Marvel Preview Review for October Part 2 of 2

As Promised Part 2

X-BABIES #1 (of 4)
Written by GREGG SCHIGIEL Penciled by JACOB CHABOT Cover by SKOTTIE YOUNG
Little X-Men! Big Adventure! Stars Reborn! Things have changed in Mojoworld as Mojo's been ousted by Mr. Veech, who's replaced the The X-Babies - the number one, top-rated stars - with something newer, safer, friendlier, and...more adorable! The X-Babies we know and love aren't going to sit by and let that happen. And how are the characters from Marvel's mid-'80s, kid-centric Star Comics line involved? The sleeper hit of the fall starts here!32 PGS./ $3.99
Lee: When I read superheroes every week, I hated this idea. BUT, now that I read capes infrequently, this appeals to me. A light hearted romp through X-men lore? What’s not to love? Actually, I’m completely sold on Skottie Youngs cover.
Jim: What's not to love, how about taking an insipid idea and making it into a four issue mini-series and charging $4 for a 32 page book. Great cover.

STARR THE SLAYER #2 (of 5)
Written by DANIEL WAY Pencils & Cover by RICHARD CORBEN
Starr the Slayer wasn't the only fictional character that writer Len Carson created back in the day -- he also created Starr's opposite number, the deceptive and demonic sorcerer Trull. Using his black magic, Trull has summoned Carson to the Realm of Zardath and bound him to a human host, making him his slave. His task? Destroy Starr the Slayer! But even with Starr's creator in his back pocket, Trull has his work cut out for him as Starr grows stronger by the day, hardening both his body and his mind in the fierce and bloody Zardathian gladiatorial arena!32 PGS./ $3.99
Lee: This is another book that wasn’t on the radar last month. Daniel Way, outside of capes, is a solid writer so that’s a plus. Corben is Corben so the art will be good. For only 5 issues, it’s worth looking into.
Jim: Again this is a no for me. I'm taking a hard line against books that are $4 and only have 22 pages of story and art. I won't skip every single one, but I will skip most of them.

MARVEL MASTERWORKS: DOCTOR STRANGE VOL. 4 HC Written by ROY THOMAS, GARDNER FOX, STAN LEE, BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH & ARCHIE GOODWIN Penciled by GENE COLAN, BARRY WINDSOR-SMITH, FRANK BRUNNER, P. CRAIG RUSSELL, JIM STARLIN,SAM KWESKIN, MARIE SEVERIN, HERB TRIMPE & DON HECK
The Master of the Mystic Arts, Dr. Stephen Strange once again descends into to the eldritch depths of adventure in this amazing collection of Marvel Masterworks! Kicked off by Roy Thomas and the incomparable art team of Gene Colan and Tom Palmer, the good doctor battles his greatest adversary, the towering cosmic presence of Eternity. Although his solo series ends, Dr. Strange's saga against the Undying Ones continues as he teams-up with Sub-Mariner and the Incredible Hulk in a storyline that lays the seeds for the dynamic Defenders! Then, Stan "The Man" Lee and Barry Windsor-Smith raise the Sorcerer Supreme to new heights of otherworldly glory in the all-time classic Marvel Premiere series. Guided by Golden Age great Gardner Fox and a host of up-and-coming art talents from Frank Brunner to P. Craig Russell, Dr. Strange runs a gauntlet of Lovecraftian horrors from the depths of the ocean to the monoliths of Stonehenge in pursuit of Shuma-Gorath. After four volumes of Marvel-ous Masterworks, Doc Strange is just getting started! Collecting DOCTOR STRANGE #180-183, SUB-MARINER #22, INCREDIBLE HULK #126, MARVEL FEATURE #1 & MARVEL PREMIERE #3-8280 PGS./All Ages ...$54.99
Lee: Marvel is starting to reprint more and more Bronze age material. I know Jim will bash this and rightly so. Marvel bronze age writing isn’t the best. But, this collection really starts to showcase Marvel young, at the time, core of artists. There is early Windsor-Smith, Russell, and Starlin art. It’s a must for any art lover. It’s a nice to have for everyone else.
Jim: This is a mixed bag. You have some really weak material and some pretty cool material, but you need to print this to get to the Englehart/Brunner era which had some awesome stuff. I'm getting this book.

MARVEL MASTERWORKS: ATLAS ERA JUNGLE ADVENTURE VOL. 1 HC
Written by DON RICO & VARIOUSPenciled by WERNER ROTH with JIM MOONEY, JOHN BUSCEMA,GEORGE TUSKA, SYD SHORES & JIMMY INFANTINO
Cover by CARL BURGOS
LEOPARD-PRINT NEVER LOOKED SO GOOD! Beginning the complete collection of Atlas' action-packed 1950s jungle adventure comics, the Marvel Masterworks venture into the oh, so attractive heart of darkness to meet Lorna, the Jungle Queen! Her jungle-faring father mauled by a lion, the seventeen-year-old Lorna embraces her unexpected new home - becoming a fierce and stunning girl of the wild and the last word in jungle justice! Trained in the ways of the African wilderness by her mentor, M'Tuba, Lorna is joined by her ever-helpful monkey companion, Mikki, and the bold, two-fisted hunter, Greg Knight. From the murky Black Swamp to the Dead Lake, the pre-Code adventures of Lorna and her cast of characters find them pitted against vicious headhunters, voodoo priestesses, killer cavemen from the Lost City, and Agu the Giant--a gorilla that could give King Kong a run for his money! You'll also enjoy the tale of two Lornas and stalk creatures both strange and fierce as Lorna uncovers all the mysteries of the jungle. With lush artwork by Werner Roth at his career best, forget it, this is a jungle adventure from which there's no coming back. Get ready to go wild with ATLAS ERA JUNGLE ADVENTURES MASTERWORKS! Collecting LORNA, THE JUNGLE QUEEN #1-5 & LORNA, THE JUNGLE GIRL #6-9 248 PGS./ $59.99
Lee: I just love the Atlas era stuff. I’m getting this because I get all Masterworks but I’m excited because the material will be all new to me.
Jim: I have been skipping Golden Age and Atlas stuff, but one book of Timely Jungle Girl is worth a look.

X-MEN: ASGARDIAN WARS HC
Written by Chris Claremont Penciled by PAUL SMITH & ARTHUR ADAMS
Otherworldly wonder at the top of one world and the heart of another! In the Arctic Circle, the X-Men and Alpha Flight find a power that could save the world at the cost of destroying...what? But cost is no object when the power is revealed as a gift from Loki, who doesn't like it when his gifts are returned! When the God of Lies loses his own prize, he decides one bad turn deserves another and sets his magic against the X-Men, only for the New Mutants to take the fall...and rise to Asgard! The X-Men ride to the rescue, but can even the mightiest mutants survive the multiple magics of myth? Collecting X-MEN AND ALPHA FLIGHT #1-2, NEW MUTANTS SPECIAL EDITION and X-MEN ANNUAL #9. 232 PGS./ 34.99 Trim size: oversized
Lee: This is another one of those, do I or don’t I books. I remember reading and loving this back in the day. But that’s a long time ago and I’m not nearly as enamored with Claremont’s writing as I once was. But, the art is stellar! But, I’m sure Claremont’s writing stinks!! But, the art’s AWESOME!!! But the writing stinks!!!! AAUUUGGGGHHHH.
Jim: Pass, you are better off buying an art book or using the money to buy an original piece of Paul Smith art then reading what is total trash.

ULTIMATE WOLVERINE VS. HULK PREMIERE HC
Written by DAMON LINDELOF Cover & Penciled by LEINIL FRANCIS YU
Damon Lindelof, co-creator of the hit TV series Lost teams with superstar artist Leinil Francis Yu to bring their storytelling magic to a tale that will rock the Ultimate Universe! Dr. Bruce Banner has been presumed dead since his execution, following his murderous rampage through Manhattan as the Hulk. But when reports start cropping up of an unidentified creature appearing around the globe, Nick Fury begins to get worried. Not because Banner can turn from man to unstoppable monster in seconds...but because Banner's existence is the one secret that can bring down Fury. Fury turns to the only man he can trust: Wolverine. And he's only too glad to take care of Banner--by any means necessary. Collecting ULTIMATE WOLVERINE VS. HULK #1-6.144 PGS./ $24.99
Lee: Ok, here’s the question, do I buy this? On the plus side, it seems those that read it enjoyed it. On the minus side, it took over 3 years to publish the whole story and had some very odd moments (such as ripping Wolverine in half and throwing his legs over a mountain). Any opinions from the crowd?
Jim: No, no, no. These hard covers I will get on occassion, but the six issue ones are the low quality books and they are still charging like this is a high end reprint.

THING: PROJECT PEGASUS PREMIERE HC
Written by RALPH MACCHIO, JOHN BYRNE & MARK GRUENWALD Penciled by SAL BUSCEMA, JOHN BYRNE & GEORGE PEREZ
Project: PEGASUS hires the Ever-Lovin' Blue-Eyed One as a security chief, but what's the point if the place is already filled with super-villains in the first place? Featuring Hercules and Thundra, Deathlok and Dr. Strange, Captains America and Marvel, Man-Thing and...Classic Thing? Plus: action in Olympus and the Nexus, Hollywood and Yancy Street! New identities for THREE super heroes! All this AND Super Hero Poker Night! What a deal!
Collecting MARVEL TWO-IN-ONE #42-43 & 53-58.160 PGS./ $24.99
Lee: In terms of classic bronze age material, it doesn’t get any better than this! While issues 42-43 are complete fluff, 53-58 is one of the best Thing plus hero of the month runs every. It’s got amazing art from Perez and Byrne when they were at the top of their game. It’s got fantastic inks from the sadly forgotten Gene Day. It’s fantastic and highly recommended.
Jim: It is all Lee says it is. Loved this stuff when it came out, but I'm still passing on it, while it was fun and all of that I have enough of this type of stuff in my collection.

Lee: Except for a couple of clunkers, it’s looks to be a good month from Marvel. Maybe it’s because I skipped the all the DKR books, and X- books, and Spidey books. BUT, I won’t let that get me down. It’s a good month for Marvel.
Jim: Dude, even with what you picked this does not look that strong to me. Of course there are always a Masterwork or two to look forward to.