Take a photo of a barcode or cover
geekyjack's Reviews (283)
Thor: God of Thunder Volume 1 by Jason Aaron is a fantastic read. While the characters that are contained within are clearly Marvel characters (with a brief appearance from Iron Man and mentions of the Avengers), this book reads more like something written for Image Comics.
It's a dark and gritty murder mystery, set in three time periods following a young pre-Mjolnir wielding Thor raiding and pillaging with the Vikings, the current day Avenger Thor we all know and love and an Old Man Thor who is King of Asgard and the last God. Each of these time periods unravel the true horror of the mysterious God Butcher and his treacherous acts. Featuring brutal fight scenes, torture and vicious murders in every issue, this is one of the most gritty Marvel comics I have read outside of Alias and Punisher Max and is quite simply brilliant!
It's a dark and gritty murder mystery, set in three time periods following a young pre-Mjolnir wielding Thor raiding and pillaging with the Vikings, the current day Avenger Thor we all know and love and an Old Man Thor who is King of Asgard and the last God. Each of these time periods unravel the true horror of the mysterious God Butcher and his treacherous acts. Featuring brutal fight scenes, torture and vicious murders in every issue, this is one of the most gritty Marvel comics I have read outside of Alias and Punisher Max and is quite simply brilliant!
Thor: God of Thunder Volume 2 by Jason Aaron continues with the pace and brilliant story from Volume 1.
We discover the reason for The God Butcher's hatred of the Gods as he continues his murder spree across space and time and his plans to kill all Gods is unravelled. Three (yes, three) Thor's do battle with the Butcher in an epic showdown of biblical proportions that prove (in my mind at least) that The Mighty Thor is quite simply the God of all Gods.
Plus, if a Mjolnir wielding Thor is brilliant enough in its own rite, picture Thor with TWO Mjolnir's! Overall, this is a great conclusion to the God Butcher story arc
We discover the reason for The God Butcher's hatred of the Gods as he continues his murder spree across space and time and his plans to kill all Gods is unravelled. Three (yes, three) Thor's do battle with the Butcher in an epic showdown of biblical proportions that prove (in my mind at least) that The Mighty Thor is quite simply the God of all Gods.
Plus, if a Mjolnir wielding Thor is brilliant enough in its own rite, picture Thor with TWO Mjolnir's! Overall, this is a great conclusion to the God Butcher story arc
The main story line running through Thor: God of Thunder Volume 3 by Jason Aaron follows the return of the villainous Malekith the Accursed, a psychotic, power crazy Dark Elf from the realm of Svartalfheim.
Thor is joined by others from the Nine Realms to fight Malekith. This team is made up of a Dwarf obsessed with dynamite, a Light Elf that resembles a gun-totting Cowboy, a Dark Elf that wants revenge against Malekith, a stinking Troll, a silent Giant and the God of Thunder himself. The story itself is not bad, but when it follows the epic God Butcher and Godbomb story in the first two volumes, this just seems to fall flat. The action isn't quite as big, the story isn't quite as grand and the villain isn't quite as villainous (he struck me as a low rent version of The Joker).
All in all, it is a good book, just disappointing following the epic start of this series. If I could, I'd give it 3.5 stars.
Thor is joined by others from the Nine Realms to fight Malekith. This team is made up of a Dwarf obsessed with dynamite, a Light Elf that resembles a gun-totting Cowboy, a Dark Elf that wants revenge against Malekith, a stinking Troll, a silent Giant and the God of Thunder himself. The story itself is not bad, but when it follows the epic God Butcher and Godbomb story in the first two volumes, this just seems to fall flat. The action isn't quite as big, the story isn't quite as grand and the villain isn't quite as villainous (he struck me as a low rent version of The Joker).
All in all, it is a good book, just disappointing following the epic start of this series. If I could, I'd give it 3.5 stars.
Jason Aaron's run of Thor: God of Thunder comes to a close with Volume 4 of the title... and what an adventure it has been.
In this Volume, the Mighty Thor has realised the destruction being caused to Midgard by global warming, large corporations and the laws of men. But how does the hammer swinging God of Thunder fix issues such as these? Who is it he fights to save the world from something that can't be seen or felt? And in the far, far future, old King Thor of Asgard makes a return and is struggling to come to terms with the now long dead Midgard. But he still insists on saving the corpse of the Earth from the Devourer of Worlds, Galactus!
It's an interesting concept and touches brilliantly on real world issues and how to solve them. I also love the different storylines running across multiple time-zones that have occurred throughout the series. While this storyline still doesn't quite match up to the epic start of the series, it's a valiant effort. Well done Jason Aaron... you truly have made Thor the God of all Gods!
In this Volume, the Mighty Thor has realised the destruction being caused to Midgard by global warming, large corporations and the laws of men. But how does the hammer swinging God of Thunder fix issues such as these? Who is it he fights to save the world from something that can't be seen or felt? And in the far, far future, old King Thor of Asgard makes a return and is struggling to come to terms with the now long dead Midgard. But he still insists on saving the corpse of the Earth from the Devourer of Worlds, Galactus!
It's an interesting concept and touches brilliantly on real world issues and how to solve them. I also love the different storylines running across multiple time-zones that have occurred throughout the series. While this storyline still doesn't quite match up to the epic start of the series, it's a valiant effort. Well done Jason Aaron... you truly have made Thor the God of all Gods!
Pyramids is the seventh Discworld novel, and also the seventh one I have read (I've decided to read them all in the order they were released). It's also my least favourite Discworld book to date... that's not to say it's not a good book, but it didn't quite live up to my now high expectations when it comes to Pratchett's crazy imagination.
I loved the start of the story which follows our protagonist, Teppic, through the Assassins Guild of Ankh-Morpork. It was fascinating to see the inner workings of one of the many Guilds we have heard so much mention of through the other books. Unfortunately, it doesn't stay on this storyline for long (probably less than a quarter of the story?) as events unfold that force Teppic to return home to the Old Kingdom of Djelibeybi. This is where the book starts to lose it for me... It slows down and not a lot happens for about 100 pages, and dare I say it, I started to get bored (for the first time ever while reading a Discworld novel).
Thankfully, the usual hilarity and Pratchett-isms start again after this point to build towards the usual bonkers conclusion involving a Genius Mathematician Camel called You Bastard, lots of Trojan Horses, the dead rising, the Gods descending and many crazy Pyramid problems (who knew they were Quantum? Well, probably anyway) If I could give this 3.5 stars I would, but the middle section of this book was just a bit too slow for me and it doesn't quite deserve 4.
I loved the start of the story which follows our protagonist, Teppic, through the Assassins Guild of Ankh-Morpork. It was fascinating to see the inner workings of one of the many Guilds we have heard so much mention of through the other books. Unfortunately, it doesn't stay on this storyline for long (probably less than a quarter of the story?) as events unfold that force Teppic to return home to the Old Kingdom of Djelibeybi. This is where the book starts to lose it for me... It slows down and not a lot happens for about 100 pages, and dare I say it, I started to get bored (for the first time ever while reading a Discworld novel).
Thankfully, the usual hilarity and Pratchett-isms start again after this point to build towards the usual bonkers conclusion involving a Genius Mathematician Camel called You Bastard, lots of Trojan Horses, the dead rising, the Gods descending and many crazy Pyramid problems (who knew they were Quantum? Well, probably anyway) If I could give this 3.5 stars I would, but the middle section of this book was just a bit too slow for me and it doesn't quite deserve 4.
Hawkeye by Matt Fraction & David Aja Omnibus
Jesse Hamm, Steve Lieber, Annie Wu, David Aja, Javier Pulido, Alan Davis, Francesco Francavilla, Matt Fraction
"Okay... This looks bad. Really, really bad. But believe it or not, it's only the third most-terrible idea I've had today and today I've had exactly nine terrible ideas."
The 'Hawkeye' omnibus by Matt Fraction and David Aja is quite simply brilliant. Funny. Lighthearted. Entertaining. Original. And bro, did I mention that it's really funny, bro?
Have you ever wondered what an Avenger gets up to on his days off? Well, you're in luck! Follow the life of the most underrated Avenger, the non-super-powered superhero. His life is a mess. But he's trying to sort it out with the help of his friends and by keeping himself busy beating up the (probably Russian?) bad guys.
The artwork is simplistic but brilliant. Pizza Dog is fantastic. The complicated relationship between Clint Barton, his work wife, ex-wife, friend girl and apprentice is complicated but brilliant.
There are actually two different story lines that seem to run simultaneously throughout this book, one that follows Clint Barton (aka Hawkeye of the Avengers) and one that follows Katie Bishop (aka Hawkeye of the Young Avengers). The storylines are fairly separate, but occasionally merge together. While Katie Bishops story is great in places, it doesn't quite meet the standard of Clint's (I kind of wish there had been more Clint and less Katie!)
Overall, if I could give half stars, this would be a 4.5
The 'Hawkeye' omnibus by Matt Fraction and David Aja is quite simply brilliant. Funny. Lighthearted. Entertaining. Original. And bro, did I mention that it's really funny, bro?
Have you ever wondered what an Avenger gets up to on his days off? Well, you're in luck! Follow the life of the most underrated Avenger, the non-super-powered superhero. His life is a mess. But he's trying to sort it out with the help of his friends and by keeping himself busy beating up the (probably Russian?) bad guys.
The artwork is simplistic but brilliant. Pizza Dog is fantastic. The complicated relationship between Clint Barton, his work wife, ex-wife, friend girl and apprentice is complicated but brilliant.
There are actually two different story lines that seem to run simultaneously throughout this book, one that follows Clint Barton (aka Hawkeye of the Avengers) and one that follows Katie Bishop (aka Hawkeye of the Young Avengers). The storylines are fairly separate, but occasionally merge together. While Katie Bishops story is great in places, it doesn't quite meet the standard of Clint's (I kind of wish there had been more Clint and less Katie!)
Overall, if I could give half stars, this would be a 4.5
'Guards! Guards!' by Terry Pratchett is the eighth book in the Discworld series, the first in the City Watch collection and also the eighth I have read. It is also now my favourite of them all so far (that crown previously belonged to 'Wyrd Sisters'). I have laughed at different points throughout all the Discworld books so far, but none have made me laugh as often or as hard as this entry to the series.
Pratchett has, as usual, created truly unique and memorable characters, each with their own distinct personalities that develop throughout this fun and imaginative story. Captain Vimes, Sergeant Colon, Corporal Nobby and Lance-Constable Carrot are all genuinely brilliant characters, but I had a special love for Carrot who's innocence and background were the cause of most of my laughter.
A secret cult. A gigantic dragon. A ragtag group of unlikely heroes. What isn't there to love about this book?
Pratchett has, as usual, created truly unique and memorable characters, each with their own distinct personalities that develop throughout this fun and imaginative story. Captain Vimes, Sergeant Colon, Corporal Nobby and Lance-Constable Carrot are all genuinely brilliant characters, but I had a special love for Carrot who's innocence and background were the cause of most of my laughter.
A secret cult. A gigantic dragon. A ragtag group of unlikely heroes. What isn't there to love about this book?
The Immortal Iron Fist: The Complete Collection, Vol. 1
Khari Evans, Matt Hollingsworth, Howard Chaykin, Francisco Paronzini, Lewis LaRosa, Mike Allred, Derek Freidolfs, Jelena Kevic-Djurdjevic, Dean White, Ed Brubaker, Edgar Delgado, Nick Dragotta, Stefano Gaudiano, David Aja, Clay Mann, Scott Koblish, Javier Pulido, Paul Mounts, Dave Lanphear, Leandro Fernández, Laura Martin, Travel Foreman, Laura Allred, Mitch Breitweiser, Russ Heath, Kano, Tonci Zonjic, Roy Allan Martinez, June Chung, Javier Rodriguez, Matt Fraction, Tom Palmer, Dan Brereton, Sal Buscema, Victor Olazaba, John Severin, Dan Brown
The Immortal Iron Fist by Brubaker, Fraction and Aja is pretty bloody good. The story line is fantastic with a mix of mystery and mysticism added into every issue. As usual Brubaker and Fraction's writing is brilliant, really developing the characters and creating an enthralling story throughout.
Danny Rand, The Immortal Iron Fist, is a character that I barely knew before reading this, only having seen him appear briefly in the run of Daredevil by Bendis (my favourite ever comic series), and the Brubaker run that followed. But this Volume really gave me a love for Danny (especially the last issue in this Volume, where we see Danny as a truly thoughtful, friendly billionaire).
While all of these factors add up to make a great story, it's really Aja's artwork that completes it. It's incredible as usual, I think it's safe to say he is becoming my favourite comic book artist. There are some issue where the art isn't Aja's, and it just kills the story slightly. And the artwork in the Annual genuinely made me laugh at how bad it was, making Danny Rand's face look deformed (thankfully that artist didn't make another appearance).
Overall, well worth a read if you enjoy the slightly darker, street level Marvel heroes like Daredevil. While there is a grander feel than many of the other street heroes from Marvel, at its heart, this story is no different to those... a superhero who's main concern is helping his hometown from a maniac trying to destroy it.
Danny Rand, The Immortal Iron Fist, is a character that I barely knew before reading this, only having seen him appear briefly in the run of Daredevil by Bendis (my favourite ever comic series), and the Brubaker run that followed. But this Volume really gave me a love for Danny (especially the last issue in this Volume, where we see Danny as a truly thoughtful, friendly billionaire).
While all of these factors add up to make a great story, it's really Aja's artwork that completes it. It's incredible as usual, I think it's safe to say he is becoming my favourite comic book artist. There are some issue where the art isn't Aja's, and it just kills the story slightly. And the artwork in the Annual genuinely made me laugh at how bad it was, making Danny Rand's face look deformed (thankfully that artist didn't make another appearance).
Overall, well worth a read if you enjoy the slightly darker, street level Marvel heroes like Daredevil. While there is a grander feel than many of the other street heroes from Marvel, at its heart, this story is no different to those... a superhero who's main concern is helping his hometown from a maniac trying to destroy it.