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maxwell-grant · 3 years

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Captain Fray: The Trash Superman

Look up in the sky! Is it a bird? A plane? No, it’s... an ugly, homeless bald man cackling evily while raining trash on the city with an army of sludge monsters, shortly before getting beaten up by a group of meddling kids. It’s just dumb old Captain Fray again getting foiled by Monica’s Gang, nevermind him. He does that every Tuesday.

Monica’s Gang are arguably the most iconic of all Brazilian comic book characters, having maintained popularity for 60 years and with unmatched worldwide recognition. They’ve had cartoons, a cinematic universe of films both cartoon and live-action, plays, a long-running manga spin-off that turned them into teenagers, crossovers everywhere ranging from The Big Two’s superheroes to Osamu Tezuka’s properties (as Monica’s creator Mauricio and Tezuka were acquaintances), at least one theme park, and much, much more. Even past Brazil’s borders, where they are a cultural institution on a scale matched only by Disney, these are some of the world’s most popular characters, starring in just about any kind of adventure imaginable and then some.

However, if you go into the world of Monica’s Gang, and look for a flying man with a chest logo, a cape and impossible superpowers, you’ll instead find their greatest arch-enemy: Captain Fray (actual name Capitão Feio, which translates to Captain Ugly), real name Feioso Araújo. Who will be happy to remind you time and time again of what a rotten, no-good scoundrel he is, even if he has to pick a fight with the Big Blue himself to prove it.

So let’s talk about perhaps the most iconic “caped superhero” of Brazilian comic books, even if he’s ultimately a long, long shot from being one.

Despite the long, worldwide spanning history of the superhero, the idea of the superhero as a cape-wearing uniformed superpowered do-gooder has remained a largely American concept, as different regions have their own unique icons. The titular 4 members of Monica’s Gang have on many occasions taken the role of superheroes, and they’ve built up a massive Rogues Gallery over decades, despite not looking like the usual idea of a superhero. Monica, Jimmy Five, Smudge and Maggy, for the most part, look and act like kids, with odd quirks.

To briefly describe the 4: Monica is the pudgy, bucktoothed ruler of the group as well as the neighborhood, being super strong and more than willing to hit people who mock her with her stuffed rabbit “Samson”. Jimmy Five has a speech impediment, and he constantly schemes to take Monica’s role as leader, best described at times as a junior Lex Luthor to Monica’s Superman. Maggy is Monica’s friend with an uncontrollable appetite, and the witty and perpetually dirty Smudge is Jimmy Five’s friend and accomplice in schemes. Smudge is defined by his complete and total refusal to take a bath or even come into contact with water under any circumstances, and some stories play up Smudge’s dirtyness to the point of superpower.

It’s Smudge in particular who’s gonna be relevant to this post, because the first time Captain Fray was introduced, he was introduced as Smudge’s good-natured and humorous uncle, a comic book addict surrounded by piles of dusty comics, particularly those of Smudge’s favorite superhero, Captain Pitoco, a sort of Superman/Buzz Lightyear analogue. Eventually, Smudge’s uncle is surrounded by dust, and out of it, he transforms “back” into a former alter-ego, Captain Fray, a megalomaniac supervillain horrified at just how clean the world is, and who decides to sully it as much as possible, flying around the city spreading dirt rays and even transforming the population into pollution-fanatics. Eventually he’s defeated and transformed back into normal, only thinking he had a weird dream.

Upon subsequent appearences, Fray would acquire things like sludge minions, underground lairs and ever increasing powers (like in the above sequence where he somehow destroys a rainbow and darkens the sky with a single gesture), although he would eventually gain a Kryptonite-esque weakness to water. Captain Fray would go on to become the most reocurring villain of Monica’s Gang for the next 40 years, as the former concept of him being Smudge’s uncle was dropped and he became instead the ruler of an underground race of sludge monsters created by him, who’d occasionally come on to the surface in order to engage in supervillain plots to take over the world and spread dirt and pollution everywhere, sometimes in stories with an environmental angle, and often when the story calls for superhero antics.

Fray’s got a very standard Grinch/Captain Hook cartoon villain personality, all cackles and snarls and shaking fists at the meddling kids who ruin his plans everytime, proud of being evil and rotten, but never too rotten to the point he betrays the kid-friendly nature of the stories he’s in, nor too rotten that he can’t do something nice for a change like allow his monsters to celebrate Christmas even if it ruins his bad guy image, or begrudingly do a nice thing for Smudge.

Although for the most part, the “mainline” comics have dropped the angle of Fray being Smudge’s uncle, the two having a particular dynamic has stayed consistent still. Sometimes, Smudge is portrayed as the only member of the Gang who’s got little to no problem with Fray, even welcoming the change of scenery he brings, although he will stick with his friends, as often he’s the only one who’s got no problem being hit by Fray’s dirt rays. While sometimes Fray singles out destroying Smudge so his claim as the dirtiest being in the universe can never be challenged, he is more often depicted as having a soft spot for Smudge, sometimes considering him a pupil or potential successor to inherit his powers, and plenty of times, Smudge has done just that, although inevitably it never sticks, partially because Fray gets jealous or misses his former life, and partially because Smudge gets bored of supervillainy and just wants to go play with his friends again.

The dynamic between Smudge and Fray has led to a lot of adventures between the two, and it’s something that’s been played up in the aforementioned manga spin-off, Monica Adventures. In it, the cast’s all been aged up to teenagers, and the adventures they get into respectively have taken much more of a shonen manga edge, much darker and weirder than anything the original kid comics could get away with, although not necessarily to it’s benefit, because I could not begin to describe just how much grimdark nonsense is in those, let’s just call it the Monica’s Gang equivalent of Jorge Joestar in terms of lunacy and leave it at that (although, to be clear, even the original “mainline” comics could get very, very weird themselves). Captain Fray has been a mainstay of said manga from the start, going through a series of redesigns, including one where he turns into a bootleg Sephiroth, and one where he tries rebranding himself into a suit-wearing gangster named “Black Dust”, which nobody really takes seriously.

It’s also granted Fray a backstory: As a kid, when he’d gone to the basement to read comics, his house was buried in a landslide. Afraid of death, he was met with a milipede claiming to serve “The Serpent” (the in-universe stand in for the devil, maybe, just bear with me here), claiming it would protec him so long as it returned the favor someday. He was afterwards transferred to an orphanage, teased by kids over his lack of hygiene and liking for superheroes and nicknamed “Captain Ugly” (again, his name, Fray is just the English translation), with rumors that his touch granted disease. After the orphanage closes, he’s adopted by a nurse and gains a step-brother in Smudge’s dad.

Years down the line, and Feioso’s managed to acquire a house and make a decent living. He spends a lot of time with his nephew Smudge, teaching him how to build toys out of garbage (a habit of Smudge in the strips) and fly kites and so on. Until one day, in an update of his original story, he’s cleaning his house packed with dusty comics, and a shelf falls atop of him. The millipede from his childhood appears to recollect the debt:

"Your mission is to pollude the Earth...rot it's soil...change it's atmosphere...darken the skies with smoke...so that the sun's rays may never again hit the surface of this planet!

"No! No, please! I-I don't want to hurt anyone!"

"You think you can refuse? You think you have a choice? Do you think you can escape your destiny? Evil does not tolerate weak servants. If you don't fill your end of the bargain, if you don't pay your debt...it will be transferred to the person you love most."

"Smudge? NO!! H-How do you know about my nephew?"

"We know of all that happens. Our eyes...are everywhere."

"Smudge has nothing to do with this. Leave him alone, please...I-I'll do anything you guys want!"

"So be it...Filthy powers will corrode your soul...This is the day of your rebirth! How would you like to be rebaptized?

"The nickname I was given at the orphanage...it's perfect! Captain Ugly strikes again!"

How “canon” the events of Monica Adventures are is a question best left unspoken, since it ultimately doesn’t change anything about the original strips. But regardless of what made Fray who he is, he would spend the following decades in many, many attempts to complete his mission and defeat Monica’s Gang, to be foiled and stopped time and time again by his nephew and his friends, little more than a dumb, cartoon villain there to be smacked again and again, too dumb to quit and too mean to stop. So he was, and so he will always be.

But something interesting’s happened recently with him. As part of the Graphic MSP initiative that’s allowed creators to reinvent the many, many characters of Monica’s Gang for stand-alone graphic novels, Captain Fray’s received one in the form of Capitão Feio: Identidade, which isn’t so much an origin story as it tells the story of a homeless man with no knowledge of his past or where he acquired the superpowers that force him to be on the constant run from society, and it tells the story of how said man eventually became the infamous supervillain, despite his many attempts to be a superhero.

The comic and it’s sequel, Tormenta, acted more of a proof of concept to test whether or not a serious reimagining of Captain Fray can work, and considering their reception and the newfound love that the Captain seems to have attained in recent years, I’d say they succedeed pretty damn well. He’s ostracized for his appearence, poverty, smell and bad manners, and there’s hardly anything he can do about it because his powers make him a toxic abomination by default. He spends portions of the book trying to create living beings with his powers, and once he succeeds in creating a Godzilla-esque monster to protect him from the authorities, he ends up having to put the monster down, before getting fed up with constant rejection and promptly announcing that, if he’s just gonna be known as an ugly monster by the people, even after he saves them, he’s gonna make it a point to be Captain Ugly Monster, the most rotten supervillain they’ve ever seen.

The comic constantly grants upon Frey iconography of several of the biggest icons of comic books, from Batman and Superman to AKIRA, playing up not just Frey’s association with comic books but also the fact that he's been mired in that aesthetic from day one. He wanted to be a hero, he wanted to be like Captain Pitoco, and regardless of continuity, all that he ends up as is becoming a gross caricature of a superhero. And still, Frey owns it. He owns his grossness, his rage, his bitterness at everything that he understands to be the opposite of himself, everything clean and good and decent, and he tries time and time again to tear it down, even if he ultimately can never get far enough to accomplish his goals, or lose all of his humanity in the process.

I’ve remarked once that, to many in some regions of South America, the “traditional” superhero does not hold much appeal, and most of the more popular protagonists and icons tend to be outlaws far away from caped antics. Which is why it’s particularly interesting that, not only is the most famous caped superman of Brazilian comic books a villain, but also that, perhaps unintentionally, Fray has undergone the kind of development that most reocurring cartoon villains never get, and one that seems almost poised to last. In a current zeitgest of villain protagonists, it’s successes and failures, I could very easily see Captain Fray becoming the star of a popular film or series, one that takes a look not just at his personality and role, but also at Brazilian culture’s relationship with superheroes and supervillains. Maybe Fray as an anti-hero, trying to make the best of the horrendous powers he’s burdened with, could work.

So long as it’s not revealed that he likes dirt because his mom got pushed off a cliff by cleaning products, I could see it working very well.

#character profiles #comic books #captain fray #capitão feio #turma da monica #mauricio de souza #brazilian superheroes #brazilian supervillains #superman #monica's gang

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ecfandom · 7 years

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Hey this is a bit different from your usual stuff but I was wondering if you could write a little headcanon set in canon. Clarke and Lexa are both injured because they both fought in a conflict with some other clan. So they're at like maybe a camp hospital or something, and Lexa is temporary blind while Clarke is temporary crippled. So Lexa carries Clarke around and gives her piggyback rides while Clarke tells her where to go. I'd love if you could write a little something about this.

“Clarke.” Lexa’s voice is calm and measured as if this is not the first time she has issued the soft scolding. “Stop fidgeting.”

“You can’t even–”

Even with the gauze wrapped around Lexa’s eyes, Clarke can see the challenging arch of her brow. Clarke lays back with an exasperated groan, fists massaging into her injured thighs.

“Clarke.”

“I’m not–”

“Let them be.”

“You can’t even see–”

“Eyes are not one’s only access to the world around them, Clarke. The sooner you learn that the sooner the restlessness will leave.”

Clare glares at her. “I have eyes, Lexa. I don’t have legs. You may be blind but at least you can walk.”

“Perhaps you should speak with Raven.”

“She can walk too!” Clarke’s hand comes up to her face, cutting off the tears that want to come before they can.

Softening at the distress, Lexa reaches her hand out and feels for the bed, guiding her chair closer when she finds it. She runs her hand over Clarke’s hair, her voice going impossibly gentle for such a warrior. “All will be okay, hodnes. You’ll heal and will walk again soon.”

“And if I don’t?”

“You will.”

“You can’t know that.”

Lexa feels down Clarke’s face and runs her thumb across her cheek, catching the bandit tear Clarke had tried to ignore. In one swift decision she stands and turns her back to Clarke. “Come on.”

Clarke scans the back, still not quite used to seeing it so unarmored and vulnerable in any place other than their bedroom in Polis. Because she can’t help herself, she reaches out and flattens her palm against it, running it up to her shoulder and resting it at the nape of her neck where her thumb mindlessly explores the scar and tattoo there.

“Come, Clarke. Let’s go for a walk.”

“But I can’t walk. And you can’t see.”

“Which is why I will carry you. Let’s go before your mother sees me out of bed.”

“There’s a reason she wants you in it, Lexa. You didn’t just hurt your eyes, you took a nasty blow to the head.”

“And yet, here I stand.”

Clarke chuckles and shakes her head, but she’s already sliding forward to wrap her injured legs around Lexa’s hips. “You know you don’t have to rub it in,” she says as Lexa bends, slides her hand under Clarke’s thighs, and lifts her onto her back.

Instinctively, Clarke wraps her arms around Lexa’s chest and slides her head in next to Lexa’s.

“You’ll have to guide me,” Lexa says, a bit of a smile playing at the corner of her lips. At the sight, Clarke suddenly realizes what a miracle it is that it’s her legs and not her eyes that are hurt. She’d gladly take even permanent paralysis over the inability to see that smile. She stares at it a little longer until it grows and Lexa taps her knee with her thumb. “Forward?”

Clarke nods, then remembers to be verbal. “Yes. A few paces. The to the right for the–”

“Door. Yes, I remember.”

Clarke grins at Lexa’s ever-present pride, even in blindness. “You told met to guide you. So let me.”

“Yes, you’re right. Go ahead.”

Clarke takes the concession with a smile and a kiss to Lexa’s cheek before directing them out of the medical bay and into the yard. They both sigh as the sun hits their faces and the sounds of nature fill their ears.

“It’s nice out,” Clarke explains. “The sun is high and there are no clouds.”

Lexa hums. “It rained,” she then murmurs.

Clarke looks around and notices the lingering water dripping from tin roofs and settling in puddles. “Yeah…how did you?”

“The ground.” Lexa taps it with the toe of her boot. “Good for novitiate training. It gives more after a good rain.”

Clarke lets her mind wander at the words, her imagination conjuring up images of a young Lexa, smothered in mud and rainfall, staff in hand. Determined scowl on her face. Clarke hums at the pleasant images and kisses Lexa’s cheek again. “If you walk forward a few paces and go left we can head towards the field behind engineering. Maybe make you another flower crown.”

Lexa smiles and Clarke can almost see her rolling her eyes under the gauze.

Their situation garners quite a few stares as they navigate slowly through Arcadia’s walls. To see Heda and Wanheda injured sets everyone on edge as it is. To see them like this, young and vulnerable and in love is an even stranger thing to behold. Clarke ignores the gawking, trying to stay present, wanting to thoroughly soak up this rare alone time with Lexa. She nuzzles her face closer and places another kiss to her cheek, then the curve of her jaw, eliciting another smile that makes her breathless.

They stay out together long after the high afternoon sun has begun it’s descent back to the ground. Clarke adjusts her head on Lexa’s stomach and stretches, grimacing slightly at the tug it causes on the gashes on her legs. Lexa’s fingers comb through her hair, their own attempt to placate Clarke’s pain.

“How’s your head?” Lexa’s fingers in her hair makes her think to ask. Lexa scratches again at Clarke’s scalp, urging her not to worry. But Clarke persists. “Lex?”

“Hurts a little,” she murmurs, sending Clarke into a memory of crazed radioactive gorillas, arm slings and the feeling of waking up to the sound of a crackling fire. Clarke turns and slips off of Lexa to wiggle her way up to her face. She rests her head on her hand and gazes down at her, her free hand coming up to brush hair from Lexa’s face.

“You’re my world. You know that, right?”

She gets the smallest of grins in the corner of Lexa’s mouth.

Without any warning, Clarke bends down and kisses her soundly on the lips, smiling into it when Lexa does.

“That’s…interesting,” Lexa sighs when Clarke pulls away.

“What is?”

“Not being able to see you. And kissing you. Together.”

“A bit out of your element isn’t it? You don’t like not being in control,” Clarke teases, running her hand along Lexa’s forehead, then her cheek where it rests.

Lexa goes quiet, the mood shifting ever so slightly. “I don’t like not being able to protect you,” she confesses softly. Lexa’s face remains placid, the most expressive part of her hidden from view, but Clarke can see that it truly scares her. She kiss here again until she feels the Commander relax.

“Good thing we’re safe here then,” she promises, adjusting Lexa’s flower crown. “Except for the bugs,” she adds, flicking away a small fly of some kind.

“Should we go back? Your mother will have found our beds empty by now.”

“If she were concerned she would have already found us.”

Lexa grins. “True.”

“Let’s stay for a little longer. Until the sun goes down.”

“So that you can tell me about the starts?” It’s subtle, but Clarke can hear the hope in her voice. It makes her smile.

“Yes.”

“It’s been a while.”

“It has.”

“Will you tell me about living in space again?”

Clarke leans forward, kisses her chastely, because she can. “Sure.”

“And how you came to the ground.”

Clarke chuckles. “You know that part already.”

“I like to hear it.”

“You just like hearing about the big, bad Commander of the Coalition.”

Lexa tries to hide a smile.

“I know you,” Clarke teases, maneuvering back atop Lexa to snuggle down into her embrace.

Lexa runs her hand up Clarke’s back, takes in the scent of her hair and the feeling of her warm breath against her throat. “You do,” she sighs. “My falling star.”

Clarke grins. “My big bad Commander of the Coalition.”

It pulls a chuckle out of Lexa, the first of the week and Clarke revels in it. She thinks, perhaps, she could handle blindness too, as long as she had that sound.

#clexa

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gokinjeespot · 7 years

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off the rack #1189

Monday, November 20, 2017

Ottawa ComicCon put on a special edition Holiday con this past weekend so I went to check it out because it was FREE admission. Still had to pay $8 to park at the EY Centre though. The main reason I went was to pick up the book D&D&D (D)ungeons & (D)ragons & (D)oodles The Tabletop Fantasy Art of Tom Fowler since Tom was there. Much to my surprise Craig Taillefer was sitting next to him on one side and Ronn Sutton was on the other. I spent a happy half hour geeking out and swapping stories with them. After Tom signed my copy and generously drew a sketch inside I walked around the venue checking out the booths. It's been years since I've attended a con and I was impressed by some of the set-ups. Still, the comic vendors looked like the ones that sold stuff 30 years ago. Same tables of long boxes and makeshift walls for the wall books. I saw a lot of old Snail customers that I haven't seen in years. Some I recognized and some that I didn't. They all knew me though. The reaction of some folks was "what is he doing here?" looks that made me grin. I ended my sojourn hanging out with my Jee-Riz partner Chris as he helped at a friends booth. I can't say that I'll go to another con but I'm glad I went to this one.

Action Comics #991 - Dan Jurgens (writer & breakdown art) Viktor Bogdanovic (pencils) Viktor Bogdanovic, Trevor Scott & Scott Hanna (inks) Mike Spicer (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). "The Oz Effect" concludes with the question of whether Mr. Oz was Jor-El or not left unanswered. Throw in a mysterious super powerful villain and it's more than enough to keep me reading. I liked Viktor's slimmer Superman. He looks more natural than the muscle bound version that Nick Bradshaw & Brad Anderson drew for the cover.

Runaways #3 - Rainbow Rowell (writer) Kris Anka (art) Matthew Wilson (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). It's time to catch up with Karolina Dean as Gert tries to get the team back together again. Karolina used to be one hot mess but she's a lot better now thanks to therapy. I am really looking forward to next issue when the gang goes to find Molly, my favourite Runaway.

Wildstorm: Michael Cray #2 - Bryan Hill (writer) N. Steven Harris (pencils) Dexter Vines (inks) Dearbhla Kelly (colours) Simon Bowland (letters). Michael's first assignment is to kill Oliver Queen. Yep, that Oliver Queen, the Green Arrow guy. His next assignment is to target another well known name. These characters are bad guys in the Wildstorm universe and I think that's cool.

Spider-Man Deadpool #23 - Robbie Thompson (writer) Chris Bachalo (pencils) Tim Townsend, Al Vey & Richard Friend (inks) Chris Bachalo (colours) VC's Joe Sabino (letters). Spider-Man tries to arrest Deadpool and mindless mayhem ensues. So a typical issue of Spider-Man Deadpool. But wait, what's with this lovely art that looks like the old Doctor Strange comic book? Why yes, it's Chris Bachalo. I am so happy and will be ogling the rest of "Arms Race" with glee.

Star Wars #38 - Kieron Gillen (writer) Salvador Larroca (art) Guru-eFX (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). "The Ashes of Jedha" starts here. We've got Luke, Leia and Han trying to contact fighters against the Empire on the planet Jedha. That's where the Empire wants to strip mine the planet's Kyber crystals. The partisans appear to not want to play nice though. We'll see how the gang gets out of this fine mess.

Not Brand Echh #14 - It was difficult finding every issue of the 13 issue run of the original series on the spinner racks back in the late sixties but I bought and read every one that I could. This title made fun of my favourite Marvel comic books back then and this latest issue doesn't spare the House of (sometimes bad) Ideas. It got a couple of genuine chuckles out of me so that's about $2.50 Canadian per chuckle. Here are the comedy sketches and their creative teams. Secret Empire Abridged: Nick Spencer (writer) Scott Koblish (art) Nick Filardi (colours). Better Than Canon: Katie Cook (writer& art). Gwenpool Absorbs the Marvel Universe: Christopher Hastings (writer) Gurihiru (art). Marvel Behind the Scenes: Nick Kocher (writer) Brian Churilla (art) Chris O'Halloran (colours). Love Can Be Nuts: Ryan North (writer) Erica Henderson (art). The Not Next Issue Page: Chip Zdarsky (writer & art). Forbush Man Returns parts 1 to 4: Jay Fosgitt (writer & art). The whole issue was lettered by VC's Clayton Cowles (letters).

Batman #35 - Tom King (writer) Joelle Jones (art) Jordie Bellaire (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). "Rules of Engagement" concludes with a terrific sword fight between Catwoman/Selina and Talia, Batman's ex. The verbal repartee was great and just as great was the one between Damian and Dick. My question is "where the heck did Holly come from?". I hope that this family adventure theme continues because I really like having Selina, Damian, Dick and Alfred around.

Maestros #2 - Steve Skroce (writer & art) Dave Stewart (colours) Fonografiks (letters). This is a beautifully illustrated Game of Thrones and Wands with wizard warriors plotting against each other. There's a rekindled romance and a shocking twist that makes reading the next issue a must.

Champions #14 - Mark Waid (writer) Humberto Ramos (pencils) Victor Olazaba (inks) Edgar Delgado (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). Worlds Collide part 4. He's no Blue Fairy but the High Evolutionary pulls a Pinocchio on Viv Vision and all seems lost. The heroes fight through but there's still a ways to go to prevent total destruction. We'll find out what happens when Avengers #674 hits the racks on December 6.

Aquaman #30 - Dan Abnett (writer) Stjepan Sejic (art & colours) Steve Wands (letters). Atlantis Uprising. The revolution starts here. Orin joins the rebel forces and King Rath becomes more unhinged. Meanwhile, Mera is in deep water. I am enjoying this book again. You should give it a try.

Mech Cadet Yu #4 - Greg Pak (writer) Takeshi Miyazawa (art) Triona Farrell (colours) Simon Bowland (letters). It's all-out action as the four cadets and their robos fight against giant alien crabs and orders from their superiors. The General is not pleased. Let's see what happens to keep them in their mechs and not get kicked out of the program.

Deadpool vs. Old Man Logan #2 - Declan Shalvey (writer) Mike Henderson (art) Lee Loughridge (colours) VC's Joe Sabino (letters). This issue tells us why the two heroes are teaming up. Makes sense. I like these straightforward good guys versus bad guy stories with witty repartee that don't tax the brain pan too much.

Superman #35 - Patrick Gleason & Peter J. Tomasi (writers) Travis Moore, Stephen Segovia & Art Thibert (art) Danei Ribeiro (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). Hey, I thought Lex's armour was mostly green. The battle for the throne of Apokalips continues with Lois and Jon's lives still hanging in the balance. I still think that Lex will save the day in the end.

American Gods #9 - Neil Gaiman (writer) P. Craig Russell (script & layouts) Scott Hampton (art & colours) Rick Parker (letters). This is like reading the novel again but better. The art enhances the story so much.

Defenders #7 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) David Marquez (art) Justin Ponsor & Paul Mounts (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). This is the funniest comic book on the racks for the week. Yes even funnier than Not Brand Echh #14. Brian has a great sense of humour. I'm wondering now if all the great artists that he works with are also going to work for DC. That would be ideal for me because he really clicks with David Marquez and Sara Pichelli. The five page fight scene between Elektra and Iron Fist is the best I've ever seen. Just as good as watching Bruce Lee in Enter the Dragon.

Wonder Woman Conan #3 - Gail Simone (writer) Aaron Lopresti (pencils) Matt Ryan (inks) Wendy Broome (colours) Saida Temofonte (letters). Some sorcery is added to the swords this issue.

Mighty Thor #701 - Jason Aaron (writer) James Harren (art) Dave Stewart (colours) VC's Joe Sabino (letters). I must have missed Mangog's origin story back when Jack Kirby first drew him but Jason recaps it very well here. Mangog isn't the only long unseen character to pop up. The Odinson's best buddy reappears too. This issue is one awesome battle. The visuals are so striking I could feel each punch. What a great fill-in by James Harren.

Super Sons #10 - Peter J. Tomasi (writer) Jose Luis (art) Scott Hanna (inks) Hi-Fi (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). I like the contrast between Jon's youthful enthusiasm and Damian's grim cynicism. The three year age gap feels like decades but each one is subtly influencing the other. This issue sets it up so that the two lads will be spending even more time together learning how to be heroes. This is one of my favourite comic books on the racks right now.

Amazing Spider-Man #791 - Dan Slott (writer) Stuart Immonen (pencils) Wade von Grawbadger (inks) Rain Beredo (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). I am enjoying this point in Peter Parker's life where things are going well for him. His relationship with Mockingbird is sweet and chaste. His new job is challenging. The super heroics aren't too over the top and he comes out a winner this issue. I know the good times won't last but I will feel good while it does. My fanboy crush on Bobbi Morse is even bigger now because of the way Stuart and Wade draw her. Sigh.

Incredible Hulk #710 - Greg Pak (writer) Greg Land (pencils) Jay Leisten (inks) Frank D'Armata (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). Return to Planet Hulk part 2. Hulk has to survive a gauntlet to save lives and he smashes admirably. It looks like next issue swipes scenes from the Thor Ragnarok movie. I am looking forward to that guest appearance.

Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #297 - Chip Zdarsky (writer) Adam Kubert with Juan Frigeri (art) Jason Keith (colours) VC's Travis Lanham (letters). Totally different Peter Parker. Totally different life from Amazing. The two titles aren't even trying for continuity and that's okay. I just want to read a good story and this one where Peter and Spider-Man are being pursued by the authorities is a good one. Throw in recent revelations involving Jonah Jameson and this fan is anxious to see what happens next. According to the next issue tease T'Challa will come calling.

Star Wars: Darth Vader #8 - Charles Soule (writer) Giuseppe Camuncoli (pencils) Daniele Orlandini (inks) David Curiel (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). We are witness to some Jedi rage this issue along with finding out what the stakes are for the good guys. Wondering what Vader is going to do keeps me coming back.

Weapon X #11- Greg Pak & Fred Van Lente (writers) Marc Borstel & Ibraim Roberson (art) Frank D'Armata (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). The Hunt for Weapon H concludes. Will Hulkverine be a good guy or a bad guy? The jury is still out on that. I like this team and am enjoying their adventures so far.

Spider-Men II #4 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Sara Pichelli (art) Elisabetta D'Amico (inking assistant) Justin Ponsor (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). Miles's search for his evil twin takes a terrible turn but he's got the Amazing Spider-Man helping out now. The two webslingers should be able to figure things out but you never know.

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