Comic Reviews 12.07.2020

 

Hey y’all. We’ve got a small one this week. Initially, I intended to cover X-Factor #5 in these reviews as the first post-X of Swords X-book. Due to the nature of the extremely sensitive content it contained, I found myself unable to write an appropriate review. If I can find the words to express my thoughts, it may be included in next week’s reviews. Those are already looking pretty stacked though. Anyway, I did want to share a fun panel from the issue, which was written by Leah Williams with art by David Baldeon, colors by Israel Silva, and letters by VC’s Joe Caramagna.

Spoilers for: Miles Morales: Spider-Man #21

 

Miles Morales: Spider-Man #21

Writer: Saladin Ahmed

Artists: Marcelo Ferreira

Inks: Wayne Faucher

Colors: David Curiel

Letters: VC’s Cory Petit

Cover: Javier Garron and Curiel

 

This is it. The finale of the Ultimatum Saga. Everything in this series thus far has led to this. It is fine. Everything here is exactly what one would want from the finale of a 20-issue story. But everything is rushed, almost to the point of unbelievability.

Take, for example, the climax. Spider-Man and Prowler have Ultimatum and Green Goblin on the ropes, right next to the interdimensional transport machine with which Ultimatum plans to send Spider-Man and his family back to the Ultimate Universe. Prowler determines they can send the two to the other dimensional and trap them there if they can overload the machine. Prowler theorizes if he overloads his suit and is close enough to the transporter, it will solve his problem. And then he does it and the conflict is over. This comes out of nowhere and Ahmed tries his best to sell it with his dialogue but it falls flat.

Are they connected? Who knew?

After the heroes reconvene to confirm all their problems are solved, we cut to a single page of Miles (And then his parents) breaking down and sobbing over dinner. It is effective, as I have a strong emotional connection to these characters, but it needed more room to truly hit its potential.

That night, Miles returns to where his uncle disappeared and breaks down again, wondering if he can continue being Spider-Man without Aaron. This should be the highlight of the issue. This should readers in the heart. Instead, nothing is felt. To a degree, that is because it, again, happens too fast and casually. More than that, it seems very clear that Prowler, Ultimatum, and Goblin are not gone. They will build another interdimensional machine and come back to cause more havoc and Prowler will be revealed to be alive.

The art team does their best here to salvage the issue, although they too struggle. The scenes of mourning do convey the characters’ thoughts and feelings well in each individual panel. Together, they have a strangely disjointed feel, something that is uncommon from this group. The action early on too feels disjointed, with few backgrounds and no sense of the location. Things are happening but it is near impossible to tell their relation to each other. It is unfortunate but I know this entire creative team will bounce back because this is the first issue of this series that was below stellar.

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