Annihilation Saga, Nova # 2, Thunderbolts #114

Annihilation Saga
Keith Giffen-Various

So let me be direct here. If you have any single fiber of your being that likes a good old fashioned space opera in the vein of Star Wars, Dune, and Battlestar Gallactica, run, don't walk to your nearest comic book shop and get yourself some of this. Annihilation Saga is just plain staggering in it's scope. That this was going on at the same time as Civil War and Civil War was getting all the pub, is astounding.

It's all here. Galactus. Silver Surfer. Thanos. Skrulls, Kree. Death. The Beyonder. Quasar. Every marvel space character shows up to battle for you guessed it, the universe's existence. It's your basic dark threat comes in, makes things seem bleak, heroes rally, lots of things blow up. Entire planets are destroyed. Entire galaxies perish. Great stuff.

Perhaps the greatest achievement of the series is making Nova into Marvel's answer to Green Lantern. This is definitely the best story that Marvel has told in the last year.

I just hope Marvel does the smart thing and collects the entire thing in a huge hardcover tome.

Nova # 2
Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning-Sean Chen

Yeah so after reading Annihilation, I pretty much had to check out Nova's book. And have to say. I was pleasantly suprised and impressed. Basically this book is about Richard Rider, Nova, returning home after Annihilation to a post-civil war america. The basic thrust is Tony Starks and the government bugging Nova, and Nova being like "I saved the freaking universe, man!".

The story basically falls into that man out of time type of encino man type story. Even though Rider hasn't been away from earth for very long, so much has changed, that he has become dissociated from it all.

The artwork is good. The writing is really strong. This book will appeal to fans of DC's Green Lantern. And maybe fans of the old Captain America, as it does hit that note too. And then also fans of the New Warriors.


Thunderbolts # 114
Warren Ellis-Mike Deodato Jr.

I was not initally overly impressed by Thunderbolts by Ellis. In fact I thought it was going to be another Ellis project I just would have to give a pass to. But I'm starting to get glad I stuck with it. It's really starting to ramp up.

The art is fantastic. The writing, we're starting to see some of the threads spun early on pull tight. I like that this is a serious book compared to Next Wave, which was full of jokes I didn't laugh at. Thunderbolts just seems more like Ellis's brilliant work on Stormwatch and The Authority. So if you are a fan of either of those works, then this is definitely a book to check out.

I mean, techinically everyone in this book is a villain. So it's interesting how you have within that group heroes and villains, and then to some degree you are also rooting against the team as they fight their actual "villains"(unregistered heroes).

So yeah. As if you needed my recommendation on a book as hyped as Thunderbolts. But consider this the official stamp of approval, at least until Ellis gets bored with the concept.