Movie Review: "Thor: The Dark World" - Beam Me Up, Heimdall (SPOILERS)

 

Once again, Marvel Studios delivers another entertaining addition to their cinematic universe with Thor's second solo outing. Still, the film has its highs and lows. We'll start with the positive.

It's probably needless to say, but Tom Hiddleston definitely stole the show as Loki. Not only does he bring his trademark wit with him again, but Loki brings a lot of twists and turns that you can't be sure what you saw actually really happened. For example, there's one scene where Loki apparently cuts off Thor's hand. I totally did not see that coming, nor did I see that it was all a ploy. It was tricks like that that made me wary to believe that Kurse actually killed him. But at least I got to make my "Well now he knows how Coulson felt" joke. Of course I was right to be wary by the end though, but it did leave me questioning...what happened to Odin?

Speaking of Odin though, the relationship between him and Thor is just as enjoyable this time around as it was the first, even though it was the roles were reversed in a way. Before, it was the wise Odin and the tempered Thor over the Frost Giants; now it was the grief-stricken revenge-seeking Odin and the calculating Thor over the Dark Elves. It definitely shows great character development for the God of thunder.

It was also nice to see more of Frigga in this film compared to the first, particularly the aspect where we realize where Loki learned his tricks from. I guess whereas Thor learned his head-on fighting approach from his father, Loki learned his deceptive side from his mother; too bad she wasn't able to keep him from trying to kill all of humanity. Despite that, her death did show that Loki has some hint of compassion.

One of the biggest aspect of the film comes from its comedy. Along with Loki (particularly his brief disguise as Captain America), a lot of it comes from Darcy and Erik Selvig, both reprised by Kat Dennings and Stellan Skarsgard, respectively. While Darcy is as snarky as the first film, one may be surprised to hear that Selvig is bring some humor to the film since he's such a serious scientist. Well, it appears that Loki's mind control did a number on his head, even landing him in an insane asylum that also houses a familiar comic book creator. It kind of made me wonder if Hawkeye had any similar problems, though I think Selvig's interaction with the Tesseract also played a part in his breakdown. Nonetheless, Selvig brought the most hilarious moments of the film.

As for the lows, while I was watching the film, I couldn't help but feel like some aspects were lifted from other movies:

• Malekith's ship was primarily dark with red lights and symbols. Felt alot like a Predator ship to me.
• The Dark Elves' attack on Asgard was very reminiscent of something that would probably be seen in the Star Wars prequel films. The fact that Skywalker Sound was used probably had something to do with that. Guess Disney is making good use of the Star Wars license.
• The shield Heimdall attempted to put up was similar to the one put over Hogwarts in the final Harry Potter film, even when it dissipated. Along with that, the lights released from the patrons at Frigga's funeral was like when everyone lit up their wands when Dumbledore died.
• Not a real serious gripe here, but the Dark Elves look like they could pass for Power Rangers villain henchmen. I've thought that ever since the first pics came out and I still think that. I can't be the only one who thought that.

Aside from those similarities, I did have some issues with Malekith in this film that were similar to Whiplash in Iron Man 2. I do feel that Malekith was a credible threat from the start, much more than Whiplash I might add, but like Whiplash, I couldn't help but feel he and the Dark Elves came out of nowhere, like there wasn't any build-up beforehand. When you look at Iron Man 3, there was a lot of subtle build up from the first 2 films that you knew that Mandarin was coming. I started to wonder if Captain America: The Winter Soldier will have similar issues, but then I realized that the Winter Soldier being the villain is automatically a plus (especially when you know the character's background), not to mention there will be ties to Avengers: Age of Ultron, which I can definitely see if the "SHIELD creates Ultron" theory plays out.

Now of course, what's a Marvel film without a mid/post-credits scene to help build up what comes next? Like Avengers, there's a serious scene and a funny scene, and that serious scene plays out similarly to Iron Man 2's post-credits scene that set up the first Thor film. But the serious scene in Thor: The Dark World helps set up not only one but two films, one that's out next year, and the other that's still being built up to. Let's just say that the latter will definitely be worth the wait.

While I still feel the need to see the film again to firmly rank Thor: The Dark World among the rest of the MCU films, here is where I would currently place it:

The Avengers
Iron Man 3
Thor
Captain America: The First Avenger
Iron Man
Incredible Hulk
Iron Man 2
Thor: The Dark World

Just because I place it last though doesn't mean I thought it was bad. I've enjoyed all the MCU films, which is more than I can say for the X-Men film series. Again, it's not a for-sure placement; it's just based on initial feelings. Based on the ending throne room scene, I definitely wouldn't mind another Thor film. Hell, that scene definitely warrants one.
To close out though, Thor: The Dark World brings a lot of what fans have come to love from Marvel Studios in its characters and humor, though it doesn't mean you can't feel a little less than satisfied compared to other outings.

RATING: 6.5/10

The Frustrations of a Marvel Reader

Marvel's February 2014 solicits hit today and I bet some of my blog followers may have been expecting a new edition of my "Inhumanity Incoming!" series, which I share solicits for comics that act as jumping on points for some series. But honestly, I don't really see the point to anymore.

With the "All-New Marvel NOW!" initiative, along with launching new series, Marvel seemed to be making jumping on points for current series simpler by labeling ".NOW" at the end of issue numbers. For example, Avengers #24 would be known as Avengers #24.NOW, indicating that it acts as a #1 in the All-New Marvel NOW! era. During New York Comic Con in October, Marvel unveiled a slew of All-New Marvel NOW! books, new and old. But two of those titles included brand new #1's for Secret Avengers and Fantastic Four, books that were already relaunched during the first Marvel NOW! initiative. With Secret Avengers, I could understand giving that book getting another restart, since it isn't exactly a high seller. But when it comes to Fantastic Four, the news of that book's relaunch was greatly annoying because it's just the latest in a long line of Fantastic Four relaunches. The only reason for the book starting over again is that James Robinson was taking over the book from Matt Fraction. In a way, I can see why Marvel would relaunch the book. Robinson is popular and that could be enough to get people to grab a brand new Fantastic Four book. Still, I believe both books could have just been given .NOW issues like other original Marvel NOW! books.

Then this week came around, and it was announced that Wolverine's solo book, another book that was relaunched with Marvel NOW!, would be once again be going back to #1 as part of All-New Marvel NOW!. Just like Fantastic Four, it's another relaunch in a long line of them for Wolverine's book. Except this time, the same writer from the previous volume, Paul Cornell, would be staying on. The only creative change is that Ryan Stegman would be taking over art duties. I mean, seriously, they couldn't have just kept the current Wolverine series going with a .NOW issue with Stegman joining then? Oh, but Wolverine has a new costume too (as seen above)! That warrants a relaunch, right? Hopefully my sarcasm is coming through here.

I'm not saying Marvel shouldn't relaunch books. I mean, when Marvel NOW! first began, they were obviously doing their own version of DC's New 52 relaunch, and many series were bound to go back to #1. But when it comes to All-New Marvel NOW!, there should be at least a good reason story-wise. For example, the two current X-Force books, Uncanny X-Force and Cable and X-Force, are being cancelled with a new X-Force #1 launching combining members from both teams into one. That works. I guess this creates a whole debate over what qualifies to relaunch a book.

But it isn't just the way Marvel is constantly relaunching books, it's how they're ending them too. To put things into perspective, I had 8 Marvel books on my pulllist during the initial wave of Marvel NOW!: Uncanny Avengers, Avengers, New Avengers, Superior Spider-Man, Avenging Spider-Man, Scarlet Spider, Daredevil, and Wolverine and the X-Men. Only the first four books mentioned were launched or relaunched during Marvel NOW! and the last four I was still getting. But then, my Marvel pulllist began to dwindle. In July, Avenging Spider-Man was cancelled in place of Superior Spider-Man Team-Up, which I did not take on. In December, Scarlet Spider was announced to be ending; it was a mid-card book so while I was disappointed, it wasn't all that surprising. Sure enough though, Jonathan Hickman's Avengers World book was announced to take Scarlet Spider's spot on my pulllist. But then it was announced that Mark Waid's consistently entertaining Daredevil series would be ending in February with #36. Now Daredevil's been an ongoing at Marvel since the original volume started in the 60's, so it will probably be relaunched soon; that doesn't mean I won't miss Mark Waid though. Then the February solicits hit today, and I find out that Wolverine and the X-Men, the only X-book I've had on my pulllist since the end of Avengers vs. X-Men, was also ending that month at #42. That just came out of nowhere for me. I mean, maybe a new X-book will launch in its place. Until then, I don't know where I'll get my X-Men fix. I don't care for Cyclops' team books. I'd get Jason Aaron other Wolverine team book, Amazing X-Men, but I'd rather wait and see if All-New Marvel NOW! will give it a .NOW issue.

By February, I'll have only 5 Marvel books, 4 Avengers and 1 Spider-Man, on my pulllist. To put that in perspective, I currently have 14 DC books on my pulllist. Between 19 books, 74% are DC and 26% are Marvel. So while the New 52 has gotten me reading more DC than ever, Marvel NOW! keeps cancelling books I was already reading and enjoying. I may be getting ahead of myself though. With DC's Forever Evil event ending in March, some big changes will probably coming up to their line-up, meaning some of the books I'm getting will probably be cancelled; if I had to speculate though, Batman: The Dark Knight (stories are getting repetitive), Batman and... (losing focus since Damian died), Nightwing (given Dick's situation in Forever Evil, he probably ain't gonna make it out alive), and Talon (just a feeling). Now I'm not saying I support DC cancelling books, but there should at least be some reason. I mean, DC just relaunched their whole publishing line 2 years ago and the series that have remained since that launch haven't been relaunched again. I don't know exactly what the post-Forever Evil DC line-up will be like, but I can bet it'll be handled better than what some of Marvel is doing. I mean, they're already smarter event wise; Forever Evil is the first DC event in 2 years while Marvel's Infinity literally started 2 months after of Age of Ultron.

But still, between cancelling Daredevil and Wolverine and the X-Men, it makes me wonder if Marvel has some policy against letting series reach #50. It seems gone are the days of long running series, and even the tiniest change can lead to a relaunch, even after a previous relaunch not too long before. All this probably makes you wonder why I still read Marvel even with everything I've complained about? Well, even though their whole numbering system is practically a joke, I read for the stories. Even though I'd like their to be some consistency, I'm not abandoning the characters I've invested in. I know Daredevil will be back. I'm sure a new X-Men book will catch my attention. The Avengers books are where the big things happen. As for Spider-Man, despite all the shit his character has been put through, between the demonic divorce of One More Day and the brain swap with Doc Ock, I don't think I'll ever stop reading the wall-crawler I've loved since childhood. To quote Saint Walker, "all will be well."

Yes, I know I ended a primarily Marvel post with a DC quote. Sue me.

Theatricality, Devils, and Cuckolds

In honor of Guy Fawkes Day (November 5), I wanted to share a symbolism paper I wrote for my Literary History class, in which I used Alan Moore's "V for Vendetta" as the basis.

Theatricality, Devils, and Cuckolds

            If anything is certain of V, the titular character of Alan Moore’s acclaimed work, V for Vendetta, it is that the anarchist has a strong sense of theatricality. Throughout the story, V is sometimes speaking quotes from a work of literature or placing his targets in a scenario which he created. Whenever he does though, it is always done with some meaning or to prove a point to someone in regards to the situation at hand. In some instances, V’s allusions show quite a bit of his thought process and how he views himself. For example, V is wearing horns when he encounters Bishop Lilliman in the middle of Book One. Horns can be a symbol of both a devil and a cuckold. In a strange way, these are both ways V feels about himself and what motivates him towards his goals.

            From one standpoint, V wearing the horns is used for a religious theme to his murder of Lilliman (Moore 54). Since Lilliman is a Bishop and viewed as a representative of God, it makes sense for V as the opposition to play a devil. The religious aspect would later lead to V killing Lilliman by feeding him a communion wafer laced with cyanide (Moore 62). This method of murder probably adds more to the non-traditional depictions presented in the scene. Bishop Lilliman is a pedophile and also attempts to rape Evey (Moore 47, 53-54). Lilliman’s actions show that the man is obviously not an all-around good person for the position he holds. Communion is viewed as a way of allowing Christ into one’s body (Brom). V takes the twists even further by making this holy sacrament into something poisonous and forcing death onto Lilliman. The whole scenario also persuades the reader’s point of view, as they are more likely to be cheering on the murderous devil in V rather than the supposed man of God in Lilliman at this point.

            While the horns are one of the physical components of V’s task at hand, what he says also fits into the situation. When V first appears to Lilliman, he states “Please allow me to introduce myself, I’m a man of wealth and taste” (Moore 54). V is directly quoting the opening line of “Sympathy for the Devil”, a 1968 song by the Rolling Stones. The general interpretation is that song is from the point of view of the Devil, also known as Satan, Lucifer, or Beelzebub, with the idea that he is not all that bad a guy (Bowie). Since V could be called a devil and has the support of the reader despite the awful things he does, the song’s meaning could connect to many ideas in the book. Perhaps it is the song’s chorus that relates to V the most:

                                    Please to meet you
                                    Hope you guess my name
                                    But what’s puzzling you
                                    Is the nature of my game (Rolling Stones)

The idea of “guess[ing] [his] name” is a mystery concerning V. His usual self-introduction is “I don’t have a name. You can call me ‘V.’” (Moore 26). Not much is given about V’s history other than being a prisoner at Larkhill and he has killed anyone that could identify exactly who he was. As for the “nature of [V’s] game”, there has been a debate among readers about whether or not he really has a stable mindset. According to Alan Moore, that was the idea:

So I made it very, very morally ambiguous. And the central question is, is this guy right? Or is he mad? What do you, the reader, think about this? Which struck me as a properly anarchist solution. I didn't want to tell people what to think, I just wanted to tell people to think, and consider some of these admittedly extreme little elements, which nevertheless do recur fairly regularly throughout human history. (Beat)

It is needless to say that V’s methods are questionable. A good example of this “right or mad” debate is when he tricked Evey into believing she was in prison, torturing her, and delivering Valeries’s letters to her, just as he was at Larkhill to help “free her” and complete her transformation, so to speak (Moore 167-172). His intentions were well, but he put someone he supposedly cared about through hell just to prove a point. Whether or not that was the wrong way to go about enlightening Evey, the charade still shows both the complexity and theatricality of V’s character.

            Wearing horns when he killed Lilliman may not be the only instance of V calling himself a devil. Sometime before that scene, Evey wanted to make a deal with V to help him in return for saving her from Fingermen in their first meeting (Moore 43). In addition, Evey also questioned a quote she saw in the Shadow Gallery, “Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici”, which V translates to “By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe” (Moore 43). V attributes the quote to Dr. John Faust, who V says also made a deal (Moore 44). The story of Faust involves making a deal with the devil, and while the tale has been reinterpreted by different writers over many centuries, that plot point always remains the same (“Faust”). V could be saying Evey herself is making a figurative “deal with the devil” by wanting to cooperate with him. Looking at the heinous acts committed by V along with the innocence of Evey at that point, her willingness to work with such a manipulative man shows the difference in their personalities and just how Faustian their relationship is.

            Horns are not just in relation to the devil, but to a cuckold as well. A cuckold is man whose wife is being unfaithful to him, and just as a horned animal cannot see its own horns, so too is a cuckold oblivious to the adultery happening behind his back (Williams). V was already being theatrical with Lilliman’s death, as he had Evey play a prostitute to lure the Bishop where V would encounter him. If Evey could be viewed as V’s “woman”, then she was committing adultery with Lilliman in her performance, and V supposedly wearing the horns of a cuckold added more to the “scene.”

            V may already consider himself to be a cuckold before this however, as it is displayed in an earlier scene of him having a faux conversation with the Old Bailey monument, which he refers to as “Madam Justice” (Moore 39). V tells Justice that he was in love with her, but her infidelity has driven him into the arms of his new love, Anarchy (Moore 40-41). V describes Justice’s “fling” as a “man in uniform” (Moore 40). What V could be referring to here is how the ideas of justice had been changed in England once Norsefire came into power. To V, she was “no longer [his] justice” but now “[Norsefire’s] justice” (Moore 41). Before destroying the monument, V’s last words to her were that she was “no longer the woman [he] once loved” (Moore 41). Norsefire’s perversion of Justice had left V feeling betrayed, but he had since found more happiness with Anarchy. One could say the cuckold V wants to show just how badly Justice has treated not just him, but the whole population of England, and that Anarchy should be more appreciated by the masses instead.

            While V can be condemned for his actions as a devil, there is no reason to not feel sympathy for him as a kind of cuckold. It is not his fault he was driven to the terrorism he commits; his trust was broken and he was made a fool of. This betrayal by an idea he held dearly left him not just mentally but physically harmed due to the horrors he was put through at Larkhill. V knows what he is, and the theatricality he takes in his actions conveys a deeper look into his self, and he is not afraid to show it to those involved.

Works Cited

Beat. "MILE HIGH COMICS presents THE BEAT at COMICON.com: A FOR ALAN, Pt. 1: The Alan Moore interview." COMICON.com. 15 Mar 2006. Web. 11 Feb 2013.

Bowie, Herb. "Sympathy For The Devil | Reason to Rock." Reason to Rock.Web. 11 Feb 2013.

Brom, Robert. "Who Can Receive Communion? | Catholic Answers." Catholic Answers. 10 Aug 2004. Web. 9 Feb 2013.

Faust. Web. 21 Feb 2013.

Moore, Alan. V for Vendetta. New York: DC Comics, 2005. Print.

Rolling Stones.“Sympathy for the Devil.”Beggars Banquet.Decca Records, 1968.LP.

Williams, Janet. "BBC News - Cuckolds, horns and other explanations." BBC.4 Jul 2009. Web. 11 Feb 2013.

Comics Review: "X-Men: Battle of the Atom" - Overreact Much? (SPOILERS)

It should be fair to start out that I have still only recently become an X-Men reader. When the "Schism" storyline broke the X-Men into two teams led respectively by Cyclops and Wolverine, I was given the perfect opportunity to jump on to the mutant books and get two flavors of X-teams. There was "Wolverine and the X-Men" and Cyclops' team in "Uncanny X-Men." As I continued reading both titles, I found myself enjoying Wolverine's team over Cyclops' dickishness, especially during the "Avengers vs. X-Men" crossover. I made a point to myself to drop Uncanny once AvX ended, though it was helpful that the title was ending anyway as part of Marvel NOW. After that, "Wolverine and the X-Men" became the sole X-book on my pulllist. Though that doesn't mean I wasn't aware of other big things happening for the X-Men, particularly the original five X-Men coming from the past to the present in the "All-New X-Men" book. Since that concept obviously would not last long, I did not see any reason to throw myself into it. Then the announcement came for the X-Men's 50th Anniversary crossover, "Battle of the Atom", where future X-Men come back to send the past X-Men back to avert a disaster. The crossover would span across several X-books, including "Wolverine and the X-Men." So since my main X-book was involved, I got the rest of the crossover.

The first past of the crossover started out strong. The highlight that happened was the past Cyclops almost being killed in battle, nearly creating a huge paradox. It was at that point it was decided to send the past X-Men back, but then the future X-Men, who later turn out to be the future's Brotherhood, arrive and tell the same thing. In the second part, past Jean, like the teenage girl that she, is freaked out when she couldn't read the minds of the future X-Men and runs away, convincing past Scott to go with her like the whipped boyscout he is. At this point, I thought she definitely overreacted. Besides that, at this point, I didn't really understand why there was such debate about sending the past X-Men back. I mean, at some point they're gonna have to go back. The almost death of past Cyclops proved that if they didn't, it's gonna cause major problems with the timeline. So imagine my surprise when one of the future mutants in a Xorn mask turned out to be the future version of the past Jean who never went back. Not exactly sure how that worked out without creating a paradox, but whatever.

For the most part, the story takes awhile to get anywhere, but when stuff happens, like big battles, mental and physical, it seriously goes down. Trust me, all the talking that happens is worth going through to get to those moments, particularly in parts five and ten. That doesn't mean the talking points aren't worth reading. There was one moment when future Deadpool, who had many funny moments in this crossover, makes a speech with the point that the future is so bad, that they let him join the X-Men. He would get complemented for it, but he would then say to himself, "Too bad it was all a lie." At first I thought Deadpool just pulled the speech out of his ass like you'd expect him to do, but then we find out that they're not even the real future X-Men. Aside from that, we see more debates between Cyclops and Wolverine (to which I always find myself agreeing with Wolverine), not to mention how future past Jean's presence is affecting them. Another nice moment between the action comes from Wolverine when he realizes that one of the future Brotherhood that was posing as a future Kitty Pryde turned out to be Raze, a son he will have with Mystique, to which he said "I'm never having sex again." I personally found that line hilarious. In addition, one of the relationships of the storyline was between Jubilee and the future version of her son, Shogo, who grows up to be part of the real future X-Men; they have a nice moment together in one of the story's epilogues.

As the future Brotherhood's plans begin to fall apart by the arrival of the future X-Men to the present, they try to send the past X-Men back but for some reason are unable to, that something is keeping them there. Now the whole reason the future Brotherhood came back in the first place was to send the past X-Men back, even though Wolverine was already planning on sending them back already. I can't help but wonder though that maybe if the Brotherhood didn't come back, the present X-Men would have been able to send the past X-Men back no problem. I mean, with all the time travel happening in the Marvel universe at the moment, the future Brotherhood coming back to make something happen that was already being attempted and Magik bringing the future X-Men to the present probably didn't help things. Hell, maybe the past X-Men could have gone back if all of the future mutants just stayed put. Guess we we'll never know.

While the story goes on for awhile, the final issue definitely wraps things up nicely, paying homage to the past (in the form of the past X-Men fighting future past Jean similarly to their first battle with Magneto), the continuing trials of the present (with future past Jean blaming Wolverine and Cyclops for screwing everything up), and looking toward the future (as future Iceman, who looks like Gandalf for some reason, telling present Iceman to not focus on the bad times that may come but look forward to the good ones, to which I assume he's referring to the upcoming resurrection of Nightcrawler). Now part of me was thinking that one of the results of this crossover would be the unification of Cyclops' and Wolverine's X-teams, but that did not come to pass, especially based on two things:

1.) Future past Jean revealed first-hand that SHIELD had Sentinels at their disposal, though it appears that Commander Hill had no idea about it, to which I question since she runs the damn place. For Cyclops, this helps his revolutionary cause in the way that even SHIELD is ready to attack mutants. For Wolverine, this brings about some sense of betrayal, and based on solicits for "Wolverine and the X-Men", he's going to get to the bottom of this.
2.) Kitty feels betrayed by her team for not trusting her or the past X-Men with their actions, and she feels so betrayed that they all even jump ship to join Cyclops' team. The past team say they don't want to stay where they aren't wanted. All Wolverine's side was trying to do was send them back HOME. You know, the past. Where they belong. What is so wrong with that? And Kitty even hugs Magik, which made me think "when the hell are they so buddy-buddy?" I understand that she felt under-minded, but that doesn't mean you change sides so drastically, especially when the other side is run by a revolutionary who killed the founder of the X-Men. Honestly, it felt kind of forced, just to shake things up, not to mention it gives Marvel an excuse to keep the "All-New X-Men" concept going longer. In the end, Cyclops even gives Wolverine a kind of troll face, knowing that this would piss him off, along with me.

The story may feel like it drags on, but the moments that are led up to definitely pay off. As a stand-alone story, I feel one needs to be familiar with what was happening beforehand to gain a full understanding of the story. For the X-Men's 50th anniversary, it could have been better, but I deem it acceptable.

STORY RATING: 6/10
RECOMMENDATION RATING: 4/10

Comics Review: "Superior Spider-Man: Necessary Evil" - Oh (Future) Shock! (SPOILERS)

Usually I save comic book reviews for big events or miniseries, but when it comes to this particular arc of Superior Spider-Man, I'm making an exception for one reason: the return of Miguel O'Hara, the Spider-Man of the future, 2099 to be exact. While the character's solo series was the cancelled in 1996, his popularity remains, even being a key part in 2 Spider-Man video games, "Shattered Dimensions" and "Edge of Time." Miguel has also been a go-to pick when it comes to new Spider-Man speculation. When Peter Parker died in the Ultimate universe, some thought an Ultimate version of Miguel would take the mantle before the new character of Miles Morales was announced. Miguel was also a popular choice among readers to be the new Superior Spider-Man; Marvel even fueled that fire by putting out some red herrings. But alas, Doc Ock was indeed the self-proclaimed Superior Spider-Man and Miguel was still on the bench. That is, until #17 of the new series.

Due to the space-time continuum shattering events of "Age of Ultron", time anomalies had been occurring in the year 2099, and one of the affects was Tyler Stone, biological father of Miguel and the head of Alchemax, the corporation Spider-Man fights against, fading from existence. Tracing the cause of this anomaly back to 2013, Stone made an uneasy alliance with Spider-Man to send him back and fix what was happening to him, not knowing that Miguel's own existence was at stake as well. As it turns out, Miguel's mission would be to ensure the survival of his grandfather, Tiberius Stone, the founder of Alchemax. Throughout this arc, Miguel juggles with the idea of killing Tiberius himself, ensuring Alchemax and the evil it wreaks never happens, even if it means his own demise.

In that first issue of the story arc, I felt writer Dan Slott did a good job re-establishing the world of 2099 for readers who may be unfamiliar with it, even right down to the slang ("Shock!"). That helps those reading Superior Spider-Man, but with most of the arc, a lot the story relies on plot-points that have been occurring in Spider-Man comics since Dan Slott became the main writer on Amazing Spider-Man at the start of the "Big Time" era in 2010. For Spider-Man 2099 fans reading this arc solely for that character, it may make it hard for them to follow a majority of what's going on, especially the part about Doc Ock's mind in Spider-Man's body. I didn't have any trouble myself, but felt there should be some warning to the 2099 fans wanting to read the character again.

I had seen some conversation among readers over which Spider-Man would be considered the hero of the story, Miguel or Otto. Personally, I thought it was pretty obvious it was Miguel. The story began in his time, so it's only logical to follow the hero from beginning to end. He certainly acted more heroically than Otto, who was constantly losing his temper with everyone throughout this arc, wanting to do things himself. Had Peter still been in control, he certainly would have been more cooperative. It also would have helped since Peter worked with Miguel before in a one-shot, but Otto seemed to have erased those memories during #9's "Parker-ectomy".

One of my worries for the end of this arc was that Miguel would die, especially based on the cover to #19:

 

But my fears were thankfully dashed when Miguel survived, deciding to save his grandfather, fearing what a changed 2099 timeline would do to his loved ones. It doesn't end there though. Once the time anomalies affecting Tyler Stone ended, he destroyed the time door, stranding Miguel in 2013. So what's a time-dispaced web-slinger to do? Get a job at the newly founded Alchemax under an alias as the assistant to his unknowing grandfather, as a way to make sure the corporation that had such a grip in his time doesn't get out of hand. So it seems that Miguel will be sticking around the present day Spider-Man universe for awhile, and hopefully this will lead to his own series again. But if I had to guess what lies ahead for the most part, I would say he'll be involved in the unofficially announced sequel to 2012's miniseries "Spider-Men", in which Peter Parker of the main Marvel universe traveled to the Ultimate universe, where his counterpart died, meeting different versions of friends and family, along with that universe's new Spider-Man, Miles Morales. Based on the upcoming "Cataclysm" event, where the main Marvel universe Galactus attacks the Ultimate universe's Earth (yet another "Age of Ultron" consequence), there's some speculation that this will be the end of Marvel's Ultimate line, but that Miles will survive as a refugee to the main Marvel universe. I wouldn't put it past Brian Michael Bendis to throw Miguel into the mix for a "Spider-Men 2", having 3 web-slingers from different times and worlds in one setting. The only question that I wonder though is whether or not Peter will fully return by then.

Now while the Spider-Man 2099 element was a shining point for this arc, let's not forget that this is still Doc Ock's book as he continues to cause more craziness in Peter's life than even Peter could. For one, he loses his job at Horizon Labs, not to mention that his constant avoidance of Mary Jane has finally caused her to cut ties with Peter. Ock got Peter's life, and it seems he's starting to get the Parker luck with it. Once Superior is over, it's going to be interesting to see how much Peter will have to answer for when he returns.
One of the most interesting parts of this arc though is that Ock is having trouble maintaining his cover as Peter, since he eliminated Peter's memories in order to gain full control of the body, since they appeared to take on a life of their own before. But in trying to remember something from the Parker memories he had already familiarized himself with, there's a "blink-and-you-miss-it" moment that provides an opening to how Peter will come back:

When Ock won the mind battle, he buried Peter under the rubble of the Daily Bugle. But it seems that with the Parker memories Ock has retained, Peter still lives on. Just how Peter will get back and how much of his memories he'll have when he gets control again, I'm unsure, but it's just another part of this roller coaster of a series that keeps me coming back for more.

For fans of both Spider-Man 2099 and the Superior Spider-Man, this is an enjoyable read that gives many reasons to look forward to what happens next for each character.

STORY RATING: 9/10
RECOMMENDATION RATING: 7.5/10

For my next comics review, I'll be looking at the X-Men 50th anniversary event "Battle of the Atom" where the X-Men of the past, present, and future collide. Funny that it's another time travel story isn't it? Stay tuned, readers.