Pull List Potpourri April 15, 2018

It's TEX!!

   Back again with another rousing episode of...PULL LIST POTPOURRI!!

   Don't you just love comics? I do. Very much. Unfortunately, I can't buy them all, but I can share with you a few standouts from my pull list that really get my motor running - or not. Let's start with not:

1. Normandy Gold #5 - Normandy Gold is a hard-nosed sheriff from a rural town who has been barreling through corruption on the mean streets of 1970s Washington, D.C. - from pimps to pushers to politicians, Normandy's been kicking the hornet's nest trying to smoke out those responsible for the murder of her younger sister. But now, Normandy just may have gone from being the hunter to becoming the prey when she finds that the men behind the death of her sister, a high-priced escort, are far more powerful and connected than she ever could have dreamed. Will Normandy get with the program and stay alive, or try to burn it all down for the sake of justice?

   I was really looking forward to an earth-shattering finale from this series. Since issue #1, Megan Abbott and Allison Gaylin have written a tight, gripping, and gritty revenge story full of interesting characters with an explosive protagonist reminiscent of the popular female heroes of the bygone blaxploitation age. Abbott and Gaylin wrap it all up in a nice, neat, but unsatisfying package in issue #5 that is just painful, quite frankly. The final issue has little action, and an antagonist who was way too easy to kill - this series embodies the proverbial bang and whimper. 

RATING: 6 out of 10.

2. Spider-Man (vol 1) #237-239 - Miles Morales is really having a tough go of it. His mom has found out his secret and isn't talking to him or his father, he's developing new powers, the loose-lipped Ganke may have just revealed his secret identity to the wrong person, and a mystery man known as Cable wants Miles to work for him in some sort of international spy group. Well, it's really about to hit the fan. Someone new is wearing the Iron Spider armor, and he's gathered a group of baddies (Sandman, Hobgoblin, The Spot, Ceres, and Bombshell) to perform the heist of the century - a drydocked S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier! Worst of all, this new Iron Spider knows Miles, and his family, intimately. If Miles tries to stop him, it could spell doom for him and everyone he loves. 

   Brian Michael Bendis is in great form in his work on this book. He has made Miles one of the most dramatic and interesting characters in Marvel's line-up, and he is quite possibly looking to move Miles out of Spidey's shadow into a different line of adventures. How will Miles react when he realizes that his most trusted friend just might not be so trustworthy? And just wait until you see who is under the mask of the Iron Spider! I see a big painful shake-up coming in Miles' future, a world where he may have to leave behind his childhood and everything he loves. Oscar Bazaldua's art is clean, precise, and uncomplicated - just the right balance between serious and cartoony. Great series. Too bad Bendis has signed an exclusive contract with DC. I wonder how the series will play out without him. 

RATING: 8 out of 10

3. The Falcon (vol 2) - Sam Wilson is really on the ropes. He watched his best friend, mentor, and brother, Steve Rogers take over the world as a Hydra agent, he suffered hatred and was reviled as Captain America,  he broke up with the love of his life, Misty Knight, and he's trying to regain his identity as Sam Wilson and as The Falcon. Oh, and the supernatural mayhem-maker, Blackheart, has just ripped Sam's soul from his body and cast it into Hell where it's being held prisoner by none other than Mephisto himself. Sam Wilson just can't catch a break. Somehow, Sam must find a way to claw his way out of hell and stop Blackheart from consuming the world, starting with Chicago, which Blackheart has turned into a powderkeg of violence and unrest using a supernatural artifact, and the already preexisting social tensions. In order to face down Mephisto and Blackheart, Sam Wilson will first have to face down the worst parts of himself. Lucky for him, Doctor Voodoo, The Patriot, and Joaquin (former Falcon) have his back...As well as a new player who just happens to be the half-human spawn of the devil himself. 

 Oh, by the way...Here come the vampires!! YES!!!

    Rodney Barnes is writing Sam Wilson like he's never been written before, putting Sam in some deep waters that I just didn't think he'd be equipped to face. Barnes has got Sam doing a bunch of soul-searching, stepping out to face the unknown, and facing down supernatural threats way out of his league. AND IT WORKS! Sam Wilson is doing great battling the supernatural, and it's attracted a great cast of young heroes in Patriot and Joaquin, as well as staunch supernatural allies like Doctor Voodoo, and the new guy (who shall not be named - no spoilers!). I never thought someone could put the Falcon - not Sam Wilson as Captain America, but THE FALCON - in the limelight and make him shine so brightly. Jay Anacleto and Romulo Fajardo, Jr. are bringing hot fire to these AMAZING covers, while Joshua Cassara is rocking the moody, action-packed, REALLY busy pencils on the interiors. Barnes' Falcon brings the social commentary, psychological thrills, and the supernatural chills that put this book at the top of my superhero pull list. 

RATING 10 out of 10. 

    Thanks for reading!!

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