The Best of the Week in Panels – 04.04.2012

Ray, people will come Ray. They’ll come to Iowa for reasons they can’t even fathom. They’ll turn up your driveway not knowing for sure why they’re doing it. They’ll arrive at your door as innocent as children, longing for the past. Of course, we won’t mind if you look around, you’ll say. It’s only $20 per person. They’ll pass over the money without even thinking about it: for it is money they have and peace they lack. And they’ll walk out to the bleachers; sit in shirtsleeves on a perfect afternoon. They’ll find they have reserved seats somewhere along one of the pages, where they sat when they were children and cheered their heroes. And they’ll look at the panels and it’ll be as if they dipped themselves in magic waters. The memories will be so thick they’ll have to brush them away from their faces. People will come Ray. The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been panels. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But panels have marked the time. This page, this panel: it’s a part of our past, Ray. It reminds of us of all that once was good and it could be again. Oh… people will come Ray. People will most definitely come.

 

Swamp Thing #8

By Scott Snyder, Yanick Paquette, Nathan Fairbairn, & Travis Lanham

I still haven’t wrapped my brain around how I feel about Swamp Thing’s new look (there are some subtle costume elements in there that I don’t love) but he makes a hell of an entrance.

 

Avengers vs. X-Men #1

By Jason Aaron, Brian Michael Bendis, Ed Brubaker, Jonathan Hickman, Matt Fraction, John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna, Laura Martin, & Chris Eliopoulos

Find out what happens when people stop being polite and start getting real.

 

Chew #25

By John Layman, Rob Guillory, & Taylor Wells

Not me. Not anymore.

 

O.M.A.C. #8

By Keith Giffen, Dan Didio, Scott Koblish, Hi-Fi, & Travis Lanham

I’m going to miss O.M.A.C.‘s gorgeous two page spreads. No other book looks quite like it right now.

 

Wolverine and the X-Men #8

By Jason Aaron, Chris Bachalo, Tim Townsend, & Rob Steen

Welcome back, Chris Bachalo.

 

Men of War #8

By Jeff Lemire, Matt Kindt, Tom Derenick, Jose Villarrubia, & Rob Leigh

If they had set Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. in World War II, I wouldn’t have hesitated in buying it.

 

Animal Man #8

By Jeff Lemire, Steve Pugh, Lovern Kindzierski, & Jared K. Fletcher

You got that right, lady.

Comments

  1. I loved that scene in Wolverine and the X-Men. Seeing Genesis lash out like that in defense of Kansas was great. The art however, made me want to drop the book until Bradshaw returns.

    • I thought this book looked amazing and don’t really care for bradshaw’s work esp how he draws wolverine, to each their own though.

    • I think both Bradshaw and Bachalo have their moments, and both of their issues have had some great panels and full-pagers, but I did prefer Bradshaw’s work by a little bit.

    • As much as I liek Badshwas work, I have to agree on his Wolverine. He looks way to young.

  2. Oh man, those 5-6 pages of ANIMAL MAN with Little Wing and the dead animals… I couldn’t believe what I was reading… well done.

  3. I just love Bachalo’s work. I liked what Bradshaw did too but the whole book was just incredible and really well done. I missed him.

  4. Animal Man was great, so unsettling

  5. That double page spread of OMAC makes me excited and also depresses me:

    It excites me because it’s one of the best looking spreads in a comic this year.

    But it depresses me because I’ll never see this title ever again.

    That’s why I’m calling for a Kamandi Ongoing from Dan Didio and Keith Giffen!

    #lastboyonearth

  6. I thought the double page spread from ASM 683 that Caselli did would be here.

  7. That double page spread from O.M.A.C. is amazing. Keith Giffen is one of the most underrated creators working in the industry today.

  8. Avatar photo MarkCWarner (@MarkCWarner) says:

    * Right there with you on Swamp Thing
    * Great use of perspective, colours and lighting
    * Thank you Chew – great caption
    * I love you O.M.A.C. – Bon Voyage…for now
    * Wolverine and the X-men has been as great a read as XForce for similar and different reasons – This image highlights why
    * “If they had set Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. in World War II, I wouldn’t have hesitated in buying it.” – BAD BAD CONOR
    * I have purchased each issue that has gone to $1.99, and stopped reading at issue 3 when I realised that 19 – 20 pages was not cutting it. I think I need to get on that now

  9. O.M.A.C. #8 was gorgeous to look at through and through.

    I liked Bradshaw and all, but I am ecstatic that Chris Bachalo is back on Wolverine and the X-Men.

  10. Avatar photo Paul Montgomery (@fuzzytypewriter) says:

    I really dig the new Swamp Thing design. Part of it is that I keep imagining what Jim Lee would’ve done with it and just really appreciating how does so much without it looking like total mess.

    • I don’t like that it’s less organic and they’ve made it look like he’s got boots and gauntlets and a tunic.

      I don’t *hate* it but I’m slightly disappointed.

    • Avatar photo Paul Montgomery (@fuzzytypewriter) says:

      It’s still organic. It’s just more wood than green. It’s not solid brown either, like armor plating. I like that it reads more like certain parts of his body are just more coarse, like the knees and elbows. It’s a definite departure though, for sure. My only objection is that, while the wings are definitely awe-inspiring, they’re more animalian, even if they are made of leaves. But if they’d gone with something from the plant world like those propeller shaped seed pods, it’d just be silly.

    • I really don’t see this as a “new look” . I see it as swamp thing putting on his armor, hence the more wooden gauntlet look. That’s what i love about swamp thing , his look is based on whatever plant he decides to grow from.

      I’m sure we’ll see many other creative uses of his power.

    • Yeah i view this as his “Taking Care of Business” outfit. He probably also has something for business casual. And, like everyone, he has a “Not Leaving the House” for those quite days at the swamp.

    • I shudder to think what his Clubbing attire is.

    • Avatar photo Paul Montgomery (@fuzzytypewriter) says:

      @TNC – Tell us about yours.

    • @Paul: A man doesn’t give away all of his secrets.

      But here’s a nugget:

      Get DJ Ron Richards to drop a beat and like Han Solo in Star Wars Kinect I’ll be talk of the party.

    • I like the new look. Organically angelic.

    • If 6 six months ago someone would have told me that when Swamp Thing shows up he’d have wings and antlers, I would have just laughed, but now I’m in awe. I love it.

  11. I’m surprised Spider-man punching fake Al Gore didn’t make it.

  12. Love em…..that is the only Men of War issue I’ve read and for the obvious treats in this one (great cover for this one too) but that Frank/World War ll/Bride of Frankenstein pin-up with a German Luger gave me sooo many ideas for a tattoo on myself, sketchbook and pens are in effect.

  13. And AvsX looks to be fun and serious, this panel struck a cord of excitement just right.

  14. The sweet panel from AvX kinda makes me sad I didn’t bite. But if the series continues getting the love, I’ll read the trade.

    Swamp Thing and Animal Man are still kicking all kinds of ass, loving the dark side of the Nu52.

    I guess none of the iFanboys read it, but The Boys 65 had quite a few drop your jaw to the floor panels and totally deserved to be featured here.

  15. Hahaha, Chew you are comedic gold.

  16. I feel the same way about OMAC. I want to see more Kirby-esk work.

    • I’m definitely getting the O.M.A.C. trade when it comes out and love the kirbyesque style/homage…..someone told me OMAC was to join JLI? Not asking for a spoiler but the cover to this book and the review lead me to believe that won’t be probable, but then again and something I’m surprised I don’t see mentioned in much New52 discussion is that a lot of these books are placed a few years apart or like JLDark and Demon Knights are 100’s of years apart, both having Madame Xanadu in them. Justice League Dark is a book I enjoy but that title blows and nothing about them says justic league, they aren’t sanctioned by them or even call themselves that or a team yet. It was obviously a title picked to sell copies but a lame one and gimmicks are great for pushing fans away, they should change the name to Dark Justice or something just to lose the poor connection to JL.

  17. For a shapeshifting plant-guy I’m sure that Swampie will change to somethig more similar his old self after kicking the rots ass for a few issues.

  18. Seeing that O.M.A.C. panel made me weep again for the loss of the book. Vale big guy. And the only thing funnier than the Chew panel was the comment underneath.

  19. y is joan rivers in chew

  20. I love the scene in Avengers vs X-Men because it looks like Cyclops got kicked in the nuts and slumped over to throw up out of his eyes!

  21. That O.M.A.C. panel looks awesome! I keep hearing good things about the comic. I’ll have to check the series out.

  22. As I scrolled down, I thought the Chew panel was Aunt May from a Spidey book I don’t read. I am very glad I was wrong.

  23. First, I love the riff on Feild of Dreams. I love that movie and I think the speach speaks as well to how I feel about comics as it does about how the characters in that movie feel about baseball.

    And I loved that AvX panel.

  24. The best panel was Emma Frost’s face after that AvX panel. “Well here it goes.” Great facial expression.