DC Comics from Diamond Distributors for April 11 2012

DC COMICS

DEC110322 100 BULLETS HC BOOK 02 (MR) $49.99

FEB120200 BATGIRL #8 $2.99

FEB120196 BATMAN AND ROBIN #8 $2.99

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DEC110334 BATMAN BUST (RES) $70.00

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FEB120204 GREEN LANTERN #8 $2.99

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JAN120309 HITMAN TP VOL 06 FOR TOMORROW $29.99

NOV110204 I VAMPIRE TP $29.99

FEB120235 LEGION LOST #8 $2.99

JAN120311 LEGION OF SUPER HEROES WHEN EVIL CALLS TP $29.99

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JAN120314 TEEN TITANS PRIME OF LIFE TP $19.99

FEB120297 UNWRITTEN #36 (MR) $2.99

Marvel Comics from Diamond Distributors for April 11 2012

MARVEL COMICS

FEB120572 AMAZING SPIDER-MAN HOOKY #1 $4.99

FEB120554 AVENGERS ASSEMBLE #2 WITH DIG CDE $3.99

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JAN120730 DAREDEVIL SEASON ONE PREM HC WITH DIG CDE $24.99

FEB120637 DEADPOOL #53 $2.99

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FEB120592 FANTASTIC FOUR #605 $2.99

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JAN128259 FREE MARVELS AVENGERS MOVIE ROLLED POSTER PI

FEB120642 GOLDFISH GN HC (MR) $24.99

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FEB120591 JOURNEY INTO MYSTERY #636 $2.99

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FEB120588 MIGHTY THOR #12.1 $2.99

NOV110599 MMW CAPTAIN AMERICA HC VOL 06 $59.99

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FEB120556 SECRET AVENGERS #25 $3.99

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FEB120559 ULTIMATE COMICS X-MEN #10 WITH DIG CDE $3.99

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FEB120693 X-MEN DARK PHOENIX SAGA TP NEW PTG $24.99

FEB120688 X-MEN LEGACY LOST LEGIONS TP $16.99

IDW Publishing from Diamond Distributors for April 11 2012

IDW PUBLISHING

FEB120363 COBRA ONGOING #12 $3.99
JAN120436 DANGER GIRL REVOLVER #3 (OF 4) $3.99
FEB120317 DUNGEONS AND DRAGONS FORGOTTEN REALMS 100 PG $7.99
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FEB120399 OZ TREASURY ED $9.99
FEB120384 SMOKE AND MIRRORS #2 (OF 5) $3.99
JAN120482 ZOMBIES VS ROBOTS ASHLEY WOOD PORTFOLIO SET $20.00

Dark Horse Comics from Diamond Distributors for April 11 2012

DARK HORSE COMICS

FEB120028 ALABASTER WOLVES #1 (OF 5) RUTH CVR $3.50
JAN118120 BERSERK TP VOL 21 (MR) $14.99
DEC110073 BRODYS GHOST BOOK 03 $6.99
FEB120034 BTVS SEASON 9 FREEFALL #8 JEANTY VAR CVR $2.99
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NOV110056 CLASSIC MARVEL CHARACTERS FF #3 HUMAN TORCH $49.95
FEB120022 CONAN THE BARBARIAN #3 CARNEVALE CVR $3.50
FEB120017 DARK MATTER #4 (OF 4) $3.50
DEC110074 DOLLHOUSE EPITAPHS TP VOL 01 $18.99
JAN120124 DOMO DRESS MAGNET SET $8.99
FEB120036 LOBSTER JOHNSON THE BURNING HAND #4 (OF 5) JOHNSON CVR $3.50
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FEB120021 ORCHID #6 (MR) $3.50
FEB120011 STAR WARS AGENT O/T EMPIRE IRON ECLIPSE #5 (OF 5) $3.50
FEB120013 STAR WARS KNIGHTS OF THE OLD REPUBLIC WAR #4 (OF 5) $3.50

Image Comics from Diamond Distributors for April 11 2012

IMAGE COMICS

FEB128166 SAGA #1 VAR CVR 2ND PTG (MR) $2.99
FEB120414 68 SCARS #1 (OF 4) CVR A JONES (MR) $3.99
FEB120416 68 SCARS #1 (OF 4) CVR C JONES (MR) $3.99
FEB120402 AMERICAS GOT POWERS #1 (OF 6) $2.99
DEC110544 ARTIFACTS #16 $3.99
OCT110543 EPOCH #5 (OF 5) $3.99
JAN128160 GLORY #24 VAR CVR 2ND PTG $2.99
FEB120503 GLORY #25 $2.99
DEC110555 HAUNT #23 $2.99
FEB120448 INFINITE HORIZON TP $17.99
JAN128290 PETER PANZERFAUST #2 2ND PTG (MR) $3.50
FEB120514 PETER PANZERFAUST #3 (MR) $3.50
FEB120519 SAGA #2 (MR) $2.99
FEB120405 SECRET #1 $3.50
FEB120457 SEVERED HC (MR) $24.99
FEB120467 STRANGE TALENT OF LUTHER STRODE TP VOL 01 (MR) $14.99
JAN128162 THIEF OF THIEVES #2 VAR CVR 2ND PTG $2.99
FEB120525 THIEF OF THIEVES #3 $2.99

Comics and Magazines from Diamond Distributors for April 11 2012

COMICS

FEB120869 ADVENTURE TIME #3 $3.99

JAN121168 ARISA GN VOL 07 $10.99

NOV111070 AVALON CHRONICLES HC VOL 01 $19.99

JAN121282 BAKUMAN TP VOL 10 $9.99

FEB121001 BASIC INSTRUCTIONS CURSE O/T MASKING TAPE MUMMY GN $14.95

JAN121259 BETTIE PAGE IN DANGER #3 (MR) $9.95

JAN120835 BETTY & VERONICA DOUBLE DIGEST #200 $3.99

DEC110786 BILLY TUCCI A CHILD IS BORN ONE SHOT ARTIST ED $4.99

JAN121011 BIONIC WOMAN #1 $3.99

DEC110767 BIZZARE THRILLS PARAGON PUBLICATIONS STORY TP (MR) $29.95

JAN121283 BLEACH TP VOL 39 $9.99

JAN121256 BLOOD ALONE GN VOL 06 $11.99

JAN121281 BLUE EXORCIST GN VOL 07 $9.99

SEP111121 BODYSNATCHERS #4 (OF 6) $2.99

DEC110779 CAVEWOMAN FEEDING GROUNDS #2 (MR) $3.75

NOV110688 CAVEWOMAN MUTATION #1 $3.75

DEC110780 CAVEWOMAN MUTATION #1 BUDD ROOT SP ED PI

NOV110689 CAVEWOMAN MUTATION #1 DEVON MASSEY SP ED PI

JAN121333 CHARMED TP VOL 03 $15.99

JAN121262 CLINT #15 (MR) $6.99

DEC110896 COMICS SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE ONE SHOT $3.99

JAN121088 COUNTDOWN 7 DAYS GN VOL 02 $12.95

FEB121115 COURTNEY CRUMRIN ONGOING #1 $3.99

DEC111155 COURTNEY CRUMRIN SPEC ED HC VOL 01 $19.99

FEB120783 CROSSED BADLANDS #3 (MR) $3.99

FEB120784 CROSSED BADLANDS #3 TORTURE CVR (MR) $3.99

FEB120785 CROSSED BADLANDS #3 WRAP CVR (MR) $3.99

FEB121294 DARK SHADOWS NOVEL ANGELIQUES DESCENT SC $14.99

FEB121295 DARK SHADOWS NOVEL SALEM BRANCH SC $12.99

JAN121299 DAWN OF THE ARCANA TP VOL 03 $9.99

NOV111086 DEAD OR ALIVE #3 (OF 4) $3.50

JAN120798 DEAD POOH ONE SHOT $3.99

JAN121298 DEVIL & HER LOVE SONG GN VOL 02 $9.99

FEB121018 DF KIRBY GENESIS #1 ACETATE ROSS SGN CVR $50.00

DEC111063 DF TRUE BLOOD EX SIX BOOK SET $19.99

OCT111125 EXTINCTION SEED #2 (OF 6) CVR A & B $2.99

JAN121326 GFT ALICE IN WONDERLAND #4 A CVR CHEN (MR) $2.99

JAN121327 GFT ALICE IN WONDERLAND #4 B CVR SEJIC (MR) $2.99

FEB121035 GIANTS BEWARE GN $14.99

DEC110787 GOLD DIGGER #137 $3.99

SEP111122 GORE #5 (OF 12) (MR) $2.99

JAN121144 GUILDED AGE TP VOL 01 $19.99

JAN120939 HELLRAISER ANNUAL #1 (MR) $4.99

JAN121081 ITAZURA NA KISS GN VOL 08 $16.95

JAN121264 JAMES BOND OMNIBUS TP VOL 03 $19.95

FEB120755 JINX HC (RES) $16.99

FEB120756 JINX SC (RES) $9.99

JAN121300 KAMISAMA KISS TP VOL 08 $9.99

JAN120838 KEVIN KELLER #2 $2.99

JAN121014 KEVIN SMITH BIONIC MAN #8 $3.99

JAN121238 KINGDOM CALL O/T WILD TP $24.99

JAN120969 KITCHEN SINK PRESS FIRST 25 YEARS $15.00

DEC118185 LADY MECHANIKA #1 CVR G 3RD PTG (PP #1009) $3.99

DEC110986 LORD OF THE JUNGLE #3 (MR) $3.99

JAN120842 MEGA MAN #12 $2.99

JAN121090 MOON & BLOOD GN VOL 03 $6.95

JAN121285 NURA RISE O/T YOKAI CLAN GN VOL 08 $9.99

OCT111128 ONE #7 (OF 10) $2.99

FEB120891 OZ WONDERLAND CHRONICLES JACK & CAT TALES #3 (OF 3) $3.99

JAN120970 PETE AND MIRIAM GN (MR) $14.99

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JAN121284 ROSARIO VAMPIRE SEASON II TP VOL 08 $9.99

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JAN121302 SKIP BEAT TP VOL 27 $9.99

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JAN121334 TALES FROM NEVERLAND TP (MR) $12.99

DEC110971 TERMINATOR ROBOCOP KILL HUMAN TP $16.99

JAN121335 THEATER #5 A CVR CHEN (MR) $3.99

JAN121336 THEATER #5 B CVR GARZA (MR) $3.99

FEB121091 TINTIN YOUNG READER ED CRAB & GOLDEN CLAW $8.99

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JAN121257 TORADORA GN VOL 04 $11.99

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JAN121759 BRICKJOURNAL #18 $8.95
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JAN121363 COMICS BUYERS GUIDE #1689 $5.99
OCT111321 DC SUPERHERO CHESS FIG COLL MAG #2 JOKER BLACK KING $16.00
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JAN121395 FAMOUS MONSTERS OF FILMLAND RETRO #192 $8.99
DEC111340 HOBBY JAPAN MAR 2012 $16.60
JAN121403 RUE MORGUE MAGAZINE #121 $9.95
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JAN122069 WHITE DWARF #387 PI

I Reads You Review: AVENGERS VS. X-MEN #0

"Without a bang"

AVENGERS VS. X-MEN #0
MARVEL COMICS

WRITERS: Brian Michael Bendis, Jason Aaron
ARTIST: Frank Cho
COLORS: Jason Keith
LETTERS: Chris Eliopoulos
COVERS: Frank Cho with Jason Keith; Stephanie Hans (alternate cover)
40pp, Color, $3.99 U.S.

Rated: T+

Avengers vs. X-Men is Marvel Comics’ current giant, crossover, event series. I’ve read comments on the old Interweb that suggest Avengers vs. X-Men will be Marvel’s biggest publishing event in over a decade, at least from the point of view of sales.

I am sure that it will be a big thing. This planned 12-issue miniseries pits the Avengers and the X-Men against each other, apparently over The Phoenix. The X-Men are a sales and merchandising juggernaut for Marvel, and the franchise has produced five successful films for 20th Century Fox. The Avengers are a little less than a month away from their debut on the big screen, when the film, Marvel’s The Avengers, arrives. Two Iron Man movies have a combined gross of over one billion dollars in worldwide box office. In 2011, two other Avengers films, Thor and Captain America, each made more than 170 million dollars in domestic box office.

Avengers vs. X-Men #0 is a prologue to the main event and focuses on Avenger, Scarlet Witch, and X-Man, Hope Summers, and blends two separate stories starring each character. In the Scarlet Witch story (written by Brian Michael Bendis), the reality-warping mutant and long-time member of the Avengers hopes to get back into the superhero business. She takes on M.O.D.O.K., but ends up needing help from Spider-Woman and Ms. Marvel. This reunion leads to a bigger reunion, but perhaps, the Scarlet Witch can’t go home again.

In the Hope Summers story (written by Jason Aaron), the young woman called the “mutant messiah,” feels confined by others’ expectations of her. Hope spends her time ruthlessly punishing non-super-powered criminals, but now, she faces the Serpent Society.

For a prologue to a big, big event, Avengers vs. X-Men #0 is surprisingly blasé. The Avengers come across as stock figures in their appearance here, except for The Vision and the Scarlet Witch. This duo is where the fire is in this story, but the constraints forced upon the story smother the fire. The Hope Summers story is only a tad bit better – if it is actually appropriate for me to use the word “better” to describe this comic book. The other characters are wooden, and Hope is petulant, but in a totally boring king of way.

The art by Frank Cho is technically well-drawn, but looks like a mechanical exercise that at least 20 other robo-artists-for-hire could have done in the same drawing style and with the same lack of panache.

I hope issue #1 is better, and I’ll find out soon.

C+

Appearances:
HEROES: Scarlet Witch, Hope Summers; The Avengers: Beast, Iron Man, Ms. Marvel, Spider-Woman, Thor, The Vision, Wolverine; The X-Men: Cyclops, Emma Frost

VILLAINS: M.O.D.O.K.; The Serpent Society: Anaconda, Asp, Bushmaster, Cottonmouth, Puff Adder