Wolverine Origins 32 is sub-par when you compare it to the work of Daniel Way to be shown later on as well as Jason Aaron's far superior Manifest Destiny mini. Issue 3 of that will be talked of here as well. Wolverine and Daken settle the score with Cyber, who pants a lot and sweats a lot, and Wolverine shows that he's far smarter than he lets people know. Not much substance to this issue and just feels like fluff. A real catch-all issue that ties up some loose ends before Daken joins the Dark Avengers. Plus, Nick Fury shows up at the end to jumpstart the next story. One thing I do like about this comic is the real quick storylines. I wish more books incorporated that.
 
Wolverine Manifest Destiny 3 is more ass-kicking, more ninja stomping, Chinatown badassery. There isn't much to be said other than pure enjoyment emanates from this book. Wolverine is getting closer to his enemies and should have them taken down next issue. But the issue is just pure joy. Too bad the artist can't hit a monthly deadline and the art suffers for it. Big time.
 
Captain Britain and MI-13 9 is another great issue in a really great book. A lot of loose ends, again, being tied up, which makes me fear for this ongoing saga. But the book is solid gold. Cornell and Kirk tell a wicked good story that shows the aftermath of the battle with Plokta and Captain Midlands getting his just desserts (Which sucks, I really loved that character through this arc, the prickish Captain America vibe was working). Touches on continuity (dealing with Blade and Meggan especially) work really well and show that Cornell has a mastery of these characters. And the next arc looks to be a blast, what with Doc Doom and Dracula ON THE MOON no less. Pure joy.
 
Again, not much to be said other than people should be reading and it's a damn shame that they don't.
 
X-Factor 39 was fucking amazing, absolutely pure insanity and some of the best stuff this book has ever produced. I will never drop this book, unless Peter David leaves. And from his opening part of the book requiring no spoilers, I will spoil nothing. Go and read this book.
 
Uncanny X-Men Annual 2 featured no X-Men in it, at all. It featured X-Men villains and Namor the Sub-Mariner and a lot of really awesome character work, but essentially, no X-Men. And you know what? It just goes to show that Matt Fraction is one of the best writers working when he can write a story that doesn't rely on artwork to tell everything and completely make you root for a character that you've hated FOREVER. He makes sense out of Dark Reign more than any other writer to date has done and shows WHY Emma Frost is a part of it and why Namor is a part of it. And when the two vastly different art styles try to derail the comic, he tells a fascinating story about a woman who uses everyone to her own views on the world and crafts a great look into this universe. I'm in awe. And I hate Dark Reign so far.
 
Deadpool 6 is just a bit of fun, one that my friends and I discussed and determined that Paco Medina and Daniel Way may have crafted what amounts to be the best iteration of Deadpool to date. And I wasn't warm to the idea at all when it started. I wasn't sure what to think about this book. And now I know. An entire issue dealing with Wade's insanity, talking to himself, and the sheer lunacy of battling Tigershark out of water just makes me so happy and elated and makes me laugh out loud. He's a complete fuck-up but the book works. Especially the opening scene with his eye and just getting torn to shreds by Tigershark. What a complete perfect comic. One that I am willing to spend money on monthly.
 
X-Force 10 and 11 are what amounts to two vastly different takes on the book that works regularly in the espionage side of the world of mutants. 10 is awesome. Ghost Rider helps James Proudstar take down the Demon Bear while X-Force takes on clones created by Sinister in an attack to destroy the Legacy Virus. And when Laura injects herself and nearly dies, perfect. The level of character development in this book, combined with action, is top notch, every single time it comes out. And the scene with Laura and her melted skin is just too weird for words.
 
Issue 10 treated us with a look inside the mind of James Proudstar dealing with the demon bear and his tribe's resting places getting upset as well as Domino and her view of why this team is awesome. Issue 11 is just a bit of filler that tells the story of Eli Bard, a man who will certainly be ruthlessly murdered by these mutants in no time flat. One who has been alive for countless centuries. It just feels a little flat and unneeded and could have filled maybe a 2 page spread but instead gets a full issue's worth of work. The ending, however, gave me chills and will surely bring about some great agony for at least one of the characters in the book.
 
Avengers Books
 
I only still read Initiative. No more Mighty or New. No way am I picking up Dark Avengers (or Thunderbolts 2 Electric Boogaloo). I just read Initiative and I will stick with that for the foreseeable future.
 
Issue 20 deals with the aftermath of Secret Invasion. A lot of soul-searching. A lot of answering questions. A lot of asking questions. Tigra is pregnant with Skrull babies and that leaves us with what amounts to one of the grossest scenes in comics recent memory. The entire issue is closing up shop on some of the lingering plotlines. Oh yeah, and Mutant Zero isn't who any of us thought she was. She's Typhoid Mary. Which is a curveball and a half. One shining moment: Taskmaster is the leader of the Shadow Initiative. One sad moment: Ant-Man leaves to join the Thunderbolts.
 
Issue 21 is more aftermath, and Gage really shines here. He completely throws caution to the wind and is going to pull in ever more of the C- and D-list characters to make this book great. The issue deals with the second Graduation, one far less showy than the last and puts Bat-wing on the Shadow Initiative, Gorilla Girl on her way home, and quite a few others jumping ship. That is, until Ragnarok hits (that's the Clone Thor, thank Veloci-jesus they didn't call him Clor). His battles are awesome. The fight between him and Thor-Girl and him and Trauma are insane. And just enough to bring Gorilla Girl back to the fold, probably to die.
 
My only question is, can we please get a standard monthly artist. Since Caselli left, this book has suffered greatly. If Ramos could stick on this book for the long haul, that would be greatly appreciated. I don't see it happening, but I can dream can't I? Also, calling it Disassembled seems a bit tongue in cheek but makes me happy, seeing as how 4 years ago everything was Disassembled and now everything's in a Dark Reign.
 
Ghost Rider Books:
 
As I mentioned last time, I'm always so excited when there are two Ghost Rider books to talk about. I really hope that this continues for a very long, long time, but I don't imagine it will. Sadly.
 
Ghost Rider: Danny Ketch 4 works wonders to tell a major portion of the story and to throw Danny into his role as headhunter for Zadkiel, the role we see him in full-steam during Ghost Rider 31. The book casts a shadow on his actions as an addict, one who needs the power so bad because his entire life suffers without it.
 
Spurrier and Saltares have taken Ketch into a new realm, one that makes me both excited to have him back and terrified of what he might do to his own legacy. And that is the sign of great storytelling.
 
The book itself has him after the Rat King and finally getting more power, more rein over the power, and shows him siphon abilities from another G-Rider in order to jump into action. And that last splash is great.
 
Over in Ghost Rider 31, everything is hitting stride. The teams have joined forces. Ketch and the Zadkiel stormtroopers are attacking the last Spirits of Vengeance left in a city in the middle of the jungle, and Johnny Blaze has to decide to act. On the other end of the world, waiting, is Kowalski with the Hellfire Shotgun, waiting in the desert for his chance to jump in.
 
Ketch and Blaze are heading for a massive face-off, knockdown dragout next issue, and we get to see the lives of the left Spirits of Vengeance here. A husband and wife spirit who enjoy carnal pleasures, Sara looking on and wondering if it's all worth it as it all could be over tomorrow, and Johnny feeling sorry for himself before he gets snapped out of it by two children willing to die for his stupidity. Perfection. And the art team is sheer gold. I never want this book to end.
 
Ever.
 
Odds and Ends:
 
These are some of the books that don't really fit into any preconceived universe of books that I read. Ones that I love to read and will continue reading (if I can).
 
Venom Dark Origins 5 is one of those books, one that I will be sad to see go. It was the last issue of the mini and a doozy at that.
 
Angel and Zeb worked wonders with the story of Eddie Brock and his hellish turn to the dark side. It was so pretty and so beautiful in it's presentation that when this issue starts with the disgusting sequence of Eddie in the symbiote web and attacking Spider-man and everything around him, it turns so fast into insanity that there's no turning back.
 
It makes me miss Eddie Brock and his craziness as Venom. He should be Venom and Mac Gargan should be Scorpion. No way around it. This book cinches that.
 
The strange thing about this book is it completely sidesteps around the idiocy of Mary Jane and Peter giving up their marriage to Mephisto. It doesn't deal with it head-on, it just shows them as two people living together under the same roof, Mary Jane obviously knowing that he and Spider-Man are one and the same, and it makes me wish that they had just let it go.
 
But that's beside the point. The point is that this was an enjoyable end to an enjoyable arc. One that makes me long for the days of Eddie Brock.
 
Dead of Night: Werewolf by Night 1 was pure gold. One that I was almost not going to buy. Didn't want to buy. Didn't want to continue down the road of purchasing this comic after the Devil-Slayer finale left a bad taste in my mouth.
 
But Jesus am I glad I bought this. It is pure heaven. It is a werewolf comic that is brutal, to the point, and fucking awesome. Mico Suayan on art and Duane Swierczynski on words and this is one of those comics that easily passes everyone else by.
 
But not me. I love the character of Werewolf by Night. I love MAX comics. And this was solid for me.
 
People can bitch about creativity or trying something new with this, but this works for me. The story of Jack Russell retold for nowadays crowds and for the MAX world is brutal. It starts with a lone survivor in a stack of bodies that just happens to be a baby, and it ends the first issue with a dead pregnant lady. And everything in between is just gore, blood, guts, and werewolf action.
 
And I dig the shit out of it. Apparently, the only thing Duane can't write well is Cable, and this book makes me want to try that out again.
 
El Diablo 5 puts us in the second to last issue in the 6 issue mini, and Jai, Phil and Ande sure know how to invite us to a battle. The big action scenes here (in fact, almost all of it is action), deals with Uncle Sam and his Freedom Fighters vs El Diablo and Vorpal. And Diablo sure puts some of these bitches down for their dirty deeds.
 
It's crazy, it's awesome, it's fun, and that's just it. It's fun. It's light. It's a quick read but one that is enjoyable. It picks up the pace so much faster than the first 4 but still sticks to the same overall themes.
 
And the final portion of the book is great, what with Chato making another huge mistake and the world just might have to pay for it.
 
I don't want this book to end but knowing that it will might keep it still immensely sweet. I can't wait to see what happens next, as I've said a number of times so far, but really, where the hell can this book go unless it kills Chato? I want to know. Plus, it sucks that the book is ending, effectively getting rid of most characters of different ethnicity in the DC Universe (as Blue Beetle's book is getting cancelled). Very sad to see.
 
And finally, Unknown Soldier 4. I've said a lot about this book and every issue gets better. Every issue is more heartbreaking than the last and more ass-kicking at the same time.
 
It's weird to read this book and be equal parts mortified at the things going on around Moses as well as just filled with glee when he lets go and fights. It's terrifying.
 
I feel awkward trying to review this book, because I never have anything bad to say about it. But lets discuss one scene in particular. The last half of this beautiful issue, by Josh Dysart and Alberto Ponticelli, should be on display in an art museum.
 
When the rain starts to fall as Moses takes the kids out of the battle and leads them to safety, when the young man who was supposed to kill them drops his gun and leaves, it's heartbreaking. When Moses, in the rain, meets up with Mother Superior and delivers nearly all of the young girls, his head is low. He knows his lot in life now, as do we, but we are left heartbroken. He can never return to his old life now.
 
This book is beautiful, poignant, and perfect, every single month. And damn you for not reading it.