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[BlueStreak]

Avengers Academy #13
as selected by Ameobas
Story by Christos Gage
Art by Sean Chen, Scott Hanna
Colors by Jeromy Cox
Letters by VC - Joe Caramagna
Cover by Billy Tan, Leonardo Olea, Amanda Conner, Paul Mounts [more...]
Publisher Marvel Comics
Cover Price: $2.99

It's Super Hero Prom and the Sinister Six in two big issues of the comic iFanboy named the “Best New Book of 2010”! First the Academy hosts a dance like none you've ever seen, guest starring the Young Allies, former members of the Initiative...and featuring smack downs and smooch downs! Then the trainees get a crash course in big-time villainy as they take on Spider-Man's greatest foes, the Sinister Six, in a story that will have major ramifications when FEAR ITSELF hits next month!




SilverPhoenix has next week's pick.


If you would like to join the group, it's easy. Just post a review and I'll add you to the member's list. As long as you stay active, eventually it will be your turn to make a pick.

With $4 comics becoming the norm, the economy being what it is and the growing popularity of mail order services the Review Group recognizes that it's becoming harder and harder to commit to participating each and every week. As long as you can post one review per calendar month you will stay in the member's list. It doesn't matter if you post your review the week of it's release or if you post it later. There is no such thing as a "late" review.

The only request I make is that if you don't plan on posting a review or if you're going to be posting late is that you drop a note in the thread so that I can keep track of who is active and who isn't. The Spreadsheet of Doom is thorough, but it can't read your mind.


Comics are to be scored on a scale from 1-10. 1 being suck, 10 being a damn good comic. Beyond that, there's no right or wrong.


If it's your week, you must announce your selection by 5pm EST the day Diamond releases it's shipping list. If you do not announce your pick at that time, I will add a poll to the thread that will remain open until 12pm EST so that the group can make the selection for that week. (If you're seriously MIA, I'll probably put the poll up sooner) To ensure that you know it's your week, I will PM you when Midtown's list goes live on Thursdays. Also you'd better keep in mind the Amber Atoms rule, if your pick isn't reviewed by 2 or more people you will be exiled from the Group for 1 year. Our definition of a single issue comic is limited to comics listed at $3.99 or lower, anything above that is off limits. Also, to prevent utter filth being chosen deliberately, the Weird Worlds Rule has also gone into affect. Any book scoring a new all-time low (2.12 as of today) will not count as a miss if people wisely choose not to purchase it. Any poor soul who did review the book will earn a free pass on a book of their choice.

Ameobas (this week)
SilverPhoenix
Doombug
Always Right
AMS
Mammon, Fool Breaker
john lewis hawk
Zero
Royal Nonesuch
Kerny
Victorian Squid
Agent Panic
Stephen Day
GHERU
Jude Terror
GLX
Punchy
BlueStreak
guitarsmashley
starlord
John Snow
Sweet James Jones
Daringd

BLUE indicates explanation given for not posting a review.
RED indicate that no review or explanation has been posted in two weeks.
RED and BOLD will be deleted at the end of the week unless a review or explanation is posted.


Eventually, I (or amlah) will putting together all of our reviews and we will have our very own article on the front page of The Outhouse! If you would like for your review to be included, please try to have it posted by the end of day on Monday.

[******]

Yay, the RG is back! I was bummed about there not being a thread last week.

[Zero]

This was a pretty good comic, reminded me of some of the better issues of The Initiative. Although I am thoroughly sick of Pym and Tigra without even reading a book they've been in since Siege.

[******]

You crazy, Pym is a great character.

[doombug]

I love this book, by a lot. Chris is one of the best writers at Marvel and dare I say, in comics.

[Zero]

I'm talking about the Scientist Supreme who loves building evil robots and moping about what a loser he is. Clearly you're thinking of the Marvel Universe's hard rockin' Sonny Bono substitute who is not the Pym I've seen lately.

[Royal Nonesuch]

Jerks!

[******]

I'm talking about the Scientist Supreme who loves building evil robots and moping about what a loser he is. Clearly you're thinking of the Marvel Universe's hard rockin' Sonny Bono substitute who is not the Pym I've seen lately.

I don't think he's been in anything I've read since Slott's MA which I liked but probably only read half of.

[******]

I love this book, by a lot. Chris is one of the best writers at Marvel and dare I say, in comics.

Much like Jeff Parker two weeks ago, he excels at being unspectacular IMO.

[SilverPhoenix]

This was good. Really good. Christos may not innudate you with awesome moments, but damn does he know how to tell a story. I was smiling from beginning to end with this comic. Best Avengers book on the market, bar none.

[GLX]

I'll be reviewing this when the issue is collected in trade. Also, I just have to say that this series is tighter than Bendis' Avengers titles.

[Rockman]

Avengers Academy #13

Finally a fun comic book that doesn't suck.

Great character moments, great art, great book.

9/10

[SilverPhoenix]

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page ... ew&id=3462 - I'm going to leave this here. I MIGHT address this sucker in my review.

[Victorian Squid]

Yeah that would pretty much be my review too.

[Amoebas]

Avengers Academy #13

This title is imo, the best non cosmic Marvel book there is right now, but you'd be hard pressed to see why with this issue.

Gage has been a breath of fresh air at Marvel for me, he has great characterization, understands that continuity is not a curse and actually writes stuff that takes more than 5 minutes to read. He's done some great work making me care about the characters in this series. But everything here was just so, so... unGage like.

As for the story, there's a dance and the Academy invites some other teen guests. That I've never heard of most of the visitors is okay, but nothing in this book makes me want to discover who any of the are.

Of course with any gathering of teens there's going to be drama...

Reptil still dealing with his 'older' self in what I thought was a potentially great storyline. Sadly, Gage must not have thought so as he abruptly ends it with a bat of a pretty girl's eyelash.

Mettle & Hazmat - what started last issue continues to blossom in this one, but (like the other review mentioned) in the most silly sit-com way possible.

Striker & Veil - Is it romance, don't know, hope not because Striker's a dick that I have feigning interest
in.

Finesse - Gag me! All the potential she had in the first few issues has been squandered lately. She's the most unlikeable character I can think of right now.

Justice & Firestar - I'm old school, so of course I prefer them as a couple, but barring that, once we get past the generic "Sleeping with" over-reaction, their talk is probably the highlight of the issue.

Hank & Tigra. Love Hank and glad to see him moving on. Tigra though? In just 5 pages she goes from 'don't even think about kissing me' to 'meet me in my room in 5'. I mean, she's always been easy, but c'mon Gage - make Hank work for it at least. And does she actually think no one is going to suspect anything when the only two adults in the room leave? She must have forgotten her sermon on chaperoning from page 1.

Speedball - NO drama for him at all here. He actually just seemed happy. BOUT FUCKING TIME! So glad to see that Penance shit is over with and we have the real Robbie back!

Anyway, by the end of the issue all the kids are having fun. There's nothing wrong with this. I should add that Marvel books these last 5+ years have had an enormous lack of 'fun', so any scene like this is welcome. But did they have to do it with a scene lifted straight from the 'Brady Bunch too much soap in the washing machine' bit?

The art is okay, not the best I've seen Chen do. I was never convinced his 30 year old Reptil was anything more than a 16 year old Reptil (just with a fuzzy chin). His action scenes were iffy too. I was puzzled how Firestar was able to throw Justice for instance.

All in all, this is still one of the better books on the shelf. I'm confident this is just a one-off misfire.

Story - 6
Art - 5
Overall - 5.5