The latter part of 2020 was again taken up on the fun side mostly with Marvel Unlimited reading inspired by random pages from Marvel Previews catalogs. I also threw in an N.K. Jemisin novel and the Alex Trebek autobiography. On the project side, it was more Teen Titans and Mayfair RPG material, for background on my DC Heroes RPG Watchmen post, along with an Einstein biography for the next post.

As before, I’m not avoiding spoilers, including a major Teen Titans spoiler.

I Am Groot (2017)

Christopher Hastings and Marco D’Alfonso
7.0/10 · August 4, 2020

Groot, only able to say 3 words, has a hard time being the focus. Even in this allegedly solo series, much of the real interest and development centers around the setting and a new supporting cast (the Guardians get jettisoned early on). He’s in Baby Groot mode through this, and though it seems for a minute like he might grow back up, he doesn’t. So, return to status quo. Enjoyable enough but pretty forgettable too.

Invincible Iron Man (2016) #7–11

Brian Michael Bendis and various artists
8.5/10 · August 8, 2020

Bendis has his strengths and weaknesses, but something I’ve really come to appreciate about him is his strong commitment to POC representation. Riri Williams is the Iron “Man” in this title, while Stark is represented by an AI version of himself. Overall this works and is pretty interesting, and I love reading the comments in the lettercols from readers who feel seen for the first time. An odd thing: I think this is the first time in this project that a random selection has led into something I’d already read in a previous project, in this case the line-wide Marvel Legacy read. Overall, solid and enjoyable Bendis.

Unstoppable Wasp (2017) #7–8

Jeremy Whitley, Elsa Charretier, and Ted Brandt
9.8/10 · August 8, 2020

I only read two issues of this, but I loved it! I think it’s the best characterization of the Wasp I’ve ever seen, and I loved the girl-positive and science-positive qualities of it. I was more touched by the ending of this, after 2 issues, than I’ve felt by whole series I’ve read front-to-back.

Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man (2017) #1–#310 [20 issues]

Chip Zdarsky and various artists
9.4/10 · August 13, 2020

Charming and thrilling Spider-Man writing. Zdarsky does a wonderful job of mixing humor and poignancy. This run is probably most notable for the “My Dinner With Jonah” issue, in which Peter unmasks to JJJ and they become uncomfortable allies. Really hits a lot of the human levels of Spidey, and finds him showing compassion (sometimes a ridiculous amount of compassion) for people. Also loved the documentary issue. My main complaint was that 20 issues is too few. (Well, and that Marvel keeps screwing with issue numbers.)

Avengers (2016) #11–690 [20 issues]

Mark Waid, Al Ewing, Jim Zub, et al.
7.3/10 · September 3, 2020

There was something fundamentally unsatisfying about this run. The first parts were just frill stories, requiring other crossover reading to understand, and then came Avengers: No Surrender. I found it hard to get past the extremely contrived, video-game-ish premise, in which the Grandmaster has STOLEN THE EARTH for a COSMIC GAME!!! Seemed like the main point was to resurrect the Hulk. On the other hand, it deepened my love for Al Ewing, who apparently wrote the best part, a dialogue between Jarvis and Bruce Banner, in which J suggested that what they avenge are the moments in which they fail to live up to their best selves.

The City We Became

N.K. Jemisin
9.6/10 · September 5, 2020

In many ways I enjoyed this more than the Broken Earth trilogy. More grounded, more fun. It made me want to revisit New York, and bring Dante along. Some parts felt a little imperfect, like the King Kong scene (really?!) and the “everybody brown = good, everybody white = bad” character layout, but overall just a marvelous fantasy. And I suppose I’m not being quite fair with my brown/white comment above — the character of Aislyn was fascinating as a sympathetic tool of evil. Maybe she’ll be redeemed? Can’t wait for the next two.

Champions (2016) #12–18

Mark Waid, Humberto Ramos, et al.
6.2/10 · September 8, 2020

This is mainly the Avengers/Champions crossover (“Worlds Collide”), and the fallout centering around Viv Vision, her humanization and duplication. It’s a good story, the crossover part of which I’m encountering for third time (after the Legacy read-through and the Avengers read-through). But I hate hate HATE Ramos’s art. It mars the entire thing badly, where it doesn’t ruin it outright.

The Watchmen Companion

Ray Winninger, Dan Greenberg, Alan Moore, et al.
7.7/10 · September 26, 2020

Obviously I’ll write more about this in my Watchmen post, but for here I’ll just say I really appreciated the chance to be able to buy all this stuff in one volume rather than hunt it down. I have a hard time envisioning how some of it would work as an RPG, and the sourcebook didn’t necessarily add all that much, but Moore’s involvement, especially in the Winninger module, makes the whole thing noteworthy.

The New Teen Titans Volume Six

Marv Wolfman, George Pérez, Romeo Tanghal
8.8/10 · September 27, 2020

Continued character development, and buildup to the payoff that will occur in the next volume. We see Terra increasingly trusted by the group, but we also know she’s a mole. The books continue to sow doubt in both directions — she’s set up to betray the Titans, but will she be swayed by their goodness in the end? Meanwhile, Robin is finally FINALLY sick of being “Robin”, and sheds that identity, in time for Kid Flash to quit for good, while Donna figures out crucial stuff about her past that resolves longstanding questions for her. This volume is a great example of the kinds of benefits you can reap when a team does a long, long run on a title — continuity is an account that pays increasing dividends the longer you let it build.

The New Teen Titans Volume Seven

Marv Wolfman, George Pérez, and Mike DeCarlo
9.5/10 · October 5, 2020

Payoff at LAST! The first half of this book is the justly famous “Judas Contract” arc, which culminates the very long Terra storyline. Turns out she is irredeemable, which is a choice I loved. Having her be just a flat-out sociopath, even more so than the Terminator, subverts the expected clichés about her childlike innocence and the inherent goodness of wide-eyed girls. Then we end the even longer HIVE storyline with some more unexpected background — it’s gone on for much of this time without its initial leadership, driven by a wife just wanting to be true to her husband’s memory. Meanwhile ripples from Terra’s betrayal get explored, especially in Beast Boy. Great stuff.

The New Teen Titans Volume Eight

Marv Wolfman, George Pérez, et al.
9.6/10 · October 12, 2020

Two huge highlights in this volume. The first is the wedding of Donna Troy. It’s an incredible art feast by Pérez, just gorgeous pages with superbly creative composition. The story is suffused with love of all kinds, and unlike the typical superhero wedding, very little conflict. There’s a bit of insecurity here and there to drive some minor drama, but for the most part it’s happy. Even ominous foreshadowing resolves into a beautiful sequence with Hippolyta. The other high point of this volume is the confrontation between Beast Boy and Terminator, whose climactic sequence is… six pages of CONVERSATION. Punches fail, talking wins. Wonderfully scripted too — the kind of lines you want to say out loud. The rest of the collection is fine, but for those two issues it’s a must-have.

Not Brand Ecch (1967) #1–13 and #14 (2017)

Stan Lee, Marie Severin, Roy Thomas, et al.
4.9/10 · October 25, 2020

A super-try-hard MAD magazine wannabe, sticking mostly to Marvel-adjacent content (including DC parodies), but sometimes drifting into movie/TV parodies and the like. The vast majority is just. not. funny. Occasional exceptions are when they do meta-commentary on their own clichés (“Something happening to Bulk! Same thing that happens around this point in every Bulk story!”). Not infrequently topical, but topical to the late 60s, and some of the referents just aren’t that available now. The MAD-style takeoff names are just exhausting. Really, every issue is exhausting, not just because they’re so dense but because they’re just so overextended. Also, just kinda boring. These took forever to read, because I read them before bed and (unlike many other comics in that scenario), only got a few pages in before nodding off. There was a #14 published as a part of Marvel Legacy in 2017, which was a little more successful, because it was written by some people who are actually funny. (Including Ryan North.)

Inhumans – Once And Future Kings (2017)

Priest & Phil Noto
9.0/10 · October 26, 2020

Okay, first of all, points for the fun Lockjaw backup stories by Ryan North and Erica Henderson. But also, the overall Inhumans story is great! I love seeing them as teens, and Priest does a great job of exploring the thematic reverberations of the Alpha Primitives. Plus, the art is absolutely gorgeous. And also, the whole thing feels just fun. The Spider-Man team-up was unexpected and awesome.

Old Man Logan (2016) #25–30

Ed Brisson & Mike Deodato Jr.
7.5/10 · October 28, 2020

So, alternate universe versions of heroes fighting other alternate universe versions of heroes from other universes always feels pretty low stakes to me. I just don’t care that much about time-displaced Wolverine from dystopia fighting time-displaced Hulk from other dystopia. There are some nice little moments with here&now Hawkeye, and what feel like some pretty clear overtones about Trump. Also, the art is pretty and often creatively composed.

The Answer Is…

Alex Trebek
9.0/10 · November 4, 2020

A really delightful read, which made me appreciate Alex on a deeper level. His perspective on life & illness was great — reminded me a little bit of Roger Ebert, though more on the lite side. Also, OMG the swearing is a riot! In any case, a quick but satisfying experience.

Runaways (2003) #1–18 and Runaways (2005) #1–24

Brian K. Vaughan, Adrian Alphona, et al
9.1/10 · November 7, 2020

This is my second or third trip through some of these comics, which is down to random vagaries, but I still find them enjoyable, which is down to Vaughan. Characters are very well drawn, and he does a lovely job of striking the emotional notes in between the plotty stuff. I have some mixed feelings about the characters still (can’t see the point of Chase, and Alex’s “brilliance” is questionable), but the ones I love (Molly, Nico, Gert) I really love.

Astonishing X-Men (2017) #1–12

Charles Soule + various artists
9.4/10 · November 24, 2020

This was great! Granted, the point of the whole thing was to resurrect Charles Xavier (and maybe to take Fantomex off the board), but it was done with tremendous thought and style. With this series, Soule became a writer to watch for me. He really gets the symbolic levels of the X-Men, and superheroes in general. For instance, bringing in Proteus to showcase how protean they all are — Psylocke, Xavier, Rogue, and so forth — is lovely. And I’m a sucker for mindscapes like Soule’s verison of the astral plane. Really satisfying read.

Black Panther (2018) #1–22

Ta-Nahisi Coates + various artists
8.9/10 · December 6, 2020

So, first thing, I’ve finally hit the point in this project where I’m opening runs that haven’t yet ended. That’s kind of unsatisfying, to end with a “To Be Continued.” But in this case, it’s unsatisfying because the series itself is great. Granted, it builds a lot on Coates’ previous BP run, which I haven’t read, but now I’d really like to, because “The Intergalactic Empire Of Wakanda” epic is both wonderfully told and quite thought-provoking. I’d heard of Coates as an essayist and opinion journalist, but knew nothing about his fiction writing. He certainly doesn’t disappoint here. The entire concept of T’Challa being enslaved by the empire that he himself set in motion, with Wakanda’s gods grasping for power in the background, goes way against cliché and makes for an intriguing unfolding. Also, the story’s structure keeps raising and answering questions. One thing I don’t quite get though: what is going on with time? Seems like in book one years go by, but T’Challa doesn’t seem noticeably older, and not much has changed in Wakanda. Confusing.

Thanos Wins: Thanos (2016) #13–18 & Thanos Annual #1

Donny Cates, Geoff Shaw, et al.
2.8/10 · December 7, 2020

Bleah. I wasn’t crazy about the first 12 issues of this (Lemire’s run), but Cates’ is significantly worse. The whole thing seems fascinated with darkness and badassery in a way that feels like it comes out of a 7th-grade male’s basement. Yet another dark sad take on Hulk, Dark Silver Surfer, multiple Thanoses, “Cosmic Ghost Rider” whose penance stare has no effect on Thanos, blah blah blah. Amoral horseshit. I will say that the annual was pretty fun though, mainly because various other writers got a crack at the concept.

Captain America (2018) #1–22

Ta-Nahisi Coates + various artists
9.3/10 · December 18, 2020

Once again this is an incomplete series as of today, and once again that’s a drag because Coates tells a fantastic story. This is Captain America for the Trump era, or rather the follow-up for Secret Empire, which was REALLY Cap for the Trump era. And as good as Coates is about exploring what American symbols mean when the country is deeply sick, he’s even better in this series about gender. There is a LOT about what it means to be “a man”, and a lot about sisterhood and a woman’s need to rescue herself rather than having a man do it for her. The women rescue Cap a lot, which really works for me.

FF variant cover issues

Marvel
8.0/10 · December 19, 2020

All from 2018. Venom #5, Weapon H #6, X-23 #3, X-Men:Red #7. As usual, Cates leaves me cold on Venom. Greg Pak is pretty respectable at selling the ridiculous concept of a Hulkverine. My favorite thing about Mariko Tamaki’s X-23 is her portray of Gabby, the fun clone. And Tom Taylor sketches a great adventure in just one issue, pulling in lots of great scenes for the X-Men. Hard to aggregate a rating for these, so let’s just say… 8.

Einstein: His Life And Universe

Walter Isaacson
10.0/10 · December 21, 2020

This was a fantastic biography. Fascinating material, written very well and researched impeccably. It felt to me like the Platonic ideal of what a biography ought to be. I learned about very complex science alongside deep insights of Einstein’s fundamental qualities as a human being. Not to mention, it gave me everything I needed and more for my Watchmen project.