All-New Bullet Reviews #4

Welcome to All-New Bullet Reviews #4! It’s really the only place you’ll find Captain America and Godzilla in the same place.

CAPTAIN AMERICA #21 (Marvel)
This issue begins with an all black page that leads immediately into the action with S.H.I.E.L.D. agents facing down their own ultimate weapon, the mega mech/base hybrid, Gungnir. Meanwhile, after having defeated the super trippy villain Dr. Mindbubble last issue, Cap dukes it out with the Iron Nail. In dragon form, the Nail ceaselessly strikes out at Cap with pointed tendrils while spouting off about the evils of America, deep in the bowels of Gungnir. Cap fights valiantly, trying to put the bad guy down, or evade him long enough to get to the generator and shut down the death machine. Several of the tendrils sink into Cap’s back, but before he goes down, he manages to hurl his shield in a last-ditch effort to save the day. I won’t say anymore in the interest of spoilers, except that I’m really interested to see what happens with the cliffhanger draws “The Iron Nail” story to a close. Unfortunately it’s a little late, as this five-part story feels like it could have been done in four. Rick Remender’s run on Captain America to date has been all about big ideas and taking the hero out of his element, and if the setup at the end of this issue is any indication, the next story will be no different. We continue to see how Cap perseveres through loss after loss and in the worst situations. I’m curious to see how Remender will abuse this new complication in Cap’s life to show us how he will continue to be a hero, no matter what. -Newell Turner

GODZILLA: THE IDW ERA (IDW)
This one isn’t a comic book in the way we’re used to. This is more of a primer for new readers who may be curious about the exploits of the original Godzilla as done by the creative minds working for IDW Publishing. This one-shot works as a refresher for us long time readers of the IDW series and a great way for new readers, those of you who finally realized how awesome Godzilla is after seeing the recently released movie, to see all of the great things IDW has been doing with the Toho Universe all in one place!
This covers the two previous “ongoing” series as well as the various miniseries including the phenomenal Half-Century War, a book any comics fan should check out. It’s also packed with art work old and new. Really, overall, it’s a great package for anyone reading the series. I wasn’t sure about it at first but it’s really a handy book to own. Also: ANOTHER sweet cover! -Skott Jimenez

THE MAXX: MAXXIMIZED #8 (IDW)
IDW Publishing continues to reprint the iconic Image series from the 90’s and it’s never looked better! Of course, it’s still as odd as it was back in the 90’s but that’s what makes a book like this fun.
This issue reveals some of the mystery of what Maxx is under that mask as well as subtle hints of what Julie Winters role in everything really is. Is she in her dream, Maxx’s dream or… are they somehow sharing the same dream of the Outback? Mr. Gone is there to give answers that don’t really seem to help, of course, but there may be a grain of truth in what he says. Afterall, the Outback seems to be shrinking the most Julie and Maxx mess around with it. But where is all this going? Is Maxx a figment of Julie’s imagination? Is everything? Who knows, besides those lucky people who read the full run of this series already? All I can say is it’s off that this series is, after 20 years, still a breath of fresh air. The artwork of Sam Keith is always fun to look at and the whole idea of a story that’s so messed up yet to intriguing just fascinates me to no end. It makes me regret not picking this up when it originally began in 1993 but I’m eternally grateful to IDW for putting this series back on the racks. It’s something that more people need to be reading and enjoying. Take a ride outside the box with The Maxx and you’ll never look back! -Skott Jimenez

SHE-HULK #5 (Marvel)
This issue…. Alright, is begins the story of the ‘Blue File’, a story plot that has been festering since the series began. Something about a case were She-Hulk, Tigra, Shocker, and a few other heroes and villains were sued because of an incident that happened some time ago. Only problem is neither She-Hulk or anyone else involved really remember any of it. It’s an alright concept but the only thing here is… I don’t really care about it. Honestly, this series has been teetering on the edge of ‘getting dropped’ from my pull list for an issue or two but as much as I hate to say it I might actually be dropping this series with this issue. While I did enjoy the idea of a hero and villain sitting down and talking rather than fighting it really was the only thing that carried this issue. There is really nothing interesting happening and hasn’t been since the series began.
What really killed it for me, though, was the art. I had the hardest time getting into this book because the art was very distracting to say the least. It was almost like the old MTV series Aeon Flux but like a knock off version and nowhere near as interesting. Sorry, guys, I appreciate anyone’s hard work on a comic book but I’m afraid I’m dropping this series as of this issue. -Skott Jimenez

THE WALKING DEAD #128 (Image/Skybound)
Months have passed, Rick and his Community have rebuilt and are moving forward in a way they never thought possible before. They are making advancements that, before, seemed impossible (who knew something as simple a bread would become an advancement?) But the arrival of new people will probably shake things up a bit, especially with Negan still around.
What’s really interesting with these new folks is we’re seeing the meeting up with new people, as we’ve seen with Rick and co. many times, from a different perspective. We readers know that Rick is essentially a good guy, that the Community, the Hilltop, and the Kingdom are composed of, and led by, good people, people who want to survive in a world gone dead but these new folks don’t know that. It’s interesting seeing the distrust of something so good from the other side. As a reader you want to explain to these folks that you’ll likely never find as good a situation as you have with Rick but you know they have to find out for themselves. The problem is we know they are going to snoop around and they are going to find a certain foul-mouthed someone who probably should have been killed months ago but wasn’t. If these guys find Negan then we know he’s going to fill their heads with horror stories and Rick is going to have a HUGE problem in his… hand.
Beyond that, I love how Carl has grown up. I love how he’s accepted his injuries and how he covers up the damaged eye. He’s really coming into his own and I love it. Still a great series and gives me some Walking Dead love until the 5th season starts. -Skott Jimenex