The Next Level

Revolution

2012-02-06T06:57:00.000-08:00

YES! I'm still alive!

Long story short, all my staff quit on me. And as a result, I was kinda burnt out. But now, I'm recharged, and ready to bring The Next Level back to greatness again!

A small post will follow later during the week, reviewing the Dark Angel Saga from Uncanny X-Force, followed by a larger post spotlighting another series that's getting the Marvel Omnibus treatment: the AGE of APOCALYPSE!

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What do you think? Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Parallel Level - Anime Update (2011 Season)

2011-11-03T19:42:00.000-07:00

Mobile Suit Gundam AGE

Gundam AGE is a paradox. On one level, it's the logical extension of the Gundam universe, expanding it into areas that previous series' had only slightly considered. However, on the other level, the expansion into these areas is done by looking backward and adopting a far more PG-oriented stance on the series.

The plot of the series shows humanity under attack by the U.E. or the "Unknown Enemy". These forces (seemingly Alien in nature) are facing off against the forces of the Earth, bolstered by the help of a young boy named Flit Asuno. Flit built his own Gundam and is using it to fight the enemy.

In General, this feels like a poor follow-up to Gundam 00. The animation quality is lower, the quality of the storytelling is severely dumbed down, and the realism present in 00 is non-existent here. However, I'm interested in the fact that we already know that Flit will fail against the UE, as the story has already been announced to take place over three generations.

Verdict: Tentatively Sticking With It.

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Guilty Crown

At first, I watched this series thinking to myself, "Well, I need something a bit more mature than Gundam Age. Something like...Code Geass maybe." After hearing that some members of the Geass team were involved with this show, I strengthened my own resolve. I'm very glad I did.

Guilty Crown revolves around Japan in 2029. The country is under quarantine by a stand-in for the World Health Organization (in this show called the GHQ) due to a viral outbreak ten years ago. The GHQ effectively runs the country, and a group of Japanese Nationalist Terrorists called "Undertaker" or "Funeral Parlour" (depending on your translation) seek to reclaim their nation. Integral to this plan is the Void Genome, a genetic weapon that just happened to fall into the hands of an unwitting student, who is now caught up in the rebellion.

Every single major criticism I have about AGE is missing in Guilty Crown. The animation is fantastic, the storytelling is tight and concise, and the realism in terms of human conflict is played up. The major selling-point of the series involves the Void Genome weapon allowing the protagonist to draw out "Voids" (items that reflect a user's personality, like a sword, some pliers, or even a refrigerator) from people and using them. Each episode ends well, leaving me hanging and interested in what happens next.

Verdict: CONSISTENTLY WATCHING

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What do you think? Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level Up - The New 52

2011-10-02T19:04:00.000-07:00

Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, and Welcome to The Next Level. We are your source for comic book opinions and debates. I’m your host Stefan, and I’ll be here with you discussing Comic Books, Video Games, and other items of note. Please note, for a purely gaming blog, I'd recommend Pwning Pat's Game Blog. The Next Level would also like to thank Jackie Fong for designing our logo.

This week's post will not contain any issue specific reviews, but will instead focus on the line-wide relaunch of the DC Universe referred to as "The New 52" or as the DCnU.

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I'm going to ask a simple question of those of my readers who have been following the New 52: Did this change anything for you? Before any major details of the relaunch had been publicly revealed, I was skeptical. But as I learned that the New 52 was acting as a sort of "soft-reboot", I made the decision to withhold all criticisms until after the first round of 52 issues had been released. Now that they have, I'm free to ask my question:

What was the point?

At it's core, the New 52 was designed to draw in new readers, and entice older readers to pick up new series outside of their regular comfort zone. I've taken the time to evaluate how this event has affect myself, and other members of the Next Level Staff.

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Prior to the New 52 Relaunch, I was reading 4 DC Comics titles: Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps, Green Lantern Emerald Warriors, and The Flash. Heading into Week 1 of the New 52, my Pull List stood at 10 titles:

Justice League
Aquaman
Flash
Wonder Woman
Captain Atom
The Fury of Firestorm
Green Lantern
Green Lantern Corps
Green Lantern New Guardians
Red Lanterns

This would seem like a sizable increase, but in fact it is not. The four Green Lantern-related titles and the Flash would have remained in my pull list anyway. In addition, I'd been waiting for Aquaman and Firestorm's titles since the end of Brightest Day. In truth, I added three books to my monthly pull list. So, what did I think of the relaunch itself?

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I am proud fan of the Geoff Johns-inspired reinvention of the Green Lantern mythos over the last 7 years. While I enjoyed each of the four Green Lantern related books, they showed no sign of being affected in the slightest by the relaunch. If a new reader had picked up any one of these four books, it would have turned them off right way. Every element of each book was based on past experiences between characters, or plot elements established from Blackest Night.

I did not enjoy the Flash first issue, but I am willing to stick it out for at least the first arc. This issue was at least able to bring in new readers, and was far easier to understand with no preconceptions of the Flash. The Justice League issue was similarly insignificant. The issue was decent, but decompressed. I will be returning to these two issues next month however.

Wonder Woman and Captain Atom were the two largest failures of the DCnU to me. I'd always been interested in both of those characters in principle, and was waiting for a moment to jump onto them. However, each of their first issues were paper-thin, relying on extremely simplistic plot devices and clichés. I will not be picking up Wonder Woman next month, and I'm giving Captain Atom one more chance.

Aquaman and Firestorm represent two sides of the same dilemma: each character had serious issues to be dealt with as a result of Brightest Day. In Aquaman, the issues are side-stepped but approached in such a manner that we know they will be addressed shortly. In Firestorm, the consequences were far more serious, but also completely ignored. In the final issue of Brightest Day, it is revealed the Firestorm Matrix is damaged and will destroy the world in 90 days. In addition, Jason had just come to terms with the murder of his girlfriend at the hands of Ronnie, whom he must merge with to become Firestorm. In the new series, the two people dislike each other because of RACE ("Why don't you have Black friends?" "I have Black friends!"), and the impending destruction of the Matrix is completely ignored. Despite these shortcomings, I will be returning to Firestorm and Aquaman next month.

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Truthfully, my dear readers, I'm going to be picking up two books more than I had been in the previous month. For all the hype, I'm going to classify the New 52 as: MORE OF THE SAME.

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What do you think? Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 2.2 - Redefinition

2011-09-13T19:48:00.000-07:00

New Avengers Annual #1

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New Avengers Annual #1

This issue begins with a Wonder Man (Simon Williams for those keeping track at home) narrating what he believes to be the Avengers five biggest failures: Ultron, Scarlet Witch, the Civil War, the Incredible Hulk, and the Dark Avengers. Shortly after this, he gives his team a small pep talk, and tells them that the Avengers as a concept is wrong. His teammates agree with him, and they lay siege to Avengers Mansion.

The battle itself is frantic, and furious. Wonder Man himself engages Ms. Marvel high in the skies, while the remaining New Avengers are trounced handily (while the Revengers clearly show some expert planning and some sort of skill). As Anti-Venom defeats Spider-Man, and Goliath defeats the Thing, Ms. Marvel crashes to the ground beaten, as Wonder Man declares Avengers Tower as his next target.

Overall, the issue felt the the start of a longer story (which at least turned out to be the case thankfully). The art was absolutely amazing, as Dell'Otto knocked it out of the park. However, I was really disappointed that we didn't get to see more of the interaction between Ms. Marvel and Wonder Man. After their many years working together, I would have loved to have seen more than was shown. Maybe it will come in the Avengers Annual later on. I give this issue: 6.5/10

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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 2.1 - The Rebirth

2011-09-04T19:00:00.000-07:00

Ultimate Hawkeye #1

Over in the Southeast Asian Republic (SEAR), a revolution is underway. Officially, the rebels only occupy a small amount of territory, but everyone can see which way the wind is blowing. Hawkeye receives his marching orders from Nick Fury, who instructs him to support the government of the SEAR, despite the protests of many SHIELD agents who believe the rebels are being supported from within the government. At this moment, the Triskelion in the SEAR is attacked by superhumans.

A flashback then kicks us back a full month, with members of the SEAR military explaining to the Chancellor their Plan: a virus designed to wipe out the X-Gene. Once this virus is fully deployed, the military would distribute a serum to create an artifical X-Gene within certain soldiers, to create a superpowered army. The flashback ends, and Hawkeye fights off the attack on the Triskelion (having a pretty bad-ass moment in the process), and reports in to Fury. Fury after mulling over the options briefly, orders Hawkeye to get the serum.

This issue acts as sort of a companion piece to last week's Ultimate Comics Ultimates #1. On the whole, I enjoyed this issue. I've always been a big fan of political dramas, and seeing one play out in comics has always appealed to me. However, I did find the flashback sequence a bit too long. Generally, I think this issue speaks very well for the interconnected nature of the new Ultimate Universe. If you had not read Ultimates #1 last week, you didn't miss anything. However, if you did, you begin to see a more complete, cohesive picture of the direction of this universe. I give this issue 7/10

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Flashpoint #5

The issue opens up with Flash confronting Zoom about the Flashpoint Universe, asking how he changed time. Zoom, however, hits Flash with the truth: It was the Flash who had created this alternate timeline, not Zoom. Zoom explains that after standing at his Mother's grave (Flash #12), Barry went mad with grief, and ran back in time to stop Zoom from murdering her. However, by stopping Zoom, Barry's brazen actions acted as a bullet hitting a windshield: shattering time itself.

A fight ensues between the Flash and Zoom, ultimately ending with Thomas Wayne killing Zoom, and convincing the Flash to run back and stop himself from stopping Zoom. Barry tries to run into the past, but is instead pulled toward his mother. After explaining the situation, he pays his respects, and travels back and stops himself. In the end, Barry is able to stop himself, but a strange woman appears, and uses Barry's Speed Force energies to reintegrate three distinct timelines into a unified one. In the new timeline, Barry remembers everything, and tells only Batman.

I'm not going to lie, I was quite disappointed with this book. I'm not upset about the DCnU reboot, I'm just not sure I like the execution. There are more than a few contradictory story elements within this issue alone, but since I know this story will be more or less forgotten, I'm going to be a bit more lenient. I give this issue 5/10

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Justice League #1

This issue opens up with police trying to apprehend Batman, who in turn is trying to apprehend a very strangely dressed criminal. Batman corners the criminal, who promptly breathes fire at him, causing Green Lantern to swoop in for the save. After a small "Wait, you're real?" segment, Green Lantern and Batman attempt to chase the criminal, who perpetrates a suicide bombing in the name of Darkseid.

Immediately afterwards, Green Lantern and Batman decide that this being (who was extraterrestrial as identified by Hal's ring) may be connected with the rumours they've been hearing of a "Superman" in Metropolis. They decide to confront him. The scene then shifts to high school football star Victor Stone, who is angry with his Dad for not showing up to his game, as he works for an extraterrestrial branch of the government. The scene then switches back to Green Lantern and Batman finding Superman, who clearly is not impressed by the duo.

This issue was solid, but ultimately suffers from decompression. The book is called Justice League, but only three members are shown (four if you count the future Cyborg). In addition, this book isn't really as new-reader-friendly as I would have liked. That said, I have a personal rule of giving new books up to the end of the first story arc to entice me, so I'll wait. One final note: the scene with Green Lantern questioning Batman's "powers"? Priceless. I give this issue 6/10

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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Next Level Relaunch

2011-08-28T09:42:00.000-07:00

Gun...dam...

2011-07-04T16:55:00.000-07:00

This is a personal list, and as such is opinion-based. It is your right to disagree if you so choose.
Each entry will contain a screenshot, and a brief explanation of why it deserves a spot on this list.
There is no order to this list. The second item is no better or worse than the first.
THIS LIST IS INCOMPLETE

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Mobile Suit Gundam Wing: The Destruction of Space Fortress Barge

There is no simple way to explain the concept of Gundam Wing, but I will certainly try my best. The main characters are a team (in a loose sense of the word) of terrorists bent on freeing outer space from the tyranny of the Earth Alliance in general, and the OZ organization in particular. Now in Gundam Wing, allegiances shifted pretty much every five episodes, but OZ more or less always remained in the antagonist's role, anchored by their mobile space fortress, Barge. But this all changed in the latter 15 episodes of the series.

Another terrorist organization from space, calling itself White Fang, declared its independence from Earth immediately, and launched a military campaign with the Gundams caught in the middle. In the midst of the battle, the White Fang's ace pilot breaks through the OZ battle formations, and destroys Barge.

The key to this scene was twofold. First, the scene plays heavily on the knowledge of the viewer at how important Barge was to the OZ organization. Sure enough, once Barge fell, OZ fell. Secondly, the music being played in the background was not your standard background battle music. This was a much more energetic song, building to a crescendo when Barge is finally destroyed. This scene was shown in such a way that after watching it, you knew that a turning point had just been reached.

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Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam: The Death of Four Murasame

It is a cliché in the Gundam world that the main love interest for the protagonist must die (with one or two major exceptions). But once in a while, the death angle is performed so strongly, that it chills even the most jaded viewer.

Kamille and Four had been starcrossed lovers from the beginning. There was no chance of their relationship surviving, but during a battle between the AEUG and Titans, Four begins to come around to Kamille's way of thinking. However, the Psyco Gundam which Four had been riding in was attacked by Jerid Messa, and Four was killed. However, Zeta Gundam was a dark show, and instead of having Kamille scream out in pain at his lost love, he tries in vain to resuscitate her, and even carries her corpse back to his ship. In the end, with his lost love in his arms, Kamille turns to his commanding officer and makes a demand that will shape the remainder of the series (which there is no need to mention here, as you either have ZERO idea what I'm talking about and it'll take too long to explain, OR you already know so why bother).

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Mobile Suit Gundam SEED: Miriallia Snaps

Backstory: Miriallia is an NCO in the Earth Armed Forces. She's joined up to help because, through no fault of her own, she was stranded on an Earth ship, and chose to do something rather than be useless. Her boyfriend Tolle made the same choice. In the previous battle, her boyfriend was shot down, and killed. Throughout the next episode, Miriallia is barely maintaining her composure.

After beginning to lose control, she is escorted to sick bay by a fellow NCO, where she steps inside and attempts to cry, but the tears won't flow. However, her attempt wakes up a patient, a restrained enemy soldier who was being treated there. After insulting her a few times, the enemy soldier begins to realize that someone close to her had been killed, and he then started insulting her dead comrade, using a racial slur (as the war in Gundam SEED had ethnic overtones). This causes Miriallia to snap, grab a scalpel and attempt to murder the enemy soldier. Her friend NCO hears the ruckus from next door, and rushes in to keep Miriallia from completing her murderous task, and he holds her back while she screams, "Tolle is dead! How can Tolle be dead, while a piece of trash like this still lives!?!" The enemy soldier can only look on in shame for what he has done. Miriallia has lost her mind with grief, showing a very human side to this war.

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Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Destiny: Cagalli Returns

Gundam SEED Destiny was full of missteps. This was one of the few story points that was actually well-received. After a near-coup, the Seiren family had taken control of the nation of Orb from the Attha family, exiling the eldest child Cagalli from the nation, claiming that she holds no sway over Orb politics.

About 30 episodes later, Orb is invaded, and due to the mismanagement of the Seiren Administration, the nation appears as if it will fall. However, a squadron of Mobile Suits appears to bolster the Orb line, lead by the Akatsuki, piloted by Cagalli. The Seiren's are so happy to see Cagalli defend her homeland, Cagalli tricks them into verbally confirming that she is the legitimate ruler of Orb. Once this is done, she gives her first order: Arrest the Seiren Family for treason.

There's a reason this is on my list, and it's not because it's the greatest storyline in Gundam history or anything, but it's because you finally got to see something that you'd always wanted in Gundam SEED Destiny. GSD was one screw-up after another, and the fans were beginning to fall away from the series, mainly because of an over-reliance on nonsensical plots and clip shows. With this, the series began one final course correction, by removing most of the superfluous elements and trying to bring the show back to what it was meant to be...before finally screwing it up again and falling into obscurity.

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Mobile Suit Gundam 00: Graham's GN Flag

Season 1 of Gundam 00 is heavily political, and for the most part, defiant of most Gundam clichés. One character in particular caught my interest: Graham Aker. In episode 18, Graham showed that he had what it took to be the absolute best. But he was forgotten for the rest of the season... or so we thought.

After an intense battle with the Alvarron, Setsuna in the Gundam Exia is still trying to catch his breath, as he is the last remaining soldier from his team. But at this second, his proximity alarm goes off and we see:

A GN Flag. Fulfilling his promise to his fallen comrades, Graham enters into one of the most memorable battles in recent Gundam history, and takes down Setsuna in once of the most terrific exchanges of Mobile Suit combat I've ever seen.

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Mobile Suit Gundam 00 S2: Awakening of 00

Gundam 00 has many religious overtones. Many of the Mobile Suits have names that are angelic, the organization Celestial Being is in reference to Angels, and Setsuna himself has a devotion to the Gundams that borders on religious. All of this came to a head in Season 2, Episode 2.

Setsuna's friends are getting destroyed outside, and the 00 Gundam will not start. There is something wrong with the reactor. Setsuna begins to recite, "Please awaken 00. The 0 Gundam is here. The Exia is here. And so am I!". As he screams the last piece, the reactor starts, and a very inspiring piece of orchestral music begins to play in the background, and Setsuna declares the launch of the 00.

Why is this on the list you may ask? Adherence to the theme of the show. When Setsuna announces that 00 is launching, his voice quivers like a religious man who has just witnessed a miracle (in the original Japanese audio anyway). It felt so real, that it stuck with me.

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Mobile Suit Gundam 00 S2: The Final Battle

In traditional Gundam history, the protagonist and antagonist fight the final battle in the most advanced versions of their Mobile Suits. But, Gundam 00 spits in the face of tradition, and forges a new path.

The antagonist, Ribbons, steals the 0 Gundam (the original Gundam in this timeline, and also the Gundam that Setsuna looked up to as if it were God) and uses it to try and find Setsuna. When he finds Setsuna's 00 Raiser Gundam, he sees that the cockpit is open and the reactor is missing. There is a flash of light, and you see the Gundam Exia fly into the scene, with Setsuna speaking again in his "miracle" voice that he will clear a path to the future. This is followed by the final battle itself.

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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Still Alive..

2011-06-28T20:04:00.000-07:00

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Yes, I'm still alive. Yes, this blog is still alive. And Level 25 will be one hell of a post, but it won't come til this weekend. We've been so busy here at The Next Level dealing with real-life issues, but they seem to be clearing up shortly. Expect greatness this weekend.

Level 24: DOUBLE FEATURE - Weeks of 05/21/11 and 05/28/11

2011-05-29T19:27:00.000-07:00

X-Men: Prelude to Schism #2
Ultimate Spider-Man #158
Green Lantern #66
Green Lantern Corps #60
Green Lantern Corps #10

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X-Men: Prelude to Schism #2

Back during Level 22, I reviewed the first issue of this book with a simple question: What the hell is going on? Unfortunately, after reading the second issue, I have the same question. Essentially, the entire issue is a backdrop for Magneto to tell his life story to Cyclops in preparation of some disaster that is about to hit Utopia. That's as much as I could figure out. This book better pick up soon, or Schism will fail.
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Ultimate Spider-Man #158

This issue is what Spider-Man is all about: Self-Sacrifice. It begins a short time after Spider-Man is shot. He wakes up, alone, on the street bleeding to death. After trying to remember what happened to the big Ultimates vs Avengers fight (see the Ultimates vs Avengers miniseries for that), he decides he must go to a hospital, and uses his webbing to temporarily patch the bullet wound. At the same time, the Sinister Six find the Tinkerer and armour up in preparation for their assault on the Parker house. They fly over Spider-Man, and in a silent moment, Spider-Man takes off after them.

Returning to the Parker house after a double date gone awry, Iceman and the Human Torch find a note left from Aunt May warning them to leave the house immediately. They are then confronted by the Sinister Six. Sandman smothers the Human Torch to prevent him from using his flame powers, and Electro uses the water base of ice to conduct electricity back to Iceman, incapacitating him. At this moment, Vulture sees the silhouette of Spider-Man, and flies toward him angry. Spider-Man webs the Vulture and throws him to the side, and is then seen holding his gunshot wound asking, "Who's next?"

I said it before, and I'll say it again: This issue is what Spider-Man's all about. The scene where Spider-Man sees the Sinister Six fly over him is easily the most powerful scene in the book because of the lack of dialogue. He's dying and he knows it, but he doesn't even contemplate attempting to save himself before the others. If Peter Parker dies as a result of this storyline, I'll actually be okay with it, for the sole reason that this arc has captured what Spider-Man is supposed to be about: Self-Sacrifice.

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Green Lantern #66

The issue begins where the last one left off: Sinestro Corpsman Hal Jordan and Red Lanter Guy Gardner battling the Emotional Entity possessed Guardians. After a short battle, Hal decides that they should attempt to escape and free Parallax, to restore the Corps. Unfortunately, the possessed Guardians are wiping the floor with Hal and Guy, so Guy decides to activate Krona's Power Gauntlet. Once he does however, both he and Hal are struck down by Krona.

The scene then shifts to within the Book of the Black, where after a brief pseudo-flashback sequence, Sinestro awakens and realizes where he is being held captive. After ripping through the other New Guardian's origin stories, he nearly succeeds in breaking loose of the book, only to be stopped by Krona. Krona claims that his ultimate plan is to create a new set of Guardians of the Universe, beings who can feel the full range of emotion. He has selected the four human Green Lanterns to stand alongside him as Guardians.

I really enjoyed this issue. I was very glad that Hal and Guy didn't beat down the Guardians, as they should have so much more power than two rogue Green Lanterns. I was intrigued by the powering up of the Gauntlet, but understood why it could not be used yet. Finally, I was happy that we've played up the "Sinestro-is-a-badass" theme from earlier books, by showing that he was the only New Guardian able to regain himself within the Book of the Black.

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Green Lantern Corps #60

Running parallel to the above issue is the story of Blue Lantern Kyle Rayner and Indigo Lantern John Stewart. The issue begins with the two Lanterns attempting to stop the release of Green Rings from Mogo, as the Central Power Battery is still infected with Parallax. After a mildly successfully attempt at containing the rings, they break free and scatter across the universe. As a result, Kyle has the idea of using the Blue Ring's power on Mogo to bring him back to his senses, but they realize they'll need to be close to Mogo's brain to do it. They head to Mogo's core, but are attacked by Parallax-controlled Green Lanterns.

After escaping them, Kyle uses his Blue Ring to create a Blue Lantern construct of Bzzd, Mogo's fallen partner. The construct begins to work, but suddenly Black energy is released from Mogo's core. John realizes that when Mogo absorbed all the Black Lanterns during the Siege of Oa (see Blackest Night: Green Lantern Corps for more details), the Black energy remained, and was now being released. John attempts to use the Green energy of Mogo, but is contacted by Krona, who shows how the Parallax-controlled Green Lantern army was growing in number, stating that a "wave of murder" will sweep across of the universe. With this information, John uses the Indigo ring to do what it does best: absorb and repurpose the energy of other Lanterns nearby.

SPOILER ALERT

He uses the ring to absorb the energy of the Black Lanterns, and uses the energy to create a create a rifle. Over the protests of Kyle, John fires, destroying Mogo.

END SPOILER ALERT

I refuse to comment on this issue until my next entry to avoid this spoiler from being spread.

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Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #10

The issue begins with a direct continuation of Green Lantern #66, seeing Hal and Guy strung up by Krona. However, Krona and all the possessed Guardians are incapacitated by (*SPOILER ALERT*) the immense energy discharge caused by the death of Mogo. Kyle and John argue over the destruction of Mogo, (*END SPOILERS*) but John grabs Kyle and teleports them back to Hal and Guy. Hal and Guy realize what has happened after they make their escape, and free Ganthet in order to remove Parallax from the Central Power Battery.

Ganthet tells the Four Rogue Lanterns to use all seven rings to force Parallax out of the Central Power Battery. Hal wears the Orange Ring and Guy puts on the Violet ring in order to use all of the rings. The initial burst works, but Parallax remained in the battery. Ganthet tells Guy Gardner that since he wears both of the extreme rings, he holds the key to releasing Parallax. With a heartfelt cry of "I love the Corps", Guy forces Parallax from the Central Power Battery. The Four Rogue Lanterns reclaim their Green Lantern rings, and join with the newly freed Green Lanterns who then turn to face Krona, the Entity-possessed Guardians, and Parallax in the final conflict of the war.

Despite the Spoiler that I'm avoiding discussing, this issue was very well done. The war is turning out a LOT better than I was expected after the midway point, and now I'm eagerly anticipating the finale.
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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 23 - Week of 05/14/11

2011-05-15T13:26:00.000-07:00

The Flash #12

This issue begins with Zoom threatening Patty Spivot and Hot Pursuit attempting to send Kid Flash back to the future. However, with Zoom's reemergence, Hot Pursuit's Cosmic Nightstick reacts to the energies of the Negative Speed Force, and he realizes that Kid Flash is not the threat. He takes off, with Flash and Kid Flash following closely behind, and encounter Professor Zoom. Flash saves Patty, while Hot Pursuit attacks Zoom. However, during the battle, Hot Pursuit's helmet is destroyed. When Zoom realizes that Hot Pursuit is an alternate Barry Allen, he uses the red lightning to kill him and absorb some sort of his powers. He then proclaims that he will use the Negative Speed Force to change the world and then escapes.

Barry talks with Patty, who makes it abundantly clear that she still has feelings for him, but Barry remains loyal to his wife. Barry and Iris then go out for lunch, when she tells him that he needs to open back up to her. Shortly after, Barry is seen standing over his mother's grave with lighting striking in the back ground. The lightning starts coming from the opposite direction, and the final page of the book shows a large lightning bolt being struck by the red lightning.

This book was good, but felt a bit rushed. Everything was wrapped up a bit too quickly, but I was happy that this book came out on the same day as Flashpoint, because despite being marketed as a lead-in for Flashpoint, very very little information regarding that story was contained within these pages.

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Flashpoint #1

The issue opens up with Barry Allen being woken up at his desk. His partner asks him about a murder case that he hasn't heard of, and his boss begins to make reference to Citizen Cold, which causes Barry to question if he meant Captain Cold. When Director Singh infers that he has no idea who that is, Barry attempts to run and turn into the Flash, but realizes that his ring and speed are gone. He falls down the stairs, and lands at the feet of his Mother, who is alive in this reality. Barry questions his mother on the members of the superhero community, but she only recognizes Batman's name. In Gotham, Batman meets with Cyborg, and many other heroes who are debating their course of action now that Aquaman's armies of Atlantis and Wonder Woman's armies of Themyscira have gone to war.

Barry goes to see his wife, but finds that she is married to someone else in this world, and decides to seek assistance from the only person who can help him. Back in Gotham, the majority of the heroes agree to side with Cyborg and fight against both armies, until Batman announces that he will not participate. Once Batman leaves, everyone who pledged to aid Cyborg reneges. Shortly thereafter, Barry arrives at the Wayne Mansion, hoping to enlist Bruce's assistance to figure out what's going on, but after a quick altercation with Batman, he realizes that Batman is in fact...

S
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Seriously, Spoilers... Highlight the Area below if you really want to know.

Thomas Wayne.

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This issue was mainly universe-building. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it, but I felt that last month's Fear Itself #1 was a better opening salvo.
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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 22 - Week of 05/07/11

2011-05-08T17:16:00.000-07:00

Moon Knight #1

Disclaimer: I understand that many people out there aren't aware of who Moon Knight is, and as a result, I've grabbed a piece of this book to explain in as little a time as possible.

So, with that out of the way, let's get to the issue. The issue begins with a party among several television producers, cheering the success of their newest title: Legend of the Khonshu. The executive producer is, in fact, Marc Spector himself. At this point, Spector gets a call and heads to the roof. Arriving there, he finds Captain America (in the Steve Rogers uniform... I'll get to that in a minute), Spider-Man, and Wolverine. They tell him that there's been chatter in the supervillain community. Seems that they've finally gotten it through their heads that most superheroes live on the East Coast, and have tried to take over the West Coast. They task Moon Knight to find out what he can.

Moon Knight dons his costume and heads to the docks, where he finds two very scared low-tier criminals discussing their rotten luck for drawing this particular assignment. He attempts to listen in, but the criminals are interrupted by the arrival of their contact: Mr. Hyde. Hyde demands his payment, but the two criminals have no idea what he's talking about. Less than impressed, Hyde quickly dispatches both of them, but is interrupted by Moon Knight. The fight goes poorly for Moon Knight, but he makes a valiant comeback, and discovers the cargo that Hyde was attempting to sell: a dead Ultron. Moon Knight grabs Ultron's head, before the barge he is on is cast into the sea. From his vantage point, he sees Hyde arguing with his client over the undue attention he has drawn, before he is seemingly killed. With this knowledge, and the head of an Ultron, Moon Knight reports back that there is already a Kingpin of LA...and he has powers. When the other superheroes ask Moon Knight what he feels the correct course of action should be, the reader sees that Moon Knight has in fact... been talking to an empty room.

Well, I have a few thoughts on this issue. First, despite normally loving Maleev's art, there were definitely points in this book where it faltered. Secondly, I really liked the idea of having the villains realize that all the heroes are all clumped together, and decide to seek their fortunes elsewhere. Thirdly, I really like the "Who is the Kingpin of LA" plot. By giving him powers, you differentiate this character (new or old is not revealed yet) from Wilson Fisk, and we're establishing a villain for this run. Finally, by referencing Moon Knight's derangement in the opening paragraph, the final page reveal of the empty room felt that much better. We aren't just dealing with a crazy hero, we're dealing with a crazy hero trying to do good, and I love it.

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X-Men: Prelude to Schism #1

I cannot in good conscience review this issue properly. The ENTIRE issue revolved around the X-Men saying "I can't believe this is happening", but NEVER ONCE explain to the reader what "this" is. Here's the problem guys, I've not been reading X-Men since the end of the Five Lights story. I have no idea what's happening, and as a result I really didn't like this book. Hopefully, I'll figure it out in the days to come.

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Fear Itself #2

This issue opens up with Odin and his fellow Asgardians returning to Asgard. While there, he "explains" that Earth is already lost, and the force that has risen there will soon threaten Asgard, so they must be ready. The scene shifts the Thunderbolts training facility, where Juggernaut is training. One of the Hammers of the Worthy strikes the facility. Juggernaut picks it up and is transformed into Kuuruth, Breaker of Stone. Similarly, accross the world, the Hulk is transformed into Nul, Breaker of Worlds.

As the same fate befalls others across the planet, the Avengers split into groups to try and quell the chaos. At the same time, Skadi is readying her troops for an attack, while the Serpent gives a speech which encapsulates the overall goal of his crusade: to claim the throne of Asgard, and force all others to feel Fear. With a thunderous cheer of "Hail The Serpent! Hail The All-Father!", Skadi's troops launch an assault... on Washington D.C.

This book is exceptional. I don't know what it is, but the line-designs on the newly revamped Worthy is really eye-catching and amazing. But to be fair, in terms of plot, not much happened in this issue aside from the rise of the Worthy. But you know what? Until I re-read this issue for this review, I didn't notice at all. This is the hallmark of a good book: I'm craving for more, all the while accepting what I've been given. Cannot wait until issue 3.

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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 21 - Giant Size Level!

2011-04-27T16:35:00.001-07:00

Ultimate Spider-Man #157
Brightest Day #24
Green Lantern #65
Green Lantern Corps #59
Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #9
The Flash #10
The Flash #11
A Review of the Story Mode of Mortal Kombat

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Ultimate Spider-Man #157

This issue begins nearly immediately after the previous one ends. Spider-Man is rushing home to warn his family that Norman Osborn and other villains have escaped and are gunning for him. At the same time, Osborn and Dr. Octopus are debating whether or not they should even go after Spider-Man. Osborn wants to kill him, and Octavius is trying to tell him that he's out. In response, Osborn attacks Octavius, and they degenerate into a large scale battle across the city streets. Spider-Man arrives at home, and tells his family to leave. After they do, he receives a call from Mary Jane: On the one news channel not covering the fight between the New Ultimates and Avengers, Osborn has murdered Octavius on the street.

After successfully tracking down the office where Osborn and the other members of the Sinister Six were hiding out, Spider-Man attempts to intervene in the New Ultimates and Avengers battle, and enters the path of a sniper: The Punisher. The Punisher attempts to shoot Captain America, but the bullet strikes Spider-Man.

Wow. Really Excited to see how this one plays out, considering we now know for sure that there will be a new Ultimate Spider-Man under the suit after this storyline. Will Peter Parker die? Will he be crippled? Gotta read on to find out.

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Brightest Day #24

This issue begins with the retelling of the White Lantern reveal: Alec Holland. For the readers who were unfamiliar with Alec Holland, the Entity recaps his story, revealing that after he died in laboratory explosion, his essence was absorbed by the Parliament of Trees, releasing a protector: The Swamp Thing. However, we learn that the Dark Avatar is Swamp Thing, which now believes it is Nekron rather than Alec Holland. Captain Boomerang is then overcome with the urge to throw a dark energy boomerang at Dove. He does so, and Hawk attempts to catch it, but it slices through his hand, but does not hit Dove. We then see that Deadman took the boomerang in the chest and is killed.

The Entity explains that in order to properly raise Alec Holland, someone needed to die. Once Deadman is...dead, the White Ring flies off of his finger to Alec's and fully resurrects him. He then absorbs the power of the Elementals, and is told by the Entity that he must become the Swamp Thing. Using the power of the Elementals, Swamp Thing is able to destroy the Dark Avatar and restore all the damage done by the Dark Avatar. Upon their release, we get an epilogue for each member of the Elementals: Aquaman discovers that the Xebellian Rebels during Aquawar were being armed by members of Atlantis, Martian Manhunter saves the girl whom he injured in issue 5, Hawkman is released but Hawkgirl remains dead, and Firestorm discovers that the Firestorm Matrix is building to detonation. Finally, we see Swamp Thing kill some executives who were planning to dump toxic waste, and the cops begin to investigate the return of the Swamp Thing.

So...I enjoyed this story but I have zero intention of following the Swamp Thing into the aftermath stories. That said, I found myself getting really into the Aquaman and Firestorm stories, and will be following those characters for the foreseeable future.

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Green Lantern #65

The issue begins with Kilowog being corrupted fully by Krona, and Hal and Guy finding a safe house they'd set up in years past. The safe house contains a ship, which the two of them use to fly to Oa to find Kyle and John. As they get to Oa, their ship is destroyed by Kilowog, and Guy and Hal enter an escape pod and are found by Kyle and John.

During their planning sessions, Hal reveals that he still has all of the rings of the New Guardians, and he suggests that the best way to take on the Green Lantern Corps is to arm themselves with the rings. Hal takes the yellow ring, and Guy takes the red ring, while Kyle selects the blue ring. John initially opts for the orange ring, but is talked out of it by Hal, who gives him the Indigo ring. They slip on their rings, and prepare for battle.

This issue felt exactly like what it was: the middle of an event. But it also was a true turning point, as we've got a viable plan to take down the Green Lantern Corps. What will happen next?

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Green Lantern Corps #59

With their plan set in motion, the four Earth-based Green Lanterns move to save Ganthet. While each of them struggles to get the hang off their new rings, Ganthet is battling the possessed-Green Lantern Corps. After being ambushed by some Green Lanterns, the four Earth-based Lanterns are able to get to Ganthet, who is in shock at the fact that Four Earth Lanterns have taken on other rings.

Ganthet verbally trashes Hal, and seeks to help free the Green Lantern Corps, but at that moment, the Planet Green Lantern Mogo arrives and attacks them.

I found this a bit more interesting than the previous issue in the War for the sole purpose of Ganthet being so angry with Hal taking on the other ring. Combined with the notion of the First Green Lantern, and the prophecy revealed in Green Lantern #62, there is serious ground here to build an excellent story.

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Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #9

This issue picks up with Mogo attacking the Lanterns, and in order to escape, they head underground, being separated from Ganthet. While underground, the Lanterns discuss their options: rescuing Mogo, or removing Parallax from the Central Power Battery. The Lanterns vote 3 to 1 to remove Parallax, and thus attempt to travel to the battery underground. They discover a lost chamber containing many of the lost technologies of the Guardians: including Krona's Power Gauntlet, not connected to the Central Power Battery.

The four Lanterns are attacked by Shedd, a non-possessed Green Lantern, which allows them to capture the Gauntlet. However, they find that the Foundry is creating more Green Lantern rings and sending them to Mogo for programming. This means that Krona will have a nearly limitless supply of possessed Green Lanterns. As a result, Kyle changes his vote, and he and John move off to free Mogo, leaving Hal and Guy to try and remove Parallax before they are attacked by the Butcher.

As I was saying in the last previous review, we're setting up a lot of groundwork for the post-war status quo, and I like it a great deal. Finally, the War is starting to heat up and I cannot wait for the conclusion.

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The Flash #10

This issue begins by revealing that Hot Pursuit is not Barry Allen from the future, but is in fact the Barry Allen from an alternate Earth. However, Kid Flash appears and attempts to point out to The Flash that he cannot take anything that Hot Pursuit says at face value. As a result, Hot Pursuit takes off, looking for fuel for his motorcycle. At the same time, Bart Allen argues with Barry that he feels that Barry has a problem with him personally.

Once the situation is dealt with, Barry returns to work, and reunites with his old lab analyst Patty (who CLEARLY has feelings for him). While explaining the Elongated Kid case to her, Barry gets a call, indicating there is another crime scene with the same modus operandi. This time, Barry notices that there are tire tracks (similar to the Hot Pursuit's motorcycle), and there is a young boy left as a witness.

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The Flash #11

The issue opens up with Barry Allen explaining to his superior why the tire tracks are significant, while at the same time revealing that the witness hasn't said a word, but is comfortable with Patty. Barry gets a call asking him to come home for "an intervention". Basically, his family believes that he's not really living his life, and is in fact just running around from case to case ignoring his family.

Bart Allen races off angrily, and Barry runs after him, but Bart is attacked by Hot Pursuit. Hot Pursuit tells Barry that Bart must be the time distortion, and must be sent back to the future, attacking him with his cosmic nightstick. At the same time, Patty (confirming her attraction to Barry to herself) discovers that there was no Gingold in the Elongated Kid's system, but instead there was a strange electrical charge. At that moment, the witness walks in, his eyes begin to glow the familiar electric red, and he restores himself to his natural age, revealing himself to be... Professor Zoom.

If there has been one problem this book has had, it's the shipping delays. However, despite the lateness of this issue, we've finally got a strong lead-in to Flashpoint, and we're extremely excited.

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Mortal Kombat

This is a first for The Next Level, as we normally let Pwning Pat focus on video games. But it was decided to supplement Pwning Pat's Review of Mortal Kombat with this post focusing on the story mode of the game.

The story is broken in two three Acts, and 16 Chapters of 4 fights each. Each Act loosely corresponds to the timeline of one of the original three Mortal Kombat games. Act 1 consists of Chapters 1 through 5. The story begins with the ending of Mortal Kombat Armageddon, showing Shao Kahn gaining all the power of Blaze and destroying all of existence. Just before Raiden is destroyed, he has the realization that "HE MUST WIN!", and sends visions of his future to his past self. His past self sees these visions, and realizes that events must change.

During the events of the first game's tournament, hosted by Shang Tsung, the Raiden from that era possesses visions of the events from the future, he notices his amulet has cracked, signaling troubling times ahead. Across the tournament's battles, Raiden comes to the conclusion that Liu Kang is to win the tournament and save Earthrealm. He urges him to fight Shang Tsung. He does so and is victorious, however, Raiden's amulet cracks further, a sign that future events remain unchanged. Disappointed with Outworld's defeat, Shao Kahn orders Shang Tsung's execution, but relents after being given the proposal of holding the second tournament in Outworld. During the events of the tournament, due to Raiden's assistance of Smoke, whom was to be subjected to cybernetic transformation as per Lin Kuei orders, Sub-Zero instead undergoes the procedure, inadvertently altering the timeline. Raiden attempts to substitute Kung Lao as the champion of the new tournament. Kung Lao, however, is killed by Shao Kahn after defeating Kintaro, leaving Liu Kang to be champion once again.

Despite Liu Kang's fatal victory over Shao Kahn, Kahn launches an invasion of Earth despite warnings by the Elder Gods that by merging Outworld and Earthrealm, he will earn their wrath. Nightwolf halts Quan Chi's ritual. However, the interference causes Shao Kahn's forces to assault the headquarters of the Earthrealm warriors, as Kabal, Stryker, Cyber Sub Zero, Jax, Smoke, and Jade are all killed and Johnny and Sonya injured by Sindel. Kitana unsuccessfully pleads her mother, who comments that she is no longer her mother, and fatally wounds Kitana. Nightwolf, in a desperate attempt kill Sindel, uses all of his remaining energy to destroy both himself and the empress. As Raiden and Liu Kang return from an unsuccessful consult with the Elder Gods was shocked of the event that took place. Liu Kang, upon seeing Kitana and all his allies dead, becomes angry, believing Raiden to be insane with his visions.

During an attempt to ally with Quan Chi in order to stop Kahn's invasion, Raiden realizes that Shao Kahn is the one meant to win by merging the realms, as it would mean that the Elder Gods would intervene, and meets with Liu Kang about this news. However, Liu Kang has already deemed Raiden insane as his efforts to change the past. They fight, with Liu Kang threatening to kill him if he insists on interfering. Raiden inadvertently kills Liu Kang instead just as Kang is about to intercept Shao Kahn. Overwhelmed with grief and guilt over the loss of his friend as well as countless others, Raiden remorsefully surrenders to Shao Kahn voluntarily. The Elder Gods intervene, and grant him the power necessary to kill Kahn, freeing Earthrealm. Raiden vows to rebuild Earthrealm and tend to the injured with Cage and Sonya.

In the end, Quan Chi is seen meeting with Shinnok. The two discuss using Earthrealm's vulnerability in making the Netherrealm the dominating force in the universe.

Why did I love this story mode:

The relationships between characters are explained and expanded upon
You get to play as, and fight, characters prior to major changes (Cyrax/Sektor before they were cyberneticized, Jax before his arms get ripped off)
Despite being a near-reboot, the story succeeds in being both new and nostalgic for all fans of Mortal Kombat.

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So that's the end of this absolutely RIDICULOUSLY long post. Thankfully, with the situations in my life having come to a close, I'll be able to return to my regular posting schedule.

Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Status Update

2011-04-26T11:35:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone,

I'm sorry about the lack of updates this month, but we at The Next Level have been swamped with our real life situations. That said, later today (or maybe tomorrow), expect the biggest post we've ever done. I hope it was worth the wait.

Level 20: DOUBLE FEATURE - Weeks of 04/02/11 and 04/09/11

2011-04-06T19:24:00.000-07:00

Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #8

This issue began with Guy, Arisia, and Kilowog recapping the events of the first arc of this book (described in Level 17), and disagreeing over the actions taken. Guy clearly states that he is the "go-to" Lantern when things get dirty. Hmm, interesting. Anyway, at this point, we get the now familiar *IMPURITY RESTORED* page, and Arisia falls under the sway of Krona. Arisia begins to fly to Oa, while Kilowog and Guy tried to stop her, until they encounter another group of cadet Lanterns who are also under Krona's sway. Kilowog rockets Guy toward a predetermined Safe House to find Hal Jordan, who may be one of the only free-minded Lanterns left.

At the meeting place, Hal and Guy recap the events of the first issue in the war, and correctly deduces their Parallax Resistance. However, when Hal asks how Krona could be controlling the Corps so completely with his Parallax plan, Guy reveals his earlier pact with Atrocitus and Ganthet, while also revealing that Krona had been stealing power from the Corps. Hal angrily asks why he wasn't informed, and Guy angrily states that he doesn't need to be informed of everything. They fight for a few pages, before realizing that the Parallax influence was subtly influencing their conflict. They remove their rings and stand together, wondering how to save the Corps.

Well... I don't know how to feel about this issue. I really enjoy this storyline, as it's really bringing everything from the Green Lantern universe to a head. But at the same time, I'm not getting the epic feel from it yet. Maybe it's a bit too early, but considering that the next issue of the war is supposed to be amazing, I'll reserve judgement.

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Brightest Day #23

The skies across the world have gone black. Planes have been grounded, storms are raging, and people are dying. The Dark Avatar has risen. The only place that's safe? The Star City Forest created by the White Light. Deadman stands with his ring raised at Firestorm, who explains that Firestorm, and the other people supposedly killed by the White Light were being used to defend the Earth. At this point, The Dark Avatar shows up at the forest, and begins to wreak havoc.

The ring blasts Firestorm, completely immolating him. However, clearly Firestorm is not dead. The White Ring summons the other "killed" heroes as Elementals (Firestorm = Fire, Martian Mainhunter = Earth, Hawkman and Hawkgirl = Air, Aquaman = Water). The Elementals attack the Dark Avatar, but are only able to slow it down. At this point, the main tree of the forest starts to glow with the White Light symbol, and the White Lantern is revealed.

Yes, I know, I'm not revealing who the White Lantern is. I decided that until the next issue hits, I'm going to let people pick up this issue and read it. I did enjoy this issue, despite some really corny writing, and I'll be sad when this series ends in two weeks.

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Fear Itself #1

This was the best book of the last two weeks, by FAR! The issue begins with a protest in Lower Manhattan (clearly meant to parallel the discontent over the proposed construction at Ground Zero), which devolves into a riot. Shortly thereafter, Sin enters the Fortress built in Antarctica to house the Hammer (as chronicled in The Book of the Skull). After revealing that she'd seen a vision of herself lifting the Hammer, she does so, becoming Skadi. Back in America, the Avengers announce a construction project to employ the people of Broxton to rebuild Asgard after the events of Siege.

Skadi swims to the bottom of the ocean, and uses the Hammer to kill some sort of Water Dragon (or maybe a Leviathan), and enter a prison with Asgardian Runes. The Hammer then frees an old man who claims to be the REAL All-Father. Feeling the release of the being that Odin calls the Serpent, Odin orders that all Asgardians should leave Earth. Thor disagrees, and in response, Odin attacks him, and bests him. Taking Thor prisoner, Odin and the other Asgardians use Yggdrasil to leave the Earth. Back in the Antarctic, The Serpent summons the Worthy (another group of Hammers falling to the Earth), and declares that he will make this world quake with fear before confronting his usurper.

Wow! This book was fantastic! The art was amazing, and the writing was top notch. Some really good points include a reporter, during the riot, asks Steve Rogers (who is otherwise occupied trying to stop people from killing each other) what side of the issue he falls down on, and Steve replies, "Are you kidding me?! I'm Anti-RIOT! Now go home!". I haven't been this excited for a Marvel event in a very very long time, and I cannot wait for the next issue.

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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

To Be Determined

2011-04-04T21:24:00.000-07:00

Level 19 - Week of 03/26/11

2011-03-28T20:41:00.000-07:00

Daredevil: Reborn #3

Not going to lie, I found this issue fairly boring until the end. The opening half of the issue is the continuation of the fight between Murdock and the corrupt cops in whatever warehouse he tracked them to. He hijacks a truck full of stolen guns, and the battle becomes a road chase. Eventually, Murdock loses the cops, and dumps the guns into the lake.

Shortly thereafter, Murdock is confronted by Calavera (the leader of the corrupt cops, while not a cop himself). Calavera threatens Murdock a bit, and then uses some from of mind scanning powers to reveal Murdock's soul. This results in a really nicely-drawn two page spread of many of the negative turns in Matt Murdock's life, such as the death's of Elektra and Karen Page, the rising of Shadowland, and the murder of Bullseye. Calavera then suggests that Murdock came after him because he wanted to die, and shoots him in the head.

So, as I stated in Level 5, I was concerned about the state of the Daredevil character coming out of this series. Since Level 5, it has been announced that Mark Waid will be taking over writing duties, and some of his comments have enhanced that concern. I don't mind take the character a bit more into the Marvel spotlight, but the grim and gritty take on the character has done extremely well. Now, I respect Waid as a writer, and as such I'm obliged to give his first arc a shot. But as for Daredevil: Reborn? I'm finishing it solely because I started it. I have no interest in the story anymore.

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Ultimate Spider-Man #156

This issue worked in some ways, but not in others. The issue opens with S.H.I.E.L.D. soldiers and acting director Carol Danvers standing near a tube containing Norman Osborn, thought dead since the events of Death of a Goblin a few years back. Neither S.H.I.E.L.D. nor Osborn can explain why he is now back among the living, and why is he is apparently powerless. At the same time, Peter is sitting to lunch with Mary Jane, but is called away by Captain America for his training. Cap takes him to a graveyard, and begins to berate him for acting like "a dumb teenager who thinks his time will never come". As Cap begins to tell him something that he claims is the most important thing that Spider-Man needs to go, he is called away. Apparently, Nick Fury's Black Ops squad (The Avengers) has gone rogue, and Captain America's squad (The Ultimates) has been tasked with apprehending them. This was a shameless method of tying in the Ultimate Avengers vs. New Ultimates limited series.

At the same time this is happening, Osborn powers up, becoming the Green Goblin once more. He springs all 5 other members of the Sinister Six, and claims that God has given him the mission of killing Peter Parker. Across town, Spider-Man is watching the Ultimates and the Avengers fight, when he gets the call from MJ that Osborn is loose. She frantically warns him that he needs to "protect [his] familiy".

All in all, a good start to a well-promoted event. The story has an appropriate sense of scale, and I really hope that the Ultimate Avengers vs. New Ultimates tie-in is for the sole purpose of keeping both teams away from Spider-Man while he goes toe-to-toe with the Sinister Six.

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Green Lantern #64

The issue began with a quick overview of Hal Jordan; who he is, and what he stands for. It concludes with Salaak reminding his team that they are to arrest Hal Jordan for treason. At the same time, Sinestro is looking over the Book of the Black, discovered by the New Guardians last issue. Atrocitus states that due to the crimes against his people, when Krona is found, it will be Atrocitus who deals the final blow. However, Carol brings up an interesting question: if the Book of the Black contains such powers and secrets, why was it left alone? At this point, Lyssa Drak appears from within the book (sealed within it during Emerald Eclipse and freed by Krona during Untold Tales of the Blackest Night) and absorbs Larfleeze into the book.

The Guardians on Oa begin to debate whether or not the rings have a flaw after all of their champions fall from grace: The First Lantern, Krona, Sinestro, and Hal Jordan. During this debate, they can see the glint of the Seven Entities heading to Oa, chained to Krona. Back on Ryut, Lyssa Drak battles with the remaining New Guardians, capturing Atrocitus. Once again, back on Oa, Krona forcibly bonds the six remaining Guardians with Six of the Emotional Entities. Only Parallax is still free, and he takes his place back in the Central Power Battery of Oa. Shifting back to Ryut, The book captures all of the New Guardians, but Sinestro and Hal. In a last, desperate attempt to break free, the two unleash their rings at full blast, to no avail. The Book disappears after absorbing Sinestro, leaving the six rings of the other New Guardians. As Hal reaches for the rings, Salaak's team arrives to arrest him. However, with the Yellow Impurity back in place, Parallax reaches out into their minds and has them try to kill Hal. He escapes with the Six Rings, while Krona states that now the universe will see the true power of the Green Lantern Corps.

Overall, this book did everything right. By absorbing the New Guardians into the Book of the Black, we no longer need to worry about them in this war. In addition, the reference to the First Lantern, combined with the flashback shown in an earlier issue, is most likely a hint at the post-war direction of this series. Finally, we've also got an established reason as to why Parallax's influence isn't harming Hal: he's been possessed before, and is able to fight back. All in all, I was ready for part two. Thankfully, I didn't have to wait long.

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Green Lantern Corps #58

This issue continues the plot from Green Lantern #64. The issue began with a quick overview of Kyle Rayner and John Stewart; who they are, and what they stand for. The issue snaps back into real-time as the team formed to battle the Weaponer teleports back into the Positive Matter Universe. However, upon their arrival, all Alpha Lanterns shut down. After performing a cursory analysis determining that the Alphas were still alive, these Lanterns begin to feel the return of Parallax to the Central Power Battery. As most of the Lanterns skedaddle towards Oa, Kyle runs after Sora in an attempt to stop her. He is held back by John Stewart. At this moment, Kyle weakens and Parallax's influence leads him to attack John.

The battle continues as Parallax's influence causes Kyle, John, and Ganthet to engage in battle before Ganthet realizes what has happened. In response, he uses his power to remove the rings of Kyle and John, but in the process, his own ring self-destructs... taking Ganthet's hand along with it. Kyle and John are sent below Oa, as Ganthet surmises that the reason that they were not immediately possessed is due to their previous possession by Parallax, indicating a higher level of resistance. Ganthet then tasks Kyle and John to find Hal, Guy Gardner, and Kilowog (the only other Green Lanterns who had been previously possessed) in order to combat Krona, while he fends off the search party.

This issue was mainly a fight between John and Kyle. There is a reason for that. Because of the marketing of this event, we know that one of the four Earth-based Green Lanterns is going to die in this story. We also know that Hal and Guy are safe, as they both carry titles on their own. As a result, the death will either be John Stewart or Kyle Rayner. M money is on Rayner. So much of this issue's dialogue was written from Kyle's point of view, and with his past in mind. It seems a bit like an old anime cliche: if an episode focuses very strongly on a minor cast member, that cast member is set to die in that episode. However, in terms of advancing the overall plot, there was surprisingly little. I'm glad this issue didn't stand alone as the only issue of the War this week, as I would have been decidedly harder on it, but for now, I think the War is moving fairly well. I'm looking forward to the next issue.

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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 18 - Lightning Always Strikes Twice

2011-03-21T22:32:00.000-07:00

Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, and Welcome to a Special Edition of The Next Level. I’m your host Stefan, and I’ll be here with you discussing Comic Books, Video Games, and other items of note. Please note, for a purely gaming blog, I'd recommend Pwning Pat's Game Blog. The Next Level would also like to thank Jackie Fong for designing our logo.

This Special Edition of the Next Level will be a primer, to get our readers ready for:

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Unlike the previous post, Flashpoint is occuring very young into the run of the Flash, and thus there are only three major storylines to be concerned with.

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The Flash: Rebirth

This storyline concerned with the restoration of the Flash mythos, rather than the return of Barry Allen (which took place in Final Crisis). In it, Barry is reluctant to pick up where he left off, but is drawn back into his duties, when it is revealed that something is causing him to kill other speedsters on touch. It is briefly speculated that Barry is the new Black Flash, but it is revealed instead that his long-dead rival Eobard Thawne (Professor Zoom) was resurrected in the near future, and travelled back to the past to destroy Barry's life. (For more information on this resurrection, read Blackest Night and Brightest Day). He created a Negative Speed Force which poisoned Barry, who was able to burn off the red lighting and regenerate his own Positive Speed Force.

It is revealed that in this timeline, Barry's mother was murdered and his father was jailed for the crime, but how can this be possible? The Negative Speed Force allows time to change, and as a result, Professor Zoom was able to run back in time, kill Barry's mother, and frame his father. Finally, the three Flashes (Barry Allen, Wally West, and Jay Garrick), Kid Flash, Impulse, and Liberty Belle are able to incapacitate Thawne and strip him of his Negative Speed Force powers, but there is a catch. Thawne is like Barry: a Speed Force Generator. If Thawne is allowed to move at all, the Red Lightning will flow once more. So Barry arranges for Thawne to be placed in this Hannibal style rig, and imprisoned in Iron Heights.

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At the conclusion of The Flash Rebirth (well, technically at the conclusion of The Flash #1, but whatever), we are introduced to a teaser for Flashpoint)

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The Flash: Dastardly Death of the Rogues

This storyline saw The Flash returning to his job at the crime lab, working as a CSI. He is faced with the case of a murder of someone dressed like his villain, the Mirror Master. However, he is in fact the Mirror Monarch, a member of the Reverse-Flash Task Force (code-named the Renegades) from the 25th Century: A police officer. What's worse, the DNA of the killer matches Barry Allen, and so the other Renegades (designed after the Rogues - the main Flash villains) travel back in time to apprehend The Flash.

At the same time, Captain Boomerang escapes from Iron Heights, discovering that he now has the ability to generate energy-based explosive boomerangs. He attacks the Flash, and the Renegades, but is ultimately defeated. At this point in time, the Rogues get involved, carrying with them a giant mirror engraved with the words: IN CASE THE FLASH RETURNS - BREAK GLASS.

During the conflict between the Rogues and Renegades, Captain Boomerang's White Lantern vision occurs, accidentally causing him to shatter the Mirror, releasing a myriad of colours, and causing Barry to hear the voice of his mother. In the ensuing chaos, The Flash is arrested and brought back to the 25th Century, where he realizes that he's been framed by a member of the Renegades. He is able to prove his innocence, and is returned to his time. However, the Temporal Courts of the 25th Century begin to detect a temporal anomaly in The Flash's native timeline. The story ends with Hot Pursuit travelling back in time to find Barry Allen, hoping that he finds the secret of the Flashpoint.

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The Flash: The Road to Flashpoint

This story begins with two stand-alone chapters. The first involves Captain Boomerang coming to terms with the demands of his White Lantern mission. In order to understand his mission, he goes to see Thawne, in Iron Heights. Knowing that Boomerang is unaware that Thawne has already completed his White Lantern mission (as revealed in Brightest Day #7 and hinted at in The Flash: Rebirth), Thawne promises to help Captain Boomerang if he frees him. After being freed, Thawne makes some derogatory comments toward Boomerang and takes off. The second chapter is a spotlight on Thawne himself, showing how he came to be the man he is. However, every time Thawne is face with some sort of unpleasant challenge, a red lighting storm swarms the page, and it is rewritten, indicating that Thawne is using the Negative Speed Force to rewrite his own past.

Essentially, we have two smaller arcs taking place within the story. In the first arc, Barry Allen has planned to go to a picnic with his wife and the Wests, but is called away on police business. The Elongated Kid has been killed. But strangely, he's not a kid anymore... He's really really old. Barry then calls his wife to inform her why he won't be attending the picnic. When Iris comments that he could have easily run over and told her in person in half the time the phone call took, Barry reveals that after the Mirror shattered, he'd been having second thoughts after seeing his mother alive, as she should have been, before the machinations of Professor Zoom. This is very significant as it was revealed that the Mirror was designed as a long term weapon to create doubt and cause it to fester in its target.

The second arc shows the new speedster Hot Pursuit travelling back in time, looking for fuel and Barry Allen. At this point, the two arcs intersect, as Hot Pursuit finds Allen working at his desk. When Allen dons the Flash garb and chases after Hot Pursuit, Hot Pursuit stops, and reveals that he is in fact a chronally displaced Barry Allen looking to stop the "single greatest time anomaly to ever threaten reality". This story is still ongoing.

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There you have it, Ladies and Gentlemen. This post has all relevant information regarding the Flashpoint.

Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 17 - A "War" is Coming...

2011-03-21T21:32:00.000-07:00

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NOTE: This post assumes that readers are up-to-date with everything up until the end of Blackest Night. However, in the interest of fairness, no MAJOR spoilers will be revealed. Reader discretion is advised.

There are four main storylines that lead into the War of the Green Lanterns. Each of these stories will be examined, with details that will prove relevant to the war highlighted.

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Green Lantern - The New Guardians

This story begins as the titular New Guardians (the leaders of the Seven Corps) call a truce at the end of Blackest Night. They then use this opportunity to attempt to hunt down the Seven Emotional Entities which are living manifestations of the emotions of each Corps. However, Ion is deep in the sun of Daxam (after Sodam Yat plunged himself into it during the Blackest Night prelude arc Emerald Eclipse), and Parallax has been stolen away.

While the New Guardians are busy doing their thing, A hooded figure appears on Atrocitus' home planet of Ryut. This figure is revealed to be the one who both wrote the Green Lantern Oath, and the captor of Parallax. This figure then travels to Daxam, and pulls Sodam Yat out of the sun (hinting at the kind of power this person must possess), and forcibly separates the Ion entity from him, taking it captive.

After some hi-jinks, and the capture of the majority of the entities, the New Guardians are confronted by The Flash, who isn't all that thrilled with the idea of Green Lantern working with some of the people that recently tried to invade the planet (referring to Sinestro during the Sinestro Corps War). During the hunt for Adara (the Hope entity), the hooded figure (who is also wrapped in bandages) uses Parallax to possess the Flash. A fight ensues, with the Hooded figure capturing all the entities, but not before being revealed as the Mad Guardian known as Krona. Krona escapes into space to prepare to cleanse the universe of emotionally unbalanced races.

As a small side-plot that was unimportant for this story, but which will surely become important later on, the Guardians of the Universe were unable to find Hal Jordan, and when they did, he was with the New Guardians. Seeing him consort with enemies of the Green Lantern Corps, Hal has been charged with treason and is to be judged.

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Green Lantern Corps - Revolt of the Alpha Lanterns

This story arc deals with the Cyborg Superman taking control of the Alpha Lanterns in order to lead an insurrection against the Guardians of the Universe. I include this storyline in this recap for completion's sake, as I'm fairly certain that no element of this story will come into play in the War.

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Green Lantern Corps - The Weaponer

In this storyline, the Weaponer, who originally forged Sinestro's yellow ring, takes Soranik Natu hostage, in the hopes of forcing a duel between himself and Sinestro. The Weaponer has also devised a shield powered by remnants of the White Light construct from Brightest Day #3. During the battle, it is revealed by Ganthet that the only reason he agreed to help the Green Lantern Corps was to search for the entity thief. His secret is revealed when Atrocitus' blood communication activates at an untimely juncture. The rest of this storyline is irrelevant to the overall War, but it does wonders for solidifying Sinestro as a badass, Kyle Rayner as a jackass, and John Stewart as a soldier. Of the four Earth-based Green Lanterns, I feel that Kyle Rayner is the most likely candidate to be killed off.

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Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors - Last Will

This storyline sees Guy Gardner, Arisia, and Kilowog travelling to the Unknown Sectors to fight a warlord named Zardor who has been telepathically controlling Green Lantern Corps recruits to do his bidding. It is revealed that Zardor is working for Krona in a limited capacity, but isn't 100% committed to him. Sodam Yat is also recovered from his Solar experience and creates a new segment of a Corps, almost like a cult, in order to overthrow the Guardians. This is revealed to have been planted in his mind by Krona.

However, Zardor is (supposedly) a step ahead of Krona. He's been sapping the power of the Central Power Battery on Oa, and storing it in Sodam's body, as Sodam is the only one capable of storing that much power due to his time as host to Ion. In addition, during the battle on Earth where Parallax possess the Flash, Krona takes his eye off the ball, and Zardor removes Krona's control over Sodam and replaces it with his own.

Finally, Guy experiences the same blood communication as Ganthet, revealing to Kilowog and Arisia that Krona is the entity thief, while also revealing that his previous experiences (which I shan't mention here for fear of Pwning Pat killing me due to Spoilers) have given him visions...including one where he and Hal are battling each other to the death.

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Green Lantern #63 (Prelude to the War)

The issue begins with a two page flashback sequence to before Krona and the rest of the Maltusians (who later became the Guardians) had their falling out. He talks with Ganthet about harnessing emotion, and after stating that he is preparing to look into the past to view the creation of the universe, the other Guardians have him arrested (using Manhunters). By the way, an interesting note, the mark of the Guardians? The White Light. Hmmm...

The issue moves into the present with the Guardian Council ordering Salaak to arrest Hal Jordan on charges of treason against the Green Lantern Corps. Hal is in deep space with the remaining New Guardians attempting to trace Krona. They travel to Ryut and discover that while regrouping after the attack on Earth, Krona has captured the Predator and now controls all the Emotional Entities. On Ryut, they discover the Book of the Black, which activates in the presence of the New Guardians, allowing them to see to the Manhunters attempting to capture Krona eons ago. Krona fashions a makeshift weapon, a gauntlet, to fight the Manhunters. He stumbles and falls, but is able to activate the gauntlet by "letting fear flow...and overcom[ing] it". His eyes glow green, and the gauntlet destroys all the Manhunters but one. Krona then manipulates the systems of the surviving Manhunter, and orders them to destroy all life in Sector 666. When captured and questioned, Krona states that he did this to point out the errors in an unfeeling police force. He says that he "wept for every single life that was extinguished", but he knows that the Guardians "did not shed a tear". Upon examining the gauntlet, Krona states that it is useless to the unfeeling Guardians, but soon, they will beware his power: The Lantern's Light. The issue ends with the Book of the Black revealing a page of the four Earth based Green Lanterns, with the tagline: There will only be three.

We've now established:

Krona created the prototype for the Green Lantern ring
Krona was responsible for the Massacre of Sector 666
Hal Jordan has been charged with treason against the Green Lantern Corps
The War of the Green Lanterns is almost certainly going to be: AWESOME!

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There you have it, Ladies and Gentlemen. This post has all relevant information regarding the War of the Green Lanterns.

Coming soon: a primer for Flashpoint! Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 16 - Week of 03/19/11

2011-03-21T20:44:00.000-07:00

Fear Itself: Book of the Skull

This issue served its purpose: to plant the seeds for the upcoming Fear Itself arc. The story is told in two stages. In the first, Sin and Baron Zemo hunt for a Book (the titular Book of the Skull) supposedly containing the Red Skull's greatest failure. The story contained in the book is the second stage of the story: a flashback detailing the attempt of Red Skull to use Atlantean magic to turn the tide of World War II in favour of the Nazis. He is stopped by Captain America, Bucky, and Namor, but the magic succeeds in causing a hammer to crash to Earth. If this is beginning to sound familiar, then ten points go to you.

Sin reveals to Zemo that the Hammer still resides in its original landing zone, as no one was able to move it. Again, another ten points if you can see where this is going. On her way to retrieve the hammer, Sin betrays Zemo and leaves him to die at the mercy of the Egyptian desert.

So as you can see by my review, this issues was fairly short on content, but not short of promise. That is a good thing, as it was billed as a "prologue" issue anyway. Given that it has been revealed in promotional material that the plot of Fear Itself centres around a cataclysmic event caused by the reveal that Odin may not be the All-Father, it makes sense that we have so many ties to Thor and Norse mythology in the book. I hope it doesn't go too overboard with the Asgardian situation as Siege did, but with Matt Fraction at the helm, I think we'll be okay.

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Brightest Day #22

This issue delivered, in one of the strongest showing for this series. The main plot of this issues is the fight between Firestorm and Deathstorm and his army of Black Lanterns, aided by the Anti-Monitor. The Anti-Monitor has the White Lantern hooked up to some apparatus and is attempting to force the Lantern to create life. The Anti-Monitor then intends to consume this life, and increase his own power supply infinitely. The White Lantern then detects the presence of Firestorm and declares that it is "not ready to leave", before blasting the Anti-Monitor with some form of White Light which is hinted to have taken information about the Anti-matter universe. Firestorm then takes this opportunity to jump into the fight.

After wounding the Anti-Monitor with an incredibly creative use of the Firestorm powers (seriously, I was wondering how no one ever thought of this before), Firestorm grabs the White Lantern. However, the Anti-Monitor recovers and splits Firestorm back into Jason and Ronnie. Taunting them, Deathstorm states that Ronnie may have been brought back, but Firestorm wasn't, and that they were simply outmatched against the Black Lanterns. He frees Stein and Jason's dad in order to heighten the emotional states of their enemies, and fires a blast at Jason. Ronnie jumps in front of it, but Stein jumps in front of him, taking the full brunt of the blast. In response, the Jason and Ronnie rejoin to form Firestorm again, and attempt to use the White Lantern to heal Stein. It fails, and he dies. In response, Ronnie and Jason prepare for a fight to the death, however it was not to be. The White Lantern releases a huge burst of light and transforms Firestorm into a White Lantern. The resultant blast defeats (but does not kill) Deathstorm and the Anti-Monitor, while simultaneously teleporting Firestorm and Jason's father to safety on Earth. Once there, Deadman appears and demands that Firestorm hands over the Lantern.

Two issues to go, ladies and gentlemen. It has certainly been a wild ride, but it was worth every second of it. I'm eagerly awaiting the next issue of this series, as we come to the close of Brightest Day.
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We've come now to the end of the entry, and we at the Next Level have been working on something special for all of our readers. Many of our readers are relatively new to comics, but are intrigued with upcoming events, such as Flashpoint, War of the Green Lanterns, Fear Itself, and the Death of Spider-Man. And so, we've devised special Next Level Primers, designed to bring our readers up to speed in preparation for these upcoming specials. Our first two primers should be out tomorrow, in advance of the first issues of War of the Green Lanterns, and The Death of Spider-Man. Following that, our primer on Fear Itself and Flashpoint will be posted. We hope that these posts bring new readers in, and excite the old readers in preparation for the events of the future.

Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 15 - Week of 03/12/11

2011-03-14T20:49:00.000-07:00

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #155

So over the past few years, I've fallen out of Ultimate Spider-Man (and the Ultimate Universe in general). Ultimatum destroyed the universe as far as I'm concerned, and I had no desire to see it continue. However, as Marvel's hype machine continued onward, I caught wind of something: Death of Spider-Man. I knew immediately that we were talking about the Ultimate Spider-Man, and picked up the two previous issues (also billed as preludes). Sorry if this backstory seemed useless, but I wanted you to understand where the review was coming from.

The issue starts with a pitch perfect example of what is referred to in comics as "The Parker Luck": Peter Parker getting fired from his job. Unsure of his next move, he get's a call from J. Jonah Jameson, asking to meet him. Peter correctly surmises that ol' JJ has deduced his identity. The meeting itself is interesting, as JJ explains why he doesn't want to out Spider-Man. He also reveals that he feels responsibility to Spider-Man for saving his life during the Ultimatum Wave. When Parker asks for his old job back, Jonah asks why, with Peter revealing that he wants to save for college. Jonah then decides that he will pay for Peter's college, by putting money aside in a scholarship fund for him whether he likes it or not, and gives him the job back.

Shortly thereafter, Spider-Man stops some crooks, and meets his ex-girlfriend Kitty Pryde on the street. They walk to his house to find a surprise birthday party for Peter. Towards the end of the party, Peter proclaims his love for Mary Jane, who states, "Happy Birthday, Tiger". Everything is looking good, but we can never forget how this issue started: The Parker Luck. The issue ends with a close-up of the Spider-Man mask, with 'x's in the place of the eyes.

Interesting. I'll certainly be reading the next few issues, and despite my unhappiness with the Ultimate Universe in recent years, this felt like the older issues of the book I enjoyed reading. Can't wait for more.

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Next Week: Our Weekly Reviews and the Spotlight on the Brian Michael Bendis run on Daredevil!

Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 14 - Week of 03/05/11

2011-03-07T18:19:00.000-08:00

Brightest Day #21

The issue begins with the superhero community responding to the deaths of Hawkman, Hawkwoman, and Aquaman, attempting to deduce the reason for their destruction by the White Ring. Hawk (not to be confused with the above dead characters, but instead the personification of War, and one half of the "Hawk and Dove" duo) openly suggests that the Deadman (and by extension the White Ring) is in fact hunting all those resurrected at the end of Blackest Night.

The second half of this issue was dedicated to the Martian Manhunter's struggle with D'Kay. Angrily lashing out, J'onn is able to open D'Kay to the thoughts of everyone on Earth. However, D'Kay gains the upper hand when it is reveal that the majority of these thoughts are corrupted by the impending rise of the Dark Avatar spoken of in earlier issues of the series. In response, J'onn drives D'Kay into the sun, killing her, and gaining his own "Mission Accomplished" splash. The White Light asks J'onn to choose which world he will defend: Earth or Mars. J'onn chooses Earth, and heads to Star City, where he is found by Deadman. However, instead of the ring incinerating him, it simply speaks: "The Earth Has Accepted You", while sucking him into the ground.

Despite the high-octane action of the previous issues, with Aquawar and the destruction of the Hawks, this issue fell flat. The Martian Manhunter story hasn't been touched on in so long that I honestly forgot all about it. I was hoping it would have stayed forgotten. That said, the impending rise of the Dark Avatar has me excited.

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Green Lantern #63

The issue begins with a two page flashback sequence to before Krona and the rest of the Maltusians (who later became the Guardians) had their falling out. He talks with Ganthet about harnessing emotion, and after stating that he is preparing to look into the past to view the creation of the universe, the other Guardians have him arrested (using Manhunters). By the way, an interesting note, the mark of the Guardians? The White Light. Hmmm...

The issue moves into the present with the Guardian Council ordering Salaak to arrest Hal Jordan on charges of treason against the Green Lantern Corps. Hal is in deep space with the remaining New Guardians attempting to trace Krona. They travel to Ryut and discover that while regrouping after the attack on Earth, Krona has captured the Predator and now controls all the Emotional Entities. On Ryut, they discover the Book of the Black, which activates in the presence of the New Guardians, allowing them to see to the Manhunters attempting to capture Krona eons ago. Krona fashions a makeshift weapon, a gauntlet, to fight the Manhunters. He stumbles and falls, but is able to activate the gauntlet by "letting fear flow...and overcom[ing] it". His eyes glow green, and the gauntlet destroys all the Manhunters but one. Krona then manipulates the systems of the surviving Manhunter, and orders them to destroy all life in Sector 666. When captured and questioned, Krona states that he did this to point out the errors in an unfeeling police force. He says that he "wept for every single life that was extinguished", but he knows that the Guardians "did not shed a tear". Upon examining the gauntlet, Krona states that it is useless to the unfeeling Guardians, but soon, the will beware his power: The Lantern's Light. The issue ends with the Book of the Black revealing a page of the four Earth based Green Lanterns, with the tagline: There will only be three.

Wow. This issue is probably the most pivotal in recent years. We've now established:

Krona created the prototype for the Green Lantern ring
Krona was responsible for the Massacre of Sector 666
Hal Jordan has been charged with treason against the Green Lantern Corps
The War of the Green Lanterns is almost certainly going to be: AWESOME!

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Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 13 - Week of 02/26/11

2011-02-28T19:06:00.000-08:00

Avengers #10

You know what? Despite, really enjoying this story arc, I HATE THIS ART! It takes me right out of the experience, making it really difficult to review this issue. There was a section in the middle of the book which contained no dialogue, and unfortunately, the art just could not carry it forward. I'm going to try my best here, but I apologize if I really speed through this review.

This issue begins with Namor, Thor, and Red Hulk travelling to the bottom of the ocean to reclaim the Infinity Gem he kept WAY back in New Avengers: Illuminati #2. Many needlessly ugly pages later, they find it. Shortly thereafter, half of the Avengers head to the Danger Room to collect Professor X's gem. During these pages, I discovered I really hate how Romita Jr draws Spider-Woman. She looks TERRIBLE under his pencil. Anyway, the other half of the Avengers head to Area 51 to get Iron Man's gem, but finds that The Hood is already there, in possession of the gem. He then uses the gem to warp to the nearest gem, finding himself standing in front of Thor, Namor, and Red Hulk.

The story is interesting, but I dropped this title once because of the art, and I'm inching closer to doing it one more time.

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Captain America #615

This issue is the conclusion of the Trial of Captain America arc, and I am fully back in the palm of Ed Brubaker here. This issue was absolutely fantastic, and I cannot wait until the next issue of this title hits the shelves.

This issue continues the battle at the Statue of Liberty (described back in Level 8) where Cap battles Sin's thugs and tries to rescue The Falcon and the Black Widow. The fight is going poorly, until Steve Rogers and Sharon Carter show up to help. Cap gets to Sin, who detonates her explosives. However, the explosion is clearly smaller than anyone expected. Sin manages to get away, but not before the heroes realize that Sin got what she wanted. She destroyed part of the Statue, giving Lady Liberty...a black eye.

Cap is returned to the courtroom, and his defence attorney gives a snippet of a closing statement, but the prosecutor's closing statement is so well-thought out (honestly, this speech is worth the price of the issue alone), that Cap is convinced to change his plea to guilty. In recognition of his service to the country, Cap is found guilty, but his sentence is commuted. However, at the last moment, the Russian Ambassador to the United States comes into the courtroom and declares that Captain America (as the Winter Soldier) has been tried in absentia in Russia, and convicted of crimes against the state.

Wow. Just, wow. This issue was fantastic, but the biggest problem with it is that the issue is NOT new reader friendly. I would highly recommend reading Ed Brubaker's run on Captain America (collected into two easily read Omnibuses, with a third on the way) to fully grasp the situation. But all in all, I cannot wait.

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Special thanks to Next Level reader, Sirron, who requested that The Next Level highlight the Bendis run on Daredevil. Congratulations Sirron, your request has been granted, and the Bendis Run on Daredevil will be placed in the Spotlight at the end of the week.

Next Week: Our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight!

Thanks for reading, and as always, feedback (nextlevelstaff@gmail.com) is welcome.

Level 12 - Week of 02/19/11

2011-02-22T09:02:00.000-08:00

Brightest Day #20

I really enjoyed this issue as a conclusion to the Aquawar arc that had been building. The issue begins with the Entity revealing that it definitively opened the gates of the Bermuda Triangle (confirming my speculation from Level 9). The fight between Aquaman's forces and the forces of Black Manta and Xebel was really well done. Aquaman's determination shows through when he asks Jackson (the new Aqualad) to cauterize his newly chopped off hand, so he can continue to fight.

Mera finally shows up and in a really really cool scene controls the entire tide with her hydrokinesis knocking the Xebelian forces back into the ocean. At that moment, Aquaman summons creatures of the sea (who oddly enough are still dead) to force the Xebelians back to the gate, while Jackson closes it. At this point, Aquaman glows White, with the entity proclaiming "Mission Accomplished". But at that moment, Deadman shows up in White Lantern grab, and after warning him about being unable to control the his ring, seemingly kills Aquaman with the white ring.

This issue felt great as a conclusion to Aquawar, but felt like it had no real tie to the ongoing mystery of Brightest Day until the very last page. But a good comic is a good comic, and I'm not going to let something as minor as that ruin this one for me.

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Green Lantern Corps #57

This issue finally delivers on the promise given WAAAAAAY back in Level 3. The issue begins with Firestorm heading to Qward to search for Deathstorm and the stolen White Lantern. He senses that White Lantern energy is on Qward and heads that way, hoping to find Deathstorm. Instead, he finds the Green Lanterns and Thunderers in battle with Sinestro. The Green Lanterns are not using their rings so as to not break the truce with Sinestro, but Firestorm did not agree to a truce.

The Weaponer saves the Thunderers, and rallies them around him for a final battle with Sinestro. Surprisingly, the Weaponer holds his own, but when Sinestro defeats him, he doesn't berate or humiliate him. What he instead does surprised me. He pulled out a yellow ring and offered the Weaponer membership in the Sinestro Corps as his weapons expert. The Weaponer accepts the offer, declaring that it is better to serve in heaven than rule in hell. Ganthet then tells the Lanterns that they have pressing business in main universe, as Krona grows stronger.

This issue was fairly weak, but what I really enjoyed was the narrative style. The entire issue, save the prologue, was narrated by Soranik Natu. In this context, there was no better choice. This entire storyline however, felt like filler to get Ganthet and the other Earth-based Lanterns out of the way while the War of the Green Lanterns was building. So here's hoping things pick up with the next issue.

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Green Lantern #62

This issue was amazing. It starts with a flashback (which I'm sure will be important) of Ganthet and Krona chaining some being. At that point, we return to the present, wherein Krona attacks Hal and defeats him, draining most of the energy from his ring. Atrocitus comes in for the save, but is overwhelmed by Krona. At this point, The New Guardians attempt to regroup and face Krona head on, but he uses the power of Ophidian to disrupt them. He then steals the Butcher from Atrocitus, finally controlling all of the entities, with the exception of (I think) the Predator. He then leaves the Earth victorious, to prepare his purge of Emotionally Unbalanced races.

Hal wakes up in Justice League HQ, with them asking Hal to let them help battle Krona. There is even a nice panel where Superman asks Hal when the last time he took off the ring was, referencing the break-neck pace of the book since the end of the Sinestro Corps War. Hal declines their offer and takes off with the New Guardians to hunt down Krona.

I loved this issue, and cannot wait for War of the Green Lanterns. Nothing else needs to be said.
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Next Week: Our weekly reviews as well as the announcement of our next Spotlight. Due to the high response to the contest, I'm extending the deadline by a week in order to properly determine the winner. So keep those emails coming in.

Thanks for reading, and as always, feedback (nextlevelstaff@gmail.com) is welcome.

JOINT REVIEW #2: MARVEL VS CAPCOM 3: FATE OF TWO WORLDS

2011-02-17T20:46:00.000-08:00

Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, and welcome to the another joint review by The Next Level and Pwning Pat’s Video Game Blog! My name is Stefan and I’m joined today by the queen of the video game Blogosphere, Patricia!

Finally the moment we have all been waiting for has arrived. Marvel vs. Capcom 3 has been released into the hands of hungry fans and not a moment too soon. But was it worth the wait (and the hefty price tag)? We’ll be exploring the depths of Marvel vs. Capcom, the pros and the cons, and whether or not this title was all it was cracked up to be.

The actual story itself is quite simple. Effectively, Doctor Doom has assembled some of the villains of the Marvel Universe and has joined forces with Albert Wesker in order to unite their respective universes in an effort to conquer both. While initially lacking the power to unite the worlds, Super-Skrull suggests stealing the power form Galactus. He posits that this would give them the power they needed, and also allow him a modicum of revenge after Galactus destroyed his homeworld many years ago. Fast forward a few days, the two universes are at war, and suddenly Galactus shows up really really pissed off.

What is a little off-putting the the starting roster itself. It’s smaller than what Super Street Figther 4 had (only by 1 character but still) and made a lot of people question: “For a game that is $64.99 right off the bat, is it worth purchasing only to have to keep buying additional characters/outfits/etc?” I personally am a little peeved off at having to buy it for almost $100 and feeling as though the game is practically incomplete.

That said Pat, after the unlockable characters (which you get after beating the game a few times and racking up the correct number of Player points) the roster grows to 38 characters, beating out Super Street Fighter IV by 3 characters. But I agree that for this price, we should have had all the characters right off the bat, but I personally didn’t mind working for them. Also, two DLC characters will be available in about a month, and for a comic fan, some of those DLC costumes look good. Captain America as the Steve Rogers – Super Soldier outfit? Sold (assuming of course I have extra PSN cash, as I don’t think I’ll go out of my way to buy it haha).

What I personally did not like about it was the story mode. It seemed extremely lack-luster, short and lacked any animations. Normally, the animations is not a big deal to fighting games such as these but considering that Super Street Fighter was filled with voice animations, the fact that MVC3 didn’t add that seemed a bit... not with the times. I personally thought the music was super lame and annoying. Although I do love that style of corny music on actual arcade machines (as it just seems more vintage and adds on to the experience), having to hear that blaring from my T.V. screen was more annoying than reminiscent. Since I played the game on the 360, I really do have to pick a bone with the controls. Unless you are fortunate enough to pick up a fighting stick for the 360 (which usually runs your wallet dry at a womping $149.99 for a decent one), then the controls seem almost... chaotic. It was frustrating trying to do any real combos with it and after a while, I found myself more button mashing than if I was to actually try to develop any real skill in the game. This is not Marvel’s fault at all but makes me wonder why they didn’t make a customized arcade stick like Mortal Kombat 9 will be doing.

Now, here’s where the PS3 shines. The controls on the PS3 are fluid and really responsive. I found myself having none of the complaints that Pat is mentioning above. The music, I honestly can’t say I noticed. To me, that’s the sign of a problem, as I normally really enjoy game music. Think about it: you always remember good game music, as well as bad game music. But what happens when you have mediocre game music? The music is forgotten. The story mode was incredibly weak in terms of its narrative. If you didn’t pick up the collector’s edition, you had no idea of the plot of this game, unless you wiki-ed it, or you read this review. If any non-Mortal Kombat fighting game deserved some sort of story mode, THIS WAS IT!

The biggest problem I had with it (which I already sort of explained before) was feeling like I paid for a full steak dinner and only got chicken scraps instead. I really don’t think it was worth paying $64.99 or the special edition $74.99 (which kind of blew once I found out that the special edition characters don’t even get released until about a month after the release of the game). Unless you got a good trade-in deal or promotion with the game OR if you’re a huge, huge huge fighting fan, I would say wait for the price to drop down a little before purchase. I really felt like I was a little bit ripped off. I mean, charging extra for COSTUME CHANGES rather than just being simple unlocks? I’m not sure who would really fall for that (although I’m sure plenty of you will).

What I found most enjoyable about the game were the Easter eggs in the writing. For example, Super-Skrull when he’s about to perform his “Inferno” hyper combo screams out “HE LOVES ME!” in reference to the Secret Invasion storyline that took over Marvel Comics during 2008. In addition, you’ll get nice little quotes from characters who know each other right before combat, such as Deadpool telling Magneto, “Welcome to Die” (in reference to the Konami X-Men Arcade game which contained this weird line). However, I found the game’s appeal wearing off quickly. What’s good about it though was that after a few hours, when I came back to it, my enjoyment factor was just as high as it had initially been.

Overall, I am quite pleased with the game. It does to be more dazzle that fizzles quickly rather than long-lasting excitement. After a while, the feeling you get while playing this game does tend to wear out and it becomes more of a serious button-masher. The over the top character finishes get old quickly and the lack of any real animation or voicing seems like a blast from the past, and I don’t mean in the good way. After all fighting games have gone through, it just seems as though Marvel vs. Capcom 3 really played it safe; which is not necessarily a bad thing but it also isn’t something that is fanboy worthy. Definitely worth a pickup as it is quite exciting. However, it isn’t something I see “going down in history” as the biggest feature in this game is the actual gameplay, yet it lacks in every other department. So yes, worth playing but I don’t see it being exciting for long term unless you’re an extremely hardcore fighting /Capcom/Marvel fan.

FINAL SCORE: 7.25/10

I’m going to have to more or less concur with the lovely lady, with my score. The game is really good. But a few things keep it from being great.

FINAL SCORE: 7.5/10

Well guys, that’s all for us today. Coming up on The Next Level: Reviews of Green Lantern #62, Green Lantern Corps #57, Brightest Day #20, and the announcement of our next Spotlight. Pat, what’s coming up on Pwning Pat’s Game Blog?

Coming up on my blog – I will be reviewing You Don’t Know Jack (as I honestly couldn’t even get myself to review LittleBigPLanet 2... long story short, it feels like a gigantic expansion unless you’re extremely creative and itching to create levels) and Killzone 3!

Level 11 - Week of 02/12/11

2011-02-14T16:13:00.000-08:00

The Flash #9

I was never a big fan of the Flash. For me, the concept was that of a man who runs really fast. Why is that interesting? A friend of mine then suggested I read Geoff Johns' run on The Flash after noticing how much I enjoyed the Geoff Johns' Green Lantern run. I did. And I haven't looked back since.

This issue is billed as the "Road to Flashpoint". Essentially, we have two smaller arcs taking place within the issue. In the first arc, Barry Allen has planned to go to a picnic with his wife and the Wests, but is called away on police business. The Elongated Kid has been killed. But strangely, he's not a kid anymore... He's really really old. Barry then calls his wife to inform her why he won't be attending the picnic. When Iris comments that he could have easily run over and told her in person in half the time the phone call took, Barry reveals that after the Mirror shattered (See The Dastardly Death of the Rogues HC), he'd been having second thoughts after seeing his mother alive, as she should have been, before the machinations of Professor Zoom. He then heads back to the crime lab to contact an old analyst friend of his, who had left Central City PD.

The second arc shows the new speedster Hot Pursuit travelling back in time, looking for fuel and Barry Allen. At this point, the two arcs intersect, as Hot Pursuit finds Allen working at his desk. When Allen dons the Flash garb and chases after Hot Pursuit, Hot Pursuit stops, and reveals that (*SPOILER ALERT*) he is in fact a chronally displaced Barry Allen looking to stop the "single greatest time anomaly to ever threaten reality".

I felt this issue moved fairly slow, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. See, after the shattering of the Mirror in Dastardly Death of the Rogues, one of the Rogues mentioned that what it did was plant a seed of doubt. It's nice to see the seed slowly grow. The Hot Pursuit design is kind of weird, as it had sort of a "Ken The Eagle" feel to me. But I really liked the idea of a Speedsteer who needed a vehicle to obtain his speed, as Hot Pursuit is a cop on a modified motorcycle. I really liked it, but it's also not a starting point. By the way, take a look at the image below, and tell me what you think of the Hot Pursuit design.

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Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #7

This issue was really one note. It wasn't bad as a stand alone, but it leads to something that REALLY pissed me off, and I'll get into that in a second.

Basically, Guy spends the entire first half of this issue trying to free himself, before finally tapping into his Red Lantern powers. Zardor and Guy end up in a fairly epic battle, but Zardor gets the upper hand leaving the returning Kilowog and Arisia to save him. During this combat, Zardor's mind-snake-thing manages to purge Krona's influence from Sodam Yat, who is then revealed to be the receptacle for the stolen Green Lantern energies (as he's the only Lantern with the ability to hold so much power because he was host to Ion for quite a while). Zardor and Sodam begin to escape, and Guy accesses his Killshot protocol to kill Sodam to prevent any further power drain. Arisia slams into Guy, preventing the beam from connecting, and allowing Zardor and Sodam to escape. Guy argues with Arisia, and then ends the argument with thanking her and Kilowog for saving him.

Okay, now with that out of the way, I need to explain something. This was the last issue of a story arc. In that respect, it did it's job very very well. Guy being forced into the Red Lantern abilites that he didn't want, and the abduction of Sodam by Zardor seem like they will be plot points in the future. My biggest complaint is the fact that the next arc on the book is the War of the Green Lanterns. But we have no real foreshadowing toward it. I mean, I know thanks to Guy's blood vomit what's supposed to happen, but what will this war be about, and why will it happen? Is Sodam's abduction related to the war? What about the third sect of Lanterns (led by Sodam), how will they play into the war? There are too many questions, and not in the good way.

HOWEVER, I understand that next week is Green Lantern #62, and shortly thereafter is the first issue of the War of the Green Lanterns. It's entirely possible that they cleared the slate to allow for new plot points, which would be entertaining. So I'm reserving judgement, but am totally willing to eat crow if I'm wrong.

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Stay tuned next week for our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight! This will be the first week that I will be accepting votes for the Spotlight, so please leave a comment or send us an email with your vote. The only requirements are that I will ask for you to send in the issue numbers (if applicable) and why you feel that the story deserves a Spotlight segment. I will reveal the winner on February 18th, and will then post the spotlight on February 25th.

Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 10: Spotlight on the Sinestro Corps War

2011-02-07T20:21:00.000-08:00

To my readers, we at The Next Level are great fans of both gaming and comic books. But once in a while, a game or book is so good that it deserves some special recognition. If you would like to nominate a book or a game for the Spotlight, please send an email to nextlevelstaff@gmail.com with a brief explanation of why the book or game deserves its own segment. This week, we will be shining the Spotlight on the Sinestro Corps War

Since Green Lantern Rebirth (see Level 1), Sinestro had been laying in wait. In Green Lantern #10, it was revealed that he had begun to amass an army of Fear-wielding soldiers to counter the Green Lantern Corps. Dubbed the "Sinestro Corps", these soldiers prepared to wage war against the universe. This knowledge only came to the Green Lanterns of Earth when a Yellow Ring attempted to take over Batman.

The opening act of this conflict involves a Yellow Ring being captured by Kyle Rayner (who had become Ion once again after the events of Infinite Crisis). This ring is brought to the Guardians, but before they see it, it escapes and precipitates an attack on Oa by the Sinestro Corps. During this attack, the Sciencells are attacked and several convicts escape (including one REALLY cool panel, where we see the remains of a Sciencell and the corona of a star shaped in the symbol of the Sinestro Corps).

Next, Sinestro reveals that Kyle is not Ion, merely its host (similar to the Parallax reveal from Green Lantern Rebirth), and rips Ion out of KYle. He then reveals that Kyle's mother did not die a natural death, and instead was murdered by a sentient viurs, who just happens to be a member of the Sinestro Corps. Sinestro then has a fantasic piece of dialogue when Kyle threatens to kill him in revenge:

"The Power Rings won't allow you to kill. A Green Lantern is an empty threat. Are you frightened yet? Are you frightened of which of your loved ones will perish next? Perish because of your dedication to a group of Guardians who don't even know what LOVE means? Are You Afraid?"

Sinestro then possesses Kyle with the Parallax entity, and declares "My Corps is ready". This leads to the single most effective two-page spread up to this point in Geoff John's run on Green Lantern

Why is this effective some of you might ask? Well think about this: We have the Anti-Monitor (who successfully destroyed the Multiverse in Crisis on Infinite Earths), Cyborg-Superman (who destroyed Coast City during the Death of Superman, preciptating the fall of Hal Jordan), Parallax (who destroyed the Universe during Zero Hour), and Superman-Prime. That is EVERY SINGLE MAJOR DC VILLAIN in the last 20 years! And they are all working with Sinestro!

The next bit of the story alternates with Hal Jordan and the Lost Lanterns heading to Qward to try and save Kyle (and Ion), while the characters of the Green Lantern Corps series are dealing with the assault on Korugar and other places around the Universe. At this point in time, Hal's Green Ring is drained of all its power, and he puts on some Yellow Rings to fight the Sinestro Corps.

Concurrently, Ranx The Sentient City and the Children of the White Lobe mount an attack on Mogo. Sodam Yat is finally able to damage Ranx and turn the tide of the battle in favour of the Green Lantern Corps. Meanwhile, on Qward, Ke'Haan of the Lost Lanterns is killed by the Anti-Monitor, but Ion is freed and Hal and the others escape. The Lost Lanterns move to return to Oa, while the three Earth-based Green Lanterns vote to contact the Justice League as they have experience dealing with the Anti-Monitor. As they approach the Earth, we see a Sinestro Corps Invasion force attacking the planet.

At this point, The Guardians of the Universe make a decision after coming out of hiding. They have re-written the Book of Oa, and introduced Ten New Law. The first law: Lethal Force is now authorized against the Sinestro Corps. This law helps the Green Lantern Corps finally turn the tide against the Sinestro Corps on Mogo, and they win the day there. Unfortunately, at the same time, the people of Earth aren't faring too well.

Hal manages to free Kyle from Parallax and Ganthet and Sayd split Parallax between the Power Batteries of the Four Earth-Based Green Lanterns. The stage is set for the final battle.

But before we get there, we have someone to deal with: Superman-Prime. How do you fight a Sinestro Corps Soldier with the power of Superman? You unleash a Sodam Yat, who also has the powers of Superman. The Guardians then give him the Ion Power to level the playing field. This fight is amazing, and I refuse to spoil how it ends here.

Ganthet and Sayd reveal that this entire war was written down in the Book of Oa as the second verse of Cosmic Revelations. They fear that if the war continues, the universe would plunge into the Third and Final Verse: THE BLACKEST NIGHT. They reveal that the prophecy foretells the rise of all seven Corps (Red - Rage, Orange - Avarice, Yellow - Fear, Green - Will, Blue - Hope, Indigo - Compassion, and Violet - Love), and that a War of Light will erupt between them. They tell the four Lanterns this in the hopes that they can avert it.

Ladies and Gentlemen, this is normally where I'd discuss the ending of the book. But I won't do that. The ending of the Sinestro Corps War is probably the most satisfying literary work that I've ever experienced. I refuse to spoil the experience for other readers by spoiling the last chapter of the book. The ending, and all the mechanisms employed to bring the story to that point, are exquisitely crafted, and done with style.

Verdict: I want everyone who is reading this blog to get themselves a copy of the Sinestro Corps War. I would love to hear the thoughts of everyone, particularly if you disagree with me, as I enjoy debating these issues. If you enjoyed this book (which I'm sure most of you did), I'd read the books I placed in Level 7, with the addition of Green Lantern Corps - Ring Quest. If you have any comments about the spotlight, please send an email to nextlevelstaff@gmail.com . Your comment may be addressed on next week’s post.

Stay tuned next week for our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight! Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

Level 9 - Week of 02/05/11

2011-02-07T08:33:00.000-08:00

Brightest Day #19

This issue was excellent. I cannot say it any more clearly than that. The issue starts off with Deadman wading through the ashes of Hawkman and Hawkgirl, (read Level 6 for further details). He angrily holds up his ring and demands that the ring resurrect the Hawks. The entity (speaking through the ring of course) denies this request, and finally explains why it resurrected the 12 people at the end of the Blackest Night story. Effectively, each of the twelve people were resurrected in order to stop a "Dark Avatar of Corruption" from destroying the forest created in Brightest Day #0. Each of the 12 people have a taint in their souls that will only be removed after fulfilling their missions as laid out in Brightest Day #7. The Entity also reveals that Aquaman, Firestorm, Martian Manhunter, and the Hawks had a bigger role to play in the battle with the Dark Avatar. Deadman is then revealed to be the power source for The Entity while they hunt for the new protector of the Earth.

Then, the Aquawar begins in earnest. Aquaman and Aqualad are attempting to prevent Black Manta, Siren, and the people of Xebel from launching an attack on the surface world, but ultimately fail. It is hinted that The Entity allowed the attack to go forward. After a battle with words (and Aqualad's debut in combat, which was pretty awesome), Aquaman's hand is cut off... again...by Black Manta... To Be Continued.

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Stay tuned next week for our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight! The Sinestro Corps Spotlight is coming...

Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

New Logo

2011-02-06T20:49:00.000-08:00

The Next Level would like to thank Jackie Fong (jacquelynfong.com) for the design of our new logo. Thank you very much!

P.S. - Level 9 and the Sinestro Corps Spotlight to come soon. Higher Size Logo below:

Information

2011-02-06T11:55:00.000-08:00

Sorry about the delays everyone, but this has been quite the hectic week over at The Next Level. Level 9 will be posted in the late evening, but the Spotlight on the Sinestro Corps War (which is already a week late, I know) will be coming shortly thereafter. I'm making a promise that BOTH posts will be up tonight shortly after the Superbowl.

And just so this blog post isn't TOTALLY meaningless, I'll be attaching the recently released cover to this summer's Flashpoint #1

Thoughts? Questions? Feedback is always welcome. Leave a comment or email nextlevelstaff@gmail.com

EDIT: Maybe not tonight. Sorry guys

Level 8 - Week of 01/29/11

2011-01-30T13:19:00.000-08:00

Captain America #614

This issue continues the "Trial of Captain America" storyline. For those of you who aren't in the know, the current Captain America was a brainwashed Soviet sleeper agent (Codename: Winter Soldier) during the Cold War, and in the previous storyline, this information was leaked to the public. Cap was arrested and put on trial as a potential traitor to the United States.

This issue can be broken into three major sections. The first section (which I personally found to be the most boring) had the Black Widow and Falcon get captured by Master Man and the evil forces of Skele...I mean...Sin.

The second section of this issue focused on the trial itself, and the testimony of several characters. I'm usually fairly interested in legal situations such as this, and as a result really enjoyed this section of the issue. The third section ties into this one, as someone working for Sin (or as he calls her the "Red Skull Lady") attempts to shoot Cap, but is taken down by Steve Rogers and Bucky. This... well, for a lack of a better term, flunky... is carrying a DVD which has Sin making her declaration: Bucky shows up at the Statue of Liberty, or she blows it up. Using the skills of Dr. Faustus, Bucky successfully escapes and moves to take on Sin.

As someone who fell off of Brubaker's run on Cap after Steve Rogers returned, I came back for the "No Escape" arc, and found myself fairly interested in this trial. I'm anxiously awaiting the next issue. And I know that some people out there are not big fans of Captain America, but my god you need to read Brubaker's run. It's golden.

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Avengers #9

So, if you'll recall, back during Level 3, I mentioned that I was fairly eagerly awaiting this issue. Somehow, I almost totally missed it when I was at the comic shop. Fail, right? Anything, this issue didn't disappoint.

The major crux of this issue is the public reveal of the Illuminati. And you know what, I'm not sure I like how it happened. Steve Rogers kinda...lost his wits, and it seemed a bit, out of character.

That said, we know now that Parker Robbins (The Hood) has the two of the Infinity Gems, we know how get got them, and we're ready for the games to REALLY begin.

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Age of X: Alpha

Confession Time: I LOVED the Age of Apocalype crossover in the mid-90s. I thought the story was excellent, and it made quite an impact on the Marvel Universe proper. So when Age of X was announced, I was thinking we might see some sort of tribute story. This isn't the case, and I couldn't be happier about it.

The Age of X seems to be a dystopian future wherein Mutants are nearly extinct. Most of the issue is set up, but the reveal that the character Basilisk is actually the alternate-Cyclops was fantastic, and beautifully explained.

There was no plot to unravel yet, and all we know about the Age of X story was revealed in promo pieces. So, while I'm enjoying it, I'm fairly confused.

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Next Week: Our weekly reviews as well as the announcement of our next Spotlight.

Thanks for reading, and as always, feedback (nextlevelstaff@gmail.com) is welcome.

Level 7 - Recap of Rage!

2011-01-23T18:30:00.000-08:00

Green Lantern: Secret Origin

This book is the post-Infinite Crisis (and possibly post-Final Crisis) origin for Hal Jordan. It depicts Hal receiving his ring for the first time, and the first meeting of Hal Jordan and Sinestro. However, what this book also features is the the first battle between Atrocitus and Hal/Sinestro, and the (fantastically devised) backstory of Atrocitus.

Abin Sur, Hal's predecessor as Green Lantern of Sector 2814, has returned to Ysmault to gain more information about the prophecy of the Blackest Night (his initial visit covered in the short story Tygers, by Alan Moore). Abin takes Atrocitus to Earth, but is killed when Atrocitus overpowers him. The majority of the story sees Hal dealing with the Green Lantern ring for the first time, but the last leg of the book shows a battle between Hal and Sinestro taking on Atrocitus.

The ending of the book (related to the Red Lanterns) shows Sinestro placing Atrocitus back on captivity on Ysmault, as the symbol of the Red Lanterns is shown in Atrocitus' eyes as Sinestro flies away.

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Green Lantern: Rage of the Red Lanterns

This book is the first major incursion of the Red Lanterns. Within it, Atrocitus manages to unleash the rage within him, by killing the remaining lifeforms on Ysmault. This act causes the Red Light to be unleashed, with Atrocitus becoming the first Red Lantern.

The Red Lantern Corps mounts an attack on the prisoner transfer, sending Sinestro (captured at the end of the Sinestro Corps War) back to his home planet of Korugar, and kidnaps him. They fight a fantastic battle, but the majority of the Red Lanterns are shown to be little more than uncontrollable animals. Please note, this book also contains the first appearance of the Blue Lantern Corps.

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Blackest Night and Blackest Night: Green Lantern

The Red Lantern Corps plays and integral part in combating the Blackest Night. I'm intentionally being vague here, as I will be highlighting this metaseries in a spotlight in the near future. In the Blackest Night series, the Red Lantern Corps don't come into play until nearly the halfway point of the story, but they forge a peace treaty with the other Corps, and agree to help fight the Black Lanterns. Blackest Night Green Lantern, on the other hand, focuses on the leaders of the seven Corps, and shows Atrocitus begin to heal from the pain of his past. This series also spotlights the Red Lantern named Bleez, who will play a significant role later on.

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Blackest Night: Green Lantern Corps

(AVOIDING SPOILERS for Pwning Pat) During the Siege of Oa, a well-known, and well-loved Green Lantern is killed. Overcome by rage over this loss, his partner becomes a Red Lantern and fights the Black Lanterns. While the dead Lantern is eventually resurrected, and the partner is able to give up his Red ring, this sets the stage for a very important event to come.

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Green Lantern - The New Guardians

As part of the peace treaty forged with the other Lantern Corps, Atrocitus stays on Earth to hunt a being who is stealing the entities which are manifestations of each of the Seven Corps. While Atrocitus is successfully able to control and contain the entity of Rage, he must now face the Entity Thief - The Mad Guardian known as Krona.

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Green Lantern Emerald Warriors: Last Will

In this book, several items of note related to the Red Lantern Corps are revealed. Firstly, Guy Gardner, Arisia, and Kilowog are joined by Red Lantern Bleez in order to find the cause of a power drain across all seven Corps. (This drain is in PART due to the machinations of Krona, but Guy knows that Krona is not the only cause). It is revealed that Atrocitus has developed a permanent link with the Green Lantern who formerly joined the Red Lantern Corps (and honestly, if you can't figure out who I'm talking about by looking at the above picture...well, fail), and Guy, Bleez, and the others find a warlord in the Unknown Sectors preparing to launch an assault on the Green Lantern Corps.

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So that's the Red Lantern Recap of Rage! Sorry for the lack of detail, but I really don't want to spoil this story for my readers. I hope that by outlining which books contain developments related to the Red Lanterns, my readers will be able to read the stories for themselves.

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Stay tuned next week for our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight.

Next Week: Reviews of Captain America #614, Age of X: Alpha, and our Spotlight: The SINESTRO CORPS WAR!

Thanks for reading, and as always, feedback (nextlevelstaff@gmail.com) is welcome.

Level 6 - Week of 01/22/11

2011-01-21T08:18:00.000-08:00

Brightest Day #18

With this week's issue of Brightest Day, one of the major storylines comes to a close, adding some seriosuly needed

depth to another. The first page of the issue is a silent tie-in to The Flash, wherein Captain Cold attacks Captain Boomerang for freeing the Reverse-Flash. (For those of you wondering why this scene is involved, the first story arc of The Flash - Dastardly Death of the Rogues - was branded a Brightest Day tie-in). The second page involves not-so-Deadman wondering why the White Ring is charging up, remarking that it feels like the day he died, but omniously states, "I don't think I'm the one who's going to die this time."

The rest of the issue is a fairly good fight on Zamaron, with the Hawks and Carol Ferris trying to take down the Predator. Eventuallly, the Hawks succeed, and Queen-lady is killed. At this moment, the White Light illuminates both Hawkman and Hawkwoman, and it speaks: "Mission Accomplished". Okay, not to be a nitpicker, but I went back and read Brightest Day #7, and I don't see how the Hawks accomplished the mission. Anyway, the Hawks are really happy, as they are finally together, and the curse forcing their numerous resurrections has been broken.

IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO BE SPOILED, PLEASE SKIP TO THE NEXT REVIEW! MAJOR SPOILERS FOR BRIGHTEST DAY BELOW! HIGHLIGHT TEXT IF YOU WANT TO READ!

The Hawks are sent to Earth by Carol Ferris in order to get busy. In the midst of getting busy, the White Ring on Deadman's finger reaches 100%, and he is teleported to the Hawks. He rematerializes in a full White Lantern uniform, but finds that he can't move, and he has the White Ring aimed at the Hawks. After the Entity (read Blackest Night and Brightest Day #7 for more details on the Entity) orders the Hawks to spend their lives away from each other, and the Hawks tell the Entity to stuff it, the ring activates, and burns (I think) the Hawks to ashes. Deadman stands in the ashes completely shocked at what has just occurred.

SPOILER-FREE ZONE

Wow. To call this a turning point in the Brightest Day storyline would be an understatement. I CANNOT WAIT for the next issue. If you've been following Brightest Day, read this issue!

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Green Lantern Corps #56

So here's the thing that I've noticed about Green Lantern. Some writers haven't gotten it, but Geoff Johns, Pete Tomasi, and now Tony Bedard have got it.

SINESTRO IS A BADASS!

My god, this issue started kind of weak, with the Sinestro Corps moving to attack the Thunderers and Weaponers of Qward. The Green Lantern Corps attempted to defend Qward, without breaking their truce with the Sinestro Corps, in order to prevent another Sinestro Corps War. This, honestly, was really weak.

But all that changed when Sinestro himself entered the battlefield (in an ABSOLUTELY beautiful page). The Weaponer moves to attack Sinestro with a spear created by the White light, but Sinestro creates a wall of energy to stop the spear. Everyone is shocked when the spear fails to destroy the wall, and Bedard hits it out of the park with this little bit of dialogue: "I can see how you got the drop on these Green Lanterns. But now you face Sinestro!". The Weaponer attempts to attack Sinestro, but gets his ass kicked, until the Thunderers return armed to the teeth.

This issue sucked at the beginning, but Bedard can write Sinestro. MY god, can he write Sinestro. If you like Sinestro, and you don't care about this story, read this issue.

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This week, I received a special request from reader, "Neil S". Neil has asked that I write a small retrospective describing the essential storylines to prepare for the upcoming Red Lanterns series this June. Well, I think that's a great idea, and I will have that retrospective up by the end of the weekend.

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Stay tuned next week for our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight.

Next Week: Reviews of Captain America #614, Age of X: Alpha, and our Spotlight (tying into the Sinestro is a badass theme): The SINESTRO CORPS WAR!

Thanks for reading, and as always, feedback (nextlevelstaff@gmail.com) is welcome.

Level 5 - Week of 01/15/11

2011-01-16T10:13:00.000-08:00

Green Lantern Emerald Warriors #6

This issue is a direct continuation from issue #5. Basically to catch people up, Guy Gardner has revealed his secret pact with Ganthet and Atroticus, which infuriates Arisia and Kilowog. After describing his apocalyptic visions in detail, Kilowog and Arisia split, feeling that they cannot trust Gardner any longer, leaving him with Red Lantern Bleez.

They track down the enemy, Zardor, and Bleez (in probably her most awesome scene ever) dispatches all the defenses of a world. Guy moves in to attack Zardor, but is stopped by both Zardor's awesome power, and a possessed Sodam Yat (wearing the new symbol that Yat burned into himself in issue 4).

So the issue was okay, nothing special. I should note that I'm not a huge fan of the Guy Gardner character, but I'm starting to warm up to him. However, this issue does present a possible road for a tie-in with the upcoming War of the Green Lanterns storyline, wherein Zardor is taking control of the minds of Lanterns, and as the issue ends, he's trying to control Guy. Since we know from the solicitation information that Guy and Hal are the two leaders of the two sides of the conflict, it adds a new dimension to the story. However, I must admit, if the war happens only because someone is possessed, I'll be a little disappointed.

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Daredevil Reborn #1

Okay, confession time. With the exception of Born Again, I'd never really read that much Daredevil until a few years ago. I then picked up the Omnibuses of Bendis' run, and Brubaker's run, in time for Andy Diggle to take over on the character. I loved what they did. I even loved Diggle's first arc on the title, leading into Shadowland. Shadowland ITSELF on the other hand? Mixed bad. I didn't like the idea that Matt was possessed, nor did I like the ending per se, but what I really liked is that the responsibility for Daredevil taking his first life, falls squarely on Matt Murdock, and not on the demon possessing him.

So I've caught you up, here's this issue. Matt has travelling blindly (no pun intended) since the Fall of Shadowland. Matt essentially crosses into a little town, where everyone (including the cops) are seriously corrupt and want him dead. This desire to want Matt dead is increased when the cops find the documents (from Brubaker's run), indicating that Matt Murdock is most likely Daredevil. Matt stumbles upon a mass grave, and the cops prepare to kill him.

Wow. Despite being someone who's loved Daredevil in recent years, this issue SUCKED. I'm really hoping the rest of the series picks the quality back up a notch. My biggest concern is that Diggle will make Daredevil a bit more of a "superhero" again, rather than a vigilante. Bendis' run did such a good job of keeping him off in the side of the Marvel Universe, and Brubaker's run made him more central, but still able to deal with the consequences of his own actions in his own sandbox. Diggle seems to want to bring Daredevil back into the Marvel Universe, and while I have no problem with that in theory, if the execution of this means Shadowland and this issue? I'm not impressed thus far.

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Stay tuned next week for our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight.

Next Week: Reviews of Brightest Day #18, Green Lantern Corps #56, and Invincible Iron Man #500, as well as the announcement of our next Spotlight.

Thanks for reading, and as always, feedback (nextlevelstaff@gmail.com) is welcome.

Level 4 - Spotlight on Daredevil: Born Again

2011-01-13T13:33:00.000-08:00

JOINT REVIEW #1: DC UNIVERSE ONLINE

2011-01-12T21:43:00.000-08:00

Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, and welcome to the first joint review by The Next Level and Pwning Pat’s Video Game Blog! My name is Stefan and I’m joined today by the queen of the video game Blogosphere, Patricia!

Hey all! Welcome back and thanks for continuing to read my blog. I hope this review is worth the read (spoiler: it is) and you will enjoy it. I was really looking forward to this game because I was hoping that I would get a decent break from World of Warcraft and plus – COMICS AND VIDEO GAMES. Really, it’s the best of both worlds. I was a little disappointed that you can’t actually join the Green Lantern Corps or be part of Joker’s Goonies but in a way, it makes sense.

Personally, I was super excited by this game, melding two of my greatest loves: COMICS and VIDEO GAMES! So enough with the preamble, let’s get into to the game. First, let’s talk about the install... It’s LONG! Make sure you have at LEAST 20 gigs free on your hard drive prior to the beginning of the process. The install itself is about 16 gigs, but leaving the 4 gig margin of error is probably a good idea. Be prepared for this installation to take a LONG time (mine took 3 hours to be exact). During the installation, I actually read the comics that I’ll be reviewing this weekend on The Next Level (shameless self-promotion ftw!)

For your information, I’m in Crisis server and my user name is “Alex Forrest” (from the movie Fatal Attraction? SHE WAS SCARY, OKAY). Oh, and I’m a villain. Obviously. I had a lot of fun during customization and I actually found myself puzzled at what I wanted my character to be like. From choosing your power set (being DPS, tank, healer, etc), to Movement Speeds (whether you can fly, be super fast, or extremely acrobatic), Weapon Styles, Morality, Personality (which will effect only your character’s posture and when you do a emotion such as dance), and lastly, your Origin and Mentor (for Hero there is, Batman (Tech) / Superman (Meta) /Wonder Woman (Magic) and for Villain there is, Joker (tech) / Lex Luther (Meta) / Circe (Magic). After that, you can create your Costume which took forever to make my girl look amazingly evil. Although it doesn’t exactly matter what you choose as you end up getting new armour to put on later.

After you’ve created your character, you wake up captured on Brainiac’s ship. This works like a tutorial level, complete with a simple boss fight. The idea of this is a method of learning your controls. And, let’s face it, these controls took a little bit of getting used to, isn’t that right, Patricia?

The controls, particularly on the PS3, were a little ... weird, to say the least? I don’t know how to explain it, but for the better part of the tutorial, I found myself fumbling a lot with the controller and kind of hoping for the best. The worst is probably when you press Start and go into your inventory, friends list, etc. It took a very long time for me to really get acquainted with it and I believe it is just simply because it is not as easily accessible as if I was playing on the PC.

After your escape from the ship, you’ll be brought to a safehouse, which depend on the alignment of your character. Once this is done, you can either begin to accept missions or explore the world.

At the beginning, your mentor decides to message you and HELLOO! THEY need YOUR help. What kind of mentor is that!? Anyways, you must go and do some meaningless task for them while they just sit back and watch you suffer. The game does become real fun after the initial run-through; from questing to instances to general exploring. I feel like the game is big enough to keep me enticed but not so huge that I feel like I’m lost and don’t know where to go back to.

So from Stefan, I’m suggesting a purchase of DC Universe Online assuming one of the following three conditions are met: 1) You’re a fan of MMOs, 2) You’re a fan of DC Comics and its shared universe, or 3) You have a group of people to play with. The game has some work to be done, but all-in-all, it’s a good experience with lots of potential and room for growth. What do you think Patricia?

I agree with Stefan. It is a simple MMO though, so it is still great for those casual online players such as me. I think that as of right now, buy the game only if you really know you will enjoy it and you will have people to play it with. I think the most crucial part of this game right now is having someone to enjoy it with. For those on the fence, I would wait before purchasing it – wait until they can patch certain things up and see if it continues to grow in popularity or fizzle out quickly.

Alright ladies and gentlemen, this was the first (of what will hopefully be many) joint reviews by The Next Level and Pwning Pat’s Video Game Blog. Coming up this weekend on The Next Level: Reviews of Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #6, Daredevil: Reborn #1, and our Spotlight on Daredevil: Born Again. Patricia, what’s coming up next on Pwning Pat’s Video Game Blog?

Next up on my blog, a game to look forward to in 2011 that didn’t quuuite make the list but definitely caught my eye and attention. What shall it be? Who knows... you’ll find out soon! It’ll be worth reading, trust me.

Level 3 - Week of 01/08/11

2011-01-08T10:15:00.001-08:00

Batman Beyond #1

Let me preface this review with some facts: I LOVED the Batman Beyond cartoon. I thought it was a very interesting piece of work, and I loved the universe it created. Naturally, when the Batman Beyond miniseries was released earlier this year, I gave it a shot. I felt that the miniseries took the same character and universe in a slightly more mature direction, which i enjoyed. Then, it was announced that due to the success of the miniseries, the series would be relaunched as an ongoing series.

Which brings me to this issue. Don't get me wrong, it was okay, but the tonal change of the previous miniseries has been completely stripped away. Had Bruce Wayne not mentioned the events of the miniseries in passing, I would have honestly felt that this issue was set in a brand new continuity. The plot revolves around a worker in the Justice League tower being diagnosed with some sort of terminal condition. In response, he steals transmuting powers from the Justice League safe (Because EVERYONE has access to the safe, right?) and proceeds to threaten innocent lives.

The one saving grace of this issue was something that clearly pointed out the differences between the future Batman, Terry, and Bruce. When Terry informs Bruce that his mother and brother are in the building being threatened, there is a pregnant pause before Bruce asks, "...Could you treat this like any other situation, and do what has to be done?". Terry's response is pitch perfect, as he responds, "God, Bruce....could you?". Fantastic. The look on Bruce Wayne's face is priceless. All in all, this book's nostalgia factor has worn off, and needs to wow me in the next two or three issues, otherwise, I'm dropping it.

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Ultimate Captain America #1

I love(d) the Ultimate Universe. The stories seemed much more topical and relevant when compared to some of the standard (or 616) Universe. I especially loved the Millar/Hitch Ultimates and Ultimates 2. However, since Ultimatum, I read the first issue of each Ultimate book, and dropped what I didn't like.

Which is what brings me to this issue. This issue was billed as the fight between the Captain America of World War II and the Captain America of Vietnam. Now after reading this issue, I swear I had read this issue before, branded as Ultimate Comics Avengers #1. Think about it: Covert operation? check. Mystery Super-Soldier Helping the enemy? check. Mystery Super-Soldier beating the holy hell out of Cap? Check. Mystery Super-Soldier revealing his identity as someone related to Cap or Cap's origin story? check.

The only reason I'm staying on with this book is the identity of "Captain America of Vietnam". It's Agent Frank Simpson -- Nuke. For those of you who are NOT aware, in the standard Marvel universe, Nuke was a Super-Soldier engineered to follow in Cap's footsteps, and fight in Vietnam. I wasn't particularly thrilled that they just made Nuke the Cap of Vietnam in the Ultimate Universe (considering what they did with Ultimate Cable a few years ago), but I'm gonna cut them some slack. Also, considering Nuke factors heavily into next week's Spotlight post of Daredevil: Born Again, I may be giving it a few extra points.

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Avengers #8

Sorry guys, but I hate Romita Jr's art. I find it SO DAMN BLOCKY! It works great for Iron Man, but badly for most other people.

Okay, now that that's out of the way, I really enjoyed this issue. The art on this series has kept me away from it, but everyone has said it was excellent, so I decided to give this issue a try. And I was certainly not disappointed. The plot of the issue revolves around Iron Man re-assembling the Illuminati (with Medusa taking the place of the recently deceased Black Bolt) revealing that SOMEONE is going after the Infinity Gems.

The dynamic between Steve Rogers (the previous Cap) and Iron Man is fantastic. The sequence where Rogers orders Maria Hill to track Iron Man, leading to the confrontation at the end of the issue was brilliant. I'll be eagerly awaiting the next issue

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Brightest Day #17

So, what do you do when you think you've blown up the universe? Look for Shadows! Wait, what?

This issue of Brightest Day has three portions: Firestorm, the Hawks, and not-so-Deadman. In the Firestorm portion, they realize that instead of blowing up the universe, they were thrown into the centre of some Shadow Demons (the warriors of the Anti-Monitor whom Deadman fought waaaaaaaaaaaay back in issue #3). They are directed to Qward, home of the Sinestro Corps, to try and protect the White Lantern from being stolen by Deathstorm. Quick note here: Aren't Kyle Rayner, Hannu, Soranik Natu, and Ganthet on Qward right now fighting the Weaponer? Doesn't the Weaponer also wield the White Light? Ah son, it's about to go down.

In the Hawkman/Hawkgirl portion of the story, the evil queen lady (sorry, I totally forgot her name, and I hate this portion of the story so I don't care to go back and learn it) invades Zamaron, home of the Star Sapphires. After a brief struggle, she usurps the Predator entity. Yawn.

In the other story, Boston Brand (Deadman, who is now alive...and I really wanna start calling him Aliveman) meets his grandfather again, and takes him for a motorcycle ride. While they are enjoying life, the White Ring on Brand's finger states "Power Levels: 1%" || "Power Levels: 2%". So the ring is being recharged by their joy for life. But what is it being recharged for?

I'm most interested in the Firestorm story, and least interested in the Martian Manhunter story (which wasn't even part of this issue, hooray!). As long as we get some sort of interaction of Qward, I'll be a very happy camper.

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Stay tuned next week for our weekly reviews, and our Spotlight.

Next Week on Spotlight: Daredevil - Born Again. The Kingpin has figured out who Daredevil is and begins to systematically destroy his life. But Kingpin is going to learn that "A man without hope, is a man without fear."

Thanks for reading, and as always, feedback (nextlevelstaff@gmail.com) is welcome.

Level 2 - Week of 01/01/11

2011-01-06T21:29:00.000-08:00

The Flash #8

This week's issue was a profile of Professor Zoom, the Reverse Flash. For those of you not quite in the know, this incarnation of the Reverse Flash wields the power of the Negative Speed Force (as revealed in The Flash: Rebirth). One of the major differences between the Positive Speed Force (the source of power of The Flash family) and the Negative Speed Force, is that the Negative Speed Force allows for a form a time travel that allows history to be changed. While a key point in The Flash Rebirth, this plot point had been left alone...until this issue.

Early into the issue, it seemed fairly ordinary as it began to tell the origin story of the Reverse Flash. The dialogue seemed simple and to-the-point, until a few pages in, when the book begins a rewind effect. This effect shows earlier panels from the book with reversed lettering and red lightning across the pages (red lightning being a sign of the Negative Speed Force at work). This pattern ran throughout the book, as every obstacle a young Eobard Thawne encountered was erased by red lightning. The issue closes with Thawne discovering the uniform of the original Flash and declaring he will be the Flash of his timeframe (the 25th Century), while the Eobard Thawne freed from Iron Heights in the previous issue is shown to be the man who had been removing the obstacles from his own life in his past (and our future...ugh, time travel makes tenses difficult).

The issue concludes with an examination of the Negative Speed Force, including an ominous line of dialogue hinting that when mastered, it would unleash far more devastating abilities. I don't know about you, but I highly enjoyed this issue, and continue to highly enjoy this series. I've got high hopes for the upcoming Flashpoint miniseries. For those of you who are not fully aware of the Flash's universe, I'd recommend reading The Flash Rebirth, and then The Flash - Dastardly Death of the Rogues, to get caught up.

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Green Lantern #61

I've gotta say, after last issue's reveal, I was really excited knowing that the next issue would be coming out so soon in relation to the previous. Then, I read the issue. Don't get me wrong, the issue was fantastic, and I loved it, but I was really hoping for a bit more story. Instead, we get a side story focusing on Atroticus and the Butcher. At first glace, it would appear to be a simple profile story, similar to the issue above, but in reality this book played out much differently.

First, we get a fairly interesting struggle between the Butcher and the Spectre. For those of you who have been following Green Lantern since Rebirth, seeing Spectre battle an emotional entity provides a sense of satisfaction denied to us in the Spectre/Parallax fight of Green Lantern #50/51, and is amazingly drawn. The Butcher takes a human host for the fight, but is drawn to Atroticus. Atroticus shows why he is the leader of the Red Lantern Corps and traps the Butcher. The following sequence with the Spectre attempting to Judge the former host of the Butcher and Atroticus' attempts to stop him is fantastically written as both an examination of Atroticus himself, and an examination of retaliatory punishment in general.

However, it does lead to the only misstep of the book. The following is a mild Spoiler for last month's issue of Green Lantern. The Spectre refuses to judge Atroticus because his mission "against Krona is a Holy one". I'm sorry, but what the hell does that mean? Yes, it makes me want to read next month's issue and all, but come on, give me a bit more than that!

All in all, this book seems to be slowly building to the War of the Green Lanterns, and I cannot wait.

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Thanks for reading, and as always, feedback is welcome.

Level 1 - Spotlight on Green Lantern Rebirth

2011-01-06T20:54:00.000-08:00

Level 0

2011-01-06T20:36:00.000-08:00

Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen, and Welcome to The Next Level. We are your source for comic book opinions and debates. I’m your host Stefan, and I’ll be here with you discussing Comic Books, Video Games, and other items of note. Please note, for a purely gaming blog, I'd recommend Pwning Pat's Game Blog.

This week marks the first public release of the Next Level, and as such it will be focused mainly on reviews and our special feature, the Spotlight. Each post will contain weekly reviews (usually posted on Saturdays) both by our staff and reader-submitted. Once every two weeks, our regular post will be followed by a post devoted to a particular item of note. Listeners can provide feedback, and suggest reviews below via a comment or by emailing nextlevelstaff@gmail.com.

Shortly after this post, I will be reviewing two issues from last week, and our first Spotlight feature. Each Saturday thereafter, I shall endeavour to post reviews from the pull list of our staff. Readers are encouraged to post constructive thoughts via the comment section below, or sent to our email address.

Please be advised that these reviews may contain mild spoilers for the books, but nothing major will be revealed without an explicit warning.

Alright everyone, thanks for reading, and prepare for the Next Level