Tag: Comics

Amazing Spider-Man 1.6: Molina’s story mercifully ends — like Julio’s life

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AG Julio

It’s a tough time to be a fan of The Amazing Spider-Man. Readers regularly must to deal with things like Dan Slott turing the wall-crawler into a living spider-meteor, or telling audiences that Peter Parker’s love for Mary Jane is “anti-Marvel.”  There seems to be no end in sight. The past year has added insult to injury with the addition of Jose Molina’s “Amazing Grace” storyline, which has finally ended with “Part Six: Lead Me Home.”

For those who have not paid attention since the beginning, here is a quick recap:

  • Peter Parker, The Amazing Atheist (on Molina’s watch) becomes obsessed with Julio Manuel Rodriguez. The mystery man died of cancer, returned from the dead, and seemingly performs miracles with his new lease on life.
  • Spider-Man and the Santerians (Julio’s friends) plan to track him down and reveal the truth.
  • Iron Man tells the group that Rodriguez is drawing power from a portal to the spirit world that is located in Harlem.
  • A “showdown” in the city is announced.

ASM 1.6 concludes with the group realizing that a demon has taken up shop in Julio’s body and will draw power from  it until the two are separated. Iron Man informs the group that a gate to the spirit world is opening that must be closed before all hell literally breaks loose.

Uncle Ben’s spirit returns once more to give his atheist nephew some advice about life, death and the nature of God — but the hero wants none of it.

“Unsubscribe,” Peter says before swinging into the fight.

Amazing Grace SpiderMan

AG1.6

 

One of the Santerians eventually break’s Julio’s neck, which causes the portal to close and the demons to disappear. Spider-Man is livid and scolds the team after Julio’s (second) funeral: “Julio was not to be harmed! There’s always another way!”

The fact of the matter is that there is not always another way. As the kids point out to the veteran superhero, “We had 30 seconds before that monster got loose in our world.”

Would it have been nice to have a priest on hand to perform an exorcist? Sure. Would it have been a good idea to call Dr. Strange for some help along the way? Of course. But that didn’t happen, and the Santerians did the best they could in a bad situation.

Peter mocks the group for believing Julio is in a better place, and they shoot back: “After everything you’ve seen…why can’t you?“

The story ends with Peter walking into a church and asking a priest to talk.

PeterParker Priest

The most disappointing thing about “Amazing Grace” is that it had a lot of potential and guys like me should have loved it.

  • Jose Molina is the first writer to seriously address spiritual issues in ASM in years.
  • “Spirit Uncle Ben,” or whatever you want to call him, actually makes some interesting points.
  • Peter Parker goes to a priest — for advice. (Marvel won’t even allow Matt Murdock into a church these days unless its on Netflix.)
  • The Santerians understand a grim reality that law enforcement personnel and soldiers all over the world are all too familiar with: Sometimes a life needs to be taken to save life.

The problem for Mr. Molina, however, is that Peter Parker should have never been portrayed as a militant atheist to begin with. He would have never blamed God for Uncle Ben’s death because he blames himself. Spider-Man was born out of the guilt that Peter felt over Ben’s murder.

I cannot cheer this particular scene, which respectfully broaches issues of faith, because the writer needed to warp Peter Parker’s origin to make it happen.

I hope Mr. Molina learns from this experience and goes on to write some solid comic books down the line, but someone needs a verbal beatdown for putting him on ASM before he was ready. The book was a disaster from start to finish.

Related:

Molina’s Amazing Spider-Man 1.5: Car crash scene a perfect metaphor for story

Molina’s Spider-Atheist: God ‘a lie’ because Uncle Ben died

Molina’s Amazing Spider-Atheist makes mockery of Peter Parker’s history

Molina’s Spider-Man: ‘Amazing Grace’ a sloppy mess

Daredevil #9: Charles Soule writes modern classic with Spidey-DD team-up

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DD SpiderMan

Charles Soule’s Daredevil #9 should be assigned in every “Superhero Team-up 101” class for the next century. “Blind Man’s Bluff: Part II” brings the Man Without Fear and Spider-Man together in a pitch-perfect issue. It is flawless, and therefore should be mandatory reading for all Marvel employees.

Here is what you need to know for Daredevil #9:

  • Spider-Man meets Daredevil in Macau for a casino heist. Although DD offers scant details, the web-slinger agrees to help him snag a briefcase from heavily armed guards.
  • The heroes’ ambush does not go as planned and a man carrying the suitcase escapes onto a helicopter headed for Hong Kong.
  • Daredevil and Spider-Man hitch a hydrofoil ride to the city after Spider-Man reveals that he tagged the suitcase with a spider-tracer.
  • The two track down the suitcase to an apartment building, a massive fight ensues, and Spider-Man makes off with the prize. He agrees to meet up with DD later.
  • The two men convene at the top of a building looking over the entire city. Spider-Man refuses to give up the suitcase until DD explains why he needs it — in addition to why the memories of their friendship is hazy.
  • Matt Murdock debates lying to his friend, but then comes clean: He did something to wipe everyone’s memory of his secret identity. He also needs the suitcase because it has Black Cat’s files on the entire NYC criminal underworld. He wants to take down all the major players in one fell swoop.
  • Spider-Man hands over the suitcase and warns, “Watch out for those black-costume phases. They can really do a number on you.”

Mystery. Action. Humor. Intelligence. Wit. This issue had it all. There is hope for Marvel, and Daredevil #9 proves it.

How is this for a novel idea: Two characters with a rich history actually act in character while using the superpowers that helped make them famous to keep the other guy safe.

There were no “arachno-rockets” needed, and the moment of truth — when Matt takes a leap of faith on a good man and then his decision is reciprocated — was incredibly poignant. In short, Mr. Soule demonstrated that there is still a place in the world for good storytelling.

DD9 Spidey

Perhaps the best way to describe Blind Man’s Bluff: Part II is “timeless.” The story feels like something I could have read in the 1980s as a kid, but at the same time it feels relevant now. It is a tale that I might reopen ten or twenty years from now and still enjoy. That is the sign of a good writer. That is why I continue to buy comic books, and that is why I pray to God that Mr. Soule does not get weirdly political in the future like so many of his industry peers.

Buy this book. Reward good writing. This is a comic book gem and everything about it is even sweeter because it comes from a writer who does not tell people to “eat a bag of d***s” over partisan politics.

Thank you, Mr. Soule. It has been a long, long time since a book has made me this happy, and for that I am deeply grateful.

DD SpiderMan sunrise

‘Civil War II: Amazing Spider-Man #2’: Gage explores ‘self-fulfilling prophecy,’ recidivism, and redemption

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CWII ASMII cover

Marvel’s Civil War II has been a mixed bag of good ideas and poor execution, but writer Christos Gage’s work on the project has generally been a notch above his peers. Civil War II: Amazing Spider-Man #2, like the issue before it, highlights just how much potential he has as a writer, even if some elements of the book are rough around the edges.

Here is what you need to know for CWII: ASM 2:

  • Spider-Man, tipped off by Ulysses, defeats a “quintronic man.” (The aftermath features a nice nod to Amazing Fantasy #15.)
  • Clayton Cole (aka, Clash) runs into an old henchman he knows, but rebuffs an offer to talk about working with the Owl.
  • Clayton eats a meal with his parents, who are seemingly rotten people. They tell their son Peter Parker is exploiting his genius, liken Clayton’s beard to a something a homeless man would sport, and say his girlfriend Donna (a single mother who works at Parker Industries as an administrative assistant), is only interested in him for his future earnings.
  • Donna breaks up with Clayton just before he asks her to marry him. She is worried about what will happen when her son learns about his criminal past.
  • Clayton explodes on a coworker and later becomes paranoid (with good reason) when Ulysses and Spider-Man act like gossipy high-school kids around him.
  • Spider-Man catches Clayton using an experimental device that can retroactively track and record sound waves. The two have an argument and Clayton storms off.
  • Mendel Stromm (aka, Robot Master), pitches a heist of Parker Industries to Clayton in a bar for henchmen. The plan is to frame Harry Osborn Lyman.
  • Peter tells Harry in a private meeting that he wants to make amends with Clayton, never realizing that the Tinkerer has been given a request to upgrade Mr. Cole’s “Clash” costume.

I mentioned in my first review that Mr. Gage added more intrigue to ASM in one issue than Dan Slott has in months. The good news is that Mr. Gage continues to creatively cross his ‘t’s’ and dot his ‘i’s’ in ways the head ASM scribe shows no interest in duplicating. The bad news is that as a reader it’s hard to witness Clayton’s behavior and not think, “Is Peter Parker the worst judge of character of all time?”

Consider this: Peter Parker’s ‘very close’ girlfriend tried to kill him, his inner circle lies to him and tries to work with corporate saboteurs, and his biggest investor (and secret santa) was the head of an international terrorist organization. He might want to have Doctor Strange check out that spider-sense one of these days, because it certainly doesn’t work during job interviews…

CWII ASMII

Overall, CWII: ASM #2 does a good job of getting readers to think about how hard it must be for an ex-convict to escape the long shadow of sins past. There is a nuance to Mr. Gage’s message about second chances and redemption that has always been absent from Mr. Slott’s work, and for that he should be commended.

At the end of the day, however, Mr. Cole largely comes across as an unsympathetic character due to his actions and the way artist Travel Foreman depicts his hair-trigger rage (an apology by the character afterwards does little to endear him to readers.)

Mendel Stromm

The best-case scenario for Mr. Cole is that he is using inside knowledge of Mendel Stromm’s attack to his advantage — as a hero. Perhaps he will set-up the villain to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt to Spider-Man and Ulysses that he is a good man. There will likely be confusion along the way  — a brief fight with Spider-Man, which technically will prove Ulysses was correct — but in the end Spider-Man and “Clash” will work together to take down Robot Master.

CWII ASMII SpiderMan

What did you think of CWII: ASM #2? Do you think “Clash” will be back to his villainous ways, or will he redeem himself by double-crossing Robot Master? Let me know in the comments section below.

Editor’s Note: Check out the YouTube page and subscribe if you’re into video reviews and podcasts. I plan on doing a lot more of that in the years ahead.

Occupy Avengers goes to David ‘eat a bag of d**ks’ Walker, Marvel’s very own ‘Hooper X’

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Occupy Avengers promo

Imagine you are a writer on a Marvel comic book that can’t even sell 17,000 copies in its second month of release. Now imagine what would happen if you logged onto your social media account and mocked “liberal black people” while flippantly telling them to “eat a bag of d***s” if they were offended by your work.

Question: How long do you think you would last before Human Resources said you were fired?

Answer: It’s a trick question — Marvel does not hire openly conservative writers. If you are David F. Walker of the basement-dwelling Nighthawk (16,522 copies sold in June), however, you can insult “conservative white people,” instruct them to “eat a bag of d***s,” and then get rewarded with an Avengers title: Occupy Avengers.

David F Walker Twitter bag

Bleeding Cool reported Monday:

Occupy Avengers, a new Marvel Avengers comic from David Walker and Gabriel Walta, is hoping to be rather political. And certainly seems to be spinning out of events in Civil War II. Rather visibly.

Because someone who some people thought wouldn’t be there, is there. Up front and central.

Here is an uncomfortable truth: Marvel’s editors think so little of black people that they refuse to let go of an author whose atrocious online behavior and anemic sales would get anyone else terminated in a heartbeat. Emasculated white men within the former “House of Ideas” look the other way when a black writer embarrassingly manages to comport himself like Hooper X from Kevin Smith’s Chasing Amy.

David F Walker Twitter

You can almost hear Mr. Walker’s internal monologue: “Black rage! I kill any white folks I lay my motherf***king eyes on!”

Hooper X rage

I seldom make predictions, but it seems safe to say that any buzz Occupy Avengers will last about as long as Occupy Wall Street. It’s hard to sell comic books to white people when you spend obscene amounts of creative energy trying to portray them as “the white devil.”

Where do you think Occupy Avengers will bottom out? Let me know in the comments section below.

Nighhawk sales

If you have never seen “Hooper X” in action, then make sure to check him out in the embedded YouTube video. It still holds up after almost 20 years.

Exit Question: How come liberal black guys can make homophobic cracks like “eat a bag of d***s” with impunity? Someone needs to ask activist-writers Dan Slott and Nick Spencer, or Editor Tom Brevoort, why Mr. Walker is exempt from the few rules governing the rest of Marvel’s staff.

Tom Brevoort sells ‘Champions’ by likening Cyclops to ‘Kid Hitler’

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Tom Brevoort

Something rather amazing happened last week that mainstream comic book websites ignored: Marvel Editor Tom Brevoort likened Cyclops to Adolf Hilter — the infamous man responsible for killing six million Jews.

For some inexplicable reason, Mr. Brevoort thought it was a good idea to sell the upcoming “Champions” book on more political activism and “Kid Hitler.” Seriously.

Entertainment Weekly reported July 5:

BREVOORT: This is the young Scott Summers pulled from the past. In my head, he’s kind of the first challenge the group faces. Which is to say that when they get together and start to do this, what they’re doing is not just putting together a superhero team, they’re more like activists. They’re making an inclusive statement that they mean to be for all members of their generation: it’s time to get together and stand up and fix the world. This is a message that goes out and people come in response to it. Cyclops shows up and goes, “Boy I love what you’re putting down, I’d like to be a part of it.” It’s kind of like Kid Hitler showing up at the door. The older Cyclops has done some stuff. He’s a hugely divisive figure in the Marvel universe, so the first question these kids have to answer for themselves is, should we let him be a part of this? Is his very presence going to taint what we’re doing? His older self became a radical and a revolutionary and did awful things, but is it the same guy? And that’s kind of why he’s there I think. He wants to go down a different road than his older self did.

A comic book fan does not even know what has happened in the X-Men books for the past few years to understand how pathetic it is that Scott Summers is “Kid Hitler.”

  1. At what point in time did the Holocaust essentially become an Entertainment Weekly punchline for Mr. Brevoort? Oh that ‘Kid Hitler.’ Tune into to see if the other super-kiddies welcome him into the club after what he’s done! 
  2. At what point did Marvel decide that it was “fun” to read heroes who earn Hitler analogies?

Marvel is in such sad shape these days that heroes seem to fight heroes more than villains, Hydra-Cap gimmicks are required for quick sales, Doctor Octopus spent over a year in Peter Parker’s body, and now Cyclops is “Kid Hitler.”

If you get a chance, ask Marvel’s writers and editors how much money they estimate Mr. Brevoort’s Holocaust analogy in Entertainment Weekly will net the company. My guess is that they will somehow try and portray you as the bad guy, but if they do then just keep in mind who you’re dealing with — men who turned Cyclops into “Kid Hitler.”

Brevoort Cyclops analogy Hitler

Iron Man #11: Bendis gives Riri action, Tony tepid climax

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IIM 11 cover

Invincible Iron Man #11 should have been an action-packed extravaganza with War Machine, Captain America, Nova, Ms. Marvel, She-Thor, Vision and War Machine all joining forces with Tony Stark to destroy “Techno Golem” and her network of terror. Writer Brian Michael Bendis had other things in mind — action for Riri Williams, and a tepid climax for Tony. Long-time readers should be chafing.

Here is what you need to know for IMM #11:

  • Stark’s board of directors hire corporate saboteur Ghost to break into Tony’s lab and override his servers.
  • Mary Jane informs the board that she is Tony’s new Executive Administrator. She wards off the hostile takeover by telling everyone that Stark is secretly working on new products.
  • Riri Williams tests her new suit during a prison break outside New Mexico State Penitentiary.
  • Tony meets “Rhodey” at a secret meeting place to ask why the Avengers are flying around Osaka, Japan. He soon realizes that he is speaking to Ms. Marvel in shape-shifted form. She informs him that a rescue operation is taking place.
  • The Avengers, War Machine, and S.H.I.E.L.D. launch an assault on the bio-hack ninjas that nets Zhang but misses the big fish “Techno Golem.” The action (that is being generous with the term) is a single shot that takes up two pages.
  • Tony poses as “Franco” in a prison cell with Zhang and asks where “Techno Golem” went. Zhang says she feels betrayed, but that the woman could be “anywhere” and will ultimately destroy S.H.I.E.L.D.

The best way to describe Invincible Iron Man at this point is disappointing. It had so much potential, but Mr. Bendis essentially over-promised and under-delivered. There needed to be serious action in IIM #11, and instead it was just talking…and more talking…and Tony scratching the back of his neck while in deep thought.

It’s nice to have witty and intelligent banter, but at some point it seems like endlessly watching two cats pat around a ball of string.

Perhaps the worst aspect of the issue is that it takes place before James Rhodes dies in Civil War II (i.e., the timing called for something special that never transpired).

This was a “rescue” operation to bring Tony out of hiding and wipe out a deadly foe, but readers are not given a memorable battle for a man who has meant so much to Mr. Stark. Instead, the book features Riri Williams punching the engine of a getaway vehicle in the desert, and a snapshot of the Avengers in action.

“That was my first superhero thing. I’ll do better next time,” Ms. Williams says after sending two convicted felons through a windshield. Meanwhile, Rhodey must embarrassingly hem and haw when he is informed that he captured the wrong High Value Target.

Your friendly neighborhood blogger wrote “Invincible Iron Man: Bendis’ superb work lures back old Tony Stark fan” on Oct. 22, 2015. I published positive reviews in the months that followed, but somewhere along the line the book began to offer diminishing returns. My guess is that Mr. Bendis has been allocating the bulk of his creative energy to whatever he is doing with Riri Williams behind the scenes.

If you are a fan of Tony Stark, then I suggest staying away from Mr. Bendis’ efforts until the billionaire has his undivided attention.

Bendis slimes Riri Williams critics as racists with straw-man argument

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Brian Michael Bendis Time

Marvel’s editorial team may share nothing in common with Matt Drudge, but there is no doubt they were thrilled on Wednesday when the media mogul gave Riri Williams (aka, the soon-to-be Iron Man) a ton of free publicity.

Mr. Bendis sat down for an exclusive interview with Time magazine, where he said that his 15-year-old MIT genius, Riri, would soon take the reins from Marvel’s coolest billionaire entrepreneur. Yours truly wondered in March if Riri would soon replace Mr. Stark, but for some reason Marvel doesn’t send scoops this way. How odd… **cough**cough**

What is most striking about the writer’s discussion with Time, however, is the giant straw-man argument he used to slime critics of his work as racists.

Mr. Bendis said:

“Some of the comments online, I don’t think people even realize how racist they sound. I’m not saying if you criticize you’re a racist, but if someone writes, ‘Why do we need Riri Williams we already have Miles?’ that’s a weird thing to say. They’re individuals just like Captain America and Cyclops are individuals. All I can do is state my case for the character, and maybe they’ll realize over time that that’s not the most progressive thinking.

But increasingly we see less and less of that. Once Miles hit, and Kamala Khan hit and female Thor hit — there was a part of an audience crawling through the desert looking for an oasis when it came to representation, and now that it’s here, you’ll go online and be greeted with this wave of love.

Translation: “I’m not saying you are racist if you say [insert critique that Mr. Bendis doesn’t agree with], buuuuut, you’re probably —  hurrrrm — racist. You’re most certainly not — hurrrm — progressive.”

The vast majority of critics, who are tired of “wave of love”-driven decisions being shoved in their face, do not say things like, “Why do we need Riri Williams — we already have Miles?” Most readers get upset with Mr. Bendis for turning a Spider-Man derivative into a God-like being for the “more power means cooler hero” crowd, but they do not have a racist or sexist aversion to his characters.

Riri Willaims

With that said, even the “weird” comment Mr. Bendis cites is only “weird” at a cursory glance. Mr. Bendis lies by omission by not really explaining the whole situation to Time.

As was already mentioned, Miles Morales is a derivative of Spider-Man. Likewise, She-Thor is a derivative of Thor, and Amadeus Cho is a diversity-upgrade for Hulk. Heck, even Falcon cannot be Falcon — he must be Captain America — because Marvel has decided Steve Rogers is generally just fit to be … dead … or a Nazi-sympathizing Hydra agent.

The point is this: Rational people might begin to wonder why classic superheroes all need a female or minority replacement when creating cool new characters is always an option.

It is actually more patronizing to women and minorities to pat them on the head and say, “Here you go my special goo-goo, ga-ga, coochie-coo. Here’s a Spider-Man and Iron Man and Captain America and Thor just for you. Don’t you cry, little ones.” 

When Brian Michael Bendis talks about going online and being “greeted with this wave of love,” it is important to remember just how much Marvel writers want it. They crave the wave. They seek it from Time magazine. They seek it from mainstream comic book websites. They seek it from Tumblr kids. They seek it in their Twitter stream and every other digital tributary — because it is addictive.

Do not let Mr. Bendis use straw-man arguments. Do not be cowed when he implies or outright calls you a racist over legitimate criticisms of his work. There are right ways and wrong ways to create a more diverse Marvel universe, and fans should not be shamed into silence because writers are quick to start talking about racism at the least bit of criticism.

Dan Slott, confronted on weird behavior, lies about Douglas Ernst Blog — again

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DC Women tweet

Douglas Ernst Blog terrifies and irritates Marvel writer Dan Slott to no end. The man stalks this blog in the wee hours of the morning, keeps tabs on my professional life, and consistently tries to smear me every time someone cites my work.

Your friendly neighborhood blogger walked out of Steven Spielberg’s newest film, The BFG, this afternoon to see traffic spike for a post titled “Dan Slott trolls random woman on Twitter, then has the gall to bash GamerGate supporters.” I knew immediately that a really good Reddit conversation was going on somewhere or that Dan Slott was once again lying about me on Twitter. It turned out to be the latter.

Here is how Mr. Slott responded to the DC Women Kicking Ass blog when its creator called him out for his unprofessional Twitter antics.

Dan Slott dcwomenkicka tw1

Yes, Dan Slott is calling me a “Right Wing extremist” — because a Catholic guy who believes in free markets, a strong national defense and the rule of law somehow equates to extremism in his mind.

As usual, the writer attacks me from afar because the evidence is not in his favor.

Since Mr. Slott knows deep down that a quick internet search can easily prove him wrong, he then goes to his bag of logical fallacies — after “ad hominem” usually comes “poisoning the well.”

In today’s case we have Dan Slott referring to a previous employer I had (for eight months), that has dozens upon dozens of op-ed contributors from across the conservative spectrum — some I vehemently disagree with (e.g., Ann Coulter), and others (like economist Thomas Sowell) who are intellectual giants.

Dan Sott dcwomenkicka tw2

Regardless, I challenge anyone to go through my Twitter feed and find “extreme” work — it’s not there.

Like any writer who works for online magazines or newspapers, I am sometimes given assignments that I dislike, but I always try my best to stick to the principles espoused on this blog. Dan Slott’s insinuation that I’m a “birther” is pathetic, but at this point it is to be expected.

Finally, Dan’s tweet-screed shows that despite being exposed as Slottian misrepresentation at its finest (even CBR readers have called him out on his sad attempts to deflect criticism), he still insists on twisting my response to Peter Parker’s “No One Dies” mantra.

Dan Slott dcwomen3

Dan Slott dcwomenka tw response

Dan Slott says Douglas Ernst Blog “distorts” everything he does, which is weird because a.) I said he hit a “home run” with Renew Your Vows, and b.) his definition of distortion apparently is “quoting a man word for word and linking to the source material whenever available.”

A good example might be that time he said Peter Parker’s love for Mary Jane is “anti-Marvel.”

I quoted the man at length, linked to an hour-long YouTube video, instructed readers to view the entire thing, and he still accused me of taking him “out of context.”

That, dear reader, is “distortion” to Mr. Slott.

Note to Dan Slott: You obviously have learned nothing from the time you stalked The Main Event and then exploited his charity run for Twitter sponge bathes. The guy tore you to shreds, but yet you continue to act like an online buffoon.

Keep talking, Mr. Slott. I will continue to expose your lies. I might even have to do my own YouTube takedown soon. If I can deliver half as well as The Main Event, then I will be happy.

Update: Look who is stalking my blog again (despite blocking me on Twitter) — Dan Slott.

Dan Slott stalking tweet

The name of this website is Douglas Ernst Blog. There is nothing weird about referring to it by its proper name. Anyone who knows about branding understands that. How strange is it that Dan Slott mocks me for being a single person when it is glaringly obvious that my writing is constantly on his mind? What are you going to do, Dan Slott, when I continue to expand my social media presence in the years ahead?

Side Note: Here is a brief glimpse into the mind of Dan Slott’s most ardent supporters. This individual tried to say that Mr. Slott does not resort to ad hominem attacks. When I said that calling me a “Right Wing extremist” is, in fact, an attack on my character his response was that it was “probably” used as a pejorative. Classic.

It was a mere “slight.” That’s all, old chap! Academics and all, you know. Hurrrm.

Dan Slott ad hominem attack

Marvel turns Trump into villain ‘M.O.D.A.A.K,’ hopes hackery buoys sales

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MODAAK Trump Marvel

It was only one month ago that activist-writer Nick Spencer turned Red Skull into a Donald Trump stand-in. Objective readers wondered just how deep Marvel’s well of partisan hackery might go. Spider-Gwen Annual #1 by writer Jason Latour offers the clearest evidence yet that it is deeper than anyone can imagine.

Comic Book Resources reported Saturday:

In this week’s “Spider-Gwen Annual” #1, writer Jason Latour and “an awesome assemblage of artists” offer a tour of Earth-65 with a collection of short stories that includes She-Hulk as a pro wrestler, the origin of Koala Kommander, and an all-too brief showdown between Captain America and M.O.D.O.K. — wait, make that M.O.D.A.A.K. (Mental Organism Designed As America’s King).

Illustrated by Chris Visions and colored by Jim Campbell, the two-page sequence depicts M.O.D.A.A.K. as an orange-skinned, tiny-handed villain sitting in his floating chair, leading the forces of A.I.M. near the United States/Mexico border. There he declares, “If American will not act — M.O.D.A.A.K must!”

However, just as he begins to utter a familiar slogan (“Must make America–“), he’s cut off by a well-placed shield throw from Captain America. Crashing to the ground, M.O.D.A.A.K. leaves us with a parting threat (and a jab at Trump): “Crush you … in … my … powerful handsss …”

Regular readers of this blog know that I have no love for the billionaire’s campaign, which is why it pains me to have to defend the man. Although, truthfully, it’s not really about Mr. Trump. What this is about is Marvel Comics filling its ranks with pathetic partisan trolls whose bright idea for keeping the company afloat is to cultivate loyalty with the lowest common denominator.

Note to Jason Latour, Nick Spencer, Dan Slott, Tom Brevoort, and everyone else within Marvel who thinks dividing people is a great business model for long-term growth: The internet exists. When you create stuff like Trump-M.O.D.A.A.K., those stories end up in news feeds next to ‘White House reveals number of civilian deaths from drone strikes.’

CNN reported Friday:

President Barack Obama’s administration estimated Friday that between 64 and 116 civilians have died during the years 2009-2015 from U.S. drone strikes outside of Iraq and Afghanistan.

In the same time span, the administration said between 2,372 and 2,581 militants had been taken out by drones. …

Human rights groups, however, were unsatisfied by the government’s disclosed figures, which came in far lower than independent estimates of civilian causalities.

Selective moral outrage and Marvel-approved hypocrisy are easy to expose thanks to the internet. Whether one loves him or hates him, Donald Trump has never dropped bombs on 116 civilian heads.

President Obama decided long ago that he would rather splatter suspected terrorists into a blood-red mist than capture and interrogate them like George W. Bush, but yet it is Mr. Trump who gets the M.O.D.A.A.K treatment. Telling.

Readers get what is going on, which is in part why Spider-Gwen had estimated sales of a whopping (drumroll please) … 33,797 copies last month.

The moral of the story is this: There are many, many, many readers who are fed up with immature antics of writers like Nick Spencer and Jason Latour. We do not have an affinity for Donald Trump, but we also don’t want to see him turned into a de facto Red Skull or alternate-universe M.O.D.O.K. (Mental/Mobile/Mechanized Organism Designed Only for Killing).

Superhero comic books were once used to unite readers of all ages and from all walks of life, but these days Marvel employees work to divide — and that is one reason why so many life-long customers no longer care and are walking away in droves.

Related:

Red Skull

Spider-Man #5: Bendis gives Miles new power … because god-like Miles

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Miles SM3

Brian Michael Bendis wants “Spider-Man” readers to know that Miles Morales, one day, will be the most powerful superhero in the Marvel universe. How do I know this? Because the kid can take down anyone with a single touch, turn himself invisible, regenerate limbs, he’s (allegedly) immortal, and now he can randomly project giant bursts of energy.

It’s dumb, lazy, and just screams, “My Spider-Man will be the best Spider-Man ever and you will respect him!”

Spider-Man #5 exemplifies everything that is wrong and everything that is right with the title. On one hand Mr. Bendis excels at planting seeds for future conflict, but on the other his efforts are negated because there is no conflict with an immortal being with an endless string of powers.

The situation is so embarrassing that Marvel Wikia lists Miles’ one weakness as … inexperience.

Translation: Miles Morales is Marvel’s Big Dog — and and you, dear reader, just don’t know it yet.

Miles Morales powers

Here is what Bendis said in a recent interview with CBR about criticism about Miles’ powers:

I already got an e-mail tonight from somebody in England who gets their comics a day early b****ing to me, and I was given this a little bit in the last volume too, that some people don’t like when Miles wins a fight with his venom blast. They think it’s bulls**t.

That’s like saying you’re mad because Thor won a fight with his hammer. I don’t understand that criticism. He has a tool and he used it. It’s not like the readers didn’t know he could do it. We’ve known since the character’s first appearance. So I’m calling bullshit on people calling bulls**t on this particular thing. It’s a very weird criticism.

Note to Brian Michael Bendis: The validity of your argument is not positively correlated with the number of times you say “bulls**t” and “b***h.”

If Miles Morales only needs to touch an opponent to beat him (e.g., the demon Blackheart, Hammerhead), then he becomes boring.

If there are no chains that can hold Miles Morales because he might decide to become a levitating burst of god-like energy, then it is kind of lame.

When the message is: “You cannot defeat Miles Morales — you can only hope to contain him!” then the book becomes a snooze-fest. That is not “bulls**t.” That is the truth.

Here is what you need to know about Spider-Man #5:

  • Miles Morales is held in a warehouse by Black Cat, Hammerhead and his crew. He uses a Venom Blast on one of the goons and Hammerhead before projecting an “energy burst” to escape.
  • Miles’ annoying grandma decides to hire a private investigator, Jessica Jones, to figure out what the teenager does when he is not in school.
  • “Goldballs” takes Ganke up on the offer to live with he and Miles.
  • Black Cat tells Miles not to interfere with her “business.” She threatens to “ruin” his life if he crosses her.
  • Maria Hill meets with Miles’ father. There is an agreement made to look after the boy and she says, “Welcome back to S.H.I.E.L.D.”

Am I interested in seeing what happens when Jessica Jones tails Miles? Sure.

Does it pique my interest to know that Miles’ father is a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent? Sure. I think it’s weird for a husband to have giant secrets from his wife and son, but for entertainment purposes I suppose it works.

Miles Morales Grandma SM

The problem Spider-Man has, however, is that it appears to be trying too hard to establish Miles Morales as “the” Spider-Man. Unfortunately, just adding power after power after power to the kid actually ends up doing him a disservice.

When it becomes apparent that a writer is desperate to have his pet creation immediately enter the upper echelons of Marvel greatness, it becomes a turnoff for readers. This reviewer may be jumping off the book soon if the trend continues for much longer.