Amazing Spider-Man #555 and Secret Invasion #1 reviews!

Let’s start with Amazing Spider-Man 555, because this was very pleasantly surprising. Just when I was contemplating of dropping Amazing Spider-Man from my pull list, because, quite frankly, it was getting boring with rehashed, repetitive shit, they pull out a miracle out of their asses.

Amazing Spider-Man 555

 Amazing Spider-Man 555 by Zeb Wells and Chris Bachalo is what Brand New Day should be. It should be fun, and should be entertaining, just like the good old days that Joe Q. wanted to recapture. Spidey’s internalization were fun and light-hearted, yet it shows that the humor is just to ease how sucky the situation is. They weren’t found on the classic thought balloons either, but rather those narration boxes, which, quite frankly, I like better than the cheesy thought balloons.

Characterization was brought out well, especially on Wolvie, as well as the main character, Spidey. The interaction between those two was beautiful; it’s just the way you’d think those two would interact within the New Avengers. Another interaction I really liked was Dr. Strange and Spidey, where Strange seems to be like a father-figure, and Spidey being all witty at Strange’s seriousness. I love how we can see Wolvie respects Strange in his own way.

The story arc is just beginning with the snowstorm, and its various elements that will be introduced in the comic. For a beginning issue of an arc, it did all it had to do. We’re still not quite aware of the threat, but we do know there is one. I liked it.

The art is something I enjoyed a lot, too. I like Bachalo’s style, even though it isn’t the most realistic. Especially for this title, it really works. Hell, it worked for Wolverine.

I give Amazing Spider-Man 555:

Four real Brian Michael Bendis heads and one Skrull Bendis.

Now, onto the MAIN EVENT! Secret Invasion #1, by Brian Michael "Everyone Should Talk Alike" Bendis  and Leinil "Clean Art" Yu. First off, I just gotta say, my copy’s signed by his awesomeness, Leinil Yu. Check it out:

This is the first issue of Secret Invasion, the biggest 2008 event. Does it live up to the hype? Well, I’d like to think that yes, yes, it does.

 As an issue in a mini-series, it does its job very well. For a first issue, it’s already got enough reveals to keep anybody interested. It has a lot of "WTF?! NO WAY!!!" and "I FUCKEN’ KNEW IT!" moments, which is great. If it keeps up like this, it will be good for the entire event. What’s important is the issue does its job, and shows people what are the stakes and it hooks people into the story, because they want to know what comes next.

There isn’t much action in this issue, and that’s okay, it’s just setting the mood and tone and pace. We wouldn’t like a big brawl with a Skrull right away, now, would we? We want it to reach a fever pitch first before anything bigger happens. However, that’s made up for with a lot of "WOAH!!!!" moments, if you catch my drift. And, on top of that, the issue has a lot of cliff-hangers, though, so there’s gotta be a lot to look forward to in the next issue.

The problem I find is inherent in Bendis’ writing of dialogue. Not that it’s bad, it just always has a very Bendis-y characteristic. Fortunately, that was spot-on for Daredevil, but it doesn’t quite feel right with people like Agent Brand. She doesn’t go "We do we got?," does she? I mean, in Astonishing X-Men, she was a hard-ass, but she didn’t speak like a hillbillly.

The banter that’s very evident in both New and Mighty Avengers is still present here. Now, if you like that, great for you. If you don’t, try not to gouge your eyes out. And with the New Avengers, it sort of sounds like only one personality, divided among several members.

The art is very appealing, and very apt, if I do say so myself. Normally, Leinil has a very sketchy quality to his art, but in Secret Invasion, the art looks uncharacteristically clean. I’m not saying that either way is bad; it just looks different this time over. I’ve heard that he has an inker now, or has a new inker, I’m not exactly sure.

I give Secret Invasion #1:

Four Brian Michael Bendis heads and one Brian Michael Bendis head, changing into a Skrull.

Remember, guys, he loves you…