Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D #1 by Guggenheim, Peralta and Rosenburg

I'm so relieved that Agents of SHIELD, the TV show, became a good show. It was pretty rough first season due to the restrictions placed on them but I'm very glad that it turned itself around. I also wasn't sure about Agent Coulson becoming an actual protagonist instead of a weird side character that appeared in Marvel movies, but you know.... I actually liked what they did with him and the character. Good on you, Agents of SHIELD.

The comic book does a very good job of mirroring the TV show without it either taking away from the TV show or loading it down with unnecessary action or character development. All of the characters are there, Daisy (which by the way, who else is kind of weirded out that Skye just all of the sudden wanted to be Daisy? Sure, your father sacrificed everything, but I mean, you were called Skye for most of your life... It's not a detriment to him to still be called that.), Deathlok, FitzSimmons, May, Bobbi and Ironman, cause you don't have to pay RDJ.

The scene opens with Coulson getting beaten up, tied to a chair, and "takin' it like a man." He slyly calls his strike teams and takes down the bad guys with quips and snarky comments typical of Joss Whedon-esque dialogue.

There is a good setup for the story and the comic ends on a cliff hanger. However, again, like I said before, it's not imperative to read the comic to enjoy the TV show, and there is just enough action to not take away from the show itself. What this comic does is give more access to it's beloved characters and allow us to peek into their lives while they are not on the show. What I found interesting is that it completely ignored Daisy/Skye, choosing to focus on May, Fitz and Coulson.. oh, and Tony Stark.

There are a few panels that stick out to me the most. In one scene, Fitz and May are training, and then Fitz asked MAY out on a date. Damn, Fitz. I'm not sure if it's going to work out, but I admire Fitz' bold move to ask her out, and May's willingness to accept. There was a lot of tension between May and Andrew on the show (which was so sad, you guys) and I'm glad that May is treated like a woman with feelings instead of a robot in the comic and giving her a chance to at least try and move on. However, I sort of feel like May may eat Fitz alive... and I also feel like Fitz will enjoy it. Fun for all!

Finally, I'm kind of put off by Coulson being REALLY BUILT in the comic. Like, him and Lola sleep together, which fine, whatever, and then they show him going to her computer to gather intel when she catches him. He's like... 40 or so. 40 year old men can be in good shape, and Coulson has to be in good shape to do his job, but... he has the receding hairline of an older man and a body of an inshape 25 year old in this panel. It was a bit off putting with baby smooth skin. I would think at least the illustrator would be more scars on him or make him a bit gritty. I get they want him to be an "Bond" like character, but... not appealing. At all.

I really like the illustration and the action in the comic and besides for the hunked up version of Coulson, it was a solid read. I hope I get more of this series, but I already have a backlog of a lot of comics to get through.

Marvel Mondays: The All-New, All-Different Avengers #2 by Waid, Kubert and Oback

It could have been written as 1 comic, but I'll give it to Marvel to try and make a buck wherever they can.

The story continues with The Vision showing up and helping Tony Stark bust out of his car-Iron-man. The Warbringer goes to Jersey City, where Nova tracks him and he is dreading meeting Ms. Marvel again more than battling his old foe. Ms. Marvel is concerned about her town and the damage that Nova is causing due to his focusing on the Warbringer.

All the Avengers arrive and meet up with Nova and Ms. Marvel, and Nova does not want to admit that the Warbringer is back due to his first incident of being dropped into the sun. The Warbringer wants immortality, and low and behold, Thor arrives to help the Avengers, or the group that do not want to call themselves the Avengers, take down their new enemy.

It's a great story, but again, I wish it was meatier. It feels even though there are a lot of characters involved, since they are making an "All-new, All-different" Avengers team, but it's just... lacking in action. Spider-man had more action than the new Avengers comic does.

I hope it picks up, and I hope that Josh buys the next month's addition. However, I do have a bone to pick with this headline... it's not completely all new, is it, if Tony Stark and Spiderman is still there, right? Aren't they part of the original Avengers? WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF, MARVEL?

Good read, but don't expect it to be a long one. It goes by quicker than usual.

The All-Different, All-New Avengers # 1 by Waid, Kurbert and Omack

The Avengers are incredibly famous now since the movies. I was wondering what they were going to do with them since they are rebooting all of their new number 1's. I was pleasantly surprised with the familiar superheros they kept and then added a few new ones to the mix.

It opens up to Sam Wilson saving someone, and no matter what he does, cannot catch a break. Tony Stark arrives and provides a needed distraction while they separate from the masses who want Captain America to buy some girl scout cookies.

Tony Stark is poor now? I'm not sure what the deal was, but he sold Stark tower to... someone that looks evil, who discovered Warbringer hiding in one of the boxes they were moving. He technically teleported, but hiding sounds funnier. Spider-man (Oh, Spider-man), was eyesdropping, but since I know that he pays Hobie Brown to be his stand in, I wonder if it's him? Anyway, he's caught by the random evil guy and Warbringer, and tosses him out the window. Tony's car is turned into an Iron-man, and Captain America save Spider-man and help save the day.

The comic then cuts to a girl who is in the midst of an argument with her teenage friends. A side note here, I love the awareness of diversity in the new comic books. It's such a simple thing to have a friend who wears a hijab in a comic book, but with all the anti-muslim rhetoric, anything that can be used to show that muslims are people too is beneficial.

Anyway, Ms. Marvel is a teenage girl who witnesses a large beast in her neighborhood and Nova battling it. She goes and change, and of course, Nova is smitten at first by the citizen, then by the changing Ms. Marvel. I don't know a lot about her, but I already think she's rad. The pair of them bicker as they take down the beast, and Nova reveals who he is in desperate attempt to get her to like him.

It does not go over well.

There are 2 more characters that haven't been introduced that will be introduced next issue: Thor and The Vision. We knew The Vision from the movie, but we'll see how they interpret him. I'm interested in reading his comic, The Visions. Finally, they changed the gender of Thor. I'm not sure how or why, but I think there is also another all knew comic about the change.

I'm excited to read the second issue of the The Avengers with the spin on it.

Also, side note, I'm excited that the new Hulk is Asian. That's pretty cool, right?