Welcome back to another week of comic book reviews. As with previous weeks this will contain shorter reviews that are in addition to the long-form reviews. For this week’s comic book review round-up spotlight we are checking out Daredevil #7, Dead Lucky #12, Local Man: Bad Girls, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #118, and Rise of the Powers of X #3.
You can check out our long-term reviews for Duke #4, Green Arrow #10, Ultimate Spider-Man #3, and Zorro: Man of the Dead #3 on the site as well. Scroll down for this week’s review round-up.
DAREDEVIL #7
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Saladin Ahmed
Artist: Aaron Kuder
Colorist: Jesus Aburtov
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Saladin Ahmed and Aaron Kuder knew exactly what the job of delivering a comic book featuring Daredevil and Wolverine fighting needed to be. Wolverine being possessed by a demon both played into the greater ongoing story of this series and a reason to have an intense, action-heavy comic book. Seeing how Daredevil has to defend himself against a Wolverine without a limiter was a blast. Aaron Kuder got over how Daredevil needed to maintain a laser focus to stay alive. The result leaves Daredevil in a spot transition us into the next big phase of this story. – Kevin
Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
THE DEAD LUCKY #12
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Melissa Flores
Artist: French Carlomagno
Colorists: Mattia Iacono and Luca Mattioni
Letterer: Becca Carey
Dead Lucky #12 acts as the final installment that appropriately wraps up this series while leaving the door open for more stories in the future. Dead Lucky very much exists in the continuously growing MassiveVerse. Melissa Flores and French Carlomagno do a lot of great work into emphasizing how this is the conclusion of this particular story that continues Bibi’s growth from where we saw her at the start of Dead Lucky. It was a chapter that had Bibi make a lot of tough choices as she had to deal with the weight of her life as Dead Lucky and the responsibilities that come with it. That is all made stronger by how Flores and Carlomagno resolve Bibi and Pyre’s relationship. That along with other relationships that were developed over the course of these twelve issues made the way things wrap up in Dead Lucky #12 feel earned. We are left in a spot where we want to see where and how Dead Lucky will pop up next in the MassiveVerse. – Kevin
Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
DUKE #4
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Tom Reilly
Colorist: Jordie Bellaire
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Duke #4 is an intense ride from beginning to end. Joshua Williamson, Tom Reilly, and Jordie Bellaire maximize every panel and page they have to spotlight what makes each character special. It all further elevates how Duke and Baroness in particular are positioned as the leads of this chapter in the story. The way things end get you even more invested in wanting to find out how this story for Duke will end. Click here to check out full review. – Kevin
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
GREEN ARROW #10
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artists: Sean Izaakse and Tom Derenick
Colorist: Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Letterer: Troy Peteri
Green Arrow #10 is a mixed bag. On the Oliver Queen and Roy Harper front, the strength of their relationship helps to move the greater story around Amanda Waller forward. Though it is a story brought down by the fact that the Green Arrow Family as a whole lacks the history to make their big reunion hit as intended. The lack of development from past creative decisions impact scenes that are made to look important but lack punching power. That all leads to an overall story that feels rushed because of lack of time. Click here to check out full review. – Kevin
Overall Rating: 6.5 Night Girls out of 10
LOCAL MAN: BAD GIRLS #1
CREATIVE TEAM
Writers & Artists: Tim Seeley and Tony Fleecs
Colorist: Brad Simpson, Felipe Sobreiro, Brian Reber
Local Man: Bad Girls pays great homage to what fans of 90s comic books remember reading. In the process it showcases how we’ve only scratched the surface of the potential for the universe. For as interesting as Crossjack’s story is there is a world filled with characters that have an equal amount of intrigue behind them. This issue not only reinforced Inga’s importance to the series but also elevated Neon as a possible lead character. The history of this world that we learn from Neon’s perspective showed a great amount of depth to her character. Neon is a perfect complement to how Jack and Inga have already been established. All the storytelling in Local Man: Bad Girls works to create even greater investment in the main series. – Kevin
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS #118
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Melissa Flores
Artist: Simona Di Gianfelice and Marco Renna
Colorist: Raul Angulo and Jose Enrique Fernandez
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #118 is a great example of how to make a transitional chapter as important as any other in a story. When Darkest Hour started, I never thought we would see Tommy Oliver and Rita Repulsa team-up. But that is exactly what we got with Melissa Flores, Simona Di Gianfelice, and Marco Renna fully tapping into what that would mean. Their team-up leads to some intriguing call backs to the original show. At the same time, we get a lot of great moments for Billy, Trini, Zack, and other characters throughout this issue. The developments with Billy in particular position him to be the most important character in this story. It all leads to Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #118 creating greater excitement for how Darkest Hour will continue to evolve as a story. – Kevin
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
RISE OF THE POWERS OF X #3
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Kieron Gillen
Artist: R.B. Silva
Colorist: David Curiel
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Rise of the Powers of X #3 continues down the Charles Xavier focus that has both been the strength and weakness of this mini-series. There is no doubt that Kieron Gillen writes a compelling Charles Xavier. The face-off against the young Moira MacTaggert did deliver on the intensity you expect from when Xavier is making the choice to alter everything. The narrow focus on Xavier with a proper counter balance from the other X-Men makes the dialogue exhausting. Especially when this is a big event with a lot of layers that aren’t fully tapped into. Which we see with the rush in Cypher and Rasputin IV role and the limited appearance of Rachel Summers. This all leads to yet another mix bag of an issue that’s become the norm for Rise of the Powers of X. – Kevin
Overall Rating: 5 Night Girls out of 10
ULTIMATE SPIDER-MAN #3
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Jonathan Hickman
Artist: Marco Checchetto
Colorist: Matthew Wilson
Letterer: Cory Petit
Ultimate Spider-Man #3 continues to the pure fun that this series has been since it launched. Jonathan Hickman and Marco Checchetto nail all the different dynamics between the cast. The relationships, especially Peter and May Parker’s father-daughter dynamic, make it easy to get lost in experiencing how the story develops with each page you turn. It all works to elevate to have the final moment between Spider-Man and Green Goblin maximize the impact Hickman and Checchetto were going for. Click here to read full review. – Kevin
Overall Rating: 9.5 Night Girls out of 10
ZORRO: MAN OF THE DEAD #3
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer & Artist: Sean Gordon Murphy
Colorist: Simon Gough
Letterer: DC Hopkins
I was legitimately on the edge of my seat with the ending of Zorro Man of The Dead #3! This was a hell of a hook ending that makes you want to read the next issue immediately. I am a long-time Zorro fan and I do prefer a classic Don Diego swashbuckling adventure. However, I must admit that this intriguing take on the myth of Zorro in Zorro Man of The Dead has been fascinating. This story has been an interesting twist on the Zorro franchise that makes for something a bit different. Click here to check out full review. – Rokk
Overall Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
