Hugo Weaving as V and Alister Mazzotti as Baldy Fingerman in V FOR VENDETTA (2006).
© Warner Bros. Pictures

Related Links

0

Comicscape - March 29, 2006

All right, I can't maintain that persona for longer than a paragraph. This week, I answer your letters about the most recent comic book adaptation to grace the cinema, V FOR VENDETTA. I had mixed feelings about the film. A lot of you guys did as well, it seems. I gleaned that other people liked the film a bit more than I did, but a few of you agreed with my concerns. To clarify: I enjoyed the film just fine. It wasn't bad. However, I felt its inadequacies were severe enough to merit scrutiny. With the Guy Fawkes issue, this is particularly important, given people's tendencies to cop their politics and history from movies (or anything other than, I don't know, books). Regardless, thanks to everyone that wrote. Here's the rub:

Ted writes, "Just wanted to say that your article on V FOR VENDETTA was great. I really enjoyed how you managed to balance both sides of the issues at hand. I also appreciate how you looked at what Alan Moore's goals were in his work, instead of just looking at the movie as a stand-alone piece."

As this is a comic book column, I have to take the source material into account more than I would were I just writing a movie review. CINESCAPE reviewed V FOR VENDETTA the same day it came out. I have to assess it as a comic reader, which means I'm going to make comparisons. If I deem any changes necessary or at least understandable, then I'll say so. However, more often than not, the changes made in comic adaptations bespeak of greed rather than artistic necessity."

"Have to say that as a rider of the 'Bush BAD!' bandwagon I'd love for a film like this to actually raise questions and stir emotions, but I also understand that the graphic novel was more than a simple 'good v. evil' story. (Hell, even in this country there are shades of grey, but I still want Bush out, but that's another story.) Anyway I think you captured all that very well."

Thanks for the kind words. The thing is, plenty of movies have already done the "War BAD!" and "Bush BAD!" thing in the past few years. Being of mixed politics, while I'm not thrilled with this administration, I really want art that assess issues more intelligently and more critically than "Bush is a fkin' Nazi, man!" Wow, man, that's like, so brilliant. You're such an individual. Stop the war. Pass the bong. How about giving thought to some issues, proposing alternatives, and not reducing oneself to slinging insults? I'm not talking about you in particular, but that's more my objection to the simplistic attacks in films like V FOR VENDETTA. But, make no mistake: I'm not saying that just because someone already made an anti-Bush film that no one else can make one. By all means, if that warms you cockles, make all the Bush-bash flicks you want. However, the simplistic dystopian take presented in V FOR VENDETTA has already been done, and better.

Aeonstrife writes, "I agree with your comments about the differences between the graphic novel and the movie V FOR VENDETTA. I thought the movie could have been so much better if it kept to the graphic novel; the movie was far too simplified. The ending sequence of all the people dressed like V was cheesy, but at the same time I don't believe it meant to show that V was converting everyone into him. It seemed to indicate that like V everyone was wearing a mask, they couldn't be themselves until the corrupt government fell, however once that happens they are free to be themselves and no longer wear a mask."

I still think the mass removal of the masks was too little, too late. You're probably correct in that the Wachowskis and James McTigue intended the image to show that they could come out from behind the façade, embrace individuality, and the like, but I felt like the image of a mob dressed as V really overwhelmed the conclusion and overshadowed any resolution.

"I can see why Alan Moore had his name taken off from the movie. I agree with your comments about V being morally ambiguous, however I also belief that Guy Fawkes was morally ambiguous. Yes Guy Fawkes was a religious fanatic terrorist, but at the same time Queen Elizabeth I and King James I were religious fanatic dictators in a hierarchy system who waged a war against the Roman Catholics, persecuting them, killing several of them and taking away their equal rights, in such a climate everyone was gray. Both monarchs clearly had the country's best interests at heart, yet they turned to cruel and horrid methods. The Protestants feared the Catholic Church would destroy them so they suppressed the Catholics, the Catholics felt that the Protestants had usurped power and would destroy all Catholics, thus this created a circle of continual violence by both sides."

It's not that I side with Protestant monarchs that persecute Catholics, but the Gunpowder Plot would've killed so many innocent people as to nullify whatever positive impact (if any) that assassinating, I don't know, the king and almost every member of Parliament would've achieved. It's the moral equivalent of blowing up the Capitol and taking all of Washington D.C. with it. And again, I doubt that Fawkes or Robert Catesby just wanted a fair shake for Protestants and Catholics alike. They wanted a Catholic monarch, and resorted to a failed mass assassination to get one.

"A very grey zone that the graphic novel adapts into a modern setting with new players, it isn't exactly the same, but in many regards it appears to be history repeating itself with a different end result."

Except that V is an anarchist, and Fawkes was a monarchist. If it were the same, V would've killed Adam James Susan (comic) or Adam Sutler (film) and taken over as dictator himself. In the comic at least, he isn't just against that particular hierarchy he is against the concept of hierarchical government.

Daniel Cutler writes, "Man Kurt, I couldn't disagree with you more. I think having recently read V for the first time about a month ago puts me in a different mind set. I wonder if the people who read the graphic novel recently vs. more than five years ago makes a difference in the way people enjoyed/compared/perceived the movie."

I reread the comic the week before I saw the film, and actually finished it the day I saw it.

"While I was reading the graphic novel, I could instantly see what parts of the written page would be removed from the screen version. The political backstabbing storyline, which was confusing and seemed almost thrown in (as it only appeared in the last 1/3 of the book) is thankfully missing from the film. When I was reading the book, I didn't get much of a sense that the people of the country supported V. These two things have been switched for the screen, and I think make for a little easier to believe. After all, if the people of the country don't support V, why should we?"

I understand excising the subplots. The movie would've been four hours long if it adapted the graphic novel a la SIN CITY. And, I agree that the comic emphasized not so much that the populace supported V, but that it was ready to blow up at any provocation. V just served as the catalyst. Having the people back V is certainly easier to digest onscreen, and, while I don't know if I would've altered it, it wasn't the most egregious change.

"I didn't at all find the film a 'knee-jerk reaction' to the current political climate. While the film referenced many hot topics in today's society, they were not directly pointed at the US - or England for that matter - but just a general concern about where this world may be headed."

Here are some contemporary references: changing Prothero from the Voice of Fate to a barking right-wing commentator a la Rush Limbaugh; extrapolating the fate of England from "America's war" and clearly setting it in a post-Iraq world that has suffered through the War on Terror; and emphasizing the persecution of Muslims and homosexuals instead of racial purity, as in the comic. This was a film made by and for Americans regarding the current political climate.

"V's ambiguity may have been a little toned down in the film, but how anyone could argue he didn't hold himself high despite his actions? Vengeance is hardly morally agreeable, despite its justifications. Sometimes its hard to translate a thought bubble to screen without it sounding corny. Also, reading the press for this movie, its been said that the Wachowski's originally wrote a screenplay for the film about ten years ago - well before any of the recent political commentary became as relevant as it is today."

So, the Wachowski's predicted the Iraq War, the War on Terror, and the perceived anti-Islamic tendencies they commented upon? Come on, they may have written the script ten years ago, but it was clearly revised since it went into production. And, the movie rarely questions the ethical implications of V's revenge killings. Revenge is a common enough theme in action movies, and few, if any, explore the debilitating personal consequences that come with fulfilling a vendetta. You're right that vengeance is morally questionable, but the film never asked as much.

"When you say, 'However, in the film, we see Britons relaxing in pubs watching the telly and sitting in nice suburban homes. Everything seems just rosy by comparison to the comic's world. As it stands, this change resembles less Moore's Britain than a leftist vision of the United States -- a country of complacent, comfortable middle class folks that traded their civil liberties for security,' I can only respond by saying that the movie should have reflected the society in question at the time (now) as opposed to the society which arguably no longer exists (from 25 years ago)."

That's my argument instead of the more nuanced examination of anarchy versus fascism, we got a pandering, hollow call to action designed to make college kids and activists feel better about their already deeply entrenched disdain of the Bush administration. It's preaching to the choir."

"I [also] had a completely different reaction to the end. I felt like V gave the people the capability to stand up to their oppressors and meet them face to face. Ironically, he did this by passing out masks which hid their faces, thus furthering the idea of 'this mask represents something. It says I don't like what you are doing to my country, and I won't stand for it.'

Except the "doing" was the suppression of civil liberties and individuality in a mass drive for state-enforced conformity. So, the people stood up to this grave injustice by -- say it with me -- dressing in conformity with a different idea. I understand the Wachowskis' and McTigue's intent -- V's liberal politics have spread like wildfire through the population, thus symbolized by its adoption of V's mask and cloak. I get the point, but I think the symbol was unintentionally contradictory.

"So, there's my response to your response to the film. At least we both agreed that the film was enjoyable. I was a little sad to see V's verbal bout with the statue of justice reduced to a mere explosion, but if I want to revisit it, the graphic novel will forever sit on my shelf waiting to be revisited."

And here's my response to your response of my response to--never mind. Don't misunderstand me. I found the film entertaining enough. I'll probably see it again on DVD. It's definitely a cut above Hollywood's usual dreck. I try to offer a more discriminating opinion based on more than whether I said "F--k yeah!" during the fight scenes. I criticized EQUILIBRIUM for many of the same reasons I have V FOR VENDETTA, but I still enjoyed it well enough. And, I think V is the superior film of the two.

James C. Ellis writes, "The abduction and eventual execution of Dietrich (Evey's boss and protector), sparked by some harmless spoofing of Sutler showed that everything was certainly not lovely at the time of the film's present. The purges were still ongoing and, at best, people were keeping their heads down and hiding lest they be taken by Fingermen, overheard by the roving surveillance teams, etc."

You're right -- that part with Dietrich didn't occur to me. However, the day-to-day life of the average Briton was made to look far more dismal in the comic than in the film. I think that visually emphasizing the daily misery would've driven the nail further. The whole domestic situation just looked a little too clean for me. But, you're correct about Dietrich. I made it sound like nothing bad happened, and I should've mentioned that part. On a side note, I really didn't buy that he'd be stupid enough to stage the Benny Hill-style parody with Sutler. In most totalitarian dictatorships, that kind of thing gets you killed and everyone knows it. Given that Dietrich was smart enough to hide his art and books, I can't imagine why the Wachowskis would portray him doing something so brazen.

"Other than that, I certainly agree with you that the crowd of Fawkes-masked citizens at the end, while 'cool looking', was either a mistake (most likely), or ironic commentary that even in betraying the Norsefire party, the common people were participating in even more mindless herd behavior."

Don't give the Wachowskis that much credit.

"I think they tried to mitigate this somewhat by having everyone take off their masks at the end, but that was a case of too little, too late. That was unfortunately the weakest part of the movie in my eyes. Beyond that, however, I must applaud the Wachowskis for creating a film which argues so... forcefully... against allowing fear to cause one to permit government - any government, under any party - from taking too many of ones civil liberties."

It certainly was forceful and unrelenting in its approach. And, by glamorizing Guy Fawkes, it went even farther than Alan Moore did. I'm not going to debate the merits of the film's politics because this isn't the appropriate forum, and I'd have to answer e-mail all f--king day. I've summarized most of my own politics succinctly enough in the past to keep anyone from calling me a liberal or a conservative (or at least a neo-con).

Erik Launiainen writes, "V is just the type of film we need as we enter the summer movie season. A smart, somewhat challenging, and dark comic book movie that doesn't give in to the temptation of commercial overdose and marketing. No McDonald's cross promotion and no sequel, let alone several."

I'll never forget the McDonald's Happy Meal toys that came out for BATMAN RETURNS. Man, was that weird.

"After multiple viewings V still energizes and excites me and makes me thankful that there are still filmmakers out there who give a damn about their subject material."

Even if their execution leaves something to be desired? I appreciate intelligent filmmaking, but intentions are cheap.

"Hopefully its serious tone...will influence Marvel to step up their game and start to give their adaptations some depth out of respect for their audience."

Well, Marvel was doing well for a while, but it's been pretty downhill since BLADE: TRINITY

"And finally, to compare V FOR VENDETTA to THE PUNISHER in any way is far more offensive that anything found in the script."

Reread my statement. I said that both films had strong protagonists buttressing weaker films. To imply that I was stating the two were of equal quality is characteristic of the very knee-jerk tendency that brought V FOR VENDETTA down. You just saw both films mentioned in the same sentence and assumed I meant they were just as good. I said no such thing. In praising Hugo Weaving's performance, I made one isolated observation -- one that I've made about both BLADE and THE PUNISHER. If it makes you happy, I think V is the superior film of the three, but even THE PUNISHER played up Frank Castle's moral ambiguity by the end.

Michael S. writes, "V FOR VENDETTA I expected to be a steak dinner, and what I got was a bar of chocolate...I expected V FOR VENDETTA to be a film with substance and weight similar to FIGHT CLUB, and what I got was a film with the substance and weight of THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK. It was nice, but hardly satisfying."

I think V FOR VENDETTA aimed a bit higher than RIDDICK and, in the end, achieved more. I wouldn't call it vapid -- just simplistic.

"I got the impression that the Wachowski Brothers thought they were addressing profound social issues. But they seem to have whittled the issues down to silly caricatures. The evil conspiratorial conservatives who care only about power and never about people, and the open-minded, people-loving, victimized liberals. I am sure there are people who see the world that way, but I expected something less dogmatic from a movie with a terrorist for a hero. But then, was V really a terrorist in the film? No one at all, except the image of Sutler and his inner cabinet meeting in the dark, seemed to show any genuine fear of V at all. Apparently everyone else embraced V. And so instead of a film that addresses genuine social issues, we get a film that draws neat little lines around it villains and its heroes (even Finch who works for the fascists but is really one of the good guys) and then tells the audience what choice they're supposed to make. Which is ironic in a film that is supposedly speaking out against letting other people tell us what to think."

I agree. As I mentioned earlier, screenwriters often accept and justify violent retribution. In real life, if most people knew someone planning a revenge killing spree -- even if they've been wronged -- they still wouldn't support it. By supporting V's vendetta, the filmmakers stripped a unique and defining aspect of the character found in the comic -- V's madness and moral ambiguity. In the comic, V is not a hero. In the movie, he clearly is.

"Speaking of irony, the irony of having everyone 'fight the fascists by becoming a uniformed mass, hiding individuality behind masks seems to have been completely lost on the Wachowski Brothers. FIGHT CLUB mocked the collectivism that was turning its revolutionaries into blindly accepting cogs. V FOR VENDETTA, however, embraced the collectivism and made it the climax of the movie."

I don't think the Wachowskis and McTigue intended to advocate collectivism. They just picked a ridiculous, contradictory, and over-the-top image to convey the populace's acceptance of V's call to action. Whether that inherently advocates collectivism is a subject for another web site.

"All in all, I have to say I was disappointed by the film. The film is pretty in that is looks polished. The acting was good. The fight scenes were nice. But I expected so much more. I honestly expected to be wowed by the story, and I wasn't. I suppose it may be that I had unrealistic expectations. But I can't help thinking that Wachowski Brothers just screwed it up."

Despite my rant, the film didn't reduce me to weeping anguish or anything. I thought it was fun, but it failed to serve as the serious, eye-opening punch between the eyes it wanted to be.

Bill McKenna writes, "Hey, it is only a movie, nothing more, nothing less. It isn't real."

You're right. I could've saved myself so much time by just writing "OMFG V R0X!" Every time I write a film column, there's always one person that reminds me that it's only a movie. This is an editorial column. You read it for my opinion. If you don't like that, then you have many other options. I get worked up because I think these things are worth talking about. It wouldn't be much of a column if I just abjectly praised everything, would it?

That's it for this week guys. Remember to drink your Ovaltine.

New This Week
By Al Brown and Kurt Amacker

DARK HORSE

Classic Comic Book Character Bone $49.95
Kurt: When I met Al's mom, I offered to show her my "classic comic book character." Giggidy-giggidy!

Lady Snowblood Vol 3 Retribution Part 1 TP (MR) $14.95

Star Wars Clone Wars Vol 8 Last Siege Final Truth TP 1 $17.95

Star Wars Knights Of The Old Republic #3 $2.99

Star Wars Return Of Tag & Bink Special ED #1 (of 2) $2.99
Kurt: All right, I like Star Wars as much as the next guy. I even liked Revenge of the Sith. But, this is officially overkill. Do we really have to mine every second before, during, and after the movies for story ideas?
Al: I was actually giving Kurt's mom the Tag & Bink Special just the other day.
Kurt: She mentioned something about a mosquito biting her a couple of times.

Tarzan The Joe Kubert Years Vol 2 HC $49.95
Al: Huh...Joe Kubert did some Tarzan, did he? If I had fifty bucks I would check this out. No wait - I'd probably just buy a bunch of beer and hamburgers and sit on my back porch. But if I had fifty more bucks, I might check this out.
Kurt: You could buy a damn lot of hamburgers for fifty bucks. Should I start calling you Fat Al?

Usagi Yojimbo #92 $2.99

DC COMICS

Action Comics #837 $2.50
Al: The Superman OYL started off pretty well, with Clark Kent apparently powerless and the omnipresent Supergirl picking up the slack. Here's part two.
Kurt: Soooo...she's in the future with the Legion and in on this "One Year Later" business? Is this Hyper Time or something?
Al: It gets weirder if you're familiar with last week's climactic reveal in Legion of Superheroes, which I suppose I shouldn't spoil. The most baffling part is: if she's in every book in the DC Universe, why can't I see up her ridiculous skirt?
Kurt: There is no skirt. There is only your mind.

All Star Superman #3 $2.99
Al: More excitingly, Grant Morrison seems to be taking all his story ideas straight from the Superman is a dick site. Good idea.
Kurt: Here's a joke: Two guys are standing atop the Empire State Building having a couple of beers. There a maintenance guy wandering around nearby. One of the guys say, "You know, the wind up here's so strong that if you jump off the roof, you float. The other guy says, "You're kidding right?" The first says, "No, I'm serious! Look!" Then, he sets his beer down and jumps off the roof. Miraculously, he floats a few feet away from the ledge before returning to the roof. The other guy says, "That's amazing! I've gotta try that!" So, he puts his beer on the ledge and jumps off. He plummets like Wile E. Coyote to the pavement below, where he lands in a broken, bloody heap. The first guy looks over the ledge and smirks. The maintenance guy says, "Man, Superman, you're a dick when you're drunk!"

Batman Journey Into Knight #8 (of 12) $2.50

Batman Legends Of The Dark Knight #202 $2.50

Blue Beetle #1 $2.99
Al: Okay, here's my thing: Blue Beetle's new costume. Spawn. C'mon now.
Kurt: Well, they're, like, both back from the dead, sort of. Man, do I love hot dogs.
Al's mom: I'm more of a Manwich girl, myself.

Green Lantern #10 $2.99
Al: Like I said, Superman's OYL storyline has been okay. Batman's been pretty cool too. But generally speaking...I feel like Infinite Crisis is officially collapsing under its own weight. It's been an incredibly ambitious project, covering every DC title and going back...what, two years now? Probably the most ambitious storyline ever attempted in a comic. (Marvel pretty much wrapped up House of M before getting into Civil War, so I don't think it counts.) And yeah, bully for DC, but it's just...too much now. And since 52, the year-long weekly book that'll supposedly fill us in on what I guess is now One Year Earlier, hasn't even started yet...we can safely say we're in for at least another year of this. It hurts my fragile mind. I'm exhausted.
Kurt: Broken like a Tijuana hooker by the convoluted insanity that is Infinite Crisis.
Al: Your mom's broke? I just paid her yesterday.
Kurt: Empty tequila bottles aren't worth anything, even if you recycle them.

Hellblazer Lady Constantine TP (MR) $9.99

JLA Classified #19 $2.99

Lucifer #72 (MR) $2.75

Nightwing Mobbed Up TP $12.99
Kurt: Look for my debut in the adult film industry, entitled Mobbed Up, starring me, Al's mom, and about 100 death row inmates. Coming soon to the booth in the back of your local video store! Man, Al's mom's a trooper.

Superman Batman #24 (RES) $2.99
Al: Introducing Superwoman, who's looking a bit on the lumberjack side of the Indigo Girls fan club, if you know what I mean. Psst! I mean lesbian.
Kurt: I thought all lesbians were just hot college chicks that get drunk and make out all the time. Was I wrong?!

Teen Titans Go #29 $2.25

Warlord #2 $2.99

Will Eisners Spirit Archives Vol 18 HC $49.99

IMAGE

Ant Vol 1 Reality Bites TP $12.99
Al: Yeah, naming your story after a movie that came out ten years ago will bring the kids a-runnin'.
Kurt: Somebody has to hold a candle for Generation X.

Ballad Of Sleeping Beauty TP $21.95

Book Of Shadows #1 (of 2) $3.50
Al: Something about a goddess of blood and death. So, y'know, if you're into goddesses of blood and death...here ya go.
Kurt: I'm into blood and death. If I believed in a goddess, that'd mean I worshipped a chick. That's not going to happen.

Deadworld #3 (RES) (MR) $3.50

Godland #9 $2.99

Hysteria One Man Gang #2 (of 4) $2.99

Invincible #30 $2.99
Al: Conclusion of "A Different World." I'm not sure if anything can beat last issue's gore fest - which, in case you missed it, was one of the most brutal fights ever put on comic paper - but I do think Invincible is back on track. Nice job, Kirkman.

Pacify GN $12.99

Rising Stars Untouchable #2 (of 5) $2.99
Kurt: And sadly, we don't get to see Sean Connery machine gun people or see Kevin Costner throw a guy off a roof. It's not that Untouchables.
Al: Untouchables the movie would go to this comic book's house and piss on its ashes.

Savage Dragon #124 (RES) $2.99

Sea Of Red Vol 2 No Quarter TP (MR) $11.99
Kurt: Bloody good read. Check it out.

Spawn #154 $2.95

Spawn Manga Vol 3 TP $9.99

Strange Girl #7 $2.99

Walking Dead #27 (MR) $2.99
Kurt: Last issue, Robert Kirkman introduced polygamy into this young world of his. Wow. Just. Wow.
Al: Which reminds me, anyone been watching HBO's Big Love series? It stars Jeanne Tripplehorne, "the other one" from Basic Instinct, and Chloe Sevigny, who I have personally seen orally pleasuring Vincent Gallo. And it's about polygamy. So you'd think there would be some naked girls in it, right? That doesn't seem like too much of a stretch, right? Here's what you get instead: Bill Paxton Ass, and lots of it. It's a bonanza of Paxton Ass. The horror, is what I'm saying; the horror. Read Walking Dead instead.
Kurt: You know, they do have these movies now where women actually take their clothes off. I mean, you can't get them at Wal-Mart or anything, but they're out there.

MARVEL

Alias Omnibus $69.99
Kurt: Damn good read and heavy enough to kill someone with!

Books Of Doom #5 (of 6) $2.99

Captain America 65th Anniversary Special $3.99
Al: Written by regular Cap scribe Ed Brubaker and rumored to have some bearing on Cap's normal series. I'll check it out.

Daredevil Vol 13 The Murdock Papers TP $14.99
Al: The last Bendis arc! Tune in now for your last chance to see Foggy Nelson and Ben Urich talk, and talk, and talk, and talk!
Kurt: It's like a Promise Keepers meeting or something.

Essential Nova Vol 1 TP $16.99
Kurt: Al, it's here. Now you can stop writing Joe Quesada threatening messages in your own feces across his car. And Essential Speedball isn't far behind, all right?
Al: But where's Essential Doctor Druid?
Kurt: Right after Essential Brother Voodoo, which is right after Hell freezes over, which is right after your mom tells you who your real father is, junior.

Fantastic Four #536 $2.99

Infinity War TP $29.99

Iron Man #6 $2.99
Al: And this painfully slow-shipping arc finally winds down. Get the trade, if it ever comes out: this is a great story. Hopefully they'll demote Adi Granov to covers and get someone who can draw on a schedule now, though.

Marvel Masterworks Golden Age Marvel Comics Vol 2 HC Var ED $54.99
Kurt: Somebody obviously wants to see if they can get Jack Kirby to spin in his grave.

Marvel Masterworks Golden Age Marvel Comics Vol 2 New ED HC $49.99

Marvel Romance Redux Guys & Doll $2.99

Marvel Spotlight David Finch Roberto Aguirre-sacasa $2.99

New Avengers Illuminati Special $3.99
Al: In what I gather is the actual, this-time-we-mean-it kickoff of Civil War, the Illuminati ("Hey, who invited Black Panther? That guy's barely famous!") get in over their heads. Know what? I like this idea. I think this is gonna be the most ass-kickinest book of the week.
Kurt: As opposed to Road to Civil War, Countdown to Civil War, Countdown to the Road to the Prelude to the Yellow Brick Road to Civil War? You mean all those things?
Al: You're always so cynical, man. Can't a guy enjoy his three decades of conspiracy theory retconning in peace?

New Avengers Vol 3 Secrets & Lies Premiere HC $19.99

Nick Fury Howling Commandos #6 $2.99
Al: This is cancelled, right?
Kurt: This is the last issue. It wraps up here.
Al: Sweet. I'm gonna go dance on its grave.

Sentry #7 (of 8) $2.99

Spider-Man & Arana Special $3.99
Kurt: Bow-chicka-wow-wow.

Thing #5 $2.99

Ultimate Spider-Man #92 $2.50

Uncanny X-Men #471 $2.50

Untold Tales Of The New Universe Psi-Force $2.99

X-Men Colossus Bloodline TP $13.99

X-Men Dark Phoenix Saga TP New Printing $24.99

X-Men Deadly Genesis #5 (of 6) $3.50
Al: So far, I'm really disappointed in last issue's revelation about Kid Vulcan's identity. Smells like creative bankruptcy to me. It's Brubaker, so I'll try to have some faith, but he better have some big-ass rabbits up his butt.
Kurt: Some men go for gerbils, but Al prays for rabbits.

X-Statix Presents Dead Girl #3 (of 5) $2.99
Kurt: Sometimes, when things are slow, I like to swing by the funeral parlor with a bouquet of roses and...nevermind.

Questions? Comments? Let us know what you think at comicscape@cinescape.com.