Bottom of the Pile - June 4th, 2014

I know, I know.   Weeks two and three of June are coming up shortly.

All-New X-Factor


Come now, Gambit.  You had to see this coming.  Also, you kinda deserved it for defining your superpower being irresistible to women. 




Amazing X-Men

This is literally what superhero comics have come to: various characters debating whether it makes sense to be surprised about one another's deaths and subsequent revivals.  Its infuriating if you happen to be one of those "you can't come back from death" fans.   But it's not so bad for those of us who view superhero comics as a gigantic, never-ending sagas akin to that of old fairy/folk stories.   Additionally, it's easier to enjoy hilarious moments like this.

Avengers World


The Ascendants appear to be a cooler looking version of DC's Chinese super-team, Great Ten.   The inspirations range from those of other superheroes to that of Chinese folk tales, and they look like genuinely interesting, unique characters. Unfortunately, I'd be genuinely shocked if you saw them again outside of this arc of Avengers World.  Doubly shocked if they avoided being immediately obliterated by some random villain to show how "serious" they are in any subsequent appearances.

Batman Eternal

Okay, not that the Godzilla lookalike and the Chinese coin aren't cute "shout-outs", but this is exactly the problem with Batman, Inc. outside of it's initial first few characters: these guys are literally just Batman clones with different cultural references subbed in.   In this case, it's doubly lazy because this is actually the Batman of Japan, rather than Hong Kong.   Or I could just be upset about the fact that it's the New 52's fault that this isn't a Black Bat story.   


Black Widow

Would Daredevil's "power" really work that way?  Because if so then any random super-criminal should be able to confuse him really easily.  


Cyclops
Scott Summers: Making Trigonometry geeks look awesome.  (Y'know, with the help of laser eye beams.)

 Earth 2

 Nah Alan, for a superhero that's actually the standard play.  Smash as much of the bad guys and their crap as humanly possible.

Iron Man

Are we really still doing the "Tony and I have never dated", bit?  Wasn't she basically his girlfriend for most/all of Matt Fraction's run?  Haven't they been flirting since like a couple months after Happy died?  How many different ways can I ask the same question?
Loki: Agent of Asgard

And here, Loki gets away with a little reference to TVTropes.  Any troper worth their salt immediately started paying more attention to the way the tropes in this issue were being used, whether inverted, played straight, or lampshaded.

Magneto
 Do you really have the right to call someone creepy when you're following them around with a cell phone?

 Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man
 This isn't especially relevant to the story told in the issue, but it's definitely the funniest panel I saw in comics that week. 

 New Warriors
"Jake Waffles" is an adorable name for a puppy, and I look forward to these guys becoming team mascots of this dysfunctional supergroup.   Also, Mister Whiskers is exactly what 95% of cats would sound like if they could talk to humans.    The other 5% would be too busy sleeping to be bothered talking to you.   

Original Sin

And, over in Original Sin, the heroes of the Marvel U have been hit with a quite literal "truthbomb". 

 New 52: Futures End
This would be a bunch of bad writing dialogue gibberish if I hadn't heard something almost exactly like it for nearly every major technology reveal since the Apple popularized the smart phone.

Author's Note: Bottom of the Pile is a weekly column (or at least, my attempt at said) in which I cover the comics that found their way to the bottom of my pile, thus being the best as I've always been a proponent of "saving the best for last".   Since bog standard reviews can be found literally anywhere, coverage can range from mini-reviews to funny comments to commentary on a creator's run or comics as a whole, depending on a wide range of factors including the comic itself, the amount of time I have, and my general mood.





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