Kathryn Immonen

The first volume of Sif’s JiM run didn’t really work for me. Sif is not strong enough as a character to headline a story that doesn’t include other familiar Marvel faces. As a result, V1 felt like one of those off-brand graphic novels that feature Thor from the myths. Happily, Volume 2 corrects that and brings back a fan favorite and Marvel original, Beta Ray Bill.

The book was excellent on two fronts: it had a good, Marvel-centric storyline that tied into recent events and it provided show more much-needed character development for Sif. Gaia, one of the three All Mothers of Asgardia, has fallen ill. Sif requests the help of Tony Stark to “quarantine” her to help determine what is wrong. He lends her the Avengers Deep Space Monitoring Station. Just after arriving, Beta Ray Bill crashes into the station, along with some alien life form that proceeds to take over Ti Asha Ra and Gaia. Sif and Bill have to battle their environment while trying to save the two women and prevent the creature from making it to Earth.

Besides being Thor’s fellow warrior and girlfriend, what makes Sif tick? By putting her into a crisis that she must solve, and where brute force is not going to cut it, readers get to see what’s beneath the surface of the warrior. Also, Sif and Bill’s relationship has always been interesting and it was fun seeing them fight side by side, and bicker, and ultimately support each other in a way only real friends can. It’s a shame that JiM was canceled, as this volume demonstrates how well she can headline a story.

Overall, this was a very enjoyable read that finally showcased Sif in a meaningful way. Highly recommended. show less

I approached AvX with caution since the reviews were all over the place. I was expecting it anotehr Civil War - heroes fighting heroes over a difference in ideology. While there is some of that, this had a surprising depth to it that elevated the story. The hardcover collection has the main event, including the Marvel Point-One, the AVX: Versus issues (hero on hero battles) and issues from the AVX: Infinite (adapted from the digital platform). It is definitely worth the price, especially show more discounted.

The Phoenix Force is returning to Earth and everyone assumes it is coming for Hope Summers, the only mutant born after the Scarlet Witch decimated the mutant population. The Avengers want to isolate and prevent Hope from being taken by the Phoenix (of course Wolverine has a more permanent solution in mind!). Scott Summers thinks that Hope is the mutant messiah and the Phoenix will give her the ability to return what was lost to mutants. What makes the story so good is that both sides not only have valid viewpoints but are emotionally invested in the outcome. The X-Men have been persecuted since mutants became known and the Avengers have done little to help them. On the other hand, Scott is gambling the lives of the entire world that Hope will be able to do what Jean Grey could not - control the Phoenix. When the Phoenix arrives, Tony Stark unleashes an experimental weapon that splits the Phoenix into five hosts, one of whom is Scott. The power of the Phoenix combined with his zealotry to "save" his people will eat away at his humanity, with devastating results.

Where the story strays a bit is with the "versus" aspect of the event. The writers want to give readers those epic match-ups, so they work them into the story by having the various confrontations occur as the two sides search the world for the runaway Hope. It felt contrived, but that doesn't mean it wasn't fun. The main event gives glimpses of the fights, but it is the AVX: Versus section that expands the battles in full. It includes: Magneto vs Iron Man; Thing vs Namor; Captain America vs Gambit; Spider-man vs Colossus; Thing vs Colossus; Black Widow vs Magik; Daredevil vs Psyloche; Thor vs Phoenix Emma Frost; Hawkeye vs Angel; Storm vs Black Panther (what a divorce!); and, Hope vs Scarlet Witch. These were followed by some "quick" fights of just a page or two of match-ups not hinted at in the main event storyline. Not every fight ended how readers might expect, and they were all reminiscent of video fighting games. Each fight included witty "AVX Fun Facts" such as "Black Panther has lots of plans" and "Demons are real." Some of the facts related to the powers of the character, but all were fun and added a lot to the story.

The final, short section was the Infinite part. I could not tell this was adapted from a digital platform (having never seen the Marvel app) so other readers shouldn't have a problem. It mostly expanded on Nova's journey to Earth and was very interesting since I know little about his character.

Overall, I was thoroughly entertained by the AVX crossover and the way it concluded, setting up the site-wide Marvel Now launch. Though not as good as Civil War or Siege, I thought AVX was better than Secret Invasion or even Fear Itself. I can't wait to read the Avengers vs. X-Men Companion with all the tie-ins. My only disappointment is that the hardcover edition does not have the sewn binding that most Marvel omnibuses have. The glued binding just won't hold up to rereading. Never-the-less, highly recommended! show less

I found this whole series SUPER frustrating as we were supposed to empathise with Cap and the Avengers and then think "Yay! They won!!" at the end. But the whole time I could only think "Wow, the Avengers are huge jerks. They are the embodiment of the "other is bad" "progress is bad" "screw your empirical evidence, my GUT tells me you're wrong" mentality that is slowly destroying civilisation." Oh well. It was still kinda fun.

What a graphic novel! I didn’t know what to expect, except that Moving Pictures had to do with art and World War II. But one glance at that cover and I knew I had to take it home with me (well first requesting it from the library and then when it got to my branch could I actually take it home). The illustrations within were equally captivating. Black and white. Full of shadows. Stark and yet evocative, which fits the rather bleak setting. This graphic novel is worth a look just for the show more illustrations alone. Utterly gorgeous.

Of course a graphic novel isn’t just about the images, so I suppose I should tell you a bit about the story. Ila Gardner is a Canadian art curator working in France during the occupation by Germany. She’s cataloguing the museum’s inventory as France attempts to hide important works from the Germans. The Germans are doing the same at the same time, and Ila is being interviewed by German officer Rolf Hauptmann, who is working to trace all the artwork. But this is merely a backstory to the relationships that Ila has with Rolf and the art and the city.

In an interview with Torontoist, Kathryn Immonen said she was inspired after reading Janet Flanner’s Letters from Paris, which mentioned the cleaning of the Louvre was a by-product of the efforts to protect the individual works: “It was just so strange and funny. But I really started thinking about those guys with the rags and the cans of Pledge and the buckets of ammonia water, the small domestic activities that were a side effect of enormous global acts of violence.” I really liked how the spectre of the war looms over much of this graphic novel but is never central to the story. It is not about the military fighting the war or politicians planning their next move, but about these people living in Paris, trying to figure out how to get by and maintain some sort of semblance of their normal lives. show less