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‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ #23 is a major status quo change for a fan-favorite character

Ever since since it’s introduction in 1984’s Secret Wars, the Venom symbiote and it’s offspring have been shrouded in mystery. Despite it’s popularity, the origin of the symbiote species has never been definitively explained. That all changes in Guardians of the Galaxy #23, when after causing it’s latest host, Flash Thompson to lose both control and consciousness, and attacking and possessing his new teammates, the Guardians of the Galaxy, it commandeers their ship and finally makes a sojourn to the fabled symbiote homeworld. But is it worth the 30 year wait?

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Bendis and Maleev lay out the chess pieces in ‘Daredevil: Underboss’

Brian Michael Bendis and Alex Maleev’s run on Daredevil is one for the ages. Their run together with the man without fear is a sprawling crime noir epic on the scale of The Godfather saga – minus Godfather Part Three. Plain and simple, their run is a modern masterpiece.

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Miles Morales: ‘Ultimate Spider-Man’ #5 is a Beautifully Colored Setup Issue

Miles Morales: The Ultimate Spider-Man #5 Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Dave Marquez Colors by Justin Ponsor Published by Marvel Comics In its role as a penultimate issue in a story arc, Miles Morales Ultimate Spider-Man #5 fulfills its goals of having enough twists and turns to set up for a real doozie of a final issue. But Brian Michael Bendis manages to …

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All-New X-Men #31 Shows Bendis’ Knack for Teen Dialogue

All-New X-Men #31 Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Mahmud Asrar Colored by Marte Gracia and Jason Keith Published by Marvel One of Brian Michael Bendis’ unique gifts as a writer is crafting believable teenage dialogue. This can mostly be seen in his 14 year run on Ultimate Spider-Man, but he also uses it to great effect in All-New X-Men. …

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The Murky Induction Into ‘The United States of Murder Inc.’ #1

The United States of Murder Inc. #1 Story by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Michael Avon Oeming Cover by Michael Avon Oeming, David Mack, David Marquez,[more…] Publisher: Marvel Icon 2014 When Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming get together, it’s murder. Powers #1 began so long ago with the death of Retro Girl and The United …

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Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man #1 is a Great Reintroduction to the Character

Miles Morales: The Ultimate Spider-Man #1 Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Dave Marquez Colors by Justin Ponsor Published by Marvel Comics It’s been seven months since an issue of Ultimate Spider-Man that wasn’t tied into the Cataclysm event came out. Between this issue and the last, Miles Morales has fought Galactus, seen heroes like Captain America and Thor …

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To Better Know a Hero: Ultimate Spider-Man, The Boy Who Slayed A Monster

Real name: Peter Benjamin Parker First Appearance: Ultimate Spider-Man #1, 2000 Status: Deceased Powers and Abilities: Spider-Man possesses superhuman strength, agility, reflexes, equilibrium, the ability to cling to surfaces, and a sixth sense that warns him of impending danger. However, his Spider-Sense is not as accurate as 616 Spider-Man, as he cannot pinpoint the locations …

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Uncle Ben, Father and Mentor to Ultimate Spider-Man

In Spider-Man’s origin story in Amazing Fantasy #15, we don’t get to spend much time with Uncle Ben. We get to see that he cares for his nephew Peter and gets him a science set. He also gets to say a quote that has become synonymous with Spider-Man, “With great power, there must also come great …

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Ultimate Spider-Man #200 is an Emotional Love Letter to Peter Parker

Ultimate Spider-Man #200 Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Dave Marquez, David Lafuente, Sara Pichelli, Mark Brooks, and Mark Bagley Colors by Justin Ponsor Published by Marvel Comics Fourteen years ago, Marvel hired an indie crime comics writer named Brian Michael Bendis to reimagine Spider-Man for the 21st century. Eleven years later, he killed off Peter Parker and replaced …

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Guardians of the Galaxy #13 Brings “Trial of Jean Grey” To A Quiet But Satisfying Close

Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Sara Pichelli & David Marquez Colors by Justin Ponsor Letters by VC’s Cory Petit Cover by Sara Pichelli & Justin Ponsor Published Marvel Comics With this issue, Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli bring to a close the “Trial of Jean Grey” storyline, a decidedly old-fashioned crossover in …

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All New X-Men #24 Amps Up The Action

Writer by Brian Michael Bendis Penciler Stuart Immonen Inker Wade Von Grawbadger Colorist Marte Garcia Letterer VC’s Cory Petit Cover by Immonen, Grawbadger and Garcia Published by Marvel Comics With the various players in place following Guardians of the Galaxy #12, this issue lights the fuse on the storyline, as the characters spring into action. …

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Guardians of the Galaxy #12 Finds Time For Emotion

Written by Brian Michael Bendis Pencils by Sara Pichelli & Stuart Immonen Inks by Sara Pichelli & Wade Von Grawbadger Colors by Justin Ponsor Letters by VC’s Cory Petit Cover by Sara Pichelli & Justin Ponsor Published by Marvel Comics Guardians of the Galaxy #12, the fourth part of the “Trial of Jean Grey” crossover, …

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Cataclysm #5 is the End of an Era for Marvel’s Ultimate Universe

Cataclysm: The Ultimates’ Last Stand #5 Written by Brian Michael Bendis Pencilled by Mark Bagley Inked by Andrew Hennessy Colors by Jason Keith Published by Marvel Comics After getting tangled up in decompression and universe hopping, Cataclysm #5 shows the final battle between the heroes of the Ultimate Universe and a very hungry and angry Galactus. This …

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All New X-Men #23 Has a Slow Plot, But is an Entertaining and Beautiful Comic

All New X-Men #23 Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Stuart Immonen & Wade Von Grawbadger Colors by Marte Garcia, Letters by VC’s Cory Petit Standard Cover by Immonen, Grawbadger & Garcia Published by Marvel Comics After what amounted to essentially two “part ones”, it’s a relief to finally get a chapter of this …

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Ultimate Spider-Man and Kitty Pryde are a Shortlived, Underrated Pairing

If you’ve read my work on this site or listened to my podcast Geeks Coast to Coast, you probably have realized that Kitty Pryde is my favorite comics character and Ultimate Spider-Man is my all-time favorite comic. So this pairing of Ultimate Spider-Man and Ultimate Kitty Pryde is a bit personal for me. They began dating in …

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Guardians of the Galaxy #11.NOW is a Strong Start to the “Trial of Jean Grey” Crossover. Again.

Guardians of the Galaxy #11.NOW Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Sara Pichelli Colors by Justin Ponsor Letters by VC’s Cory Petit Cover By Sara Pichelli & Justin Ponsor Published by Marvel Comics All New X-Men #22 ended with the X-Men, shortly after Jean Grey was captured by the Shi’ar, approaching a spaceship from …

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All New X-Men #22.NOW is a Strong Start to the “Trial of Jean Grey” Crossover

All New X-Men #22.NOW Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Stuart Immonen & Wade Von Grawbadger Colors by Marte Gracia Cover by Immonen, Grawbadger & Gracia Published by Marvel Comics The premise of All New X-Men is one of the all time great “bad on paper, good in execution” premises: the original teenaged X-Men …

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Kevin Maguire Blasts Into Space in Guardians of the Galaxy #10

Guardians of the Galaxy #10 Writer: Brian Michael Bendis Artist: Kevin Maguire Publisher: Marvel Comics A lot of writers talk about writing with their artist in mind but in Guardians of the Galaxy #10, you can see just how Brian Michael Bendis slightly changes up his storytelling in this issue to perfectly suit his guest …

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Ultimate Spider-Man: Brian Michael Bendis Redefines the Teen Superhero for the 2000s

Ultimate Spider-Man Vol. 1 1-133, 150-160 (2000-2011) Vol. 2 1-15 (2009-2010) Written by Brian Michael Bendis Art by Mark Bagley, Stuart Immonen, David Lafuente, Takeshi Miyazawa, and  Sara Pichelli Published by Marvel Comics For eleven years, Brian Michael Bendis chronicled the life and death of Peter Parker in the pages of Ultimate Spider-Man. He updated Spider-Man for …

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Cataclysm #1 Is Mark Bagley’s Triumphant Return to the Ultimate Universe

Cataclysm: Ultimates’ Last Stand #1 Writer: Brian Michael Bendis Penciller: Mark Bagley Inker: Andrew Hennessy Colorist: Jason Keith Publisher: Marvel Cataclysm #1 is like the beginning of the third act of a blockbuster action film, and it is only the first issue of a six issue miniseries. Basically, because of the events of Age of Ultron, Galactus …

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Ultimate Spider-Man #28 Ties Up Miles Morales’ Story Nicely

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #28 Writer: Brian Michael Bendis Art: Dave Marquez Colors: Justin Ponsor Publisher: Marvel To start things off, Ultimate Spider-Man (starring Peter Parker) was the first comic I ever read, and this is probably the last issue of the Ultimate Spider-Man series. (Miles Morales will return in the Cataclysm event which will most likely end the Ultimate Universe.) So …

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Age of Ultron Concludes With a Fun, Insane Ride that Actually Makes Sense

Age of Ultron #10 Writer: Brian Michael Bendis Artists: Alex Maleev, Bryan Hitch, Butch Guice, Brandon Peterson (cover), Carlos Pacheco, David Marquez, Joe Quesada Colorists: Paul Mounts, Richard Isanove Publisher: Marvel Comics Because of the events and format of this book, it is extremely hard to write about. The last issue and ending of Age of …

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Age of Ultron #9 Uses Dialogue and Characterization to Begin to Wrap Up the Series

Writer: Brian Michael Bendis Pencilers: Carlos Pacheco and Brandon Peterson Colorists: Jose Villarubia and Paul Mounts Cover: Carlos Pacheco Publisher: Marvel Brian Michael Bendis deftly handles the multiple timelines that he has set up in the previous issues and resolves some plot threads in a logical fashion while setting up a big finale that could …

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