Bloodhunting 4 | And in the end, we are all Doomed

We chat about the final issue of ‘Blood Hunt’ — and what’s to come.

Marvel’s Blood Hunt crossover has met its end, and the Smash Pages Kill Krew — myself, Shane Bailey and Tom Bondurant — are here to put the nail in its coffin with our final “Bloodhunting” roundtable. You can read our thoughts on the first issue here, the second one here and issues three and four here.

Please note there are SPOILERS in this discussion related to the story and its repercussions, so you may want to avert your eyes the same way the citizens of the 616 did when their beloved sun returned. OR DID IT? Find out below.

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Bloodhunting 3 | The quiet and then the storm

The Smash Pages crew plants a stake into the third and fourth issues of Marvel’s ‘Blood Hunt,’ as well as some of the crossover issues.

Marvel’s Blood Hunt crossover is more than halfway over now and heading toward its final issue. Once again, the Smash Pages team — myself, Shane Bailey and Tom Bondurant — has come together to talk about the event, with our third “Bloodhunting” roundtable. You can read our thoughts on the first issue here and the second one here.

In this edition, we talk about Blood Hunt #3 and #4, as well as crossover issues featuring Doctor Strange, Doctor Doom, Moon Knight and more. Please note there are un-polybagged SPOILERS in this discussion related to the story, so only enter if you dare — or if you’ve just been freed from an Asgardian prison, and need to catch up on things quickly.

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Bloodhunting 2 | Tie-ins, heel turns and plot complications

The Smash Pages crew sinks their fangs into the second issue of Marvel’s ‘Blood Hunt,’ as well as some of the crossover issues.

Marvel’s Blood Hunt crossover is in full swing, with a second issue, several crossover issues and a few tie-in miniseries hitting shelves over the last few weeks.

Once again, the Smash Pages team — myself, Shane Bailey and Tom Bondurant — has come together to talk about the event, with our second “Bloodhunting” roundtable. You can read our thoughts on the first issue here.

This time around we talk about Blood Hunt #2, as well as crossover issues featuring Spider-Man, the Avengers, Doctor Strange, the Blood Hunters and Dracula. Please note there are blood-soaked SPOILERS in this discussion related to the story, so only enter if you dare — or if you’re in your astral form, and are thus protected from all things spoiler-y. I’m pretty sure that’s how it works.

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Bloodhunting 1 | A roundtable on Marvel’s vampire-infested summer event

The Smash Pages crew digs into the first issue of Marvel’s ‘Blood Hunt.’

Marvel’s next big event is here — Blood Hunt, a crossover series they’ve spent months building toward with announcements about tie-ins, miniseries and even a Red Band edition that features more blood.

The first issue came out last Wednesday, and just like Captain America is assembling a new team of Avengers to fight off the vampire hordes, we’ve assembled the Smash Pages team — myself, Shane Bailey and Tom Bondurant — to talk about the event. So here’s our first “Bloodhunting” roundtable, with more to come in the weeks ahead.

This time around we talk about Blood Hunt #1, as well as the Free Comic Book Day issue and another recent series that might have served as a prelude. Please note there are heavy duty SPOILERS in this discussion related to the story, so only enter if you dare.

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What Are You Reading? | ‘Porcelain,’ ‘Godfell,’ ‘Local Man’ and more

See what the Smash Pages crew has been reading lately.

Welcome to What Are You Reading?, our look at what the Smash Pages crew has been checking off their “to read” list lately. Today’s reviews include first issues of Godfell and Local Man, as well as Porcelain and some classic DC Comics Presents.

Let us know what you’ve been reading lately in the comments below or by tagging us on social media.

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What Are You Reading? | In ‘Miracleman,’ ‘the character work alone would be worth the read’

See what the Smash Pages crew has been reading lately, including Dark Web, Doctor Strange, Aquaman and more.

Welcome to What Are You Reading?, our look at what the Smash Pages crew has been checking off their “to read” list lately. Today’s reviews include recent issues of Miracleman and Mary Jane & Black Cat, some classic Doctor Strange and Aquaman, and some new/classic Bishop stories.

Let us know what you’ve been reading lately in the comments below or by tagging us on social media.

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‘Batman ’89’ is not content to just be a continuation of the film

Tom Bondurant shares his thoughts on the first two issues of Batman ’89, which continues the story started in the first Tim Burton ‘Batman’ film.

The more I think about the current Batman ’89 miniseries, the odder it seems.

Tim Burton’s Bat-movies don’t fit easily into any one category. Weird as they are, they’re not full-on “Tim Burton” movies, because they’re beholden to at least a nominal amount of source-material lore. That weirdness also sets them apart from other action-movie blockbusters. Today, after a decade or two of superhero movies becoming more faithful to the comics, Burton’s efforts seem almost primitive, with a dreamlike quality – far from the hard edge of Christopher Nolan’s urban crime stories or the DCEU’s CGI-enabled spectacle.

However, Batman ’89 – written by Sam Hamm, drawn by Joe Quinones, and colored by Leonardo Ito – isn’t really interested in translating Tim Burton to comics. Although writer Sam Hamm penned the Burton movies’ original drafts, both were revised to varying degrees by subsequent writers, especially Daniel Waters on Batman Returns.

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It was a bunch of punching: Heroes Return roundtable, the big finale

Lo! There shall be an ending!

This is it! The moment you’ve all been waiting for! The final chapter in Marvel Comics’ spectacular summer event, Heroes Reborn comes to a close in Heroes Return #1.

Tom Bondurant, Shane Bailey, Carla Hoffman and the jovial JK Parkin bask in the final faceoff between the Squadron Supreme of America and the remnants of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes for the answers to all our questions! Who will win? Who changed reality? What was Mephisto’s secret purpose? And why were these books $4.99??

Grab your copy of the finale and read on!

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I wish Johnny Quick would put on a shirt: Heroes Reborn roundtable, week 7

Carla, Tom, Shane and JK continue to discuss Marvel’s latest comics event and its tie-in one-shots.

The Smash Pages team is back this week for our penultimate Heroes Reborn roundtable, where we break down the latest Marvel crossover issue by issue. This week Shane Bailey, Tom Bondurant, Carla Hoffman and I talk about Heroes Reborn #7, as well as the final tie-in issue, Weapon X & Final Flight.

You can read part one of our roundtable discussions here, part two here, part three here, part four here, part five here and part six here.

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‘Fantastic Four’ #33 provides ‘the greatest reaction page in the history of comics (this week)’

Carla Hoffman offers a quick review of the second chapter of Doctor Doom’s wedding.

So I love superhero weddings almost as much as I love pro wrestling weddings, and the two genres have a lot in common.

After all, none of us are coming to the nuptials to see love triumph or watch people slow dance at the reception; we want to see the carnage. If there’s a big cake, we want someone to go through it. If the officiant asks for anyone to “speak now or forever hold your peace,” there should be at least five people jumping to their feet to object. 

It’s drama, it’s fashion, it’s a comic book wedding for Fantastic Four #33.

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Stellar motorcycle shots: Heroes Reborn roundtable, week 6

Carla, Tom, Shane and JK continue to discuss Marvel’s latest comics event and its tie-in one-shots.

The Smash Pages team is back this week for our sixth Heroes Reborn roundtable, where we break down the latest Marvel crossover issue by issue. This week Shane Bailey, Tom Bondurant, Carla Hoffman and I talk about Heroes Reborn #6, as well as two tie-in issues: Night-Gwen and Squadron Savage.

You can read part one of our roundtable discussions here, part two here, part three here, part four here and part five here.

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‘Batman: Earth One’ Vol. 3 ‘reframes a number of classic elements in an entertaining way’

Tom Bondurant reviews the latest in DC’s line of Earth One graphic novels, the long-awaited third part of Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s Batman trilogy.

This week I read a lot of Batman, which sounds stereotypical, but it’s kind of unavoidable. The new issue of Detective came out this week, along with the third issue of Batman: The Detective; and both featured Bruce Wayne battling overmuscled man-mountains with handlebar mustaches and crazy glints in their eyes. There was also issue #3 of The Batman/Scooby-Doo Mysteries, plus a decent amount of the Darknight Detective in issue #2 of Justice League: Last Ride. And I’m still in the middle of a New 52 Batman re-read, getting into the “Zero Year” epic.

All that said, I’m going to talk about Batman: Earth One Volume Three, written by Geoff Johns, pencilled by Gary Frank, inked by Jon Sibal and colored by Brad Anderson.

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