Powers v9: Psychotic

Powers v9: Psychotic - by Brian Michael Bendis and Michael Avon Oeming; Collects # 7 - 12 of the Marvel/Icon run.

Unlike some of the earlier trade paperback collections this feels like more than one story; three stories to be precise. Two of them take place in the foreground and one in the background. The two foreground stories are related. In the first (Act I) a superhero is killed by a cop. Turns out the dead superhero, the man behind the mask, isn't the same person who he was thought to be. The investigation by Detectives Christian Walker and Deena Pilgrim leads in an unexpected direction and eventually taking them back to the person who originally wore the mask.

In act II, the extremely powerful gem that gave the hero his powers, both incarnations, goes missing. With the FBI threatening to step into the matter Walker and Pilgrim launch an investigation to figure out how it disappeared from the evidence room in Police HQ.

Meanwhile, throughout these six chapters, Deena is with a pesky ex-boyfriend. She is determined that the relationship is over but he doesn't want to let it go. Her refusal to even talk it over with him leads him, in an act of desperation to do something very stupid. There is some resolution this storyline but I get the feeling that it will continue in the next collection or possibly the one after.

Good plot developments in this collection but overall it feels like an "inbetweener": there are character and plot developments without resolution. The Act I and II story lines felt a bit like filler material. Filler for what? For the Deena's Boyfriend storyline which isn't really resolved in this collection. So I liked it but don't think it would be a good place to start reading Powers. You really should start at the beginning. I do plan to continue reading this series.

Hercules/Hot Gimmick

The Incredible Hercules: Against the World - This wasn't bad. I liked the team of Hercules and Amadeus Cho. I liked watching them interact. The art work was okay. I did like how they wove in the different myths about Hercules. Aside from that the story wasn't anything too special. Part of what holds it back IMO is the fact that it is tied to the aftermath of World War Hulk. I don't read the big event books so I felt like I was missing something; or maybe it was just ill will for the big events getting in my way of enjoying what is (arguably) a well written and decently drawn comic book. There were parts where I was really digging it and other parts where I felt my attention waning. I doubt I'll pick up the next collection. Its worth trying, if you like superhero comic books, but its just not for everyone. From what I've been told future issues tie into other big crossover events. *sigh*

Hot Gimmick v6 - I'm not sure how I got this far into this series. I'm not that wild about it. I don't really like any of the characters. I do appreciate the craftsmanship of the writer/artist, Miki Aihara. I think she does a great job with visual story-telling. Love how the action flows and the facial expressions of her characters. If only the characters themselves were a little deeper. I can't see myself reading anymore of this 12-volume series.