Marvel Collector Corps - Box 2 : Ant-Man

Marvel Collector Corps - Box 2 : Ant-Man

The second Marvel Collector Corps box has finally arrived, featuring the hero of next week’s sure to be blockbuster smash, Ant-Man! Back in February, we broke the news that Marvel and Funko had teamed up to bring us, the fans, 100% completely exclusive collectibles t-shirts and accessories valued at over $50 through a bi-monthly shipping service and once again they did not disappoint!

Much like the first Avengers box, a beautifully rendered Scott Lang Ant-Man image graced the top of the box with Ant-Man and Marvel markings screaming around the outer edges. The inside flap contained great moments in Ant-Man comics history, which featuring Yellowjacket, Wasp, Stature and more!

Upon opening the top flap, once again the first two pieces of swag greeted me in the form of a Marvel Collector’s Corps patch and pin, this time both featuring Ant-Man.

Lifting the inner flap where the patch and pin were positioned, the Exclusive Ant-Man Pop! Vinyl figure was displayed; a helmet-less Ant-Man alongside Funko’s smallest figure to date, miniature Ant-Man!

Nestled to the right-hand side of the Pop! Vinyl figure, were two Funko bobble-head Ant-Man figures. My luck brought me both Ant-Man and Yellowjacket!

Below the vinyl figures, an exclusive Variant Edition of Ant-Man #5 was tucked underneath …

And directly below was another fantastic exclusive T-shirt to round out the box!

After my ups and downs with Loot Crate and NerdBlock, I’m loving the items arriving through the Marvel Collector Corps. In just one month, August will bring another set of exclusives tied to this summer’s epic comic event Secret Wars for Box 3! To sign-up for the Marvel Collector Corps, visit www.collectorcorps.com today!

Questions or Comments? Sound off below, or find me on Twitter as @ArchangelEZE and for more exciting news and reviews, follow NGP on Facebook!

Until next time True Believers,

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The Weekly Pull Review - Secret Wars #1

The Weekly Pull Review - Secret Wars #1

The Marvel Comics event of the year is finally upon us as Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribic’s 8-issue Secret Wars event officially launched the beginning of the end for the Marvel Universe this week. This massive saga is a HUGE payoff to those, like me, who have collected Hickman’s work through Avengers (Vol. 5) and New Avengers (Vol. 3) totalling a whopping 77 issues, which together weaved an intricate story of how Earth’s Mightiest Heroes failed to not only protect their world, but the entire multiverse.

Although the premise seems daunting for those who aren’t up to speed, IGN has put together a fantastic recap of the events that have led up to Secret Wars, which you can find here. Take note that Hickman’s work isn’t for the faint of heart and tells a much darker and complex tale for such a mainstream title, clearly aimed at an older and more mature demographic.  

The Secret Wars event begins right where the Avengers finale concludes, with the final two worlds in the Marvel multiverse facing the incursion and imminent destruction. Earth-616, better known as the Prime continuity, and Earth-1610, the Ultimate Universe. As the worlds collide, beloved heroes fall in battle, lives are lost to scientific miscalculations and a Battleworld is formed, which will forever change the landscape of the Marvel Universe.

Worlds Collide

The scope and significance of this story also marks a historical event for Marvel Comics, as this is the first time in franchise history that the publisher has rebooted. With the exception of it's Star Wars titles, every Marvel book will see its final issue during the event, replaced by Secret Wars tie-in titles that will follow the incursion survivors. Very little is known at this point regarding how the Marvel Universe will unfold after the event reaches its conclusion. Some signs point toward a jump in time, while others suggest that some tie-in stories will evolve into mainstream ongoing titles.

Secret Wars is the must-read event of the year, and comes highly recommended by the NGP team. This is one of the boldest and most well-written story events to ever come from the House of Ideas and if every issue is as strong as the debut, we're in for a treat.

4/5 Toast Rating

This is the big leagues, and everything we know about the current Marvel Universe will never be the same.    

Questions or Comments? Sound off below, or find me on Twitter as @ArchangelEZE and for more exciting news and reviews, follow NGP on Facebook!  

Until next time True Believers,

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33 Marvel Titles Come To An End

33 Marvel Titles Come To An End

It's true ... the master list has been established. On the cusp of Secret Wars Marvel has revealed that 33 titles will be coming to an end this May and some of these are pretty heavy hitters. 

Speaking with ComicBook.Com, Marvel's David Gabriel revealed the ongoing title casualty list for the first ever reboot in Marvel history. 

"Secret Wars is unlike any event ever published. It’s not just an event with a few tie-ins, it’s an entirely new publishing line, an entirely new television network’s fall line-up if you will. It’s not unlike what was done in the 1990s with Age of Apocalypse. Even then, that was just the X-Men titles. But this is so much more. The entire Marvel Universe will be affected in some really shocking, really surprising ways."

It's important to note that Gabriel has also revealed that some titles will be rebooted in the aftermath of Secret Wars, but others will be gone for good. 

So without further ado, revise your pull-lists accordingly. Here are the titles that will be reaching their 616 Finale over the next few months:

• All-New Captain America
• All-New Ghost Rider
• All-New X-Men
• Amazing Spider-Man
• Amazing X-Men
• Angela: Asgard’s Assassin
• Avengers
• Avengers World
• Captain Marvel
• Cyclops
• Deadpool
• Elektra
• Fantastic Four
• Guardians 3000
• Guardians of the Galaxy
• Hulk
• Inhuman
• Iron Fist: The Living Weapon
• Legendary Star-Lord
• Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man
• New Avengers
• Nightcrawler
• Nova
• Rocket Raccoon
• Secret Avengers
• Spider-Man & The X-Men
• Spider-Man 2099
• Storm
• Superior Iron Man
• Thor
• Uncanny X-Men
• Wolverines
• X-Men

Questions or Comments? Sound off below, or find me on Twitter as @ArchangelEZE and for more exciting news and reviews, follow NGP on Facebook!  

Until next time True Believers,

-ArchangelEZE    

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The Weekly Pull : Spider-Gwen

The Weekly Pull : Spider-Gwen

Spinning out of the 6-part ‘Spider-Verse’ story arc featured in The Amazing Spider-Man, Spider-Woman (or Spider-Gwen) was one of the many Multiverse Spider-Men who teamed up to take down a league of Spider-Totem hunters known as The Inheritors, lead by the villainous Morlun.

First appearing in the short story, Edge of Spider-Verse #2, Spider-Gwen was an instant smash hit with readers, as they were taken to a place where roles were reversed, and Peter Parker had been the one to die that fateful day at the hands of the Green Goblin. However, not all in this version of the story has changed … with great power, still comes great responsibility.

“This story sees Gwen at a real crossroads of her life,” says writer Jason Latour, in an interview with Marvel.com. “Spider-Woman is wanted for a crime she didn’t commit. So where as her life in costume before was a lot of adventuring and fun, she’s now being forced to decide what it means to her.” (Read more on Marvel.com!)

With the conclusion of the primary continuum Spider-Verse arc in mid-February, Spider-Gwen was quickly launched into her own ongoing series, within her own home universe, full of whimsical pastel colors and a cast of familiar characters in unfamiliar roles.

Is it worth the read? I’m split down the middle. The take on the traditional Spider-Man story is intriguing and fun, but the color schemes and language make things feel that their aimed at a much younger audience, much like Stewart and Fletcher’s Batgirl, which doesn't hit the right notes for me.

2 / 5 Toast Rating

In the end, the Spider-Gwen story still takes place within the Marvel Multiverse. So the real question remains : is there a chance the title can survive past May? Or will the impending Secret Wars (link) incursion leave this title an ill-fated Mini Series? Marvel is starting to pull a DC Comics stunt, and it’s stressing me out.

Questions or Comments? Sound off below, or find me on Twitter as @ArchangelEZE and for more exciting news and reviews, follow NGP on Facebook!  

Until next time True Believers,

-ArchangelEZE     

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Secret Wars Shakes Up EVERY Marvel Title This May

Secret Wars Shakes Up EVERY Marvel Title This May

It’s no secret that Marvel is the defending champion when it comes to epic comic events. House of M, Civil War, Secret Invasion, Siege, Fear Itself, Avengers vs. X-Men, Age of Ultron, Infinity, AXIS, Black Vortex … the list goes on and on, and that’s just within the past decade.

However, the biggest event is still to come, and time is running out. Scheduled to run for 4 consecutive months beginning this May, Secret Wars will focus on the collision of the Marvel 616 (prime continuity) Universe with that of the Marvel Ultimate Universe, in which both will be destroyed and pieced together with other post collision universes (think DCs Multiverse but surprisingly less confusing) creating the battleground that will reforge Marvel anew come September.

So what will happen to your favorite current titles (with the exception of Star Wars) when the Marvel U is dissembled and enters Battleworld? I’m glad you asked …

The X-Men, will venture to the fiery depths of Hell to vanquish a demon horde in the pages of Inferno, where a collided universe places them in a post apocalyptic version of Manhattan.

Members of the Nova Corps will be pitted against Thanos in a race to recover the Infinity Stones, which will set the cosmic table in the Marvel Universe for years to come within the pages of Infinity War!

Wolverine may be dead in prime continuity, but in another he is Old Man Logan, living in a universe where all of the heroes have been murdered, and the villains rule with an iron fist. Can the last remaining hero truly make a difference?

Steve Rodgers and his trusty steed Devil Dinosaur stand alone on Planet Hulk. Will a planet full of Hulk’s spell the end for the Star-Spangled hero?

The Avengers will gather in an attempt to save a small sliver of their remaining world in the pages of A-Force. Standing shoulder to shoulder in a never before seen lineup, the women of the Marvel Universe may be our only hope of survival.

Although this is just a brief taste of the titles scheduled to occur under the Secret Wars banner, it’s exciting to see Marvel shake things up a bit. In the aftermath, who will live and who will die? And when only one Universe remains, what characters will change forever?

Sound off in the comments below, find me on Twitter or let us know on the New Geek Protocol Facebook page!

Until next time True Believers,

-ArchangelEZE

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The Weekly Pull : Marvel Fights Dirty

The Weekly Pull : Marvel Fights Dirty

It’s no secret that Marvel is struggling to regain their properties from major motion picture companies. The bulk of the characters are over at Disney (which we can all be thankful for), however Sony holds the rights to Spider-Man while Fox, with an iron grip, controls X-Men and the Fantastic Four. But what about Marvel’s very first superhero? Their first mutant? Who controls the Sub-Mariner? Who controls Namor?

Now, I know what most of you are thinking : “Who cares, it’s Namor.” and quite honestly, I’m inclined to side with the same logic. However, after the publication of January 2015’s Avengers #40, it has become abundantly clear that Marvel cares, and is willing to do just about anything to prove it.

Please note, from this point on, SPOILERS may be present if you aren’t up to speed on current Avengers story arcs. So if you wish to remain in the dark, this is your one and only warning.

Plain and simple, character rights are a fickle bitch. It’s extremely unlikely that any one studio “owns” the rights to something. For example, Sony only holds cinematic power over Spider-Man, where Marvel has full control over the character in print and television mediums. Unfortunately, each character in the Marvel U is bound by it’s own set of rules. Some of which expire, while others remain perpetual.

Before the massive success of Iron Man, Marvel's self produced, high risk Hail Mary to escape bankruptcy back in 2008, superheroes in cinema weren't the box office smash that they are today. A prime example is Director Ang Lee's 2003 take on the Hulk produced by Universal Studios. Although the film grossed $245 million worldwide (surpassing its 137 million budget), the film's reception was less than stellar. The mixed reviews ultimately prompted Universal to allow the cinematic rights for the Hulk to lapse, retreating back to Marvel, which allowed them to reboot the franchise with Edward Norton as The Incredible Hulk and include the character as a key member of the Avengers.

How does this all connect to Namor and Marvel's stance on the a Sub Mariner? Universal Studios still holds a portion of the rights to the Atlantean King, and in this day and age, they aren't so keen to make the same mistake twice. So, in rebuttal, Marvel has opted to play the strongest card they have and completely eliminate all marketing support with the launch of Secret Wars ...

The gloves are off, we're fighting dirty and it's pretty clear Marvel isn't screwing around anymore. Need further proof? With Fox's Fantastic Four reboot set to hit theaters this fall, Marvel has indefinitely canceled the series.

Do you have a comic, graphic novel, comic event or storyline you’re itching to read or learn more about? Sound off in the comments below, find me on Twitter or let us know on the New Geek Protocol Facebook page!

Until next time True Believers,

-ArchangelEZE

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The New 52 Comes To An End

The New 52 Comes To An End

Well … sort of. DC Comics has announced that the “New 52” branding will finally come to an end after it’s 4 year run as the tagline of the DC Universe. However, fans can rest assured that the stories and current continuity will remain the same (collective sigh of relief!) and is in no way another franchise reboot.

Beginning June 3, 2015 with the conclusion of April and May’s Convergence event, the DC line up will launch 24 brand new titles in addition to the 25 ongoing staples to ensure that there will be something for everyone, especially in light of Marvel announcing a still mysterious reboot of their own with the conclusion of this May’s epic Secret Wars event, which promises to change the Marvel Universe as we know it (stay tuned)!

As for the new titles, the folks at IGN have gained exclusive access to eight of them, which include ::

• Batman Beyond by writer Dan Jurgens & artist Bernard Chang
• Cyborg by writer David L. Walker & artists Ivan Reis and Joe Prado
• Dark Universe by writer James Tynion IV & artist Ming Doyle
• Doomed by writer Scott Lobdell & artist Javier Fernandez
• Harley Quinn/Power Girl by writers Jimmy Palmiotti, Amanda Conner & artist Stephane Roux (4 issue mini-series)
• Red Hood/Arsenal by writer Scott Lobdell & artist Denis Medri
• Starfire by writers Jimmy Palmiotti, Amanda Conner & artist Emanuela Lupacchino
• We Are Robin by writer Lee Bermejo & artists Rob Haynes and Khary Randolph

With an additional seven announced through CBR ::

• Justice League of America by writer/artist Brian Hitch
• Bizzaro by writer Heath Corson & artist Gustavo Duarte (6 issue mini-series)
• Bat-Mite by writer Mark Russell & artist Ben Caldwell (6 issue mini-series)
• Omega Men by writer Tom King & artist Barnaby Bagenda
• Mystic U (tentative title) by writer Alisa Kwitney & artist Mauricet
• Section Eight by writer Garth Ennis & artist John McCrea
• Dr. Fate by writer Paul Levitz & artist Sonny Liew

And the final batch coming to us from Newsarama ::

• Robin, Son of Batman by writer/artist Pat Gleason
• Black Canary by writer Brenden Fletcher & artist Annie Wu
• Martian Manhunter by writer Rob Williams & artists Ben Oliver, Paulo Siqueira
• Earth 2: Society by writer Daniel H. Wilson & artist Jorge Jimenez
• Midnighter by writer Steve Orlando & artist ACO
• Bat-Mite by writer Dan Jurgens & artist Corin Howell

As for the 14 titles not making the cut come June, grab a Kleenex© as we mourn the loss of the following titles::

• Aquaman and the Others #11
• Arkham Manor #6
• Batman Eternal #52
• Batwoman #40
• Green Lantern: New Guardians #40
• Infinity Man and the Forever People #9
• Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Three #12
• Klarion #6
• Red Lanterns #40
• Secret Origins #11
• Star-Spangled War Stories Featuring G.I. Zombie #8
• Swamp Thing #40
• Trinity of Sin #6
• World's Finest #32

Do you have a comic, graphic novel, comic event or story line you’re itching to read or learn more about? Sound off in the comments below, find me on Twitter or let us know on the New Geek Protocol Facebook page!

Until next time True Believers,

-ArchangelEZE

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