Spawn

[HellsRider]

So after 250 and the Resurrection one shot we are back to our scheduled program with 251 out this week and a preview is available.

Following the re-introduction of Al Simmons in SPAWN: RESURRECTION #1, we dig deeper into Spawn’s time away, the mystery of the word “CHAOS,” and Birch, the veteran warrior who is clearly more than he seems. As the city devolves around him, Spawn is an unlikely beacon of hope in the darkness.

Preview

I believe the solicitation above was around when Brian Wood was going to be the writer so we'll see if it'll stick to that or not. Good to see that Al has kept his human form on Earth and seems to have the ability to transform to Spawn whenever he wants. Art looks better too.

[AstroWolfboy]

Looks awesome , I read Resurrection 3 times in a row, so I'm hoping Brian Wood Stays

[Dark-Flux]

Brian Wood never started. What you read was Paul Jenkins.

[spaghettidracula]

Just read 151. I'm done. The new creative team sucks. I don't know what I just read but it wasn't Spawn. Derivative and boring. I don't even want to talk about all the continuity mistakes because there's really no point. It's so bad that I don't care what happens to Al Simmons, my favorite hero since childhood. Shouldn't the creative team have been actual spawn fans who have read everything? This new run is a joke.

[Rajikaru]

Todd and crew should have given issue 250 a being ending and a definitive end to the old continuity. It almost feels as if all the plot threads that he cleaned up during 201-250 was for nothing. As a long term Spawn fan, I feel insulted and cheated, especially since in merely 2 issues, Jenkins has contradicted just about everything Spawn was.

That said, I like the past two issues. I've really enjoyed them. But if they wanted to tell new stories without contradicting what came before, we should have gotten a better send off. I'm gonna ride this out and see where it goes...

[HellsRider]

Gave 251 a whirl and I'll start with art. I said for the preview the pages looked better, but as the issue progressed something just took me out of it. Its trying hard to evoke a classic Spawn only modernized look, but it just feels like decent filler art work as nothing stands out.

Story-wise, after the one shot I was prepared to treat this as its own run and not judge it based on whats come before, but man its pretty hard to do that as a long time Spawn reader. First, the issue spends too much time recapping the one shot. Yes we already know Al's mission and that Heaven has only so much control in Hell and so on, but did we need that many pages to recap especially when the synopsis of the same damn issue takes care of this in less words. Second, why is Todd co-credited for dialogue along with Jenkins? I thought Jenkins had free reign on everything, but the dialog is very much too melodramatic and overwritten which is something I attribute to Todd's style of writing. Third, their are a number of tacked on aspects such as the Gardner situation, again, and even the bug infestation from 249-250 which Al doesn't really give a damn about either so the feeling is its just there just cause and it pretty much feels like we'll touch on nothing from the Downing era leaving a number of storylines from that up in the air which pisses me off because 250 could have and should have been better in finishing those storylines instead of accomplishing absolutely nothing other than bringing Al back which wasn't even a result of anything Downing did. Fourth, is the feeling of way too familiar territory - Al calling out for his wife, an enemy saying something bad about his wife, Al losses his mind, and so on. We've seen this done too many times before and was a fear I had after reading the one shot. On that same level we have the identity of the person responsible which sounds kinda similar to Mammon and I'm not too crazy about that.

Their is potential in some spots though. Mike seems interesting, the spirit sword was interesting too, and everyone having an animal buddy or tethered connection is different. However, things progressed only marginally so when so much more could have been done. The end of the issue to me, felt like the middle of the issue, and the fight before that was too drawn out especially given Al's current power where he shouldn't have trouble owning some lowly demons. I'll stick with it a few issues more and see how it pans out...

[Drakeon]

Can someone clarify something for me?

I stopped reading at issue #139 and have jumped back on with Reserection. What exactly happened with Downing in #250? Was anything about him explained yet. Like his angel powers, purpose or the plot about his miracles? Did Al take back the suit or does he have a new one?

[Forever Knight]

No idea.

The ongoing ended with 116. But there a load of minis and one-shots. Cant name em all off the top of my head.

Is there an official discussion thread for The Darkness? I was able to grab some collected stuff and love the art I've seen. I hope it's got a dark and solid story. Anyone play the video game?

[HellsRider]

I played the first Darkness game and it was pretty cool. It had a more realistic graphical approach as opposed to comic book visuals, but it fit the tone well. Definitely underrated imo. The second one I didn't play, but what I saw of it they changed the look so its a bit more colorful and comic book like and heard it was pretty good too. Really good voice acting too especially for The Darkness itself in both games.

Drakeon - As of now everything with Downing has been wrapped up. Throughout Downing's tenure he only had a piece of Al's original suit. His angel powers and miracles came from a combination of his soul being in Heaven, Hell, and back to Earth without ever dying. This was corrupted by the symbiote who sent a bit of itself to every person Jim touched/healed. In 250, Jim was trying to weaken the symbiote to either A) be able to completely control it, B) kill it, or C) be able to use it to save Sara who was in a coma induced by a trip to "the black" but I can't tell for certain cause nothing was ever explained other than in the end both Jim and the symbiote were dragged to Hell (?) at the border between the Dead Zone and our world where Al died back in 185 and Al came back. However Al came back not because of anything Downing did, but because of the events of the one shot. Their are a number of plot points that are left unexplained from the Downing era and from the looks of it, the new team does not seem interested at all in answering anything on that at least so far.

[cranger]

I loved this issue.

No, I am not a long time Spawn reader. I read it when it started but dropped out of comic reading shortly after that. I tried reading it again in the 240's but just never got into it. This issue really drew me in with the art and the setup for what the main story is going to be. No, it is nothing 'new' but it still looks fun and I loved the action scenes.

[Forever Knight]

Did somebody say action scenes?

[Dark-Flux]

Is there an official discussion thread for The Darkness? I was able to grab some collected stuff and love the art I've seen. I hope it's got a dark and solid story. Anyone play the video game?

Theres a Top Cow thread somewhere, yeah.

[spaghettidracula]

I think Jonboy Meyers should try to get a job as a cartoonist for Disney, and Paul Jenkins might want to turn in an application at Subway.

[Drakeon]

So Jim and the symbiote went to hell. Sara is still in a coma.

What about Fitzgerald?

Did they ever say how Jim defied god?

What happened with Mark, Bludd, Clown, and Cog?

[HellsRider]

So Jim and the symbiote went to hell. Sara is still in a coma.

What about Fitzgerald?

Did they ever say how Jim defied god?

What happened with Mark, Bludd, Clown, and Cog?

Fitzgerald - Unknown. He and the CIA were looking into recent break-ins of facilities that contained documents about The Project - a plan concocted by Heaven and the CIA, specifically Jason Wynn, to create hybrid human and Heaven soldiers. It was Jim who was breaking in, as Spawn, and getting details since in Jim's past life as Director Kramer he oversaw The Project until he experimented on himself as the last patient. Nothing came of this storyline. Terry was also working Mark as a lead to Downing, but nothing came of that too.

Jim defied God, by attempting to kill him. In doing so, God casted Downing down to Hell in exchange for 1000 souls from Hell. During this point the souls of Al and Jim met and Malebolgia took note of this and prepared at that point in time in case he was ever killed by going all Voldemort and giving his power to a select few followers to keep until he could be reborn. This sort of explains why Al was easily able to beat Malebolgia back in issue 100.

Mark - Unknown. Jim revealed to him that he was Spawn and then Haunt confronted Mark and told him to seek Wanda Blake for answers which now can't happen given what we know now. So yeah not much there. Oh and Susan still has the soul of Hel inside of her.

Bludd - Have no clue. I think he's still alive after the battle in 249, but can't say for certain.

Clown - I honestly don't know. In 250 we got one page of him confused just as anyone about the bug infestation, but felt that something was coming. With the one shot and recent issue he's acted very differently and has a new look too going back to the skinner look he had post-Armageddon. We might have to treat this new Clown as its own thing.

Cog - Unknown. He did not appear at all in 250. He appeared at the end of 249 to push Sam & Twitch in a particular direction to help Downing and the bug infestation markers (which in itself was a waste of time of a plot point) and he vanished.

Other unfinished storylines include - the Vatican/Medieval Spawn, Redeemer, Simon Pure and the Heaven vampires, the albino Heaven agents, and Haunt himself.