GeekMom: Comic Book Corner — Spider-Man and Space Mountain

Happy Comic Release Day! Welcome to another installment of GeekMom Comic Book Corner, where we recap our adventures in comics for the week. This week I let the giggles fly as I read The Ultimate Spider-Man, and Kelly takes us into the world of Disney comics with Space Mountain.

Dakster Sullivan — The Ultimate Spider-Man: Ultimate Collection Vol. 1 by Brian Michael Bendis  and art by Mark Bagley

Last night, despite a pounding headache, I picked up my copy of The Ultimate Spider-Man: Ultimate Collection Vol. 1, which encompass the first thirteen issues from the hit series by Brian Michael Bendis.

These first thirteen issues give the traditional origin story with Uncle Ben’s death, but it also gives a different twist on his killer and how Spider-Man goes after him. And when it comes time for Peter to get a job, he gets a dual role as Spider-Man photographer and website tech for the Daily Bugle. I thought the addition of Peter working on the Daily Bugle website gave his origins a nice modern update and something more solid to do after school than running around taking pictures all day.

Something else that’s different in this story-line is Gwen Stacy, or the lack of her, that is. Mary Jane is the only girl that Peter shows interest in and they have a nice relationship for most of the book. My guess is that this was written for the younger generation whose unfamiliarity with Gwen caused her to be omitted entirely.

In terms of villains, we see the beginning of the Green Goblin and we meet Doctor Octavius in his pre-transformed state. Electro makes an appearance as well, but it’s brief and he’s more of the hired help at this point in the story.

Most Spider-Man issues I’ve read had me chuckle inside, but this volume actually had me laughing out loud. My favorite part was when Spider-Man took on the Kingpin and started reading fat jokes off of note cards. The jokes he was making were just too funny to hold in.

I know that the X-Men will eventually show up as guest stars in this series, and I can’t wait to see how they interact with Spidey.

The Ultimate Spider-Man is appropriate for anyone 10 years old and up.

Curious to know what I’m pulling this week? Check out my pull list on Comixology.

Kelly Knox – Space Mountain by Bryan Q. Miller and Kelley Jones (Disney)

Is it trite to say that the new original graphic novel Space Mountain is a fun ride? It is? Too bad, I’m saying it anyway.

Space Mountain is an epic, family-friendly, time-traveling space adventure in the same vein as the 1979 Disney flick The Black Hole. Granted, I don’t remember much of The Black Hole because it scared the bejeebies out of me as a kid, but I do know that Space Mountain has a lot of the same deep-space adventurous vibe. And, you know, a black hole.

It’s the year 2125, and two space cadets from the Magellan Science Academy get the chance of a lifetime when they win a ride on a time-traveling spaceship. Once they join the crew and begin their journey to 24 hours in the future, something goes horribly wrong. The kids must save the crew–and history as we know it–before it’s too late.

The graphic novel is based on the Disneyland attraction of the same name, but doesn’t overdo the park references. If you’re a fan of Disney parks, though, you’ll get a kick out of the cameos here and there as parts of Tomorrowland make an appearance. (Tomorrowland was the working title of the book, and would have worked even better, but it was presumably changed because of the upcoming film with the same name.)

I only picked up this graphic novel because Bryan Q. Miller wrote it, and I was hoping for another space adventure like his recent creator-owned book Earthward. I wasn’t disappointed. While it’s a little early to introduce my 5-year-old to time travel and paradoxes, I will happily share Space Mountain with her when she’s a little older.

Looking for something else, readers? Check out this week’s listed books:

Action Comics #32 Aquaman And The Others #3  New Series Batman ’66 Meets The Green Hornet #1 (Of 6) New Mini-Series Batman And Robin Vol. 3 Death Of The Family TP Batman And Robin Vol. 4 Requiem For Damian HC Batman Arkham Asylum Living Hell Deluxe Edition HC Batman Eternal #9 Batwing #32 Before Watchmen Minutemen Silk Spectre TP Earth 2 #24 Green Arrow #32 Green Lantern #32 Hellblazer Vol. 8 Rake At The Gates Of Hell TP Hinterkind #8 Justice League 3000 #7 Looney Tunes #219 Kid Friendly New 52 Futures End #5 Weekly Series Stormwatch Vol. 2 TP Stormwatch Vol. 4 Reset TP Swamp Thing #32 Swamp Thing Vol. 4 Seeder TP Tiny Titans Return To The Treehouse #1 (Of 6) New Mini-Series Kid Friendly  Trinity Of Sin The Phantom Stranger #20 Vampire Diaries #6 Wake #9 (Of 10)

All-New X-Factor #9 Amazing X-Men #8 Amazing X-Men Annual #1 Avengers #24.NOW Avengers World #7 Black Widow #7 Captain America #21 Cyclops #2 New Series Deadpool #27 (Wedding Issue) Indestructible Hulk Vol. 4 Humanity Bomb HC Inhumanity HC Iron Fist The Living Weapon #3 New Series Iron Man #27 Loki Agent Of Asgard #5 New Series Magneto #5 New Series Miles Morales The Ultimate Spider-Man #2 Miracleman #7 Moon Knight #4 New Series New Warriors #5 New Series Nova Classic Vol. 3 TP Original Sin #3 (Of 8) Painkiller Jane The 22 Brides #1 (Of 3) New Mini-Series Punisher #6 Punisher MAX By Jason Aaron Omnibus HC Superior Foes Of Spider-Man #12 Uncanny Avengers Vol. 2 The Apocalypse Twins TP Wolverine And The X-Men By Jason Aaron Omnibus HC

Acronym Key: VC = Variant Cover / HC = Hard Cover / TP = Trade Paperback / GM = GeekMom Recommended Reading

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