Critical Hits & Misses #325

• What happens to the MCU after Infinity War sends Robert Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark into retirement? The Hollywood Reporter takes a look at some of the possibilities, including one annoying storyline that hopefully never happens (we want Riri instead of Teen Tony, okay?)


• Pixar's Coco opened this past weekend in theaters, and instantly shot up to the #1 spot, especially in Mexico, where it was the #1 movie ever. 

For today's musical hit, I promise I won't torture us all with Christmas music from here until actual Christmas (I personally can't stand most Christmas music), but here's Pentatonix with a nifty take on "Deck the Halls"

Today's critical rolls: So Riri Williams (or even Rhodey) as the new Iron Man, emirite? What about some of the other heroes? Do you think they could pull off female Thor in the movies? And who should take up the mantle of Captain America?

Critical Writ has a super-duper strict comment policy that specifies a single rule above all others: we reserve the right to ban you for being a terribad citizen of the internet.

Critical Hits & Misses #137

• Shamus Young has written an enormous, book-sized retrospective on the Mass Effect trilogy, analyzing the story, developmental changes and more. 


• Marvel films, are you ready for this? EW has the scoop on the Guardians of the Galaxy joining up with the Avengers to fight Thanos during Avengers: Infinity War. Spidey will be there too! Is there going to be enough screentime for this much awesome??? 

For today's musical hit, we have Incubus' "Megalomaniac"

Today's critical rolls: TGIF! What's on the agenda for your weekend? Anything fun and exciting?


Critical Writ has a super-duper strict comment policy that specifies a single rule above all others: we reserve the right to ban you for being a terribad citizen of the internet.

Shattered: Ms. Marvel #11 Review

Ms. Marvel #11 brings the Civil War II arc of the series to its heartbreaking devastating conclusion. It’s not all doom and gloom, there are some nice moments of levity, and some satisfying action.

Overall, it’s phenomenal. If you somehow haven’t started this series yet, I cannot recommend it more.

Spoilers beyond this point.

Well, it was always going to end this way, at least between Kamala and Carol. We knew from the beginning that she would inevitably end up on Tony’s side, and going by the covers of this issue and the last few ones, her support of Captain Marvel was not gonna end in a pretty way.

Getting everyone to sit down and watch Minority Report does seem like the best way to solve everything.

And it certainly does not. Kamala’s plan to win her over shows her desperation– anyone who’s been reading the main Civil War II series knows that a fault in her predictive justice system isn’t going to put her off. Add to that the fact that Kamala teamed up with a sort of villain (Hijinx is my favorite new character by the way­– I hope to see more of the Canadian Ninja Syndicate in the future).

Anyone else really want a spinoff?

Add to that the fact she once again battled Basic Becky (whom we thankfully haven't seen the last of, I love hating her) and called in Tony Stark himself for backup, and I think we’ve got a relationship that won’t be healed any time soon.

It gets worse though. Kamala finally stepping up and taking a stance was long overdue, but this comic isn’t afraid to show us the stakes of her delay. Bruno finally awakes from his coma, but we don’t get the tearful reunion we needed to see after her split with Captain Marvel.

The scholarships remark isn't out of nowhere– issue #7 covered how important it was to him.

 Bruno’s rage isn’t unjustified, but it stings nevertheless. We’re used to Ms. Marvel learning from her mistakes every few issues, and things reverting back to the status quo. This change is pretty big. This isn’t just anyone she’s lost, it’s Bruno. Her best friend since the second grade. The one who has stuck with her through thick and thin and, as we discover in the beautifully drawn opening to this issue, is the one who crafted her bangles into a protective vambrace.

This hurts so much.

Overall, Ms. Marvel #11 is unafraid to go where any of the other issues have, and has full on consequences, some disproportionate, others not so, for our heroine’s actions. It’s devastating, and tears will probably be shed. But overall, it’s a damn good comic.

Me too Tony, me too.

Aranwe Quirke is a totally real, definitely not made up name. No, you may not see the birth certificate.

Critical Hits and Misses #20 - September 2nd, 2016 - Dramatic Lightning Bolt!

• Greg Berlanti and Mara Brock Akil are developing a Black Lightning television series! (John)

• As a joint project, Vigo Universal and Belgium's Musée royal de Mariemont have assembled a truly out-of-this-world 3D-printed Stargate replica. (Miz Opifex)

• All Over Albany shared what is thought to be the Hamilton-Schuyler wedding cake recipe from the New York State archives. (SecretAgentR)

• Marvel has scrapped their Mighty Men of Marvel beefcake variant covers, but Iron Man’s is being reused...with his nipples censored. Once again, Marvel is censoring Freeze Peach ^TM in the name of political correctness. (Megan)

• From yesterday through October 10th, Multiversity Comics is hosting 40 Days of Supergirl. This feature series will showcase exclusive Supergirl artwork from a multitude of artists. (Dominik)

• Back in March, Dorian Lynskey at The Guardian wrote a great piece on how “grumbling fanboys" won’t win the battle against feminism in comic books. Lynskey covers women in comics in the old days, and how things are changing fast now. (Ivonne)

• Last week, journalist and feminist Tara Bradbury roasted Internet trolls after backlash against an article she wrote about NL FemFest, once again bringing attention to the hostile environment women endure online everyday. (Lacey)

Today's musical hit is this rockin' live version of "Psalm 40:2," by the Mountain Goats. (Etienne)

And speaking of music—here's a new segment: this week's critical playlist is entitled "Bitter Prayers, Fiery Sacraments," and consists in a selection of songs on the theme of complicated, ambivalent faith. (Scott)

Today's critical rolls:

1. Who would be the prime choice to play DC's first headlining black hero, Black Lightning?
2. For that matter, what about Black Lightning's daughters, Thunder and Lightning?
3. What variant cover theme would you most like to see out of DC and/or Marvel?
4. In honor of our first amendment rights: who is the sexiest comic book beefcake?
5. Is there any song or music video that holds any special, sentimental value to you?

— Critical Writ has a super-duper strict comment policy that specifies a single rule above all others: don't piss off John.

#FreeTheStarkNipples ⚡