Catalyst Prime (New CB Universe)

[Wodwulf Seaxaning]

That is good, I hope they keep that crap out of it as it drove me from most of Marvel comics (that & their flood of events). I don't mind diverse characters if they are done well & the stories are good. I hope Milestone Media & DC doesn't screw up the reboot of their Milestone comic line, I loved those in the early 90s.

[Savant]

First issue of Noble dropped this week. Did anyone read it?

They also have their FCBD issue coming out tomorrow. Might check that out first before giving the line a try.

I've been a fan of Roger Robinson's art ever since that run on The Web for DC a few years back....So I checked out Noble and it's not bad. A very different tone to the book compared to most comics I've read. Almost feels like a modern comic laced with some blaxploitation elements, it's fun.

[Cyberstrike]

OMG they're SJW comics! Oh lord the world will end because we have to put up with with black, Hispanic, disabled, and female superheroes and none of these new heroes are white, straight, male characters![/extreme sarcasm

Just thought I would get that crap out of the way.

This is my thing - how is having non-white or female characters make a comic SJW? Honestly I'd like to know. I know that Cyberstrike posted this as sarcasm, but I've been watching a lot of comic related Youtube of late & labeling things SJW seems to be a thing. I understand what SJW means & I generally despise SJWs but I think the term for comics & other media gets way over used.

From what I've seen of Marvel's America ... that is a SJW book, it seems centered on the character being Brown & Lesbian; totally identity politics & the author of Black Panther is an outspoken SJW, I've read his articles. He has a low opinion of America, whites & Western culture. I'm am deeply annoyed he seems to being flagged to take over Captain America. I have zero issue with Marvel replacing characters with non-whites & gays, as long as it 1) makes sense, 2) isn't done in a hamfisted manner & 3) is done with respect to the character & fans.

Now off my rant & back on topic, I am looking forward to checking out these titles. They look cool.

First off that post was original meant to be sarcastic (that is why I put the [/extreme sarcasm] in it) due to the conservative nature of this forum.

Second I am sick and tied of every character in a comic that is a person of color, LGBT, disabled, and etc get blasted as "SJW Propaganda" because that is 100% crap or people like you gets their panties in a knot because a comic book creator as a political point of view that this disagree or the creator doesn't express it well.

Third: Just because you don't like something doesn't mean someone else can't find meaning in it for instance I've met many people who love America and most of them are LGBT, women, and/or people of color. Because the character and book speaks to them.

Fourth: Please take your list and cram it. I don't give a damn what you or anyone else here likes or think is "respectful to the fans" because I'm too old and I don't have the time or patience to do deal with fan entitlements anymore. I think that the entitlement of straight white male fans sucks and is hurting not comics but the world as general.

[manga4life]

You guys still reading? Kino, Astonisher, Noble, and Accell all have me enamored and I can't wait to finally pick up Summit and Incidentals. The only book I don't truly like is Superb.

I do worry the low sales will see this line a quick death though....

Some titles selling well under 1K....

[ironherc]

^I still read some books like accel, superb, astonisher, kino and superb.

[Ryan]

Just discovered this universe, I'm surprised no one has mentioned that the Senior Editor behind Catalyst Prime, Joe Illidge, has become the new Executive Editor at Valiant. So these books might offer a bit of a 'things to come' for Valiant.

I just read the FCBD special 'white event' and Noble #1. My overall impression is that I liked them, I appreciate how they have a straightforward feel of just trying to be good sci-fi/superhero stories while seeming fresh. I love the more realistic approach, definitely getting a New Universe/early Valiant vibe there, which is great.

Having said that, I'm going to dig in from a critical perspective. These are the 2 most important issues of a new universe launch, the free issue that is an origin and setup for the entire universe that will surely have a larger print run and new reader exposure than any other thing they put out; and the first issue of the flagship hero which will also get a lot of new eyes.

The FCBD issue was a little too muddled for me. The dialogue was usually good, but all the jumping around was confusing and all the different characters made it hard to keep track or form a strong impression. We don't need a flashback scene for every astronaut, it's too overwhelming and I don't know why I should care about all these characters. Just show them interacting and dealing with the crisis, we'll figure out who they are from that. The superhero action at the beginning (one year after the event) is never tied in to the rest of the story and so just sits there as another confusing and disjointed scene. The shifts in art style and a few digital gaffes make it feel not as highly tuned as you'd want for a showcase universe opening book.

I really like the ambition of the story though, as well as the hard sci-fi take. As a reader who's looking for that, it's probably enough to pique the interest and make you want to know more about what will come next. As a casual reader on the fence, I don't think it leaves a strong enough impression that you would want to run out and order the books. They launched 7 (or so?) titles out of this, and yet in 27 pages of story you would have no idea who any of those characters would be.

Noble #1 - I liked this. Intriguing story that didn't tell too much, just enough to make you curious. Great action, with the hero demonstrating his powers instead of explaining them. Cool looking hero with a great metal mask/helmet.

Now for the critique - almost the entire issue was one long action scene. 16 of the 22 pages were for just the one scene. A lot of action is fine, but the problem is all in one scene it gets too repetitive. The dudes had a tranq gun to his head twice and he just gets out of it twice. This scene could have been cut down immensely and still been really cool with him demonstrating his powers and kicking *SQUEE*. Then there could have been more time to develop him and the plot more. For an issue 1 it feels a little skimpy, and as a casual reader I'm not sure there's enough there to really get me excited.

Looking at the sales figures, Noble #1 had the highest in the line with 4,915 and then #2 shows up with 2,191 before dropping off the charts until Diamond started reporting the top 500 in Dec 2017 where #7 comes in at 925 (!). That's sort of eye-popping and I don't know how these series continue with such low numbers.

After reading these 2 issues I have more hope for the next phase of Valiant. I will try to read more of the Catalyst line when I get a chance, but from these it looks like Joe Illidge has the right kind of sensibilities to do good things at Valiant.

[Edited for clarity]

[Ryan]

NM (Double post)

[BugsySig]

Gail Simone taking over:

https://www.cbr.com/interview-gail-simo ... ons-forge/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[The Outcast]

I'm in love with this universe, almost, if not, as much as Valiant. It's an amazing new universe and Lion Forge is killing it on writers and artist. And now that Gail is over seeing it, that's makes it even better. Summit by Amy Chu is my favorite and they have three first event in 2019.

[leonmallett]

OMG they're SJW comics! Oh lord the world will end because we have to put up with with black, Hispanic, disabled, and female superheroes and none of these new heroes are white, straight, male characters![/extreme sarcasm

Just thought I would get that crap out of the way.

This is my thing - how is having non-white or female characters make a comic SJW? Honestly I'd like to know. I know that Cyberstrike posted this as sarcasm, but I've been watching a lot of comic related Youtube of late & labeling things SJW seems to be a thing. I understand what SJW means & I generally despise SJWs but I think the term for comics & other media gets way over used.

From what I've seen of Marvel's America ... that is a SJW book, it seems centered on the character being Brown & Lesbian; totally identity politics & the author of Black Panther is an outspoken SJW, I've read his articles. He has a low opinion of America, whites & Western culture. I'm am deeply annoyed he seems to being flagged to take over Captain America. I have zero issue with Marvel replacing characters with non-whites & gays, as long as it 1) makes sense, 2) isn't done in a hamfisted manner & 3) is done with respect to the character & fans.

Now off my rant & back on topic, I am looking forward to checking out these titles. They look cool.

First off that post was original meant to be sarcastic (that is why I put the [/extreme sarcasm] in it) due to the conservative nature of this forum.

Second I am sick and tied of every character in a comic that is a person of color, LGBT, disabled, and etc get blasted as "SJW Propaganda" because that is 100% crap or people like you gets their panties in a knot because a comic book creator as a political point of view that this disagree or the creator doesn't express it well.

Third: Just because you don't like something doesn't mean someone else can't find meaning in it for instance I've met many people who love America and most of them are LGBT, women, and/or people of color. Because the character and book speaks to them.

Fourth: Please take your list and cram it. I don't give a damn what you or anyone else here likes or think is "respectful to the fans" because I'm too old and I don't have the time or patience to do deal with fan entitlements anymore. I think that the entitlement of straight white male fans sucks and is hurting not comics but the world as general.

So very much this.

[leonmallett]

I have just ordered 5 tpbs for this line, so I am really interested to see how I digest those over a short period of time.

Is the FCBD story collected in any of the tpbs?

[BugsySig]

I have just ordered 5 tpbs for this line, so I am really interested to see how I digest those over a short period of time.

Is the FCBD story collected in any of the tpbs?

I do t believe so, but it is available digitally for free via comixology and comic blitz.

[leonmallett]

I have just ordered 5 tpbs for this line, so I am really interested to see how I digest those over a short period of time.

Is the FCBD story collected in any of the tpbs?

I do t believe so, but it is available digitally for free via comixology and comic blitz.

Thanks BugsySig.

I can't find a UK retailer who stocks it (the FCBD book), and USA to UK shipping is around £20 GBP.

[leonmallett]

For anyone thinking of the tpbs, my first 3 arrived and they all have the same 'Event' story which I assume is the FCBD story.

[leonmallett]

I read and really enjoyed Noble volume 1; a good set-up overall for me, with lots of action and a few plot twists as 3 separate motivations play out in pursuit of the protagonist. The memory loss and power set made me think Bloodshot meets Motorhead (from Comics Greatest world), both touchstones I like.
The art is from Roger Robinson and Jamal Igle, both of whom I like a lot, so a great choice for the book.
I gave it 4 out of 5 on Amazon.


I also read KINO volume 1 in the past couple of days. While an interesting premise it is one not suited to an indefinite story run (basically it has multi-reality story-telling which worked in inception as the arc was finite; in a presumably theoretically infinite serial story arc that makes less storytelling sense). The protagonist concept made me think Sentry meets Inception, and that is a problem with the book; it feels very high concept, but not in a way that is sufficiently deconstructed or revealed over 4 chapters. Add in that the lead is a bit of a cipher compared to other characters and after 4 chapters/issues things were hanging unresolved with no single conclusion to point to, I gave it 3 out of 5 based on overall enjoyment but nagging problems in the execution. The art I think will be polarising as it is very stylised.

[ironherc]

So anyone still reading this books? with a comic book event on the horizon. I'm hoping it will get slightly more attention.

[Phantom]

I am still reading the superb.
With the new crossover coming up I might be tempted to pick up a few more.
Really enjoy the back up story of cosmosis great fun.

Superb storyline has improved since issue one, or maybe I am just more engaged with the charactors.
Current issue 19 has a development which I was .

Will see how it pans out, Down Syndrome children / teenagers are very naive and innocent being more susceptible then others the same age. I really hope it doesn't go down that path ~ as it doesn't need to. Would I stop reading because of it? Maybe ~ but then its just a comic book.

To put it out their, it is about the main character, a downs Syndrome teenager now might be in a 'gay' relationship. With no suggestion of this sexual choice before ~ I am more annoyed that the other person involved is taking advantage of the main character / or the writer has no idea how vulnerable Downs Syndrome are.

Not getting involved in any debate about peoples life choices or how they are depicted in comics. I have no interest in your sexually or orientation, it doesn't bother me at all. In this instance, I read the comic and saw it as the writer moving the charactor forward, but maybe intentionally or unintentionally showing a homosexual teenager taking advantage of a mentally challenged person. Or maybe it is the choice of the main charactor, but due to his disorder I was 'don't go their' I was enjoying it as it was.

[grendeljd]

So anyone still reading this books? with a comic book event on the horizon. I'm hoping it will get slightly more attention.

I tried out every title in the line for at least 1-3 issues per series. While I liked the overall idea of the setting for this superhero universe & its origins, none of the titles really held my attention or sparked my imagination.

[SwiftMann]

Accell - I really like this book. I love the art on most issues. I don't know that anything new has actually happened in the last year of the book though. Seems like every issue has the same plot points with no forward momentum.

Superb - Been onboard since the beginning. Generally speaking I've enjoyed it. Like Accell, I feel like it has been spinning its wheels the last year. And, I too struggled with the sudden relationship thrown in at the end. Gay or straight, it just didn't fit the story and definitely felt placed on the character versus somewhere the character ended up naturally.

Incidentals - I read the first 5 or 6 issues. I know there was some team aspect to it, but neither the art nor story were clear and I dropped it.

Astonisher - I dug the beginning of deCampi's run. It wasn't a totally novel idea but it felt new and the characters were memorable and likable. While I appreciated what Priest tried to do with the book to wrap it up, it was a complete misfire.

Kino - Read the first arc. Hated the art. Didn't care about the story. I can't fathom how or why this book went on for so long.

Never read Noble, Summit, or Quincredible

So, I'm actually glad these titles are on hiatus/canceled for the event. It's likely going to be my last hurrah with the universe (if it's not the publisher's too).

[leonmallett]

Accell - I really like this book. I love the art on most issues. I don't know that anything new has actually happened in the last year of the book though. Seems like every issue has the same plot points with no forward momentum.

Superb - Been onboard since the beginning. Generally speaking I've enjoyed it. Like Accell, I feel like it has been spinning its wheels the last year. And, I too struggled with the sudden relationship thrown in at the end. Gay or straight, it just didn't fit the story and definitely felt placed on the character versus somewhere the character ended up naturally.

Incidentals - I read the first 5 or 6 issues. I know there was some team aspect to it, but neither the art nor story were clear and I dropped it.

Astonisher - I dug the beginning of deCampi's run. It wasn't a totally novel idea but it felt new and the characters were memorable and likable. While I appreciated what Priest tried to do with the book to wrap it up, it was a complete misfire.

Kino - Read the first arc. Hated the art. Didn't care about the story. I can't fathom how or why this book went on for so long.

Never read Noble, Summit, or Quincredible

So, I'm actually glad these titles are on hiatus/canceled for the event. It's likely going to be my last hurrah with the universe (if it's not the publisher's too).

Summit volume 1 was a very good read for me.

[BugsySig]

Accell - I really like this book. I love the art on most issues. I don't know that anything new has actually happened in the last year of the book though. Seems like every issue has the same plot points with no forward momentum.

Superb - Been onboard since the beginning. Generally speaking I've enjoyed it. Like Accell, I feel like it has been spinning its wheels the last year. And, I too struggled with the sudden relationship thrown in at the end. Gay or straight, it just didn't fit the story and definitely felt placed on the character versus somewhere the character ended up naturally.

Incidentals - I read the first 5 or 6 issues. I know there was some team aspect to it, but neither the art nor story were clear and I dropped it.

Astonisher - I dug the beginning of deCampi's run. It wasn't a totally novel idea but it felt new and the characters were memorable and likable. While I appreciated what Priest tried to do with the book to wrap it up, it was a complete misfire.

Kino - Read the first arc. Hated the art. Didn't care about the story. I can't fathom how or why this book went on for so long.

Never read Noble, Summit, or Quincredible

So, I'm actually glad these titles are on hiatus/canceled for the event. It's likely going to be my last hurrah with the universe (if it's not the publisher's too).

I actually think Noble was the best book of the group.

[SwiftMann]

Brandon Thomas wasn't a known name to me. Joe Casey very much is, which is why I gravitated towards his titles when the universe launched.

[leonmallett]

Accell - I really like this book. I love the art on most issues. I don't know that anything new has actually happened in the last year of the book though. Seems like every issue has the same plot points with no forward momentum.

Superb - Been onboard since the beginning. Generally speaking I've enjoyed it. Like Accell, I feel like it has been spinning its wheels the last year. And, I too struggled with the sudden relationship thrown in at the end. Gay or straight, it just didn't fit the story and definitely felt placed on the character versus somewhere the character ended up naturally.

Incidentals - I read the first 5 or 6 issues. I know there was some team aspect to it, but neither the art nor story were clear and I dropped it.

Astonisher - I dug the beginning of deCampi's run. It wasn't a totally novel idea but it felt new and the characters were memorable and likable. While I appreciated what Priest tried to do with the book to wrap it up, it was a complete misfire.

Kino - Read the first arc. Hated the art. Didn't care about the story. I can't fathom how or why this book went on for so long.

Never read Noble, Summit, or Quincredible

So, I'm actually glad these titles are on hiatus/canceled for the event. It's likely going to be my last hurrah with the universe (if it's not the publisher's too).

I actually think Noble was the best book of the group.

I would put it on near par with Summit vol 1, but Noble vol 2 was stronger than Summit vol 2 for me.

[Phantom]

Anyone else reading 7 days?
I am really enjoying it, the art and storyline match very well.
Interesting twist with Superb (hope when returns to normal numbering of books, the story is not forgotten ~ and we move away from the last few pages of superb 13?)


Didn't like the main villain, firstly looked like something out of Primortals, or from tekno comics (don't recall which character). Also, just moved away the story away from being better overall. I don't know what I would of done, or have any suggestions to improve it.

[SwiftMann]

I'm reading it, although #3 was the only one I've enjoyed so far. The story in the first two issues was too disconnected and the delays and length of time between issues makes me forget any details. That or the big threat is just too generic, which I think is the real culprit here. It's not bad or anything, it's just not a memorable story.