Thank you for your sensitive translation, Manya Koetse. A powerful and truthful look at the real lives of people in China—gripping, human and heart-felt. I speaks to the human spirit in all of us. I think anyone from any country or culture can relate to her story. Thanks Fan Yusu for writing this and Manya for translating it for us. Your email address will not be published. First published November 16 China Standard Time. They might have aired 30 years ago, but some TV dramas just never get old. We have listed the greatest classic Chinese TV dramas of all time, that, either because of their high-production value or historic ratings, are still talked about today.
The drama, live broadcasted by Beijing Television, sent out a message of frugality, as one young girl warns her sister not to waste food by remembering her of their difficult past and brave mother, who died of hunger while even refusing to eat the last bit of food, a vegetable pancake. Much has changed within those sixty years. After a time when the production of TV dramas practically came to a standstill during the Cultural Revolution, the late s and early s saw a boom in the popularity of television dramas, along with a spike in households that owned their own TV.
Since the s, mainland China has gone from a country where most television dramas were imported from outside the country, to one that has the most thriving domestic TV drama industry in the world. Some TV dramas in this list have become classics through time, some are fairly new but have already become classics within their genre. Most of these series will have links redirecting to available versions on Youtube or elsewhere — unless written otherwise, they do not have English subtitles.
This article is focused on those classics that have been important for the TV drama industry and audiences of mainland China. These dramas are listed in chronological order of appearance, not listed based on rankings. This TV drama became such a sensation across China in , that it also became known as the Chinese equivalent to the classic Godfather series. The series has become such a classic that it still plays an important role in popular culture of China today, with newer films and TV dramas also being based on the original series the mainland China TV series Shanghai Bund , for example, is a remake of the original.
War Drama Watch the first episode here on Youtube. Despite the fact that the TV drama itself was somewhat poorly produced, it still gets high ratings on sites such as QQ Video or Douban today. Fun fact by Ruoyun Bai see references: The uniforms that were used, were not up to par: This popular TV series is centered around Ji Gong, the folk hero and Chan Buddhist monk who lived in the Southern Song and, according to legend, had supernatural powers and spent his whole life helping the poor.
Before Heaven Above later in this list , it is thus one of the very first dramas to focus on corruption as a theme, and it also caused a buzz at the time for doing so — most people over 50 in China today will probably remember this TV series today. This is an all-time favorite TV series in China that is still rated with a 9. Even today, this CCTV TV series from is still rated as one of the best Chinese television series of all time on Sogou, where viewers rate it with a 9. The female director Guo Xinling was a Party member who worked on many televised works during her career. Just as many others of the series in this list based on classic novels, there are remakes of these series in recent times.
The series, set in Beijing, tells the story of working-class woman Liu Huifang and her unlikely marriage to the middle-class Wang Husheng, a university graduate who comes from a family of intellectuals. When Huifang finds an abandoned baby, she adopts it against the will of her husband. As the first TV series that focused on the hopes and dreams of ordinary Chinese people, the success of Yearnings was unprecedented, and it formed the beginning of Chinese television drama as we know it today.
This is the first cross-strait co-production, as a Taiwanese TV series filmed in mainland China. But when this drama aired in the early s, it was something quite new. It was the beginning of a drama genre that turned out to be hugely popular, with many new television series focusing on emperors and empresses in their youth or their tumultuous lives during the height of their power Barme , Perhaps, this series will always be a classic just because it was one of the first within its genre.
As many of the classics in this list, this hit TV series is also based on a folk legend, namely that of Madame White Snake e , a mythical snake-like spirit who strives to be human, which is a source for many major Chinese operas, films. In , it was still one of the most replayed TV series.
Even on IMDB, it is rated with an 8. YouTube Buy novel in English: Beijinger in New York. The TV series marks a first in several aspects. It was the first Chinese-language TV show to be shot in the United States, but it was also the first time ever for the production of a Chinese TV drama that a bank loan was used in order to make it possible Bai , 83 ; in other words, it also marks the start of a more commercialized TV drama environment.
It has since been rerun on local channels countless of times. At the time of I Love My Family , sitcoms were mostly characterized by their low production cost; three episodes were made within five working days Di , Historical drama Produced in Taiwan Some episodes on Youtube here. The series was originally scheduled for just 15 episodes, but was received so well when it aired on Chinese Television System, that it was eventually expanded to episodes.
Historical drama Directed by: THe show has been watched by some 1,2 billion people around the world Hongb , This series focues on two Chinese men and two American women, of which one seduces one of the Chinese married men. The show was a big hit in the mids. Behind the Scenes of a New China about her experiences of playing in the show and her life in China at the time.
This series is still rated with a 9. This epic TV drama was loosely based on historical events in the reigns of the Kangxi and Yongzheng Emperors, and became one of the most watched television series in mainland China of the s. This is one of the most important TV series in this list. The historical drama was not without controversy, and some parts of it have been censored in mainland China. The original series had 60 episodes, which was later brought down to The TV drama has also been a fruitful topic for scholars for its representation of history.
In the book Representing History in Chinese Media: There are almost 40, netizens ranking this TV drama on Douban , where it scores a 8. The TV drama, which is also known as Romantic Life in English, dramatizes memories of the Cultural Revolution, focusing on a group of friends, their hopes and dreams, and their romantic life. It is set in Beijing in the late period of the Cultural Revolution A Novel Watch on Youtube. The story became well-known by the movie of the same title by Zhang Yimou, which became an international success.
It was first broadcast on Hunan TV in China in On Douban , more than people have reviewed this movie at time of writing, coming up with a score of 9. The drama was also broadcasted in other countries, such as South Korea. Urban Drama Directed by: Also known as Snail House , this TV drama was all the rage back in for its focus on the crazy housing market in urban China and the lives of ordinary Chinese who are struggling to survive in the city while living in small spaces. Dwelling Narrowness , based on a novel by the same name, tells the story of two sisters with very different lifestyles who are looking to find a home in Shanghai or actually, the fictional city of Jiangzhou, that basically represents Shanghai , and improve their quality of life, each in their own way.
In the year of its broadcast, Wall Street Journal featured an article dedicated to the series and the discussions it triggered online. Rated with a 9. Moral Peanuts is a multiple season series started in , that follows a gang of five young friends who live together and earn their living in a fraudulent way.
Corruption drama Directed by: Li Lu Available with English subtitles here. In , this TV drama became a true craze on Chinese social media and received a lot of coverage in international media for being comparable to the American political drama House of Cards. Contemporary historical drama Episodes: The series is great in providing insights into how people used to live, from dress to daily life matter. The scenery and sets are beautiful. Consumption, Content and Crisis. Want to know more? By Manya Koetse Follow whatsonweibo. Chinese Television and Politics.
University of British Columbia Press. Hong Kong University Press. Gains, Losses, and Implications. State University of New York Press. Hong Kong University Press; Wang, Min and Arvind Singhal. Directly support Manya Koetse. By supporting this author you make future articles possible and help the maintenance and independence of this site. Donate directly through Paypal here. Spotted a mistake or want to add something? Please let us know in comments below or email us. The best books to understand modern China — from society and history to gender and online language.
By Eric Crosby and Ryan Guy
This list was compiled based on own preference and that of many readers whom we asked about their favorite sources within this category. If you think certain books are not here that should be here within these categories, please let us know in the comments below and we might compile a second list in the future. There are many great books out there on modern China, and a lot of them are written in Chinese, Japanese, French, Spanish, Dutch, and many other languages — but for the scope of this particular list, we have chosen just to focus on the books that have come out in the English language.
Interestingly, outside of the USA, this same book is sold under a different title: The Struggle for Survival. Forgotten Ally — Rana Mitter. It is estimated that more than 45 million lives were claimed during the Great Leap Forward — a project that was meant to make China a greater nation than the United Kingdom within a time frame of 15 years. A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press has a series of short introductions to over different subjects, from Globalization to Foucault and from Shakespeare to Nothing.
- Strange Reflections.
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A Very Short Introduction Audiobook: This is one of the works many of our readers recommend as a book that really helps to understand China. Through personal and historical narratives, Peter Hessler moves between present and history in this work, telling stories that go from the ancient oracle bones to modern-day urbanization. Schoppa has a very clear and no-nonsense approach to Chinese history, explaining the importance of crucial events over the past century and how they came to form modern China.
The Search for Modern China Audiobook: Spence Get on Book Depository: The Search for Modern China. Three Daughters of China. Practically every garage sale or thrift shop nowadays has a copy of Wild Swans lying around since its immense success in the s. The book is an account of the tumultuous Chinese 20th century from the perspective of three generations of women. It is a personal account of Jung Chang, the author, but offers a glimpse into an incredible time in the history of China in a personal and captivating way that more formal history books could never do.
An absolute recommendation for anyone who wants to know more about how the Cultural Revolution and the period before and after affected Chinese women, families, and society at large. Three Daughters of China Get on iTunes: Three Daughters of China Audiobook: The Return of Religion After Mao. While many books on the transformation of Chinese modern society focus on the mushrooming of new companies, the rapid urbanization of China, or its staggering consumerism, Ian Johnson takes on an entirely different, yet so important, topic in this work; religion and spirituality in the post-Mao era.
One person interviewed by Johnson for this book said: The Souls of China: Brand new skyscrapers and shopping malls, but silent streets and empty apartments. The city of Ordos, Inner Mongolia, is one of the most famous. Ghost Cities of China: Ghost Cities of China. Like Peter Hessler, whose work is also in this list, Evan Osnos is one of the names that recurringly comes up when asking people about their favorite books to understand China. Florian Schneider, lecturer at Leiden University, is an expert in taking popular phenomena or events in China and analyzing the greater discourse behind them.
In this work, that was awarded with the EastAsiaNet Award, Schneider focuses on Chinese TV drama series; with China being one of the largest producer and consumer of TV drama in the world, this form of entertainment plays a significant role in the popular culture of China and is a powerful tool to guide public opinion.
Schneider gives a nuanced overview of the complicated processes involved in producing TV dramas in China, examining important and highly interesting questions relating to the major players in the TV drama market and how they influence drama discourses, the political-ideological frameworks of television series, and the role of TV entertainment in regulating Chinese society. China in Ten Words Get on iTunes: China in Ten Words Audiobook: China in Ten Words Unabridged. China has a booming celebrity culture, which plays an enormous role in the social media environment and popular culture in general.
This is also the reason why this book in this list; it is the first book-length exploration of celebrities in contemporary China. Celebrity in China Get on Bookdepository: Politics and Everyday Life in a Changing Society. What is it like to be a Westerner teaching political philosophy in an officially Marxist state? Why do Chinese sex workers sing karaoke with their customers? And why do some Communist Party cadres get promoted if they care for their elderly parents?
These are some of the questions addressed in this book by Daniel Bell, drawing on personal experiences to explain how Chinese society is transforming so quickly while still sticking to old traditions — of which Confucianism is one of the most important ones. Media, Arts, and Lifestyle. Anyone interested in pop culture in China cannot understand the current environment without understanding where it came from — and this book provides a full overview of that environment from to Weibo and Collective Remembering in Contemporary China.
In this publication, Eileen Le Han looks at the development of microblogging platform Sina Weibo from the perspective of collective memory. The author notes that there is a strong desire to remember what is happening and an anxiety over forgetting on this platform. What is remembered for what reasons, and what is forgotten? But the 15 different chapters in this book each give unique insights into the world of media and religion in China, such as that on Buddhism online or digital Islam, which will be helpful and refreshing to anyone interested in modern China and how it deals with religion and the media.
Religion and Media in China. Donatello and Leatherhead 2 and 3. North By Downeast part 2! My episode is 16! Clean Freak On A Leash! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Old Chien Khan and the Dogstar Boys! February and March ! Golden Triangle On His Sleeve! May and June 93! And we do some 93 toy talk as well! The Maltese Turtle Special!
Ninjara and Dem Demon Ass Darlins! We also take a look at some toys released in from playmates! Future Shark Shock Sadness Madness! Episodes 15 and 16 December 92! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventu. Vote NO on Clyde!!! Episodes 13 and 14 December 92! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles An. Episodes 11 and 12 November 92! Episodes 9 and 10 November 92! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Ani. This Turtles On Fire!!! Episodes 7 and 8 October 92! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Anima. Smells Like Ninja Spirit. Episodes 5 and 6 October 92!
Episodes 3 and 4 October 92! Episodes 1 and 2 September 92! Also, this image was taken from shirtoid. Issues 40 and Mighty Mutanimals: Mighty Mutanimals Issue 8 and 9. Issues 38 and 39 and Mighty Mutanimals: Issue 6 November 92! Mighty Mutanimals Issue 7. Issues 37 and Mighty Mutanimals: Issue 5 October 92! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adven.
Issues 35 and 36 August and September 92! Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Adventures: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. City At War August 93! We will be headed back to the year …. The last chapter of the City At War st. Times Pipeline Sep 92 figures! In other huge news, we formally announce the launch of our Turtle Soup Patreon! Ryan also tells a story about getting straight daggered and we investigat. We also, or course, handle some awesome listener emails and requests.
The Umpire Strikes Back! Always Open For Packages…. The One Hour Hypersoup Heist! Half Bag of Tricks! Might Mutanimals 2 June 92 , Misc. Put Your Name On It! Callipygous to the Max! Fork Over The Wampum! I Win, You Ooze…. Ich Bin Nur Befehle! We also tell more tales of Magic and talk some high priced figures! Urban Decay is Urban…. Classy Predator visits the show to talk about inte. The Turtles Got a Bobsled Team…. We also discuss using Hulk Hands to resolve romantic disputes,. How do we do this, you may ask? Why, by reviewing Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles in Time Arcade , of course!
The Animated Series , Season 5, Episodes 19 through Like a Turtle Do! The Animated Series , Season 5, Episodes 15 through Life Debts and Altar Boy Regrets. The Animated Series , Season 5, Episodes 13 and The Animated Series , Season 5, Episodes 11 and Explicit Episode 95 — likeavernon. The Animated Series , Season 5, Episodes 9 and We also discuss crippling germophobia and try out our favorite Vernon tactics. The Animated Series , Season 5, Episodes 7 and 8. We also divert a bit to talk about keeping America cooking with ovens,.
On this episode of Turtle Soup, we welcome a special? We also talk about our ideal role play character. Explicit Episode 92 — Born to be Best Buds! Explicit Episode 91 — Bad Hare Day…. The Animated Series , Episodes 1 and 2. In addition, we also discuss the concept of digital letter openers, tackle your listener emails,.
Explicit Episode 90 — Breasted Gene Simmons…. Explicit Episode 86 — All Aboard the S. We also cover a bunch of TMNT news, talk a lot about super yachts, and just have a good time in general with our special guest,.
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Explicit Episode 85 — Chill Out! On this episode, we welcome Mr. Explicit Episode 83 — In the Mouth of Sadness…. We also manage to discuss the strangeness that is herding sheep, Mr. Issue is an anthology issue, with different vignettes focusing on the Raft breakout starring Warden John Walker and convict Crossbones. The Thunderbolts later battle aquatic mutants rising out of Lake Michigan.
Spider-Man , the webslinger attempts to deal with the rampant paranoia that grips Manhattan, which includes, in addition to his own hallucinations, attempted suicides, hate crimes, no cell phone service and satellite activity, an attack by Vermin , a foreclosed homeowner holding people hostage in St. Mark's Church , a woman in labor in need of a hospital and an attack by the Thing , who has been turned into Angrir.
Black Widow , Black Widow and Peregrine are sent on a mission to free hostages being held in a Marseille cathedral by Rapido. He and a group of mercenaries are trying to exploit the panic over the events in Paris to steal France's nuclear arsenal. The anthology miniseries Fear Itself: The Home Front explores how the events of the storyline affect the ordinary citizens of the Marvel Universe, much as Civil War: Front Line and Siege: Embedded had previously done with the " Civil War " and " Siege " crossover storylines, respectively. The series also follows the investigation of an abandoned Thule Society headquarters by Jimmy Woo and the Agents of Atlas , Liz Allan 's encounter with bank robbers as she tries to escape New York City with her son, Cardiac 's attempt to help a health care industry CEO whose son has meningitis, Blue Marvel 's discovery of a submarine harboring antimatter samples off the coast of Kadesh , Mister Fear 's realization that the Serpent and his Worthy have surpassed his ability to induce fear in people, American Eagle 's attempt to deal with the fear and chaos in Bleachville, the Great Lakes Avengers ' confrontation with the forgotten villain Asbestos Man and the attack upon Amadeus Cho , X , Spider-Girl , Power Man and Thunderstrike by a group of samurai Shark Men after the former group is teleported onto a station in the Pacific Ocean.
In Uncanny X-Men , the mutant team is in San Francisco in an attempt to ease anti-mutant tensions, when they learn that Kuurth is rampaging through California, and decide to confront him when he reaches the city. When her teammates try to follow her using forbidden magic, they instead end up in Hell, where they encounter Mephisto, who offers transport the team to Hel, for a price. Uncanny X-Force , that team investigates a terrorist bombing, which leads them to a Christian fundamentalist cult named the Purifiers , whose leader, a former neurosurgeon named Jonathan Standish, sees the appearance of the Worthy as a sign that the Devil is on Earth, and blames superhumans for the global chaos.
Wolverine , Wolverine infiltrates the Prometheus , a fully armed Helicarrier originally intended as Norman Osborn 's H. Namor and his comrades, Lyra , Loa , Doctor Strange and the Silver Surfer , are attacked by the Undying Ones , demons who break through Earth's dimension as a result of the global panic weakening the barriers between the dimensions and who make a deal with Nerkodd to help them take over Earth. In Herc , Hercules pursues escapees from the Raft, and must also confront a resurrected Kyknos and the amnesiac Hecate , who tries to take over Brooklyn after her memories are restored.
In Ghost Rider , a woman named Alejandra who grew up in a pyramid temple in Nicaragua among the followers of a man named Adam, becomes a new, female Ghost Rider, and confronts Skadi and her allies. Meanwhile, Mephisto tells Johnny Blaze , who is at peace now that he is free of the curse of Ghost Rider, that Adam who relieved Blaze of the curse and bestowed it upon Alejandra intends to take away all of humanity's sins, which will turn it into a cold, emotionless stagnant race devoid of creativity.
Mephisto tells Blaze that he must separate Alejandra from Adam, but Alejandra is unwilling to agree to this. The debut of Alpha Flight ' s fourth volume depicts the Canadian superhero team's rescue efforts for victims of a tsunami created by Nerkodd, and their ejection of Nerkodd from Canada. Fearsome Four , She-Hulk , Howard the Duck , Frankenstein's Monster and Nighthawk intervene when the empathic Man-Thing goes on a rampage in Mahhattan, due to the fear and chaos he senses on the part of the citizenry, [] [] and discover a plot by Psycho-Man to use Man-Thing's volatile empathy to create a weapon.
Deadpool , which offers a humorous take on the storyline, the Merc with a Mouth hopes to improve his security consultation business by arranging the dim-witted villain Walrus to find a bejeweled but otherwise ordinary hammer in order to convince him that he is one of the Worthy, in the hopes of subsequently defeating him publicly in order to bolster his reputation.
The Fearless pits Sin and Valkyrie against one another as they compete to find the hammers of the Worthy that fell to Earth at the end of the main miniseries. Critics exhibited mixed reaction to the work of the individual creators involved in the different books of the "Fear Itself" crossover, praising the art in general, but generally panned the writing as "pedestrian, bordering on silly", and reported that the title failed to sell through at shops. Gold found it endemic of "endless phony dull event stunts" that he had been criticizing for over a decade.
Erik Norris of IGN gave the prologue a "Great" rating of 8 out of 10, saying it set up the crossover storyline effectively. He also praised Brubaker's vibrant depiction of the characters and Scot Eaton 's artwork for effectively capturing character emotions. Chad Nevett, reviewing the Fear Itself: Book of the Skull for Comic Book Resources , opined that it felt like a drawn-out issue of Ed Brubaker 's Captain America , and a lead-in to the relaunch of that title, rather than an essential setup for "Fear Itself".
At Newsarama , David Pepose noted Brubaker's talent for mixing fun dialogue with action, but thought the book read "a little choppy". He described Scot Eaton's pencils as having "an exciting vibrancy", singling out his rendition of character close-ups, but felt that in light of Marvel and Matt Fraction's promotion of the miniseries, that the prologue was unnecessary. Danny Djeljosevic of Comics Bulletin saw Book of the Skull as Brubaker's embracing of the silliness of the Marvel Universe, and also questioned if readers would need the prologue to appreciate the crossover, saying that Captain America's presence in the story felt more like a marketing ploy than a natural aspect of it.
Djeljosevic found the supervillain interaction to be fun, and wished that it had been given the focus of the book.
Shelley Martin
Alex Evans of Weekly Comic Book Review gave the book a "B" , thought, despite his aversion to prologue books, for Brubaker's scripting, the accurate tone of each of the characters, comparing the combination of Nazis and paranormal elements to the work of Mike Mignola , as well as Eaton's "fantastic" art. Evans opined, however, that it did not function well as a prologue, because it did not inform him as to the nature of the upcoming storyline.
Evan Narcisse, Graeme McMillan and Douglas Wolk of Time magazine's Techland website found the book to be "tepid", and stated that it failed to provide exposition for new readers, or to inform or intrigue readers as to the upcoming storyline, which they felt was emblematic about Marvel's "insular" approach to big event storylines.
Doug Zawisza, reviewing the Fear Itself miniseries for Comic Book Resources , commended writer Matt Fraction for the first two issues, praising his establishment of the story and tying it into Marvel Universe history in the first issue, while still making it enjoyable for new readers.
Though they enticed him to buy the tie-in books, which he normally does not do with crossovers, he felt the story's shift of locales, the lack of resolution to its setups, the depiction of action in "snippets" and the relegation of important plot events to tie-in books hurt the story. Zawisza also praised Wade Von Grawbadger's inks and Martin's colors. Despite his disappointment with the latter in issue 4, [] he singled issue 5's rendition of a sequence spoken in runes and the electric blue lightning emanating from Thor's hammer as otherwise strong inking and coloring, respectively.
At Newsarama , Jennifer Margret Smith praised Fraction's slow building of an uneasy fearful tone, his ability to play to smaller, less tangible emotions and for capturing the real-world parallels of the country's mood and Steve Rogers ' Barack Obama -like characteristics in issue 1. Marston conceded that the story's major beats could be perceived for their shock value, but contrasted this with the "little moments" that he felt stood out.
Shadow Fan by Shelley Martin
Marston felt issue 7 in particular contained a rushed climax and an overall lack of exposition, resonance and depth for what should have been important elements of the story, which he felt was emblematic of the miniseries. Marston criticized the epilogue pages for being devoted to upcoming spinoff books instead of these elements. At Comics Bulletin , a roundtable review of issue 1 by five reviews resulted in an average rating of 3. The reviewers generally praised the writing and art, though Ray Tate, who expressed an aversion to large-scale "event" storylines, questioned the first issue's execution, and perceived out-of-character behavior on the part of Odin.
Norse mythology fan Thom Young stated that certain elements did not resonate or ring true to him. Like Doug Zawisza, Djeljosevic was impressed by Stuart Immonen's ability to effectively render different subjects, from sleepy seaside Canadian towns to superhero battles, and remarking, "Immonen is easily the most versatile artist in comics, who will surely go down as one of the greats with his striking layouts and dynamic, varied panel to panel storytelling.
Immonen reminds me of the old-school Marvel Comics artists, who were capable of delivering strong, consistent work every month with little need for fill-ins. Just sit back, relax, and enjoy the mayhem. Schedeen also thought Immonen's wide, cinematic panels were "top-notch", and Laura Martin's colors "characteristically lush and beyond reproach", but thought Wade von Grawbadger's inks were thicker and slightly less precise than on his previous New Avengers work.
However, Schedeen rated three of the following four issues a "Good" or "Okay" 6. Evans felt the book utilized its scene-jumping structure to properly explore the expansive, global impact of the Worthy as a legitimate threat, and that both Bucky 's death and Loki's humorous dialogue were well-handled.
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However, Evans decried the too-straightforward treatment of Sin's setup, and the lack of Fraction's usual subtext in issue 3 which he graded "B-". Stell called it a "crappy" series based on a "thin" concept that warranted neither seven issues nor the copious tie-in books. The reviewers thought the art and colors were vibrant and detailed, and Immonen the perfect choice for the series, though Stell thought it looked a bit rushed in issue 6, and not up to Immonen's usual standards in issue 7.
Sin's Past 1 a "Mediocre" rating of 5 out 10, saying that the issues chosen for reprinting were not the ideal ones from which readers could learn about the character , as the character's first appearances did not feature her disfigured, skull-like appearance, did little to flesh out her character and the modern and because the bold, modern coloring did not mesh with Al Milgrom 's soft pencils, whose detailing of Rich Buckler 's layouts issue were inconsistent in quality to begin with. Schedeen gave Fear Itself: The Worthy 1 an "Okay" rating of 6 out of 10, opining that while the origin stories, they were not particularly memorable, owing to their limited page space, that Sin's segment was a rehash of the Book of the Skull prologue, and that while the Hulk and Thing segments were outstanding in terms of the writing by Greg Pak and Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa and the artwork by Lee Weeks and Javier Pulido , the entire book was available for free on Comixology.
He called the first four issues "brilliant", repeatedly lauding their consistent excellence from month to month, and naming the series one of Marvel's best comics, saying the first issue was the best one of the year thus far. Evans described Gillen's child Loki story as "perfection", and hailed Gillen's ability to tie in seemingly digressive elements as thematically relevant, his issue structure and his facility for narration and dialogue, as well as the humor, adventure and characterization.
Arsenault cited Loki's "heroically comic" scene-stealing, and aside from not enjoying the visuals in the flashback sequence as much whose purpose he conceded he understood , he thought the book a "hoot" that new readers would enjoy. Lindsay of Comic Book Resources gave 4 out of 5 stars to issues , and , and 3.
The reviewers praised the intelligence, structure and "cerebral" narrative of Gillen's of Thor and Loki's new relationship set against Asgardian politics, calling it a "glorious tale", and an improvement over his previous Thor work. Also mentioned were Gillen's whimsical captions, "tight dialogue" and his ability to plant narrative seeds and follow through purposefully with winding plot twists.
They also noted Braithwaite's "intricate", "amazing art" and Arreola's colors, and how this lent itself to depicting Loki's various moods. Johnston praised the book for the complexity in which it elevated Loki as a more impressive character than Thor. He compared it to the "Wiz Kids" segment of the Simpsons episode " Treehouse of Horror XII ", and applauded its humor, emotion, the rendition of the different sides of Volstagg's personality, and the manner in which guest artist Rich Elson's refined, precise pencils addressed the previous problems Schedeen perceived in the series.
In addition to the book's appropriately non-colloquial dialogue among the gods, Colombo felt that because of the much-needed characterization to the Serpent, which Colombo felt the main miniseries lacked, he would be more invested in re-reading that miniseries. He felt Pasqual Ferry's art was hit-or-miss, however. Norris felt the transition from a young Odin to aged one was handled poorly, criticized the rendition of the Worthy as the contemporary characters that are possessed by them in the miniseries.
Alex Evans, reviewing New Avengers 14 and 15 for Weekly Comic Review, graded them "A-" and "B", calling the first issue the best since the series' first story arc, due to writer Brian Michael Bendis' intimate character work with Mockingbird , and artist Mike Deodato 's ability to capture the most subtle nuances of emotion in facial expressions.
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Regarding the next issue, Evans thought that while it was not as compelling as the previous one, Bendis nonetheless fleshed out Squirrel Girl into a "fully realized, sympathetic character", disproving his initial expectations upon learning that it focused on Squirrel Girl. Though he was impressed with the story's ability to stand on its own without requiring reading a different title, he did not care for its reliance on coincidence. McElhatton also enjoyed Scot Eaton's pencils, in particular his rendition of Beast and of the fight scenes, but noted that Adi Granov 's cover to the book included a number of characters not in it.
Evans also called Scot Eaton's art "incredibly polished, detailed, and high budget", as seen in both the attack on Washington, DC and the character's reactions to it. Evans said the book fulfilled all the criteria for a good tie-in book, including a message that avoided being overly sentimental or silly. Ray Tate gave 5 out of 5 bullets to Avengers Academy 15, but only three bullets to issue Conceding he was disinterested in the crossover's core miniseries, he nonetheless liked Christos Gage 's exploration of Tigra in Academy 15, but thought issue 16 to be a "mixed bag", saying that while the creative team succeeded in making the Veil story resonant, the drama of the Absorbing Man and Titania did not engage him, despite being technically good.
He also thought the art was effective, but was not enamored of what he thought was an overly-highlighted coloring style. Schedeen felt the series overall suffered from lack of focus on the entire team. Youth in Revolt 1, attributing this to confusing plotting, implausible behavior on the part of bit characters and lack of independence from the core miniseries.
Schedeen likened the depiction of the low point of the Initiative's crisis to the classic Marvel Team-Up 41 in which Spider-Man was trapped under tons of rubble. Schedeen consistently had kind words for Norton's "clean, expressive pencils". Though he advised readers that it was not essential to the crossover, he enjoyed it more than the first two issues of the core miniseries. He felt the riots, however, marred the story, as he did not think them a believable reaction to "fear". He also said that Norton's art was a "recipe for success".
Also singled out was his tying up of the Detroit Steel rivalry from the "Stark Resilient" storyline, and the development of Potts and Cabe. Evans questioned, however, the pacing in issue , and the use of runes for dwarven profanity in Stell also took notice of Bettie Breitweiser's colors and lighting, which she felt were the only ones that depicted the Worthy in a way that they did not appear to be " Tron -rejects". Hulk vs Dracula 1 an "Okay" rating of 6 out of 10, citing the dull, formulaic nature of the conflict, which was already seen in numerous other tie-in books.
While Yehl thought Ryan David Stegman 's settings were solid and featured intricately detailed backgrounds, the character work failed to inspire awe or fear. The Black Widow , Kelly Thompson of Comic Book Resources criticized the in media res structure, saying that instead of the payoff demanded by such an approach, the result is an "eye-rolling deus ex machina-like cheat that in any movie-theater would illicit [ sic ] vocal groans. Tate attributed the narrative's fluidity to Peter Nguyen's character designs, which he compared to Peter Chung 's Aeon Flux , and also applauded Veronica Gandini's colors.
Jesse Schedeen, reviewing Fear Itself: Despite thinking that the citizens depicted were a bit too archetypal, he felt issue 1 properly covered the effects of the Serpent on the populace that were ignored by Fear Itself 2 that week, including those inflicted on Spider-Man that formed a classic set of insurmountable circumstances for him that rivaled his fight with Morlun in the " The Other " storyline. Schedeen felt Mike McKone's art was clean and cinematic, but varied between his familiar style and a flat, minimalist one in issue 1.