The Mighty Reviews 4/30/09

[Kdawg59]

Dawg's Reviews

Green Lantern #40
DC Comics
Written by: Geoff Johns
Drawn by: Philip Tan

The war of light grows closer. Blackest Night is almost here and it may not be pretty.
Last issues the Guardians of the Galaxy broke their bargain with the Vega System and have written in the Book of Oa, that Vega will no longer be a safe harbor for galactic criminals. The Green Lantern Corps will now police it and bring order.

Whys so haughty Guardians? Well if you had Larfleeze come calling with his Orange Light of Avarice, you’d be pretty much be racing to not let that evil spread too. Let’s face it, the Guardians have never been the most humble little smurfs in the Multiverse and so they keep writing laws to compensate for past mistakes. Enter this newest law and the mandate to basically invade the Vega System and bring Larfleeze and his greedy little Corps to justice.

There’s only one problem with this mentality. The Orange Lanterns eat Green Lanterns for breakfast… literally. They consume and assimilate the invading green power rings and their users and basically spit out an assimilated Orange version of them… Kind of nasty actually for those of you who thought it couldn’t get and more wicked than the venom/blood spewing Rad Lanterns.

Meanwhile Hal Jordan is still reeling from having both a blue and green power ring. He even gives a great analogy about the rings going together like peanut butter and jelly or peanut butter and chocolate (can’t remember which as I type this but you get the idea). Yet despite blue and green rings working so well in harmony, Hal is having problems as the blue rings is asking him what gives him hope. Hal doesn’t have a clue yet and the ring knows it.

It’s an all out battle issue and Philip Tan wonderfully renders it in detail. His Orange Lanterns are just plain nasty and he deserves great praise for making the embodiment of greed so believable. I find myself wanting to soak in the Orange Lanterns and Larfleeze as they are the coolest additions into the mythos thus far.

There’s not much else to say that hasn’t been said already about this book. Everywhere you look on the web, people are talking about Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps and the road to Blackest Night. It’s not a fluke people… it’s getting this much press, because it is that damn good.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine #1
Marvel Comics
Written by: Chris Yost
Drawn by: Mark Texeira

Talk about an impossible book to review this week. How do you write and draw a single comic book issue devoted to Wolverine’s origin, when there have been entire series devoted to telling it. It must have been an impossible task for Chris Yost to distill all of that continuity and history and put it into a story for new readers as well as curious veterans.

Well I can tell you, that despite a top-notch creative team of Yost and Tex, this issue did not cut it for me. Perhaps that is 100% my fault for picking this up being a Wolverine fan for as long as I have, or perhaps it is because of the reasons I mentioned above and it is just too much to pack in one issue.

I think Yost should be given a medal of honor for even trying to write this story and I give him great credit as most of the pieces are there, even if they don’t dive too deep. Tex has always been a badass artist and his Wolvie is no exception… even here… but the problem is that there is just too much to fit in and so scenes get abbreviated, or left out altogether.

I started to think about this issue and how someone new to Wolverine might read it though and my mindset became far more favorable. Maybe this book isn’t intended for me… perhaps it is more of a Wolverine: 101 for new students. Then I asked myself if the book would be enough to make me have interest in this character? I would say it probably would.

I mean you see bits of everything. You see snippets from every major revelation in Wolverine’s history up until he joined the X-Men. You see his first claw pop that was detailed in the “Origin” story by Jenkins and Quesada. You get to see his horror of the time he was first bonded to his adamantium skeleton at Weapon X. You see behind the scenes of his first field mission against a certain mean green. You see a little bit of his relationship with James Hudson and Heather, which arguable have been his greatest friends in his storied history. Lastly you see him leaving department H and joining the X-Men. So in that respect the trip down memory lane was great and for newb readers, it would tell you most of what you needed to know.

My biggest problem was that I wanted more. Yep, I said it… despite Wolverine being in 39 books every week… I wanted more from this. Take this review with a grain of salt I guess… especially you old salty dogs that already have most of Wolverine’s story and history collected in trades.

Uncanny X-Men #509
Marvel Comics
Written by: Matt Fraction
Drawn by: Greg Land

Holy Hell did I enjoy this issue. I have been back and forth on this comic since Messiah Complex ended, both loving and not loving it at times. It’s been inching closer to what I feel its stride should be lately and last issue was great. Last issue was nothing compared to this issue in terms of story and intrigue. This alone is the reason that this book is my pick of the week over the obvious Green Lantern choice.

The X-Men have all finally settled in to their new existence of being tolerated in San Francisco… at least for the most part. Their headquarters have become a haven for all mutants to once again learn about peace and tolerance and to at least hope for Xavier’s dream, even if they employ Cyclops’ more hard-edged version of it in life.

The mutants have integrated themselves into the fabric of the local culture and you get to see such things as Dazzler and Pixie performing at local clubs, or new addition to the team Northstar racing Surge in the streets. You even can see Colossus taking in a Raiders football game while sitting and participating in the infamous “black hole” section of fans. (I’ll give Land a free pass here for aping a Triple H pose while giving Colossus, Russell Crowe’s ‘Gladiator’ mask.)

Things seem pretty good, which for the X-Men, can only mean things are about to get bad. Sure enough a fella by the name of Trask has been lobbying to pass legislation of “Proposition X”. This proposition would be law, prevent mutants from breeding and future generations to cause “devastation” similar to what happened in Cooperstown Alaska when the “messiah” baby was born.

It gets worse boys and girls. The red Queen has resurrected the corpse of Kwannon and transferred Psylocke’s consciousness back into her original body. This serves as a trial run for her real scheme which can only mean the resurrection of a redhead close to the X-Men’s hearts… Which one is up in the air… probably the clone and not the fiery bird.

The Red Queen makes her move accompanied by her Sisterhood of Evil Mutants (including Spiral, Lady Deathstrike, and a few other nasty beyotches) and the battle ensues.

Of course the X-Men are caught unaware… what else is new? But still it’s awesome.

Fraction is really hitting a comfort zone finally I think and it’s not an easy feat with these characters as there is a lot of them, as well as a lot of history and characterizations to get to know when it comes to writing the X-Men. He’s knocking it out of the park now I think and maybe it’s time for those of you whom have shied away from the X-Men to see what you think again.

Wktf’s Reviews

Captain America Theater of War: A Brother In Arms One-Shot
Marvel Comics
Written by: Paul Jenkins
Drawn by: John McCrea
Cover by: Mitch Breitweiser

On the night of March 25th, 1945, twenty-three men of the Second Battalion of the United States Army Rangers undertook one of the most daring raids of World War II, led by the legendary Captain America. Unfortunately, this mission doesn’t go the way anyone planned, and the team of US soldiers find they’ve lost their initial advantage and begin losing what will leave only fourteen of the initial twenty-three. And while the story of this hopeless battle is powerful enough in and of itself, a sub-plot unfolds that slowly begins to emerge not only as the primary point to this tale but also the subject of its title.

A severely wounded German soldier is taken as a prisoner of war, a prisoner for whom Cap assumes primary responsibility. To his fellow soldiers, a German soldier is no better than a Nazi, but Cap already understands and is quick to point out to his men who feel the hero is jeopardizing their mission that a soldier in defense of his homeland is no different than any other soldier with the same objective, even if the wounded soldier in question happens to be the enemy. Cap feels bound by the rules of war and even sites Article 2 of the 1929 Geneva Convention when negotiating with the Nazis to remind them that they are required by military protocol not only to return his salute but to allow Cap’s return of the wounded German soldier. But, again, to no one’s surprise, Nazi’s are not German soldiers. In fact, Cap’s wounded enemy soldier seems to hate the Nazi’s as much or more than the American Soldiers. And suddenly, without warning, Cap’s team finds that they have a most unlikely brother in arms.

I have to say that these one-shot Captain America stories Marvel’s been running have been hit or miss. Paul Jenkins in this case hits the ball way out of the park. By pulling what seems to be an actual historical event into the fantasy world of Marvel’s greatest hero and using this World War II battle as the backdrop for a tale about the human spirit, Jenkins delivers a powerful and even sad tale about the awakening of something inside Cap’s men that even they didn’t realize was there. John McCrea’s art seems well suited for this story with plenty of detail and action when needed, as well as quiet and shadows at the right time. There’s one particularly strong moment McCrea delivers between Cap and the German captive where the “A” from Cap’s mask is reflected in the German’s eyes. This seemed somehow symbolic of an understanding these two enemies reached. In the end, this story really delivered the goods for action lovers along with a surprisingly poignant moral that, sadly, came too late for some by the story’s close. My pick of the week.

Dark Avengers #4
Marvel Comics
Written by: Brian Michael Bendis
Drawn by: Mike Deodato
Cover by: Mike Deodato

Thus endeth the first arc of the Dark Avengers’ new book, and this arc has pretty much run the gamut from really fun to really dull. Unfortunately, despite the action that carries the first half of the story, this particular issue is pretty dull. Due to Osborn’s Cabal arrangement, where he promised protection for their cooperation, Osborn’s hand is forced to come to Doom’s aid after the good Doctor is attacked by his spurned lover Morgana Le Fay. While the Dark Avengers, having apparently lost Sentry to Le Fay’s death blow, duke is out with Le Fay’s Demons in Latveria, Osborn as the Iron Patriot and Doom travel back to King Arthur’s time to take Morgana head on in her own time.

There are actually some pretty good moments in this issue. Osborn and Doom teaming up make for quite a pair, even as Morgana voices the distrust that Osborn has got to be feeling toward Doom. Moonstone or, rather, the new Ms. Marvel, battling it out with Morgana in our time is fast, furious and surprisingly brutal. I love what’s going on between Bullseye and Venom. Talk about an opportunity to build dissention in Osborn’s ranks. And, during a post battle quiet scene there’s a little dialogue between Moonstone and Marvel Boy that leaves the young hero admiring Moonstone in a way that cracks a smile on Ares’ face. But, all in all, this issue moves along at a disappointingly meandering pace, and doesn’t really hold together as a single issue as much as a transition point between what may be from the frying pan into the fire.

Whereas the Cap issue I reviewed above really is Jenkin’s issue, Bendis doesn’t seem to give this issue his all. Fortunately Deodato, whose interiors usually do nothing for me, really steps up his game. I’m surprised to find I’m liking his art more and more with every issue of this book. So, while I’ll continue to by Dark Avengers at least for a while as it seems to be the core of Dark Reign, I really hope Bendis finds a sustainable direction for this title which, at the moment, it doesn’t seem to have.

Dark Reign: The Cabal One-Shot
Marvel Comics
Written by: Jonathan Hickman, Matt Fraction, Rick Remender, Kieron Gillen, Peter Milligan
Drawn by: Adi Grano, Dave Sharpe, Max Diumara, Damine Di Giandomenico, Ronci Zonjic

Billed on Marvel’s web site as five all-new stories about Norman Osborn’s secret Cabal, in which we’ll learn how each member of this syndicate intends to capitalize on the situation—and perhaps how they intend to deal with each other, this book totally under delivers on this front, with the possible exceptions of the first story by Hickman and Grano which focuses on Doom’s active imagination and thoughts about the future and the Fraction/Sharpe piece on Emma Frost.

Of all of these five tales the best, not surprisingly, is the Emma Frost story written by Matt Fraction which gets inside Emma’s mind and memories to uncover her motivations for joining the Cabal. I was a bit surprised at first to see her there, considering I’d been wholly convinced of her love for Cyclops and role as an X-Man. This short story paints Emma as both a survivor as well as a woman dedicated to helping those less fortunate than herself, and preserving her ability to do so. She’s seen and been victimized by enough persecution to know, for survival’s sake she’d rather be on the side of the strong.

The other stories are barely worth the cover price of this book. Most, like The Hood’s and Namor’s, simply are stand alone short stories about the characters that reveal very little about them, and the final story is a prelude to Doom and Loki’s arrangement in the pages of Thor which, if you don’t read Thor, is meaningless and, if you do read Thor, still doesn’t add anything to the storyline in Thor’s own book. In summary, the stories are inconsistent in quality and most of them are basically meaningless. Unfortunately, this is one of those books I wish I could put back on the self and get my money back.

[Kdawg59]

Sam Wilson's Reviews

Thunderbolts #131
Marvel Comics
Written by: Andy Diggle
Drawn by: Bong Dazo
Cover by: Francesco Mattina

The Thunderbolts, once upon a time Marvel’s worst kept secret, are the Marvel U’s premiere team of anti-heroes. Literally, considering they were all villains at one point. Throughout the years they’ve changed their roster with Moonstone and Songbird always managing to hang on (except for the John Arcudi run when Thunderbolts became an underground fight club, yeah, I know…), and most recently Norman Osborne took over as chairperson. In case you have been under a rock, Norman Osborne used this as a stepping-stone to pretty much take over the Marvel Universe (Dark Reign for those who have been preoccupied elsewhere). So the Thunderbolts have changed it up once again, still villains, still ruthless and bad-assed, probably even more so now with Andy Diggle helming things. For those of you who don’t know his work, Andy Diggle is right up there with the biggest bad-asses in comic books (Jason Aaron, Garth Ennis and Warren Ellis would be on that list). He got his start on 2000 AD, giving that book balls once again, and I personally was introduced to him on DC/Vertigo’s retake on “The Losers” (one of the most underrated comics of the last 10 years). He transformed Ollie Queen from bi**-ass to bad-ass in “Green Arrow: Year One”. So how is he doing with Marvel’s #1 team of bad guys?

Andy Diggle started his run on the T-bolts a few issues back by shaking up the membership once again (in case you missed it, the old T-bolts are now the Dark Avengers, but whatever). The new team is led by Yelena Belova (the blonde Black Widow, apparently getting burnt to a crisp in the Savage Land in the “New Avengers” didn’t keep her down), creepy Ant-man, Ghost, Headsman and Paladin (except for Paladin I don’t know who any of those guys are nor do I care). Osborne set it up so the new team made themselves look good by saving Air Force One, and now they have the full support of the president. Their first mission? Take out Deadpool, who has been a liability to Osborne since he cheated him after using him to defeat the Skrulls (see recent issues of Deadpool to clear that up). The T-bolts vs. Deadpool is a full fledged crossover entitled “Magnum Opus” and goddamn do they go at it. Last issue ended kind of unexpected with Wade Wilson asking Yelena out on a date, and then continued in Deadpool with Yelena kneeing him in the crotch (damn). Jumping back over to the T-bolts, Deadpool finds himself being held prisoner by the T-bolts. Or does he? They go at it again and lots of things are wrecked in over the top, comical ways. When it’s all said and done? Deadpool and Yelena, sitting in a tree (just maybe)…

Andy Diggle, as I’ve stated before, is one of the most underrated guys in comics. Solid story, good dialogue, and enough bad-ass to last you until next month. Him on the Thunderbolts; putting Yelena Belova in charge? Genius. Word…

Ultimate Wolverine Vs. Hulk #5
Marvel Comics
Written by: Damon Lindelof
Drawn by: Leinil Francis Yu

Ummm, so this book last came out in 2006 and the Ultimate U has changed a lot. Ultimatum is wrecking sh** and, well, that’s pretty much it. Oh yeah, Nick Fury isn’t even on the planet, or the Ultimate U anymore and he’s the one that got this book rolling initially, sending Wolverine in to do the job he couldn’t (kill the Hulk). Whatever though, this book is finally being completed and it was pretty kick a** when it first came out, so we’ll do a quick update of the first two issues and move on. Anyway, as I was saying Nick Fury calls Wolverine in for one purpose and one purpose only: find the Hulk, kill him, and keep it freakin’ quiet. Helping him out is Dr. Jennifer Walters, one of the lead scientists on the original super-soldier project that created the Hulk. Betty Banner is present as well, using her PR skills to cover up the Hulk’s resurgence as he makes his way across Europe and into Asia. Anyway, the Hulk has been sighted in Asia, and off Wolvie goes to whack him and hopefully have a good time doing it. Yeah, and he gets to spend time with the foxy Dr. Jennifer Walters (who’s not the She-Hulk in the ultimate universe, at least not yet, as for what they do with her that remains to be seen).

If you read this book when it first came out, you know Wolvie vs. Hulk is some crazy sh**. I mean that in the most complimentary way. Thus far we have seen a lot; a shadowy mission, foxy women and balls out action, and damned if I ain’t pleased with the way Ultimate Jennifer Walters is turning out. Anyway, last we saw Wolvie and Hulk (and Jennifer), Wolvie had finally caught up with Jadejaws and was going to get himself some payback for getting his a** kicked (and ripped in half) earlier, and instead of a fight he gets a cup of cocoa? Then in a series of flashbacks (sort of), we learned exactly how Wolverine came to get himself ripped in half, and we get to see the Hulk’s harem of foxy monk chicks (seriously) and Ultimate She-Hulk. Last issue we get the origin of Ultimate She-Hulk, and well, its not Jennifer Walters, Ultimate She-Hulk is indeed Betsy Ross (gasp). This of course brings us to the current issue. Wolverine finds out his spirit animal is a Panda, Betty and Bruce get it on (maybe), Ultimate Forge shows up and Nick Fury is plotting (I know, a stretch)…

Leinil Yu is hands down my favorite comic artist putting out stuff right now, and seeing him draw the Hulk (and She-Hulk), well, that’s pretty much kick a** to an extreme level. Being a big fan of “Lost”, I’m cool with Lindelof. Seriously, I’m not even that mad took so long for the series to start back up. Yeah, they took She Hulk in a completely different direction than in the regular Marvel U, but the art and story are fantastic so I’ll get over it. I’m down with this book, down with the eventually trade, and seriously down with Ultimate She-Hulk. Word…

The Mighty Trade Reviews

Wktf’s Trade Review

Marvel Fanfare: Strange Tales
Marvel Comics
Written by: Chris Claremont, Roger McKenzie, Charlie Boatner, David Anthony Kraft, David Winn, David Michelinie, Mike W. Barr, Roger Stern, Steve Grant, Bill Mantlo
Drawn By: Michael Golden, Paul Smith, Trevor Von Eeden, Dave Cockrum, Marshall Rogers, Luke McDonnell, Sandy Plunkett, Charles Vess, Joe Barney, George Freeman

Back in 1982, when yours truly was graduating from college, Marvel launched a new concept called Marvel Fanfare. It ran for 60 issues over 10 years, and this trade collects the first seven issues. The name “Fanfare” actually was carefully chosen as this was supposed to be a very special, and specially priced, product or “fare” for Marvel’s hard-core comics fans. They’d use their top tier talent to produce big, bold stories and print them on cover stock pages so the color would truly pop. And, designed for the Direct Sales channel, Mighty Marvel jacked the price of this puppy to an unheard of $1.25 back then. The brainchild of artist (see Spectacular Spider-Man or The Avengers) turned Editor Al Milgrom, each issue was a collection or anthology of different stories and also contained Milgrom’s own humorous and self-deprecating Editori-Al pages. The title launched with a big splash and lots of attention. Just last year Marvel repackaged all those stories (and each Editori-Al, too) into a trade paperback sporting Michael Golden’s famous cover of Spider-Man’s being carried off by a massive Pterodactyl over the Antarctic, with the X-Men’s Angel in hot pursuit. So, nearly 30 years later (damn, has it been that long since I’ve been out of college?), how does this collection stack up?

Pretty well, I’d say, but also pretty inconsistent. Some stories are really terrific, some okay, and some just downright awful. The marquis draw is a story that runs through the first four issues scripted by Chris Claremont, riding pretty high on his X-Men fame at that time. The first two parts are drawn beautifully by Michael Golden, the third part by the late/great Dave Cockrum, and the final part very ably by Paul Smith (and inked nicely by the ever dependable Terry Austin). The premise is that Karl Lycos, also known as Sauron, has been spotted with Ka-Zar in The Savage Land and Tanya Anderssen, his former lady love, recruits The Angel to find him and bring him home to her. Peter Parker is granted the exclusive photojournalistic assignment and, yep, before you know it Spider-Man and The Angel are in serious trouble. Ka-Zar gets involved to save them, but so does Lykos and, yep, before you know it, while Spidey and The Angel are saved, Sauron is unleashed. So…enter the X-Men who team up with Ka-Zar to battle and try to save their foe. There are plenty of twists and turns in this story, the art’s consistently good, and our heroes find themselves in some genuinely terrifying trouble. Claremont’s problem is that, as usual, he can’t get out of the way of his own writing. Face it, when you have Wolverine waxing poetic about the laws of nature you’re writing just for the sake of reading more of your own words. The man’s never been able to get passed his ego in his writing, even in his heydays.

Speaking of which, there are some genuinely funny moments in this book as Editor Al actually has some good fun at Claremont’s expense in his Editori-Als. At this point in time, Frank Miller’s Daredevil was outselling Uncanny X-Men (yes, X-fans, it’s true) and Al has Claremont jumping up and down for attention. The dialogue between and among Milgrom, Jim Shooter and Claremont in these illustrated one-pagers actually made me chuckle out loud. Other high points include some other really terrific feature stories, such as a Doctor Strange tale told by Claremont and illustrated by Marshall Rogers, a Spider-Man/Scarlet Witch team up by Mike W. Barr and Sandy Plunkett, a much welcomed Deathlock tale by David Kraft and Michal Golden, and a Hulk vs. Blob slug fest by Steve Grant and Joe Barney. There are also some reasonable but not exceptional Captain America, Iron Man, Dr. Strange (again) and Daredevil stories. I guess they can’t all be great but considering the premier talent promised, in the premier format delivered and for the premium price Marvel charged, you’d think these “okay” stories should be elevated a bit. That said, there’s no excuse for the simply terrible Fantastic Four, Hawkeye and second Daredevil stories. This last one was written by Bill Mantlo so I certainly expected more, but this poorly scripted tale of DD’s inability to save a blind boy’s Seeing Eye dog from being euthanized has little to no redeeming value.

Well, there you have it. This Marvel Fanfare trade has a truly diverse mix of stories, and some really good-to-great one, but I’m not sure there are enough of them between these covers to make the retail price of $24.99 worth it.

[wktf]

Sorry for the delay with my reviews. My laptop melted down on me last night, but it's up now and reviews are posted!

The Cap One-Shot was a nice surprise, by the way.

[thecallahan]

GL was my pick of the week (only got that, Nova and JSA) for more than just the small amount of comics I got. While I loved the main story of that, I really, REALLY loved the Tales of the Orange Lanterns mini-story in the back. I'm happy Uncanny's turning around for the better, I dropped it because I was really turned off by the inconsistent issues (storywise).

P.S. How the Orange Lanterns are made/chosen is awesome.

[Babytoxie]

Originally Posted by Wktf

Marvel Fanfare: Strange Tales
Marvel Comics
Written by: Chris Claremont, Roger McKenzie, Charlie Boatner, David Anthony Kraft, David Winn, David Michelinie, Mike W. Barr, Roger Stern, Steve Grant, Bill Mantlo
Drawn By: Michael Golden, Paul Smith, Trevor Von Eeden, Dave Cockrum, Marshall Rogers, Luke McDonnell, Sandy Plunkett, Charles Vess, Joe Barney, George Freeman

Great selection for a trade review. This series was one of the best things Marvel had going in the '80s. I remember all the stories fondly (even the lesser ones), and that Hulk/Blob showdown was one of my favorites.

[bat_collector]

some of these trades seem like a good idea, but some of the prices turn me away.

30 bucks for the first 10 issues of spiderman 2099!!! Surely I can find them cheaper at some show!

[Babytoxie]

Originally Posted by bat_collector

some of these trades seem like a good idea, but some of the prices turn me away.

30 bucks for the first 10 issues of spiderman 2099!!! Surely I can find them cheaper at some show!

That was a case of sticker shock for me. I'll never understand why Marvel feels that lines like 2099 and New Universe are worthy of the full-color "Classic" trade treatment. Marvel Fanfare is a whole 'nother issue...

[wktf]

Originally Posted by Babytoxie

Great selection for a trade review. This series was one of the best things Marvel had going in the '80s. I remember all the stories fondly (even the lesser ones), and that Hulk/Blob showdown was one of my favorites.

Thanks! Yeah, I was really looking forward to reviewing this one. I have very fond memories of picking up these issues as they came out and feeling like it was a special, event-type experience every time.

[protector2814]

Great reviews. Thanks to all.
Wow, wktf that Captain America, Theater of War was my favorite of all the Cap. one-shots to have come out since Steve's death. There's a lotta great WWII books coming out right now; Tucci's Sgt. Rock mini which is finishing up, Ennis' excellent Battlefields which is starting a new story this week, the Darkhorse Blazing Combat archive (which I'm still waiting for), and this one-shot can hold it's own right with them.
This book really has a health dose of WW2 action. It's the best straight-up Cap. War book I've ever read. Loved it.

Still have that original run of Fanfare. Gonna have to pull them now.

[wktf]

I was really pleased with this Cap One-Shot, Protector. Unfortunately, if Marvel collects all these Cap One-Shots they've lately been putting out I likely won't buy the trade given how inconsistent they've been. But this one's a keeper.