The Winner of Round 3:
Crisis On Earth Prime!

(click the image to view the whole fight)

Round 4 Rules:

To participate in the Free-For-All send an email to fnf [at] spacebooger.com no earlier than Tuesday at 6PM,
and no later than Friday 6PM (Eastern Time)!
In the email make sure to include the url of your fight. A direct link to your post or include a link to your homepage – I will check at 8PM on Friday to find the exact url.

Every entry needs to include the following:

• a fight scene from a comic between two or more characters – this is pretty much just a Free For All.
• the entry should be one consecutive fight scene – not many panels scattered throughout the comic.
• the entry should not appear, or be posted, until after noon on Friday
• an image from a book that is at least six-months old
• title and number of the issue featured (writer and artists would also be nice)
• and a direct link to the fight and feel free to use a “VOTE” image (large 400px, medium 300px, small 150px):
  http://www.spacebooger.com/2010/09/10/friday-night-fights-free-for-all-round-4/
  (note – the link will not work until 4PM (EST) on Friday, and the official fight will post around 11PM)
• Come back after the fight is posted and before Sunday at 11PM (EST) and cast your vote for the winner of the round!

Friday Night Fights: Fair Fight Free For All
Round 4 September 10th at 11PM!!

Want a $20 Gift Card to Amazon.com?

Then participate in the Friday Night Fights Referral Contest!

All Fighters (participants of Friday Night Fights) and members of the forums can earn multiple entries to the contest. Everyone can earn an entry or entries by doing one or more of the following:

• Referring a new fighter (who didn’t participate in the last “Minimum Cloneage” rounds) who participates in 3 of these “Free For All” fights will earn you TEN Entries.
• Joining the forums and posting 12 Relevant posts will earn you ONE entry. That’s one explanation every Friday of who you voted as the winner.

For complete details along with questions or concerns please check out the dedicated thread in the “Whatever” forum titled “Friday Night Fights Referral Contest Info.”

In July I had some promotional Amazon.com credit, so I pre-ordered Metroid: Other M. The game arrived last Tuesday, along with more Amazon credit as a bonus for pre-ordering, and I have loved it. Most reviews that I have read online, and even in Nintendo Power, have been somewhat negative; full of complaints with only a dash of compliments. One of the major complaints about the newest Metroid game for the Wii is that it is too story based. I personally don’t get how any game from the Metroid series can be “too heavy on story” especially since there is a strict continuity between games along with a Manga telling Samus Aran’s origin leading up to the original game. Since I did not buy any new comics last week I will focus today’s post on the storyline of Metroid along with a mini review of the newest game.

Metroid is a series of science fiction action-adventure video games conceived by designer Makoto Kano and artist Hiroji Kiyotake and primarily produced by Nintendo.Metroid chronicles the missions of bounty hunter Samus Aran who protects the galaxy from the depredations of the Space Pirates and their attempts to harness the power of fictional organisms such as the eponymous Metroids. It is noted for having one of the first female protagonists in a video game, and for its nonlinear gameplay. Metroid combines the platforming of Super Mario Bros. and the exploration aspect of The Legend of Zelda with a decidedly darker atmosphere.

- Wikipedia

Even though I had never beat any of the Metroid games before, I own the original Metroid and Super Metroid. So, last month I decided that I should go back replay and beat those two games since Metroid: Other M takes place immediately after Super Metroid. Before I played any of the games I did a little research and came across a website titled Metroid Recon. This site is the ultimate Metroid resource housing walkthroughs, maps, story summaries, soundtracks, and even translated scans of the series’ prequel Manga.

The Prequel Manga:

Learn all about Samus’ upbringing, training under the Chozo and her early missions. A few familiar faces introduced throughout the 2D series join the story along the way, and a number of revelations make this a necessary read for any Metroid fan. The manga is officially licensed and provides an entertaining read of Samus’ early days before the events of Metroid: Zero Mission.

- Metroid Recon (click the link to read the whole manga)

Metroid:

I bought the original Metroid for the NES back in the 90’s but because of the immense size of the game and the difficulty I never beat it. When I decided to go back and play Metroid last month, I did a little research and decided to play Metroid: Zero Mission. Zero Mission is a GameBoy Advance remake of the original game that was easily able to trade for at Goozex.com. Two reasons went into my choosing to play the 2004 remake instead of the original:

• The game was portable and would allow me to play while still hanging out with my wife instead of camping out in the basement.
• And most importantly the remake included a viewable map when the game was paused.

The Original NES game and the GBA Remake

I loved the platforming action and exploring of the original but I was never one to take notes while playing a game nor did I ever draw maps, so I would easily get lost and frustrated playing the orginal NES game. Metroid: Zero Mission’s inclusion of a map was a huge help in playing and beating this game, but it wasn’t the map that keep me motivated to play. Instead of just wanting to play a perfect platforming/adventure game and my desire to beat the game, I played through the whole game in three days because I was immersed in the story.

All was not lost though. Desperate for help, the Federation enlisted the aid of Samus Aran, a mysterious and powerful bounty hunter. Samus was tasked to infiltrate the Pirate’s fortress on planet Zebes alone and destroy their Metroid breeding operations while taking out the Space Pirate leader known only as Mother Brain.

- Metroid Recon

The above is the premise for both the original Metroid and Metroid: Zero Mission the remake. Infiltrating the Space Pirate’s fortress and destroying the Metroids was not the only mission Samus was trying to complete, she was also seeking revenge against the Space Pirates who destroyed her home and parents. As you play through Zero Mission, Samus’ war against the Pirates is supplemented by flashbacks to her youth and being trained to exterminate the Metroids by the ancient Chozo race, bird-like creatures who raised her, to fulfil her destiny. This remake did a phenomenal job in creating a perfect game to play and a story that keeps the player motivated to play until the end.

Metroid II: The Return of Samus

I don’t own this game nor did I play it, but the Gamboy game’s story is pivotal to the next three games that follow:

Samus Aran’s back on the frontline. Her target: an army of Metroids on their native planet of SR388. Before claiming victory against the Space Pirates on Zebes, Samus confronted several Metroids in battle, revealing the incredible danger they posed.

Her job was far from over upon sealing Mother Brain’s fate. The Galactic Federation, overwhelmed with joy at Samus’ success, decided to take action to prevent any further misuse of the Metroid’s life-sucking power.

Returning to the planet where the entire crisis began, the Federation had hoped to wipe out the entire race of Metroids there to secure the safety of the galaxy and rid the threat of them landing in the wrong hands again.

-Metroid Recon

After successfully destroying the last living Metroid, Samus comes across a Metroid egg. The egg hatches right before her eyes and mistakes the bounty hunter as it’s mother – a bond that would play an important role in Samus’ next three adventures.

Super Metroid:

When Super Metroid first came out it was the largest game I ever attempted to play. Even though this game had a map, I was too focused on the action and platforming elements and because I didn’t care about the story I never stayed focused enough to finish the game… until last month.

Super Metroid starts off imediately after Metroid II on the GameBoy. Instead of killing the metroid hatching that had mistaken her for it’s mother, Samus delivered it to the a research station so that it could be studied and cared for. Shortly after she dropped off the baby at the research center, the Space Pirates who were breeding metroids for destructive purposes in the first game steal the baby and Samus once again returns to their planet to rescue the baby and destroy the Space Pirates.

Instead of rescuing the baby metroid, the metroid rescues Samus at the end of the game giving her the ability to put the evil Mother Brain down for good. Unfortunately, the metroid sacrificed it’s life in order to save it’s surrogate mother… something that Samus never forgot.

Metroid: Other M

The set-up/intro for Samus Aran’s newest adventure:

I have yet to beat this game so I can not give a full review or plot summary, but I can share what I think of the game so far. I don’t have to tell you how the game connects to the others story-wise, the above video did a great job of that, but I can tell you that I love it. I didn’t talk about the three first-person Metroid games because even though I own them I am not a fan and I prefer the 2D platforming style of the original NES, SNES, and two GameBoy Advance games. Metroid: Other M is set in a 3D world but plays like a 2D platformer. The best way I can describe the gameplay is that Samus moves similar to how the characters of a Final Fight/TMNT beat-em up game does. Not only does Samus move in a 3D looking world like those games, she is able to perform a couple grab type moves common to those games. The game does let/require the player to use a first-person mode to look around the levels and to fire missiles.

The story is what everyone is seeming to complain about. I don’t get the complaint about this new game heavily focused on story, I know that there are a lot of cut-scenes in this game and the voice acting is not the best, but the Metroid series has always relied heavily on story. I don’t get the complaints.

Most importantly, this new Metroid game has the same eerie atmosphere that all the games before it had. Samus may not start the game out alone, but as the game progresses this changes (I don’t want to give away spoilers) and Samus is stranded in a world where every living thing is trying to kill her before she kills it.

The only real complaint that I had was that the cover art for the US version Metroid: Other M wasn’t as cool as the Japanese one. I decided to remedy that by mashing the two covers together:

Click to view the full image to print out

Whenever I play a Metroid game I become possessed, well recently I have become possessed, and I get pulled into the game and find myself not wanting to put it down until I have played it from start to finish. Metroid: Other M is no different, if you ignore the fact that it is not the same 2D romp you are used to you will love this game as much as any other game of the series.

The rules are simple:

• THERE IS NO THEME!
• This is a Free-For-All and open to any random acts of wanton violence from one consecutive fight scene from any comic.

This Week’s “Free-For-All” Fighters Are:

Ulik (SpaceBooger)

Donna Troy (Crisis On Earth Prime)

Tabitha Smith and Aaron Stack (Hero Sandwich)

Tarzan (Last Burly Men on Earth)

Nightcrawler (Marvel Flipside)

Fruitman (Slay, Monstrobot of the Deep)

Buster Witwicky (ShadowWing Tronix)

Blue Beetle (Stars And Garters)

Make sure you vote for the winner!

view results

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite fight by Monday @ 11PM.

All votes will be considered, but in the end I will have the final say. The winner will be announced next Tuesday!
Visitors and guests – please cast your vote too!

Remember the Referral Contest for $20 Amazon.com Gift Card will be going on for all 12 rounds.

For complete details along with questions or concerns please check out the dedicated thread in the “Whatever” forum titled “Friday Night Fights Referral Contest Info.”

The Mighty Thor #210
Gerry Conway – Writer
Sal Buscema & Don Perlin – Art

I would have never of guessed that Galactus choose to wear that super-sized helmet, I always thought it was a part of his planet devouring body.

After seeing this image I was curious about Galactus’ origin and how little I knew about him, so I did a quick search at the MarvelDirectory.com and found the following:

Galactus’ Origin: “Galactus is the sole survivor of the universe that existed prior to the creation of the current universe. Originally Galactus was a humanoid named Galan, who was born on the planet Taa, a paradise-like world whose civilization is said to have been the most advanced of any of the known universe of that time.”
Galactus’ Costume: “The nascent Galactus learned how to use his vast power, and created a suit of armor to help him regulate it. He then transformed the starship into a kind of incubation chamber, where Galactus spent centuries evolving into his current form.”

-MarvelDirectory.com

I guess if you are powerful enough to devour planets and wander through space you wouldn’t have to worry about a helmet that size throwing you off balance since there is no gravity. So why why wouldn’t one design and wear an extra-large helmet with ears/wings as wide as your shoulders?

The Silver Surfer #50
Ron Marz – Story
Ron Lim & Tom Christopher – Art

I don’t really think my wife has a funny looking face and I know she wasn’t offended because all afternoon and evening we were ripping each other and having a good time. After that comment though, she did give me a dirty look and that’s when I decided to use that statement/joke for this week’s comic strip. Not wanting to forget the punchline, I immediately grabbed one of my two year-old’s bath crayons the wrote a rough draft of the script on the shower wall. Here is visual proof:

So basically I took that simple strip from my shower wall and created this week’s comic strip, and in the end all of the credit goes to my wife for the humor within it.

Check out the comic strip here: http://www.spacebooger.com/?comicID=167

The Winner of Round 2:
SpaceBooger!

(click the image to view the whole fight)

Round 3 Rules:

To participate in the Free-For-All send an email to fnf [at] spacebooger.com no earlier than Tuesday at 6PM,
and no later than Friday 6PM (Eastern Time)!
In the email make sure to include the url of your fight. A direct link to your post or include a link to your homepage – I will check at 8PM on Friday to find the exact url.

Every entry needs to include the following:

• a fight scene from a comic between two or more characters – this is pretty much just a Free For All.
• the entry should be one consecutive fight scene – not many panels scattered throughout the comic.
• the entry should not appear, or be posted, until after noon on Friday
• an image from a book that is at least six-months old
• title and number of the issue featured (writer and artists would also be nice)
• and a direct link to the fight and feel free to use a “VOTE” image (large 400px, medium 300px, small 150px):
  http://www.spacebooger.com/2010/09/03/friday-night-fights-free-for-all-round-3/
  (note – the link will not work until 4PM (EST) on Friday, and the official fight will post around 11PM)
• Come back after the fight is posted and before Sunday at 11PM (EST) and cast your vote for the winner of the round!

Friday Night Fights: Fair Fight Free For All
Round 3 September 3 at 11PM!!

Want a $20 Gift Card to Amazon.com?

Then participate in the Friday Night Fights Referral Contest!

All Fighters (participants of Friday Night Fights) and members of the forums can earn multiple entries to the contest. Everyone can earn an entry or entries by doing one or more of the following:

• Referring a new fighter (who didn’t participate in the last “Minimum Cloneage” rounds) who participates in 3 of these “Free For All” fights will earn you TEN Entries.
• Joining the forums and posting 12 Relevant posts will earn you ONE entry. That’s one explanation every Friday of who you voted as the winner.

For complete details along with questions or concerns please check out the dedicated thread in the “Whatever” forum titled “Friday Night Fights Referral Contest Info.”

Last Week In Comics:
A fresh take on 5 day-old comics.

Batman #702

One of the things I disliked about Batman R.I.P. was that the “death” of Batman occurred in a company wide cross over and not in his own book with the “R.I.P.” title. Batman #702 is the concussion of a two part story that fixes the problem that bothered me (and others who read the story but not Final Crisis) about R.I.P. by piecing together what happened between Batman possibly “dying” in issue #681 and his real “death” in Final Crisis. LWIC:

• After being pulled away from his hunt for Dr. Hurt by the JLA, Batman plays the part of the “World’s Greatest Detective” and works on a way to take down Darkseid and the other evil New Gods.
• Bruce invents (or finds?) a “magic bullet” that is the essence of all bullet to kill an evil “god” who would be the essence of all things evil.
• Batman relates this bullet to every bullet that ever caused damage and comes up with a plan to shoot this “god killing projectile” through time to dispose of Darkseid and stop his “ideas” of evil from ever spreading to humans.
• The rest of the issue re-shows in more detail the events from Final Crisis where Bruce confronts Granny Goodness and gets captured, the events where Darkseid tries to clone him to create an army, his escape, and lastly the defeating of Darkseid along with his displacement through time.

When Grant Morrison took over the writing duties of Batman, he started to add deeper meaning to the character as the ultimate hero in the battle between good and evil. With Dr. Hurt possibly being the devil, Morrison states that the the New God Darkseid one-ups even the devil. If I interpreted this issue correctly, all of the New Gods are “incurably powerful living ideas” meaning that Darkseid is the source of all evil in the universe – including the devil. No matter how intricate of a tale Morrison tells each month and now matter how many twists and turns this book may take it is the ultimate “humanity over evil” with a well trained and determined human takes defeats an evil god.

And as always, check Rikdad’s Comic Thoughts for a more in-depth look at Batman #702.

Detective Comics #868

Many years ago when Dick Grayons was still the Boy Wonder, a young man was subjected to the Joker’s deadly “Joker Venom.” Instead of laughing himself to death like all of the other victims, the boy was hopped up on other drugs that did not mix well with the Joker’s drug. This young man was saved by his drug addiction, but it left him permanently scared like the Joker. LWIC this “imposter” Joker started selling his own temporary and highly addictive version of the Joker’s venom urging the users to cause mayhem:

• The Joker “Impostor” urges his “Jokerz,” or drug addicts, to rob banks and give to the poor.
• A Batman “Impostor” urges people to follow in Batman’s footsteps and uphold the law as “Guardian Bats.”
• While the Jokerz are giving money to the poor, regular street thugs begin to mug and beat them down for their newly acquired money.
• The Guardian Bats are using weapons and excessive force on the the Jokerz, including after the Joker Venom wears off and the users revert to their sane selves.
• The Police are arresting both the Jokerz and Guardian Bats and unfortunately not keeping the peace between the regular folks.
• The Impostor Joker has successfully created mayhem and chaos throughout the whole city, while the violence craving leader of the Guardian Bat hunts down Jokerz leaving Batman and Jim Gordon with a huge mess to clean up.

This story is great. It’s got a “this could really happen” feel along with an “only in comic books” story making this an entertaining read. With the all of the other Batman books keeping us on our toes with complex and deep stories each month this book supplies us with the fun action packed world of Batman sometimes missing from the other books. I can’t wait for the next issue because these last two issues have been so much fun to read.

The rules are simple:

• THERE IS NO THEME!
• This is a Free-For-All and open to any random acts of wanton violence from one consecutive fight scene from any comic.

This Week’s “Free-For-All” Fighters Are:

Hulk (SpaceBooger)

Invincible and the Immortal… kinda (Crisis On Earth Prime)

The Atom & Green Arrow (Hero Sandwich)

Thor (Marvel Flipside)

The Thing (Slay, Monstrobot of the Deep)

Optimus Prime (ShadowWing Tronix)

Black Lightning (The Sock Drawer)

Guy Gardner? (Stars And Garters)

Make sure you vote for the winner!

view results

Don’t forget to vote for your favorite fight by Monday @ 11PM.

All votes will be considered, but in the end I will have the final say. The winner will be announced next Tuesday!
Visitors and guests – please cast your vote too!

Remember the Referral Contest for $20 Amazon.com Gift Card will be going on for all 12 rounds.

For complete details along with questions or concerns please check out the dedicated thread in the “Whatever” forum titled “Friday Night Fights Referral Contest Info.”

The Incredible Hulk #160
Steve Englehart – Writer
Herbe Trimpe & Sal Trapani

What is Print-N-Pixel?

Print-N-Pixel is an in depth Group look at Comic Books In Video Games. Print-N-Pixel is more than just playing comic book related video games, its also a “book club,” a month long comic book club.

Even if you don’t play video games and you only read comic, or vise versa, stick around and participate in the discussion of either the game or the comics. And if you missed the introduction to Print-N-Pixel you can find it here.

Recommended Reading

The Print-N-Pixel: The Infinity Saga  has been introduced. The first set of Recommended Reading and Marvel Super Heroes the game has been reviewed. This week will focus on looking at the Recommended Reading stories for our second featured game.

For more about the history and how to play the featured game(s) check out the first installment of “Print-N-Pixel: The Infinity Saga.”

Recommended Reading:
The Infinity War Review

The Infinity War

After the events in the Infinity Gauntlet, Thanos retreated to a farm on a nameless planet. Even though he pretty much exiled himself from everything that he tried to destroy in the universe while wielding the the Infinity Gauntlet, the Titan still keeps tabs on the cosmic beings and powers of the universe. Noticing “exotic patterns” of energy originating from an inter dimensional portal, Thanos leaves his new residence to investigate the strange energy. Unknown to Thanos, the same energy source he detected was also responsible for putting the powerful cosmic entity Eternity into a coma or catatonic state. The first being to notice that the entity Eternity comatose is Galactus. Fearful of any being who is powerful enough to put one of the most powerful beings in the universe into a catatonic state, Galactus seeks out Doctor Strange to help revive or awaken Eternity.

While Galactus contacts Doctor Strange other alien beings also arrives on Earth. Spider-Man, Iron Man, Wolverine, and Mr. Fantastic are all attacked by twisted looking doppelgangers, or evil twins, that seem to have come from another planet or dimension. Also on Earth, Dr. Doom notices the same energy patterns deep within the universe that Thanos considered “exotic,” but to him the patterns are similar to that of the Cosmic Cube. The Cosmic Cube is a powerful containment device that holds energy that is equally as powerful to the energy within an Infinity Gem. Dr. Doom, power hungry as always, wants to possess the Cosmic Cube and it’s power so he enlists the technologically advanced Kang the Conqueror to assist him in attaining the powerful containment device.

Traveling to the origin of the “exotic” energy patterns he detected earlier, Thanos travels to a construct similar to the shrine he created fro Lady Death while wielding the power of the Infinity Gauntlet. Thanos is both impressed and curious. Once inside the construct, or stronghold, Thanos finds a newly resurrected foe that he and Adam Warlock defeated years ago – The Magus. The Magus is not alone, beside him is another Thanos. Thanos confronts the Magus and his doppelganger, instead of fighting Thanos is offered to participate in the Magus’ evil plan. Thanos states that his has changed and instead of destroying his own reality he would rather protect it, vowing not to join the Magus but defeat him instead. After being easily removed from the Magus’ stronghold, Thanos realizes that he is not powerful enough to take on the villain by himself.

Thanos travels to Earth to ask Adam Warlock, the man who defeated the titan while he possessed the Infinity Gauntlet, and his group known as the “Infinity Watch” help him defend the universe and defeat the Magus. Thanos’ presence was not well respected by Warlock’s partners, but after some discussion the group realizes the peril the universe is in and decides to help. The Infinity Watch are not the only people on Earth that realize that the universe is in great danger, so does Mr. Fantastic. Mr. Fantastic sends out an S.O.S. to every hero on Earth asking them to meet at the Fantastic Four’s headquarters to discuss this universe threatening event.

Not understanding how the Magus returned from the dead, Thanos and his new allies sneak into Deaths realm to visit the all knowing “Infinity Well.” The “Infinity Well” tells the cosmic heroes that the Magus is equivalent to Adam Warlock’s evil twin and was created while Warlock possesed the Infinity Gauntlet. After defeating Thanos in the original “Infinity Gauntlet” storyline, Adam Warlock feared that he could not handle the godlike power of the gauntlet. To prevent him from misusing his omnipotent power, Warlock expelled all good and evil from his body so neither could could his judgement. After expelling both the good and evil from his body to better control the power of the Infinity Gauntlet, the Living Tribunal (maker of all cosmic law) declared that the Infinity Gems could never be used in unison making Warlock’s sacrifice unnecessary. Not only was the expulsion of good and evil unnecessary, according to the Infinity Well the evil in which Adam Warlock expelled is what recreated his evil doppelganger – the Magus.

Back on Earth, all of the world’s greatest heroes gather at Four Freedom Plaza to discuss the evil power that threatens the universe. As all the heroes gather around Mr. Fantastic, Wolverine who already defeated an interdenominational doppelganger notices that Mr. Fantastic has the same scent as the evil aliens. Before Wolverine can convince everyone that they are being duped, Mr. Fantastic’s evil twin detonates a gama bomb destroying the Fantastic Four’s headquarters. Luckily the Invisible Woman was able to contain the blast so that none of the heroes were injured. As the heroes turn their attention to the doppelganger, the Magus and Thanos’ doppelganger appear from a portal and rescue their lackeys. Thinking that the real Thanos played a role in the attack and the fact that Magus looks similar to Adam Warlock, Earth’s heroes believe that both Thanos and Warlock are their attackers and the threats to the universe.

Magus, who’s powered with cosmic awareness which allows him to be highly intelligent and a gifted strategist, reveals that both the attack on the Heroes and the odd alliance of Thanos and Adam Warlock are all part of his master plan. Unknowing that they are just pawns in the Magus’ game, both teams led by Adam Warlock and a team consisting of Earth’s heroes along with Galactus and his crew all travel to the source of the threatening energy patterns.

Warlock and Thanos’ group arrives to the source of the energy disturbance first. The second group to arrive is the one consisting of Earth’s heroes. Upon their arrival the heroes immediately attack Thanos, Warlock, and the Infinity Watch. Galactus arrives last and is annoyed by the fighting, knowing that neither group is powerful enough to be behind the universal chaos, so he beams both bickering groups aboard his ship.

Realizing that he created the Magus, Adam Warlock knows that there is only one way to take the entity created from his expelled evil down – he needs to become the all powerful wielder of the Infinity Gauntlet again. Warlock believes that if he can become powerful enough he will be able to absorb the evil he once expelled from himself to contain and therefore defeat the Magus and save the universe. Gathering all of the Infinity Gems from his team, Adam Warlock recreates the Infinity Gauntlet. Unfortunately the gauntlet is powerless. Understanding that Warlock needs to be able to become the wearer of the Infinity Gauntlet again, Galactus leaves the heroes to appeal to the Living Tribunal to overturn his prior ruling of using the Infinity Gems in unison. Almost immediately after his most powerful foe leaves, the Magus appears and snatches Adam Warlock.

Without Warlock and the Infinity Gauntlet, Thanos comes up with one last idea. Hidden on Galactus’ ship is the only device, or weapon, that the devourer of planets fears – the Ultimate Nullifier. Thanos searches the ship and locates this ultimate weapon and assigns Quasar to use the weapon to destroy the Magus.

Back at the Magus’ stronghold, the Infinity Gauntlet changes hands from the prisoner Adam Warlock to his evil shade. Just as Warlock is telling the Magus that the gauntlet is powerless because of the law instituted by the Living Tribunal, Galactus successfully convinces the cosmic law creator to overturn his previous ruling. With the Infinity Gauntlet powered up, the Magus’ plan was almost complete. As he prepared to destroy all of the heroes he used as pawns, the Magus forgot about the villains. Dr. Doom and Kang the Conqueror never stopped following the energy released from the Cosmic Cube and were variables that the Magus never included into his plan. The surprise attack by Doom and Kang was nothing more than an annoyance to one who is as powerful as a god, but the attack did slow the villain down giving Quasar more time to attack with the Ultimate Nullifier. Even with the extra time Quasar was not quicker than the snap of Magus’ fingers. With his new power as a god the Magus captures and imprisons all those who opposed him with a snap of his all powerful gloved fingers… except for one who was hidden.

With the Infinity Gauntlet now in his possession, the Magus has no need for his prisoner and arch enemy – Adam Warlock. Just as the evil entity is about to kill Warlock, Thanos barges in and challenges the new wearer of the Infinity Gauntlet. Thanos may not have the power of a god, but he also knows that the Magus doesn’t either giving the titan a fighting chance. Before the Infinity Gauntlet was recreated Thanos, who was secretly assigned to be the protector of the Reality Gem, installed a fake gem on the gauntlet. While Thanos and the Magus are trading punches, Adam Warlock frees himself and grabs a hold of the Infinity Gauntlet allowing both he and the Magus to access the power of the Infinity Gems.

During the struggle between Warlock and the Magus a cosmic entity is released and merges with the entity Eternity who the Magus tried to control. Seeking vengeance the new cosmic entity, a composite being composed of both Eternity and Infinity, aid Warlock in defeating the Magus.

After the Magus is defeated the heroes of Earth are immediately returned home and everything returns to normal, except for Adam Warlock. After absorbing his “evil” and trapping the Magus inside of the Soul Gem attached to his body, Warlock is left in a catatonic state. Thanos warns the rest of the protectors of the Infinity Gems that since Adam Warlock has regained his “evil” but not the “good” expelled from his body that if/when he awakens from his coma he could be for powerful and evil of an adversary than even Thanos the Titan ever was. As for the “good” that was expelled from Warlock, the final page shows this being surrounded by the powerful Cosmic Cubes.

Recommended Reading: Conclusion

Unlike The Infinity Gauntlet, this story was not a reread for me.  When The Infinity Gauntlet was first released I didn’t really enjoy it so I never bothered reading th sequel. After rereading The Infinity Gauntlet for the last set of Recommended Reading, I was looking forward to reading the sequel - The Infinity War. Unfortunately I didn’t enjoy the sequel as much as the first.

I don’t know if it was the fact that that I never really felt any urgency that you would expect from a story where the whole universe is at risk of being destroyed. Or maybe because the incorporation of Earth’s heroes and all of their doppelgangers felt forced and unnecessary to the story that turned me off. No matter what the reason is, I didn’t really dig the story that much but I am looking forward to playing more of and reviewing Marvel Super Heroes: War of the Gems on the SNES.

Upon reading The Infinity War, I really enjoyed it and look forward to reading it’s sequel The Infinity War for the next set of Recommended Reading.

Did you read The Infinity Gauntlet, and if so what did you think of it?  Or more importantly do you know why Adam Warlock did not just become “one with the Infinity Gems” in the beginning? Share it in the forums.

This week’s SpaceBooger Achievements

SpaceBooger Achievements are earned by playing the featured game, and also for comic book related tasks such as reading and obtaining recommended comics. SpaceBooger Achievements can be earned for any game or comic at any time, but I encourage all participants to attempt to earn the achievements when they are posted.

This week’s SpaceBooger Achievements are:

“Recommendation”

Suggest other comics that may be relevant to enjoying this feature. (Medium)

“Another Castle”
Short for “I’m sorry, the Princess is in another castle.”

Beat the Game using cheats, continues, or extra credits. (Medium)

“1-1″

Defeat One Level with One Quarter or No Continues. (Easy)

“1-2″

Defeat Two Levels with One Quarter or No Continues. (Medium)

Past Achievements:
“Member” – Become a member of the SpaceBooger.com forums. (Easy)
“Input” – Suggest a game and/or comics for upcoming Print In Pixel features. (Easy)
“Press Start” – Play the featured game at least once during the time it is featured. (Easy)
“Hard Copy” – Obtain and play an Original Hard Copy of the game. (Hard)
“Comic Book” – Read one or more of the “Recommended Reading” books. (Medium)
“Comic Collector” – Obtain a Hard Copy of one or more of the “Recommended Reading” books. (Hard)

Remember to leave a comment letting me know what achievements you earned along with posting them here in the forums.

Next on Print-N-Pixel:

• Marvel Super Heroes: War of the Gems (SNES) – Game Review
  Featuring: A in-depth look and review of the game.
• The Infinity Saga Around The Internet
  Featuring: A conclusion to the Print-N-Pixel: Marvel Super-Heroes – The Infinity Saga with quotes and other’s opinions of the game.

References:

• The comic covers are from Wikipedia
• The original image of Thanos and the Infinity Gauntlet used in the Print-N-Pixel logo was found at comicvine.com

Since time is a unit of measurement and not concrete I don’t believe that anyone would be able to travel back or forward in it. One of my favorite movies revolves around time travel (Back to the Future) and some of the current comics I enjoy also revolve around that concept (The Return of Bruce Wayne, Booster Gold, and Rip Hunter and the Timemasters), but even if time was concrete I still don’t think time travel would be possible.

For example:

If you traveled back in time from point “C” to point “A” in hopes of changing event “B,” it would be impossible and you would cease to exist if you removed event “B.”

Back to the Future does a decent job of conveying that idea with the fact that Marty would cease to exist if his parents did not fall in love in the past.

Even though I don’t believe in time travel, it is a fun concept and can be entertaining ideas.

Check out the Booger contemplating time travel in this week’s comic strip: http://www.spacebooger.com/?comicID=166