Zub Tales

• Adventures In Poor Taste: 8/10 “Avengers #681 is probably the best issue of the weekly No Surrender story so far.”

• Comic Book Corner: “It’s an entertaining book and you don’t have to wait a month for it to come out so you don’t feel like you’re forgetting anything. A very fun read.”

• Comic Book University: “They’re telling a story with a lot of butt-kicking. I’m okay with that.”

• Comicosity: 8/10 “Avengers #681 is another solid chapter in what is becoming a significant epic in Avengers history.”

• Comicsverse: 8.3/10 “The origin of Voyager and revelation of the Grandmaster’s involvement show strong writing, and the artwork of Jacinto and Curiel continues to be a highlight.”

• Fortress of Solitude: 9/10 “I am loving how much action is in this book and how much story as well…Each issue keeps ramping it up.”

• Graphic Policy: “Jim Zub, Mark Waid, and Al Ewing still craft a solid issue with good character moments spread out. It’s an all out action brawl with small character moments this time around but it’s good action and they paced themselves quite well at it.”

• Pop Culture Philosophers: “It’s a story that finally feels big. Big enough to an Avengers story and weekly…A really cool epic story.”

• Rogues Portal: “As ever, Avengers #681 is worth checking out if you’ve been following “No Surrender,” which throws a few new wrinkles into The Grandmaster’s game.”

CHAMPIONS #20
JIM ZUB (W)
SEAN IZAAKSE (A)
COVER BY STEFANO CASELLI

• What good is conquering a world if it’s already destroyed by the time you take over? The Master is determined to save Earth from itself and the Champions are going to help him do it…
• Plus, a new hero from an unexpected source — Who is Snowguard?

32 PGS./Rated T+ …$3.99

• Caped-Joel: “Just a very solid comic from start to finish.”

• Comic Book University: “It was enjoyable…They’re promising a lot more story next issue and I’m looking forward to it.”

• Comicosity: 8/10 “acinto’s greatest strengths in figures is in expressions, and this story supplies plenty of opportunity for that to shine through.”

• Comicsverse: “I’m very excited for what’s coming next…Thank heavens this is a weekly series!”

• Fortress Of Solitude: 9/10 “All in all, I’m very pleased with this book and I’m glad it keeps giving us the action and adventure an Avengers book should.”

• Graphic Policy: “Avengers: No Surrender continues to entertain but also provide emotion to the proceedings. Characters like Rogue are allowed to shine and be developed further”

• IGN: 8.5/10 “The action was exciting and the story is still building up its momentum. That’s not an easy thing to maintain for a weekly series, but it’s working so far.”

• Sci-Fi Pulse: Grade: A “The story gives every character a moment and the visuals continue to give this tale an epic look. This is what a team book should be like in comics.”

As announced over on AIPT, I’m the writer on Hunt For Wolverine: Mystery In Madripoor, a four-issue mini-series starting in May drawn by the legendary Chris Bachalo. Mystery In Madripoor is a key part of the Hunt For Wolverine storyline being orchestrated by Charles Soule and ties into major plans for the X-Men books at Marvel.

Getting the chance to work with Chris (one of my favorite artists in comics) and delve into such a cool part of X-Men lore with Madripoor, a city of hedonistic delights and murderous intent, has been a thrill. As you can see from the cover (illustrated by Greg Land), I also get to write a stellar cast of X-Men, including Storm, Rogue, Psylocke, Jubilee, and Domino!

As soon as I can post more teasers and details, I definitely will. Can’t wait for all of you to see what we have planned!

Avengers: No Surrender enters its second month! What did reviewers think of our latest installment? Read on and find out…

• Adventures In Poor Taste: “The writing team of Mark Waid, Jim Zub and Al Ewing believably craft this new character’s backstory, and drench him in the rage of squandered millennia.”

• Caped-Joel: 8/10 “Avengers: No Surrender continues to be a really good time.”

• Comic Book: 8/10 “The creative team of Mark Waid, Jim Zub, Al Ewing, and Kim Jacinto should be commended for creating a story line that has all the trappings of an old-school Avengers story line but with a modern day lineup and tone.”

• Comic Book Corner: 8/10 “I liked this book. I liked the character development…good stuff here!”

• Comic Book University: Grade: A- “This is still a really good series and I’m genuinely enjoying this.”

• Comicosity: 9/10 “Waid, Zub, and Ewing pour a lot of work into constructing the Challenger’s history and personality, but by the end of the issue, Challenger is a familiar foe, one the Avengers and only the Avengers can challenge, and one that surely has history in the Marvel Universe.”

• Comics: The Gathering: 8/10 “This event has been a great time, and the art really lends itself to this.”

• Comicsverse: 9/10 “AVENGERS #679 is a much-needed addition to this storyline that manages to be one of the best yet in this series”

• Diskingdom: 8/10 “The artwork continues to impress and I love the look of the Challenger, he has that Thanos vibe, huge and powerful.”

• Fortress of Solitude: 9/10 “Avengers #679 was another awesome installment in the No Surrender storyline.”

• Graphic Policy: 9/10 “This continues to be an event that’s a hell of a lot of fun and living up to the hype, exactly what I was hoping it would be.”

• Rogues Portal: “With act one nearing its end, No Surrender pushes forward in Avengers #679 with an intriguing, cosmic-level installment.”

• Sci-Fi Pulse: “The visuals look great, even with a change of artists. This series continues to impress.”

• Caped-Joel: “The writers use the different teams powers to unique effect here.”

• Comic Book Corner: 8.5/10 “I had a lot of fun with this. There was a lot of action and a lot going on.”

• Comic Book University: “So far it’s proven to be a really good story…This issue is really getting me into this story line.”

• Comic Buzz: “Still loving this weekly action packed story…Still loving the art too.”

• Comic-Watch: 9/10 “Waid, Zub, and Ewing are taking advantage of the fast pace they can set here and they’re hitting their marks just right….Avengers No Surrender has you hooked from the moment you open the issue.”

• Comicsverse: “The style delivered to us by Pepe Larraz and David Curiel has been phenomenal. Curiel’s colors pop in such wonderful ways: from the purple surrounding the mystics back at the bunker to the red that encompasses the entire battle in Peru.”

• Comicosity: 9.5/10 “No Surrender is a fun event that pulls inspiration from Avengers tales old and new, ret-conned and re-imagined. There are obvious influences from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as well as new bits, specifically crafted to be grafted onto Avengers lore. “

• Fortress of Solitude: 9/10 “I really like the balance between the four teams we have in the series.”

• Geekcast Radio: “Artist Pepe Larraz deserves a special amount of credit being able to put together such consistent great art throughout this series thus far.”

• Geeked Out Nation: 8.2/10 “This week’s issue was more action packed than the last now that it is time to jump into the fray. The art team of Pepe Larraz and David Curiel did a standout job of capturing the intensity of this game.”

• Major Spoilers: 8/10 “It’s really nice to see a massive planetwide crisis crossover done in a way that doesn’t forget the micro in blowing up the macro, and this creative team clearly knows how to pull off that rare feat…”

• Rogues Portal: “…despite its cataclysmic plot, writers Mark Waid, Al Ewing, and Jim Zub haven’t forgotten to add some levity to the proceedings.”

• Sci-Fi Pulse: “This is reigniting my love of Marvel’s characters and is spurring me to check out other titles. This is a gateway comic, to be sure.”

• You Don’t Read Comics: “…this is another strong chapter in an event that, while variable, continues to show itself worthy of carrying the Avengers title, giving readers a massive, high stakes story with plenty of gravitas and heart, and even a few laughs along the way.”