Here we are again with another Thanos Rising review. This time around I’m going to keep it short and sweet because I’m honestly tired of bagging on this series. It’s not improving and this issue was like re-reading the first issue in a lot of ways. Thanos should be a cool character; he should be a villain that I love to hate or just plain love. Instead I feel apathy towards him. Maybe that’s what Aaron wants since that’s the only emotion that Thanos feels in this entire issue, but a character feeling apathy and the reader feeling it are two very different things. Thanos killed his mom. If you’re surprised by that then you really didn’t pay attention in the last issue. He leaves home after that because he didn’t find the answers he was looking for inside of her corpse. He explores the galaxy and finds a type of happiness at least for a little bit. He becomes a father and then decides to become a space pirate. He does so by boarding a ship on his own and helping the stupid bastards on board attack a Shi’ar cargo ship. As the pirates kill everyone on board, Thanos stands and watches them. The captain gives him hell for not getting his hands dirty, even though Thanos has more than a few inches on him in height and way more muscle. Thanos just brushes it off because he doesn’t give a shit. Now rinse and repeat until he kills the captain. It was the same thing as with the lizards in the first issue.

Thanos the space pirate huh? What I can I possibly say that doesn’t make that already ridiculous statement worse? Don’t get me wrong, I like the character. I’m just not one of those readers that only care about the character. I enjoy a well-written story to go along with them and I’m not finding it here. Aaron’s writing may appease some readers and as far as a Marvel title goes, this series is quite dark, but it’s not good. The writing reeks of constant effort to please the fans with some kind of shock. This isn’t dark. It thinks it is and if you were reading some other Marvel title you may have your mind blown. I would advise you to read more comics instead of this watered down story and its need for attention.

The art is fantastic, but no matter how good Bianchi’s style is, it can’t save the story and it’s completely held back by the story. I would love to see Bianchi on a series like Ten Grand, but he seems caught in the corporate wheel so I don’t know if that will ever happen.

I still don’t even know if this is an ongoing or not, but it doesn’t matter since I won’t be returning to the title. Everyone that’s buying it now is sure to see the holes forming in the predictable plot the minute Bianchi needs a break from the art duties. When that happens, look for a quick creator shake up before the series is cancelled.

Score: 2/5 (Art Only)

Writer: Jason Aaron

Artist: Simone Bianchi

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Price: $3.99

Release Date: 6/5/13