JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #2: The issue begins with a mysterious man recruits a very confused Scarecrow into his organization. Despite the way it looked last issue, it appears Green Arrow will survive his encounter with the Secret Society of Super Villains. And that means, despite the drama, it is time for the team members to meet each other and be introduced to the world by the President. Of course, that also means Hawkman needs to clean the blood off of him and Catwoman, a known criminal, must stay behind the scene. Martian Manhunter gets inside Green Arrow’s head and learns that he infiltrated the Society and then was attacked by what appears to be a mechanized Batman. Arrow awakens and finds out that Steve Trevor has a new team and Arrow is not being invited to be on it. The team, minus Queen, heads out to unlock the mystery of the Society only to be captured by a mechanized trinity of heroes: Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. In the back-up, we see how the Martian Manhunter convinces the President why America needs another Justice League.
The second issue of this title continues on the path of the first with Steve Trevor calling the shots AFTER Amanda Waller tells him what to call. It’s obvious Geoff Johns knows how to write a good super team story. After all, he’s had 18 months to get it right on the initial JUSTICE LEAGUE title. And we all know what kind of work David Finch does. What will be interesting is to see how long he stays on the title as he does have a tendency to bail early on books. I have to say I don’t know how much faith I’m going to have in this book. I look at the lineup and immediately my mind goes to the disastrous Detroit Team of the Nineties…you know, the one that the last Vibe was on. Hawkman needed a place to go with his book gone and DC wanted to bring Vibe back into the fold(God knows why) along with Stargirl. But everyone else HAS their own gig or HAD their own gig.The back-up by Matt Kindt and Scott Clark is nothing nmore than page filler to me. I really didn’t know that it took Martian Manhunter from stopping an assassination attempt on Barack Obama to get him to buy into this team.
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA’S VIBE #2: Our hero questions why he was chosen to be a part of the Justice League of America and so does his brother, who now knows his secret. His handler, Agent Gunn, thinks it was a bad idea but you can’t put the Genie back in the bottle at this point. A very ugly alien shows up sees a news report about the country of Kahndaq and a terrorist group called The Sons of Adam and the “controversial Stagg Industries Refinery”. When the phrase “A.R.G.U.S.” is heard, the alien attacks. Vibe is called in to find the alien with his powers and does so. The alien surrenders and presents a scroll to Vibe just before being gunned down by Agent Gunn. The scroll ends up with Amanda Waller and she has Gypsy read it. Apparently, it is in her native language and from her father. The note is asking her to come home, which is something Waller is in no hurry to do. Next Vibe gets introduced to the world with the rest of the JLA by the President while Amanda sets up plans to have Vibe fight Kid Flash to prove he’s really a hero.
Okay, the book went from
interesting to dumb with this issue. This guy is the least heroic hero and his
brother is just annoying. Add in Agent “Shoot first and ask questions later”
Gunn doing his best “New Nick Fury” imitation and it gets clichéd real fast.
And I think I know what it was I liked the most about the first issue: Amanda
Waller’s “Circus”. The book gets really good when we meet Gypsy and last issue
it was the mystery of Darkseid’s daughter. When those elements come into play,
the book gets good. Other than that, Vibe is a cardboard character just like
his predecessor. I also didn’t care for the uneven artwork by Pete Woods and
Andres Guinaldo. What I DID fine nice was Goeff Johns mirroring the events of
the introduction in this book AND JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA. And I have to ask
how much of this story was Johns and how much was co-writer Andrew Kreisberg.
NIGHTWING #18: Dick Grayson is
having a hard time dealing with the deatgh of Damian Wayne. He eventually meets
with Sonia, who has been calling his cell phone non-stop. He meets with batman
who tells him of someone auctioning off his father’s costume most recently
defaced by the Joker. Nightwing arrives at the secret auction in time to stop
someone from buying his father’s suit, but not before the mysterious Dealer
sets the place on fire. Dick Hs a decision: rescue some bidders who were trying
to kill him or save the suit. Of course, he saves the people and the relic from
his father goes up in spoke. The next day, Dick visits Damian’s grave and
leaves a remembrance on his tomb. Later he meets with Sonia and tells her of
his recent loss. She reveals to him that her father, Tony Zucco, is still alive
and part of some criminal organization in Chicago.
Looks like it’s time for a road trip.
Kyle Higgins does a nice job of
expressing Dick’s feelings of loss and frustration regarding Damian and then
his parents. To top that off by bringing Tony Zucco into the ix is sheer
genius. This will surely lead to Dick Grayson pulling up stakes and setting up
home, at least temporarily, in Chicago.
It’s a good move that gets Dick out of Gotham
and into a new locale. And it’s not like you can send him to Bludhaven as
apparently that doesn’t exist in the new continuity. The art by Juan Jose Ryp
is nice and clean and full of action where needed.
PHANTOM STRANGER #6: In his
search to find the answers of where his family has gone and who was
responsible, The Phantom Stranger ends up in Las Vegas:
“Sodom and Gomorrah
with neon signs and all you can eat buffets”. A prostitute approaches him and
hands him her cell phone. Dr. Thirteen is on the other end. Thirteen tells the
Stranger to go to a specific place in the Lucky Devil Casino where there is a
game of high stakes poker going on. The demon players are Belial (the King of
Lies), Suge, and Ruskoff(both of whom are Trigon’s sons). His silver necklace
buys his way into the game and the talk is over who might have kidnapped his
family. It is even suggested that raven may have done it based on what The
Stranger did to her. Belial, Suge and Ruskoff all decide to fold for no
apparent reason. It appears Deadman was the cause of that and he has learned
that the demons three know nothing about the missing family members. After the
encounter, The Stranger gets another phone call from Dr. Thirteen. He tells The
Stranger to get back to his lab right now or it will be the end of everything
for his family.
Okay…that was a fairly dumb issue! All it managed to do was introducing the
three demons and tell us they knew nothing. It also shows us that Deadman
survived the current adventure in JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK. It also shows that J. M.
DeMatteis has a penchant for some really cornball stuff every now and then. A
perfect example: the whole Sodom and Gomorrah bit. And then we
throw in some humor by having prostitutes with cell phones being the method of
communication between The Stranger and Doctor Thirteen. The true highlight of
this issue is the artistic combination of Zander Cannon and Gene Ha that so
reminds me of their work on TOP 10 some years back. This book will get a title
change in June to TRINITY OF SIN: THE PHANTOM STRANGER as it will have a
companion book in TRINITY OF SIN: PANDORA. Can a TRINITY OF SIN: THE QUESTION
be far behind?RED HOOD AND THE OUTLAWS:#18: Jason Todd finds himself dealing with various nightmares as his sleep is haunted as a result of his recent acid attack by the Joker. Meanwhile, Bruce suffers the guilt of all of this, believing this to be all his fault. Bruce shares a moment or two talking to his comatose former partner while Jason battles the Joker in his nightmare. While Bruce takes his hand in this world, the same happens in the dream world, only Jason is dressed as Wingman. Jason wakes, attempts to apologize but is silenced by Bruce who takes him into his arms.
Scott Lobdell manages to take the former hero turned villain turned anti-hero and turn him fully into a hero once again. All the bad blood that existed since A DEATH IN THE FAMILY melts away. *SIGH*-REALLY!? Okay-nice ending here but REALLY! Maybe it’s me. If my mentor failed to save me and then POSSIBLY endangered myself and most of those I love and/or respect, I don’t think I would be THAT forgiving. but this is comics and anything can happen. The story is nice; it allows Batman to apologize and Jason Todd to exorcise himself from his demons. And Tyler Kirkman does a good job on the art. So…does the next issue become WINGMAN AND THE OUTLAWS? Personally, if you are going to turn Red Hood totally to a face(as they say in the wrestling business), let’s just loose the Starfire/Roy Harper love story, stick her in TEEN TITANS and send him over to play kiss and make-up with GREEN ARROW. Then we can call this book RED HOOD WAR JOURNAL or something silly like that!
RED LANTERNS #18: Rankorr goes on a picnic with the woman he
rescued last month. he wonders should he abandon the ring and try to return to
his former life. Bleez appears, scaring the woman away. Meanwhile, Volthoom
decides to offer Atrocitus a chance at a different reality by showing him what
his life would have been like had the Manhunters not attacked. It seems that
Atros would have eventually become the ruler of his people. But, in this
alternate timeline, Atros becomes an evil ruler who kills anyone who opposes him,
even his wife. Atros is eventually assassinated by his own son. Volthoom gains
power from this as Atrocitus realizes that his life would not have been a happy
one either way. Then he offers the Red Lantern the choice of which reality he'd
prefer. Atrocitus chooses to have Ryutt destroyed while Volthoom takes possession
of the "Great Heart". As he leaves, Atrocitus is told he is responsible
for the fate of his people and he orders the Red Lanterns to hunt him down and destroy
him.
While I know the story of IT’S A WONDERFUL
LIFE and was a big fan of Marvel’s WHAT IF, points to Peter Milligan
for what is probably his best single issue yet of this title. And, in doing so,
he finally gets to the center of Atrocitus’ character. He is doomed by whatever
action he chooses. So now he chooses a fate where he becomes the victim. And we get artwork from the
totally amazing Miguel Sepulveda. For once, I can actually call this a
recommended title again.
SUICIDE SQUAD #18: Yo-Yo’s sister Red Orchid is in league with Regulus who, like Yo-Yo, is supposed to be dead. Yo-Yo finds the package and removes the bag from his head. Amanda Waller, watching it all through camera-equipped contact lenses confirms that it is Kurt Lance. Lance’ power is to shut down super powers. A captured Deadshot spits in Regulus’ eye and he gleefully takes it as a sample. Yo-Yo turns to Harley Quinn for help and, following a kiss and a slap, she cuts herself free. She knocks Lance out with the butt end of her knife and now Yo-Yo's powers return. Deadshot grabs Kurt Lance and forces Waller to explain that Kurt Lance is a tracker of super-powers, and that he can turn them on or off at will. Red Orchid, powered by a sudden influx of water, uses her vines to capture the squad again. Regulus claims the retrieval of Kurt Lance is a personal vendetta for Waller. Before he can finish, Waller cuts the feed on the communicators and heads out into the field herself. With the package going out the door with Regulus, Yo-Yo decides it's time to make a sacrifice. Deadshot hits the nanobomb in Yo-Yo’s neck, which triggers the bomb, and both Yo-Yo and Red Orchid's heads explode.
Well, I would say this is the end of Yo-Yo, but we have seen him pull a Houdini before. Although it is kind of tough to escape from having your head blown off! And Kurt Lance, who we all believed to be dead, is alive and well. And that also means that Black Canary didn’t kill him. So how did he gain these powers? He certainly didn’t have them while Team 7 was active. All in all, Adam Glass is making the most of his last few issues. And Henrik Jonsson, while he doesn’t live up to past artists, is fitting in nicely.
SUPERMAN #18: We begin with Orion defeating a beast that is attacking the people of Behemoth. Highfather, ruler of New Genesis, calls him back home. Orion is taken to the Prophecy Wall and he is told that the explosion of Krypton unleashed a threat named Superman on the universe. Back on Earth, Superman has been called to a U.S. Senate hearing to discuss the existence of the Fortress of Solitude. They want the Fortress removed and Superman refuses. Later that night, Clark meets up with Cat Grant and she proposes ClarkCatTropolis: a website where they can publish news independently. Clark thinks it’s a bad idea but promises Cat that he will talk to Morgan Edge about getting her job back at the Daily Planet. Suddenly people at this club begin jumping off the rooftop. Superman finds a mysterious signal coming from the DJ's sound system and destroys it with his heat vision. Meanwhile, over at S.T.A.R. Labs, Hector Hammond has once again regained his ability to dream.
Scott Lobdell gives us a nice story that, after the whole H’el story, is a breath of fresh air. Sorry, I REALLY hated H’EL ON EARTH. So, anything is better than that was. But here we go again (PET PEEVE TIME). Art is by Aaron Kuder on pages 1-4, and 17-20(the Orion storyline), Tyler Kirkham on pages 5-9 (Superman at the Senate) and Robson Rocha for pages 10-16. Three artists on one book? Please refer to the classic of this genre!
SWAMP THING #18: As the Parliament of Decay prepare Swamp Gthing for his final journey, Arcane prepares to take Abby’s life. Alec arrives in time, tears Arcane in half and saves Abby's life. Abby warns he will reform unless the Parliament of Decay gets another avatar and she is the only acceptable candidate to become the Avatar of Death. To do that, she must die, which Alec does not want to accept. Arcane of the Rotworld returns to the present and devours his torn apart body, then heads to the Parliament's chamber. Sadly, Alec pierces through Abby's chest with his vines and kills her. Arcane rushes in and, despite a convincing argument, Alec impales him too. But not before his human self is mortally wounded by Arcane. Although Arcane thinks he has won, Abby is now the Avatar of Death in his place and he is destroyed by the Parliament. Alec awakens in the Parliament of Trees and they convince him to continue to be the earth's Swamp Thing. They allow Abby to visit for a short time. She has placed their human bodies here, where they can rest together. They kiss one last time before she leaves. Despite it all, the man who once was Alec Holland will remain the Swamp Thing.
Scott Snyder is getting good at writing really depressing, emotional work. First his entire run on BATMAN and now this. Welcome to the tragedy of Abigail Arcane and Alec Holland. They are star crossed lovers destined to only be together in death. They are the Romeo and Juliet of the New Millennium. Snyder’s tale of death and destruction throughout the ROTWORLD arc has been terrific and now it ends like this. Swamp Thing will carry on as the defender of the green while Abby carries on as the Avatar of Death. Terrific stuff! And let me just add that Yanick Paquette’s work is probably the best of his career!
TEAM 7 #6: The team heads to the Advanced Prosthetic Research Centre where Caitlin Fairchild works. As they head in, a mechanical monster cuts into the aircraft, mortally wounding Summer Ramos, who manages to bring the ship down before dying. The death shakes Amanda Waller as this is the first time she has lost anyone in the field. Once inside, we see that the place is filled with human-cybernetic hybrids chanting: "Caitlin, help me?" The team finds Caitlin, who has been taken over by the cybernetic enhancements. She responds to her father by shoving her fist through his chest, killing him. Slade and Cole Cash pursue her and, realizing she is no longer Caitlin Fairchild, Slade shoots her through the head. The former Doctor Hank Henshaw arrives and he too has been taken over by the Spartan programming. He explains that James Bronson was the target all along. Bronson is on leave with his family when the Spartan Subject arrives. It initiates its’ core transfer, destroying the building in the process. All appear dead except for Bronson, who is now merged with Spartan.
After the first few issues, I was pretty disappointed with this title. After all, this is set in the early days of the NEW 52 Universe and it would be nice to see how some of these characters got their start. It’s been a bumpy road and now it is a confusing, winding road that is about to end as DC has pulled the plug. Six issues in and NOW we start killing off characters. How does Caitlin Fairchild die now? Isn’t she running around in THE RAVAGERS? And does Hank Henshaw ever become the cyborg Superman in this Universe? And why do we have Cole Cash dying on the cover when THAT NEVER HAPPENS INSIDE THIS BOOK! ARRGGGHHH!!! We have a good story by Justin Jordan and Alixe Pascal that still leaves me praying for this title to end. Sorry DC: if you would have done this thing properly, it wouldn’t be getting the axe!
TEEN TITANS #18: Tim Drake is feeling the loss of his adoptive brother. Tim imagines Damian is with him and encourages him to do everything he can to protect other teen superheroes from meeting his fate. A week passes and Superboy arrives to ask for a place on the team and Tim agrees, despite concerns from the others. He gathers the team and they have a news assignment: protecting super-powered teens. Their first mission is to save a girl named Tabitha Munse from the government-specifically Belle Reve. The team attempts to break in so Amanda Waller sends the Suicide Squad after them, to little avail. Red Robin confronts her and says he has known about Kurt Lance following them for weeks. He also explains that he is here to cut a deal to benefit both groups. The battle between the two teams ends when Waller says so and the Titans realize that Tabitha Munse never existed. It was all a ruse by Red Robin to get them inside. And, if that wasn’t enough, Trigon arrives in Times Square.
WONDER WOMAN #18: Hermes and Wonder Woman fight over Zola’s kidnapped baby. She is no match for him but, before he can deliver a killing blow, Orion arrives in a boom tube and takes her away. We learn that he was able to track her because he collected her DNA when he slapped her backside earlier.. Just as Hermes begins to gain on them, the pair come to a sudden stop sending him flying into Demeter’s Real Meanwhile, the First Born faces his Poseidon, who swallows his nephew in one gulp and Cassandra too. War confronts Demeter, rips open her wooden belly and removes Zola’s baby. Wonder Woman and Orion arrives and is told that War has taken the child. Orion and Diana return to Manhattan and find War has returned Zola's baby to her. Discov ering the child is a boy, Orion comments that if he is called upon to kill it, it is easier for him than it would be if it were a girl.
Brian Azzarello brings the epic that has been playing out piece by piece since the first issue to an end. For die hard fans of the mythology, it is has been a love/hate relation shio. For the rest of us, it has been a wild ride through a character who has had her ups and downs over the years. What is disappointing about this conclusion is gthe jumbler of srtist working on the issue. We have Goran Sudzuka handling pages 4,5,8,9,10, 13,14,15,16, and 17 and Cliff Chiang finishing the tale with the final three pages of the story. In the midst of all of this, we have Tony Akins providing the layouts and Dan Green finishing for pages 1-3, 6, 7, 11 and 12. I have railed about this many times ragrdinging many books/ Whatever happened to the days of having an art team, let’s says Jack Kirby and Joe Sinnott, work on a book, even several books, month in and month out with scarcely a filler here or there. And we have computers now too…
WORLDS’ FINEST #10: Power Girl is pretty ticked off that the folks from Holt Industries have attacked Starr Island to steal back what she stole from Michael Holt to begin with. So she has been destroying Holt Industries sites on the West Coast and making it look like they were caused by natural disasters. Unfortunately, one of her attacks causes unexpected collateral damage. Huntress breaks into Micheal's old office and is attacked by his T-Spheres. Evading them, she receives a call from Kara that immediately takes her to Gotham City. Once there, she visits the grave of her not-brother where she is observed by The Dark Knight himself. Back at Holt Industries, the police have their investigation cut short by Aleeka Musgrave who insists their own investigators will handle this. When they question her authority, she calls for Michael who appears and says that she speaks for him. I thought he was missing…?
Paul Levitz turns in another great issue here as the line
that Power Girl walks becomes thinner and her life becomes more complicated.
She borders between being a hero and an anti-hero; she’s Robin Hood to serve
her own needs. And Levitz has managed to take the cardboard Huntress he wrote
about in her mini-series and make her real, suffering the loss of Damien Wayne
and the trepidation about meeting this world’s Bruce Wayne. Kevin Maguire’s art rocks as always and adds great life to
the feel of the title. The book has had its ups and downs over the last few
months, but now seems to be on the right track with the addition of the Michael
Holt mystery.
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