DC's NEW 52 Month 23, Part 1

ACTION COMICS #23: Lady Lourdes and the Pax Galactica have arrived on the moon where Straith and Superman have been fighting. The Pax Galactica have come to fight an enemy called the Lexus and they are hoping Superman can help them out and he agrees. Lexus, also known as the Devourer of Life soon appears. Lexus is described by Lourdes as “evil incarnate” that wields dark magic. When Lourdes began to battle Lexus, there were 500 in the Pax Galactica, which is down to only four. Superman takes Lourdes enchanted blade and, using his x-ray vision, thrusts it through Lexus’ heart, destroying the creature. At that point, the Pax Galactica declares him their ruler. In the back-up, the World of Krypton story concludes with Zod and Jor-El defeating The Colonel.

Scott Lobdell and Tyler Kirkham turn in a confusing and really boring issue. PLEASE get this man off this character! I am tired of the Big Blue Boy Scout being turned into the Big Blue Whining Guy in Tights. I mean, I had issues with Grant characterization, but this is so much worse. Superman wielding a sword and thrusting it through the bad guy’s heart? C’mon: this is dumb, dumb, dumb. And the back-up: just glad it’s over. I couldn’t stand the story and having it show Zod and Jor-El as good buddies just really put me off. And all this time, I thought THE COLONEL was ZOD. Shows how much I PAID ATTENTION!

ALL STAR WESTERN #23: While Batman is looking into Jonah Hex’ story, Hex and Dr. Arkham tear up the town as Hex is searching for Booster Gold, so he can get back to his own time. Hex decides he needs a drink and he and the good doctor end up at a bar, where they are accused of being homosexuals by some trouble makers which is the perfect excuse for Hex to start a brawl. So impressed is the bartender that she and Hex end up in bed together while Jeremiah ends up with her flirtatious roommate. The next morning, the foursome end up at a chop-shop to change vehicles. Afterwards they pass a breast cancer awareness march, which suddenly gets interrupted by a speeding car that crashes into the camp. Hex heads into a nearby gun shop and is given a rifle by a sympathetic owner. The driver is seeking revenge for his wife's plan to divorce him. Jonah responds by putting a bullet through the driver’s head. Jonah gets arrested as a mass murderer even though he saved countless people in the process. Suddenly Bruce Wayne arrives at the hospital and says he will provide legal representation for Hex. 

Jimmy Palmitotti, Justin Gray and Moritat craft a weird feeling one this issue. We have Hex and Arkham playing male versions of Thelma and Louise in this buddy road trip. Then they end up in a bar where the whole concept of homosexuality and gay marriage is debated. I love that someone has to explain to Hex what gay means! Then we get to watch Arkham get nervous around the positively excited roommate of the barmaid and then Jonah and the barmaid make post coital small talk. Then we get an explanation of what breast cancer awareness is before the vigilante who looks like he old Wild Dog character shows up, pissed as his wife and mows down innocents. Wow! This is a totally weird chapter. And, if that wasn’’t enough, what IS with the mutants?

ANIMAL MAN #23: With Buddy nominated for Best Actor, the conjecture is that the View-Tube video of Buddy fighting the splinterfolk is nothing but a publicity stunt. Buddy is pretty upset by it and has locked himself in his hotel room. Later that night, Buddy attempts to break into Belle Reve to talk to Clinton Hogue and find out more information about the splinterfolk. Meanwhile, Brother Blood complains that he was born with a connection to the Red but the Totems passed him over for Buddy. He believes if he drinks Buddy's blood, he will gain access the Red. Unfortunately, when he drinks the blood, he breaks out in the same bloody tattoo that once affected Buddy long ago. Maxine is still within the Red trying to find her brother Cliff, but there is a chance that his soul is on its way to the Rib-Cave to be reincarnated. Brother Blood enters the Red and begins to murder the Totems. One of the Totems admits he called on Brother Blood to put an end to the Parliament of Limbs.

Jeff Lemire, my hero when it comes to writing creepy, continues to turn things loose on this title. With art from Steve Pugh, Buddy Baker’s life continues to get more and more complicated. His marriage is in disarray, with son is dead, his daughter deep in the Red and Brother Blood, long a Teen Titans foe, trying to tap into the energy of The Red and get some help in the process. It’s gonna be a long road for our hero. 

AQUAMAN #23: Aquaman and Mera attempt to escape from the Xebel forces who are loyal to the Dead King. We learn that Mera’s father used to be king of Xebel and she inherited his ability to control water. The pair decide to return to Atlantis because they believes Vulko knows about the Dead King. Meanwhile, Tula, Murk and Swatt prepare to enter the prison to rescue Orm when they learn Atlantis is under attack. When Aquaman and Mera arrive at Atlantis, they lead the attack against the Scavenger. Urn sacrifices his life to save Aquaman from a missle attack. Using his telepathic powers, he gets Topo to attack the Scavenger's fleet. But the strain of the telepathic command causes Aquaman to pass out, just as the Dead King and his Xebel forces arrive. When Aquaman awakens, he is inside a tent with Vulko taking care of him. Aquaman, sporting a beard, has been in a coma for six months. 

So Geoff Johns has decided to slap the beard on our sea hero. How long will it be before he loses a hand to a shark? Speaking of which, have we jumped the shark by jumping ahead six months in time? What will have changed in all that time? And how does this tie in to the FOREVER EVIL storyline? Anyway, the story is fun, Paul Pelletier’s artwork is great, as always, and the dialogue, even when there are silly bits, is compelling and fun. Yeah: it’s a fun read!

BATGIRL #23: Comissioner Gordon and Detective McKenna arrive at Charise Carnes apartment and he asks for her help in finding the killer known as Batgirl. They set their sights on questioning Ricky Gutierrez. Her alter ego, Barbara in out shopping with her roommate Alysia Yeoh and Barbara defeats some would be muggers in the process. Arriving at home, Barbara gets a call from Ricky, who explains he can’t see her anymore. Ricky is off the meet with the leader of the Sixty-Eight Kings street gang, who have captured his brother Rolo. Gordon and McKenna arrive just as Rocky heads off and he accidentally knocks McKenna unconscious in the process. Gordon searches the house and sees pictures of Ricky and Barbara together. Barbara follows Ricky and, having decided top give up the mantle of the bat, disguises herself and gets into it with some of the Sixty-Eight Kings. Outside, Knightfall has assembled The Disgraced to kill Commissioner Gordon. Gordon and his men burst in just as Tyrell prepares to kill Rolo. The Commissioner takes a shot and it apparently kills Ricky. 

First we start out with a tremendous looking Alex Garner cover. Then we move to the story where Batgirl is trying to deal with her brother’s death AND now the APPARENT death of her thug boyfriend. Jim Gordon is in a major snit about Batgirl killing his son(he thinks-read SUICIDE SQUAD Jim) and Knightfall is so paranoid she thinks the Gordon is after her so she plans on having him killed. This is all just part of the neatly tangled tale by Gail Simone and Fernando Pasarin.

BATMAN #23: Bruce has been blasted into the bottom of the well and the Red Hood Gang are in hot pursuit. They grab a bunch of ancient weapons from Bruce's collection and beat him severely, while the Red Hood mocks him. As the place burns and the walls start coming down, a monologuing Red Hood grabs a portrait of Bruce’s parents and fires a gunshot through their faces and into Bruce's stomach. He manages to activate the secret panel that leads to the tunnels below and eventually to the manor, where he collapses. When he awakes, Alfred is tending to his wounds. That night, he discovers his father’s mapping device and begs his father for some kind of sign. The mapping device activates and creates a 3D image of the cave he had fallen into as a boy. Standing by the open window, a swarm of holographic bats fly through. Seeing this as a sign, Bruce vows to become a bat. Meanwhile, Philip Kane is having issues with his adviser Edwrd Nygma, as he believes Nygma is responsible for sending Red Hood after Bruce. Kane threatens to kill him and Nygma says "Cain", which activates a ginat magnet in the floor and drags Kane, who has a metal plate in his head, to the floor. Nygma’s quits, but is told he will always be a question mark. In the back-up, we see Bruce involved in a death-match fight in Norway.

Purists will be flipping out over this retooling of the origin (you think that’s something, wait until ZERO YEAR invades the rest of the NEW 52). Well, as much as I recall the classic Bruce in the smoking jacket being inspired by a bat, the whole smoking jacket thing REALLY made me think Dr. Wertham was right! Anyway, I like where this is going, even if I don’t truly buy the whole Edward Nygma was a villain in Bruce’s life BEFORE Batman. Of course, I don’t buy the Red Hood being under the command of Nygma. But, this is the NEW 52 and I am willing to suspend disbelief. After all, I am ready to believe that Ben Affleck can be Batman…

BATMAN AND ROBIN #23: Bruce has been using a virtual reality program to relive the events that killed Damian, convinced he could have saved his son’s life. Alfred calls Nightwing back from Chicago to have a talk with his former partner, but instead the former Boy Wonder joins him within the simulation. Nightwing ends up killing the Heretic with a spear and Damian lives. But Bruce realizes it was only a simulation and Damian is still dead. Dick suggests he takes Damian's death to become a better Batman. Later, Alfred runs the simulation himself. In that sim, Alfred pricks the boy with a tranquilizer before he can leave the cave. Bruce finds a tearful Alfred using the device, and the older man apologizes for letting Damian go. Bruce agrees to shut the simulation down permanently.

Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason continue their epic run on this title with the ever changing name. This time it is called BATMAN AND NIGHTWING, obviously. We continue to see a father’s grief, but it is now tended with sorrow as opposed to the desperate anger which he first approached it with. Remember: he originally was trying to pull a PET SEMETARY and resurrect him suing Dr. Frankenstein’s methods. So we proceed into Villains Month with The Dark Knight a little more at ease. Not totally at peace, but more at ease.  

BATMAN INCORPORATED SPECIAL #1: Batman is checking the Bat-computer’s case files on members of Batman Incorporated. The first tale involves Jiru, the Batman of Japan. Seems someone has been storing human organs in vending machines. Jiro and Canary end up at the Capsule Hotel, where businessmen are being killed and their parts are being sold. The man responsible is Doctor Inside-Out and our heroes eventually capture him. The next case has Squire who battles and defeats Srpingheel Jack before becoming the Knight. Raven Red battles Coyote while remembering a moment with an old man at the top of a casino. The next case file features Nightrunner, El Gaucho, and Dark Ranger. The next story is followed by The Battlin’ Bovine Bat-Cow breaking up a kidnapping. In the end, Batman decides not to archive the case folder for Batman Incorporated.

And thus BATMAN INCORPORATED comes to an end. This was a fun little anthology that gave us some cool stories. Chris Burnham needs to be given a MONTHLY BATMAN JAPAN title…just because it’s so much fun! Yeah I know: ANOTHER Bat Title? So cancel BATWING and give us this. And I don’t even READ BATWING. The Knight tale by Joe Keatinge and Emanuel Simeone is a nice way to pas the torch. The Raven Red was okay and highlighted by the art of John Paul Leon. The El Gaucho tale was also okay with a lot of action and some nice art from John Stanisci. The higghlight of the book had to be the adventure of Bat Cow by Dan Didio and Ethan Van Sciver. Six silent pages. Proof that Didio does his best work when he’s only has to write one line of dialogue: “MOO!”  

BATMAN SUPERMAN #3: We learn that the Earth Two Wonder Woman stabbed Lois Lane because Kaiyo the Trickster from Apokolips possessed her body. Kaiyo convinces Superman of Earth Two that Batman has the means to kill Superman if needed. The leads to a flashback where Clark and his family first met Alfred and Bruce. Going back to the present, which is actually the past, Superman finds the crystal he had knocked out of Batman’s hands. Apparently it comes from a government bunker studying it. The two Batmen attack the two Supermen and, in the process, our Batman and Superman learn each other’s secret identities. Kaiyo returns and tells them all that the weapon they want to destroy is the only weapon that can defeat Darkseid. 

I have total mixed feelings about this title. Jae Lee’s art is his usual great work but the story by Greg Pak makes me yearn for his HULK work. It is a confusing mess. We have the trinity from Earth 2 and the heroes of Earth Prime and unless you pay attention to the costume, it is extremely difficult to see who is who. And then we fill a good portion of the book with the first meeting of Bruce and Clark of Earth 2. It’s kind of weird and a little creepy and the fact that Clark and Bruce would spar without Clark killing him accidentally is hard to swallow. And this is all going to lead to a meeting with Darkseid? So, we certainly know where this falls in the timeline. And I really don’t care. Even with Scott Lobdell doing a smash up job(?) on the main Superman titles, I would take his titles over this in a heartbeat.

BATMAN THE DARK KNIGHT #23: At the Gotham Securities Exchange, Clayface manages to sneak in with a tour group and begins to short out the computers there, causing the market to immediately crash. Done with his crew, he then murders his henchmen and turns his attention to one witness. Just in time, Batman arrives and rescues her. Clayface pursues Batman who tries several times to use his new weapon on the villain but it doesn’t work. He needs it to create a complete seal, otherwise Clayface slips out. Batman ends up in Arkham where he questions Mad Hatter about who he told about his relationship with Natalya Trusevich but to no avail. Soon the Darek Knight is in Penguin’s bedroom who he accuses of hiring Clayface to make the market crash. Clayface attempts to steal some rare cat's eye diamonds, but Batman arrives. Actually several Batmen arrive, confusing the villain. Finally the real Batman flies overhead in the Batplane with the perfect ait tight container. The various Batmen were Jim Gordon and the rest of the GCPD. With Clayface in jail, Gordon knows it’s only a matter of time before Clayface finds a crack to slip through.

The concluding chapter in Gregg Hurwitz story is great with the shape changer being held in the ultimate trap. But if it cracks during the FOREVER EVIL story…?  Alex Maleev delivers some of his best work since DAREDEVIL and I could almost get used to him being the regular artist as I see Daredevil and batman as being cut from similar cloth. Next issue is part of VILLAINS MONTH and we get the origin of Clayface. I wonder which origin and which Clayface. It should be interesting…

BATWOMAN #23: Kate and Maggie Sawyer discuss the incident where Kate accidentally injected Maggie with Fear-Toxin. So Kate injects herself with it to see what Maggie went through. With Maggie waiting beside her, Kate rides out the violent hallucinations. When she awakens, she apologizes for hiding her true identity, promises to never cheat, never kill someone who wasn't going to kill her, and never hurt her daughter. Kate proposes for a second time and Maggie accepts. Meanwhile, Bette Kane watches her father interrogate a DEO Agent and decides to take a different approach to getting home to talk. After explaining what she believes will happen when Director Bones lets the people in Washington down. With that the Agent agrees to talk. Speaking of the DEO, Cameron Chase releases a whole batch of dangerous criminals, including bane, who she leaves in charge, as part of "Operation Batfrack".

J. H. Williams III and W. Hadem Blackman continue to build towards what is going to be an interesting war on the Bat. We get a boatload of trippy images during Kate’s psychotic reaction to the Fear Toxin, followed by a proposal and an acceptance. We get Bette using intellect to get info on the DEO versus her dad’s military tactics. And the fact that Bane is leading a team for Operation Batfrack (LOVE THE NAME!) is just scary wrong and so right! But I don’t like Trevor McCarthy’s art at all. It just is too formless as opposed to Williams’ wonderful style. This is the only negative I can find. This is still one of my favorite titles. As I have said before: she’s gay and you need to get past it to get to the heart of this book. Unfortunately DC seems to have issues as Williams and Blackman have announced that, because of issues with DC Editorial, they will be exiting this title as of issue #26. Guess who isn’t happy about this? 

BIRDS OF PREY #23: Basilisk has subdued the Birds and Uplink is feeding them all dreams that never happened. Condor dreams of he and Dinah falling in love with each other. Dinah dreams of Team 7’s encounter with the Pandora Box. In this dream, Kurt survives but he fades and turns into Condor. Barbara dreams of a happy family where her brother is sane and she gets accepted into the FBI. Strix dreams of her grandmother and how Mary tries to warn people about the balloon that explodes, killing everyone and burning her. Uplink’s control is weakened and soon the Birds, minus Condor and Black Canary who have already been shipped back to Tsiklon, wake. When Dinah wakes, she discovers that her Canary Cry won't work because her husband Kurt, who is supposed to be dead, is being held in a tube in the room with her.

So NOW we get some interesting stuff and we have to wait for the last THREE PAGES to get the big plot piece? We have an entire issue full of “would of, should of and could have” to get to the revelation the Kurt Lance is still alive. This is another issue of Christy Marx’ usually boring dialogue that I find myself having to struggle to get through. But Romeo Molenaar’s art is the BOMB!

CATWOMAN #23:  Catwoman and Princess Tinderbox are on their way to the land of the Warhogs to broker a peace that will allow Selina to find Rat-Tail. During their journey, Catwoman begins to be bothered by this cat that continues to follow them. As they get closer, the Warhogs attack. They are captured and brought inside, where they immediately receive a cleansing gas shower and meet the chief Warhog, who is developing bacteria that will help humanity survive a biological event. Convinced that this Bio-Toxin will eventually kill everybody in Gotham, she steals the test tube and uses it so she and Tinderbox can gain their escape. Unfortunately, the Joker’s Daughter and the strange cat are waiting for them. The Joker’s Daughter?

For the history impaired, the original Joker’s Daughter was Duela Dent, the biological child of Two-Face and Gilda Dent. She was a member of the Teen Titans and Titans East and certainly didn’t look like the Joker currently does. Perhaps she is wearing his face, as it did sort of float away at the end of the DEATH OF THE FAMILY storyline. The story is interesting, but Ann Nocenti’s dialogue, even with an assist from Scott McDaniel, is like something from a high school writing assignment…and one that probably got a C+. The bantering between Selina and her charge is ridiculous and it only gets worse when they arrive at Warhogs bunker. Rafa Sandoval’s art is consistently great and is the true high point of the issue.

CONSTANTINE #6: Constantine may soon be dead, especially since Lloyd called Zatanna and gets her answering machine. John is having an out of body experience and Chris is his tormentor, as he has been cutting deals with those on the Astral Plane to make Constantine’s life and afterlife a living hell. Constatine warms him that it’s not good to make deals with the spirits of the Cult. But he gets dragged away by the Cult's eliminators who warn Constantine that they will come for him when he truly dies. Meanwile, Tannarak learns of John’s impending death from Mister E and Sargon and sends cultists to the bar to finish the job. But they are halted by Lloyd and a rifle. When he runs out of bullets, Papa Midnite comes to his aide, because his man MopMop was corrupted and killed by the Cult. While Tannarak heads to Dotty's Pet store, Midnite uses his voodoo magic to bring John back to life. Unfortunately, Tannarak has found John’s secret room where all of the occult weapons and artifacts are hid.

Yeah…he’s pretty much screwed! Actually, not really. After all, he IS John Constantine. He could take a snake out of its’ skin while it’s still slithering. Ray Fawkes, with the artistic assist of Renato Guedes, has managed to quickly grasp the concept of the man and is doing a competent job of translating that to the NEW 52 Universe. I had pretty much written this book off with the first issues, but persistence does pay off as this book continues to get better in style and substance. And I REALLY LOVE Papa Midnite.

DEMON KNIGHTS #23: Despite the Shining Knight being healed and the Horsewoman getting her legs back, the Giants are bombing al-Wadi. Jason Blood goes back to Hell and unleashes the Demon Etrigan to help his fellow Knights battle the Giants. From a hot air balloon, al Jabr and his troops attack. And the prize of the Black Diamond gets knocked from his hands by Xanadu and in falls into the hands of the Giants who find themselves fighting over it. When all is said and done, Vandal Savage escapes and all of the Giants end up dead. Al Jabr takes the Black Diamond and locks it away with the Holy Grail, as they cancel each other out. This allows the Demon Knights to ride off into the sunset of future comicdom.

And thus ends one of the original NEW 52 titles which never really gained enough of a fan following to be a success. I personally was surprised it lasted this long. In the end, Robert Vendetti and Phil Winslade become the final creative team and bring the series to a satisfying conclusion for me. I’m sure many of these heroes will pop up again, especially Etrigan. You can’t keep a demon down this long. Personally, I would expect to see him pop up in JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK with his former team mate Xanadu. It was a sometimes fun and sometimes frustrating ride, but it will be missed.

DETECTIVE COMICS #23: We learn that the guy who got tossed out of The Wrath’s plane was a crook named Clyde Anderson who Batman had tried to mentor to three years ago. Batman also is pretty positive that E.D. Caldwell is The Wrath, although he has no solid proof. Bruce meets with Caldwell, which includes martial arts sparring during their negotiations. Caldwell has special video contact lenses that allow him to watch Alfred as he is going through Cladwell’s private armory. Excusing himself, Bruce takes a call from Alfred but it is cut short when the butler is suddenly caught and menaced by The Wrath himself, who announces he is coming for Batman next. In the back-up, we learn that Francine Langstrom married Kirk Langstrom because her employers at Caldwell Industries had instructed her to, along with making sure he completed his Atavistic Gene Recall Serum. After the serum got loose in Gotham, she realized the operation was compromised and developed her own formula, which is both addicting and turning her into a killer. Kirk tries to convince her to let him fix it, but she attacks him and flees.

John Layman and Jason Fabok continue to turn E.D. Caldwell and Caldwell Industries into a major player in the NEW 52 Gotham City. With plans to start a war while also trying to align himself with GCPD, this sly businessman is poised to become a major player in the Rogue’s Gallery. And, for once, I find myself a FAN of the back-up, as we finally get a resolution to the Man-Bat story and learn that Francine was just a hired hand sent by Caldwell to get the formula created and kill off her husband. Cold stuff! And not the Francine Langstrom from the old DCU where she was the loving concerned wife. I actually look forward to more of this story, especially if it’s by Layman and artist Andy Clarke.

DIAL H #15: Nelson and the Dial Bunch have finally made it to the Hub: where all realities connect through the Exchange. The Centipede is waiting for them, leading to attacks on him by Dwan, Nelson and Roxie. The Fixer arrives and he and the Centipede take off with Nelson. Roxie and the Dial Bunch find a section of the Hub where the wires are frayed and cut, allowing elements of an infinite number of worlds to arrive here. Nelson wakes up and is introduced to O, the Lost Operator. We learn that he has created a D-Dial, which destroys realities by randomly dialing up apocalypses. He dials and wipes out the reality of Metacastle. Fixer tells Nelson that O has promised the Centipede an E-Dial(for Evil). Fixer explains the true workings of The Hub and how people of various realities found their way to the Hub and that the Lost Operator nearly caused genocide with the Doom Dial. He broke time and sent Dials off to other realities, which the Fixer has sent a lifetime trying to retrieve, only to find that the Exchange tower fell only days after he left this world. Meanwhile, Open-Window Man gets inside and finds hundreds of dials inside. Roxie replaces her S-Dial with a flawless H-Dial that she can use to battle Centipede. The Fixer and Nelson team up to take down The Operator, while The Centipede cranks up his E-Dial. Nelson creates a mash-up hero with Chimney Lacrymose, which can’t be shut down by O, and continues to dial mash-ups. O dials a mash-up that is unrecognizable as any one thing and causes the Operator, the tower and Centipede to explode. Nelson, Roxie, and Open-Window Man decide to dial again to find their friends.

And so ends one of the most confusing titles in recent history. This book was so far out there it was truly destined to fail from the start. But somewhere down the road these characters will reappear in the NEW 52 DCU and someone might even declare this as one of the most underrated series ever. Credit to be given to DC for even attempting to find and audience, and to China Mieville and Alberto Ponticelli for sticking it out and turning out some amazing, if not bizarre, work.

EARTH 2 #15: The Flash, Wesley Dodds and his Sandmen have been knocked about by a battle with Steppenwolf’s Hunger Dogs, as have many of the other New Wonders. Green Lantern was trashed by Brutaal, Doctor Fate found himself defeated by Beguiler and The Atom was taken out by Bedlam, after he had been driven mad and taken out The Flash. While all this is going on, the World Army is getting ready to cross the Dherain border. In Casablanca, Hawkgirl continues her investigation into the death of Alan Scott's murdered fiancé. The trail leads her to the Double Zero Casino and a man named Darcy Twain, also known as Roger Sharpe and Hazard. In Gotham City, Scott Free and Barda are being attacked by Fury, who graduated from Granny Goodness’ finishing school with Barda. Scott steps in to help when a red robot calling itself Red Tornado Unit 1.3 interrupts telling all parties to yield to her by order of the World Army. 

Nicola Scott and Tervor Scott’s art is awesome! James Robinson’s story-not so much. I like that he is throwing in a bunch of Fourth World characters and has even reintroduced Red Tornado as the female she was back in the Golden Age of Earth 2. But the story is so disjointed right now with action in Dherain, at the Dherain border, in Casablanca and in Gotham City. So stories have one plotline that plods along. This one has four that will eventually all intersect. I hope that happens before Robinson bids farewell to this title and DC.

GREEN ARROW #23: The implant that gives Count Vertigo his powers has been taken out by one of Oliver’s EMP arrows. As one of Vertigo's doctors tries to repair it, the Count plots to recapture Oliver and Shado. Against doctor’s orders, he proceeds after them. Oliver is still reeling from the revelation that Emiko is NOT Komodo’s daughter but Shado’s by Robert Queen. Vertigo’s men arrive to attack and Shado takes them out of the picture quite quickly and handily. With the bad guys taken out, Shado explains how Komodo killed Robert Queen, and took Emiko from her. The pair had sought the ancient artifact known as the Green Arrow, which was also sought by The Outsiders. Lacroix killed Robert, who was his rival for leadership of the Arrow Clan. Count Vertigo attacks and Shado collapses, but recovers quickly. She kills off Vertigo's men and takes down Vertigo, telling him to tell Komodo that she is coming for him. In Hungary, Henry prepares to tell Naomi how he feels about her but she confesses her feelings for Oliver, crushing Henry. Meanwhile, Seattle Mob Boss Jimmy MacGowan finds that someone is killing off mob bosses. He gets tossed from an upper floor window by Richard Dragon, who plans to take control of everything in Seattle.

Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter, gets introduced into the NEW 52. Of course the Richard Dragon we knew was once Richard Drakunovski and trained Oracle, Huntress and The Question. But this one appears to be on the Dark Side, as the original character once was. Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino are making this title as fun as it has ever been. It is a far cry from where it started in the NEW 52 and, I would have to say, is truly being saved by the twists and turns Lemire is throwing in. I love the introduction of Shado and wonder how long before she and Ollie become a couple. Would that be weird? The mother of your half sister is your lover?

GREEN LANTERN #23: Hal mourns the fact that Lantern recruits have died battling Larfleeze and his Lanterns. And, making things worse, prisoner Prixiam Nol-anj has escaped, killed a Lantern guard and has become a Star Sapphire in the process. Hal goes after her and finds her on a barren world where she has reunited with members of The Clann. There is a battle and she manipulates him with his love for Carol Ferris. Suddenly, their rings cut out, only for a moment. He rushes off to try and save Carol as he has seen a vision of her and Kyle Rayner battling against Relic, even though his ring can no longer detect them.

I’m still trying to get used to the non Geoff Johns/Doug Mahnke version of GREEN LANTERN. Writer Robert Venditti is doing an adequate job, although I think he’s trying too hard to get Hal back into the driver’s seat and show some backbone. Hal, as of late, has become the Green Lantern we love to hate. Unfortunately, Hal is still hung up and his former lover and this will probably be his downfall. I ALMOST wish we had Sinestro back at the helm as you KNEW where his motives sat. Billy Tan’s art gets better with every issue, so that is a big plus here.

THE GREEN TEAM #4: Last issue, J.P. and Commodore unmasked Riot and left us in the air. We still don’t know as the team battles Riot and he rips Cecilia’s arm off. Riot wants Commodore's mecha-suit. He is soon captured and taken away while Riot’s clones continue to battle the remainder of the team. Riot is Commodore’s father and he takes his son to his hideout in France. Apparently Riot has infused the mecha-suits with nanites and that is helping to keep him alive. The rest of the team arrives just as Commodore’s suit dissolves his father. The issue ends with the team cemented together, even though the after effects on all of the team will remain.

I really wish I knew what Art Baltazar and Franco are trying to prove on this book. I don’t get it. I really don’t. We have a rag tag bunch of uninteresting characters brought together by common greed and then becoming superheroes because…? Again, I like Art and Franco’s work over the years, but I don’t understand where this book is going and give it another four to eight issues before DC drops the boom on it. And that you have to have three pencillers in the form of Ig Guara, Robson Rocha and Travis Moore to finish a book. My biggest gripe about the NEW 52 and many comics in general is that you cannot keep a team in place for more than an issue or two, if you’re lucky. WAY TOO MAY fill-in artists. I have done the rant before: where are the heroes of our comics past, who were drawing countless issues each and every month, when you need them? 

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #7: We begin with Lex Luthor’s lawyers telling him they may be able to get him out of prison. He is more concerned that someone set Superman up and it wasn’t him. Pandora arrives and thinks he may have the darkest heart to open her box. Meanwhile, Plastique infiltrates A.R.G.U.S. and places a device on Dr. Light’s body. In Pittsburgh, Doctgor Psycho is battling many of the Justice League members and Martian Manhunter manages to enter his mind. Psycho tells Manhunter that he was sent to Kahndaq by the Secret Society, but never received his orders. The Atom then confesses that she is a mole for the JLA, causing Superman to order them to head to A.R.G.U.S.  to question Amanda Waller. Elsewhere, part of Batman’s team is trying to get inside the House Of Mystery after The Phantom Stranger absconded with the other half. Catwoman asks the House to open its’ doors and it does. The Phantom Stranger's image appears in a window and explains how the team tried to interrogate Dr. Light’s soul in the afterlife and now the Stranger may not be able to return. He warns that Xanadu must be found as she knows the truth behind the box. Back at the prison, Pandora presents the box to Luthor, but Wonder Woman arrives and pulls Pandora away. The Amazon touches the box in the process and finds herself possessed by it. At A.R.G.U.S., the Secret Society detonates the device on Dr. Light's body and a massive explosion destroys the building and possibly all in it.

Geoff Johns, Jeff Lemire and Doug Mahnke bring us Chapter Four in this epic crossover which will lead into FOREVER EVIL. In its own weird way, this so reminds me of the old JSA/JLA team-ups of the Sixties and early Seventies. Only we don’t know who the real bad guys are that have been setting things in motion. Just who makes up the Secret Society? We now know Plastique is a member, or at least a hired gun. But who are the rest of this Super team. Maybe we will even get to see the old Legion of Doom headquarters! And, just because this is all about spoilers, get ready for JUSTICE LEAGUE CANADA as the JLA team will end up folding after FOREVER EVIL and relocate to the Great White North.

JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #23: The aftermath of the last chapter is felt. Back at what is left of A.R.G.U.S., the search for survivors begins. In Luthor’s prison cell, Wonder Woman is possessed by Pandora’s Box until it is freed from her and it possesses Shazam, turning him into an evil version of himself. The evil influence makes its’ way through the assembled heroes, moving to Frankenstein and others until it ends up in the hands of John Constantine, who joins hands with Zatanna and transports to the Temple of Hephaestus in Greece. It seems that Madame Xanadu is trapped in a bunker beneath the site. Batman’s team arrives as Madame Xanadu explains that Pandora’s Box is not a prison but a doorway. And that is when a strange thin man, who we have seen before, arrives and tells all that it is time to open the doorway. 

Jeff Lemire and Mikel Janin bring us the penultimate chapter in the TRINITY WAR crossover and it looks like the mystery is revealed. The doorway will lead to another Earth, because obviously two is not enough. Here we see someone who looks like an alternate reality version of Alfred Pennyworth promising to open the door. Does the arrival of super humans from another world signal the “death” of our heroes or will they just end up on said Earth and leave the super humans to run rampant? Read JUSTICE LEAGUE #23 to find the answers and then prepare for VILLAINS MONTH.

JUSTICE LEAGUE #23: Apparently when the Justice League fought Darkseid five years ago, it weakened the boundaries between universes and allowed two people to escape their world. One of those was a man known as The Outsider, who built the Secret Society and put a mole within one of the Leagues. He arranged to frame Superman for murder and blame it on Pqandora’s Box. At the Temple of Hephaestus, all the Leaguers decide they want the box, which Madame Xanadu has revealed is a doorway to another world, for them. The craziness concludes with Superman, convinced that Wonder Woman and Batman are having an affair, attacking them and knocking the box away. It momentarily shuts down and the influence fades. Firestorm and Element Woman find out that Superman is suffering from Kryptonite poisoning because of a sliver of it inside his brain. The Atom quickly admits that she did it at the exact moment Dr. Light was murdered. Cyborg accuses her of being a traitor and she accuses him of being the same, at which point his metal form rips away from him and reveals itself as Grid. The Outsider arrives and picks up the box which had been created on his world and placed here. It could only be open4d by someone from his world-the birthplace of evil. Declaring that the butler did it, he opens the portal and a version somewhat like Aquaman emerges and falls to the ground, dead. Xanadu realizes the "Trinity" she had envisioned was actually the number three, as in Earth Three. Meet the evil versions of the Justice League: the Crime Syndicate. And they are prepared to conquer the world.

No real commentary needed for this. This issue had everything you could want in a concluding cliff-hanger! The villains are revealed! Earth 3 is here! The traitor is revealed! Earth 3 is here! Cyborg is pretty much reduced to what is left of his human self. Did I mention Earth 3 is here? Sorry-fanboy here!!! I cannot wait for FOREVER EVIL and VILLAINS MONTH. This could define where the NEW 52 goes from here.