ACTION COMICS #34: Chapter One of DOOMED: LAST SUN. In Gotham City, Red Hood, Roy and Starfire are rescuing civilians from Brainiac’s invasion but the psychic energy is so strong, they fall under Brainiac’s control. Soon Brainiac affects Luthor and Batman begs Superman to get out of range before he is under control too. Instead, he tries to rescue Baka, who also falls under the control of Brainiac. Lois reaches out to Martian Manhunter for help, and he and Lois join Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman in the Fortress. Superman and J'onn fly to the sun allowing the Man of Steel to absorb the solar energy and manages to open a portal to the Phantom Zone. Brainiac destroys the Justice League Satellite and the mothership is on course to collide with Earth. And the Fortress-it’s being attacked by escapees from the Phantom Zone.
Greg Pax and Aaron Kuder ratchet up the tension and excitement in this episode. Pak’s writing gets better and better and Kuder is hitting his stride with some of the best art of his career. This is the shot in the arm this title, and this character, needed to elevate from where it was.
SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN #11: Chapter Two of DOOMED: LAST SUN. Having escaped the Phantom Zone, Non and Mongul plan on attacking Earth. Martian Manhunter tries to locate the minds of Lana Lang, Steel and Cyborg, who were inside the justice League Satelite when it exploded. He and Superman attack the Brainiac constructs that are trying to assimilate the trio. Cyborg suggests that Lana and Steel get taken back to Earth while he uses the shuttle to self-repair. Unfortunately, Brainiac takes him over too. Wonder Woman enters the Phantom Zone portal to ask Mongul for help. She promises Mongul and Non that, if they help her, she will return War World to them. If that weren’t bad enough, Superman considers unleashing the Doomsday Virus to defeat Brainiac.
Things look pretty grim for our heroes, especially with plans in motion and deals in play. Seriously: what is Wonder Woman thinking to turn War World back to two of the baddest of the bad? And Superman: is he that desperate that he is prepared to unleash the beast from within? Charles Soule and Thony Silas do an excellent job here as the story is filled with questions and the art completely fits the mood. This storyline is barreling towards what may be a bitter end for someone in the Superman Mythos.
SUPERGIRL #34: Chapter Three of DOOMED: LAST SUN. Supergirl crashes into the apartment of a wheelchair bound boy named Michael. He explains to her how Superman turned into Doomsday and that there was a Kryptonite bomb dropped to stop him. He explains how he loss the use of his legs and how he hasn’t seen his mom and dad since everything that happened in metropolis. She promises to try to find them and does, bringing them to the hospital. She returns to Michael, gives him the goods news and they kiss. Then suddenly everybody in Queens finds themselves affected by Brainiac. When she looks into space, she sees the Cyborg Superman exiting Brainiac’s ship.
Tony Bedard and Karl Moline bring us the penultimate chapter in Last Sun. I’m sorry: I am not a fan of this book, normally don’t read it and the only thing exciting about this issue is the interracial kiss. Actually, just the kiss was cool and the interracial thing would only have been a big deal if this was in 1968. The art is okay and the story…well-like I said-I don’t read the book and really don’t care. This was a three dollar waste for me.
To be concluded in SUPERMAN DOOMED #2
Thursday, September 25, 2014
Tuesday, September 9, 2014
NEW 52 Month 33, Part 2
JUSTICE LEAGUE #33:Tune in next month, as DC ships #33 and issue #34
JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #33: Boston Brand shares a spectral kiss with Nightmare Nurse and ends up at Nanda Parbat. Sort of. He steps forward and falls to the floor of the kitchen in the House of Mystery. Zatanna, Asa, and Constantine use a spell to find Nanda Parbatto goes bad and, because of a spell around it, they cannot find it. Dejected, Deadman leaves the House and finds himself inside a circus tent where he recalls his life as a performer. But Brahma Dass arrives and transports him back to the ruins in the Himalayas. For him to get there, he needs to ride there on the back of a dragon and, upon arriving, is greeted by strange blue-skinned people who claim they have been living in his consciousness. They transform into a strange creature and call themselves Pantheon. The team arrives in Nanda Parbat and are attacked by the Pantheon. Meanwhile, Boston Brand wakes up in pain. Because Boston Brand is alive once more.,
J.M. DeMatteis, with art this month by Andres Guinaldo, turns in a bit of a sluggish issue this time. Oh, let’s go back to Nanda Parbat is like sending Dorothy and company back to Oz. Oh, that’s right: she did. Well, those read much better than this. And Boston Brand becoming human again is no big deal. We saw that happen in Pre-New 52 contiguity before. So, overall, this one gets a yawn and a trip to the stack of comics to be filed. Hopefully, next issue will be better. You come off a great run and now this.
JUSTICE LEAGUE 3000 #8: The team is back at Cadmus and find out that Firestorm has betrayed them and led them straight into a trap. Later, Ariel and Terry have dinner together, reminding her that he has already killed The Flash, his sister and the entire Cadmus staff. He tells her that she must agree to continue her work or he will continue to kill and revive the heroes. Reluctantly, she agrees. Meanwhile, Locus and Convert explore the DNA vaults, which contains samples of almost every superhero who has ever lived. Locus gets annoyed by Convert’s concern about the “obsession with Green Lantern” and explodes Convert-at least one of Convert’s bodies. Green Lantern has managed to use his powers to mess with Cadmus’ Security system so Terry will only get to see and hear what Lantern WANTS him to see which will allow them to walk out unnoticed. Ariel, it seems, has resurr3ected Teri and made her into...the NEW Flash!
Wow! Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis and Howard Porter continue to create possibly my favorite oddball Justice League title since the “Formerly Known as” version. Porter’s art is quirky enough to work and the tag team of Giffen and DeMatteis just really writes it with such flair that it makes it hard for me NOT to love it! This is, if not my favorite book of the most recent new titles, is pretty much tied with HARLEY QUINN.
JUSTICE LEAGUE UNITED #3: In Moosonee, Miiyahbin wakes in a cave as an older man, who claims to be one of “The Seven”, tells her she needs to help herself to free herself and then transforms into the Whitago. Meanwhile, Alanna along with the rest of the Justice League, Supergirl AND Lobo, arrive in the Rannian desert. They realize something is going on in the capital involving the baby and Byth. Supergirl punches Lobo into space as Alanna disappears and is replaced by Adam Strange before switching again. Alanna begins to be in pain because of a problem with the Zeta Beam, so Sardath sends her back to Earth. Half the team stays with him as he works on the beam and the other half seeks out Ultra and Byth. Hawkman has Sardath get the Zeta Core to him and he flies it as far away as he can before it explodes. J'onn, Supergirl, and Star Girl arrive with Supergirl carrying Byth off so Martian Manhunter and Star-Girl can try to relate to the child, who embraces J’onn. Lobo catches and runs Supergirl down in a car, which lets him escape with Byth. Supergirl retrieves Hawkman's dead body and heads back to Rangar.
Three issues in and I still find myself sitting on the fence with this book. The characterizations are not what I would expect from Jeff Lemire and the art by Mike McKone is not what I would call his best. Don’t get me wrong: I love the mix of characters on this team. But the whole thing just seems…boring! And can we decide what Lobo is the REAL LOBO? I believe the arc ends with issue #4 or #5. I will at least give it until there to decide if it makes the cut.
NEW 52 FUTURE’S END #9-12: In issue #9, Lois Lane goes to the Indian Ocean, following what she believes are map coordinates. Finding nothing, she heads home, not realizing that Cadmus Island has been hidden by magic. On that island, Slade Wilson tells Cole Cash that he and Fifty Sue kill people that King Faraday wants killed. And they also want Cole to find them as many super-humans as possible. He leads Cole to a prison filled with superhumans from Earth 2. At the Metropolis Armory Ward, Madison Payne is visiting her father when Rampage breaks out Ethan Boyer and knocks her down in the process. Superman arrives and attacks Rampage. She grabs Madison and throws her into the air, forcing Superman to save her and allowing Rampage and Boyer to get away. At Terrifitech, Mister Terrific is continues to examine the cyborg he recovered after his attack on the Batman of the future. A.L.F.R.E.D. tells Terry McGinnis he needs to break into Terrifitech and Terry thinks that means teaming up with a group already planning to do that. Off in the Huron System, Ray Palmer attaches Hawkman's arm to Frankenstein. Unfortunately, Hawkman is not dead and not happy about it. He is even more upset when he learns that the rest of Stormwatch was killed. Meanwhile, Father Time watches his agents and gets ready for what he knows is coming.
In issue #10, Superman continues to search for Ethan Boyer in one of the labs that Boyer had abandoned. He finds Lois there who reminds him that he had already told her the lab was abandoned. He flies off and Lois continues to doubt he is truly who she thought he was. At the Wounded Duck, Terry tells Coil, Plastique, and Key that he is the new Batman and he wants to join them on the break into Terrifitech. Key remains suspicious and Terry knocks him out with a variation of the Tonga Death Strike. Cal Corcoran advises him that he knows what that was and the person who came up with this version. Later, Cal finds Madison searching through his drawers looking for evidence that he was Red Robin. He denies it and gives her a necklace. Off in the Huron System, Hawkman's arm has healed, mourns for the rest of Stormwatch who had been killed and promises revenge. Just then, Hawkman's Stormwatch communicator goes off meaning there is a chance one of his teammates survived. On Cadmus Island, Cole nearly gets beaten to death by an OMAC wearing a cloaking device. At the homeless shelter in Vancouver that she works at, Jane Kirby is approached by Emiko. She claims she knows who she is and she needs her to be that hero. She needs her to be Barda.
In issue #11, Justin, Cole Cash's tech support, pays a visit to Voodoo, who has just killed a pair of robbers. In the Huron System, Frankenstein, Amethyst, and Hawkman are on a search and rescue mission for his missing Stormwatch teammates. Amethst relates the tale of the fall of Gemworld and their ship ends up in a huge metal dish on a planet where they believe they may be. Michael Holt goes on live television and claims that the future Batman is an invader. Meanwhile, a cargo ship in the Madagascar Sea is attacked by a strange being, killing every one on board. The Justice League has teleported Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch to them. Ronnie finally admits that he is responsible for not getting to Seattle in time to save Green Arrow. Ronnie harbors bad feelings because he was told to save New York and Washington and his home in Pittsburgh was attacked. He and Jason leave, telling the team to find someone else to replace them.
In issue #12, Hawkman, Amethyst, and Frankenstein are attacked by an army of robots led by Stormwatch’ Engineer. King Faraday and Deathstroke go to Baltimore to visit a Mercy: a woman he hopes to recruit to go to Cadmus Island. After being grazed by a bullet from Slade, she throws them out. Not long after, she gets a call from Voodoo, who is still in New Jersey with Justin. She tells her that location is compromised and to meet up with the twins at the safehouse. Then Voodoo contacts someone else and is put on hold while the friend defends herself from some attackers. In Metropolis, Ethan promises to use the equipment he stole to turn Rampage back to normal. In actuality, the device is designed to make her more violent and he leaves as the lab explodes with her still inside. Segueing thirty years into the future, Brother Eye force-feeds the Joker before being escorted through Arkham by Frankenstein. When he enters the room he is led to, he is surprised to find Batman being kept alive and begins to laugh uncontrollably.
Love the book or hate it, you have to admit the creative team is being extremely adventurous. Brian Azzarello, Keith Giffen, Dan Jurgens and Jeff Lemire provide the story while Patrick Zircher, Aaron Lopresti, Georges Jeanty, and Jesus Merino handle the artwork. Even if this ends up being a tale that will have no bearing in the New 52 Universe, I am finding it a ball to see how the pieces come together. And DC is banking on it too. The entire month of September is all about FUTURE’S END.
NEW SUICIDE SQUAD #1: Amanda Waller is out and Vic Sage is in charge. Waller is working at a new version of Belle Reve and IS still in charge, but not with the tight reigns she once had. Bitter, she hopes the first mission is a failure, which will result in Sage being disgraced. She is suspicious that he may be looking to replace Deadshot and Harley, as he has added Deathstroke and Joker’s Daughter. Neither of them are Belle Reve prisoners and don’t have the explosive devices implanted.
The team is in Moscow where Deathstroke has to restrain Harley Quinn from attacking Duela. Their mission is to destroy the twenty-sixth floor of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and assassinate an oil executive. When they get to the twenty-sixth floor, they are attacked by an unknown military team.
Sean Ryan and Jeremy Roberts bring us the NEW Suicide Squad. Wait: didn’t DC JUST CANCEL SUICIDE SQUAD? Okay, so I guess this is a reboot of the team. And to be honest, I don’t get it. Okay, I GET the reboot but the whole idea of RENUMBERING the book based on a change of creative team and cast members-that I don’t get! With that gripe out of my system, let’s just say that I like the way the first issue is going, especially with the warring factions of Deathstroke/Deadshot and Harley/Duela. This could be a lot of fun once it gets rolling. Like all new issues, I’ll wait and see.
RED HOOD AND THE OUTLAWS #33: We begin with Starfire freeing herself from Eseru Prime, where she was traded as a slave. Then she decides to free her fellow captives with the help of the starship Starfire: Depalo and Kitt’n. Then she spends years on her “Goodwill Tour”, which acted as a cover for her underground railroad. Today, she has headed off as the spaceship that arrived at the Ant Farm is filled with dead slaves who were searching for her. Dr. Kirk Langstrom takes issue with Roy and Jason’s attitudes towards him and turns into Man Bat. Meanwhile, Kori has arrived in Abu Dhabi where aliens are hiding under cover as humans. This leads to a battle the Kori may not be able to win.
Scott Lobdell and RB Silva give us an issue of mostly back story and what I like to think of as filler. Okay, we get Starfire’s origin piece here. But, haven’t I read this before? The origin, I mean. Didn’t I read this recently, the whole idea of being sold into slavery and all. I sure did: SECRET ORIGINS #2. This follows up on what happened AFTER or somewhere in between AND AFTER? Either way, it looked pretty and that was about it for me. Although the Man Bat appearance was pure gold!
RED LANTERN #33: Guy Gardner is drinking with John Stewart at the Formgalt Trading Outpost and asks for his help with “everything”. They proceed to have a long talk about what is going good and bad in their lives. Eventually, everything means helping each other out in a typical fight in the bar. Meanwhile, Bleez is desperate to help Rankorr and, to feed him, she cuts herself open so he can feast on her blood. Zox calls for Skallox to come help but Skallox has joined up with Atrocitus on Skallox’s old homeworld Styge Prime. Skallox has confessed that Gardner knows how to track him and Atrocitus answers by creating a blood lake on this new homeworld.
Charles Soule and Alessandro Vitti continue their epic journey through the troubling world of the Red Lanterns. And this whole thing seems to be a mess. Not the story or the art, mind you. I mean the Lanterns themselves are a hot mess! Two factions and they all have so much drama within them they should have a reality show. This is Chapter Two of the confrontation with Atrocitus. Part Three is in…
RED LANTERNS ANNUAL #1: Atrocitus and his Lanterns launch an attack on various cities across Earth. When they are finished, he addresses the world and offers up a seemingly unlimited number of Red Lantern rings. While numerous people on the planet begin wreaking havoc with their anger and their new powers, Guy and his Lanterns arrive to begin mopping up, cleaning up and, with heroes such as Batman and Supergirl, ending the crisis. Meanwhile, Zilius Zox and Bleez launch their own attack on Atrocitus’ Lanterns, including blowing up the new Blood Lake. But Atrocitus has a secret weapon in Rankorr, who is being mind-controlled by a creature that has been implanted within him. He confronts Zox and punches through his head, effectively killing him. Rankorr removes the creature within him and destroys it, before mourning over his fallen comrade, who has a positive message to bring back to Guy. With his last dying breaths, Zox steers his “good ship” into the new Blood Lake, destroying it. Bleez gets captured but Guy and Supergirl arrive to free her and causing Atrocitus to retreat. But he isn’t done as he has thousands of Red Lanterns ready to fight for him.
So the road to the final battle for control of the Red Lanterns begins here and now with the third chapter in this storyline. Charles Soule’s writing is excellent, as usual while Miguel Sepulveda handles the art chores. And the book looks AWESOME! As much as I am a fan of Alessandro Vitti, Sepulveda has a nice clean style that just pops off the page! Enjoy Soule’s work now because he has recently signed an exclusive deal with marvel. The bad news: he will be departing this title and SWAMP THING. The good news? He won’t be leaving until he finishes the arcs he is currently working on. So have no fear: you won’t get a writer jumping into the pool mid-story
SECRET ORIGINS #4: In the first story, we see Harleen Quinzel, the oldest of four kids and the only girl, growing up in Brooklyn. She grew up wanting to be a criminal psychologist. One night at a Halloween party she meets and begins crushing on a boy named Bernie, who asks her who she would kill if she had the chance. She points out a girl at the party who had bullied her and says she would throw her into the front of a Mack truck. To prove his love for her, he threw the bully in front of a Mack truck. After his trial, she broke into his parent’s house and stole a memento: a stuffed beaver. After a year, he was stabbed to death in juvenile detention. She went to Gotham University on a scholarship, graduated at the top of her class eventually took a job at Arkham. She convinced the warden to let her try an experiment and began to dress like the inmates. She met The Joker, fell for him and eventually, after the warden got killed, escaped with him. He took her to the Ace Chemical Processing Plant and tossed her into a vat of chemicals, changing her to his bleached skinned sidekick. Eventually, they went their separate ways and had their own misadventures.
In the second story, we see Oliver Queen as a child being told by his father to never give up and never stop fighting. As he grew older, he learned to never quit but also learned that he could get by on his name and family fortune. While partying on one of Queen Industries’ oil rigs, some of father’s enemies attacked. Oliver ended up getting knocked into the ocean and found himself stranded on a desert island. There, he was captured by mercenaries and tortured, before breaking free and killing their leader. Having survived, he flagged down a ship and escaped the island. Arriving home, he took the skills he learned and became Green Arrow and, through Qcorp, he was able to take the profits and fund his secret identity, along with John Diggle and Naomi Singh.
In the third story, set after Batman died, Damian decided to go on patrol by himself. Alfred gets Nightwing involved and tells him of Damian’s history. Batman and Talia al Ghul fell into what appeared to be love and had a child. Talia raised Damian and trained him to eventually become part of the League of Assassins. Over time, she decided to introduce her son to his father, who took a disliking to him. But just when they were beginning to connect, Batman was gone. Alfred gave Damian a letter from Batman telling his son he had earned what came next. He discovered a Robin uniform made just for him and went out on patrol with the new Batman, Dick Grayson. In actuality, Alfred had written the letter because he knew that Gotham would always need Batman and a Robin.
I am still uncertain about whether this title is worth five dollars a month from out of my comic budget but this issue was better than most that came before it. The first story by Jimmy Palmiotti, Amanda Conner and Stéphane Roux was the highlight, as it filled in details and was by MOST of the creative team (Roux has done fill-in work for Chad Hardin). The second tale, by Jeff Lemire and comic legend Denys Cowan didn’t really add a lot of new information as we knew, if you have read Lemire’s run on GREEN ARROW, that Oliver was a spoiled brat set up to survive by his father. The last story by Peter J. Tomasi and Ian Bertram also tread upon familiar grounds, except for the “Alfred letter”. Batman ALWAYS needs a Robin. So…who do YOU think it will be?
SINESTRO #4: Sinestro and the Yellow Lanterns are battling the Paling when Sinestro begins to hallucinate that Hal Jordan taking everything he ever had in his life that was good: fame, his daughter and his team. He manages to overcome the hallucinations and defeats the Paling, going so far as to kill their defeated leader. His daughter criticizes him for this while another member of the team thinks he and she should go to bed to celebrate the victory. Sinestro makes his way into the Paling’s ship, investigates their plans, and orders his team to free the slaves and destroy the ship. But the action is far from over as Sinestro runs into the real Hal Jordan and it appears that the two of them have to have a talk.
I really think, at this point, the only reason I still read this is because Rags Morales is illustrating it. I don’t say “drawing it” because it doesn’t look drawn. I believe that is due to Jason Wright’s coloring technique on it. Anyway, I always liked Sinestro as a character, be it good or bad. But this Sinestro is just boring! His team has no depth and his daughter-she is the only one with half a brain. The great mission to save Sinestro’s people has become just a poorly devised sub-plot for something bigger that I don’t care about. Thanks Colin Bunn! I am hoping the next issue will at least conclude this storyline and allow me to read the FUTURE’S END one shot and be done.
STAR SPANGLED WAR STORIES #1: At a bar in Mississippi, Tiff and a local named Duke are playing pool and she mentions that she was in prison because of her special skills. Duke’s friends come in and tell him they have caught FBI agent. She joins the others to interrogate him and cuts off his hands when he resists. Then she takes the gun from Duke and puts three bullets into the agent’s head. She dumps the body in her trunk and leaves. She takes the body to her motel room and unwraps it. G.I. Zombie says she's supposed to be Carmen King. As he reattaches his hands, we discover that she had been assigned to work with him by the D.O.D. She tells him not to leave the room and she goes to bed. But as soon as she falls asleep, he leaves and finds his way to a nearby gas station. There he sees a couple arguing and the abusive husband attacks his wife. G. I. Zombie, whose name is Jared, attacks, ripping an arm off the father and biting his throat. He tells the mother and her daughter to escape as he drags the father into the woods to continue his feed. The next morning, Carmen and Jared head off on their mission and Carmen hits a deer and then a tree. Jared allegedly takes the deer back to its’ mother. When he returns, he has Carmen follow him to the farm they believe the cache of stolen guns are being kept in. There they discover that Duke and his gang have more than stolen guns-they have Patriot Missiles too.
Okay, so when you are a SUBWAY spokesperson and diet too much, I guess you become G.I. Zombie. This is one totally weird title which I am sure will end up being like most of the other weird titles that DC has introduced in the NEW 52: it will get cancelled. Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray and Scott Hampton gives us a creepy, very strange and very troubling title. There are elements of torture, dismemberment, cannibalism, voyeurism and a fair amount of blood. Beneath a Darwyn Cooke cover, this title will be talked about for some time. Good thing Frederick Wertham isn’t around anymore.
SUPERMAN #33: We begin with Perry White teeing off on Lois Lane about letting another newspaper get the first story about the new Superman and Jimmy Olsen for not getting a good picture. Clark Kent arrives and shows Perry and article that he had written two decades ago about the Ulysses Research Lab. Perry believes Clark knows more than he is sharing and offers to tell him everything about the disaster at the lab if the Planet gets the story first. Perry reveals that an accident occurred when they broke into the second dimension and killed many of the people in the lab. It was shut down and buried. Their conversation ends when Ulysses arrives for his interview with Clark. Clark explains about the whole secret identity thing . Ulysses claims he was sent as a child from a dying world. His parents, Peter and Bridget Quinn, left him a journal explaining they had no choice but to send him to another dimension for his own survival. Through this journal, he had believed that Earth had been destroyed. Superman heads to the remains of the lab but leaves Ulysses at his apartment. Although he had been told to stay there, Ulysses dons some of Clark’s clothing and ventures out. An explosion occurs and he vows to destroy the mechanical men who threaten Metropolis. Superman comes back to Metropolis to remind Ulysses that he was to stay in the apartment and not cause so much damage. But the good news is that Peter and Bridget Quinn survived the lab explosion and soon the son is reunited with his parents. Meanwhile, a cloaked figure watches and muses how Superman will be alone for a long time to come.
I had really high hopes as I started this issue and then it all went flat! What happened? Perry being Perry again and ripping new ones to his star players was classic Perry White. Clark getting back into the Planet, albeit briefly, and getting the full story on the Lab explosion had be wanting more. We get Ulysses origin and that kept me intrigued. And then it became a comedy of cliches as Ulysses attracts the eyes of some pretty girls, eats a steak and doesn’t pay and then trashes Metropolis while trying to save it. You would think he was a member of the Fantastic Four! So Superman comes home, berates him a bit and then gives him the good news. There is a warm and fuzzy reunion between Ulysses and his parents and then Clark gets bummed and some creepy guy spies on him. Wow: really thought I would get more from Geoff Johns and John Romita Jr.
SWAMP THING #33: Swamp Thing gets into it with Lady Weeds, who he believes may be trying to betray him. The Wolf reminds Alec that it is his fault that Brother Jonah, Lady Weeds and himself have been brought here when their paradise was destroyed. He then suggests that Alec check on how healthy the Green is and he soon realizes that plants all over the world over are dying. Leaving a small piece of himself here, he goes off to investigate. Lady Weeds complains to Wolf that almost got her sent back and he explains that it is not easy to plot the downfall of the most powerful being on the planet. He also explains he has a plan to remove Capucine but it will permanently alter Lady Weeds' form. It seems Wolf is responsible for upsetting the balance of the Green. Meanwhile, Alec’s only allies, Jonah, Capucine, and Guarav discuss situations and Capucine admits that she is dying. One of Wolf’s agents returns and Wolf demands to know how Alec was killed. The agent returns the fee he was paid saying the Avatar was too powerful. Later that night, Jonah, for the first time in 800 years, shares a bed with Capucine, when they hear a noise from Wolf's room. He goes to check on it but, when he opens the door, he becomes horrified, and then has his stomach sliced open.
I will truly miss Charles Soule when he leaves this title. Swamp Thing has been torn apart and tossed around like he was in the good old days of this title and this is probably the most faithful characterization of almost any NEW 52 hero. Javier Pina’s artwork is totally fitting of the look and the feel and the supporting cast has depth, both on their good sides and their bad. This is a great title and, if you need to, go out and buy the TPB of the early issues and add this to your pull lists.
TEEN TITANS #1: This issue begins with a masked terrorist and his gang, as they have kidnapped a school bus filled with students from the Saint Sebastian Preparatory School of Wilmington, Delaware. Her manifesto is rather unusual. It sounds as if she want S.T.A.R. Labs to stop work on their newest projects. Either way, they are planning on killing their passengers-live for the whole world to see on every piece of mobile electronics they own. Luckily, the Teen Titans, all of whom are connected to the World Wide Web through their mobile devices, steps in to save the day. Later, at S.T.A.R. Labs Phase 2, which is still under construction, the lead terrorist kills a guard and declares that this is “not over, not yet.”
Well, THAT left a lot to be desired. Will Pfeifer and Kenneth Rocafort resurrect a series that just got cancelled by Dc not that long ago. But, despite that, here it is again in all its’ glory. NOT! I am not a huge fan of Rocafort work, but it’s okay hgere. My biggest issues are with the concept itself. We have Red Robin(Yum!), Wonder Girl, Raven, Bunker and Beast Boy saving a bunch of school girls in New York. That is not the problem, although it totally felt like SPEED 3 was being created. What I have a problem with is this book is all about being superheroes in the day of the mobile device. The cover looks like the screen of any cell or tablet, complete with pseudo image blocks so our heroes can be tagged, which they are. There are mock pop-up ads and a search bar for “Chirper”. They see the incident happen live on line and they communicate with the devices. And, at the end of the day, the world is watching with their cell phones, transmitting pictures and videos at the speed of light around the world. If this is going to be a statement about technology and the responsibility of using it properly, consider me out. Although I have a feeling I want to know who the masked terrorist is and am guessing it’s someone we know.
TRINITY OF SIN PANDORA #13: Giganta demands that Agent Kincaid reverse the damage to Pandora's healing ability or else, so she does. Flashing back to 1800 BCE, Pandora is having her friend Markos create the weapons she needs. His forge gets attacked Wrath and is killed in the process. Pandora took his body to an oracle and she learned how to burn his body so that he would be reincarnated, warning that every time he is brought back, he will suffer a similar fate. And it did. In Thailand in 600 CE, Mongkut taught her how to use a silk scarf as a deadly weapon. Not long after, he was killed. In present day, Pandora explains that she needs to catch her friend Marcus' spirit in a mystic flame. Kincaid agrees to help build the pyre for Marcus and tells Pandora her real name is Jennifer. As the pyre begins, she sees that he is going to be reborn in Okinawa, Japan. A group of Vampires and their leader sees that the pyre has been lit and he promises to drain the city of Baltimore. Kinkaid gets words of the impending vampire attack and suggests that now is the time for Pandora and Giganta to prove themselves.
Ray Fawkes and Francis Portela, along with artist Tom Derenick have finally given us some information we can use and a bunch of characters we can truly like. Pandora has stepped out from her early cardboard being to become a real character. We now see the connection between her and Marcus and how they have done the dance for thousands of years. Agent Kinkiad, working for S.H.A.D.E. or not, has grown from a bad-ass Pandora hunter to a true defender of the Earth. And Gigant? Who would have thought that this worn-out character of a villain would suddenly gain new life in this book. Oh please: let these three dire on together in the new TRINITY OF SIN title. That alone would make me want to buy the book.
TRINITY OF SIN THE PHANTOM STRANGER #21: The Phantom Stranger, who carries with him the dead body of Phillip Stark, pays Chris the Redeemer a visit. Together, they journey to the Temple of Absolution so the Redeemer can work his miracles while The Stranger goes back to New York to visit Terrence Thirteen and find that Zauriel is dead. Soon everyone in the room is transported to Empyrea to give the angel a proper funeral. After an unearthly funeral pyre, we all learn that Zauriel was The Stranger’s personal angel, from the time before his betrayal of the Lamb until now . It also seems that Zauriel can be saved if a human champion fights for him. Thirteen volunteers and goes up against The Cursed in a battle he cannot possibly win. But before they can rip him to shreds, The Stranger intervenes and saves him In the end, it looks like The Stranger is going to have to fight God to win the soul of Zauriel.
J. M. DeMatteis and Fernando Blanco prepares for this book’s death knell as The Stranger fights for the soul of his personal angel. My issue with this book, which I think has been my problem all along, is that The Phantom Stranger was always like a low key version of The Spectre: ready to meet out vengeance, but in a nice way. This Stranger is wishy-washy. One minute, he’s a tough fighter for those weaker than he and the next-he’s whiny mystical figure wanting to make up for his betrayal over two thousand years ago. We all get that he’s Judas and we all get the concept of redeeming himself. But grow a set!
WONDER WOMAN #33: The First Born has captured Wonder Woman and wants her to join him. Back on Paradise Island, Orion becomes angered when he discovered that Diana has been abandoned by her companions. He decides he needs to take over but Hera grabs him and warns him that he must obey the judgment of the Amazons. That night, Themyscira is attacked by the First Born's war machines. Aleka, as much as she is against it, finally accepts offer to aid in the battle. The First Born sends Cassandra and the Minotaur to even the odds. Goading Diana and telling her all will die if she doesn’t join him, he shoves a spike into her side and tells her she can watch all she loves die as she dies alone. Orion attacks the minotaur only to be gored. The First Born arrives and orders his creatures to kill everyone. Aleka has moved the Amazons into amphitheater which Cassandra has surrounded. She is felled by a spear and now Zola and Zeke are unprotected. As she seemingly dies, Zeke's power is reborn and Hippolyta, the stone queen of the Amazons, becomes their leader once more.
And the race to the end of Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang’s run on this title is truly a race to the finish line. This book has turned on or turned away more fans than I can remember in recent memory. Personally, I think it is one of the more creative titles out there. For the haters, you only have a short wait until someone else jumps on(issue #36). For the lovers, prepare to mourn and hold your breath that this new creative team (Meredith Finch and David Finch) will deliver. And based on who it is, I would say there is a 50/50 chance that it will deliver.
WORLDS’ FINEST #25: This is the point where Karen and Helena realize it will be their last night on THIS Earth. So Karen decides to go spend her night at various going away parties while Helena will spend the evening alone. One of Karen’s lawyers interrupts to inform her that her will has been changed, per her request with everything being left to Tanya Spears. She then hands him a quantity of letters to be delivered to people close to her only is she doesn’t come back. DeSaad tries to sneak up on Tanya in the lab, but her screams immediately brings Karen and Helena there. Defeated, Tanya is ordered to open the portal and Karen and Helena step through. Upon landing on Earth 2, they find it totally engulfed in flames and filled with destruction.
And with that our heroes bid a fond farewell to this Earth and turn their attention to THEIR Earth. But it looks like they should have been reading EARTH 2 to see what was going on. Obviously, they have stepped into what promises to be the big event for the Fall-big enough that DC is giving us a weekly comic about it. Anyway, Paul Levitz and Tyler Kirkman deliver a sentimental and yet action packed issue for their sendoff. That doesn’t mean the series is ending. That just means their setting is changing and with that comes new adventures. Tune in next month as the heroes look for signs of the heroes they knew.
JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #33: Boston Brand shares a spectral kiss with Nightmare Nurse and ends up at Nanda Parbat. Sort of. He steps forward and falls to the floor of the kitchen in the House of Mystery. Zatanna, Asa, and Constantine use a spell to find Nanda Parbatto goes bad and, because of a spell around it, they cannot find it. Dejected, Deadman leaves the House and finds himself inside a circus tent where he recalls his life as a performer. But Brahma Dass arrives and transports him back to the ruins in the Himalayas. For him to get there, he needs to ride there on the back of a dragon and, upon arriving, is greeted by strange blue-skinned people who claim they have been living in his consciousness. They transform into a strange creature and call themselves Pantheon. The team arrives in Nanda Parbat and are attacked by the Pantheon. Meanwhile, Boston Brand wakes up in pain. Because Boston Brand is alive once more.,
J.M. DeMatteis, with art this month by Andres Guinaldo, turns in a bit of a sluggish issue this time. Oh, let’s go back to Nanda Parbat is like sending Dorothy and company back to Oz. Oh, that’s right: she did. Well, those read much better than this. And Boston Brand becoming human again is no big deal. We saw that happen in Pre-New 52 contiguity before. So, overall, this one gets a yawn and a trip to the stack of comics to be filed. Hopefully, next issue will be better. You come off a great run and now this.
JUSTICE LEAGUE 3000 #8: The team is back at Cadmus and find out that Firestorm has betrayed them and led them straight into a trap. Later, Ariel and Terry have dinner together, reminding her that he has already killed The Flash, his sister and the entire Cadmus staff. He tells her that she must agree to continue her work or he will continue to kill and revive the heroes. Reluctantly, she agrees. Meanwhile, Locus and Convert explore the DNA vaults, which contains samples of almost every superhero who has ever lived. Locus gets annoyed by Convert’s concern about the “obsession with Green Lantern” and explodes Convert-at least one of Convert’s bodies. Green Lantern has managed to use his powers to mess with Cadmus’ Security system so Terry will only get to see and hear what Lantern WANTS him to see which will allow them to walk out unnoticed. Ariel, it seems, has resurr3ected Teri and made her into...the NEW Flash!
Wow! Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis and Howard Porter continue to create possibly my favorite oddball Justice League title since the “Formerly Known as” version. Porter’s art is quirky enough to work and the tag team of Giffen and DeMatteis just really writes it with such flair that it makes it hard for me NOT to love it! This is, if not my favorite book of the most recent new titles, is pretty much tied with HARLEY QUINN.
JUSTICE LEAGUE UNITED #3: In Moosonee, Miiyahbin wakes in a cave as an older man, who claims to be one of “The Seven”, tells her she needs to help herself to free herself and then transforms into the Whitago. Meanwhile, Alanna along with the rest of the Justice League, Supergirl AND Lobo, arrive in the Rannian desert. They realize something is going on in the capital involving the baby and Byth. Supergirl punches Lobo into space as Alanna disappears and is replaced by Adam Strange before switching again. Alanna begins to be in pain because of a problem with the Zeta Beam, so Sardath sends her back to Earth. Half the team stays with him as he works on the beam and the other half seeks out Ultra and Byth. Hawkman has Sardath get the Zeta Core to him and he flies it as far away as he can before it explodes. J'onn, Supergirl, and Star Girl arrive with Supergirl carrying Byth off so Martian Manhunter and Star-Girl can try to relate to the child, who embraces J’onn. Lobo catches and runs Supergirl down in a car, which lets him escape with Byth. Supergirl retrieves Hawkman's dead body and heads back to Rangar.
Three issues in and I still find myself sitting on the fence with this book. The characterizations are not what I would expect from Jeff Lemire and the art by Mike McKone is not what I would call his best. Don’t get me wrong: I love the mix of characters on this team. But the whole thing just seems…boring! And can we decide what Lobo is the REAL LOBO? I believe the arc ends with issue #4 or #5. I will at least give it until there to decide if it makes the cut.
NEW 52 FUTURE’S END #9-12: In issue #9, Lois Lane goes to the Indian Ocean, following what she believes are map coordinates. Finding nothing, she heads home, not realizing that Cadmus Island has been hidden by magic. On that island, Slade Wilson tells Cole Cash that he and Fifty Sue kill people that King Faraday wants killed. And they also want Cole to find them as many super-humans as possible. He leads Cole to a prison filled with superhumans from Earth 2. At the Metropolis Armory Ward, Madison Payne is visiting her father when Rampage breaks out Ethan Boyer and knocks her down in the process. Superman arrives and attacks Rampage. She grabs Madison and throws her into the air, forcing Superman to save her and allowing Rampage and Boyer to get away. At Terrifitech, Mister Terrific is continues to examine the cyborg he recovered after his attack on the Batman of the future. A.L.F.R.E.D. tells Terry McGinnis he needs to break into Terrifitech and Terry thinks that means teaming up with a group already planning to do that. Off in the Huron System, Ray Palmer attaches Hawkman's arm to Frankenstein. Unfortunately, Hawkman is not dead and not happy about it. He is even more upset when he learns that the rest of Stormwatch was killed. Meanwhile, Father Time watches his agents and gets ready for what he knows is coming.
In issue #10, Superman continues to search for Ethan Boyer in one of the labs that Boyer had abandoned. He finds Lois there who reminds him that he had already told her the lab was abandoned. He flies off and Lois continues to doubt he is truly who she thought he was. At the Wounded Duck, Terry tells Coil, Plastique, and Key that he is the new Batman and he wants to join them on the break into Terrifitech. Key remains suspicious and Terry knocks him out with a variation of the Tonga Death Strike. Cal Corcoran advises him that he knows what that was and the person who came up with this version. Later, Cal finds Madison searching through his drawers looking for evidence that he was Red Robin. He denies it and gives her a necklace. Off in the Huron System, Hawkman's arm has healed, mourns for the rest of Stormwatch who had been killed and promises revenge. Just then, Hawkman's Stormwatch communicator goes off meaning there is a chance one of his teammates survived. On Cadmus Island, Cole nearly gets beaten to death by an OMAC wearing a cloaking device. At the homeless shelter in Vancouver that she works at, Jane Kirby is approached by Emiko. She claims she knows who she is and she needs her to be that hero. She needs her to be Barda.
In issue #11, Justin, Cole Cash's tech support, pays a visit to Voodoo, who has just killed a pair of robbers. In the Huron System, Frankenstein, Amethyst, and Hawkman are on a search and rescue mission for his missing Stormwatch teammates. Amethst relates the tale of the fall of Gemworld and their ship ends up in a huge metal dish on a planet where they believe they may be. Michael Holt goes on live television and claims that the future Batman is an invader. Meanwhile, a cargo ship in the Madagascar Sea is attacked by a strange being, killing every one on board. The Justice League has teleported Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch to them. Ronnie finally admits that he is responsible for not getting to Seattle in time to save Green Arrow. Ronnie harbors bad feelings because he was told to save New York and Washington and his home in Pittsburgh was attacked. He and Jason leave, telling the team to find someone else to replace them.
In issue #12, Hawkman, Amethyst, and Frankenstein are attacked by an army of robots led by Stormwatch’ Engineer. King Faraday and Deathstroke go to Baltimore to visit a Mercy: a woman he hopes to recruit to go to Cadmus Island. After being grazed by a bullet from Slade, she throws them out. Not long after, she gets a call from Voodoo, who is still in New Jersey with Justin. She tells her that location is compromised and to meet up with the twins at the safehouse. Then Voodoo contacts someone else and is put on hold while the friend defends herself from some attackers. In Metropolis, Ethan promises to use the equipment he stole to turn Rampage back to normal. In actuality, the device is designed to make her more violent and he leaves as the lab explodes with her still inside. Segueing thirty years into the future, Brother Eye force-feeds the Joker before being escorted through Arkham by Frankenstein. When he enters the room he is led to, he is surprised to find Batman being kept alive and begins to laugh uncontrollably.
Love the book or hate it, you have to admit the creative team is being extremely adventurous. Brian Azzarello, Keith Giffen, Dan Jurgens and Jeff Lemire provide the story while Patrick Zircher, Aaron Lopresti, Georges Jeanty, and Jesus Merino handle the artwork. Even if this ends up being a tale that will have no bearing in the New 52 Universe, I am finding it a ball to see how the pieces come together. And DC is banking on it too. The entire month of September is all about FUTURE’S END.
NEW SUICIDE SQUAD #1: Amanda Waller is out and Vic Sage is in charge. Waller is working at a new version of Belle Reve and IS still in charge, but not with the tight reigns she once had. Bitter, she hopes the first mission is a failure, which will result in Sage being disgraced. She is suspicious that he may be looking to replace Deadshot and Harley, as he has added Deathstroke and Joker’s Daughter. Neither of them are Belle Reve prisoners and don’t have the explosive devices implanted.
The team is in Moscow where Deathstroke has to restrain Harley Quinn from attacking Duela. Their mission is to destroy the twenty-sixth floor of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and assassinate an oil executive. When they get to the twenty-sixth floor, they are attacked by an unknown military team.
Sean Ryan and Jeremy Roberts bring us the NEW Suicide Squad. Wait: didn’t DC JUST CANCEL SUICIDE SQUAD? Okay, so I guess this is a reboot of the team. And to be honest, I don’t get it. Okay, I GET the reboot but the whole idea of RENUMBERING the book based on a change of creative team and cast members-that I don’t get! With that gripe out of my system, let’s just say that I like the way the first issue is going, especially with the warring factions of Deathstroke/Deadshot and Harley/Duela. This could be a lot of fun once it gets rolling. Like all new issues, I’ll wait and see.
RED HOOD AND THE OUTLAWS #33: We begin with Starfire freeing herself from Eseru Prime, where she was traded as a slave. Then she decides to free her fellow captives with the help of the starship Starfire: Depalo and Kitt’n. Then she spends years on her “Goodwill Tour”, which acted as a cover for her underground railroad. Today, she has headed off as the spaceship that arrived at the Ant Farm is filled with dead slaves who were searching for her. Dr. Kirk Langstrom takes issue with Roy and Jason’s attitudes towards him and turns into Man Bat. Meanwhile, Kori has arrived in Abu Dhabi where aliens are hiding under cover as humans. This leads to a battle the Kori may not be able to win.
Scott Lobdell and RB Silva give us an issue of mostly back story and what I like to think of as filler. Okay, we get Starfire’s origin piece here. But, haven’t I read this before? The origin, I mean. Didn’t I read this recently, the whole idea of being sold into slavery and all. I sure did: SECRET ORIGINS #2. This follows up on what happened AFTER or somewhere in between AND AFTER? Either way, it looked pretty and that was about it for me. Although the Man Bat appearance was pure gold!
RED LANTERN #33: Guy Gardner is drinking with John Stewart at the Formgalt Trading Outpost and asks for his help with “everything”. They proceed to have a long talk about what is going good and bad in their lives. Eventually, everything means helping each other out in a typical fight in the bar. Meanwhile, Bleez is desperate to help Rankorr and, to feed him, she cuts herself open so he can feast on her blood. Zox calls for Skallox to come help but Skallox has joined up with Atrocitus on Skallox’s old homeworld Styge Prime. Skallox has confessed that Gardner knows how to track him and Atrocitus answers by creating a blood lake on this new homeworld.
Charles Soule and Alessandro Vitti continue their epic journey through the troubling world of the Red Lanterns. And this whole thing seems to be a mess. Not the story or the art, mind you. I mean the Lanterns themselves are a hot mess! Two factions and they all have so much drama within them they should have a reality show. This is Chapter Two of the confrontation with Atrocitus. Part Three is in…
RED LANTERNS ANNUAL #1: Atrocitus and his Lanterns launch an attack on various cities across Earth. When they are finished, he addresses the world and offers up a seemingly unlimited number of Red Lantern rings. While numerous people on the planet begin wreaking havoc with their anger and their new powers, Guy and his Lanterns arrive to begin mopping up, cleaning up and, with heroes such as Batman and Supergirl, ending the crisis. Meanwhile, Zilius Zox and Bleez launch their own attack on Atrocitus’ Lanterns, including blowing up the new Blood Lake. But Atrocitus has a secret weapon in Rankorr, who is being mind-controlled by a creature that has been implanted within him. He confronts Zox and punches through his head, effectively killing him. Rankorr removes the creature within him and destroys it, before mourning over his fallen comrade, who has a positive message to bring back to Guy. With his last dying breaths, Zox steers his “good ship” into the new Blood Lake, destroying it. Bleez gets captured but Guy and Supergirl arrive to free her and causing Atrocitus to retreat. But he isn’t done as he has thousands of Red Lanterns ready to fight for him.
So the road to the final battle for control of the Red Lanterns begins here and now with the third chapter in this storyline. Charles Soule’s writing is excellent, as usual while Miguel Sepulveda handles the art chores. And the book looks AWESOME! As much as I am a fan of Alessandro Vitti, Sepulveda has a nice clean style that just pops off the page! Enjoy Soule’s work now because he has recently signed an exclusive deal with marvel. The bad news: he will be departing this title and SWAMP THING. The good news? He won’t be leaving until he finishes the arcs he is currently working on. So have no fear: you won’t get a writer jumping into the pool mid-story
SECRET ORIGINS #4: In the first story, we see Harleen Quinzel, the oldest of four kids and the only girl, growing up in Brooklyn. She grew up wanting to be a criminal psychologist. One night at a Halloween party she meets and begins crushing on a boy named Bernie, who asks her who she would kill if she had the chance. She points out a girl at the party who had bullied her and says she would throw her into the front of a Mack truck. To prove his love for her, he threw the bully in front of a Mack truck. After his trial, she broke into his parent’s house and stole a memento: a stuffed beaver. After a year, he was stabbed to death in juvenile detention. She went to Gotham University on a scholarship, graduated at the top of her class eventually took a job at Arkham. She convinced the warden to let her try an experiment and began to dress like the inmates. She met The Joker, fell for him and eventually, after the warden got killed, escaped with him. He took her to the Ace Chemical Processing Plant and tossed her into a vat of chemicals, changing her to his bleached skinned sidekick. Eventually, they went their separate ways and had their own misadventures.
In the second story, we see Oliver Queen as a child being told by his father to never give up and never stop fighting. As he grew older, he learned to never quit but also learned that he could get by on his name and family fortune. While partying on one of Queen Industries’ oil rigs, some of father’s enemies attacked. Oliver ended up getting knocked into the ocean and found himself stranded on a desert island. There, he was captured by mercenaries and tortured, before breaking free and killing their leader. Having survived, he flagged down a ship and escaped the island. Arriving home, he took the skills he learned and became Green Arrow and, through Qcorp, he was able to take the profits and fund his secret identity, along with John Diggle and Naomi Singh.
In the third story, set after Batman died, Damian decided to go on patrol by himself. Alfred gets Nightwing involved and tells him of Damian’s history. Batman and Talia al Ghul fell into what appeared to be love and had a child. Talia raised Damian and trained him to eventually become part of the League of Assassins. Over time, she decided to introduce her son to his father, who took a disliking to him. But just when they were beginning to connect, Batman was gone. Alfred gave Damian a letter from Batman telling his son he had earned what came next. He discovered a Robin uniform made just for him and went out on patrol with the new Batman, Dick Grayson. In actuality, Alfred had written the letter because he knew that Gotham would always need Batman and a Robin.
I am still uncertain about whether this title is worth five dollars a month from out of my comic budget but this issue was better than most that came before it. The first story by Jimmy Palmiotti, Amanda Conner and Stéphane Roux was the highlight, as it filled in details and was by MOST of the creative team (Roux has done fill-in work for Chad Hardin). The second tale, by Jeff Lemire and comic legend Denys Cowan didn’t really add a lot of new information as we knew, if you have read Lemire’s run on GREEN ARROW, that Oliver was a spoiled brat set up to survive by his father. The last story by Peter J. Tomasi and Ian Bertram also tread upon familiar grounds, except for the “Alfred letter”. Batman ALWAYS needs a Robin. So…who do YOU think it will be?
SINESTRO #4: Sinestro and the Yellow Lanterns are battling the Paling when Sinestro begins to hallucinate that Hal Jordan taking everything he ever had in his life that was good: fame, his daughter and his team. He manages to overcome the hallucinations and defeats the Paling, going so far as to kill their defeated leader. His daughter criticizes him for this while another member of the team thinks he and she should go to bed to celebrate the victory. Sinestro makes his way into the Paling’s ship, investigates their plans, and orders his team to free the slaves and destroy the ship. But the action is far from over as Sinestro runs into the real Hal Jordan and it appears that the two of them have to have a talk.
I really think, at this point, the only reason I still read this is because Rags Morales is illustrating it. I don’t say “drawing it” because it doesn’t look drawn. I believe that is due to Jason Wright’s coloring technique on it. Anyway, I always liked Sinestro as a character, be it good or bad. But this Sinestro is just boring! His team has no depth and his daughter-she is the only one with half a brain. The great mission to save Sinestro’s people has become just a poorly devised sub-plot for something bigger that I don’t care about. Thanks Colin Bunn! I am hoping the next issue will at least conclude this storyline and allow me to read the FUTURE’S END one shot and be done.
STAR SPANGLED WAR STORIES #1: At a bar in Mississippi, Tiff and a local named Duke are playing pool and she mentions that she was in prison because of her special skills. Duke’s friends come in and tell him they have caught FBI agent. She joins the others to interrogate him and cuts off his hands when he resists. Then she takes the gun from Duke and puts three bullets into the agent’s head. She dumps the body in her trunk and leaves. She takes the body to her motel room and unwraps it. G.I. Zombie says she's supposed to be Carmen King. As he reattaches his hands, we discover that she had been assigned to work with him by the D.O.D. She tells him not to leave the room and she goes to bed. But as soon as she falls asleep, he leaves and finds his way to a nearby gas station. There he sees a couple arguing and the abusive husband attacks his wife. G. I. Zombie, whose name is Jared, attacks, ripping an arm off the father and biting his throat. He tells the mother and her daughter to escape as he drags the father into the woods to continue his feed. The next morning, Carmen and Jared head off on their mission and Carmen hits a deer and then a tree. Jared allegedly takes the deer back to its’ mother. When he returns, he has Carmen follow him to the farm they believe the cache of stolen guns are being kept in. There they discover that Duke and his gang have more than stolen guns-they have Patriot Missiles too.
Okay, so when you are a SUBWAY spokesperson and diet too much, I guess you become G.I. Zombie. This is one totally weird title which I am sure will end up being like most of the other weird titles that DC has introduced in the NEW 52: it will get cancelled. Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray and Scott Hampton gives us a creepy, very strange and very troubling title. There are elements of torture, dismemberment, cannibalism, voyeurism and a fair amount of blood. Beneath a Darwyn Cooke cover, this title will be talked about for some time. Good thing Frederick Wertham isn’t around anymore.
SUPERMAN #33: We begin with Perry White teeing off on Lois Lane about letting another newspaper get the first story about the new Superman and Jimmy Olsen for not getting a good picture. Clark Kent arrives and shows Perry and article that he had written two decades ago about the Ulysses Research Lab. Perry believes Clark knows more than he is sharing and offers to tell him everything about the disaster at the lab if the Planet gets the story first. Perry reveals that an accident occurred when they broke into the second dimension and killed many of the people in the lab. It was shut down and buried. Their conversation ends when Ulysses arrives for his interview with Clark. Clark explains about the whole secret identity thing . Ulysses claims he was sent as a child from a dying world. His parents, Peter and Bridget Quinn, left him a journal explaining they had no choice but to send him to another dimension for his own survival. Through this journal, he had believed that Earth had been destroyed. Superman heads to the remains of the lab but leaves Ulysses at his apartment. Although he had been told to stay there, Ulysses dons some of Clark’s clothing and ventures out. An explosion occurs and he vows to destroy the mechanical men who threaten Metropolis. Superman comes back to Metropolis to remind Ulysses that he was to stay in the apartment and not cause so much damage. But the good news is that Peter and Bridget Quinn survived the lab explosion and soon the son is reunited with his parents. Meanwhile, a cloaked figure watches and muses how Superman will be alone for a long time to come.
I had really high hopes as I started this issue and then it all went flat! What happened? Perry being Perry again and ripping new ones to his star players was classic Perry White. Clark getting back into the Planet, albeit briefly, and getting the full story on the Lab explosion had be wanting more. We get Ulysses origin and that kept me intrigued. And then it became a comedy of cliches as Ulysses attracts the eyes of some pretty girls, eats a steak and doesn’t pay and then trashes Metropolis while trying to save it. You would think he was a member of the Fantastic Four! So Superman comes home, berates him a bit and then gives him the good news. There is a warm and fuzzy reunion between Ulysses and his parents and then Clark gets bummed and some creepy guy spies on him. Wow: really thought I would get more from Geoff Johns and John Romita Jr.
SWAMP THING #33: Swamp Thing gets into it with Lady Weeds, who he believes may be trying to betray him. The Wolf reminds Alec that it is his fault that Brother Jonah, Lady Weeds and himself have been brought here when their paradise was destroyed. He then suggests that Alec check on how healthy the Green is and he soon realizes that plants all over the world over are dying. Leaving a small piece of himself here, he goes off to investigate. Lady Weeds complains to Wolf that almost got her sent back and he explains that it is not easy to plot the downfall of the most powerful being on the planet. He also explains he has a plan to remove Capucine but it will permanently alter Lady Weeds' form. It seems Wolf is responsible for upsetting the balance of the Green. Meanwhile, Alec’s only allies, Jonah, Capucine, and Guarav discuss situations and Capucine admits that she is dying. One of Wolf’s agents returns and Wolf demands to know how Alec was killed. The agent returns the fee he was paid saying the Avatar was too powerful. Later that night, Jonah, for the first time in 800 years, shares a bed with Capucine, when they hear a noise from Wolf's room. He goes to check on it but, when he opens the door, he becomes horrified, and then has his stomach sliced open.
I will truly miss Charles Soule when he leaves this title. Swamp Thing has been torn apart and tossed around like he was in the good old days of this title and this is probably the most faithful characterization of almost any NEW 52 hero. Javier Pina’s artwork is totally fitting of the look and the feel and the supporting cast has depth, both on their good sides and their bad. This is a great title and, if you need to, go out and buy the TPB of the early issues and add this to your pull lists.
TEEN TITANS #1: This issue begins with a masked terrorist and his gang, as they have kidnapped a school bus filled with students from the Saint Sebastian Preparatory School of Wilmington, Delaware. Her manifesto is rather unusual. It sounds as if she want S.T.A.R. Labs to stop work on their newest projects. Either way, they are planning on killing their passengers-live for the whole world to see on every piece of mobile electronics they own. Luckily, the Teen Titans, all of whom are connected to the World Wide Web through their mobile devices, steps in to save the day. Later, at S.T.A.R. Labs Phase 2, which is still under construction, the lead terrorist kills a guard and declares that this is “not over, not yet.”
Well, THAT left a lot to be desired. Will Pfeifer and Kenneth Rocafort resurrect a series that just got cancelled by Dc not that long ago. But, despite that, here it is again in all its’ glory. NOT! I am not a huge fan of Rocafort work, but it’s okay hgere. My biggest issues are with the concept itself. We have Red Robin(Yum!), Wonder Girl, Raven, Bunker and Beast Boy saving a bunch of school girls in New York. That is not the problem, although it totally felt like SPEED 3 was being created. What I have a problem with is this book is all about being superheroes in the day of the mobile device. The cover looks like the screen of any cell or tablet, complete with pseudo image blocks so our heroes can be tagged, which they are. There are mock pop-up ads and a search bar for “Chirper”. They see the incident happen live on line and they communicate with the devices. And, at the end of the day, the world is watching with their cell phones, transmitting pictures and videos at the speed of light around the world. If this is going to be a statement about technology and the responsibility of using it properly, consider me out. Although I have a feeling I want to know who the masked terrorist is and am guessing it’s someone we know.
TRINITY OF SIN PANDORA #13: Giganta demands that Agent Kincaid reverse the damage to Pandora's healing ability or else, so she does. Flashing back to 1800 BCE, Pandora is having her friend Markos create the weapons she needs. His forge gets attacked Wrath and is killed in the process. Pandora took his body to an oracle and she learned how to burn his body so that he would be reincarnated, warning that every time he is brought back, he will suffer a similar fate. And it did. In Thailand in 600 CE, Mongkut taught her how to use a silk scarf as a deadly weapon. Not long after, he was killed. In present day, Pandora explains that she needs to catch her friend Marcus' spirit in a mystic flame. Kincaid agrees to help build the pyre for Marcus and tells Pandora her real name is Jennifer. As the pyre begins, she sees that he is going to be reborn in Okinawa, Japan. A group of Vampires and their leader sees that the pyre has been lit and he promises to drain the city of Baltimore. Kinkaid gets words of the impending vampire attack and suggests that now is the time for Pandora and Giganta to prove themselves.
Ray Fawkes and Francis Portela, along with artist Tom Derenick have finally given us some information we can use and a bunch of characters we can truly like. Pandora has stepped out from her early cardboard being to become a real character. We now see the connection between her and Marcus and how they have done the dance for thousands of years. Agent Kinkiad, working for S.H.A.D.E. or not, has grown from a bad-ass Pandora hunter to a true defender of the Earth. And Gigant? Who would have thought that this worn-out character of a villain would suddenly gain new life in this book. Oh please: let these three dire on together in the new TRINITY OF SIN title. That alone would make me want to buy the book.
TRINITY OF SIN THE PHANTOM STRANGER #21: The Phantom Stranger, who carries with him the dead body of Phillip Stark, pays Chris the Redeemer a visit. Together, they journey to the Temple of Absolution so the Redeemer can work his miracles while The Stranger goes back to New York to visit Terrence Thirteen and find that Zauriel is dead. Soon everyone in the room is transported to Empyrea to give the angel a proper funeral. After an unearthly funeral pyre, we all learn that Zauriel was The Stranger’s personal angel, from the time before his betrayal of the Lamb until now . It also seems that Zauriel can be saved if a human champion fights for him. Thirteen volunteers and goes up against The Cursed in a battle he cannot possibly win. But before they can rip him to shreds, The Stranger intervenes and saves him In the end, it looks like The Stranger is going to have to fight God to win the soul of Zauriel.
J. M. DeMatteis and Fernando Blanco prepares for this book’s death knell as The Stranger fights for the soul of his personal angel. My issue with this book, which I think has been my problem all along, is that The Phantom Stranger was always like a low key version of The Spectre: ready to meet out vengeance, but in a nice way. This Stranger is wishy-washy. One minute, he’s a tough fighter for those weaker than he and the next-he’s whiny mystical figure wanting to make up for his betrayal over two thousand years ago. We all get that he’s Judas and we all get the concept of redeeming himself. But grow a set!
WONDER WOMAN #33: The First Born has captured Wonder Woman and wants her to join him. Back on Paradise Island, Orion becomes angered when he discovered that Diana has been abandoned by her companions. He decides he needs to take over but Hera grabs him and warns him that he must obey the judgment of the Amazons. That night, Themyscira is attacked by the First Born's war machines. Aleka, as much as she is against it, finally accepts offer to aid in the battle. The First Born sends Cassandra and the Minotaur to even the odds. Goading Diana and telling her all will die if she doesn’t join him, he shoves a spike into her side and tells her she can watch all she loves die as she dies alone. Orion attacks the minotaur only to be gored. The First Born arrives and orders his creatures to kill everyone. Aleka has moved the Amazons into amphitheater which Cassandra has surrounded. She is felled by a spear and now Zola and Zeke are unprotected. As she seemingly dies, Zeke's power is reborn and Hippolyta, the stone queen of the Amazons, becomes their leader once more.
And the race to the end of Brian Azzarello and Cliff Chiang’s run on this title is truly a race to the finish line. This book has turned on or turned away more fans than I can remember in recent memory. Personally, I think it is one of the more creative titles out there. For the haters, you only have a short wait until someone else jumps on(issue #36). For the lovers, prepare to mourn and hold your breath that this new creative team (Meredith Finch and David Finch) will deliver. And based on who it is, I would say there is a 50/50 chance that it will deliver.
WORLDS’ FINEST #25: This is the point where Karen and Helena realize it will be their last night on THIS Earth. So Karen decides to go spend her night at various going away parties while Helena will spend the evening alone. One of Karen’s lawyers interrupts to inform her that her will has been changed, per her request with everything being left to Tanya Spears. She then hands him a quantity of letters to be delivered to people close to her only is she doesn’t come back. DeSaad tries to sneak up on Tanya in the lab, but her screams immediately brings Karen and Helena there. Defeated, Tanya is ordered to open the portal and Karen and Helena step through. Upon landing on Earth 2, they find it totally engulfed in flames and filled with destruction.
And with that our heroes bid a fond farewell to this Earth and turn their attention to THEIR Earth. But it looks like they should have been reading EARTH 2 to see what was going on. Obviously, they have stepped into what promises to be the big event for the Fall-big enough that DC is giving us a weekly comic about it. Anyway, Paul Levitz and Tyler Kirkman deliver a sentimental and yet action packed issue for their sendoff. That doesn’t mean the series is ending. That just means their setting is changing and with that comes new adventures. Tune in next month as the heroes look for signs of the heroes they knew.
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