DC's NEW 52 issues #6, Part Two

I, VAMPIRE #6: After an issue long battle, only one thing is important: Andrew Bennett gets beheaded by his former lover and Cain arises. Oh crap: we’re all screwed now!

Joshua Hale Fialkov and Andrea Sorrentino craft a great story which crosses over with JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK. You should be reading both anyway, but this kind of forces you to do that. The story still impresses with each issue and the cast is well drawn out, both visually and from a characterization stance. You must read this book…the vampires command it!

JUSTICE LEAGUE#6: It’s the big bang up between Darkseid and the newly formed team. Meanwhile, Batman tries to save Superman from the clutches of Desaad and his minions on Apokolips. Leave it to Cyborg to save the day as he not only activates a Mother Box but ends up being playing a major role in sending Darkseid back home. The government praises them and Flash declares they are called the Super Seven. Elsewhere, two shadowy figures refer to themselves as Super Villains.. In the back-up story, we meet Pandora, who we may have seen before, and The Phantom Stranger.

Great looking end to this initial arc. Leave it to Jim Lee to draw a blockbuster when he needs to. Goeff Johns’ story is okay and the whole idea of making Cyborg the A lister they have aimed him to be doesn’t sit with me. He’s always been a B-list character and to elevate him to this level is like retooling the Justice League, setting them in Detroit and populating them with characters like Vixen. Gypsy and Vibe…oh wait: we did that already!. Anyway, I’m curious to see where we go from here.As far a Johns’ back-up story: so now we have some mysterious hooded woman. Haven’t we been here before. But a key bit of dialogue sets it all up.The Stranger accuses her of rewriting reality. She replies that she realigned it and strengthen it. Does this now give DC an out for a future reboot? Sure does!

JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK #6: The “members” of the teams are plagued by horrific nightmares. They all end up at Madame Xanadu’s place where they fight off a creation from Shade’s psyche. Come to find out that these are not just nightmares but glimpses of the future that MIGHT have happened if they hadn’t fought the Enchantress. And also, what may STILL happen if they do not band together. After telling Constantine that they do NOT have to like each other, a truce is maintained. Then, bleeding from her nose, Xanadu sees the vision: Andrew Bennett is dead and Cain is arisen. Thus begins the crossover with I VAMPIRE.

This is sort of a filler issue in that it pushes the story along just enough to get the team together and lead into the I, VAMPIRE crossover. Milligan and Janin continue to rock the house, even with a small tale like this one. Milligan’s characterizations are winners, especially those of John Constantine and Shade.. But he has had a little bit of experience with both of them. The bad news is that he will be leaving this title after issue #8(but ANIMAL MAN’s Jeff Lemire will be taking over) and he will be writing STORMWATCH as of issue #9, which should just make that title a little creepier than it has been. Until then, enjoy this ride!

JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL #6: This issue allows the team to take a break and take inventory of themselves. Batman and Booster Gold bust up some bad guys. Dora and Zhifu share hot dogs and diffuse a bomb. Later, there is an impassioned speech from Booster and Zhifu in front of the U.N. Security Council, who gives the thumbs up to the team of Justice League International. But just as it looks to be the “best day ever” for the team, a missile strike takes them out. Is the J.L.I. dead?

A very nice start to the next story arc.Dan Jurgens lets the cast take a breath for a few before slamming the action back at them. And guest art team Marco Castiello and Vincenzo Acunzo do an okay job but I miss the team of Aaron Lopresti and Matt Ryan. So, now that we’ve blown up the team, how to we paint them out of THAT particular corner? Tune in next month to see!

NIGHTWING #6: Nightwing is busting heads and criminals in Texas while Raya and Raymond continue to conspire. It looks like they are going to take Dick out during a Flying Graysons Tribute Show and then give Bryan Haly the circus back. Dick finds out and takes the proper precautions as the circus rolls into Gotham City. This leads to a battle between Raymond(back from the dead by SOME mysterious circumstance) and Dick high above the crowd and ends with Raymond blowing up the place. Yeah…not good for business!

And so we come racing towards the conclusion. Nice overall issue from Higgins, Barrows and Borges that does prove that you CAN go home again. The problem I am having with this series is that it is so up and down. One issue just blows me away and then the next just blows…

O.M.A.C #6.:  Maxwell Lord is contacted by Brother Eye who spills the beans about Zero Patient. Max rips Mokarri as he has NO KNOWLEDGE of Zero Patient. Meanwhile, Jody Robbins is upset that her cousin June went down in a plane crash(see the Challengers of the Unknown story in DC UNIVERSE PRESENTS #6), so a double date is set. In comes Leilani Lugo who is more than meets the eye. She transforms into this deadly whip bearing furie(yeah…that’s what I said) who seeks the Mother Box(it’s all about the Kirby stuff, kids!). Kevin becomes O.M.A.C.  and proceeds to kick her butt. Of course, he also loses the girl in the process. Meanwhile, Brother Eye sends an assassin from Kord Industries(hopefully not Ted Kord himself, as we know what happened to him in the OLD DCU) to take out Max Lord, who turns the tables and makes the shooter cap himself. For Max: the war is just beginning.

I’m still pissed off at the canceling of this title. I’m still blown away by Dan Didio and Keith Giffen’s rendering of the Kirby legacy. I am still hoping for a proper resolution and the characters turning up in other DC titles. And, as much as I will miss the title, I cannot wait to see where this goes in two more issue and how they wrap this up in a satisfying way. Other than that, I recommend that you read this while you can.

RED HOOD AND THE OUTLAWS #6: Red Hood finds himself battling some big nasty guy with sharp teeth in a submarine. When he awakens, he finds himself on an island being tended to by a mysterious person. A few days later and it’s revealed to be Starfire who thinks she remembers Jason from another time. He eventually gets a tour of her home: a spaceship on the island. She offers him clothing and, oh look: it’s Nightwing and Robin gear! She explains that she thinks she remembers him from when she first arrived but is not so sure. So the pair have sex, stories are told and then it’s off to save Roy.

Okay: the flashback issue. We are told at the start that this issue takes place prior to issue #1 of the series. That would explain a lot, including the road trip rescue planned at the end of the issue. So what has happened to Kori’s memory? This all remains to be seen in future months. While not so much as a fill-in issue, it does slow the story down a bit and allows us to get a deeper look at the characters. Nice work by Lobdell and Rocafort here.\

RED LANTERN #6: Bleez and Atrocitus continue to battle for leadership of the Lanterns. Meanwhile, Jack Moore becomes Rankorr and proceeds to take vengeance on the man responsible for his grandfather’s death. But that may not fully happen as Guy Gardener shows up and intervenes.

Yes, I will say it again: THIS IS ABSOLUTELY THE Lantern book to be reading. Rankorr is added to the ranks of the vengeful lanterns and will become a major player within those ranks in issues to come. Great stuff from Peter Milligan and Ed Benes. Just go buy it!

RESURRECTION MAN #6: Mitch Shelley is stuck in Arkham Asylum and will do absolutely anything to get himself killed while he is here. In fact, the guards have nicknamed him ‘Deathwish’. One of the guards arranges for the system to be shut down and allows for a massive inmate escape. Mitch manages to quell the riot, but Guard Fletcher, despite Commissioner Gordon’;s direct orders, shoots Shelley in the head and kills him. Mitch manages to get himself off the coroner’s table, goes after Fletcher and justice prevails.

Okay…so this is the basic fill-in issue. Shelley gets out of prison with a new power and the bad guy responsible for the prison break gets taken out. If this is your first issue of this title, prepare to be disappointed, especially after the pedestal I put this title onto. Trust me: they are much better than this. Not that the story isn’t a good one, just not where it normally is. If you’ve been reading this right along, prepare to be a little disappointed. Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning and Fernando Dagnino turn in a nice story that hopefully does more down the road than just act as a tieing in to another part of the DC Universe.

STORMWATCH #6: The aftermath of the explosion aboard Stormwatch One is felt. The ship exits hyperspace and enters our atmosphere, if only for as moment, raising concerns at a certain military monitoring station. Jack fights the Daemonite A.I. that runs the ship and eventually the ship is restored to it’s place in hyperspace. A new team leader is again chosen(as The Projectionist ended up being taken by Harry to wherever he went to). And Midnighter tells Apollo he’s hot

I did say last month that the love story between Apollo and Midnighter was just beginning, didn’t I? Paul Cornell finally introduces the Daemonite that will end up tying into the other former Wildstorm books, along with much of the NEW 52 Universe in months to come. Kudos once again to Miguel Sepulveda for his awesome artwork. This book deserves a nice place in the NEW 52, especially considering where it came from. Keep up the good work, folks: don’t let this one slither away.

SUICIDE SQUAD #6: Harley Quinn is on the loose and the Suicide Squad is hot on her trail with a new team including Light and Lime(from GREEN ARROW), Savant, King Shark and, of course, Deadshot. Savant gets a shot in an Harley goes down. Only it isn’t Harley-it’s a man dressed as Harley. It’s a trap which means…here comes a bunch of Harley’s(or as one of the twins refers to them  “a transvestite goon squad”). Much bloodshed and dismemberment ensues. Meanwhile, we get the revised origin of Harley Quinn along with her murdering the Doctor who first assigned her to The Joker’s case. The Squad mops up and we learn the Yo-Yo is still alive deep within King Shark’s belly. Come to find out, Harley has made her way to the Gotham City Police Department. Seems she wants to be there as she is obviously looking to get her hands on Mr. J.’s face. This will become a very tough breakout for the Squad now.

With the line “she’s really fast for a clown”, the roller-coaster trip into the mind of Harley Quinn kicks off. And what a ride. Not much is truly changed in her origin, as we all knew she was a trouble person who was seduced my The Joker’s charms. What is awesome is seeing her as the crazy killer he managed to pull out of her. And watching King Shark dismember Harley’s in drag and then have Yo-Yo inside his belly calling for help? PRICELESS! Clayton Henry is providing the art for this arc and it rocks!  And there is no reason for me to crow about Adam Glass’ story as it is one of his typical insane bloodbaths! Wait until next issue when this all comes together! Will Harley survive? Hope so…she’s the co-star of the book!

SUPERBOY #6: Continuing the tale started in TEEN TITANS #5, Superboy has come in search of Wonder Girl and must fight the Teen Titans to do so. Having decided to leave the teens alone, Superboy stops long enough to disrupt N.O.W.H.E.R.E.’s security operation and tells them to make Templar aware of his return soon. Soon Supergirl meets up with him and tries to converse. But since she still speaks in Kryptonese and he doesn’t understand that, we have a problem. But one touch and he sees Krypton’s demise and devbelops the ability to speak Kryptonese. He explains he is a clone, she screams the name Kon-El and wails on him. And we learn that Kon-El means he is a disgrace in the House of El and has no choice but to become a “mindless killing machine”. Superboy ends up back at N.O.W.H.E.R.E. to take on Templar but meets up with Rose instead.

Scott Lobdell’s story continues to roll on, this time with a scripting assist from legendary Marvel Editor and writer Tom DeFalco. This is such a wonderful story being told here. I had some trepidation when this book came out as I really didn’t want the story of Superboy, which had been corrupted enough by the Reign of the Superman storyline. But this series has surprised me from the first issue and continues to amaze me. He may be Kon-El but he is not the Kon-El/Carter Kent that Karl Kessel and Tom Grummet. And I am surprisingly okay with that.

SUPERGIRL #6: Kara is still pinned to a wall and continues to think about her home world and has a conversation with her deceased parents that give her the strength to break free. Good thing too because Argo City burns away. Also a good thing she is free because Reign is causing havoc at the Arch de Triumphe and she has brought other Worldkillers with her.

Another fun issue from Michael Green and Mike Johnson. The Worldkillers are big, bad and a suitable set of enemies for the Maiden of Might. And the dialogue between Kara and her parents helps to flesh out the NEW 52 back story. I’m curious to see how this tale ends.

SUPERMAN#6:  Superman goes toe to  tow with his cousin Kara high above the streets of Metroplois. Seems that it’s NOT Superman after all but goes back to an incident with the Collector of Worlds that happened five years ago(but we will get to read about in the upcoming ACTION COMICS #7). Once he figures that out, he zooms in from space to save Supergirl and the day. Post battle, Clark and Heather have a chat and she confesses that she knows she’s not the girl for him(as Lois eavesdrops). Meanwhile, part of Stormwatch falls to Earth and that become fodder for the future.

And the most exciting thing about this issue was the one page tie-in to STORMWATCH on the last page of the book. That and Nicola Scott’s art. Other than that, it was a yawn fest that I am glad has ended.

SWAMP THING #6: This time around we learn the deep dark secret: The Rot hasn’t been coming for Alec, it has been coming for Abby. She ends up being swamped(pun intended) by the Rot and begins a metamorphosis process that will leave her a part of the evil growing across the world. Alec flees back to the swamp and begs to become the Swamp Thing once more. But he is too late and the Green tells him it is dying. Well, so too is Alec as some misshapen things runs him through with a chainsaw. Okay…so what happens now?

Another amazing issue by Scott Snyder and Marco Rudy filled with scary goodness and full-on creepiness.  This is a ride on a roller coaster worth taking. I preach about this with every issue so stop me from doing this. Just go buy the book and realize that we’re soon to be seven issues in and the “title character” has only made a brief appearance so far. You know that’s not going to last forever.

TEEN TITANS #6: Fresh from getting beat down by Superboy, the Teen Titans face Detective Lure and some of Gotham City’s finest. Skitter gets them out of trouble, but Kid Flash has got some issues. The team ends up at S.T.A.R. Labs looking for help from Virgil Hawkins, A.K.A. Static. While Virgil runs tests, a psycho named Grymm takes control of Skitter and attacks Wonder Girl and Bunker. The bad guy goes down, Kid Flash gets a new costume and Bunker comes out of the closet.

Scott Lobdell and Brett Booth just make this book so much fun that it’s pretty ridiculous. I spent many years rolling through the various Teen Titans incarnations and, in my opinion, this ranks up there with the Marv Wolfman/George Perez era. Every page screams with Booth’s killer artwork and Scott Lobdell weaves a great story fueled with some rollicking dialogue. This is such a fun read and it gets better with each issue.

WONDER WOMAN #6: As the replacement for Zeus continues to be debated, Diana and Lennox put things into motion. She proposes that Poseidon rules Heaven by day and Hades rules by night and they share Hera as their queen. All of this irks Hera and  she gets blinded in the process. Looks like Diana has managed to screw both Poseidon and Hades. But this all comes back to bite her as Zola gets dragged to Hell by a creature pretending to be her mother. Now the cards are on the table: Hades wants to rectify this broken agreement or else Zola dies.

Boy…this book has more mysterious machinations than an episode of SURVIVOR. Everyone is out to cut their own deals and it matters not who gets shot in the process. Brian Azzarello throws some greats twists in and again we get another great issue by Tony Akins on the art side. Stop making me beg: go BUY THIS BOOK!

DC's NEW 52 issues #6 Part One

ACTION COMICS #6:  The book begins with negotiations being made for the Kryptonite from Kal-El’s rocket. Hey, if it’s made right, it can be Red-K,  Black-K, Silver-K and the ultra special Blue-K. But Kal-El and the adult Legion of Superheroes are trying to fix the rocket and realize they need to go into Superman’s brain where there is a Tesseract space where the Anti-Superman Squad is hiding. The Legion defeat the bad guys, Superman repowers the ship and the mission gets accomplished. In the back-up story, Clark packs up his stuff and moves out of the family home after the death of his parents.

Wow: I totally have to bow to the genius of Grant Morrison and thank him for these last two issues. We get the adult Legion of Superheroes, the ORIGINAL youthful trio that I grew up with, some really nice turns with Clark and Pa Kent, the entire rainbow of K’s. Sorry…just geeking out there for a moment. So, Mr. Morrison hits one out of the park and makes me remember why I love comics so much. And Andy Kubert’s art should make his family proud.. Great story arc. I hope the momentum continues next issue as we go back to the storyline left hanging at the end of issue #4.

ALL STAR WESTERN #6: Jonah and Dr. Arkham, well mostly Jonah, takes out the giant bat and make their way out of the Bat cave. Yeah…really the bat cave as they emerge from under the stately home of Alan and Catherine Wayne. Right…Wayne Manor. Wayne, Hex and Arkham lead a raid on the underground mine.that ends up in a major bloodfest. Leave it to Jonah to let a little torture lead him to the answers he needs. Seems Mister O’Grady has been hiding young Mr. Moody and Thurston Moody is responsible for kidnapping the boys and putting them to work in the mine. So Hex heads to New Orleans to find Moody. Waiting for him there: Nighthawk and Cinnamon. The back-up story concludes the origin story of the Asian heroine The Barbary Ghost.

Yet again, I am forced to bitch out DC for giving me a 20 page main story with a back-up tale for $3.99. The main story rocks and I love where it goes, especially showing up in Wayne Manor after finding a giant bat UNDER Wayne Manor! And I do like the back-up story. I could seriously see this being a lead feature or headlining a book. But give me a full main story for my FOUR BUCKS!

ANIMAL MAN #6: What I can best call a fill-in issue as Cliff spends most of the book watching a film called TIGHTS starring Buddy Baker.

The first issue if this title that I really haven’t been happy with. The story is an interesting analogy for our hero but doesn’t progress the story foreword to my liking. Nice art from John Paul Leon, but three pages of continuity and the use of the word “porn” three times in two pages sdoesn’t cut it for me.

AQUAMAN #6: Four years ago, Mera’s father sends her off to kill the man she ends up with. But that’s food for later as Mera ends up in town to get dog food and gets hit on by this perverted store clerk named Randy. Mera takes care of him by snapping his arm like a twig. Things gets crazy as someone calls the police and we have a bit of a situation. But it gets worse as someone has broken out of prison and is holding his daughter hostage. We discover that Mera has the power to drain water from bodies and that is how he gets weak enough to be taken into custody. We also find that Mera doesn’t quite understand us surface dwellers. She does makes friends with Jennifer, one of the other clerks from the grocery store. When she returns home, Arthur tells her they are off to see Dr. Shin, who is going to tell them who sank Atlantis.

Like the last issue, this one goes into some weird places. Mera was supposed to kill Aquaman? Really? That’s a serious rewrite on history. Then we get the whole get molested and then end up at a hostage taking sub-plot. So next issue, the pair find out who sunk Atlantis, which seems like a big surprise to Mera. Have I ever said that Ivan Reis’ art blows me away? And Geoff Johns script is pretty cool too…certainly better than what he is writing for JUSTICE LEAGUE.

BATGIRL #6:  Batgirl ends up talking Bruce Wayne out of killing her and we get the back story on Gretel. Once a reporter named Lisly Bonner, she was essentially murdered by Boss Whittaker. But she came back with special powers and turned herself into the vigilante. Batman gets involved, as does Detective McKenna, who cuts the two heroes some slack so they can capture Gretel.

Nice wrap up to the storyline with Gretel, who makes a very cool addition to the Interesting new villain and a bunch of fun with Babs mom. Nice Gail Simone story and typically cool art from Ardian Syaf. Still one of my favorite books and I’m still waiting  for the payoff on Barbara Gordon’s recovery.

BATMAN #6: Batman is still alive but not for long as the Court of the Owls is calling for his death. Just when it seems Batman is done, he rises up and takes down Talon and manages to escape. The Court of Owls decides to do away with Talon, who has failed them. Not a big problem for them as they have a room filled with caskets filled with potential new Talons.

Okay, this was kind of a let down. We spend the first third of the book with Batman getting his ass whipped and then, all of a sudden, he gets the reserve and strikes back. Yeah…that’s called painting yourself out of a plot corner. But that’s all right because this is the introduction to the cross title Owl storyline coming in the next few months. That’s a good thing because another issue like this would be a horrible mistake.

BATMAN THE DARK KNIGHT #6: Batman recovers from the butt whipping he got from Superman last issue and realizes that The Flash has been poisoned and if he stops running the toxin will kill him. So Superman heads off to find him while the next surprise member of the super enhanced Rogues Gallery arrives: Bane(of course…there IS a movie coming soon!). There’s the guy behind the toxin! Now THAT makes sense. Only problem is that the toxin makes the already monstrously muscular Bane smarter.

Another beautiful looking issue that FINALLY gives us a payoff regarding the mystery of the Toxin. Of note this issue is that David Finch is still getting top billing on the cover while Paul Jenkins actually wrote this issue solo while Finch only handled the art chores. Does it makes a noticeable difference? It didn’t to me. It pretty much read the same as previous issues, so I guess it shows how much co-writing was actually going on.

BATMAN AND ROBIN #6: Ducard pushes Damien to cross over to the Dark Side to no avail, as he rejects his burning methods(see…it has to do with acid baths). We get the tale of how Bruce left the tutelage of the Ducards after he was betrayed. Meanwhile, Batman gets to listen to his son being tortured. Yeah…this isn’t going to end well for someone!

Another top-notch issue here. We get a little more back story on the relationship between a younger Bruce Wayne and the Ducards. Peter Tomasi once again writes a great story filled with twists and turns while Patrick Gleason puts the icing on the cake with his great artwork. Winner, winner, Batman and Robin dinner!

BATWOMAN #6: Batwoman is fighting with a guy with a scythe while some dude in a legionnaires outfit watches. What? So we cut to a month earlier, where Bette’s uncle reads to her as she is still in the hospital. Jump to a week ago where Maggie is dealing with a woman who wants to know where her children are. Four months ago, an Asian woman sets everything in motion by drowning Maria’s children. Kate’s story goes back three weeks and while being romantic with Maggie, she is still doing her share of hiding things from her, specifically her activities as Batwoman. Chase’s story is from two weeks ago and we find out what kind of a costume upgrade Batwoman got from the D.E.O.. And that brings us all back to now, as Batwoman turns the table on the guy with the psythe for a hand.

Very strange issue that bounces in so many directions that it becomes overly confusing. The timeline is all over the place and it took me two good solid readings to get comfortable with the story. Picture reading PULP FICTION. This issue does not play in a lineal fashion.. Amy Reeder is the artist this month and her work is good but not as attractive as J. H. Williams. Curious to see if this trend of storytelling continues over the next few issues or not.

BIRDS OF PREY#6: It’s all about Choke. Seems that the mysterious Choke is responsible for putting post hypnotic suggestions into emails and texts or some people and uses them to do the dirty work. Well, the Birds have figured that out and now find themselves in an office, attacked by office workers reciting nursery rhymes. Next issue: Choke Revealed.

Yeah…nothing I like better than ending with a cliffhanger the issue before and having it get resolved(somewhat) on page 14 of the following issue. C’mon…REALLY!? I said last month this storyline needs to end and I meant it. It will take SEVEN issues to get this resolved…not to mention that this was a total cluster of crap. Isn’t AMAZING how they figured this out? Really? How about a little “this is how we figured it out” thrown in there. And they managed to capture all of these brainwashed people. When did that happen? Oh yeah…as they say in the movie and TV business…it happened OFF CAMERA. That just means poor storytelling. Nice art fill from Javier Pina tough. Finish it, guys. Or else I will find myself finished with this title.

 CATWOMAN #6: Selena finds herself in the custody of some of the dirty cops on the Gotham Police Department. She also realizes that Reach is working with them and proceeds to get a major whipping at her hands. Lucky for her she knows how to bite someone'’ ear off and gain a little bit of an advantage back. And just before it looks REALLY bad, the day is saved by one good cop, who allows her to go free. She tussles up with Batman and admits she has a death wish. At the end of the tale, she reveals herself to Gwen Altamont and asks for her help.

Wow! Nice end to this part of the story. Great little line about how Batman won’t do anything as long as they continue to have sex. Yeah…I’m not making that one up. That is THE LINE. Another truly awesome issue from Judd Winick and Guillem March. I have nothing else to say. I just continue to advise you each month to support this title. Just go buy the book!

DC UNIVERSE PRESENTS #6: CHALLENGERS is a TV reality show where a group of celebrities make their way to the Himalayas in a “competition of wits and edurance”. Along with the celebrities are host Clay Brody, producer June Robbins, her pilot boyfriend Ace and his co pilot Maverick. Along the way, the mountain seemingly comes alive and the plane crashes ina big fireball. June awakens from a nightmare where Ace is killing her to find she and the other survivors are in Nanda Parbat(DC’s version of Shangri-La). Ace is buried in the Well of Souls but the High Priest of Rama Kushna has a banquet in their honor. A drugged banquet as the survivors go to sleep only to wake up at the crash site. And Clay has a secret: an archaeological stone which led him here. A rescue helicopter arrives but not before Clay is swallowed by some long tongued beast in the mountains. As the survivors fly off, June sees that they are all “living on borrowed time”(the motto of the original Challengers) and that they should “make the most of  it”

I’m psyched about this series! I LOVED the CHALLENGERS in almost all of their incarnations. A little back story for the uninformed. CHALLENGERS OF THE UNKNOWN made their appearance in SHOWCASE  #6 way back in 1957. The original team was Kyle "Ace" Morgan, Matthew "Red" Ryan, Leslie "Rocky" Davis, and Walter Mark "Prof" Haley. Later on, Ryan was killed and replaced by his pop star brother Tino Manarry. When Ryan came back from the dead, his brother disappeared (with one of Red’s eyes…long story). June Robbins later joined the Challengers as an honorary Challenger. Their adventures ran throughout the Sixties and infrequently during the Seventies and showed up in various alternate versions and one truly trippy version by Howard Chaykin.

So now we get this version. And, most importantly, we get Nanda Parbat. How important is that. Name it: Judomaster lived here, The “original” Question trained Renee Montoya here(and he died here). But, most importantly, Rama Kushna hangs her hat here. And even though Ace appears dead, we have a Prof and a Rocky and a Red, along with some other characters who may or may play their parts in the future months(maybe Brenda is supposed to represent occultist Corinna Stark). Interesting that it looks like June, the “honorary Challenger” may be the one taking the lead in this new series. Dan Didio, who has already proven he can tap into classic Sixties  and Seventies works turns in a fun story here and the legendary Jerry Ordway combines with Ray McCarthy and Andy Lanning(yes…THAT Andy Lanning) to turn out his always killer art. I cannot wait for the next issue. Hey guys: don’t mess this up and give us a regular series down the road(how about a SEA DEVILS series while you’re at it?)/

DEATHSTROKE #6: Starting with a flashback of Grant and Slade in training. The flashback ends with Grant’s apparent death. In the present, Slade and the “suit” continue to battle. Slade finds out this is about April who he bumped off in issue #1. But Slade knows how to use an E.M.P. blast and that shuts down the bad guy. And we find out who is pulling the strings of April’s mom and dad: Grant Wilson. There’s a twist!

The team of Kyle Higgins, Joe Bennett and Art Thibert gets circumvented this month by having Eduardo Pansica and Vicente Cifuentes take over the art chores. No biggie: their work is great and fits the tone of the book just fine. One more issue to go and then Mr. Liefeld puts his feet all over it. Hope it doesn’t go downhill, as I really like this title!

DEMON KNIGHTS #6: Exoristos leads the attack while Xanadu plots to do something terrible, but can’t. Horsewoman sends an army of horses into battle to the dragons while Etrigan saves Exoristos long enough to have the final charge begin. Next issue: the final battle.

Lots of action this month with only a little plot movement. More great stuff from the team of Paul Cornell and Diogenes Neves. Really looking forward to the conclusion of this storyline!

DETECTIVE COMICS #6: Rivers is still at Penguin’s Casino. Batman finds Raju, one of the Penguin’s men, dead in a bloody bathtub. We meet a new character named Snakeskin and the temptress with an eye patch, who has a sister named…Charlotte Rivers. Unfortunately for her, she gets attacked by Snakeskin just as Batman arrives. Even worse, his feelings for her get the two of them in a very cold situation they may not get out of.

A much better story than last issue’s disaster, fully written and illustrated(with inks by Sandu Florea) by Tony Salvatore Daniel. Having sisters being on opposite sides of the law is nothing new, but always fun to see woven into a story. And just what is The Penguin up to? You know it can’t be good!. And no 8 page back-up story this time around. Nice job, guys!

FRANKENSTEIN AGENT OF S.H.A.D.E. #6: While humanoids are being devolved and recycled, one of them gains intelligence and runs away. Off on planet Earth, Frankenstein and the Creature Commandos are trolling down the Mekong Delta in search of Colonel Quantum: a refugee from the Vietnam War who apparently has pulled a Colonel Kurtz in the deep jungle. And just like in APOCALYPSE NOW, the mission is to assassinate Quantum. When they arrive at Quantum’s home in the jungle, he begs to be taken out and is quickly accommodated. But things are bad at S.H.A.D.E.net as the original Creature Commandos take control.

Another bang-up issue by the team of J.G. Jones, Alberto Ponticelli and Jeff Lemire. And obviously, the story gets a nod to Joseph Conrad and Francis Ford Copolla too. Can this story get wrapped by the time issue #9 comes oput, when I expect the O.M.A.C. story to get merged into this title(as O.M.A.C. gets cancelled at issue #8 to make room from some of the six new  NEW 52 titles).

GREEN LANTERN #6: Hal busts up a bunch of guys trying to steal airplane parts. He’s impressed: he can do this without having an active Lantern ring. Meanwhile, Sinestro gets into a tussle with Starstorm. That goes well, but Sinestro still needa a partner and goes to retrieve Jordan who ends up as Sinestro’s sidekick, whether he likes it or not.

This issue let me down this month. Okay, so we know Jordan wants to be a Lantern but is trying to kick the habit. And Sinestro has his own agendas on his plate and will pursue them to the fullest. And that means dragging poor Hal back into it. Yawn-we KNOW this is where this is going, so move it along. Also wasn’t thrilled with Mike Choi’s art. There’s nothing wrong with it but I’m just not a huge fan of the painted art thing.  So, this issue falls flat and I hope it doesn’t become a two-time problem with the next issue.

THE HUNTRESS #6: Helena breaks a lot of rules in a foreign land to finally get to The Chairman’s son. She makes him promise to donate 2 billion to charities associated with abused women and she will let him live. So how does she get away from the authorities and get out of the country. By having a friend like Kara Starr, soon to be known as Power Girl. Yes, this is the lead in to WORLD’S FINEST in just 60 short days.

Finally it ends, not with a bang but with a definite whimper. This book was SO BAD that words continue to fail me. I do not like Helena as a character, I don’t like The Huntress as a character and the plot could have been wrapped up in two issues , maybe three. To run it out for six issues was a reason to make money. Thumbs DOWN to Paul Levitz even while giving a BIG THUMBS UP to Marcus To. And REALLY BIG THUMBS UP to Guillem March for a great cover which has nothing really to do with the book, except it looks REALLY GOOD! I have said previously that I wouldn’t read Levitz’ WORLD’S

FINEST(yes, they have moved the apostrophe YET AGAIN!). I may not even read issue #1.