ARCHIE #1: Archie #666 ended the long run on this classic comic character, his friends and the town of Riverdale. Now the comic has been reborn with a new direction courtesy of Mark Waid and Fiona Staples.It’s truly a modern day Archie Andrews. He goes to Riverdale High and tells us about Betty Cooper: the All-American girl who can fix a car and still be sweet and innocent. Reggie is still the suave bad boy and Jughead is now a master of manipulation; no longer tempted by bribes of food. Most of the issue is built around their break-up in what is known as the “Lipstick Incident”. The gang tries desperately to put them back together at the Homecoming Dance but Jughead throws a monkey wrench into their plans. In the process, Archie ends up filling in as guitar player in the band at the dance and that may be the jump-start their relationship needs to be rekindled. Oh yeah: Lodge Industries and a certain girl are waiting in the next issue. This is a great jumping on point of a book that also includes Archie’s first appearance from PEP #22 back in 1941. I have never been a fan of the humor of Archie and the gang but, with this book, the Archie horror themed books and the forthcoming JUGHEAD series by Chip Zdarsky and Erica Henderson, it’s a good time to get on the bandwagon.
BARB WIRE #1: Back in the day, some two decades ago, Chris Warner created a character named Barb Wire. She was part of the Comics Greatest World that included such titles as AGENTS OF LAW, CATALYST, GHOST, KING TIGER(getting a new series in August), DIVISION 13, HERO ZERO, MOTORHEAD, X and others. She also was the star of a film disaster starring Pamela Anderson. She was a bar owner and bounty hunter. Surprisingly, the new Barb Wire is also a bounty hunter who also runs a nightclub that is slowly being swallowed by bills. In the first issue, we see her blind brother tending bar, meet the supporting cast and watch as The Hammerhead gets trashed by an all out brawl involving Wyvern Stormblud. The story is totally cartoon fodder, but in a good, guilty pleasure way. The art by Patrick Olliffe is dynamite and possibly some of the best of his long career and hearkens back to his work on THE UNTOLD TALES OF SPIDER-MAN. This is not a title that will change the world; just make it a fun place to hang for a bit!
NEGATIVE SPACE #1: A very overweight and ugly man named Guy is a depressed writer who desperately tries to write his suicide note. Meanwhile, at the Kindred Corporation, a team tries everything they can to break this man and make him take his life, because he is messing up the order of things by living. See, there are monsters that feed on negative emotions and the corporation is responsible for creating those emotions to keep the monsters away. That is the basic premise in this new series from Ryan K. Lindsay and Owen Gieni. And it truly is as weird as it sounds. The art is quirky, the story is complex and it is far away from the standard superhero in tights tales! This is a weird little treat you should really put into your pull list.
THE SPIRIT #1: He’s back…well, sort of. Will Eisner’s legendary hero The Spirit, has made his way from DC Comics to Dynamite and the result is having Matt Wagner and Dan Schkade take their shot at him. “Who killed The Spirit” not only retells the origin of our hero, but also lets us know that Denny Colt has been missing for two years now, much to the dismay of Central City and Ellen Dolan. With our hero out of the picture, Sammy Strunk and Ebony White take the lead in the issue, as they set about to find out what happened to their friend. The issue builds slowly but it feels like it wants to be a success. There have been some major players who have handled this legend, including Paul Smith and Darwyn Cooke. I believe Wagner, whose MAGE is still one of my favorite comics of the last 20 years, has the chops to do that. I look forward to the next issue and beyond!
STRANGE FRUIT #1: Mark Waid and J. G. Jones, who also handles the art, combine their talents to bring us this tremendous first issue of a four issue mini-series. Set in Mississippi in 1927, it presents us with prejudice and more in a tale that brings a strange visitor to Earth with powers far beyond mortal men. The strange visitor is a large black man and seems to be the perfect foil for the KKK. This book is a beautiful piece of art with a great heart inside of it. It is a perfect fit for the recent news reports and issues with the Confederate flag, complete with a last page reveal that is so timely that it is scary. Boom Studios has done a great job with the production and the tale is amazing! I wish this was a weekly, so I could get to the end. But then, I also with it wasn’t a limited series so I could just wallow in Jones’ art.
THE TOMORROWS #1: In the near future, all forms of art are illegal and will result in death. The Atlus Corporation is run by a guy named Hughes and The Tomorrows and their supercomputer Warhol find the never-ending battle. This has the makings of an interesting series from Curt Pires and Jason Copland. The characterization is a little weak and Copeland’s art is on the very quirky side. It almost feels like were in the middle of a Pop Art painting. But that will change next issue, as each issue is done by a different artist. This book also feels like a superteam searching for a true revolution to fight; sort of like the Fantastic Four wanting to take down a regime run by Paste Pot Pete. It’s not the perfect comic book, but it is a little something different. I wouldn’t automatically add it to your pull list, but pick it up if you have some extra coin to spare.
WE STAND ON GUARD #1: It’s 2112 and the White House has been bombed, leading to Ottawa also being bombed, possibly because Canada burned down the White House in the War of 1812. In the process, Amber’s parents are killed and her dying father instructs her brother to never leave her side. Next, we jump to 2124 where Amber is trying to survive in the Northwest Territories when she comes across American battledroids and the Canadian resistance forces. The droid gets defeated and the characters are all introduced to each other. Unfortunately a monstrous battledroid arrives and it takes ingenuity and teamwork to bring it down. But Booth gets killed by the droid’s pilot and an argument ensues as to who should execute him. Amber does that without blinking, earning her place in the Two-Four.
Welcome to the future courtesy of Brian K. Vaughan and Steve Skroce. This is a powerful combination of creators. On one hand, you have Vaughan, who has given us such killer books as Y THE LAST MAN and SAGA, not to mention his writing for UNDER THE DOME and LOST. And you couple that with Skroce, who has illustrated X-MAN and CABLE, but has also done storyboards for all three MATRIX films. The art is tremendous and I LOVE Vaughan’s story. The weakest part to date is characterization, but how tough is that to do for seven characters in one issue. To that end, Booth’s death is there, but doesn’t leave a scar on the reader. And just where is Amber’s brother in all of this? Bottom line: pick this one up!
Thursday, July 23, 2015
Sunday, July 5, 2015
DC YOU Month #1, Part 2
JUSTICE LEAGUE 3001 #1: Currently, Lois Lane has managed to download her consciousness into the body of Ariel Masters and wants nothing more than to take out the Justice League. She checks in with Sinestro, who is busy getting busy. Superman, Batman, the female Guy Gardner, Wonder Woman and the Flash are on Wodin Twelve, where Starro consciousness has taken over every person on the planet. Guy heads to the Office Of Fathomless Bureaucracy on Moonshadow Six while over on Camelot Nine, Fire tells Ice how wonderful sex was with Etrigan. And, somewhere in the middle of all this, a craft carrying Kara Zor-El is heading towards Wodin Twelve.
Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis and Howard Porter are back for more merriment in the 31st Century. I so love this book! It is just great to see how heroes twisted and turned this way. And hey: we’ve even got Superman checking out Guy Gardner’s ass! Porter’s art has never looked as good and Giffen and DeMatteis make the humorous tag team Palmiotti and Conner WISH they could be. If you like your heroes turned upside down and inside out, this is truly the book for you!
LOBO #7: On Praxis Prime, Lobo is ready to take out his newest target: Varnu Vain. But a kill squad has showed up and killed Vain and some semi-innocent bystanders in the process. He takes out most of them but is captured by a team led by Kadra from the Void Whisper. As he realizes the Siamese twins he had bedded have set him up, he gains his revenge by depositing a bomb in the mouth of one of them, blowing her head off. Working for the Void Whisper, he meets with a priest, who gets killed by a tracker. No sooner does he realize there is a problem then he gets attacked by a Thangarian, a Daemonite and a Martian. Things don’t look good for the Last Czarnian.
Cullen Bunn and Cliff Richards give us more of what this book has previously offered: sex, blood, guts and a so-so story. So…exactly what we had prior to CONVERGENCE. Richards’ art is dynamite. You will love it if you like dismembered bodies, head shots and such. I can’t believe this book is rated T+ because I think it’s a bit gory for a T+ title. Maybe this should be a Vertigo book or get an M rating. Anyway, the story is so-so, the art rocks and I'm not certain if I'm going to continue or not. It's kind of like a car crash. You don't want to look but can't help to.
MARTIAN MANHUNTER #1: A bunch of kids dare a little girl to go wake an alien creature by the name of Mr. Biscuits. Meanwhile, Martian Manhunter, the alleged last of his kind, saves a passenger jet in trouble while revealing that his people have come to Earth. In Dubai, a cat burglar watches a royal prince be murdered by a Martian creature. In fact, there is a sudden outbreak of murder and terrorist incidents around the world, which leads J’onn to his friend Helen Demoff, where he asks her to kill him.
This book is totally the shining gem in DC’s releases for Week Three of the DC You lunch. Rob Williams gives us a story that poses more questions than answers. How is it that Martians now exist after we have long been told that J’onn was the last of his kind? Why the rise in murder and terrorism? Who is Mr. Bisquits? Why does J’onn need to die? This book is awesome! And Eddy Barrows art, with Eder Ferreira inking, is some of the best of his career. So…bottom line: the book LOOKS GREAT, READS GREAT and is a roller coaster ride from page one until the end. Add this to your pull list. This is required reading!
MIDNIGHTER #1: Someone who wants the Dragon’s Gold is attacking The Gardener in the God Garden. Meanwhile, Midnighter and his date are interrupted during dinner by an armed team looking for Modoran traitors. That means Midnighter is soon taking people out. Later, in a pool hall in Boston, he plays some pool, then takes his boyfriend to Moscow and Oakland before ending the day with some hot loving. Hours later, the two share a meaningful conversation about relationships before Midnighter injects Jason with a Smartmark tracker that allows Jason to contact Midnighter if he needs him. The Gardener calls to him and he goes to her, where he finds out that the mysterious assailant took the file that tells everything there is to tell about Midnighter.
So, if you’re reading this, you hopefully know that Midnighter is a gay character. That’s important to the whole story and, if you didn’t know that, you will figure it out real quick when you see he and Jason in about as graphic a situation as you can squeeze into a T+ rated book. Steve Orlando does a great job of mixing the action with the romance and Aco’s art fits the story nicely. Do I expect there will be some ire from some group about the gay angle? Sure I do. And DC will answer that they are only trying to appeal to their diverse audience. Do I think they are going to amp up that side of our anti-hero because they want to appeal to that diverse audience? Sure I do. And I am okay with that as long as it all fits into the story and they’re just not exploiting it because they can.
NEW SUICIDE SQUAD #9: Deadshot, Black Manta, and Captain Boomerang are informed of their newest mission. With Harley, Parasite, and Reverse Flash as their back-up, they are to infiltrate the League: the new version of the League of Assassins. Arriving in Turkey, they gain entrance into the organization. Once inside, they are tortured until they conform to the rules and goals of the League. Then they are taken out in the desert where they are forced to kill three would be heroes who have been frozen. It’s amazing what baseball bats will do to frozen people.
Sean Ryan writes us a killer story…literally! This is a dark and nasty issue, punctuated with some dark humor. And my favorite line? Floyd Lawton saying that Parasite is “kinda like if Grimace had sex with a nightmare”. Couple this with Philippe Briones awesome art and this book is a winner for sure! This is DC’s newest cash cow and they are going to make it as entertaining as possible. So yeah: this works!
OMEGA MEN #1: After “killing” the White Lantern, members of the Omega Men are hiding on the planet Ogyptu. As the police on the planet use strong-arm tactics to find them, they eventually run into Tigorr, Broot, Scrapps, and Primus. Defeating their hunters, the team blows up the place and makes their escape. And joining them, whether he wants to our not, is Kyle Rayner, who is kept in the dark and mutters Carol’s name.
Okay…you might find this a little hard to follow and that is because it is. Tom King gives us a great introduction for new fans and a re-introduction for long time fans of this team. But the book is far darker than the original and paints them as terrorists. But, obviously, they are the good kind of terrorists that are trying to take down the “Evil Empire”, if you will. Barnaby Bagenda’s painted art is nice, but I really wish we had his art from the preview story instead. It seemed to be darker and not as colorful, although we do get to see one of the Citadel soldier’s heads explode in living color! Again, another T+ book crawling with adult themes. I want to see where King is going with this and hope the next issue will fill in some of the holes in the story.
PREZ #1: Welcome to 2036 where the powers that be are looking for the best candidate to be President following the next election. The field is a joke and the spin on them is even worse. 19-year-old corn dog fry cook Beth Ross goes to visit her dying father in the hospital. She attempts to go on the show Double Dare Billionaire, but the show runs out of time. Her Sickstarter campaign is going even worse and she has nowhere near the 4 million dollars she needs to pay dad’s medical bills. Along the way, the Hacker Collective Anonymous runs a campaign to have her in the Presidential race. When all is done, no one has enough Electoral votes to win, so a Secret CEO meeting at the Build-A-Burger Headquarters, and Boss Smiley, seems to hold the key to our next President.
Close behind MARTIAN MANHUNTER #1, this is my second favorite book of Week #3. And that is a complete surprise, considering how awful the 8 page preview of this title was. Mark Russell and Ben Caldwell gives us a hysterical, historical romp. If NATIONAL LAMPOON MAGAZINE, the CLASSIC Seventies LAMPOON, mated with a CLASSIC SNL political sketch and had a baby, THIS would be that baby. Filled with way too many jokes that most teens will not get (Specifically the Hacker Collective Anonymous group that are all wearing there V FOR VENDETTA masks!), this book was laugh out loud funny at points. The satire is ripe and so is the topic. Definitely a must read, even if it has no connection to the classic DC series starring Prez Rickard. Now, I want BROTHER POWER back!
RED HOOD/ARSENAL #1: Roy Harper is in the middle of the Arizona Desert, observing a meet between Tara Battleworth and some terrorists. They have a captured CIA agent and the deal is to sell him back to the Senator that Battleworth works for. It all goes back fast, leading to Roy having to take action and take out the terrorists. Unfortunately, they shoot the Senator, leading Roy to realize that things have gotten that much worse. But then the Senator springs back to life and we all realize that it is really Red Hood in disguise. The real Senator is safely being held in a car trunk. Despite their bickering, maybe this team should work for the government, as Battleworth offers.
Okay…so this is exactly as I expected. It is the same book we previously had MINUS Starfire. That means, we have bickering between our heroes and some silly adventuring. Scott Lobdell does what he does and writes as he always has, meaning the characters sound like they came out of the Nineties and are full of easy to identify personality. And, as much as Lobdell gets bashed for this, I actually LIKED this isue, except I totally saw where the reveal with the Jason/Senator was goingThe art from Denis Medri, who previously worked on Image’s 13 CHAMBERS, is kind of different but fitting, reminding me of some of the better independent comic folks out there. All in all, I have read worse.
ROBIN, SON OF BATMAN #1: Robin and his pet griffin Goliath are being held captive in Bialya because Goliath got caught poaching their blessed cows. Elsewhere, Morgan Ducard’s daughter finds her father’s skeletal remains and his mask. Eventually Daman and Goliath get free as he screams that “the year of atonement is at hand”. In the end, a lone figure rises up in Nanda Parbat. If this REALLY Talia Al Ghul?
Wow! This one just pulls all the bits and pieces from the previous BATMAN AND ROBIN runs together into one amazing book! Patrick Gleason, artist extraordinaire, handles scripting and art chores on this book and it rocks! We bring in the Year of Blood, the late Morgan Ducard, a crazy dream sequence, a trip to Al Ghul Island, and a griffin named Goliath. This thing looks great, reads liked Peter Tomasi never left it and is setting some cool plot points for the future. If you were a fan of the previous incarnations, this one will put you right where you want to be.
SECRET SIX #3: It’s two days after our team has escaped Mockingbird and they are currently in hiding in Big Shot’s house. Catman is having a bit of an issue with a cop who likes to beta his dog and that may be an issue later. Unfortunately, they aren’t the best house guests as a bunch of them have had weird sex on his couch. Black Alice reveals her name is really Lori Zechlin and her origin may be tied to an accident involving her and her parents. Porcelain and the Ventriloquist go out to get some food and that results in them taking out a harassing tough guy who isn't as tough as he thought. When it comes time for dinner, Strix sets the table, even though she doesn’t know how.Catman finds out the cop next door has been beating his dog again and this leads to him beating the cop and taking possession of his dog. Later, we find that Big Shot is really Mr. Dibney and that Ed Nygma is Mockingbird.
This would be a killer book…if it would stay on schedule. There was a gap between issue #1 and issue #2 and then two months off for CONVERGENCE and no one remembers what the heck was going on. Okay, so this group has come together because they were held captive by someone named Mockingbird. But it’s two months later and we don’t remember what was happening. Gail Simone gives us the best story to date, as we get some background on the characters. And Dale Eaglesham comes on-board as artist and kicks the doors down! The characters jump off the page. I especially like that Big Shot looks like a character right out of Wrightson’s work on CAPTAIN STERN. And who is Mr. Dibney really? If this title would stay on track, this could be a great book. Unfortunately, it’s just another title hampered by scheduling issues.
SINESTRO #12: Sinestro and Soranik argue about his machinations. Later, Dez informs Sinestro that Soranik has made her move against her father, leading to a battle between father and daughter. In the end, Sinestro takes her Green Lantern ring from her and replaces it with a Yellow Lantern ring.
Here’s the highlight of the book: Brad Walker's art. Spectacular and fits the feel of the book beautifully! Cullen Bunn does a nice job in giving a wonderful father/daughter battle. I am still not a huge fan of this book, but this is one of the better issues thus far. For anyone who thinks that Sinestro is a great anti-hero, realize that Sinestro is in it for himself and allegedly for his people. He’s a bad guy, people. Deal with it!
STARFIRE #1: Picking up from the 8 page preview we got during CONVERGENCE, Kori is trying to start a new life in Key West. She is trying to convince Sheriff Gomez, who describes her as a “big orange Supergirl”, to help her. They go to a pawnshop, where she trades in her alien rock collection for “three large”. After, Starfire and Stella go out drinking, which leads to a couple of guys fighting over Kori. Next, they head off to a trailer park where Kori can rent a place until something permanent comes along. The issue ends with a huge storm bearing down on Key West and Stella’s brother in the Coast Guard, totally depressed sense the loss of his Maria two years before, is smack dab in the middle of it all. Looks to me like he may need to be saved by his soon to be new girlfriend, Starfire.
What we have here is Starfire suddenly sounding like a cross between Harley Quinn and Chrissy on THREE’S COMPANY. When did she become so naïve that she sounds DUMB? Oh wait: could it be that the team of Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti are writing this book AND HARLEY QUINN? Yeah…could be! We have a ditsy super heroine, a guy who is described by his own grandmother as being “horny as an alley cat”, and a sheriff who pumps her newest friends with booze while the big storm is coming. The highlight of this title is the art of Italian artist Emanuela Lupacchino. Her work, along with the inks of Ray McCarthy and the coloring job by Hi-Fi, makes this book stand out visually. Lupacchino lists her influences as people like Dave Stevens, Steve Rude, and Adam Hughes and it is obvious by the attention to the female form. Unfortunately, this beautiful looking book can’t save the awful story that goes with it.
SUPERMAN #41: Clark gets an anonymous text message from a mysterious individual revealing the “unknown source” for technology advanced weapons. Clark and Jimmy head off to a factory in Technology Park where a well-dressed man is showing off his huge 3D printer which is making the advanced weapons. Clark and Jimmy get spotted by some guards, but Clark becomes Superman and is forced to use his solar flare to take out the 3D printer robot. Later they discover that the man in the suit is a recently elected Senator who no longer has a mustache. That leads to his arrest and celebration in the Daily Planet office. Clark gets another text informing him of a woman with blue hair coming to see him and instructs him to turn her over to the authorities or else. And he does. Later still, he rescues the woman from the “authorities” and gets shot in the process. Unfortunately, Lois gets involved with her snooping and jumps into Jimmy’s getaway car. Apparently the woman has information about who's really behind the weapons, but Clark may not be able to live to tell the tale.
TRUTH continues to move in mysterious ways as Gene Luen Yang takes over as writer, coupled with John Romita Jr.’s art. Fans were wondering exactly how good Yang’s work would be and, based on this first issue, I see it as a bonus to the franchise! His pacing is dead-on and the characterization jumps back and forth between feeling like the 21st Century Man of Steel meets his Sixties counterpart. This book feels right and hopefully won’t drift off into silly places. For now, I like the direction…especially because I want to know how this whole TRUTH story ties together.
SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN #18: Clark and Diana are lying in bed when Clark gets a three A.M. panic call from Lana, telling him there is something in her parent’s house in Smallville. When Clark and Diana arrive at the house, no one is there and there is no sign of a struggle. Later, they go into town, where some of the regular folks question his being here and suggest that trouble follows him and they don’t want trouble anymore. Then they find out that they family home has been taken away, as has every Kent buried in town. That is when the Suicide Squad shows up to capture and collect.
Peter Tomasi and Doug Mahnke give us their unique chapter as part of the TRUTH storyline. I really like where this Superman story is going, but I want to know HOW did we get to this point. What happened, outside of Lois revealing Clark's secret identity, to cause Superman to become both powerless and hated? When are we going to have this piece of the puzzle revealed to us. You would think that, with four Superman titles issued in a month, we would have some answers by now. The book is a great read, considering I am not a big fan of the Diana and Clark relationship. MY CLARK KENT has a relationship with LOIS LANE.
TEEN TITANS #9: Red Robin and Chimera are setting up warning sensors in Chciago in hopes of capturing that mass-murdering Superboy. At street level, Bunker, Beast Boy and Raven are accosted by their fans when Superboy arrives and stops a train from hitting a girl. Manchester Black notices Superboy’s arrival and gathers his team-Power Girl, Wonder Girl, Kid Flash, Guardian, and Klarion-and sends them into action. The Titans manage to get Superboy out of there, but Blacks’ team arrives and Wonder Girl demands they release Kon to her.
Will Pfeifer and Kenneth Rocafort get points for turning what could have been a completely boring issue into only a halfway boring issue. And it has nothing to do with the creative team as it does the characters. This is NOT my Teen Titans. And who let Guardian and Klarion in here? Klarion ESPECIALLY!!! I like that we have could old, Manchester Black stirring up the pot, but even THIS VERSION is not the cold, calculating Manchester Black I love. So, the story was good, the art was equally as impressive….and we just need to shake up the team a bit. Once that’s done, I will LOVE this book!
WE ARE ROBIN #1: We begin with Duke Thomas getting beat up on the school yard for dating someone’s sister. He ends up at Leslie Thompkins place, which results in him being put into another foster home, as his parents have been missing since they were infected with Joker Toxin. Duke runs away and ends up under Gotham where he discovers an entire city of people being led by a madman who wants to tear Gotham down. Duke gets spotted but, before he can be captured, is saved by the group known as We Are Robin. In the end, we see the headquarters of the mysterious person known as "The Nest".
For those who don’t know, this title features Duke Thomas. He played a major role during ZERO YEAR and eventually became Robin in BATMAN AND ROBIN FUTURE’S END. So, if you followed those books, you are somewhat invested in this character. I’m guessing that this team and it’s mysterious benefactor will fight crime and help Duke find his parents. Lee Bermejo and Jorge Corona do a nice job of telling the tale, although I wish Bermejo had drawn it. I’m not completely thrilled with it Corona’s art and also wonder how DC gets away with a T Rating while dropping words like “ass” and “bitch” into it. Oh yeah: what’s with the $3.99 cover price DC “drawing the line at $2.99”? Is that because it’s a first issue? Shame on you!
WONDER WOMAN #41: Diana heads to Mount Olympus to check in on Donna Troy, who is being held captive there after leading the massacre of the brothers of the Amazons. She then goes to visit Zola and Zeke, who are chilling by the Pool of the Gods. Later, she checks in with Hephaestus to see how the captive Amazons there are doing and discovers that he has crafted a new costume for her. Later, she runs into some kid who is threatening to blow himself up. The two of them scuffle before he slips loose and gets away, after telling her that he knows she is the God of War. He goes to a secret location and learns that he needs a weapon powerful enough to kill a god to become the God of War.
While the story is cool, the costume SUCKS SO BADLY! Meredith Finch is responsible for this new design and it looks like an amalgam of a bunch of heroes, including stealing from Black Widow and Captain America. Why have we gotten rid of the classic image? If you are truly going to do this, can we just go back to the white pantsuit look from the Seventies? At least she looked bad ass instead of ridiculous. While David Finch’ art is his usual fine work, I cannot get past this horrible costume. Seriously, can we bring back Mod Girl Wonder Woman, get Denny O’Neal on-board, and get back to the days of pissing off feminists?
Keith Giffen, J. M. DeMatteis and Howard Porter are back for more merriment in the 31st Century. I so love this book! It is just great to see how heroes twisted and turned this way. And hey: we’ve even got Superman checking out Guy Gardner’s ass! Porter’s art has never looked as good and Giffen and DeMatteis make the humorous tag team Palmiotti and Conner WISH they could be. If you like your heroes turned upside down and inside out, this is truly the book for you!
LOBO #7: On Praxis Prime, Lobo is ready to take out his newest target: Varnu Vain. But a kill squad has showed up and killed Vain and some semi-innocent bystanders in the process. He takes out most of them but is captured by a team led by Kadra from the Void Whisper. As he realizes the Siamese twins he had bedded have set him up, he gains his revenge by depositing a bomb in the mouth of one of them, blowing her head off. Working for the Void Whisper, he meets with a priest, who gets killed by a tracker. No sooner does he realize there is a problem then he gets attacked by a Thangarian, a Daemonite and a Martian. Things don’t look good for the Last Czarnian.
Cullen Bunn and Cliff Richards give us more of what this book has previously offered: sex, blood, guts and a so-so story. So…exactly what we had prior to CONVERGENCE. Richards’ art is dynamite. You will love it if you like dismembered bodies, head shots and such. I can’t believe this book is rated T+ because I think it’s a bit gory for a T+ title. Maybe this should be a Vertigo book or get an M rating. Anyway, the story is so-so, the art rocks and I'm not certain if I'm going to continue or not. It's kind of like a car crash. You don't want to look but can't help to.
MARTIAN MANHUNTER #1: A bunch of kids dare a little girl to go wake an alien creature by the name of Mr. Biscuits. Meanwhile, Martian Manhunter, the alleged last of his kind, saves a passenger jet in trouble while revealing that his people have come to Earth. In Dubai, a cat burglar watches a royal prince be murdered by a Martian creature. In fact, there is a sudden outbreak of murder and terrorist incidents around the world, which leads J’onn to his friend Helen Demoff, where he asks her to kill him.
This book is totally the shining gem in DC’s releases for Week Three of the DC You lunch. Rob Williams gives us a story that poses more questions than answers. How is it that Martians now exist after we have long been told that J’onn was the last of his kind? Why the rise in murder and terrorism? Who is Mr. Bisquits? Why does J’onn need to die? This book is awesome! And Eddy Barrows art, with Eder Ferreira inking, is some of the best of his career. So…bottom line: the book LOOKS GREAT, READS GREAT and is a roller coaster ride from page one until the end. Add this to your pull list. This is required reading!
MIDNIGHTER #1: Someone who wants the Dragon’s Gold is attacking The Gardener in the God Garden. Meanwhile, Midnighter and his date are interrupted during dinner by an armed team looking for Modoran traitors. That means Midnighter is soon taking people out. Later, in a pool hall in Boston, he plays some pool, then takes his boyfriend to Moscow and Oakland before ending the day with some hot loving. Hours later, the two share a meaningful conversation about relationships before Midnighter injects Jason with a Smartmark tracker that allows Jason to contact Midnighter if he needs him. The Gardener calls to him and he goes to her, where he finds out that the mysterious assailant took the file that tells everything there is to tell about Midnighter.
So, if you’re reading this, you hopefully know that Midnighter is a gay character. That’s important to the whole story and, if you didn’t know that, you will figure it out real quick when you see he and Jason in about as graphic a situation as you can squeeze into a T+ rated book. Steve Orlando does a great job of mixing the action with the romance and Aco’s art fits the story nicely. Do I expect there will be some ire from some group about the gay angle? Sure I do. And DC will answer that they are only trying to appeal to their diverse audience. Do I think they are going to amp up that side of our anti-hero because they want to appeal to that diverse audience? Sure I do. And I am okay with that as long as it all fits into the story and they’re just not exploiting it because they can.
NEW SUICIDE SQUAD #9: Deadshot, Black Manta, and Captain Boomerang are informed of their newest mission. With Harley, Parasite, and Reverse Flash as their back-up, they are to infiltrate the League: the new version of the League of Assassins. Arriving in Turkey, they gain entrance into the organization. Once inside, they are tortured until they conform to the rules and goals of the League. Then they are taken out in the desert where they are forced to kill three would be heroes who have been frozen. It’s amazing what baseball bats will do to frozen people.
Sean Ryan writes us a killer story…literally! This is a dark and nasty issue, punctuated with some dark humor. And my favorite line? Floyd Lawton saying that Parasite is “kinda like if Grimace had sex with a nightmare”. Couple this with Philippe Briones awesome art and this book is a winner for sure! This is DC’s newest cash cow and they are going to make it as entertaining as possible. So yeah: this works!
OMEGA MEN #1: After “killing” the White Lantern, members of the Omega Men are hiding on the planet Ogyptu. As the police on the planet use strong-arm tactics to find them, they eventually run into Tigorr, Broot, Scrapps, and Primus. Defeating their hunters, the team blows up the place and makes their escape. And joining them, whether he wants to our not, is Kyle Rayner, who is kept in the dark and mutters Carol’s name.
Okay…you might find this a little hard to follow and that is because it is. Tom King gives us a great introduction for new fans and a re-introduction for long time fans of this team. But the book is far darker than the original and paints them as terrorists. But, obviously, they are the good kind of terrorists that are trying to take down the “Evil Empire”, if you will. Barnaby Bagenda’s painted art is nice, but I really wish we had his art from the preview story instead. It seemed to be darker and not as colorful, although we do get to see one of the Citadel soldier’s heads explode in living color! Again, another T+ book crawling with adult themes. I want to see where King is going with this and hope the next issue will fill in some of the holes in the story.
PREZ #1: Welcome to 2036 where the powers that be are looking for the best candidate to be President following the next election. The field is a joke and the spin on them is even worse. 19-year-old corn dog fry cook Beth Ross goes to visit her dying father in the hospital. She attempts to go on the show Double Dare Billionaire, but the show runs out of time. Her Sickstarter campaign is going even worse and she has nowhere near the 4 million dollars she needs to pay dad’s medical bills. Along the way, the Hacker Collective Anonymous runs a campaign to have her in the Presidential race. When all is done, no one has enough Electoral votes to win, so a Secret CEO meeting at the Build-A-Burger Headquarters, and Boss Smiley, seems to hold the key to our next President.
Close behind MARTIAN MANHUNTER #1, this is my second favorite book of Week #3. And that is a complete surprise, considering how awful the 8 page preview of this title was. Mark Russell and Ben Caldwell gives us a hysterical, historical romp. If NATIONAL LAMPOON MAGAZINE, the CLASSIC Seventies LAMPOON, mated with a CLASSIC SNL political sketch and had a baby, THIS would be that baby. Filled with way too many jokes that most teens will not get (Specifically the Hacker Collective Anonymous group that are all wearing there V FOR VENDETTA masks!), this book was laugh out loud funny at points. The satire is ripe and so is the topic. Definitely a must read, even if it has no connection to the classic DC series starring Prez Rickard. Now, I want BROTHER POWER back!
RED HOOD/ARSENAL #1: Roy Harper is in the middle of the Arizona Desert, observing a meet between Tara Battleworth and some terrorists. They have a captured CIA agent and the deal is to sell him back to the Senator that Battleworth works for. It all goes back fast, leading to Roy having to take action and take out the terrorists. Unfortunately, they shoot the Senator, leading Roy to realize that things have gotten that much worse. But then the Senator springs back to life and we all realize that it is really Red Hood in disguise. The real Senator is safely being held in a car trunk. Despite their bickering, maybe this team should work for the government, as Battleworth offers.
Okay…so this is exactly as I expected. It is the same book we previously had MINUS Starfire. That means, we have bickering between our heroes and some silly adventuring. Scott Lobdell does what he does and writes as he always has, meaning the characters sound like they came out of the Nineties and are full of easy to identify personality. And, as much as Lobdell gets bashed for this, I actually LIKED this isue, except I totally saw where the reveal with the Jason/Senator was goingThe art from Denis Medri, who previously worked on Image’s 13 CHAMBERS, is kind of different but fitting, reminding me of some of the better independent comic folks out there. All in all, I have read worse.
ROBIN, SON OF BATMAN #1: Robin and his pet griffin Goliath are being held captive in Bialya because Goliath got caught poaching their blessed cows. Elsewhere, Morgan Ducard’s daughter finds her father’s skeletal remains and his mask. Eventually Daman and Goliath get free as he screams that “the year of atonement is at hand”. In the end, a lone figure rises up in Nanda Parbat. If this REALLY Talia Al Ghul?
Wow! This one just pulls all the bits and pieces from the previous BATMAN AND ROBIN runs together into one amazing book! Patrick Gleason, artist extraordinaire, handles scripting and art chores on this book and it rocks! We bring in the Year of Blood, the late Morgan Ducard, a crazy dream sequence, a trip to Al Ghul Island, and a griffin named Goliath. This thing looks great, reads liked Peter Tomasi never left it and is setting some cool plot points for the future. If you were a fan of the previous incarnations, this one will put you right where you want to be.
SECRET SIX #3: It’s two days after our team has escaped Mockingbird and they are currently in hiding in Big Shot’s house. Catman is having a bit of an issue with a cop who likes to beta his dog and that may be an issue later. Unfortunately, they aren’t the best house guests as a bunch of them have had weird sex on his couch. Black Alice reveals her name is really Lori Zechlin and her origin may be tied to an accident involving her and her parents. Porcelain and the Ventriloquist go out to get some food and that results in them taking out a harassing tough guy who isn't as tough as he thought. When it comes time for dinner, Strix sets the table, even though she doesn’t know how.Catman finds out the cop next door has been beating his dog again and this leads to him beating the cop and taking possession of his dog. Later, we find that Big Shot is really Mr. Dibney and that Ed Nygma is Mockingbird.
This would be a killer book…if it would stay on schedule. There was a gap between issue #1 and issue #2 and then two months off for CONVERGENCE and no one remembers what the heck was going on. Okay, so this group has come together because they were held captive by someone named Mockingbird. But it’s two months later and we don’t remember what was happening. Gail Simone gives us the best story to date, as we get some background on the characters. And Dale Eaglesham comes on-board as artist and kicks the doors down! The characters jump off the page. I especially like that Big Shot looks like a character right out of Wrightson’s work on CAPTAIN STERN. And who is Mr. Dibney really? If this title would stay on track, this could be a great book. Unfortunately, it’s just another title hampered by scheduling issues.
SINESTRO #12: Sinestro and Soranik argue about his machinations. Later, Dez informs Sinestro that Soranik has made her move against her father, leading to a battle between father and daughter. In the end, Sinestro takes her Green Lantern ring from her and replaces it with a Yellow Lantern ring.
Here’s the highlight of the book: Brad Walker's art. Spectacular and fits the feel of the book beautifully! Cullen Bunn does a nice job in giving a wonderful father/daughter battle. I am still not a huge fan of this book, but this is one of the better issues thus far. For anyone who thinks that Sinestro is a great anti-hero, realize that Sinestro is in it for himself and allegedly for his people. He’s a bad guy, people. Deal with it!
STARFIRE #1: Picking up from the 8 page preview we got during CONVERGENCE, Kori is trying to start a new life in Key West. She is trying to convince Sheriff Gomez, who describes her as a “big orange Supergirl”, to help her. They go to a pawnshop, where she trades in her alien rock collection for “three large”. After, Starfire and Stella go out drinking, which leads to a couple of guys fighting over Kori. Next, they head off to a trailer park where Kori can rent a place until something permanent comes along. The issue ends with a huge storm bearing down on Key West and Stella’s brother in the Coast Guard, totally depressed sense the loss of his Maria two years before, is smack dab in the middle of it all. Looks to me like he may need to be saved by his soon to be new girlfriend, Starfire.
What we have here is Starfire suddenly sounding like a cross between Harley Quinn and Chrissy on THREE’S COMPANY. When did she become so naïve that she sounds DUMB? Oh wait: could it be that the team of Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti are writing this book AND HARLEY QUINN? Yeah…could be! We have a ditsy super heroine, a guy who is described by his own grandmother as being “horny as an alley cat”, and a sheriff who pumps her newest friends with booze while the big storm is coming. The highlight of this title is the art of Italian artist Emanuela Lupacchino. Her work, along with the inks of Ray McCarthy and the coloring job by Hi-Fi, makes this book stand out visually. Lupacchino lists her influences as people like Dave Stevens, Steve Rude, and Adam Hughes and it is obvious by the attention to the female form. Unfortunately, this beautiful looking book can’t save the awful story that goes with it.
SUPERMAN #41: Clark gets an anonymous text message from a mysterious individual revealing the “unknown source” for technology advanced weapons. Clark and Jimmy head off to a factory in Technology Park where a well-dressed man is showing off his huge 3D printer which is making the advanced weapons. Clark and Jimmy get spotted by some guards, but Clark becomes Superman and is forced to use his solar flare to take out the 3D printer robot. Later they discover that the man in the suit is a recently elected Senator who no longer has a mustache. That leads to his arrest and celebration in the Daily Planet office. Clark gets another text informing him of a woman with blue hair coming to see him and instructs him to turn her over to the authorities or else. And he does. Later still, he rescues the woman from the “authorities” and gets shot in the process. Unfortunately, Lois gets involved with her snooping and jumps into Jimmy’s getaway car. Apparently the woman has information about who's really behind the weapons, but Clark may not be able to live to tell the tale.
TRUTH continues to move in mysterious ways as Gene Luen Yang takes over as writer, coupled with John Romita Jr.’s art. Fans were wondering exactly how good Yang’s work would be and, based on this first issue, I see it as a bonus to the franchise! His pacing is dead-on and the characterization jumps back and forth between feeling like the 21st Century Man of Steel meets his Sixties counterpart. This book feels right and hopefully won’t drift off into silly places. For now, I like the direction…especially because I want to know how this whole TRUTH story ties together.
SUPERMAN WONDER WOMAN #18: Clark and Diana are lying in bed when Clark gets a three A.M. panic call from Lana, telling him there is something in her parent’s house in Smallville. When Clark and Diana arrive at the house, no one is there and there is no sign of a struggle. Later, they go into town, where some of the regular folks question his being here and suggest that trouble follows him and they don’t want trouble anymore. Then they find out that they family home has been taken away, as has every Kent buried in town. That is when the Suicide Squad shows up to capture and collect.
Peter Tomasi and Doug Mahnke give us their unique chapter as part of the TRUTH storyline. I really like where this Superman story is going, but I want to know HOW did we get to this point. What happened, outside of Lois revealing Clark's secret identity, to cause Superman to become both powerless and hated? When are we going to have this piece of the puzzle revealed to us. You would think that, with four Superman titles issued in a month, we would have some answers by now. The book is a great read, considering I am not a big fan of the Diana and Clark relationship. MY CLARK KENT has a relationship with LOIS LANE.
TEEN TITANS #9: Red Robin and Chimera are setting up warning sensors in Chciago in hopes of capturing that mass-murdering Superboy. At street level, Bunker, Beast Boy and Raven are accosted by their fans when Superboy arrives and stops a train from hitting a girl. Manchester Black notices Superboy’s arrival and gathers his team-Power Girl, Wonder Girl, Kid Flash, Guardian, and Klarion-and sends them into action. The Titans manage to get Superboy out of there, but Blacks’ team arrives and Wonder Girl demands they release Kon to her.
Will Pfeifer and Kenneth Rocafort get points for turning what could have been a completely boring issue into only a halfway boring issue. And it has nothing to do with the creative team as it does the characters. This is NOT my Teen Titans. And who let Guardian and Klarion in here? Klarion ESPECIALLY!!! I like that we have could old, Manchester Black stirring up the pot, but even THIS VERSION is not the cold, calculating Manchester Black I love. So, the story was good, the art was equally as impressive….and we just need to shake up the team a bit. Once that’s done, I will LOVE this book!
WE ARE ROBIN #1: We begin with Duke Thomas getting beat up on the school yard for dating someone’s sister. He ends up at Leslie Thompkins place, which results in him being put into another foster home, as his parents have been missing since they were infected with Joker Toxin. Duke runs away and ends up under Gotham where he discovers an entire city of people being led by a madman who wants to tear Gotham down. Duke gets spotted but, before he can be captured, is saved by the group known as We Are Robin. In the end, we see the headquarters of the mysterious person known as "The Nest".
For those who don’t know, this title features Duke Thomas. He played a major role during ZERO YEAR and eventually became Robin in BATMAN AND ROBIN FUTURE’S END. So, if you followed those books, you are somewhat invested in this character. I’m guessing that this team and it’s mysterious benefactor will fight crime and help Duke find his parents. Lee Bermejo and Jorge Corona do a nice job of telling the tale, although I wish Bermejo had drawn it. I’m not completely thrilled with it Corona’s art and also wonder how DC gets away with a T Rating while dropping words like “ass” and “bitch” into it. Oh yeah: what’s with the $3.99 cover price DC “drawing the line at $2.99”? Is that because it’s a first issue? Shame on you!
WONDER WOMAN #41: Diana heads to Mount Olympus to check in on Donna Troy, who is being held captive there after leading the massacre of the brothers of the Amazons. She then goes to visit Zola and Zeke, who are chilling by the Pool of the Gods. Later, she checks in with Hephaestus to see how the captive Amazons there are doing and discovers that he has crafted a new costume for her. Later, she runs into some kid who is threatening to blow himself up. The two of them scuffle before he slips loose and gets away, after telling her that he knows she is the God of War. He goes to a secret location and learns that he needs a weapon powerful enough to kill a god to become the God of War.
While the story is cool, the costume SUCKS SO BADLY! Meredith Finch is responsible for this new design and it looks like an amalgam of a bunch of heroes, including stealing from Black Widow and Captain America. Why have we gotten rid of the classic image? If you are truly going to do this, can we just go back to the white pantsuit look from the Seventies? At least she looked bad ass instead of ridiculous. While David Finch’ art is his usual fine work, I cannot get past this horrible costume. Seriously, can we bring back Mod Girl Wonder Woman, get Denny O’Neal on-board, and get back to the days of pissing off feminists?
Thursday, July 2, 2015
A sneak peek at the ALL-NEW ALL-DIFFERENT MARVEL
Marvel Comics has just released the ALL-NEW ALL-DIFFERENT FREE PREVIEW book featuring the first 45 revealed titles for the post SECRET WARS relaunch in October. Yeah: 45 titles! Rumor has it, the number could swell all the way up to 60! That’s a lot of reading and a lot of money involved. Think about it: 60 titles at $3.99 a month…that is just under $250 a month. And if you also read DC, Image, Valiant or any number of other books, you could be looking to get a second job just to feed your comic fix!
So, what are we looking at? Well, here we go, title by title, with creative teams and my opinion, for what that may be worth.
INVINCIBLE IRON MAN by Brian Michael Bendis and David Marquez. The design work looks great and Bendis sure knows how to write a cool story. The fact that this is the FIRST title shown in the preview shows me this is a book they are totally going to push at people.
A-FORCE by G. Willow Wilson and Victor Ibanez. I read the first issue of the SECRET WARS series and immediately turned my nose to it after completing it. An all female Avengers team should be a hormone filled event and I’m seeing lots of that floating about in this title. But the meandering list of characters just scares me. And, after reading that SW issue…yeah: I’m good without this. And the tagline of A-Force to be reckoned with just makes me want to hurl!
ALL-NEW ALL-DIFFERENT AVENGERS by Mark Waid, Adam Kubert, Mahmud Asrar, with covers by Alex Ross. Did you read the FCBD issue? If you did, then you know this has the makings of being a long-winded, meandering pile! Your Avengers are Thor(the female one-who looks to also be in A-Force too), Captain America(the black one), Iron Man(the drunken one), The Vision(the mechanical one), Spider Man(the Ultimate one), Ms. Marvel (the Muslim one) and Nova(the young one). Too many characters I really don’t care about here to make me want to read this.
UNCANNY AVENGERS by Gerry Duggan and Ryan Stegman. Here’s a team for you: Steve Rogers(still old), The Human Torch(which one?), Rogue, the Amazing Spider Man, Quicksilver (in the UGLIEST outfit ever), Brother Voodoo(I think), some woman with a rising sun on her uniform…and Deadpool. Could this be the first time in my life that I DON’T READ an AVENGERS title? Could be!
NEW AVENGERS by Al Ewing and Gerardo Sandoval. With a line-up including Songbird, Hawkeye, Wiccan, Hulkling, Squirrel Girl and Sunspot and a tag line promoting Avengers Idea Mechanics, I find myself not being the LEAST bit interested in this title.
ULTIMATES by Al Ewing and Kenneth Rocafort. So, I’m confused as I thought the Ultimates were dead. And I’m also wondering if Rocafort has left DC for Marvel or is doing double duty. Anyway, the team appears to be Black Panther, Spectrum, Blue Marvel, Miss America, Captain Marvel…and Galactus(?). just for that last reveal alone, my interest is piqued. Galactus…REALLY?
DOCTOR STRANGE by Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo. Doctor Strange wielding spells and an axe? Yes please: count me in! I love Bachalo’s art and although Aaron can be hit or miss, I’m excited about this series!
CAPTAIN MARVEL by Tara Butters, Michele Fazekas and Kris Anka. I cannot say just how much I REALLY DISLIKED the previous series, mostly because I felt the writing was just awful. While I still long for all of the changes to the Marvel Universe to effectively give us the CLASSIC Captain Marvel back(hey-we now have a Gwen Stacey in the NEW Marvel Universe), I can almost deal with this title. With the show runners for AGENT CARTER writing it, this could be a fun, character driven title!
SAM WILSON, CAPTAIN AMERICA by Nick Spencer and Daniel Acuna. Sorry-I don’t LIKE Sam Wilson as Captain America and never have. Personally, I’m all about the Bucky Barnes as the replacement Captain America. Based on the illustration we were served up, it looks like Cap and Steve come to a crossroads and a split. Personally, I don’t care.
THE TOTALLY AWESOME HULK by Greg Pak and Frank Cho. I am SO STOKED for this title! The question is WHO is the Hulk? Based on the shadowy image we get, I think it MIGHT BE Amadeus Cho, especially because he is “totally awesome”. But really: Pak and Cho together? So, the stories will be epic and the babes will be booming!
THE MIGHTY THOR by Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman. Jane Foster, still dealing with cancer, continues her fight as Thor. Now, I dropped the series after the first issue, but picked it up for the revealing last issue. As I have said elsewhere, Aaron is hit or miss, so I may give him a chance. She’s not Don Blake but she’s also not Beta Ray Bill!
SCARLET WITCH by James Robinson, with covers by Kevin Wada. I am kind of scared about this one. Wanda has the ugliest costume this side of her brother’s costume and we have no listing of an artist, so who knows what this thing is going to look like. The saving grace IS James Robinson who is killing it with AIRBOY. We can only hope…
MS. MARVEL by G. Willow Wilson, Takeshi Miyazawa and Adrian Alphona. I read the first issue and found it so overtly Ethnic that I was offended by it. I am all in favor of diversity, but I was just feeling like the idea that she was Muslim was being shoved down my throat. Now, we have a new title and we have thrown Lockjaw and Medusa into the mix. And, if that weren’t enough, it LOOKS like BATGIRL! Enough! Let’s bring in young, female readers with good stories and cool artwork…not this stuff that looks like BAD MANGA!
ILLUMINATI by Josh Williamson and Shawn Crystal with cover art by Riley Rosmo. With the tagline, “Forever Evil”, there is hope that this thing is going to be killer! I’m not totally familiar with Williamson’s work on NAILBITER or GHOSTED and have yet to read his just released RED SKULL SECRET WARS book and I Know Crystal did a DEADPOOL mini series and FANTOMEX MAX, so I’m good with that. Looks like the team is made up of The Hood, Absorbing Man, Black Ant and some others. My guess: this is the new Thunderbolts crossed with the Frightful Four.
HAWKEYE by Jeff Lemire and Ramon Perez. I have to admit I am probably the biggest Jeff Lemire fan I know, so this is a given for me. But, based on the promo illustration, it looks like our hero is much older and the tag line says Hawkeye vs. Hawkeye, this is going to be much different from what we’ve been used to prior to SECRET WARS. Either way, count me in.
ANT-MAN by Nick Spencer and Ramon Rosanas with covers by Mark Brooks. I have to admit that I haven’t been reading this series, but I may give it a shot. From what I have been told, Scott Lang is Ant-Man and he has a supporting cast featuring Grizzly, Whirlwind, Porcupine, and Beetle. So, it’s The Avengers meets Thunderbolts meets the Masters of Evil?
VISION by Tom King and Gabriel H. Walta with covers by Marcos Martin. This has potential, as the rumor is that Vision creates an entire family for himself. With Tom King writing it, anything could be possible! Curious to see what Walta gives us in the art department.
CONTEST OF CHAMPIONS by Al Ewing and Paco Medina. Is Al Medina suddenly the new golden boy of the Marvel Universe as it suddenly seems like he is writing a ton of titles! Unfortunately, his recent Marvel work, CAPTAIN AMERICA AND THE MIGHTY AVENGERS, and LOKI have done nothing for me. The promo shot with what seems to be the Maestro in the role of the Grandmaster, concerns me. It’s a revamped rehash.
AMAZING SPIDER MAN by Dan Slott and Giuseppe Camuncoli with covers by Alex Ross. Peter Parker is back, we think. Well, there is someone in the Spider suit, riding in a Spider Mobile(really?) in the cover art. And we do have Peter Parker in a tux with two babes on his arm. Is he in the suit or just acting as a mentor to Miles Morales. Since Miles is wearing his trademark suit on his Avengers team, we have to assume this is Peter. With Dan Slott at the helm, it should be great!
CARNAGE by Gerry Conway and Mike Perkins with covers by Mike Del Mundo. I am not a fan of all these carnage books that Marvel has shoved at us over the years, but with Gerry Conway at the helm it could either be great or awful, such as the recent AMAZING SPIDER-MAN .1 books. Perkins has been around the comics’ block for a while, with his early U.S. works being in NEGATIVE BURN back in the days of the Indys and he had great turns on RUSE and KISS KISS BANG BANG for CrossGen. It’s supposed to be a horror comic book. Let’s see how this plays. Personally, I’m looking forward to this.
SPIDER-WOMAN by Dennis Hopeless and Javier Rodriguez. I hate to make fun of a person’s name and tie it to a book, but I must. Who thought that taking Jessica Drew and making her PREGNANT was a good idea. I saw the cover, and the redesigned costume, and wanted to barf! Oh wait: this is the same ugly costume she has been wearing since issue #5. But knocked up? Lemme guess: we can have a contest to see who the baby daddy is! Oh brother!
SPIDER-MAN by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli. So here we have the Miles Morales Spider-Man. You can tell the difference because of his suit, his name (NOT AMAZING), and the fact that Bendis is writing him. If you liked him in the Ultimate Universe, you will probably be a fan of him here!
SPIDER-GWEN by Jason Latour and Robbi Rodriguez. This character is the new darling of the Marvel Universe, as is seen by the astronomical prices for her first appearance in EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE # 2 (upwards of $300 CGC Graded and slabbed). I have to say I’m not a fan of the character but, for fans, this will fit right in to your pull list. I may snag the first few issues just to see how this Gwen and Peter Parker relate to each other.
SILK by Robbie Thompson and Stacey Lee with covers by Helen Chen. Sorry to say, I’m not reading this title either. I read her appearances during the whole SPIDER-VERSE thing in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN and wasn’t impressed with her character. Thompson is currently writing the SILK series and Lee is drawing it, so I don’t expect any change except that the promo tag line refers to her as The Sinister Silk.
SPIDER-MAN 2099 by Peter David and Will Sliney with covers by Francesco Mattina. Peter David is a legend in the business and Miguel O’Hara is the legendary Spider-Man from Earth-928, which no longer exists. So, my guess is that we’re in present day New York here. I figure I’ll check it out, as he was probably my favorite of the 2099 characters back in the day.
WEB WARRIORS by Mike Costa and David Baldeon with covers by Julian Totino Tedcesco. And we need a Spider-Verse title like I need another ulcer! This book will feature the adventures of Spider-Man India, Spider-Ham, Spider-Gwen, Spider-Man Noir, Anya Corazon and Spider-UK. Because hey: obviously readers can’t get enough Spider-Gwen!
DAREDEVIL by Charles Soule and Ron Garney. Daredevil has a new costume design and appears to be hanging with Gambit. I’m excited about this because it is Charles Soule, who did such amazing work for DC and has been doing nice work at Marvel, and legendary penciler Ron Garney. Who knows what havoc these two could wreak on this title!
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY by Brian Michael Bendis and Valerio Schiti. I’m not a fan of this group, even if the movie was the biggest thing to come out of last summer. I’m old school: give me Vance Astro and the boys! Well, Bendis and Schiti is giving us a new team of Guardians that features Venom, Drax, Rocket Raccoon, a new female Star-Lord, The Thing, and Groot. A FEMALE Star-Lord? Well, considering one of the SECRET WARS series was STAR LORD AND KITTY PRYDE…I wonder. And The Thing is here and the Human Torch is elsewhere. Boy…Marvel is serious when they want to distance themselves from the FANTASTIC FOUR movie!
DRAX by CM Punk, Cullen Bunn and Ed McGuiness. Oooh…here’s a concept. Draz is participating in an Intergalactic Fight Club, the tagline says Best in the Galaxy and CM Punk is writing it with Cullen Bunn. Yeah…that’s a stretch! But Ed McGuiness is drawing it. Ooh…I want this to be a well-written guilty pleasure book but I’m afraid!
HOWARD THE DUCK by Chip Zdarsky and Joe Quinones. Yawn! Sorry: this title irked me from the first pages of issue #1. Same creative team, so I expect more of the same.
NOVA by Sean Ryan and Cory Smith with covers by Humberto Ramos. The father and son team are back. I haven’t read this title since the first issue, so I must admit to being out of the loop. Ramos doing the covers is great, although I would love to see his interior work. This is probably not a title I will pick up outside of the first issue, but it remains to be seen. The first issue could blow me away and that could be that.
STAR-LORD by Sam Humphries with covers by Dave Johnson. Here is another title without an art team names and that alone scares me! Sam Humphries worked on THE ULTIMATES with Hickman and also AVENGERS A.I. and X-FORCE. And the promo art shows Star-Lord in an astronaut’s suit. Confused? Yeah…me too!
VENOM: SPACEKNIGHT by Robbie Thompson and Ariel Olivetti. Just the title alone makes me curious! I like Ariel Olivetti’s art and Thompson is working on SILK. And I have to assume that Venom is Flash Thompson. At least he was the last time I read the title. Yeah…I want to get a look at the first issue and really hope it doesn’t suck.
HOWLING COMMANDOS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. by Frank Barbiere and Brent Schnoover. What we have here is a team made up of Hit-Monkey, Man-Thing, Werewolf by Night, an undead Jasper Sitwell, Manphibian and Dum Dum Dugan and a bunch more monstrous heroes. This is either going to be the most surprising, amazing series in years or suck worse than almost anything you have read in years. Hopefully, the former but I truly have my doubts.
AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. by Marc Guggenheim and Mike Norton. Marvel continues it’s TV tie-in with the continuing adventures of Coulson and company. I stopped reading the most recent series after the first few issues and haven’t looked back. I want Nick Fury back and not the Son of Fury we had shoved at us as part of the Samuel L. Jackson retcon!
UNCANNY INHUMANS by Charles Soule and Steve McNiven. Soule and McNiven. This makes me VERY HAPPY! It looks as though our line-up is Black Bolt, Medusa, Gorgon, Beast, the Human Torch and possibly The Inhuman. This has the possibility to be huge!
KARNAK by Warren Ellis and Gerardo Zaffino with covers by David Aja. Holy Cow! We’re letting Warren Ellis take over the most volatile of all the Inhumans? YES PLEASE!!! This book is guaranteed to be THE most exciting of those titles announced so far. Anything Ellis touches is wonderfully weird and I expect this to be no exception!
ANGELA: ASGARD’S ASSASSIN by Marguerite Bennett, Kim Jacinto and Stephanie Hans with covers by Julian Totino Tedsesco. When Angela was this cool character over at Image, I was find with that. When she came over here, I wasn’t so fine with it. Now that we’re going to let Marguerite Bennett team her up with Hel to do battle with whatever, I have to throw up my hands and say “no thanks!” Todesco’s art look amazing but it’s only a cover. I have no idea what Jacinto and Hans is going to give us. To me, it doesn’t matter: it’s Marguerite Bennett messing with a character who should have stayed over at Image.
SQUADRON SUPREME by James Robinson and Leonard Kirk with covers by Alex Ross. Right off the bat, we have James Robinson, Leonard Kirk and Alex Ross. Okay: SIGN ME UP! Their Earth is dead and gone and so is the legendary Mark Gruenwald who wrote the DEFINITIVE Squadron Supreme story. If ANYONE could do that book justice, it’s Robinson!
EXTRAORDINARY X-MEN by Jeff Lemire and Humberto Ramos. Marvel has said that THIS is now the A Team when it comes to the mutant world. And it’s a heavy hitting creative team that will give us the closest thing to a classic version of the classic team. Iceman, Storm, Colossus, Magik, Old Man Logan, teen Jean Grey and Nightcrawler make up this team and I’m thrilled about it! .
UNCANNY X-MEN by Cullen Bunn and Greg Land. So, the A Team is now the second tier as Magneto runs a team made up of Psylocke, Mystique, Fantomex and Sabretooth. So, this is X-Force now? This is the team that is going to be the ones not afraid to do the dirty jobs? Bunn is uneven but Greg Land is amazing, so this book could either be spot-on amazing or downright awful. It’s a mutant Punisher styled army!.
ALL-NEW X-MEN by Dennis Hopeless and Mark Bagley. It’s a road trip book! We’ve put the teenage versions of Beast, Cyclops, Angel and Iceman and new Wolverine X-23 into a VW micro-bus and sent them off on the road. Well, this ain’t Kerouac and I’m already reading a road book in the form of BIZARRO over at DC. This one will REALLY need to hit it out of the park to make me jump on and stay on.
OLD MAN LOGAN by Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino. Yes, you read right: the hit team from GREEN ARROW have been reunited on this title. That alone should make you want to read this book. If you saw Sorrentino’s work on the OLD MAN LOGAN SECRET WARS title, you know it’s going to look amazing. With Lemire writing it-pure heaven!
ALL-NEW WOLVERINE by Tom Taylor and David Lopez. At long last, X-23 gets to wear the costume and take over. Dressed in her own version of the classic Wolverine costume(yes-the yellow and blue!), she looks amazing and scary at the same time thanks to Lopez’ art! And Taylor has been just doing great work on SUPERIOR IRON MAN. I tire of the million X-titles, but this may be worth picking up.
DEADPOOL by Gerry Duggan and Mike Hawthorne with covers by Tony Moore. Because we really needed a DEADPOOL title following SECRET WARS. Hey, let’s be honest: next to Spider-Gwen, he is probably Marvel’s most popular character. But let’s be honest: Deadpool jumped the shark many years ago when he had something like 3 titles running at once. Didn’t Marvel learn from the Punisher that has three titles running at once back in the day? I won’t be jumping on this title at all.
So that’s the first run. Now, you may have noticed some things that I, along with some other media outlets, see as being M.I.A. in the All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe. Most glaringly is NO FANTASTIC FOUR. Not just No book, but NO team! If you’ve been reading SECRET WARS, you can see where some of our team is. The Thing joins the new guardians team while Johnny Storm is in the Inhumans. Also missing from the new universe are such Marvel mainstays as Ghost Rider, The Winter Soldier, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Shang-Chi, Black Widow and The Punisher. There are even characters featured on the two two-page spreads at the beginning of the book who apparently have no home yet. Where is Red Wolf and Citizen V? Where is Arkon and company from WEIRDWORLD? Marvel has stated that this title will continue post SECRET WARS.
Again, word has it that there may be as many as 60 titles by the time everything relaunches, so maybe these characters are forthcoming. Personally, I will do exactly what I did when DC launched its’ NEW 52: I will sample each title and go from there. Unfortunately, I fear that many of these books won’t make it past issue #1 with me.
So, what are we looking at? Well, here we go, title by title, with creative teams and my opinion, for what that may be worth.
INVINCIBLE IRON MAN by Brian Michael Bendis and David Marquez. The design work looks great and Bendis sure knows how to write a cool story. The fact that this is the FIRST title shown in the preview shows me this is a book they are totally going to push at people.
A-FORCE by G. Willow Wilson and Victor Ibanez. I read the first issue of the SECRET WARS series and immediately turned my nose to it after completing it. An all female Avengers team should be a hormone filled event and I’m seeing lots of that floating about in this title. But the meandering list of characters just scares me. And, after reading that SW issue…yeah: I’m good without this. And the tagline of A-Force to be reckoned with just makes me want to hurl!
ALL-NEW ALL-DIFFERENT AVENGERS by Mark Waid, Adam Kubert, Mahmud Asrar, with covers by Alex Ross. Did you read the FCBD issue? If you did, then you know this has the makings of being a long-winded, meandering pile! Your Avengers are Thor(the female one-who looks to also be in A-Force too), Captain America(the black one), Iron Man(the drunken one), The Vision(the mechanical one), Spider Man(the Ultimate one), Ms. Marvel (the Muslim one) and Nova(the young one). Too many characters I really don’t care about here to make me want to read this.
UNCANNY AVENGERS by Gerry Duggan and Ryan Stegman. Here’s a team for you: Steve Rogers(still old), The Human Torch(which one?), Rogue, the Amazing Spider Man, Quicksilver (in the UGLIEST outfit ever), Brother Voodoo(I think), some woman with a rising sun on her uniform…and Deadpool. Could this be the first time in my life that I DON’T READ an AVENGERS title? Could be!
NEW AVENGERS by Al Ewing and Gerardo Sandoval. With a line-up including Songbird, Hawkeye, Wiccan, Hulkling, Squirrel Girl and Sunspot and a tag line promoting Avengers Idea Mechanics, I find myself not being the LEAST bit interested in this title.
ULTIMATES by Al Ewing and Kenneth Rocafort. So, I’m confused as I thought the Ultimates were dead. And I’m also wondering if Rocafort has left DC for Marvel or is doing double duty. Anyway, the team appears to be Black Panther, Spectrum, Blue Marvel, Miss America, Captain Marvel…and Galactus(?). just for that last reveal alone, my interest is piqued. Galactus…REALLY?
DOCTOR STRANGE by Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo. Doctor Strange wielding spells and an axe? Yes please: count me in! I love Bachalo’s art and although Aaron can be hit or miss, I’m excited about this series!
CAPTAIN MARVEL by Tara Butters, Michele Fazekas and Kris Anka. I cannot say just how much I REALLY DISLIKED the previous series, mostly because I felt the writing was just awful. While I still long for all of the changes to the Marvel Universe to effectively give us the CLASSIC Captain Marvel back(hey-we now have a Gwen Stacey in the NEW Marvel Universe), I can almost deal with this title. With the show runners for AGENT CARTER writing it, this could be a fun, character driven title!
SAM WILSON, CAPTAIN AMERICA by Nick Spencer and Daniel Acuna. Sorry-I don’t LIKE Sam Wilson as Captain America and never have. Personally, I’m all about the Bucky Barnes as the replacement Captain America. Based on the illustration we were served up, it looks like Cap and Steve come to a crossroads and a split. Personally, I don’t care.
THE TOTALLY AWESOME HULK by Greg Pak and Frank Cho. I am SO STOKED for this title! The question is WHO is the Hulk? Based on the shadowy image we get, I think it MIGHT BE Amadeus Cho, especially because he is “totally awesome”. But really: Pak and Cho together? So, the stories will be epic and the babes will be booming!
THE MIGHTY THOR by Jason Aaron and Russell Dauterman. Jane Foster, still dealing with cancer, continues her fight as Thor. Now, I dropped the series after the first issue, but picked it up for the revealing last issue. As I have said elsewhere, Aaron is hit or miss, so I may give him a chance. She’s not Don Blake but she’s also not Beta Ray Bill!
SCARLET WITCH by James Robinson, with covers by Kevin Wada. I am kind of scared about this one. Wanda has the ugliest costume this side of her brother’s costume and we have no listing of an artist, so who knows what this thing is going to look like. The saving grace IS James Robinson who is killing it with AIRBOY. We can only hope…
MS. MARVEL by G. Willow Wilson, Takeshi Miyazawa and Adrian Alphona. I read the first issue and found it so overtly Ethnic that I was offended by it. I am all in favor of diversity, but I was just feeling like the idea that she was Muslim was being shoved down my throat. Now, we have a new title and we have thrown Lockjaw and Medusa into the mix. And, if that weren’t enough, it LOOKS like BATGIRL! Enough! Let’s bring in young, female readers with good stories and cool artwork…not this stuff that looks like BAD MANGA!
ILLUMINATI by Josh Williamson and Shawn Crystal with cover art by Riley Rosmo. With the tagline, “Forever Evil”, there is hope that this thing is going to be killer! I’m not totally familiar with Williamson’s work on NAILBITER or GHOSTED and have yet to read his just released RED SKULL SECRET WARS book and I Know Crystal did a DEADPOOL mini series and FANTOMEX MAX, so I’m good with that. Looks like the team is made up of The Hood, Absorbing Man, Black Ant and some others. My guess: this is the new Thunderbolts crossed with the Frightful Four.
HAWKEYE by Jeff Lemire and Ramon Perez. I have to admit I am probably the biggest Jeff Lemire fan I know, so this is a given for me. But, based on the promo illustration, it looks like our hero is much older and the tag line says Hawkeye vs. Hawkeye, this is going to be much different from what we’ve been used to prior to SECRET WARS. Either way, count me in.
ANT-MAN by Nick Spencer and Ramon Rosanas with covers by Mark Brooks. I have to admit that I haven’t been reading this series, but I may give it a shot. From what I have been told, Scott Lang is Ant-Man and he has a supporting cast featuring Grizzly, Whirlwind, Porcupine, and Beetle. So, it’s The Avengers meets Thunderbolts meets the Masters of Evil?
VISION by Tom King and Gabriel H. Walta with covers by Marcos Martin. This has potential, as the rumor is that Vision creates an entire family for himself. With Tom King writing it, anything could be possible! Curious to see what Walta gives us in the art department.
CONTEST OF CHAMPIONS by Al Ewing and Paco Medina. Is Al Medina suddenly the new golden boy of the Marvel Universe as it suddenly seems like he is writing a ton of titles! Unfortunately, his recent Marvel work, CAPTAIN AMERICA AND THE MIGHTY AVENGERS, and LOKI have done nothing for me. The promo shot with what seems to be the Maestro in the role of the Grandmaster, concerns me. It’s a revamped rehash.
AMAZING SPIDER MAN by Dan Slott and Giuseppe Camuncoli with covers by Alex Ross. Peter Parker is back, we think. Well, there is someone in the Spider suit, riding in a Spider Mobile(really?) in the cover art. And we do have Peter Parker in a tux with two babes on his arm. Is he in the suit or just acting as a mentor to Miles Morales. Since Miles is wearing his trademark suit on his Avengers team, we have to assume this is Peter. With Dan Slott at the helm, it should be great!
CARNAGE by Gerry Conway and Mike Perkins with covers by Mike Del Mundo. I am not a fan of all these carnage books that Marvel has shoved at us over the years, but with Gerry Conway at the helm it could either be great or awful, such as the recent AMAZING SPIDER-MAN .1 books. Perkins has been around the comics’ block for a while, with his early U.S. works being in NEGATIVE BURN back in the days of the Indys and he had great turns on RUSE and KISS KISS BANG BANG for CrossGen. It’s supposed to be a horror comic book. Let’s see how this plays. Personally, I’m looking forward to this.
SPIDER-WOMAN by Dennis Hopeless and Javier Rodriguez. I hate to make fun of a person’s name and tie it to a book, but I must. Who thought that taking Jessica Drew and making her PREGNANT was a good idea. I saw the cover, and the redesigned costume, and wanted to barf! Oh wait: this is the same ugly costume she has been wearing since issue #5. But knocked up? Lemme guess: we can have a contest to see who the baby daddy is! Oh brother!
SPIDER-MAN by Brian Michael Bendis and Sara Pichelli. So here we have the Miles Morales Spider-Man. You can tell the difference because of his suit, his name (NOT AMAZING), and the fact that Bendis is writing him. If you liked him in the Ultimate Universe, you will probably be a fan of him here!
SPIDER-GWEN by Jason Latour and Robbi Rodriguez. This character is the new darling of the Marvel Universe, as is seen by the astronomical prices for her first appearance in EDGE OF SPIDER-VERSE # 2 (upwards of $300 CGC Graded and slabbed). I have to say I’m not a fan of the character but, for fans, this will fit right in to your pull list. I may snag the first few issues just to see how this Gwen and Peter Parker relate to each other.
SILK by Robbie Thompson and Stacey Lee with covers by Helen Chen. Sorry to say, I’m not reading this title either. I read her appearances during the whole SPIDER-VERSE thing in AMAZING SPIDER-MAN and wasn’t impressed with her character. Thompson is currently writing the SILK series and Lee is drawing it, so I don’t expect any change except that the promo tag line refers to her as The Sinister Silk.
SPIDER-MAN 2099 by Peter David and Will Sliney with covers by Francesco Mattina. Peter David is a legend in the business and Miguel O’Hara is the legendary Spider-Man from Earth-928, which no longer exists. So, my guess is that we’re in present day New York here. I figure I’ll check it out, as he was probably my favorite of the 2099 characters back in the day.
WEB WARRIORS by Mike Costa and David Baldeon with covers by Julian Totino Tedcesco. And we need a Spider-Verse title like I need another ulcer! This book will feature the adventures of Spider-Man India, Spider-Ham, Spider-Gwen, Spider-Man Noir, Anya Corazon and Spider-UK. Because hey: obviously readers can’t get enough Spider-Gwen!
DAREDEVIL by Charles Soule and Ron Garney. Daredevil has a new costume design and appears to be hanging with Gambit. I’m excited about this because it is Charles Soule, who did such amazing work for DC and has been doing nice work at Marvel, and legendary penciler Ron Garney. Who knows what havoc these two could wreak on this title!
GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY by Brian Michael Bendis and Valerio Schiti. I’m not a fan of this group, even if the movie was the biggest thing to come out of last summer. I’m old school: give me Vance Astro and the boys! Well, Bendis and Schiti is giving us a new team of Guardians that features Venom, Drax, Rocket Raccoon, a new female Star-Lord, The Thing, and Groot. A FEMALE Star-Lord? Well, considering one of the SECRET WARS series was STAR LORD AND KITTY PRYDE…I wonder. And The Thing is here and the Human Torch is elsewhere. Boy…Marvel is serious when they want to distance themselves from the FANTASTIC FOUR movie!
DRAX by CM Punk, Cullen Bunn and Ed McGuiness. Oooh…here’s a concept. Draz is participating in an Intergalactic Fight Club, the tagline says Best in the Galaxy and CM Punk is writing it with Cullen Bunn. Yeah…that’s a stretch! But Ed McGuiness is drawing it. Ooh…I want this to be a well-written guilty pleasure book but I’m afraid!
HOWARD THE DUCK by Chip Zdarsky and Joe Quinones. Yawn! Sorry: this title irked me from the first pages of issue #1. Same creative team, so I expect more of the same.
NOVA by Sean Ryan and Cory Smith with covers by Humberto Ramos. The father and son team are back. I haven’t read this title since the first issue, so I must admit to being out of the loop. Ramos doing the covers is great, although I would love to see his interior work. This is probably not a title I will pick up outside of the first issue, but it remains to be seen. The first issue could blow me away and that could be that.
STAR-LORD by Sam Humphries with covers by Dave Johnson. Here is another title without an art team names and that alone scares me! Sam Humphries worked on THE ULTIMATES with Hickman and also AVENGERS A.I. and X-FORCE. And the promo art shows Star-Lord in an astronaut’s suit. Confused? Yeah…me too!
VENOM: SPACEKNIGHT by Robbie Thompson and Ariel Olivetti. Just the title alone makes me curious! I like Ariel Olivetti’s art and Thompson is working on SILK. And I have to assume that Venom is Flash Thompson. At least he was the last time I read the title. Yeah…I want to get a look at the first issue and really hope it doesn’t suck.
HOWLING COMMANDOS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. by Frank Barbiere and Brent Schnoover. What we have here is a team made up of Hit-Monkey, Man-Thing, Werewolf by Night, an undead Jasper Sitwell, Manphibian and Dum Dum Dugan and a bunch more monstrous heroes. This is either going to be the most surprising, amazing series in years or suck worse than almost anything you have read in years. Hopefully, the former but I truly have my doubts.
AGENTS OF S.H.I.E.L.D. by Marc Guggenheim and Mike Norton. Marvel continues it’s TV tie-in with the continuing adventures of Coulson and company. I stopped reading the most recent series after the first few issues and haven’t looked back. I want Nick Fury back and not the Son of Fury we had shoved at us as part of the Samuel L. Jackson retcon!
UNCANNY INHUMANS by Charles Soule and Steve McNiven. Soule and McNiven. This makes me VERY HAPPY! It looks as though our line-up is Black Bolt, Medusa, Gorgon, Beast, the Human Torch and possibly The Inhuman. This has the possibility to be huge!
KARNAK by Warren Ellis and Gerardo Zaffino with covers by David Aja. Holy Cow! We’re letting Warren Ellis take over the most volatile of all the Inhumans? YES PLEASE!!! This book is guaranteed to be THE most exciting of those titles announced so far. Anything Ellis touches is wonderfully weird and I expect this to be no exception!
ANGELA: ASGARD’S ASSASSIN by Marguerite Bennett, Kim Jacinto and Stephanie Hans with covers by Julian Totino Tedsesco. When Angela was this cool character over at Image, I was find with that. When she came over here, I wasn’t so fine with it. Now that we’re going to let Marguerite Bennett team her up with Hel to do battle with whatever, I have to throw up my hands and say “no thanks!” Todesco’s art look amazing but it’s only a cover. I have no idea what Jacinto and Hans is going to give us. To me, it doesn’t matter: it’s Marguerite Bennett messing with a character who should have stayed over at Image.
SQUADRON SUPREME by James Robinson and Leonard Kirk with covers by Alex Ross. Right off the bat, we have James Robinson, Leonard Kirk and Alex Ross. Okay: SIGN ME UP! Their Earth is dead and gone and so is the legendary Mark Gruenwald who wrote the DEFINITIVE Squadron Supreme story. If ANYONE could do that book justice, it’s Robinson!
EXTRAORDINARY X-MEN by Jeff Lemire and Humberto Ramos. Marvel has said that THIS is now the A Team when it comes to the mutant world. And it’s a heavy hitting creative team that will give us the closest thing to a classic version of the classic team. Iceman, Storm, Colossus, Magik, Old Man Logan, teen Jean Grey and Nightcrawler make up this team and I’m thrilled about it! .
UNCANNY X-MEN by Cullen Bunn and Greg Land. So, the A Team is now the second tier as Magneto runs a team made up of Psylocke, Mystique, Fantomex and Sabretooth. So, this is X-Force now? This is the team that is going to be the ones not afraid to do the dirty jobs? Bunn is uneven but Greg Land is amazing, so this book could either be spot-on amazing or downright awful. It’s a mutant Punisher styled army!.
ALL-NEW X-MEN by Dennis Hopeless and Mark Bagley. It’s a road trip book! We’ve put the teenage versions of Beast, Cyclops, Angel and Iceman and new Wolverine X-23 into a VW micro-bus and sent them off on the road. Well, this ain’t Kerouac and I’m already reading a road book in the form of BIZARRO over at DC. This one will REALLY need to hit it out of the park to make me jump on and stay on.
OLD MAN LOGAN by Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino. Yes, you read right: the hit team from GREEN ARROW have been reunited on this title. That alone should make you want to read this book. If you saw Sorrentino’s work on the OLD MAN LOGAN SECRET WARS title, you know it’s going to look amazing. With Lemire writing it-pure heaven!
ALL-NEW WOLVERINE by Tom Taylor and David Lopez. At long last, X-23 gets to wear the costume and take over. Dressed in her own version of the classic Wolverine costume(yes-the yellow and blue!), she looks amazing and scary at the same time thanks to Lopez’ art! And Taylor has been just doing great work on SUPERIOR IRON MAN. I tire of the million X-titles, but this may be worth picking up.
DEADPOOL by Gerry Duggan and Mike Hawthorne with covers by Tony Moore. Because we really needed a DEADPOOL title following SECRET WARS. Hey, let’s be honest: next to Spider-Gwen, he is probably Marvel’s most popular character. But let’s be honest: Deadpool jumped the shark many years ago when he had something like 3 titles running at once. Didn’t Marvel learn from the Punisher that has three titles running at once back in the day? I won’t be jumping on this title at all.
So that’s the first run. Now, you may have noticed some things that I, along with some other media outlets, see as being M.I.A. in the All-New, All-Different Marvel Universe. Most glaringly is NO FANTASTIC FOUR. Not just No book, but NO team! If you’ve been reading SECRET WARS, you can see where some of our team is. The Thing joins the new guardians team while Johnny Storm is in the Inhumans. Also missing from the new universe are such Marvel mainstays as Ghost Rider, The Winter Soldier, Luke Cage, Iron Fist, Shang-Chi, Black Widow and The Punisher. There are even characters featured on the two two-page spreads at the beginning of the book who apparently have no home yet. Where is Red Wolf and Citizen V? Where is Arkon and company from WEIRDWORLD? Marvel has stated that this title will continue post SECRET WARS.
Again, word has it that there may be as many as 60 titles by the time everything relaunches, so maybe these characters are forthcoming. Personally, I will do exactly what I did when DC launched its’ NEW 52: I will sample each title and go from there. Unfortunately, I fear that many of these books won’t make it past issue #1 with me.
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
DC YOU Month #1, Part 1
ACTION COMICS #41: Clark Kent is hungry and tired and a long way away from Metropolis. He is jobless, almost powerless, has been outed as Superman, and there are numerous lawsuits filed against him. He buys a motorcycle, gets in a fight, and goes on a road trip before ending up in Metropolis, where he finds there is a warrant out for his arrest. Meeting up with Jimmy Olsen, he discovers that the block where he used to live has been renamed Kentville. A shadow creature attacks Metropolis, similar to one which has attacked him earlier. As he battles the creature, the Metropolis police are ordered to go into to Kentville and burn it down.
Talk about a new beginning! And a confusing one to say the least. The reason for the confusion in this first part of the TRUTH storyline is that it takes place after events in SUPERMAN #41 and #42, neither of which had come out when this book hit the stands. Pak’s story is powerful and I am pretty certain that this is going to be a defining piece in his repertoire, just like his HULK run was. Aaron Kuder’s art is sharp and crisp and the only thing that confused me was when Jimmy Olsen got this semi-Afro look? And is that facial hair? Wow! What ever happened to the bow-tie wearing kid? Anyway, this is a great start to a new era for the Big Blue Boy Scout.
ALL STAR SECTION EIGHT #1: Sidney Speck gets drunk at an art gallery and ends up becoming SixPack: leader of Section Eight. He knows there is trouble coming and needs to put the legendary team back together but most of the team died helping Hitman fight the demonic Multi-Angled Ones. After much searching, he gets a team of seven together: PowerTool, Bueno Excellente, Guts, The Grappler, Dogwelder, Baytor and himself. Wondering whom he is going to get to fill out his team, he sees Batman and asks him. Unfortunately, Batman gets a parking ticket while going to an ATM and drives off without joining.
Welcome to the funniest, most brilliant book from out of the second week’s releases of the new DC You. Garth Ennis and John McCrea, the mad geniuses behind HITMAN and THE BOYS, have reunited with this new team that first appeared in HITMAN. And it is hilarious! I mean, we have a character named DOGWELDER!!! There are lots of great jokes and ribs and McCrea even has the nerve to draw three specific iconic Batman images into the tale: the classic Neal Adams, the Kelly Jones ‘Broken Bat’ and the Jim Aparo ‘Death in the Family’ Batman. In addition, they all end up in the context of the tale. Of course, we also get a Batman who drops an “S-Bomb” three panels from the end of the book and complains about the three dollars it would cost him to use an ATM out of his network. Do NOT read this expecting it to be a serious superhero romp. Read this because you know it will be an unbelievable romp of epic silly proportions.
AQUAMAN #40: In St. Louis , a strange creature arrives to attack the city. Aquaman also arrives, defeating the creature and calling out the beings who live inside it. They battle, leading him to freeze them all and then strike them down. We learn that he and his people have encountered them before and Vulko explains that it’s less like an invasion but more like a disease spreading across their kingdom. After seeing his proposal to Mera, we find we’re back in the present, where he is being attacked by his fellow Atlanteans before teleporting away to the Amazon, where he is greeted warmly by the invaders.
If it feels like you just stepped into the middle of a movie, having missed the first hour or so, then you are right. This is what this issue is all about. For some unknown reason, Aqauman is in new duds and being hunted by his own people for siding with some other people. And the flashback reveals that he proposed to Mera. Wait: weren’t they already married? And why is Vulko being treated like Hannibal Lector? Besides being confused by this, the story by Cullen Bunn is so truncated that it is hard to follow. I literally had to read the present storyline as a unit and then the past storyline. Too many jumps like this makes Hulk’s head hurt! And Trevor McCarthy’s art is just too angular and blocky for me to enjoy. I hope this book improves, as it was a major disappointment to go from where it was to this.
BATGIRL #41: While battling a bunch of hooded weirdos worshiping a large electronic tube, the new Batman arrives, threatening to arrest her. As one of the hooded ones attacks him, she escapes. Later, she tells Frankie about the incident when her father, with his new clean-shaven look, arrives and takes her out for ice cream. In the process, he reveals that he is the new Batman and has been charged with tracking down and arresting all the other vigilantes out there. Meanwhile, Livewire gets loose from the electronic tube and terrorizes Burnside. During their battle, the new batman arrives and Livewire flees, leaving Batman to arrest Batgirl.
I could probably stomach this title if it weren’t for a number of things. First, the cartoony art by Babs Tarr, which has gotten more cartoony with this issue thanks to “background assists” and colors by Joel Gomez and Serge Lapointe. Second, when did Batgirl become a teenage ditz? This IS the same hero who was once shot by the Joker, wheel chair bound, remarkably repaired and then led the Birds of Prey, right? Cameron Stewart and Brendan Fletcher continue to rewrite the legacy of Batgirl, aiming it at a younger, female audience. And, I still hate it! Although, they do get points for dropping Jim Gordon in to the mix and telling his daughter he would hate for her to find out he was leading a double life.
BATMAN #41: Two months have passed since Batman and The Joker died and now there is a new Batman in town. Inside an armored suit is former Gotham City Police Commissioner Jim Gordon. When it seems that none of the possible Batman recruits would measure up, Geri Powers convinces Gordon to fill the role while Harvey Bullock convinces him to quick smoking. With the help of Julia Perry and Daryl Gutierrez, who pilot the Bat Ship that works like Oracle once did, Gordon has a new haircut and a new attitude. On his first mission, he an energy creature being controlled by a criminal named Precious Precious. This member of the Whisper Gang has baseball legend Dodger Valera hostage and it comes down to Jim, with his Bat Taser, to save him. In the end, we see that a lone, bearded man on a park bench MAY be Bruce Wayne. So, if Bruce Wayne IS alive, why is he no longer Batman.
And this is why BATMAN is the best selling DC title on the stands. Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo just absolutely crush it with each and every issue and, at this rate, they could hang on and break the Stan Lee/Jack Kirby record for issues set in the classic days of FANTASTIC FOUR. We get a little bit of recent history, some great action, and a mystery. So, IS that Bruce Wayne? We all know you can’t kill him, just as you can’t kill Clark Kent. And rumor has it that he has already appeared in BATMAN #40 and in the FCBD DIVERGENCE book. Both times, we see a bandaged man on crutches with a someone that has an "R" on his jacket (Batman and Damian perhaps?). Come back next month as the mystery deepens and the book continues to shake up the comic world.
BATMAN BEYOND #1: In the future city of Neo-Gotham, Batman is fighting the Jokerz gang , where he eventually gets the Veil security system engaged to hide Gotham from Brother Eye. He goes to the apartment that Nora and Matt share and he is told of a place called The Lodge where it is believed many of Terry McGuiness’ friends are being held captive. Flying through a devastated New York, he encounters the Brother Eye created Robot Superman, eventually beating him in combat. Making his way into the P.O.W. Camp, he encounters a much older friend from his past: Barbara Gordon.
Here are some things that you need to know about this title. First, Terry McGuiness, the Batman of the future in comics and animated television shows, is dead, having died trying to stop Brother Eye during the FUTURE’S END event. Second, the current Batman is Tim Drake: our favorite Red Robin who is much older and went to the future to find that he didn’t succeed in eliminating Brother Eye. Third: Neo-Gotham is the only city that hasn’t been affected by Brother Eye. So we have a post apocalyptic world where pockets of survivors are all that is left. But Tim is youngish and Babs Gordon is not. Dan Jurgens and Bernard Chang do a great job and have sucked me into a title that I never bought in the old DCU. Nice job guys: I look forward to where you take this.
BATMAN SUPERMAN #21: Superman is fighting the good fight, even though his powers have been diminished. A police officer, who stood up against his sergeant recently, tells him to move along following his defeat of some bad guys. Clark heads over to visit Lex Luthor who reveals that he has tracked the energy signature of the weapons that have recently been used against Superman to Gotham City. So off they go, where they have a run-in with the new Batman who tries to arrest Clark. Discovering some evidence, he heads to the Bat Cave where he finds a one-armed Alfred and learns that Bruce is dead. Later, Lois calls him and explains the chaos that has occurred in the lives of Perry, Jimmy and herself because of her outing him. Returning to the Bat Cave, he paints and customizes his motorcycle and goes off to confront Batman.
I totally LOVE where the TRUTH story is going, but have a MAJOR COMPLAINT. This is the SECOND Superman book out this month (ACTION COMICS #41 being the first) and the second one to make references to books that haven’t hit the stands yet. In ACTION COMICS, it was references to SUPERMAN #41 and #42 and here we find out that the police officer confronting his sergeant happened in ACTION COMICS #42, which is three weeks away. Can you say SPOILER? I’m guessing that, during the attempt to burn down Kentville, this cop said no. Okay…thanks for ruining THAT SURPRISE. Other than that, Greg Pak and Adrian Syaf turned in a book that had me waiting to see what was next with every page turn. And Alfred with one arm? I guess he didn’t get that fixed, did he?
BAT-MITE #1: Bat-Mite is on trial and gets exiled to our Earth where we find him driving and crashing the Batmobile while chasing some criminals. Batman arrives, defeats the criminals, and frees the young woman who had been locked in the trunk of the criminal’s car. Then women in a nurse’s outfit pops up and drugs Bat-Mite. He is awakened and finds himself captured by woman named Doctor Trauma. Her plan, in order to keep herself young, is to implant her brain in Hawkman’s body. Can our little hero save the day?
Well, that was fun and as silly as I expected it to be. Dan Jurgens and Colin Howell do a great job of tapping into the classic DC humor titles like BOB HOPE, SUGAR AND SPIKE, and THE ADVENTURES OF JERRY LEWIS. This is certainly not going to appeal to everyone, but I knew this was going to be corny when I jumped into it. If you’re a fan of HARLEY QUINN, you MIGHT like this, although I think the jokes are fresher and funnier here. So, it’s a six issue commitment that I think I can live with.
BIZZARO #1: Jimmy Olsen, Bizarro and Colin the Chupacabra head off on a road trip. After a bit of an accicent, they end up at King Tut’s Slightly Used Car Oasis. Tut gains powers from three aliens masquerading as Osiris, Horus and Anubis and proceeds to attempt to get everyone in Smallville to buy a car.
It doesn’t sound like much, but you actually have to read it. I won’t tell you about the gags and jokes, but I will tell you the book is a ball! Rumor has it that Heath Corson pitched this to DC Editorial as PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES but I think it feels more like FEAR AND LAOTHING IN LAS VEGAS. Gustavo Duarte art is cool and cartoony and we get a one-page dream sequence courtesy of the legendary Bill Sienkiewicz that is a dream come true! This was dumb and fun and is not about to win any major awards. But who cares? This is just a fun ride with two unlikely partners and
BLACK CANARY #1: The Black Canary Band has developed a reputation for having trouble at their gigs as five of their last seven shows have come to a quick end because of violence. This is a big concern to band member Byron, as she seems to feel all of this started when D. D. joined the band. With a great voice, a lack of stage presence, and a shadowy past behind her, the band tries to get through their gigs without chaos and get an album recorded in the process. At their next gig, the scary shadow creatures that have been observing D. D. forces another violent incident where the band cancels their show and our hero is forced to use her Canary Cry to subdue them. One of the creatures reveals that “he” is coming for Ditto, the band’s silent guitarist. With that, D. D. decides it is time to train the band in the art of hand-to-hand combat.
I haven’t quite figured out how I feel about this book. It’s not a true superhero title and it’s not really a rock and roll story. Rather, it is this weird hybrid by Brenden Fletcher and Annie Wu, which means it has the feel of the BATGIRL title that so drastically got revamped several months back. And it even has that weird look to it too. What I don’t like about this title is how D. D.’s past has been shoved aside and isn’t it convenient that the Black Canary has joined a band called the Black Canary Band? And she has suddenly become much younger than we remember her. What I DO like about this book is the story. We have aliens or some kind of weird creature tracking down a silent guitarist who plays the meanest guitar around but has some connection to these creatures. I also like Fletcher and Wu’s storytelling, complete with several virtually wordless pages during the club gig. So, I have to go at least another issue or two as the story has totally hooked me.
CATWOMAN #41: Selina Kyle is at the opera and has a clandestine meeting with Oswald Cobblepot regarding their alliance. Back at home, she discovers from Ward that Batman is dead and is racked by grief and seeks comfort in the arms of Eiko. Meanwhile, Alvarez and Keyes are investigating a murder at restaurant owned by a former cop while also having to handle less than desirable cases as punishment for what has previously transpired involving Kyle. Black Mask meets with Cobblepot and continues to plan on how to wipe out the Calabreses. Back at Kyle’s house, Mario Falcone arrives with an olive branch and Antonia is charged with giving him a mission before they will accept. Selina and Eiko meet again and Selina decides to put the costume back on and seek out information on what happened to Batman.
Now you know that Selina’s sexuality has been not only hinted at but revealed when THE RAINBOW HUB, a website devoted to news and media for the News and media for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual community, covers this book! Of course, to be fair, they have also recently covered SQUIRREL GIRL and SECRET WARS too! What was only hinted at, up until THE KISS a few issues back, becomes more evident as Selina’s apparent bi-sexuality continues (after all, her first issue featured one intense romantic encounter with the Dark Knight). Genevieve Valentine, with art from new series artist David Messina, continues to bring us a new and different Catwoman, although it is GREAT to see her back in the suit after way too long in the pant suit. This is not to say that she doesn’t spend the entire issue except for the last page in the clothes of the head of the Calabrese Crime Family, because she does. Valentine’s story, somewhere between BOARDWALK EMPIRE and THE SOPRANOS is entertaining and Messina’s art is nice and recalls Terry Dodson’s work. This continues to be a winner of a title!
CONSTANTINE: THE HELLBLAZER #1: John Constantine is standing in a clothing store, naked and covered in blood. He convinces the salesgirl that this isn’t what she sees and that the piece of paper saying credit card IS a credit card. While he gets dressed for free, many of the ghosts of his past, specifically his ex-bandmate Gaz, haunt him. He ends up in a pub where he becomes attracted with the owner/bartender. It looks like they might end up on a date when a demon named Blythe arrives and that results in the two of them having a go in the back or Blythe’s place called Inferno. After finishing and making their way to the Basement, otherwise known as the Ninth Circle, Constantine discovers her business partner: a demon named Haluk who is harvesting souls. Constantine is forced to fight the creature and wins, dispatching Haluk and Blythe back to Hell. Gaz and the other ghosts appear and tell John that someone is killing all of the “ghosties” and it’s Constantine’s fault.
This is DEFINITELY NOT the John Constantine who walked through the NEW 52, pining the good old days and being lovesick during his time on Justice League Dark. This is more like the John Constantine of old: the Vertigo John Constantine who smoked like a chimney and shagged anything that moved, male or female. Here is the John Constantine we all love: the mage who has made more bad deals with demons and other creatures then we can count. This is truly a T+ title, thanks to Ming Doyle and James Tynion IV, with art from Riley Rossmo. Dark, moody and sure to offend the most open minded of comic fans, this is a treat and probably one of my other favorites from the Week Two releases. This rocked!
DEATHSTROKE #7: Hephaestus and Victor Ruiz watch Deathstroke engage in his training with his new sword, preparing him to go off and kill a God named Lapetus. After slaying a bunch of imaginary creatures, Slade goes off and meets with his daughter Rose, who has cut her hair, much to his dismay. He gives her a message he wants given to her brother Jericho, which she promptly burns as soon as he has left. With Hephaestus’ disembodied head leading the way, Deathstroke goes to Themyscira and enters Tartarus, where he immediately encounters enemies. He quickly slays them, before finding a statue of Apollo. He realizes someone is inside and attacks it, causing it to explode and whatever is inside to escape. That’s when Diana arrives, tells him he has unleashed a force that will destroy them and orders him to “surrender or die”.
Tony S. Daniel and James Bonny team up to bring us the first bloody act in the post CONVERGENCE world of Slade Wilson. Nothing has changed here except that Bonny is co-writing the tale. Slade is still the physically changed person he was two months ago, his kids still hate him and Hephaestus is still looking to have him do his dirty work for him. Ruiz is still this shadowy figure with the funds and a hidden agenda. Overall, this is the same book we had two months ago, which is fine by me. It’s DC’s answer to Frank Castle and, since I happen to like The Punisher, I’m okay with that.
DETECTIVE COMICS #41: The new Batman is fighting crime in the streets while Harvey Bullock and Nancy Yip are getting busy in the sheets. Bullock hears an explosion outside and realizes that they need to be there. We then get a flashback to three weeks ago when Maggie Sawyer tries to convince Bullock to lead the new Batman Task Force, which he refuses. Two weeks ago, Maggie and Jim Gordon are meeting at Le Cirque de Volant, where Gotham’s elite will be on opening night. Jim is still uncertain at this point if he is going to sign on to be the new Batman. One week ago, Harvey and Nancy are in a cop bar and, in the midst of a fight that Bullock helps start, Renee Montoya shows up. Following the fight, we learn that Montoya has come back to Gotham and accepted the Task Force job that Bullock turned down. She tries to convince him to join the team and get Yip reinstated in the process. At the same time, Yip receives a mysterious phone call regarding the seating chart for the Le Cirque event, with the voice on the other end insisting that she “kill them all”.
Well, this is some interesting and grim events but did we really have to see Yip riding Bullock in bed? Honestly?! Brian Buccellato and Francis Manapul provided the great story while Fernando Blanco steps in with an art style more common to mainstream superhero books, as opposed to the previous work by the former team for THE FLASH, which I truly liked. This is a book that will obviously focus more on the supporting cast than the Dark Knight and only have him appear as needed. And I’m okay with that. I like seeing Bullokc in action and having Montoya back is killer! I can’t wait for next issue to see what Yip’s deal is.
DOOMED #1: While a creature dwells upon what has happened to him, we go back twelve hours ago to when this creature was a young man named Reiser. He gets a job at S.T.A.R. Labs and that’s good as he and his roommates try to make do with their rent by looking for a new roommate to share expenses. Reiser also has an Aunt Belle who is getting old and forgetful, which results in him bringing her food and claiming he was bringing it to her as he bought too much for himself. Back at S.T.A.R., he gets overheated while power cleaning one of the rooms there and removes his suit long enough to get some air. This is bad as the air causes him to change later at the worst possible time: on what looks to be the makings of a new relationship.
What the heck is this? Has Scott Lobdell REALLY thrown his plot back into the early Sixties? Is he trying to make this guy the new Peter Parker? It’s pretty obvious to me. Let’s see: youthful kid, helps out his old Aunt Belle, makes one STUPID MISTAKE and now becomes a creature obviously affected by the Doomsday Virus, and that keeps him from jumping in the shower with his soon to be new girlfriend. And, if plot follows tradition, she will end up being his long-suffering girlfriend. Unless this title gets the axe early on in which case none of this matters. With that having been said, I have mixed emotions about this. I like the characterization of Reiser but regret having a ton of plot here. I’m also not a huge fan of Javier Fernandez’ art as it seems that everyone lately is still influenced by the Rob Liefeld style of art. I so wanted to hate this book, but I can’t. There is some nice, funny bits in it, especially a worn-out gag involving Belle’s cat, and I really like Resier as a character. I had pretty much written this book off before the first issue appeared but I have to give this at least another shot as the writing here is better than most of Lobdell’s recent output.
DR. FATE #1: Poor Khalid. As Brooklyn is caught up in a massive deluge, caused by an angry Egyptian God, which looks to be the worst thing to happen since the Biblical flood, our hero has to deal with an Egyptian statue coming to life. And, if that wasn’t bad enough, he is told that he is the new Dr. Fate and must wear the famous helmet. He is totally freaked out and shares that with Shaya through a series of text messages. He also shares that with his mother, who is more concerned with her cat Puck, who has managed to stay dry even though it is raining cats and dogs. On his way home, Khalid uses powers he didn’t know he had to save a girl who has fallen in front of a train. Puck takes him back to the museum and makes certain he takes the helmet, even as the cat dies to be reborn. Meanwhile, bad things happen to his cab-driving father as he transports a mysterious man to the airport.
What to make of this? Well, if you didn’t read the preview story during CONVERGENCE, you are probably a bit confused. Khalid, now the second Muslim hero in comics, is the new Doctor Fate and I don’t know how I feel about that. It has NOTHING to do with his ethnicity, so let’s make that clear. This character has a long, storied tradition and I had enough trouble swallowing his incarnation on the New 52 version of Earth 2. But this is just so far off tradition that it’s really, REALLY hard for me to swallow. Where is Kent Nelson when we need him? Paul Levitz and Sonny Liew give me a book filled with characters I don’t care about and that’s not a good thing, especially with this being issue #1 and I find no interest in coming back. The story is slow moving, the characters are droll and the art is unappealing to me. Sorry DC: I think this is a case of 1 and done for me.
EARTH 2: SOCIETY #1: A year ago, Terry Sloan, the smartest man in the world, ordered the twelve ships containing the survivors of Earth 2 to crash land on the planet Telos turned into the new Earth 2. Each of these ships represent a new city on this new Earth 2. Now, one year later, Dick Grayson, the new Batman, is on patrol in New Gotham and currently trying to save Sloan from Johnny Sorrow and his gang. He does but Sloan flees, wondering is HE sent Grayson to hunt him. Who is HE and why is Sloan so afraid of him?
Daniel H. Wilson and Jorge Jimenez do an okay job of bringing fans who didn’t read CONVERGENCE up to speed. Unfortunately, there are lots of gaps in the story. First off: did it REALLY take a year to build Gotham out of the wreckage of one of the spaceships? And what is the story with the other cities? Will Dick ever find his son, who was last seen with the Earth 2 version of Barda (who we can assume is different from the one referenced by Mister Miracle in the current issue of JUSTICE LEAGUE). Jimenez’ art is choppy and blocky and reminds me a lot of Dennis Cowan’s work. All in all, I was not impressed by this, but will give it an issue or two to see where the plot finally goes.
FLASH #41: In the near future, Flash is battling a new enemy when time slows down and the Reverse Flash visits him. Moving back to now, we see that Barry is living with the former Pied Piper and his partner David, who Barry knows very well. Later, he visits his dad in Iron heights and tells him he knows that someone named Thawne has something to do with his mom’s murder. He angrily tells Barry never to say that name again and orders him to leave. Double Down tells Henry Allen that he needs to keep alert because the “Man in Yellow” is coming. Henry gathers up some con friends and they break out of Iron Heights so he can protect his son. Back at the battle from the beginning of the book, Barry takes down the unnamed villain as Reverse Flash looks on.
Robert Venditti, Van Jensen and Brett Booth pick up where they left off with a bang –up story that now weaves itself a little closer to the television show of the same name. The Reverse-Flash, who we know is Thawne, is back to make someone’s life miserable. But, isn’t his life already miserable? I mean, he has lost his girlfriend and is living with an ex criminal and a co-worker. How much worse can that get? Well, the story is fun, the art looks great and I’m dying to see where this goes to next!.
GOTHAM ACADEMY #7: Maps is in class and day dreaming when she is chastised by her teacher, which causes Eric to attack Mr. Scarlet and Damian Wayne to make his presence known. Later, she observes Damian practicing his moves when they get stuck together and a raven steals her quill pen. They go to Pomeline, who is convinced that the quill is responsible for all this, including Eric’s outburst earlier. Pomerline goes crazy and knocks them out the window, forcing Damian to have Maps grab his grappling gun and fire it across the way. The pair end up in Kyle’s room and he proceeds to attack them with a tennis racket before Damian uses her to knock Kyle out. They decide to visit Professor MacPherson and see if she can help. They figure that the quill was made from a feather from a demon bird from Inishtree, which also has a connection with the Wayne family. Outside, they find Maps friends still influenced by the spell and also find the raven. This causes Damian to whip out a Batarang which causes the bird to release the quill. Scarlet arrives to inform them that the quill carries a version of the Avain Flu, which caused the craziness. The pair are brought to Headmaster Hammer’s office, where Damian claims HE took the quill and therefore is expelled. As he leaves, he gives her the Batarang and tells her she might need it someday. Just then Professor MacPherson arrives and tells Maps that she needs to tell her something about Olive.
Well, this was a quick in and out for the Son of Batman. One issue and done! Becky Cloonan and Brendan Fletcher give us more of what came before, but this time we have painted art from Mingjue Helen Chen. The story was a lot of fun, the art was beautiful, and I just love this silly ride. What is the secret in this place? I feel like I’m 8 years old and watching DARK SHADOWS again, although without the vampires and werewolves! This is a fun, recommended read for kids of pretty much all ages. And go track down the 75th Anniversary Joker variant by my friend Craig Rouseau. It rocks! Hey DC: can we get him to do an issue or two, since he NAILED the characters!
GOTHAM BY MIDNIGHT #6: The team is gathered at the funeral of Sister Justine. Corrigan reveals the secret behind The Spectre and then explains how Detective Drake has a harbinger of death inside her known as a Bain Sidhe. As they are called away to a ghost sighting at Powers Corporation, Doctor Tarr goes into the church and curses out God. At the Powers building, Corrigan and Drake learn about the ghost and connect it to the recent death of George Wooley. It turns out that Wooley was given a methamphetamine by his boss and that resulted in his death, which is why he is haunting the place. Back at the police station, we learn that Doctor Tarr is experimenting on a bizarre flower that is capable of regenerating itself. And, if that wasn’t crazy enough, Kate Spencer shows up to try and keep Internal Affairs off the team’s back.
Ray Fawkes is back to deliver the ghostly goings-on in Gotham City, with Juan Ferreyra delivering the art. And, as expected, it rocks! There are many a good bit of dialogue and the art is both surrealistic and scary. This is a book designed to give you the creeps. And when you get Internal Affairs involved with this group, it can’t be good news for anyone. This is NOT a superhero title and that’s fine. This is just the kind of oddball book the DC Universe needs and not some of the horrible horror books of the past…yes: I’m looking at the recent PHANTOM STRANGER and TRINITY OF SIN as bad examples.
GRAYSON #9: At St. Hadrian’s, Dick Grayson is desperately trying to contact Bruce and get orders to come home. As the story unfolds, Matron learns that someone has been killing spies on Spyral missions across the world. Currently Grayson and Agent 1 are in Spain trying to steal a Kryptonian necklace from a duchess there. Grayson manages to make his way to the dance floor and dances with the young woman, stealing the Kryptonite jewel in the process. Matron contacts him and advises him that Agent 1 may be a traitor. Dick knocks him out and flees, leaving Agent 1 at the mercy of a silent assassin. But someone else knocks off the assassin, leaving Agent 1 in the hands of the Spanish Police.
Leave it to Tim Seeley and Tom King to give us a plot that is this involved and this intricate. Like an onion, it’s filled with layer upon layer of plot with no real answer. This is a mystery book that makes off like it’s a superhero book. And that is not even with me mentioning the classic full page illustration by the amazing Mikel Janin of Dick in his tux, adjusting his bow tie and asking “am I straight”. C’mon: is there anyone out there who is not going to get that joke? What makes this whole thing work is that you don’t know whom the good guys and the bad guys are. As of now, everyone is a suspect. And that’s the way I like it!
GREEN ARROW #41: Someone or something mysterious is killing black people in Seattle. Oliver Queen has come back from his Alaskan road trip and picks up Emi from school. On the way home, they run into the Wart Lady and he explains her history, Later, Seahawks lineman Eddie Ridge is found dead after having a run in with someone mysterious at his home. It looks like the person responsible make be working with Mr. Zimm from Panopticon. In fact, this person seems to be affected by the moon. Could this white faced individual be Eclipso?
Benjamin Percy and Patrick Zircher go to a really dark place with this first issue. In fact, it seems like we have blown off the last creative team and gone back to a place where Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino were creating magic. So who is this mysterious racist targeting black men? I’m only making the Eclipso assumption based on the pasty complexion and the last page where it seems the moon is at play as the killer pours bleach over a bound black man. Yeah-this title is totally going to upset people.
GREEN LANTERN #41: Hal Jordan is one of the most wanted men in the Universe. But, at the moment, he is at the Gaming Dens of Y'Gaal, where he saves the life of a viceroy connected to the monarch of Ketleth Prime. The pair bust out of prison and head back to Vrigo’s uncle, taking one of the slavers with them. In deep space, they discover that the Green Lantern Corps appears to be dead and Mogo has been destroyed.
Robert Venditti and Billy Tan throw some interesting turns into this issue. Hal suddenly has long hair, making me wonder how much time has transpired since he stole the gauntlet. And he now dresses like the Spectre in his long green hooded cloak. Venditti’s story is interesting and makes me want to read the next issue and Tan’s art is cool too! I like this Hal as he doesn’t seem as much of a crybaby as the pre-Convergence Hal was, but that may change as he sees the Corps seemingly destroyed. But, with just this one issue in the can, I like where this could end up going.
GREEN LANTERN: LOST ARMY #1: John Stewart, Kilowog, Arisia, Xrill Vrek, Two-Six, and Krona are in a strange place in space battling alien energy creatures. They are lost in space with no way to contact the central Power Battery. They make their way through the battle and come across some dead Lanterns, who seem, to be encased in some sort of crystal that may have been created by a Red lantern ring. This leads them to a giant pyramid in space that just oozes red energy from it.
I so thought this book would be a mess, based on the preview and the fact that I have never been a fan of John Stewart as a Green Lantern. Surprisingly, Cullen Bunn does a good job of writing an interesting story. It concentrates on Stewart, but also gives us enough of Gardner, with new short hair, clean shaven and a nifty looking Lantern suit, and the rest of the cast to not make it feel like a total team book. The highlight is Jesus Saiz’ art: the whole thing, as he handles pencils, inks and coloring. Images leap off the page and it really drew me into Bunn’s story. I still don’t care for Stewart, but this may lead to being the only Gardener fix I can get. I will give it a few issues and pray it doesn’t get mucked up!
HARLEY QUINN #17: Harley and her team are kicking ass and taking names, so Harley thinks it’s a good idea to meet with the mayor and offer her services. The mayor balks and sends one of his flunkies to go out and check up on her. Meanwhile, Captain Horatio Strong eats some “marine greens” that transforms him. Later, Harley and Mason are out on a date and reveal their pasts to each other. The date goes well until the police arrive and arrest Mason on charges of murder and jail breaking. Heartbroken, Harley goes home, where she accepts a delivery for all 140 parakeets she recently bought. Hearing that Captain Strong might be missing, she sends Harlem and Harvey out to a fisherman’s bar to investigate. They find Strong, but the sea spinach he ate has definitively altered him.
Let’s begin with how great Chad Hardin’s art is. As always, his stuff is killer and I hope he can stay on schedule because it is truly thew star of this title. Now we get to Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmitotti’s story. As expected, it is full of dumb jokes, innuendo, and all around goofiness. In other words: the usual stuff. What I can’t figure out is how DC can list this as a T rated book and have such things as the words “ass”, and “bastards” in it. Not to mention the delivery boy checking out Harley’s posterior and telling him that it “ain’t gonna spank itself”. With that line and her date with Mason, it’s nice to see that Harley isn’t a lesbian, after many fans had presumed following her recent encounter with Poison Ivy. She’s just a girl who wants to have fun, no matter WHAT the sex is! For now, the DEADPOOL of the DC You-niverse is safe on my list. Hey-we all need a little dumb fun every now and then!
HARLEY QUINN/ POWER GIRL #1: Taking place between panels in issue #13 of HARLEY QUINN, Harley and P.G. find themselves in the middle of Galaxia Del Sombrero where they meet Sleezox: the horny Sexyprince of Valeron. After some craziness involving a Sleezox eating creature, they go off to deal with Oreth Odeox, who is dedicated to wiping out the hedonistic world of Valeron. There, they run into Mo’zit Blaqhed. He is the judicial magistrate who has a problem with P.G., noting that she wears skin-tight clothing, has unacceptable levels of cleavage and possible Karflippian Toe and may be a prostitute. This just sends Harley to another place and it’s not a good one for her mental stability, as she blasts Mo’zit’s head off. Soon they meet Groovicus Mellow who exclaims his joy that the foxiest mama in the universe has returned to their planet. He sends them off to free Lord Vartox on its moon, who is currently a captive of Odeox on the moon known as Lustox, so they can get his power ring which will send them back to Earth. Unfortunately, this isn’t going to be easy.
What happens when you let Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti, and Justin Gray loose on a comic book? You get this. Again, DC gives us a mixed bag here as I REALLY wanted to hate this book! Maybe it’s the fact that I grew up in the Seventies and get a lot of the references. Let’s see: Sleezox is a horny, mushroom eating Yoda, Odeox is the evil despot who is torturing Vartox, who is really Zardoz. Blaqhed is a pus covered creature who complains about Karflippian Toe (I guess that’s an intergalactic camel) and Groovicus Mellow is a soul brother like no other. Valeron is filled with lava lamps and hemp and all those things people who DIDN’T grow up in the Seventies worship because they wish THEY HAD. It’s a silly, sophomoric book that will turn off folks fed up with Harley’s book or silly sophomoric comics in general. But this just hit the right funny bone for me and I’m giving credit for the book not being TOTALLY over the top to Gray’s putting a little restraint in to what could have been a further Harley rehash. The fact that the whole six issues drops in between two panels of HARLEY QUINN #13 is beyond silly though. Rush out and get that copy now, kids! BTW: Stephane Roux turns in the best looking artwork of his career to date! Bottom line: the book doesn’t TOTALLY suck and is probably doable as a mini-series that we know how it will end.
JUSTICE LEAGUE #41: Kanto and Lashina murder A woman by the name of Myrina Black. Apparently, she is not the first and won’t be the last, causing the Justice League to investigate. Because he is sensitive to migraines when a Boom Tube is used, Cyborg decides that someone connected to Apokolips is to blame. Later, Superman and Luthor visit Neutron, who is dying of cancer following the Amazo incident. Luthor refuses to help him, causing he and Superman to engage in a war of words. This is until Lex’ sister shoots Lex, seemingly eliminating him before calling on a Mother Box to eliminate them “for Darkseid.” Meanwhile, Mr. Miracle makes his way into Darkseid's citadel and confronts him, before being forced to flee by his adoptive father. In the process, he runs into Kanto and Lahina and is forced to jump again. This time he runs into the real Myrina Black. Back at the murder investigation, Darkseid's Daughter Grail uses Flash like a Mother Box and crawls out from inside him and proceeds to take apart the Justice League. She uses Power Ring to open a doorway that brings the Anti-Monitor to Earth.
So, this is the first chapter in the new arc and the start of the Darkseid War, which is the big Justice League event for the remainder of the year. I like where the story is going, thanks to Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok. But I want to know what is up with Mr. Miracle. This is his first true appearance on what is now known as Earth-O and he talks about having met the Justice League and his early life. No mention is made of the destruction of Earth 2 and he even talks about his love for Big Barda. Somehow, it seems as what happened in EARTH 2: WORLD’S END never happened. Or else someone didn’t clue Johns in about those developments. I also feel about this issue as I did about the first issue of SECRET WARS: way too much stuff crammed into one issue. Despite that, this is a good start for what should be the next six months of story.
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #1: We begin with Superman telling someone unseen to look at what they have done. After a literal earth shattering explosion, we flashback to earlier when Clark Kent is preparing to go to an invitation only event at the Infinity Corporation. It is Superman who arrives there where he meets Alexis Martin, Vincent, and a host of dead versions of Superman. He hears about the Stones of Forever and how the future is gone, as Vincent explains that he expects Superman to save them all. Meanwhile, Aquaman is called away from a meeting with the U.N. and the rest of the team go to a clean energy power plant in Metropolis. As the Parasite arrives, the team realizes it’s a trap and fight for their lives. Superman arrives and does his best to help the team while a mysterious security guard arrives at the Infinity Corporation building and meets with Vincent and Alexis. The League defeats Parasite and heads to the Infinity Corporation building to find it has totally disappeared to be replaced by…Rao?
You need to be aware of three things about this book before you jump in. First: it is not in current DC Continuity as Superman has his powers, Batman is still alive and Wonder Woman is not wearing her ridiculous new outfit (more on that in a later review). Second: this book ships with EIGHT DIFFERENT COVERS-one for each member of the team and a special 75th Anniversary Joker Variant. Yes, the seven member covers do fit together to form one giant image. Third: you get hit with an extra sized story, 49 page, WHOPPER of a story for the over-sized price of $5.99. Now, once you have absorbed all of that realize this is story and art by Bryan Hitch and it rocks! DC took a big chance on this, with the price and multiple covers and all. But the story is great and full of action and mystery and the art is also killer. Add this to your list as this looks to be a winner, even out of continuity!
Talk about a new beginning! And a confusing one to say the least. The reason for the confusion in this first part of the TRUTH storyline is that it takes place after events in SUPERMAN #41 and #42, neither of which had come out when this book hit the stands. Pak’s story is powerful and I am pretty certain that this is going to be a defining piece in his repertoire, just like his HULK run was. Aaron Kuder’s art is sharp and crisp and the only thing that confused me was when Jimmy Olsen got this semi-Afro look? And is that facial hair? Wow! What ever happened to the bow-tie wearing kid? Anyway, this is a great start to a new era for the Big Blue Boy Scout.
ALL STAR SECTION EIGHT #1: Sidney Speck gets drunk at an art gallery and ends up becoming SixPack: leader of Section Eight. He knows there is trouble coming and needs to put the legendary team back together but most of the team died helping Hitman fight the demonic Multi-Angled Ones. After much searching, he gets a team of seven together: PowerTool, Bueno Excellente, Guts, The Grappler, Dogwelder, Baytor and himself. Wondering whom he is going to get to fill out his team, he sees Batman and asks him. Unfortunately, Batman gets a parking ticket while going to an ATM and drives off without joining.
Welcome to the funniest, most brilliant book from out of the second week’s releases of the new DC You. Garth Ennis and John McCrea, the mad geniuses behind HITMAN and THE BOYS, have reunited with this new team that first appeared in HITMAN. And it is hilarious! I mean, we have a character named DOGWELDER!!! There are lots of great jokes and ribs and McCrea even has the nerve to draw three specific iconic Batman images into the tale: the classic Neal Adams, the Kelly Jones ‘Broken Bat’ and the Jim Aparo ‘Death in the Family’ Batman. In addition, they all end up in the context of the tale. Of course, we also get a Batman who drops an “S-Bomb” three panels from the end of the book and complains about the three dollars it would cost him to use an ATM out of his network. Do NOT read this expecting it to be a serious superhero romp. Read this because you know it will be an unbelievable romp of epic silly proportions.
AQUAMAN #40: In St. Louis , a strange creature arrives to attack the city. Aquaman also arrives, defeating the creature and calling out the beings who live inside it. They battle, leading him to freeze them all and then strike them down. We learn that he and his people have encountered them before and Vulko explains that it’s less like an invasion but more like a disease spreading across their kingdom. After seeing his proposal to Mera, we find we’re back in the present, where he is being attacked by his fellow Atlanteans before teleporting away to the Amazon, where he is greeted warmly by the invaders.
If it feels like you just stepped into the middle of a movie, having missed the first hour or so, then you are right. This is what this issue is all about. For some unknown reason, Aqauman is in new duds and being hunted by his own people for siding with some other people. And the flashback reveals that he proposed to Mera. Wait: weren’t they already married? And why is Vulko being treated like Hannibal Lector? Besides being confused by this, the story by Cullen Bunn is so truncated that it is hard to follow. I literally had to read the present storyline as a unit and then the past storyline. Too many jumps like this makes Hulk’s head hurt! And Trevor McCarthy’s art is just too angular and blocky for me to enjoy. I hope this book improves, as it was a major disappointment to go from where it was to this.
BATGIRL #41: While battling a bunch of hooded weirdos worshiping a large electronic tube, the new Batman arrives, threatening to arrest her. As one of the hooded ones attacks him, she escapes. Later, she tells Frankie about the incident when her father, with his new clean-shaven look, arrives and takes her out for ice cream. In the process, he reveals that he is the new Batman and has been charged with tracking down and arresting all the other vigilantes out there. Meanwhile, Livewire gets loose from the electronic tube and terrorizes Burnside. During their battle, the new batman arrives and Livewire flees, leaving Batman to arrest Batgirl.
I could probably stomach this title if it weren’t for a number of things. First, the cartoony art by Babs Tarr, which has gotten more cartoony with this issue thanks to “background assists” and colors by Joel Gomez and Serge Lapointe. Second, when did Batgirl become a teenage ditz? This IS the same hero who was once shot by the Joker, wheel chair bound, remarkably repaired and then led the Birds of Prey, right? Cameron Stewart and Brendan Fletcher continue to rewrite the legacy of Batgirl, aiming it at a younger, female audience. And, I still hate it! Although, they do get points for dropping Jim Gordon in to the mix and telling his daughter he would hate for her to find out he was leading a double life.
BATMAN #41: Two months have passed since Batman and The Joker died and now there is a new Batman in town. Inside an armored suit is former Gotham City Police Commissioner Jim Gordon. When it seems that none of the possible Batman recruits would measure up, Geri Powers convinces Gordon to fill the role while Harvey Bullock convinces him to quick smoking. With the help of Julia Perry and Daryl Gutierrez, who pilot the Bat Ship that works like Oracle once did, Gordon has a new haircut and a new attitude. On his first mission, he an energy creature being controlled by a criminal named Precious Precious. This member of the Whisper Gang has baseball legend Dodger Valera hostage and it comes down to Jim, with his Bat Taser, to save him. In the end, we see that a lone, bearded man on a park bench MAY be Bruce Wayne. So, if Bruce Wayne IS alive, why is he no longer Batman.
And this is why BATMAN is the best selling DC title on the stands. Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo just absolutely crush it with each and every issue and, at this rate, they could hang on and break the Stan Lee/Jack Kirby record for issues set in the classic days of FANTASTIC FOUR. We get a little bit of recent history, some great action, and a mystery. So, IS that Bruce Wayne? We all know you can’t kill him, just as you can’t kill Clark Kent. And rumor has it that he has already appeared in BATMAN #40 and in the FCBD DIVERGENCE book. Both times, we see a bandaged man on crutches with a someone that has an "R" on his jacket (Batman and Damian perhaps?). Come back next month as the mystery deepens and the book continues to shake up the comic world.
BATMAN BEYOND #1: In the future city of Neo-Gotham, Batman is fighting the Jokerz gang , where he eventually gets the Veil security system engaged to hide Gotham from Brother Eye. He goes to the apartment that Nora and Matt share and he is told of a place called The Lodge where it is believed many of Terry McGuiness’ friends are being held captive. Flying through a devastated New York, he encounters the Brother Eye created Robot Superman, eventually beating him in combat. Making his way into the P.O.W. Camp, he encounters a much older friend from his past: Barbara Gordon.
Here are some things that you need to know about this title. First, Terry McGuiness, the Batman of the future in comics and animated television shows, is dead, having died trying to stop Brother Eye during the FUTURE’S END event. Second, the current Batman is Tim Drake: our favorite Red Robin who is much older and went to the future to find that he didn’t succeed in eliminating Brother Eye. Third: Neo-Gotham is the only city that hasn’t been affected by Brother Eye. So we have a post apocalyptic world where pockets of survivors are all that is left. But Tim is youngish and Babs Gordon is not. Dan Jurgens and Bernard Chang do a great job and have sucked me into a title that I never bought in the old DCU. Nice job guys: I look forward to where you take this.
BATMAN SUPERMAN #21: Superman is fighting the good fight, even though his powers have been diminished. A police officer, who stood up against his sergeant recently, tells him to move along following his defeat of some bad guys. Clark heads over to visit Lex Luthor who reveals that he has tracked the energy signature of the weapons that have recently been used against Superman to Gotham City. So off they go, where they have a run-in with the new Batman who tries to arrest Clark. Discovering some evidence, he heads to the Bat Cave where he finds a one-armed Alfred and learns that Bruce is dead. Later, Lois calls him and explains the chaos that has occurred in the lives of Perry, Jimmy and herself because of her outing him. Returning to the Bat Cave, he paints and customizes his motorcycle and goes off to confront Batman.
I totally LOVE where the TRUTH story is going, but have a MAJOR COMPLAINT. This is the SECOND Superman book out this month (ACTION COMICS #41 being the first) and the second one to make references to books that haven’t hit the stands yet. In ACTION COMICS, it was references to SUPERMAN #41 and #42 and here we find out that the police officer confronting his sergeant happened in ACTION COMICS #42, which is three weeks away. Can you say SPOILER? I’m guessing that, during the attempt to burn down Kentville, this cop said no. Okay…thanks for ruining THAT SURPRISE. Other than that, Greg Pak and Adrian Syaf turned in a book that had me waiting to see what was next with every page turn. And Alfred with one arm? I guess he didn’t get that fixed, did he?
BAT-MITE #1: Bat-Mite is on trial and gets exiled to our Earth where we find him driving and crashing the Batmobile while chasing some criminals. Batman arrives, defeats the criminals, and frees the young woman who had been locked in the trunk of the criminal’s car. Then women in a nurse’s outfit pops up and drugs Bat-Mite. He is awakened and finds himself captured by woman named Doctor Trauma. Her plan, in order to keep herself young, is to implant her brain in Hawkman’s body. Can our little hero save the day?
Well, that was fun and as silly as I expected it to be. Dan Jurgens and Colin Howell do a great job of tapping into the classic DC humor titles like BOB HOPE, SUGAR AND SPIKE, and THE ADVENTURES OF JERRY LEWIS. This is certainly not going to appeal to everyone, but I knew this was going to be corny when I jumped into it. If you’re a fan of HARLEY QUINN, you MIGHT like this, although I think the jokes are fresher and funnier here. So, it’s a six issue commitment that I think I can live with.
BIZZARO #1: Jimmy Olsen, Bizarro and Colin the Chupacabra head off on a road trip. After a bit of an accicent, they end up at King Tut’s Slightly Used Car Oasis. Tut gains powers from three aliens masquerading as Osiris, Horus and Anubis and proceeds to attempt to get everyone in Smallville to buy a car.
It doesn’t sound like much, but you actually have to read it. I won’t tell you about the gags and jokes, but I will tell you the book is a ball! Rumor has it that Heath Corson pitched this to DC Editorial as PLANES, TRAINS AND AUTOMOBILES but I think it feels more like FEAR AND LAOTHING IN LAS VEGAS. Gustavo Duarte art is cool and cartoony and we get a one-page dream sequence courtesy of the legendary Bill Sienkiewicz that is a dream come true! This was dumb and fun and is not about to win any major awards. But who cares? This is just a fun ride with two unlikely partners and
BLACK CANARY #1: The Black Canary Band has developed a reputation for having trouble at their gigs as five of their last seven shows have come to a quick end because of violence. This is a big concern to band member Byron, as she seems to feel all of this started when D. D. joined the band. With a great voice, a lack of stage presence, and a shadowy past behind her, the band tries to get through their gigs without chaos and get an album recorded in the process. At their next gig, the scary shadow creatures that have been observing D. D. forces another violent incident where the band cancels their show and our hero is forced to use her Canary Cry to subdue them. One of the creatures reveals that “he” is coming for Ditto, the band’s silent guitarist. With that, D. D. decides it is time to train the band in the art of hand-to-hand combat.
I haven’t quite figured out how I feel about this book. It’s not a true superhero title and it’s not really a rock and roll story. Rather, it is this weird hybrid by Brenden Fletcher and Annie Wu, which means it has the feel of the BATGIRL title that so drastically got revamped several months back. And it even has that weird look to it too. What I don’t like about this title is how D. D.’s past has been shoved aside and isn’t it convenient that the Black Canary has joined a band called the Black Canary Band? And she has suddenly become much younger than we remember her. What I DO like about this book is the story. We have aliens or some kind of weird creature tracking down a silent guitarist who plays the meanest guitar around but has some connection to these creatures. I also like Fletcher and Wu’s storytelling, complete with several virtually wordless pages during the club gig. So, I have to go at least another issue or two as the story has totally hooked me.
CATWOMAN #41: Selina Kyle is at the opera and has a clandestine meeting with Oswald Cobblepot regarding their alliance. Back at home, she discovers from Ward that Batman is dead and is racked by grief and seeks comfort in the arms of Eiko. Meanwhile, Alvarez and Keyes are investigating a murder at restaurant owned by a former cop while also having to handle less than desirable cases as punishment for what has previously transpired involving Kyle. Black Mask meets with Cobblepot and continues to plan on how to wipe out the Calabreses. Back at Kyle’s house, Mario Falcone arrives with an olive branch and Antonia is charged with giving him a mission before they will accept. Selina and Eiko meet again and Selina decides to put the costume back on and seek out information on what happened to Batman.
Now you know that Selina’s sexuality has been not only hinted at but revealed when THE RAINBOW HUB, a website devoted to news and media for the News and media for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual community, covers this book! Of course, to be fair, they have also recently covered SQUIRREL GIRL and SECRET WARS too! What was only hinted at, up until THE KISS a few issues back, becomes more evident as Selina’s apparent bi-sexuality continues (after all, her first issue featured one intense romantic encounter with the Dark Knight). Genevieve Valentine, with art from new series artist David Messina, continues to bring us a new and different Catwoman, although it is GREAT to see her back in the suit after way too long in the pant suit. This is not to say that she doesn’t spend the entire issue except for the last page in the clothes of the head of the Calabrese Crime Family, because she does. Valentine’s story, somewhere between BOARDWALK EMPIRE and THE SOPRANOS is entertaining and Messina’s art is nice and recalls Terry Dodson’s work. This continues to be a winner of a title!
CONSTANTINE: THE HELLBLAZER #1: John Constantine is standing in a clothing store, naked and covered in blood. He convinces the salesgirl that this isn’t what she sees and that the piece of paper saying credit card IS a credit card. While he gets dressed for free, many of the ghosts of his past, specifically his ex-bandmate Gaz, haunt him. He ends up in a pub where he becomes attracted with the owner/bartender. It looks like they might end up on a date when a demon named Blythe arrives and that results in the two of them having a go in the back or Blythe’s place called Inferno. After finishing and making their way to the Basement, otherwise known as the Ninth Circle, Constantine discovers her business partner: a demon named Haluk who is harvesting souls. Constantine is forced to fight the creature and wins, dispatching Haluk and Blythe back to Hell. Gaz and the other ghosts appear and tell John that someone is killing all of the “ghosties” and it’s Constantine’s fault.
This is DEFINITELY NOT the John Constantine who walked through the NEW 52, pining the good old days and being lovesick during his time on Justice League Dark. This is more like the John Constantine of old: the Vertigo John Constantine who smoked like a chimney and shagged anything that moved, male or female. Here is the John Constantine we all love: the mage who has made more bad deals with demons and other creatures then we can count. This is truly a T+ title, thanks to Ming Doyle and James Tynion IV, with art from Riley Rossmo. Dark, moody and sure to offend the most open minded of comic fans, this is a treat and probably one of my other favorites from the Week Two releases. This rocked!
DEATHSTROKE #7: Hephaestus and Victor Ruiz watch Deathstroke engage in his training with his new sword, preparing him to go off and kill a God named Lapetus. After slaying a bunch of imaginary creatures, Slade goes off and meets with his daughter Rose, who has cut her hair, much to his dismay. He gives her a message he wants given to her brother Jericho, which she promptly burns as soon as he has left. With Hephaestus’ disembodied head leading the way, Deathstroke goes to Themyscira and enters Tartarus, where he immediately encounters enemies. He quickly slays them, before finding a statue of Apollo. He realizes someone is inside and attacks it, causing it to explode and whatever is inside to escape. That’s when Diana arrives, tells him he has unleashed a force that will destroy them and orders him to “surrender or die”.
Tony S. Daniel and James Bonny team up to bring us the first bloody act in the post CONVERGENCE world of Slade Wilson. Nothing has changed here except that Bonny is co-writing the tale. Slade is still the physically changed person he was two months ago, his kids still hate him and Hephaestus is still looking to have him do his dirty work for him. Ruiz is still this shadowy figure with the funds and a hidden agenda. Overall, this is the same book we had two months ago, which is fine by me. It’s DC’s answer to Frank Castle and, since I happen to like The Punisher, I’m okay with that.
DETECTIVE COMICS #41: The new Batman is fighting crime in the streets while Harvey Bullock and Nancy Yip are getting busy in the sheets. Bullock hears an explosion outside and realizes that they need to be there. We then get a flashback to three weeks ago when Maggie Sawyer tries to convince Bullock to lead the new Batman Task Force, which he refuses. Two weeks ago, Maggie and Jim Gordon are meeting at Le Cirque de Volant, where Gotham’s elite will be on opening night. Jim is still uncertain at this point if he is going to sign on to be the new Batman. One week ago, Harvey and Nancy are in a cop bar and, in the midst of a fight that Bullock helps start, Renee Montoya shows up. Following the fight, we learn that Montoya has come back to Gotham and accepted the Task Force job that Bullock turned down. She tries to convince him to join the team and get Yip reinstated in the process. At the same time, Yip receives a mysterious phone call regarding the seating chart for the Le Cirque event, with the voice on the other end insisting that she “kill them all”.
Well, this is some interesting and grim events but did we really have to see Yip riding Bullock in bed? Honestly?! Brian Buccellato and Francis Manapul provided the great story while Fernando Blanco steps in with an art style more common to mainstream superhero books, as opposed to the previous work by the former team for THE FLASH, which I truly liked. This is a book that will obviously focus more on the supporting cast than the Dark Knight and only have him appear as needed. And I’m okay with that. I like seeing Bullokc in action and having Montoya back is killer! I can’t wait for next issue to see what Yip’s deal is.
DOOMED #1: While a creature dwells upon what has happened to him, we go back twelve hours ago to when this creature was a young man named Reiser. He gets a job at S.T.A.R. Labs and that’s good as he and his roommates try to make do with their rent by looking for a new roommate to share expenses. Reiser also has an Aunt Belle who is getting old and forgetful, which results in him bringing her food and claiming he was bringing it to her as he bought too much for himself. Back at S.T.A.R., he gets overheated while power cleaning one of the rooms there and removes his suit long enough to get some air. This is bad as the air causes him to change later at the worst possible time: on what looks to be the makings of a new relationship.
What the heck is this? Has Scott Lobdell REALLY thrown his plot back into the early Sixties? Is he trying to make this guy the new Peter Parker? It’s pretty obvious to me. Let’s see: youthful kid, helps out his old Aunt Belle, makes one STUPID MISTAKE and now becomes a creature obviously affected by the Doomsday Virus, and that keeps him from jumping in the shower with his soon to be new girlfriend. And, if plot follows tradition, she will end up being his long-suffering girlfriend. Unless this title gets the axe early on in which case none of this matters. With that having been said, I have mixed emotions about this. I like the characterization of Reiser but regret having a ton of plot here. I’m also not a huge fan of Javier Fernandez’ art as it seems that everyone lately is still influenced by the Rob Liefeld style of art. I so wanted to hate this book, but I can’t. There is some nice, funny bits in it, especially a worn-out gag involving Belle’s cat, and I really like Resier as a character. I had pretty much written this book off before the first issue appeared but I have to give this at least another shot as the writing here is better than most of Lobdell’s recent output.
DR. FATE #1: Poor Khalid. As Brooklyn is caught up in a massive deluge, caused by an angry Egyptian God, which looks to be the worst thing to happen since the Biblical flood, our hero has to deal with an Egyptian statue coming to life. And, if that wasn’t bad enough, he is told that he is the new Dr. Fate and must wear the famous helmet. He is totally freaked out and shares that with Shaya through a series of text messages. He also shares that with his mother, who is more concerned with her cat Puck, who has managed to stay dry even though it is raining cats and dogs. On his way home, Khalid uses powers he didn’t know he had to save a girl who has fallen in front of a train. Puck takes him back to the museum and makes certain he takes the helmet, even as the cat dies to be reborn. Meanwhile, bad things happen to his cab-driving father as he transports a mysterious man to the airport.
What to make of this? Well, if you didn’t read the preview story during CONVERGENCE, you are probably a bit confused. Khalid, now the second Muslim hero in comics, is the new Doctor Fate and I don’t know how I feel about that. It has NOTHING to do with his ethnicity, so let’s make that clear. This character has a long, storied tradition and I had enough trouble swallowing his incarnation on the New 52 version of Earth 2. But this is just so far off tradition that it’s really, REALLY hard for me to swallow. Where is Kent Nelson when we need him? Paul Levitz and Sonny Liew give me a book filled with characters I don’t care about and that’s not a good thing, especially with this being issue #1 and I find no interest in coming back. The story is slow moving, the characters are droll and the art is unappealing to me. Sorry DC: I think this is a case of 1 and done for me.
EARTH 2: SOCIETY #1: A year ago, Terry Sloan, the smartest man in the world, ordered the twelve ships containing the survivors of Earth 2 to crash land on the planet Telos turned into the new Earth 2. Each of these ships represent a new city on this new Earth 2. Now, one year later, Dick Grayson, the new Batman, is on patrol in New Gotham and currently trying to save Sloan from Johnny Sorrow and his gang. He does but Sloan flees, wondering is HE sent Grayson to hunt him. Who is HE and why is Sloan so afraid of him?
Daniel H. Wilson and Jorge Jimenez do an okay job of bringing fans who didn’t read CONVERGENCE up to speed. Unfortunately, there are lots of gaps in the story. First off: did it REALLY take a year to build Gotham out of the wreckage of one of the spaceships? And what is the story with the other cities? Will Dick ever find his son, who was last seen with the Earth 2 version of Barda (who we can assume is different from the one referenced by Mister Miracle in the current issue of JUSTICE LEAGUE). Jimenez’ art is choppy and blocky and reminds me a lot of Dennis Cowan’s work. All in all, I was not impressed by this, but will give it an issue or two to see where the plot finally goes.
FLASH #41: In the near future, Flash is battling a new enemy when time slows down and the Reverse Flash visits him. Moving back to now, we see that Barry is living with the former Pied Piper and his partner David, who Barry knows very well. Later, he visits his dad in Iron heights and tells him he knows that someone named Thawne has something to do with his mom’s murder. He angrily tells Barry never to say that name again and orders him to leave. Double Down tells Henry Allen that he needs to keep alert because the “Man in Yellow” is coming. Henry gathers up some con friends and they break out of Iron Heights so he can protect his son. Back at the battle from the beginning of the book, Barry takes down the unnamed villain as Reverse Flash looks on.
Robert Venditti, Van Jensen and Brett Booth pick up where they left off with a bang –up story that now weaves itself a little closer to the television show of the same name. The Reverse-Flash, who we know is Thawne, is back to make someone’s life miserable. But, isn’t his life already miserable? I mean, he has lost his girlfriend and is living with an ex criminal and a co-worker. How much worse can that get? Well, the story is fun, the art looks great and I’m dying to see where this goes to next!.
GOTHAM ACADEMY #7: Maps is in class and day dreaming when she is chastised by her teacher, which causes Eric to attack Mr. Scarlet and Damian Wayne to make his presence known. Later, she observes Damian practicing his moves when they get stuck together and a raven steals her quill pen. They go to Pomeline, who is convinced that the quill is responsible for all this, including Eric’s outburst earlier. Pomerline goes crazy and knocks them out the window, forcing Damian to have Maps grab his grappling gun and fire it across the way. The pair end up in Kyle’s room and he proceeds to attack them with a tennis racket before Damian uses her to knock Kyle out. They decide to visit Professor MacPherson and see if she can help. They figure that the quill was made from a feather from a demon bird from Inishtree, which also has a connection with the Wayne family. Outside, they find Maps friends still influenced by the spell and also find the raven. This causes Damian to whip out a Batarang which causes the bird to release the quill. Scarlet arrives to inform them that the quill carries a version of the Avain Flu, which caused the craziness. The pair are brought to Headmaster Hammer’s office, where Damian claims HE took the quill and therefore is expelled. As he leaves, he gives her the Batarang and tells her she might need it someday. Just then Professor MacPherson arrives and tells Maps that she needs to tell her something about Olive.
Well, this was a quick in and out for the Son of Batman. One issue and done! Becky Cloonan and Brendan Fletcher give us more of what came before, but this time we have painted art from Mingjue Helen Chen. The story was a lot of fun, the art was beautiful, and I just love this silly ride. What is the secret in this place? I feel like I’m 8 years old and watching DARK SHADOWS again, although without the vampires and werewolves! This is a fun, recommended read for kids of pretty much all ages. And go track down the 75th Anniversary Joker variant by my friend Craig Rouseau. It rocks! Hey DC: can we get him to do an issue or two, since he NAILED the characters!
GOTHAM BY MIDNIGHT #6: The team is gathered at the funeral of Sister Justine. Corrigan reveals the secret behind The Spectre and then explains how Detective Drake has a harbinger of death inside her known as a Bain Sidhe. As they are called away to a ghost sighting at Powers Corporation, Doctor Tarr goes into the church and curses out God. At the Powers building, Corrigan and Drake learn about the ghost and connect it to the recent death of George Wooley. It turns out that Wooley was given a methamphetamine by his boss and that resulted in his death, which is why he is haunting the place. Back at the police station, we learn that Doctor Tarr is experimenting on a bizarre flower that is capable of regenerating itself. And, if that wasn’t crazy enough, Kate Spencer shows up to try and keep Internal Affairs off the team’s back.
Ray Fawkes is back to deliver the ghostly goings-on in Gotham City, with Juan Ferreyra delivering the art. And, as expected, it rocks! There are many a good bit of dialogue and the art is both surrealistic and scary. This is a book designed to give you the creeps. And when you get Internal Affairs involved with this group, it can’t be good news for anyone. This is NOT a superhero title and that’s fine. This is just the kind of oddball book the DC Universe needs and not some of the horrible horror books of the past…yes: I’m looking at the recent PHANTOM STRANGER and TRINITY OF SIN as bad examples.
GRAYSON #9: At St. Hadrian’s, Dick Grayson is desperately trying to contact Bruce and get orders to come home. As the story unfolds, Matron learns that someone has been killing spies on Spyral missions across the world. Currently Grayson and Agent 1 are in Spain trying to steal a Kryptonian necklace from a duchess there. Grayson manages to make his way to the dance floor and dances with the young woman, stealing the Kryptonite jewel in the process. Matron contacts him and advises him that Agent 1 may be a traitor. Dick knocks him out and flees, leaving Agent 1 at the mercy of a silent assassin. But someone else knocks off the assassin, leaving Agent 1 in the hands of the Spanish Police.
Leave it to Tim Seeley and Tom King to give us a plot that is this involved and this intricate. Like an onion, it’s filled with layer upon layer of plot with no real answer. This is a mystery book that makes off like it’s a superhero book. And that is not even with me mentioning the classic full page illustration by the amazing Mikel Janin of Dick in his tux, adjusting his bow tie and asking “am I straight”. C’mon: is there anyone out there who is not going to get that joke? What makes this whole thing work is that you don’t know whom the good guys and the bad guys are. As of now, everyone is a suspect. And that’s the way I like it!
GREEN ARROW #41: Someone or something mysterious is killing black people in Seattle. Oliver Queen has come back from his Alaskan road trip and picks up Emi from school. On the way home, they run into the Wart Lady and he explains her history, Later, Seahawks lineman Eddie Ridge is found dead after having a run in with someone mysterious at his home. It looks like the person responsible make be working with Mr. Zimm from Panopticon. In fact, this person seems to be affected by the moon. Could this white faced individual be Eclipso?
Benjamin Percy and Patrick Zircher go to a really dark place with this first issue. In fact, it seems like we have blown off the last creative team and gone back to a place where Jeff Lemire and Andrea Sorrentino were creating magic. So who is this mysterious racist targeting black men? I’m only making the Eclipso assumption based on the pasty complexion and the last page where it seems the moon is at play as the killer pours bleach over a bound black man. Yeah-this title is totally going to upset people.
GREEN LANTERN #41: Hal Jordan is one of the most wanted men in the Universe. But, at the moment, he is at the Gaming Dens of Y'Gaal, where he saves the life of a viceroy connected to the monarch of Ketleth Prime. The pair bust out of prison and head back to Vrigo’s uncle, taking one of the slavers with them. In deep space, they discover that the Green Lantern Corps appears to be dead and Mogo has been destroyed.
Robert Venditti and Billy Tan throw some interesting turns into this issue. Hal suddenly has long hair, making me wonder how much time has transpired since he stole the gauntlet. And he now dresses like the Spectre in his long green hooded cloak. Venditti’s story is interesting and makes me want to read the next issue and Tan’s art is cool too! I like this Hal as he doesn’t seem as much of a crybaby as the pre-Convergence Hal was, but that may change as he sees the Corps seemingly destroyed. But, with just this one issue in the can, I like where this could end up going.
GREEN LANTERN: LOST ARMY #1: John Stewart, Kilowog, Arisia, Xrill Vrek, Two-Six, and Krona are in a strange place in space battling alien energy creatures. They are lost in space with no way to contact the central Power Battery. They make their way through the battle and come across some dead Lanterns, who seem, to be encased in some sort of crystal that may have been created by a Red lantern ring. This leads them to a giant pyramid in space that just oozes red energy from it.
I so thought this book would be a mess, based on the preview and the fact that I have never been a fan of John Stewart as a Green Lantern. Surprisingly, Cullen Bunn does a good job of writing an interesting story. It concentrates on Stewart, but also gives us enough of Gardner, with new short hair, clean shaven and a nifty looking Lantern suit, and the rest of the cast to not make it feel like a total team book. The highlight is Jesus Saiz’ art: the whole thing, as he handles pencils, inks and coloring. Images leap off the page and it really drew me into Bunn’s story. I still don’t care for Stewart, but this may lead to being the only Gardener fix I can get. I will give it a few issues and pray it doesn’t get mucked up!
HARLEY QUINN #17: Harley and her team are kicking ass and taking names, so Harley thinks it’s a good idea to meet with the mayor and offer her services. The mayor balks and sends one of his flunkies to go out and check up on her. Meanwhile, Captain Horatio Strong eats some “marine greens” that transforms him. Later, Harley and Mason are out on a date and reveal their pasts to each other. The date goes well until the police arrive and arrest Mason on charges of murder and jail breaking. Heartbroken, Harley goes home, where she accepts a delivery for all 140 parakeets she recently bought. Hearing that Captain Strong might be missing, she sends Harlem and Harvey out to a fisherman’s bar to investigate. They find Strong, but the sea spinach he ate has definitively altered him.
Let’s begin with how great Chad Hardin’s art is. As always, his stuff is killer and I hope he can stay on schedule because it is truly thew star of this title. Now we get to Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmitotti’s story. As expected, it is full of dumb jokes, innuendo, and all around goofiness. In other words: the usual stuff. What I can’t figure out is how DC can list this as a T rated book and have such things as the words “ass”, and “bastards” in it. Not to mention the delivery boy checking out Harley’s posterior and telling him that it “ain’t gonna spank itself”. With that line and her date with Mason, it’s nice to see that Harley isn’t a lesbian, after many fans had presumed following her recent encounter with Poison Ivy. She’s just a girl who wants to have fun, no matter WHAT the sex is! For now, the DEADPOOL of the DC You-niverse is safe on my list. Hey-we all need a little dumb fun every now and then!
HARLEY QUINN/ POWER GIRL #1: Taking place between panels in issue #13 of HARLEY QUINN, Harley and P.G. find themselves in the middle of Galaxia Del Sombrero where they meet Sleezox: the horny Sexyprince of Valeron. After some craziness involving a Sleezox eating creature, they go off to deal with Oreth Odeox, who is dedicated to wiping out the hedonistic world of Valeron. There, they run into Mo’zit Blaqhed. He is the judicial magistrate who has a problem with P.G., noting that she wears skin-tight clothing, has unacceptable levels of cleavage and possible Karflippian Toe and may be a prostitute. This just sends Harley to another place and it’s not a good one for her mental stability, as she blasts Mo’zit’s head off. Soon they meet Groovicus Mellow who exclaims his joy that the foxiest mama in the universe has returned to their planet. He sends them off to free Lord Vartox on its moon, who is currently a captive of Odeox on the moon known as Lustox, so they can get his power ring which will send them back to Earth. Unfortunately, this isn’t going to be easy.
What happens when you let Amanda Conner, Jimmy Palmiotti, and Justin Gray loose on a comic book? You get this. Again, DC gives us a mixed bag here as I REALLY wanted to hate this book! Maybe it’s the fact that I grew up in the Seventies and get a lot of the references. Let’s see: Sleezox is a horny, mushroom eating Yoda, Odeox is the evil despot who is torturing Vartox, who is really Zardoz. Blaqhed is a pus covered creature who complains about Karflippian Toe (I guess that’s an intergalactic camel) and Groovicus Mellow is a soul brother like no other. Valeron is filled with lava lamps and hemp and all those things people who DIDN’T grow up in the Seventies worship because they wish THEY HAD. It’s a silly, sophomoric book that will turn off folks fed up with Harley’s book or silly sophomoric comics in general. But this just hit the right funny bone for me and I’m giving credit for the book not being TOTALLY over the top to Gray’s putting a little restraint in to what could have been a further Harley rehash. The fact that the whole six issues drops in between two panels of HARLEY QUINN #13 is beyond silly though. Rush out and get that copy now, kids! BTW: Stephane Roux turns in the best looking artwork of his career to date! Bottom line: the book doesn’t TOTALLY suck and is probably doable as a mini-series that we know how it will end.
JUSTICE LEAGUE #41: Kanto and Lashina murder A woman by the name of Myrina Black. Apparently, she is not the first and won’t be the last, causing the Justice League to investigate. Because he is sensitive to migraines when a Boom Tube is used, Cyborg decides that someone connected to Apokolips is to blame. Later, Superman and Luthor visit Neutron, who is dying of cancer following the Amazo incident. Luthor refuses to help him, causing he and Superman to engage in a war of words. This is until Lex’ sister shoots Lex, seemingly eliminating him before calling on a Mother Box to eliminate them “for Darkseid.” Meanwhile, Mr. Miracle makes his way into Darkseid's citadel and confronts him, before being forced to flee by his adoptive father. In the process, he runs into Kanto and Lahina and is forced to jump again. This time he runs into the real Myrina Black. Back at the murder investigation, Darkseid's Daughter Grail uses Flash like a Mother Box and crawls out from inside him and proceeds to take apart the Justice League. She uses Power Ring to open a doorway that brings the Anti-Monitor to Earth.
So, this is the first chapter in the new arc and the start of the Darkseid War, which is the big Justice League event for the remainder of the year. I like where the story is going, thanks to Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok. But I want to know what is up with Mr. Miracle. This is his first true appearance on what is now known as Earth-O and he talks about having met the Justice League and his early life. No mention is made of the destruction of Earth 2 and he even talks about his love for Big Barda. Somehow, it seems as what happened in EARTH 2: WORLD’S END never happened. Or else someone didn’t clue Johns in about those developments. I also feel about this issue as I did about the first issue of SECRET WARS: way too much stuff crammed into one issue. Despite that, this is a good start for what should be the next six months of story.
JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #1: We begin with Superman telling someone unseen to look at what they have done. After a literal earth shattering explosion, we flashback to earlier when Clark Kent is preparing to go to an invitation only event at the Infinity Corporation. It is Superman who arrives there where he meets Alexis Martin, Vincent, and a host of dead versions of Superman. He hears about the Stones of Forever and how the future is gone, as Vincent explains that he expects Superman to save them all. Meanwhile, Aquaman is called away from a meeting with the U.N. and the rest of the team go to a clean energy power plant in Metropolis. As the Parasite arrives, the team realizes it’s a trap and fight for their lives. Superman arrives and does his best to help the team while a mysterious security guard arrives at the Infinity Corporation building and meets with Vincent and Alexis. The League defeats Parasite and heads to the Infinity Corporation building to find it has totally disappeared to be replaced by…Rao?
You need to be aware of three things about this book before you jump in. First: it is not in current DC Continuity as Superman has his powers, Batman is still alive and Wonder Woman is not wearing her ridiculous new outfit (more on that in a later review). Second: this book ships with EIGHT DIFFERENT COVERS-one for each member of the team and a special 75th Anniversary Joker Variant. Yes, the seven member covers do fit together to form one giant image. Third: you get hit with an extra sized story, 49 page, WHOPPER of a story for the over-sized price of $5.99. Now, once you have absorbed all of that realize this is story and art by Bryan Hitch and it rocks! DC took a big chance on this, with the price and multiple covers and all. But the story is great and full of action and mystery and the art is also killer. Add this to your list as this looks to be a winner, even out of continuity!
Thursday, June 18, 2015
Some short take comic reviews
INSUFFERABLE: We begin with a villain is looking for 50 million dollars or he will finish burying a girl alive. Nocturnus, a Batman styled vigilante hero arrives and saves her although his selfish, glory-hogging teenage sidekick Galahad ends up getting her out and sucking up the good media vibes. Nocturnus meets with and shares a coffee with Lt. Rainwood, explaining his sidekick is his son. We then view the two lives of the two heroes. Nocturnus is the hard driving parent who never was able to accept his son’s best work while Galahad is the angry child who never fit in. Tonight, he spends his time bedding two lady fans and then posting on his web site, which ends with him teasing about how his mother died. Revelations next issue?
If you think you might have been down this road before, you are right. This title was initially launched in 2012 on Mark Waid’s Thrillbent.com website as a digital comic. Well, thanks to the folks at IDW, the book has a hard copy now which has been altered just enough to make you want to read it all over again. This is a fun take on the anti-superhero genre that BRAT PACK and Waid’s IRREDEEMABLE stomped all over. Waid’s writing is his crisp stuff and Peter Krause gives us some killer visuals too! This needs to be on your list, especially if you realize that the concept of spandex clad superheroes is just silly!
DEATH SENTENCE LONDON: Thanks to my friend Ron for turning me on to this title a few weeks back. Ron was VERY ENTHUSIASTIC about how good this was and I jumped in with both feet. To fully understand what’s going on here you need to find the original six issue series from 2014 or get the hardcover reprint. The series, by Monty Nero and artist Mike Dowling got its’ first life in CLINT MAGAZINE and then reprinted with changes by Titan Books beginning in 2013. In a nutshell, we follow three people who have contracted the G+ Virus. This new Sexually Transmitted Disease gives you super powers for six months and then you die. Graphic designer Verity, rock guitarist Weasel, and media personality Monty each have their own ideas of what to do with the time they have left. DEATH SENTENCE was a six-issue rocket ride with a mind-blowing shock filled plots, killer dialogue and great characterization.
DEATH SENTENCE: LONDON is the new monthly that picks up where the mini-series left off. In it, we meet undercover agent Jeb Mulgrew and get visits from some of the cast from the first series. Weasel is seem as a hero while Verity has become drunk with power-literally! It is equally as wild as the original and totally crazy, especially with Martin Simmonds taking over the art chores with his wildly inventive, painted style. In other words, the rock rocks and needs to be on your list. It’s sci-fi meets fantasy meets horror meets the craziest thing you have ever read.
PROVIDENCE: This book is both a sequel and prequel to Alan Moore’s THE COURTYARD and NEONOMICON. THE COURTYARD, by Moore, Antony Johnston, and Jacen Burrows, was a two-issue mini-series published by Avatar Comics in 2003. It followed FBI Agent Aldo Sax who investigates a murder that leads him to a nightclub in Red Hook, where he learns of a drug called Aklo. From there, things get crazy. Moore and Burrows again teamed-up in 2010 for the four-issue NEONOMICON as FBI Agents Lamper and Brears meet with Sax at the psychiatric hospital he is now a resident of. From there, they head to Red Hook before ending up in Salem and a bunch of really bizarre sex rituals leading to the introduction of Nyarlathotep and Cthulhu. While reading those are not essential, they do help.
PROVIDENCE takes us back to Red Hook and the Lovecraftian mythos and fans of Lovecraft are going to go nuts about this book. Filled with killer and quirky characters, interesting plots and a ton of supplemental material, this is a delight! And local fans will get the references and appreciate the inclusion of the map of Providence. Moore’s story is a delight and Burrows art is top notch. My biggest complain with Avatar’s books has been giving us Burrows art on the cover and then something that just doesn’t measure up inside. This one delivers on all cylinders.
FIGHT CLUB 2: I am a HUGE fan of the movie, although I have to admit never having read Chuck Palahniuk’s book. So, when I saw this sequel solicited, I was thrilled. And I am glad to say the book does not disappoint. The sequel follows Sebastian and his subdued other half Tyler Durden. Meanwhile, his wife Marla is doing her best to try and coax out Tyler to again do what he does best. Throughout it all, we see characters and situations from the original material re-emerge. And if you thought that Project Mayhem was dead just because Tyler was gone, you are greatly mistaken.
We get wild sex, blood, guts, chaos, and therapy sessions, complete with a meeting for folks affected by Hitchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome. Palahniuk and Cameron Stewart combine for this off the wall read that only makes me want to but the movie in and play it over and over again. It SO EMBRACES the glory of what made FIGHT CLUB great. It’s all bang and flash and just so wild that I want this to be a weekly!
SWORDS OF SORROW: This is Dynamite Comics answer to the summer blockbusters offered by the BIG TWO. Dynamite has made a name for itself by sucking up the license for all sorts of comic characters including The Spirit, The Shadow, the Gold key heroes(Magnus, Turok and Solar), along with the popular concept of multiple covers. This title has the distinction of releasing an epic 26 COVERS (collect them all and go broke today!)! This six issue series by Gail Simone and Sergio Davila brings together the women of Dynamite in one epic battle against the forces of evil who are out to take down Everywhere, Everywhen, and Nowhen. Included here are Vampi, Red Sonja, Lady Rawhide, Miss Fury, Dejah Thoris and the female Kato. On the other side of the ledger, fighting for the bad guys, is Purgatori and a bunch of comic bad girls.
While the concept sounds great and all and the art looks unbelievable, there is just too much going on here. Factor in the half dozen or so one-shots and mini-series that tie into this and it gets even more confusing. I have always been a big fan of Simone’s work, but this just feels like a forced agenda being shoved at me. I can certainly enjoy sticking strong-willed heroines in the forefront of a good comic and agree we should have more strong willed women heroes in comics. But this just feels too over the top to enjoy, although I give Simone credit for juggling 20 characters really well. And the concept of having all of this happen in different times and places at once is a concept we have seen too many times before. I wish I could recommend it, but I can’t.
JUSTICE, INC. THE AVENGER: I have been a HUGE fan of Richard Henry Benson’s alter ego since Warner Paperback Library started reprinting them back in the heyday of the DOC SAVAGE boom. With the selling point being that Kenneth Robeson, the man behind DOC SAVAGE, was behind him, it was easy to get a twelve-year-old kid to dive right in. As I learned years later, Robeson was a pen name used by many authors and Lester Dent, the main man behind Doc Savage, wasn’t the same guy who wrote The Avenger’s adventures and most of these were written by Paul Ernst. That didn’t matter, as the character was just different enough to capture my imagination. He has appeared several times in comics, most recently in a five issue mini-series from Dynamite alongside The Shadow and Doc Savage.
The current incarnation is from Mark Waid and Ronilson Freire and right from page #1, this book is an adventure lovers dream! Benson and his team are called upon to help a woman figure out why a ghost is haunting her home and it is done in such a loving pulp style that you would swear it is straight adapted from a pulp novel. Waid simply nails it here with some of his best work! This is such a great book that I really can’t express my love for it any more than saying that you need to add this to your pull list. It’s a fun, non-spandex filled ride into adventure. So pull the covers over your head, whip out your flashlight and journey back to the simpler times.
If you think you might have been down this road before, you are right. This title was initially launched in 2012 on Mark Waid’s Thrillbent.com website as a digital comic. Well, thanks to the folks at IDW, the book has a hard copy now which has been altered just enough to make you want to read it all over again. This is a fun take on the anti-superhero genre that BRAT PACK and Waid’s IRREDEEMABLE stomped all over. Waid’s writing is his crisp stuff and Peter Krause gives us some killer visuals too! This needs to be on your list, especially if you realize that the concept of spandex clad superheroes is just silly!
DEATH SENTENCE LONDON: Thanks to my friend Ron for turning me on to this title a few weeks back. Ron was VERY ENTHUSIASTIC about how good this was and I jumped in with both feet. To fully understand what’s going on here you need to find the original six issue series from 2014 or get the hardcover reprint. The series, by Monty Nero and artist Mike Dowling got its’ first life in CLINT MAGAZINE and then reprinted with changes by Titan Books beginning in 2013. In a nutshell, we follow three people who have contracted the G+ Virus. This new Sexually Transmitted Disease gives you super powers for six months and then you die. Graphic designer Verity, rock guitarist Weasel, and media personality Monty each have their own ideas of what to do with the time they have left. DEATH SENTENCE was a six-issue rocket ride with a mind-blowing shock filled plots, killer dialogue and great characterization.
DEATH SENTENCE: LONDON is the new monthly that picks up where the mini-series left off. In it, we meet undercover agent Jeb Mulgrew and get visits from some of the cast from the first series. Weasel is seem as a hero while Verity has become drunk with power-literally! It is equally as wild as the original and totally crazy, especially with Martin Simmonds taking over the art chores with his wildly inventive, painted style. In other words, the rock rocks and needs to be on your list. It’s sci-fi meets fantasy meets horror meets the craziest thing you have ever read.
PROVIDENCE: This book is both a sequel and prequel to Alan Moore’s THE COURTYARD and NEONOMICON. THE COURTYARD, by Moore, Antony Johnston, and Jacen Burrows, was a two-issue mini-series published by Avatar Comics in 2003. It followed FBI Agent Aldo Sax who investigates a murder that leads him to a nightclub in Red Hook, where he learns of a drug called Aklo. From there, things get crazy. Moore and Burrows again teamed-up in 2010 for the four-issue NEONOMICON as FBI Agents Lamper and Brears meet with Sax at the psychiatric hospital he is now a resident of. From there, they head to Red Hook before ending up in Salem and a bunch of really bizarre sex rituals leading to the introduction of Nyarlathotep and Cthulhu. While reading those are not essential, they do help.
PROVIDENCE takes us back to Red Hook and the Lovecraftian mythos and fans of Lovecraft are going to go nuts about this book. Filled with killer and quirky characters, interesting plots and a ton of supplemental material, this is a delight! And local fans will get the references and appreciate the inclusion of the map of Providence. Moore’s story is a delight and Burrows art is top notch. My biggest complain with Avatar’s books has been giving us Burrows art on the cover and then something that just doesn’t measure up inside. This one delivers on all cylinders.
FIGHT CLUB 2: I am a HUGE fan of the movie, although I have to admit never having read Chuck Palahniuk’s book. So, when I saw this sequel solicited, I was thrilled. And I am glad to say the book does not disappoint. The sequel follows Sebastian and his subdued other half Tyler Durden. Meanwhile, his wife Marla is doing her best to try and coax out Tyler to again do what he does best. Throughout it all, we see characters and situations from the original material re-emerge. And if you thought that Project Mayhem was dead just because Tyler was gone, you are greatly mistaken.
We get wild sex, blood, guts, chaos, and therapy sessions, complete with a meeting for folks affected by Hitchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome. Palahniuk and Cameron Stewart combine for this off the wall read that only makes me want to but the movie in and play it over and over again. It SO EMBRACES the glory of what made FIGHT CLUB great. It’s all bang and flash and just so wild that I want this to be a weekly!
SWORDS OF SORROW: This is Dynamite Comics answer to the summer blockbusters offered by the BIG TWO. Dynamite has made a name for itself by sucking up the license for all sorts of comic characters including The Spirit, The Shadow, the Gold key heroes(Magnus, Turok and Solar), along with the popular concept of multiple covers. This title has the distinction of releasing an epic 26 COVERS (collect them all and go broke today!)! This six issue series by Gail Simone and Sergio Davila brings together the women of Dynamite in one epic battle against the forces of evil who are out to take down Everywhere, Everywhen, and Nowhen. Included here are Vampi, Red Sonja, Lady Rawhide, Miss Fury, Dejah Thoris and the female Kato. On the other side of the ledger, fighting for the bad guys, is Purgatori and a bunch of comic bad girls.
While the concept sounds great and all and the art looks unbelievable, there is just too much going on here. Factor in the half dozen or so one-shots and mini-series that tie into this and it gets even more confusing. I have always been a big fan of Simone’s work, but this just feels like a forced agenda being shoved at me. I can certainly enjoy sticking strong-willed heroines in the forefront of a good comic and agree we should have more strong willed women heroes in comics. But this just feels too over the top to enjoy, although I give Simone credit for juggling 20 characters really well. And the concept of having all of this happen in different times and places at once is a concept we have seen too many times before. I wish I could recommend it, but I can’t.
JUSTICE, INC. THE AVENGER: I have been a HUGE fan of Richard Henry Benson’s alter ego since Warner Paperback Library started reprinting them back in the heyday of the DOC SAVAGE boom. With the selling point being that Kenneth Robeson, the man behind DOC SAVAGE, was behind him, it was easy to get a twelve-year-old kid to dive right in. As I learned years later, Robeson was a pen name used by many authors and Lester Dent, the main man behind Doc Savage, wasn’t the same guy who wrote The Avenger’s adventures and most of these were written by Paul Ernst. That didn’t matter, as the character was just different enough to capture my imagination. He has appeared several times in comics, most recently in a five issue mini-series from Dynamite alongside The Shadow and Doc Savage.
The current incarnation is from Mark Waid and Ronilson Freire and right from page #1, this book is an adventure lovers dream! Benson and his team are called upon to help a woman figure out why a ghost is haunting her home and it is done in such a loving pulp style that you would swear it is straight adapted from a pulp novel. Waid simply nails it here with some of his best work! This is such a great book that I really can’t express my love for it any more than saying that you need to add this to your pull list. It’s a fun, non-spandex filled ride into adventure. So pull the covers over your head, whip out your flashlight and journey back to the simpler times.
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