Secret Empire #9: Spencer does a solid job of keeping up the suspense here. It's hard to get us on the edge of our seats the way he did in early issues, given it's pretty clear how the story is going to end: the heroes will take on a Cube-powered Captain Nazi while Dream Steve convinces Kobik to restore him to reality. But, the story unfolds well; I only had two nitpicks. First, I would've loved some sort of chart showing which side possessed which shards. I initially thought the heroes had two shards -- one from Ultron and one from the Savage Land -- but last issue they only seemed to have the Ultron one. That said, I don't care that much; it's why a chart would've been helpful, since it would've been simple to understand the status quo. (Instead, we get the weird "cast of characters" page that adds nothing to the story.) Second, it's hard to believe Sam managed to free New York from the Darkforce Dimension and bring down the Shield with only one shard (assuming his use of the shard allowed those events to happen). If true, you'd have to imagine Steve doesn't need some Cube-powered suit to take out the heroes. He might not be able to rewrite history without the final shard, but it seems like he could easily just wish away his opponents. At any rate, we are where we are. Spencer includes some grace notes here, like Carol and Sam taking a moment to reflect on how fun it is to kick the HYDRA troops' asses. But, for the most part, it's really about following the silver ball through the Rube Goldberg machine while we wait for Kobik to right her wrongs.
Ben Reilly: Scarlet Spider #6: I love Peter David, and I'm willing to ride this one until the end with him. However, I'm surprised I don't really have a great read on Ben Reilly as a character after six issues. (Conversely, Miguel O'Hara was a fully formed character after just the first three-issue arc of the original "Spider-Man 2099" series.) David portrays Ben as desperate: he's trying to save Diva's daughter simply because he doesn't have a lot of great options when it comes to employment. But, honestly, it's sort of hard to believe. He could pretty easily just use his Spider-Powers to rob enough banks to set himself up nicely and then decide what he wants to do. Instead, he just seems to be hanging around Vegas in search of a larger plan. In other words, after six issues, I still don't get the core conceit of this series. He's not wandering the country like an outlaw like he used to do or serving as a city's reluctant hero like Kaine did in Houston. He's just...there.
Detective Comics #963: I've mentioned previously it's sometimes hard to remember what changed from the DCU to the DCnU, particularly when it comes to Batman's continuity. For the most part, everything stayed the same, except for some outrageous changes that DC wisely promptly ignored (like Joker manipulating Jason's life essentially from birth to Tim not figuring out Batman's identity). However, sometimes the change feels more abrupt, as is the case here with Anarky. Anarky was playing a key role in Fabian Nicieza's run on "Red Robin" when the DCU came to an end, and I think that version of the character is fresh in most of our minds. Moreover, Buccellato and Manapul introduced a completely different character using that moniker in their own run on this title. As such, it's hard to tell what character we're getting here. I acknowledge I don't get all the Bat-family titles. Maybe he's already debuted in "Red Hood and the Outlaws" or "Teen Titans" (or "Batgirl" since I stopped reading it). But, it's this uncertainty that detracts from the story Tynion is trying to tell here. I get why Spoiler would be attracted to Anarky in the abstract. But, since it's impossible to know what this Anarky feels, it's also hard not to feel at least partially confused.
Iceman #4: I really, really, really wanted Bobby to make out with Daken. [Fan sigh.] That said, something still isn't clicking for me and this series. At times in this issue, it was an effort to make my way through the dialogue, something I don't think I should've felt given the sexually charged banter the fight between Bobby and Daken brought to the table. But, I'm hoping Sina finds his groove in the same way I hope Bobby does. Each issue feels like an improvement, and I'm hoping we'll really be cooking with gas (or, I don't know, freezing the lake?) in a few issues if it keeps improving.
Nightwing: The New Order #1: To use the cliché, Higgins leaves us with more questions than answers here, but so far it's a good thing. First and foremost, Higgins doesn't tell us why Dick decided to turn against the metahuman community. All we know is he activated a device that stripped 90 percent of metahumans of their powers; the remaining metahumans either were forced to take inhibiting drugs or, if they didn't work, imprisoned until a "cure" could be found. It's a pretty serious shift to the fascist, and Higgins certainly has to explain how it happened at some point. It appears Dick had a child with Starfire, so my original guess -- that a metahuman killed Barbara -- might not wind up being true. Moreover, Alfred himself opposes Dick's approach -- particularly the indefinite detention of metahumans who don't respond to treatment -- making it even more unclear why Dick himself would take this position. But, we also have the larger question: why give us this series now? Did Higgins just decide to launch this miniseries because he had the idea, or will we see either the themes or the outcomes of this miniseries impact the "real world?" I'm intrigued.
Also Read: Generations: The Unworthy Thor and the Mighty Thor #1; Pathfinder: Runescars #4; Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #3; Star Wars: Doctor Aphra Annual #1; X-Men: Gold #10
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