Batman #28: Although I still think the story King is telling has potential, we've gotten to the point where the framing device -- Bruce recounting the War of Jokes and Riddles to Selina -- is starting to weigh down the story itself. Moreover, King's focus on vignettes from the fringes of the war makes these issues read like they're from one of those cross-over event anthology series. Last issue, it was the origin of Kite Man; this issue, it's the fight between Deadshot and Deathstroke. (The latter is definitely the more interesting one.) But, the actual war between Joker and Riddler essentially happens off-panel. They've already split up the Upper East and West Sides and assembled their armies when this issue starts, even though we haven't really seen how they convince each villain to join their side. (I think we've only seen Riddler's pitch to Ivy.) We're shown how Bruce and Gordon are at their wits' end, but we're not really told why they haven't been able to get a handle on the situation. Gordon tells Batman Joker has wired the entire city with explosives and Riddler has guards hidden throughout the city to unleash terror, but isn't that basically any given Tuesday in Gotham? I think it's probably time for King to do a little more showing and a little less telling.
Nightwing #26: It turns out Giz is really dead, and I have to admit I'm impressed: it's rare we actually kill off good guys anymore. Dick feels guilty since Giz died looking into the Second Hand, the organization smuggling superhero-killing weapons into Blüdhaven. Helena appears at Dick's apartment to tell him she and Barbara are worried about him and offers to help him track down someone named Draculi. (Did I mention Dick is naked in the shower when she arrives? Well timed, Helena.) Dick realizes she's only offering to help because Draculi is connected to organized crime and it advances the anti-Mafia crusade she's adopted since leaving Spyral. (The mob killed her family, and I'm pretty sure it means DC is more closely aligning Huntress with her original DCU incarnation. I'm guessing it's all happening in "Batgirl and the Birds of Prey.") The duo track down a fixer in Rome who tells them Draculi has gotten erratic. He sends them onto Draculi's home, but he's already dead. However, he leaves a clue: a flash drive explaining he's Agent 19 of Spyral and someone is messing with his mind. Dick realizes the Second Hand is Spyral as we see Agent 1 with a group of other agents watching Dick and Helena from the rooftops; one of the agents remarks that they took the bait. Although it's overall a solid issue, I don't get what we're supposed to believe when it comes to the clue. It seems like Agent 1 wanted Dick and Helena to find it, but why would he want them to know Spyral was after them? Isn't it better to surprise them? Also, how orchestrated was it? How did Agent 1 know Agent 19 would leave the flash drive connecting himself with Spyral? Meanwhile, in Gotham, Shawn has decided to embrace Pigeon's war against capitalism. Bad call, Shawn. Bad call.
Spider-Man #19: Bendis makes an admirable attempt to sell Ganke's argument Miles is off his rocker because he resents being a "Spider-Man cover band," but I'm not sure I really buy it. It seems much more likely he's breaking under the pressure of juggling his secret identity while also dealing with the fact his parents are, at least for now, separated. I get teenage boys aren't exactly in touch with their emotions, but I don't feel like you have to get inventive when it comes to pinning Miles' stress on a cause. At the very least, you'd figure someone would mention it as a possibility.
X-Men: Gold #9: I've enjoyed Spencer's deft if obvious political and social commentary in "Captain America: Sam Wilson," but Guggenheim forgets the "deft" part of that equation in this issue. Kitty is called to Washington to testify before a Congressional sub-committee against a mutant-deportation bill. If he had focused less on the soap-opera elements of this issue, Guggenheim could've delivered a clever metaphor for the current immigration debate instead of the anti-Trump screed we get here. However, he's juggling too many balls to manage it; instead, he winds up dropping them all. In terms of the soap opera, Logan convinces Kitty to take Peter to DC with her as her bodyguard. Instead of slowly rekindling their romance over a few issues to the point where Kitty can't ignore her attraction to Peter anymore, Peter essentially proposes marriage and Kitty essentially accepts. (No, really.) Moreover, Rachel announces she wants to date Kurt because she discovered he was attracted to her when she read his mind a few issues ago and because it'll somehow ensure she doesn't become her mother. (She's concerned about that because of these amped-up powers I don't really remember her getting.) I thought Kurt had more self-respect than to dive into a relationship with someone who states the only thing she finds attractive about him is his attraction to her, but I guess Guggenheim doesn't. When you throw in there the revelation Stevie Hunter is now a Congresswoman but somehow still wearing '90s era jumpsuits, well, it's just a mess from start to finish.
Also Read: Archangel #5; Darth Vader #4; Hawkeye #9
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