Batman #60: I may have to cancel this series soon. I just have no idea what King is doing here. It isn't so much the plot, whose direction I dislike but more or less understand. But, the words are strung together in ways that make little sense. It's almost like it was written in a foreign language and we're reading a poor translation. (Paging Jonathan Hickman.) King's obsession with non sequitur poems makes the situation even worse. Although I understand the plot, I still don't get why it's going in such a bizarre direction. It now turns out Bane wasn't the one pulling the strings in Arkham; it was Bruce's father from "Flashpoint." At least, I think? I can't even possibly imagine why he would be involved. Even if he was motivated to help Bane run Arkham, why would Bane accept his help? It also seems like he killed the Penguin's girlfriend, though I don't understand why he would do that, since it sounds like Oswald got his revenge by flagging Bane's actions for Bruce. But, do I care? I don't know if I do.
Die #1: Holy fucking shit, this issue is amazing. Right up front (or, in back, actually, in his note), Gillen admits the inspiration for this book is the question I've asked myself for decades: "Whatever happened to the D&D cartoon kids?" I can't believe my luck that I get to see Kieron Gillen answer that question.
First things first, Gillen does a great job of establishing our cast of characters. Our protagonist is Dominic. He and his friends are dedicated RPGers, and his best friend Sol has created a boutique game for Dominic's 16th birthday. Each player is given a die, and Sol explains it's the only one in the world where they're playing. Dom is the Dictator ("a diplomat with teeth") with a d4, his depressed friend Matthew is the Grief Knight ("a magical warrior" who turns "emotions into power") with a d8, his younger sister Ash is Neo ("a cyberpunk") with a d10, his edgy friend Isabelle is Godbinder ("some kind of atheist with gods for pets") with a d12, and his dumb friend Chuck is the Fool ("I kinda picked some random abilities") with a "entirely normal" d6. Sol keeps the d20 for himself.
Shortly after they start the game, they disappear. They reappear two years later, minus Sol and one of Ash's arms, inexplicably unable to talk about their experiences. We then flash forward twenty-five years later, as Dominic celebrates his 41st birthday. We learn his wife Sophie threw him a surprise party for his 40th birthday and he reacted badly, because parties and presents serve as reminders of his experience. Sol's mother appears on his doorstep and angrily presses Dom for information. Sophie threatens her, and we learn she frequently appears demanding information about Sol. Later that night, Dom meets his sister Ash for a drink and the bartender hands them a box someone left for them. It's the box that originally contained the dice -- with a blood-soaked d20.
Panicked, they assemble the party (except they can't call it a party, for reasons that become clear later) at Chuck's house. Chuck is wealthy based on a series of books he's written about their experience ("Portal of Pain"). Ash wonders how he can do so since the rest of them can't talk about it, and Dominic assumes it's part of his personality, that he can't take anything too seriously. Like Chuck, Isabelle has a few spouses in her past and she teaches high-school English. (We previously learned Ash left her husband for a woman who then left her.) Along with Dom, Matt is the most grounded, married with kids and a statistics professor. Dominic is surprised to learn it's been five years since they saw each other, since he's the closest to Matt. They start to talk about their experience, but it's difficult; for example, Chuck stumbles on the word "party," unable to say it. Isabelle apologizes to Dom for not being more "woke" when they were kids. I'm guessing it's an allusion to a relationship Dominic had with Sol in the Realm, given his character (the Dictator) was a woman. Isabelle wonders why Dominic didn't take the die to the police, but Dominic says he was afraid to lose control of it. As they stare at it, the die activates, dragging them all into the "Realm." As they transit spacetime, a voice announces the Grandmaster once again threatens the Realm and it needs a hero to rise, like the narration you'd hear at the start of an arcade game.
Returned to the Realm, Gillen reveals the group's inability to talk about the experience came from a geas Dominic put on them before they left. Matt presses Dom to lift the geas, which he (she, here) does. Isabelle immediately pounces on him, noting the geas and taking on the Grandmaster were his idea. But, Dominic retorts that it wasn't his idea to leave behind Sol, though we learn they never actually saw the Grandmaster kill him. He says he hoped Sol was alive when he saw the die, though Isabelle notes the blood on it probably implies the opposite. Suddenly, the die flies through the air to a now-grown Solomon's hand. We learn the Grandmaster trapped him and tried to steal his die. Solomon escaped and they fought "a long war" that he eventually won. He announces he's now the Grandmaster as he puts the die in his empty eye socket. (His other eye has a die in it, presumably the Grandmaster's d20 die?) He then announces the party has to complete the game.
In his note at the back, Gillen talks about this series exploring the consequences -- to him and his loved ones -- of him falling into a fantasy world at 16 years old. Part of the reason this intention feels so fully realized is that the art is beyond spectacular. Hans infuses both our world and the Realm with a dream-like quality that reflects the characters' emotions. It's the perfect complement to Gillen's vision. Gillen talks about this series as driven in part by a mid-life crisis of sorts, and, as someone roughly his age going through his own version, this book could be better than therapy!
Doomsday Clock #8: This issue is much more action-packed and straight-forward than previous ones, though I'm not entirely sure it's a good thing.
We begin with a brief scene of Ozymandias swiping a file from the Oval Office. But, the action shifts almost immediately to Moscow, where a hot-headed Firestorm is taking on the People's Heroes, accusing them of trying to ruin his life through the Superman Theory. One of the Heroes manages to disrupt his powers, forcing him to crash to the Earth into a group of protesters. They immediately attack him and, panicked, he explodes, turning the protesters to glass. Superman immediately flies from Metropolis to Khandaq amidst reports Firestorm fled there, but Black Adam informs Superman that Firestorm isn't there (though notes he's welcome). Clark resumes his search for Firestorm. Meanwhile, in Metropolis, Lois discovers a package with no return address on it that someone (Rorschach) sent directly to her at the "Planet." It contains a flashdrive with a reel of the Justice Society of America, something Lois doesn't recognize.
Meanwhile, Clark finds Firestorm hiding in a cave in Russia. He's trying to turn back one of the glass statues, of a child. He's irrationally distraught, in part because Dr. Stein keeps telling him it can't be done. But, Clark calms Firestorm down, and he's able to transmute the kid to flesh again. Clark then interrupts a rally the Russian President is giving and informs the crowd Firestorm can undo the damage. But, he then talks about his concern over the current anti-metahuman movement, saying Krypton was doomed to destruction because its council was too divided. Clark encourages people not to demonize metahumans. Watching the speech en route to Moscow, Bruce contacts Clark and tells him not to pick a side. The Russian President interrupts Superman, denouncing him for siding with the metahumans.
To make matters worse, Firestorm arrives just then, swearing he can help everyone. Unfortunately, the Russian army opens fire on him. Superman manages to save the boy Firestorm transmuted from the hail of bullets, but Firestorm is driven insane with guilt when the army's bullets destroy other statues. He attacks the army, forcing the Heroes to join the fray by trying to stop Superman, who they see as on Firestorm's side. Clark watches in horror as tanks crush statues, and he attacks one, sealing the public's view of him attacking the Russian army. Bruce warns Superman the problem isn't Firestorm just as an enormous (and suspiciously blue) explosion occurs, with Superman at its epicenter. Ozymandias watches on computer screens, muttering only, "It begins."
I'm glad to see something happening in this book, but it's still hard to tell how it's all going to end. I rolled my eyes at the idea that Firestorm could change back the boy, so I was glad to see Bruce inform us it was actually Dr. Manhattan manipulating the events. All that said, we seem to be getting farther and farther afield from where this series started. Snyder certainly has time to get back to the original drift, but I'll admit I'm feeling impatient.
Shatterstar #3: As I requested last issue, we get some more insight into Shatterstar's relationship with Gringrave, as they learn Mojo plans on mating him with Windsong, a fellow gladiator. Oddly, it's Gringrave who takes action to stop it, conspiring with Windsong's partner to end Shatterstar's reign (and, I'm assuming, his suitability as a match for Windsong in Mojo's eyes). Meanwhile, in the present, 'Star prioritizes saving Karl Sortenthau, since he's deemed too old to fight in the arena; he gets him just before he's eaten. But, it means he loses Tina, after she makes a deal with Grandmaster to get powers so she can be the hero in the arena who saves the tenants. (It ends...badly.) Seeley is really just getting his sea legs here, infusing this issue with the type of emotion we didn't see in the first two issues. I hope he keeps rolling with it as we come closer to the conclusion. At some point, it would be nice to see why Gringrave changed her mind about indulging in love. Right now, it seems more like 'Star fell for her sooner than she fell for him. By the time she realized she loved him, he had turned off that part of him, at her instruction. But, I'm connecting those dots for Seeley; it would be nice to see him doing it on his own.
Star Wars #58: This issue is great on all levels. Seeing a relaxed Han Solo uncharacteristically confess actual feelings to (though not for) Leia is great. Gillen really stresses how the atmosphere on Hubin drives him to this moment. Give a smuggler a minute to relax without worrying about making a buck and he apparently becomes the Dude. But Gillen also shows how Hubin's isolation drives Luke to the brink of madness, stuck on a planet exactly like Tatooine, just "greener." He's frantically working on building a transmitter to call for rescue, even though pretty much everyone warns him it could bring ruin to Hubin. But, it's Leia who's full of surprises as she leads an expectant Han to her room only to show him...her plans to destroy Shu-Torun entirely. Oh, Leia, you never disappoint. Gillen and Unzueta capture Han and Leia both so perfectly in this moment, with Han starting to take off his vest only for Leia to reveal her serial-killer den; it may be my favorite moment in the entire series. But, most importantly, it sets up a confrontation with Shu-Torun that I can't wait to see. Just like Aaron before him, Gillen is showing he's not in any rush, as this entire Shu-Torun saga shows the potential to unfold over dozens of issues, with a level of complexity that could be its own trilogy. Man, I love this series.
Uncanny X-Men #4: OK, now we're getting somewhere. First, the art is excellent. No photo-realism, just excellent drawing. Second, we see some decent characterization, at long lest! We get some Beast/Iceman banter, we get a hilariously unhinged Legion, we get a furious Hisako calling bullshit on the adults. It finally reads less like a pitch and more like a comic. (Legion's text bubble running off both sides of the panel to show how he's annoyingly rambling was awesome.) But, I'm also 100% Team Hisako. After Jean and Betsy use their powers to convince the Horsemen they're all dead, they almost immediately silence Legion as he's trying to explain his actions. Hisako points out it makes no sense to do that, because he's the only one who knows what's happening. Jean demands absolutely loyalty from her despite the fact, as Hisako also notes, she's the one who ignored or missed Legion's warnings, leading to the Mansion's destruction. But, Jean does Jean as she decides the X-Men don't need to investigate these new Horsemen, even though they're uniquely suited to do so. Instead, she wants them to join the other superhero teams in trying to address the chaos unfolding around the world. She inserts Storm's team into a civil war in Chernaya while she and her team take on Blob and Omega Red as they attack an oil platform. La la la. Maybe a little strategery, Jean? At any rate, we also learn Hank probably did something that led to the creation of the mutant "vaccine" we've previously seen, surprising no one. At this stage, it's finally starting to feel more like "Avengers: No Surrender" and less like Rob Liefeld was given the keys to the kingdom. That's obviously a good thing.
West Coast Avengers #5: West Coast, Best Coast, 'Nuff Said!
Winter Soldier #1: The premise of this mini-series is pretty clever. Bucky has dedicated himself to rescuing people who want to escape lives where they've made bad -- and dangerous -- decisions. For example, the issue starts with him helping a dirty cop escape right before he's supposed to drive a getaway car for some other dirty cops. In other words, his drive for redemption is pretty clear. Bucky's set up his base of operations in Indiana, where he's from, and he's getting help from Sharon Carter. (Higgins work in the sort of time-management joke we used to see when Wolverine was on 30 different teams.) Tony Stark even helps, motivated by Sharon's comment that they've all had help when they needed to start again. Bucky's also gotten into meditation as a way to deal with his demons, and he seems to be remembering a memory where one of the technicians working on his project tried to help him escape because the project was immoral. (Bucky, of course, killed him.) The issue ends when a Hydra assassin takes out one of Bucky's clients after he contacted his girlfriend still on the inside. The assassin? A teenager dressed like teenage Bucky! At this point, my only complaint here is that Higgins doesn't do a lot with Bucky as a character. He has time to do that, but one of my worries with Bucky is always that he's portrayed as bland instead of haunted. It's when he's portrayed as so emotionally dead that he's boring that series get canceled. I guess the stakes are low for a five-issue mini-series, but I'd really like to see Bucky emerge from the limbo in which Marvel has stashed him these last few years. Brubaker did such amazing things with him, and I really want him to be less shadow-y than he's been these last few years. Importantly, Higgins establishes the government pardoned him for his help against Hydra. Here's hoping it means we're going to get Brubaker's Bucky back.
Also Read: Death Orb #3; The Merry X-Men Holiday Special #1; Nightwing #54
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