Batman #43: I'm not sure if this story is over, but, if it is, I call a massive foul. We'll get to that part in a minute. First, I'll say this issue was much better than last issue, as it was grounded in an unusually sensitive Bruce realizing Harley was the key to Pamela's salvation. That part was beautifully and lovingly handled; King even implies it's Bruce's relationship with Selina that makes him able to see this answer. But, the "foul" part enters the equation when it becomes clear King never explained how Pamela powered up so significantly she was able to control 8 billion people. EIGHT BILLION PEOPLE! It's really an unforgivable sin. It's one of those moments where I just don't understand how an editor could've possibly let it pass. Compounding matters further, Bruce tells Pamela she didn't actually kill the five men she thought she killed, the thing that seemed to set her on this course in the first place. (King also doesn't explain why she's feeling this way now, years after the event. Again, didn't the editor raise an eyebrow?) I believe Bruce is saying the Riddler shot them dead but (again, for an unclear reason) wanted Pamela to believe she did it. But, it doesn't explain why the Riddler would want her to feel the blame or how Pamela just overlooked the fact their bodies were ridden with bullet. I just don't get it, and it's a shame, because King does such a great job with the emotional beats.
Nightwing #41: This arc has been really hit or miss, and this issue itself is the same way. On one hand, I liked Guppie's focus on getting Dick to forgive himself for letting the Judge run up the death toll he has. Guppie points out Dick forgave Baby Ruthless and Detective Svoboda for their transgressions and is trying to get Guppie to forgive himself for killing his father, but Dick's unwilling to let himself off the hook. It's a good point and a good insight into Dick's character. But, I don't understand how Dick magically stopped the Judge. Sure, I bought the idea he -- and he alone -- could resist the Judge's offer of living happily ever after in exchange for allowing the Judge to return to the sea. But, he basically just tackles him underwater and calls it a day. Was the Judge really that weak? He was in his natural element, but he couldn't outwrestle Dick? (I mean, I'm even giving Higgins a pass on the fact I don't think we ever learned how the Judge got his supernatural powers in the first place.) It just seemed like Higgins knew he had to wrap up the story; he didn't need the Judge anymore, so Dick was now able to capture him. Meh.
Pathfinder: Spiral of Bones #1: I love Pathfinder, but I have to admit this issue is a miss for me. Valeros and company have come to Kaer Maga to learn more about Thassilonian magic. Cool, I get that part. Thassilonian magic has certainly caused them some trouble. Valeros gets into a dispute with a troll fortune teller, but he's saved by Imrijka, a half-orc fuck buddy from his caravan days. Imrijka is a inquisitor of Pharasma, and it's entirely possible it wasn't coincidence she ran into them. I just don't yet understand why she would be tailing them, but Frasier seems to be implying something is afoot here. At any rate, Ezren and Harsk get into trouble when Ezren accidentally teleports them into Kaer Maga's extensive undercity, and Ezren calls Seoni via a message spell for help. Making their way to the undercity, Merisiel and Valeros have an odd conversation about kids, with Valeros saying he doesn't want to leave a kid without a dad if he dies on an adventure. It's weird, but it's also a sign Valeros may have some honest-to-goodness emotions somewhere in there, so I'll take it. Of course, Valeros then gets knocked through a wall during a skirmish, touches a mysterious gem, and finds himself held by a goat-horned, blue-skinned woman in the afterlife. I appreciate Frasier's focus on Valeros as a person and not just a mindless brawler, but something about the setup here felt forced to me. For example, touching a mysterious gem on an altar is a pretty rookie mistake for someone with Valeros' experience, and something about his relationship (such as it is) with Imrijka also felt totally forced. We'll see where we go from here, I guess.
Youngblood #10: This issue is interesting, because Bowers again shows his willingness to explore the psychological impact superheroing has on people. When a Hulk-like monster breaks free of a Japanese holding facility, Ryan deploys Team Youngblood. The faux Hulk (Fulk?) quickly overpowers Dolante and Vogue, and Horatio only manages to stop him by stomping on him. However, Fulk eventually breaks through Horatio's feet and proceeds to break two fingers. Dolante makes a connection with the creature, but an enraged Horatio grabs him and intends to bite off his head. Vogue tries to reason with him as Dolante threatens to incapacitate him, but Horatio tells Vogue she doesn't understand what he's seen because she hasn't been in the game as long as he has. He's obviously traumatized from the period when he was working as a mercenary against his will, and he tells Vogue he can't have anymore blood on his hands. However, Vogue has Dolante incapacitate him before he can kill Fulk. The difference between Horatio's argument here and Kate's argument in "Detective Comics" is Bowers makes it clear other options exist to neutralize Fulk's threat before it kills anyone else (as opposed to Batwoman having to take the kill-shot to stop Clayface's rampage). Ryan reveals the entire ordeal was tantamount to an audition. As a natural leader, he needs a team to lead, and he's worked out an agreement with the Japanese Prime Minister. She offers them official status, which they accept, on the condition Horatio isn't included. I'm pretty sure they've just made their number-one enemy here. I give a lot of credit for Bowers for where he's gone with Horatio. After all, he's the whole reason Youngblood came together, so his immediate fall from grace is shocking, both to the reader and the team. It's not something I feel like we'd see in DC or Marvel books.
Also Read: Quantum & Woody #4
Showing posts with label Youngblood (2017). Show all posts
Showing posts with label Youngblood (2017). Show all posts
Monday, April 9, 2018
Wednesday, March 7, 2018
Not-So-New Comics: The January 10 Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)
Avengers #675: And away we go! First, I have to thank the writing team for starting off this event with the Living Lightning (now just Lightning) as he’s one of the few gay characters in the Marvel Universe. The authors not only put him front and center here, but they also show him as a red-blooded gay man as he awkwardly (but successfully) asks out Detective Dan. It’s still a big deal to me, particularly after Marvel seems to be responding to the people who want their comics maler, straighter, and most importantly whiter by de-diversifying its line-up.
But, Lightning isn’t just there as a set piece. The action gets going almost immediately after he busts some thieves and ponders how he should be doing more with his life as a former (West Coast) Avenger. Detective Dan tries to console him, saying he's still doing good work, but they're both startled when the Sun seems to go nova. We quickly learn someone has stolen the Earth, causing all hell to break loose: the loss of the ring of satellites around the Earth has crippled global communications, and the change in the Earth's geospatial position has unleashed a series of natural disasters. The various Avengers teams leap into action, and the art team does a great job of showing the magnitude of their effort. (Hercules catching the rolling globe the Atlas statue was holding was a particularly nice touch, and Carol’s dumb-founded expression as she stares at the space where Earth and the Moon used to be is hilarious.)
The authors kick it up a notch as several of the more prominent heroes are put, in Rogue’s words, on "pause." Someone sends out an emergency distress symbol that manages to get through the communications black-out, and we’re only left with: Synapse, Voodoo, the Human Torch, Thor, Falcon, Lightning, Toni Ho, Roberto, Cannonball, Red Hulk, Wonder Man, Beast, Scarlet Witch, Hercules, Rogue, and Quicksilver. The (young) Wasp arrives to inform everyone Jarvis might die from injuries he sustained in trying to save a child, but she leaves in tears when Rogue suggests they don’t have time to help him. (Rogue correctly asserts Jarvis would understand.) Beast leaves with the Wasp, and the loss of his intellect seems like it's going to prove Rogue’s point that it’s a bad idea to divert important resources from the task at hand. Then, a mysterious white-haired woman is revealed to have sent out the call. The mystery isn't just her identity; it's that everyone seems to know her. In fact, her likeness appears on the statue of the founding Avengers.
The authors kick it up a notch as several of the more prominent heroes are put, in Rogue’s words, on "pause." Someone sends out an emergency distress symbol that manages to get through the communications black-out, and we’re only left with: Synapse, Voodoo, the Human Torch, Thor, Falcon, Lightning, Toni Ho, Roberto, Cannonball, Red Hulk, Wonder Man, Beast, Scarlet Witch, Hercules, Rogue, and Quicksilver. The (young) Wasp arrives to inform everyone Jarvis might die from injuries he sustained in trying to save a child, but she leaves in tears when Rogue suggests they don’t have time to help him. (Rogue correctly asserts Jarvis would understand.) Beast leaves with the Wasp, and the loss of his intellect seems like it's going to prove Rogue’s point that it’s a bad idea to divert important resources from the task at hand. Then, a mysterious white-haired woman is revealed to have sent out the call. The mystery isn't just her identity; it's that everyone seems to know her. In fact, her likeness appears on the statue of the founding Avengers.
All in all, I’m really excited. This issue felt like a classic Avengers story (particularly when Quicksilver got catty with Rogue). The authors accomplish their main goal here, making us believe they’re telling so huge of a story they have to do it weekly. “Batman Eternal” failed to convey that sense of urgency, which is why it eventually became a chore to read. But, 16 issues is different than 52 issues, so hopefully it’ll be an easier task to stay on message. At any rate, I'm in it to win it.
Darth Vader #10: After issue #5 saw Anakin firmly rejecting redemption and embracing his apprenticeship to Darth Sidious, I was surprised here when he destroyed the memory crystal. Jocasta essentially goads him into it, saying she understood Palpatine wanted to make more Darth Vaders from the children on that list. She asks what he wants, and it's a good question. Did he destroy the crystal because he was just happy someone cared what he wanted? Did he do it because he didn't want the competition? Gillen doesn't tell us, keeping (for now) Vader's motivations unclear. I'm hoping we continue to see more moments like this one, where Vader's role as a committed villain comes under question.
Darth Vader #10: After issue #5 saw Anakin firmly rejecting redemption and embracing his apprenticeship to Darth Sidious, I was surprised here when he destroyed the memory crystal. Jocasta essentially goads him into it, saying she understood Palpatine wanted to make more Darth Vaders from the children on that list. She asks what he wants, and it's a good question. Did he destroy the crystal because he was just happy someone cared what he wanted? Did he do it because he didn't want the competition? Gillen doesn't tell us, keeping (for now) Vader's motivations unclear. I'm hoping we continue to see more moments like this one, where Vader's role as a committed villain comes under question.
Old Man Hawkeye #1: I didn’t read “Old Man Logan,” but reading this issue makes me feel like I should’ve. Logan makes an appearance here, with Clint asking him if he wants to join in getting revenge on the super-villains who wiped out the superheros 45 years earlier. Why did he wait 45 years? It’s because Claire Temple told him he only has a few weeks or months before glaucoma robs him of his eyesight. Time is ticking, in other words. But, Sacks doesn’t jump right into that story. We begin with Clint working a job for a guy named Mr. Hammer (I’m assuming some connection to Justin Hammer), transporting cargo through Tannenbaum Gorge in South Dakota. When a group of crazed Madroxes attack the truck asking for MGH, Hawkeye wonders whether Hammer has gotten him involved in something illegal. (I wonder what the definition of “illegal” is in this world.) Clint takes out all the Madroxes but one, and it's him missing his shot at that one that brings him to Temple. Next time we see Clint, he’s at Logan’s homestead in California, where Logan rebuffs his attempt to recruit him. Then, he’s in Hammer Falls, Nevada, visiting his daughter, Ashley Barton, who isn’t too keen to see him. Meanwhile, the Venom symbiote attacks and consumes the one Madrox Clint didn’t murder in the hijacking attempt, and Bullseye realizes Hawkeye is active again when he finds the other Madroxes' bodies. Reading the Wiki entry on “Old Man Logan,” I’m intrigued to see where Sacks goes here. We know how the story ends, so we know Clint doesn’t get his revenge. But, sometimes it’s about the journey.
Phoenix Resurrection — The Return of Jean Grey #3: The gang finds Jean’s coffin is empty and realizes they need to find her. Hank offers to rebuild Cerebro, but reminds everyone they don’t have any psychics. So, Kitty tracks down Emma, who approves of the $*#!^ she’s become. Kitty tells her Jean has returned, and Emma suggests she’s at a plateau in New Mexico that she knew meant a lot to Scott. Kitty brings the whole gang to the plateau, and Magik uncovers a dome that had been trying to hide itself. A door opens, and the X-Men prepare to enter the dome. Meanwhile, Waitress Jean flees a version of her costumed self who appears to her. Rosenberg seems to break what I thought was a rule here, as “Mr. Patch” and Dr. Reyes both appear, despite them not being dead. Whatever. It’s time to wrap up this story. It’s starting to feel a little Keystone Cops, with everyone chasing something we all know they’re going to find.
Titans #19: This issue is a great example of why I’m canceling this series. Abnett relies on the old shtick of the Justice League condemning the Titans’ actions, which worked when they were young adults but doesn’t work now. Batman says Donna and Wally need to be fully assessed. But, he doesn’t mention Wally is hurt because his son stabbed him in the heart. It also takes Roy to mention Donna is under suspicion because Diana lied about the fact she was made of clay. Dick makes a half-hearted attempt to make these points to Batman, but then reverts to a disappointing-son role that he’s never, ever held. It’s character assassination all around, and I won’t stand for it. Bruce's insistence they failed at their mission also just doesn't make sense. As Wally mentions, they nabbed Mr. Twister, Psimon, and the Key and defeated Troia. What did they do wrong? Not cause enough property damage, like the Justice League does? Remember when Bruce gave a college scholarship to the girl who hacked Amazon and destroyed a town (in "Justice League "#11)? I could continue, but I won't. I’m done with this one, unfortunately.
Titans #19: This issue is a great example of why I’m canceling this series. Abnett relies on the old shtick of the Justice League condemning the Titans’ actions, which worked when they were young adults but doesn’t work now. Batman says Donna and Wally need to be fully assessed. But, he doesn’t mention Wally is hurt because his son stabbed him in the heart. It also takes Roy to mention Donna is under suspicion because Diana lied about the fact she was made of clay. Dick makes a half-hearted attempt to make these points to Batman, but then reverts to a disappointing-son role that he’s never, ever held. It’s character assassination all around, and I won’t stand for it. Bruce's insistence they failed at their mission also just doesn't make sense. As Wally mentions, they nabbed Mr. Twister, Psimon, and the Key and defeated Troia. What did they do wrong? Not cause enough property damage, like the Justice League does? Remember when Bruce gave a college scholarship to the girl who hacked Amazon and destroyed a town (in "Justice League "#11)? I could continue, but I won't. I’m done with this one, unfortunately.
The Wild Storm: Michael Cray #4: It’s clear the point of this series is for Michael to kill the Wild Storm versions of DC heroes: he took down Green Arrow in the first two issues, we’ve seen reference to Bruce Wayne, he eliminates the Flash here, and Trelane sends him after “the Aquaman” next. All these missions seek to steal the technology the “hero” (or “victim”) is using, but it’s unclear why Skywatch wants this technology and how it's going to use it. It’s also unclear why this series needs to exist. Ellis has made it clear he's telling an integrated story, so presumably the technology we see in this series will play some sort of role in the ongoing struggle between Halo, IO, and Skywatch in the main title. It’s just unclear what it is yet. Also, the terrible art on this series makes me realize how important John Davis-Hunt is to the magic of the main title. So far, this series just seems like a random series of hits whose conclusions are foregone.
X-Men: Blue #19: OK, I totally, totally didn’t see that coming. The denouement here actually makes a time-travel story make sense! It turns out the reason why the X-Men saw themselves when they initially returned in time was that it was actually the future Brotherhood, lead by Charles Xavier II, pretending to be them. It’s why in all the possible futures we've seen they were trying to enslave either human- or mutantkind. As such, it also now makes sense why the timestream is collapsing due to their absence; the team actually has been missing form the timestream. It turns out the Brotherhood created a Cerebro that puts Professor X under their control, amping up their abilities considerably. Honestly, I didn’t see how Bunn could possibly resolve this storyline, but he actually stuck this landing. This story might’ve just risen to “classic” level in my book. I really enjoyed the Brotherhood’s initial appearance under Bendis, and I love the idea that they took the fight to the past since they failed in the present and the future.
Youngblood #8: Bowers is really getting going here. The team tracks down a missing hero, Superstitious, to a freighter in the East China Sea. They find her unconscious in a room filled with religious artifacts, but, before they can spring her, a fanatic tells them she’s the key to being invited to the next world after the coming Apocalypse. (Of course she is.) Then Interpol arrives and tries to arrest the team for ruining their months-long operation (to what aim, I don't know). But, Man-Up destroys the freighter by embiggening in a burst of enthusiasm. Later, Dolante complains to Vogue that Horatio (a.k.a., Man-Up) needs to leave the team because he’s reckless, but she’s not so sure. Meanwhile, someone named Task is revealed to be underwriting this new iteration of Youngblood. He asks Doc Rocket (his ex-girlfriend) to dinner, and it inspires Dolante to take up Vogue’s offer to meet her at a club. (It's New Year's Eve.) He’s just a little surprised to find Horatio there, too, kissing her. Dun-dun-DUN! Perhaps the most interesting part of this issue is Supreme is the one to save Superstitious in the wake of the freighter explosion, and Superstitious marvels at how little she knows about her powers and comments how important she is to this world. Superstitious then sends her to another galaxy. Dun-DUN-DUN! I don’t really get the good-guy vibe from Superstitious, so I’m intrigued how she got on Vogue’s list of missing heroes in the first place. I guess we'll see.
Also Read: Bloodshot Salvation #5, Detective Comics #972, Ms. Marvel #26, Venom #160, X-Men: Gold Annual #2
Also Read: Bloodshot Salvation #5, Detective Comics #972, Ms. Marvel #26, Venom #160, X-Men: Gold Annual #2
Friday, December 8, 2017
Not-So-New Comics: The October 11 DC Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)
Dark Nights: Metal #3: Snyder tries to do too much here, but I understand why he does so. He clearly has big plans -- even bigger than the ones we've already seen -- and he needs to move us quickly to where we are at the end the issue. As a result, this issue is a little rushed, but I think ultimately it'll be worth it to see where Snyder takes us.
It starts really, really well: we get an adorable scene where Damian and Jon are playing guitars in a field in Smallville as Bruce, Clark, Diana, and Lois watch. It's the most warmth I've ever scene displayed in a DC Comic, to be honest. Bruce tries to thank the group for all their support after he was forced to confront his darkest fears during the recently concluded war, and they all make fun of him for how bad he is at expressing emotions. But, then it turns out it's just another nightmare: Barbatos evolves from Bruce's form to attack Superman, and we learn Clark has been fighting these nightmares for lifetimes. But, Diana saves him by putting her Lasso of Truth around him to get him to see the "real" world. He awakens to a scene that combines "The Matrix" with Scientology: Clark and Diana are attached to the outside of a skyscraper along with thousands of other people. (Capullo goes for broke with these scenes, as the people are basically Day of the Dead skeletons.) Clark leaves Diana to take on Barbatos, but gets his ass handed to him. Flash saves him just in time, taking him to the Oblivion Bar, a safe space in a pocket dimension where all the other heroes are located.
Everyone is significantly worse for the wear as we learn they've all failed in their attempts to displace the Dark Batmen from their cities. (Dick is particularly shaken, and I may need to read "Gotham Resistance" now.) The towers are really generators, and Superman realizes Barbatos wants to pull our world into the Dark Dimension. At this point, Green Arrow reveals the Nth metal can hurt them. Dr. Fate and Mr. Terrific are able to locate three stashes of Nth metal through its connection to the other reactive metals in Steel's hammer, Fate's mask, Plastic Man's egg, and Deathstroke's armor. Diana starts splitting up everyone in teams to go mine the metal, but Superman dissents when Mr. Terrific reveals the last signal is coming from the Dark Dimension. Clark says Bruce used a code word in his last dream that he and Superman developed to signify trouble, and Dick confirms he can also feel Bruce trying to reach him. Superman realizes Bruce is sending the signal from the Dark Dimension, but Dick says they shouldn't go after him. Dick argues they should fight Barbatos as Bruce would've wanted them to do. However, Dick is also shaken by how dark Bruce's soul is, something they've all seen through these perverted forms of him. Damian is outraged, attacking Dick. One of the most crushing scenes is Damian clinging to Superman after he informs the group he'll save Bruce. Dick and Damian's sense of hopelessness conveys just how overpowering Barbatos' ability to kill hope is.
At any rate, the teams are forced to flee the bar as Batman Who Laughs and his Robins find them. (Kendra made it clear she was against saving Superman exactly for this reason.) As the other teams arrive at their destinations and start hunting for the Nth metal, Flash and Steel accompany Superman to the Fortress of Solitude. Superman reveals the coordinates for the Dark Dimension were close to the ones for the Phantom Zone, and he thinks the Phantom Zone might be, as Flash says, a "permeable membrane" between our dimensions. Steel attaches himself to the Antenna and Flash supercharges it, creating an energy link to the Dark Dimension. (Just go with it.) Superman travels there, only to realize he was wrong. Bruce was sending songs in the dreams, not words: the two chords of the song the kids were playing were D then C: "don't come." Superman is the battery, and with his arrival in the Dark Dimension the circuit is complete. Shit is going down, y'all.
Detective Comics #966: This series has dragged lately, but it isn't now! This issue is one of the most gripping I've ever read, particularly when you consider it's also a time-travel story. Tim and Future Tim talk while occasionally fending off Doomsday, though Future Tim doesn't reveal anything too specific about how he got this way. In fact, our only real hint before the issue wraps is a flashforward to his timeline, where Anarky comments to Spoiler about an event involving Clayface setting everything in motion. Instead, Future Tim lays out his road to Batman and strikes a theme in doing so, saying certain patterns are set. For example, Dick's reality is as a circus kid, so he eventually leaves Gotham and starts a family. Jason's reality is as a tragic story, so he winds up losing an eye and a leg and living as a homeless drunk. Damian's reality is a violent arrogance, so it's heavily implied Future Tim has to kill him after his "Batman" #666 iteration practically burns Gotham to the ground. Tim refuses to accept he's going to become Future Tim, but Future Tim agrees to use his technology to travel to Tim's present. As he departs, Future Tim encourages Tim to make peace with Conner, but Tim doesn't know who Conner is. Future Tim is shocked, and he reviews the present timeline thanks to his Batcomputer (who he creepily calls "Brother"). He realizes this timeline has been tweaked (heavily implying he's from the DCU timeline), and he cuts Tim's arm. When he realizes he, too, has a scar, he realizes he can save Tim from his future by killing the person responsible for it: Batwoman. Although this issue is super-talky, you get the sense Tynion has laid the groundwork he needed to lay and we're about to see some honest-to-God fireworks as Future Tim goes after Batwoman.
The Wild Storm: Michael Cray #1: Right off the bat, I’ll say the quality of this issue is notably different from “The Wild Storm.” Not that the issue is bad, but everything about it — the writing, the art, etc. — feels like a copy of the original. Michael gets his first assignment from Trelane: he’s to infiltrate Oliver Queen’s “Sanctuary” and steal his technology. Wait, The Wild Storm has its own Green Arrow, you ask? Apparently. He seems to be a variant of the television version, as all the details don’t exactly match: for example, both his parents (not just his father) died in the shipwreck that left him stranded. What’s the Sanctuary, you ask? Well, I’m glad you did. It’s a version of the island where he was stranded, where he plays “The Most Dangerous Game” to keep his skill sharp. It’s not the only sign he’s insane. His font is notably different: rather than the regular font everyone else uses in The Wild Storm, he speaks in all-caps, italics, and quotations. Trelane stresses she wants him for the technology, but notes Michael is a better person than she is, so he’ll probably want to stop Queen from killing veterans. Along the way, we get a hint of Cray’s supernatural powers; whereas he destroyed Marlowe’s spur in “The Wild Storm’ #1, here he blows up a mouse living in his new house. He's as sad as we are.
Youngblood #6: Bowers advances the plot significantly here, though we don't really have any more answers than we did at the start of the issue. The kids battle the Byrne gestalt while Badrock and Shaft (well, mostly Badrock, since Shaft is missing his arm) take on Diehard. The kids realize they're in trouble when the gestalt eats one of the Chapel twins (though I'm not really sure if they're twins now, because the one getting eaten refers to the other one as "Chapel"). Badrock winds up throwing Diehard into the room where the gestalt is, and he's appalled when he sees the seemingly dead kids. Badrock sacrifices himself to the gestalt, claiming he knows how to beat it after it connects to him and he's able to see its thinking. The gestalt explodes, and Badrock emerges as a normal teenage boy. Nine days later, we discover Man-Up is slave labor for some paramilitary leader in Morocco, and the team - comprising of Dolante, Supreme, Vogue, and the speedster whose name I can't remember -- arrives to rescue him. I'm really enjoying this series, and I'm intrigued to see what happens with Badrock. Is he now a cyborg like the Byrnes? But, I also feel like I'm struggling to get a grip on everyone, because Bowers is more or less writing for the trade here. I complained in a previous review that the extensive use of flashbacks in the first five issues made it difficult to follow the team coming together, and it's a problem I still can't remember one of the team members' names after six issues. But, I was also excited by the advertisement announcing "Bloodstrike" coming in January 2018, so it's a limited complaint.
It starts really, really well: we get an adorable scene where Damian and Jon are playing guitars in a field in Smallville as Bruce, Clark, Diana, and Lois watch. It's the most warmth I've ever scene displayed in a DC Comic, to be honest. Bruce tries to thank the group for all their support after he was forced to confront his darkest fears during the recently concluded war, and they all make fun of him for how bad he is at expressing emotions. But, then it turns out it's just another nightmare: Barbatos evolves from Bruce's form to attack Superman, and we learn Clark has been fighting these nightmares for lifetimes. But, Diana saves him by putting her Lasso of Truth around him to get him to see the "real" world. He awakens to a scene that combines "The Matrix" with Scientology: Clark and Diana are attached to the outside of a skyscraper along with thousands of other people. (Capullo goes for broke with these scenes, as the people are basically Day of the Dead skeletons.) Clark leaves Diana to take on Barbatos, but gets his ass handed to him. Flash saves him just in time, taking him to the Oblivion Bar, a safe space in a pocket dimension where all the other heroes are located.
Everyone is significantly worse for the wear as we learn they've all failed in their attempts to displace the Dark Batmen from their cities. (Dick is particularly shaken, and I may need to read "Gotham Resistance" now.) The towers are really generators, and Superman realizes Barbatos wants to pull our world into the Dark Dimension. At this point, Green Arrow reveals the Nth metal can hurt them. Dr. Fate and Mr. Terrific are able to locate three stashes of Nth metal through its connection to the other reactive metals in Steel's hammer, Fate's mask, Plastic Man's egg, and Deathstroke's armor. Diana starts splitting up everyone in teams to go mine the metal, but Superman dissents when Mr. Terrific reveals the last signal is coming from the Dark Dimension. Clark says Bruce used a code word in his last dream that he and Superman developed to signify trouble, and Dick confirms he can also feel Bruce trying to reach him. Superman realizes Bruce is sending the signal from the Dark Dimension, but Dick says they shouldn't go after him. Dick argues they should fight Barbatos as Bruce would've wanted them to do. However, Dick is also shaken by how dark Bruce's soul is, something they've all seen through these perverted forms of him. Damian is outraged, attacking Dick. One of the most crushing scenes is Damian clinging to Superman after he informs the group he'll save Bruce. Dick and Damian's sense of hopelessness conveys just how overpowering Barbatos' ability to kill hope is.
At any rate, the teams are forced to flee the bar as Batman Who Laughs and his Robins find them. (Kendra made it clear she was against saving Superman exactly for this reason.) As the other teams arrive at their destinations and start hunting for the Nth metal, Flash and Steel accompany Superman to the Fortress of Solitude. Superman reveals the coordinates for the Dark Dimension were close to the ones for the Phantom Zone, and he thinks the Phantom Zone might be, as Flash says, a "permeable membrane" between our dimensions. Steel attaches himself to the Antenna and Flash supercharges it, creating an energy link to the Dark Dimension. (Just go with it.) Superman travels there, only to realize he was wrong. Bruce was sending songs in the dreams, not words: the two chords of the song the kids were playing were D then C: "don't come." Superman is the battery, and with his arrival in the Dark Dimension the circuit is complete. Shit is going down, y'all.
Detective Comics #966: This series has dragged lately, but it isn't now! This issue is one of the most gripping I've ever read, particularly when you consider it's also a time-travel story. Tim and Future Tim talk while occasionally fending off Doomsday, though Future Tim doesn't reveal anything too specific about how he got this way. In fact, our only real hint before the issue wraps is a flashforward to his timeline, where Anarky comments to Spoiler about an event involving Clayface setting everything in motion. Instead, Future Tim lays out his road to Batman and strikes a theme in doing so, saying certain patterns are set. For example, Dick's reality is as a circus kid, so he eventually leaves Gotham and starts a family. Jason's reality is as a tragic story, so he winds up losing an eye and a leg and living as a homeless drunk. Damian's reality is a violent arrogance, so it's heavily implied Future Tim has to kill him after his "Batman" #666 iteration practically burns Gotham to the ground. Tim refuses to accept he's going to become Future Tim, but Future Tim agrees to use his technology to travel to Tim's present. As he departs, Future Tim encourages Tim to make peace with Conner, but Tim doesn't know who Conner is. Future Tim is shocked, and he reviews the present timeline thanks to his Batcomputer (who he creepily calls "Brother"). He realizes this timeline has been tweaked (heavily implying he's from the DCU timeline), and he cuts Tim's arm. When he realizes he, too, has a scar, he realizes he can save Tim from his future by killing the person responsible for it: Batwoman. Although this issue is super-talky, you get the sense Tynion has laid the groundwork he needed to lay and we're about to see some honest-to-God fireworks as Future Tim goes after Batwoman.
The Wild Storm: Michael Cray #1: Right off the bat, I’ll say the quality of this issue is notably different from “The Wild Storm.” Not that the issue is bad, but everything about it — the writing, the art, etc. — feels like a copy of the original. Michael gets his first assignment from Trelane: he’s to infiltrate Oliver Queen’s “Sanctuary” and steal his technology. Wait, The Wild Storm has its own Green Arrow, you ask? Apparently. He seems to be a variant of the television version, as all the details don’t exactly match: for example, both his parents (not just his father) died in the shipwreck that left him stranded. What’s the Sanctuary, you ask? Well, I’m glad you did. It’s a version of the island where he was stranded, where he plays “The Most Dangerous Game” to keep his skill sharp. It’s not the only sign he’s insane. His font is notably different: rather than the regular font everyone else uses in The Wild Storm, he speaks in all-caps, italics, and quotations. Trelane stresses she wants him for the technology, but notes Michael is a better person than she is, so he’ll probably want to stop Queen from killing veterans. Along the way, we get a hint of Cray’s supernatural powers; whereas he destroyed Marlowe’s spur in “The Wild Storm’ #1, here he blows up a mouse living in his new house. He's as sad as we are.
Youngblood #6: Bowers advances the plot significantly here, though we don't really have any more answers than we did at the start of the issue. The kids battle the Byrne gestalt while Badrock and Shaft (well, mostly Badrock, since Shaft is missing his arm) take on Diehard. The kids realize they're in trouble when the gestalt eats one of the Chapel twins (though I'm not really sure if they're twins now, because the one getting eaten refers to the other one as "Chapel"). Badrock winds up throwing Diehard into the room where the gestalt is, and he's appalled when he sees the seemingly dead kids. Badrock sacrifices himself to the gestalt, claiming he knows how to beat it after it connects to him and he's able to see its thinking. The gestalt explodes, and Badrock emerges as a normal teenage boy. Nine days later, we discover Man-Up is slave labor for some paramilitary leader in Morocco, and the team - comprising of Dolante, Supreme, Vogue, and the speedster whose name I can't remember -- arrives to rescue him. I'm really enjoying this series, and I'm intrigued to see what happens with Badrock. Is he now a cyborg like the Byrnes? But, I also feel like I'm struggling to get a grip on everyone, because Bowers is more or less writing for the trade here. I complained in a previous review that the extensive use of flashbacks in the first five issues made it difficult to follow the team coming together, and it's a problem I still can't remember one of the team members' names after six issues. But, I was also excited by the advertisement announcing "Bloodstrike" coming in January 2018, so it's a limited complaint.
Friday, November 17, 2017
Not-So-New Comics: The September 13 Non-Marvel Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)
Dark Nights: Metal #2: Snyder takes us on a tour of Batman’s recent history, and he's largely successful in making connections between stories we haven't previously seen. It's not perfect, but it's still impressive.
Barbatos first took notice of Bruce when Darkseid’s Omega Sanction sent him into the past (see "The Return of Bruce Wayne"), and Barbatos decided Bruce would be the perfect doorway to the Light Universe. (I'm not sure why he thought that, since it seems sort of inevitable Bruce would fight against Barbatos using him that way. But, let's just take it as a fact.) The Court of Owls is revealed to be the Judas Tribe, or the Tribe that betrayed the Bird Tribe. (Again, I'm not sure we learn why they betrayed the Bird Tribe, but I feel like it's pretty clear we're supposed to believe Barbatos himself corrupted them.) As devoted Bat Tribe members, the Court helped Barbatos prepare Bruce for serving as the doorway by treating him with four of the five metals necessary to open the portal. First, they exposed him to electrum in "Court of Owls" ("Batman" #5, I believe) and then dionesium in "Endgame" ("Batman" #40). Then, Bruce exposed himself to promethium in "Batman" #49, when he returned his memories, and the Nth metal in "Dark Days: The Casting" #1, when he activated the device Krona built to see into the Universe's origin. (When Krona did so, he apparently saw a black hand reaching toward him. Creepy.) I’ll admit, I don’t really remember any mention of Bruce using promethium to bring back his memories, but I’m willing to let it go, given everything else here is pretty tight (and gets tighter).
As Bruce frantically relates to Superman when he and Wonder Woman finally locate him, he realized he only needed coating with one more metal before Barbatos could enter our world. (Again, I'm not really sure how Bruce got all this information about the metals, but I'm assuming it has something to do with Carter's diary.) To prevent this possibility, Bruce heads to the Temple of Khufu where he intends to use baby Darkseid (really) to Omega Sanction himself into the past and take on Barbatos with Hawkman’s mace, which defeated him once. (I don't really remember us learning Hawkman defeated Barbatos, and I'm pretty sure he's trapped in the Dark Universe. But, bygones.) However, Bruce's plan goes awry when the Court reveals they knew Carter’s journal was in Wayne Manor (...though somehow don't know Bruce is Batman). As such, the Court altered the text to show the location not of the Temple of Khufu, but the Temple of Hath Set. Dun-dun-DUN! Barbatos’ minions seize Bruce, and they coat him with the fifth metal: Geri Powers' batmanium. (Like I said, the story got tighter.) The doorway opens and dark versions of Batman pour into our Universe.
In other words, so far, so good. Although Snyder might not connect all the dots for us, he leaves us enough dots for us to be able to draw our own conclusions. Where he does connect them, the picture makes perfect sense. Also, it's just sort of fun. I don't know how he manages that, given how grim of a topic it is, but I think it's mostly due to the art, as Glapion infuses everything with enough cartoon color to encourage you not to take it all too seriously. For a cross-over event, they're doing pretty well so far.
Detective Comics #964: This issue feels like Tynion was told he had to wrap up the story three issues early. In fact, it’s even worse than that. On several occasions, developments just happen for no apparent reason: Batman suddenly (like, literally, he appears from nowhere) confronts Anarky, Anarky reveals he built his Utopia with the First Victim from the Victim’s Syndicate, Anarky kisses Spoiler, etc. It all just doesn’t make any sense. At one point, Spoiler complains Anarky is always mansplaining everything to her, but I’m pretty sure they’ve only known each other, like, an hour. I mean, sure, I’m totally on board with her kicking his ass for being an asshole, but I don’t understand the sense of familiarity she allegedly feels for him. Also, I don’t get why he’s such a threat to Batman. OK, the First Victim was sort of a terrorist. But, the only thing of which Anarky seems to be guilty is wanting his Utopia to conform with his vision. Um, isn’t that kind of OK? Like, yes, it makes him an egomaniac, but does it make him a terrorist? Batman arrests him and incarcerates him here, but I have absolutely no idea what the charges are. Monologuing? It's all just weird.
The Realm #1: Holy shit, I can't remember being more excited about a comic after a first issue in ages! As one of the pull quotes says, it's like "Dungeons and Dragons" meeting "The Road." But, it's more than that. Peck and Haun manage to give us a raft of great characters, most notably Will Nolan, our protagonist. But, we'll get to that.
Starting first with the setting, we're witness to two new realities on Earth: some sort of apocalyptic event has largely destroyed it, and said event apparently involved dragons, orc, and sorcerers. We're given a peek at those forces when we see a sorcerer in a floating citadel engage in human sacrifice to commune with his dark god. But, it's a brief interlude. Mostly, our focus is on Nolan, who guides people through dangerous territory in the broken United States. Nolan's client, King, is killed by Sasha, the woman King hired Nolan to bring to him. King told Nolan that Sasha was his daughter, but it turns out she was really someone King traded for antibiotics that proved to be fake. It's unclear to me if Nolan knew Sasha was going to kill King or if she just took advantage of the situation when King had his men try to kill Nolan instead of paying him. If it's the former, I'm intrigued, since it implies Nolan is more than just a guide. In the end, Sasha says they're even, but I'm not sure if it's because she saved Nolan's life or if she paid off a debt to Nolan by killing King for him. Either way, she tells him he'll have to pay the toll like everyone else the next time he crosses her domain, and you get a good sense of the sort of place the Realm is.
Nolan returns to what seems to be home, where he meets with Marcus, his agent, if you will. They're close (maybe very close), and it's good to see. Often, in these sort of stories, the protagonist is a hardened loaner, but Peck and Haun make Nolan an even more interesting character by avoiding that trope. (On a side note, I can't wait to learn more about the toothbrushes that seem to be the Realm's currency.) At any rate, Marcus sends Nolan to meet with Molly and her colleague: they want to hire Nolan to escort them and two scientists to Kansas City. Here, we're introduced to Rook, a gimp-looking spy Nolan uses to make sure his clients are on the up and up. Finally, we're privy to a dream Nolan has, where the blackness that covers his arm starts spreading across his body, turning him into a demon. He awakens, shaken.
In other words, damn, this issue has a lot happening. But, it's all so well paced and scripted, it leaves you wanting more. I can't remember a series more clearly creating such fully realized characters in just one issue, not even "Reborn." Peck and Haun pay extra close attention to detail throughout the issue: the uneven lines Haun uses to create panels conveys how chaotic this world is. It conveys how carefully they've constructed this world and story, and I can't wait for the next issue.
Titans #15: I'm just not sure where Abnett is going here. Does he really think we're going to believe he's killing off Wally so soon after Wally returned? He must, because he keeps putting him in situations where he appears to die. But, since it's hard to believe it's going to stick, it doesn't have the impact he seems to want it to have. (Plus, he keeps doing it over and over again.) Then, you've got the fact that pretty much everyone on the team has been "the traitor" at one point. The tagline for next issue is yet again, "The traitor revealed!" It might as well add, "No, really, seriously, we mean it this time." At this stage, I'm not even sure what the traitor is allegedly doing. I mean, we have some sort of force taking control of Psimon, but it's apparently Lilith who'll ultimately be the threat? Does that mean the "force" will eventually take over her? Also, what does any of that have to do with H.I.V.E.? I can't even remember why H.I.V.E. is holding Psimon prisoner. Weren't they the ones who hired him? I just feel like we're seriously spinning our wheels here.
Youngblood #5: Man, Bowers is really just keeping up the heat. My only real complaint with this series at this point is his extensive use of flashbacks. I'm having problems remembering how the team came together, and I'm not sure if we would've lost anything in terms of suspense if Bowers had just assembled this story sequentially. For example, Rachel is thrilled to discover Badrock in her apartment, as if she hadn't seen him before that moment. I guess it could be true, but I was pretty sure she was with the team when it originally debuted and he and Shaft went after them. Maybe? Did this scene happen before they assembled the first time? I don't think so, but my confusion over it reveals why it's a problem. At any rate, I get the sense we'll be seeing less use of flashbacks as the story really kicks into gear here. All sorts of crazy stuff is happening with the Byrne brothers. They're not only revealed to be cyborgs, but cyborgs who can merge with one another to create a huge robot. Moreover, one of the "brothers" seems more dominant than the other. But, it's Diehard ripping off Shaft's arm that really reminds me why this series feels so fresh. Whereas Abnett unbelievably keeps threatening to kill off Wally in "Titans," I'm pretty sure Shaft's arm isn't going to miraculously grow back next issue. By giving us realistic stakes, the entire story feels more organic.
Also Read: Dragon Age: Knight Errant #5
Barbatos first took notice of Bruce when Darkseid’s Omega Sanction sent him into the past (see "The Return of Bruce Wayne"), and Barbatos decided Bruce would be the perfect doorway to the Light Universe. (I'm not sure why he thought that, since it seems sort of inevitable Bruce would fight against Barbatos using him that way. But, let's just take it as a fact.) The Court of Owls is revealed to be the Judas Tribe, or the Tribe that betrayed the Bird Tribe. (Again, I'm not sure we learn why they betrayed the Bird Tribe, but I feel like it's pretty clear we're supposed to believe Barbatos himself corrupted them.) As devoted Bat Tribe members, the Court helped Barbatos prepare Bruce for serving as the doorway by treating him with four of the five metals necessary to open the portal. First, they exposed him to electrum in "Court of Owls" ("Batman" #5, I believe) and then dionesium in "Endgame" ("Batman" #40). Then, Bruce exposed himself to promethium in "Batman" #49, when he returned his memories, and the Nth metal in "Dark Days: The Casting" #1, when he activated the device Krona built to see into the Universe's origin. (When Krona did so, he apparently saw a black hand reaching toward him. Creepy.) I’ll admit, I don’t really remember any mention of Bruce using promethium to bring back his memories, but I’m willing to let it go, given everything else here is pretty tight (and gets tighter).
As Bruce frantically relates to Superman when he and Wonder Woman finally locate him, he realized he only needed coating with one more metal before Barbatos could enter our world. (Again, I'm not really sure how Bruce got all this information about the metals, but I'm assuming it has something to do with Carter's diary.) To prevent this possibility, Bruce heads to the Temple of Khufu where he intends to use baby Darkseid (really) to Omega Sanction himself into the past and take on Barbatos with Hawkman’s mace, which defeated him once. (I don't really remember us learning Hawkman defeated Barbatos, and I'm pretty sure he's trapped in the Dark Universe. But, bygones.) However, Bruce's plan goes awry when the Court reveals they knew Carter’s journal was in Wayne Manor (...though somehow don't know Bruce is Batman). As such, the Court altered the text to show the location not of the Temple of Khufu, but the Temple of Hath Set. Dun-dun-DUN! Barbatos’ minions seize Bruce, and they coat him with the fifth metal: Geri Powers' batmanium. (Like I said, the story got tighter.) The doorway opens and dark versions of Batman pour into our Universe.
In other words, so far, so good. Although Snyder might not connect all the dots for us, he leaves us enough dots for us to be able to draw our own conclusions. Where he does connect them, the picture makes perfect sense. Also, it's just sort of fun. I don't know how he manages that, given how grim of a topic it is, but I think it's mostly due to the art, as Glapion infuses everything with enough cartoon color to encourage you not to take it all too seriously. For a cross-over event, they're doing pretty well so far.
Detective Comics #964: This issue feels like Tynion was told he had to wrap up the story three issues early. In fact, it’s even worse than that. On several occasions, developments just happen for no apparent reason: Batman suddenly (like, literally, he appears from nowhere) confronts Anarky, Anarky reveals he built his Utopia with the First Victim from the Victim’s Syndicate, Anarky kisses Spoiler, etc. It all just doesn’t make any sense. At one point, Spoiler complains Anarky is always mansplaining everything to her, but I’m pretty sure they’ve only known each other, like, an hour. I mean, sure, I’m totally on board with her kicking his ass for being an asshole, but I don’t understand the sense of familiarity she allegedly feels for him. Also, I don’t get why he’s such a threat to Batman. OK, the First Victim was sort of a terrorist. But, the only thing of which Anarky seems to be guilty is wanting his Utopia to conform with his vision. Um, isn’t that kind of OK? Like, yes, it makes him an egomaniac, but does it make him a terrorist? Batman arrests him and incarcerates him here, but I have absolutely no idea what the charges are. Monologuing? It's all just weird.
The Realm #1: Holy shit, I can't remember being more excited about a comic after a first issue in ages! As one of the pull quotes says, it's like "Dungeons and Dragons" meeting "The Road." But, it's more than that. Peck and Haun manage to give us a raft of great characters, most notably Will Nolan, our protagonist. But, we'll get to that.
Starting first with the setting, we're witness to two new realities on Earth: some sort of apocalyptic event has largely destroyed it, and said event apparently involved dragons, orc, and sorcerers. We're given a peek at those forces when we see a sorcerer in a floating citadel engage in human sacrifice to commune with his dark god. But, it's a brief interlude. Mostly, our focus is on Nolan, who guides people through dangerous territory in the broken United States. Nolan's client, King, is killed by Sasha, the woman King hired Nolan to bring to him. King told Nolan that Sasha was his daughter, but it turns out she was really someone King traded for antibiotics that proved to be fake. It's unclear to me if Nolan knew Sasha was going to kill King or if she just took advantage of the situation when King had his men try to kill Nolan instead of paying him. If it's the former, I'm intrigued, since it implies Nolan is more than just a guide. In the end, Sasha says they're even, but I'm not sure if it's because she saved Nolan's life or if she paid off a debt to Nolan by killing King for him. Either way, she tells him he'll have to pay the toll like everyone else the next time he crosses her domain, and you get a good sense of the sort of place the Realm is.
Nolan returns to what seems to be home, where he meets with Marcus, his agent, if you will. They're close (maybe very close), and it's good to see. Often, in these sort of stories, the protagonist is a hardened loaner, but Peck and Haun make Nolan an even more interesting character by avoiding that trope. (On a side note, I can't wait to learn more about the toothbrushes that seem to be the Realm's currency.) At any rate, Marcus sends Nolan to meet with Molly and her colleague: they want to hire Nolan to escort them and two scientists to Kansas City. Here, we're introduced to Rook, a gimp-looking spy Nolan uses to make sure his clients are on the up and up. Finally, we're privy to a dream Nolan has, where the blackness that covers his arm starts spreading across his body, turning him into a demon. He awakens, shaken.
In other words, damn, this issue has a lot happening. But, it's all so well paced and scripted, it leaves you wanting more. I can't remember a series more clearly creating such fully realized characters in just one issue, not even "Reborn." Peck and Haun pay extra close attention to detail throughout the issue: the uneven lines Haun uses to create panels conveys how chaotic this world is. It conveys how carefully they've constructed this world and story, and I can't wait for the next issue.
Titans #15: I'm just not sure where Abnett is going here. Does he really think we're going to believe he's killing off Wally so soon after Wally returned? He must, because he keeps putting him in situations where he appears to die. But, since it's hard to believe it's going to stick, it doesn't have the impact he seems to want it to have. (Plus, he keeps doing it over and over again.) Then, you've got the fact that pretty much everyone on the team has been "the traitor" at one point. The tagline for next issue is yet again, "The traitor revealed!" It might as well add, "No, really, seriously, we mean it this time." At this stage, I'm not even sure what the traitor is allegedly doing. I mean, we have some sort of force taking control of Psimon, but it's apparently Lilith who'll ultimately be the threat? Does that mean the "force" will eventually take over her? Also, what does any of that have to do with H.I.V.E.? I can't even remember why H.I.V.E. is holding Psimon prisoner. Weren't they the ones who hired him? I just feel like we're seriously spinning our wheels here.
Youngblood #5: Man, Bowers is really just keeping up the heat. My only real complaint with this series at this point is his extensive use of flashbacks. I'm having problems remembering how the team came together, and I'm not sure if we would've lost anything in terms of suspense if Bowers had just assembled this story sequentially. For example, Rachel is thrilled to discover Badrock in her apartment, as if she hadn't seen him before that moment. I guess it could be true, but I was pretty sure she was with the team when it originally debuted and he and Shaft went after them. Maybe? Did this scene happen before they assembled the first time? I don't think so, but my confusion over it reveals why it's a problem. At any rate, I get the sense we'll be seeing less use of flashbacks as the story really kicks into gear here. All sorts of crazy stuff is happening with the Byrne brothers. They're not only revealed to be cyborgs, but cyborgs who can merge with one another to create a huge robot. Moreover, one of the "brothers" seems more dominant than the other. But, it's Diehard ripping off Shaft's arm that really reminds me why this series feels so fresh. Whereas Abnett unbelievably keeps threatening to kill off Wally in "Titans," I'm pretty sure Shaft's arm isn't going to miraculously grow back next issue. By giving us realistic stakes, the entire story feels more organic.
Also Read: Dragon Age: Knight Errant #5
Monday, October 16, 2017
Not-Very-Deep Thoughts: The August 9 Non-Marvel Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)
Detective Comics #962: I mostly like what Tynion did here, though I'll admit I'm still left a bit confused. Luke successfully introduces the Batman A.I. into Azrael, allowing him to join the good fight against Ascalon. The big development is Nomoz sacrificing his life to tell Jean-Paul Ascalon is his brother, though this part seemed odd to me. After all, didn't we just learn Jean-Paul was grown in a lab? OK, maybe Ascalon was grown from the same genetic material as Jean-Paul, but Tynion seems to be supposing an emotional connection there I'm not sure Jean-Paul would feel. After all, Jean-Paul didn't even know if he had biological parents, as far as I can recall. Is Tynion saying Jean-Paul Valley, Sr. is the biological father of Azrael and Ascalon? Is Azrael going to go hunt for his biological mother? This part remains unclear. That said, the resolution of the story mostly works. Ascalon has uploaded the personalities of all Gotham, giving him some sort of power I don't quite understand. But, Zatanna uses the Gnosis Sphere to give him all the answers to all life's questions. She knows human life is about the questions, not the answers; as a result, Ascalon comes to understand humanity and, inexplicably, summons his human form. (This part seemingly supports the idea Jean-Paul and Ascalon are biologically, and not just genetically, brothers, but I still don't understand the mechanics of it, if you will.) Jean-Paul is left paralyzed after Ascalon broke him over his knee, a parallel to the "Knightfall" story I guess now never happened. But, the big development is a thankful Ascalon informing Bruce Tim is still alive (the reason Bruce was chasing the Gnosis Sphere in the first place). Moreover, Ra's al Ghul is seemingly impressed by Jean-Paul Valley, Sr.'s manipulation of the events from behind the scenes and invites him to meet their mutual "benefactor." Again, this issue could've been stronger. You got the sense Tynion was rushing through the details to advance the larger plot on an expedited timeframe. But, the plot still at least makes sense and I do feel like that larger plot is progressing nicely.
Youngblood #4: Other than the physics-defying moment when Bowers has Shaft fire his sword from his bow without the use of a string, this issue is pretty solid. The Byrne brothers are revealed to be fulfilling their father’s mission by using Help! to identify methumans to traffic to interested buyers. But, Help! seems to be simply a means to an end, raising funds for whatever their eventual plans are. Dolante and Petra break into ByrneTec to get more information about Man-Up’s disappearance and stumble upon the truth just in time for the Byrne brothers to send the Chapel brothers (I think) after them. Shaft almost gets eliminated as he goes after Cybernet himself, but he’s saved by the rest of the team, with Margot revealing Dolante and Petra went rogue. (The woman who actually saves him is the white-haired woman with a “Y” on her t-shirt, and I’m not sure if she’s Supreme, who we see Dolante and Petra meeting a few days earlier.) My several-weeks break in reading comics was most obvious here, as I couldn't remember how the team discovered Help! would know about Man-Up's disappearance or how they identified Cybernet as an enemy. But, I'm back in the saddle, and I'm looking forward to learning more.
Also Read: Titans #14
Youngblood #4: Other than the physics-defying moment when Bowers has Shaft fire his sword from his bow without the use of a string, this issue is pretty solid. The Byrne brothers are revealed to be fulfilling their father’s mission by using Help! to identify methumans to traffic to interested buyers. But, Help! seems to be simply a means to an end, raising funds for whatever their eventual plans are. Dolante and Petra break into ByrneTec to get more information about Man-Up’s disappearance and stumble upon the truth just in time for the Byrne brothers to send the Chapel brothers (I think) after them. Shaft almost gets eliminated as he goes after Cybernet himself, but he’s saved by the rest of the team, with Margot revealing Dolante and Petra went rogue. (The woman who actually saves him is the white-haired woman with a “Y” on her t-shirt, and I’m not sure if she’s Supreme, who we see Dolante and Petra meeting a few days earlier.) My several-weeks break in reading comics was most obvious here, as I couldn't remember how the team discovered Help! would know about Man-Up's disappearance or how they identified Cybernet as an enemy. But, I'm back in the saddle, and I'm looking forward to learning more.
Also Read: Titans #14
Monday, August 14, 2017
Not-Very-Deep Thoughts: The July 12 DC and Image Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)
Dark Days: The Casting #1: Despite the cute naming system, this issue is really "Dark Days" #2, a direct sequel to "Dark Days: Metal."
Bruce makes his way to Hephaestus' forge in the hopes of asking him about the metal, and he meets Diana there. (He presumably arrived here through the portal he used in "Dark Days: The Forge.") Diana explains Hephaestus made each member of the Pantheon of Greek gods a weapon from the "eighth metal." She says she came to the forge because she had a vision she would give Bruce Apollo's Sunblade. She does so, explaining the gods have left Earth in advance of the coming war.
The Immortals tell Hawkman the metal came from a rift in reality that also produced a terrible devil intent on bringing darkness to the world. It's the inspiration behind the Bat symbol representing the four tribes of humanity we saw in "Dark Days: The Forge." A member of the Hawk Tribe apparently betrayed humanity by siding with the Bat, and Hawkman and Hawkwoman were the ones to contain him, closing the door between his world and our world. However, Hath-Set (or maybe Dr. Manhattan) made them forget.
Batman eventually trades the Sunblade to Talia al Ghul in exchange for the item she carries: the dagger of Shazam (the wizard, not the teenager). (After he left the forge, the Sunblade led him to the dagger.) It turns out al Ghul was part of the group of Immortals who met with Hawkman in the early 20th century, and he spent decades trying to get his hands on the dagger. She agrees to the trade only because he promises her the "ninth" metal if she gives him the eighth one. (I know, I know. After all, isn't his Sunblade made of the eighth metal? Also, if Thundarr makes an appearance, I'll totally not complain about anything in this series again.)
In the Secretcave, Joker briefly gives Duke and Hal his side of the story of how he survived the fall at the end of "Death of the Family," explaining the dionesium not only healed his body but reattached his severed face. (Well done on tying up that loose end, Snyder.) Joker also explains Luke and his mother have the metal in their blood, possibly because they're descendants of the Bat Tribe. (I'm assuming the devil also had the metal in his blood.) Luke will serve as some sort of signal for Batman, and Joker wants to kill him (and destroy a machine Bruce has hidden in the Secretcave) so Bruce can focus on him.
Bruce returns to the cave, revealing to Duke and Hal he started investigating the metal when he used it to resurrect himself and saw visions of his future in that moment. Bruce reveals he knows the frequency of the energy (presumably from the tower we saw in "Dark Days: The Forge") and Shazam's dagger gives him the power to reveal the "truth." (It's not clear why it does or why the Sunblade didn't.) Duke's powers let him see how the machine Bruce was building should be finished, and he uses a copy of Hal's ring to finish it. (Seriously, I know. Just hang in there.) Bruce activates the machine (maybe with the dagger), but only sees darkness. Three-thousand feet below Gotham, a group of hooded figures says Bruce has broken the seal. Apparently, he would've seen their army of dark knights had they not "prepared" him correctly. These knights appear to be dark analogues to the DCnU heroes.
Overall, despite the deus ex machina (almost literally in several cases), Snyder picks up pretty much all the threads from "Dark Days: The Forge." (The only real exception is the identity of the creature or person Bruce released from imprisonment on the Mooncave, unless I'm missing something.) It's clear Snyder has a vision for this story, so the nagging questions are acceptable, since he seems likely to resolve them. But, we should probably have a clearer sense of what all these metals mean by the end of next issue. At some point, even for someone used to suspending disbelief for the past 30 years, it gets hard not to roll your eyes, and Snyder probably doesn't want us doing that much longer.
Titans #13: I'll admit I'm not sure why Abnett decided to so quickly launch into an arc that involves betrayal within the team. We're just getting a sense of the bonds the team shares in the present, and already he's making us question said bonds. Abnett seems to want us to believe Dick is the betrayer by throwing suspicion on Lilith. But, we saw her premonition so we know it wasn't her (unless Psimon really did turn her and we saw thoughts he implanted in her mind). Part of the difficulty in following this story is Abnett has the characters all acting somewhat oddly. Garth is suddenly hopelessly devoted to Lilith after sharing a kiss, and Wally is committed to keeping secret his ability to freeze time even though we're not really told why he would. I think it's because his friends are worried about his heart, but it actually seems like it might give some insight into how he can use his powers without hurting his heart. I wouldn't be surprised in the end if we learn that they're all being manipulated psionically.
Youngblood #3: OK, I have to say, this series just keeps getting better and better. As Bowers says in the letters page, it's pretty clear the rules are different here, showing a willingness to permanently change a character's status quo. Badrock is actually working for Diehard, though it's unclear if Diehard wanted him to put together the team for good or for ill. It could be just setting up Shaft. After all, he decides to investigate the Byrne Twins after Badrock has the kids tell them about the disappearances of Man-Up and other heroes. The new Sentinel (even if we're not calling him that) tells him he couldn't find any information about them when he was part of the Stream, and Shaft obviously isn't thrilled to learn he was part of the group that ruined his life. Meanwhile, we learn Doc Rocket was only part of the team briefly, and Petra recruited her because she still has high favorability ratings, meaning she could help make sure the team has a real claim to the Youngblood name. Finally, we have some business with an alien bounty hunter that I didn't quite follow, but Bowers pretty clearly has a plan for that. All in all, it's another exciting issue that really raises the bar on this endeavor.
Also Read: Detective Comics #960; Dragon Age: Knight Errant #3;
Bruce makes his way to Hephaestus' forge in the hopes of asking him about the metal, and he meets Diana there. (He presumably arrived here through the portal he used in "Dark Days: The Forge.") Diana explains Hephaestus made each member of the Pantheon of Greek gods a weapon from the "eighth metal." She says she came to the forge because she had a vision she would give Bruce Apollo's Sunblade. She does so, explaining the gods have left Earth in advance of the coming war.
The Immortals tell Hawkman the metal came from a rift in reality that also produced a terrible devil intent on bringing darkness to the world. It's the inspiration behind the Bat symbol representing the four tribes of humanity we saw in "Dark Days: The Forge." A member of the Hawk Tribe apparently betrayed humanity by siding with the Bat, and Hawkman and Hawkwoman were the ones to contain him, closing the door between his world and our world. However, Hath-Set (or maybe Dr. Manhattan) made them forget.
Batman eventually trades the Sunblade to Talia al Ghul in exchange for the item she carries: the dagger of Shazam (the wizard, not the teenager). (After he left the forge, the Sunblade led him to the dagger.) It turns out al Ghul was part of the group of Immortals who met with Hawkman in the early 20th century, and he spent decades trying to get his hands on the dagger. She agrees to the trade only because he promises her the "ninth" metal if she gives him the eighth one. (I know, I know. After all, isn't his Sunblade made of the eighth metal? Also, if Thundarr makes an appearance, I'll totally not complain about anything in this series again.)
In the Secretcave, Joker briefly gives Duke and Hal his side of the story of how he survived the fall at the end of "Death of the Family," explaining the dionesium not only healed his body but reattached his severed face. (Well done on tying up that loose end, Snyder.) Joker also explains Luke and his mother have the metal in their blood, possibly because they're descendants of the Bat Tribe. (I'm assuming the devil also had the metal in his blood.) Luke will serve as some sort of signal for Batman, and Joker wants to kill him (and destroy a machine Bruce has hidden in the Secretcave) so Bruce can focus on him.
Bruce returns to the cave, revealing to Duke and Hal he started investigating the metal when he used it to resurrect himself and saw visions of his future in that moment. Bruce reveals he knows the frequency of the energy (presumably from the tower we saw in "Dark Days: The Forge") and Shazam's dagger gives him the power to reveal the "truth." (It's not clear why it does or why the Sunblade didn't.) Duke's powers let him see how the machine Bruce was building should be finished, and he uses a copy of Hal's ring to finish it. (Seriously, I know. Just hang in there.) Bruce activates the machine (maybe with the dagger), but only sees darkness. Three-thousand feet below Gotham, a group of hooded figures says Bruce has broken the seal. Apparently, he would've seen their army of dark knights had they not "prepared" him correctly. These knights appear to be dark analogues to the DCnU heroes.
Overall, despite the deus ex machina (almost literally in several cases), Snyder picks up pretty much all the threads from "Dark Days: The Forge." (The only real exception is the identity of the creature or person Bruce released from imprisonment on the Mooncave, unless I'm missing something.) It's clear Snyder has a vision for this story, so the nagging questions are acceptable, since he seems likely to resolve them. But, we should probably have a clearer sense of what all these metals mean by the end of next issue. At some point, even for someone used to suspending disbelief for the past 30 years, it gets hard not to roll your eyes, and Snyder probably doesn't want us doing that much longer.
Titans #13: I'll admit I'm not sure why Abnett decided to so quickly launch into an arc that involves betrayal within the team. We're just getting a sense of the bonds the team shares in the present, and already he's making us question said bonds. Abnett seems to want us to believe Dick is the betrayer by throwing suspicion on Lilith. But, we saw her premonition so we know it wasn't her (unless Psimon really did turn her and we saw thoughts he implanted in her mind). Part of the difficulty in following this story is Abnett has the characters all acting somewhat oddly. Garth is suddenly hopelessly devoted to Lilith after sharing a kiss, and Wally is committed to keeping secret his ability to freeze time even though we're not really told why he would. I think it's because his friends are worried about his heart, but it actually seems like it might give some insight into how he can use his powers without hurting his heart. I wouldn't be surprised in the end if we learn that they're all being manipulated psionically.
Youngblood #3: OK, I have to say, this series just keeps getting better and better. As Bowers says in the letters page, it's pretty clear the rules are different here, showing a willingness to permanently change a character's status quo. Badrock is actually working for Diehard, though it's unclear if Diehard wanted him to put together the team for good or for ill. It could be just setting up Shaft. After all, he decides to investigate the Byrne Twins after Badrock has the kids tell them about the disappearances of Man-Up and other heroes. The new Sentinel (even if we're not calling him that) tells him he couldn't find any information about them when he was part of the Stream, and Shaft obviously isn't thrilled to learn he was part of the group that ruined his life. Meanwhile, we learn Doc Rocket was only part of the team briefly, and Petra recruited her because she still has high favorability ratings, meaning she could help make sure the team has a real claim to the Youngblood name. Finally, we have some business with an alien bounty hunter that I didn't quite follow, but Bowers pretty clearly has a plan for that. All in all, it's another exciting issue that really raises the bar on this endeavor.
Also Read: Detective Comics #960; Dragon Age: Knight Errant #3;
Monday, July 10, 2017
Not-Very-Deep Thoughts: The June 7 Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)
Batman #24: Whoa. I did not see that coming. To be honest, I didn't really enjoy this issue. As I mentioned in a previous review, we've never really gotten resolution when it came to Claire's story. She's allegedly healed here, so we're left to assume Bruce's plan to use Psycho-Pirate to take away her fear worked. But, she still seems...off. Her side of the conversation with Bruce doesn't sound the way an actual human would speak. It's full of oddly timed emotional moments followed by robotic repetition of stilted phrases. But, if you put aside the script, the point of the conversation is important: Claire asks Bruce what he wants as he presses her to decide what she wants. When he essentially admits he's scared of getting what he wants, she gives him permission to be scared. It's an unexpectedly powerful moment. He realizes he wants Selina, and the issue ends with him proposing to her with the diamond she stole when they first met. I remember reading with awe "The Autobiography of Bruce Wayne," the story that concludes the first volume of "Greatest Batman Stories Ever Told." (Google tells me it's actually "The Brave and the Bold" #197.) In it, the Bruce and Selina of Earth-Two finally dedicate themselves to each other after facing their fears during a fight with the Scarecrow. (When else would you face your fears?) I'm not sure if King is intentionally paying homage to that story, but this one has the same feel. "The Autobiography of Bruce Wayne" is still one my favorite Batman stories after all this time, because it shows him finally allowing himself to be a real boy. I can't explain how excited I am of the possibility of seeing that story become the actual status quo in the main universe, even if the script that got us to this point was poor. I'll take it.
Dark Knight III: The Master Race #9: I wasn't even going to bother to review this issue, but it felt wrong not to do so, like I was rewarding DC for the cynicism that brought this series into existence. I try not to be the type of fan who expects too much from the companies that produce the comics we read. I get it's a business, and I try not to make their money grabs into an issue except when they cross the line, like when they charge $9.99 for a regular issue with just a few pages of extra "stories." (I'm looking at you, "Amazing Spider-Man" #25.) After several years of reviewing comics, I also feel like I'm better about acknowledging that just because a comic doesn't work for me means that it's "bad." In cases where I see obvious plot holes or terrible line work, I recognize someone else finds mystery in those plot holes and beauty in those jumbled lines. (I admit in not always succeeding in this endeavor; I still feel bad for what I said about Matt Fraction during "Fear Itself.") But, it feels like DC has gone beyond the pale with this one. The story has been remarkably simple, even less complicated than the plot of "Man of Steel." It's essentially a "Transformers" movie at this point: an alien race -- the Kandorians -- invades, Lara betrays humanity and joins the Kandorians, Lara's love of her family turns her against the Kandorians, Clark lets loose like never before, and the alien race is defeated. The End. Everything else is essentially filler. In fact, it's hard to see what role Bruce even played in this issue. Nothing he does has any impact on the inevitable conclusion. In the rare instances where Miller and Azzarello had the opportunity to give us some more emotional insight into a character, they didn't. For example, Atom wordlessly saves the day here, but we have no chance for him to express the regret he feels for unleashing the Kandorians on Earth in the first place. We just have to assume he feels relieved, if not vindicated. Emotional insight is implied with long stares and nothing more. Including "Dark Knight III: The Last Crusade," this series of ten issues cost $59.90. It's hard for me to accept that, that I spent that amount of money on this series. To put that in perspective, you can buy the premium edition of "Batman: Arkham Knight" and its hours of play time for $39.99. DC obviously feels justified in charging $59.90 because of the legacy of a four-issue series published 32 years ago. But, I have to wonder if anyone paused at the price. Did the editor at any point remind the creative team we were paying $59.90 for their story? Did they ever ask Kubert to maybe spend a little more time depicting the guy with the melted face so it doesn't just look like he has a poor handle on perspective? Did anyone ask Azzarello to spend maybe just a little bit more time getting us to care about the characters rather than just assuming we did? Did anyone think about us, the reader, at all?
Darth Vader #1: I thought this series was going to take place in the same timeframe as the rest of the ongoing "Star Wars" series, making me wonder why they started with a #1 issue (yet again) instead of continuing the numbering from Gillen's series. But, we're not in Kansas anymore. Soule takes us to the moment Anakin becomes Vader, and it's as startling as expected. The Emperor launches Anakin...er, Vader...right into his training, explaining that he has to steal a lightsaber from a Jedi and make the Kyber crystal "bleed" with his rage. (The crystals are apparently alive, so the rage a Sith feeds into his stolen lightsaber is what turns the crystal red, giving the Sith's lightsabers their distinctive color.) The Emperor then abandons Vader on a planet to accomplish his quest, an admittedly difficult one since the Emperor has already killed virtually all the Jedi. I don't know where we're going, but I'm hoping Soule doesn't really give us classic Vader here. Ideally, we'll see some of Anakin shine through Vader's demeanor, something we admittedly don't really see here as Vader slaughters a group of thieves. Sure, Anakin killed all those younglings at the Jedi Temple, so it's not like he's an innocent. But, Anakin's sudden embrace of slaughtering innocents was one of the most poorly explained parts of the prequel trilogy. Soule has a chance to correct that here. After all, we've seen plenty of bad-ass Vader. Vulnerable Vader? That would be a story worth reading.
Hawkeye #7: Whoa. Just...whoa. I thought we were going to have to wait a while before Kate had time to delve into the mystery of her father. But, Thompson gets right to it, as Madame Masque sends Kate the necklace her mother wore to signify her love for Kate and her sister. Did I mention said necklace was covered in blood? You think we're starting down the road of getting more information about Kate's dad as she makes her way through Madame Masque's penthouse. But then she finds her dad sitting in Madame Masque's chair? Apparently it's not as long of a road as we thought. Meanwhile, Thompson continues to give Kate one of the strongest personalities in comics: you can predict what she's going to say before she says it. I can hear her voice so clearly in my head. (Finger guns!) Really, I'd read this series just to see Pizza Dog (yay!), but Thompson makes Kate so damn irresistible. It's really becoming one of the best series on the stands. What is it about Hawkeyes?
Iceman #1: I admit I was nervous about reading this issue. In fact, "trepidation" is probably the right word. As a kid, Bobby was always my favorite X-Man because he seemed to be carrying the same indescribable weight as I was. I know most authors weren't writing Bobby as gay then, but Bendis obviously picked up the same cues as many of the rest of us when he had young Bobby come out (or, at least, accept Jean outing him). To see Bobby begin to enter the world as a gay man: it's almost too much. After reading this issue, I would say my main emotion is that it's mostly a relief to have it done. It's uneven, particularly in terms of the art, and odd, but Grace has a very good read on what makes Bobby tick and, at the end of the day, that part is the most important. Moreover, Grace makes the key decision to show not tell: we get all the information about where Bobby is mentally through his interactions with his friends and family. It's nice to see him have a relationship with his younger self, though Grace makes it clear how awkward it is. Younger Bobby leans too heavily into teasing Bobby about being a dad, but it also is a pretty good description of their relationship. Moreover, Grace's sense of history is impeccable. Bobby starts the issue by writing his dating-website profile, where he says his friends are his family. When his father has a health scare that sends Bobby running to his hospital room, we're reminded just how much his biological family isn't his family. Grace doesn't let Bobby off the hook either: although he's mad his parents moved without telling him, he also forgot his mother's birthday. Their dysfunctional relationship is a two-way street, and the most poignant part is Bobby imaging conversations with the parents he wishes he had after leaving the hospital. Every gay kid has had those conversations. For me, it allowed me to relax, knowing Grace knew what he was doing here. That said, it's not smooth sailing throughout the issue. The art leaves a lot to be desired. Vitti is a pretty established artist, so I just don't know if he didn't have a lot of time here or what. But, his lines are hurried, making characters gain and lose 100 pounds between panels. (Seriously.) It's disappointing, to be sure. Moreover, Grace himself makes some odd choices, like when the mutant Bobby saves randomly uses British English despite being a New Yorker. Overall, it's probably a B-. But, I really just needed it not to be a disaster, and Grace delivers that.
Nightwing #22: This arc is essentially our first real story where Dick is firmly planted in Blüdhaven. After all, "Nightwing Must Die!" had him trolling around France pretty quickly after he arrived in town. But, now he and Shawn have settled into a solid routine and Dick is ready to get a job. (Shawn has apparently gotten back her job at the center, something Seeley doesn't really explain here. But, it never made sense to me that they fired her in the first place, so I'm just going to view it as correcting a wrong.) However, Dick is distracted by his sense that something big is going to happen soon, and he's right: he stumbles upon a Metropolis-based gang trying to clear out a local one, and we learn it's because they have a deal with Tiger Shark to give him some privacy to operate at the port. (Yeah, I'm not sure why Tiger Shark didn't just make the deal with the local gang either.) Tiger Shark is worried Dick is going to spoil his plan to smuggle into Blüdhaven whatever it is he's smuggling, so he hires Blockbuster to take out Dick. However, Blockbuster makes things all the curiouser when he doesn't take out Nightwing, but offers him some sort of job. It's an interesting twist, and I'm legitimately intrigued to see what Seeley has planned here.
Nova (2017) #7: I have to admit, I'm having a hard time with Marvel's new approach to series, where you get emotionally invested and then they end them after seven issues. (At least "Moon Knight" made it to 14 issues, I guess.) It's so clear Loveness and Pérez had other stories to tell, and it hurts my heart they won't be able to tell them. Although long-time readers of this blog know I'm a huge Rich Rider fan, I became a fan of Sam -- a character I previously disliked -- because of this series. Their relationship brought out the best in both of them, and Sam proves his hero chops here. I loved Rich warning Sam he might've sacrificed his life to try to save him from the Cancerverse and Sam responding, "Yeah, well, I talked to some girls." Marvel has promised some sort of relaunch in the fall that we fans of the classic stories will appreciate. I worry that sounds a lot like stripping out the diversity they've infused in their line, and I hope it's not the case. Rich and Sam together shows why we're better for this diversity. It's not just because people see themselves in the stories in a way they didn't previously (though that's obviously important). But, it's also opened up new stories for established characters. Rich has always been a lonesome guy, and something about his partnership with Sam gave him a spring in his step and a smile on his face that we don't often see when it comes to him. I hope we see both of these guys soon and that we see them together. We can't go back, but only forward. Novas gotta step up.
Reborn #6: In the end, this story isn't all that complicated: it's ultimately about Bonnie finding the courage to die. As she and her dad confront Golgotha, she returns to "reality" when she somehow returns to life. (Doctors don't seem to be performing CPR or anything, so it's a little unclear how she suddenly returned.) However, she knows that she has to return to destroy Golgotha, not only to save her dad, Harry, and Roy-Boy, but also to save Earth itself. After all, Golgotha plans to use her blood to fully energize the machine he's constructed to breach the wall between their realm and Earth. Realizing she's needed more there than here, she returns, defeats Golgotha, and becomes queen. I have to be honest and say I'm disappointed Millar makes it so easy. After all, Golgotha has his minions allow Bonnie and her father to waltz into his castle. We could have watched them fight their way into it over the course of several issues, giving us some sense of satisfaction when she finally confronts Golgotha. Instead, she reminds us the prophecy says she'll defeat him, and she and everyone else essentially surrender to it. You wonder why Golgotha didn't just shoot himself. It's like Fizban handing the Heroes of the Lance the Dragonlance in the Inn at Last Home and transporting them to Neraka to defeat the Dark Queen. The only hiccup is when Bonnie returns to life, but she resolves that challenge fairly easily. It takes a story that started with so much promise for complexity and nuance and reduces it to a Saturday morning cartoon. But, that said, I also like Saturday morning cartoons. I'm sad we didn't get "Mistborn,' but I can live with "The Pirates of Darkwater." Millar teases a TV series and a standalone novel in his column after the issue concludes. If that happens, this series may really just prove to be a quick introduction to a much more complicated world. Millar himself says he has five volumes of the comic planned. I would've happily taken a more immersive twelve-issues series in lieu of five volumes. (Have we learned nothing from "The Mummy" and "King Arthur: Legend of the Sword?") But, I'm also happy to revisit this realm, whatever the circumstances.
Spider-Man #17: I have to say, at some point here, I'm Team Hammerhead. He's just minding his own business, shaking down the Vulture's brother for money he owes Black Cat, when Bombshell decides to stop him. He tells her he doesn't hit girls or kids, she persists, and he beats her into a coma. Then, the hospital texts Miles to tell him and he comes after Hammerhead at his own bar. (Hammerhead was in the middle of lamenting to his cronies that the capes always make everything worse.) Bendis almost makes you think he's got a point. But, Bendis also uses Miles' unrestrained pummeling of Hammerhead to emphasize Miles' concern about his dark side. After he pummeled an entire bar last issue, he's sensitive to it, and Hammerhead wondering aloud if Miles is on the right side is enough to distract him. Don't get distracted with Hammerhead, Miles: it usually doesn't end well.
Youngblood #2: Bowers begins to flesh out how the team came together, and it all more or less makes sense. (For a "Youngblood" issue, that's an accomplishment.) The new Vogue approaches a guy named Durante Murray, who offers "hero how-to" videos on the Internet. He idolized Sentinel back in the day, and his suit is based on a schematic Sentinel sent him after Durante wrote him a fan letter. Vogue wants to re-form Youngblood in order to gain the world's attention and then use said attention to spread word about Man-Up. (We learn that Man-Up himself didn't just physically disappear; every record of him everywhere has also disappeared.) Durante agrees to help, but refuses to be called Sentinel, a sign of his disappointment over the revelations that broke Youngblood in the first place. (We also learn he was the Bloodstream person who helped reveal all their crimes to the world.) In the present, Jeff manages not to get himself killed as the kids still suffer from the hallucinogenic gas Crime Condor used on them. He delivers the "cease and desist" letter from President Diehard and slinks into the night. When he awakens in Badrock's bunker, Badrock reveals the truth: he helped assemble the team in the first place. All that said, Bowers still has some steps to show us in how we got here. For example, Shaft knows the woman called Doc Rocket on the team, possibly because her father was on the original team with him. But, we don't know anything about the white-haired woman who serves as the fourth member. We also don't know how Badrock found all of them in the first place. But, Bowers is clearly getting there. In the meantime, he's telling an interesting story that DC or Marvel couldn't tell. After all, this series takes place in a world where the public has no faith at all in government or heroes. With DC and Marvel, they often pretend people feel that way after whatever the most recent event is that destroyed a major city, but everyone usually forgets about it after four or five issues. Here, it's real. Bowers really sells it, and the success of the series is going to depend on him maintaining that sentiment, that we're not just reading a DC or Marvel series about a superhero team. As President Diehard himself says, the do-it yourself movement the Help?! app is spreading hearkens to a more innocent time, and it's going to be interesting to see these kids try to change the world's perceptions about what it means to be a hero. Of course, we also learn the brothers who designed Help?! are trying to take over the United States. Isn't it always the way?
Also Read: Amazing Spider-Man #28, Champions #9; Deathstroke #20; X-Men: Gold #5
Dark Knight III: The Master Race #9: I wasn't even going to bother to review this issue, but it felt wrong not to do so, like I was rewarding DC for the cynicism that brought this series into existence. I try not to be the type of fan who expects too much from the companies that produce the comics we read. I get it's a business, and I try not to make their money grabs into an issue except when they cross the line, like when they charge $9.99 for a regular issue with just a few pages of extra "stories." (I'm looking at you, "Amazing Spider-Man" #25.) After several years of reviewing comics, I also feel like I'm better about acknowledging that just because a comic doesn't work for me means that it's "bad." In cases where I see obvious plot holes or terrible line work, I recognize someone else finds mystery in those plot holes and beauty in those jumbled lines. (I admit in not always succeeding in this endeavor; I still feel bad for what I said about Matt Fraction during "Fear Itself.") But, it feels like DC has gone beyond the pale with this one. The story has been remarkably simple, even less complicated than the plot of "Man of Steel." It's essentially a "Transformers" movie at this point: an alien race -- the Kandorians -- invades, Lara betrays humanity and joins the Kandorians, Lara's love of her family turns her against the Kandorians, Clark lets loose like never before, and the alien race is defeated. The End. Everything else is essentially filler. In fact, it's hard to see what role Bruce even played in this issue. Nothing he does has any impact on the inevitable conclusion. In the rare instances where Miller and Azzarello had the opportunity to give us some more emotional insight into a character, they didn't. For example, Atom wordlessly saves the day here, but we have no chance for him to express the regret he feels for unleashing the Kandorians on Earth in the first place. We just have to assume he feels relieved, if not vindicated. Emotional insight is implied with long stares and nothing more. Including "Dark Knight III: The Last Crusade," this series of ten issues cost $59.90. It's hard for me to accept that, that I spent that amount of money on this series. To put that in perspective, you can buy the premium edition of "Batman: Arkham Knight" and its hours of play time for $39.99. DC obviously feels justified in charging $59.90 because of the legacy of a four-issue series published 32 years ago. But, I have to wonder if anyone paused at the price. Did the editor at any point remind the creative team we were paying $59.90 for their story? Did they ever ask Kubert to maybe spend a little more time depicting the guy with the melted face so it doesn't just look like he has a poor handle on perspective? Did anyone ask Azzarello to spend maybe just a little bit more time getting us to care about the characters rather than just assuming we did? Did anyone think about us, the reader, at all?
Darth Vader #1: I thought this series was going to take place in the same timeframe as the rest of the ongoing "Star Wars" series, making me wonder why they started with a #1 issue (yet again) instead of continuing the numbering from Gillen's series. But, we're not in Kansas anymore. Soule takes us to the moment Anakin becomes Vader, and it's as startling as expected. The Emperor launches Anakin...er, Vader...right into his training, explaining that he has to steal a lightsaber from a Jedi and make the Kyber crystal "bleed" with his rage. (The crystals are apparently alive, so the rage a Sith feeds into his stolen lightsaber is what turns the crystal red, giving the Sith's lightsabers their distinctive color.) The Emperor then abandons Vader on a planet to accomplish his quest, an admittedly difficult one since the Emperor has already killed virtually all the Jedi. I don't know where we're going, but I'm hoping Soule doesn't really give us classic Vader here. Ideally, we'll see some of Anakin shine through Vader's demeanor, something we admittedly don't really see here as Vader slaughters a group of thieves. Sure, Anakin killed all those younglings at the Jedi Temple, so it's not like he's an innocent. But, Anakin's sudden embrace of slaughtering innocents was one of the most poorly explained parts of the prequel trilogy. Soule has a chance to correct that here. After all, we've seen plenty of bad-ass Vader. Vulnerable Vader? That would be a story worth reading.
Hawkeye #7: Whoa. Just...whoa. I thought we were going to have to wait a while before Kate had time to delve into the mystery of her father. But, Thompson gets right to it, as Madame Masque sends Kate the necklace her mother wore to signify her love for Kate and her sister. Did I mention said necklace was covered in blood? You think we're starting down the road of getting more information about Kate's dad as she makes her way through Madame Masque's penthouse. But then she finds her dad sitting in Madame Masque's chair? Apparently it's not as long of a road as we thought. Meanwhile, Thompson continues to give Kate one of the strongest personalities in comics: you can predict what she's going to say before she says it. I can hear her voice so clearly in my head. (Finger guns!) Really, I'd read this series just to see Pizza Dog (yay!), but Thompson makes Kate so damn irresistible. It's really becoming one of the best series on the stands. What is it about Hawkeyes?
Iceman #1: I admit I was nervous about reading this issue. In fact, "trepidation" is probably the right word. As a kid, Bobby was always my favorite X-Man because he seemed to be carrying the same indescribable weight as I was. I know most authors weren't writing Bobby as gay then, but Bendis obviously picked up the same cues as many of the rest of us when he had young Bobby come out (or, at least, accept Jean outing him). To see Bobby begin to enter the world as a gay man: it's almost too much. After reading this issue, I would say my main emotion is that it's mostly a relief to have it done. It's uneven, particularly in terms of the art, and odd, but Grace has a very good read on what makes Bobby tick and, at the end of the day, that part is the most important. Moreover, Grace makes the key decision to show not tell: we get all the information about where Bobby is mentally through his interactions with his friends and family. It's nice to see him have a relationship with his younger self, though Grace makes it clear how awkward it is. Younger Bobby leans too heavily into teasing Bobby about being a dad, but it also is a pretty good description of their relationship. Moreover, Grace's sense of history is impeccable. Bobby starts the issue by writing his dating-website profile, where he says his friends are his family. When his father has a health scare that sends Bobby running to his hospital room, we're reminded just how much his biological family isn't his family. Grace doesn't let Bobby off the hook either: although he's mad his parents moved without telling him, he also forgot his mother's birthday. Their dysfunctional relationship is a two-way street, and the most poignant part is Bobby imaging conversations with the parents he wishes he had after leaving the hospital. Every gay kid has had those conversations. For me, it allowed me to relax, knowing Grace knew what he was doing here. That said, it's not smooth sailing throughout the issue. The art leaves a lot to be desired. Vitti is a pretty established artist, so I just don't know if he didn't have a lot of time here or what. But, his lines are hurried, making characters gain and lose 100 pounds between panels. (Seriously.) It's disappointing, to be sure. Moreover, Grace himself makes some odd choices, like when the mutant Bobby saves randomly uses British English despite being a New Yorker. Overall, it's probably a B-. But, I really just needed it not to be a disaster, and Grace delivers that.
Nightwing #22: This arc is essentially our first real story where Dick is firmly planted in Blüdhaven. After all, "Nightwing Must Die!" had him trolling around France pretty quickly after he arrived in town. But, now he and Shawn have settled into a solid routine and Dick is ready to get a job. (Shawn has apparently gotten back her job at the center, something Seeley doesn't really explain here. But, it never made sense to me that they fired her in the first place, so I'm just going to view it as correcting a wrong.) However, Dick is distracted by his sense that something big is going to happen soon, and he's right: he stumbles upon a Metropolis-based gang trying to clear out a local one, and we learn it's because they have a deal with Tiger Shark to give him some privacy to operate at the port. (Yeah, I'm not sure why Tiger Shark didn't just make the deal with the local gang either.) Tiger Shark is worried Dick is going to spoil his plan to smuggle into Blüdhaven whatever it is he's smuggling, so he hires Blockbuster to take out Dick. However, Blockbuster makes things all the curiouser when he doesn't take out Nightwing, but offers him some sort of job. It's an interesting twist, and I'm legitimately intrigued to see what Seeley has planned here.
Nova (2017) #7: I have to admit, I'm having a hard time with Marvel's new approach to series, where you get emotionally invested and then they end them after seven issues. (At least "Moon Knight" made it to 14 issues, I guess.) It's so clear Loveness and Pérez had other stories to tell, and it hurts my heart they won't be able to tell them. Although long-time readers of this blog know I'm a huge Rich Rider fan, I became a fan of Sam -- a character I previously disliked -- because of this series. Their relationship brought out the best in both of them, and Sam proves his hero chops here. I loved Rich warning Sam he might've sacrificed his life to try to save him from the Cancerverse and Sam responding, "Yeah, well, I talked to some girls." Marvel has promised some sort of relaunch in the fall that we fans of the classic stories will appreciate. I worry that sounds a lot like stripping out the diversity they've infused in their line, and I hope it's not the case. Rich and Sam together shows why we're better for this diversity. It's not just because people see themselves in the stories in a way they didn't previously (though that's obviously important). But, it's also opened up new stories for established characters. Rich has always been a lonesome guy, and something about his partnership with Sam gave him a spring in his step and a smile on his face that we don't often see when it comes to him. I hope we see both of these guys soon and that we see them together. We can't go back, but only forward. Novas gotta step up.
Reborn #6: In the end, this story isn't all that complicated: it's ultimately about Bonnie finding the courage to die. As she and her dad confront Golgotha, she returns to "reality" when she somehow returns to life. (Doctors don't seem to be performing CPR or anything, so it's a little unclear how she suddenly returned.) However, she knows that she has to return to destroy Golgotha, not only to save her dad, Harry, and Roy-Boy, but also to save Earth itself. After all, Golgotha plans to use her blood to fully energize the machine he's constructed to breach the wall between their realm and Earth. Realizing she's needed more there than here, she returns, defeats Golgotha, and becomes queen. I have to be honest and say I'm disappointed Millar makes it so easy. After all, Golgotha has his minions allow Bonnie and her father to waltz into his castle. We could have watched them fight their way into it over the course of several issues, giving us some sense of satisfaction when she finally confronts Golgotha. Instead, she reminds us the prophecy says she'll defeat him, and she and everyone else essentially surrender to it. You wonder why Golgotha didn't just shoot himself. It's like Fizban handing the Heroes of the Lance the Dragonlance in the Inn at Last Home and transporting them to Neraka to defeat the Dark Queen. The only hiccup is when Bonnie returns to life, but she resolves that challenge fairly easily. It takes a story that started with so much promise for complexity and nuance and reduces it to a Saturday morning cartoon. But, that said, I also like Saturday morning cartoons. I'm sad we didn't get "Mistborn,' but I can live with "The Pirates of Darkwater." Millar teases a TV series and a standalone novel in his column after the issue concludes. If that happens, this series may really just prove to be a quick introduction to a much more complicated world. Millar himself says he has five volumes of the comic planned. I would've happily taken a more immersive twelve-issues series in lieu of five volumes. (Have we learned nothing from "The Mummy" and "King Arthur: Legend of the Sword?") But, I'm also happy to revisit this realm, whatever the circumstances.
Spider-Man #17: I have to say, at some point here, I'm Team Hammerhead. He's just minding his own business, shaking down the Vulture's brother for money he owes Black Cat, when Bombshell decides to stop him. He tells her he doesn't hit girls or kids, she persists, and he beats her into a coma. Then, the hospital texts Miles to tell him and he comes after Hammerhead at his own bar. (Hammerhead was in the middle of lamenting to his cronies that the capes always make everything worse.) Bendis almost makes you think he's got a point. But, Bendis also uses Miles' unrestrained pummeling of Hammerhead to emphasize Miles' concern about his dark side. After he pummeled an entire bar last issue, he's sensitive to it, and Hammerhead wondering aloud if Miles is on the right side is enough to distract him. Don't get distracted with Hammerhead, Miles: it usually doesn't end well.
Youngblood #2: Bowers begins to flesh out how the team came together, and it all more or less makes sense. (For a "Youngblood" issue, that's an accomplishment.) The new Vogue approaches a guy named Durante Murray, who offers "hero how-to" videos on the Internet. He idolized Sentinel back in the day, and his suit is based on a schematic Sentinel sent him after Durante wrote him a fan letter. Vogue wants to re-form Youngblood in order to gain the world's attention and then use said attention to spread word about Man-Up. (We learn that Man-Up himself didn't just physically disappear; every record of him everywhere has also disappeared.) Durante agrees to help, but refuses to be called Sentinel, a sign of his disappointment over the revelations that broke Youngblood in the first place. (We also learn he was the Bloodstream person who helped reveal all their crimes to the world.) In the present, Jeff manages not to get himself killed as the kids still suffer from the hallucinogenic gas Crime Condor used on them. He delivers the "cease and desist" letter from President Diehard and slinks into the night. When he awakens in Badrock's bunker, Badrock reveals the truth: he helped assemble the team in the first place. All that said, Bowers still has some steps to show us in how we got here. For example, Shaft knows the woman called Doc Rocket on the team, possibly because her father was on the original team with him. But, we don't know anything about the white-haired woman who serves as the fourth member. We also don't know how Badrock found all of them in the first place. But, Bowers is clearly getting there. In the meantime, he's telling an interesting story that DC or Marvel couldn't tell. After all, this series takes place in a world where the public has no faith at all in government or heroes. With DC and Marvel, they often pretend people feel that way after whatever the most recent event is that destroyed a major city, but everyone usually forgets about it after four or five issues. Here, it's real. Bowers really sells it, and the success of the series is going to depend on him maintaining that sentiment, that we're not just reading a DC or Marvel series about a superhero team. As President Diehard himself says, the do-it yourself movement the Help?! app is spreading hearkens to a more innocent time, and it's going to be interesting to see these kids try to change the world's perceptions about what it means to be a hero. Of course, we also learn the brothers who designed Help?! are trying to take over the United States. Isn't it always the way?
Also Read: Amazing Spider-Man #28, Champions #9; Deathstroke #20; X-Men: Gold #5
Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Not-Very-Deep Thoughts: The May 10 Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)
Amazing Spider-Man #27: I start every issue hoping Dan Slott has gotten a good night's sleep and woken up that next morning focused a little more on the story he's trying to tell. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to have happened for this issue. First, we have Sable's ridiculous explanation of how she survived the precarious scenario where we last saw her in "End of the Earth." She apparently used her suit to turn invisible, which made Rhino think she vanished. The problem with that explanation is Rhino had his hands around her neck at the time. Rhino might not be the sharpest crayon in the box, but he's been around the block a few times: he understands invisibility. If Sable disappeared, but he still felt her, I find it unlikely he'd let go, scratch his head, and decide maybe he wasn't as suicidal as he appeared to be. To make matters worse, everyone continues to take a leave of their senses in this issue. Nick Fury tries to intimidate Harry and May to convince Peter not to invade Symkaria. After all, Peter is obviously in the wrong for wanting to stop Norman Osborn from turning the country's population into slave labor for his war machine. Sable is shocked - shocked! - that her people turned to the Countess during her "absence." Who knew they'd actually believe her when she faked her on death? The good news is the issue improves greatly when Slott puts behind the plot and focuses on the action. Spidey is legitimately funny as he, Mockingbird, Sable, and the Wild Pack take on Norman's army of Goblins and machinery. Slott even manages to give at least one of the Pack a personality! He also makes clear Bobbi and Peter are getting closer and closer to a relationship, as Bobbi admits she left S.H.I.E.L.D. because she knows Pete always does the right thing. (Of course, he ruins the moment by joking about her believing in him.) Moreover, Slott continues his pattern of doing better with the grand sketches of a plot than the intimate details: Norman's plan to turn everyone in Symkaria into a Goblin is legitimately scary. However, Slott has demonstrated this trouble in sticking the landing, so we'll see how it goes next issue. I feel like someone from editorial needs to step in here and help him do a better job connecting the dots. You can't crank out the number of issues he has and not lose sight of the larger plot a bit. Someone has to say, "Dan, that Sable explanation makes no sense," or, "At some point you have to show Nick understanding S.H.I.E.L.D. is being hypocritical." The Zodiac arc is a great example of this problem. Like this issue, we had a super-fun romp through the British Museum, but Slott dragged down that issue when he bumbled through explaining why Scorpio was there in the first place. At this point, I'm trying to just enjoy the best art team this series has possibly ever had while hoping Dan takes a sabbatical at some point.
Detective Comics #956: This issue wraps up the arc better than I thought it could, but Tynion still leaves us with a lot of unanswered questions (and not necessarily in a good way). We learn Shiva left R'as al Ghul after she learned what his true intentions for the League of Shadows were, but we don't get told why it was necessary for the League of Shadows to exist separately from the League of Assassins in the first place. We learn Bruce once walked a dark path of magic and he'll need to walk it again since it's what al Ghul used to make him forget about the League. But, we still don't know why al Ghul wanted him to forget about the League. Bruce also now realizes the Colony was more involved with the League than he thought, but we don't have any idea why. Were they originally allies and the relationship went bad? Does the Colony support al Ghul's original plans for the League? As Bruce said, all we really do know is Shiva's defection from al Ghul forced him to reveal more than he intended. This arc has felt like butter scraped over too much bread, as Tynion avoided giving us any answers to the mystery at the heart of it. But, hopefully he can fill in the gaps now that Bruce is on the hunt.
Ms. Marvel #18: Yup, I totally cried. The cover implies we're going to see some sort of interaction between Bruno and Kamala (pet peeve #1), but Wilson actually focused solely on Bruno and his attempts to adjust to his new life in Wakanda. Wilson grounds the story in reality in a way we don't usually see in comics: Bruno isn't suddenly going to have a cybernetic hand and leg. He doesn't get the deus ex machina superheroes get. Bruno has to earn it, and he does, with the help of his classmates who he now realizes are his friends. It's not hard to see a great lesson in perseverance in the face of obstacles here, the type of story we're often denied when the aforementioned deus ex machina magically makes a problem better. (I'm looking at you, Cosmic Cube.) Like the rest of us, Bruno will be facing the consequences of his actions for a long time.
Star Wars: The Screaming Citadel #1: OK, Gillen is definitely embracing the creepier side of the "Star Wars" Universe here. (It's not a bad thing.) In the wake of the opening arc of her own series, Aphra tracks down Luke (thanks to some assistance from Sana) and convinces him to help her unlock the core she swiped from the Ordu Aspectu. Apparently it contains Rur's personality, so it's a win-win proposition: Aphra gets an eyewitness to ancient history and Luke gets a Jedi Master to instruct him. The only problem is she doesn't know how to open the core. As such, they have to travel to the titular Screaming Citadel. The ancient (and bored) queen of Ktath'atn holds a contest at the Citadel every year: she swaps favors for the chance to meet "interesting people." Not surprisingly, Aphra and Luke qualify after Luke uses his Jedi powers in front of the queen. However, it appears the queen is a vampire: her minions feed off the citizens' energy and then feed that energy to her. Needless to say, she's...excited about the possibility of feeding off a Jedi, since she hasn't done so in a while. Checchetto and Mossa do an amazing job of using "Alice in Wonderland" imagery when it comes to the queen, as she looks not dissimilar from a modern Queen of Hearts. After the disappointing "Yoda's Secret War" arc in "Star Wars," I'm excited for this arc. It reorients us around a cast of characters we recognize, but tells a story that we haven't seen before. Gillen does a great job of reminding us how hungry Luke is for training in this period before he learns of Yoda's location, and filling in this sort of gap drives the excitement for this arc (something "Yoda's Secret War" lacked). I'm not saying everything needs to advance the larger story we know from the movies, but it certainly doesn't hurt.
Uncanny Avengers #23: Honestly, this series is the best team book on the shelves. Duggan does a great job of conveying honest-to-goodness emotions on almost every page, from Synapse learning Cable stayed with the team to be her mentor to Rogue wistfully looking at the photo of the team in happier days. In fact, Rogue and Synapse have really been Duggan's signature characters, as much as you'd expect it to be Deadpool. We learn Synapse eventually became the Shredded Man in the future Cable tried to prevent by returning to our time, and his words of encouragement to her -- about how that future is no longer possible and how she makes her own choices -- really shows how far she's come as a character. Rogue's feelings about the team are also instructive. She's lost a lot recently, as Duggan reminded us in the previous issue where she contemplates Xavier's death. It's probably the first time we've seen Rogue committed to this team as a team and not just as the X-Men's plant on it. It's a great moment, and it's made all the better when she, Johnny, and Synapse agree to travel with Brother Voodoo to New Orleans to take care of his brother and the Hand. In so doing, Duggan shows how he's really made this series an integrated narrative, as past events aren't just conveniently forgotten when we move to the next arc. I'm thrilled it's still going strong, if only because I'm hoping we get some sort of Deadpool and Wonder Man buddy-comedy arc as they try to get back Simon's money. (Did I mention Deadpool lost all of it? Apparently he had some cash flow problems and figured Simon was dead...)
Youngblood #1: According to my comic-book database, I own issues #0-#4 of the original run of "Youngblood." (I believe the only two Image comics I collected beyond ten issues were "Wild C.A.T.s" at 12 issues and then "Stormwatch," at ten issues exactly.) Similar to my experience reading "The Wild Storm," I don't really remember much the original plot. All I really remember is the ginger Hawkeye was hot. (My recollection of "Wild C.A.T.s" similarly revoked around the hot ginger.) Knowing Liefeld, I probably wasn't missing much. The good news is Liefeld got someone else to write the story this time and, even better news, it's not too bad. Bowers quickly establishes that Youngblood ended when a hacktivist group called the Bloodstream revealed the behind-the-scenes dirt about the team, "a litany of criminal activity, illicit sex scandals, assassinations, and government cover-ups." In the present, superheroing appears to revolve entirely around an app called Help! operating like Task Rabbit, if you will. However, one of its stars, Man-Up, has gone missing. His friend, Gunner, is looking for him, but she doesn't know anything about the "real" him. She eventually recognizes his photo on a missing poster and meets his aunt, learning his name is Horatio and he's a 19-year-old kid who got his powers after a chemical spill at work. Gunner pledges to find him and comes to the attention of President Diehard and his wife, Vogue, when she (Gunner) starts using Vogue's look and name. Diehard is in the process of negotiating a deal with Help!, essentially to replace Youngblood. However, he decides to send Shaft and Badrock, both incarcerated, to arrest Gunner and her friends, because he disapproves of vigilantism (likely because the new Vogue and her friends are working outside Help!). Bowers doesn't establish what motivates Gunner to leave Help! and become Vogue, but I'm sure we'll get there. The challenge for Bowers is going to be not just wallowing in nostalgia. Warren Ellis is doing amazing work in "The Wild Storm," and Bowers, whether he likes it or not, is competing with that. The art is solid here, though, again, Jon Davis-Hunt is doing spectacular work over there. (Also, is that supposed to be Shaft at the end? He looks...12 years old.) At any rate, it's a high bar for Bowers and Towe to clear, but it would be exciting if they did, to have life breathed into both these franchises.
Also Read: Dragon Age: Knight Errant #1; Titans #11; X-Men: Blue #3
Detective Comics #956: This issue wraps up the arc better than I thought it could, but Tynion still leaves us with a lot of unanswered questions (and not necessarily in a good way). We learn Shiva left R'as al Ghul after she learned what his true intentions for the League of Shadows were, but we don't get told why it was necessary for the League of Shadows to exist separately from the League of Assassins in the first place. We learn Bruce once walked a dark path of magic and he'll need to walk it again since it's what al Ghul used to make him forget about the League. But, we still don't know why al Ghul wanted him to forget about the League. Bruce also now realizes the Colony was more involved with the League than he thought, but we don't have any idea why. Were they originally allies and the relationship went bad? Does the Colony support al Ghul's original plans for the League? As Bruce said, all we really do know is Shiva's defection from al Ghul forced him to reveal more than he intended. This arc has felt like butter scraped over too much bread, as Tynion avoided giving us any answers to the mystery at the heart of it. But, hopefully he can fill in the gaps now that Bruce is on the hunt.
Ms. Marvel #18: Yup, I totally cried. The cover implies we're going to see some sort of interaction between Bruno and Kamala (pet peeve #1), but Wilson actually focused solely on Bruno and his attempts to adjust to his new life in Wakanda. Wilson grounds the story in reality in a way we don't usually see in comics: Bruno isn't suddenly going to have a cybernetic hand and leg. He doesn't get the deus ex machina superheroes get. Bruno has to earn it, and he does, with the help of his classmates who he now realizes are his friends. It's not hard to see a great lesson in perseverance in the face of obstacles here, the type of story we're often denied when the aforementioned deus ex machina magically makes a problem better. (I'm looking at you, Cosmic Cube.) Like the rest of us, Bruno will be facing the consequences of his actions for a long time.
Uncanny Avengers #23: Honestly, this series is the best team book on the shelves. Duggan does a great job of conveying honest-to-goodness emotions on almost every page, from Synapse learning Cable stayed with the team to be her mentor to Rogue wistfully looking at the photo of the team in happier days. In fact, Rogue and Synapse have really been Duggan's signature characters, as much as you'd expect it to be Deadpool. We learn Synapse eventually became the Shredded Man in the future Cable tried to prevent by returning to our time, and his words of encouragement to her -- about how that future is no longer possible and how she makes her own choices -- really shows how far she's come as a character. Rogue's feelings about the team are also instructive. She's lost a lot recently, as Duggan reminded us in the previous issue where she contemplates Xavier's death. It's probably the first time we've seen Rogue committed to this team as a team and not just as the X-Men's plant on it. It's a great moment, and it's made all the better when she, Johnny, and Synapse agree to travel with Brother Voodoo to New Orleans to take care of his brother and the Hand. In so doing, Duggan shows how he's really made this series an integrated narrative, as past events aren't just conveniently forgotten when we move to the next arc. I'm thrilled it's still going strong, if only because I'm hoping we get some sort of Deadpool and Wonder Man buddy-comedy arc as they try to get back Simon's money. (Did I mention Deadpool lost all of it? Apparently he had some cash flow problems and figured Simon was dead...)
Youngblood #1: According to my comic-book database, I own issues #0-#4 of the original run of "Youngblood." (I believe the only two Image comics I collected beyond ten issues were "Wild C.A.T.s" at 12 issues and then "Stormwatch," at ten issues exactly.) Similar to my experience reading "The Wild Storm," I don't really remember much the original plot. All I really remember is the ginger Hawkeye was hot. (My recollection of "Wild C.A.T.s" similarly revoked around the hot ginger.) Knowing Liefeld, I probably wasn't missing much. The good news is Liefeld got someone else to write the story this time and, even better news, it's not too bad. Bowers quickly establishes that Youngblood ended when a hacktivist group called the Bloodstream revealed the behind-the-scenes dirt about the team, "a litany of criminal activity, illicit sex scandals, assassinations, and government cover-ups." In the present, superheroing appears to revolve entirely around an app called Help! operating like Task Rabbit, if you will. However, one of its stars, Man-Up, has gone missing. His friend, Gunner, is looking for him, but she doesn't know anything about the "real" him. She eventually recognizes his photo on a missing poster and meets his aunt, learning his name is Horatio and he's a 19-year-old kid who got his powers after a chemical spill at work. Gunner pledges to find him and comes to the attention of President Diehard and his wife, Vogue, when she (Gunner) starts using Vogue's look and name. Diehard is in the process of negotiating a deal with Help!, essentially to replace Youngblood. However, he decides to send Shaft and Badrock, both incarcerated, to arrest Gunner and her friends, because he disapproves of vigilantism (likely because the new Vogue and her friends are working outside Help!). Bowers doesn't establish what motivates Gunner to leave Help! and become Vogue, but I'm sure we'll get there. The challenge for Bowers is going to be not just wallowing in nostalgia. Warren Ellis is doing amazing work in "The Wild Storm," and Bowers, whether he likes it or not, is competing with that. The art is solid here, though, again, Jon Davis-Hunt is doing spectacular work over there. (Also, is that supposed to be Shaft at the end? He looks...12 years old.) At any rate, it's a high bar for Bowers and Towe to clear, but it would be exciting if they did, to have life breathed into both these franchises.
Also Read: Dragon Age: Knight Errant #1; Titans #11; X-Men: Blue #3
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)