Not-So-New Comics: The October 25 Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

For some reason, I didn't really have a lot to say about the October 25 releases.  It's not necessarily a bad thing; they were all really solid issues.  "Ben Reilly:  Scarlet Spider" #9, "Bloodshot Salvation" #2, "Detective Comics" #967, and "Nightwing:  The New Order" #3 all significantly advanced their plots, and I thoroughly enjoyed "Quantum and Woody! #0.0001½.  But, I guess not much seemed particularly noteworthy.

Dark Nights:  Gotham Resistance (Teen Titans #12, Nightwing #29, Suicide Squad #26, and Green Arrow #32):  I finally had to admit I was enjoying “Dark Nights” so much I decided to go back and buy these issues.  (I read "Nightwing" #29 when it was released on September 20.)  The authors do a great job in keeping the story connected issues to issue as some members of the Suicide Squad and Teen Titans get possessed by the Batman Who Laugh’s Damian while the other members join with Green Arrow, Mister Terrific, and Nightwing to get to the heart of Challengers' Mountain in the middle of Gotham.  It actually helped reading these issues after reading "Dark Nights:  Metal" #3, since it's clear the music and voices Dick is hearing is Bruce telling him not to come rescue him.  Dick doesn't exactly hit the nail on the head in interpreting that message, deciding instead Bruce is dead or lost.  (That said, he was a helluva lot closer to interpreting the message correctly than Clark was.)  The main outcome of this cross-over event in terms of the larger story was Damian seemingly mortally wounding his counterpart with Nth metal.  Mister Terrific arrives to whisk the remaining team members — Damian, Dick, Green Arrow, and Mister Terrific — to the Oblivion Bar, as we saw in "Dark Nights:  Metal" #3.  Here, Green Arrow reveals what they've learned about the Nth metal, setting the ball rolling for the rest of the series.  Beyond just advancing the larger plot, the authors really show the despair the characters are beginning to feel, particularly Dick and Harley; you understand why Dick is such a mess in “Dark Nights:  Metal” #3.  The only criticism I have of this mini-event is I didn’t really buy Harley and Killer Croc feeling some sort of patriotism for Gotham, but it’s a minor complaint.  All in all, it's a solid event that anyone reading "Dark Nights:  Metal" would benefit from reading.

The Flash #33 ("Dark Nights:  Bats Out of Hell" #1):  This issue starts immediately after Superman enters the Dark Dimension, as Murder Machine and Devastator arrive to steal the tuning fork (as seen in “Batman:  The Devastator” #1).  Interestingly, Devastator destroys the fork, saying he’ll bring it to Barbatos only after he rebuilds it.  Why would he need to rebuild it?  Is that going to provide the loophole the League needs to defeat Barbatos?  Meanwhile, Barbatos kidnaps the various League members from their missions to lock down more Nth metal, separating Arthur, Barry, Diana, and Hal from their partners and sending them against their Dark Dimension counterparts.  This entire event has been building to this moment, and I can see why these issues were sold as essential to the overall story.

Amazing Spider-Man #790:  OK, first, I have to say, I could overlook a lot here just given how beautiful the art is.  Honestly, in 35 years of reading Spider-Man comics, I can't remember them ever looking as good.  (Yes, I'm not a McFarlane fan.)  As mentioned in the letters column, Immonen really has an amazing (heh) ability to convey motion; at certain points during Peter's fight with Johnny and later Clash, it really felt like I was watching a movie.  But, the good news is I don't have to overlook anything.  Slott is telling a really bang-up story.  I love the idea of Peter committing to going on an apology tour, showing how solid of a guy he is; as Harry says, most companies would've just sent some lawyers to sign the settlements on their behalf.  I'm also glad Slott is continuing to keep the Robin Hood version of Clash here.  I even liked Peter continuing to somewhat uncharacteristically look the other way when it comes to Clash, as he does here when Clash steals back the tech he developed for Parker Industries.  It was a little questionable previously, but something about it now feels like it reflects Peter's new worldview after the fall of PI.  Is he really going to sweat Clash stealing back the technology he himself created?  He has bigger fish to fry.  Meanwhile, I wonder if the developments in "Uncanny Avengers" means Johnny is going to buy back the Baxter Building.  (Are the Avengers going to live there?)  It seems too perfectly timed for it not to be true.  In other words, Slott and the art team have really hit a home run when it comes to a Legacy story that feels and looks like the Spider-Man stories of my youth, and I hope it lasts as long as possible.

Also Read:  Batman:  The Merciless #1; Ben Reilly:  Scarlet Spider #9; Bloodshot Salvation #2; Detective Comics #967; Nightwing:  The New Order #3; Quantum and Woody #0.00011/2; Rebels:  These Free and Independent Starts #8; U.S.Avengers #11; X-Men:  Blue #14

Not-Very-Deep Thoughts: The May 17 Edition (HERE BE SPOILERS!)

The Flash #22:  Williamson does what he can here, given the editors' clear instructions to give us a peak behind the curtain without drawing it back entirely.  As expected, Thawne encounters Dr. Manhattan, who destroys him, likely because he doesn't want anyone to be able to identify him.  (I'm still not sure how Thawne recognized him, but I feel like that's a story for another time.)  As Barry and Bruce are left flailing in the timestream, Jay Garrick calls to Barry.  Barry says his name, allowing Jay to rescue them.  However, Barry doesn't recognize Jay the way he did Wally, causing Jay to seemingly disappear back into the timestream.  Williamson makes it clear both Barry and Bruce are shaken by this arc's events:  Bruce was unable to save his father and Barry was unable to save Jay.  The biggest unanswered question is why Dr. Manhattan would risk exposing himself by arranging this experience in the first place.  After all, Barry and Bruce are clearly committed to investigating the incident now.  But, it seems less an accidental oversight than an intentional mystery, presumably one to be answered later.  Meanwhile, in an ad after the issue concludes, we're told the "Doomsday Clock" event is coming in November as the blood on the smiley-face button morphs into Superman's shield.  I'm not sure if I'm excited, but, if I am, King and Williamson handling this cross-over event with such aplomb got me there.

Secret Empire #2:  Spencer avoids the "Age of Ultron" trap here by making the heroes' next steps pretty damn logical.  Tony eventually reviews the thumbdrive the new Patriot brought him, revealing a message from Rick detailing the truth behind Steve's betrayal.  (He hacked into Hydra's files to get the information.)  Hawkeye wants to lead a team to track down the pieces of the Cube, but, since Dr. Selvig was smart enough to hide them outside HYDRA territory, he and his team have to get smuggled past the (very secure) border to do so.  On the other hand, Natasha feels it's a fool's errand.  She recalls all the people they lost in previous attempts to prove Steve was a clone or a LMD and argues (pretty convincingly) Steve would want them to kill him if he knew how he was being used.  Miles doesn't necessarily agree with her, but he feels his destiny is to kill Steve (per "Inhumans vs. X-Men") so he and the Champions join her.  (Yes, I'll be getting "Secret Empire:  Uprising.")  Meanwhile, Clint and his team are on the border in a Mos Eisley sort of town.  Ant-Man leads them to Sam, who helped him smuggle Cassie across the border.  Let's just say Sam isn't too thrilled to see them.  In the Darkforce dimension, Dagger is killing herself to provide the only light the city gets while Kingpin is providing help to the population with the request that people remember his help when the sun "returns."  Throughout the issue, Spencer does an excellent job keeping up the pace while still taking us through all the steps necessary to make these developments feel organic.  But, it's the last page that brings an honest-to-goodness surprise.  Seriously, these sorts of developments are usually so telegraphed that it's rare to be surprised anymore.  However, a rugged-looking Steve Rogers saving a mysteriously glowing woman from members of the Serpent Society and asking her for help to get home?  Let's just say I don't think I'm as cocky about knowing what Spencer has in mind as I was.

Teen Titans #8:  Maybe it's because this cross-over arc has three writers, but this issue made little sense to me.  First, we have Kid Flash deciding to spend the day with some older guy with a cool car.  I get he misses his father and likes working on cars, but going for a joyride and then burgers with a stranger (with an eyepatch) you just met is a pretty clear no-no, teenage superhero or not.  Then we've got the weirdness of Dick's deal with Deathstroke, which drives the tension of this issue.  We don't know what it is yet, but I feel like we're not going to get a satisfying answer in the end.  Deathstroke seems to have kidnapped both Wally Wests to activate some sort of battery that will not only resurrect his son but make himself more powerful.  But, what would Dick have to do with that?  Is the deal completely unrelated and just so happens to come to light when Deathstroke is being all villain-y?  Seems unlikely.  Percy actually does a solid job in scripting the tired "good guys initially fight as a result of an obvious misunderstanding" bit; the rumble on the roof of Titans Tower actually sounds the way I think it would, all chaotic and jumbled.  But, for Percy to sell this issue, you still have to believe Kid Flash not only spent the day with Deathstroke but also then helped him with his time-travel plans even after he revealed himself.  I just don't believe even a rookie would be that naive, but there you go.

The Wild Storm #4:  Not a lot happens in this issue, but it's beautiful to behold:  Davis-Hunt and Buccellato are geniuses, truly.  After the Wild C.A.T.s escape Angie's bunker via Void (before one of the surviving members of Razors 3 detonates a grenade), the action stops and everyone gets a moment to breathe.  Miles recaps the last two issues for his husband over wine and leftovers, and we then get our first prolonged exposure to Henry Bendix.  We don't learn much, other than the fact he prefers spending his time in his enormous space station orbiting Earth (as opposed to Earth itself) and he engages in a whole lot of bluster with everyone other than his assistant, Ms. Pennington.  (I don't know if it was a conscious choice, but Pennington looks a lot like Carol/Cheryl from "Archer," which makes it all the more awesome.)  We conclude the issue with Mike telling Miles his brain tumor is inoperable and Miles asking him if he wants to keep working.  Meanwhile, Angie walks along a deserted highway (after initially crashing into the ocean when she fled the bunker at the start of the issue).  Ellis does a great job keeping us guessing mostly because his characters are all in the same situation:  no one really has any clue what's happening.  That said, Henry Bendis, Miles Craven, and Jacob Marlowe aren't exactly the types of guys who handle that well, so we'll see where we go.

X-Men:  Gold #4:  Guggenheim's telling a number of stories here, and they're all pretty great.  First, we've got the mundane.  Kitty, Kurt, and Rachel easily take out some members of the Serpent Society as they rob a bank.  Kitty is anxious to get the fight concluded so she can get to her meeting with the city about hooking up the Mansion to the sewer and water system, a clever reminder of the team's struggles to get itself established.  (I'm also intrigued how they're going to pay that rent bill the city presented them earlier.)  Plus, Guggenheim is reminding us Kitty wants to improve the X-Men's visibility not just by eliminating mutant threats, but regular ones, too.  Then, we're got the mysteries.  Dr. Reyes informs Colossus the alien-looking guy from the Brotherhood is actually an alien; in fact, he's an alien whose language is even unknown to the universal translator.  Meanwhile, Logan and Storm go all "X-Men:  SVU" when they convince a NYPD detective to tell them more about the  murder of a mutant.  (This entire sequence is great, in part because Guggenheim uses the pacing and phrasing of "Law and Order."  It makes me realize I would 100% read a comic where Logan and Ororo just went around town solving crimes.)  But everyone has to put their day on hold to help Remy.  You see, he swiped some nanites for Bolivar Trask's granddaughter.  (Before you worry, he didn't know who she was when he took the job; he took it explicitly to find out the buyer's identity.)  Trask planned on connecting the nanites to an artificial intelligence for military (and, allegedly, non-mutant killing) purposes, and Remy decides to stop her.  But, he sorta accidentally breaks the containment tube and the nanites fly into Trask's computer system.  Given the amount of anti-mutant AIs on your average Trask computer, the nanites bond with such an AI and become a nano-swarm Sentinel.  Ooopsie!  Remy obviously glides over his role in creating said Sentinel when he calls for help.  (It's all part of his charm.)  Seriously, it sounds like Guggenheim would've been rushed given how much happens here, but the pace is really fun, a sort of "day in the crazy life" approach.  It's a great start for this new arc.

Also Read:  Batman #23; Generation X #1; The Mighty Thor #19; Nightwing #21; Star Wars #31; U.S.Avengers #6