Captain America #4
Cap is trapped in an alternate universe created by his old teammate Jimmy Jupiter. The good news is this place is supposed to represent Steve Rogers' ideal version of America. But we all know how that is gonna work out. It's more like The Matrix: Reloaded. And nobody liked that movie.
Steve McNiven's brilliant panel design is on display again. Every page has a distinct look. His use of oddly shaped panels really is fun to follow. Another standout issue.
Justice League #3
The slow burn continues. I'm not saying that the way Geoff Johns is handling introducing each member of the team is bad, just slow. This all could have been handled in two issues. I liked the foreshadowing of Darkseid and the tie-in to Cyborg's tech. I have to disagree with Gint on the inclusion of Victor Stone on this book. There are more then enough of the traditional big time heroes on this title. There is room for one odd ball.
I'm going to commit comic book blasphemy and criticize Jim Lee. He crowded every page in this issue. I recognize this is a team book with lots of action but it's becoming difficult to separate foreground and background elements. This also could be partially colorist Alex Sinclair's fault. His choice of an overall cold and metallic palette didn't work for me. Typically Sinclair's work is the best in the business so I'm not sure what was up.
Swamp Thing #3
The pieces are in place and the story is really starting to roll. This month we are introduced to William Arcane, a young boy who must live in a plastic bubble to survive. William also happens to be the avatar for The Black or the Rot much like Alec Holland is the avatar of The Green and Animal Man is the same for The Red. Once this kid escapes his bubble you can almost hear the shit hitting the fan. What I'm most excited to see is how Scott Snyder plans on tying the events of Swamp Thing with Animal Man. The overlapping themes surely will deliver a big payoff of readers down the road. I suggest you pick up both of these titles to get the full scope of the story Snyder is constructing.
Wonder Woman #3
This marks the first big shakeup to the old status quo. Brian Azzarello has rewritten the origin of one of DC's most recognizable heroes and my only question is why did it take so long? I always maintained that a major reason Wonder Woman was a difficult character to empathize with was because she was made of clay. Yes, for those of you that don't know, she was sculpted out of clay and brought to life. That's so ridiculous that it makes getting bitten by a radioactive spider seem completely reasonable.
Azzarello reinvents Diana as the illegitimate child of Zeus and Queen Hippolyta. Seeing as how Zeus' lady Hera wouldn't take kindly to the idea of him stepping out on her, Hippolyta crafts said tale of creating a baby from clay. Upon learning the truth of her birth Diana decides it's time to leave Themyscira and the Amazons behind and adopts the name of Wonder Woman. The only thing that could have improved this powerful scene would be Diana shouting “Screw this noise!”
Everything in this issue made perfect sense. It addressed the history behind the character while updating it to a version that is understandable and gives the hero a new sense of direction. This is what The New 52 truly is about: fixing and updating parts of a character's mythos while keeping the core of what makes them intriguing intact. -$
Panel of the Week: I know I just bitched about the art in this book. What can I say, I'm a sucker for Wonder Woman and Jim Lee. Put them together and I'm powerless to resist.
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