Wonder Woman #25
This book may as well be called Olympian Gods. Wonder Woman does NOTHING Wonder Woman-ly in this issue. Actually, if you took her out completely, it would change nothing.
Strife is planning something with a really sharp needle made by Hephaestus. Something with giving gifts and sending Wonder Woman and the gang into Chernobyl. All that excitement you see on the cover of Wonder Woman fighting Strife? Yeah, that doesn't happen in this book. Nothing like a little bait and boredom from the Wonder Woman crew.
My patience and this book's life on the Pull-List are being severely tested.
He-Man and the Masters of the Universe #8
Hooo-waaah is the art bad in this book. Goddamn! Rafael Kayanan is responsible and it makes me wonder how a major company like DC Comics agrees to putting this slop on the page.
Dan Abnett's story was enough to get me through the art problems last issue, but not so much here. I guess we need to hear about Zoar and Subternia to understand why/how Randor wants to bring the Sorceress back to life. But the way its presented is super boring. It just feels like a lot of roundabout talking.
I have a lot of trust in Dan Abnett and he will be my guide through this arc until DC gets their act together and puts a real artist on this book.
X-Men #7
Now that the Battle of the Atom tie-in nonsense is past us, I'm going to give this book a solid go. Brian Wood and presumably Terry and Rachel Dodson are locked in for the next arc which should run until issue 12.
#7 was a pretty solid read though I'm really unfamiliar with most of the characters. Between Lady Deathstrike and Monet, Wood catches new readers (me) up on who these ladies are and what they do pretty quicky. If you bought this book to read Kitty Pryde, you're going to be disappointed. She's gone for some unexplained reason after Battle of the Atom. The Dodson's art is great. Clean and sharp, just the way I like it. If you're going to have a book about all women, pick an artist who knows how to draw women.
Issues 1-3 were pretty solid. 4-6 were garbage. #7 is hopefully back to Marvel letting Wood tell his story without any editorial interference.
Rogues Rebellion #2
Written by Brian Buccellato and drawn by Scott Hepburn, Rogues Rebellion is a fun adventure through the DC Earth that's been taken over by the Crime Syndicate.
The Rogues have turned their backs on the Syndicate after refusing to murder everyone in Central City, so the Syndicate has sent word out to all supervillains that the Rogues are to be killed. What makes this issue interesting is that they get separated from their leader, Captain Cold and Mirror Master's powers are on the fritz. There are some honestly creepy beats about the mirror world that I hope get fleshed out as the mini goes long.
Hepburn does a really nice job directing his panels and page layouts. His art isn't going to win many awards, but for a book like this, it fits pretty damn well.
Green Lantern: New Guardians #24
Justin Jordan takes us on a straight up sci-fi ride asking the question: should we make our planet a utopia if the price is making another planet a distopia?
Its a pretty neat concept fully utilizing the scope of what lies out in the far reaches of the DC Universe. The Guardians send Kyle to find out what's wrong with this seemingly perfect planet. The problem is the planet has been fixing the odds of everything going right, while on another planet the results are everything goes wrong. If The Twilight Zone did Green Lantern episodes, this would surely be one.
The only problem with this book is Jordan seems bent on making a love connection between Kyle and Carol Ferris. That's like having Lois Lane fall in love with Bruce Wayne. It shouldn't happen. Justin Jordan better watch his back.
The Wake #5
The first half of Scott Snyder and Sean Murphy's miniseries ends on a bittersweet note: with the presumed death of the beautiful Lee Archer.
The flashforwards that Snyder and Murphy have teased through the first five issues apparently take center stage in issue #6 as the creatures have essentially sunk the mainland, driving the oceans 100 miles inland. Its a sad issue having to let go of Lee Archer and the other characters that Snyder and Murphy made so real. Leeward, our lead character in the future has a lot to live up to.
Snyder promises a lot of insane shit going down in his letter at the end of this issue promoting the second half. Its been a great series. Lets hope the last five issues keep up the tradition.
Batman and Two-Face #25
I suppose this title is now officially Batman and..., but that's here nor there for now. We're here to talk about how great this issue was.
Following up Pete Tomasi and Patrick Gleason's excellent part one of this story in issue #24, part two is just as good. Its like reading a really good Batman: The Animated Series episode. Patrick Gleason's art is the perfect style for a more serious Animated Series-like tone. Tomasi writes an interesting story about Harvey Dent and the woman who scarred his face and killed Gilda, with Batman in the middle of course. We also see a little Matches Malone. I would seriously read a Matches Malone series. Maybe that's just my affinity for Magnum P.I. showing.
This issue has heart at its core hitting all the bases of what a good comic should be about. And look at that cover. Animated Series all the way.
Animal Man #25
If I could effectively clap in this space I would do it. Bravo, Jeff Lemire and Rafael Albequerque. Bravo.
Brother Blood has infiltrated the Red. He's going after Maxine who's hiding there. Blood's congregation has taken the Oscars hostage. Buddy and Ellen break in to kick some ass and take some names. And they do just that before Buddy suddenly gets transported to some Cthulhu-like space planet.
This is an issue that reminds me why I love comic books. Some books are just a slog to get through with crappy art and/or a self-serving story. Animal Man has none of that. Lemire and Albequerque know what a comic is supposed to be about.
Panel of the Week:
Its natural to hear Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. deliver this line.
-Gint
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