Comics are Awesome II

[Dominic]

Earth 2 #13:
Despite following from the lack-luster annual, this issue reads well enough. It actually works better than the annual on a few levels, including being a better introduction of the new Bat Man of Earth 2. I am not sure how far in advance Robinson knew about leaving with issue 16. But, this issue not only continues leading in to the big fight with Steppenwolf, but it introduces a couple of new characters and sets up for another big fight next issue. The next few issues are likely to be rushed, or to leave plot threads dangling for a later writer to pick up. (And, based on "Team 7", we also know that DC is not at all shy about leaving plot threads wholly unresolved.) While this is not the best comic on shelves, it is still a hell of a ride.
Grade: B/C


Legends of the Dark Knight #8
"Carved" is.....bad. The high concept is that somebody goes nutty and is kidnapping people. His MO is that he leaves very detailed wooden carvings in their place. He does this to convince Batman to help him bring his family back from the dead. So, yeah, a man driven mad with grief is able to orchestrate a tantrum with the complexity and competency of a low-level supervillain. And, he pulls all of this off without leaving a trail of evidence so wide that even the Gotham Police can find him. Oh, and there is still a "duh of course" moment where Batman apparently read the writer's mind. It is not as bad as the "of course, he is trying to communicate with ghosts!" reveal from issue 7. But, it is still pretty bad. The bulk of Paul Tobin's work has been on "Marvel Adventures", which only requires simple plots and Silver Age grade execution. Tobin is trying to write a darker story here. But, the dark tone and attempts at being profound do not work well with the Silver Age handling of Batman. Tobin definitely needs to grow as a writer.

"Unnatural Selections" relies a bit more on "improbably leaps of logic and finding information) than it probably should. But, it is handled better over-all. Sanchez does a good job of blending the real (if macabre) with things that one might reasonably expect to find in the world that Batman inhabits. In this case, Batman knows a semi-mystical McGuffin when he sees it. But, he is not anticipating it before seeing it, which provides necessary grounding.

Grade:B/C


Legends of the Dark Knigh #9
Gage looks to be attempting to write a definitive Batman story with "Dreaming he is a Butterfly". I cannot blame Gage for trying to write the definitive character study of Batman, especially so soon after a reset. And, there are some legitimately clever and insightful bits. But, the problem is that the story (including some of above mentioned clever and insightful bits) arguably does more to undermine the long-term logic of Batman, while making clear that Batman is aware of the problems. (Gage addresses questions of Batman inspiring criminals, the expectations of Batman having a short career and the wasteful nature of Batman's crusade.) All said, it is a noble but very flawed effort.

Fawkes turns in a more basic Batman and Catwoman story that I cannot recall the name of. It is not bad, and does its job as a back-up.

Grade: B/C


Dom
-giddy about "Age of Ultron" next week.

[BWprowl]

I ain't gonna review it (it was fine), but this week's 'Avenging Spider-Man' was apparently the last issue of that series; it's getting a name-change to 'Superior Spider-Man Team-Up' next month, though the writer, concept, and ongoing story will all remain intact (Otto's been collecting his old Sinister Six teammates, that's going to continue), so I gotta wonder...uh, why? I guess they kinda want to tie all this 'Superior' Spidey stuff under a similarly-named banner, but it still comes off as kinda arbitrary. There's also 'Superior Foes of Spider-Man' and 'Superior Carnage' titles launching, but I don't know anything about either of the writers on those, so I'm not sure if I'll be picking them up.

The other thing is that Otto's apparently going to be tweaking his costume next month (kinda reminds me of the Alex Ross-proposed costume for the first Sam Raimi movie, if anyone remembers that). The previous solicits for 'Superior Team-Up' had hidden this by showing the cover with his current costume, but this month the art had been altered to show the new suit (though Ramos's cover art for the next issue of 'Superior Spider-Man' had always shown the new costume, presumably because Ramos is a hack who can't be bothered to draw two versions of a cover for marketing purposes yes I hate that guy's art that much).

The new costume looks alright, but I hope this doesn't disqualify us from eventually getting a toy of some sort of the first 'Superior' costume, since I really love that one for the stupidest reasons.

[Sparky Prime]

16 issues (plus a zero and an annual) is about the average run that one can expect on a modern comic. (Bendis on the "Avengers" books is a rarity in this day and age.) This might just be legit turn-over.

Any word on who is replacing Robinson? Unless it somebody on my "no-go" list, I will probably keep this book.)

I haven't seen anything on a replacement yet, no.

The new writer for Earth 2 is going to be Tom Taylor, who is currently writing the Injustice: Gods Among Us comic series.

[andersonh1]

So, DC is learning that books based on C and D list characters don't sell, and it's time for more of the A-listers. There's only so far they can spread Batman, so this past weekend we've learned of a few new concepts.

Justice League 3000 http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page ... e&id=46132

By the same guys who brought us the old comic post-Crisis Justice League, a book that had a great first year or two then began slipping in quality. It's odd to me how DC wants to have their cake and eat it too... they reboot their universe and go forward with all new versions of every character, and yet they dig up an old team of creators from 25 years ago in the hope that long-time readers will be enticed into picking up the book. Honestly, it looks like a tired concept to me, and doesn't spark much interest.

Superman/Wonder Woman

I don't have a link, but if this was not New52, I might be interested. As much as I enjoy seeing Batman and Superman team up, there's a lot of potential in pairing Superman with Wonder Woman and seeing what kind of stories result. Yeah, having the two in a relationship is about as stupid as it gets, but that aside, the different philosophies and methods and goals of these two powerful characters could make a good series.

[Sparky Prime]

Yeah, having the two in a relationship is about as stupid as it gets, but that aside, the different philosophies and methods and goals of these two powerful characters could make a good series.

I don't think it's stupid that they're in a relationship. There have been stories in the past where they were together. Besides, it's been explained that Superboy is pretty much a clone of a son Lois and Superman will have at some point in the future. Not that a comic book has to stick to that, but it would suggest Lois and Superman will eventually become a couple in this timeline. At any rate, I think this could be an interesting title.

Not really sure what to think of Justice League 3000. Can't say I care for most of those designs, but I do think the Green Lantern is an interesting look. I've seen some fans saying they think the Flash is Wally West, but I have to doubt that it will be. I have enjoyed stories about future versions of the Justice League characters before, so I think it'll be worth checking out at least.

[Dominic]

Tom Taylor, who is currently writing the Injustice: Gods Among Us comic series.

I heard about the new "Earth 2" writer by text yesterday. Being completely unfamiliar with Taylor and "Injustice" (beyond it being a videogame), I really could not form an opinion.

I picked up two issues of "Injustice: Gods Among Us" today. And, it is not bad. There are a few rough spots that I am willing to assume have more to do with the fact that the book is leading in to a game more than any deficiency on Taylor's part. Based on the first two issues, it looks like the high concept is that Superman becomes "pro-active" after Lois Lane is killed (along with most of Metropolis) in a nuclear blast triggered by the Joker. It is not really explained how the Joker knew to target Lane to get to Superman. But, it does not really matter in this case. The high concept (Superman gets aggressive) is nothing new. "Red Son" did it better. And, anybody who has been reading comics for as long as I have could likely come up with a few examples of a "Superman gets pro-active and things go horribly" story. (I am remembering an "Armageddon 2001" cross-over from 20+ years ago....) Taylor does not do anything spectacular. But, given what he has to work with, he does good enough. If the local shop had issues 3 and 4, I would consider picking them up, and might even consider adding "Injustice: Gods Among Us" to my pull list, if only to have more of an idea what Taylor is all about before he takes over "Earth 2".

In continuity terms, I think that "Injustice: Gods Among Us" counts as a recognized alternate universe, similar to "Earth 2". Either way, if Taylor can at least keep up the level of writing he shows here, I will be keeping "Earth 2" on my pull-file.

Age of Ultron #10:
I am not going to use spoiler-text, because this review will not have spoilers. It will have warnings.

Ah, where to begin. Okay, so some stuff happens. Some of it implies some pretty basic stuff that happened off-panel last issue. (This involves Storm and Wolverine cleaning up their mess and priming Pym's memory. It nothing that could not be figured out with about 3 seconds of thought from the reader.) Then, there is a flashback to the 12.1/Free Comic Book Day issue. I am not sure how/where the timeline splits here as I do not have any copies of that story handy. (I think I gave them away. I dunno.) Some stuff happens, and the newly awakened Ultron is soundly defeated. Time goes wacky for a few minutes, Storm and Wolverine get jobbed (I think) and some stuff maybe sorta changes.

To be fair, Bendis puts a somewhat clever twist on the McGuffin used to kill Ultron (the real threat to Ultron is pre-set coding that is triggered and aggravated by Ultron reacting to an obvious but fake threat). But, it does not really justify the hype, or length, of this series. "Age of Ultron" probably could have been compressed in to about 6 or 7 issues. And, given how long it was delayed (and likely tweaked in that time), it probably should have been compressed.

But, ultimately, this is a Marvel summer event book. The length is what it is. Some stuff happens. It is an event book, so it should not really matter. "Secret Invasion" did not really do much or have much going on in terms of higher narrative. It coasted along well enough for 8 issues. It was a ride, and it had its share of fun moments, and the tie-ins were fun. "Avengers v/s X-Men" was huge. It felt huge. And, on some visceral level, it made me feel the same way I did over 20 years ago when reading it. (I did not finish that book. But, I kind of wish I was less jaded about comics and could have enjoyed it more.)

The problem is that we were supposed to care. Marvel said that "Age of Ultron" was going to matter. Marvel specifically said that "Age of Ultron" as going to end with such a big damned deal of an ending that Marvel could feel secure revealing "Angela's first Marvel appearance" without detracting from the issue.

Marvel even felt the need to poly-bag the issue.

Marvel even felt the need to poly-bag the issue.



Sorry. It needed to emphasized.

As I read it, and based on a discussion in the comic store, the real end result of "Age of Ultron" is....

Another cross-over....between 616 and the "Ultimate" universe. As Sparky pointed out about a year ago, Marvel once said that 616 and "Ultimate" would not cross-over. They even said they were making an exception for the 50th anniversary of Spider-Man with the "Spider-Men" series. And, now, they are just running a cross-over of exactly the sort that Marvel has always promised they would never do in "Ultimate".

Galactus shows up in the "Ultimate" universe as a precursor to the upcoming "Hunger" event. The biggest can of worms that this opens up is that Marvel is undermining their branding of "Ultimate", and doing exactly the sort of thing that they said they would not do in the "Ulitmate" books. As recently as the last two years, Marvel consistently pushed the "Ultimate" books as being more or less self-contained and grounded. They were not supposed to cross-over with 616, especially for this sort thing. (I am very interested in what "Ultimate" readers have to say about "Hunger".)

So, yeah, the take away here: Marvel is back-sliding on one of their longer held editorial policies for the sake of an event that few if any of the readers it is being pitched towards want.


A few negligible changes to Marvel's timeline have been made. Some of the "future" characters and books are now formally off the table, either being retconned or being alternate timelines. Of course, Marvel's multiversale numbering system long since established that much. Did anybody need to be told that Arno Stark (the Iron Man of 2020) or the 2099 books were really not tied to anything in modern Marvel?

There have been changes to Thanos and the Guardians of the Galaxy. But, those re-writes have been underway for the last year or so now.

"Age of Ultron" is less a "Crisis" style reset than it an all-purpose way for Marvel to make arbitrary changes if they feel like making them. It offers nothing in the way of clarifying what (relatively little) has changed about 616 Marvel. There is not sense of scale or of degree. A bunch of stuff happened....and none of it matters. Despite the hype, and the black poly-bag, "Age of Ultron" was just a cheap event story, and not even a particularly good one.

But, who cares? At least it is over.

Grade: F
("Age of Ultron" is not even worth reading as an example of bad comics. But, odds are, somebody here is going to get it packed in with a trade in the near future.)


-Despondent Dom......

[Sparky Prime]

Green Lantern #21
Of course the roller coaster that is Hal and Carol's relationship resumes immediately now that Hal's back. I gather Carol feels she can love Hal more apart than if they are together, and because of that, she can do more good with her own ring. Hal says they'll make it work and is called back to Oa where the Templar Guardians decide to put Hal in charge of the Corps while they re-familiarize themselves with the universe. Apparently Salaak has resigned his post as protocol officer and Kilowog has taken his place. Hal decides they need to recruit with so many GL's killed recently, despite Kilowog saying they aren't ready to be recruiting. And it's just in time for Larfleeze to decide Oa is vulnerable with the Guardians gone. Pretty good issue.

Green Lantern Corps #21
Here we see why Salaak resigned his post. Because of his position so close to the Guardians he feels he is to blame for not catching onto their behavior sooner, and some in the Corps agree. The Templar Guardians convince him to remain a Green Lantern. It's suggested Salaak will hunt down any other dark plots the Guardians may have had. Meanwhile, we get a bit of a feel for the distrust the rest of the universe feels towards the Green Lanterns after the Third Army and First Lantern. Not sure how the entire universe would know the Third Army had anything to do with the Guardians, given the Guardians managed to keep almost everyone in the dark about it, but whatever. And another villain has decided to take advantage of the Guardians absence. Decent issue. I like that this issue puts a bit more of a focus on various members of the Corps and looks like will introduce some new recruits separately from the ones introduced in GL.

Green Lantern: New Guardians #21
The Templar Guardians request Kyle accompany them as they tour the universe, but Kyle really doesn't want to do that. He feels especially betrayed by the Guardians having been so close to Ganthet personally. Hal joins him to let off some steam on some space sharks and convinces Kyle it's probably a good idea someone keeps an eye on these New Guardians. Kyle returns to Earth to pack up his apartment and talks to Carol, where she mentions the conversation with Hal in the above GL issue. The first place the New Guardians visit is an anomaly on the edge of the universe they believe is a relic of a previous universe. Kyle isn't convinced they are unlike the old Guardians in their study of the thing, and they are attacked by a self imposed guardian of the anomaly. The fighting triggers the anomaly to break, and frees the much hyped new villain, Relic.

Overall, I'm a bit surprised how interconnected the storylines of all three issues where. I was expecting them to go in their own directions now that The Wrath of the First Lantern is over, but they each pick up on events from the others. Yet each establishes events well enough on their own you don't have to read all of them to enjoy the story. It's a nice touch that reminds me of an older era of comics. Nice to see a new direction for each title as well. Looking forward to seeing where these new writers takes things.

[JediTricks]

Finished the rest of All-Star Superman. Very good first half. Honestly tho, once it got to the Bizarro Home stories, it lost me and it never quite made it back. The endings were rushed and didn't work for me, in fact the animated feature version was much better with Lex's ending both in-canon and from the changes.

[andersonh1]

Green Lantern #21
Of course the roller coaster that is Hal and Carol's relationship resumes immediately now that Hal's back. I gather Carol feels she can love Hal more apart than if they are together, and because of that, she can do more good with her own ring. Hal says they'll make it work and is called back to Oa where the Templar Guardians decide to put Hal in charge of the Corps while they re-familiarize themselves with the universe. Apparently Salaak has resigned his post as protocol officer and Kilowog has taken his place. Hal decides they need to recruit with so many GL's killed recently, despite Kilowog saying they aren't ready to be recruiting. And it's just in time for Larfleeze to decide Oa is vulnerable with the Guardians gone. Pretty good issue.

I agree, good issue. I enjoyed it quite a bit. It puts Hal in a role he's uncomfortable with (shouldering responsibility of leading) and Kilowog as well, since he's more of a drill sergeant and brusier than he is a clerk. Should be good for both characters.

Finished the rest of All-Star Superman. Very good first half. Honestly tho, once it got to the Bizarro Home stories, it lost me and it never quite made it back. The endings were rushed and didn't work for me, in fact the animated feature version was much better with Lex's ending both in-canon and from the changes.

I don't think I've ever read more than the first two issues. The animated version is very good though.

[JediTricks]

I don't think I've ever read more than the first two issues. The animated version is very good though.

You're the first person I've seen agree on that, I really liked the movie, that's why I bought the comic, a lot of folks said the movie was ok but cut too much from the book. I didn't feel that way when reading it, the book does a better job encompassing the entirety of Superman in the various comic ages, but doesn't really add anything of substance to the characters that the movie missed. The movie ending everyone talks about the impact being taken away, but the comics ending feels very much the same too-quick pacing, and in some ways quicker than the movie.