TF Views

Batman ’66 #25

“Night of the Harlequin”
Jeff Parker set this new villain up in several earlier issues, and it finally pays off as we get the Batman ’66 version of Harley Quinn, known here as Harlequin. I think at the time I reviewed those old issues I wasn’t too thrilled with bringing in characters that hadn’t actually appeared on the old tv show. I felt that it diluted the unique world that this version of Batman inhabits. But the cow’s out of the barn now, so there’s no point in complaining. And if it gets a few of Harley Quinn’s fans to pick up this book, that’s no bad thing.

The story itself see Harlequin go on a crime spree, and her motto seems to be “what would the Joker do?” Batman and Robin eventually capture her when she tries to hire some thugs as underlings, because they’ve disguised themselves to infiltrate the would-be gang.

“Bad Men”
A takeoff of sorts on Mad Men, the story sees the Penguin, the Joker, the Riddler and the Eartha Kitt version of Catwoman approach the best ad agency in Gotham for ideas on how to upgrade their image with Gotham City residents. Also there is Barbara Gordon in civilian garb, and she manages to get the villains arguing enough with each other that they don’t see her call the police to come round them up. It’s a fun story that couldn’t happen in any other Batman series.

Sinestro #12 and #13
I've kinda been neglecting this title a bit, I don't think I've posted anything about the last couple of issues. But with how connected the story of these two issues are, I thought it works out better by talking about both of them together.

New Korugar has a problem, the reactors at the core of the former prison planet are melting down and will explode soon. Natu is concerned her father is going back to his old ways given his seemingly lack of interest in the situation and the threat to the few remaining survivors of their people who currently live on the planet. Although Sinestro does have his science division working on that problem, the Yellow Lanterns are currently busy planting a seed of Ranx (which was destroyed during the Sinestro Corps War) on War World. Natu discovers this plot but Sinestro confronts her and they fight. Sinestro displays his superior ring skills and takes Natu's Green Lantern ring from her and replaces it with one from his Corps, making Natu a Yellow Lantern.

Natu demands her GL ring back, but being unaccustomed to using Fear, isn't able to put up a fight against Sinestro. He assures her it was necessary as Lyssa Drak gave him the heads up the Green Lantern Corps would be disappearing, as we see her GL ring suddenly vanish. Natu wants to know where the Green Lanterns are but Drak says she could only see it coming, she doesn't know what happened to them. With that taken care of, Sinestro turns his attention back to the reactors that are about to explode and is joined by Bekka, who believes as one of the New Gods, she was only recruited to be a weapon for Sinestro to show his strength, but Sinestro says strength has nothing to do with the weapons he has. At the planet's core, Sinestro unleashes Parallax and binds him to the reactors, preventing the meltdown but also leaves him without his greatest weapon, which he tells Bekka she can use that information however she wants. With that crisis over, Sinestro announces with the Green Lantern Corps gone, the Sinestro Corps will be replacing them as the peace keepers of the universe. Later on, Drak reveals to Sinestro she was the one that triggered the meltdown so that he'd forget about saving his people and focus on the bigger picture. However, Sinestro already knew all this, but he spares Drak and keeps her betrayal a secret because she is still useful to him.
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The last time we saw Parallax during the Gods Head storyline, it looked like High Father had smacked Parallax out of Sinestro. And they kind of gave the impression Sinestro was bluffing that he still had Parallax went he didn't use him to escape from Mongul. So I was a bit surprised to see Sinestro still had Parallax after all. But now he really has sacrificed his control over the Fear Entity, which only Bekka knows for the moment. Good to see the acknowledgement of the absence of the Green Lantern Corps here, although we really don't get any insights as to how/why they ended up transported to another time/universe. And I really like that Sinestro decides to use his own Corps to replace the missing Green Lanterns. Really speaks to how Sinestro still sees himself and his goals of trying to maintain peace in the universe. Also interesting to see the Yellow Lanterns resurrecting Ranx by planting a seed on War World. Looks like the Sinestro Corps is returning to the strength they had back during the Sinestro Corps War. Really looking forward to the developments in this series.

Superman Unchained
I was mildly curious about this series when it was being published, but my general aversion to all things New 52 caused me to steer clear. But the good old library had it a few weeks ago, and it's worth reading for free, right?

No, not really. It wasn't just the lateness of the issues that saw this book losing boatloads of readers every issue, I'm sure. It's the fact that for a book featuring Jim Lee and Scott Snyder, it's not very good at all. It's a very bloated story with a very cynical tone, and the few attempts at breaking out and showing Superman as inspirational just fall flat. Batman gets all the best lines, of course, and he's barely in the story. Jim Lee seriously has problems keeping Superman on-model and consistent from page to page, and his storytelling skills leave a lot to be desired. He did a much better job with his issue of Multiversity than he does here.

The story in a nutshell: Superman learns of another alien much like himself, called Wraith, who has been on Earth and in the employ of the US military since 1938. The two of them work together temporarily to stop a terrorist organization who manages to launch every nuclear weapon on Earth via alien technology. Superman is able to stop the nukes with the same tech, but he and Wraith eventually come into conflict, thanks to the orders of General Lane. In the end, it turns out that Wraith was a plant to scout an invasion, and the fleet is out beyond the sun, heading for Earth. Superman heads out into space to stop them armed with a weapon developed by Lex Luthor, but it's Wraith who ultimately chooses to remain loyal to his country where he's lived for 78 years and to destroy the fleet, killing himself in the process.

It sounds simple. But with all the characters and all the details stuffed into this story, it feels very convoluted. It shouldn't be, and there's where I'm thinking that the storytelling methods of Snyder and Lee are at fault. The idea of a weapon that allows Superman to supercharge himself on solar energy and then die seems to come straight from All-Star Superman, it's not original. And then there's the US and Russian military, who both have weapons that are able to hurt and kill Superman. Things like weapons that emit red sunlight so they can hurt him, or other similar tech that should be impossible for 21st century humanity to engineer. Lane uses them to attack the Fortress of Solitude near the end of the story. And speaking of Lane, once again we have the tired cliche of a mindless, war-loving, "my country love it or die" general who doesn't need orders from the president to do whatever he pleases stereotype we ALWAYS get in stories like this. Lane isn't a character, he's a cliche. It's so typical and it's so lazy.

I've just scratched the surface of the details. I've read worse Superman stories, but this is very much a story that was overhyped and then underdelivered.

Green Lantern #43
As I said last time, this book feels less and less like a Green Lantern title. It might as well be Han Solo flying the mouthy ship rather than Hal Jordan. I don’t know… I don’t mind the story, and interesting things happen every issue, but the title feels misleading these days.

In any case, Hal and his crew are investigating what’s causing planets to turn to stone, and Hal has a good idea what the cause could be. He heads out to the edge of the universe and the Source Wall. Anything that touched it in the past turned to stone and became entrapped in it (which may mean that all the planets turned to stone so far aren’t actually dead, but that’s hardly a certainty). Hal leaves his power gauntlet behind as he heads out to take a look at the wall, because Relic is there studying it, and a crack that’s appeared in it. Hal and Relic have a good conversation, and thanks to the fact that Relic saw him, Hal knows that Black Hand is involved.

Thanks to the alien price messing with Hal’s power gauntlet, the ship is lit up with green energy, alerting Relic and turning him hostile. Hal has to argue with his ship, but in the end they all escape just in time, with Relic noting that they’ll meet again.

All other gripes aside, Vendetti has done a nice job not only continuing his overall storyline that began with Relic entering the universe and studying it, but he’s figured out a way to use the Source Wall as a threat by having it “infect” Black Hand somehow. It’s the type of thing that Geoff Johns sometimes does well: take a long-established character or story element and do something new with it. I still hate Hal’s Gambit look though, an d the sooner we get back to him actually dressing and acting as a Green Lantern, the happier I’ll be.

Rebels #1
"In a rush of great public resistance to an oppressive and excessive government, a homegrown militia movement is formed in rural America. This is not 2015, but 1775. With the war for independence playing out across the colonies, young Seth and Mercy Abbott find their new marriage tested at every turn, as the demands of the frontlines and the home front collide."

Historical fiction isn't the type of comic I normally buy. But I'd had my eye on this series for a few months. The art looked good, and I always find early American history fascinating, so since I had none of my regular books out this week I decided to take a chance on this series and see how it was. I'm glad I did, because it was quite good and right up my alley.

Young Seth Abbot is growing up in New Hampshire in the years before the Revolution. His father is a tough, silent man who says little and thinks it's a waste of time for Seth's mother to teach him how to read. As Seth grows, his father and he become part of the local militia, and there is an incident where they plan to ambush a unit of Redcoats who are marching through the woods. Flash forward to a now grown Seth, and he's still in the militia, watching as relations between the British government and the colonies get worse. A group of farmers try to occupy a courthouse to prevent their land from being seized, and they're attacked by Redcoats. Seth defuses the situation, but two of the farmers have been killed.

Before the end of the issue, we learn that Seth will be marrying Mercy, a young woman from a neighboring farm, within six weeks. His best friend Ezekiel is also in the militia with him, and neither of them know just how far events with the British will escalate.

Rebels #2
The story jumps ahead a few months. Seth is off with the militia, the Green Mountain Boys, engaging in guerilla warfare against the British army. He is away from home for weeks at a time, while Mercy is alone at their small home, keeping house and spending her time alone. The house is payment from Ethan Allen in exchange for a two year stint in the militia by Seth. The militia steal some papers from an officer, learn of plans to build a new fort, and after a visit home by Seth, they head out to disrupt those plans. The issue ends on a cliffhanger as the small militia unit, under heavy fire, manages to sink a British barge with supplies for the new fort, but not without some loss of life.

Writer Brian Wood has an afterward in both issues 1 and 2 where he discusses some of his upbringing and what led him to write a book like this. His politics and mine are pretty far apart in a lot of ways, but there's a lot we can agree on as well about the current condition of the United States, and a love for the history and mythology of our country. He's a native of New Hampshire, hence his choice to set his story there and focus on some of the lesser known events of the Revolutionary War. After reading these first two issues, I think I'm in for the long haul. I'm really enjoying the story.

Star Trek/Green Lantern Spectrum War #2
Chekov quickly learns to use the blue ring to power the Enterprise, allowing Hal to fight Chang but Hal is still weak from his trip to this universe. Chekov fires some blue energy torpedoes and they retreat to avoid a larger conflict. Meanwhile, a Gorn named Glocon is chosen by a red ring and a Romulan named Decius is chosen by the orange ring. Chang returns to Qo'Nos and kills the Klingon council putting himself in charge. But his ring suddenly shuts down as Sinestro arrives claiming he will give the orders as long as Chang wears a yellow ring.

Still a lot of set up for this event with this issue focused so much on the rings choosing bearers from the Trek universe. Good to see a Romulan and Gorn get a ring to give us a few more Trek aliens I'm this story. Although it seemed strange Hal says he gets a shock every time the rings from other Corps choose a new bearer. And while it's understandable Hal doesn't know where he followed Ganthet's trail to, how does he think the Enterprise could be a secret NASA ship? Anyway, despite not really progressing the plot much, I enjoyed this issue. Gave us some interesting looks at the Romulan state of affairs as well as the Gorn in this timeline. Glocon and Decius also both express unhappiness with the current state of their respective governments. Looking forward to how power rings change things for them seeing what Chang did to his government with his ring.

Green Lantern #43
It's great to see Ethan Van Sciver doing the art for this issue. There are some cool scenes in this issue that I think his art really helped to capture. The 2 page spread of Hal going to talk to Relic at the Source Wall particularly has this great sense of scale to it. Story wise though, I felt it was lacking in a few areas. It just seems odd to me to see Relic sitting by the Source Wall, apparently having lost his memory of being taken to the other side with Kyle, when he's still so concerned about the various Corps putting a drain on the Emotional Reservoir. Granted the fissure that's appeared in the Wall has his attention currently, but at the same time, he's so quick to react to the little burst of emotional energy on Hal's ship. Speaking of Hal's ship, I'm really not caring for the AI personality or how Hal keeps referring to it as "darling". It just doesn't seem like something Hal would call it. I can't help but think of the Green Lantern Animated Series, where Hal and Kilowog have a ship with an AI program they name Aya... Only I feel the cartoon did a much better job introducing and developing that personality.

I missed Trek/GL last week. I'll have to remember to pick it up this week.

I got to meet Green Lantern writer Robert Vendetti today. He was at the comic shop signing books, so I had the chance to say hello and tell him that I was enjoying the book. The only downside was that I had already spent all my cash on this week's books and didn't have anything for him to sign. But hopefully my positive feedback was encouraging.

andersonh1 wrote:I got to meet Green Lantern writer Robert Vendetti today. He was at the comic shop signing books, so I had the chance to say hello and tell him that I was enjoying the book. The only downside was that I had already spent all my cash on this week's books and didn't have anything for him to sign. But hopefully my positive feedback was encouraging.

Wow, I bet that was fun. Too bad you didn't have anything for him to sign, but still cool that you got to meet him.

Star Trek/Green Lantern #2
I guess the primary plot developments of this issue are that a Gorn gets a red ring, and the Romulan Decius gets the orange ring. General Chang heads back to the Klingon homeworld to kill the ruling council and install himself as emperor, only to have Sinestro show up and put him in his place. Hal Jordan is somehow aware every time a new ring-wielder is chosen. Beyond that, the issue consists of characters discovering what they can do with their newfound powers, resulting in some light but fun scenes. It's a clash of franchises that goes by way too quickly.

Green Lantern Lost Army #3
If last issue's ending didn't clue the reader in, this issue leaves no doubt that the Green Lanterns are in the past, and in Relic's universe, presumably near the end of its existence. How close isn't clear, and John Stewart finds himself wondering about that. He ends up lying to Relic to try and gain his assistance, something Guy Gardner isn't at all happy about. Relic's ship is attacked by "Light Pirates" and when the Green Lanterns engage, Arisa finds her ring totally drained of power very quickly by the collectors that the pirates use.

This series seems to have taken a page from "Arrow" and features a flashback to John Stewart's time as a Marine for the third issue in a row. Relic's universe continues to be an interesting place to visit, though as I've said before, I'm concerned that it was more effective when left to the imagination. I guess it was too intriguing a setting to leave unexplored. And having two major enemies of the GLC as cast members, though admittedly when they're younger and less hostile, is an interesting choice.

Rebels #3
The story flashes back and forth between Seth's childhood and Seth and Mercy's present day troubles. The childhood memories involve Seth and his father and sister going ice fishing in a New England snowy winter, a day's walk from home. The hand-drill for getting through the ice breaks, and when Seth's father chops through the ice with his hatchet, he ends up weakening the ice and falling in. He gets out, but has been wounded and suffers the very real danger of exposure to the cold. Seth's sister is supposed to start a fire, but she runs home, leaving Seth to drag his wounded father back home, a trip that takes four exhausting days through the frozen wilderness.

In the present day, Seth returns home from the successful expedition against the British to find Ethan Allen and another soldier waiting on him. His wife Mercy is all alone most of the time, and has taken to carrying a pistol with her when she's outside of the lonely cabin in the woods. Seth is barely home for a half hour when he leaves to march south and join the Continental Army. Needless to say, his wife is not happy at all. The closing narration of the story notes that Seth would not see her again for six years, and that he wouldn't have left if he'd known his son would be born five months later.

There's a bleak ending, with Mercy left all on her own in the deep woods to have her child, and her husband heading off to fight in the Revolutionary War. It's true to history though. That's the type of thing that often happened, with families being apart for years at a time. And after reading so many comics with superhumans to whom time, distance and cold aren't much of an obstacle, the story of a boy having to drag his father home across a frozen wilderness is such a strong piece of drama. Good stuff.