Comics are Awesome III

[Sparky Prime]

Venditti had some good ideas during his run... But honestly I'd have to say overall I wasn't a big fan of his work. I feel that he reset things back to status quo way too often, and in some ways took the story back a few steps from where Johns left it. Be interesting to see who will be replacing him.

[andersonh1]

Well at least someone remembers Cowgirl! Even if it's just a cameo. And Tom Kalmaku as well.

http://www.blogofoa.com/2017/10/tom-kal ... rface.html

[andersonh1]

Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #41
Zod's Will finishes up with Hal taking on Zod in single combat, and since as Hal notes he's prepared for a Kryptonian this time, he fights an aerial battle against Zod and beats him, placing him under arrest, only for John and the Guardians to arrive and remove the Corps from Zod's planet, refusing to assert jurisdiction, much to Hal's chagrin. John promises Hal that they'll be watching the planet, and Zod reveals to his family that the Eradicator was able to obtain all the military data stored in Kyle's ring, which he does "magnaimously" return when the Corps leave his planet. Good story, good art, and I enjoyed the dialogue, particularly Hal's "I believe" monologue at the beginning of the issue. As a character who depends on willpower, Hal must have strong beliefs, so it's very much in character for him.

Mera: Queen of Atlantis #2 of 6
I'm not sure I reviewed issue 1, but the plot honestly doesn't move forward by much. Mera is living on the surface, recovering from her injuries sustained after breaking through the Crown of Thorns around Atlantis. Meanwhile Ocean Master had fallen in love with a surface woman with a son, but the call of duty means he must return to Atlantis to intervene in the ongoing civil war there. As Mera knows he's not a man of good character, she tries to talk him out of it when he pays a courtesy call on her, but the whole thing comes to blows as they argue, especially when Mera reveals that the Widow Sisterhood named her as queen. In her injured state, she's no match for Ocean Master, who is stopped from killing her only by the appearance of his girlfriend and son.

Metal #6
Metal ends after a long delay, but that let the same artist draw all six issues, so it's not a bad thing. Yes, in the end, our group of heroes finally defeat Barbatos and lift the Earth out of the dark multiverse, using a variety of weapons, including some 10th metal armor taken from the Forge of Worlds. Hawkman (who always used 9th or Nth metal) is recovered and regains his human form, and the Source Wall is broken, meaning whatever's on the other side can come through. There are tons of characters who get good scenes, but Wonder Woman's is notable, as is Batman's (he teams up with the Joker to defeat the Batman who laughs and rescue the Monitor from him, of all people). In the end, a humbled Bruce Wayne holds a dinner and party for all his friends, noting that (as Wonder Woman demonstrates in this issue) their friendship and commitment helped get them all through, and he's thankful they didn't give up on him. I like a humbler, grateful Batman, and scenes like this should happen far more often. The book sets up all sorts of plot threads and characters for the future, as well as a Justice League reorganiztion, so it's par for the course there.

Most of the "New Age of Heroes" set up to come out of Metal look like Marvel analogues to me (Damage is the Hulk, Sideways is Spider Man, the Terrifics are the Fantastic Four, etc), and I doubt that most of them will last any longer than new characters spun out of other events. But I will be picking up Hawkman when it starts in a few months, so hopefully Venditti has some good plans for the character.

[Sparky Prime]

Kinda disappointed they didn't go into more with Hal's ring... With Kyle briefly wearing it, and seeing how he was being affected by Hal's Willpower, it seemed like they might have been building towards something. But I guess that was just to illustrate how unique Hal's new ring is and why it's really only suited for Hal to use.

[andersonh1]

Venditti had some good ideas during his run... But honestly I'd have to say overall I wasn't a big fan of his work. I feel that he reset things back to status quo way too often, and in some ways took the story back a few steps from where Johns left it. Be interesting to see who will be replacing him.

I agree, I'm curious to see who will be taking over.

I've just re-read about half of Venditti's New 52 run, having picked up the hardcovers after all, and I've been looking back over my reviews written as the issues came out. I was fairly positive about a lot of it, though down on some aspects. I do think the quality of his writing (and definitely the art) improved once we hit Rebirth, but there's a definite division between the New 52/DC You/Rebirth phases of his work that almost have to be editorially driven.

The New 52 is where we got most of Venditti's new contributions to GL with Relic and the emotional reservoir and the lightsmiths of the previous universe. The Khund and Durlan war, with the Durlans trying to become Daxamites, was built in part on previous storylines or ideas by other writers (I"m thinking back to some Sodam Yat storylines in GLC pre-52), but I thought was well done. Godhead was a case of presenting the New Gods as if they were something new. And then we got DC You and Renegade Hal, which did some interesting things with Black Hand and the Source Wall, revamped Sonar and then had Parallax-Hal in the book. The Rebirth book has used a lot of traditional enemies and concepts that, while not really offering any new ideas, have been fun, well-told stories that don't outstay their welcome.

Maybe that's why HJ&TGLC has felt a bit lightweight, because it's not really bringing a lot of new ideas to the table (Hal's unique ring being an exception), just reusing old characters and concepts, albeit doing that well in my opinion. Most of Venditti's new contributions came at the beginning of his run, whereas Geoff Johns seemed to (in retrospect) always be heading for Blackest Night, but he took his time getting there, giving us various new things along the way (the Sinestro Corps, the emotional spectrum, etc), and it wasn't until Blackest Night ended that he really ran out of steam (in my opinion anyway). He had a goal, and he paced himself in getting there.

It is kind of amazing that the main Green Lantern title has only had two writers in 14 years. Whoever the new guy is, he's got a lot to live up to.

[andersonh1]

Titans #22
Monsiur Mallah and the Brain put their plan into action, with the Brain's intelligence increasing exponentially. He puts his plan to divide and destroy the Justice League into action, drawing them to different parts of the globe and then attacking them, as well as attacking Batman on the JL satellite. Donna Troy has had enough of being sent to her room, as it were, and leaves to help Roy Harper just before the systems are taken over. She saves him from Cheshire and her hired thugs, who were just about to kill Roy, who was right all along about the greater threat. He and Donna head inside to confront the Brain. Paul Pelletier is drawing this series, and though I was disappointed to see Brett Booth leave, I think I like Pelletier's art better at this point.

Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #42
Ethan Van Sciver draws this issue in which the Controllers plan to re-establish the Darkstars and challenge the Green Lantern Corps. They've done their job too well, and in the usual fashion, the armor they've made to control the recruits gains a mind of its own, turning on the Controllers. Darkstar One recuits Tomar-Tu into the ranks, because rather than repenting of his murder of Romat-Ru, Tomar has decided that it was the right thing to do, and that he'd do it again. It's mentioned during his conversation with Hal that Tomar-Re was killed by Goldface, which happened in Green Lantern #198 during the Crisis, so that goes way back. John Stewart's time as a Darkstar is hinted at, and I assume will play a part in this storyline. It would be a missed opportunity if it didn't. This is a strong beginning to the story, though it feels like it just gets up and running when we hit the cliffhanger and have to wait for the next installment.

[andersonh1]

I have a twitter account solely so I can ask comic book writers questions from time to time. I asked Robert Venditti if we were ever going to find out who sent the Green Lantern Corps to Relic's universe, and his reply was "Not from me. That wasn’t one of my stories."

[Sparky Prime]

....Wasn't one of his stories? As the writer who picked up the story right where the Corps returned to their own universe, that should have been one of his stories. It was bad enough he had Kyle explain the Corps just thought the Guardians were on a 'walkabout'. But b brushing it off like he's done over the past 2 years and not addressing it at all, he makes it seem like the Corps doesn't care that someone had the ability to send them all into the previous universe as it was about to die, when that should have been one of their first priorities to find out and deal with.

[andersonh1]

Aquaman #35
I love this book, but they seriously need to wrap up the current storyline, running since issue 24. A year of Aquaman in exile, while Corum Rath goes crazier and crazier, feels like it's never going to end. And while I don't mind long hair and beard Aquaman, he needs a haircut and a shave soon. At any rate, the story does look like it's finally going somewhere, and both Aquaman and Murk appear to have reached an understanding, while Rath is mutating into something horrible as he pays the price for the dark magic he unleashed last issue.

Superman #45
A farewell to Gleason and Tomasi's run sees the Kents return to the farmhouse in Hamilton County one last time to get the last of their belongings before the new owners move in. They clean, they pull stuff into the yard, the Flash takes everything to their apartment in Metropolis, and they get to go to the county fair one last time. The issue even ends with "The Colors will fly", some of the earliest words from issue 1 of Rebirth Superman. It's a nice little family story of the kind I've come to enjoy so much since Jon was added to the books.

Action Comics #1000
I just picked up the standard cover. Great 80 page anniversary issue that sees all sorts of past Superman creative teams return for stories short and long that go back to various eras of Superman's history. Dan Jurgens opens the book while Brian Bendis and Jim Lee close it. I couldn't begin to name all the writers and artists, but my favorite Superman artist, Jerry Ordway, contributes a story, and Patrick Gleason has a hypertime story that gives us many iterations of Superman. Geoff Johns writes a short story featuring the Golden Age Superman and Butch, the guy whose car Superman is smashing on the cover of Action Comics #1. It's a nice anniversary celebration, and I honestly haven't even read it all yet. There's an 80 Years of Action Comics hardcover I might pick up as well at some point.

[andersonh1]

Nice review of Action Comics #1000, and I agree, it's a wonderful anniversary issue. "Charm, sincerity and optimism" certainly sum up the stories, with the exception of the final story by Bendis, which is really just a teaser for future storylines.

https://www.bleedingcool.com/2018/04/19 ... 00-review/

In the litany of “landmark” issues released of late — almost entirely of which came from Marvel and have been largely quite enjoyable — Action Comics #1000 manages to stand apart on a mixture of charm, endless sincerity, and an optimistic tone to brighten up even these dark times.

In any case, Action Comics #1000 is everything I hoped it would and more. The writers, artists, inkers, color artists, and letterers all do pristine work, and even the weaker parts were still very enjoyable and only weak by comparison to the incredible work done in this comic. This is the birthday both Superman and Action Comics deserved, and you should definitely give it a read. Don’t miss out.