Red Hood and the Outlaws #22 – Review

By: James Tynion IV (writer), Julius Gopez (pencils), Ray McCarthy (inks), Nei Ruffino & BLOND (colors) 

The Story: Jason prepares to lead to the League of Assassins into battle against the Untitled, not knowing that they’ve enlisted Arsenal. It’s up to Starfire to save the world, and, hopefully, her friends as well.

The Review: This month the Outlaws are on their own. James Tynion has created a fascinating web of alliances that pits our heroes against each other. As ever, Roy Harper is a standout character, his combination of brilliance, directness, and unwavering loyalty making him hard to dislike, but easily the most desperate of the trio. He’s even got a new hat!

Starfire is still struggling to find her voice. Thankfully, she’s the one getting things done and working for the good, but the star of the show is still Jason Todd.

Jason’s plotline sees him exploring the underground utopia that forms the core of the League of Assassins empire. Though Jason is a little bit of a blank canvass after his mind wiping adventures, it’s great fun to get to know the League’s members. The Bronze Tiger and Lady Shiva give a great sense of the League’s ethos and power, and focus on their interactions with their peers help the issue feel immersive and connected to the greater DCU.

Tynion has also  come a long way in his portrayal of Cheshire since Red Hood and the Outlaws Annual #1. Where she came off a little generic and oversexed there, Tynion’s settled into a much preferable playful rhythm for her sophomore appearance that makes her an oddly likable cuthroat assassin.

Earth Two Annual #1 – Review

By: James Robinson (story), Cafu (art), Julius Gopez (pencils), Cam Smith (inks), Pete Pantazis (colors)

The Story: The big guy goes after the small fry.

The Review: While some might use the recent announcement of Robinson’s departure from this series (and DC as a whole) as ammunition against DC’s creative instability, I happen to see it as a perhaps wise, even necessary thing.  Robinson’s power on Earth Two began waning a long time ago, and by now, his writing is no longer a factor for why I remain attached to the title.  Really, it’s more the concept, as opposed to the execution, that keeps me on board.

It is not lost on me, however, that even conceptually, this series is fully a product of Robinson’s imagination.  I’m perfectly willing to admit that in terms of actual plot development, he has good ideas and Earth Two has become a compelling, independent world because of it.  But his character work has been horrendously shallow on this series, mostly as a result of an increasingly hackneyed style of dialogue and narration.

Young Romance #1 – Review

By: Too many to list—check out the review.

The Story: Superhero love is a many-splendored thing…

The Review: Young Romance is one of those titles that a proper reviewer probably should feel a little bit of embarrassment about reading, given its hopelessly gimmicky nature.  Even so, I do kind of like the grab-bag format of these things, and I appreciate that DC has enough of a sense of humor to do something this cheesy.  Besides, with the mix of talent involved, you never know if you might run into a gem of a feature, promising better things from the creators involved.

Team Seven #3 – Review

By: Justin Jordan (story), Julius Gopez & Jimbo Salgado (art), Nathan Eyring (colors)

The Story: This isn’t Zelda, Slade; big shiny gems aren’t always a good thing.

The Review: Sometimes, I just don’t get how the Big Two make their publishing and editing decisions.  Granted, I’m no businessman, nor do I know the ins and outs of the comic book biz, and obviously there are a lot of politics that I have no awareness of, but the goal shouldn’t be that hard to grasp: produce the best story premises with the most suitable and talented creative teams possible.  Settling for less only creates more problems in the long term.

Case in point: I would like to know who gave the green light for Team Seven to go to market when it is so clearly not ready for mass consumption.  The book clearly has a good pitch—put a number of DC’s toughest non-powered heroes on one team and unleash them on some crazy missions—but from what I’ve read, it seems clear the series could have used a lot more time in the development tank before it could truly stand on its own.

Team Seven #2 – Review

By: Justin Jordan (story), Ron Frenz (breakdowns), Julius Gopez (pencils), Scott Hanna (inks), Nathan Eyring (colors)

The Story: It’s hard to tell if everyone’s gone crazy because of a Jekyll serum or severe jet lag.

The Review: Even though Jordan gets to work with some pretty recognizable characters, it’s apparent that some intensive work needs to be done to make them stand out in people’s minds. Team Seven ostensibly works within a much more realistic framework of conflicts than, say, the Justice League, and so they tend to come across a little more realistically than their superheroic peers.  However, the closer characters get to reality, the harder it is to make them memorable.

After all, you’re dealing with a whole group of people who are pretty darn smart, intellectually, street, or otherwise.  Not only that, but they are all of them professionals in their field.  Smart, professional people tend to react reasonably in crisis situations, and so has Team Seven.  In such circumstances, there’s no meaningful opportunity to show off your colorful personality.  So even though there are obvious differences between Amanda Waller and Cole Cash, you don’t read this issue and instantly recognize a totally Waller or Cash “moment.”