Superman Unchained #7 – Review

By: Scott Snyder (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair (colors)

The Story: Can a one-man army take down an actual army?

The Review: Happy Independence Day, everyone—yes, even you folks who have nothing to do with the good ol’ U.S. of A. So I think it’s appropriate that my first review of the day celebrating America goes to the comic starring that most quintessential all-American hero, the Man of Steel himself. It’s also important that here, we’re dealing with a Superman in his purest, most heroic form, as opposed to one struggling not to unleash certain death on all living things—we’ll deal with that hot mess later.

That said, Clark’s big heroic moment in this series has come and gone; what’s left is purely personal, with little opportunity for growth. He seems on the verge of it here, reflecting on Wraith’s challenges from #5: “The choices I make about when I fight, how I fight, how I live my life inside and outside of this…those choices mean that Superman, as I’ve created him, he can’t last forever.” But he never synthesizes these musings into a concrete conclusion as to what he should do. Instead, he dithers, pleading with Lois for understanding, which is preaching to the choir if you’ve ever seen it.

Superman Unchained #6 – Review

By: Scott Snyder (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Dustin Nguyen (art), Alex Sinclair & John Kalisz (colors)

The Story: Superman faces the nuclear winter of Ascension’s discontent.

The Review: While I personally think Action Comics is the quintessential Superman title on the market, there’s no denying that Unchained remains the Superman “It Girl.”  What’s interesting is that the current storylines in each series have a common conflict: Clark’s universal concern for humanity versus purely American interests.  The way Greg Pak and Snyder have handled this conflict reveals the essential differences in their respective styles and books.

In a way, Pak doesn’t really challenge Clark’s values as directly as Snyder does.  In Action Comics, Ghost Soldier is a formidable opponent for Clark, but he’s no match for Clark’s capabilities.  Under those conditions, Clark can take a broader worldview than Soldier simply because he has the power to.  But Wraith is not only Clark’s match, but his superior both in power and experience.  If there’s a scenario Wraith can’t handle, it calls into question whether Clark can, either.

Superman Unchained #5 – Review

By: Scott Snyder (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Dustin Nguyen (art), Alex Sinclair & John Kalisz (colors),

The Story: If Superman’s image of himself 40 years from now is that bad, what hope is there for the rest of us?

The Review: While some folks may decry any grimness that enters the ultimately cheerful Superman mythos, I always thought Clark’s halcyon childhood in the comics was a bit too sugar-coated to be credible.  If Smallville and Man of Steel did the comics one better at anything, it was giving the young Clark some actual trauma and a bit of a temper—too much at times, sure, but my point is the changes weren’t inherently bad ones.

Since the DC relaunch, the comics have aligned more closely with Superman’s TV and film appearances by emphasizing that Smallville life was not always watching sunrises/sunsets from wheat fields.  Now, I may join the pitchfork-bearers when it comes to things like killing off the Kents,* but I have no problem with the notion of Clark’s burgeoning powers as a consistent source of tragedy for him.  It’s logical that his nature would invite more dramatic consequences to his actions than the typical farm boy.  With his origins, it’s asking too much to make it seem as if he experienced the ups and downs of childhood and adolescence like everybody else.

Superman Unchained #4 – Review

By: Scott Snyder (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair (colors)

The Story: Superman becomes the Luke Skywalker to Wraith’s Obi-Wan Kenobi.

The Review: I’ll be the first to admit that even though I’m very much a superhero fan, the genre has grown formulaic over the years, and not to an unnoticeable degree either.  Still, I would discourage any broad generalizations about the integrity of the genre.  If anything, it’s harder than ever to write a superhero comic that’s well-crafted, much less novel.  Getting that balance of action-adventure while still telling a story with some teeth to it remains an elusive task.

That’s why Superman Unchained reveals the range of Snyder’s abilities even as some might say that the title wastes talents that might otherwise be spent on more legitimate, creator-owned pursuits.  Few others in the business can engage in the blockbuster type of action you see here while retaining some credibility.  Snyder’s scientific approach to the application of Superman’s powers is so convincing that you spend less time picking out the technical flaws of what’s going on, and more time relishing the action before you.

Superman Unchained #3 – Review

By: Scott Snyder (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair & Jeromy Cox (colors)

The Story: Traveling halfway across Utah is bad enough; doing it as a result of a drop-kick is worse.

The Review: Superman-analogue villains are nothing new, even to the Man of Steel himself: Zod, Cyborg-Superman, and most recently, H’el.  Each of these antagonists is intended to parallel and contrast with Superman, to reveal his virtues by their own lacking of the same.  In a sense, these characters give a glimpse into how Superman could have turned out with a different upbringing than he had in Smallville.

Wraith is no exception to this trend.  Unlike Superman, he was sent to Earth not by circumstance but by design.  He describes himself as an answer to someone’s prayers, that someone being the U.S. military during a time of war.  Despite arriving looking fully grown, he refers to one General Rudolph as “the first father I knew,” meaning he was raised with all the efficiency, pragmatism, and discipline America’s finest can provide.  He’s an older, more experienced Superman with the attitude of a military brat, purposely isolated from society at large—a threatening combination.

Nothing could suit General Lane’s aims more.  While Superman definitely has more dangerous antagonists, Wraith included, Lane is the one that really grabs your attention, demanding your respectful hatred.  Few mortal men have the chutzpah to confront DC’s biggest so brazenly, but Lane’s unflappability gives even Luthor’s a run for its money.  When Superman states he just wants to talk, Lane replies shortly, “Well, you do it from your knees, son.”

Superman Unchained #2 – Review

By: Scott Snyder (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair (colors)

The Story: Superman multitasks rampaging robots, black hole tech, and doppelgangers.

The Review: It didn’t register on me last time, but since it has a back-up feature, that means it’s one of DC’s few, extra-sized series: a higher price point for an added page count.  Since Snyder only uses a couple pages for his back-up, he basically has three extra pages for his own use.  In similar fashion to how stifled DC comics felt after they reduced their page counts two years ago, it’s remarkable how much more substantial those additional pages make the story.*

Even without them, the issue would have felt pretty dense anyway; that’s just how Snyder writes.  But those pages allow Snyder to add all those wonderful, brainy details that make his stories so naturally fascinating to read: references to Greek history (i.e., Apollodorius), British folk figures (i.e. Ned Ludd), and labor movement ballads sung to the tune of battle hymns.  Unlike Geoff Johns, who throws in these things to give his work a veneer of sophistication, Snyder uses them to enrich the story, to comment on the action, to hint on events to come.

Superman Unchained #1 – Review

By: Scott Snyder (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair (colors)

The Story: Superman slips up on the fact-checking of his own story.

The Review: Superman is kind of an odd duck in the scheme of comic book icons.  Even though he’s practically the biggest and most important character DC has, his actual popularity—by which I mean the number of people who’d say he’s their favorite superheroes—always seems disproportionately low to his recognizability.*   He and Batman are ostensibly equals, yet the Batman franchise has consistently outpaced Superman’s in a big way.  Why?

My best guess is it has to do with how difficult it is to get a handle on his character.  I don’t think many people appreciate what a bundle of contradictions Superman is: at once human and alien, physically powerful but emotionally vulnerable, mild-mannered at times and bold at others, someone whose mission is to be a shining example when his deepest desire is to fit in.  Getting the right balance of all these qualities is, to say the least, a formidable task.

Justice League #12 – Review

By: Too many to list—or even talk about.  Check out the review.

The Story: Cue the violins—love is in the air for the League!

The Review: Warning—mild rant ahead.  A lot of people like to blame the media for our social problems today, but it’d be more accurate to say it’s not so much the media but the media hype.  Chalk it up to the relentless 24-hour news cycle or our human need to make every story a little more colorful.  If we as a society are strident, misinformed, distracted, or ignorant, blame it on the media’s tendency to make a big deal over non-issues, to incite excitement over nothing.

This brings us to the obvious question.  Did we really need to have so much controversy and brouhaha over Wonder Woman and Superman’s romantic entanglement?  Was the tabloid-style plastering of their illicit embrace and kiss all over the internet valuable in any way?  The answer, of course, is no.  I’ll refer you to a very perceptive article on the subject, and add on my two cents by saying: frankly, it’d surprise me if the two most powerful and attractive people in the world didn’t even consider a fling at some point.

Justice League #11 – Review

By: Geoff Johns (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams & Jonathan Glapion (inks), Alex Sinclair & Gabe Eltaeb (colors)

The Story: Even Wonder Woman can get a little touchy about her love life.

The Review: The creative supervisors at DC aren’t totally blind, right?  If so, then I can only assume that the uptick in superheroes’ parental deaths post-relaunch must be a purposeful decision of some kind.  In the last year, Cyborg lost his mother (presumably), Wonder Woman lost hers, and Superman lost both his parents.  We’re not even yet counting the Green Lantern, the Flash, Aquaman, and of course Batman’s traditionally deceased parentage.

This trend is so ludicrously prevalent that I feel safe in calling it a cheap gimmick, a crutch to give characters an air of tragedy that tries to pull itself off as depth.  But horribly cynical as this sounds, death has little meaning unless it has the weight of a life behind it.  For the newly orphaned members of the League, we have no true conception of what the deaths of their parents mean to them except that they’re sad, an obvious statement that hardly moves you personally.

Justice League #10 – Review

By: Geoff Johns (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams, Mark Irwin, Jonathan Glapion (inks), Alex Sinclair, Gabe Eltaeb, Tony Avina, Hi-Fi (colors)

The Story: You don’t just break into the Justice League’s clubhouse and get away with it.

The Review: Before I get into the review, I have to apologize for the huge delay on my end this week.  As you may know, this gig isn’t my day job.  During the summer, I did take on quite a few new commitments that have eaten a lot of time, and this week was an especially rough example of that.  I can’t tell you much about the details, but I will say that while it sucked having to put the reviews on hold, it was completely worth it; we got the kid home.

And with that nugget of vagary, let’s talk about what’s really important here: people with superpowers wearing costumes.  Up to perhaps last issue, that was pretty much the extent of character development on the League.  Aside from a lot of buddy-idiot exchanges between Flash and Green Lantern, with a grumbling Batman in the background, we haven’t really seen this set of extraordinary individuals mesh together as a cohesive team just yet.

Justice League #9 – Review

By: Geoff Johns (story), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair, Pete Pantazis, Gabe Eltaeb (colorists), Gary Frank (feature art), Brad Anderson (feature colors)

The Story: Soon, the League will know the dangers of excessive fanship.

The Review: One of this title’s biggest pitfalls has been its inability to establish a consistent tone, direction, or even purpose for itself.  Although Darkseid’s invasion gave plenty of reason for the League to come together, they did so in a way that felt genuinely random.  It didn’t feel like destiny had any part in their gathering at all.  Once victory was theirs, they might as well have gone their separate ways; you didn’t really grasp the value of their association.

Up to this point, the League’s dealings among themselves have felt largely professional in nature.  Johns pulls away from that trend in this issue, splitting the team into little units and using that opportunity to show a somewhat more intimate interaction.  Even in these circumstances, you don’t see the heroes truly resonating with each other, but Johns plants the seeds for what may cause them to draw closer together in the future.

The New 52 #1 – Free Comic Book Day Review

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

The Story: Everyone needs a lawyer—especially when your judges are master mages.

The Review: I like free stuff as much as the next person.  I’m an old hand at waiting for five minutes to get a sample of some Costco microwaveable piece of whatever that you can inhale in three seconds.  So of course, Free Comic Book Day has all kinds of appeal for me.  But—and I don’t think I’m alone in saying this—I’ve always found the gratuitous offerings less than stellar, either being forgettable fluff pieces or thin teases for upcoming events.

DC’s contribution to comic lovers’ favorite holiday isn’t just a prelude to their next company-wide Big Event; it’s an Event that doesn’t even show up until next year.  This kind of move has always struck me as overly confident.  Whoever’s in charge must believe that whatever story they have up their sleeve must be big and important enough to keep you intrigued for twelve or more months, and they must be pretty certain they can build up the tension properly until then.

Justice League #6 – Review

By: Geoff Johns (writer), Jim Lee (penciller), Scott Williams, Sandra Hope, Batt, Mark Irwin (inkers), Alex Sinclair, Tony Avina, Hi-Fi (colorists)

The Story: Darkseid, wouldn’t printing ads on the back of milk cartons work better than all this?

The Review: Justice League Dark demonstrated, by negative inference, how important it is to give each member of the team an active role in a conflict.  But more than divvying up the work for tactical purposes, it’s even more important, for long-term storytelling purposes, to give each character a distinct spiritual role within the team.

Unfortunately, Johns hasn’t succeeded in making his League anything more than a gathering of powerful super-beings—which is surprising, since Johns usually can’t resist making a symbol out of everything he writes.  The problem is the characters come across so flat just in their personality that it’s hard to draw out any deeper substance from them.

Johns simply hasn’t used the team he’s brought together well.  Take Aquaman.  I don’t think he says much more than four lines the entire issue, and aside from putting his trident into Darkseid’s eye (which, really, is only copycatting Wonder Woman’s sword-trick two panels earlier), he serves no crucial purpose at all.  Neither does Flash, for that matter, unless you count coming up with the one of the lamest team names ever in a craven ploy for heartwarming laughter.  And after all that drama between Cyborg and his dad, Johns allows only a single throwaway panel and line to resolve it.

At least Johns takes some pains to finally give the only lady at this sausage fest something important to do.  That said, when you think about her biggest accomplishment in the fight against Darkseid, all anyone really needed from her was her lasso.  As charming as her naïve wisdom is (“The world belongs to no one.  And everyone.”), she only seems to have value in the absence of others.  Without Superman, she fills in as the team’s heavy hitter; without Batman’s leadership, she leads by example of her fearlessness.  Once the boys come home, she’s back to fodder again.

Justice League #4 – Review

By: Geoff Johns (writer), Jim Lee (penciller), Scott Williams (inker), Alex Sinclair & Gabe Eltaeb (colorist)

The Story: Vic, would this be a bad time for me to suggest you star as the new Bionic Man?

The Review: I admit, I had mixed feelings when I heard Cyborg was going to join the Justice League.  As a Teen Titans fan, I always liked the character, and thought Johns’ portrayal of him as the heart of the team very cool.  And when Brad Meltzer put up Cyborg as a potential member of the newly reformed Justice League of America (back in 2006), I didn’t think it was a bad idea.  I just felt that as a hero, Victor is competent, but not high-tier material.

Then it occurred to me that on a team that has Green Arrow on its roster, perhaps it doesn’t make sense to be picky about who gets to join.  Anyway, in this issue, Cyborg gets some major upgrades in his power set, as his father imbues him with a cornucopia of highly advanced, barely understood tech devised by the great geniuses of the DCU, including Anthony Ivo, Dr. Magnus, and, interestingly enough, Ryan Choi (the short-lived Atom replacement).

It would be impossible to figure out how all these technologies come together to make Cyborg a living, functioning whole, and Johns doesn’t even try, but clearly, it all makes for a formidable powerhouse.  Running on auto-pilot, Victor immediately dispatches two of the Parademons who break into the lab by obliterating them with a “white noise cannon.”  The combined trauma of his injuries and cybernetic revival makes him freak out, of course, and he takes it out on his dad in an over-the-top, screaming fury: “You did this to me!”

But what doesn’t sound over-the-top in this early formation of the League?  All the characters sound rather flat and one-dimensional, though some more than others.  Wonder Woman can’t seem to deviate from the same line no matter what she says (“What a day for a fight!”), as if Johns doesn’t know exactly how to write her, which may be a major problem in time.  And it’s hard to tell if Hal gets the most lines because that’s just his nature, or because Johns knows how to write him best, but whatever the reason, his constant, bratty chatter gets pretty grating after a while: “I can do anything with this ring.  So, really, what can you do that we can’t?”

Justice League #2 – Review

By: Geoff Johns (writer), Jim Lee (penciller), Scott Williams (inker), Alex Sinclair (colorist)

The Story: You know, I guess it’s not a new-fangled Rubik’s cube after all.

The Review: While the debut issue of this series had quite a lot of fun, engaging material to it, it also had the disappointment of a false promise.  When you have a book with “Justice League” slapped on the cover, you expect to see more than a couple guys in costumes bantering their way through a sewer.  Considering how hyped the group portrait of the League got in the preceding months, no wonder you felt dismay on discovering most of them don’t even appear in the issue.

Once you get through this issue, you’ll see why Johns chose to bring the team together in stages.  Remember, we’re dealing with a world new to superheroes, and consequently the superheroes are new to each other.  So what does that mean?  Hero-on-hero battle.  And once you have Superman going toe-to-toe with Batman, Green Lantern, and the Flash, any more cooks would crowd the kitchen and overcook the dish.  Better to let the guys get the obligatory duking over with so the others can just get to business when they show up.

Besides, you have plenty of juicy tension as is.  Johns made his name in the Green Lantern and Superman properties, so it’s unsurprising both characters come off the boldest in this issue.  Hal proves a lack of fear means never worrying about putting your foot in your mouth (“I’m with Batman…and he’s a total tool.”), while Clark demonstrates a quieter cockiness.  Heck, how can you not smirk a little after shattering a Lantern’s constructs just by flexing your chest?

Don’t worry; Flash and Batman get more than their own two cents in, with Barry being the perfect straight man to Hal’s more frenetic antics (“Barry, you’re exposing your identity!”  “And you just called me ‘Barry,’ genius.”).  Bruce of all people acts the team player here, getting the impulsive metahumans around him to calm down long enough to “keep us on point.”  As the crisis builds, his razor-sharp mind will prove crucial to maintaining the team’s integrity.

And the crisis is building fast.  Those cubes don’t keep pinging forever, and when the timer goes off, things get ugly fast, becoming ugliest for poor Victor Stone.  You might be curious as to how he gets involved in this mess.  Well, remember how his friend mentioned his dad has been studying superheroes?  As it turns out, Vic’s dad works for none other than S.T.A.R. Labs, which just got a small, pinging cube of its own.

Justice League #1 – Review

By: Geoff Johns (writer), Jim Lee (penciller), Scott Williams (inker), Alex Sinclair (colorist)

The Story: I have only one question—what happened to everybody’s underwear?

The Review: Funny.  It doesn’t feel like a new age of comics.  But DC insists one has come, and seeing the enormous slate they’ve just wiped clean, we must take their word for it.  This relaunch sets out to reinvigorate their company line as a whole, and also invite a whole new audience to the table.  So suppose I was a virgin comics reader, convinced to pay for this glimpse into the wonders of the DCU.  Does the issue convince me this world is worth my time and imagination?

Of course, just because you’re a virgin doesn’t mean you have zero experience of what you’re about to get into.  Movies have made certain figures familiar, even household names, and DC heroes are icons to begin with.  Small wonder we begin with the most recognizable and current of those: Batman, Green Lantern, and, of course, Big Blue himself (even more blue now that his underpants have been removed—from sight, anyway).

For those of us all too familiar with the many iterations of these heroes, their characterizations may seem raw and shallow indeed.  G.L. has all his trademark cockiness (“Note to self, Batman: Green Lantern can handle anything.”) and Batman comes across less gritty than just plain grouchy (“Take your flashlight and go home.”).  But from the eyes of a new reader, the scenes effectively show us the characters’ core personalities, powers, and mission statement.

We also get a nice introduction to Vic Stone, of Cyborg fame, one of the more exciting choices for the League, as he adds not only diversity to the team, but youth.  Make no mistake, this Cyborg is greener than Green Lantern, as at the onset, he has no cybernetic accessories (not even a laser canon!) to speak of.  But as the freshest face on this title, he’ll serve an important role as our guide to this updated universe, and the herald of its new generation of go-getters.

Batman: The Dark Knight #2 – Review

By: David Finch (writer and penciller), Scott Williams (inker), Alex Sinclair (colors)

The Story: Golden Dawn, Part Two: Batman and the Penguin tangle over exactly who is interrogation whom. They’re both lugging around some Dawn Golden baggage. Killer Croc smashing entrance doesn’t even things up. In the meantime, Commissioner Gordon is getting his own Dawn Golden problems. And somebody stole the Batmobile!

What Good: I loved the visuals in this book. Finch is a great artist and he captured the eerily slow, deliberate movements of Batman in full-on menace mode. Check out the difference in Batman between the credit page and the bottom panel of the next. In terms of dynamicism, Finch has got it down. Check out Killer Croc’s move on Batman as he surprises him. That’s art in movement. The level of detail on the settings and the people (especially Penguin) were highly textured. Another great example of detail is the theft of the Batmobile. The artistic anti-heroism doesn’t stop at the Penguin either. The three surviving hobos (after last issue’s offing of the one called the King) are living wrecks, expertly done. I have to mention Sinclair’s colors throughout. Whether it’s a bright orange suit on a green Croc, or some subtle purples and blues to set off night in Gotham around the hobos, Sinclair sews it up.

Batman: The Dark Knight #1 – Review

By: David Finch (writer, artist), Scott Williams (inker), Alex Sinclair (colorist)

The Story: The Golden Dawn, Part One: Dawn Golden, a childhood friend, if not a childhood fascination, of Bruce Wayne’s, has disappeared. Gotham’s finest aren’t getting anywhere with the case and Batman puts off a lot of other important Bat-work to embark on this personal quest.

What’s Good: David Finch’s visuals were stunning. The level of detail in background (check out the broken glass on Croc’s head), the gadgets (check out the Bat-Cave) and people (throughout the whole book) was right up there, while the dynamism of posture and panel layout made the whole issue feel like it was in movement (even though there was only one fight scene). Finch’s Gotham is dark and worn down, but real, unlike the psychologically-disturbed Gotham we’d find through Frazer Irving. The grit, realism and lack of exaggeration in the art tells us that this is a hard-boiled, noir crime story with the cowled detective in his element and his obsession. I have to say that I also really liked Finch’s take on Killer Croc and Penguin. Neither has ever looked better or more menacing to me.

On the writing side, Finch did everything he needs to do to propel a new mini-series into action. He set up the deep and personal relationship between the detective and the victim, he put society and its pressures into play, added mysterious opponents and traps, and ended on a cliffhanger. While I thought yet-another-personally-connected-damsel-in-distress (you’ll recall we’ve got the Cornell’s Absence arc happening in Batman and Robin at the same time) to be a bit tired, Finch made it work to really drive up Bruce’s normally obsessive personality and make the reader *really* want the bad guy. I bought into the knight-errant-on-a-quest story. The repulsiveness of some of the details (I can’t give spoilers) of the crime raised the stakes and had me wanting more.

Blackest Night: Titans #2 – Review

By J.T. Krul (writer), Ed Benes (artist), Scott Williams and Ed Benes (inkers)

The Story: Donna Troy’s dead husband and baby come after her as Black Lanterns. Black Lantern Terra and a few other old friends from the post-living move to smash Gar, Kid Flash, Cyborg and Starfire. Hawk and Dove fight Black Lantern Hawk before Terra plays with the foundations of the Titans Tower. Then things get really messy, zombie-apocalypse style…

What’s Good: The art is fantastic. I’ve always liked Benes, even though I know his art doesn’t fit everyone’s taste. I think a case can and should be made for him, on the basis of well-rendered figures, muscles, emotions and action that carry right through the book.

On the writing side, Krul delivered a solid Act Two. In a three-act series, the situation for the heroes gets worse and worse throughout Act Two, until the last straw is thrown on. The menace is there and it is scary (zombie baby – just picture it). Our heroes get in some great shots, though. Gar gets a wrestling smash in on Black Lantern Terra, Cyborg’s white sound seems to hurt them while Starfire leaves a smoking black lantern ring on a crispy, re-dead finger. Any bets on how long that finger stays crispy? Finally, in terms on villainous power, now I have slightly more respect for Terra.

What’s Not So Good: Not much to complain about. I’m not completely up on all my Titans mythos, so the identities of some of the villains were question marks for me without much more than clues to go on. The colors didn’t blow me away: competent, but not stellar. The grays and blacks and browns eventually became a bit overpowering. Even the spectrum of emotion colors didn’t look like more that a blurry patchwork. But these are smallish point in an otherwise pretty solid book. And if Krul left me with one dominant emotion, it was relief…that I don’t live in the DC universe.

Conclusion: If you’re following Blackest Night, even if you’re not a huge Titans fan, I recommend picking up this book (the first issue is probably still on some stands too). It’s a great story of fear and the undead hitting the DC universe, with fantastic art and an overwhelming menace.

Grade: B

-DS Arsenault

Batman #686 – Review

By Neil Gaiman (writer), Andy Kubert (artist), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair (colors), Jared K. Fletcher (letters)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: He’s fucking dead?! Well no, not exactly. We’re dealing with Grant Morrison here after all, so we can’t exactly buy the fact that Bruce Wayne/ Batman is dead. Plus the last time we saw the Dark Knight, he was topless and doing cave paintings. So after the past year of Morrison’s wacky mysteries and references you can care less about, let’s hope that a writer of Alan Moore’s status can deliver. Neil Gaiman, I’m banking on you to really give us a more appropriate “final tale” for the beloved Dark Knight.

The Story: The book opens with Batman’s friends and enemies coming together to pay their respects. The Batman’s service is an open casket, and lots of familiar faces appear throughout the issue. After a brief showing of who’s showing up, two of the most important people in Bruce Wayne’s/ Batman’s life deliver their eulogies, and reveal just exactly how the Caped Crusader died.        

The Good: Neil Gaiman’s writing is as sharp as ever in this tale, as he carefully examines and captures all the quirks and the voice of each character throughout the Batman lore. It’s interesting and actually quite entertaining how Gaiman slowly pans through the event, showcasing numerous characters to guide the story. He finds a way to pay tribute to Batman and really examine the whole mythos of the Dark Knight.  Furthermore, it’s nice to have Andy Kubert back. He reminds everyone that not only can he capture Batman from different eras and different interpretations (as shown in each eulogy), he can also perfectly display the necessary raw emotion shown and conveyed throughout this time of crisis.

The Not So Good: When I picked up this book, I was expecting some sort of proper closure. If DC really was going to “kill off” Batman, then it’s only fitting that he’s sent off right by a legendary writer. An iconic writer for an iconic character. However that’s not the case, as Gaiman’s story carries on in a similar way to Morrison’s, where the characters you thought you knew, weren’t who they were after all, and that story of Batman dying is either exactly what did happen or what could’ve happened. You simply don’t know who or what to believe, as you hear two stories that reveal how Batman died.

Furthermore, I can’t help but remember how stupid this whole “Batman R.I.P” ordeal is in the first place. Aside from all the unbelievable/ bizarre situations taking place, an off-screen conversation between Bruce Wayne and an unidentified character is also happening. As revealed in their dialogue, Bruce Wayne has yet to solve another mystery. Therefore, he isn’t exactly dead.  And with “The Battle For The Cowl” around the corner, then the “Batman” can never exactly die. If this is supposed to be the Batman version of “Whatever Happened To The Man Of Tomorrow,” then we can expect to find Bruce Wayne/ Batman living and winking at us at the end of this whole mess. Hence proving that the idea of “Batman R.I.P.” was flawed from the beginning.

Conclusion: “Whatever Happened To The Caped Crusader” is off to a not so memorable start. The portrayal and “revelation” of certain characters will never be remembered, as their depiction tampers with history; making you wonder if this is some “What If” story. Also the focus on the multiple perceptions of the Dark Knight isn’t a memorial of the past’s numerous renditions of Batman. It’s a rehashed concept all packed neatly in one book. We’ve seen this done before in Warren Ellis’ “Planetary/ Batman: Night on Earth,” but I guess we can see how Neil Gaiman does it. So expect to hear more eulogies and more stories that summon the Batman from different eras. However as of right now, this book is not measuring up to Moore’s notable tale, which makes the title undeserving. This tale is rather starting to look more like a mere “imaginary story;” an account that fans DON’T HAVE TO exactly consider canonical with the Batman lore.

Grade:  C+

-Raymond Hilario

All Star Batman and Robin #10 – Review

By Frank Miller (writer), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair (colors)

I’ve got one word to describe this issue: Yawn.

I literally fell asleep reading this book. I couldn’t even finish it. When I woke up and continued where I left off I really had to push myself to power through Jim Gordon’s excruciatingly boring monologue. With all the crap Frank Miller’s taken from this book, I’ll give him one thing: it looks like he’s actually trying – at least with certain scenes. Batman and Robin are around for a few pages and basically do nothing but go to see a beaten Catwoman. The rest of the story focuses around Jim Gordon and his family – which is a nice change. But all these overly fluffed monologues from Batgirl, Black Canary, and Gordon do nothing more than bloat the book.

What I do like is that this feels much like the Jim Gordon from Batman: Year One. The nuances and the way he talks – as annoying as some of it is – feels somewhat genuine. The rest of the characters, however, are crap – throwaways. The censored dialogue that everyone’s been fussing about is completely overrated. Any kid who’s watched any TV will be able to fill in the blanks with their own set of colorful metaphors. Miller easily could have replaced these words with symbols or other, less harmful words but chose not to. DC editorial is just as responsible for this mess as Miller and that’s all I’m going to say about that. Does the inclusion of these words make the book more compelling or powerful? Nope. It’s just lazy writing.

Jim Lee’s art is incredibly good here and I’m once again saddened to see such beautiful visuals go to waste on such a sorry story. It’s also disheartening to see his art censored here, but thankfully the panel in question hardly hampers the overall issue.  I’ve also been critical on Alex Sinclair’s coloring in the past – especially with last issue where they’re all in the yellow room. Here, Sinclair shows off his best stuff. The coloring in this book is so incredibly gorgeous – one of the best looking books I’ve seen all year. The scenes where Gordon is hanging around the docks perfectly echo the world of Gotham and her foreboding persona. Really brilliant work by the art team.

Ultimately, this book is your standard hodgepodge of good and terrible. Unfortunately, Jim Lee’s art cannot save this sinking ship. Sure, it may be the selling point, but that doesn’t stop the story from being abysmal. To all those who thought this book was going to make a serious turn around after last issue, I’m laughing at you (and apparently, so is Frank Miller). If the readers are anyone in this book it’s Barbara Gordon: we’re so addicted to this awful mess that we’ve ended up in a terrible car crash. And our only hope is Jim (Gordon) Lee.

Save us, Jim. Save us! (Grade: F)

– J. Montes

All Star Batman and Robin, The Boy Wonder #9 – Review

By Frank Miller (writer), Jim Lee (pencils), Scott Williams (inks), Alex Sinclair (color)

Oh boy, here we go again. After last issue being somewhat enjoyable, we’re treated to 18 pages of crap once more. Batman and Robin, completely painted in yellow (dwelling in a painted yellow room), taunt, insult, and demean Green Lantern in each of these 18 pages. It’s completely mindless and disrespectful to the characters. Sure, Green Lantern is being the self-righteous jerk, but Batman is just an ass. What’s worse is he revels in being an ass. In fact, this is the first Batman series that’s not only made me dislike Batman, but Robin as well.

It’s not just Frank Miller’s script that’s awful here – the over abundance of yellow is just too much. It diminishes Jim Lee’s art and makes it painful to look at after the third page. I kept waiting the scene to change, but it just kept going and going! I guess I can’t blame Alex Sinclair’s for his choice of coloring here, he just did what he was told. This “toying” with the Green Lantern goes on all issue until Robin finally does something incredibly stupid. And I’ll admit, what Batman does to punish Robin is hilarious. I actually laughed out loud, because the whole sequence of events that plays out is just so ridiculous!

When things finally become serious, the book becomes readable and even a tad interesting. Alex Sinclair’s lush coloring returns, we get some trademarked gorgeous splash pages by Jim Lee, and even Frank Miller’s narrative becomes compelling. It’s just too bad it only lasts for five pages. If you must buy this book (like me), make sure you pick up the variant Neal Adams cover. It’s pure awesome. (Grade: F)

– J. Montes