Detective Comics #27 – Review

by John Layman, Scott Snyder, Paul Dini, Brad Meltzer, Gregg Hurwitz, Peter J. Tomasi, Jason Fabok, Neal Adams, Dustin Nguyen, Guillem March, Bryan Hitch, and Sean Murphy

The Bat-Man, a mysterious and adventurous figure, fighting for righteousness and apprehending the wrong doer, in his lone battle against the evil forces of society…

Giant anniversary issues like this are always interesting to dissect. What’s the best use of all those pages? Will it connect to current storylines, or should it serve as a celebration of the character’s history? This behemoth issue tries to have its cake and eat it too, but that’s only a problem if it fails. So the question is: did it?

Let’s start at the very beginning, as I hear that that’s a very good place to start. The issue opens with a story from Brad Meltzer and Brian Hitch that goes by the highly appropriate title, “The Case of the Chemical Syndicate.” This iteration of “Chemical Syndicate” is a clever retelling of the 1939 original. Though it has been updated, it is a remarkably faithful adaptation. The major difference is the addition of Batman’s later character traits and a running commentary from the Dark Knight, himself, which would not have been possible in the original story without spoiling the surprise ending.

Though Meltzer displays an impressively economic writing style, cramming a lot into a short fifteen pages without overcluttering his story, the real meat of this story is in the narration. Basic Batman caption boxes do a fine job of showing up a mysterious and yet inexperienced version of the Caped Crusader. Meanwhile, a series of journal entries posit a number of answers to the question “why does Batman do it?” The answers are a master class in Batman, neither overglorifying the vigilante, nor digging too deep into his neuroses to appear heroic. Particularly over the last few days, I’ve been growing tired of a Batman too damaged to inspire us to anything healthy. Perhaps I’m biased by my recent musings, but I think this story navigated these dangerous waters very well.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz #5 – Review

By Eric Shanower (Writer), Skottie Young (Artist), and Jean-Francois Beaulieu (Colorist)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: I know it’s only April and that only five issues have been released, but I’m about ninety percent certain that The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is going to win my vote for mini-series of the year. On top of that, I’m also fairly certain that Skottie Young and Jean-Francois Beaulieu are going to win my vote for best art team. The series (especially the artwork) has just been that good so far…

The Story: On a mission to reluctantly try to kill the Wicked Witch, Dorothy and her companions leave the Emerald City. Soon enough though, the Wicked Witch of the West learns about the group’s journey. Wolves and crows are only the beginning of the obstacles Dorothy, Toto, The Tin Man, The Scarecrow, and The Cowardly Lion must overcome…

What’s Good: Comics don’t get much better than The Wonderful Wizard of Oz #5. Seriously. The visuals are absolutely spectacular, Eric Shanower’s adaptation is extremely compelling, and the package as a whole is really something special.
Especially impressive is how the creative team mixes the whimsical and the sinister. It finally allows the writing to stand up next to the artwork without being overshadowed in any way. While I’ve had no problems with Eric Shanower’s writing so far, up until this issue it has generally taken a back seat to the artwork from Skottie Young and Jean-Francois Beaulieu. That is not the case here.

What’s Not So Good: I have absolutely no complaints about The Wonderful Wizard of Oz #5. In my opinion it is a perfect example of how downright incredible the comic book medium can be.

Conclusion: Do yourself a favor and hunt down the first four issues of the series if you haven’t already. It’s well worth it. Once you are caught up, then sit back and enjoy what I’m sure will be remembered as one of the single best comics of the year.

Grade: A+

-Kyle Posluszny

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz #2 – Review

By Scott Shanower (Writer), Scottie Young (Art), and Jean-Francois Beaulieu (Colors)

Some Thoughts Before The Review: The first chapter of Marvel’s adaptation of the children’s classic left quite an impression on me, especially since I wasn’t exactly expecting much from it. Sure, I knew the art would look nice, thanks to the free sketchbook that was released, but I still found myself caught off guard by the incredibly high quality of the final product. The gorgeous artwork and whimsical storytelling came together in what can only be called a perfect harmony. And while I know how the story goes, I still can’t wait to see what happens next.

The Story: Dorothy’s trip along the Yellow Brick Road gets a bit more lively as she encounters a tin man wishing for a heart and a cowardly lion in need of some courage. As a result, the second chapter of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz is largely driven by short origin tales, and melancholic ruminations about the nature of life. It all makes for a pretty dense read when compared to the first issue.

What’s Good: Simply put, the creative team continues to knock this adaptation completely out of the park. And best of all, the second issue of the series actually manages to build upon the incredibly impressive foundation laid down in the first, making the art even more impressive, the writing much stronger, and the overall feel of the comic more satisfying. I really couldn’t be much happier with how the whole project is coming together.

What’s Not So Good: My only complaint about the issue is something of a strange one. I absolutely love how Scott Shanower’s script is given more time to shine throughout this issue. He successfully handles the narrative and themes of the story in a way that really displays how the classic tale can appeal to people of all ages through an ingenious mix of simplistic ideas and complex, weighty themes. The downside to that is that occasionally the artwork feels almost overwhelmed by the amount of text-boxes throughout the book. And the artwork absolutely, in every way, needs to be seen, enjoyed, and savored.

Conclusion: Considering that the text-box issue is something of a necessary evil, it doesn’t really weigh a whole lot on my overall enjoyment of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz #2. The comic simply rocks in every way. I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone. It’s a perfect example of why the comic medium can be such a fantastic thing.

Grade: A-

-Kyle Posluszny