Constantine #1 – Review

By: Ray Fawkes & Jeff Lemire (story), Renato Guedes (art), Marcelo Maiolo (colors)

The Story: Never make friends with a man who wears a trenchcoat indoors.

The Review: When you hear discussion about John Constantine as reintroduced into the mainstream DCU, the word you most often hear to describe him is “neutered.”  I confess that I’m probably the least appropriate to make a judgment on this point.  I’ve barely read Hellblazer and my knowledge of Constantine lore is minimal at best.  But I do know that in the Vertigo universe, he’s a much more cunning, canny, witty, and biting character than he is now.

Given the general dissatisfaction with Constantine’s portrayal in Justice League Dark, I’m not sure exactly what the people in charge at DC were thinking in choosing to release a solo ongoing featuring the antihero, especially written by the same duo responsible for the “neutered” image he has in his team book.  That said, Fawkes-Lemire do bring a fairly different side of John to this title, one that provides a bridge between his Vertigo and JLD sides.

Justice League Dark #12 – Review

By: Jeff Lemire (story), Mikel Janin (art), Ulises Arreola (colors)

The Story: John Constantine mulls on the difficulties of having a magical love life.

The Review: When DC first announced the relaunch, the folks in charge promised it didn’t mean a complete reset of the universe or, to put it more clearly, it didn’t mean every piece of continuity and tradition of the last 70+ years would be abandoned.  Some things would be preserved as needed.  And granted, a few creators have kept up that promise, albeit mostly with things that already sell.  No need to rock the boat or fix what ain’t broken and all that.

Thus far, only a couple writers have gone out of his way to preserve the lesser-known, obscure bits of DC canon, and none more so than Lemire.  He has done more than his part to save all the great supernatural and occult stories for a new generation, but he doesn’t do so intrusively.  At no point does he indulge in excesses of nostalgia or force readers to dig through back issues to figure out what he’s talking about.  He makes every bit of new info clear and accessible.

Young Justice Episode 22 – Review

By: Kevin Hopps (writer)

The Story: Joining the League is not unlike joining the Plastics in Mean Girls.

The Review: To the show’s credit, the writers have done a careful job focusing on the young team itself, despite the constant temptation of the Justice League appearing tantalizingly on the fringes of stories.  Still, we’re constantly reminded the League is the real aspiration here.  Sure, the YJers have tackled every mission before them with as much energy and professionalism as you could hope, but their eyes especially light up at anything to do with the big boys and girls.

This may be the first episode where we get a real in-depth glimpse into the actual workings of the League, and the timing can’t be better since now is the time they’ve chosen to reconsider their roster.  Among the many illustrious candidates for membership are our very own YJ kids—exciting, no doubt, though a bit odd considering it wasn’t all that long ago (in the time frame of the show) that full indoctrination was a no-no for these eager, teenaged heroes.

But the episode also informs us that bigger stakes motivate this sudden recruitment process.  We’ve seen the villains have become more organized and collaborative, and so the League must be pitch-perfect to handle that.  Hopps thus does an excellent job spelling out the thought process of evaluating each potential Leaguer.

Some of these discussions are just there for humorous effect.  Flash’s suggestion of Guy Gardner as a useful powerhouse receives a resounding chorus from fellow Lanterns Hal and John: “No!”  “But we could really—”  “No!”  Other issues receive more serious treatment, especially when they concern shake-ups within the current roster.  Now that Zatara has taken on the mantle of Dr. Fate, no one how wise it is to retain such an unpredictable force on the team, even if only to keep “a close watch on us,” as Zatara/Nabu claims.  Then, too, there is the recent discovery of Captain Marvel’s true age; though he insists he never lied, Wonder Woman accurately points out his omission was still a deception, proving that despite having the wisdom of Solomon, there’s still a kid’s brain in that big, brawny hero.

Young Justice Episode 19 – Review

By: Greg Weisman (writer)

The Story: Well, they do say teens have one foot in youth and the other in adulthood.

The Review: Yes, this review is a bit late in coming.  In my defense, I had no idea the show had returned until just a day or so ago.  The erratic scheduling of this series has been of the few truly frustrating aspects of Young Justice.  No sooner does it come back than it goes on hiatus again.  Consequently, the first season has stretched on for nearly two years now, which is quite an achievement, depending on your point of view.

Anyhow, the five months since our last visit with the team gave this episode the feeling of a season premiere.  That idea must not have been lost on Weisman, since the scope and quality of this episode feels very appropriate for a premiere.  He chooses to adapt Todd Dezago’s JLA: World Without Grown-Ups, the first storyline involving the team later to be known as Young Justice, and a pretty challenging one at that.  As you might figure out from the title, our immature heroes get placed in the awkward position of being the world’s only hope for salvation, mainly because there’s flat out no one else to turn to.

It’s actually quite interesting watching Weisman’s interpretation of the story, because it seems to exemplify some of the show’s standout features.  First off, the episode doesn’t have nearly the humor and slapstick when it was Fonzie-wannabe Superboy, hyperactive Impulse, and straight man Robin (Tim Drake flavor) zipping around.  Here, things feel pretty sober, even tragic in places, and though Weisman writes it with great credibility, it’s undeniably a bummer story.

Yet strangely, at the same time, the episode somehow falls short of the maturity Dezago’s original storyline had, even though technically, the team here acts a lot more mature than the one back then.  Dezago used the absence of adults to satirically play out a world where kids can act on their impulses and desires without restriction, true, but he also dove into the crushing resentment of kids whose parents are merely figuratively absent.  Weisman sort of dismisses that to focus on the more after school special (ASS, remember) side of things: parents and children learning to appreciate each other’s presence in their lives, kids who must grow up fast to take responsibility as necessary, that kind of thing.

Young Justice Episode 15 – Review

By: Greg Weisman

The Story: I think this is the beginning of a magical friendship.

The Review: Zatanna has a rather complicated place in the DCU and especially with the Justice League.  Originally, she came into the League as a rookie, one of its youngest, if not its very youngest, members.  While her teammates carried an experienced maturity, she had a bright-eyed innocence and humor that rang a little closer to that of a much younger hero.  Though now an honored member of the League, she still retains a certain youthful charm about her.

Very fitting then that she gets introduced to Young Justice as one of their peers.  In a lot of ways, she fills a vacuum within the team.  For one, she adds another female presence to a largely testosterone heavy cast.  For another, the team has had to deal with a lot of mystical threats with only Aqualad’s dabbling in magic as a viable defense, so having Zee as a direct answer to those situations seems not only appropriate, but ideal.

Weisman smartly avoids using Zee as a magical cure-all to the team’s obstacles by quickly establishing some limitations to her powers: familiarity with her spells, a proper source of energy, and preparation.  None of this stops her from making an impressive showing on her unofficial mission with the YJers, proving that her value to any team is less about solving their problems with some backwards words and more about manipulating the odds in their favor.

Her unpredictability not only in her powers but also in her status as an unknown factor proves crucial when the team finally has their showdown with their treacherous former mentor.  Of course, we know Red Tornado’s no traitor, but it’s necessary the team learns that for themselves, since they still hold a brisk chip on their shoulder when it comes to their League chaperones.  Hopefully, this episode marks a critical point in turning their wariness to genuine affection.

Young Justice Episode 14 – Review

By: Kevin Hopps (writer)

The Story: You have to hate it when villains catch on to the value of teamwork.

The Review: Over the course of this series, we’ve seen a lot of interconnected plotlines, a neat feat for a cartoon, one for which the show’s writers should give themselves a hefty pat on the back.  We’ve seen elements featured from early episodes, like the Blockbuster formula and Bane’s Venom, pop up again in later ones, developing into much bigger sources of tension.  We also know almost every foe the team has faced has some connection to the mysterious Light.

In this episode, the official halfway point of the series, almost all those elements finally get put into play when the Injustice League (or Society or what-have-you) launches attacks around the world.  It’s a pretty powerful group (Count Vertigo, Black Adam, Wotan, Ultra Humanite, Atomic Skull, Poison Ivy, and the Joker), but their particular method of collaboration is what proves most ingenious and challenging, not only for Young Justice, but their mentors as well.

Indeed, as much as our stars get to do, we see nearly as much action from the Justice League, which may draw out some wistful nostalgia for all you Justice League Unlimited fans.  Besides the usual suspects, we see appearances from some very surprising members.  Some are fun delights (Plastic Man), others interesting choices (Blue Devil and Guy Gardner as Green Lantern), and some just throw you for a loop (Milestone heroes Icon and Rocket).

But what of our young heroes?  While the big guns tackle the big, imminent threats, Batman entrusts YJ to take down the villains at the source, with no help or supervision whatsoever.  A major mission, to be sure, one that feels a tad early since the team still feels pretty rough around the edges.  At any rate, this should shut down any further accusations about being babysat and doing only grunt-work, once and for all.

Zatanna #9 – Review

By: Paul Dini (writer), Cliff Chiang (artist), John Kalisz (colorist), Adam Beechen (feature writer), Jamal Igle (feature penciller), Robin Riggs (feature inker)

The Story: What better way to treat the puppet that’s going to kill you than invite him to your home?  Also, Zatanna, junior sorceress, learns braces can really get you down.

The Review: Magic is an enormously potent sowing ground for stories.  Because it can do and be pretty much anything, it’s limited only by writer’s ingenuity—and by the writer’s skill.  Too often, especially in superhero comics, it gets used as story fodder for the characters, or a deus ex machina to explain away anything the writer can’t figure out more tangibly.  Because of magic’s elastic nature, writers have to create some physics for how it works in their stories.  When they don’t, magical stories easily become unconvincing, confusing, or just plain random.

Paul Dini may be starting to apply some rules to magic in Zatanna’s world—a good thing, especially for this particular character.  No two writers have ever portrayed her powers the same way, with the possible exception of her backwards-talk, and even that doesn’t get consistent treatment.  Despite all her many appearances throughout the years, you still don’t really have a handle on her abilities, and that’s partially because in the DCU, magic is so elastically defined by all the writers who have tried to use it that there’s no sense of order to it at all.

You can see this disorder every time Zatanna uses her powers in this issue, which always leaves you with a bunch of nagging questions.  For example, with her infamous “pots” spell, does she freeze time around the person?  Are they paralyzed?  If they’re paralyzed, how come the puppet can still talk?  Is it because he’s magicked already?  Can people think in this “deppots” state?  How long do they stay that way?  What are the spell’s limitations?  Sure, you can just accept it for what it is, but you’re sure to be bothered when it pops up again and works a different way.

Zatanna #2 – Review

by Paul Dini (writer), Stephane Roux (pencils & inks), Karl Story (inks), John Kalisz (colors), and Pat Brosseau (letters)

The Story: Zatanna battles Fuseli in the realms of nightmare and Brother Night makes Detective Colton an offer he can’t refuse.

What’s Good: Stephane Roux’s artwork in this issue is awesome.  He takes his game up to totally new levels for this issue.  A good part of it is due to much of the issue taking place in Zatanna’s dreams, which allows Roux to really cut loose with his lay-outs, allowing him to go wild with a couple of awesome splash pages or create pages that feel like organic collages while John Kalisz goes wild with the psychedelic colors.   Zatanna’s facial expressions are also really well done, instantly making her very likable.  Villains Brother Night and Fuseli look great as well; Brother Night’s barely changing sinister grin is creepy as hell and Fuseli reminded me of Gollum of LOTR fame.

Dini’s Zatanna continues to grow on me.  Her trademark sassiness is ever present and it was nice surprise to see her be completely unfazed Fuseli’s nightmares.  Instead going through the typical traumatic struggle with her past, Zatanna quickly interrupts Fuseli and starts kicking ass in the nightmare realm.  It was a total about-face from what I was expecting.  Dini also adds plenty of human touches to the character.  In constantly wanting a good night’s rest, Zatanna is instantly more sympathetic and vulnerable, which is in complete juxtaposition to her composure when battling Fuseli’s conjurations.  It’s really rather neat as Zatanna shows no vulnerability under stress, when we’d expect her to, but instantly becomes human outside of that stress.  If that’s not the mark of a superhero, I’m not sure what is.

Dini is also very effectively building up Brother Night.  Everything he does is subtle and minimal, just enough to hint at his power without ever pulling back the curtain.  There’s a demonstration of his power this issue that is really awesome in this respect; it suggests the sheer depth of his power without breaking out any pyrotechnics.

I also liked Dini’s depiction of Fuseli’s dream manipulation.  Instead of going with standard nightmares for his victims of falling or monsters or what have you, Fuseli’s constructions are realistic and close to life.  It’s far more effective and it makes a lot more sense.

Zatanna #1 – Review

by Paul Dini (writer), Stephane Roux (pencils), Karl Story (inks), John Kalisz (colors), and Pat Brosseau (letters)

The Story: Brother Night, crime boss of the mystic realm, looks to expand his empire into the human world, forcing Zatanna to lay down the gauntlet.

What’s Good: It’s clear relatively early on that this book feels a hole in DC’s line-up.  The very fact that this is a mystic title makes it feel different and greatly missed.  This is only heightened whenever the action leaves the human realm; when Zatanna confronts Brother Night in his lair or when Night tries to gain an ally in Fuseli, a demon of nightmares, it’s hard not to have flashbacks to great books like Sandman or Swamp Thing.

Given Dini’s much documented love for the character, there’s no surprise that Zatanna is expertly shown as a strong protagonist.  She’s a badass, pure and simple.  An enterprising, confident, and sassy female lead is always an easy sell, and that’s no different here.  Dini also begins an effort to mark Zatanna with an adversity to the idea of destiny as a defining feature.   I hope he sticks with this, as it could lead to intriguing stories in the future.  I actually feel that Zatanna’s openness and bluntness about this aspect of her beliefs serves better than subtlety; surprisingly, it makes the “I forge my own path” schtick feel less clichéd.

What I appreciate most about Dini’s work here, however, is how quickly he leaps into the action.  There’s only a bare minimum of set-up and next to no exposition.  We’re plunged headfirst into the first story-arc and conflict more or less immediately.  This leads to a quick, energetic read that almost fools you into believing that Zatanna has a large and well established back-story, or that Brother Night and his rogue’s gallery have been around forever when, of course, this is their debut.  It makes the book an engaging read and, more importantly, gives it a sort of confidence.

Madame Xanadu Vol. 1: Disenchanted – Review

by Matt Wagner (writer), Amy Reeder Hadlery (art), Richard Friend (inks), Guy Major (colors), and Jared K. Fletcher (letters)

The Story: Madame Xanadu tries to do what little good she can, from Camelot, to the court of Kublai Khan, to revolutionary France, to 1880s London, to 1920s New York; but it always comes with mixed results.  And there’s always that pesky Phantom Stranger to deal with….

The Good: Wow, what a trade.  Ten issues long, this is a big book that’s ‘s really a series of two-issue arcs (each in a different time period) that end in a massive change in the series’ status quo; and it feels nothing short of epic.  Not a single page is wasted, either.  There isn’t any treading of water and Wagner’s jumping from time period to time period with equal amounts of ease (and no doubt a gratuitous amount of research) is truly impressive, essentially making this a series of period pieces in the DC Universe that effortlessly incorporates a bevy of historical figures.  Any one of the five time periods here could’ve been the basis for an entire ongoing series.  The scope of the book comes to enormous, but never overwhelming thanks to the cycle of repetition that Wagner shows Xanadu and the Stranger to be hopelessly locked in.  Best of all, the ending of the trade feels natural, grand, and conclusive, which is what you want out of a trade’s ending, not a cliffhanger.

The relationship between Xanadu and the Stranger really is the meat of the book. It’s a highly complex relationship that evolves from lover, to enemy, to source of tragedy. Yet despite this fluidity, the beauty is that much like Xanadu and the Stranger’s existences, the relationship is really just a cycle that continually repeats the same pattern.  A tremendously pained yet beautiful relationship, it’s one of the best in comics.  Best of all is the difference in morality that comes to seperate the two; it’s just so damned hard to side with either one, as neither is wholly right or wrong.  At the very least, the reader will oscillate between Xanadu and the Stranger. I myself spent much of the book on Xanadu’s side, but ended the book on that of the Stranger.

Lastly, Amy Reeder Hadley’s art is fantastic and the woman deserves every Eisner nomination she’s had tossed her way. It’s vibrant, joyful, and full of life. Hadley’s style manages to successfully make use of a Japanese influence, but while that anime/manga feel is definitely there, it’s never overwhelming. Rather, Hadley takes elements of it to create a unique art style, rather than just whole-hog draw a manga. What comes out is not a Japanese-styled book, but rather a look that is all her own.

What’s Not So Good: I don’t say this often, but while this trade was fantastic, I did get the feeling that the series works better in single issue format. Jumping from time period to time period, it just feels a little too compressed when it’s all between the same two covers. This somewhat hampers the Phantom Stranger appearances; it becomes much more obvious that he’s showing up in every single issue when you’re not having to wait a month between Xanadu fixes. As a result, the Stranger’s appearances almost feel too frequent.

Conclusion: A tremendous value for your dollar, fantastic art, and an epic feel make this a trade, and a series, worth checking out.

Grade: B+

-Alex Evans