Comic Reviews

does reviewing require any reading time?

2009-12-09T22:00:00.002-05:00

Every few years Private America or Windbreaker has another child which delays the return to our respective comic book hobbies. I've still got boxes of issues that haven't been reviewed here, but that's also because I haven't read them. I'm just shocked blogger.com hasn't taken this site down yet!

your comic review hosts are lame...

2007-03-02T22:00:00.000-05:00

I can't believe we haven't posted since August 06! Private America, I'm calling you out! Pick up enough slack for both of us and post some reviews!

I've been reading 52... sort of. Other titles have piled up: Superman, Detective Comics, Green Lantern, and Teen Titans. Am I even pulling TT? I can't remember... lame.

ACTION COMICS #841

2006-08-03T09:08:00.000-04:00

8/10 (Story: 4.5; Art: 3.5)

Busiek also writes this one, about an alien race of collectors that finds Earth and, well, starts collecting. They are particularly interested in religious artifacts, and at one point they digitize the entirety of St. Patrick's Cathedral in order to "sell it" to interested bidders elsewhere in the galaxy. Superman, Firestorm, Nightwing, and the Teen Titans join forces to try to stop them.

The story is neat. I don't know if these villains have appeared anywhere before. If not, I give Busiek very high marks for creativity. Art is pretty good, nothing exceptional.

52 #4 - #12

2006-08-02T15:31:00.000-04:00

9.5/10

Story: every writer on the DC staff
Art: anyone not writing

I'm not going to even begin summarizing all the important events in this book. For now, just understand that there are amazing stories being told that don't directly involve the major heroes of the DCU.

Check out the official 52 website.

GREEN LANTERN #10 - #12

2006-08-02T15:26:00.000-04:00

10/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Ivan Reis

"Revenge of the Green Lanterns" parts 1-3. Boy am I glad this book didn't get axed from my recent pull list downsizing! This arc is part of the One Year Later continuity and Johns continues his amazing blend of pre- and post-Infinite Crisis history while spinning an exciting story in the present. GL rookies are learning about Hal Jordan's checkered past -- well, you know, killing a bunch of GLs a while back while possessed by Parallax.

SUPERMAN #654

2006-08-02T12:53:00.000-04:00

7/10 (Story: 3.5; Art: 3.5)

Most the art deduction is for the lettering, which is really obnoxious. The penciling and coloring are nice, though.

The story...meh. It's not original, but of course Busiek tells it with great flair. I'm hoping Busiek can come up with some good, post-IC stories. This is more a "day in the life" story rather than the start of a cool, new arc.

BATMAN #655

2006-08-02T12:52:00.000-04:00

9/10 (Story: 4; Art: 5)

Great issue. I am a little concerned about the story, but I won't say anything until Windbreaker reads #654.

Art is STUNNINGLY GOOD. Some of the best art I've seen in a Batman book.

THE ALL NEW ATOM #1

2006-07-28T09:45:00.000-04:00

8/10

Gail Simone does a great job introducing us to the new Atom, who has some interesting connections to the old Atom. I will probably rack pull this one for now, but I think it could be very interesting. The art isn't my cup of tea, but it is serviceable.

WONDER WOMAN #!

2006-07-28T09:44:00.000-04:00

8.5/10

Good first issue! Got the title on my pull list, anyway.

JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #0

2006-07-28T09:42:00.000-04:00

9.5/10

Wow!

BATMAN #654

2006-07-28T09:40:00.000-04:00

10+/10

One of the greatest single issues I've ever read...this is the first comic book that made me cry!

No spoilers until Windbreaker reads it...

TEEN TITANS #34

2006-07-16T20:14:00.000-04:00

9/10

Story: Johns
Art: Daniel / Thibert / Conrad

"The New, New... New Teen Titans."

BATGIRL #72 - 73

2006-07-16T19:59:00.000-04:00

5/10

Story: Gabrych
Art: De La Fuente

Who knows the real reason for DC editors pulling the plug on this book, but it's a done deal -- Cassandra Cain is no longer Batgirl.

I've been a bit distracted from this book anyway recently (with all the other required reading DC puts out!) so it doesn't bother me too much. But there's nothing great about these final issues. Gabrych established a fairly loyal fan base fleshing out Cass and her connection to the Bat-family, then sort of dropped the book and turned his writing/creativity on auto-pilot.

What's really going to annoy people is that Cass is turned into a B-level villain in the final pages of #73. First she dies, is carried into eternity (?) by Stephanie/Spoiler, then gets splashed in what could be a Lazarus Pit, then suddenly comes back to life ready to kill. That is, be true to herself. Whatever.

DETECTIVE COMICS #820

2006-07-15T08:36:00.000-04:00

8.5/10

Story: James Robinson
Art: Leonard Kirk / Andy Clarke

"Face the Face" part 7 (of 8). If only Robinson was staying on board following this great arc! Batman & Robin have evidence to suggest that Two Face is NOT the man behind the recent Gotham slayings. So who had access to the GCPD and tried to implicate ol' Harvey?

Side gripe: 2.99 for this book now? have mercy!

DETECTIVE COMICS #819

2006-07-15T08:34:00.000-04:00

x/10

Story: James Robinson
Art: Leonard Kirk / Andy Clarke

"Face the Face" part 5 (of 8).

ULTIMATES 2 #11

2006-07-10T21:23:00.000-04:00

9.5/10

Story: Mark Millar
Art: Bryan Hitch

"America Strikes Back."

BATGIRL #71

2006-07-10T20:37:00.000-04:00

4/10

Story: Gabrych
Art: Mhan / Delperdang

Ok, I'm getting downright irritated with this book -- part of me is relieved it's ending. By stretching the current plot thread out through so many issues, all feeling of urgency is lost. In real time, I think this is the 6th issue within a 24-hour period. At this point, I'm not even sure how clever Batgirl is. She knows hand-to-hand combat, but her "team" gets slaughtered around her. Gabrych knows the character in and out, I'm just bored right now.

BIRDS OF PREY #91

2006-07-10T19:07:00.000-04:00

5/10

Guest creative team. So average it isn't worth reviewing.

I guess Gail Simone was out of town, so we get a throwaway story about the value of life. If this was made into a TV episode, it would only show on Lifetime.

BRAVE NEW WORLD (Infinite Crisis)

2006-07-09T07:00:00.000-04:00

7/10

80 pages in the wake of Infinite Crisis... for $1.

This is not required reading even if you're pulling DC comics right now. All 6 stories are introductory teases for other DC books hitting the shelves (Checkmate, Martian Manhunter, OMAC, Trials of Shazaam, The Creeper, and Uncle Sam & The Freedom Fighters).

Here are the important discoveries (activate invisotext):

(1) There is a young man who may be the key to eliminating the final OMAC.

(2) Checkmate doesn't trust metas, wants to use lethal force, and ironically uses WW (vs. Max Lord) as an example.

(3) J'onn J'onzz may not be the only Martian on earth after all.

(4) The Monitor is watching again, this time with a room full of other Monitors.

DC's Next Major Project

2006-07-07T15:14:00.000-04:00

Here is an idea for DC's next major project, once 52 wraps: Comic Reviews: Windbreaker's Journey through Oblivion.

The story would focus on the sudden reappearance of Windbreaker on Comic Reviews, which heralded the return of Private America, only to see Windbreaker mysteriously disappear as quickly as he came back.

6 issues in 6 days...which will be tough since comics only ship once a week.

52 #3

2006-07-06T14:34:00.000-04:00

9.5/10 (story: 5; art: 4.5)

The fun continues. Gotham police find Alexander Luthor's body, but Lex and the Joker made him look like Lex, creating an alibi for all of Lex's recent misdeeds. Meanwhile, Black Adam continues his new...er...outreach...by publically murdering a thug in front of live, TV cameras.

What a fun, exciting, tense read this book is. You honestly don't know what's going to happen next, which makes it so much fun.

TEEN TITANS ANNUAL 2006

2006-07-06T12:57:00.000-04:00

8/10 (story: 4.5; art: 3.5)

Another must read from IC, simply because it is a good-bye to Superboy. This issue takes place right after his first encounter with Earth-Prime Superboy (in Teen Titans #32) and just before his last, disastrous encounter with him in Infinite Crisis #6.

This is exactly why I wanted a stand-alone Superboy series...the issue effectively deals with a lot of the issues that would have been covered there: his relationship with Lex (and the dark side that comes from that), Wonder Girl, Ma and Pa Kent, etc.

The art isn't all that good, but it isn't terrible. I didn't like the way that Wonder Girl was drawn.

All in all, a good issue which could have been great with better art. And a nice, intimate look at Superboy just before his death.

QUICK REVIEWS

2006-07-05T12:36:00.000-04:00

Day of Vengeance IC Special: 9/10 (probably the best of the IC specials; details how the magic folk take on the Spectre and trick him to defeat him)

OMAC IC Special: 6/10 (nonessential IC reading since it just details the OMAC mop up operation after it was defeated in IC #6; this is really only a preview for DC's new Checkmate series))

Villains United IC Special: 6/10 (ditto for OMAC)

Rann-Thanagar War IC Special: 8/10 (essential reading for IC since it details how the Rannians and Thanagarians found out that an outside force--Alex Luthor and Superboy--were manipulating events)

INFINITE CRISIS SECRET FILES 2006

2006-07-05T12:23:00.000-04:00

10/10 (story: 5; art: 5)

The absolute best that IC has to offer, both from a story and art perspective.

The villains of IC turned out to be Alexander Luthor (from Earth-3) and Superboy Prime (from Earth-Prime). They, in turn, were trying to manipulate Earth-2 Superman into helping them achieve their objectives.

IC Secret Files 2006 is about what motivating them to do their deeds. And it is a marvelous read full of moral and ethical dilemmas.

Most importantly, however, it is a fascinating inquiry into the popular theory of heaven, i.e. that it will be a place where we can fulfill all of our desires. This Secret Files shows the ultimate hollowness of that view, and how it can drive otherwise good people to do very bad things to escape what, in reality, would be a living hell.

TEEN TITANS #30 and 31

2006-07-05T12:13:00.000-04:00

8/10 (story: 4; art: 4)

This really should be marked as an Infinite Crisis tie-in, simply because Johns lays out that the how and why of the reappearance of so many long dead characters (such as Jason Todd, who featured prominently in issue #29).

The Brother Blood stuff is a rehash and uninteresting, but the connection between Eternity Boy and the events of IC are interesting and enjoyable. The art is pretty good and really soars at times.

52 #2

2006-07-04T14:29:00.000-04:00

9.5/10

Even better than the first issue. Elongated Man tries to figure out who defaced his wife's grave (which brings Wonder Girl into the story) and The Question tries to enlist Montoya's help with some crime fighting. Booster Gold also tries to find out what went wrong when he (barely) saved an airplane from certain destruction.

This one just gives little hints that something much larger is going on than a story about how heroes cope without the big three around. I get the feeling that, layer by layer, Johns, et al, are going to reveal that some major events take place in the year after IC.

52 #1

2006-07-04T14:28:00.000-04:00

9/10

52 is one of the best ideas that any comic publisher has had in a long time. Spawned out of the events of the recent Infinite Crisis mega-event crossover, 52 tells the entire story of the DCU in the year between the end of IC and the beginning of the regular titles one year later. It does so through weekly comic book releases written by the DCU's leading authors (Johns, Rucka, Waid and Morrison).

The theme of the book is clearly going to be how the DCU manages without the three major heroes (Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman) as well as the larger JLA. This gives other characters like Booster Gold, Detective Montoya, Elongated Man, and The Question time to shine.

As you can see, the idea is great. So how is the execution? So far, its great too. The bottom line with issue #1 is that this is a fascinating experiment in story telling that showcases characters that probably couldn't carry a title on their own. The only potential problem I see is how the writers are going to be able to condense all their ideas into only 52 issues.

The first issue focuses on Booster Gold, who is clearly trying to fill the gap left by Superman's absence. It's fun to see him do his best to fill the man of cape's shoes, using his unique awareness of the future to aid in his heroics. Meanwhile, Montoya is doing some sole searching, and there are some great panels featuring The Question near the end. All in all, very satisfying.

INFINITE CRISIS #2-7

2006-07-04T14:13:00.000-04:00

9/10

I don't want to take the time to do reviews for each individual book, but I do want to review DC's biggest comic crossover event in 20 years.

Overall, I was very satisfied with buildup, events, and conculsion of the IC saga. It managed to wipe the slate clean for DC without doing a complete reboot, and new readers will be better able to enter the DC universe now.

I also found it a very satisfying conclusion to Crisis on Infinite Earths, even if the plot of IC wasn't quite as compelling as COIE. What puts IC above COIE, though, is the motivation of the villains, which isn't fully revealed unless you read the IC Secret Files.

I wasn't let down with #7, either. I thought it was a fitting conclusion to the series, and an appropriate way to deal with the "limbo" characters from COIE (Earth 2 Superman and Lois, Earth 3 Alexander Luthor, and Earth Prime Superboy). Also, I thought #7 (and IC as a whole) had a lot to say about the state of comics today, in particular what it actually means to be a hero. Superboy represents the viewpoint of a lot of comic fans: namely, that superheroes should always be stuck in the Silver Age, never have a dark side, and certainly should never change. While I appreciate this viewpoint, I find myself somewhere in the middle, and Superboy's rampage was an apt depiction of what would happen to the comic world if some fans had their way.

All this made IC loads of fun, and certainly better than most comics you can find out there. Highly recommended.

DETECTIVE COMICS #818

2006-07-02T22:02:00.000-04:00

9/10

Story: James Robinson
Art: Leonard Kirk /Andy Clarke

"Face the Face" part 3 (of 8). This is a crossover with BATMAN, so we'll see if Private America makes it out of his Crisis to review those issues. But score another winner for Robinson and this gumshoe arc. Bats enlists the help of a civilian to dig for clues during the daylight. And Harvey Dent may or may not be killing off villains -- all we know is that he hasn't been known as Two-Face for over a year.

DETECTIVE COMICS #817

2006-07-02T21:49:00.000-04:00

9/10

Story: James Robinson
Art: Leonard Kirk /Andy Clarke

"Face the Face" part 1 (of 8). ONE YEAR LATER starts here (year after the events of INFINITE CRISIS #7). I has pleasantly surprised at how strong this OYL kickoff was. Robinson is new to me, but frankly anyone is a welcome change to Bat-books after Judd Winick.

Here's the quick recap:
- Gordon became commissioner again 3 months ago
- Harvey Dent is fighting crime, Punisher style
- Officer Harvey Bullock made some important discoveries 6 months ago
- Crooked cops in GCPD came out of the woodwork 9 months ago

Familiar faces, familiar villains, but clearly there are important events that we'll learn more about in 52. For now, I'm loving this arc.

I need a vacation to read all this

2006-07-01T22:17:00.000-04:00

Here's what is currently piled up waiting to be read -- not counting Box #96 at my local funny book establishment.

52 #4
DETECTIVE COMICS #817
DETECTIVE COMICS #818
DETECTIVE COMICS #819
GREEN LANTERN CORPS: RECHARGE #4
GREEN LANTERN #9
GREEN LANTERN #10
BIRDS OF PREY #91
BIRDS OF PREY #92
BIRDS OF PREY #93
BIRDS OF PREY #94
SUPERMAN SECRET FILES & ORIGINS 2005
SUPERMAN #650
SUPERMAN #651
SUPERMAN #652
THE NEW TEEN TITANS #34
TEEN TITANS #35
BATGIRL #71
BATGIRL #72
BATGIRL #73
SNAKE EYES #5
SNAKE EYES #6

And here's what I expect to find in Box #96 later this week:

52 #5
52 #6
52 #7
52 #8
52 #9
DETECTIVE COMICS #820
DETECTIVE COMICS #821
GREEN LANTERN #11
BIRDS OF PREY #95
SUPERMAN #653
ULTIMATES 2 #11

In all, 33 issues to read and review. I see no end in sight.

INFINITE CRISIS #7 (of 7)

2006-07-01T16:03:00.000-04:00

6/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Jimenez / Perez / Lanning / Ordway / Bennett

I'll review this mediocre issue soon enough. I'm reading it again to see if it'll somehow improve. I'm feeling a bit let down right now.

Ok, here's my take. I know Private America's in love with #7 -- and I want to be... it just felt like a hurried final chapter.

First, the positives!

A new universe is created when Superboy (Conner) bites the dust that throws together heroes who did not used to coexist on one planet. There was tons of action and some sweet art throughout. You can feel the start of a new cohesive adventure in the DCU.

Now, the grumbles (or why I only rate this "decent"):

Too many random events for me. Doomsday - where'd he come from? And why? And if after a loooong battle years ago that climaxed with the death of Supes-2, why dispatch of Dday so quickly? Actually, the whole Metropolis splash page annoyed me. Was the cover meaningless? Some things in there don't appear inside.

Batman vs. Deathstroke... drool fest for fanboys, right? Wrong! Batman wins OFF PANEL! For the love of Zeus! Wonder Woman suddenly decides that killing Max Lord was wrong. That's right, wrong! After Rucka made her point of view crystal clear for us in the pages of Wonder Woman #220. What made her change her mind?

So as a whole, did I enjoy INFINITE CRISIS? Yes, I certainly did. And I'd buy it again if Marty McFly took me back to November 15, 2005.

INFINITE CRISIS #6 (of 7)

2006-06-27T21:19:00.000-04:00

10/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Phil Jimenez / Jerry Ordway / George Perez / Ivan Reis

Read the issue, then read this commentary. I'm going to brain dump for this issue, so forgive the incohesive post. I'll have to compare to #1-4 later, but this may be the most action packed of the series. It's incredible.

GA & GL are buddies again. The new Blue Beetle is pulled into the fold by Batman & Co. to destroy Brother Eye. Supermen make up. Alex continues looking for the perfect earth, by combining earths with the anti-monitor technology. Spectre takes out Star Sapphire. Superboy, Nightwing, and Wonder Girl set free Manhunter, Power Girl, and the others trapped by Alex. Black Adam rips up Psycho Pirate and tickles Superboy-Prime.

The book finishes with Superboy battling S-P and destroying Alex's tower and creating a new earth in the process. Superboy dies from it. I know... it pissed me off, too.

INFINITE CRISIS #5 (of 7)

2006-06-26T17:55:00.000-04:00

9/10

Story: Geoff Johns

Art: Phil Jimenez / Jerry Ordway / Ivan Reis

So much happens between the covers, but this issue can be summed up like this: the pillars of the DCU (Supes, Bats, WW) are experiencing a change in character. They are being offered a chance to shine as heroes at a time when ordinary citizens as well as other good guys have second doubts about recent actions by the big three.

[ s p o i l e r w a r n i n g ]

...turn back now...

...last chance...

Earths are appearing all over the sky, even Bizarro Earth.

Earth-2 Lois dies in Earth-2 Superman's arms. He screams, Earth-1 Supes shows up, and they bloody each other. WW arrives to calm both down.

Superboy-Prime escapes from the Flashes.

as to the fate of the resident superheroes...

2006-06-23T20:29:00.000-04:00

We have new babies, but we'll return... as soon as our women tell us we can...

recent comics I've missed

2006-02-21T11:32:00.000-05:00

SUPERMAN #226
BIRDS OF PREY #91

Sadly no Infinite Crisis until March.

Quick Reviews

2006-02-07T13:13:00.000-05:00

JSA #79: 7/10. Johns is off the book, and it's not quite up to par anymore. I still enjoy it, but this story is just...weird.

Wonder Woman #223: 6/10. Omacs assault the Amazons. The stuff with Wonder Woman is great, the rest...not too great.

JSA: Classified #5: 8/10. This book takes a closer look at the re-forming of the Injustice Society. This is exactly what this book should be: a chance to more deeply explore certain characters that feature in the JSA book.

GREEN LANTERN #7

2006-02-06T09:54:00.000-05:00

8/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Carlos Pacheco

"Perfect Life" part 1. Private America and I have been admiring several DC writer's handling of the massive crossovers in several of our reviews. As huge as the INFINITE CRISIS events are, books like Green Lantern can be enjoyed by any reader. If this is your only DC comic, you won't be sorry. If you're a GL fan, Geoff Johns' current work is must read material.

I love, love, love when GL and Green Arrow team up. They share a unique set of similarities and differences that make for fun storytelling. This issue begins a Mogul-related arc. Mogul, the alien who fought with Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman on the JLA tower before escaping. Big M's only son has travelled to earth to conquer, and has brought along some Black Mercy plants (attach to host and stimulate happy happy joy joy feelings).

BOOKS OF DOOM #1

2006-02-02T08:52:00.000-05:00

10/10

I can't find anything to criticize in this book. Ed Brubaker, who continues to wow me with his writing on Captain America, takes the writing helm on this story of Dr. Doom's origins. Brubaker is quickly moving up my ladder of favorite writers, because he can write tense, character driven stories that are nonetheless entertaining.

I won't spoil the plot or anything, but as you can guess Victor von Doom didn't have a normal childhood. It's neat, though, to see him agonize over whether to do good or evil. Since we know that all humans face this choice at some time (no matter how depraved they are currently) Brubaker does tap into something eternal in this story.

Read it!

CAPTAIN AMERICA #11

2006-02-01T13:06:00.000-05:00

9.5/10 (story: 4.5; art: 5)

Ahem...pardon me while I clean up my shorts.

First, why do I subtract a point for the story? Because I would not choose to bring Bucky back if I were writing this comic.

But everything else is perfect.

This is how you do a comic...tense story, awesome, creative art, and a love for the continuity without smothering us with it. This continues to read like a great Tom Clancy novel. Awesome stuff.

TEEN TITANS #29

2006-02-01T13:05:00.000-05:00

7.5/10 (story: 4; art: 3.5)

I'm back!

This was a solid issue, but nothing special. It was neat to see Jason Todd fight Tim Drake, but I don't think Jason should have won so easily. Art was okay, nothing special. Looks like Brother Blood is back...I'm not too excited about that, actually.

BIRDS OF PREY #90

2006-02-01T08:29:00.000-05:00

9/10

Story: Gail Simone
Art: Paulo Siqueira /Adam Dekraker

"Perfect Pitch" part 5. This is an issue that would easily suck you into reading BoP every month. It's the end of an arc, but works as a stand alone issue, also. For those of you wondering where the humanized Batman was in comics, here he is! Bats was convinced that Huntress was using Oracle & Co. to have bloody revenge on the Gotham mobs. He's threatening to shut down all the Birds' operations when Huntress hands him an atlas of organized crime. She assembled more undercover data than anyone up to that point - including Batman - and she did it for him. He responds with "This is... this is good work. No, this is... outstanding work." No whining about protocol, no argument that she should have told him earlier... just good old fashioned Batman patting a coworker on the back.

So... the cliffhanger from last month... Black Canary vs. Deathstroke! LOVED that battle! Why? Because Canary shows off her 3-second, 2 fingers held in blind spot swinging around enemy's face lodging into eye socket move, that's why! But he gets away. Again.

Art was excellent throughout. Special focus was given to Huntress' facial expressions that completely sold her feelings to the reader. As good as the art was, I will complain about multiple artists on one arc, let alone one issue. Pick a guy and stick with him!

first funny books for february

2006-01-31T08:04:00.000-05:00

DETECTIVE COMICS #816

GREEN LANTERN #8

GI JOE SNAKE-EYES DECLASSIFIED #6 (of 6)

new comics shipping this week

2006-01-24T07:40:00.000-05:00

Just one new issue in Box #96:

GREEN LANTERN CORPS RECHARGE #4 (of 6) -- I'm bitter that they extended this mini to 6 issues. I hate when publishers do that!

But I will read up on the details of:

BATMAN #649 -- a comic that I once couldn't do without; and

WONDER WOMAN #225 -- a comic that was great starting with #219 (the extent of my reading), but doesn't seem so important anymore. Rucka should be pouring his time into this since it's about to be rebooted. Make one last high-quality run. Oh well...

WONDER WOMAN #224

2006-01-22T09:06:00.000-05:00

5/10

Story: Greg Rucka
Art: Cliff Richards

This issue is for hardcore WW fans only. You don't learn anything important that isn't found in 3 panels of INFINTE CRISIS #3. This is an exploration of a character from Themyscira who doesn't really matter since the whole lot of them are leaving the realm of Patriarchs. But, we did get some great action in these pages, including the fantastic Purple Death Ray!

INFINITE CRISIS #4 (of 7)

2006-01-21T14:20:00.000-05:00

9/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Phil Jimenez/George Perez/Ivan Reis

* SPOILERIFIC COMMENTS BELOW *

The last several pages kicked the rating up a bit. Batman sets aside his pride and asks Nightwing for help. Fortunately, NW gives the finger to Devin Grayson and responds true to his character. The Flashes help out a serious battle started by Superboy Prime, who suddenly isn't any better than the "bad" heroes he's trying to erase. Society pretty much levels Bludhaven. A new Spectre is chosen. JSA characters start disappearing as two earths begin to separate! (The final page illustrating this is sweet!)

DETECTIVE COMICS #815

2006-01-21T14:18:00.000-05:00

9/10

Story: Shane McCarthy
Art: Cliff Chiang

"Victims" part 1 (of 2). Take a break from the mini-series, maxi-series, gigantor crossovers, and check out this issue. As much as I love the larger scale events in the DCU, I still enjoy a fun, concise Batman story. Starts out (as the cover suggests) with Zsasz sticking Alfred with a blade. Ends with Bruce Wayne baiting Zsasz into further action. Dialogue is punchy, art is crisp. Great issue.

GREEN LANTERN CORPS #3 (of 5)

2006-01-19T10:53:00.000-05:00

7/10

Story: Dave Gibbons / Geoff Johns
Art: Patrick Gleason /Christian Alamy

Two bickering new Corps members (1 Thanagarian, 1 Rannian) head off to uncharted territory and run into serious trouble. But do not fret -- the poozers have help coming! Meanwhile, Kyle and Guy search for the fearful recruit from issue #1 and end up in the same place as the lost lanterns.

40 posts and counting...

2006-01-17T09:31:00.000-05:00

Where is Private America? I know he was dispatched to the heartlands, but should have returned by now...

So, with my newly reduced pull list (see below), what's in Box #96 this week?

BIRDS OF PREY #90 -- Black Canary vs. Deathstroke

GREEN LANTERN #7 -- new arc including Green Arrow

! INFINITE CRISIS #4 ! -- forgot about this, but found it in my box! woohoo!

***************************************
Birds of Prey
Detective Comics
Green Lantern
Superman
52 (coming soon)

BIRDS OF PREY #89

2006-01-16T12:39:00.000-05:00

10/10

Story: Gail Simone
Art: Joe Bennett / Jack Jadson

"Perfect Pitch" part 3. Can I say "Best of the Week" even if I only read 1 comic last week? Small team stories are Gail Simone's forte. Her Villains United mini was excellent, and this BoP is a sort of spin-off from that. Ex-villains Savant and Creote have been working with Oracle's team, so Calculator abducts/tortures Savant in order to lure Oracle to himself.

The character development was superb across the board. Jim & Barbara Gordon talking about her secrets, Black Canary reflecting on her training from Shiva, and the differences between the Birds and their new henchmen, Savant and Creote.

Couple of spoiler cliffhangers....

1. Calculator has Deathstroke ready to wipe out the Birds when they come to rescue Savant. D hasn't faced Black Canary post-Shiva.

2. Batman wants the Birds to stop operating in Gotham. He shows up in Oracle's window with Gordon present to tell her to back off. Plus, he says there's a hidden agenda to Huntress' plan to infiltrate the mob.

new comics this week

2006-01-10T10:58:00.000-05:00

Nothing new in Box #96, but I will be reading spoiler reviews of the following new comics:

GREEN ARROW #58 -- bad guys attacked Star City and destroyed GA's headquarters.

JLA #124 -- more team in-fighting. this time GA vs. Batman. I dropped the title from my pull list, and DC is stopping it after IC (for a while anyway).

This isn't on my pull list, but my next trade paperback pull will probably be SEVEN SOLDIERS OF VICTORY VOL 1. Reprints (in original release order): SEVEN SOLDIERS OF VICTORY #0, SEVEN SOLDIERS: SHINING KNIGHT #1-2, SEVEN SOLDIERS: THE GUARDIAN #1-2, SEVEN SOLDIERS: ZATANNA #1-2 and SEVEN SOLDIERS: KLARION #1.Since Private America isn't keeping up with his reviews of the maxi-series, I have no idea what's going on in Grant Morrison's world.

TEEN TITANS #30

2006-01-09T17:45:00.000-05:00

4/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Tony Daniel

Average comic, but the horrible layout sends it to the WTF category. Was this a TEEN TITANS issue or a CAPTAIN CARROT issue? I'm still not sure. A page of Brother Blood, a page of vegies... what a mess.

Blood brings on the new Zombie Titans West -- young heroes who are coming back to life (sort of).

SUPERMAN #224

2006-01-07T11:53:00.000-05:00

5.5/10

Story: Mark Verheiden
Art: Ed Benes /Ivan Reis

This is a fun issue for the Superman faithful, but nothing groundbreaking. Lex is stranded (for now) in the arctic while Supes engages Black Rock. Quick question: why didn't Superman trap Black Rock in a fortress of love when they first met? He allows himself to be thrown around the city for a while before finally aiming love beams her way.

Don't let the "Infinite Crisis Crossover" bulletin fool you -- that's just a continuity note.

I have a whole new outlook on Lex Luthor since reading the Man of Steel mini. In this issue, Verheiden goes back and forth between Superman's and Lex's perspective on the battles they're fighting. Lex is in pure survival mode right now -- no one matters more than himself. If nothing else, this issue will give you a fresh take on the differences between Lex and "the alien."

ALL-STAR SUPERMAN #1

2006-01-06T13:22:00.000-05:00

7/10

Story: Grant Morrison
Art: Frank Quitely

Maybe I'm one of those guys who thinks the market is a bit saturated with the Superman origin. Everyone knows it -- even strangers to comic books. Granted, Morrison only takes a few panels to remind us of Supes' history, but the whole issue feels like it's for readers untouched by pop culture over the past 25 years. If I was running the show, I'd suggest writing some out-of-continuity stories that emphasize Superman's "alien" status without starting from square one.

The best thing Morrison did was immediately portray Superman as THE force to be reckoned with on earth. Not just Metropolis, but earth. This guy is top of the food chain. Art was very good, but I hated the cover. Is Superman chilly sitting up on that cloud? And has he been super-sizing too many meals or is he just big boned now? Does that sly expression mean he's hiding something under the cape, or he's about to zap me with heat vision?

GREEN LANTERN #6

2006-01-03T16:35:00.000-05:00

8/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Ethan van Sciver

Black Hand is a bit irritated that Hal Jordan won't stay dead. And who can blame him? It's not fair to the rest of us.

What's great? The art -- amazing. Also, the Hector Hammond possibilities are excellent. I love how Johns is treating this old-school villain. Sinestro isn't the only great foil to Green Lantern.

A couple of minor complaints. First, Hal Jordan swipes BH's hand clean off. Again. Why did he even fight at all? Why not just whip out the ring and FWISSSH? Second, call me picky, but why do the aliens have to be evil capitalist scientists bent on re-engineering the galaxy's greatest products? I miss the Reagan era when capitalism was still a pleasing word in the public's ear -- before the mass media distortion. But I digress...

new arrivals for the new year

2006-01-03T13:04:00.000-05:00

DAY OF VENGEANCE INFINITE CRISIS SPECIAL -- won't buy it, but I'm going to read spoiler reviews of it. The attack on magic is a big deal in DC's Crisis.

DETECTIVE COMICS #815 -- Mr. Zsasz is going after Alfred.

SUPERMAN #225 -- maybe I should read #224.

* * * * * * * * * * * *

Windbreaker's new pull list (effective immediately) will be:
Birds of Prey
Detective Comics
Green Lantern
Superman
52 (the post-IC title)

I will continue dipping into my massive collection of back issues, though.

BIRDS OF PREY #88

2005-12-31T20:14:00.000-05:00

9/10

Story: Gail Simone
Art: Joe Bennett/Eddy Barrows

"Perfect Pitch" part 2. In a way, I'm getting a JLA fix from this book right now. Simone writes an excellent team book, fleshing out all the players without getting lost in one character's story. This issue played up the on again/off again relationship between Black Canary and Green Arrow, so even though the League has disbanded, I get some good archer action.

Plot points:

- Calculator wants Oracle bad. He's captured Savant (a soldier fighting with Huntress) to pry out intel.

- Huntress is close to being named a mafia capo. Her next move will be to help the Birds destroy a mob family.

- Babs daydreams about being Batwoman.

INFINITE CRISIS #3 (of 7)

2005-12-31T08:13:00.000-05:00

9/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Phil Jemenez / George Perez

* * * Warning: I will not avoid spoilers, so read the issue first! * * *

Of the first 3, this issue looks and feels the most like CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS. There is a ton of action, overlapping plot threads, truck load of characters playing pivotal roles, and the art is worth taking a second look through the issue without bothering to read word bubbles.

Here's where Geoff Johns is taking us -- what's the deal with the characters who survived the original crisis? As heavily speculated across the internerd, Alexander Luthor and Superboy Prime are the brains and muscle (respectively) behind some recent events, including the kidnapping of Martian Manhunter/Black Adam/Power Girl and destruction of the JLA tower. It gets worse -- Alex is the guy who was doubling as Lex Luthor, so he knows all about the Society's antics!

Batman has a major scene with Earth-2 Superman, where old man Supes tries to get Bats to help with the rebooting of the current earth. Sort of a Vader/Skywalker moment with the opportunity for the two greatest heroes to rule together.

Questions left to be answered:

Does Earth-2 Superman have any motive other than saving Lois?

Does Brother Eye have anything to do with Alex Luthor and Superboy Prime?

Where do Amazons go when they leave our earth?

Minor complaint: Batman sort of falls apart when talking to Brother Eye. It feels rushed. Why after all that's happened, does he now say "what have I done?" Shouldn't that have happened in OMAC #2?

WONDER WOMAN #223

2005-12-30T20:41:00.000-05:00

8/10

Story: Greg Rucka
Art: Rags Morales

Diana leaves her trial when she learns of the OMAC attack on Themyscira. One sonic boom later, she's in the throws of battle with her sisters. The world is watching the televised attack as warrior after warrior falls.

comics of Christmas present

2005-12-29T09:19:00.000-05:00

One new title in box #96 this week:

WONDER WOMAN #224

But I'm most excited about picking up last week's INFINITE CRISIS #3!

BATGIRL #70

2005-12-26T16:54:00.001-05:00

5/10

Story: Andersen Gabrych
Art: Pop Mhan / Jesse Delperdang

"Destruction's Daughter" conclusion. Ok, so we left off in #69 with Batgirl helping Dr. Freeze resurrect his wife by lowering her into Nyssa's lazarus pit. We open the pages of this issue to find all hell breaking lose. The evil dead are literally crawling out of the ground. That's fine. But I didn't care for the new Mrs. Freeze... Lazara. This whole arc was supposed to be about Batgirl searching for her birth mother. Suddenly that doesn't seem to matter anymore. No sense in buying this issue if you aren't a die hard fan.

JLA #123

2005-12-26T16:54:00.000-05:00

5/10

Story: Bob Harras
Art: Tom Derenick / Dan Green

I don't envy Harras -- he has to keep this book interesting, when we all know it's going to end soon (even if it's a temporary stop). I may go ahead and just drop this title now. It's sputtering to the finish line where the Infinite Crisis follow-ups will take over. Donna Troy left for space again. I think she has now officially departed for space in every DC title currently published.

GLX-mas SPECIAL

2005-12-25T18:49:00.000-05:00

8/10

Story: Dan Slott
Art: too many to list

Maybe not the finest work ever by Slott, but this is a terrific comedy book. There are so many inside jokes for those fortunate enough to have read the earlier GREAT LAKES AVENGERS mini. I'm not going to spoil anything, other than this: I will always remember Squirrel Girl has the heroine who defeated the multiverse-destroying villain, Thanos!

pre-Christmas newbies in box #96 (also known as the 25th consecutive post since Private America appeared)

2005-12-20T10:49:00.000-05:00

BATGIRL #71

BIRDS OF PREY #89

INFINITE CRISIS #3 (of 7)

GI JOE SNAKE-EYES DECLASSIFIED #5 (of 6)

SECRET WAR #5 (of 5) -- the Bendis mini concludes after just 22 months; I've been holding these issues to read until I had the whole set, so a review will come fairly soon

new in Box #96 this week

2005-12-12T08:42:00.000-05:00

unusual for me to have so many new books in one week...

JLA #123 - word on the street is that JLA will be off the shelves for a while; hopefully the stories won't suck in the meantime

TEEN TITANS #30 - Geoff Johns

GLA MISASSEMBLED - (trade paperback) thank you Private America for the exposure

GLX-MAS SPECIAL - title will make sense after you read GLA

ULTIMATE IRON MAN #5 - picking up steam in the last issue; even if it is a focus on young Tony, this should be a solid conclusion; volume 2 is in the works

hawkman: allies & enemies

2005-12-11T17:02:00.000-05:00

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Rags Morales

Volume 2 in the current volume of Hawkman, collecting issues 7-14. As much as I loved Volume 1 (Endless Flight), this trade has been sitting on my shelf unread for some time now. Shame on me for delaying! Geoff Johns is superb (as expected) as he incorporates characters and events from a mangled DCU history into one coherent story. Art is very strong. I'm not always a fan of Rags, but there wasn't anything worth complaining about here.

PART 1

8.5/10

Ray Palmer, the Atom, is a former JSA partner of Hawkman. Part 1 of this trade establishes their friendship and personalities without getting bogged down in talk bubbles. Atom is one of the often thrown-away characters of the DCU, but Johns makes you love him. He's a great compliment to Hawkman. Without outlining the whole plot, I'll just say that we get a nice glimpse into some Old West past lives of the Hawk heroes. And one thing to remember -- Hawkgirl has not expressed love to Hawkman in this current life as Kendra Saunders. Hawkman believes that they can only be slain by their permanent enemy Hath-Set if they're fighting side-by-side as lovers.

PART 2

8/10

Enter Dr. Fate! This was fun for me since I had no idea Hawkman's son was now Dr. Fate. I'm only now getting into JSA history. Part 2 picks up with Fate explaining what Hawkman should expect in the future -- basically, he's fated to die.

PART 3

9/10

Hawkgirl's long lost Grandpa, Speed Saunders has been kidnapped as part of a trap for HG and HM. The heroes follow guides to a mountain in Tibet, where a secret society is said to dwell. It's not long before the trap is sprung and hand-to-hand combat rages. Surprise, surprise, the enemy is revealed as the reincarnation of Hath-Set. Not knowing what to expect, Hawkman made sure to pack the Atom in his carry-on luggage. Great fight scenes.

PART 4

/10

Review.

TEEN TITANS #29

2005-12-10T20:38:00.000-05:00

7/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Tony Daniel/Marlo Alquiza

"Life and Death" guest starring Red Hood (who everyone should know by now is Jason Todd) and Donna Troy. This issue takes place before Donna heads into space with Supergirl and some other heroes. My only major complaint is that the art was inconsistent. Robin II's costume coloring was off on several panels, which was especially distracting since it helped to distinguish from Robin III. A minor complaint is Red Hood's dialogue. Johns sets the stage nicely for the Tim Drake showdown, by reminding the reader where these 2 guys came from. For a hilarious, spoiler-happy review, follow this link.

Ok, so what boosted this to "good" status? Well, primarily the clarification of Red Hood's return -- both the how and why. A lot of magical mischief has been blowing out of hats recently in the DCU. Souls that should be dead are not finding rest and are slipping back into the living arena. Souls that should be stable are being sucked into the dead zone. In other words, Day of Vengeance is still a very meaningful miniseries.

JLA #122

2005-12-10T11:30:00.000-05:00

8/10

Story: Bob Harras
Art: Tom Derenick/Dan Green

What a pleasant surprise for me. I loathed the previous issue, but I thought this was a terrific issue with a focus on the team. Remember, it is a team book. Green Arrow and Black Canary don't have the awkward dialogue seen in #121. The story flows nicely as the two veteran members do their best to keep the JLA together by adding to their ranks. Supergirl seems a logical addition, but she's about to join Donna Troy in space.

The villain in Harras' arc is the Key -- a sick, sick man who's having some trouble with voices in his head. The more people he kills, the quieter the voices seem to be. Now he has his sights on a friend of the JLA.

ULTIMATES 2 #9

2005-12-08T22:17:00.000-05:00

9/10

Story: Mark Millar
Art: Bryan Hitch

This is the Marvel issue I've been waiting months for. In fact, it was so good, I'm going to stop moaning about all the money I've flushed on Ultimates books.

DETECTIVE COMICS #814

2005-12-08T21:52:00.000-05:00

4/10

Story: David Lapham
Art: Ramon Bachs/Nathan Massengill

"City of Crime" part 12. The finale. ZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzz.....

for Christmas maybe I'll empty Box #96

2005-12-05T09:05:00.000-05:00

If I do, I'll be up to my eyes in back issues, including:
JLA #43 - 46
JLA #49 - 50

New books for me this week:
DETECTIVE COMICS #814
SUPERMAN #224
ULTIMATES 2 #9

BIRDS OF PREY #87

2005-12-04T14:47:00.000-05:00

10/10

Story: Gail Simone
Art: Joe Bennett/Eddy Barrows

BEST OF THE WEEK!

"Perfect Pitch" part 1. Private America will love this issue when he gets around to borrowing it. This is old-school comic book writing (and drawing) set in modern day.

Calculator has been established as the Society's anti-Oracle. He is brilliant, tech-savvy, and has a burning desire to solve the puzzle of Oracle. Add to that the pressure of Lex Luthor looking over his shoulder.

The Birds are a fully-functional team now. No Bat-heroes in sight, assuming you don't count Huntress. The pages illustrating them in action were excellent -- felt like watching an adventure movie. The "Barbara-might-walk-again" plot was not advanced here, but Simone nails the character's attitude regarding her current situation. Her tears of joy at JSA headquarters were genuine. This isn't a bitter woman -- rather, she keeps her head up and a smile on her face even in the face of tragedy.

TEEN TITANS #28

2005-12-04T08:46:00.000-05:00

4.5/10

Story: Gail Simone (guest)
Art: Rob Liefeld (guest)

Part 2 in the "What was Gail Simone thinking!" arc. I'm only bothering to post a review since I like to fill up the web site. Words can't describe how inconsistent the art is. Capes, body dimensions, hair... it's all a mess. And the story does very little for me. Kestrel, the Purple People Eater, bites it at the hand of another villain, but I'm not even sure he'll be gone long.

Tim Drake's reflections throughout were good character meat, but not enough to salvage this meaningless arc.

GREEN LANTERN #5

2005-12-04T00:21:00.000-05:00

10/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Ethan van Sciver

"Feeding Frenzy." New story arc picks up, but has roots in earlier issues. First observation: the art is stunning. I loved van Sciver's work in GL: Rebirth, and he's just as impressive here.

Bobbleheaded Hector Hammond has some intel on experiments involving rapid evolution. Is Shark one of those? Plus, throw in the mix Black Hand (see the Rebirth issues), who is suddenly given powers from strange visitors. As powerful as GL Hal Jordan is, there is a sense of dread in this issue. Crazy aliens are "bamf'ing" in and out of the clear blue -- who are they and what is their purpose?

ULTIMATES ANNUAL #1 [2005]

2005-12-03T08:28:00.000-05:00

8/10

Story: Mark Millar
Art: Steve Dillon

My expectations were super low for this first Annual set in Marvel's Ultimate Universe. I'm glad, because I ended up being very pleasantly surprised. This is a strong outing for Millar -- the sort of issue I used to expect from him on the Ultimates.

We get a little deeper into the mind of Nick Fury. He loves his country and will do just about anything to keep it secure. Thank you Millar, for not getting preachy with politics here!

The Defenders issue (U2 #6) was a waste, but their cameo here was very good. These are a bunch of nobodies who want desperately to be accepted into the hero community. Overall, the art was just ok, except for some of the emotion portrayed on character's faces -- that was top notch.

GREEN ARROW #19 - 20

2005-12-01T12:44:00.000-05:00

6/10

Story: Brad Meltzer
Art: Phil Hester/ Ande Parks

"Archers Quest" parts 4 and 5 (of 6). I want to rate these issues higher, but there just isn't a whole lot of meat. GA is running around picking up souvenirs from his life before death before life. It's not a bad scavanger hunt, but I'm not sure what purpose it serves. Oliver Queen wants to protect his friends and family from ever being hurt by a villain, but will grabbing old toys help?

The highlight is the interaction between Ollie and GL Kyle. GA fans know that he and GL Hal were superfriends, so who's this Kyle kid playing dress-up?

what's in box #96 this week?

2005-11-28T22:34:00.000-05:00

Well, besides a huge pile of back issues that I'm saving for a rainy day, I'll have

WONDER WOMAN #223

That's it. No ULT FF #25 for me.

BATMAN #633

2005-11-27T15:14:00.000-05:00

9/10

Story: Bill Willingham
Art: Kinsun

"War Games" Act 3, Part 8 (of 8). What's not to love here?

- Black Mask has tracked down Oracle's clocktower headquarters, holding her as bait for Batman.

- Gotham PD has a shoot-on-sight order from Commish Akins if any masked vigilante resists arrest.

- Scare Beast lets loose again.

- Batman finally gets his one-on-one duel with Black Mask, only to be stopped by Oracle, of all people. Her point of view actually sounds a lot like Batman in the "Sacrifice" story (Superman 219, Action Comics 829, Adventures of Superman 642, Wonder Woman 219): it's not worth killing the enemy... Just walk away from each other.

Art was superb. I'm still not a huge fan of the glossy paper, but Kinsun is at his best here. You know an artist is doing a good job when the reader can recognize Tim Drake and Dick Grayson. They're such normal looking guys that it takes skill to make them stand out.

LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #184

2005-11-26T23:25:00.000-05:00

8.5/10

Story: Dylan Horrocks
Art: Brad Walker/Troy Nixey

"War Games" Act 3, Part 2 (of 8). I'll qualify the rating by saying that in order to fully appreciate this issue, you have to have read at least some of the major issues in the War Games arc. That said, this LOTDK outing is excellent, even if it does have some cheesy dialogue thrown in!

We're in the final act now, so hidden villains/agendas are being revealed, the cops' patience with Batman has been extinguished along with hundreds of lives, and the Bat-family is ready to do whatever is necessary to end the bloodshed.

Reading these issues again puts more recent comics in a new light. Onyx's rage over Orpheus' death, for example. Also, you can see the signs of Oracle's withdrawal. She's had enough of the Bat-relationship.

Perhaps one day, before I'm fully gray, Private America will post reviews of the other War Games issues outside of the core titles.

DETECTIVE COMICS #799

2005-11-26T21:31:00.000-05:00

7/10

Story: Andersen Gabrych
Art: Pete Woods/Cam Smith

"War Games" Act 3, Part 1 (of 8). The plot doesn't really soar forward, but I love the development. The press and police have been more and more anti-cape since the gang war first broke out in Gotham. Commissioner Akins sees Batman as a pompous renegade who should be locked up. Perhaps against his better judgement, Akins is allowing Batman to lead the final charge against the gang-bangers in hopes of ending this war.

Bats is following his elaborate strategy set up as part of his own war game that Spoiler set into motion. He is setting up his own inside man, Orpheus, as leader of the bad guy mob. Problems arise since Black Mask has already murdered Orph, and assumed his identity!

GREEN LANTERN CORPS: RECHARGE #2 (of 6)

2005-11-26T18:43:00.000-05:00

6/10

Story: Geoff Johns/Dave Gibbons
Art: Patrick Gleason/P.Rollins/C.Alamy

The GL recruit who quit in #1 is in trouble, and calling for Lantern help. Rannian and Thanagarian fleets are about to duke it out over a planet that is itself a Green Lantern. A star is unstable in a distant corner of the universe. Veterans and new recruits are sent out in different directions to handle the various threats.

Nothing groundbreaking, but it's still a good team book. I think this will be a solid mini for fanboys. Non-GL readers shouldn't feel bad about missing this title.

DETECTIVE COMICS #813

2005-11-26T15:11:00.000-05:00

4.5/10

Story: David Lapham
Art: Ramon Bachs/Nathan Massengill

"City of Crime" part 11. A resounding "meh." I just don't care anymore. I want next month to be here, so this long-winded story can finally end. There are WAY too many loose ends to tie up in one concluding issue. I had hoped that the resolution would begin here. The only crystal clear plot point is one we knew from the first issue of this arc -- the mysterious "body" is setting a death trap for Batman. Well whoopdy-freakin-do.

SUPERMAN #223

2005-11-26T14:39:00.000-05:00

5/10

Story: Mark Verheiden
Art: Ed Benes/Ivan Reis

Supergirl tells Kal that she's headed off to space with Donna Troy. He pouts. An emergency arises. They fight the enemy. She leaves. He smiles proudly. That's the issue in a nutshell.

A new host has been found (by Lex Luthor) to be the new Blackrock. Lucia is a woman in prison that Superman fought a few months back -- I think in Verheiden's first issue of this run. The more a person can channel their hatred, the more powerful they can become. But it's hard to understand this woman's intense, Lex-like hatred of Supes. It's not as though he has been thwarting her life's ambitions.

So what's the Infinite Crisis theme from this issue? Talia al Ghul springs Lucia from prison and gives her the black stone. Blackrock will be Lex's tool to keep Superman occupied for a while. (Meanwhile, space-suit Lex is still out in the arctic).

INFINITE CRISIS #2 (of 7)

2005-11-22T22:06:00.000-05:00

10/10

Story: Geoff Johns
Art: Phil Jimenez

First, take a minute to study the cover if you're lucky enough to pick up the Perez variant. Then allow yourself a good 20 minutes to read through this issue -- it's loaded with goodies.

Before I even started into Johns' story, I was blown away by the art. In fact, page 1 was so good that I flipped through a few more pages just to see if the quality kept up (it did).

So on to the story... we left off in IC #1 with Superman-2 leading the charge out of "heaven" to right the wrongs of the current universe. #2 is really about Power Girl. Old Man Supes shows up in her life and explains all about her place in history (or lack of place). Johns does a superb job of refreshing old fans of the basic Crisis On Infinite Earths plot points without feeling like a flashback episode.

The final couple of pages are mind-blowing. Superman-2 makes a bold proclamation: the wrong universe was saved back in the old Crisis! Earth-2 should be restored as the "true" universe! Once again, I'm dying for the next issue.

coming this January...

2005-11-22T12:48:00.000-05:00

Green Lantern & Green Arrow, together again!

my infinite crisis: habitually falling behind in reading

2005-11-22T12:43:00.000-05:00

Ok, I managed to pick up 3 weeks worth of funny books last night. So what's shipping for me tomorrow?

GI JOE SNAKE-EYES DECLASSIFIED #4 (of 6)

BATGIRL #70

new material for the reading room

2005-11-14T17:14:00.000-05:00

Shipping this week:

BIRDS OF PREY #88

GREEN LANTERN #5

BATGIRL #69

2005-11-14T12:36:00.000-05:00

7/10

Story: Andersen Gabrych
Art: Pop Mhan/Jesse Delperdang/Robin Riggs

"Destruction's Daughter" part 4 of 5. The ongoing saga to establish who Batgirl can call Mommy. I don't have any commentary to add other than this issue was good, but by no means great. I'm thinking it might be time for a new creative team to take a fresh look at Batgirl & Co. What would really be fun is having the BIRDS OF PREY team and BATGIRL team swap books.

Plot summary:

- turns out Ra's al Ghul helped finance the "creation" of Cassandra Cain

- Nyssa and Talia, the Ghul Girls, are planning a sort of "clean up the world after the Society takes it over" scheme.

- Nyssa has a lazarus pit, and she claims it can be re-used. We'll find out soon enough, because Dr. Freeze's wife was dropped in it. Nora was resurrected, but she doesn't look happy!

Next month should be a nice conclusion.

JSA CLASSIFIED #4

2005-11-10T08:42:00.000-05:00

9/10 (art: 4; story: 5)

This arc ends nicely. The art is VERY nice, in particular during some of the action heavy scenes. The story is good too; ties in nicely to Infinite Crisis. Should be interesting to see Kara's reaction to the return of Earth II superman.

more comics the flatulent one will pick up late...

2005-11-07T23:34:00.000-05:00

INFINITE CRISIS #2 (of 7) - love the George Perez variant cover

JLA #122 - "World Without A Justice League" aka "Where Are The Quality DC Writers"

TEEN TITANS #29 - Geoff Johns is back!

UNCANNY X-MEN #132

2005-11-05T09:20:00.000-05:00

8/10

Story: Chris Claremont
Art: John Byrne

The mysterious Hellfire Club continues their behind-the-scenes plotting against the X-Men. There is a bit of internal tension, as is always the case when one bad guy has to trust another (see Villains United reviews).

Jean Gray is the key to the baddies' success. They see a level of power in her that most close to her don't even recognize.

JLA #121

2005-11-03T11:43:00.000-05:00

4.5/10

Story: Bob Harras
Art: Tom Derenick/Dan Green

Oh, how the mighty JLA has fallen. I'm not talking about the characters splitting up, I'm talking about the quality dropoff following the Geoff Johns run. The plot itself isn't terrible, but this issue is arranged in a distracting way. The wrong words in bold face, minor plot points dominate major ones... just one thing after another.

Quick summary:

(1) Green Arrow is a womanizer.

(2) Nightwing and Batman can frown like no others.

(3) new recruits still being sought for the JLA, including NW.

(4) even though they hate being spied on, JLA wants to spy on Batman.

coming soon to box #96

2005-11-01T14:11:00.000-05:00

DETECTIVE COMICS #813 - "City of Crime" part 11 of 12.

SUPERMAN #223 - Supergirl is headed to space w/Donna Troy, so Superman will be a weepy mess.

According to DC's website, BATGIRL #70 is supposed to ship this week, but it isn't listed with Diamond.

BATMAN #632

2005-11-01T09:54:00.000-05:00

6/10

Story: Bill Willingham
Art: Kinsun/Aaron Sowd

"War Games" Act 2, Part 8. This issue illustrates why it can be so difficult to keep the excitement level up in a massive crossover story. It's a fine part of the story, but when you've been anticipating major events to unravel in Gotham's gang war, this outing feels a bit flacid.

So what happens? Black Mask has murdered Orpheus, and is assuming his identity in order to trap/kill Batman. Zeis attacks Bats, and is promptly put in his place, but not before planting a bomb. While Bats goes to look for it, Black Mask (disguised as Orph) helps Zeis escape. Power is restored to Gotham. The Batman/Oracle relationship continues downhill with Bats acting downright catty.

In the final frames, we see how media coverage is swaying to anti-vigilante mode. Arturo refers to Batman and his "gang," a term not lost on Gothamites in the midst of this hellish war.

WONDER WOMAN #222

2005-10-31T09:48:00.000-05:00

8/10

Story: Greg Rucka
Art: Rags Morales/Mark Propst

Interesting structure in this issue. The monologue throughout is from Cheetah, not Wonder Woman. It almost feels like a Secret Files comic - which is probably why I give it an 8 instead of a 10.

First, the Cheetah component. I haven't been reading this title long enough to know Cheetah's history, and this issue doubles as an origin story for her (although, I'm assuming it's different than her original origin told decades ago). C looks at herself as a dark reflection of WW. Her primary weakness is greed, and she thinks WW's is pride. Since she sees similarities between the two of them, C hates that WW is always respected and loved, while C is despised.

In the final pages, C confronts WW at the holding facility where WW turned herself in for killing Max Lord. They engage in a quick but ferocious battle that ends with a battered and bleeding Cheetah lying on the ground. WW is going to have a hell of a time in court!

On the Infinite Crisis front, how about that final splash page?! Now the U.S. Navy understands why the Paradise Island babes have been fortifying their defenses.

AMAZING SPIDER-MAN #1

2005-10-27T09:35:00.000-04:00

7/10

Story: Howard Mackie
Art: John Byrne/Scott Hanna

AMS Volume 2 kicked off in 1999, after a cliffhanger involving Spidey defeating Green Goblin, saving Aunt May's life, then promising himself and Mary Jane that the hero work was finished. From then on, it would be Peter Parker, normal guy.

Now, we all know that can't last forever, but give credit to the writers in not rushing Parker's return. They give you the same sort of gut-twisting conflict about normalcy that the movie version of Spider-Man had to deal with in the SPIDER-MAN 2.

But just because Parker isn't wearing colored tights, doesn't mean there isn't plenty of action here. Someone has hired the Scorpion to track down Peter, not Spider-Man, at all costs. Meanwhile, a mysterious hero is hitting the streets as Spidey (my money is on Daredevil, although a hint was dropped that it's going to be Johnny Storm).

LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #183

2005-10-26T22:25:00.000-04:00

7/10

"War Games" Act 2, Part 2. Did I enjoy War Games this much the first time around? The plot moves along nicely in this particular issue. I hear it can get pretty complex in the spin-off books like Robin, Batgirl, Catwoman, etc.

The most refreshing moment was when Tim Drake returned to action as Robin. He and Batman still have conflicts to resolve, but city-wide gang wars are more important.

1) Is drug runner Escobedo behind all the carnage? Batman thinks maybe he is.

2) Spoiler spills the beans on her role -- she was the architect, since she stole Bats' war game scenarios. She tells Catwoman, who then tells Dr. Leslie Thomkins, who is then angry with Bruce. This is a crucial point, considering what DC did with Leslie in recent months. Her frustration was directed at Bruce, not Stephanie.

3) Matches Malone is still one of the silliest dressers alive.

4) A masked torturer has reached Escobedo before Batman & Robin.

5) Commish Akins is not Jim Gordon. He may never trust Batman, since they don't have the time to establish a slow-growth friendship.

SUPERGIRL #1

2005-10-24T22:12:00.000-04:00

8.5/10

This was a lot of fun. Partly because it featured both Supergirl and Power Girl, both alleged cousins of Superman.

We're still hashing out origins. Kara (SG) arrived on earth later than planned, due to some unexpected cosmic activity. She was born on Krypton before Kal-El, and was supposed to come keep an eye on him.

Things get a little interesting when the two power chicks get together -- their powers go haywire. PG gives SG a little warning at the end... she sensed something dark inside of Kara.

As with the other major DC titles, this book fits into the current Crisis events.

SUPERGIRL #0

2005-10-24T22:03:00.000-04:00

10/10

I don't see a single weak point in this intro to the new monthly by Jeph Loeb. And the art is incredible -- some of the best I've ever seen. Private America sums up the plot here, so I won't repeat it.

Just a couple of key points now that Villains United #6 and Infinite Crisis #1 are in hindsight...

1) SG is an alien, but what exactly is her origin? And how much stronger than Kal-El is she?

2) Lex Luthor is watching... but which Lex is it? It's crazy-eyed, space-suit Lex with the help of Calculator.

shipping to the gaseous one this week...

2005-10-24T21:26:00.000-04:00

JLA #121 - "World Without a Justice League" Will Nightwing help the team, or side with Batman to keep them disbanded?

WONDER WOMAN #222 - will pick up on a Donna Troy/Supergirl plot thread, so this should be fun.