Sorry about the lateness of this post. I’ve been ill and had some technical difficulties.
The Last Phantom #3
Beatty, Ferigato, Andrade
[Dynamite]
I said I’d give this title a few more issues to get off the ground and impress me. Three issues in and the verdict is, well, quite good actually. I wouldn’t say this is one of the best titles I’m reading, but’s it is definitely able to stand on it’s own. We’ve got an origin story for Kit Walker seeping through amongst the actual plot, introducing critical elements of the Phantom’s persona without disrupting the narrative. I’ll admit that so far we don’t really have much real characterization for Kit as most of the story so far has been the Phantom getting revenge and stuff. We haven’t really seen him outside of the violence yet. Speaking of the violence though, it’s very well done, and the action scenes are decently illustrated. There’s also some really clever stuff such as the scene with the grenades in this issue. The plot development at the end was something far too obvious, but it had to be done. So yes, overall my verdict so far is: quite good.
Power Girl #18
Winick, Basri, Gho, Kholinne
[DC Comics]
There was really no reason for me not to reading Power Girl, and many reasons for me to read it, but up until now I hadn’t been buying it. So this week, I grabbed #17 and #18 and realised I was even stupider than I had thought. I guess I’ll go back and get some earlier issues now. Anyway, first things first: the art is really pretty. I can’t think off the top of my head of any other books Basri’s pencilled, but I’m sure I’ve read something else he’s done and loved it. The colouring is kind of fantastic too. As for the story, #18 explains the origin for the new character Divine, who featured in the previous issue, and has lots of stuff with Maxwell Lord. The opening pages also had Doctor Sivana, who I always like to see whenever he shows up somewhere unexpected. Winick’s writing is funny and well-paced and Power Girl is really sassy (her words, but she’s right). Essentially all this adds up to a series I should’ve been reading for months now.
The Flash #6
Johns, Manapul, Buccelato
[DC Comics]
The end of the first arc of the new Flash series. Plot-wise, it’s been pretty dull. There’s been a few cool little things, such as Captain Boomerang’s black boomerang constructs and The Top was an interesting character, but it’s still all been overshadowed by Manapul’s gorgeous art. That really is the principle reason to buy this book: it’s one of the best looking books on the market. I’d also like to mention that this issue is the first time (as far as I know) that Wonder Woman’s current situation has been mentioned outside of the Wonder Woman title, and we get to see this from the perspective of future people looking back at history and realizing something isn’t how it should be. It was just something I appreciated from the issue. As for the future of the Flash, big things should start happening in the next arc. We’ve got Flashpoint coming up next year, and Wally and Bart feature alongside Barry with new character Hot Pursuit in the lead-up to that event. So while I’m a little bit let down by the first arc, I’m expecting the title to improve greatly over the next few months
Batman 100-page Spectacular
Brubaker, McDaniel, Story
[DC Comics]
If, like me, you have never read Batman #591-#594 then you have the lot collected here. At a $7.99 cover price though it may be pushing, as it’s essentially a trade paperback at that point. However, I did enjoy it and thought the ending of the first story ‘Shot through the heart’ was fantastic as it gave us one of those rare humanising moments for Batman, with him sitting in Jim Gordon’s backyard talking to himself as if he were talking to Jim as a friend. It was a really powerful image for Batman to just sit in the rain looking downtrodden and lonely. The first story features Deadshot attempting a hit on Lew Moxon and Batman attempting to stop him, which gets him tangled up with the Moxons (who are naturally involved with dirty dealings) and their bodyguard Zeiss, who appear again in the following story. Overall this was an interesting read, but really, there’s no point in going back and reading these stories as they have no impact on current continuity and only really matter to those who read them when they were first released.
Batman #704
Daniel, Hannin
[DC Comics]
With Tony Daniel on both writing and art, I’m expecting a lot from this. And for the first issue, I was impressed. We have the return of Catgirl, who Bruce immediately tells Dick to stop getting herself into trouble. The other plot thread introduced is Sasha Lo, of the Tang Lo Foundation, attempting to purchase Crime Alley from Bruce Wayne for renovations, and by the end of the issue we find out Sasha isn’t all she seems. But the big thing about this issue is that it features two Batmen, which could have become immensely confusing, but has actually not worked out that way, and it’s really easy to tell Bruce and Dick apart. For one, Bruce has a different costume now. Secondly, even in the scenes where all you see is Bruce and Dick’s masked heads, Daniel has managed to distinguish them from one another really well. The title does appear to mostly be focussing on Dick though, which does make sense, as Bruce isn’t exactly going to be in Gotham much with Batman Incorporated happening. Speaking of which…
Batman Incorporated #1
Morrison, Paquette, Lacombe
[DC Comics]
The aftermath of Bruce’s trip through time in Return of Bruce Wayne as well as events occurring throughout Morrison’s Batman and Robin, Bruce is setting out to turn Batman into a global franchise. With Dick as Batman in Gotham, Bruce takes Selina Kyle with him to Japan in his search for Mr. Unknown, who he intends to train up into the ‘Batman’ of Japan. But the issue isn’t called ‘Mt. Unknown is Dead’ for nothing, because Lord Death Man (once called Death Man, but Morrison added Lord for a bit of Engrishness) got there first. I don’t think I’ve really spoiled anything, which is good, but there’s not much to spoil in this issue, because we’ll be getting the rest of this story in coming issues. So yeah. This being a Grant Morrison book means you can expect a little weirdness, which in this issue mostly involves Catwoman not understanding tentacle rape hentai, which culminates in a nice little splash page. Overall, while an intriguing idea, Batman Inc. will need a bit more time to find it’s feet.
Batman: The Return
Morrison, Finch, Batt, Winn
[DC Comics]
After countless delays for Batman titles these past few months, we finally got Batman: the Return. First off: art. Finch is amazing and I don’t think anyone would really question that, and seeing what he’s doing here makes me look forward to Batman: The Dark Knight. Next: story. The plot mostly involves Batman (Bruce) bringing Oracle, Red Robin, Dick, Damian and Batgirl in on his plans. One of these I know got Adam annoyed, the Internet 3.0 thing. I honestly didn’t have an issue with it although I can understand why Adam would (Internet 2.0 isn’t well-defined as it is, so it’s hard to imagine a definite new internet paradigm), and I liked that Oracle questioned the idea because it does sound like ridiculous comic-book nonsense. I also liked that Batman’s plans for Batgirl were completely impractical. Beyond that, we have Bruce and Damian teaming up using silly looking robots, and Damian really not working well with Bruce which I thought was kind of cool. It sort of reflects the Batman and Robin relationship, with Bruce and Dick being the moody and the fun ones respectively, while Dick and Damian are the opposite, so Bruce and Damian teaming up ruins the dynamic of the uh…Dynamic Duo. Oh and the issue ends with some Middle-Eastern looking Batman-like armoured guy, and a new organisation named Leviathan, who do sound a little bit too much like Marvel’s HYDRA in all honesty. Regardless, I enjoyed this issue mostly for the way Bruce is relying on his crimefighting associates, with him treating them like chess pieces that he can use how he wants, with that not really being the case. That metaphor works particularly well with Bruce’s last line ‘Game on’, so I’m pleased with it. :D
Other books I got this week were; The Spirit #8, which is still not captivating me half as much as it should; Thor First Thunder #3, which looks too afwul for anyone to ever want to read; Green Hornet Blood Ties #2, which I’ll admit is my least favourite Green Hornet book (ironic because it’s the only one I’m reading that features the original Green Hornet); and lastly Teen Titans #88, but I decided not to review it because it wasn’t new this week, but I may review it and next week’s #89 together.
-Brad
