Issue Number: 1
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Cullen Bunn
Artist: David Messina
Inker: Gary Erskine
Colors: Javier Tartaglia
Letters: Joe Caramagna
Price (USD): $3.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero
In the Marvel Ultimate Universe Wolverine was killed by Magneto. Later we
learned that he had a son, Jimmy Hudson, with the same healing abilities and
claws. Jimmy has been a key member of the Ultimate X-Men headed up by Kitty
Pride. Before he died Logan left a hologram message for Jimmy that Kitty
delivered to him. Jimmy has been searching for more information about his
origins since then. This series is about both Logan and Jimmy. It starts with a
flashback set in Missouri years ago where Logan is heading up a government team
on alert about an organization or project called Mothervine. There is a rally
going on for a likely presidential candidate, Senator Lee and the team is
scanning the crowd for their target. But the danger comes from an unlikely
source, a young girl whose apparent mutant ability was just triggered by the
whispers from a man in the crowd. The team sees her as the threat but Logan
holds them back while Lee's security prepare to take lethal measures. Whoever
activated her is the real threat and the lead they have been looking for. This
scene is the set up for the real plot in the present time. As Jimmy listens to
Logan's message to him the technopath among the X-Men, Garab Bashur - aka Black
Box, finds underlying data indicating Mothervine is calling her children.
Convinced this was purposely part of Logan's message the two will travel on
their own to see where it leads. Elsewhere we learn that Mothervine is aware
they have been compromised and there is another mutant looking for more than
just answers. So this story is more than just Jimmy wanting to know more about
his father. It is about Logan assuring Jimmy he did not regret the choices he
made in life and that Jimmy must make his own. The addition of the other mutant
will prove interesting, considering his role in the Ultimate universe up to this
point. It may eventually mean their purposes and motives are at odds with each
other. The art is very good in all aspects. I think this is a fine addition to
the Ultimate story at this point.
Title: SUPERBOYIssue Number: 18
Title Story: Mind Your Manners
Publisher: DC
Writers: Scott Lobdell & Tom DeFalco with Tony Lee
Artists: R.B. Silva & Iban Coello
Inkers: Rob Lean & Denis Frietas
Colors: Richard & Tanya Horie
Letters: Travis Lanham
Cover Artist: Brett Booth & Norm Rapmund with Andrew Dalhouse
Price (USD): $2.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero
Once again I am looking at one of the New 52 titles I have not been following. I
frankly was not that interested in SUPERBOY or the related titles TEEN TITANS or
the RAVAGERS from my first samples. So I decided to see what Superboy is up to
now that the H'el on Earth arc has finished. It opens with Superboy returning
millions of dollars to a bank vault. No explanation is given as to why he took
it in the first place but that he apparently has gained a conscience and plans
to turn himself in to the authorities. Unfortunately his plan is interrupted by
a being of living fire called Plasmus who plans to take money to get back at the
corporations who made him this way. He seems to be a peripheral character to the
main plot as elsewhere in Manhattan we see a diminutive mentalist scamming rich
people with his power. He is Dr. Psycho and he is hiding from the H.I.V.E. who
want his power. Does that make him a small medium at large? As the battle
between Superboy and Plasmus spills out onto the streets Dr. Psycho senses
Superboy's telekinetic power and wants to siphon some of it for his own use.
Reaching out with his mind Psycho is suddenly pulled into Superboy's mind where
he sees some of his memories. This is something his power never did before.
Strangely enough this will lead Psycho to Lex Luthor and the tease is that
Luthor will reveal the secret origin of Superboy? Well, that may be worth
sticking around next time if you are interested. There is another brief story in
the back called "Good Boy" by Scott Lobdell and Ken Lashley that is about an
alien female that just crash landed in the Amazon and is immediately set upon by
a group of aliens unlike her that mean her harm. Fortunately for her a familiar
canine is nearby. What this has to do with Superboy or the other plot is
unclear. It seems to be just another plot to be developed later. This issue was
okay but leaves a lot of questions unanswered. The art is decent but there is
not enough here to get me to come back for more - not even Superboy's secret.
Your opinion may be different.
Title: THOR: GOD OF THUNDERIssue Number: 6
Title Story: What the Gods Have Wrought
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Butch Guice
Inker: Tom Palmer
Colors: Ive Svorcina
Letters: Joe Sabino
Cover Artist: Esad Ribic
Price (USD): $3.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero
Someone recently mentioned this title to me so I picked up the latest issue to
see for myself. I turns out I seemed to have picked an issue where the title
character is nowhere to be found. Evidently this may be part of a longer arc,
but it is not noted as such. The reason Thor is not in this issue is that it is
all about a centuries old being called Gorr The God Butcher. He has vowed to
kill all deities across the cosmos and has been at it for a very long time.
According to the intro he has encountered Thor numerous times across the
centuries but now he has revealed a horrific end game to his mad quest. So this
is a break, or perhaps a prelude, to his latest encounter with the gods of
Asgard. His story begins 3000 years ago on an unnamed planet far away. He is a
young child alone with his recently widowed mother. They are trying to eke out a
living on a mostly desolate place. If the heat and lack of food don't kill them
the predators will. Through all their hardships his mother counsels him to honor
the gods and count his blessing - they will always provide. He still does not
understand why his father died even though they made the sacrifices to the gods
but she is adamant in her belief. Well, we can guess where this is going at this
point. Years later as a grown man he has children of his own and a pregnant wife
but living conditions have not changed. They are all starving and yet his wife
repeats the same things Gorr's mother had told him, "put your life in the hands
of the sky gods, they will provide." Tragedy after tragedy strikes those he
loves with no intervention from the gods though. When he refuses to follow the
rituals the tribe has set for the disposal of the dead he is shunned by them as
well. Alone with no faith or hope he just wants to die and be done with it. It
is at such an appropriate point in his life when he comes across two beings that
crashed to the planet from beyond the sky. It is the events that unfold next
that provide him with the will to carry on, and the power to begin a new quest -
to find and kill all the gods in the skies. It is a fascinating origin that
makes us believe how and why Gorr is on this quest. The final scene shows him on
what appears to be his own world. He has taken many gods lives but it here we
see what he is doing with those not yet dead, one is a very familiar Asgardian.
The story by itself is very good. It is scripted and drawn very well. Even the
observation the prisoner makes near the end is an obvious conclusion that
emphasizes what Gorr has become. I liked this issue a lot and will probably
check a few more out to see the big picture.
Title: ALIENS VS. PARKERIssue Number: 1 (of 4)
Publisher: Boom! Studios
Creators/Writers: Paul Scheer & Nick Giovannetti
Artist: Manuel Bracchi
Colors: Vladimir Popov
Letters: Deron Bennett
Cover Artist: Phil Noto
Price (USD): $3.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Science Fiction
This is an interesting space opera type story. It opens with a bunch of guys
fighting the Rakk'nar on a moon somewhere out there and as they have some
progress superior forces soon attack them until Parker shows up in the drop ship
to rescue them. What we soon find out is that this is only a video game and the
main characters are on a break from their real job as employees of Space-Ex the
space delivery service of the future. They basically pick up people and/or their
stuff and deliver it to other planets. There are five of them and Parker is the
title character. Their latest mission is very unusual. It is classified for one
and to their surprise when they get to the pick up location they find United
Space Marine warships waiting for them. The marines are stereotypical big
muscular macho dudes, sort of like the characters these guys pretend to be in
their video games. Another big surprise is that these guys are supposedly just
hired security and the real client is a female civilian. Her story is that the
company she works for lost contact with a mining station on Xeones and so she is
going to investigate. Well this bunch of space mailmen is more than a little
suspicious, and very much bored with life in space transportation. Before long
they decide to follow the marine drop ship and see what is really up. What could
possibly go wrong? The interesting part of this comic is not so much the plot
but the interactions among the main characters. Each has a unique personality
and the banter among them and others has a nice touch of humor that is fun and
believable. Them taking an unauthorized jump planet side on a whim - not so
much. I am guessing there will be much danger and tight situations ahead with
our heroes perhaps outshining the marines eventually. So far it is a fun comic
with decent production values and that makes it worth your time.
Title: SHRUGGED Volume 2Issue Number: 1
Title Story: New Body To Fear
Publisher: Aspen
Creators: Michael Turner & Frank Mastromauro
Writer: Frank Mastromauro
Artist: Jonathan Marks & Micah Gunnell
Colors: Beth Sotelo
Letters: Josh Reed
Price (USD): $1
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Fantasy
I am not a regular reader of anything from Aspen though I have reviewed a few
titles in the past. Since this one is a new first issue I decided to take a
look. There are a couple of stories involved here going on at the same time and
a third at the end. First we have Theo who is a high school student. If you just
look at his story and the dialogue going on between him and others it seems to
be a typical story of a teenager. He goes to school, hangs with his buddy Thom,
gets paired up with a hot chick Louisa in Biology lab much to the dismay of
Kiori who has taken a liking to him and so on. While all this is going on we
also see the angel and the devil on his shoulders, literally. It is not really
good versus evil though. Angie is very much the one who wants to help keep Theo
focused on important things while Devonshire wants to appeal to his more basic
instincts. Basically he wants him to enjoy the fun in life and she wants him to
take it more slowly. Just how much influence they really have on him is not
really clear. Their dialogue between each other get into incidents from the
previous volume and they involve other-worldly adventures some of which Theo was
involved in. It is all a bit confusing and re-reading sections doesn't help a
lot. The last section takes place in the world where Angie and Devonshire come
from. He is a Neferian and she is an Elysians. On their world the two races have
formed an alliance against a common enemy - again someone from the previous
volume of the series. This whole work is too jumbled to make it really
enjoyable. It certainly does not stand-alone as it refers too much to the prior
series. It may help boost sales to have a new number one but you cannot ignore
the need for new readers to comprehend what is going on. The fact that Devon and
Angie argue about what Theo should be doing and how they have to influence him
makes little sense when nothing in this issue indicates they have any influence
on his behavior. The back-story from the previous adventures involving the
Neferians and Elysians may have some bearing on all this but it is too difficult
to keep straight. The art is the best part of the book but it is not enough to
carry things for me.
Title: WOLVERINEIssue Number: 1
Title Arc: Hunting Season
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Paul Cornell
Artist: Alan Davis
Inker: Mark Farmer
Colors: Matt Hollingsworth
Letters: Cory Petit
Price (USD): $3.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero
Wolverine has two first issues this week. This one is the one in the normal
Marvel Universe. This series is just one more in a whole slew of comics he
already appears in. The editorial comments mention that this one will feature
him more on his own - that is not at the school or with other X-Men or the
Avengers. That does not mean other Marvel characters won't appear. In fact two
are promised for next issue. But this first issue is all about the main man on
his own with a rather unusual opponent. There is a man with some sort of
disintegration weapon that leaves the bones behind. In an indoor mall he has
already claimed several victims, others are bound by some kind of energy bands
and are kneeling around him. His son is standing nearby talking to Logan who was
also shot but is healing fast but the father is escalating and it appear the son
will be his last victim before he commits suicide. But he is not the unusual
opponent I spoke about. Wolverine manages to make his move and diffuse the
situation the only way he can to spare the remaining hostages and the son. As
the riot squad moves in to secure the scene the boy approaches Logan with
questions and then takes control of both the cops and Logan amazingly and grabs
the ray gun himself. Either he and his father were more than they appear or
something else is at work. The hook of this first issue is not so much the
action when things are happening but the surprise of the young boy becoming the
aggressor and doing a pretty good job of it. There are some lighter moments
before the boy takes over between Logan and the female cop in charge, which
makes the sudden change of pace more pronounced later. But in all it is nothing
outstanding - just interesting. I like Davis and Farmer's work and they do their
usual good job. If you can't get enough of Wolverine this is for you. So far it
is not something I can get excited about.
Title: POISON ELVESIssue Number: 1
Title Story: Presumed Dead
Publisher: Ape Entertainment
Creator: Drew Hayes
Writer: Robb Horan
Artist: Montos
Letters: Deron Bennett
Price (USD): $2.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Fantasy
Mature Readers
This is a revival of an old series created by Drew Hayes who passed away some
six years ago. I have never read an issue though I remember seeing it on the
racks in the old days. As your humble reviewer I decided I should give it a look
to see what it is all about. Bob Horan has taken much effort to move the
characters and story forward from where it left off. This is not an easy task
after a long hiatus. He has to educate new readers as to the history of the last
80 issues or so while satisfying long time fans who need more than a lot of
recap. Fortunately Keith Davidson provides the basic background in a two-page
summary in the back material called The Poison Elves Primer. I would recommend
that new readers go to this first. Although the main story gives the gist of
most of what is going on and why this primer provides a lot more information
without having to tell a new tale at the same time. In the world of Amrahly'nn
the Dark Wars between the Dark Army of the trolls and the rest of the beings on
the planet. They would have wiped everything out had Elves not risen to the
cause and finally defeat the trolls wiping all but a few that fled to the
wilderness. After that humanity arose to become the dominant life on the
continents, the dwarves retreated to their underground kingdoms and the elves
also kept to their own concerns while the trolls and their allies became the
stuff of legends. That was ages ago. The main stories began in 1513 when a rogue
elf called Lusiphur Malache unwittingly unleashed evil back into the world when
he slew a certain demon. Lusiphur became a marked man among every society and
trouble followed him everywhere. But his fortune turned when he befriended Elvin
soldier Jace San Lanagraith. They got a chance at redemption when they fell into
possession of the Elvin Fire, the greatest power in the world sought by the
forces of good and evil alike. After facing many adversaries along the way they
brought the Elvin Fire to the Elvin High Council and in exchange for their
lives, which would have been forfeit for past crimes, the two became personal
agents of the wizard Mogre-Ur. As their story ended prior to this issue Lusiphur
was forced to leave Jace and their charge Wisp trapped in the troll stronghold
at Fell Keep. As this issue opens Lusiphur has begun to mount a rescue mission.
The story is told from the perspective of Jace's journal as he writes in 1527
but the story itself takes place twenty years earlier. It follows Lusiphur and
his companions the human Bob and the pixie Petunia. It will involve Lusiphur
meeting with the wizard, getting into a fight with a retired Elvin general with
surprising results, and having a conversation with his sword that changes all
his plans. Oh, and his ex-wife is also involved. Parts of this whole thing are
amusing and at times interesting but for me it fails to rouse sufficient
interest to keep with it. There is just too much history to plough through and a
lot of emotion between the players that alludes to the past. I realize the main
point - a lot of the players want to rescue Jace - but there is a lot of things
going on that hinder everyone getting on the same wavelength to accomplish that
goal. It may be a welcome return for old time fans but I do not see enough to
interest new readers.
Title: DARK AVENGERSIssue Number: 188
Title Story: Agents of Thunder
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Jeff Parker
Artist: Neil Edwards
Inker: Terry Pallot
Colors: Chris Sotomayor
Letters: Joe Caramagna
Cover Artist: Joe Quinones
Price (USD): $2.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero
I never was attracted to this title when it first came out but I decided to see
what the latest issue is all about. The Dark Avengers are Toxie Doxie, Trick
Shot, Al Apaic, Ragnarok and Moonstone. The story 'til now explains that the
group was on its way to the Raft prison when they were teleported to an
alternate reality along with their warden USAgent where New York is divided in
factions controlled by that Earth's heroes. Moonstone has been capture by this
world's Dr. Strange along with Skarr and forced to provoke war between Warlord
(Ben) Grimm and the rest of the Earth. Toxie has freed Trick Shot, Al Apaic and
USAgent from the evil Tony Stark and his weak-willed assistant Hank Pym but
Ragnarok, the Thor clone is still in their clutches. Stark is preparing for an
attack from Namor and the minions of Atlantis. As the story begins Moonstone has
been mortally wounded by Grimm's minions. On that battlefield two agents of
A.I.M. have been watching while shifted slightly out of phase with this
dimension but their equipment has malfunctioned enough for them to be seen and
attacked by Skarr. This world's Reed Richards is allied with Skarr and he
realizes theses spies are connected with the people who are manipulating events.
It is a bit complex situation to jump into at this point but the individual
scenes are easy to comprehend on their own. One major scene is in Hell's kitchen
where Daredevil and his faction have captured Toxie and the others and they are
webbed to the wall by this world's Spiderman who has evolved into a non-speaking
hero with amazing new powers of perception and mind-controlled webs. It is up to
the prisoners to convince DD that they are working against Strange. Spider-Man
will be the key to what happens next. Meanwhile Tony is forcing Pym to make a
neutron bomb though it appears Hank is finally growing a spine. The two main
plots move faster as the assault on Dr. Strange begins. There is a lot going on
and things may reach a major climax soon. I did get into most of it though the
scenes with Skarr, Grimm and Reed refers to things not explained in the recap.
Not being all that familiar with the Dark Avengers it is sometimes difficult to
realize who they are and who is from this alternate world. I would give this one
a passing grade for effort, although the alternate reality premise is overused
in my opinion as evidenced by my next review. Still the art is good. The whole
thing did not engage me enough to want to read the next issue so that is the
final word.
Title: X-TERMINATIONIssue Number: 1
Publisher: Marvel
Story: David Lapham, Marjorie Liu & Greg Pak
Writer: David Lapham
Artist: David Lopez
Inkers: Alvaro Lopez and Allen Martinez
Colors: Andres Mossa
Letters: Chris Eliopoulos
Cover Artist: Ed McGuinness & Morry Hollowell
Price (USD): $3.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero
The lineup for this crossover event features over two-dozen major characters
from three series. This also involves characters crossing dimensional barriers.
We have two mutants from the Age of Apocalypse, Nightcrawler and Dark Beast, who
will provide the catalyst for action as they join forces to try to get back
where they belong. Meanwhile The Astonishing X-Men lead by Wolverine are
tracking down Nightcrawler for a vengeance murder he committed. Elsewhere the
transdimensional team known as the X-Treme X-Men has found that the barrier
between dimensions in Multiverse is becoming unstable. So the question posed as
the story starts is what effect will Nightcrawler & Beast have on that barrier
by the method they use to get home? It is Dark Beast that comes up with the plan
and it involves the Dreaming Celestial in Golden Gate Park. Essentially they
will get inside and if Beast's theory is correct they should be able to emerge
in any reality they desire by manipulating the cosmic energy of the Celestial.
Naturally at a critical moment Wolverine and the rest show up and indeed things
go wrong. This one event is the thing that will bring together all of the cast
as a dimensional breach like no other opens into New Apocalypse. Here members of
the X-Terminated want Dark Beast to pay for his crimes. Wolverine and his crew
want to take Nightcrawler back with them against the wishes of X-Terminated. And
as if it isn't crowded enough already the X-Treme X-Men show up because the
dimensional rift is threatening destruction to all reality. It doesn't get much
bigger than that. Oh wait, it does! Can three teams of X-Men handle what comes
next? This comic has affirmed something I decided a long time ago - don't read
any more X-Men crossover events. To me it seems like the effort is being made to
portray the situation as disastrous as possible and only the fabulous X-Men will
be able to prevail in the end. We have the usual posturing as the good guys
threaten the bad guys and each other while all reality is beginning to unravel.
No doubt before it is over one or more of the characters will be killed - not
Logan or any other regular long time character but there is plenty of fodder in
X-Terminated and X-Treme to work with. It is not worth going any further. I
realize hard-core fans love this kind of thing. For entertaining comics
involving mutants I'll stick with a well-written comic with self-contained
stories featuring characters that grow and evolve and hold my interest. I am
talking about X-FACTOR.
Title: CONSTANTINEIssue Number: 1
Title Story: The Price We Pay
Title Arc: The Spark and the Flame
Publisher: DC
Writers: Ray Fawkes & Jeff Lemire
Artist: Renato Guedes
Colors: Marcelo Maiolo
Letters: Sal Cipriano
Price (USD): $2.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Supernatural
Well it took them long enough but DC finally got around to restarting yet
another of its longest running comics, changing the title and giving it a new
number 1 issue. Many probably don't realize that with the demise of the
numbering of ACTION and DETECTIVE COMICS, HELLBLAISER held the new longevity
title. More and more over the years DC has brought Constantine into mainstream
DC - not so much Vertigo anymore so maybe it fits that they make the effort to
boost sales with a new first issue. One thing that appealed to me right away
with this story is that it involves a teenager who is troubled but can lead John
to a mystical device that can be used to find the source of any form of magic.
It is something both good and evil people would want to own. It is just the kind
of thing Constantine would want to hide away from those people. There are three
parts to Croydon's Compass scattered about. The trail first takes them to Norway
and even in route adversaries begin to attempt to thwart his efforts. The set up
for what awaits them has already been previewed in various DC comics. It appears
that good magicians gone bad are planning something and the first one of them
John will encounter is Sargon the Sorceress. This story has a little of
everything for this type of story. There is a large than life plot with mystical
characters but there are also human adversaries and real world threats.
Constantine always manages to see a solution but getting there often means hard
choices. While this is part of a larger story it has its own beginning, middle
and end. The writer's style is appealing and the art team does a splendid job.
Regardless of the whole first issue gimmick it is a worthwhile comic.
Title: NOVAIssue Number: 2
Title Story: Believe
Publisher: Marvel
Writer: Jeph Loeb
Artist: Ed McGuinness
Inker: Dexter Vines
Colors: Marte Gracia
Letters: Albert Deschesne
Price (USD): $3.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero
I was so intrigued by the first issue of this new series I decided to look at
the second to see the rest of the origin of the new Nova. In the previous issue
we met Sam Alexander, a teenager from a small town in Arizona. He grew up
listening to his dad tell stories of space adventures with an elite group of
space peacekeepers called the Nova Corp. The Black Novas or Supernovas was the
cream of the corp and allied with non-members like the green assassin lady
Gamora and a talking raccoon being called Rocket. Alex believed these stories to
be made up fantasies by a dad who wanted his kids to think of him as something
more than a janitor with a drinking problem. We know different as we saw Jesse
really was a Supernova and had given up the service for his family. But Jesse
has disappeared and through a bad circumstance Alex ended up in the hospital
where he was stunned to find both Gamora and Rocket in his room when he awoke.
They wanted to talk to him about his father but the kid freaked out at the sight
of a talking raccoon! The meeting had to be cut short at that and Sam was left
with his father's helmet, still not believing in the myth. There is not much
else to the plot except what happens when Sam decides to put on the helmet
triggering not only the power it contains but also a pre-recorded message from
his father. As it all sinks in Sam realizes his life has changed and now he can
do incredible things. After he is discharged when his injuries have miraculously
healed and he is taken home by his mother he decides to experiment with his new
abilities. Now kids are kids and his enthusiasm over the incredible power of the
Nova helmet will take him somewhere he should not be, much to the chagrin of the
resident there as revealed on the last page. This issue combines well with the
first to complete the initial origin of Nova. There is much more to come and he
has more to learn about the Nova helmet and his dad's friends. The script has
just the right amount characterization for the key players. It is a traditional
approach to the super hero origin with power thrust upon an unsuspecting teen
that has some issues but is basically a good person. I like the approach to
easing him into his new role and the bits of humor that keep things on the light
side at this point. The art is top notch from start to finish. I recommend you
pick up these first two issues as interest in this title is bound to gain
momentum, as the GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY movie gets closer to release.
Title: BATMAN BEYOND UNLIMITEDIssue Number: 14
Title Story: Legends of the Dark Knight: Dana
Publisher: DC
Writer: Adam Beechen
Artist: Peter Nguyen
Inker: Craig Yeung
Colors: Andrew Elder
Letters: Saida Temofonte
Cover Artist: Ryan Benjamin
Price (USD): $3.99
Release Date: NOW ON SALE
Genre: Super Hero/Cartoon Adaptation
The BATMAN BEYOND series began as an adaptation of one of the better super hero
cartoon shows based on DC characters. The comics have gained a following as well
and lived beyond the life of the TV show. DC restarted the comic incorporating
not just the future Batman but also other heroes of the era with shorter backup
stories in this new title now up to #14. This "Beyond" universe is set in the
future. Bruce Wayne had long retired from crime fighting when Terry McGinnis
stumbled on his secret. Terry has overcome tragedy in his life and his
intelligence and skills gained him Bruce's respect and blessing and so now Terry
fights crime in Gotham City as Batman Beyond. This chapter of his story turns
out to be a turning point in his career. There has been a tragic incident
involving the Joker Gang with many people hurt in an explosion including Bruce
Wayne and the father of Terry's girlfriend Dana Tan. It turns out Dana's brother
was involved with the Jokers and has paid the ultimate price for his crimes. But
this story is about the aftermath and a decisions Dana has made. The first is
with her family as the relation between her father and brother were always
strained. Then she decides to have a long talk with both Terry and Bruce about
what she has known for a long time, that Terry is really Batman. How the all
turns out is the crux of the story. The epilogue is fitting as well and in its
own way rather ironic. The story serves to end some plots, resolve dangling
issues and keep the adventures moving forward in a new way. The art as always
stays true to the animation style of the cartoons. It is a terrific comic for
all ages.
But wait - there's more!
"A Gift From Above" by JT Krul, Howard Porter, Livesay & Carrie Strachan
This first backup is a story involving Superman set in the same time period. It
starts years ago as Superman in his familiar red, blue and yellow costume came
across a planet where a race of feral creatures called Mangals were abused and
forced into slavery by the more dominant race. He helped free them to return to
their forest habitat and build a new future. As we flash forward Superman, now
in his future black and white togs is back on the planet but the old oppressors,
the Trillians, have him captive. His friends the Mangals are shooting their way
in to rescue their "savior". As he is rescued and returns to the Mangals'
habitat he learns many things. The first is that they revere him as nearly a
god. The other is that they want his help in eliminating the Trillians entirely.
This is one of those Superman stories where he has to help those he should but
not too much less they become what they hate. This is the first part of the
story and we see that the Trillians have a master plan as well. Even set in the
far future the Man of Steel has to maintain his values and will hopefully set
things right. This is a decent filler story.
"Flashdrive" by Derek Fridolfs, Jorge Corona, Derek Fridolfs and Nick Filardi
The final story involves the Flash of the Beyond era. She is Danica, a young
teen with the Flash power. What is unique about her is that she communicates in
her head with the previous Flashes - Bart, Wally and others - who are evidently
residing in the Speed Force. This brief story finds her at the opening day of
the new Flash Museum but she is not the main attraction. A villain named
Mindslide has taken over and the current Justice League, less Superman, are
trying to stop him. They are failing badly. It will be up to her and her half
dozen back seat driver Flashes to save the day. It is a solid story for a new
hero's baptism of fire as she proves she can see the solution to the problem
without any help from her predecessors. She also gets a deserved reward from
Superman in the end. The best part, after the main plot is resolved, is her
challenge to Superman - in the tradition of those before her she wants a foot
race to see who is the fastest person alive. It brought a smile to my face.
*****
TRIVIA CONTEST!!!! WIN REAL PRIZES!!!!!
If you think you know the answer to the trivia question send your guess via
Email to me at ComicBkNet@aol.com and you could win the prize. The first six
correct answers will be assigned a number and a roll of the dice will determine
the winner. You should put your real name in your message so we know who you
are. Prizes must be claimed at our store within 30 days of winning. The prize
will be a $10 credit slip, which will be redeemable for merchandise at regular
retail or in-store ongoing specials only. Only one prize per person will be
allowed per every 4 weeks. I will be the sole judge of the correct answer even
if more than one answer could be correct. Submit only one answer per Email
please but guess as often as you like.
Last week's trivia question:
In 1991, the first issue of BONE appeared, X-MEN began with a new #1 - setting
an all time sales record - and one of the first modern comic books to appear in
the former Soviet Union was a Russian version of WHICH character?
The character in question was Mickey Mouse. The winner by the dice is Keith
Martin.
Here was your no prize question:
What unique circumstance in Major League Baseball occurred at Ebbets Field on
August 15, 1926?
One of baseball's most baffling moments occurred in a game between the Brooklyn
Dodgers and Boston Braves. Three Dodgers - Dizzy Vance, Chick Fewster and Babe
Herman - all somehow ended up on third base at the same time, stunning fans,
players, and umpires alike. Umpires eventually called both Fewster and Herman
out.
THIS WEEK'S TRIVIA QUESTION:
When Jack Kirby switched to DC in the 70's he introduced many new characters to
the DC Universe. Which major supporting character was introduced in Jack's
debut issue at DC in 1970?
Folks, you never know who among the readers is knowledgeable about the question
so don't hesitate to send in an answer - even days after it appears.
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