Editor's Note: Here is part two.
Red Robin #10, with the current creative team of Chris Yost, and Marcus To, is another issue in the Red Robin versus Ra's al Ghul saga. This issue picks up where Batgirl #8 left off, with Prudence on a rooftop with Red Robin and Stephanie, only now, she’s holding a gun to Stephanie, claiming she has to kill her. Tim then gives us a page of inner monologue about how it is his fault that Stephanie is in this situation and how it is his fault she is going to die. Stephanie then takes down Pru with a kick and punch combo, before it is revealed that Pru owes Tim, and how she’s here to help him.
Next up we have Alfred talking to Vicki Vale who is asking to see Tim, and how she is starting to question where he really is. It’s a boring two page scene that you won’t really care about five minutes later. This is followed up by Hush, who still looks like Bruce Wayne being kidnapped by Ra’s Al Ghul, who knows who Hush really is and wants his help. We go back to the scene of Pru, Batgirl, and Red Robin on a rooftop talking about how things have changed and what they need to do to combat Ra’s.
Next the team of Batgirl, Red Robin, and Pru go to Tim’s hideout, and try to work out what to do next, however before they can plan their next move, they are ambushed by what looks to be DC’s version of the X-Men, except they work for Ra’s and don’t look nearly as cool, or even interesting.
The issue ends with Tam, the person who Tim is meant to care about, left at the wayside outside of Wayne Manor, being told by Vicki Vale that no one is home, and how she wants to talk about Tim. Tam answers with what do you want to know, just as a sniper has their sights set to kill Tam and Vicki, and that is where this issue ends, to be continued.
Well, it’s like night and day with these books, one has great writing, but an artist who decided to phone it all in. The other has an artist who has really grown on me, and whose art I really enjoy be plagued by terrible writing.
To sum that up for you, this is yet another filler issue of Red Robin, nothing of interest happens, Tim’s inner monologue is still very depressing and makes me dislike the character a little more each time I read it, and he is just not very interesting here, most certainly not enough to justify his own comic. Take the Red Robin from Batgirl, Red Robin there, is written to be like a mini Batman, but also, he’s still written to be Tim Wayne. Here, he’s written to be an annoying emo, who every month I find myself hating more and more.
Once again, the art in this book goes from strength to strength. It is not the best art I have ever seen, but it is not necessarily the worst. Over the past few issues, To has grown more and more comfortable with drawing Red Robin and his world, and that really comes across here. It’s really just a shame that Chris Yost is writing a pretty poor comic for him to work from.
Red Robin #10:
Reviewed by Suavestar
Editor's Note: Suavestar has created a nice three-part piece of not only a review of Batgirl, but also of his normal comic Red Robin. He also commented on yesterday's announcement of Fabian Nicieza taking over writing duties on Red Robin starting in June. All of the pieces will post today with a four hour window in between. So be sure to tune in throughout the day to see all three great pieces.
Last month, Red Robin #9 ended saying that there would be a crossover issue with Batgirl next. Being an idiot, and interested in seeing how this would turn out, this afternoon I went out and picked up both Batgirl #8 and Red Robin #10. So, welcome to this one off double review from me of both Red Robin #10, and Batgirl #8. Usually Zaius reviews Batgirl on the site, but for one night only, I will also be reviewing Batgirl. So let’s begin with the first issue of the two part crossover, Batgirl #8.
Batgirl #8 is written by Bryan Q Miller, with art by “Guest Artist!” Talent Caldwell. We open with Batgirl training against machines and an inner monologue about her life and a bunch of other stuff. She is then stopped by Red Robin, who asks her why she is dressed as Batgirl, and where are Dick and Cassandra. I’m already going to stop with a continuity error. In Red Robin last month, Batgirl was seen just hanging out in the cave waiting for Red Robin, and smiling, in this issue, she’s approached by him in the middle of training. I’m not too bothered about this error, but it’s something worth noting. The issue continues with some funny back and forth between Batgirl and Red Robin, it’s a light-hearted scene about how much Stephanie has moved on and how Tim needs to respect her as Batgirl. Really, that is all this issue is about, Tim is back in town, and he has to get used to the status quo. Stephanie is Batgirl, deal with it, oh, and if you have time, stop Ra’s Al Ghul from destroying Gotham.
Next up we have Tim and Stephanie going to a charity event of some sort in Gotham and Tim showing that he is back and here to be the hero Bruce wanted him to be. The issue is fast paced, as we next up have a Stephanie/Tim team up against a few league of assassin nobodies, followed by the end of the issue where Tim finally accepts Stephanie as Batgirl, and says that he is proud of her. The issue ends with the pair being confronted by Prudence of Red Robin frame, and the line “To be continued in Red Robin #10!”
Right, problems with this comic first, well the main issue is the art, it is horribly inconsistent here. You can have good pages, like the opening scene between Red Robin and Batgirl, which looks almost like Francis Manapaul, which is never a bad thing. You can compare that to the second half of the book, where you can almost hear the artist say “Crap, this is due in two hours!” and rush through his final ten pages. The game changing point where the art gets really bad is during the scene between Oracle and Detective Nick, the scene seems to set the pace for the rest of the book, in that it is cartoony, and not very nice to look at.
The writing by Bryan Q Miller, for the most part, is great. He doesn’t create a well organized action sequence here, but what he does give us is a great character issue. You can almost see Tim slowly accept Stephanie as Batgirl in this issue, and although it was the first issue of the title I have picked up, I did not feel like I was left out of the loop.
All in all, I was very happy with this comic, and even though, it wasn’t the crossover I was expecting, seeing as Ra’s takeover and destruction of Gotham was secondary to building a new relationship between Tim and Stephanie, I was still very happy with this comic. It’s a real shame that the art let this comic down.
Batgirl #8:
Reviewed by Suavestar
Like the last issue of the Brave and the Bold I reviewed, this comic was written by J.Michael Straczynski and the art and cover was by Jesus Saiz.
Before I go on and talk about this book, am going to fill you in on the character Brother Power the Geek. From what I learned from Wikipedia, Brother Power the Geek is a character created in the 60’s. The character was inspired by Frankenstein. He was a dummy in a tailor shop owned by Hippies in the 60’s, who decide to dress up the dummy in their clothes. The dummy got hit by lighting and was given powers. The comic only lasted two issues.
So on to this issue. It starts with Bruce as a child watching TV with his parents. It talks about how his dad would let him stay up late every now and then to watch horror films despite his mother getting angry. His dad said it would prepare Bruce to face his fears when the time came. Bruce wouldn’t be scared and too used to a life of luxury. It then shows Thomas and Martha being killed. Bruce then explains why Frankenstein was his favorite movie and the movies now are different the classic one because they don’t know how to end monster movie. We then see Brother Power the Geek climbing out of the remains of a burnt down building. Batman sees Brother Power walking down a dark alleyway looking like he is lost. Batman recognizes him from one of his case files and goes down to talk to him. But Brother Power just keeps repeating a phrase from the 60’s, “Make love not war, flower power.” Then Brother Power asks Batman what year it is and Batman proceeds to tell him that it’s the year 2009. Brother Power seems to be confused. Batman feels sorry for him and lets him go. Batman tells him that he will check up on him in a couple of days to see how he is doing.
There is a flashback to the 60’s when Gotham was a bright place and people are having fun. Brother Power is shown with some friends talking about a riot that’s going to happen. It then flashes forward back to 2009. Brother Power is wondering what happened to all of the trees. We then see Batman fighting some thugs with guns. While he is taking them down, all he can think about is Brother Power and why he is in Gotham. The thought is bothering him, but he can’t figure why. It then makes him remember one night when he was watching Frankenstein. Young Bruce overhears his parents talking about their friends who are going through some problems. Thomas tells Martha the reason why they are having problems is because it is easier to get mad and blame someone else when you are the one who screwed up. Then we see a split screen of Frankenstein and Brother Power calling themselves monsters. Brother Power is patrolling the streets protecting innocent people like he use to do. Batman starts to think about the burnt down building that Brother Power was found crawling out of. Batman leaves a few cameras in part of the building. When Batman leaves, a man and a woman walk in to the building, who we find out are actually living there with their baby.
Then we see Brother Power searching through a charity clothes bin and picks himself up some new threads. He puts on some make-up to make himself look less like a zombie. He remembers that in the 60’s he would go to a free clinic and get his makeup done by a nurse called Cindy. I don’t know if she was in his comics or that she is even important. During this flashback he is in the clinic with his friends and they hear on TV that President Kennedy has been shot. So he and his friends decide that you have to fight fire with fire and start a riot in downtown Gotham. Brother Power and two of his friends manage to not get arrested. Brother Power is not happy about what happened and tells his friends that he wants no part of this violence. Then it flashes back to 2009 and Brother Power is looking out of a window seeming sad and lost. He then he sees a fire. An alarm goes off in the Batcave and Batman rushes to the Bat-Computer only to find out that the building burning is one that he placed the camera in. He sees a man pouring gasoline inside the building and sees the couple tied up. Batman jumps into the Batmobile and races to the scene. At the building, Brother Power climbs up the fire escape and jumps through a window to get in to the building. Batman speeds to the scene and runs into the building. He starts to search for the couple, only to find Brother Power talking to himself. He tells Batman that the world is a much different place from the one he left in the sixties. He tells Batman "This isn’t my time… Maybe it’ll never be my time.” Batman leaves him and finds the couple. The woman tells Batman that their baby is upstairs. Then Batman hears “But maybe it’s not over.” Then Brother Power comes out of the flames and hands their baby over saying “For some of us.” He tells Batman to “Have a nice day” and is engulfed by the flames. Batman grabs the entire family and grapple guns out of the building. Batman’s footage helped the police catch the man who burnt down the building. Later Batman went back to the burnt down building. He looks to see if he could find anything left of Brother Power and finds it strange that there is nothing. Batman knows he is still alive and he is out there somewhere waiting to be reborn. Batman finds this thought strangely comforting.
This issue is pretty cool. At first the cover of this issue kinda put me off, but the story itself is really good. You get a to know Brother Power and you start to feel sorry for him right from the start. This is one thing that Straczynski is really good at. The art work is different and takes to some getting used to, but overall it is good. One thing that I have noticed about Straczynski is that he likes end an issue with something emotional, like a character dying and the other character commenting on their life. I find that pretty cool and different. I would say pick it up because it’s a pretty good read.
The Brave and the Bold #29:
Reviewed by Johnny Impulse
The DC DTV animated movie series has had its fair share of ups and downs. It has put out awesome movies, like Green Lantern, or Wonder Woman, and it has put out very bad movies, like Superman Batman: Public Enemies. So where does JL: CTE, the latest film in this series, sit? Well, it’s at the top. This movie was fantastic!
Before I actually review it though, I want to go into the history of the film. It originally was supposed to be Justice League: Worlds Collide, and was going to be part of the DCAU. The film was intended to be released between Justice League and Justice League Unlimited. It would have served as a bridge between the two series. However, the film never got made, and Justice League Unlimited began, albeit, bridge-less. Now, many years later, the film has finally been released, but rewritten as Crisis on Two Earths. Even though The Film has been rewritten, not much has changed. We get to see the League building the new Watchtower, how the expanded roster came about, and even how Wonder Woman got her Invisible Jet. The only actual difference is that Green Lantern is Hal Jordan, not John Stewart. Other than that, CTE fits nicely into the DCAU, and perfectly fills the gap between JL and JLU.
The story is simple enough, a good version of Lex Luthor, from an alternate earth, comes to the Justice Leagues world, asking the league to help him defeat the Crime Syndicate of America, super powered criminals who have the country’s crime under their thumbs. The League goes to Luthor’s earth to take down the Syndicate, but soon discover a more sinister plot to destroy all of reality. The story is not to complex, but excellent nonetheless. Though the movie is made primarily of action sequences (awesome action sequences), it has some nice character development, especially a subplot involving John Jonzz. Dwayne McDuffie delivers one his best scripts with this movie.
The animation is absolutely top notch. The fight sequences are brutal, and exciting, and just look great all-around. The character designs are very good too. They seem to take some inspiration from Frank Quitley’s artwork on the JLA Earth 2 graphic novel written by Grant Morrison. I particularly liked Batman’s fight with Owlman at the end of the movie. It was one of the coolest animated fight scenes I have seen in a while. I won’t talk about it though; you just have to see it.
One of the things that makes the movie so good is the flawless voice cast. Everyone involved is great, there is no weakness in the cast (can we expect less from Andrea Romano though?) In the Justice league we have Mark Harmon as Superman, William Baldwin as Batman, Josh Keaton as Flash (he was awesome, and had the perfect voice for The Flash), Vanessa Marshall as Wonder Woman, Jonathan Adams as Martian Manhunter, and Nolan North as Green Lantern. From the Crime Syndicate we have James Woods as Owlman, Gina Torres as Superwoman, Brian Bloom as Ultraman, and James Patrick Stuart as Johnny Quick. Also from the Crime Syndicate world is Chris Noth as Lex Luthor. Focusing on Batman for a minute; William Baldwin was great! At first I was a little jarred by his voice, it’s definitely different from Kevin Conroy’s DCAU portrayal. However, as the film progressed, I liked his performance more and more. He is actually really good, and I would like him to return to the role. His last line to Owlman is awesome! Speaking of Owlman, James Woods’ performance is one of the highlights of the film. He was the perfect actor for the role, and it shows! His performance alone makes the movie worth watching!
Also, one more thing I loved; the music. The film is scored by James L. Venable, and though he is new to me, I hope I hear more of him soon. His score was very good, and had a big budget cinematic feel.
So all in all, I can’t say enough good things about his movie. It’s certainly the best of the DC DTVs, and I highly recommend that you see it.
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths:
Reviewed by TheCapedCrusader
Once again, the DC Comics solicits have lead us astray. No you say? Unfortunately, yes. While we all could have expected the latest issue of Streets of Gotham to be the second part of Mike Benson’s two part arc, the solicits said otherwise. The previews stated that Paul Dini would be returning to the title, however, he didn’t. None the less, Benson pens the conclusion to the “Hardcore Nights” storyline.
Some fans may be disappointed with issue number nine, but not me. Benson doesn’t present the reader with a major villain and the Commissioner Gordon plays a major role. Basically, issue nine is just a downright good Batman crime story. However, while I thoroughly enjoyed this issue, Dick Grayson’s characterization is completely out of whack. First off, I get the strange feeling that Benson initially wrote this with Bruce Wayne as Batman; the dialogue that Dick speaks is very “Bruce like”. Dick displayed a very dark and less optimistic personality, qualities that fit the Bruce Wayne personality. The only other problem I had with issue nine is that the antagonist is revealed rather sudden and everything just comes to a end to quickly and conveniently. This is just my opinion, why don’t you decide after reading the issue summary:
The issue opens where issue eight left off; Dick and the escort are in the penthouse when the armed man busts through the door. Benson pulls a classic trick; issue eight led us to believe that the armed man was the jealous boyfriend. However, Dick soon learns that this is not the boyfriend, but someone completely random. The hunter smacks the escort and demands Dick’s wallet. Throughout this sequence, Dick is studying the man’s movements. The hunter keeps a gun pointed on Dick the entire time when the escort makes a remark distracting him. This gives Dick just enough time to land a knee right to the man’s face. The hunter becomes completely disoriented and eventually becomes unconscious. The escort quickly exits the room and makes her way out of the building. As she is running, the doorman, Anthony asks her if everything is ok. Remember Anthony because he plays a much larger role, later in the issue. Anyway, at police headquarters, the hunter, whose name is Sal, is being questioned by Commissioner Gordon and Batman. Sal is hesitant to talk at first, but soon Batman “persuades” him into singing. Batman and Gordon then bring in the escort, Sophia. We learn that Sophia and Sal have been blackmailing the same men who have been found murdered. Sophia would take them back to the room and then Sal would barge in and scare them. They accuse her of killing the men but she pleads her innocence. Gordon demands a name from her, and she gives the name of her ex-boyfriend, Roland Davis. Batman knows she is innocent and tells Gordon to let her go. Reluctantly, Gordon agrees, but there is a twist. Sophia is dropped off back at the penthouse and then heads back to work. She runs into him in the club and is shaken up by this. She heads home and upon entering in the elevator, Roland enters and begs her to take him back. Anthony then enters and takes control of the situation. Roland learns of the set up and seems to feel differently about Sophia now. Gordon enters the elevator and arrests Roland. In the interrogation room, Roland receives some tough love from Gordon and Batman, but maintains his innocence. Gordon and Batman know they can’t hold Roland for long and decide to take another crack at a set up, with a twist. Back at the night club, we see Sophia sitting with another man, who remains hidden. They leave the club and then head for the penthouse. Two hours later, the man exits the penthouse alone. He begins walking down the sidewalk when we see a large figure approach him. The man turns down an alley and sees the dead body of Roland Davis. The man is shocked by this and we learn that it is none other then Gordon. Gordon then is confronted by Anthony with a knife in hand. Anthony attacks Gordon but Batman is there to moderate the situation. Anthony turns out to be the killer, SHOCKER! Gordon informs Sophia that it is over. Gordon takes Sophia to the bus station, buys her a bus ticket, and tells her to leave and begin a new life. And that’s where the issue ends.
The Manhunter co-feature opens with Manhunter beating the snot out of a low level thug looking for answers she knows he doesn’t have. The issue then cuts to the court room, twelve hours earlier. Dent asks for a bench trial because of his horrid facial features. This leads to Kate asking the judge the relieve himself of the case. This upsets the judge and grants Harvey his request. Court is adjourned and rescheduled for Thursday. Back in Los Angeles, Kate’s son, Ramsey, has decided to head to Gotham to help his mother and is riding in the boxcar on a train. We then cut back to when Manhunter is beating up the thug when she is confronted by Huntress. Huntress offers Manhunter her help in finding something to bring Dent down. We cut to Thursday, back in the courtroom. In the courtroom, Harvey is outwitting Kate and then Commissioner Gordon is called onto the witness stand. Dent asks Gordon why he would have kept him alive if Gordon knew that Dent killed the district attorney. This upsets Gordon, and Kate knows she is in for a roller coaster ride. To be continued…
This past story arc impressed me. I think Mike Benson is a writer with a strong future in comics. He seems to have that gritty style that I so often enjoy. However, how obvious is it that Anthony is the killer? Once he is introduced, the reader automatically knows that he has a major role. None the less, I could dismiss this simple storytelling method. What I could not dismiss, was the poor characterization of Dick Grayson. It wasn’t that Batman was portrayed poorly; it was that this was written to be the Bruce Wayne Batman. This becomes very apparent in the interrogation scenes; Batman is threatening and isn’t planning on taking any prisoners. Dick isn’t Bruce, which is something that, I guess Benson doesn’t understand. However, issues eight and nine are exactly what I want from Streets of Gotham. Good stories that don’t always have to contain a large number of characters. I thought it was great to see Gordon take such a larger role in a story, it seems that recently; Gordon has taken a back seat in the other titles. It’s always good to see a writer stress the importance of Gordon’s character. Bravo, Mike Benson!
Of course, Dustin Nguyen remains to be impeccable and always impressive. I will say that Nguyen surprised me with his ability to pencil such a grim and gritty story so effectively. Derek Fridolfs is consistent as always. Fridolfs seems to be lost in the shuffle sometimes and I think he is just as important to this title as Dustin Nguyen is. But the art is great as always and leaves me with no complaints.
The Manhunter co-feature I found to be a little disappointing. This story felt like filler and not much progressed in the storyline. When you have so few pages to tell a story, Andreyko needs to keep the ball rolling. Needless to say, I am still interested to see where this is all going and I expect a better performance from Andreyko in the upcoming issue. Jeremy Haun is much like Dustin Nguyen, perfect. He art works so well with the Manhunter character and he maintains his consistency.
Overall, I found Streets of Gotham number nine to be an enjoyable read from front to back. While the issue felt a little rushed, I must say I am not missing Paul Dini and hope Mike Benson is giving some more batman-related work in the near future. The book’s art remains candy for the eye and is about the most consistent of any of the bat-books. In the end, if you enjoyed issue eight, you will not be disappointed with issue nine.
Batman: Streets of Gotham #9:
Reviewed by Zfactor
We received a copy of the DVD version of Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths a little while ago and it releases today in stores. Should you head to the store and buy this right now? Well, I am going to let you know.
At first glance, this film seems like another quick story to expand the animated DC Universe, yet something feels strangely familiar. We have the Justice League battling villains in order to save the world. Does that remind you of something? Perhaps, Justice League Unlimited. Well, when this film was announced, that is exactly what I thought it was. In the podcast that you will hear on Friday, I referred to the announcement seeming as if it was another Superman/Batman mishap. Everything seemed to line up as what we saw before. The story originated from Dwayne McDuffie, who wrote many episodes of Justice League Unlimited. All of the characters that were in the film we had seen in the show. So why would you think that this was any different than the many multi-part stories we saw in episodic form for the show? Well, let me tell you why.
The basic plot of the film is that the Justice League of our earth battles the Crime Syndicate from a parallel earth. In this parallel earth, things are different. Despite the Syndicate being an obvious group of villains, they are treated with a level of respect. The heroes on this "Earth" are led by Lex Luthor. Their "Justice League" has been taken out one by one by the Crime Syndicate. We even see The Jester (a parallel version of The Joker) give his life to try and stop the Crime Syndicate. Lex Luthor travels to our universe to enlist the help of the Justice League to help him take down the Syndicate. The Justice League travels to the alternate earth to take them out. Batman stays behind, as he believes that there are enough problems in their universe. Owlman (the parallel version of Batman) is pretty much the main villain. He has created a bomb that will take out not only the the earth of his universe, but destroy Earth Prime, hence eliminating all "Earths." Batman of course comes and faces Owlman head on leading to climatic ending.
Overall, this film was a surprise to me. As I said, because it was first announced as a series of episodes that McDuffie wrote for Justice League Unlimited, I was concerned that it would have a feel of episodes put together as a film. But, it did not have that feel at all. The pace was very quick. It did not feel at any point that there was meant to be a break between acts. It had a more mature feel with the obvious violence. It wasn't overdone. We got more than we would have if this had ever aired on Cartoon Network. I applaud McDuffie for this. He took what was supposed to be a cartoon and made it a film.
On the Batman front, William Baldwin did a decent job at voicing Batman. It isn't the best job, but it fit with the feel of the film. Batman did take a back seat to the first half of the film. Although we see that while he wasn't around, he had a recruitment drive to have more heroes join the league. That kind of seemed out of place. Then again we have seen stranger things in the DC animated films. Batman not only saves the day in the end, but also proves to be smarter than most of the Justice League within the final scene with the Crime Syndicate.
For the special features, there were some interesting ones. The main feature was a piece about the various "crisises" that have happened in the DC Universe. They did a very good job getting many of the main creators that were involved in everything from Identity Crisis to Final Crisis. There was also a preview of the next DCAU film, which we know will be Batman: Under the Red Hood. There wasn't any footage from the film, but we did see the voice cast as well as some storyboards.
Also in this release, was the first DC Showcase film. It featured The Spectre. A good story that laid out his origin and told an interesting story in a very short amount of time. This was maybe even better than the main film. I look forward to more of these.
Overall, the film was good. I would not place it in the top three of DCAU films, but it was definitely better than I expected. One thing that many do not know is that the film will be released at Best Buy with an exclusive Owlman figure. This will be in limited quantities and only be with the Blu-ray and 2-disc DVD version. So you may want to get that right away and not wait until the end of the week to pick it up. I think if you are questioning it, rent it on iTunes or at your local video store. You will see that the film is worth adding to your collection of DC films.
Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths:
Reviewed by Dustin
Tony Daniel’s current arc on Batman has been solid, to say the least. As the story is beginning to wrap up, we are getting ever closer to finding out the identity of the Black Mask.
Last time we saw Batman, he had fallen into a trap set by the Penguin and the Mad Hatter at an abandoned amusement park. This issue basically picks up the story an unspecified time later. Batman is washed up on the shore in Gotham Harbor, and is found by Damian. Dick is seen to be beaten up pretty badly when he is discovered, and is wearing a broken mask that the Black Mask has been giving to the “false faces.”
Now throughout the book, Batman continuously goes in and out of consciousness. At the same time, the story is going back and forth between the present time, and flashbacks of the previous nine hours that are running through Dick’s mind. Going back nine hours, we see that Batman is under the control of the Penguin, following his orders by way of the altered gas mask. Damian has already figured this out, but just hasn’t figured out whose orders Dick had been following. We see that the Penguin had sent Batman to break into the Mayor’s office where he takes two tubes of the antidote to Black Mask’s mind control toxin. As Batman is beginning to gain consciousness again in the present, he blacks out once more and the story goes to Catwoman and Kitrina Falcone who are going after Black Mask as well. Catwoman saves Kitrina from the third member of their group who was about to kill Kitrina. Batman shows up, still under Penguin’s control and takes them down, but goes with Kitrina to Devil’s Square, which has attracted both the National Guard and the Marines due to the Black Mask and his followers.
While going through all of the flashbacks in his mind, Dick is slowly beginning to remember what happened. We see that he had confronted Black Mask and his inner circle of Fright and Dr. Hugo Strange. They fight and Batman had gained the advantage until Black Mask pulled a gun, and shot Batman in the chest, who proceeded to fall out a window, off a cliff, and into the ocean below. And that is where he reaches the point at the beginning of the book. It ends with a now fully aware Batman telling Babs that he thinks he may know who Black Mask really is.
I enjoyed this book, despite its non-linear timeline. I think Tony Daniel did a good job pulling it off, though I will acknowledge that I am not a huge fan of this style. The reason he was able to keep the story from being too confusing or choppy was the fact that the main focus was in the flashbacks, with no action in the present. That’s the trap that many writers fall into, but Daniel avoided. The actual story started off great, with Damian doing all the talking. That first scene gives the reader a reminder that even though he may think of himself as an adult, Damian is still just a kid. I got a small chuckle out of the first line when he saw Dick lying on the beach and yelled out, “Epic Fail!”
The one issue I had with this book was the absence of Dick’s thought process during the fight scenes. This was obviously because he was being manipulated, but maybe it would have been a little cooler if we saw conflicting views between the Penguin and Dick’s thoughts. Either way, Daniel’s doing a good job, and his art has been excellent as well. It’s nice to get a break from the seemingly never ending Blackest Night with a good Batman story (I’m sure I’ll get some flak from that).
Batman #696:
Reviewed by RiddleMeThis
Superman/Batman 69 starts off where the last issue took place, with Superman staring down NRG-X who actually is that Bronze Age villain, Grant Haskill, (this is shown in a flashback as a shadowy man, Anderson Gaines, is asking for the hit on Clark Kent) I mentioned in the last review. They fight, have some exposition dialogue and Superman is left wondering who would want him killed.
Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne while at a function gets to meet Gaines, afterward. After Gaines unwittingly gives Bruce a DNA sample, contacts Clark and the two convene at the JLA Watchtower.
While Gaines is going back to his penthouse apartment we learn why we’ve never heard of this character before. Gaines is in fact one of the shape shifting alien terrorists from the Kryptonian ship that Superman and Batman found in issue 64. Currently the ship is still on the dark side of the Moon and is shown on the last page of the issue. Gaines also reveals his Durlan form and it does look interesting. It’s a nice grouping of all these green tentacles coming out. We then end with Batman telling Superman that instead of taking on Gaines head on, that they’ll have to do it guerrilla warfare style.
Well, it’s moving the story well, which is a good thing of course. But at the same time the story is still leaving me wondering what is the need for it to be set after “Our Worlds At War.”
It does seem that Joe Casey had this idea, the editors were saying “Yeah okay, but just so you know, when the Blackest Night crossover is over, the book is getting an overhaul. So can you do your thing around it?” So it’s like we are getting two stories; this Durlan vs Krypton story that Casey started back in issue #64 and the aftermath of Our Worlds At War, which is getting the “shoehorned in because I have to drop references” treatment. At some point I’d like to know if there is a reason that the time of this story had to be where it is, and not say after “Legends” or “Invasion.” Actually Invasion would have been a more intriguing setting as that would have been just before Superman literally went into his self-imposed “Exile” (that was the name of the storyline). Whatever results from this story could have added to the reasons Superman just left Earth for a time.
But the story Casey is telling is still an intriguing one, and I am interested in seeing where this is going. I’m going to drop the rating a bit though, because it still has a run-of-the mill feel to it, as opposed to an epic feel that an aftermath tale should be.
Superman/Batman #69:
Reviewed by SteveJRogers
Reviewing this title each month is becoming increasingly difficult – I'm finding there are only so many ways to say 'good story', 'great dialogue', 'fun characters', 'superb art', 'striking covers' … but I'm enjoying the challenge nonetheless as Batgirl continues to be my most looked-forward-to book each month.
This issue, the third and final part of the Batgirl Rising: Core Requirements story-arc, picks-up just where the last issue left-off: Batman is in trouble, Batgirl and Robin are rushing to his aid before his hunters – Roxy Rocket, Riot, and Doctor Phosphorus, each fuelled by a mix of infamy and Roulette's wealth – can kill him.
As Stephanie and Damian race across the roof-tops of Gotham City the bickering – such an enjoyable feature of recent issues – continues: 'What the hell is wrong with you?' asks Stephanie as Damian charges ahead refusing, as he sees it, to be hampered by his companion – 'And you swing like a girl' he counters before disappearing, quite literally, in a puff of smoke to pick up his motorbike.
At the Batcave Barbara Gordon is monitoring the web-feed of Roulette's performance as she tries to locate the source of the broadcast. Aware that Dick is injured and that he needs BOTH Stephanie and Damian if he is going to survive she directs Steph to her private garage, where she's been saving something for a 'special occasion' – and Batman's plight certainly qualifies as just such a special occasion.
As we see Damian, now on his bike, weaving in and out of the Gotham traffic we catch sight of Stephanie advancing rapidly in her own vehicle that's not quite a car, not quite a motorbike … as we find out later on in the story!
Meanwhile, back in Devil's Square, Batman – weak but not yet beaten – is barely one-step ahead of Phosphorus with Roxy Rocket not far behind. Stephanie and Damian, join forces and work together as Dick, now close to being overwhelmed, sees that help from his young companions is just moments away. Wrestling himself free from his assailant Dick jumps to safety as Damian leaps from his bike … moments before it impacts on Phosphorus.
With Phosphorus temporarily out of the picture Roxy Rocket sees her opportunity and swoops low for an attack – as she does Stephanie positions herself beneath Roxy's rocket, hits her vehicle's 'eject' button and fires herself skyward towards Roxy, where the two women fight for control of the aircraft.
With Riot – several Riots in fact – now beating on Dick, Damian positions Phosphorus for a very painful meeting with Roxy. Two down, one to go. As Stephanie leads Dick to safety the young boy – 'little Lord Fauntleroy' – confidently confronts around a dozen Riots … and it soon becomes obvious that he's out of depth: Batgirl to the rescue!
Much later, having put an end to Roulette's plans, Dick, Damian, and Stephanie join Barbara back at the Batcave. As the two youngsters eat, and recommence their bickering that had been largely abandoned while they worked as a team, Barbara and Dick take time-out to talk about where they've come from, where they are, and where they are going – and, perhaps more importantly, why they are going there.
When discussing 'creativity' I'm always quick to acknowledge there's no such thing as good or bad, rather something that is to my personal tastes or otherwise. The Batgirl title very much falls into the former category.
Throughout the series so far the stories themselves have been largely uncomplicated and beautifully told through strong narration and some great dialogue – and this issue continues that tradition. As regular readers will know I'm enjoying the lighthearted bickering between Stephanie and Damian but it wouldn't take much for this fun relationship to cross the line into silly: it's credit to Brian Q. Miller's writing that I'm confident that particular pitfall will be avoided.
I've long-since been a fan of Lee Garbett's art and feel his work gets better with each passing issue – as I've said before, this clean, sharp, confident style of artwork is VERY much to my personal taste and therefore credit also goes to Trevor Scott and Guy Major for their inks and colours.
As the concluding issue of a story-arc featuring no less than four villains, it would have been easy for this issue to have turned into nothing more than a 22-page 'chase-and-fight.' Needless to say, it didn't, as moments of high drama were interspersed with moments of quiet reflection, none more so than the scene, late in the issue, with Barbara and Dick in the Batcave. I was genuinely touched as the two discussed their past – and their futures – and I have a feeling that in time we'll look back to these five panels as something of a turning-point for the two characters.
While I'm not saying the Batgirl title is perfect, I can't, in all honesty, identify any flaws and I'm not sure what else I'm looking for to consider it perfect – it makes me smile, at times it makes me feel a little sad, it makes me think. It makes me want to read and then re-read the issue and makes me look forward to the next.
Batgirl #7:
Reviewed by Zaius
The roller coaster ride continues! DC wasted no time in releasing the second part of Morrison and Stewart’s story arc. After an excellent, yet confusing issue in number seven, we receive the answer to the question; who is the resurrected Batman? In a fast-paced and wonderfully scripted issue, Morrison continues to provide us with the freshest approach to Batman that we haven’t seen for years. And I haven’t even mentioned Cameron Stewart yet!
Let me start off by saying that any doubts that you may have had after issue seven; forget about them. Morrison approaches issue eight with a much more cinematic style of story telling. He also clears up the mysteries behind all of these Batman corpses. He does a fantastic job of pacing and structuring the issue, a slight problem with issue seven. He incorporates flashbacks and references to R.I.P and Final Crisis, and they make perfect sense. However, to fully understand what is going on, if you haven’t read any of the titles previously mentioned, you might want to go check those out. The issue reads quickly and forces the reader to keep up, but these qualities provide the reader with a very exceptional reading experience.
The issue begins with Batwoman explaining her predicament and how she exactly ended up in a coffin, like she was in issue seven. As she is explaining, alongside Batman, Squire, and Cyril the Knight, they all wait for the rising of the Batman from the Lazarus Pit. Of course, when this Batman comes face to face with the group of heroes, he is rather uncontrollable to say the least. He quickly begins to attack the group and we then learn who this Batman truly is. Tying back into R.I.P and Final Crisis, we learn that this is the one remaining clone of Bruce Wayne. Returning to present time, the crew is having quite a bit of difficulty bringing the clone of Wayne down. Outside of the mine, King Coal’s men escape and return to King Coal himself. They tell him of the masks inside and he then proceeds to detonate a bomb. The roof of the mine explodes, separating Dick from Cyril and Squire and the clone. However, Dick manages to find Batwoman beneath all the rubble. The clone finds the exit and begins to leave. We then see Alfred accessing the sealed vault that Dick removed the body from, and he learns of Dick’s horrible mistake. The clone commandeers the bat-plane and heads for the plane back to Gotham City. Back in Gotham, Alfred meets an injured, but heeled Damian at the top of Wayne Tower. In the mine, Dick comforts Kate but she then explains she has to die, and does. The plane arrives back home, and the clone makes quick work of a curious Alfred. While Damien is researching Dick’s recent actions, he is confronted by the cloned Batman and believes him to be his father. To be continued…
Like I said, this issue reads fast! But Morrison does a great job of knitting it so tightly together. I also thought the issues cliffhanger leaves the reader with some interesting predictions. Morrison continues his fun and action-packed ride that I just cannot get enough of.
While Morrison remains on top of his game, Cameron Stewart is the true hero in this issue. Stewart’s artwork is much more refined and his style and lines remain very strong. In some very difficult panels, he makes a clear distinction between Dick and the cloned Batman during their fighting scenes. Readers should no longer question the reasoning for his presences on this title. Truly genius!
Overall, I found this issue to be an absolute blast. It left me wanting more and I will have a difficult time waiting for the next issue. Luckily, the break is only two weeks. Morrison and Stewart make their collaboration a very memorable one with issue eight. Morrison does a fantastic job of tying all of his previous work together, to form a rather logical story. Morrison’s stamp on the character continues to get larger and larger…
Batman and Robin #8:
Reviewed by Zfactor
With a recent slew of old titles being brought back to tie into Blackest Night, you’re probably wondering if they are really worth picking up. And let me tell you, The Question number thirty seven is definitely worth the purchase.
The Question number thirty seven sees the return of legendary Question writer Denny O’ Neil, who co-writes the issue with the great Greg Rucka. Both known for their previous work on the Question title. The issue also sees the return of former series artist, Denys Cowan. If you are a fan of Vic Sage and the previous work on the Question, this issue is definitely for you. While Sage returns as a Black Lantern, the issue doesn’t feel like it is a part of Blackest Night, but rather a closing chapter on the previous work.
The plot of the issue is fairly straight forward. The issue opens with a brief recap of the eventual death of Vic Sage (the original Question). We then learn that due to the recent events of Blackest Night, Professor Rodor, also known as “Tot”, is attempting to revive Sage with the use of a black ring. Rodor is doing because he wants to know the answers that separate life from death. Meanwhile, Lady Shiva appears and challenges Renee to a fight. While the two are knee deep in combat, Sage rises from the dead as a Black Lantern. When Lady Shiva and Renee are confronted by Sage, we learn that Shiva actually came because she was expecting this. While Tot is trying to get answers from Sage, the two women are set out to destroy him. They eventually learn how to defeat the lantern; Shiva realizes that Sage can only see them through their feelings, so to speak. She tells Renee to keep herself from feeling anything and they will become invisible to Sage. Shiva, Renee, and Tot are able to remain composed and Sage eventually exits. The issue ends with Renee suiting up in her Question outfit, and making her way after the Black Lantern Vic Sage.
First of all, I thought the pairing of the two writers, who have such tremendous respect for the character, was an excellent move on DC’s part. I think the core concepts from the original series are all here. I also thought that having Lady Shiva appear was a real plus. This provided the issue with some of the important characters to arrive and allowed for more action to occur within the panels. I thought the story was very original and I felt like I wasn’t reading a Blackest Night tie-in, which I think is the real secret to making a tie-in successful.
O’Neil and Rucka do a superb job as usual, but the real treat of the issue is being able to Denys Cowan pencil a Question issue once again. Cowan really brought the book to life originally with his grim and somewhat gritty style. In this issue, it is no different. He remains sharp as ever when penciling the fast-paced fight sequences that were always wonderful to look at. This issue also features Bill Sienkiewicz doing the inks. With the two teaming up, we are brought back to the dark and violent panels that made the Question what it was in the past.
Overall, a wonderful issue that made me come to a realization. I realized that the Question co-feature in the back of Detective Comics really isn’t that good. This issue reminded me of what the Question should always be. The Question should always be about strong characterizations and almost hopeless storylines. With well paced and sharp dialogue, terrific artwork, issue number thirty seven is a real knockout.
The Question #37:
Reviewed by Zfactor
Red Robin #9, written by Chris Yost, art by Marcus To, not Ramon Bachs who is on the cover of the comic as artist, but following the many screw ups in the DC office with soliciting Paul to be writing books, which he’s not actually doing, I can let that slide for now.
This issue sees Red Robin come back to Gotham, to take down Ra’s, who has now sworn to destroy everything Bruce Wayne made.The story is mixed with Red Robin getting back to grips with how Gotham works, by taking down Killer Moth, in a sequence that is the most enjoyable in the book. Tim, instead of whining about how Bruce is alive, is now just doing what I want this comic to do, be in the middle of a fight, with a second tier villain.
The rest of the comic has Tim meeting his old friends, like Conner Kent, who Tim has a heartfelt moment with, referencing a sequence in a comic that I didn’t read. That comic was Adventure Comics #4. What is Yost’s obsession with making the reader have to read other comics to understand just what Tim is talking about? I’m sure the DC editors love that Yost is doing this, but I, as a reader, am just left feeling lost.
Next we have a sequence with Tim and Ra’s, with Ra’s reminding Tim, that although you are in a boring comic that really is a filler issue at best, you still have to face the league.
Following this revelation, Tim realizes that he needs help, in the form of the bat-family, and who does he find in the cave, smiling? Stephanie Brown as Batgirl, and she says “Well, I’m not spoiler anymore tee hee…” Yes, that’s where we end this comic, with a shock ending, that was given away in solicitations three months ago.
The art in this comic, as usual with Red Robin at this point, is average at best. It does look good in places, but as with Red Robin itself, just when you start to enjoy it, the creative team pulls it away from you. The page that bothers me the most, is the final page, with Batgirl. She seems so posed on that page and is in complete contrast with what she is saying. So, overall, acceptable art, that could be better.
Chris Yost’s writing is his usual work here, it is serviceable. But like the art, it is nothing special. Red Robin seems to be that little comic that just can’t get to where it wants to go, and for that reason, I still remain disappointed with the comic.
Red Robin #9:
Reviewed by Suavestar
November 2009-Batman and Dial H for Hero
Just in case you don’t know what Dial H for Hero is, he is kinda like the cartoon Ben 10. Instead of having a watch which turns the wearer into different aliens, the Hero Dial turns the wearer in to different heroes with different powers. So this issue is basically Ben 10 meets Batman.
This issue starts with the Hero Dial’s current owner, a teenage boy called Robby Reed, and his Grandfather checking in to a hotel in Gotham City for an Army reunion. While they are checking in, the desk clerk tells them to be careful while they are outside in Gotham since it is a dangerous place. The Grandpa replies to the clerk that it’s not his first time in Gotham. Meanwhile, Robby is looking out of the lobby’s window at a down and out man sitting on the steps of building across the street. We then learn that this man used to work at a local steel mill. He is upset because he got hurt and then was laid off. Then we see The Joker (looking kind different then I’m use to, but hey), talking to his henchmen and telling them that he finally wants to kill Batman and how he has an awesome plan to finally end the Bat.
A few hours later, Robby is watching the news with his Grandpa. He doesn’t understand how there is so much crime in Gotham City with Batman around, so his Grandpa tries to explain to Robby that Batman can’t be in four places at once, let alone two places. Soon afterward, Robby can’t sleep and decides to use his Hero Dial to help Batman. The dial turns him into a hero called Mental Man, who is meant to be “The Greatest Psychic who ever lived.” I think every time he transforms he gives a brief description of the hero’s powers. I could be making that all up or confusing it with Digimon. Well back to the story. Mental Man then use his powers to see into the future and gets scared at what he sees. He then turns back to Robby and goes to bed.
The next morning Robby and his Grandpa leave the hotel. But as soon as they leave, the guy that caught Robby’s eye the day before, breaks in to their hotel room and steals some of their things including the Hero Dial. After leaving the hotel room, he goes to an alley and takes a look at the stuff his stole. He starts to think if it was really worth it until a friend of his comes along and tells him that somebody is offering him and other lowlifes a $100 for tripping alarms to keep the police busy. This is where we learn that his name is Travers. So Travers tells his friend that he will think about it. While he is thinking he takes a look at the Hero Dial and makes a joke about how the analog dial is dead and wonders if the person who made the dial ever heard of digital. He then pushes one of the buttons which results in him turning in to a hero called The Star (who looks a lot like the Sentry from the Marvel comics) who is super-strong and can fly. Travers hears somebody crying for help and he saw a window cleaner falling, so he quickly flies up and save him before he falls to his death. After bringing the window cleaner to safety , Travers gets a hero's welcome from the public. While he is introducing himself, he see Batman watching from the corner of his eye and decides to go and talk to him. Well, The Star and Batman exchange words. Batman gives the usual speech, “This is my city. And if you mess up, I will hunt you down and beat you down.” So The Star tells Batman about the plan he heard about. Batman thanks him for the information and they shake hands. But while they shake hands, Batman somehow gets his fingerprints.
The Star goes back to the hotel room of Robby, while they are talking to the Police about what has been stolen. He flies away before he is seen. So now he is flying around saving people. Then the next couple of pages are pretty cool, with lots of cool fighting and action scenes. We later see Batman breaking into a warehouse with hostages tied up. Batman goes to save them, but before he can he hears The Joker and his plan to kill Batman. If Batman saves the hostages, he has a few seconds to untie them and leave the building before it blows up, which is impossible and if he walks away the building with still blow up. So either way Batman dies. So Batman leaps forth to save the hostages, but before he does the Star flies in and grabs the C-4. He flies through the window and then the C-4 blows up killing him.
The next morning, Robby is sitting outside of a building where his Grandpa's army reunion is being held. He is reading a newspaper article talking about the death of The Star. Batman appears out of nowhere and hands him back the Hero Dial. Robby then says that he doesn’t deserve the dial and tells Batman that he left the Hero Dial out to get stolen. When he was looking in to the future, he saw The Star die. He didn’t want to die and calls himself a coward. Batman gives him a pep talk and tells him about Travers. He says that Travers always wanted to do something with his life and by stealing the Hero Dial, he got his chance to die as a hero.
This issue was written by J. Michael Straczynski. This is the first comic I have ever come across written by him, but I have heard that he has written a lot of The Brave and the Bold. He is a pretty good writer, but am not too sure on how he writes Batman. The story felt rather short, but I guess that's how The Brave and the Bold comics work. The artist was Jesus Saiz, whose art is pretty good, but a lot of his male characters look girlie. But his take on Batman and The Joker is pretty cool, despite The Joker looking kind of girlie in some panels. But besides that its a pretty good comic.
The Brave and the Bold #27:
Reviewed by Johnny Impulse
Boy this comic has taken tons of twists and turns in its run hasn’t it?
It starts out as a complete in-continuity book, which is where events such as the downfall of Lex Luthor’s Presidency (1-6) and the return to the DCU current continuity of the Kara Zor-El Supergirl (8-13). Then it starts becoming an out of continuity title where the main attributes seem to have been to spotlight the difference between DC’s “Big Two” in “dueling” thought balloons, which essentially seemed to come down to stuff like “I like vanilla ice cream.” “I like chocolate ice cream,” or “I love Mondays.” “I HATE Mondays!”
It has been in recent issues seemingly heavily influenced by ideas from the Silver Age era World’s Finest tales when that title was the Superman-Batman team up book. The extreme of this was a recent issue where it turned out the entire story of the issue was just a simulation file in a new virtual reality training device in the Batcave. Bruce Wayne’s file name for the file was “WF V2 63 Night & Day.” In other words it was the artist’s, Rafael Albuquerque, way of treating Superman/Batman as a second volume to the World’s Finest series that ended in 1986. Which leads to way too many issues to go into here in terms of how this series should be taken when trying to fit it’s stories into the continuity of the time.
So now we begin a new era on the book, well technically it started back in issue #64 since #68 picks up where it left off, though I don’t think anyone knew that at the time, especially Apple as he slaughtered it on the comic podcast when it came up. So now the book is essentially a peek into different events in DC history. Part entertainment, part history lesson I suppose. And we kick things off as #68 has a nifty “Our Worlds At War Aftermath” banner on the cover. The best thing to do first is to dive into what happened in the event Our Worlds At War.
Mostly a Superman cosmic event for the summer of 2001, though it did cross over into several of DC’s books and had Imperiex as the main villain attacking Earth. Big battle of course, with Metropolis as the epic center, and as per norm it seems, the city gets ravaged. Long story short, Superman is able to save the day, and the universe! The story has been collected in three different volumes, Superman: Our Worlds At War volumes 1 and 2, as well as a complete edition.
So it is at the point after the event has occurred that the book starts off with. As well as after # 64 and the mysterious Kryptonian ship that Superman and Batman found.
This is very much an introductory piece to the story, entitled “The Big Noise” and Joe Casey does a good job setting up what you would think are the major players for this story. An adventure seeker, who manages to find the missing escape pod from the ship in # 64, and a major backer of S.T.A.R. Labs, Anderson Gaines, appears at first to be a major focal point. Research is coming up empty on whether or not this character has been spotted before, so Casey has to be given props for setting up a nice shady villain.
Also Casey gives us a mystery man showing down Superman at cliffhanger at the end, NRG-X (Nuclear Radiation Generator Experimental), the name comes from a Superman villain from the 1970s, but I doubt Casey is brining that particular character out of mothballs. This NRG-X kind of resembles Iron Man, I wonder if that is the indented effect by the art team.
On the Batman side of things, Bruce investigates a strand of DNA taken from the non-Kryptonian aliens found on the ship in #64 (strange not saying “previous issue” but that is what a Halloween special followed by a two part Blackest Night crossover story will do to you), to determine just what kind of creature was on that ship, and hopefully a clue to determine how it ended up in current (at that point) DCU time.
In all, it was an enjoyable issue with some great art work, but it does leave me wondering just what the tie-in to Our Worlds At War is going to be, besides just lip service to the event that Superman and Batman had just gone through. It does leave me wanting to read more though, and I guess that is the best thing you can say about the first issue of a story, it leaves you wanting to continue reading. It’s not quite enough to give 5 out of 5, so I’ll give it a nice solid 4, but only because it just seems to superficially tie-in with the story its supposedly linked with.
Superman/Batman #68:
Reviewed by SteveJRogers
Batman joins the newly reformed Justice League of America in issue number 41 of the JLA written by James Robinson, penciled by Mark Bagley and ably inked by Hunter, Alquiza, and Wong.
First and foremost, what is the most striking detail about this issue? The continuity problem! Not only does this issue take place after Blackest Night is over it also spoils the ending to “Justice League: Cry for Justice”. So anyone who wants an advanced look at how that series ends, help yourselves! (Not that “Cry” has exactly set the world on fire. Also written by Robinson, it is now running late.)
Batman does not take a central role in this book as it is, of course, a team up affair. The story starts out with a disconsolate Donna Troy ready to walk away from it all. Burnt out and “beaten down” Troy happens across a crime scene where children are being held hostage in a hospital and she is forced to act. After securing the children and stuffing the bad guys, she openly questions herself, lashes out at Wonder Woman and proclaims, “I am done.”
Or not.
After a short lecture from Wonder Woman and a brief interlude through America’s colonial period (with a sidebar trip to the Smithsonian, which serves as a future JLA storyline) Troy relents and starts the recruitment process. Starfire and Cyborg quickly sign up and Troy takes off to Gotham City. Here we catch up with the Caped Crusaders in the middle of a beat down of some poor Killer Moth wannabe’s. The new Batman and Robin are at their acrobatic best and seem to be following the Judd Winick model. Lighter in attitude and much less grimmer in tone. The action stops as Troy appears on the scene and says not bad to "Batman". Batman, in quotes, as she knows it is Dick Grayson beneath the cowl. She compliments the duo and refers to Damian as a kid. Cue comedic retort from the new Damian Robin, “Kid?” he says, “How dare you Harlot.” Funny and not too far off as Donna Troy is sporting a skin tight cat suit that might be more appropriate to the bedroom than a back alley.
The two exchange some small talk and catch up quickly. Batman tells Donna that he just put down “Yellow Wasp” and is on the trail of a bigger evil doer called” The Broker” who has been setting up hideouts and putting together groups for what may be a larger storyline in the future. He correctly deduces Donna hasn’t arrived for chit-chat and asks her if her visit means she wants him to join the Justice League. She is amazed at his deductive prowess (he cheated) and the seal the deal with a groan inducing “fist bump”. Again, from the Winick model? Of course if she had asked me to join the League I would have told she had me at revealing, skin tight jump suit that barely covers her ample, um, attributes. Just sayin’. (Oh yes, Damian says he's in too.)
The story continues as Donna goes off to recruit the new Dr. Light, Mon-El as the Superman sub, Green Lantern, and Green Arrow. The final panel is a full pager and is a nice portrait of the Hal Jordan Green Lantern and Batman.
The artwork seems a bit rushed but the inking was fine. Like I said, the last panel is pretty cool and Mon El gets a nice action splash page. The story? Well, it is a reboot of the JLA series, so Robinson had to fit in a lot threads just to pull each character in. Hopefully future plots will be tighter. I’m curious how large a role the Dick Grayson Batman will play in this series and if he will continue the lighter tone discussed earlier. I’m actually hoping he’ll keep the cape and cowl and stay on as Batman in the JLA even after Bruce Wayne returns. There is more than one Green Lantern after all. Anyone think DC has the guts to allow that angle?
Yeah, I didn’t think so either.
Justice League of America #41:
Reviewed by Dark Knight Dave