Three Felines in One Issue

Catwoman (Volume 3) #55
Written by Will Pfeifer
Art by David Lopez and Alvaro Lopez
Cover by Adam Hughes

This issue was good but it didn’t accomplish much. We still don’t know who is the father of Selina’s baby. Is it Bruce or is it Slam? I do hope it is Bruce but I have my doubts. Although I guess this is a great hook for the writer, the longer Pfeifer keeps the suspence going, the longer people will stay with the book. I am still really digging the film freak and all of his movie references. The Angle Man is just a bastard this issue and Pfiefer does a good job of making you hate him. There were also some funny moments when Selina puts on the costume and moments that show how Selina really is a good mother to the baby. The art was a little strange at times. For example, why does Selina have brown hair in some scenes? Doesn’t she have jet black hair? Also, she is shown with a blue costume in part of the issue. Her costume is black! I suppose that this is the fault of the colorists. Anyway, not much happens but I still enjoyed this issue and will be sticking around for more.

PS: Holly makes it seem like Wildcat is a better fighter than Selina. I just have to say if they were in a fight, I’d bet on Selina.

R.I.P Jade

JSA Classified #12
Written by Stuart Moore
Art and Cover by Paul Gulacy and Jimmy Palmiotti

This story I think is really about the death of Jade and how it affects Alan Scott. Well, at least this part of it. I think this is important because it does need to be dealt with somewhere and this is as good of a place as any. Vandal Savage is not portrayed as even remotely likeable this time around, the way he murders his daughters cat in the flash back and even his facial expressions make you hate him. So hats off to the artist although the flashback to Jade’s death makes Donna Troy, Starfire, and Jade look terribly ugly with distorted facial features. But this is only a minor flaw in what is essentially a well-drawn and well-written book.

Some Hopes

Checkmate (Volume 2) #2
Written by Greg Rucka
Art by Jesus Saiz
Cover by Lee Bermejo

Another well done issue by Rucka and company. I am really digging the art. Maybe I will check out some other stuff Saiz has done. The cover is also just goregous. I think they should include a character list at the beginning of every issue like they did last issue. It can get confusing who is who with all the code names flying around. I loved the mentions of things currently going on around the DCU. Great use of Continuity! I also am loving the debate between the characters on weather it is acceptable to kill to stop crime. This mirrors the debate between comic fans themselves about whether heroes should kill. I see both Alan Scott and Sasha’s points so I am completely neutral in the debate. Sasha and Mr. Terrific’s relationship came as a surprise. I hope this doesn’t mean her love for Batman is totally gone. I hope that people won’t forget that Sasha is originally a Batman character and I hope Rucka will deal with that in this series at some point. Solid Issue.

Top 50 DCU Characters

Just like every other blog I have decided to list my 50 Best DCU Characters. I guess this makes me a follower but who cares, this is fun. Here Goes:

1. Batman (Bruce Wayne)
2. Superman (Clark Kent)
3. Wonder Woman (Princess Diana)
4. Catwoman (Selina Kyle)
5. The Joker
6. Plastic Man (Eel O’Brian)
7. Robin (Tim Drake)
8. Supergirl (PAD Version)
9. Green Arrow (Oliver Queen)
10. The Black Canary (Dinah Lance)
11. Raven
12. Aquaman (Orin/Arthur Curry)
13. Martian Manhunter (J’onn Jonnz)
14. The Flash (Wally West)
15. Captain Marvel (Billy Batson)
16. Batgirl (Cassandra Cain)
17. Nightwing (Dick Grayson)
18. Poison Ivy (Pamela Isley)
19. Black Adam (Theth-Adam)
20. Oracle (Barbara Gordon)
21. Superboy (Connor Kent)
22. Wonder Girl (Cassandra Sandsmark)
23. Alfred Pennyworth
24. The Huntress (Helena Bertinelli)
25. Elongated Man (Ralph Dibny)
26. Dr. Psycho
27. Lex Luthor
28. Lois Lane-Kent
29. Wally the God Boy
30. Harley Quinn (Harleen Quinzell)
31. Green Lantern (Kyle Rayner)
32. The Flash (Jay Garrick)
33. The Flash (Barry Allen)
34. Two-Face (Harvey Dent)
35. Commisioner James Gordon
36. Green Lantern (Hal Jordan)
37. Animal Man (Buddy Baker)
38. Kid Flash (Bart Allen)
39. Blue Beetle (Ted Kord)
40. Supergirl (Kara Zor-El)
41. Donna Troy
42. Speedy (Mia Dearden)
43. Arsenal (Roy Harper)
44. Ra’s Al Ghul
45. The Penguin (Oswald Cobblepot)
46. Halo (Gabrielle Doe)
47. Argent (Toni Monetti)
48. Indigo (Brainiac 8.0)
49. The Bulleteer (Alix Hollower)
50. Detective Chimp

Hal Is Up To His Old Tricks

Green Lantern (Volume 4) #11
Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Ivan Reis and Marc Campos
Cover by Simone Bianchi

This issue, understandably late, was the second for Green Lantern one year later. Once again, Geoff puts together a nice mixture of action packed events and warm character moments. I loved the introduction of the new Crimson Fox. It put a smile on my face and should put a smile on the faces anyone who liked Justice League Europe back in the day. I like how Fox is being forced into joining the Global Guardians as this organization has always been kind of shady and I am not surprised to see them acting this way now. I am a little worried about Hal, as defying the guardian’s wishes has never been a good thing for him and I hope he knows what he is doing. The two page spread where Hal is in front of the guardians is just magnificent and kudos should be given to the artists for that. Also, Geoff manages to make Guy likeable this issue which is something that is rare. I know Guy has his fans but usually he just comes off as a cocky jerk to me. So Kudos to Geoff. The ending was pretty cool although I have never found the manhunters that fascinating and do not know much about the cyborg superman.

Green Arrow Kicks Butt

Green Arrow (Volume 3) #62
Written by Judd Winick
Art and Cover by Scott McDaniel and Andy Owens

This issue was just a big fight between Green Arrow and Deathstroke. While that is cool, it is just too decompressed. If you look at comics like last month’s issue of Birds of Prey and this, it is sad. Birds of Prey had so much in a single issue while this had basically one drawn out scene. I liked Ollie’s statement about Ted Kord (Even though Maxwell Lord murdered him and not the society) and I think more heroes should be remembering Ted as well as Superboy in 52. I also liked how Deathstroke got his ass handed to him by Green Arrow and realizes that Green Arrow has been retraining himself in the last year (ala every other hero that was missing for the year) and I have a theory that he probably trained with with his son at the monastery. I am looking forward to seeing Connor Hawke and Speedy soon as I really miss them being in this title. I also have a theory that the national guard is after Green Arrow and not Deathstroke, but I could be wrong. This was a bland issue but get it if you really like long drawn out fight scenes.

The End…Finally!

Superman/Batman #25
Written by Jeph Loeb
Art and Cover by Ed McGuinness and Dexter Vines

Before I start my rant, I have to say, I did not totally hate this issue. There were some cool moments like seeing all the supergirls together. Now onto the regular scheduled rant: This blew. And I mean blew. In fact, really since the end of the Supergirl Arc in this book. This has sucked. I have really lost confidence in Jeph’s writing. He just throws whatever he thinks is cool into a story without any respect for plot or actually making sense. Maybe for some people this is fun and brings them back to their childhood or something, but my childhood was in the nineties so I have no fond memories of the silver age and I am completely turned off by this whole thing. Jeph’s ego seems to have inflated so much that he thinks he does not even have to respect continuity. I am glad he is leaving this title for good.

Batgirl Rant

Robin #150
Written by Adam Beechen
Art by Freddie Williams II
Cover by Patrick Gleason and Prentis Rollins

While the cover of this issue may have been too cool for school, the insides of this book are not. But first, I should tell what I liked about it. I liked Beechen’s writing of Tim Drake, when he says he did geometry for eleven hours I smiled. This is a dedicated crime fighter, unlike Dick or Jason were, Tim is Batman Jr. He really could be Batman one day, he is driven enough. Other than that, I was appalled by this issue. Now this was not Beechen’s fault, I am sure what made this story bad was an editorial mandate. Cassandra Cain has gone bonkers, so bonkers that she is totally out of character. For 73 issues of her solo series, we saw a girl who although trained to kill, she turned her back on that life and grew into a person to be admired. Why destroy that? There is no reason. Cassandra from her series would never become a killer or for that matter, talk like she talks in this issue. Cassandra was a shy girl, not this monster she has become. I would much rather have Cassandra dead than turn into a villain. It is a more hainous comic book crime than Hal Jordan going Rogue as one of the most important aspect of Cassandra’s character was her devotion to not killing. I only hope that the next issue we find out things are not as they seem and maybe just maybe Cassandra has not become a villain. God, I hope so.

DC’s Newest and Craziest Superhero Team Makes its Series Debut

Shadowpact #1
Written by Bill Willingham
Art and Cover by Willingham

See I expected this to be good but I did not expect to be this good. This was a really fun read. It reminded me of PAD’s Supergirl and Fables rolled up into one. I simply loved it. It has this charm to it that only Willingham can bring to a comic. The storyline was cool, and the fact that the shadowpact has been missing for a year in the big red barrier thing was smart on Willingham’s part. He really doesn’t have to explain what they have been doing in the last year because they have only been one place. What is so great about this new series, is that I couldn’t have cared less about Nightshade, Nighmaster, Bluedevil, The Enchantress, Ragman, and Detective Chimp before this. Now I want to know more about each and every one of them. What the villains are doing is very creepy and reminded me of that short story the lottery that you always had to read in high school english classes. Speaking of these villains, they all seems to be evil doppelgangers of the Shadowpact members. I wonder if this was purposeful…I guess it has to be. The only problem I saw with this issue is I don’t see why Detective Chimp had to get a new costume. His old costume was way cooler. Anyways, great start to this new series and I am looking forward to reading more. Everyone should definitely buy this.

Shadowpact Reviews

Issues:

#1
#2