Booster Gold 42-47

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #42
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Dematteis
Art by Christ Batista

Booster Gold tells the story to his sister about his time in 25th century prison where he is cellmates with a man who is constantly fluctuating between time periods – the man is revealed to be a future version of Booster himself with “Chronal leprosy” which is actually really gross as drawn by Batista. Interesting issue. I enjoyed it I suppose.

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #43
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Dematteis
Art by Christ Batista

Booster finds himself running into the Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st century which makes this a fun issue as Brainiac 5 works to cure Booster’ chronal leprosy. This was a fun issue. Giffen and Dematteis write some great dialogue between the legionaries and you can tell Batista had fun drawing them.  I wonder if the dangling plot points will ever get solved as I believe the next issue begins a flashpoint crossover.

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #44
Written by Dan Jurgens
Art by Jurgens

I was excited to read this issue despite it being a Flashpoint crossover (a mini-series I have never read and have no interest in reading considering it lead to the disgusting New 52) because I remember Dan Jurgens’s run on this book rather fondly. Jurgens’s art is as beautiful as always and he writes very well but damn I don’t really care about Flashpoint and could not get excited reading this issue. That being said, I love the shout outs to continuity about Coast City. Jurgens knows his continuity.

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #45
Written by Dan Jurgens
Art by Jurgens

The Flashpoint crossover continues here as we learn the girl Booster saved has powers. Who is she suppose to be? I am not sure. I do not recognize her name. This was another good issue by Jurgens – as the man can draw and write like a champ. But I still find it hard to care because I hate flashpoint. Albeit, I am intrigued by the mystery girl.

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #46
Written by Dan Jurgens
Art by Jurgens and Ig Guara

This was a very forgettable issue. I am sad this is the penultimate issue because this series is usually great under Jurgens but this flashpoint crossover is uninteresting. I really don’t care about seeing Booster Gold fight Doomsday again.

 

 

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #47
Written by Dan Jurgens
Art by Rick Leonardi and Jurgens

First of all, Booster calls the Flash Barry in this issue. Why would Booster Gold call him by his first name like they are friends? His character knew Wally West as Flash for his entire career. Ugh. It’s bad enough Barry Allen had to take up most of the cover on the last issue of Booster’s series. Jurgens only drew the last few pages and Leonardi is okay but he is no Jurgens. This just seemed last filler when it should have been a series finale. Disappointed.

Logging Off

Red Robin #21
Written by Fabian Nicieza
Art by Marcus To

 

Red Robin and Anarky managed to shut down the unternet in this interesting issue. I am not sure I completely understand what the unternet is – but I like the concept and the connections to Final Crisis here. I was hoping that Cassandra Cain was in this because Nicieza has said she’ll be in this book in the spring but I guess I will have to wait a little longer.

Booster Gold 40 and 41

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #40
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Pat Olliffe

 

This was an okay issue setting up the threat, recapping Booster’s life, and a surprise ending. I am sure Rip has his reasons for this.

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #41
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Chris Batista

 

So were we supposed to recognize the guy at the end of this? And the idea that Booster would willingly turn himself in after all these years – or that Rip would think it was a good idea – is just absurd. Not impressed with this issue.

Bruce Remembers

Power Girl (Volume 2) #21
Written by Judd Winick
Art by Sami Basri

 

This was awesome for anyone enjoing Generation Lost as Power Girl manages to convince Dick Grayson with the help of Bruce Wayne of Max Lord’s existence and villainy. Bruce’s presence here was just awesome and it was great to see that he remembers Lord – because if anyone could it would be Bruce. I also loved how Basri got all the pre-infinite crisis costumes correct in the flashback. I know that sounds easy, and it is, but so many other artists at DC would have gotten it wrong cause their editors suck at their jobs.

Memory Wipe

Power Girl (Volume 2) #19
Written by Judd Winick
Art by Sami Basri

 

I liked that the JSA All-Stars actually believed Power Girl about Maxwell Lord. I mean she is their proven leader and they would have no reason to doubt her – I feel like a lot of writers would have went there though so I am glad Winick did not. It’s too bad even PeeGee forgets about Lord soon after. One thing that kind of bothered me is that Power Girl was a member of Justice League Europe and probably didn’t have many adventures with Fire, Ice, and the rest of Justice League America but I can buy that they had a few. Anyways, this was a really good issue as Winick has really made the whole Generation Lost plotline pretty epic and the surprise success of the brightest day line. We need to see Terra soon though.

Booster Gold 38 and 39

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #38
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Chris Batista

 

This was a fun story where Rani goes back in time to tell Maxwell Lord’s  mother on him! Hilarious and adorable and goofy old General Glory is in it too! I cracked up everytime his sidekick showed up. One thing that annoyed me is how could General Glory be in Europe when all metahumans couldn’t go to Europe during WW2 cause of hitler and his sphere of destiny?!! Come on Giffen and Demateis do your research!

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #39
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Chris Batista

This would have been a good issue where Booster Gold finally puts Ted Kord’s death behind him – if it hadn’t been done seven thousand times before! Ugh!

Kryptonian Clones

Power Girl (Volume 2) #18
Written by Judd Winick
Art by Sami Basri

 

Power Girl gets her ass kicked pretty bad in this by her clone-woman thing I don’t know what to call it. What I don’t get is that Sivana knew how to clone a Kryptonian or make a replicant or whatever – why wouldn’t he have done this before? I hope it is explained because that is a pretty powerful thing. And why does Winick use Sivana in everything he writes? Anyways, the moment where Power Girl remembers everything about Maxwell Lord was pretty awesome though. I wish more happened in this book though.

Beetle Puke

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #37
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Chris Batista

 

This was a funny issue with Booster having to deals a crazed oversexed alien woman named Estrogina who swallows the transformed Blue Beetle and Booster has to get her to puke him up. Yep that is what happens in this issue. It is all good and fun…but a part of me wants to get back to what is going on with Rip Hunter and Booster’s sister. I miss Jurgens on this book a lot.

The Prison’s Top Bitch Kitty

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #36
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Pat Olliffe

 

The title of this post is also what Estrogina – a new character I believe – refers to herself as in the last page of this issue haha awesome. I liked this issue and I like that they are tying into Invasion – which I didn’t expect to happen. But I don’t know, I am not sure that they have Skeet’s “voice” quite right. He is almost too human in this? Skeets is great and I think he is very human-like. But Jurgens always wrote him with less, smart ass remarks I guess. Either way, Giffen and Demateis have quite a lot going on here. It is pure craziness with Ted Kord turned into a chipmunk and a kitty bitch haha.

Planet Pounding

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #35
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Chris Batista and Pat Olliffe

 

This is fun and action-packed and I liked that Ted knew that Booster was from the future all along and Barda admitting she actually does like Ted and Booster but hmmm…I guess I really don’t care about the overall plot and this planet pounder thing, I would rather get back to the Maxwell Lord stuff. Having the darkstars show up was pretty cool though.

Poor Skeets Was Locked In A Box

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #34
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Chris Batista and Giffen

 

Goldstar returns just as Booster goes back-in-time and gets stuck in a little adventure with Ted searching for the stolen cliff-notes version of the book of destiny. It is a wacky plot featuring a villain called the Underachiever and it was a fun read. I feel like the balance between comedy and seriousness is still there even though it almost went over to the side of pure comedy here. I love the character of Rani and I hope the little girl will become a permanent fixture…will she become the new Goldstar? She is a little young for that right? Haha the funniest joke had to be Skeets explaining that he was never around in the JLI years because Booster had him locked in a box behind his pornos hahaha.

All Is Well

Power Girl (Volume 2) #13
Written by Judd Winick
Art by Sami Basri

 

Well I have to say that as I suspected, the book still maintains good quality with Winick coming on. He knows how to write humor and balance it with action – he always has. He can be hit or miss – but he can do that and I have no idea why some people are so down on him as a writer. Basri’s art is also perfect for Power Girl – it is different from Connor but that doesn’t mean it is bad. This book recaps Maxwell Lord’s return and then wiping away the memory of his existence. It is written in such a way that it also recaps Power Girl’s history – I am not sure if the mind wipe worked on her – I think it did as she does forget the mission to find Lord. I think Lord himself is responsible for her company going bankrupt all of a sudden somehow. I was glad to see Terra wasn’t dropped from the book too. All is well for this series.

Artifacts

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #33
Written by Keith Giffen and J.M. Demateis
Art by Chris Batista

 

Haha this was a fun romp! Booster travels to the past to the JLI days to gain evidence of Maxwell Lord’s existence. Brilliant idea but it doesn’t quite work because the artifact – a videotape- doesn’t come back with him for some reason. I am not sure that I understand why but Rip says it is something to do with a chain. Anyways, a lot of interesting stuff was shown besides how great it was to see the JLI and everythig – apparently Maxwell Lord was not always evil and that Martian Manhunter scanned his mind and found him to have a good heart. What happened to him? Will this be revealed in Generation Lost? I wonder if Lord will be redeemed by the end of all this? I love the character of Rani and I hope she stick around. This run has been kick ass so far.

Brave and the Bold 29 and 30

Brave and the Bold #29
Written by J.M. Straczynski
Art by Jesus Siaz

Wow JMS does not know how to write Batman’s voice at all. This character just isn’t Batman. That’s all I got to say about this incredibly boring issue. I like the ideals of the sixties too JMS but you didn’t write a good comic here.

Brave and the Bold #30
Written by J.M. Straczynski
Art by Jesus Siaz

This was an interesting story in which the original Doctor Fate put a part of his soul into Hal’s ring in order to help him one day. It’s a bit of a stretch but I think it works within the comic. THe whole thing is really a debate between Hal and the Doctor over the power of fate and the power of will power. I wish there would have been something said about Hal’s time as Parallax and how he tried to use his will to change the universe and hey look where that got him. But this could take place before then and not far in the future as they made it seem. Decent issue.

Honoring The Dead

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #27
Written by Dan Jurgens
Art by Jurgens and Mike Norton

While this issue was not as powerful on an emotional level as last issue was, it was still a great issue and a great way to honor Ted Kord. I am not sure if I liked the way Jurgens characterized Jaime Reyes here, he seemed a little more in experienced that he has been shown to be of late, but it wasn’t too bad. Next issue I am excited to get back to the main story as it looks like Booster will be going to save his sister from Coast City’s destruction by Cyborg Superman in the past. That should be good. That’s all I really have to say about this issue.

Jurgens The Underrated

Booster Gold (Volume 2) #26
Written by Dan Jurgens
Art by Jurgens and Mike Norton

Jurgens is by far one of if not the best artists DC has, why doesn’t he get any appreciation for it?! He is also just as good of a writer. You don’t have to have read anything with Booster Gold before and you would completely understand and enjoy this issue. If you know Booster’s history, you will enjoy it more but that means it is a good use of continuity. I loved every page of this issue. Pick this up if you are a fan or just someone getting into DC through Blackest Night.

Death in the DCU

Green Lantern (Volume 4) #43
Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Doug Mahnke

If this issue doesn’t get you excited for Blackest Night the nothing will. This was an excellent issue detailing the history of the Black Hand, the murder of his family, and suicide and then his rise from the dead as the first Black Lantern and embodiment of the Black Lantern Corps. Mahnke’s are is as gorgeous as ever and I think he may be my favorite artist at DC for event books. I love the DC Universe and its continuity and it was so exciting to see Mahnke draw all the heroic deaths over the years. My only complaint is story-wise, why the fuck no mention that Kyle was basically the entire Green Lantern Corps for a decade! It’s just another example of DC favoring silver age old-fuck heroes. Oh and fuck Didio by the way and his stupid ass DC nation column about the Justice League. Am I being a little mean with this review? Sorry. Let’s go back to the positives, this was an amazing issue that brings us right into what will hopefully be the greatest event DC has had in a long time.