So, I have dropped Adventure Comics and WonK. I love the pretty art and Kon in Adventure comics, but it's silly to pay 3.99 for it when I don't even care about the Legion. I'll get it in trades. I guess I've dropped Runaways too, since I realized I didn't pick it up this week, skimmed through it, saw there was a lot of angst, and decided not to bother. I'll prolly pick up the issue where Gert comes back though, to see what it's like.
But, concerning the comics I DID pick up:
Secret Six #13
We get to see Bane, Scandal and Artemis in Victorian Regalia. Diana convinces Catman to switch sides (not that Catman isn't a huge fan of switching sides...) with a few words. Ragdoll tries on Diana'a boots and tiara. Deadshot fantasizes about shooting everyone. Scandal is a badass. Thomas poses with a badass army of Bana. Amazons Attack is mentioned, and as much as I want to forget it, I'm glad that awful event bred one good thing: Gail is at least getting plot bunnies out of it.
All in all, another fine issue of a fine title.
4/5
Booster Gold/ Blue Beetle #24
On Booster's side, standard, mildly enjoyable fare. Booster restores time, Black Beetle has unfathomable motives, blablabla. Also, when Booster impersonates Slade, for some reason he's all "BELIEVE IN YOURSELF! MENTOR DAMIAN!
Still, the "YOU KILLED MY SON I'LL NEVER FORGIVE YO
And apparently now Raven knew all along the Titans would defeat Trigon. That makes her constant angst pretty unneccesary. Oh, time travel. You hurt my head.
In the Blue Beetle backup, Jaime's recent issues with the Scarab come to a head. Also, the Black Beetle is not Hector, unless he's lying. He killed Hector! That's not nice. And Milagro is going to be "really important" in the future. Sounds like a vote for "Milagro, the next Green Lantern!"
It's very exciting! Jaime's finally going to have to fight off the corrupted scarab and figure out what the deal is and now he's all possessed oh no!
I hope Milagro's okay.
Booster: 2.7/5
Blue Beetle: 3.7/5
The Unwritten #5
Poor Kipling. And OMG, Oscar Wilde hitting on people! And then getting arrested. Because of Kipling. But he didn't mean to. It's all an ancient conspiracy!
This was kind of a transition issue. It was like, exposition: with Kipling! Guest starring Oscar Wilde and Mark Twain! Only it wasn't really exposition, because it's all very mysterious and this actually deepened the mystery.
I don't get the last page. Is that Tommy? How did he get away from the cops? What's so "Oh my God" about the book? I guess we'll see next issue.
This was the weakest issue of the series so far, but it was still really good. Oscar Wilde guest starring is always a plus.
4/5
Wednesday Comics #10
Batman: continues to make no sense but the art is pretty. He beats up a dog! That's not nice, Batman! But he really didn't have a choice.
Kamandi: is soo pretty. And it's ass kicking time!
Superman: Hey, Supergirl!
Deadman: Is here to kick ass and say alive. And he's all out of...life...look, he beats up people, okay?
Green Lantern: faces off a fleet of aliens and it's actually pretty cool.
Metamorpho: Wow, Sapphire is a total twit. She cares more that Rex didn't get her diamond than the fact that he'd DEAD. And that poor Butler guy. And OMG SPACESHIPS ROCKET FUEL OMG!
Teen Titans: So, maybe Trident is not a rapist's son, Gizmo says. Wait, where the hell did Gizmo come from?
Adam Strange: is not afraid to throw people into his zeta beam.
Supergirl: is super cute and there's a really pretty panel when she flies near the sun. "I wonder if Dr. Mid-Nite's ever been this near the son...naaa, he's probably just spontaneously combust" made me laugh. She tries to be friendly to the aliens, but they somehow aren't cowed by her sheer adorableness. And Dr. Mid-Nite is still the worst pet sitter ever.
Metal Men: is very sad, as Dr. Morrow prepares to sacrifice them all to save the city. Platinum understanding her orders immediately and kissing Morrow on the cheek to say goodbye is actually pretty sweet.
Wonder Woman: is here to kick ass and take names. And she beats the Cheetah handily and snarkily. Also, Etta Candy makes everything good.
Sgt. Rock: is still boring.
The Flash: is too dumb to realize his wife is a gorilla. And Grodd is confused and so am I. I may have to reread this arc when it's over to make sure I didn't miss anything.
Demon/Catwoman: How many times is Catwoman going to free herself from control then be controlled again? Geesh, the cycle is endless.
Hawkman: mocks the dinosaur and his short arms. It's pretty amusing, but not very wise, as the Dinosaur smashes Hawkman really hard.
Another great issue, and things are beginning to climax, though, God, I don't see how most of them are going to wrap up all the loose ends in two strips.
5/5
That's all, folks!
Adventure Comics #1:
I liked this. Kon making his little list is so cute, as well as the liedtoSupermanangst! at the end. It definitely looks interesting, and there was Bart! Wanting to smash his memorial statue and getting all hyperactive about it! And wearing boots to bed! (Which reminded me of Luna saying the same thing in the HBP movie. Bart and Luna Lovegood, soulmates Y/Y?) Oh, Bart, I love you. And I love Krypto stealing Kon's thunder in the cute-girl-saving area. Manapul's art is excellent, I love it, it's so pretty.
But it looks like Superman's buying into DC's current line of "PEOPLE ARE BORN EVIL!!!!111" Seriously, Kal? Lex was born evil? Lovely thing to say in front of Kon, and complete bullshit as well. What a stupid thing to have Superman say. I thought he was friends with Lex as a kid! (Though I guess Johns could be changing that. Sigh.)
I didn't really understand the backup, but Starman's bowling is funny. Though schizophrenia does not work that way, really. I'm surprised Johns would play an actual life-destroying mental disorder for laughs actually.
That said, I'm not sure how long I'll be getting this. I love Kon, but I am a poor college student and I have no interest in the Legion Backup. So unless it really grabs me...
but for now, it gets a solid 4/5.
Booster Gold/Blue Beetle #23
Booster was better than it has been this week. Micheal's little speil about "I'm the greatest hero ever in the future!" and him trying to hit on 80's!Raven amused me (as well as her reaction- which was the flowery, melodramatic equivilant of "WTF". ) And post apocolyptic scenarios and Trigon is always fun.
Blue Beetle was great as usual. Paco makes everything funny, and it was nice to see Brenda admit her vulnerability and try to reach out to the robot girl- but Paco's reaction- "I can't tell Jaime about our problems but you can tell random robots?" made it. Though Sturges messed up a little- Brenda's dad is supposed to be DEAD, not in prison. And of course, by the end, Brenda and Paco are bickering again. Oh, those two. And Jaime is wonderful as usual, snarkily hoping lessons are learned. Overall, this was a very strong installment and a nice thing to read on one's birthday. I love these characters, and always will.
Booster: 3/5
Blue Beetle: 5/5
And onto the next week (Wednesday Comics will be reviewed in a clump):
Batgirl #1: See here. In the future, Batgirl may or may not always get a post to itself. It will depend on how my fancy strikes me, I suppose, but it is a comic starring Steph, so chances are I will get pretty wordy.
Supergirl #44: Maybe it's because I'm not a huge fan of this crossover (other than the WoNK issue that began it) but this issue seemed a bit weaker than the others. It was just...crossover-y.
Lois is very mad at Kara, which is understandable, but I hope this particular plot thread doesn't drag on too long, because it could get old after a while. Kara is very mad at Flamebird for getting her father killed by not being a good cheif of security. I guess I'm a little confused on that part. I mean, is it Thara's job to check everyone who comes into New Krypton? You'd think that would be down to the lower staff, one person can't do all that. And how do you keep people off a PLANET, anyway? Besides, in Kara's view, Thara is crazy, so she's not really culpable for any bad decisions she may have made. So she's being really unfair to her friend. But I suppose grief does make you unfair. I wonder if Gates intended the irony of Kara blaming a friend unfairly for the death of her father, while she's upset that Lois is doing the same thing to her over her sister.
Anyway, Kara is captured by Mirabai, and Gates does a good job of making it seem like "OMG big things are happening this climax is gonna be big guys!"
(Well, I looked over the Superman issue in the comic shop...and it really isn't. Earth has decided Superman is bad for no reason, Mirabai punches Mon-el but they don't kill him for some reason, Earth REALLY must hate Supergirl, Nightwing and Flamebird now...and that's it. Also, Superman meets Genral Lane, but it's really anti-climatic. But that's not Gates fault.)
A decent issue, and Jamal Igle shines as always. I particularly liked the page with Thara punching the bus.
3.5/5
Power Girl #4:
I got this a week late- I just really liked the scans I saw on sd. I'm glad I did- it was a transistional issue, between arcs and as such was really easily accessible. I love the hilarious movie trailers, Terra and Karen's adorable relationship, Karen scaring poor lewd guys with her tallness but making sure to give them advice on how to be more respectful of women in the future...Karen's love of horror movies (and the adorable semi-psychotic look on her face when she talked about it- Amanda Conner rules) and how newbie Terra didn't know you should wear your costume under EVERYTHING- "well, except cocktail dresses and bikinis"- and decided just fighting crime in her undies would be an acceptable substitute!
I also like how Karen actually got the Well Intentioned Extremist villian a talking to and a job that would fit her talents instead of sending her to jail- more superheroes should do it, and it showed how smart and proactive Karen is.
And then we have Amanda Connor's adorable expressions and backgrounds and Karen's evil cat being awesome- it was a very fun issue.
I wish I had enough money to keep getting this series, honest, this issue was such a joy. Who knows, if next months scans prove to entice me again, I may drop another series in favor of this one.
5/5
And now for this week:
Detective Comics #856:
I'm on the fence about whether I should drop this after the first arc is over. The art is breathtaking, though Maggie Sawyer has a hell of a creepy smile. I really like the relationship between Kate and her father. The story is pretty interesting. But it's not the level of fantastic that gets me to pay for 3.99 comic. I don't understand a lot of the Crime Bible stuff (I need to reread 52, but it's hard to find all the trades in bookstores...and then read the Crime Bible series) and I'm just not really hooked. On the other hand, I'm interested in Kate's origin, which is the next arc. Maybe I should just read/get this in trade.
Renee's backup was really bleh. She escapes from a car, she beats up a guy. The story doesn't have any meat to it that I can see.
4/5
Flash: Rebirth #4
Yes, I got this. You know why? One word: MAX. Oh my god, Max. I knew it was coming, because Bart really clunkily forshadowed it by not being able to go five seconds without mentioning Max, but I was not prepared for how much joy I would feel when it happened. Max is BACK! And he came back for Bart. And he came back and saved Bart. And Barry's whole speech about him being a father to Bart- it was so adorable and true! I fangasmed.
Also Bart's pure :DDDDD face when Max came back in all his hairy chested glory. Even in the last splash page when they were all preparing to kick ass he was looking over at Max all gleeful.
The rest of the issue wasn't bad either! I loved Bart's moments with Thawne. Calling him a jerk and punching him and being like "Hey, we're only half related. *shrug*" Oh, Bart.
And Wally's kids are cute and bratty, and Wally got to be a badass. And now the whole Flash family is fighting together! I love it. Awesome. It even makes me want to get the next issue. Well, mayyybe. If there's a lot of Bart and Max in it.
I can't wait for Bart's series. There better be a lot of Bart and Max hijinks in it!
5/5 JUST BECAUSE MAX.
Wonder Woman #35:
Oh, Dinah, I love you. I also love seeing Diana and Dinah kick ass.
I liked the mention of Myndi Mayer too. I liked Myndi.
And that's an interesting plot development with Zeus's lightning. I wonder what it means? I like how Diana said "Great He-" and then had to cut herself off. She used Hera's name later on after the lightning though. I wonder if it means something or it's just a slip.
Diana makes a promise to Pele. That can't be good. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out.
As for Diana and Nemesis- aw, poor Tom. I look forward to whatever explanation Diana offers Tom, hopefully that'll come about next issue.
4.5/5
And now...Wednesday Comics:
Batman: The "Batman threatening thug" scene last week was really inspired- it's rare to see Bats torture his foes so creatively- usually he just dangles them off buildings. But he got all wacky with the "slipping bit of glass" and lit cigarrette above the eye. And the art did amazingly well with it. But it goes back to bleh and confusing this week. I have no idea what's going on, and don't particularly care.
Kamandi: I KNEW little human girl was a secret badass! I KNEW she had to be awesome! Maybe it was just that I liked her dress and her pretty hair- but I've liked her from the start, so it was a nice birthday present to see her finally reveal that she was a grade-A asskicker two weeks ago. And we find out her name was Orora the week after that- as well as confirm that Kamandi is an adorable little dork, "You are very beautiful!" I want to ruffle his hair. Meanwhile, poor Tiger army- but they've got the Lions on their side now! Ha, the talking animals amuse me.
Superman: Finally stops angsting and starts fighting, a little. Still not that interesting.
Deadman: Boston is old school and gets to mack dead girls. Nothing special, but entertaing enough.
Green Lantern: Hal got fired from the space station for being a stupid jerk. Why am I not surprised? Now he's trying to save his friend. Pretty standard.
Metamorpho: EW, Saph's dad is flirting with Urania. He's WAY too old for her. Java amused me, and I like how creative Gaiman gets with the strip.
Teen Titans: The Blue Beetle strip was super painful- because of the REALLY HORRIBLE spanglish (seriously, Jaime saying something in Spanish EVERY OTHER WORD what the hell, Jaime may use the occasional spanish phrase in his own title but he is NOT a painful stereotype, Berganza!), the confusing fight, and Trident being the son of Dr. Light- seriously, you wanted to bring a character who is now forever connected with the word rape, Berganza? Oh God, now I'm thinking about HOW Trident is probably the son of Dr. Light AGHHH. And the next strip? Takes in FC continuity- Dr. Light burned by Spectre- "It was deserved". So yeah, I'm guessing this IS rapist Dr. Light. WHY do we need rape in Wednesday comics? Also, Tim is pretty whiney. I guess he just can't escape that characterization.
Adam Strange: Two other Adam Strange strips not about Alanna- but hey, this weeks was! I like Alanna. And I like this strip now, even though I didn't so much at first.
Supergirl: How ditzy IS Kara to think Aquaman can talk to things that are not fish? I mean, any newbie superhero should know that- as he points out, it's IN HIS NAME. I do get the impression she's a newb- crying at Aquaman's little blow up makes her seem pretty young. I do like how she's super stressed and concerned about her pets- I can relate. And her being bored with the TV and not able to find anything to eat in Mid-Nite's fridge was funny. As always, Conner makes everything adorable.
Metal Men: Aw, Tin gets hurt! I like Tin, I hope he's okay (which he will be, I'm sure). Platinum sure gets pissed at this, I like her showing some characterization besides "wants to sex Dr. Morrow" and also being a little badass.
Wonder Woman: You know what else I got for my birthday? ETTA CANDY! The best birthday present of all. Love her in this, she's just big and fun and totally into being a sidekick. The strip is really getting awesome with Di knowing now the dreams are real and fighting Cheetah and the talking skulls and lasso of truth and the pages being less cluttered (though the layout of this weeks was a little confusing)
Sgt. Rock: At least it's not just the Sgt getting constantly beating up anymore- but it's still really boring.
Flash: Things are getting freaky with the multiple Flashes and Barry's nose bleeding and him freaking out and the world quaking. Exciting!
Demon/Catwoman: FINALLY Catwoman is human again, but the strip is still pretty dull. And the first strip of this showed so much promise! A shame.
Hawkman: Okay, so this strip has grown on me. Hawkman being all protective of the little girl with huge glasses is adorable, and there's dinosaurs! Also, this week, we got to see Hawkwoman and she's busy "mopping up the alien invasion, honey". JLU has rubbed off me, and so it just makes me happy whenever Hawkwoman/girl shows up. Poor Hawkman is stuck with only Aquaman as possible help (man, Aquaman's showin' up everywhere). That has to be a bummer. But Hawkman takes it in stride, saying "he couldn't hurt!" Well, hopefully...
Whew! That's three weeks of comics reviewed! Now I really need to go to bed!
- Mood:
tired
Yes. Red Robin.
Okay, so I just skimmed the parts that weren't Steph-related. But the part I did read gave me a pretty good idea of the books tone, and it's one I'm very much not interested in. I'll just list my problems so we can all get on with our lives.
Tim is a complete ass. I mean, he kicks Steph in the stomach when she comes up to talk to him (and I'm really unclear to whether she was walking through the door to say hi and couldn't help but do it stealthily, because hey, Gotham vigilante- or if, as the art indicates, she was lurking in the corner. If the latter is it, what the hell? Did she get there before Tim did? Did she actively walk over to a corner so she lurk in the shadows for no reason and Tim just didn't notice this somehow? Did she borrow the JLA transporter and beam into that corner? What? WHAT? My head hurts)
And it's hard enough to make her want to barf, and he doesn't say "oops my bad" or even HELP HER UP when she asks. I don't care how upset Tim is, that is just rude.
But what really irks me is the continuity thing- Tim gets ragey ranty all over again about how he can't trust her to wear that costume and they already AGREED HE DIDN'T HAVE A RIGHT TO BE MAD O
But no, we're ignoring that and back to RAGEYTRUSTISSUES because THAT'S not getting old. And Tim continues to add to the creepy abusive trend by grabbing Steph's wrist when she tries to pat him on the shoulder, roughly enough that she winces and he doesn't let go for like, five lines of dialogue. Under Fabian, he just swatted her hand away, at least, no "look at me I can crush your wrist I so dominant".
And apparently another reason Steph can't be trusted is because...she said eveyone was worried about Tim and Tim guesses Dick asked her to track him down...and this makes her a lying bitch who can't be trusted. Because Dick was worried and so was she and they collaborated. Yeah! How dare you, Stephanie!
And despite the fact Steph is begging him to talk, he wishes he could talk to her, but he can't, because she's such a bitch! And he leaves. So emo.
Seriously, between Fabian and Yost, I guess the Bat Writers have a pact to dump abuse of Steph- whether physical or just lecturing her over what a lying hor she is. At least Fabian had the decency to give Steph a decent make-up with Tim- only to have Yost undo it. Brutally.
But I'm not really sad about Steph. It doesn't really affect her, though I consider it OOC she didn't yell at Tim to snap out of it- the whole scene made her look like some sort of whimpering pushover (I exaggerate, but allow me my rage)
Nah, it's Tim. He's been through a lot yes. (Though as Bart, Steph and Kon are now ALL back, he really hasn't lost any more than the rest of the Bat Family at this point) But I am really sick and tired of Tim being a grimdark raging mini-Batman. They've been doing it for OVER A YEAR and this was really it's apex- and I'm not interested in it anymore. It's made him unlikable, it's obscured all the qualities I enjoyed about the character. He's just gotten progressively darker and angrier and there's no sign of him stopping, and I am just BORED with it at this point. He's another generic angry "badass" character...and now he's treating his friends and family like crap. It's not Tim. It's not entertaining to me.
So I hope Steph and Tim don't get together again soon, until Tim snaps out of it (If that ever happens). All that happens when they get together these days is Tim yelling at her about what a untrustworthy screwup she is and Steph cringing and crying. Away from Tim is the best place for Steph to be right now. Hopefully Steph will have a fun role over in Batgirl and get to be her sunny self, along with being friends with Cass plzthx. Meanwhile, Angry!Tim can do whatever the hell he wants. I hope he gets better and likable again, but for now, I'm done with him.
Whew! Now that's over, I can talk about good comics! You know, other than Tim I'm pretty happy with DC these days. Assuming they don't mess the Batgirl thing up, I'm perfectly content to let Red Robin suck and enjoy all the other cool titles including...
Wednesday Comics #1:
This was pretty good, just like I expected. I enjoyed most of the features:
Batman: Big panels, nice art. I liked the dialogue between Batman and Gordon about how Gordon feels like he's failed when he turned on the Batsignal. And Batman's replying quip "I don't know how I should take that." Oh Bats! And I feel for Gordon, but seriously? You waited till 11:59 to call Batman and the guy is going to be murdered at MIDNIGHT? I don't think wounded pride is an excuse for that kind of crap. But nice cliffhanger!
Kamandi: is adorable. I'd date him if he were the last boy on earth! See what I did there? Very pretty art, old fashioned monologue, I've always like the scenario and setting behind Kamandi, so this is cool with me.
Superman: Thought this art was a little to dark for Superman, but that alien sure is wacky. Looks like Superman's going to bond with it over how allllooone he feels.
Deadman: I really like this one. Boston Brand is so kitschy and the art was pleasantly kitschy as well. Dead people solving murders are always fun.
Green Lantern: VERY pretty art, set in the late 50's, which is probably the area where Hal best works (New Frontier proved that) not much happening so far.
Metamorpho: Kitschy, 60's style, looks wacky and promising.
Teen Titans: Never been a huge fan of Cheeks art, but TT needs a dose of fun. Not much happening here, we'll see where it goes.
Strange Adventures: Okay. I found it pretty boring.
Supergirl: Adorable Amanda Conner art! Matrix costume! Super pets! Hopefully it won't all be one note gags about Krypto and Streaky destroying stuff, but lead to an interesting plot line. But it was certainly cute and awesome.
Metal Men: Not bad.
Wonder Woman: I actually found this one the most intriguing. A bit confusing, but Caldwell certainly took advantage of the space to put in lots of action and dialogue, and I dig the talking pigeons and Oracles. Definitely the most interesting start to a plotline, and Diana is very much an innocent about to go on an incredible journey.
Sgt Rock: He gets beat up a lot. Boooring. And the art ain't my cup of tea.
Flash: Barry and Iris are MARRIED and he STILL hasn't told her he's the Flash? Isn't that an important thing to tell someone before you take the vows? What a dick. And what a dimwit Iris must be if she doesn't know. Much as that annoys me, I like the gimmick of Iris having her own comic, and the art is cute. (Of course it is, it's Kershl)
The Demon and Catwoman: Oooh, this was cool. I loved the art. Yay Selina!
Hawkman: Somone should led Baker know "flap" is not a very dramatic word. In fact "And so we flap" being repeated so many times, so dramatically, made me giggle a whole lot. And Hawkman is making the hawks fly after them when the weaker ones are falling unconcious and SPLATTING on the EARTH? What a DICK. Filled with compassion, my ass.
5/5, very enjoyable.
Booster Gold/Blue Beetle:
The Booster Gold story was merely decent. How the hell did Starfire and Donna get killed by a grenade? Must have been a hell of a grenade. Nice to see the old school Titans though. Cyborg yelling his typical thing about his "decibels of white sound" and Booster actually being IMPRESSED made me giggle.
The BB backup however, was great. Norton's are really complements the title, I love Milagro's action figures and the quips are on as usual, and the plot has taken an intriguing turn.J aime forever!
Booster Gold 2.5/5, Blue Beetle: 4/5
New Krypton #5
This title is just consistently good. I loved the depth added to Zod, and I actually didn't see the ending coming. Also, more depth to one of the supporting characters, and Supeman being cuddly. And Pete Woods! Such a good title.
5/5
That be it for today! Hope you weren't to whiplashed by the NERDY FANGRRRL RAGE suddenly switching into NERDY FANGIRL LOOOOVE.
- Mood:
bouncy
I also met Amanda and Keith and Andrew. Amanda's really cool, also into creative writing and she had awesome hippie rainbow jeans. We all had an epic geek discussion ranging from politics to anime to LotR to Harry Potter...it was great. I think college will be cool.
I've rewatched Dr. Horrible a couple more times, and found myself becoming oddly more okay with the ending. Mostly because the acting and song was so good. Or maybe it's because I found Commentary the Musical on Youtube and it was hilarious enough to make up for the ending. Or maybe rewatching it makes the ending seem less random and mood whiplash, because I know what's coming.
Either way all the songs are still stuck in my head and I am in love with Neil Patrick Harris. And the songs.
Before orientation I hung out with my cousin a bit, which was great. I love her so. I got kind of mopey the last night she was here for no apparent reason, I feel bad about it now. I also saw Star Trek, and we managed to get into a heated argument about whether Uhura was useless or not. I maintain she was, especially since Jo's counterargument was "She pushed buttons! She did her role of pushing buttons very well!" All I know is, knowing nothing else about Star Trek (I saw a few episodes of the one with Janeway in it once. My cousin is obsessed with her), I now love Spock and the guy who played Kirk was hawt.
I also saw ads for HP6. It looks like Ron's going to have his Quidditch subplot from book 5 in the sixth movie. Hurray! I wonder how that's going to work. Weasley is our king!
I'm either getting a job at the comic shop or Ingles. Probably not the comic shop, because my comic book guy said he could only afford a few hours and he hasn't called me. Too bad. I'll fill out the application for Ingles. Dad gave me this random speech about how I shouldn't give a job yet because I'm anti-social and can't follow directions, which means I'll be a failure in life apparently. So now, you know, I'm definitely getting one.
In comics news, I still haven't gotten mine for today, but last week got Booster Gold/Blue Beetle and New Krypton.
BG/BB
The Booster one I give a 2. It was pretty much meh. Booster breaks into the cave to get pics of Babs, he and Dick argue then Black Beetle shows up and ZOMGvanishes Dick. Because Hector has a thing against Batman since when? Maybe Jaime mentioned he liked Batman to Hector once. AND SO BATMAN MUST BE DESTROYED. Fits in with the stupidity that is the Black Beetle's origin. I did like Skeets little jab at Booster. Oh, Skeets.
The Blue Beetle one gets a 4. I love Mike Norton's art, especially how he did Brenda's hair. It's so flippy! It was a decent start, I have a feeling Sturges is still getting his feet with the new format.
The henchmen conversation wasn't terribly funny (though I did think "Well, heroes have sidekicks". And then I was all: But wait, villians have sidekicks and henchmen! Like Dr. Drakken! No hero has an army of sidekicks. Except for Batman sort of, but he doesn't use them that way enough. Then I realized that's what the Holiday Girls basically were for Wonder Woman. Another reason why they should be bought back. And the more salient point is that Jaime could probably get henchmen for free, he's so awesome. I'd work for him for free!)
But then the plot thickens with a 1940's robot that Jaime cannot defeat! Oddly, it takes three hours for Brenda and Paco to decide to research it. I'd have done that after the first half hour, guys. And Paco rather awkwardly randomly reminds Brenda he's in a mysterious fight with her. Man, Jaime is screwed without Hector and Nadia.
Anyway, there are problems with the scarab and sad Jaime and more robots and Paco being mysterious, so the issue ends on an interesting note. As long as there is Jaime, I will continue to get this book.
New Krypton #4
I love Pete Woods. I'd just like to reiterate this. The series continues to be solid, Superman continues to be adorable and Hal is a douche. That is all.
4/5
Heading to the Heroes Con thisw eekend! I cannot wait!
- Mood:
mellow
Also, Sturges will be writing the Blue Beetle back up! And it's ten pages! Hurray!
Come June, I will definitely be getting Streets of Gotham and Detective Comics. Streets of Gotham, because it sounds neat, I like Dini, there will be (hopefully) Cass and Huntress, and I'm eager to learn more about Manhunter. I haven't been able to spare a dime for any of her trades, though I desperately want to, from the good stuff I hear. And because of that, I never got a chance to jump into the ongoing while it was around. Batwoman because it's Rucka, and the art is beautiful looking.
I'll flip through Red Robin and see if it's worth anything at the shop- from the descriptions, it's definitely Tim, and maybe he'll be written decently- I like the idea of him globetrotting to find Batman. And maybe Steph will show.
Judd Winick and Ed Benes on one book sounds like the failiest fail that ever failed, so even if I had been planning on getting that, I'm avoiding it like the plague now. Not interested in Batman and Robin.
I desperately WANTED to get Gotham Sirens, as I like all the characters, but that cover turned me right off. I know a book with those three is bound to have some cheesecake, but Guilliem March needs to get it through his head those are antiheroines/villianesses, not stars in a very soft core porn shoot. I'm not buying a book with that type of art. No matter how good the writing is, having the titular characters showing me their asses instead of kicking ass, not to mention the barbie doll anatomy, will take me right out of the story.
The funny thing is I complained about it on Superdickery when I first saw the cover on the IGN video, they inundated me with good March art, and called me a crazy feminist and all that, and I was like "No, it's that idiotic cover and his idiotic Oracle covers I don't like" and they didn't seem to get it...until the cover came out in the solicits. Then it's all "Oh, I see your point, that's porn-tastic."
So those are my Bat-plans for June. Also, Sean McKeever is leaving TT. I hope whoever places him is decent. And keeps Cassie acting sane. But changes her costume, plzthnks. Though I'm not sure I'll keep buying TT. Ravager doesn't interest me enough to pay an extra dollar. Though I'll check it out.
- Mood:
optimistic
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
parsimonia and I are probably taking over WFA with a couple other people. I mean, can you think of fangirls any more attack-y than the two of us? Justice will be served.We haven't started yet, and we're still trying to set up how we're going to coordinate, but, it is coming. And it will be huge.
In the meantime, I made ton of Blue Beetle icons! To celebrate! And downloaded fonts!
( Blue Beetle )
*Does the Jaime Dance* (The Jaime dance is very spastic and can only be seen by true believers)
- Mood:
geeky
( icons! )
Yep, crazed.
Anyway, onto comics!
Booster Gold #18
Yawn, this title's getting pretty boring, I think I'm going to drop- what, a JAIME BACK UP! www.newsarama.com/comics/030912-Co-Featu
HELLS YEAH I AM THERE! Awesome decision by DC. I love it. I hope they get Sturges to write it and Raf to draw it. (what is it with DC not announcing creative teams?) Oh yes, hurray Jaime! I'm only worried about all those stupid Jaime haters on 'Rama going to drop the book because of this. I hope this move is profitable for DC, and not the other way around. Because I need my Jaime.
Issue itself get a 2/5. But none of that matters anymore.
Battle for the Cowl #1
Meh. No Steph and very little Cass. It was decent. What confused me is how Dick is suddenly the "cutting his emotions off one". I thought that was Tim's job right now? Maybe since Daniel forgot that, he'll also forget Tim is mad at Steph, and he wont be a dick to her when she shows up! (If they interact). Nothing much happened. Todd is obviouslty the gun toting Batman, even if the summary hadn't said. Damien was way OOC, but since I don't like Damien anyway, I didn't care. Tim called Bruce his father, which was weird. Tim doesn't think of Bruce that way, and his real dad's only been dead a year. Bruce didn't raise him like he raised Dick.
But I'll keep getting this, because Steph and Cass will be in it. No matter how small the part, I follow those two wherever they go!
3/5
Action Comics #whatever
Man, this was a "meh" week. Nightwing and Flamebird are no one I care about. Barrows art is still hideous. Thus, I will not be following Action comics, Rucka or no.
2/5
But, the most important thing here? JAIME YAY! Also, I am doing Steph posts on the new s_d. Which allows a bajillion icons. So far I have thirty different ones. I find it hard to resist. I vow to make some Jaime icons too, to celebrate his Jaimeness.
- Mood:
jubilant
But, onto modern comics.
Last issue of Blue Beetle came out! Much sadness. I did an review of the issue and a very long image packed overview on the awesomeness of the series at BSR: www.bigshinyrobot.com/reviews/archives/4
*sigh* It really is depressing that an awesome last issue had to be permeated by a really forced plotline and cliches the series always avoided. Also, ugly art. Barberi was good on Impulse, but he just plain doesn't fit here.
Wonder Woman #29
Now here's a title I can always count on. The only weirdness was Donna blaming Diana for Terry's death under Genocide's influence. How does that work? Genocide makes people think Diana is responsible for car accidents? Really odd.
Etta noooo! She'll be okay, she must! Really awesome scene between Wondy and Cheetah. Deflecting missles with Amazonian bracelets is always for the win. Steve showing up made me fangirl. Hi Steve!
Also, Zeus was well...Zeus. That is, a dick. He killed the hot god! Was probably jealous of his hotness. Diana has her work cut out for her. She has to restore Athena and the godly beefcake (at least, I hope she restores the godly beefcake) as well as defeat Genocide and the Olympian and rescue Etta and seek medical attention.
Love the "Son of Posiedon" splash.
Origins and Omens. Hmm, I wonder what Hippolyta's speech means. Is Diana using Tom? What's it he should beware? And when is it supposed to take place? I can't imagine Hippy going out from the Island and NOT helping her daughter. And isn't she supposed to be waiting for her Amazons or being threatened by Zeus or whatever?
The pregnant Amazon...well, there was a pregnancy also in Teen Titans O&O so I was worried about Cassie...but on second look Preggers Amazon appears to have either very short hair or none at all. So unless Cassie cuts her hair short or decides to wear it in a bun...pregnant silhouette in TT had long hair...
If not Cassie, I'm betting Alkyone due to the lack of hair. Would be interesting, considering how bad she wanted a kid. I HOPE it's that, and not Cassie. Please Gods above, not Cassie.
Anyway, solid issue nevertheless.
4/5
Teen Titans #68
Another decent issue. Cassie is supportive yet stern, Jaime is worried and supportive. I do wonder about Eddie's mental health, with what how quick he was to exchange an eternity of hellish slavery for three years of superheroing. I mean, just completely straightfoward this time! Who in their right mind would even consider the choice presented like that? Like Kid E said, what is WRONG with him?
Some funny lines, my particular fave being the super awkward hug.
For Ed Benes, Origins and Omens was surprisingly non-cheesecakey. One Cassie ass shot though, of course. The main part was again, decent (though I have no idea WHY they would even CONSIDER letting Bombshell on the team) but the last page has the pregnant silhouette that worries me and worse...Cassie kissing Jaime. Or possibly Black Beetle. What. the. hell. If it's Jaime, that's so many levels of wrong. IEven if it's not....I though Cassie was SUPPOSED to be getting better? I thought McKeever said he didn't want her defined by relationships? Is she going to mack EVERY GUY ON THE TEAM?
This had better be misleading! Or I'm dropping again!
3.5/5
S'all for now.
- Mood:
thoughtful
And comics this week weren't bad!
Reviews!
Wonder Woman #28
Man, this kicked so much ass. Aside from the random Tom stuff, I still don't fully understand it. There's a mystery about it though, and I think we'll get our explanation soon.
But who cares about Diana and Tom macking? What I care about is Diana, Donna and Cassie being a GLORIOUS TEAM OF AWESOME that LOVE EACH OTHER also. Hells yeah! It's about freaking time! Donna and Diana haven't been depicted as being close in...have they ever been? Not from what I've read. But in here, Donna is there for Diana and is all "Get the hell off of my sister!" when Diana is threatened. I LOVE it. And Cassie is a member of the team again, who is confident and wants to help.
Also they have matching armor. Sort of. Impractical wings aside (Gails said on s_d she doesn't like them either, but she came up with a use for them. I can't wait to see it) it looked really cool, especially on the splash page where it was revealed. Especially Donna's, which is all starry and pretty. And I really like the differentation. Diana is gold, Donna is silver, and Cassie is bronze. Not only does that go in order of their age and poweset (Diana's the first "age", Donna's the second "age" and Cassie's the third "age") Diana does tend to favor gold in her costume, while Donna does silver, and Cassie wears bronze. Also, Diana's the eagle, Donna's the hawk and Cassie's the dove. I wouldn't have known this if Gail hadn't told me, but at second look, the beaks of the birds are different. Oh, and Cassie's randomly bares her navel. Like
bluefall said, I can only imagine she breaths through it, and that's why she always keeps it exposed.I got distracted by the armor...there was also the creepy reveal of Genocide's eyes (making her silly spikey thing worth it) and Gorilla action. Also axe action. Diana/axe may be my OTP. And Cheetah was a badass.
Also, Zombie Jason and the Argonauts! What more do you need?
Can't wait for the next installment!
4.7/5
Teen Titans #67
A decent issue, if not a particularly exciting one. However, I wasn't scared off my renewed buying of the series, and Cassie is still a decent and confident person. I did a review on BSR fully exploring this: www.bigshinyrobot.com/reviews/archives/3
3/5
Blue Beetle #35
A step down from last issue in terms of quality (last issue being made of awesome). I can only imagine because Sturges is being forced to wrap up the series in a short time. Also, no Raf on art. Nooooo....
We did see Ted's notes on various villians, which were in his usual sarcastic manner. And apparently when dispensing advice of how sometimes your own personal needs can get in the way of your mission, he then apparently gave examples of all the times he'd had to bail Booster out, which Jaime believes are exaggerated. I can only imagine how hilarious these tales would be.
The weirdest thing about this issue is Jaime wondering if he'd be willing to purposefully march to his own death the protect people (he believes he would) when...he's kind of already put himself in that posistion. When he plugged himself in to the sattelite to keep the Reach from hurting anybody, he was willing to go foward with it even though he knew he would die. And not only that, when Booster came to the rescue, he actively tried to stay back to save the most horrible person he'd ever met. So why are you even wondering about this, Jaime, of course the answer is YES, you already DID it. Also he randomly wondered a few other things randomly, but nothing that didn't make sense as much as that little question.
Also, Jaime's secret identity was almost revealed (He tried to cover it up by doing the "Oops, I'm leaving...and two seconds later Blue Beetle arrives!" but no one bought it) until people saw him while he was still fighting the guys as Blue Beetle...so I can only assume that is some trick by Peacemaker or Hector or someone. Who knows.
Also, Nadia runs to fight people! I have a bad feeling she might be the one who "dies" next issue. Seriously, people, why does someone have to die? This is BLUE BEETLE, where senseless death does not happen. I'm only hoping the "die" thing is a metaphor or some random villian bites it.
3.5/5
In other news, I got my final Perez Wonder Woman trade in the mail and Robin: Violent Tendencies (the trade of Steph's return. I couldn't find it anywhere, of course, until I broke down and ordered it, then is magically appeared at my local Barnes and Noble).
What I learned from Wonder Woman is Hermes is a huge diva (All camera's trained on me! I'll give you money if you believe in me! Hey, don't turn that news off, they're talking about me!) and it is HILARIOUS. Oh, Greek Gods.
Also, Julia has menopause. It's an issue not often tackled in comics (and by not often, I mean, I can think of no other instance EVER where it was reference seriously) so I applaud them for mentioning it, but I had to laugh when Diana said "Julia, I am sorry if I and Hermes made you angry" and Julia's all "No, it wasn't you. In a way it wasn't even Hermes. It was something that excacerbated an already tense situation. I suppose Amazons don't have to be worry about menopause." It was just not what I expected her to say at all. She led up to it really dramatically and everything. "The truth is, Diana, it was....menopause!"
And then Diana going "I've read about that!" Way to rub your everlasting youth in, Diana. And then Julia's response "So have I. But it really sucks having it. By the way, I think Hermes totally has a crush on you."
Diana: "Oh, he wouldn't do that."
Julia: "We are talking about the Greek Gods here, right?"
I addition, we got a nice little mini stories about the Amazons when Julia and Vanessa visited Themyscria. All of them were really neat, though they were all done by different artists considerably less skilled that Perez. (It was very odd, to go from Perez's extreme detail and generally believable anatomy to just...your average artist.)
I also liked Myndi better POST death, because her funeral revealed her backstory- she'd grown up in a very sexist and stifling family, who hated her for being more carefree and independent. Her mother worked herself to death cooking and cleaning, and her sister became 2.0 after she died as her father's favorite. She ratted out Myndi to her father about her wild sexual exploits, and Myndi was kicked out of the family. Myndi responded by becoming a successful and respected (if ruthless and tactless, as well as eventually drug addicted) PR Manager. She was close to her little brother, who was also kicked out of the family for being gay. Myndi was the only one who didn't care, and she encouraged her brother to come out. When he did and his bosses attempted to fire him, she sicced her lawyers on them and he was able to keep his job. She also used her influence to make her sister invite him to her wedding.
That alone makes her kinda awesome. I'm pleased and impressed at the title for commenting on the issue of gay rights. Considering people are still stupid about it today, they must have been even more stupid twenty years ago, so it took some gumption to include it.
Anyway, good trade.
I know Perez's work goes beyond these four books. Is there no trade collecting the stuff after this? Because I haven't seen one. I don't want to go scrounging in back issues...oh well.
I also reread the "Return of Steph" arc too. I forgot how...at home Dixon writing Tim felt. He was not grim and gritty! I miss Chuck. Say what you will, but he wouldn't have had Tim bitch at Steph and then release Jason. And he would have had Steph kick ten kinds of ass.
*sigh*
Oh well. S'all for now.
- Mood:
hungry
Best
*I went to the Heroes Con, where I met Jann Jones, Dan Didio, Darwyn Cooke, Amanda Conner, Todd Dezago, Matthew Sturges annnnd Michell Poust, who did my lovely Steph commission.
* I got a lovely Steph commission.
(nevermore999.livejournal.com/17353.html#c
*And a less lovely, but okay one. And a cute chibi Tim sticker. nevermore999.livejournal.com/17760.html#c
* Jann complimented me in her DC Nation column. (nevermore999.livejournal.com/22551.html )
*This blog took off, and I made a bunch of nifty internet friends. ( nevermore999.livejournal.com/14085.html )
*Looking at that post, I remember Gail Simone commented on a couple posts! That was so AWESOME.
*Also I got tagged several times on WFA. ( nevermore999.livejournal.com/tag/when+fa
*My Steph wiki expanded and is now ridiculously comprehensive, despite the fact I had to do 99% of it all by my lonesome. That's the power of obsession, folks. And someone even added it as a source on Steph's actual wikipedia page! Without any prompting from me! So I did wikipedia a favor and kindly linked them back. (stephaniebrown.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page ) (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephanie_Brown_(c
* I got hired for Big Shiny Robot! ( nevermore999.livejournal.com/29332.html )
*I scored an interview with Fabian Nicieza! (nevermore999.livejournal.com/39539.html ) ( nevermore999.livejournal.com/43386.html )
Worst
Hardly any worsts, my comic fan existence has been super cool. But here's two, minor, minor things.
*Jann Jones never answered my letter. I'm worried she's mad at me for slying saying Adam Beechen sucks in my thank you note.
*Various internet arguments, whether at Comic Bloc, Superdickery or Scans_daily, have annoyed me. Oh, Internet.
Now that the year is totally in review...Reviews!
Teen Titans #66
It's a flipping miracle.
I enjoyed this issue of Teen Titans.
OH EM GEE.
Forced to pick it up because Spoiler is in it, I was pleased to see not only did nothing horrible happen to her, she got to be kind of cool. First, of all, she sparred with Traci 13 and they became friends. Steph is awesome, and Traci is awesome and together they are almost too awesome for the world to handle. Which is why I want them to team up more. Now they have a precedent!
And the scene was neat in general, characterwise. Steph was nice enough to hold back on Traci, but once Traci says "Show me what you can do" she roundly kicks her ass...or bruises it, rather. A nice display of skill (and of course, as always, Steph goes for the face kick) even though, as said, Traci isn't an expert, relying more on magic and awesome than martial arts.
And Traci laughs and says nice one! And Steph helps her up all nice! Clearly, they like each other. This makes me happy. Steph must guest star in Blue- crap, I forgot...curse you cancellations! *sigh* My heart would stop if that happened anyway, from sheer joy, so maybe it's just as well.
And then Bombshell comes in and is all jerkish. She really annoys me, just another example of Teen Titans thinking DRAMA and CONFLICT is someone on the team being a jackass and others inexplicably putting up with it.
But I kinda loved Steph tensing up for the fight, ready to take on a girl with quantum skin. (She could win if she convinced Amy to depower, by calling her chicken a lot. And then, two seconds later, fight over) And then Misfit teleports in. Oh Misfit. I'm disappointed a little she didn't go all "Hey, saw your autopsy photos!" to Steph.
And I liked Wonder Girl being nice to Steph. Some read it as passive agressiveness, but I didn't see it. It was awkward, all right, but how could it not be? She seemes to really be trying.
In fact, I liked Wonder Girl in this issue a lot. It seems McKeever's sticking to this whole "the lasso made her a horrible person, now she's nice again" business. And she's going to get to be leader! Oh, YJ flashbacks.
Tim bringing Steph along for "moral support" for when he quits is weird. What KIND of moral support? This was partly why, when I looked back on Steph coming out of Tim's room and realized he was in his undies when Cassie came in, I was all "Wait. Did they have sex or something?"
But I doubt it. Tim is an eternal virgin. He just seems to like talking to his ex girlfriends in his underwear.
....
Okay, moving on. Jaime was cool this ish, despite his inexplicable not wanting Traci to join the team (probably he doesn't want her to die. I know, Jaime, I know). So was Kid Devil. And it is HILARIOUS no one wants to join the Titans. Because why would you? It's a death sentence!
Oh, and also hilarity in how Tim's quitting speech was essentially "This team sucks. A lot. So I'm quitting. Because...um, Batman's missing? You can handle it Cassie kthnxbye."
So....*drumroll*...I think I'll actually pick up this title again. Mostly to see how NewandImproved!Cassie does as leader. I'll drop it like a hot potato when/if it gets bad again tho.
Complaints though: Cassie's new costume is ludicrous. She's an Amazon without bracelets. Why? And how does she expect to deflect bullets and lasers and whathaveyou? And HOW does she move her arms with that metal thing? Come ON. Change costume now please.
The art in general sucked actually. Eddy Barrows cannot leave soon enough. His spines are made of silly putty, his anatomy is off, the girls lips look like they've been pumped with collagen and had glue like lipstick applied, and his boobs are all the same-perfectly round and moving as a seperate organism from the body. Also, the girls have a weird square pelvis thing going, especially apparent on Cassie in the old Titans picture. Oh, and all his clothes are impossibly tight. Not just the spandex, Cassie's outfit and Misfit's and Traci's too. AND, finally, the abdomens are impossibly concave and painful looking.
Yeah. Well.
4/5
Blue Beetle #34
AWESOME. As usual. I absolutely LOVE it. The Scarab's "Oops" and subsequent resuscitation, Jaime's one liners: ("Don't you guys ever stay dead?" "Not traditionally!"), attack of the immigrants, Brenda and Paco being awesome, Brenda being snarky, Jaime's family tackle hugging him and finally, an surprisingly nice resolution to the immigration issue, where Jaime finally gets to speak up and says he's not being dragged into the Border Patrol because he's supposed to be a hero for everyone, but he will follow the laws. And then, the most awesome afterthought "And all this? Caused by a rich white guy. Just sayin'." Oh, Jaime. MARRY ME.
Matt Sturges really has gotten his groove. I knew he would, he was nice to me at a comic convention!
They can't cancel this title. Whhhhyyy.
*cries*
5/5
Wonder Woman #27
A really enjoyable issue. Donna was awesomesauce, Genocide gets more threatening, Cassie was caring, and I LIKED Tom. Whoa.
Pretty art too. Excited for the next, as always.
4.5/5
Superman #683
Hi, Zatanna! Pretty art, but not much happening. Poor Kara, though. The punching page was pretty powerful. And nice fragment monologues from supporting heroes. (I could've done with one from Wondy, though).
3.5/5
Whew! Ending this post with a picture I did of Supergirl, Batgirl and Wonder Girl!
( I kinda like it, too. )
Also, did a review for a Marvel mini I really like, NYX, on BSR! It's written by a woman too! Yay, more women in comics!
www.bigshinyrobot.com/reviews/archives/3
- Mood: tired
BoP #124
As kickass as the cover is (excepting the handles) the fight inside left me slightly dissapointed.
I sort of summed it up on Superdickery:
That's what disappointed me about the fight. Wouldn't it have been awesome if Oracle had used her mad skillz to set all these security traps, and the Joker has to go through all of them to get to her, and though he does what pretty much anyone else would fail at getting through them, but by the time he gets to her he's beat the fuck up and she kicks his ass? But he manages to get some shots in because of his special Jokah powahs?
That would have shown respect for both the characters, and we wouldn't have had to see the Joker throw the person he made paraplegic down the stairs, which, I'm sorry, I don't need to see.
I dunno, it's just Oracle's not just a martial artist anymore. It would have been nice to see her use all of her skills against the guy who shot her. And use weapons besides the escrima sticks, ranged ones.
I feel a fight between Babs and the Joker could have been pretty epic and pulled up a lot of good emotional stuff, but Tony Bedard was not the right writer to handle it. For one thing, he doesn't write a very good Joker. It would have needed to last a bit longer too.
And I do think Oracle should have had time to set up her security system. How would the Joker fight a ton of lasers? It would have been interesting. And when he gets there, then the physichal fighting starts. Just the Joker escaping would have dented the victory for Babs, she didn't need to be thrown down some stairs too.
However, I do think it was cool when she totally decimated his mouth. Stealing his smile and all. Sure, he's had many teeth knocked out over the years, but she bashed in ALL of them. That's definitely a cause for the Joker to freak out.
All I know is it's a good (or bad) thing Misfit found the Joker and not Dinah, because you know what she said she'd said she'd do to the Joker if she was ever in a room alone with him (Gail's run)
( BoP reaction comic by me )
( Little BoP reaction toon. )
I'm looking forward to next issue though. I'm cravin' some Dinah and Babs bonding time!
My Dad actually picked the comic up and read it while cleaning my room (I don't ASK him to do it, he's neurotic) because the cover was so cool. He thinks the fight between the Joker and Babs was the coolest thing ever.
Dad: "She smashed in his face and stole his SMILE! I loved her Arnis sticks!"
Me: "She calls them escrima sticks".
Dad: "It's the same thing, it depends which part of the Philipines you are from."
I am constantly boggled by how much he knows about every conceivable form of martial arts ever. He should be in the Batfamily.
Which leaves me to wonder if the Internet has lead me to be cynical and course. Why can't I enjoy the comic for the awesome parts like Dad does?
3.5/5
Wonder Woman # 26
A good issue. I'm not sure it was spectacular enough that fans jumping on because of the event will stay, which worries me. Genocide is monstrous, and her design doesn't bother me as much as it seems to others. I'm very curious about what's up with the gods. And Diana's lasso got stolen! Whoa. I wonder if Dr. Minerva still has the jones for that thing, or Genocide just took it for laffs.
I'm very interested in getting more into Genocide's powers and...personality? Dunno. Right now, I'm not quite convinced she's the worst threat evar, but I'm sure I will be.
And Tom fought hard to keep the nectarine pit, which was endearing. I'm still not sure he's good enough for Diana.
Looking forward to more.
4.5/5
Blue Beetle #33
I feel like crying, because this was great issue. Sturges best yet. The Teen Titans were funny and likable (and the world stopped spinning...) and Tim was cracking jokes like a cutie! Oh, Timmy. I missed your sense of humor. And Peacemaker's eternal search for a drinking buddy...Brenda and Paco smackdown complete with Paco's Twu Confessions...
WHY MUST THE GOODNESS END?
The only thing I'm confused on is why the Scarab isn't exhibiting a personality. Maybe there will be a reason for this.
I now demand Matt Sturges write Teen Titans. I WILL PAY DC TO DO IT. And Rafeal Albequerque draw it. He draws Cassie like a human being! I love her wavy hair. And adorable Tiny Tim.
Oh dreams. You make me sad.
5/5
Superman #66oh like I keep track
I want to have Renato Guede's art's babies.
Oh, there was writing too. An okay story, though apparently Kara has fucked up again. Understandably, because these are her parents long thought dead she's listening to, so I'll let it go. And the Kryptonian madness comes home to roost...Mon El being surrounded by villians made me giggle. It prolly shouldn't have, but there ya go.
4/5
( Cassie with bracelets. )
Comic Bloc is growin' on me, btw. The intelligence level seems to have gotten higher of late, and they're all so nice. I may even consider rejoining.
I'm glad Cassie is unemo in time for next ish, which I will be forced to pick up because Spoiler. Here's hoping it sticks, unlike her Wonder Girl mini un-emoness.
- Mood:
thirsty
There's going to be a Oracle mini! They have no idea who the writer is, but, um, well...Oracle!
Battle for the Cowl is not written by Judd Winick, which means I may actually buy it! Also, I like Tony Daniel's art, though I have no idea how his writing will be.
Wonder Woman may get a second series!
Paul Levitz totally mentioned me in his Newsarama article:
In the TEEN TITANS GO! Campaign, we got an extraordinary batch of letters from young people, often complete with their drawings of the characters. They were passionate, individual, and many made interesting cases about how the title was a good springboard for a lifetime of reading comics.
He is totally talking about me and the people I convinced. I started the "save Teen Titans Go" through character art and comics, encouraged people to send art with their letter, and provided Paul's address and reviewed letters for several Teen Titans boards. I basically started the movement, getting recognition from even J. Torres for my fanaticism (he said nice things to meeee!)
I was the one who sent Paul the most letters, always with shittily drawn fancomics. We had a long correspondense, I argued with him and he sighed in exasperation until finally going "You know, you are very smart and passionate. NOW SHUT UP AND LEAVE ME ALONE GOD." (I'm paraphrasing, clearly.)
So yeah, it was totally me he was talking about. *swells with pride sort of*
Though as he said, despite my AMAZING EFFORT, TTG only got a seven ish estension.
The Bad:
BoP, Robin and Nightwing are still canceled, and this is still distressing. Tim, Dick and Babs sound like they'll be fine BUT WHAT ABOUT STEPH? I NEED MY STEPH! Also, Huntress and Misfit and Zinda! I need them too! Why, DC, why, why do you take my titles away for whatever stupid new direction you want to go in!
Blue Beetle is canceled. I saw it coming. But...*sigh* Oh well. Maybe I'll try my letter writing magic...
The Schweeeeeeeeetttt:
A comic book store has opened three minutes away from where I live! No more long gas-wasting trips to Pastimes! And they have all the stuff I need! Plus stray cats (they won't come near me, but I will eventually win their favor. Or get tetanus. One has a grody eye, this worries me.)
I still feel loyal to my old comic book store tho, so I think I'll drop by there once a month. The guy who runs the store, Chris, has serious social problems (he gets angry about weird things. ALSO WE CANNOT TOUCH THE COMICS BEFORE W
So yeah, I feel very...mixed. Goddamit, is Blue Beetle and Robin and BoP weren't canceled I'd be so happy.
WHY DC WHY
And on Blue Beetle's behalf: WHY FANS WHY DIDN'T YOU BUY MORE BLUE BE
- Mood:
energetic
shanealt 'S FAULT.New Krypton Special #1
This was actually pretty good. I liked all the art. I mean, Pete Woods, Gary Frank and Renato Guedes! That's practically an orgasm of great comic book art.
Yes, you will never be able to let go of that mental image.
The reasons I picked this up is because shane pestered me to (in the nicest way possible), it's going to tie into Supergirl, which I am reading and actually, it seems like a good hook for a story. 100, 000 Kryptonians! Wreaking havoc on an unsuspecting world. It's...a good idea. New! Different! It'll change back eventually, but it will be an interesting idea until it does. The ramifications of Kara having her parents back alone is rife with possibilities.
Anyway, it was a good story. Tension between Lois and Lucy (I demand a Lois Lane special now! If Jimmy Olsen gets one, Lois definitely should! And Gail Simone should write it, because she said she would! I hold her to this!), Jimmy's...rambling about something that happened in his special, I'm going to ignore that because I didn't read the damn thing.... random whale killing tells us all that earth is so fucked...
Oh, and Clark is sad because his dad died. I am not impressed with this death. I know having 100, 000 Kryptonians would make Clark too happy, so something horrible must happen tp him simultaneously because THAT IS HOW COMICS ARE! But, you know, in the end it's another death in comics, and I fail to be impressed by those anymore. They elicit a yawn. Jonathan, I will miss you until you get ressurected in five years. Hang in there!
But the writing surrounding it...well, it's sweet. I love Clark's little flashbacks, the
"My father taught me to be awesome" (I am paraphrasing)
"Oh yes, Jor El's crystals?"
"..."
and Ma telling Clark to do his job, she'll be fine...the "I so wish I could beat the shit out of Braniac" fantasy....Lois trying to comfort him...
Yeah, it's sweet. Well done, comics. There were a lot of "silent" pages in this comic, and they worked incredibly well. Really gave it a feeling of "mood".
Kara's dad seems like a total douchebag though. "Oh, we can't really tell them what to do, you know...ARE YOU TRYING TO MAKE US LESS KRYPTONIAN?" No, Kara'sDad, he's trying to get you to not totally clash with the inhabitants of the planet you crash landed in.
Speaking of which, hoping for Kara's reaction to Jonathan's death in Supergirl, since it wasn't in here.
OH AND LOIS'S DAD IS BACK OH NOES!
In conclusion, I give this...4.5/5! Well done.
Superman #I am not looking to see what number. A really high one.
Wasn't as good as the special, but eee, Renato Geudes! Ahem. Apparently the Justice League likes to interrogate Superman while standing intimidatingly on the Fortress of Solitude. Though I can see why they're concerned, what with the whale killing Kryptonians an' all.
Also, Krypto coming to comfort Ma Kent is just the CUTEST THING EVER. My heart melted. Good boy, Krypto. (I love dogs)
Could people stop referencing Amazons Attack? I am trying to pretend it never existed over here. And I fail to care about random Liberty guy. I do wonder what's up with Kara and her best friend who sort of snaps at her. Guess we'll find out later...
And...WTF is that Doomsday crashing down there? Why...Doomsday bores me, but the sheer WTFckery of him appearing out of nowhere...well, interesting.
4/5
Blue Beetle #32
While I fail to be impressed by Polaris, I cannot fault Mr. Reyes badassery with a cane. And Traci 13's badassery and carrot conjuring (why is the magic flooey, though? Is this some crossover I'm not aware of?).
So, um, yeah.
3.5/5
Birds of Prey #123
So! This was okay. O 'Hare, it is commendable you are trying to be Nicola Scott, but you're really not cutting it. The Joker/Babs confrontation led to nothing, but looks like there will be another one. I dunno, I'm interested, yet bored...
3.5/5
S'all folks
- Mood:
okay
Hey, cool, I have Windows Movie Maker now! Sorry, I was scrolling to see if I still had Scan Gear Starter and could scan. And I do. And I have Windows Movie Maker! Now I can make dorky music videos about Stephanie to my heart's content! Neat.
I have to get Photoshop reinstalled, tho. : ( I can't do that again 'til my uncle visits. And none of my pics are saved here, I will have to do something about that.
Oh, right, I was going to review stuff. Without further ado...
Supergirl #34
I actually really enjoyed this. In fact, a detailed review is here: www.bigshinyrobot.com/reviews/archives/2
It made me optimistic about the new run. I was already pretty psyched for it, because
shanealt being so psyched for it kind of rubbed off on me, so I'm glad I wasn't dissapointed. Yet.Cat commenting on Supergirl's skirt being "indecent" amused the heck out of me, considering the clothes she was wearing when she said it. Also, Supergirl's little card to Cat was funny. I enjoyed the fight with Silver Banshee and when Kara was booed off the field I really felt for her.
And I have to admit, Tim giving Kara Conner's glasses was adorable. Also, helpfully, Tim didn't angst about Conner while doing it. (I liked Kara's confusion at Tim having a cave. I mean, come on, Tim, stop with the MiniBruce...ness!
And her conversation with Lana had the "aw" factor going. "How strong are you?" "I'm Supergirl, strongest girl in the world." YES. And Kara on a swing is love.
Like I said in the main review, Kara's new identity of Linda Lang could be taken in an interesting direction. It could also go badly, but I'm optimistic. Unlike other Linda Danvers fans, I don't mind she's using that name at all (
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif){kind=small}
scans_daily can be bitchy at times) After all, Linda stole the name from the original Kara Zore-el...sooooo....5/5
Blue Beetle #32
A pretty lackluster issue, not nearly as strong as Sturges previous ones. Nothing much happened, though I did appreciate the Mrs. Reyes badassery and am interested to see Brenda confront Mariposa.
3/5
Runaways #2
An improvement from last issue, Moore seems to be finding his legs. I actually want to see what happens next. Still nothing spectacular, and I still miss Alphona.
Chase seemed OOC. He was either having random outbursts or making stupid comments. I especially can't see him randomly calling EvilMajesdanian!Lady "hot" in that dopish way. Not after Gert. I liked Nico's "scatter" and "beach veiw" spells though, she's comporting herself like a leader, which is good to see after Whedon hinting that she wasn't qualified for the posistion in his run.
3.5/5
S'all for now, more later!
- Mood:
indifferent
It's unlikely Steph will join. Skill wise, she doesn't have much to bring to the team Tim doesn't.
Now if I were writing Titans I would point out the things she does have to bring to the team...she knows Tim better than anyone, so is the best equipped to see the holes in his reasoning in times of stress. She understand crime better than any of the others. Crime may have affected their lives but Steph grew up with criminals coming in and out, so she knows better than anyone how they work. That could come in handy. Her medical skills must be very good now considering the time she spent with Leslie, and if the team ever needed to do a mission in Africa...
Not to mention she's not the type to angst, which the team so needs. Combat the despair of Cassie and Tim!'
So if I were writing the Titans, I wouldn't put Steph on the team. Not right away anyway. I would have her as a reserve member, popping in and out every few issues, until I figured out how to make her useful when the team already has Tim. She would be a huge help if Tim ever went missing, for example, so that could be one reason for Steph to come in temporarily.
Now this is my point of view. From DC's point of view, they clearly don't mind having redundant members on the team. I mean, Supergirl, Wonder Girl and Miss Martian were all on the team at one point. Three super strong flyers, that's not redundant at all. And consider Kara and Cassie were both pretty much interchangable powerful snippy blonde girls the way they were written. So saying DC wouldn't let Spoiler on the team because she's redundant has some truth to it, but it isn't like DC cares about that TOO much. Also, having Spoiler would lead to Tim n Cassie angst and we know DC loves that.
But right now, I wouldn't be surprised if Sean, or DC sees Steph as some plucky little screwup who's not actually useful, so I wouldn't hold my breath for her joining.
As for Traci 13, I think she would be extremely handy in a well written Titans, so she'd totally be in right away if I wrote it. Just seeing her and Jaime working together within the team would be entertaining. She's ALSO not angsty, which is good. For real life, I see a 50/50 chance of her joining.
Misfit is already in BoP, but McKeever kind of has a mad on for her, so she might join.
Supergirl, well, Sean was making a big deal of her return over in his q & a thread at Comic Bloc, so maybe. She's in Robinson's Justice League or whatever, so I doubt it.
Speedy's a big possibility. She already was a Titan once, and nobody's doing anything with her, so I see her joining. I dread the clunky references to her HIV Sean will inevitably make. I would put her on the team because I really like her.
The Ray is also a possibility. He was on YJ, and nobody's doing anything with him either. I might put him on if I was a writer.
The rest, I have no idea. The New/Old Bombshell is a mystery and I never read Seven Soldiers. I just know that no way is Klarion joining. He's NOT a superhero!
All I know is if Steph joins, they'll force me to pick up the book, whether she sucks in it or not. If that happens, well played, DC, well played.
For your entertainment:
( A toon )
- Mood:
contemplative
- Mood:
distressed
I'm supposed to write an essay on a recent book that's impacted my life. I
Wait, I just realized. I read Trickster's over the summer! Yeah, I can say that impacted my life! I can go on about the strongness and epicness of Aly and how it renewed my faith in humanity!
Thank you, LJ for this epiphany!
And my Senior Exit is going to be on "Yellow Wallpaper." I really wanted to do it on Wonder Woman but apparently my psycho AP teacher says it HAS to do with LITERATURE. I doubt I'd have much of a chance convincing her that WW is literature. My Women's History teacher Ms. Williams, says she would let me if she were my teacher, but she's not psycho like Ms. Pumphrey, so...
Anyway, enough about school, reviews now.
Blue Beetle #31:
Another decent, if not Jon Rogers level, issue. *sigh* Wish Rogers would come back plz. BUT, this was good, and I laughed a lot at it. "I defeated you...WITH SCIENCE!" And there was Brenda and Paco so all it well.
("I PWN you!" "So that's how that's pronounced.")
(ALSO PACO IS THE BLUE BEETLE HEE)
4/5
Teen Titans Year One
Though this issue was kind of random, the art remains so freaking awesome it could have been complete crap writing and I would have loved it. Fortunately, it was written well, in a hallucinogenic nightmare kind of way. Poor Dick and the graveyards in his head.
"You're very disturbed, Robin." Oh, Wally, I love you.
Also, Batman fails at IM's. Ha! But he is NICE and NEEDS Dick to come home, My God, that is adorable.
In all, I really like this series, and it SO pwns the regular titles, so much it is not even funny!
4.5/5
Runaways #1 (AGAIN)
Decent. I'm actually surprised by how much I like Ramos's art. I liked it on Impulse too (except for that one issue with Jessie Quick!nipples which I did not need scarring my mind, thank you) but it's even more dynamic here. Though I ask Christina, why does Vic suddenly have black hair?
It's not nearly as good as the Vaughn issue, but Moore is still finding his legs, so I'll give him a chance. It's a nice read so far, if not feeling me with undefinable happiness or making me cry so far like the old series did so well...*sigh*
3.5/5
S'all for tonight!
- Mood:
recumbent
parsimonia's suggestion. (I think I kind of forgot anyone would need that explained to them : P)In other news my birthday is tomorrow (Yay!) in which I turn 17, and my senior year starts a week from then. (BOO!) I have been a bad girl and not done any volunteer work this summer when I need to get hours for the National Honors Society. *sigh* On the other hand, I'm making good progress on Pride and Prejudice for English and enjoying it, so at least I'm not procrastinating TOO horribly on that.
New comics in two days- Booster Gold (I look forward to the Dixoness and the Babsness!) and Wonder Woman (I look forward to the just plain awesomeness) and...*checks DC's site* Yeah, that's it. Gosh, the cover of Green Arrow/Black Canary is pretty. *MUST NOT BE TAKEN IN BY PRETTY ART*
Anyway, my point is, time to review all those comics I have lazily NOT reviewed.
Huntress Year One #5 and #6-
I am dissapointed, which shocks and alarms me. This series, which had an incredibly stellar first four issues, fell apart a bit on the last two. I remember I was under the impression early it would just be a four issue miniseries, and now I kind of wish I was right. While Madison writes a truly awesome Huntress, she completely fails at writing Bruce and Babs, and to some extent, Selina.
The thing that irks me most about issue #5 is Babs. First of all, how Huntress made her look like an idiot. Babs is smart and capable, she should have at least given Helena a hell of a good fight, if not beat her completely. A Helena vs. Babs fight should be huge and epic, not a handful of panels where Babs gets in a sucker punch before Helena completely owns her.
Then we have Bruce yelling at Babs that she's fired. WTF, Bruce? There's Batdickery, then there's just being sad. Not only would Bruce NEVER say that to Babs unless he seriously meant it, and by yelling it at her he comes across as some petulant child who takes out his anger on others, there's no way Babs would take that. Reading Batgirl Year One, Babs is very independent and capable. She describes herself as a "free agent" and never had any real aim to be a "Bat." Unlike Dick, she did not live with Batman or require his approval, so she didn't take his crap. If Bruce threw a fit like he does in this issue, Babs would say "screw you" and walk away. She's not Bruce's employee or servant, and she spent a while working completely without his consent and can do it again. She's not a afraid to speak her mind, and would not put up with such treatment. And Bruce KNOWS this.
Not to mention, this is pre-DickLeavesJasonDiesBabsisShotHorribl
Maybe I'm just really sensitive about this considering what happened that other time Bruce told a young woman she was fired...
Moving on...I kind of like Selina's speech to Helena, it was neat ("So you're the anarcha-feminist of Gotham?" "Call me Catwoman, it's shorter.") But what the hell is Selina doing smoking? Anyone with an athletic occupation, which Selina definitely has, knows smoking will ruin their abilities. Selina's far too smart to do this. Plus, no way is she 29 in this period.
Onto #6, Babs is humiliated aGAIN (Maybe Madison just doesn't like Babs?) Oh, and Batman totally hasn't fired her. Chump. Also, Helena leaves WAY too many people alive who know her name. Also, Batman should not know her name, if he does we lose that thing where Tim figured out her identity and kept it secret from Bruce and they had this weird friendship and it was adorable! (Also, proving my point that Tim's secret superpower is guessing everyone's secret identity- Bart, Steph, Bruce, Dick, Helena- it's UNCANNY!)
Anyway, Helena is still cool, and I loved Catwoman in this, despite the smoking. It just...Madison, WHY? It was so awesome and now it's all flawed! Guh!
3/5
Blue Beetle #30
Many of my friends didn't like this, but I thought it captured the feel of Jon Roger's run very well. The plot is still in the beginning stages, and we have yet to see how the tricky immigration issue will be treated, and there were some flaws, but I love the one liners and character interaction (Jaime makes his own sound effects! Brenda and Paco argue! Jaime suggests names for supervillians! God, I love the supervillian title fight, so cracktastic) So I'm optimistic.
4/5
Supergirl #32
Sigh. What happened? I don't know. All I know is it was sort of cool when
Oh well. Empress next! Then new and possibly exciting run!
2/5
Robin #176
All right. This was well written, I will admit. I especially liked the flashback to Tim getting his costume, and how Dick was totally snarky about it and they teased each other like brothers.
"My costume is scary now!"
"No it isn't, it has underwear on the outside!"
"Oh, like you can talk, at least I have tights under my underwear!"
"Yes, but now I have a Nightwing costume and I look incredibly sexy in it."
"SHUT UP MY COSTUME IS SCARY!"
Meanwhile, Tim has gone batshit insane or something because he's yelling at everyone and sticking batarangs in people's eyes and Stephanie is naturally concerned about this, but WAIT, Batman talked to her forty nine hours ago (I guess she gave the when off panel, or else Tim just assumes it's forty nine hours because he's GONE INSANE) and told her he was planning on going crazy so please make sure Tim doesn't get involved?Apparently making sure Tim doesn't get involved involves following him around voicing skepticism and faint concern and deleting pictures of the Goddamn Batman.
Anyway, Tim is really mad about this and SWINGS AWAY INTO THE NIGHT.
THE DRAMA!
Okay, I'm looking forward to Search for a Hero and the developments with Stephanie, but this felt kind of meh to me.Maybe because of the crossoverness, or maybe it's a side effect of how quickly Fabian must have had to write it.
Also, I really don't like Joe Bennett's art. It's so generic and there's a few panels that made me go "whuh?"
Anyway, BRING ON MORE STEPH!
3.7/5
Okay, I suppose that's it. See yas!
- Mood:
chipper
I keep forgetting to get this comic the week it comes out because I'm not used to bi-weeklies.
This comic is just so snappy, masterful and SMART. I am loving the art more and more, and Helena essential elegant darkness and badassery remains intact. I loved her meeting Babs. Sure, the meeting was unlikely and improbable, but I loved the exchange. Oh, happy pre-shot Babs. ("Maybe European women are more girly. I'll try to be girly.") And the artist just drew Babs so preeeettty.
I also liked the underwater fight, it was very well thought out, with the man dressed like the devil and tying Helena's hair to the pipe (OUCH!)
Also, Alfred snark at the end! "Mustaches show sophistication, Ms. Gordon." Oh, Alfred.
Next issue has an exciting set up, can't wait for Helena and Bats to meet.
5/5
Raven #5
Eh, it was sweet. Okay ending. I missed an issue, so...the art was more cluttered than usual this time around, too. Cool to see Raven kick ass in her own special way tho.
3.5/5
Blue Beetle #29
Step up from last fill in issue. Not anything spectacular, but a fun, solid issue that showcases Jaime's compassion (Jaime is my comic book boyfriend. I love him so) and has Peacemaker kicking open doors for no apparent reason. (Peacemaker is a textbook example of a slated for dead, outta date character reinvented into awesomeness. See, people, every character has the ptential to be great. No needless killings!)
4/5
Also:
( Another picture. )
- Mood:
calm
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