Monday, August 27, 2007

Blue Beetle #18

Blue Beetle is a fun book to read. I was a fan of the Ted Kord Blue Beetle and was saddened to see him offed during the build up to "Infinity Crisis". I did not pick up the new Blue Beetle book when it first came out. I got my first taste of the character during Mark Waid and George Perez's "Brave and The Bold". I liked what they did with the character and decided to go back issue diving at my local comic store. I ended up getting the complete run 1-14 (missing a few issues in there). What I found was an engaging character the was fun and interesting. John Rogers, the writer, has done a great job of fleshing out the supporting cast and the lead character's, Jaime Reyes, introduction across the DC Universe. I have enjoyed Rafael Albuquerque's art, but was disappointed that he could not do the whole issue. Substitute art by Davidl Baldeon & Dan Davis seemed rushed and did not match the tone established for Blue Beetle.

In the issue, Blue Beetle and the Teen Titans team up to take on Lobo. Blue Beetle's armor continues to pull tricks out of the hat and show just how powerful it can be. The team fights Lobo to somewhat of a standstill and ends with Robin commenting on Beetle's lack of fighting skills. Robin invites Beetle to hang with the Titans and Jaime considers the invite. I'm looking forward to seeing Beetle in the Teen Titans as of issue #50. I believe he will be a breath of fresh air to a morose comic book and bring back some of the awe that is needed for that group. If you haven't picked up Blue Beetle, I recommend it!

Monday, August 20, 2007

Justice League of America #12


Both my son and I had the same reaction upon seeing Justice League of America #12, "Wow!" The cover is absolutely amazing. I hope that the DC Direct team has plans to make the cover a poster. I would buy it!

This issue is Brad Meltzer's last of a 12-issue run. I know that in my previous posts I have had some strong critiques of the editorial decisions from DC. However, with Justice League of America, I believe that DC Comics has done an excellent job of putting together a great book. Brad Meltzer has done a phenomenal job of reestablishing the Big Three (Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman) and bringing along a lot of familiar faces. "Monitor Duty" shows the different members of the team taking their turn as team monitor. While there isn't any action in this issue - besides Hawkgirl and Red Arrow having fun - I think Mr. Meltzer ended his run on a very good note. This issue serves up notes on each team member that will hopefully be fleshed out by the oncoming Dwayne McDuffie.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Supergirl #20


During one of DC's many panels at this year's San Diego Comic Con, Dan Didio explained Supergirl's place in the DC Universe. He was answering a question in regards to bringing new readers to DC. Dan asked the audience, "Who is Supergirl?" He responded with "Superman's cousin." In an attempt to rectify past mistakes with Supergirl, she was reintroduced into the DC Universe in the pages of Superman/Batman.

Here initial introduction in Superman/Batman: Supergirl #8-13, writer Jeff Loeb did a good job of setting up Kara in the post-Crisis (original not Infinite) Earth. Supergirl's new series jumped from her introduction and stumbled almost from the start. While some of the stories have been enjoyable, the inconsistent writing and art have hurt this title. The only book that has done an excellent job presenting an exciting and well thought out Supergirl is Brave and the Bold written by Mark Waid and illustrated by George Perez. In the pages of Brave and the Bold, Supergirl comes across as a powerful young woman getting to know her place in the universe.

Supergirl #20 addresses the aftermath of Supergirl and Wondergirl attempting to negotiate with the President on Air Force One during the Amazon Attacks war. DC has really dropped the ball on Amazon Attacks. What should have been a series spanning cross over event, turned into a continuity mess with poor writing. This issue of Supergirl begins by being hampered by this illogical storyline. Given that, I enjoyed the action that Tony Bedard put in this issue. We get to see Supergirl cut loose and even show that she is vulnerable, like Superman, to magic. Besides the Amazon Attacks tie-in, the big drawback to this issue was the art. Renato Guedes' version of Supergirl looks like a tube with thick hips and legs. I know that America is getting fatter, but does Supergirl have to follow that trend. My son, who is "ho-hum" on Supergirl as it is, picked up the book and immediately put it down based on the shoddy art.

How does DC fix Supergirl?
1) Pick a direction for the character and begin moving that way. The best of the DC heroes don't just go from fight to fight, they have a story arc to develop their character and their place in DC. This character should get young girls excited about reading comics. My daughter, who is just getting into comics, could care less about Supergirl right now.
2) Get a good writer for the long term. It looks like Tony Bedard is on for on three issues, two of which are crossover event tie ins. Therefore, I don't expect much from his run.
3) Get an artist that can draw young. Supergirl is 16 not 25 (or older by Guedes' art). Bring in an artist that can attract young girls (and guys) to the character.

While the answers above can apply to almost any book being published, they highlight what DC has done wrong in the handling of Supergirl. Good Supergirl stories can be published. Just go to Brave and the Bold for the proof.

-Matt

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Metal Men #1(of 8)


During my life time there have been no long runs of the Metal Men, and all of the short runs have done weird things with them and created loopholes in the DC universe. This 8-issue mini-series introduces all 6 of the Metal Men: Gold, Tin, Lead, Mercury, Iron, Platina (formerly Tina or Platinum), and the new sarcastic character Copper. This mini-series also stars a sane Dr. William Magnus. The art in this book is very colorful and suits the Metal Men well. The comic starts out with an introduction of the baddies yet to be named, and then transitions into the metal men fighting a big army of other robots. Then after a few pages it goes into flashback mode where it pulls in new readers of the Metal Men and gives a background story of Dr. Magnus and the first Metal Men (-Copper). On the last page it leaves you with a cliffhanger that will leave you wanting more of the mini-series that looks like it will be a very fulfilling read.


-Andrew

Monday, August 6, 2007

All Flash #1



I grew up with the Barry Allen Flash. His death in "Crisis on Infinite Earths" was poignant moment for me. At the time I was upset with DC for taking away one of my favorite characters but, with the introduction of Wally West (formerly Kid Flash) as the Flash, and the subsequent development of the Speed Force, I grew to admire DC's handling of the Flash mythos. The torch was passed to a Flash for a new generation and writers like William Messner-Loebs, Mark Waid, and Geoff Johns, Wally became the Flash for a new generation. A new Kid Flash was also introduced. Coming from the future, Bart Allen, grandson of Barry, would start off in the DC Universe as the aptly named Impulse and would move onto inherit the mantel as Kid Flash.

DC decided to see if lightening would strike twice by having Wally disappear during the "Infinite Crisis" saga. Bart would assume the role of the Flash in the Flash: The Fastest Man Alive comic book series. Having lived through the original crisis and death of Barry Allen, I was all for Wally going away and Bart becoming this generation's Flash. However, sadly, the transition was woefully mishandled by DC and its writers. By issue 13, interest in the Flash had dwindled and DC decided to kill off Bart Allen. Bart died at the hands of the Flash's original rogues gallery of criminals. Over in the Justice League of America and Justice Society of America titles, "The Lightning Saga" crossover was playing out. In the end, after a confusing appearance by the Legion of Superheroes, Wally and his family returned back to the DC Universe.

In All Flash #1, we get a story that provides a setup for the further adventures for Wally West as the Flash. Some things are not quite right as his kids, who were new born just a year ago are now 10-12 years old. Superman ponders this and Wally gives a quick "lets talk about it later" answer. Wally then sets off against the rogues to attempt to set up that story line for future issues.

I was happy to see Mark Waid back in the writing chair for the Flash. He knows Wally West best and can return the Flash back to a best selling comic with great stories. I though the one shot did a good job of returning Wally to the fold and setting up the future story arc. I hope Flash 231 brings tighter art direction as the team art displayed in All Flash #1 did not provide a cohesive picture of this version of Flash. All in all I'm pretty excited about the direction of the Flash. I'm hoping at some point Bart is brought back to serve as Kid Flash. However, with the addition of Wally's older kids I don't see that happening.

-Matt