Posts Tagged ‘ Power Girl ’

The second week of DC’s new universe came out this week (well, third if you count Justice League #1, which I should really post about just to be complete at some point). How’d they do?

Batman And Robin #1 – Why, it’s almost like the reboot didn’t happen isn’t it? This feels very much ‘business as usual’ even if it did attempt a fresh start with a little recap of Bruce’s origin to the unfeeling Damian. Well constructed with a decent intro to a new villain who’s had enough of the Batman Incorporated concept (he may as well be called ‘The Reader’), this issue didn’t quite make it home for a few reasons; first, Damian here is an unbelievable brat and impossible hard to like; second, the art was a little confusing for part of the action sequence; third, I still don’t get why a children’s swimming pool was over nuclear rods; and finally, if I jumped on here as a brand new reader I don’t think I’d be picking up the next issue – there isn’t enough explanation of who Damian is. It’s clear he’s Batman’s son, but it’s also clear they don’t have much of a relationship. Too much backstory, not enough explanation. Fail.

Batwoman #1 – Let’s get this out of the way – it’s beautiful. JH Williams has really scored with the art here. The storytelling doesn’t really suffer due to his layouts; it’s an exceptionally strong entry and one that I’m sure Williams and Batwoman fans have been waiting for. As someone who hasn’t read the Batwoman Detective run, though, I felt a little lost with some of the backstory and was surprised to see former Flamebird leaping around as Batwoman’s sidekick. For completely new readers I suspect a lot of this went over their heads – but I’d hope they’d stick around for the art at the very least. Nice to see Cameron Chase and Director Bones, too. My main issue is that I doubt anything was altered from the version of this series that was to be released months ago (aside from the color of Gordon’s hair and the shopping in of the Mysterious Hooded Woman). A kind-of hit.

Deathstroke #1 – Sometimes low expectations work in your favor, because I really enjoyed this. It’s the same Deathstroke we know and love (only maybe a bit stronger, and with an agent) who’s rep seems to be waning slightly. An imaginative heist (well, imaginative if you haven’t seem Executive Decision),some mystery items and a bit of a twist ending that I admit I didn’t see coming. Strong stuff, and definitely enough here to clue new readers in. A hit.

Demon Knights #1 – Much better than Paul Cornell’s other book (Stormwatch), this is helped by actually assembling a team and starting at the beginning of a story. Good art, a surprisingly likable Vandal Savage, a nice twist or two between Jason Blood and Madame Xanadu, and a few members of the team I wasn’t expecting make this a fun issue that shows a lot of promise. If I had any complaint,it’s that having all the members of the team independently arrive in a small village at the same time is a hell of a coincidence, but no doubt there are higher powers at work. Good stuff. A hit.

Frankenstein Agent Of S.H.A.D.E. #1 – Another hit from writer Jeff Lemire. Everything you need to know is right here from the set-up of SHADE to the introduction of the new Creature Commandos and Frankenstein himself. I was surprised to see a non-Atom Ray Palmer in the cast, but his role here makes sense. Also, there were giant monsters. Can’t go wrong with giant monsters. A hit.

Green Lantern #1 – Much like the Batman, this is business as usual. As someone who’s a bit behind on trades with GL, I knew the basic set up (Sinestro is now a GL again, Hal’s back on Earth) but it was all neatly explained for those elusive new readers. The potential in the set-up here is pretty good – especially the conflicts between Sinestro and both his old and new Corps, although I expect the status quo will be back in six issues or so. It was also nice to see that Hal without a ring is even more clueless than before. Now, is it enough to make me leap back to monthlies? Probably not; I’m enjoying GL reading in chunks. But I’d still say it’s a hit.

Grifter #1 – Now this I liked. Pretty much a “What if Lost‘s Sawyer got kidnapped by aliens instead of crashing on the island, broke out, then decided to hunt then down?” – hell, they even threw a plane in there. Great art from Cafu, strong writing from Edmondson, and generally a great set-up. I think there’s an editorial slip-up on the last page, but this is a good start to the series, a good intro to the Daemonites and generally a good comic. A definite hit.

Legion Lost #1 – Like I said before, I like the Legion and I like Fabian Nicieza, and I like Pete Woods – but this was a bit wobbly for me. I’m not sure if it was the surprisingly non-exciting reason the team gets stuck in the past (time bubble shenanigans as they transport a fleeing villain back to their own time), the fact that the team’s mainly made up of characters I have no affinity for, or the apparent death of two of the team (one of which I do have an affinity for) at the end of the book – but something about it just didn’t click. However, I’ll check the next issue out because if nothing else, I have faith in Nicieza. Not really a hit, but I’m with it.

Mister Terrific #1 – I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would but a few things didn’t sit right with me, from the apparently casual sex relationship with probably-not-Power Girl Karen Starr (jarring when we’ve just flashbacked to how much Michael Holt loved his wife and wanted to die after she did) to the weak introduction of another love interest (weak because I don’t exactly know who Aleeka is or how she relates to Michael). Race definitely plays a part in the book, from Michael’s ‘Thanks, Black Guy’ line to Karen’s ‘I’m a white girl’ and Aleeka’s ‘I’m a black woman’ retort, and I suspect that won’t sit well with some readers. For me it was a little jarring, if I’m honest, but nothing that turned me off the book. What did turn me off a bit was the generic mind control style threat and the fact that the art didn’t quite gel for me. Even so, I’d say this was a hit if only because as #1s go, it summarized who Michael Holt is pretty well and set up an interesting status quo for him.

Red Lanterns #1 – Let me get this out of the way: I hate Atrocitus’ redesign with a passion. I expect it’s been done so we have a slightly more human-looking character as our lead, but I just don’t like it. Now that’s out of the way, I have to say this was pretty good. It sets up conflict within the Red Lantern Corps, possibly redefines Atrocitus’ mission in the wake of the last GL storyline, and has a double splash page of Dex-Starr. So yes, I’d say hit – although I’m more likely to go to trades on this in line with GL.

Resurrection Man #1 – Loved seeing Mitch Shelley (and the Body Doubles) again, and having him apparently targeted by angels (they were angels, right?) sets this firmly in the darker corner of the DCU. I have absolutely nothing negative to say about the book at all – except that two plane action sequences in one week (and especially this week) might be one too many. Other than that it’s like you’ve never been away, Mitch. A hit.

Suicide Squad #1 – I enjoyed this a lot, although I guessed the twist early on. I still don’t like a lot of the character redesigns here, but they’re not as jarring as they are on the (terrible) cover. Starting with a pretty-much fully formed team worked well here but I still appreciated the one page recaps of a few of our cast’s pasts, although I’m left wondering if Secret Six still happened in the rebooted universe. The most jarring thing is the redesign of Amanda Waller; Gone is the tough, older, rotund Waller of yesteryear and in her place is an attractive, lacy-bra-wearing younger Waller. I’m not too keen on that, but overall, I’d say this is a hit – with a few reservations.

Superboy #1 – This was much, much better than I’d hoped it would be. It was a rewarding read, and having the (currently nameless) Caitlin Fairchild in the mix is an interesting addition, as is Lois Lane’s involvement as whistle-blower on the Superboy project. This new take on Superboy – and I guess he won’t be going by ‘Connor Kent’ anytime soon – is quite a departure, but one that I’m interested in. It looks like writer Lobdell has plans for some pretty tight continuity between this and Teen Titans, so my hopes for that book just rose. A definite hit.

So, overall another winner with only Batman and Robin failing for me, and that’s more a result of it not embracing the new as opposed to being a bad comic. As we see more of the new DC, new questions get raised. For example, if this is Superboy’s first appearance, what exactly happened after Superman died (as he hinted he still did in Swamp Thing last week?)? Obviously there was no Superboy – but what about Steel and the Eradicator? I assume the Cyborg Superman still showed up as he’s played a pretty big role in the non-rebooted Green Lantern in the past…

In any case, so far, so good. Keep at it, DC.

Better late than never – and still ahead of this week’s releases, which is good.

Action Comics Annual #12 – A steaming pile of crap. Honestly, I don’t think I’ve read a worse comic in a long time. Where to begin? Perhaps the grating, omniscient third party narration? Perhaps the fact that their origins are contrived? Perhaps the fact that we may know their history but we don’t really know them? If you haven’t bought it, don’t.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #1 - The store I went to didn’t have it. I choose to take this as a sign that it is not destined to be a monthly pull of mine. Alternatively, I may pick it up this week.

Outsiders #19 – Not bad, not good, just forgettable. The good news is that it has Vandal Savage (who’s always fun, in spite of Morrison’s makeover) and it also has Ra’s Al Ghul. IN A BEAR HEAD-HAT.

Power Girl #2 – Aaand I’m out. Well, that was quick. I’ve been looking forward to this comic since it was announced over a year ago, but I’m done. Two issues in and I get half an issue dedicated to the origin of a villain I don’t care about? Not only that, but the book suffers from serious verbal diarrhea. It’s the opposite of decompressed storytelling – which is fine until you realise that you don’t really care about the story anyway.

Supergirl #42 – Solid issue, with Lois reliably under control mourning her sister’s (apparent) death. It’s funny, but for all the fuss about Supergirl being back on track (and it is), I kind of view this book as the home of the Superman supporting cast right now – Lois, Sam Lane, Lana, Cat Grant; they’re all here. And the book’s the better for it. Oh, and Jamal Igle’s art on here is fantastic. He and Sibal are really working well together.

All-New Savage She-Hulk #3 – A great fun little mini. I find myself liking this more and more, and having the original She-Hulk punch out the Sentry is icing on the cake. Although…who wants more tiny little Normans running around? Sure, Harry’s okay, but the two-whose-name-shall-not-be-spoken weren’t enough? Although…would a Norman/Lyra mix still have his brillo pad hair?

Amazing Spider-Man Family #7 – A Roger Stern-penned Spidey tale is always a must, even if it is about Aunt May and Uncle Ben first getting together – but on the eve of May’s wedding, its a nice little retrospective. Throw in Spider-Girl (still entertaining) and Fred Hembeck’s l’il Peter Parker meeting the Brothers Voodoo, and you’ve got a nice little book.

Cable #15 – The whole Messiah War thing has basically become one big fight scene. Enjoyable fluff, but no depth to it.

Captain Britain And MI 13 #14 – I mentioned how much I liked this last week – but allow me to add this:
Heh.

Dark Reign Fantastic Four #4 – The more I read this book, the more concerned I am with Hickman taking the reigns of the regular title. Reed is back in ‘fix everything’ mode (which is the title of Hickman’s first arc), Ben, Sue and Johnny are supporting characters, and Franklin and Valeria are funny but kind of brattish – and they really shouldn’t be one of the main focuses of the book in my opinion. On the plus side, Norman Osborn is reliably crazy and the end of the issue promises a great smack-down which will, no doubt, not be delivered.

Invincible Iron Man #14 – Apparently I missed last issue which is why , but I’m all caught up now. Fraction handles this book much better than he does Uncanny X-Men. Focused, smart and funny, he’s on fire here, and Sal Larocca’s work is gorgeous. I’m a bit confused about Crimson Dynamo as I thought Dmitri was out of the suit, but that’s not enough to put me off.

Mighty Avengers #26 – Better than last issue, which isn’t saying much. I’m still not entirely on board but I want to see how this plays out. Honestly, though, the book needs a better art team than this.

Punisher #6 – Didn’t pick it up. So its been moved to the trade list!

War Of Kings Ascension #3 – This issue turned the spotlight on Chris Powell as opposed to Darkhawk and was the better for it. The art’s a lot less confusing without the two Darkhawks running around, and I feel like I’m getting to know the protagonist. And the book has finally dovetailed with War of Kings.

X-Men Legacy #225 – A decent enough wrap up to Xavier’s arc, but after a year and a half of him as the central star, I still don’t really care about him. So I suspect that the book’s failed, really, in spite of solid writing on Carey’s behalf. Nice art though.

When a Kryptonian drops by for dinner, there are certain protocols one must follow in or
der to make them feel welcome and at home.


Do tell them that they look resplendent in their outfits. Most Kryptonians favor garishly colored garb of a lycra-like variety. They believe that this gives them an aura of respectability and power.

Don’t look up their skirt or tug on their cape no matter how great the temptation.



Do offer them a seat. Remember, just because you can fly indoors, it doesn’t mean you should fly indoors.

Don’t be too vague about directions. Telling a Kryptonian not well-versed in Earth languages to ‘take a seat’ could result in them leaving the house with it.

Do ask them how it feels to fly.

Don’t ask them to take you flying with them. History has shown that bad spoken-
word songs can follow and, as much as you like to think otherwise, you’re no William Shatner. Or, hopefully, Margot Kidder.

Do ask them their opinion on how to save mankind. Your average Kryptonian has an inflated sense of self-worth and often feels that only they could possibly make the right decisions to save the world.

Don’t point out that the whole world-saving thing didn’t go to well on Krypton.

Do offer them plenty of vegetables with any meal.

Don’t try to hide some Kryptonite in the salad, no matter how much they’re annoying you.

Do complement them on their over-developed musculature and body

Don’t stare too long at it.

There are many more rules, of course, but these should at least leave your arms intact in your sockets once dinner is over!