Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 7/27

Adventure Time Comics #1
Story & Art: Various

Boom! launches a new Adventure Time series this week, and it's totally mathematical! Featuring some of comics best cartoonists, this first issue features some of my personal favorites as well. This issue has four short stories, which vary from very light in both subject and continuity, to some deep dives into more obscure Adventure Time characters.

"Toothpaste Fairy" by Art Baltazar- Art Baltazar, co-creator of Tiny Titans and Patrick the Wolf Boy, brings us a story of Finn going on a quest for toothpaste! You have to imagine in the post-apocalyptic future of the Land of Ooo, toothpaste isn't exactly easy to come by, but fortunately there's a Toothpaste Fairy! It's a light, fluffy story (an apt description when you see all the clouds) and perfect if you've enjoyed Art's Tiny Titans stories.

"Stand Next to Me" by Katie Cook- Katie Cook, of Gronk fame, tells a story featuring some of Ooo's lesser known princesses. Breakfast Princess is the main character of the story, and I am reminded how awful she is; she's the Mean Girl of the princess set. She leads Pastry Princess and a cupcake person into the woods to retrieve a skeleton that is near Lump Space Princess's campsite because being near LSP is a fate "worse than death." The story shows that LSP, for all her usual craziness and narcissism, does have a good heart, and puts Breakfast Princess sort of in her place. I love Cook's art (I have a tiny commission of her's framed on my mantle), and I love her takes on the princesses and Ooo in general.

"Goliad Gets a Break" by Tony Millionaire- Taking one of Adventure Time's odder characters, the powerful psychic candy beast Goliad out for a romp is none other than Tony Millionaire, whose Sock Monkey and Maakies bear a similarity to the odder and darker corners of the Adventure Time mythos. Millionaire clearly knows his Adventure Time, cramming in cameos by such minor characters as Choose Goose, Ricardio, and the Orgalorg. Millionaire's style is no less cartoony than the rest, but has more of an edge, which fits the darker nature of the story, although it is still lighter than many of the recent episodes of the animated series.

"Good Shelf" by Kate Leyh- Kate Leyh has done some Adventure Time shorts before, and is a co-writer on Lumberjanes, so she knows how to write friendship, so it's nice to have her round out this inaugural issue with a tale of Finn and Jake, with Finn building things out of wood he found. Being this is Ooo, though, boards you just happen to find aren't usually just boards, and Finn's good nature and naivete lead to a bit of an issue. It's a fun short story, and like the best really short stories (only three pages), it has plenty packed into it without seeming cramped or rushed.

Batgirl #1
Story: Hope Larson
Art: Rafael Albuquerque & Dave McCaig

Batgirl enters the "Rebirth" era with a solid new status quo and a fun opening issue. After the trauma of the end of the previous volume of her series, Barbara Gordon is taking a trip "Beyond Burnside" (the title of the arc) to do some soul searching. Starting her travels in Japan, Babs is there to investigate the story of one of the world's first superheroines, the Fruit Bat, who fought crime in 1939 Japan, and who is now a one hundred and four year old woman. But Barbara starts off at a hostel where her roommate is a guy named Kai, who coincidentally was a friend of hers when the Gordons lived in Chicago. Barbara seems to take this at face value initially. Hope Larson gets Barbara right from the get go; Babs can't stop calling her friend Frankie back in Burnside to check in on things, even thought she's been gone for less than a day. Babs is fascinated with the history of superheroes. Babs is a good friend. Larson absolutely gets all the aspects of Babs as a character. But Larson doesn't hold back on the action, which is part of what makes this a great first issue. She finds a nice balance between establishing Barbara's new situation with a great action scene as sailor suited clown make-up wearing girl attacks Kai; Babs immediately knows that Kai, who was a kid with a past, is not saying everything about his innocent trip to tour Asia. And the mysteries of the series are deepened when we see that, despite being a centenarian, the Fruit Bat still has some moves, and sets Babs on the next leg of her journey. And I'm glad Rafael Albuquerque is the guy drawing it, because it looks amazing. It's been so long since he regularly did superhero work, except for a short run on Animal Man, that I forgot how great a superhero artist he is; I think of him as a horror artist thanks to American Vampire, forgetting how much I adored his Blue Beetle run. His style has so much energy, so much flare, that Batgirl practically jumps off the page. There's a bit with a thrown knife that flashes from panel to panel on a grid and another of Barbara thinking of how to take down the clown girl with a thrown ball that are absolutely stunning. If this first issue is any indication, the new volume of Batgirl picks up from the last one and maintains the air of fun and adventure while setting its own direction.

Detective Comics #937
Story: James Tynion IV
Art: Alvaro Martinez, Raul Fernandez, & Brad Anderson

When will I stop reviewing the Rebirth Detective Comics? When it stops being the best Bat book on the shelves and a love letter to Batman fans! Each issue, writer James Tynion IV packs in more references to classic Batman stories and continuity while still making a series completely accessible to new fans and fans of the characters on Batman's team who might not be mired in years of Batman minutiae. While last issue focused entirely on the team, this issue starts off with and focuses mostly on Batman himself. Imprisoned by the Colony, the military organization using Batman's tactics, we watch as Batman breaks his way out of their imprisonment and gets an idea of what the military is doing using his name. We see the base, the toys, and the man designing it all: Ulysses Hadrian Armstrong, better known as The General. A creation of Chuck Dixon, the general was a villain who moved on to be one of Tim Drake's arch-foes, a teenager with a brilliant military mind, and Tynion has him working for the military, designing Batman type weapons for the Colony. It's a great turn, and a great use of a character I love. There's one panel in particular, as Batman watches a video of the Colony do a wetwork mission, where The General offers to see a more gory video in delight, and Batman's one panel, shadowed, "No." radiates rage at the perversion of what he does. As things continue, we get the confrontation between Batman and his uncle, Jake Kane, the man behind the Colony, and again we see why they call Batman the world's greatest detective, as we learn how much Batman already knew before even recruiting his team. Speaking of the team, they have their own pages here, as we get to see the strengths of two of their members: Batwoman's indomitable will as she prepares to stand up to her father, and Red Robin's brain. As a life-long Tim Drake fan (his life, I suppose, as I was nine when he was created, but still he and I go way back), it's cool to see what Tim has been up to and designed in Gotham's underground, and how it also features another nod to one of Chuck Dixon's creations, the Bat-Rocket, the subway vehicle Azrael-Batman drove around. There's another bit of Batman continuity that gets a call out, but it's a mystery for now, a nod to other media Batman and to things to come that I don't want to discuss yet as it would be a spoiler of sorts, but I like that Tynion is building a whole long form narrative; I can't wait to see how it pays off. Seriously, if you're a fan of Batman in general and you're not trying out Detective, do yourself a favor and pick up the series now, because you're in for a treat.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 10/28

Batgirl #45
Story: Cameron Stewart & Brenden Fletcher
Art: Babs Tarr & Serge LaPointe

I love an October wedding, probably because I had one myself. This month's issue of Batgirl features the wedding of Barbara's best friend and former roommate Alysia, and her fiancée, Jo. And fortunately, since neither of them are actual super people, there is no supervillain attack. That's not to say everything goes off without a hitch, because Barbara is maid of honor and has brought her new boyfriend, Luke Fox, formerly he superhero Batwing and son of Batman's ally Lucius Fox, as her date just as Dick Grayson shows up unexpectadly to have a talk with Barbara. Dick's return to Gotham and "from the dead" has been handled very deftly in Grayson and Batman & Robin Eternal, and this issue takes a different, but no less important and emotionally resonant, turn with it. Because Dick has come back to woo Barbara, and Barbara will have none of it, so Dick lifts Alysia's wedding ring pre-ceremony, and has Barbara chase him. And when they stop, he gives a very heartfelt speech about how she's the rock that's kept him going while he was embedded in the spy organization Spyral, goes in for a kiss, and... Barbara shoots him down. I love Barbara and Dick, they're one of my favorite comic book couples, and I'm happy Gail Simone gave the pre-Flashpoint versions a happy wedding in Convergence, since in this case, Barbara is completely in the right. Dick's actions are selfish, and are making a day that should be about Alysia and Jo about him, and this is not at all out of character for Dick, who loves grand gestures and big moments, but has never been too good in the day-to-day of a relationship. And I'll be honest, as much as I want to dislike Luke Fox for getting between them, Stewart and Fletcher have made him incredibly likeable and a good match for Barbara. And so the two make peace as friends and part ways, with Barbara having outgrown Dick as he is now. The art from regular series artist Babs Tarr is even more astounding than usual this issue, not just in the chase between Barbara and Dick, which she draws beautifully (and can we get her to draw some more Grayson? She has such a great sense of motion she's made for Dick's acrobatic style), but the actual wedding sequences are gorgeous. Alysia is a lovely bride, and the designs for all the dresses and outfits are perfect. I've always been a fan of quiet, character based issues breaking up the action in between big superhero battles, and Batgirl #45 is one of the best I've read in years.

Black Magick #1
Story: Greg Rucka
Art: Nicola Scott & Chiara Arena

Greg Rucka is one of my favorite writers period; his comics thrill me every month, and his novels are some of the ones I look forward to the most each year. And so a new creator owned Rucka series from Image, with art from Secret Six artist Nicola Scott, was high on my list of new series I was looking forward to this year. And the first issue of Black Magick did not disappoint. Rucka is a writer best known for writing in the crime, spy, and thriller genres, bringing touches of these even into his superhero work, and like his other creator owned series for Image, Lazarus, a near-future dytopian political thriller, Black Magick is a genre bender, a mix of police procedural and occult thriller. The first issue is all about mood, atmosphere, and establishing our protagonist, Rowan Black. The issue starts out at a witches' ceremony, with chanting and a circle, drawn in black and white, timeless and all sorts of creepy until a cell phone goes off, breaking not just the ritual, but the sense that this could be any time, firmly rooting it in the now. The phone belongs to Rowan, and she is being called away for work; Rowan is a police detective, and a hostage taker is demanding to talk to her and only her. The book moves immediately from the supernatural atmosphere seamlessly into a police stand off, as Rowan and the hostage negotiators talk to the nameless man who is holding four people hostage, demanding Rowan come in and talk to him privately. It's not a scenario unique to this comic, it's something that anyone who's a fan of crime drama has scene many times before, but Rucka handles it well, letting the reader get to know Rowan through how she interacts with the other officers and the criminal. And once she gets in, and the hostages get out, things get supernatural again, as the man, who refuses to let Rowan have his name, knows that she is a witch, and has been sent by someone or something, something that is in his head, to kill her. Rowan is able to cast a spell to stop her own death and turn it on him, but there are a lot of questions left, about who sent him and what Rowan means when she calls someone at the end of the issue to tell him that it's starting again. Nicola Scott's art is even better than I remember from Secret Six, and only helped by the "black and white with just the occasional hint of color" coloring she did along with color assists from Chiara Arena. And as with Lazarus there is extensive backmatter that aids in the world building that Rucka is starting. Oh, and as an aside, there was also a new issue of Stumptown, Rucka's private eye comic, from Oni this week that is also definitely worth a look. There are few writers who do crime comics like Greg Rucka, and Black Magick's blend of supernatural and crime is a nice twist on his crime work that's fresh and innovative.

Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1953-  The Phantom Hand and The Kelpie
Story: Mike Mignola
Art: Ben Stenbeck & Dave Stewart

The current realities of the world of Hellboy and his allies are pretty grim: Hellboy is dead and in Hell, the B.P.R.D. is fighting the Black Flame and the giant monsters that ravage the world, and Abe Sapien is still on his walkabout, unsure of what he truly is. Those of us who have ben long time fans of Hellboy and his friends remember a time when things were a little more whimsical, when we regularly got stories like "The Corpse" and "Pancakes" (this isn't a condemnation of the current era of Hellboy stories, just a statement about their evolution). This new one-shot, going back to Hellboy's earliest days with the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense, hearkens back to some of those earlier stories, as in "The Phantom Hand," where Hellboy heads off to England with his mentor and father figure, Prof. Trevor Bruttenholm, and Bruttenholm's friend, paranormal researcher Harry Middleton, to investigate the case of a hand that roams the night on its own. The story of the hand's origin is a dark one, as few Hellboy stories are that light, but when Hellboy and the hand start to fight, it becomes a big brawl when what has been animating the hand comes out. It's fun to see Hellboy just punching the crap out of something, and equally fun to see Bruttenholm's frustration with Hellboy's, shall we say, hands on approach to paranormal investigation. The second story in the issue, "The Kelpie," is a tale of Bruttenholm and Middleton as young men, heading out of their first paranormal investigation with a third man, Billy Connolly, and how this ties in to the Celtic myth of the Kelpie, a horse that lives beneath the sea. It's darker than "The Phantom Hand" but does what a lot of great Hellboy stories do, which is tie classic myths into the modern world of Hellboy. Kudos also must go to artist Ben Stenbeck, who worked with Mignola on many of his Baltimore comics (stories of Lord Baltimore, the vampire hunter, not the city of Poe and bird themed sports teams), who draws a great Hellboy, some excellent demons, and one creepy horse monster. If you enjoy Hellboy stories, but have shied away from the epic stories running through the current titles, this is a great one-shot to get some old school Hellboy action.

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #1
Story: Ryan North
Art: Erica Henderson & Rico Renzi

After a short hiatus, Squirrel Girl is back in her second ongoing of this very year, a point both the cover and the narration in the bottom gutter, Ryan North's answer to rollover text in web comics, make. There's a lot to love about Squirrel Girl, both the comic and the character, and one of the great things is how self-aware it is. There's this joke about number one churn, and another about how Squirrel Girl is not biologically or LEGALLY a mutant, which some have taken as a decree from Marvel on high, and I take as North having some fun with his readers; he knows that fans are aware if the world of comics, and lets us in on the joke. The issue itself is more than just a string of inside baseball jokes, and while it doesn't pick up directly from where the previous volume left off, it's not a book where the time gap is full of mysteries. We open with Squirrel Girl and her animal themed super friends, Chipmunk Hunk and Koi Boi, helping rescue people from a fire, so we get a glimpse at the superhero cast of the title before the main plot of the issue kicks off, as Squirrel Girl and her roommate, Nancy, move into a new apartment and meet Squirrel Girl's mom, Maureen, for lunch. Maureen is a great addition to the cast, funny and so deeply proud of her daughter; she's the mom with the baby pictures and the stories ready to go at a moment's notice, to Nancy's delight and Squirrel Girl's chagrin. And upon returning to their apartment from lunch, they are seemingly attacked by Brain Drain, a z-list villain with ties to Hydra, who they find wrestling with Tippy Toe, Squirrel Girl's right hand squirrel, and Mew, Nancy's cat. But as things have proven often when Squirrel Girl has fought a supervillain in her own title, there's way more going on here, and the fight itself is resolved in a way that isn't about the punching, but instead with talking and computer literacy, since Squirrel Girl and Nancy are studying computer science at Marvel's famous Empire State University. That sort of non-traditional dynamic is a key element and a real charm for this title; Squirrel Girl really wants to make everyone's life better, wants to do the right thing, and this means the villain often winds up being befriended by Squirrel Girl (not always, but she never fails to try). This makes for probably the most all-ages friendly superhero book coming out from any publisher right now. It is also, far and away, the most densely written and drawn comic I picked up last week (and believe me, that's saying something; I only review about a fifth of what I pick up week in and week out). And that's not a dig. You sit down with Unbeatable Squirrel Girl and you're due for at least two to three times the normal read time of a mainstream comic, when you factor in the full script and the narration text in the gutter, and even more time if you pour over every one of Erica Henderson's panels for all the jokes she has going on in them, this issue's highlight being the food court on Avengers Island, home of the New Avengers, the team Squirrel Girl has joined post-Secret Wars. With a  new number one, there's no better time to check out the adventures of Squirrel Girl and her friends, both human and animal.


Dan Grote comes back for the finale of he mini-series about Death's two paramours, Deadpool Vs. Thanos...

Deadpool vs. Thanos #4

Story: Tim Seeley

Art: Elmo Bondoc and Ruth Redmond

Deadpool and Thanos’ quest to rescue the living embodiment of Death and restore order to the universe has gotten bigger with each issue, from a visit to the chicken-hooded voodoo priest Black Talon, to a fight with the Guardians of the Galaxy, to a war among the lords of Hell, to, finally, a place outside time and space, where giant characters like Eternity and the In-Betweener stand in a ceiling-paint-white void being everything.

On the one hand, it makes fans of old-school cosmic Marvel want to go running for their old Jim Starlin comics. On the other, Tim Seeley and Elmo Bondoc also found room to pepper in Easter eggs from the most arcane parts of Deadpool’s continuity, from Sluggo to Slayback to Ajax.

In issue #4, we learn that Eternity, the living embodiment of all that is, is keeping his sister, Death, locked in a cage beyond existence, despite a plea from the In-Betweener, who represents the balance between order and chaos, to maybe chillax a bit. Fresh from the underworld, DP, Thanos, and Black Talon teleport into the void and spring Death from her prison, at which point she sets her two thralls against her brother, in a grand bid to kill everything.

When Deadpool realizes his on-again, off-again girlfriend (Worry not, Thursdays with Wade fans, we’ll be getting to this soon) has lost it, he turns on Thanos, who throws him into Eternity, at which point a floating space monkey turns him into Captain Universe.

Altogether now: COMICS, EVERYBODY!

Deadpool uses his newfound Uni-Power to defeat Thanos, restore the peace between Eternity and Death (discover Eternity is ticklish), teach everyone a lesson about the beauty of a finite life, and consider the merchandising rights to a Captain Uni-Pool action figure variant.

In the end, Deadpool is mortal once more, Black Talon gives up death worship, and Thanos is sent away by Death, “until she has further use for him, in some Secret War yet to come” (capitalization mine).

Like most Deadpool minis of the modern era, you don’t need to read Deadpool vs. Thanos for any sort of important continuity moments, but, also like most Deadpool minis of the modern era, it’s hyperviolent, a lot of fun, and contains many a gift for longtime fans. If you love Wade, or even cosmic Marvel, and you one day stumble upon the trade in a cheap-o bin, definitely pick it up.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 7/29

Batgirl Annual #3
Story: Cameron Stewart & Brenden Flecther
Art: Bengal (Chapter 1)
        David Lafuente & Gabe Eltaeb (Chapter 2)
        Ming Doyle & Ivan Plascencia (Chapter 3)
        Mingjue Helen Chen (Chapter 4)

One of the pluses of the recent new wave of Batman related titles is how each book stands almost entirely on its own feet; you can read Grayson, Batgirl, Gotham Academy, Gotham by Midnight, or the reimagined Catwoman and not have to read any other Batman comic to understand what's going on in that title. This past week's Batgirl Annual is a great comic, and while it is a perfect standalone story, what it does is set Batgirl's adventures in the wider context of what's going on in Gotham City. If you haven't been reading Batgirl, Barbara Gordon has been the defender of Burnside, the hip, Brooklyn-esque neighborhood of Gotham for the past year or so. But this issue, after finding an amnesiac UN official wandering through her neighborhood, Barbara is sent on a collision course with many of the other members of the Bat-family. The first chapter has her working with Helena Bertinelli, the director of the spy organization Spyral and another agent, Dick Grayson, who Barbara thinks is dead and who does his best to keep his identity a secret; the second chapter has Barbara run into Spoiler, recently reintroduced to the DCU and currently appearing in Catwoman; chapter three features a team-up with Kate Kane, Batwoman, whose title has ended and is currently in limbo; and finally Batgirl goes to Gotham Academy, where she meets Olive Silverlock and Maps Mizoguchi, the protagonists of that title. The main plot element, what Batgirl and her allies are looking to find and stop, is an absolute McGuffin (it's called the Negahedron, such a classic 50s pseudo-science name it works best as something that you don't think too much about) to arrange these character meetings, and that's perfectly fine. Each interaction has its own flavor and purpose. The Gotham Academy segment pulls the two books Brenden Flecther writes together and allows us to see Maps, that book's consummate fangirl, get to work with a superhero and get some sidekick dreams, which is just adorable. Batwoman has pretty much disappeared since her title ended, and it was just nice to see Kate back. But I think long time fans were really looking at those first two chapters for something big. In the pre-reboot times, Barbara Gordon as Oracle had very strong ties to both Helena Bertinelli and Stephanie Brown in their other identities, Stephanie as the third Batgirl and Helena as Huntress. These are the first real interactions between the new era Batgirl and her former friends, and while the rapport is different, it's still nice to see how they fit together. Helena and Barbara work together as a well oiled machine, fighting their way through the troops of the terrorist organization Gladius, all while trying to avoid Dick Grayson (and Dick's pain at having to avoid Barbara is palpable). Spoiler is still a novice, and she's so pleased to nearly best Batgirl at the super-hero game; I would love to see Baba work more with Stephanie when Steph's apprenticeship in Catwoman is over. All-in-all, the issue mixes action, adventure, and strong character moments to wonderful effect and makes it essential if you're enjoying any of the titles that are involved. Oh, and on a final note, I love Barbara momentarily recognizes Dick Grayson, who disguises his face and voice, by his butt, which seems to be his new defining physical characteristic; it's such a nice nod to what's going on in Grayson and hilarious in how well Barbara remembers Dick. I want those crazy kids to find a way together, sue me.

Copperhead #9
Story: Jay Faerber
Art: Scott Godlewski & Ron Riley

The second arc of the sci-fi Western Copperhead moves forward at breakneck speed, as Sheriff Clara Bronson gathers a posse to retrieve her deputy, Boo, who has been kidnapped by a band of outlaws. Last issue saw Boo's part of the story, as the outlaws make their way to The Bastion, a wretched hive of scum and villainy, and what Boo does to try to stop them or at least slow their progress. This issue is Clara's story from that same time period, and we get to see certain events from the previous issue from a different point of view. But before their paths cross, we see Barton gather a posse that is made up almost entirely of people she doesn't trust: Cletus, the criminal she dealt with in the first arc, Ishmael, the artificial humanoid hermit who lives in the desert, and two other artificials provided by local land baron Hickory, who is not a nice man at all. The journey through the wasteland is a classic Western trope, and we get the character interaction that defines much of Jay Faerber's work; he finds a way to keep the action of a series going while mining his characters for important personal beats. Even after he has proven trustworthy and not a bad guy in the past, Bronson still doesn't trust Ishmael, which is to be expected, as she has stated how little she trusts artificials. What's more interesting is to see how Ishmael interacts with the two other artificials, how they view him as an outsider and how they think about their own place in the world. And while Bronson talks to Cletus, and we get a better idea of exactly what is going on in his head, it's the artificials that really captured my attention in this issue. Their "bred for battle" attitude and culture, how they act when confronted with death, and the way they look at the death of their own once it happens, it fills in some gaps about how these beings exist. This worldbuilding is key in good science fiction, and I'm glad to see that Faerber has all this background. In addition to this, the slow burn about Barton's ex-huband's escape from jail continues; this is going to be a big deal when he arrives on Japser (the planet where Copperhead is), and the little bits here and there about him just make the tension even higher. Next issue wraps up the second arc, and all the pieces are now in place for a showdown.

Invisible Republic #5
Story: Gabriel Hardman & Corinna Bechko
Art: Gabriel Hardman & Jordan Boyd

Invisible Republic the series from Gabriel Hardman and Corinna Bechko that takes place on a planet after a dictatorship has fallen and follows a reporter who has found a diary of an unknown cousin of that dictator, wraps its first arc with an issue that takes place nearly entirely in those diaries. Maia Reveron, cousin to Arthur McBride, has found a life away from her cousin with beekeepers and honey seller Archi and Luis, who said they could pay her way out of indentured servitude and take her on as an apprentice. But as her connection to McBride is revealed, things start looking bleaker. Even moreso when Maia winds up in the middle of a demonstration, finds out that Luis is working with McBride's underground, and when the demonstration becomes a riot, Maia has to make a decision. It's a telling moment for Maia, who we see as a good and loyal person being more and more swept up in events beyond her control, but who still tries to do what's right in her mind. It's an issue that will change the status quo moving forward when, at the end of the issue, we meet a character from that flashbacks for the first time in the present. There's so much to love about this series, with it's depth of character and it's wide world, but what continues to blow my mind each issue is Hardman's art. The gritty world he's crafted fits perfectly with the tone of the series and defines it. Everything is absolutely clear, nothing gets lost in a single panel, but everything is dirty and used. This isn't the pristine world of Star Trek or the Western influenced sci-fi of Firefly. The closest I can think of is Lazarus (which also had a very solid issue this week, by the way), a future world that is very much extrapolated from the world as it is now, with all the dirt and creases you'd see. The riot scene, where the military comes down on McBride and disperses the crowd violently, can be viewed as some commentary on recent events in America, but knowing exactly what McBride is and how manipulative he is, that particular commentary has its legs cut out from under it: McBride is not some innocent revolutionary as he would have the people believe. He's a cold blooded killer. And watching him build his cult of personality makes him all the more powerful and creepy as a character. Science Fiction is genre that embraces all kinds of stories, and Invisible Republic, with its politics and humanity, is one of the strongest science fiction comics on the market. It's a perfect time to go out and snag all five issues that are out and read them together, and be ready when the new arc starts.

The X-Files Annual 2015
Story: Mike Raicht
Art: Kevin VanHook & Mat Lopes

While there were some good monster-of-the-week style stories in the recently completed X-Files Season 10 comic, much of that series was dedicated to building a new, cohesive mythology for the series to move forward. This year's annual, though, is a monster story of the best order, the kind that not just tells a spooky story, but delves into Mulder and Scully. The story follows Mulder as he barges into a high school reunion to try to find out what happened to a student who disappeared years ago in a haunted house. This is a very Mulder thing to do, as is lying to Scully to drag her along. I know a lot of people who are Mulder fans could read this issue and be really annoyed at Scully for not just her skepticism but her annoyance at Mulder, and while it seems a times very harsh, I can see why she's upset; Mulder dragged her away on a weekend to investigate a case without telling her; she has very right to be annoyed. But as the case of the disappearance of Colin Matthews deepens, Mulder learns more about Colin and his friends, Tristan Nolan and Kelly McGreevy, who have made a career as ghost hunters by talking about what they witnessed the night Colin disappeared, and details about psychic powers and exactly what kind of people these now adults were set Mulder on a path that not only leads him to confront Tristan and Kelly, but to get some resolution on a case for once. But because he's Fox Mulder, he looks a little deeper, and what he finally deduces is even more disturbing than a disappearance, It's got a great twist ending, like many of the best X-Files, and it's the twist within the twist that really makes it. I was also impressed that, while it's referenced in places, the fact that Mulder investigates a disappearance in the anniversary of the disappearance of his sister, there's no big long speech about Samantha. Mulder's own hunt for his sister is the thing that's defined his entire life, and how he deals with it here is allowed to play out subtextually, in a show not tell way. With The X-Files about to return to television, I'm not sure how much big mythology stuff that the comic has been doing is going to be valid anymore, so stories like this, strong done in one monster stories, are a great place for the comic to live, and this issue would be a good prototype for upcoming stories.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 3/18

Batgirl: Endgame #1
Story: Cameron Stewart & Brenden Fletcher
Art: Bengal

The silent comic isn't easy to do. I've read quite a few of them over the years, and I have often found them confusing. The artist has to have a very strong sense of storytelling, and I can only imagine the writer has to provide a strong script, or have a strong relationship with the artist, so they know the style the writer is trying to convey. The Batgirl one shot tying into the big Joker story running in Batman right now, "Endgame" is one of those really strong silent comics. Batgirl, who has been living in Bristol, one of the outer boroughs of Gotham, stands defending the bridge from the main city as those not infected by the Joker's toxin flee before the bridge is blown. It's a taut, well paced story, with legions of grinning, Joker looking Gothamites try to kill those who remain uninfected; it's a zombie apocalypse with a really creepy laugh track. But if the Jokers aren't enough of a problem, Tiffany Fox, daughter of Lucius Fox, has been separated from her parents, and Batgirl has to rescue her form the sea of Jokers. The Foxes were featured supporting cast members in the last year of Batwing, but haven't shown up as a family since then, and if you know the hardships they went through there, a reader can only imagine the devastation of losing their surviving daughter. So Batgirl uses a combination of brains and skills to save the girl. She also has help from Frankie Charles, her roommate who in the most recent issue of Batgirl (#40, also on sale this week, and a fine comic in its own right), joined Batgirl's crusade, seemingly as a new Oracle of sorts. Bengal is an artist I'm not familiar with, but his art is perfect for this issue. His Jokers are creepy, grinning ghouls, and his Jker (the real one, not the infected people) who appears on a screen briefly has an air of menace and madness. But it's the scene where Batgirl has to communicate with Tiffany over a distance using hand signals that sold me. The facial expressions and hand gestures are more eloquent than many words balloons. This is a great comic to show how far Batgirl has come as a character, confident and strong in the face of the man who crippled her; if the New 52 Batgirl needed an issue where she proved she had moved beyond the trauma of the Joker, this was the one.

Invisible Republic #1
Story: Gabriel Hardman & Corinna Bechko
Art: Gabriel Hardman

The dystopian sci-fi is a genre unto itself, and Image comics has some great ones going right now, with Lazarus, East of West, and the recently launched Descender. But I figured I'd give Invisible Republic a shot, on the strength of its creators alone. Hardman and Bechko did a tremendous job on the second volume of Star Wars: Legacy, exceeding all  my expectations, and another science fiction story seems right up their alley. And it did not disappoint. On Avalon, a distant world, reporter Croger Babb is getting nowhere asking people about how they felt when the Malory Regime fell. There's no explanation of what the Malory Regime was, but you don't need it. The look of the world, and the reaction people are giving Babb, makes it pretty clear things haven't been good on Avalon for quite sometime. And things for Babb aren't looking much better until he finds a bum burning stacks of paper. He buys the paper and settles in to read it, after we see that he is not exactly looked upon well by his fellow reporters, and we flash back to a time before Avalon was settled, when people had just arrived, before faster than light travel had been perfected, and to two people on the run: Maia Reveron, who wrote the memoir, and her cousin, Arthur McBride. Again, we enter in medias res, with Maia and Arthur camping alone on a beach, hungry and seemingly cast out. But an encounter with soldiers turns quickly brutal, as the soldiers attempt to talk them into joining the army of the Commonwealth, and when they are refused decide to simply conscript them. The fight scene is brutal, and it's clear that Arthur has a killer's instinct, while Maia has a softer heart, something that I can only imagine will come back to bite them, as she spares one of the soldiers after Arthur kills the other two. The final page reveal sets up the direction of the series, as it turns out Arthur eventually became the strongman and dictator of Avalon. It feels like we'll be watching the creation of a monster in one narrative, while Babb will be dealing with the fallout of Arthur's regime in the other. While this is a first issue, the world has a lived in feel; it's familiar without being derivative, like watching Alien for the first time. Hardman's art, with it's gritty textures, perfectly suits a world in decline. If Image keeps releasing new, smart, and interesting series like Invisible Republic, I might as well just hand my wallet over.

The Manhattan Projects: The Sun Beyond the Stars #1
Story: Jonathan Hickman
Art:Nick Pitarra

After returning from hiatus, it's nice to see that Manhattan Projects hasn't lost a step; it is still the craziest comic out there. This first issue of the new mini-series, The Sun Beyond the Stars, has a slightly tighter focus than the previous volume, with it's sprawling cast. The opening sequence, which feels like the teaser to a science fiction movie, introduces us to Primor, a mad alien scientist, and the Sionna Science Union, the government that he seems to have it out for. Primor's weapon of choice are spores that seem to sprout world killing monsters, and he has no problem obliterating planets and betraying allies to get them. Primor escapes at the end of the teaser, but if we've been taught anything by the first volume, is that nothing stops a mad scientist from attaining his goal, so I'm pretty sure we'll be seeing Primor again soon. The main story of the issue begins with finding Yuri Gagarin, cosmonaut, imprisoned on a space station, in a holding cell, hearing the story of an alien named Garru who apparently ate all the young of an entire species by accident, thus committing genocide. Yuri is apparently here for a parking violation, his ship wandering into the area as he looked for his lost dog, Laika, shot out into space during the last volume. We get a particularly funny court scene, when Yuri and Garru are brought before Ryleth the Hammer, and we learn Garru's full name, or at least his known alias. It's by no means safe for work, and I try to keep the swearing to a minimum on here, but it struck me as so funny I got an odd look from my wife as I laughed violently at it while sitting on the couch. The issue ends with Yuri and Ryleth heading to a bar, and a reunion, one that does not go exactly as expected. Jonathan Hickman is a writer who tends towards huge casts and crazy ideas flying every which way. But this issue, along with his recently launched The Dying and the Dead, are more intimate stories, focusing on one character. That doesn't mean the ideas are any less crazy or interesting, and that the books don't feel like Hickman stories. And Nick Pitarra is working at the top of his game, with wonderful and completely original alien designs. I'm curious to see where the rest of the cast of the Manhattan Projects are, or whether this will be a Yuri and Laika story exclusively, and exactly what Primor is up to. It's bad science all over again, and I couldn't be happier.


Dan Grote brings us a review of a Matt Signal favorite writer working with everyone's favorite Merc with a Mouth...

Deadpool’s Art of War TPB

Story: Peter David

Art: Scott Koblish

While Deadpool defies normal comic book conventions as a rule, he tends to defy the most rules in his miniseries. He’s killed alternate versions of himself, classic literary characters, and even the entire Marvel Universe.

In Deadpool’s Art of War, Marvel’s mirthful mercenary runs through Sun Tzu – the original author of the text from which this series takes its cues – changes Loki back to his classic look (while taking pot shots at J. Michael Straczynski and Matt Fraction in the process) and destroys Manhattan by pitting Earth’s Mightiest Heroes against the combined forces of the Nine Realms (That’s right, nine; Angela’s not in this one), in a battle that will never be spoken of again.

All this is so that Deadpool can publish his own version of The Art of War and make money. All he has to do is convince the Norse god of mischief to wage war on Midgard.

Peter David seems such a natural fit for Deadpool – a humor-driven character with occasional bouts of pathos – that it’s nearly unbelievable he hasn’t written him before, save, apparently, for an off-panel cameo in X-Factor. Artist Scott Koblish makes things fit even more like a glove, having penciled ’Pool in Gerry Duggan and Brian Posehn’s (nearly over) ongoing series. Koblish drew the flashback issues in the main title, such as when Deadpool teams up with Power Man and Iron Fist against the White Man or when he teams up with Iron Man against alcoholism. Koblish excels at drawing DP in when-in-Rome-style costumes, and he gives Wade a pretty sweet/ridiculous Asgardian helmet early on in the book, while he’s playing Loki against Thor.

Look for guest appearances from all your favorite Asgardians – except Angela – and pretty much all of Earth’s heroes, from the Avengers to the Fantastic Four to the X-Men. Also, because Loki is waging war on Manhattan and the Hulk makes an appearance, look for an easy nod to the Avengers movie.

(Please note: I wasn't able to find a good image of the cover to the trade paperback of this series, so that is the cover to issue #1.) 

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 10/8 (with Bonus Animated Discussions for Star Wars: Rebels)

Batgirl #35
Story: Cameron Stewart & Brenden Fletcher
Art: Babs Tarr

And now for something completely different... The beginning of the new creative direction for Batgirl has been anticipated since it was announced, and now having read the first issue, I can say that it's a success. It's a jarring difference for the first handful of pages, I admit, as it feels completely different than anything else coming out from DC right now, but once you settle in to the groove, it's a ton of fun. New writers Cameron Stewart and Brenden Fletcher have moved Barbara Gordon out of Gotham City proper and into Burnside (Gotham's answer to Brooklyn), and we see a completely different life for Barbara, and see her fighting crime that is very much 21st century crime, with tech theft and on-line sleaze mongering factoring into this first story. So much of Gail Simone's run was about Barbara recapturing her identity, both as Barbara and Batgirl after regaining the use of her legs, that it's different to see Barbara struggling with normal twenty-something problems, like getting her stuff stolen, including all her research work for her new college research project, being broke, and losing her costume (well, not all of it is trypical). We do meet Barbara's new roommate, Frankie, and we still see Alysia, Barbara's roommate from the Simone run. Frankie seems like a more grounded character than Alysia, not going out and protesting and breaking and entering, but being a normal person, which will be a nice balance to the chaos around Barbara. Rounding out the supporting cast is Black Canary, who shows up on Barbara's doorstep after her place burned down. Her falling out with BBarbarafrom the end of Birds of Prey is addressed, and by issue's end, we get an answer to how that happened, and it looks like Dinah will be crashing on Barbara's couch for a while. It's fun to have the slightly older, and very caustic, Canary to balance out the jubilant energy of so much of the rest of the cast, and I'm glad Canary has a home after the end of Birds of Prey. I love the way that the writers use Barbara's photographic memory to help her solve the case of her stolen laptop, and the way she defeats the villain of the issue, Riot Black, the guy who runs an internet blackmail site, is perfectly Barbara, clever and tech savvy (and Black speaks with hashtags. Nine times out of ten, that's an excuse to smack a guy down on its own). Babs Tarr's artwork was equally different from anything DC is doing, and really grabbed my attention. Her art is heavy on the panels, in many cases working with something close to a traditional nine panel grid, instead of the more splash page heavy artwork that is the modern DC house style, and it works perfectly with the script she was given. Even the two pages spread where Barbara reconstructs the party at her apartment from the night before when her computer was stolen is not a sloppy two page spread used to fill up space, but is filled with detail and character. With it's quick wit, smart story, and excellent art, it's an auspicious beginning to this new direction for Barbara Gordon and Batgirl.

Batman #35
Story: Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV
Art: Greg Capullo and Kelly Jones

On the other end of the spectrum from the hip, quirky Batgirl, this week's issue of Batman is full of superhero action. The issue opens with Batman having an internal monologue about the reconstruction of a theatre in Gotham after Zero Year, and the concept of deus ex machina, where the gods come down at the end of classic Greek drama to set things right. And in this issue, the gods do come down to Gotham, only they are wrathful gods ready to destroy Gotham's resident hero. The Justice League is attacking Batman, and we watch as Batman dons a giant suit of battle armor to defeat them. This is a story that plays with the now classic trope that Batman is prepared for everything. not only does he have this armor designed exactly for this, but he has a contingency to clear out a good part of Gotham to be able to fight the League without fear of collateral damage. The plans to take out Wonder Woman, Flash, and Aquaman without lethal force are clever, and don't recycle the plans from the story that established the contingencies, Mark Waid's "Tower of Babel" from his JLA run. The non action sequences establish some of the post Batman: Eternal status quo for Batman without giving away too many of the details of the end of that series, and none of those details are shocking; I don't think anyone expected Alfred to remain locked in Arkham for the rest of his life. Still, some of those details are tantalizing, like why Bruce is living in a suite decked out in Court of Owls motif for one. Capullo hits the art for this issue out of the park, drawing a battle between Batman and the League that is second to none. The final page reveal of the villain of the piece, which the creators did a creators job of keeping a surprise and I won't spoil here if you haven't read it on-line yet, makes for an especially creepy splash page from Capullo. The issue also features a full on back-up story tied into the main plot, from Snyder collaborator James Tynion IV and classic Bat artist Kelly Jones. I won't say too much about it to not spoil the villain reveal, but it features five Arkham escapees abducting a doctor and over the course of this series of back-ups, will each tell a story. The first story comes from Ephram Snow, whose tale of devils is suited to Jones's horror style. It's a good coda to the main story, and if the first chapter is any indication, it looks like Snyder and Capullo have another hit Batman arc on their hands.

Birthright #1
Story: Joshua Williamson
Art: Andrei Bressan

Joshua Williamson is already writing two very strong creator owned series from Image (Nailbiter and Ghosted, which had a really good issue this week as well), and now he's hit the triple crown with the first issue of his new series, Birthright.  Birthright looks at what happens to the real world when a kid runs off to have a great adventure in another world, like in The Chronicles of Narnia or The Never Ending Story. The story opens with Mikey and his dad, Aaron, playing catch on his birthday. Mikey runs into the woods to retrieve the ball and never comes back. Pretty soon, the disappearance of Mikey tears his family apart. Aaron and Wendy, Mikey's mom, split up over the disappearance and the suspicion that Aaron had something to do with Mikey's disappearance, and Brennan, their elder son, is torn between his parents. But a year after his disappearance, Mikey reappears fully grown and with a big beard and dressed as a barbarian. He tells the story of his time in Terrenos, where he met an ogre named Rook and a flying girl named Rya, who said he was prophesied to defeat the evil God King Lore. The book zigzags between the real world tragedy of a missing child, the heart wrenching drama of what happens to his family, and the fantasy world he lives in, Williamson manages to keep these very different balls all in the air, and keeps them balanced. Andrei Bressan draws the story equally well, balancing a style that is grim and real with gorgeous fantasy settings and cool looking monsters. I have to applaud Williamson's talent for making each of his series feel distinct, because other than the high quality, I wouldn't know that each of his books were written by the same writer. With a great twist ending, an essay from Williamson explaining his inspirations, and a map drawn by "Mikey" in crayon of Terrenos at the back, the issue is packed with so much material, and yet you still set it down wanting the next issue to be waiting for you. Birthright is a stand out addition to Image Comics stable of titles, with its mixture of reality and fantasy and gorgeous art.

Grendel Vs. The Shadow #2
Story & Art: Matt Wagner

I don't know what I can say about this comic's awesomeness that's different from what I said about the first issue, but I'm going to try. Issue two of the series picks up precisely where issue one left off, with our two title characters about to do battle. If you're at all familiar with Matt Wagner's art, you know that this is the kind of scene he was born to draw. The fight scene is gorgeously fluid, one of those fights that, despite knowing these are static panels, you can actually feel the characters moving. After the battle, which ends in something of a draw with both of our protagonists surviving (although points to Shadow for capturing Grendel's fork, his weapon of choice), we see Hunter Rose and Lamont Cranston's orbits intercept as well as those of The Shadow and Grendel. Hunter spends more time consolidating his hold on the mob in his usual efficient and brutal fashion. We also see more of the female companions to the two, as The Shadow's constant companion Margo Lane continues to feel discontent with how The Shadow's single minded quest leaves her out in the cold and we get a better feel for Sofia Valenti, daughter of Don Valenti and the woman who has caught Hunter Rose's eye. Hunter is usually portrayed with an almost Sherlock Holmes-like lack of interest in women, as none can live up to the image of Jocasta Rose, the woman who seduced him as a teenager and showed him the possibilities of the world, so for any woman to draw his attention makes the reader take notice. The fact that she is also trying to get the best of Grendel makes her all the more interesting, and woe to the man who abused her friend, because I see a reckoning for him next issue that will go very much in Sofia's favor. There are so many beautiful scenes in this book that I can really only recommend that you read it, and get caught up before the final issue. The threads are coming together for a clash of the ages between our leads.

Star Wars: Rebels- Spark of Rebellion

At New York Comic Con this weekend, Marvel announced what will be there first Star Wars ongoing not set during the classic trilogy, Star Wars- Kanan: The Last Padawan. This series will tie in to the new Star Wars animated series, Rebels, which has its series premiere tonight. But last week, there was a one hour special movie that kicked off the series, introducing us to this crew of new characters, and I watched it over the weekend, and was very pleased with what I saw.

Set in the period between the prequel trilogy and the classic trilogy, Rebels follows a ragtag group of, well, rebels out to fight the Empire.We are introduced to the crew through Ezra, a street urchin who runs into the rebel cell as they try to liberate a cargo from the Empire. The cast feels like it's playing with a lot of the classic Star Wars character types. Kanan, the leader of the group, was a young Jedi at the time of Order 66 and the fall of the Jedi, so he has a touch of the Han Solo rogue, while having to be master to Ezra, who is strong in the force. Zeb is a Lasat, a big alien, but as opposed to Chewbacca, he can speak normally and has a harder edge, but seems to have a softer side underneath it. Hera is the Twi'lek hotshot pilot, and is the heart of the crew. Sabine is a Mandalorian, but seems closer to the warrior Mandalorians than the peace loving ones we saw in The Clone Wars, yet still has a heart and cares about the rest of the crew as much as blowing things up, which she seems top notch at. The crew is rounded out by Chopper, an astromech droid (like R2-D2) who has a sense of humor and seems to be the comic relief. Star Wars is also known for it's villains, and we seem to get two major players in this special. Kallus is an agent for the Imperial Security Bureau, who is tasked with bringing down the Rebellion before it takes off, and when Kanan is revealed as a Jedi, Kallus contacts The Inquisitor, the Empire's Jedi hunter, who only makes a cameo, but strikes a fearsome figure in the tradition of many dark Force users.

The plot of the movie starts out with a caper that turns into a speeder bike chase, leads to a trap, and ends with a big battle to liberate a group of Wookiee slaves. It's well paced, and feels like Star Wars. For good or ill, depending on the opinion, it does not have the darker edge of many of the better episodes of The Clone Wars, and feels very accessible to all ages and levels of Star Wars knowledge. Using the familiar character tropes makes for easy accessibility as well, but none of the characters feel cookie cutter; the crew of the show does a good job of making them unique and interesting in their own right. My only quibble is the animation isn't quite as clean as the later episodes of The Clone Wars; it feels like they were using the same modelling as the early episodes of that series. It's not bad, just not as crisp, and hopefully, the animation will grow as the show does. Still that is a small issue with an episode full of action, character, and spaceships, which is so much of what makes Star Wars great.

The series premiere is of Star Wars: Rebels is on Disney XD tonight at 9 pm.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 9/10

Batgirl: Futures End #1
Story: Gail Simone
Art: Javier Garron

The last time Gail Simone was leaving Batgirl, I wrote how much I was going to miss her. And while I feel that way this time too, it's nice to feel like this time she got a chance to not just wrap up her run in her last regular issue of the series, but to put a bow on it with this issue, the tie-in to DC Comics September event, Futures End, where all the series jump five years into the future. She brings in different aspects of her run, from Barbara's roommate Alysia to James Gordon Jr., but tells a story that shows the depths that Barbara could go to when pushed beyond the point of no return. Only it's not the point of no return. Even though Barbara has become Bete Noire, the black beast, even though Barbara has seemingly lost everything, she comes out of it stronger. Simone has proven that Barbara is one of the strongest characters in comics, and this story seals that, showing that, no matter the depths, Barbara will pull her way out of them. But beyond the Barbara story, which is a good one, readers are introduced to the League of Batgirls, or should I say reintroduced. While one is a new Batgirl, the character under the mask being Tiffany Fox, daughter of Batman's ally Lucius Fox, the other two are the pre-New 52 Batgirls Stephanie Brown and Cassandra Cain, characters fans have been dying to see again, and back in their Batgirl identities. Simone leaves the book on a high note for many fans, letting them revisit these characters, written wonderfully, with a tribute from Barbara to them and for them to show how much Barbara has effected their lives. And this issue is a tribute to everything Simone has done with Barbara for all the years she has written the character. Thank you, Gail, for everything you've done, and I can't wait for the new Secret Six.

Copperhead #1
Story: Jay Faerber
Art: Scott Godlewski

Jay Faerber has written some of my favorite Image series of all time, including the superhero soap opera Noble Causes and the crime comic Near Death (and i just recently picked up the full run of his series Dynamo 5. I see a recommended reading in the future). So I was excited to see the announcement of his new series, Copperhead, which is a sci-fi/western mash-up, described by him in the little essay at the back of the issue as, "Deadwood in space." Mixed genres are a favorite thing of mine, and while the space western isn't new (Faerber admits as such in the same essay), it is a genre combo that works, and one that I've enjoyed often (see Firefly and Defiance and the Thrilling Adventure Hour segment "Sparks Nevada, Marshall on Mars" for some good recent examples). Faerber starts the series out strong, with an introduction to our leads, a couple of crimes, and some world building. Clara Bronson and her son Zeke move to the frontier town of Copperhead, where Clara has been hired as the new sheriff. Upon arriving, she meets the deputy who was passed over for the job, an alien named Budroxifinicus, who Clara dubs Boo to his chagrin. Clara and Boo go off to deal with a domestic disturbance, and come back to find the local mine owner, big shot Benjamin Hickery waiting to introduce himself, along with his artificial human workers, who Clara clearly has an issue with, saying they should have been destroyed, "after the war." While no details about this war are clear, it is clearly a plot point to be revisited, and an important part of world building a new universe; we readers aren't going to know everything that is normal conversation on a removed world in the future, and explaining it thoroughly would be forced. The relationship between Clara and Boo is going to be central to the comic, and her insistence on being in charge immediately is not going to go over well with a deputy who feels he should have been given the job. The issue ends with Clara and Boo discovering a crime that is much bigger than what she's seen so far, and Zeke getting himself into trouble while helping a local girl look for her lost dog; it's a nice cliffhanger that makes you want to come back. Scott Godlewski does a great job with the looks of the different aliens, and the old west/used universe feeling of the setting. This is a very solid first issue of a series that I'm going to be keeping my eye on over the coming months.

Lazarus #11
Story: Greg Rucka
Art: Michael Lark

The third storyarc of Greg Rucka and Michael Lark's at times frighteningly realistic dystopian political sci-fi, Lazarus, begins with the arrival of the Bittner family Lazarus, Sonja, at the borders of the territory of the Carlyle family, our main characters. For those of you who haven't tried the series, a Lazarus is a family member of one of the sixteen families who rule the world, who has been transformed into a fighting machine to guard their family's interests, and as Forever, our main character and Lazarus of the Carlyle family, arrives, we again see that Forever is seemingly more human than the other Lazarus (I'm assuming the plural of Lazarus, by the way. Lazaruses just sounds wrong to my ear). As was set up in last issue's one off story, Bittner is serving as go between for the Hock family, Carlyle's bitter rivals, who have captured Jonah Carlyle, the rogue son who attempted to betray the family and failed. The issue has two important aspects. The first is a further view into the way the families who rule the world interact with each other. The politics and the wheels within wheels that we see Malcolm Carlyle, family patriarch, planning for when in comes to the conclave of families. More integral is Forever beginning to really dig into the mystery of the message she received at the end of the first arc, saying that she is not, in fact, actually a Carlyle. She says she believes that message is from Jonah, attempting to sow discord, but there seems to be more to her belief than that, and there's clearly more to this. Her sister, as well s the doctor in charge of her care, Bethany, laughs it off, but goes out of her way to tell Malcolm that Forever is asking these questions. We also see Johana, Jonah's twin sister and co-conspirator, who escaped without suspicion after the treason, egging Forever on, reminding her what a traitor and bastard Jonah is, clearly hoping Forever will eliminate him before he reveals her part in the plot; Johana is the character most to be watched, as she is clearly far more clever than most give her credit for. Forever also spends time with Marisol, the woman who trained her, and mentions the message and her doubts. It's always interesting to see how different Forever's interactions with her family is from most others, and how different her interactions with Marisol is from everyone else, how much more comfortable she is. Forever is a wonderfully nuanced chaarcter, and I am looking forward to seeing her interact with other Lazarus.  The conclave begins next issue, and I'm curious to see more of each of the sixteen families, and I have a bad feeling for Marisol, who now might know something she really shouldn't.

Ms. Marvel #8
Story: G. Willow Wolsin
Art: Adrian Alphona

Ah, there's nothing like the story of a girl and her dog. Unless it's the story of a girl and her gigantic, genetically altered, teleporting dog. In the new issue of Ms. Marvel, the Inhumans' dog, Lockjaw, finds his way to Kamala Khan, our heroine. Kamala continues her attempts to track down and defeat the Inventor, the villain who has been menacing Jersey City, but now she has a little extra help. Kamala fights her way through another of the Inventor's mechanical menaces, and discovers more about just how he's powering them, and the action scenes are well written and drawn in Alphona's wonderful style. We also get to see Kamala with Nakia, one of her best friends, specifically the one who doesn't know her secret, and we start to see some fraying at the edges of that friendship, and more time with Kamala and Bruno, her best friend who does now her superhero identity, and he continues to be a classic superhero tech guy/sidekick who also serves as a sounding board for Kamala. We also get an ending with quite a cliffhanger, and I'm unsure of what Wilson is doing with Kamala's powers in the best way; I like to be kept guessing. But the real treat of the issue is seeing Kamala interact with Lockjaw. It's sweet to see how excited she is to spend time with the big dog, and it's great to see him add to her superheroing and to be so affectionate. When written write, Lockjaw is presented as a dog who might be a little smarter than average, but is still a dog, and Wilson captures that. I love Lockjaw, who is just one of the great superhero pets, and Alphona draws a great Lockjaw, with a face that is expressive without ever looking like anything other than the face of a dog. He also gives Lockjaw real mass and weight, making him feel as gigantic as he is. I hope Lockjaw stays as a member of the cast for the foreseeable future.

Stumptown Vol.3 #1
Story: Greg Rucka
Art: Justic Greenwood

Any writer with range is a slightly different writer when he or she is working in a different genre, and I'm a big fan of all the different writers Greg Rucka is, be it sci-fi Rucka, superhero Rucka, or steampunk Rucka. But the Rucka I love best is crime and spy Rucka, the guy who wrote Gotham Central, Queen & Country, and the Atticus Kodiak novels. And that Rucka is back is strong form with the debut of the new volume of his Portland set P.I. series, Stumptown. The issue is a character issue, getting you up to speed if you haven't read either of the previous stories. Stumptown follows Dex Parios, a private investigator in Portland, Oregon. The issue opens with Dex playing keeper for her local soccer team. When that game ends, she takes her brother Ansel, who is developmentally disabled, to a professional soccer game, where she meets Mercury, a friend of theirs, who gives them tickets to a signing with the team afterwards. At the match, she runs into CK, who scored the winning goal against her at the game at the beginning of the issue, and they spend some time chatting, and after the signing, Dex and Ansel stumble across the aftermath of a crime. And that's it. Not exactly the stuff of gumshoes and dames, huh? No, but what it does is expose you to exactly who Dex is, how protective she is of Ansel, how good she is to her friends. I'm also sure that, like the beginning of most good mysteries, it will be chock full of clues that will make a lot of sense as the mystery comes into focus. Rucka is a great writer when it comes to character, and this issue spotlights that. Justin Greenwood comes in as the new series artist, the first since co-creator Matthew Southworth. Greenwood's style isn't quite as gritty as Southworth's, but still fits the down and out P.I. tone of the series that was set by those earlier arcs. The end of the issue does set up a crime, one that strikes close to home for Dex, so it looks like things are going to speed up very fast from here.

Reviews of Comics from 5/14 & A Special Announcement

Abe Sapien #13
Story: Mike Mignola & Scott Allie
Art: Max Fiumara

This is not a normal issue of Abe Sapien. This is not a normal issue of most mainstream comics. While our titular protagonist does appear in the issue, he is by no means the center of the story. This is a story in the classic Eisner Spirit vein, where Abe steps into a situation and it is more the story of the people who are in that situation. This is the story of a man driven mad by his own past and by the changes in the world that have been wrought in the past few years throughout the books featuring the B.P.R.D. and their allies, and the woman he has kidnapped. He believes they are the last man and woman on Earth, and she has been broken by the losses she suffered when the horrors came out of the ground. The issue has no dialogue; it is told entirely through narrative that goes into the head of these two characters. It isn't first person narrative either, but a sort of third person omniscient that allows you to see without the bias of a first person narration. Throughout the issue, you get to know these two characters well, you see the man's background and the woman's pain. You see him first spot Abe and view him as the serpent in his new garden of Eden. The art of Max Fiumara is dark and perfect for this particularly dark story. Abe Sapien has been the most introspective book in the Mignolaverse since its inception, and this issue does such interesting things with point of view that it is something well worth checking out.

Batgirl #31
Story: Gail Simone
Art: Fernando Pasarin

So, first a quick discussion of the actual issue. This is a great creepy horror movie kind of story, with people trapped in a building with a monster chasing them. Barbara has a reunion of sorts with her sorta boyfriend Ricky, only to have things go very wrong; I guess when your dad shoots your boyfriend, things aren't going to go so well. And the issue ties nicely with both the rivalry between Batgirl and her main nemesis in this current series, Knightfall, and the new mastermind from the recent annual, Mr. Rain. And the story is done in one, so it makes a good starting point for new readers. But, as good as any issue of Gail Simone's Batgirl is, let's talk about what I came into this issue really excited for: Ragdoll! For those of you who don't know Ragdoll, and shame on you, Ragdoll was created by Simone as part of her Villains United mini-series, which lead into the ongoing Secret Six. Ragdoll is a man who had extensive surgery dome to himself to allow all his joints to move freely in any and all directions, making him the ultimate contortionist. He is also completely out of hiss mind, having little to no morality and saying things that qualify at best as random and at worst as creepy to the extreme. Being his first full appearance in the New 52 (he has appeared in the background in Arkham scenes before), I was a little worried. Despite being written by his creator, I admit to being worried that he might be changed in this new world. Boy was I wrong! Ragdoll is still the complete, unpredictable madman that he was before the change.Simone hasn't lost any of the voice, and artist Fernando Pasarin draws a creepily bendy Ragdoll. If you loved Secret Six, or just like great, weird villains, this is a great issue to jump on.

Tales From the Con: Year One

Story: Brad Guigar

Art: Chris Giarrusso

This issue is a collection of comic strips published on the website of Emerald City Comic Con. They're fun little one offs poking gentle fun at fandom and con culture. It's hard to write a full on review of something like this, since there's no continuity or continuing narratives, and trying to describe the strips would be like explaining a joke; it just doesn't work. But I can say writer Brad Guigar writes some very funny material without sinking into snark or nastiness, like so many strips about comic book culture do.And the art is by Chris Giarrusso, best known for his amazingly funny Mini-Marvels strips that appeared in Marvel comics throughout the 90s and for G-Man, his all ages creator owned superhero comic published through Image. His art is a delight, fun and whimsical, and its what got me to pick up this book. I'm glad to say the words lived up to the art, and if you're in the mood for a good laugh, Tales from the Con is a good book to sit back and chuckle your way through.

Now, for this week's special announcement: over the weekend, Matt Signal contributor Dan Grote and I joined the regulars on the Shut Up Kids Podcast for their superhero extravaganza. Check out the podcast here at talkbacker.com to hear a discussion of comic books, movies, and TV, as well as super hero music and the madness of Alan Moore. Oh, and for those of you who read this blog at work (and I know some of you do, don't deny it) there's is some stronger language than I use here and some suggestive dialogue, so plug in those headphones or wait until you get home before you listen, k? Thanks to Dan Milczarski, Nick Nightly, and the Colonel for having us on!

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 3/12

Batgirl #29
Story: Gail Simone
Art: Fernando Pasarin

Gail Simone's Batgirl has been a consistently enjoyable comic, one that does a good job of mixing action, emotion, and character. This most recent issue was the second part of a two part story where Batgirl and her friend and sometimes partner Strix, a Talon of the Court of Owls who abandoned the Court, are up against Silver, a vampire hunter who believes the Batman family are vampires who have taken control of Gotham. Silver is a good addition to the pantheon of anti-heroes or villains, as he is clearly unbalanced, but is trying to do something good. He has kidnapped a small child, but I don't think I'm spoiling too much of a twist when its revealed he was actually right and she is a vampire.Artist Fernando Pasarin does a great job drawing the fight scenes between Batgirl and Strix and Silver and his companion/valet Miss Targa; they're well choreographed martial arts fights. What I found very interesting was also an interaction between Batgirl and Strix. After Silver escapes at the beginning of the issue, Strix makes it clear to Batgirl that she will kill Silver if he has harmed the girl that was kidnapped. And while Strix tells Batgirl she will not kill, she is lying. And while there is no murder by issue's end, I think we're going to see further conflict between the two; Strix was trained to be a killer, and it'll be hard for her to break that training. Next issue is a fill in, and the one after that sees the return of one of my favorite Gail Simone creation, Ragdoll of Secret Six fame, so I have a feeling you'll be hearing about Batgirl again here soon.

Batman #29
Story: Scott Snyder
Art: Greg Capullo

Batman is one of the few books I right about here every month, and for good reason, and that reason isn't just that I love Batman. Scott Snyder has an excellent feel for Batman as a character, and his "Zero Year" story has been a great re-imagining of Batman's early days in Gotham. This issue marks the end of the second act of the story, called "Dark City," with Batman escaping the Riddler's death trap from the end of last issue to go and try to stop Riddler from taking over all of Gotham's technology. I believe it was Paul Dini who once said that Riddler is the hardest Batman villain to write, since he has to be as smart as Batman, and his plans need to make perfect sense on a second read through. Snyder has really captured this; Riddler feels like a real threat, something many writer have failed at, and a perfect intellectual nemesis for Batman, without descending into the unctuous snobbery of the Riddler in the Arkham video games. The issue also pays off the confrontation between Batman and Doctor Death, a freakishly re-imagined version of the first name villain Batman ever fought. That re-imagining is part of a truly impressive issue from artist Greg Capullo. Capullo has splash pages inspired by Frank Miller, as well as the horrible Dr. Death, and scenes of destruction in Gotham that sent shivers down my spine. The issue also has a scene with the Waynes and young Bruce, and its a scene that I feel is important. The Waynes are a touchstone in Bruce's life, the great incorruptible past, and seeing them with him, not as absentee parents who left their son for Alfred to watch, makes the great tragedy of Batman's life more resonant. "Savage City" begins next month, the concluding third of "Zero Year" where all the seeds Snyder has sewn will bear fruit. If he can pull this off, this is an arc that could go down as one of the great Batman stories; I'm hoping he can do it.

Batman : Li'l Gotham #12
Story & Art: Dustin Nguyen and Derek Fridolfs

All good things... Batman: Li'l Gotham has been one of the most enjoyable books on the racks for the past year, and I've been expecting the final issue to really hit a high note, and I was right. The two stories are Thanksgiving and Christmas, and each show the charm and knowledge of Batman history that have defined this series. The first story sees Damian on the hunt for Jerry, the turkey he took on as a pet in the previous Thanksgiving installment, and winds up running afowl (see that pun, folks, that's why you read this blog) of the Condiment King. Yes, a Z-List villain created as a gag for Batman: The Animated Series who showed up one or twice as a gag in Chuck Dixon's run on the Bat titles. It's a fun story to see just how Damian has actually grown to care about the turkey, and to be less of a little sociopath. The final story is a Christmas tale of Alfred and Damian looking through a family album of the family. Pictures of Bruce growing up, as well as all the Robins, adorn the pages, and are narrated by Alfred and Damian's commentary. The issue is a survey of Batman's life, and shows a Batman that we'd never see in the mainstream comics: one who leaves gifts for the inmates at Arkham and gently carries his sleeping son to bed. Batman is a character with so many facets, it was nice to have a book on the racks that showed a different Batman.I hope that we see more Batman from Nguyen and Fridolfs sometime soon.

X-Files: Season 10 #10
Story: Joe Harris
Art: menton3

The X-Files was a TV series that depended on its mystery and mythology. It was a series where for every answer you got, you got three questions. With the debut of the comic series that picks up where the series left off, the mythology has picked back up, and there are new mysteries. One of the major mysteries was how various cast members long thought dead are back. This issue, "Further Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man," a follow up to a classic episode, gives us a few answers. The Cigarette Smoking Man, also known as Cancer Man, was one of the principal antagonists, and a character whose history was shrouded in mystery. This issue gives the reader snapshot views of moments in his past that may or may not be true. Ties to the Bay of Pigs and various other historic events, as well as his connection to the Mulder family, are explored, and moments with his own family show the history of the enigmatic figure. The art by menton3 is in the style of Ben Templesmith, heavily lined and full of shadow, works with the subject matter and character. As I said before, the issue gives the reader new questions to ask by the end, but those questions keep the reader coming back for more, and that's a big part of the appeal of The X-Files.