Hope in Crime Alley: The Importance of Leslie Thompkins

Superhero comics have a language of violence in them that is implicit, if not explicit. Heroes fight villains. There's punching, kicking, shooting, bataranging, webbing, and blasting. It's been part of the lexicon since the formation of the genre. And I've been thinking a lot about violence this past week. Gun violence in particular, but also the fictional worlds I love, the violence in them, and their relationship to the real world. And of course there are no easy answers to any of the questions I've read or I've posed to myself, and I would feel strange writing some paean to better fiction worlds in the face of reality. But when I was thinking about a world that could be a better one, and how that interacts with reality and fiction, I thought about a character from the Batman mythos. Leslie Thompkins isn't exactly an obscure character, but she isn't a top billed one either; she's never been in a movie, and the incarnation of the character on television right now is about as far removed from the actual character in the comics as possible. But I wanted to write about Leslie today, about her history, and about why she's such an important character not just for Batman, but for superhero comics in general.

Leslie Thompkins made her first appearance in Detective Comics #457 from 1975, in a story entitled, "There is No Hope in Crime Alley!" Written by Denny O'Neil, one of the greatest of all Batman writers, and with art by Dick Giordano, this story establishes a bit of continuity that has been played on many times since, that Batman visits the alley where his parents were killed on the anniversary of their death. It also added another wrinkle. After his parents' death, a social worker came to the crime scene and talked to Bruce, and held him, and did her best to comfort him. This little bit of light in that darkest of days for Bruce came from Leslie Thompkins, who appears in that story as a little old lady. one who comes to the alley herself every year to remember the tragedy she witnessed, the one she spent her life working to help make sure never happened again.

Right from the start, Leslie takes the violence she witnessed and went in the complete opposite direction as Bruce did. She does her best to help people to prevent tragedies. And when Batman finds her being mugged in Crime Alley, and begins to savagely beat the mugger, Leslie tells him to stop, and condemns his rage. It's a ten page story, beautiful and perfect. It appeared in the excellently curated collection, The Greatest Batman Stories Ever Told, that came out in 1988, which is where I first encountered it. At the time, Leslie was a footnote in Batman history, but the story impacted me enough that Leslie being at the Wayne's murder became part of my personal head canon, and my affection for the character was not alone, as I soon discovered.

Leslie only appeared twice more in the course of the next twelve years, once in another O'Neil penned story about Batman returning to Crime Alley on the anniversary of his parents' death, "The Curse of Crime Alley," which also introduced C-List Bat-villain Maxie Zeus, and once in "The Player on the Other Side," Batman Special #1, Mike W. Barr's introduction of The Wrath, one of the earliest anti-Bats. And while O'Neil introduced Leslie, and established the baseline of her personality, it's Barr who would take the character in new directions.

I've written a feature about Mike W, Barr and Alan Davis's run on Detective Comics, one of the most underrated runs on any Bat-title, and the final full issue of that run is the one that introduced the post-Crisis version of Leslie Thompkins (there's weirdness in the continuity of this issue, but I won't focus on that right here). This issue, Detective Comics #574, "My Beginning... And My Probable End..." (which is a quote from "There is No Hope in Crime Alley") features Batman bringing a severely wounded Jason Todd to Leslie Thompkins clinic to save his life.

The changes to the character are notable. Leslie is no longer a social worker, but is instead a medical doctor who runs a clinic in Crime Alley. She is also noticeably younger, not an octogenarian, but probably in her fifties or sixties. This is the story that introduces the idea that Leslie was Bruce's foster-mother for a time, taking an active part in raising the boy. It also establishes that Leslie is well aware of Bruce's identity as Batman, and that she disapproves. She does not consider Batman a heroic knight, but a tool that continues to forward the problems of violence in society; while sometimes Batman is necessary, she feels like Bruce would be better without being Batman. And more than that, she feels responsible for Bruce being Batman, that it was partly her failing that put him on the path. But for all the negativity and confrontation, Leslie cares for Bruce deeply, and is concerned that his crusade will lead to his death, and still wants to protect him.

Barr would use Leslie in his next arc on Detective Comics, "Batman: Year Two," which builds off the relationship established in the previous issue, but the next truly notable Leslie story would be another Barr story, "Faith," from Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight #21-23. "Faith" is set prior to "Year Two" but after the events of Frank Miller's "Year One." The story deals with Batman's first encounter with the idea that people may want to follow in his footsteps; in this case a young former addict who he saved starts up the Batmen, a group clearly inspired by the Guardian Angels civilian patrol organization, down to the red berets, but are considerably more violent. Meanwhile, Leslie is furious at Batman and what he's doing to the city, and it's after Batman is shot by the man who he once inspired for being a disappointment, that Batman comes to Leslie and reveals his identity. Barr does interesting things with the idea of faith, Leslie's faith in non-violence and peace and the Batmen and their faith in Batman.

While Leslie would continue to pop up occasionally in the Batman titles for the next few years, usually when Batman or one of his allies needed medical attention beyond what Alfred could provide, and was further incorporated into Batman's origin in Batman #0, the post-Zero Hour origin of Batman, the thing that I feel helped cement her in the minds of Batman fans as an essential part of Batman's origin and life is her appearance on Batman: The Animated Series. Voiced by venerable actress Diana Muldaur (best known in geek circles as the argumentative Dr. Pulaski from the second season of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and remembered fondly by me as the hardass Rosalind Shays on L.A. Law, who met with an unusual downfall), B:TAS captured everything that Barr and O'Neil had established and distilled it. Leslie was tough but loving, always willing to tell Bruce what she thinks and to try to convince him that Batman, and the violence he represents, is something that he can leave behind. While only in a handful of episodes, Leslie was woven into the tapestry of Batman's origins so seamlessly that she would be a part of it moving forward. There was one notable change to Leslie's backstory made in B:TAS, which established her as a co-worker and longtime friend of Thomas Wayne, Bruce's father. While I can see some problems with this, as it stops her from just being a good Samaritan as Joe Chill is just a random criminal, it explains how she was able to be such a big part of Bruce's life, and does not interfere with her as a strong and loving influence; this change would eventually be adopted by the comics as well.

Leslie became a more steady fixture in the Batman comics starting with the 1999 massive event, "No Man's Land." Leslie decided to stay behind when Gotham was shut off from the rest of the world, and kept her clinic running as a neutral space among the city's warring crimelords, where anyone could come to receive medical treatment or to find a safe haven. Alfred spent much time there with her, and she was befriended by both Azrael and a young woman who Barbara Gordon used as a runner through the wastes of Gotham, Cassandra Cain, Leslie had her own spotlight issue, Batman Chronicles #18, "Spiritual Currency," showing how, even in the darkest hours of Gotham, Leslie kept her hope alive and her pledge of non-violence, even when faced with more violence around her than ever before. It's a great issue, and one of the best spotlights on Leslie.

After "No Man's Land," Leslie would continue to appear regularly in the Batman titles. She befriended Selina Kyle in the early issues of Ed Brubaker's excellent Catwoman series, helping Selina and her protege, Holly Robinson, get their lives in Gotham's East End together. She remained a recurring character in the Denny O'Neil written Azrael series until that character's death. It was even established by Devin Grayson in an early issue of Gotham Knights that she and Alfred had flirted with having a romantic relationship for years, but their duties had kept them apart.

This next paragraph is going to be tricky for me to write, partially because it violates the blog rule about only writing about comics I like, and partially because it takes a good character and drags her through the mud. "War Games" was a Batman event that was released in 2004-2005 and featured a massive gang war in Gotham started by Spoiler, one of Gotham's younger vigilantes, who took an exercise Batman had run in the Bat Computer about how to get control of Gotham's mobs and tried to implement it without thinking of the consequences. It's a messy story for many many reasons, and in the end features the death of Spoiler at the Thompkins clinic after being tortured by Black Mask. After Spoiler's death, Batman discovers that Leslie, who had left Gotham for Africa, let the girl die, not treating her, to give Bruce an object lesson and hope to stop his endless crusade and save further children from dying in it. It's an ugly, out of character twist, and completely violates everything Leslie had stood for over the past thirty years. I'll be honest: I mentioned head canon earlier, that trove of stories you keep that "count" for you, and while I try to stick close to canon, this was a story I hated from day one and never counted.

Fortunately, Chuck Dixon took over as writer on Robin again in 2008 after a six year or so absence from the book and character he defined, and immediately set about making things right. He revealed that Spoiler, Stephanie Brown, was in fact alive, having asked Leslie to help fake her death so she could escape Gotham and the life she had lived. In one fell swoop, Dixon had returned Leslie to the good, noble woman she had always been. Leslie would return to Gotham and appear briefly in those Dixon issues of Robin, and would get a spotlight in the Gotham Gazette mini-series that took place around the "Battle for the Cowl." Her final pre-Flashpoint appearances would be in Batgirl, when Stephanie was the title heroine.

Since Flashpoint, Leslie's backstory has actually returned to closer to what it originally was, as she seems to now be a social worker for Gotham's child protection services working with children and adolescents. She has only made brief appearances, once in a flashback as Jason Todd's case worker after his parents died but before Bruce took him in, and a few times in We Are Robin, where she is working with Duke Thomas after his parents disappeared in the wake of Joker's assault on Gotham. Her one appearance with Batman in this context was in Batman #52, a flashback to her working with a young Bruce, but it could be taken either way that she's his case worker or a family friend. There is one odd appearance in an issue of Grayson, where Leslie is seen working in a refugee camp in Africa as a doctor, which doesn't seem to fit this persona, but we'll see if that gets folded in. In a recent Twitter interaction I had with him, new Detective Comics writer James Tynion IV said Leslie will be appearing in Detective Comics #935, coming out this Wednesday.

Just as a brief aside, There is a  Leslie Thompkins in Fox's Gotham, played ably by Morena Baccarin, however the character is Leslie in name only. In the series she is a former Arkham doctor turned medical examiner who has little to no relationship with Bruce Wayne and is one of the romantic partners of Jim Gordon. She has no problem with violence. So basically she's about as close to her comics counterpart as anyone is on Gotham.

But earlier I said I wanted to not just talk about who Leslie Thompkins is, but why she's important to Batman and comics. To start with, Leslie is a smart, driven, female character who takes no guff from anyone, even if it's Batman, which puts her in a league with character like Wonder Woman and Amanda Waller, which is worth noting. But more importantly, Leslie represents to me the path not taken. In a world where flashy people in flashy costumes fight and destroy everything around them, she is the calm blue ocean, the voice that says there has to be another way. She reminds Batman every time they talk that he could stop, that he could use the Wayne fortune not to fight the results of crime as Batman, but confront its roots in poverty and pain. And while she judges and will never go easy on Bruce or any of his allies, she also always has a kind word and an embrace. In a world where violence is on every corner, whether it's on the pages of a comic book or a newspaper, a person who holds out hope that people really can be better, that peace and non-violence is an option is a rare thing. And because of the laws of comic book plot, Batman can never take up the path Leslie offers, her mere existence assures that the option remains open, and hope for a better, more peaceful world is always available. And that hope is important to have in the dark days of Gotham, and anywhere else.

The Great Batman: Brave and the Bold Rewatch: Mystery in Space!

Season One, Episode 14: Mystery in Space!

Written by Jim Krieg

Directed by Brandon Vietti

Plot synopsis

Teaser: Equinox has kidnapped Gorilla Grodd and the Question and strapped them to an elaborate scale trap, telling Batman he can only save one of them, which the Dark Knight of course proves untrue.

Episode: Batman is standing on a shoreline awaiting a zeta beam to transport him to the planet Rann when he hears a strange sound he discovers to be Aquaman emitting the cry of a wounded beluga whale. But this isn’t the happy-go-punchy, bravado-filled Aquaman we’ve grown accustomed to. Big A is despondent, questioning the meaning of everything. At first, Bats stresses he can’t help because he has a solo mission to attend to (“It’s important I stress the word ‘solo,’” his inner monologue says), but the zeta beam ends up transporting both heroes into the middle of a firefight on an alien planet.

In the skies over Rann, they are met by Adam Strange and his wife, Alanna, who take them to their base in the capital where Alanna’s father, Saradath, welcomes them. The introductions are interrupted by a message from General Kreegaar, leader of the lizardlike Gordanians, who shows them a giant spiderlike mech approaching the city.

“All is lost. Woe is us. Perhaps it’s not too late to surrender,” Aquaman suggests, still mysteriously and uncharacteristically crestfallen.

Batman, Aquaman and Adam Strange lead an attack on the mech. Aquaman takes out Gordanian warriors with little effort, and little enthusiasm. Were this any other episode, he’d be laughing heartily and working on some kind of title for a future tale. Kreegaar turns the fight around, however, trapping the heroes in a thermal device meant to boil them alive from the inside. The heroes escape by using Strange’s jetpack to cut a hole in the floor.

Once back at the base, Strange deduces the Gordanians are after the Eye of Zarid, essentially a giant magnifying glass that can be used to fry an entire city. The Eye is located underwater. Batman, Aquaman and the Stranges get their scuba on and find the Gordanians attempting to free the Eye from beneath the waves. Batman suggests Aquaman do what he does best and summon the local sea creatures to their aid. But when they arrive and Strange talks about using them to draw fire, Aquaman shoos them away instead. That’s when he reveals what’s been bugging him all episode: Big A apparently failed to stop whalers from poaching beluga recently, and it’s left him feeling less than heroic.

As Batman tries to snap the King of Atlantis out of his funk, the Gordanians attack. In the midst of the fight, a zeta beam transports Adam to Earth, 25 trillion miles away. Alanna is captured, and the Gordanians free the Eye of Zarid, moving it toward the city. Adam teleports back to Rann just in time for Batman and Aquaman to relay the dire news. Adam sits down, feeling like a failure and declaring the war lost.

That’s when we get the king’s speech.

“What has gotten into you, man?” Aquaman asks Strange. “Alanna is alive! Rann is alive! You’re alive! And where there is life, there’s always hope!” (What could be move Silver Age than exclaiming every sentence?)

Strange: “But we’re outgunned.”

Aquaman: “So what? We don’t even use guns!” (Great line)

Strange: “But the Eye is invulnerable.”

Aquaman: “All the better to prove we are true heroes!”

Strange: “Alanna is their captive.”

Aquaman: “For now! This isn’t the end. It’s an opportunity! Most men wait their entire lives in vain for a moment like this! A chance to matter! A call to adventure! Adam, answer that call!”

I mean, I don’t know about you, but I want to go punch some lizard men in the face after watching that scene. But more importantly, Adam does, and that sets into motion a daring, utterly ridiculous plan.

The heroes steal Earth’s moon via zeta beam and drop it into orbit around Rann, creating an eclipse that depowers the Eye of Zarid and renders the Gordanians impotent. Strange rescues Alanna, Kreegaar screams as the Eye crashes to the ground and Aquaman rides triumphant aboard a pair of Rannian sea creatures, because that’s what you do when you’re a badass sea king.

“A fitting end to The Strange Encounter of the Reptile Men,” Aquaman declares, having truly become his old self again.

As for what happened while Earth temporarily had no moon, that’s never shown. Hopefully it wasn’t too catastrophic.

Number of times Aquaman says “Outrageous!”: Zero.

Who’s Who

Aquaman (voiced by John DiMaggio)

First comic book appearance: More Fun Comics #73 (November 1941)

First Brave and the Bold appearance: Season 1, Episode 3- Evil Under the Sea!

Adam Strange

First comic book appearance: Showcase #17 (November 1958)

First Brave and the Bold appearance: Season 1, Episode 14- Mystery in Space!

An archaeologist from Earth who is transported by zeta beam to the planet Rann in the Alpha Centauri system, Strange becomes the protector of that planet and marries one of its women, Alanna, daughter of chief scientist Saradath.

The Question (voiced by Nicholas Guest)

First comic book appearance: Blue Beetle #1 (June 1967)

First Brave and the Bold appearance: Season 1, Episode 14- Mystery in Space!

Created by Steve Ditko and acquired by DC in its absorption of Charlton Comics in the 1980s, journalist turned detective Vic Sage’s face is covered by a substance called pseudoderm, making it look as though he has no facial features. The Question is obsessed with conspiracies, and at times his philosophy has run the gamut from Ayn Rand-style libertarianism to Eastern zen. In later years, Sage would be replaced as the Question by Gotham police Detective Renee Montoya. The Question also served an inspiration for Watchmen’s Rorschach.

Equinox (voiced by Oded Fehr)

First comic book appearance: Justice League of America #111 (June 1974)

First Brave and the Bold appearance: Season 1, Episode 14- Mystery in Space!

Equinox is based on a DC Comics villain named Libra, who appeared in a 1970s Justice League story by Len Wein. Grant Morrison brought the character back as a big bad in 2008’s Final Crisis storyline, making him obsessed both with balance and godhood.

Gorilla Grodd (Voice by John DiMaggio)
First Comic Book Appearance: The Flash #106 (May, 1959)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Two- Terror on Dinosaur Island!

Gordanians
First Comic Book Appeearance: New Teen Titans #1 (November, 1980)
First Brave and the Bold appearance: Season 1, Episode 14- Mystery in Space!

The Gordanians are a lizard man species of intergalactic conquerors and slavers. They are often allies of the Citadel, another group of alien conquerors, and in the comics they have little connection to Rann, but are instead mostly seen as nemeses of the planet Tamaran, home of Starfire; they are the race that kidnapped and enslaved her before she escaped to earth to join the Titans.

Continuity, Comics Connections, and Notes

The title of the episode refers to one of DC Comics' classic sci-fi comics of the 50s and 60s, the one in which Adam Strange had a recurring feature for many years. 

The actor who voiced Equinox, another recurring character loosely based on a comic book character but technically original to the show, is voiced by Oded Fehr, an actor best known for The Mummy films, but who does a fair amount of voice work. He voiced Doctor Fate in Justice League Unlimited prior to his work on this series, and would go on to voice Ra's al Ghul in Young Justice.

In addition to writing for The Matt Signal, Dan Grote is now the official comics blogger for The Press of Atlantic City. New posts appear Wednesday mornings at PressofAC.com/Life. His new novel, Magic Pier, is available however you get your books online. He and Matt have been friends since the days when Onslaught was just a glimmer in Charles Xavier's eye. Follow @danielpgrote on Twitter.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 6/8

Birthright #16
Story: Joshua Williamson
Art: Andrei Bressan & Adriano Lucas

The fourth arc of Birthright begins an arc that looks like it's going to provide answers to many of the series long burning questions. Birthright is usually a strong mix of action and character, but this issue mostly takes a step back from the action and gives us a very strong dose of character. We don't get much more of the most awkward dinner ever between the sorcerer Mastema and the mother of our protagonists, Wendy, and Mikey's ex/friend.babymama, Rya, before two of the remaining other mages, Kylen and Enoch show up to discuss what to do about finding Mikey and the betrayal of their fellow, Samael. But after only a few pages of this, we're back with Mikey, his brother Brennan, his dad Aaron, and Samael, revealed to be the boy's grandfather, Aaron's father. If we got the impression from the end of the previous issue that Aaron has some issues with his dad, And now we can see how, as hard as it would be for anyone to be accused of the murder of their son, and to have their son disappear, how much this plays right into the issues Aaron has as the son of a father who abandoned him. And how furious he is that his father, who knew about the magical land of Terrenos, never came to him and his family in their hour of need, when Mikey was gone. And Samael may have good reasons, but his evasion and his simply saying that he has good reasons without explaining anything? That doesn't make him sound like the most trustworthy of guys. We also get more explanation of Brennan's burgeoning mystical abilities, and his use of them sets off what looks to be the series next major fight scene. A series with so many mysteries needs to start paying them off eventually, and as Williamson has proven in his other creator owned series, he knows when the time is ripe for some answers. Ad as good as the story is, and it's very good, the art on this issue is Andrei Bressan's best. Not only do we have great character moments in the faces of both Samael and Aaron, but Bressan gets to draw Samael's lair, a treasure trove of mystical artifacts. This is always something an artist can have fun with, but this particular treasure trove is littered with props from many classic fantasy movies. In a once over I saw all sorts of stop motion creatures from Harryhausen movies, the skull of the pirate from Goonies, Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors, the crocodile from Hook, and the Wicker Man from, well, The Wicker Man. I'm a big fan of Easter Eggs, and the two page spread that introduces Samael's treasure room is just packed with them. Birthright is an exciting, character-driven modern fantasy story, and one for fans of the stories that explore the thin line between fantasy and reality. The first three arcs are out in trade, so it would be easy for you to catch up and start grabbing the single issues as things really start speeding forward.

Detective Comics #934
Story: James Tynion IV
Art: Eddy Barrows, Eber Ferreira, & Adriano Lucas

"DC:Rebirth" keeps moving forward, and you'll be seeing a lot of it this week. We're starting it with the new issue of Detective Comics, which returns to its original numbering. Detective has been the most inconsistent of the Batman titles since the Flashpoint changeover, a book that has ranged from some excellent arcs to some of the worst Batman comics I've read. The new dawn of the series takes aspects from various places, including Batman & Robin Eternal and the late Batwoman series, and starts creating a new Batman team title. There's a lot of mystery built into this first issue, as someone is impersonating Batman and using scientifically advanced drones to chase down other Gotham vigilantes. With this going on, Batman recruits Batwoman, who has a military background, to serve as team leader and drill sergeant for a team of young vigilantes, specifically Red Robin, Spoiler, Orphan (Cassandra Cain's new identity, and one reforming villain, Clayface, who Batwoman worked with at the end of her own series. I probably have every appearance of Batwoman, and while she has shared page time with Batman before, this issue felt like the most substantive meeting between the two. In the past, Batman has mostly given her his usual routine when a vigilante is in Gotham he hasn't trained, the, "This is my city," shtick. But here, he's reaching out to her for help, and it's the more stable Batman on the end of Scott Snyder's run we're seeing here, someone who is willing to work with people and not be the paranoid figure he has often been portrayed as in the past fifteen years or so. To really show that, he unmasks in front of Kate Kane, and we get to see her react on the best possible way, "I've been waiting for you to admit it for the last year and a half." And the utterly shocked look on Bruce's face is priceless; it's rare to see Batman surprised, and it's a nice change, We get little bits of each of the characters on the team, probably the least with Red Robin, which I'm a bit sad about as I've been waiting for Tim Drake to have a regular spot in a Bat book since the post-Flashpoint universe began, but he's got time. I like the feeling we get for Orphan, who is still haunted by the events of Batman & Robin Eternal, Spoiler, who plays up her name a lot more than it was played up in her pre-Flashpoint years as someone who spoils the plans of villains, and the scene where Batman and Batwoman find Clayface actually does a good job of making Clayface a more sympathetic figure, much more akin to his Batman: The Animated Series portrayal then the mustache twirling Basil Karlo of the comics. And we see Kate Kane still dealing with the fallout of her disagreements with her father and I assume her final break-up with Maggie Sawyer, who appeared back in Metropolis in the week's Action Comics. I hope we get to see a lot of the dangling threads from Batwoman's series played out here as the series progresses. This was an excellent debut issue, a great way to introduce new readers to these characters, and a really enjoyable issue for old time Bat fans looking to see the next generation of the Batman family back together.

Flash: Rebirth #1
Story: Joshua Williamson
Art: Carmine Di Giandomenico & Ivan Plascencia

Flash: Rebirth actually combines aspects from both of the above reviews: It's part of "DC: Rebirth" and is written by Joshua Williamson. So much of this issue is new series writer Joshua Williamson giving readers his view if Barry Allen. Barry is having a hard time of things here: he's been assigned to a murder case that oddly resembles his mother's, and he's having visions. If you read DC Universe: Rebirth, you know those visions are connected to Wally West trying to make his way back into the world, and we get to see the sequence from that one shot from Barry's point of view, and it still warms my heart. Barry is such a warm, friendly guy, and seeing him with his protege and surrogate son just brings out the best in him. And I am such a huge fan of  this Wally West, I'm just glad to see him back. The sadness that he is experiencing, knowing that most of the people he knows and loves, and the confusion that his Aunt Iris and Uncle Barry are "just friends" in this reality, is palpable. And if I wasn't pleased enough that I see Barry interacting with Wally, I get to see Barry interact with my favorite character of all time as well, Batman. I like that Williamson doesn't have Barry and Bruce interact as detectives, since that's not what Barry really is, but as scientists, which is how Barry thinks of himself. This issue is the first to really build on the reveals of the DCU: Rebirth one-shot, and begins Batman and Flash's investigation into what changed the universe and what's happened to them, analyzing the Comedian's button that Batman found in the cave. We don't get any answers, but a lot is set up for the future of the series. The wrap up of the case Barry was investigating has some very different hints, hints of Professor Zoom being back in the picture. I'm personally left to wonder if the Zoom who is imprisoned in Iron Heights, the New 52 Zoom, is still there and the yellow blur we see is the pre-52 Zoom, somehow having survived his apparent death in Flashpoint, and is now an agent of Dr. Manhattan, or simply is back to his old tricks of screwing with Barry. The art from Carmine Di Giandomenico is absolutely gorgeous, and really captures the feel of speed, and the colors by Plascencia add to it, making for a visually striking comic. With this issue, we have an excellent starting issue that gives readers a good idea of who Barry Allen is and what his world is like, who his supporting cast is, and a taste of what's to come.

Wonder Woman: Rebirth #1
Story: Greg Rucka
Art: Matthew Clark, Sean Parsons, and Jeremy Caldwell & Liam Sharp and Laura Martin

This first issue of Wonder Woman in the Rebirth era is about truth and contradictions. Greg Rucka start his new run on this series by examining the contradictions between Wonder Woman's pre-Flashpoint origin and her post-Flashpoint one, between how the world looks at her and how the world looks at other heroes. As with most of the Rebirth one-shots, this issue feels like a statement on where the character is and how the creators perceive them, so it is also lighter on the action, but is filled with a thoughtful examination of Wonder Woman as a character. Greg Rucka's previous run on the character leading up to Infinite Crisis is my favorite Wonder Woman run, so I'm thrilled to see him back, and I love how he embraces all the history of the character, how he doesn't ignore the New 52 incarnation of the character, but uses the contradictions and the current status quo to spotlight Diana's strength as a champion of truth. I love the change from the New 52 costume to the more armored version of Diana's traditional garb, and Liam Sharp's Diana is both beautiful and fierce, a force to be reckoned with, and if the big fight scene at the end of the issue between Diana and constructs in the design of Greek mythological creatures is any indication, we're in for a visual feast as Sharp gets more creatures to draw. Rucka builds a mystery at the heart of his new take on the series, questions of Olympus and what Diana has been a part of, and the hinted at brother from the end of Geoff Johns's Justice League. Rucka more than any other writer is facing down the changes made in the New 52 head on in this stellar one-shot.

The Great Batman: Brave and the Bold Rewatch: Game Over for Owlman!

Season One, Episode Thirteen: Game Over for Owlman!
Written by Joseph Kuhr
Directed by Ben Jones

Plot Synopsis

Teaser: A recap of the events of the last episode, the first part of the two-parter, segues into Batman using a smoke pellet to escape the Gotham police.

Episode: Batman heads across the rooftops, avoiding the police, finding the Phase Oscillator warps time as well as space and that he's been gone for three weeks in this world, and trying to figure out why the police are after him. He then sees another Batman, dressed in an old version of his costume, escaping a bank with stolen money. He deduces that it is Owlman, having escaped, and they begin to fight. Again, the two are so evenly matched that neither can easily defeat the other, but Owlman escapes, leaving Batman holding the money bag, and Green Arrow appears to capture Batman. Batman tells Arrow the truth, but he doesn't believe him, and so Batman throws the moneybag at him with a small explosive and escapes in the confusion.

Batman slips into a hidden tunnel, as we see all his friends now hunting for him, coordianted by Green Arrow, except Plastic Man, who Green Arrow tells they don't need. Blue Beetle sees Batman as he pops out onto the street, but Batman hits him with an electric blast, and then ties up Plastic Man, who nearly grabs him, and escapes again, this time to be nearly grabbed by Red Tornado. Batman tries to summon the Batmobile, but realizes Owlman has reprogrammed it. Trapped in a blind alley, Batman thinks he's about to be taken out by his best friends when a hook, like those used to pull bad acts off stage, appears out of the darkness. and pulls him into the shadows and into a warehouse. And in the warehouse is the Joker, oversized pistol in hand, waiting to shoot him for changing their game and trying to out-criminal him.

Joker pulls the trigger and a bang flag pops out, and Batman punches him. Joker tosses up a white flag, and tells Batman he wants to team-up against the impostor. Batman wants to know how Joker knows there's an imposter, and Joker more or less says he knows because he knows Batman and what he would or wouldn't do. He wants to team up to stop Owlman, and Batman initially refuses, leaving Joker handcuffed, but Joker points out that since the two are evenly matched, Batman will need the Joker's help, as Owlman still craves order, and the Joker's chaotic nature will work in Batman's favor. Batman begins to consider it just as Plastic Man finds him. Joker offers a ride in his Jokermobile, and as the heroes wait outside, the Jokermobile breaks out of the warehouse.They stop it, only to find a trussed up Plastic Man inside.

Meanwhile, Batman and Joker try to figure out their next move. Batman calls an old Batmobile to them, and they head off. Batman makes Joker give his word no one will be hurt. Joker agrees, and offers to shake, but Batman gives him a look and joker reveals the little needle he has on his hand, waiting to poke Batman. Joker chalks it up to old habits, and start asking what all the buttons in the Batmobile do. Batman tells him that he really shouldn't touch one, and Joker naturally does, and is hit with knockout gas.

Batman awakens Joker in the Batcave, and Joker sees all the mementos from their previous encounters. Batman begins to consider what Owlman's next target is, looking for a pattern. He finds out Owlman has accessed his files on his fellow heroes, and found the ways to neutralize them, and we see him starting to do it. Batman again knocks out Joker and they head out of the cave. Batman contacts the others, and only Plastic Man responds, just as Owlman takes him down. Batman and Joker arrive, and Batman begins to fight Owlman, who demands the Phase Oscillator back so he can return to his Earth.

Joker starts to go through his weapons, trying to find one that won't hurt anyone, and settles on a rocket launcher, which he fires at the dueling Batman and Owlman. He thinsk Batman will move, but instead it Batman knocked down as Owlman nearly hits them with the Batmobile. Joker takes a grappling hook from Batman's utility belt and escapes, saving Batman's life. A car chase begins, Batman contacting Owlman, who offers to trade the heroes he's captured for the Phase Oscillator. Batman refuses, and Owlman begins to threaten innocents, so Batman turns the Batmobile over to Joker to drive as he saves people Owlman is endangering with reckless driving and weapons. Joker even stops chasing Owlman to save an innocent.

Joker asks Batman  why he took a chance on working with him, and Batman remembers Red Hoo,d Joker's counterpart from Owlman's world, who is a hero. He looks up in the sky and sees an Owlman version of the Batsignal. At the signal's source, Owlman has the heroes captured in tailor made deathtraps, with various villains surrounding him. Batman and Joker arrive, and tells Owlman that if he doesn't free the heroes, Batman will destory the Phase Oscillator, stranding him. The villains attack, But Joker proves a good ally.

However, as they face down the villains, Owlman offers Joker a new option, a tailor made trap for Batman, and the trigger to start it. Joker is tempted, and then decides that he' a villain, and hits the button, which should encase Batman in rubber. But Batman used the Phase Oscillator to escape, and pops out on the other side of the villains, where he promptly punches Owlman but Dr. Polaris is able to magnetically pull the Phase Oscillator from Batman and send it to Owlman.

But Batman had counted on the Joker's betrayal, and user the Phase Oscillator's time bending abilities to spend a week gathering Batmans from alternate worlds and appearing only a second later back on his Earth. The Batmen begin to not only fight the villains, but free the imprisoned heroes. Now that the villains are outnumbered two-to-one, they are easily defeated, leaving Batman to take down Owlman and Joker on his own, but the two villains begins arguing over which one will take down Batman, and Batman uses the distraction to use the trap Owlman designed for him to capture them both.

The fight over, the villains are carted away, and Batman goes to his counterparts, who old a tied up Owlman, who swears to return for revenge, and Batman says he'll be waiting to stop him before the other Batmen take him away. The Joker is the last of the villains to be carted away, and he says if they weren't opposites they could be friends, and Batman knows, from having met the Red Hood, that's true, and there's a good man in there. But then Joker swears he'll get him next time and Batman thinks, "Or maybe not."

Who's Who

The Joker (Voiced by Jeff Bennett)

First Comic Book Appearance: Batman #1 (April 1940)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Thirteen- Game Over for Owlman!

The Clown Prince of Crime. The Harlequin of Hate. These are but two of the nicknames for The Joker, Batman's arch-foe. Formerly the criminal known as the Red Hood, he lost his mind after chemicals bleached his skin and turned his hair green, and has since been an agent of sheer chaos. At times a madcap clown crook, at other a terrifying murderer, Joker's personality is as variable as the winds. His history with Batman goes back to the Dark Knight's earliest days, and no one villain has inflicted more pain on Batman. The Joker believes the two of them are a duel act, and that they are meant to fight until the end. The Joker is a master criminal with a brilliant, if twisted mind. He has myriad lethal gadgets and gimmicks, most notably his Joker Venom, a poison that leaves his victims with a rictus grin similar to his. But his greatest weapon is his sheer unpredictability, a person is never sure if Joker will shake their hand or wring their neck.

Owlman (Voiced by Diedrich Bader)
First Comic Book Appearance: Justice League of America #29 (August 1964)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Twelve- Deep Cover for Batman!

Green Arrow (Voiced by James Arnold Taylor)
First Comic Book Appearance: More Fun Comics #73 (November, 1941)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode One- Rise of the Blue Beetle

Blue Beetle  (Voiced by Will Friedle)
First Comic Book Appearance: Infinite Crisis #3 (February, 2006)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode One- Rise of the Blue Beetle

Aquaman (voiced by John DiMaggio)

First comic book appearance: More Fun Comics #73 (November 1941)

First Brave and the Bold appearance: Season 1, Episode 3- Evil Under the Sea!

Red Tornado (Voiced by Corey Burton)
First Comic Book Appearance:  Justice League of America #64 (August, 1968)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Four- Invasion of the Secret Santas!

The Atom (Ryan Choi) (voiced by James Sie)

First comic book appearance: DCU Brave New World (August 2006)

First Brave and the Bold appearance: Season 1, Episode 3- Evil Under the Sea!

Plastic Man (Voiced by Tom Kenny)
First Comic Book Appearance: Police Comics #1 (August 1941)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Two- Terror on Dinosaur Island!

Black Manta (Voiced by Kevin Michael Richardson)

First Comic Book Appearance:  Aquaman #35 (September, 1967)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Three- Evil Under the Sea!

The Brain (voiced by Dee Bradley Baker)

First comic book appearance: Doom Patrol #86 (May 1964)

First Brave and the Bold appearance: Season 1, Episode 9 – Journey to the Center of the Bat!

Dr. Polaris (Voiced by Lex Lang)
First Comic Book Appearance: Green Lantern #21 (June, 1963)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Eight- Fall of the Blue Beetle!

Gorilla Grodd (Voice by John DiMaggio)
First Comic Book Appearance: The Flash #106 (May, 1959)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Two- Terror on Dinosaur Island!

Gentleman Ghost (Voiced by Jonny Rees)
First Comic Book Appearance: Flash Comics #88 (October, 1947)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Two- Terror on Dinosaur Island!

Clock King (Voiced by Dee Bradley Baker)
First Comic Book Appearance: World's Finest Comics #111 (August, 1960)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode One- Rise of the Blue Beetle


Continuity, Comics Connections, and Notes

As opposed to simply being sharing a title and being called part one and part two, this two parter shares a connected title, "Deep Cover for Batman!" and "Game over for Owlman!" These kinds of constructions are similar to to ones from the classic Batman TV series, although in most of those cases, the titles also rhymed.

When Owlman makes his first appearance in the episode, he is wearing Batman's original costume from Detective Comics #27, down to the purple gloves he wore in that first issue, and he is striking the exact pose from the final panel of the first origin story of Batman in Detective Comics #33.

Similarly, the Batmobile Batman uses when chasing Owlman is the design of the first bat branded Batmobile ever used in the comic; Batman drove cars before that, but they were just roadsters and sports cars without the signature Batman touches.

This episode marks the first appearance of the Joker in the series, and is the first major Batman villain to appear: eventually, most of the major Bat-foes will appear, but before now it's been mstly non-Batman foes like Grodd or C-Listers like Cavalier. Joker's design, like Batman's, hearkens back to the '50s, especially the art of legendary Batman artist, Dick Sprang. The Jokermobile was right out of the same era, by the way.

The Batmen of the Multiverse are mostly versions of Batman who have appeared in Elseworlds. The vampire Batman is from the Doug Moench/Kelly Jones vampire Batman trilogy; there are a few Cowboy Batman incarnations, although this one resembles a cross between Batman and the DC western hero, Nighthawk; the superstrong, bulky Batman is drawn from Brave and the Bold #68; Pirate Batman is Captain Leatherwing from Chuck Dixon's Elseworlds annual Detective Comics Annual #7; the Big Brain Batman is from World's Finest #151, where he's the "Batman of 800,000 A,D."; and finally, the armored Batman is one I can't place. If anyone knows where he comes from before this episode, or knows for certain it's an original creation, let me  know.

Reviews of Comics from Wednesday 6/1

Batman: Rebirth #1
Story: Tom King & Scott Snyder
Art: Mikel Janin & June Chung

The whole DC Universe is, well, being born again with Rebirth, and so it's time to reset that Batman status quo back to closer to, well, status quo in Batman: Rebirth. There's a passing of the creative baton, as this issue is co-written by Scott Snyder, who has been writing Batman for the past fifty-plus issues and new series writer Tom King. The issue ties up a bunch of plot threads, including fixing Bruce Wayne's issues with his fortune and exactly how Duke Thomas, late of We Are Robin and a semi-regular part of Snyder's run since the "Zero Year" storyline, will fit into the series moving forward. While there's a lot of table setting for the future, and tying up of plot threads from the previous run, we also get a solid done in one story that reintroduces a "classic" Batman foe, the Calendar Man. I use the quotes because the original version of Calendar Man has been mostly forgotten, and the version that most people know is the version from Batman: The Long Halloween and Batman: Dark Victory. But as with many of the other villains that Snyder re-introduced in his run on Batman, he's added a little bit to the mythos, adding a supernatural or metahuman angle, where Calendar Man changes with the seasons, dying in winter and being reborn in spring, becoming a better version of himself each time. Batman is working to find a way to stop Calendar Man's new mad scheme, where a device is speeding up the seasons, allowing not just Calendar Man's cycle to speed up, but to release deadly spoors on Gotham in the "spring" which would be week's end. It's a crazy super science plot, but that makes it cool to me; it's not grounded in some grim, gritty reality, but it superhero comics at their best. It also does something that I love with Batman: he pushes the limits of what a human is supposed to be able to do. It's not ridiculous, superhuman stuff, but a man who is pushing himself beyond what any human has done because it's what he needs to do to save his city. That's what makes Batman an optimistic character in my mind: he does what he does because he needs to save his city. The art by Mikel Janin is extraordinary, gorgeous and fluid, and is a step up from his already impressive work on Grayson. Seriously, DC, you need to get this man on a Batman book again, and you need to do it soon. If the Rebirth one-shots are designed to get readers excited about the new direction for the DC titles, Batman: Rebirth does a great job.

Buffy: The High School Years- Freaks & Geeks
Story: Faith Erin Hicks
Art: Yishan Li & Rod Espinosa w/ Tony Galvan

There have been plenty of Buffy the Vampire Slayer comics, from the  original series that ran concurrently with the series to the recent series that continue the TV series for three more seasons. I know many fans who are of mixed feeling about those later seasons, so this, the first in a series of original graphic novels set during seasons 1 & 2 of the TV series, is for them. This story feels right out of the first season of Buffy, as a matter of fact, since she doesn't know about Angel being a vampire yet, it's easy to squeeze it into the timeline. The story sees a Buffy, who is new to Sunnydale and her friends, is coming to terms with her status as more of an outcast and not the popular girl she was before she moved to Sunnydale. The antagonists are a group of four recently turned vampires, who were geeks before they were sired, and thought they'd be cool now that they were undead, but instead are simply geeks in the vampire set. And when they're told that the way to get in with the vamp set would be to kill the Slayer, well, they set out to do it. And since I said this takes place during season one of Buffy and the comic is now in season ten, you can guess who wins. Still, it's interesting to see the vampires call Buffy out on being a bully, as they're used to the pretty girls picking on them, and see how Buffy reacts to it. It embraces ll the angst that made those early seasons of Buffy classics. You can hear the dialogue in the voices of the actors it's so spot on. And while the story embraces the unlimited budget of comics to produce a spell and a creature that would be difficult on a TV show's budget, it doesn't let that fact drown out the character driven nature of the best Buffy stories. I've enjoyed the comic universe of recent Buffy stories, but there's something nice about returning to these early years, when the most Buffy had to worry about was failing a test and the occasional apocalypse.

The Shadow: The Death of Margo Lane #1
Story & Art: Matt Wagner
Colors: Brennan Wagner

Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow clearly does. Matt Wagner has a history with the Shadow, the mystery man who is a direct spiritual ancestor to Batman; he wrote Shadow: Year One and wrote and drew the crossover between the Shadow and his own creation, the assassin/mob boss Grendel. This is the first full length story starring the Shadow written and drawn by Matt Wagner, and it's absolutely gorgeous. Wagner has a wonderful sense of the period these stories are set in, and the look of the buildings, the design work, and the costumes are all absolutely gorgeous. As with his other Shadow stories, this one is narrated by Margo Lane, the Shadow's romantic partner and one of his many agents in crime fighting, and sees the shadow in conflict with a new boss of the Tongs of Chinatown, the Red Empress. The Shadow's investigations lead him not just to the streets of New York, but to China itself, and then back, If you've never read the Shadow, or are unfamiliar with his world, this first issue does a great job of catching you up, introducing you to his powers, his allies, and his methods. It reads like a pulp, packed with narration and exotic locations, crooks and heroes, reporter and cops, everything you expect from a '30s crime story. As a story narrated in the past tense by Margo, I'm not sure exactly how the title and Margo's seeming death will play in unless she's narrating from beyond the grave, but we'll see as the series progresses. A good Shadow story is filled with crime, shocks, and a touch of the macabre, and this issue has all of that in spades.


And Dan Grote's back with a review this week, reviewing Deadpool #13, a four part crossover in one book...

Deadpool #13/Daredevil #7.1/Power Man and Iron Fist #4.1/Deadpool #13.1

Story: Gerry Duggan, Charles Soule and David Walker

Art: Jacopo Camagni, Guillermo Sanna, Elmo Bondoc, Paco Diaz

Colors: Veronica Gandini, Mat Lopes, Nolan Woodard and Israel Silva

Deadpool teaming up with a hero who can’t stand him is a time-honored tradition dating to his work with Banshee in 1994’s “Sins of the Past” miniseries. This issue, which is actually a four-part crossover in one $9.99 floppy, teams the worst Avenger with Daredevil, Luke Cage and Iron Fist – none of whom has any lost love for him – to protect a Wall Street investor wanted by multiple mobs and some of the more crooked parts of the NYPD.

So yeah, it’s kind of like “The Other Guys,” one of the better Will Ferrell/Adam McKay movies.

It’s also a spiritual sequel of sorts to the Daredevil/Deadpool ’97 annual, which saw the Man without Fear and the Merc with a Mouth team up for the first time to stop the mentally unstable assassin Typhoid Mary.

Duggan, who writes the first and fourth parts of this intrabook crossover, doesn’t often lean on the work of previous Deadpool scribes. His run has done an amazing job of building Wade Wilson’s world and rich history on its own. But in this issue, he revisits the relationship between Deadpool and Mary built early on in Joe Kelly’s run and says, flat out, what we’ve all been thinking for 20 years.

Typhoid Mary raped Deadpool.

“It was truly one of the worst experiences of my life,” Wade recounts of the time Mary used an image inducer to pose as Wade’s crush of the time, the X-Force member Siryn. “And that’s saying something, if you’ve read my Handbook entry.”

This time around, Mary is working for the Russian mob, one of the parties who wants investor Marvin Shirkley dead for losing their money. Shirkley hires Deadpool for protection, and Wade agrees to take his case, seeing it as an opportunity to work out his Mary issues. Deadpool takes Marvin to the district attorney’s office – specifically, the broken elevator-turned-office of Assistant District Attorney Matt Murdock – for protection, but that idea falls apart once Deadpool realizes the key piece of evidence they need to protect Marvin, the laptop Marvin gave him containing information on all his clients, he threw in the trash because it didn’t fit in his safe.

And so, with a host of Russian, Japanese and other mob nasties coming for them, Deadpool, Shirkley and the Heroes for Hire spend a day in a New York landfill trying to find the laptop. When the goon squad finally shows, the sanitation workers help the heroes repel them, only after which does a truck roll in with the laptop safe and sound. And after one last fight, Mary is locked away in a SHIELD facility where she can get care for her dissociative identity disorder, courtesy of an ever-softening Wade and his life-model decoy SHIELD friend, Agent Emily Preston.

Oh, and there’s a framing sequence in which Daily Bugle reporter Ben Urich tries to figure out how to report all this and gives up, but it doesn’t really affect the story at all.

Had this been an actual four-part crossover, you would have paid almost $20 to collect ‘em all. So while 10 bucks for one book is certainly steep, you are getting one solid, self-contained, quadruple-sized story out of it. And a lot of jokes about being blind.

It Came from Kickstarter: The Hero Business: Season One

One of the problems with buying as many novels and trades as I do, and contributing to as many Kickstarters as I do, is that I have constantly growing stacks on unread books. I get a new one, and unless it's part of a continuing narrative, it usually joins the stack. And then sometime when I'm between books, I'll grab a random book off the stack. Last week I was looking for something light and fun, and I saw a book from a Kickstarter that I received back in December, and thought that it fit the bill, and it really did.

Created by Bill Walko, The Hero Business is the story of a business that provides marketing, consulting, technical, and PR services for super heroes. If you're new the super hero game, they have a consultant for you,to learn the ropes. Have you been through a cosmic crisis that has re-written your history? That's what public relations are for, to get the word out! It's aware of pretty much every genre trope you can imagine, and plays them all for laughs, but never pokes at those of us who love them. It's quick-witted super hero pastiche with its tongue planted firmly in cheek, with office drama mixed in, and some great characters.

The Kickstarter for The Hero Business funded a collection of the first season of the web comics, the first six storylines. We're introduced to the series through Parker, the new receptionist for The Hero Business, which is the name of the company as well as the comics, on her first day of work, so we have a solid point of view character that allows the reader to not only see how the business works, but the other principal characters.

Parker (center) is a smart, level headed young woman who is also working on her dissertation while dealing with the wacky hijinks at Hero Business. Morgan (far right) is the Director of Public Relations; she's probably the best of the senior staff at what she does, but she's also a workaholic. Simon (first from right) is the Marketing Director, a smarmy Brit who is always looking to get ahead and always has a scheme up his sleeve. Brody (far left) is the art director, who feels like doing this commercial work is below him, that he's a real artist, but that doesn't pay the bills. Finally. there's Bravada and Dr. Malefactor (on Parker's left and right, respectively). These guys were once Superman and Luthor-esque arch-rivals, but now have to work together, with Bravado as official superhero of Hero Business, and Malefactor as Head of R&D, meaning he still builds mad science stuff, but he theoretically isn't doing it to take over the world. Bravado is pretty out of touch with the modern world, and Malefactor still is more mad scientist than corporate scientist, and they still profess to hate each other, but there's something close to friendship hidden underneath that.

Each of the six chapters of the first season of The Hero Business are short stories that can be read on their own, but have subplots that feed into each other. Chapter One, "Orientation," is the aforementioned first day of work for Parker. She has to show a celebutante who has gotten herself super powers around, introduce her to the people who will help her become a superhero. We meet the cast, and get to really see just how smart Parker is, as she's the one who solves the problem when the celebrity brat decides it would be much cooler to be a super villain. But in the epilogue, we see that Parker has a secret of her own, one that she is keeping from Hero Business and might mean she has an agenda against the business.

Chapter Two is "The All-New, All-Different Bravado," where a popular TV show about superheroes says Bravdo is old news, so the Hero Business decides to rebrand him. It's a hilarious take on superhero reboots, as three members of the hero business select creators to help design Bravado's new image. Brody brings in a '90s Image Comics type creator who tries to make Bravado grim and gritty; Morgan brings in a hip, young TV writer from the "EW Network," to try to make Bravado relevant to the youth market; and Simon brings in a Grant Morrison analogue to make a trippy, confusing Bravado. The ending, where the people who initially were against Bravado are now begging for the classic one back, is interesting to read as we see DC Rebirth taking shape and the return of classic versions of heroes.

"Cry, Malefactor!"the next chapter, focuses on "reformed" mad scientist Dr. Malefactor trying to find a new job that will allow him some more freedom to do mad science while leaving an android duplicate in his place at Hero Business. We get to see that Malefactor has more levels than just the evil scientist and that he's got layers, that he feels like a failure for not having conquered the world yet. We also get our first look at Infernal Enterprises, the Hero Business's rival, a company that does similar work, but is evil, run by the malevolent Demonatrix and her assistant, Primstone.

Morgan is the focal character of Chapter Four, "Frenemy Mine." Glamazon, one of the world's leading superheroines, has written a tell-all memoir, and the Hero Business, as her PR firm, is hosting a book launch party. Glamazon was Morgan's school roommate, and the two of them go back years, and Morgan isn't exactly flattered by the things Glamazon has to say about her. But she's a professional, and wants to grin and bear her way through it. But things go wrong, including certain revelations about Morgan's past, and we get a wild fight in the middle of the party. This chapter gives us more depth for Morgan, who has been up til this point been mostly portrayed as a driven business woman, and we get dimension on Glamazon as well, one of the more regularly portrayed super people in the comic.

The last of the single character centric chapters, "Simon Sayeth," pretty obviously from the title focuses on Simon. Simon has developed a new app called "kickr" which works as a way to let heroes meet other heroes for team-ups. But when the other senior staff members aren't being as helpful as Simon wants, he uses a book of black magic to cast a spell to get them to. Only, as anyone who has ever read anything about mind control or wishes knows, be careful what you ask for. And despite remaining a jerk, the story gives reader a bit more understanding of why he is such a jerk. And while his plan doesn't work out, the eventual use of his app is absolutely hilarious.

"Bad for Business," the final episode of season one, is a perfect finale, bringing together all the things we've learned about these characters, and answering questions about Parker's secret and origins, what Infernal Enterprises is up to, and provides a cool cliffhanger for the next season. It's an exciting payoff, as each character gets to show off what they are best at. I love the scene where Parker, Simon, and Malefactor are brainstorming ways to stop Infernal Enterprises's hostile takeover of the Hero Business, because even if Simon is willing to do anything to get ahead, and Parker needs to prove she's on the side of the angels, neither are quite willing to go down Malefactor's mad science route, no matter how frustrated he gets by it.

It's obvious from these descriptions that Bill Walko knows his superhero tropes. He plays off all the hero vs. hero, the retcons, the plans gone wrong, and so many more. The Season One collection also has a bunch of "Coffee Break" strips; one or two page shorts that are quick set-up punchline gags. The covers to each of the chapters, as well as various pin-ups, are homages to classic superhero comic book covers. And the background and supporting super characters all play on classic hero types that all of us super hero fans know and love.

The most important thing about The Hero Business, though, is the first line of creator Bill Walko's introduction, "Comics should be fun."And at its heart, below all the pastiche and parody, is what The Hero Business is: fun. It's quirky superhero sit-com at its best, enjoyable both for those of us who get everything that Walko is alluding to and those who just know that superheroes fight supervillains in flashy costumes. And hey, I'll always read for the fun of it.

Since The Hero Business was a Kickstarter, you can't get it through most of the usual channels. But you can visit The Hero Business website, where you can buy the complete Season One, various prints and merch, or just read the series as a web comic. Season Two, episode one is running now.

The Great Batman: The Brave and the Bold Rewatch: Deep Cover for Batman!

Season One, Episode Twelve: Deep Cover for Batman!
Written by Joseph Kuhr
Directed by Michael Chang

Plot Synopsis

Teaser: Sitting in shadows, a hooded figure begins to talk about his comrades and the Phase Oscillator, a device that will allow him to find allies on another Earth. He fires the device, and a portal opens. He tosses a throwing star in the shape of a card suit spade through, and is confident the device is working when a hooded Batman-like figure appears, along with figures resembling his many allies, although they appear far more aggressive. The light reveals the man to be the Red Hood, and as the others pursue him, he drops the Phase Oscillator, which is retrieved by his foes, who beat him, although he is able to escape. The group steps out of the shadows, revealed to be Owlman (Batman), Blue Bowman (Green Arrow), Scarlet Scarab (Blue Beetle), and Silver Cyclone (Red Tornado), who plan to use the device to take over other worlds.

Episode: The Bat Signal shines in the Gotham sky, as Batman talks to Commissioner Gordon, telling him he's stopped the Riddler. He drives back into the Batcave, first noticing the throwing spade Red Hood tossed through the vortex, and in its reflective surface notices Owlman, who attacks. The two have an extended fight sequence and prove evenly matched, down to similar gadgets. Batman kills the lights, and Owlman begins to gloat, saying owls see better in the dark than bats, turning on nightvision tech. Batman, though, is prepared and triggers a device that causes a bright flash before punching Owlman and knocking him out.

Batman examines the Phase Oscillator, deducing its purpose, and realizing Owlman is his doppelganger. Owlman, in a strait jacket and cell in the Batcave, refuses to tell Batman his purpose, and while Batman seems to threaten to beat the answers out of Owlman, he instead takes his costume and heads back to Owlman's Earth. In Owlman's penthouse, he finds the doppelgangers of his friends waiting, and warns them off his Earth, saying its too dangerous, a world where everyone has powers, so they decide to go with plan B: simply use a giant bomb to blow up the other Earth, to make an example of it and scare all other Earths into bowing to them.

The Injustice Syndicate heads to a lab to get a sample of Prometheum-90, the fuel for the bomb, and Batman sees the world he's in, and how it is full of fear of the villains, with seemingly no heroes to defend it. They reach the lab and go to get the Prometheum-90, but Silver Centurion warns them not to break the container, or the only sample of the mineral known will be useless. Seeing a way to stop the bomb, Batman heads to get it, only to be interrupted by Red Hood. The Injustice Syndicate attacks Red Hood, and Batman knocks Red Hood aside, revealing his identity as a hero from the other world. He gives Hood a Bat communicator, and although Hood's face is obscured by shadow, the lines of it and the bits we see make it clear he is this Earth's Joker. Batman apologizes before knocking him out, and the others arrive, with Scarlet Scarab holding the Prometheum-90.

Back at Owlman's penthouse, Batman finds out where Red Hood is being kept, and when Blue Bowman asks why he's acting weird, Batman slugs him and tells him not to question him. Bowman walks off perturbed, and then seems to talk to the air, telling someone to stay close and keep an eye on Owlman. In the jail, Silver Cyclone is trying to torture information out of Red Hood, who won't break, simply laughing it off. We see his origin, and inversion of Batman's fight with his Earth's Red Hood, where instead of him jumping into the chemicals that made him Joker to escape, Owlman throws him into them, and this Red Hood didn't fully lose his mind. We see versions of villains,in this world heroes, fighting the Injustice Syndicate, and falling to them, although Hood escapes to fight another day. Batman is communicating to him right in his ear through the communicator, telling him to stall as he is about to spring Hood and the other heroes.

But then we find out who Blue Bowman was talking to: Dyna-Mite, this universe's Atom, who springs up to stop Batman from using the computer to free the heroes. Batman stops Dyna-Mite, but the computer is destroyed, so Batman heads down to Hood, who uses his interrogation to drop hints to allow Batman to find him. As Batman nears him through the ventilation system, Silver Cyclone figures out what's going on, zaps Hood and starts blowing cyclones through the vents, pushing Batman back towards a large exhaust fan. Batman tosses a few explosive capsules from his utility belt to stop the fan, and escapes into the Injustice Syndicate's trophy room.

Batman makes his way into the room, and finds Blue Bowman, Dyna-Mite, and Scarlet Scarab waiting. They try to blast him, and when they find Owlman's tattered costume, they think they killed him, only to have Batman drop down on them in his own costume. He easily bests them, and then heads down to the jail, where he frees Red Hood. They are then confronted by the entire Injustice Syndicate, including doubles of Aquaman, Fire, and nearly all the bother heroes who have appeared in the series to date. Silver Cyclone observes they are outnumbered, but Batman opens the cells, freeing the heroes, all doubles of series villains, to even the odds.

A big fight commences, and with Batman aiding them, the heroes have the upper hand this time. Red Hood battles Silver Cyclone, and is able to knock the Phase Oscillator away from him into Batman's hands. The heroes begin to slowly lock the villains up in the cells they were once imprisoned in, but Silver Cyclone has a last play: He activates the bomb that he was planning to send to Batman's Earth, so he can wipe out all human life on this Earth, leaving him an empty Earth of his own. Red Hood throws an explosive spade, blowing up Cyclone's head. Batman attaches rockets to the bomb, and Red Hood programs the Phase Oscillator to a world of zombies, where no one can be killed, and the rocket explodes there, causing no deaths.

Later, Batman and Red Hood stand in Owlman's penthouse, Batman congratulating Red Hood on his victory, and Red Hood saying he hopes his counterpart can repay Batman, whose reply is that seems, "unlikely." Batman opens the portal and heads back to the Gotham, only to find the city papered with wanted posters for him, and the police surrounding him, saying he's under arrest.

TO BE CONTINUED

Who's Who

Owlman (Voiced by Diedrich Bader)
First Comic Book Appearance: Justice League of America #29 (August 1964)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Twelve- Deep Cover for Batman!

When first introduced, Owlman was a member of the Crime Syndicate, the team's opposite number to Batman, although he was never given much of a backstory. In the post-Crisis and post-Flashpoint continuities, he is Thomas Wayne Jr., who hails from Earth-3 (or the anti-matter universe before the multiverse was recreated), the brother of Bruce Wayne. The two origins vary: post-Crisis, Thomas witnessed the death of his mother and brother at the hands of a corrupt police officer and swore vengeance on the law, while in post-Flashpoint, he orchestrated the death of his family to inherit their fortune. There have also been two Owlmans from the main DC Earth, one was detective Roy Raymond Jr., recruited to be the detective on the Outsiders after Batman's apparent death at the hands of Darkseid, and the other is Lincoln March, a member of the Court of Owls who claims to be Bruce's heretofore unknown brother, Thomas Wayne Jr, although his claims are unsubstantiated. Owlman has skills on par with Batman in both intellect and fighting, although he is considerably more ruthless and has no qualms about taking a life.

Crime Syndicate of America

First Comic Book Appearance: Justice League of America #29 (August 1964)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Twelve- Deep Cover for Batman!

The Crime Syndicate of America is an alternate reality of the Justice League of America from Earth-3 (or briefly the antimatter universe in the post-Crisis continuity where there was no Multiverse). On their Earth, the morality of people is inverted, and heroes are villains and vice versa. The Crime Syndicate is often portrayed a rulers of their world. The five regular members of the Crime Syndicate are Ultraman (Superman), Super Woman (Wonder Woman), Owlman (Batman), Johnny Quick (Flash), and Power Ring (Green Lantern). The most recent incarnation of the team, whose invasion of the main DC Universe Earth was the centerpiece of the Forever Evil crossover, also included Grid (Cyborg), Sea King (Aquaman), Deathstorm (Firestorm), and Atomica (Atom).

Red Hood (Voiced by Jeff Bennett)

First Comic Book Appearance: Detective Comics #168 (February 1951)
First Brave and the Bold Appearance: Season One, Episode Twelve- Deep Cover for Batman!

While there is no direct corollary to this alternate Red Hood in the alternate DC Universe, the name Red Hood is significantly tied to Batman history. The leader of the Red Hood Gang, a gang that terrorized Gotham, Batman cornered Red Hood in the Ace Chemical Factory, where he dove into a vat of chemicals to avoid capture, counting on the air supply in his helmet to help him survive. And while he did survive, he found his skin bleached white and his hair dyed green. He would go on to become Batman's most nefarious foe, the Joker, but more on that next time... Former Robin Jason Todd would also take up the name Red Hood after his resurrection from his death at Joker's hands.

Continuity, Comics Connections, and Notes

The Injustice Syndicate members introduced in this episode are nearly all original characters, with the exception of Owlman. The name of the group is actually a combination of two villain teams who have fought the Justice League over the years, the Crime Syndicate of Earth-3, who are the alternate reality evil doppelgangers of the Justice League, and the Injustice Gang, who are usually a team comprised of villains who are gathered to fight the Justice League.

This is the series first of only two part episodes. Similar to Batman: The Animated Series, Brave and the Bold is a mostly episodic series, where while there is character development and backstory built up over the series, it can mostly be watched in any order, as opposed to later DCAU series like Justice League, which was much closer to a serialized narrative.

As with the beginning of the series, the teaser is tied directly to the main story, but is even more tied in to the main story, being less of a stand alone vignette and more a prologue to the main action.

Many of the most famous elements of Batman's mythos appear rarely in the course of Brave and the Bold. As mentioned earlier,Batman rarely appears without his mask. And while the Batmobile and Batarangs have appeared often, this is the first appearance of both the Bat Signal and the Batcave.