Robin (1993 Series) #122

January 18, 2004

Quick Rating: Fair
Title: Bad to the Bone

Robin’s encounter with a smuggler leaves him with a tough choice.

Writer: Bill Willingham
Pencils: Rick Mays
Inks: Aaron Sowd
Colors: Guy Major
Letters: Ken Lopez
Editor: Michael Wright
Cover Art: Jason Pearson
Publisher: DC Comics

While I’m still waiting for Bill Willingham to wow me on this title the way he does each and every month in Fables, this issue is a step up from his debut issue. Last issue ended with a cliffanger, Robin with a gun held to his head by a crook smuggling a mysterious object from S.T.A.R. Labs. He handles that situation with the usual aplomb one would expect from someone trained by the Batman, but our crook du jour makes a couple of stupid moves that leaves the hero dumbfounded.

As we learn more about the “mysterious object” in this issue, it is evident that Willingham is using a supernatural menace in his opening story arc. While Batman stories dealing with mysticism almost always seem forced and inappropriate, for some reason, the same menaces are a lot easier to take in a Robin story. Perhaps it’s because the character himself isn’t as grim or serious, so you can accept seeing him fight with a dark magician or magical artifact. Willingham seems on his way to crafting a major new villain, although whether he will be a one-time threat or a new addition to Robin’s rogues gallery remains to be seen.

We also get the return of Spoiler in this issue – an in-costume return, which is sure to ruffle Batman’s… um… feathers… but which readers will welcome. She’s a great character and really has become integral to Robin’s mythos.

I’m still not sold on Rick Mays as the penciller for this title. While there’s nothing technically wrong with his artwork, he’s a good storyteller and draws good superheroes, he doesn’t feel like a good match. His characters have a very manga-esque feel, particularly in the eyes, which just doesn’t feel right in a Batman-family book.

This issue probably won’t win any new readers, but it will satisfy old readers enough to keep them around through the end of Willingham’s first story arc. Here’s hoping by then he pulls out that “wow” moment we know he’s capable of and keeps us all around.

Rating: 6/10

Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane #13

December 26, 2006

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: The Parker Thing
Rating: All Ages

Gwen Stacy needs help with her new boyfriend – so she turns to Mary Jane!

Writer: Sean McKeever
Art: Takeshi Miyazawa & Rick Mays
Colors: Christina Strain
Letters: Dave Sharpe
Editor: Mark Paniccia
Cover Art: Tak, N. Lee & Christina Strain
Publisher: Marvel Comics

As Mary Jane tries to deal with the fact that Peter Parker has a new girlfriend, Gwen Stacy grows more and more upset over Peter’s frequent absences and lame excuses. She’s still new at Midtown High, though, and doesn’t have many friends, so she turns to the one person who may have some insight into Peter’s behavior… Mary Jane. MJ is having enough trouble just trying to remain civil to Gwen, but the idea of giving her advice, helping her stay in the graces of the boy they both have a thing for… it gets to be a bit more than MJ can handle.

This is actually my first exposure to the “Mary Jane” universe, and I have to admit, the appeal is obvious. This reads a bit like an old-fashioned romance comic, but with enough of a contemporary flavor to make it easily accessible and enjoyable to a modern teen audience. The book is a wonderful blend of Marvel canon, romance comic style and modern writing. It’s not perfect – Gwen’s narration of a battle between Spidey and the Sandman starts out cute but begins getting a little tedious – but it still has a very realistic flavor, and that’s a point in its favor.

Miyazawa’s art style seems a natural fit for the comic – while it obviously has a Manga feel to it, the soft lines and wide-eyed expressions are a natural for a romance comic (which is what this is, let’s be honest). His fight scene is somewhat constrained by being filtered through Gwen’s perceptions, but for what it is, it works.

Overall, this is a fun comic, and the sort of thing that comics need to do more of: expand their horizons.

Rating: 8/10

Robin (1993 Series) #121

December 13, 2003

Quick Rating: Average
Title: Johnny Got His Gun

Robin’s first day at a new school could turn out to be murder…

Writer: Bill Willingham
Pencils: Rick Mays
Inks: Aaron Sowd
Colors: Guy Major
Letters: Nick Napolitano
Editor: Michael Wright
Cover Art: Jason Pearson
Publisher: DC Comics

Well… they can’t all be Fables. Bill Willingham’s first issue as the Robin scribe is solid enough, but isn’t really anything special. Most of it feels like setup, which is certainly necessary for a long run on a title, but one can’t help but wish there had been a little more zip in this first issue.

Robin, alias Tim Drake, is beginning his junior year of high school in this issue, and immediately gets taken under the wing of a classmate who views himself as the cliqueless ruler of the school. Tim doesn’t like this young man, Bernard Dowd, any more than the reader does – he seems pretty arrogant and full of himself, and essentially is a walking neon sign that says, “Big storyline coming up involving this character! Stay tuned!”

Meanwhile, Batman has Tim using his computer skills to track down clues on a thief who escaped with a piece of S.T.A.R. Labs technology. They aren’t sure what, exactly, they’re looking for, but the classification labels it as an item vital to national security. Tim is put off, however, when Batman puts him on cave-duty so he can concentrate on school.

This issue features a decent tale, nothing really wrong with it, but nothing that grabs the reader either. There’s nothing to make this book stand out from the so-so run of Jon Lewis or even to harken back to Chuck Dixon’s landmark 100-issue run. The absence of the Spoiler, Robin’s girlfriend, from this issue, is also bothersome, as she is one of the best members of his supporting cast, outside of Batman and Alfred. On the writing end, the best thing we get are several new bat-toys Tim employs in the opening fight scenes with the S.T.A.R. thieves. New uses for his cape and other bits of technology are quite good, and it’s always fun to see something else added to the Bat-family arsenal.

This issue would be rated higher than “average” if it weren’t for Rick Mays’s artwork. His poses are awkward and uninspired for the most part, and for some reason nearly every character has the same elongated, almond-shaped eyes, making them look Asian. It’s not quite a manga style, but it’s close, and while there’s nothing wrong with a manga style in and of itself, it doesn’t really fit well with this title.

Willingham has proven himself a good enough writer that he deserves at least a full story arc to decide if you keep reading this title or not. While this book isn’t overly impressive by itself, it has potential, and you can only hope that the writer is already planning to build upon it.

Rating: 5/10