Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne #4

August 7, 2010

Title: Dark Night, Dark Rider

Writer: Grant Morrison
Penciler: Georges Jeanty
Inker: Walden Wong
Colorist: Tony Avina
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Cover: Andy Kubert
Editor: Mike Marts
Publisher: DC Comics

Bruce Wayne continues to ricochet through time, landing in the Gotham City of the post-Civil War era. The town is gripped with the fear of a “Cowboy in Black” who has been exacting brutal vengeance on certain unsavory elements of the population, and so the bounty hunter Jonah Hex is called in to take him on.

Aside from the question of why Gotham – always depicted as an east coast port city – has all the earmarks of a Clint Eastwood spaghetti western, this is a really strong issue. Jonah Hex (despite the crappy movie) is a great character that doesn’t often get to interact with the rest of the DC Universe, so it’s a lot of fun when a story gives a truly natural reason for him to turn up. It makes sense for him to be here, and it leads to a really strong confrontation between him and Batman. This has been a solid series from the first issue, and this is no exception.

Georges Jeanty, who’s been kicking butt and taking names on Buffy the Vampire Slayer the last few years, finds time in his schedule to turn this out, and he does a great job. His depiction of the Bat-Cowboy is really cool, and his Jonah Hex is so strong that I’d like to see him handle an issue or two of that series.

Good stuff, Mr. Morrison. Good stuff indeed.

Rating: 7/10

Justice League: Generation Lost #6

August 1, 2010

Title: Splitting the Atom

Writer: Judd Winick
Breakdowns: Keith Giffen
Penciler: Fernando Dagnino
Inker: Raul Fernandez
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Cover: Cliff Chiang
Editors: Ogle, Siglain & Cunningham
Publisher: DC Comics

Captain Atom got caught in an explosion last issue, which has a tendency to cause him to bounce around through time. This issue, we see what happened to him during that time he was lost, beginning with waking up on a rural farm in an era without any modern conveniences and where nobody recognizes the man with the metal skin as a superhero. What he discovers in this other time, though, turns out to be of crucial importance to what’s going on in the present day.

Judd Winick is doing a really good job with this title. The spotlight on Captain Atom is pretty solid, but the way he pulls off the reveals in this issue are just fantastic. This issue sets up the rest of the series very well. We’ve never had any doubt that Maxwell Lord was a bad guy, but this issue really drives home just how vital it is that this makeshift Justice League stop him from doing… well… whatever it is he’s doing. Winick also does a nice job of picking apart Captain Atom’s consciousness, delving into who he is and what’s going on beneath that shiny shell of his.

I’m not sure when Keith Giffen migrated from being co-writer of this book to doing the breakdowns, but the transition was smooth and the artwork remains solid. Giffen is really one of the all-time great layout artists, and the team of Fernando Dagnino and Raul Fernandez do very nice work, laying their own art over his blueprints. The book is sharp-looking and handles the different characters and eras very well.

This book has been quite a surprise – it’s not just good, it’s very good, and it’s been consistently good. Let’s just hope that it can keep this up for the next 20 issues.

Rating: 8/10

Batman Beyond (2010 Series) #2

July 30, 2010

Title: Hush Beyond Part 2: Past Crimes

Writer: Adam Beechen
Penciler: Ryan Benjamin
Inker: John Stanisci
Colorist: David Baron
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Cover: Dustin Nguyen
Editor: Michael Siglain
Publisher: DC Comics

Last issue, a string of murders began to target the enemies of the original Batman, Bruce Wayne. Terry McGinnis, the current Batman, managed to track down the killer, only to find a blast from the past – is the real culprit the man called Hush?

I’m glad to see that Adam Beechen is making this book into, essentially, a mystery story. Batman is a superhero, sure, and Batman Beyond specifically is immersed heavily in the science fiction genre, but the core of the character has always been his skills as a detective, and we’ve got a pretty good mystery to work with here. There’s obviously a reason for this resurgence in Batman’s old foes at exactly this moment, and exploring those reasons gives Terry (and Bruce, for that matter) a great motivation as this series goes forward.

I’m back and forth on Ryan Benjamin’s artwork. Some of the design stuff is really good, but some of the more detail-oriented things, such as characters’ faces, isn’t as strong as it could be. His Bruce, for example, is a kind of generic Old Man template, while Terry has a wide-eyed, almost manga look going for him. It’s easy to tell everybody apart, mainly because the costumes are so wild and different from one another, but without the clothes I don’t know if it would be that simple.

This book is sold, but it could use some tweaking.

Rating: 7/10

52 #2

May 17, 2006

Quick Rating: Very Good
Title: Looking Back at Tomorrow

A new question for Booster, a new path for Renee and a new mystery for Ralph!

Writers: Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid & Dan Jurgens
Breakdowns: Keith Giffen
Pencils: Joe Bennett & Dan Jurgens
Inks: Jack Jadson & Art Thibert
Colors: Alex Sinclair, Guy Major & Jeromy Cox
Letters: Travis Lanham & Nick J. Napolitano
Editors: Stephen Wacker, Eddie Berganza, Ivan Cohen & Jeanine Schaefer
Cover Art: J.G. Jones & Alex Sinclair
Publisher: DC Comics

After a first issue that was, by necessity, mostly set-up, this issue the story of 52 really begins in earnest. Booster Gold seeks help to help repair Skeets, his robot from the future whose records of the present seem to be faulty. Renee Montoya, even as she spirals further downward, is given a new purpose. And someone has left a mystery for Ralph Dibney, the former Elongated Man.

Although Booster gets the cover, Ralph gets the meatiest story this week. Starting at the grave of his wife (slain in the book that launched a thousand issues, Identity Crisis), Ralph finds a clue to a new mystery. Any fears that this book would just be a year-long epilogue to Infinite Crisis should be allayed – although it’s clearly built on that foundation, the stories that begin this issue really are independent. They aren’t just tying up loose ends, they’re unraveling threads and weaving something new.

It’s clear this issue that the six “stars” of this title won’t be equal in every issue – two of the six don’t even appear this week – but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Not every character appears in every episode of an ensemble television show either, and with only seven days between issues it’s not like fans are going to have to wait another month for their Steel fix. As long as each of them has their moments in the sun, their storylines, it’s not too big a burden if they fall by the wayside for one issue.

I’m intrigued by the story, but Joe Bennett and Jack Jadson could use some tightening up. Keith Giffen’s layouts are fine (and for longtime fans it’s clearly his work), but the characters look a bit stiff at times. It even took me a second look to realize I was seeing Ralph Dibney’s infamous nose-wiggle that shows he’s on the trail of a mystery.

This issue also begins the ten-part “History of the DC Universe” by Dan Jurgens and Art Thibert, and it’s a little on the light side. With only four pages in the first installment, you don’t expect it to go too far, but you also don’t expect the first two pages to be spent on Donna Troy trying to decide if she even wants to hear the history. We know she’s going to, after all. Like last issue, this is a necessary introduction and I expect the story to get better now that they can get to the meat.

All in all this is a solid issue, and the few problems I had are things that will be naturally addressed as this unique project continues its rotation. With two down and fifty to go, this definitely feels like a worthwhile project for me.

Rating: 8/10

Justice League Unlimited #19

February 27, 2006

Quick Rating: Great
Title: The Justice Rangers Ride Again!

When a time-travel mishap sends three Leaguers back in time, they have to race to fix the timestream!

Writer: Adam Beechen
Pencils: Gordon Purcell
Inks: Bob Petrecca
Colors: Heroic Age
Letters: Travis Lanham
Editor: Michael Wright
Cover Art: Ty Templeton
Publisher: DC Comics/Johnny DC

As Wonder Woman, Elongated Man and Vigilante go through trophies of the Justice League’s past adventures, Vigilante accidentally activates a time-travel device that sends them back to the old west where they encounter three of DC’s classic western heroes – Jonah Hex, El Diablo and Bat Lash. To get home, the heroes will have to protect an important young man from an attempt on his life by a villain from the future.

Justice League Unlimited, even in its final season (stupid Cartoon Network) continues to be one of the single greatest superhero television shows ever made, and Adam Beechen has done a really great job capturing the feel of that show in this comic. Each issue is stand-alone, but features a story that would fit in quite nicely with the chronology of the TV series, and the way he goes beyond the League itself to drawn in other parts of the DC Universe makes it even more fun. This version of the old west, of course, is a great deal more sanitized than that you would find in Jonah Hex, but in a comic aimed at kids, that’s an acceptable change. The sheer cool factor of seeing Elongated Man and Hex fighting bad guys in robot suits more than makes up for that.

Gordon Purcell’s artwork, as always, is spot-on. Each panel looks like it could have been clipped directly from the TV show, but he doesn’t sacrifice any of the storytelling language unique to the comic book form.

I really, really love this comic book, it’s the only Johnny DC title I buy every month, and even though the television series is coming to an end, I hope DC keeps this title alive for a very long time.

Rating: 9/10