Jyger’s Favourite 5 – 5 Favourite Damian Moments

Yeah, as you might imagine, I’m feeling just a little nostalgic for some of my favourite Damian Wayne moments, what with him dying horribly in the newest issue of Batman Incorporated. Now, I understand why a lot of people dislike the guy. Hell, I did for a long time. However, there have been some really great moments of his, be they either F Yeah moments of awesometasticness, or just plain ROFL moments. So, to help people get over the loss of Damian, and to help his detractors better understand why I liked him, these are my 5 Favourite Damian Moments.

#1 – STOP THE WEDDING!

I think this was the moment that pretty much solidified beyond any doubt why Dick and Damian as Batman and Robin were awesome. I forget exactly why they were crashing the wedding. I mean, I know there were thugs and crooks and whatnot there, but I forget the exact situation. But regardless, Dick and Damian crash the wedding, and as Damian points out during the ensuing fight, they both had a line upon crashing the doors down. I will admit though that Dick’s is funnier and maybe adds a little insight on certain lingering issues of his regarding weddings.

#2 – Damian and Stephanie in the Magic Bounce

This one was more a matter of “Which one would people kill me most for leaving out”. I didn’t wanna go the cheap way and say “Every Time Damian And Stephanie Were On The Same Panel At The Same Time”. Likewise, if I did all my favourite Damian and Stephanie moments, this whole list would be just them. So I had to pick one, and for me, this is the best one. It pretty much summarises their chemistry as an unlikely duo in that one page. Sadly, it kinda makes me wanna shake my fist at DC, as one of these characters is banned from use by writers, and one is now dead…What the frak.

#3 – Damian pwns Jason Todd

So Damian has just beaten Jason Todd in a fight (albeit with some shenanigans involved), and what does he do? He rides off on Jason’s motorcycle with the Red Hood helmet mounted on the front. This is Damian being a very blatant dick, but considering he’s doing it to Jason Todd, it’s admittedly kind of funny. Though this once again raises some questions regarding Damian, like “How the hell can he drive a motorcycle?”.

#4 – Damian Proves How Much He Cares

This one’s kind of different, because it’s more heart-warming than anything. In the first issue of Batman & Robin of the New 52, Bruce tells Damian about their family and about the deaths of Damian’s grandparents, Thomas and Martha Wayne. Now at first, he doesn’t seem to care much, but then in later issues he’s seen searching through the sewers for something. And what does he eventually reveal to his father? One of the pearls on Martha Wayne’s necklace from the night she’d been shot. This was Damian proving to Bruce that he DOES care about more than just himself, and we see these two genuinely bonding as a result…although this kind of pales in comparison to the last of my favourite Damian moments.

#5 – Pretty Much All Of Batman & Robin Annual #1

If you’ve read my look at this comic, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about. If you’re lazy and don’t wanna read it, here’s a basic summary: Damian sends Bruce and Alfred on a scavenger hunt around the world that allows Bruce a chance to retrace his parents’ trips across the world while Damian patrols as Batman. There’s funny moments, heart-warming moments, and lots of Damian being a badass. Also, looking back on it, I’m glad we got to see Damian done the cowl once.

So yeah, I hope that this has helped people in the wake of Damian’s death, and let’s hope that someone (Tomasi, Snyder, etc) can convince Morrison to let them bring him back so we can see more awesome moments like these. Ja né!

Related articles

• What I Bought Today – Batman & Robin Annual #1 (WARNING – SPOILERS) (jygersrant.wordpress.com)
• Some thoughts on the future of Damian Wayne (robot6.comicbookresources.com)

What I Bought…Erm, Yesterday – Talon #5, Batman Incorporated #8 (WARNING – SPOILERS)

Well, I was kinda busy doing up the eulogy and tribute video for Damian yesterday, and by that point, I was kind of exhausted beyond the point of even really wanting to type this up, so let’s make up for that by looking at…

So let’s start off with the comic that everyone is talking about (including Burt Ward, believe it or not), Batman Incorporated #8.

Okay, I gotta judge this comic fairly, and thus, I gotta point out a small problem I have with this: If you did not know that Robin was gonna die from the spoilers DC was giving away, you’d still know it was coming. Why? The scene with him and Nightwing. Granted, it’s awesome seeing them working together here, and their team is probably one of two things I’ll miss most about Damian, and I’ll get to the other one in a sec, but you read this scene with Damian telling Dick he was his best partner and that they were the best team and you go “WOW, you are SO gonna die, Damian!” Then we come to the fight with The Heretic, and there’s a scene where I admittedly had to take a second to chuckle, as Damian aims a crossbow at The Heretic and basically says “I promised my father I would never kill again”. And as we all know, every time Damian says that, it means he’s fully ready to kill something. But yeah, Damian fights The Heretic, all the while yelling at his mother to stop all this madness, but The Heretic murders him as Batman arrives too late to save him, and Talia sheds a single tear. Aww, yeah that makes up for EVERYTHING, you psychotic bitch. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if there’s a twist later where it turns out the Talia that was complex in her motives and characterization has been physically replaced by a clone. After all, THIS Talia LOVES cloning. Still, for all its ups and downs, I am enjoying this book for the most part, though I will admit to some stuff happening on the side of the main story that I am COMPLETELY in the dark about.

Oh, and real quick, I suppose I should address this. Readers of DC Comics occurring within the New 52 have probably noticed within the past month or so that there’s this little two page strip at the end of each issue called “Channel 52”, where these newscasters recap events within the New 52 for that week or so. Well, this week they decided to play up what was going on in Batman Incorporated, specifically that Robin dies. A few people, in particular Waffles For Stephanie, have been VERY offended by this, saying they’re making a show of the 10 year old’s death. Personally, I just found it more stupid than anything, much like how I find the entirety of Channel 52. However, if you WERE offended, I recommend you check out the link at the end of this post.

Talon has officially become my favourite comic to get on the last week of the month. If James Tynion IV can keep up this kind of writing for Red Hood and the Outlaws, I might actually pick it up. I’m thinking I may have jumped the gun saying that Sebastian Clark was going to inevitably turn heel, or Tynion changed his mind on what to do with him, as he’s shown interacting with Casey and Sarah in a kind manner and saying that it’s times like Calvin has enjoyed as of late with Casey and Sarah, time as a family, that they’re fighting for. Casey also gets some moments of awesomeness in here, and we learn a little more of her backstory. We also see that Felix Harmon, AKA The Gotham Butcher, has tracked Calvin back to Gotham and is just a bit out of the Court’s control when he needlessly murders a couple in their apartment. Also, Batman is here!…Yeah!…Umm, Batman!…Okay, I knew darned well Batman was gonna appear in Talon at some point, but I kinda figured it’d be a little further down the road. As we see, though, he’s found out about the bank heist that went wrong in the past couple of issues, and he’s concerned that Calvin Rose taking on the Court of Owls directly could force a war that they’re just not ready to fight yet. However, it seems that things only get worse when Calvin tries infiltrating an impenetrable building run by the Court and it turns out one of the staff in the building is actually the Grandmaster of the Court at this time, and faster than you can say Admiral Ackbar, Calvin walks into a trap to end the issue.

So yeah, this was a mixed week to say the very least. Come back again next week as we venture back to Earth-2 and sleuth about in Detective Comics. Ja né!

Related articles

• ‘Batman’ Star Burt Ward — Hey DC Comics … DON’T KILL ROBIN!!! (tmz.com)
• Five Ways Robin Could Come Back To Life (geek-news.mtv.com)
• Robin the Boy Wonder killed? Grant Morrison speaks out (herocomplex.latimes.com)
• DC Comics’ Bat-Family Reacts To Robin’s Fate In March’s Covers (comicbookresources.com)
• I wasn’t going to do this DC, but now I am happily willing to raise you my other hand. (wafflesforstephanie.tumblr.com)

Goodbye, Little Bird – The Eulogy of Damian Wayne, AKA Robin V

First off, before any smart asses bring up the title, I still count Stephanie Brown and Tim Drake as Robins. I don’t care what Dan Didio or anyone at DC Editorial says. But yeah, today a Robin fell…again. This is like the third Robin to die in the line of duty, although fortunately one turned out to be a cover-up and actually lived and the other was brought back to life. However, this one seems to have been planned pretty much since conception, so while I cling to hope he may return, I have to take this time to say a fond farewell to Damian Wayne, AKA the Fifth Robin.

Damian’s run in DC Comics can technically be traced back to the 1987 book Son of the Demon, but the canonicity of it is kinda tricky, so let’s instead look to his début à la Grant Morrison‘s run on Batman. Damian is the son of Batman and Talia al Ghul, he was grown in an artificial womb and raised by the League of Assassins. One day, Talia just drops Damian in on Bruce and tells him he needs to take care of him for a time, though really it was just to mess with him. Immediately, he was a problem, trying to beat Tim to death so he could replace him as Robin and even murdering one of Batman’s enemies, but it becomes clear that he DOES mean to do well and wants to be accepted by Bruce, however misguided his efforts are.

During an event where Batman was believed to have been killed by Darkseid, Dick Grayson was eventually convinced that he needed to become Batman. Believing that Damian needed guidance and seeing Tim Drake more as an equal than a sidekick, Dick took Damian on as his Robin. The two formed a unique version of the Dynamic Duo, with Dick being a more light-hearted Batman while Damian, to be blunt, was dark and brooding like his father. When Bruce returned, they continued to serve in such capacity within the newborn Batman Incorporated, but eventually Dick stepped down to become Nightwing again.

Bruce and Damian’s partnership was rocky at best, due to Damian trying to suppress the murderous instincts ingrained into his mind by the League of Assassins and Bruce’s lack of experience as a father. However, as they realise they lack an understanding of each other, they open up to each other. Their partnership is later hampered when Damian’s own mother, seeing Damian siding with Batman against her, puts a bounty on his head that the most lethal assassins in the world try to cash in on. However, this isn’t the worst of Bruce’s worries, believing his son is more than capable of protecting himself. Rather, he had received a vision of the future upon his return of a post-apocalyptic Gotham where Bruce is dead and Damian makes a deal with the devil to become Gotham’s new protector, only for everything to fall apart and for Gotham to be destroyed. This is eventually proven false when it turns out the one set to one day obtain this title is actually The Heretic, who turns out to be Damian’s genetically cloned brother. With Batman held captive by Talia and The Heretic, and much of Batman Incorporated overtaken, Damian comes to their rescue, but is ultimately murdered by The Heretic.

Now, as I said before, I’m still clinging to hope that they find some way to bring Damian back. However, in the off-chance that they don’t, I would just like to say that Damian was never a perfect Robin, and I don’t know if I’d call him the best, but he was a hero, and don’t anyone dare try to take that away from him. And if there was one thing I can give him, above all else, is that despite being the youngest Robin, he may have been the single most fearless of them in the face of evil.

https://www.tumblr.com/jyger85/44178926484/my-short-tribute-to-damian-wayne-aka-the-fifth

Goodnight, young prince, and may flocks of robins sing thee to thine rest…

Related articles

• Robin the Boy Wonder Killed Off in Latest Batman Comic (theepochtimes.com)
• DC Histories: Damian Wayne (Robin V) (ifanboy.com)
• Why Dc? Why?! (thebeardygeek.wordpress.com)

 

Robin RIP? (WARNING – SPOILERS)

I feel odd posting that there are spoilers for Batman Incorporated #8 here, seeing as how this news was delivered by DC themselves, but yes, it has been confirmed: Damian Wayne, AKA Robin, is going to die.

Like with Alfred in Death of the Family, this was guessed at for a while now. However, it seems that this time, we were right…and boy, do I wish we were wrong. For all his ups and downs, the little punk was actually growing on me a lot. But yeah, it seems as though in two days, I have another eulogy to write. I’m thinking I’ll probably do that separate from Wednesday’s edition of What I Bought Today.

Now, I’m not surprised that this was Grant Morrison‘s call, not DC Editorial. After all, since his run with Batman is coming to an end, this kinda helps bookend it a bit. The thing that surprises me most about all this is that apparently Peter J. Tomasi, the writer of Batman & Robin, has known since day one of writing that book that Damian was going to die. I’m gonna have to look back on his run with the book to see if there were any hints early on that he was writing toward that eventuality, though he has noted that he was hoping Morrison would change his mind.

Speaking of which, word is that Batman & Robin #18 is gonna be a silent comic. What that means is no word balloons, no sound effects, no text period…well, except for the title likely, and words on books or something, but you get what I mean: No one and nothing making a sound throughout the entire issue. Colour me interested, Tomasi. Also, following this, Red Robin and Red Hood are gonna be hanging with Batman for a bit, though I should stress that neither one are for certain going to be Batman’s new partner. Personally, my bet is on either Helena Wayne or Harper Row becoming Robin, which would be great because we’d get to see another female Robin.

Could we be seeing Helena taking over as the Robin of THIS Universe?

Anyway, I suppose I’ll see everyone in a couple of days. Ja né!

Related articles

• DC killing off Batman’s ‘Boy Wonder’ Damian Wayne in new comic book (nypost.com)
• BAT SIGNAL EXCLUSIVE: Tomasi Reveals “Batman & Robin’s” Future (comicbookresources.com)
• BREAKING: Something Big Happens in Batman Inc. #8 (Spoilers) [UPDATE] (ifanboy.com)
• DC would like you to know Robin is gonna die this week in Batman, Inc. (io9.com)
• BATMAN INC’s Huge Plot Point SPOILED in NY Post (newsarama.com)
• Robin the Boy Wonder Killed Off in Latest Batman Comic (theepochtimes.com)

Who I’d Like To See In Smash Bros. 4

So, seeing as I am a big fan of the Super Smash Bros. series of games, and because I’m sure a lot of people are probably making their own guesses as to who will be in the upcoming Wii U/3DS game, I thought I’d take a moment to talk about who I’d like to see in the new game. First off, I’d like to say that I’d like to see all the fighters in Brawl return, albeit with modifications to some fighters. For example, Ganondorf needs to be changed up so that he’s not a carbon copy of Captain Falcon except made super slow. I don’t know of a single person whose best fighter is Ganondorf. With that said, here’s the new fighters I’d like to see show up…

Playable or Summonable Characters

Shadow the Hedgehog from Sonic the Hedgehog

The Ultimate Lifeform, Shadow is far more than just a dark version of Sonic. Technically, he’s already appeared in Brawl, but he was an Assist Trophy that slowed down enemies with Chaos Control. Instead, I’d like to see him be a fully playable character whose moves are more based off his moves in Sonic Battle.

Loid from Mother/Earthbound Zero

Well, we had one character from Mother 2/Earthbound and one character from Mother 3, so why not a character from Mother/Earthbound Zero? So why Loid instead of Ninten? Because Ness and Lucas are alike enough, and Ninten would likely be the same way. Loid, on the other hand, would use guns and gadgets to fight with instead of PSI, making him unique among his crew.

Poliwhirl from Pokémon

Yeah, I know, I’m kinda biased here, but I personally feel that Poliwhirl would make for an awesome playable character, or at least a callable Pokémon in a Poké Ball, that attacks with various Water attacks and maybe even an Ice Punch. For his Final Smash, I see him temporarily evolving into either Poliwrath or Politoed (decided by the player) to do different attacks.

Sora from Kingdom Hearts

I don’t care what they gotta do to make this happen someday, I wanna see Sora in Super Smash Bros. And considering that this next Smash Bros. game will be for the 3DS, it’d only make sense to have him appear as he did there. Obviously, his attacks would resemble his various signature techniques from Kingdom Hearts games,  and for his Final Smash, I’m thinking he’d call in Riku to do an imitation of Eternal Session from Kingdom Hearts II.

Geno from Super Mario RPG

This would be one of the most awesome things to ever happen in Smash Bros. if Geno showed up. Geno is one of the most awesome characters of Super Mario RPG, and other than him being a trademarked character of Square Enix, I have no idea why his only other appearance was a mini-game cameo in Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga. This is a guy with a move that could obliterate any non-boss in one hit if performed correctly.

Waluigi from Mario Tennis

Again, another former Assist Trophy I’d like to see fleshed out into a full character. After all, Mario has Luigi to team up with in Smash Bros., I’m sure Wario would appreciate the same. Since he’s only ever appeared in spin-off games for Mario, Waluigi’s moves would probably be based off of the various spin-off games he’s been in, like hurling dice, smashing people with golf clubs and tennis rackets, driving into people with go karts, etc.

Bosses In Story Mode

Egg Dragoon (Ultra-Hyper Prototype 2) from Sonic Generations

Seeing Dr. Eggman as a boss would be glorious, and what better mechanised horror has he ever unleashed than the Egg Dragoon’s form in Sonic Generations. With enough speed to rival Sonic’s and enough to strength to stand up to Bowser, the Egg Dragoon would make for an awesome boss.

Mewtwo from Pokémon

I feel bad for poor Mewtwo. It got totally got shafted when Lucario came in and did everything it could do but better. However, I never really felt Mewtwo had a very good moveset in the games anyway and would work far better as a boss. Something approximate to Tabuu’s size, though not quite as powerful.

Smithy from Super Mario RPG

Again, as a big fan of Super Mario RPG, I would LOVE to see the appearance of characters from there, and who better to act as a boss than Smithy? That giant hammer, his mechanized minions, the multiple forms that change at random, he would be an excellent boss. Hell, you could build an entire story around him and Eggman teaming up.

…And that’s all for now. If I think of any more, I will post them later. Remember, we’ll be getting our first looks at the new game in both versions at E3 this June, so keep your eyes peeled for that. Ja né!

Wonder Woman In The New 52 – I NEED TO VENT…AGAIN

Okay, I know I already talked about this before, but I feel the need to bring up the problems occurring with Wonder Woman in the New 52. Namely, I feel that there’s a definitive lack of respect for the character at times. Before I start on that, though, I would like to point out that I got a lot of these images, as well as some additional info I wasn’t already aware of, from DC Women Kicking Ass. She writes an awesome Tumblr, and you should all really give it a look sometime.

Now then, back to poor Diana. Her origin story has been altered so that, rather than being sculpted from clay and granted life by the Gods, it turns out that was a lie and that she’s really the result of a one night stand between her mother and Zeus. Now ultimately, this one didn’t bother me quite as much, since it just meant she’s a Demigod instead of a Golem (she was made from clay, that technically makes her a sort of Golem), though it does irk me that Hippolyta would lie like that. Plus, it pretty much makes the events of The Circle either non-canon or based around complete bull. What bothers me far worse is THIS.

…Seriously, what the hell? Turning the Amazons into killers, rapists, and slave traders was not only unnecessary, but it completely RUINS them as characters you want to see come back. And because they’re tied to Diana’s backstory, that in turn hurts her as well. Oh, and don’t even get me started on THIS.

But that’s just her solo book. Y’know, the one where the character is supposed to excel the most? Then there’s Justice League. I mentioned before that her current characterization works for the first arc, and I still stand by that. However, all that changed when THIS happened…

All of a sudden, Wonder Woman has gone from a strong, independent woman who forced a sword through Darkseid‘s eye socket to basically just being Superman’s girlfriend. And no, it’s not JUST because they’re dating, it’s HOW their relationship is unfolding, where we see Superman trying to teach and lecture her on humanity and how best to hide among them, and, oh good grief, does it make me wanna vomit!

Look, I get that at the beginning of Justice League, she was new to Man’s world, but as of this time in JL, she’s been a part of it for FIVE YEARS! She does not need Superman to teach her this stuff. She would have picked all this up while here. But no, we have to have Superman teach her because…well, just because. And that’s the problem in a nutshell: These two do not come off as equals in this relationship, as I’ve stated before. And it’s made all the worse by the fact that Supes is likely still holding a torch for Lois, and storylines suggest that their relationship will eventually end BADLY. And the sad thing is, it could actually still be worse. Don’t believe me? Read Frank Miller’s work that includes them as a couple. It makes me feel like DC will someday drop the pretences and just go ahead and release adult love novels featuring DC Superheroes. Hell, if Fifty Shades of Grey can become a best-seller, I’d believe anything could sell that much.

And then there’s her appearances in Batwoman as of late, where she’s……..um, actually pretty well written. I’m serious, while I don’t pick up Batwoman on a regular basis, what I’ve read of it depicts Wonder Woman pretty well. Powerful, confident, and compassionate. I WAS cringing for a moment when it became apparent that Batwoman was harbouring a schoolgirl-like crush on her, but thank goodness they didn’t go in the direction of a Batwoman/Wonder Woman/Superman love triangle, and we instead see Batwoman proposing to Maggie Sawyer…Um, Batwoman IS a DC title, yes? o.O

Anyway, that’s all from me for now. Post your thoughts, opinions, whatever, and let’s hope that things don’t degrade much more. Hell, this makes my brain ache, and I already have a really bad cavity in my mouth right now. I don’t need any more pains in the region of my head. Ja né!

Related articles

• She Has No Head! – Is the Destruction of The Amazons The Destruction of Feminism in DC Comics? (comicbookresources.com)
• “Because they are both heroes and wear red and blue” (dcwomenkickingass.tumblr.com)

Batman/Superman Confirmed For June ’13

So USA Today just confirmed something that, from what I’ve heard, Rob Liefeld spoiled months ago: A new Batman/Superman team-up book is on its way this summer. The comic is to be written by Greg Pak, who is yet another long-time Marvel writer that DC is snatching up, and illustrated by Jae Lee, who also did a ton of Marvel work, but has also admittedly done a little work with DC and also some work with Image. This book is slated to take place during the past of the New 52, when Bruce Wayne was new to being Batman, and Clark Kent was the Superman of the working class, and the two have their first interactions.

I can fashion a cape that looks like a Rorschach test when it’s billowing in the wind…BECAUSE I’M BATMAN! (Never gets old)

Okay, so as a guy who gets bothered by continuity hiccups, I have a slight issue here. In Justice League #1, Batman told Hal Jordan that he’d never met Superman, only researched him, and in Justice League #2, it was rather clear that Superman and Batman were having their first interaction right there. The only way this makes any sense is if one of the following occurs…

1. An event occurs in this book that Superman and Batman decide to keep to themselves.
2. The two get mind-wiped or otherwise have something happen to them to make them forget the events of this comic book, which would ultimately make this book rather pointless unless they manage to remember them later on.
3. They only very briefly catch sight of each other prior to Justice League’s events, and the rest of this comic involves them teaming up during the five year gap between the first and second arcs of Justice League.

This illustration seems to back up Possibility #3, as Superman is very clearly wearing his Kryptonian Armour and not his t-shirt and jeans.

Otherwise, I will say that I am interested in reading this book. Not quite as much as Scott Snyder and Jim Lee’s upcoming Superman title, though. Speaking of which, the Snyder/Lee Superman book still hasn’t been publicly named yet, but I’ve heard it’s likely going to be coming out around the same time as Batman/Superman. I will say that I wanna melt my brain after hearing people refer to this as ‘Batsoup’…though not quite as much as I do after seeing that in the latest Wonder Woman comic, Orion apparently slapped Diana’s ass and got away with it with little more than a scowl….Yeah, I think I’m getting why this is a Batman/Superman comic and not a Trinity comic, but I’ll have to get to that later. Ja né!

Related articles

• ‘Batman/Superman’ showcases meeting of DC Comics icons (usatoday.com)
• DC Announces Batman/Superman for June (gothamspoilers.com)

What I Bought Today – Nightwing #17 & Justice League of America #1 + News Involving Batwoman (WARNING – SPOILERS)

Well, tis Wednesday yet again, and I have been to the comic book shop, so let’s look at…

Before I get to Nightwing #17, I have an apology to make. Last time I looked at Nightwing, I reported that all of the circus folk were dead. That’s not actually true, but allow me a moment to explain myself. The reason I thought they were dead isn’t just the destruction of Amusement Mile and Haly’s Circus, but because they all were infected with Joker Venom, after which they beat the crap outta Nightwing. So why did I think they were dead? Because I was under the impression it was the same blend as was used on Raya that ultimately killed her. I shouldn’t have just assumed that, though, and thus I apologise.

So yeah, Nightwing #17 does two things: The first is showing Dick Grayson lying to EVERYONE and saying that he’s alright while he watches his whole world fall apart, with Haly’s burnt to ashes, the circus folk turning their backs on him, his trust fund being completely emptied out, and his old friend/ex-girlfriend Raya dead. The other thing it does is remind me of better days, as when Nightwing almost goes ape crap on some guys raiding the ruins of Amusement Mile, none other than Robin manages to stop him, reminding me of the days when Dick and Damian were the Dynamic Duo and Dick was usually the one having to keep Damian from pulling the proverbial trigger. Also, word is Nightwing will be moving to Chicago in the future. I guess Blüdhaven didn’t get magically rebuilt with the reboot. lol

Btw, I got the one with the Hawaiian Flag. I don’t know why. XD

Justice League of America #1 has me scratching my head at points, but overall, it seems pretty solid. Apparently, it centres around two major points. The first is that recent events (the Atlantis event, the disappearance of Booster Gold after witnessing the kiss between Superman and Wonder Woman, and likely a few other reasons) have left a level of mistrust in the Justice League, leading to the government forming the JLA to not only serve as a team of elite heroes but to also to act as a fail safe against the League just in case. As for the second, remember how in Justice League #6 we saw two members of the Religion of Crime plotting? It seems they’re finally making a move in the form of the Secret Society. Green Arrow manages to learn about this, but takes heavy damage on the way back to Steve Trevor, just managing to tell him of the Secret Society before seemingly flat-lining. Of course, since Oliver has his own solo book that just got a whole new team working on it, and since Arrow is DC’s current cash cow, I somehow doubt he’s truly dead.

So that’s it for what I bought today, but there’s one other thing I thought I’d report, and that’s what happened in Batwoman #17…

SQUEEE, a wedding!!!… … …*ahem* Anyway, that’s all from me. Check in week when I look at Talon #5, where Calvin Rose takes the fight to the Court of Owls, and Batman Incorporated #8, where I’m hoping we don’t get some tragic news. Ja né!

Chuggaaconroy’s Pokémon Colosseum LP Team – It’s Evaluating Time!

So recently, Chuggaaconroy finalised his team on his Let’s Play of Pokémon Colosseum. And because I have no life and was bored one day, I decided to do some in-depth analysis of his team. So with that said, you know what time it is!

It’s Evaluating Time!

So, let’s kick off with Emile’s starter, Saikou.

#1 – Saikou

Known as the Big Good of his team on TV Tropes, Saikou the Espeon started off Emile’s team along with his Umbreon, Baggage. However, Baggage sadly stayed true to his eventual name and only served as a temporary member of the team until the final member of the team joined. Saikou generally puts up Reflect screens, blasts opponents with Psychic-type attacks that can also confuse, or teams with Pokémon that use Earthquake and puts up Protect to avoid being damaged himself. Saikou has weaknesses to Bug, Ghost, and Dark-type attacks and his low physical defence have led to many occasions where he’s taken massive damage, but his high-speed and special attack have conversely given him plenty of opportunities to dish it out as well.

#2 – Corona

Known as The Hero of the team, Corona the Typhlosion was Snagged as a Quilava from Rosso in Phenac City. His general tactic of go in, maybe lay down a Sunny Day, and starting hitting hard with Flame Wheels has pretty much become a staple of Emile’s game plan in battles. It might seem rather basic, but it’s worked rather efficiently thus far. Of course, he still struggles with Rock, Ground, and Water-types, and pairing him with Marshall, Emile’s Quagsire, can be potentially troublesome. However, he still does what he can to mow down the competition, and does it pretty well.

#3 – Marshall (I WAS ONE LETTER AWAY FROM GETTING THE NICKNAME! T_T)

Considered The Lancer of the team (although for a time considered The Big Guy), Marshall the Quagsire was Snagged from Divel in Pyrite Town. His immunity to Electricity, his Water Absorb ability that causes Water-type attacks to heal him instead of damaging him, his fairly well-rounded stats (minus his speed), and Surf and Earthquake attacks that hit both opponents on the field make Marshall a major player on the team. Really, the only thing he needs to worry about is Grass-type attacks, but Emile’s usually smart enough to keep him off the field for those. He’s been involved in a couple of funny moments in the LP, not the least of which playing unintentional accomplice to the stupidity of Dakim’s Camerupt. Oh, and as an amusing aside, the second best choice for his nickname was Tim. Why? Because HE’S SO HAPPY! XD

#4 – Affection

Termed The Chick of the team, Affection the Misdreavus was Snagged from Vant in Pyrite Town. Affection’s placement on the team occurred during an absolutely hilarious run through the Pyrite Colosseum where her opponents repeatedly attacked her with moves that didn’t affect her. Now admittedly, Ghost-type Pokémon are immune to Normal and Fighting-type attacks, and Affection as a Misdreavus has Levitate, which makes her immune to Ground-type moves. However, the opponents didn’t attack her with ineffective moves one or two or three times, but TWELVE TIMES throughout that entire episode. She also knows Pain Split, which has made Snagging Pokémon MUCH easier for Emile. Sadly, 3rd Gen game mechanics and the lack of her evolved form hold her back a bit, but considering that she’s currently been attacked on nearly a couple dozen occasions at this point and walked out unscathed, I think that more than makes up for it.

#5 – Walnut

The Big Gal of the team, Walnut the Forretress (don’t look at me like that, the fans came up with these) was Snagged from Vana in the Shadow Pokémon Lab. Walnut is the physical wall of the team, possessing a large number of resistances, is immune to Poison, and only has one weakness: Fire-type moves. But like with Marshall, Emile is usually smart enough to keep Walnut away from Fire-types. She can also poison opponents badly with Toxic, Protect from attacks and team-mates’ Earthquakes, and, if worse comes to worse, can go boom with Explosion and take her opponents with her. Walnut is definitely not the type to crack under the pressure of battle…I should never make puns in these. -_-

#6 – Granbull

Considered The Smart Guy of the team, Granbull (does not have a nickname at the time of this writing) was Snagged from Tanie in the Shadow Pokémon Lab. As the final member of the team, Granbull is the one with the most to prove. He possesses the most physical power of his team, as showcased with his Strength and Earthquake attacks. Granbull’s only major problem is Fighting-type moves, though he does suffer from low speed (albeit not nearly as much as Marshall). Granbull’s first battle as a member of the team sadly didn’t go as well as Emile was hoping, but he’s since picked up the pace.

http://pigmaskmajor120.deviantart.com/art/Chuggaaconroy-Pokemon-Coloseum-Trainer-Card-354739708

So, this is the part where I gotta look at the strengths and weaknesses of this team as a team. Between the six of them, they possess seven immunities: Normal, Fighting, Ground, Water, Poison, Ghost, and Electric-type attacks are all completely ineffective to certain members of the team. Also, two of the members have Protect, and two have Earthquake, so Emile can dish out massive damage on the opposition with little risk to his team. Having said that, Saikou and Affection are both weak to Ghost and Dark-type moves, and Quagsire and Walnut have x4 weaknesses to Grass and Fire-types respectively. While Saikou and Corona have good speed and Affection has decent speed, Marshall, Granbull, and Walnut are all relatively slow. Marshall is usually wearing the Quick Claw, which allows him to move first on occasion, but it’s impossible to predict when this could or could not work.

Ultimately, I feel that Emile has a good team. Is it his greatest team in his Pokémon LPs? I’m inclined to say no. I think that his Crystal run had a much better team. However, it should be noted that Emile is severely limited by the choices available in this game, so with that said, I feel that this team is pretty good. We’ll see how it plays out as time goes by, and also what Granbull’s eventual nickname will be. Ja né!

http://www.youtube.com/user/chuggaaconroy

Why The Rage Over Twilight Sparkle’s Transformation? (WARNING – SPOILERS FOR SEASON 3 FINALE)

Okay, I’ve been kinda avoiding talking about Friendship Is Magic a lot on here, but something occurred recently where I just have to stop and ask “Why?”. Now for those wondering, yes, I watch this show. I know that might surprise some, considering a certain video I released a while back from when I watched a little video called Cupcakes and have since acted all traumatized any time something MLP related pops up on my show. Well, first off, yeah I was kinda traumatized by Cupcakes, but I got over it pretty quick. Everything since has basically just been me playing it up for laughs, especially when I look back and consider just how dumb I was for being horrified by it. Now, am I a Brony? Ehhh, depends on when you ask me, to be perfectly honest. I don’t mean to pick on y’all, but you do get a little over-enthusiastic with this show. And this is one of those times.

So in the newest episode of Friendship Is Magic, Twilight Sparkle writes her own magic, which in turn allows for her transformation from unicorn to alicorn (which is actually an error and the correct term iswinged unicorn), and that she’s also now a Princess along with Celestia, Luna, and her sister-in-law Cadance. And for some bizarre reason, people have been really pissed about that, saying they jumped the shark and that this is the end of the show and so on. Don’t believe me? Watch the live chat version of this episode on YouTube. There was actual panic going on there when it happened, which I am hoping was exaggerated, because then it would be kind of funny whereas now it’s just dumb.

Behold, the Princess Twilight cometh

Now first off, before I address my overall thoughts on the matter, I will say that I saw this coming, for a LONG time. The biggest piece of evidence (before Hasbro actually went out and just said it, that is) was during The Crystal Empire, where we see transitional shots of Celestia and Luna with the sun and moon behind them and Twilight with a star behind her, and then at the very end where Celestia and Luna watch Twilight leave and pull out Star Swirl the Bearded’s book. So yeah, knew this was coming eventually, so didn’t really shock me.

Aside from the change itself, my thoughts on the episode as a whole are that it should’ve been a two-parter, or perhaps a made-for-tv movie. It was good, it just felt like too much (seven songs and a crap-ton of flashbacks) was being crammed into an episode that, minus commercials, clocked in at just over 20 minutes. Plus, I would’ve liked to have seen Twilight getting ready before the coronation, and maybe have Luna come in and say something to her, thus furthering the full circle she’s gone through.

As it pertains to the change itself, I will say that I understand concern over this move. After all, it’s a big change, especially considering that Twilight is arguably the main protagonist of the show. What I don’t get is the outrage. Honestly, it comes off as people not even giving this change a chance. Guys, chillax a little. Let this play itself out. It might not even change THAT MUCH of the narrative. I mean, it’s not like they’re all being turned into human teenagers so they can go undercover at a high school-

Equestria Girls, the Friendship Is Magic spin-off

………….Anyway, I think for now we just need to wait until Season 4 and see how this plays out. Ja né!