Jyger’s Favourite 5 – 5 Favourite Series From DC’s New 52/DC YOU

Well, the New 52 is just about at its end, with DC Rebirth coming up next week and the last of the New 52 books ending over the course of the next few months. And while the New 52 has become something of a punchline for many fans, let’s not forget the good times that came with it. Let’s be honest with ourselves and admit that there WERE good books, as well as the bad. So, with that in mind, I’ve decided that, before I seriously rag on the New 52 one last time, I should really take a look at some of my favourite comics from this era. Now, keep in mind, these are JUST the ones that I read. I’m well aware of the fact that there were other good comics that came out during the past five years under the DC banner that won’t be on this list. As such, if your favourites aren’t on the list, by all means, feel free to place your own in the comments. Also, keep in mind that there are books that, while good, just weren’t the overall greats of this list. So, books like Justice League, while having arcs I liked, also had a bunch of arcs I DIDN’T like, so they just missed the cut…though I DO have a bonus round for them. lol And, of course, books that are not a part of the main line, like Sensation Comics feat. Wonder Woman don’t count. Why we couldn’t have more books like it and Legends of Wonder Woman in the main line, I dunno, but for now, let’s start with one that’s probably kinda obvious to anyone who’s read my blog for a while…

#1 – Superman Unchained

Yeah, not shocking anyone with this pick, I’m sure. Most definitely my favourite of the books starring the New 52 Superman, and it’s one of the reasons I’m actually sad to learn that he’s dying. Yes, he is arguably the most inherently flawed of the mainstream Supermen, but when you have a good writer with a good story writing him, those flaws are used in good ways. We see how this Superman is still an inspirational figure in spite of these flaws by never giving up and continuously trying to do the best he can for the world. So yeah, while I’m obviously overjoyed to see the pre-Flashpoint Superman return to active duty, along with his wife and son, there will always be a little part of me that gets nostalgic for the Superman who didn’t always get it right, but nonetheless kept trying his best, for truth and justice.

#2 – Batgirl

I actually feel bad because I initially was unwilling to give this book a try. Why? Because they’d seemingly undone Babs’ past as Oracle as a means to make her Batgirl again, thus taking the position away from Stephanie Brown, who was nowhere to be seen for a long time. But while all that is true, I can’t deny that this book has had some great moments. Granted, I HATED the Batgirl Wanted arc, and Black Canary’s characterization in the beginning of the Stewart/Fletcher era rubbed me the wrong way, but the rest of it has been highly enjoyable. Some of my favourite moments are probably Alysia’s wedding, the end of the Simone era when Babs called in damned near EVERY superheroine on Earth, ALL of her annuals, the tie-in to Future’s End, that time she and Strix took on vampires, it’s just been a hell of a ride, and I hope that the next volume is just as fun.

#3 – Justice League United

For those that never read this book, I’ll keep the recap brief: Shortly after the collapse of the government sanctioned JLA, which was secretly meant as a fail-safe against the Justice League, three of its members, Stargirl, Martian Manhunter, and Green Arrow, found themselves teaming with Supergirl, Adam and Alanna Strange, Animal Man, and newcomer Equinox, to form a new Justice League: the Justice League United, set up in Canada, and meant to protect the world from extraterrestrial and paranormal threats. Of course, right off the bat, I was excited, since…well, do you know how long I waited for my country to get their own Justice League? Was awesome. But beyond that, getting to see some of the character interactions without the dread present in the JLA book that came before it was great too (Green Arrow and Animal Man playing off each other made for some decent comedy), and there was a lot of more traditional superheroing. In the later stages of the book’s existence, the team began rotating members in and out in order to deal with different situations, regardless of which side of the law they were on. Anyone from Batgirl to Poison Ivy, Swamp Thing to Vandal Savage, and so on could be brought in depending on what the situation called for. Unfortunately, this didn’t last long before the book’s cancellation, but the JLU has since appeared during the Truth story-arc in the Superman books, giving me hope that they’ll one day return to action.

#4 – Convergence

I should probably note that, when I say Convergence is a favourite of mine, I’m not talking about the main series. This is primarily because…well, I didn’t read it, and from what I’ve read, there’s not really much of anything that good, other than the restoration of the Multiverse. Oh, there’s some stuff involving the New 52 version of Earth 2, but unfortunately, that’s been a SERIOUSLY mixed bag. You wanna know more about that, go check out the blog Helena Wayne Huntress for more details. But no, what I’m referring to as one of my favourites of the New 52 is all the tie-in stuff. Granted, that could be seen as cheating for one simple reason: IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE NEW 52. The Convergence tie-ins are about giving resolution to stories that happened before the New 52, letting the heroes of ages past get one last hurrah, and even setting up for maybe a few of them to return later on. And they’re all awesome! Nightwing and Oracle get married and kick ass (not necessarily in that order, lol), Lian is brought back to life, Stephanie Brown suits up as Batgirl again, Lois and Clark have a child, the JSA return, it’s all amazing! Hell, even Scott freaking Lobdell turns in a good Blue Beetle book! I didn’t even think it was possible for him to put out anything of quality, but I guess mathematically speaking, it had to happen EVENTUALLY.

#5 – Batman

…Yyyeeeaaaahh, suppose this isn’t much of a surprise to anyone. lol While I wasn’t a fan of the story where Jim Gordon was Batman, and I found Joker to be WAY over the top in terms of unstoppable villainy is concerned, it’s really hard to not consider this book one the best of the past five years. Snyder and Capullo have simply been on fire for this era, and it’s sad to know that, at least for a while, that team of theirs is over. Although as hard as it is for me and other readers, I gotta imagine it’s even harder for them. But yeah, you guys should all know all of my favourite moments from this book, and if you don’t, I made a list of them just before the Superheavy story-arc. Point is, if you’re a Batman fan and you’ve been avoiding this book for the New 52 branding, don’t. It’s at least worth your time to check out.

So those are my favourite books of the New 52 in terms of overall quality. And now, the bonus round for all the arcs of books that I liked.

Worlds’ Finest

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Huntress and Power Girl fighting a giant Irradiated Man in a Japanese harbour! All it needed was for Godzilla and Dragonzord to show up to make it the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen! XD

Justice League

…Not to self: Review Darkseid War once the entire storyline is finished. It is easily my favourite story of the New 52 Justice League. Also, I thought Origin worked as an introduction to this new timeline, and the Amazo Virus was pretty awesome, too, and marked the point in which Geoff Johns finally found his groove with writing Wonder Woman’s character.

Batman/Superman

Cross World was great, and presented one of my all-time favourite images of Wonder Woman, and the stuff with Mongol and Toymaster is admittedly dumb fun that resolved in an awesome team-up involving Supergirl, Batgirl, Steel, Red Hood, and Krypto.

Batwoman

Y’know, DC, right after the engagement, I was totally gonna stick with this book. Then you called it off, the creative team left as a result, and then you did the stupid vampire thing. Just saying, you had a great thing gift-wrapped for you. I sincerely hope, though, that since Rebirth is apparently nixing the whole heroes-can’t-be-married thing, with the old Superman who is married to Lois Lane being back and Aquaman and Mera being engaged, that Batwoman finally is allowed to get married in Detective Comics.

Talon

Ultimately proved to be hit and miss, but I liked it for the most part. Could’ve done without Casey being damned near torn apart, but watching her make her badass comeback with a cybernetic arm-cannon was awesome. I mean, yeah, it’s another case of extreme violence against women in a comic, but it’s hard not to watch her in the hospital bed right after losing her arm and eye and not grin ear-to-ear when she’s still being like “Aw, fuck it, just put a giant arm-cannon on me, and I’ll fuck these guys up! And Calvin, you better make sure you haven’t completely screwed things up by the time I show up, or your ass is grass!” XD

Nightwing

I unfortunately can’t really justify putting Nightwing on the top 5, but that’s less to do with the quality of the stories told in it and more to do with the constantly changing status quo that was really only a thing strictly because of stuff happening in the other Bat Family books before ending due to events in Forever Evil. Oh, and as a side-note, SO glad to see that Nightwing is in blue again, but not sure where this is going with him as a member of the Court (or Parliament, I guess) of Owls.

Supergirl

I can’t say enough how much I adored the team-up with Power Girl. Was just great.

Starfire

I feel like I MIGHT’VE put this on the list if I’d read through the entire thing and it didn’t delve into the cheesecake quite as much as it did, soooo…Eh, call it sixth, I guess. lol

Earth 2

Again, DC, you had me right up until Evil Superman working for Darkseid, and Thomas Wayne as Batman. Then you completely lost me. And THEN you pissed me off with World’s End and the first arc of Earth 2: Society. Seriously, like I said before, go read Helena Wayne Huntress’ blog for more details, but suffice to say, it’s been a MESS, one that I hope gets cleaned up soon. I DO recommend the Tower of Fate arc, though.

Poison Ivy: Cycle of Life and Death

Problematic for me personally at times, but still enjoying it, and glad it’s here. 🙂

And that’s all my favourite stuff of the New 52. Like I said before, if you’ve got a book that you really liked from this era that wasn’t on here, by all means, leave your own list in the comments, and be sure to check back in the future when I go over the worst of this era. Ja né!

My Thoughts On DC Books Getting Cancelled In March

So, with the solicitations for DC in March out for all to see, a few cancellations have been made official, one of which I already talked about, one I knew about and didn’t mention on here, and one I just found out about and is making me rather sad. So, let’s go through all three and what my thoughts are on them.

Animal Man

Not TOO depressed about this one. Why? Well, for starters, I never read it, but I have seen bits and pieces, and I can say that while Animal Man isn’t my own personal cup of tea, I can see how a LOT of people would love the crap outta it. The other reason is that the writer, Jeff Lemire, is gonna be writing adding Animal Man to the roster of one of the Justice Leagues, likely either Justice League Dark or Justice League of Canada. Either one works, honestly. My only concern the ending of the Animal Man book, the status of the Baker family by the end of it, and if they will be appearing in the League book he’ll be in.

Batman: The Dark Knight

THANK FRAKKING GOODNESS, this book is getting cancelled! If I may be allowed to adapt a quote of Roger Ebert‘s, when he was talking about the movie North, I hated Batman: The Dark Knight. Hated, hated, hated, HATED that book. HATED it. Hated every single stupid, intelligence-insulting moment of it. And it’s gonna survive until #29, not counting the #0 issue or the Villains Month issues. The ONLY reason this book made it this far, and I know this, because I WAS one of the people who bought it for a while, is the title (because The Dark Knight was still hot), and the fact that Batman was the main protagonist. If you put anyone else in these scenarios and storylines, wouldn’t have ever made it past the first arc. And the fact that writers are very generously trying to make something out of the random, idiotic stuff that happened in it, I don’t know why they bother trying, but kudos to them. In fact, memo to me, come March or April, do something that carefully analyses the idiocy of this book.

Talon

Sadly, this book, not okay with it being cancelled. Going into Talon, I was initially concerned that this was gonna be a waste of time, and on the very first issue, I knew this was gonna be awesome, and it has been. Calvin Rose has been awesome, Casey Washington has been quite possibly one of the best new characters of the New 52, the story has been a great follow-up to the Court of Owls/Night of the Owls arcs of the main Batman series by Scott Snyder, and my only hope is that these characters continue to hang around. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if they become regulars in the upcoming Batman Eternal weekly series. I’d LOVE it if Casey became the next Oracle type of character.

So, guess that’s one book I’ll be forced to drop. However, I’ve decided to stick with Talon until the last issue. Regardless of what happens, how it ends, and who stays or goes, I’ve stuck with it since the beginning, so I feel the need to stay with it until the end. I owe it to these characters, and I owe it to James Tynion and Scott Snyder. Still, I guess that helps me with my decision regarding what to drop for the new books in the new year, which you can still vote on, btw.

So, what are your thoughts on all of this? Comment below, and we’ll see how these books conclude in March. Ja né!

Related articles

• Nature Calls; Animal Man Answers. An Introduction to Animal Man (comicbookheretic.wordpress.com)
• Lemire’s Animal Man series to end in March 2014 (comicsrefueled.wordpress.com)
• Seeley & Lucas Conclude “Talon” in March (comicbookresources.com)
• Batman: The Dark Knight cancelled (digitalspy.co.uk)
• “Animal Man” and “Talon” to End in March (outrightgeekery.wordpress.com)
• DC readies weekly series, ‘Futures End’ for spring (thenewstribune.com)
• The New 52 and Why It Has Failed (ericmikols.com)
• DC Cancelled Stormwatch in April (goodkindofgeek.com)
• Rumor: DC Is Working On Low-Budget Superhero Movies (capesonfilm.com)
• ‘Talon’ added to list of titles ending in March (comicsrefueled.wordpress.com)

 

What I Bought Today – Talon #8, Batman Incorporated #11 (WARNING – SPOILERS)

So yeah, despite the fact that I stayed home from my class today, I managed to grab a couple of comics, so let’s take a look at…

Let’s not waste any time, and dig into Talon #8.

This one is unfortunately kinda depressing, but I knew it would be, so at least I was prepared going in. The Butcher forces Casey and Sarah to bring him to Calvin Rose, who has died from the attack by Bane. Having suffered major damage in the past year+ between the Night of the Owls and the operations by Calvin and Sebastian Clark, the Grandmaster has had enough and revives Calvin to tell him who Sebastian is working with. With this knowledge, it becomes clear that Clark is now operating out of the island of Santa Prisca. However, before they force Calvin to deal with Clark and Bane, they have another mission they plan to force Calvin to undergo, and that’s deal with another of their rogue Talons: Mary Turner. And if he doesn’t comply, they’ll kill Casey and Sarah. So yeah, if you haven’t figured it out, looks like Talon will be having a crossover with Birds of Prey…Oh joy. I’ll get more into why I’m less than thrilled about that and why I think this crossover is kind of a dumb idea, but at least I can expect the Talon side of it to be well-written.

Batman Incorporated #11 is a bit different. This one kinda takes a break from what’s going on in Gotham as usual illustrator Chris Burnham instead tells a story involving the Batman of Japan, formerly Mr. Unknown, in his…what, third or fourth costume thus far? Anyway, I’m just gonna say this right now, so there is no mistaking my opinion on this book…I LOVE THIS BOOK! It takes Batman-esque storytelling and mixes it with lots of anime and tokusatsu elements, throws it all in a blender, and it comes out GLORIOUS. Jiro’s partner/girlfriend is Shy Crazy Lolita Canary for the Super Young Team, who is a TON of fun, the bad guys look like Power Ranger rip-offs, the way they beat the villain is clever, I just love the whole thing. I’m telling you, when Grant Morrison‘s Batman Incorporated finishes its run, Chris Burnham needs to give Jiro his own book, because this was awesome, and a welcome break from the horrible events going on with Batman in Gotham City.

Well that’s it for today, but check in later this week as I hope to give some glimpses at a couple of books I didn’t buy today. Also, be back in a week from today when hopefully we learn more about the new Batman of Earth 2. Ja né!

Related articles

• Interview: Chris Burnham Talks Japan Batman in BATMAN INCORPORATED #11 (comicvine.com)

What I Bought Today – Detective Comics #900 (WARNING – SPOILERS)

Tis Wednesday, and it finally came in, so let’s look at…

Balls to the wall, people. It’s the 80 page spectacular known only as Detective Comics #900.

And first, I just wanna say that I know it’s technically considered Detective Comics #19. Well technically, I don’t give a shit what the New 52 numbering refers to this comic as, it’s Detective Comics #900. This comic is 80 pages long BECAUSE it’s the 900th issue, and I’m not gonna let anybody take that away from this comic. So, what do we get? Five stories all in one book, with a few splash pages in between drawn by various artists. Considering the stories mostly revolve around the same situation, I’m perfectly okay with that. So, let’s cover each one separate as to avoid any getting left out, starting with The 900, drawn by Detective Comics regular Jason Fabok.

Acting as a reboot of the Man-Bat backstory, we learn that the Man-Bat formula was actually stolen by Talia from Kirk Langstrom, who was the original Man-Bat before the relaunch. Now Emperor Penguin has it, and has used it to infect the 900 block of Gotham, even creating a Man-Bat Zsasz, because he wasn’t dangerous enough I guess. Batman tells Alfred he’s not calling in the others, but the truth is he already contacted Batgirl and Nightwing. Batgirl is already busy with her own Man-Bats, understandable, and Nightwing is on his way to Chicago…on his motorcycle…and he hasn’t even left the city limits yet. And this is the one problem I have with this story: Nightwing might be angry with Bruce over what happened in Death of the Family, but he would not abandon Gotham when it was being torn a new one by Man-Bats. That’s the kind of thing that people do when they’re about to turn heel. Anyway, with the Family apparently not able to give help, Batwoman shows up with Kirk and his wife to tell Batman about the serum and how to counter it. Unfortunately, it requires him to over-write the virus with another that will only cause transformations in people with a specific DNA: his. So with no other option, as creating an antidote would take too long and the Man-Bats could spread beyond Gotham, Kirk makes the sacrifice and becomes the Man-Bat to cure everyone. With Zsasz cured, he decides to rat out Emperor Penguin, who apparently is in the middle of calling in a favour from Poison Ivy.

Birth of a Family is the aftermath of The 900, drawn by Andy Clarke. Here, we see Kirk’s wife, Francine Langstrom, recount the events of his work as a scientist, how he wanted to help the blind and deaf children with the serum, how the two were married, and how everything went down the tube from there. The serum was mutating the children into Man-Bats, and before Kirk could fix it, the serum was stolen by the League of Assassins. Flash forward to today, where Francine believes she knows a way to bring Kirk back, but to do it, she has to make the same sacrifice he did and become a Man-Bat herself.

War Council is kind of the odd one out, honestly. Not because it’s bad, ‘cuz it isn’t. Just that it doesn’t have anything to do with what’s going on. It’s also the only one not written by John Layman, and instead is written by James Tynion IV. We check in on Bane and his crew, who had come to Gotham a year ago with the intent to bring it to its knees. It didn’t work out so well, as they were first attacked by Talons on the way in, and then Bane got his ass thrown off a cliff back in Batman: The Dark Knight #7…which I bought back then…for reasons that elude me. However, after that defeat, it seems that our old buddy Sebastian Clark showed up and encouraged him to take on the Court of Owls, which apparently will lead into the next issue of Talon.

Birdwatching, drawn by Henrik Jonsson, is told from the perspective of Mr. Combustible, who was from Detective Comics #6 and 7, which I didn’t read. Not much really happens, except that we learn a little more about Emperor Penguin’s operations during The 900, and we get some major hinting that Penguin’s probably gonna get away with everything that happened last month after the judge at his trial has his family threatened.

And finally, we have Through A Blue Lens, as drawn by Jason Masters. This one also takes place following The 900, where a group of cops are looking over one of their own in a hospital bed and telling them about how, when he was a Man-Bat, he took on Batman, and three of them admit they wished their colleague had taken Batman out, because they’re a bunch of those ungrateful bastards who think Batman is responsible for frakking everything. However, the one in the hospital bed tells the one who believes in Batman that he sides with her and that, when he gets out of the bed, he’ll be more than happy to be her partner out on the streets.

So, awesome issue. Could it have been better? Sure. But as of late, I’m trying to take the approach of being more thankful for what I have than cursing for what I don’t have. I have this, and it’s pretty damned good, and that’s all that matters. Next week, we check in with Calvin Rose as he meets up with Bane, we see what the JLA is up to, and see how far Batman Incorporated is willing to go to get vengeance on Leviathan for the death of Robin. Ja né!

What I Bought Today – Talon #3, Batman Incorporated #6 (Warning – Spoilers) + Interesting News Concerning Red Hood

Well, it’s Wednesday, so let’s go ahead and check out…

God, I love the new logo. Anyway, let’s kick off with Talon #3.

So yeah, you remember my two problems regarding Issue #2? How it’s hard to agree with Calvin Rose in his mindset when we haven’t seen anything of him interacting with Casey and her daughter Sarah, and how Guillem March was absent? Both of those problems are not present here. Guillem March is back for this, and we see LOTS of Casey (who pulls off ‘strong independent woman’ in a way relatively unseen in the New 52) and Sarah (Sarah is adorable, btw. Almost gave me ghostly flashbacks of Lian), and I have nothing to bitch about…well, save for one thing, and it’s not even really a problem so much as something that gets on my nerves: Sebastian Clark is so gonna turn heel. I can see it coming a mile away. He’s either gonna turn heel or he’s gonna find some way to screw with Calvin, be it on purpose or by accident. It’s one of the two things, but I can be sure it’s one of them. In the meantime, the chemistry is still good between him and Calvin. Also, we see the return of the mask that Dick Grayson wore in Batman #1, which is neat. And while we get a shit-ton of new characters kinda thrown at us, they all get their own time in the comic and we learn who they are and what their background is. Great stuff as always from James Tynion IV, Scott Snyder, and of course, the returning Mr. March.

And no, my pet peeve is not called in for this, it’s meant to be symbolic. 😛

Batman Incorporated #6…Okay, I love this comic, I really do, but I have no idea what the fuck is going on! We still have not gotten to the point at the beginning of #1 where Bruce Wayne is arrested, and I’m pretty much left guessing what in the world happened and if it will EVER be addressed in any of the other comics. Also, despite what we saw a little over a month ago, there’s a line of dialogue near the end that suggests that Damian ISN’T the one who becomes the third Batman (second after Dick, remember). I have a theory on that, but I’d rather keep it to myself. Also, after the explosion from last issue, most of the members of the Batmen of all Nations are horribly wrecked, some are even dying, and I honestly got a little horrified for Squire in this one for a bit. I hope for the best, I’d hate to see ANY of them be killed off. Otherwise, this is still a good comic with Batman robots fighting Leviathan’s Man Bat legion and plenty of drama. I will also give this comic a major plus: Bat Cow cameo! That ought to make Gotham Spoilers happy. 😛 But seriously, somebody please tell me what the fuck is going on, or at least that it’ll get resolved soon because I hear tell that Grant Morrison won’t be writing for much longer, and I can’t see them continuing this book without him.

Oh, and the last thing I wanna talk about here: There’s this rumour on Bleeding Cool (same people that somehow knew that Gail Simone had been fired before she did) that starting with Red Hood and the Outlaws #18, James Tynion IV is taking over the comic…And when I heard that rumour, I started to cry tears of joy for a little bit…I’m starting to get a little choked up right now, actually. The only way this comic will not improve by a HUGE amount with this switch (if it DOES in fact happen) is if it turns out that editorial mandate is what makes the plot stupid. Tynion has earned my trust with this. I may or may not begin picking it up again if this change does happen, though, depending on what all changes. I’ll keep y’all posted.

Anyhow, that’s it for today. Next week, we learn about the last Amazon left on Earth-2 (PLEASE be Donna Troy), and much much more! Ja né!

What Comics Do I Collect?

So as you’ve noticed, I’ve been giving short text reviews on the comics I buy every week. Now, I realise that there’s always the chance this could change, but for now, this is the line up of comics I buy every month. And before you ask, NO, I don’t buy any Marvel right now. Will I? Possibly, eventually, but not right now, no.

“You take the ugly one!” “No, YOU take the ugly one!” “Which one is the ugly one?!“

This comic continues to amaze me with just how good it is. It’s pretty much the JSA in a modern setting on an alternate Earth. To add to the uniqueness, Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman are all dead after saving the world from Darkseid, and these new heroes have to pick up the slack when the Earth comes under attack again. It actually retells the origins of Alan Scott, Jay Garrick, and others in ways that I actually find far superior to their Golden Age origins. Also, Mister Terrific has arrived on Earth-2 by accident and will be getting caught up in the events here, which should make Linkara happy since I know he liked that comic a lot. It’s a great comic with a lot of action and great storytelling, it’s just great overall.

“Yeah, I know there’s a giant Penguin engulfing the moon. I don’t need to look back at it. You know why? Because I’m BATMAN!“

I actually didn’t buy Detective Comics prior to issue 13, except for the tie-in issue with Night of the Owls. Why? Eh, the style just didn’t agree with me, and I also thought it was really gruesome the way that Joker lost his face. Plus, I was already buying Scott Snyder‘s Batman, which was WAY better and still is, I didn’t need to buy this. The newer arc with the new team working on it has proven to be worth my time, but I still maintain my opinion that Detective Comics should probably go to Red Robin. I think this team writing Red Robin solo stories would be awesome.

“Crap! If that plane burns up any harder, it could burn Power Girl’s costume off…AGAIN!“

This is a book that I’ve been enjoying a bit less as time has gone by. The first arc was great, telling the story of how Robin and Supergirl of Earth-2 were stranded on our Earth following the battle on Earth-2 with Darkseid’s forces, becoming Huntress and Power Girl. It actually ended with a battle against a giant monster in the bay off the coast of Japan, which could only have been better if Kamen Rider Skull, DaiZyuJin, and Godzilla had shown up. The problem with it, as has been pointed out to me, is that nothing was really resolved by it in terms of the overall story of Huntress and Power Girl, and it doesn’t look like much will be resolved by this next one either. I hear there might possibly be a new team taking over later on, I hope that the make the story lead somewhere great…and STOP having Power Girl wind up naked EVERY ISSUE!

Favourite line thus far? Her comment about how she’s got arm strength like a mother these days. XD

This is another book I chose not to pick up for a while, but it’s for reasons I kinda kick myself for: I was still feeling all butthurt over Stephanie Brown being gone. Now granted, I still kind of am, but that’s no reason to not buy a book that’s a legit good book. Basically what happened is, prior to the relaunch, Barbara Gordon was in a wheelchair for years after being shot in the spine by Joker and served as Oracle, who was a cyber hacker that pretty much operated as an extra set of eyes and ears for Batman, the Birds of Prey, even the fugging Justice League. However, with the relaunch and the New 52, it was decided that she would have back surgery and regain the ability to walk, and thus regain her status as Batgirl. Also, her time as Oracle MAY have been erased, I’m not really sure. Either way, though, Gail Simone has been writing an awesome Batgirl title. Do I still miss the Bryan Q. Miller Batgirl with Stephanie Brown? Yeah. But this is still an awesome book, worth picking up.

“I don’t even need the motorcycle to catch you! Know why? Because I’m BATMAN!“

Okay, I know that I will not shut up about how awesome this book is, but that’s only because it can not be said enough. Snyder is apparently best thought of as a horror writer, and even here it kind of shows, and it’s amazing how well it works for Batman. And the thing is, generally speaking, horror stories scare me and scare me away. But this? This scares me into wanting to read MORE, wanting to see just how in the hell they’re going to make it through the situations they find themselves in. I also love how the storyarcs are long, involved, and have a lot of work and effort put into them, and it shows. I would honestly argue that this and Earth-2 are among the best books going in the New 52.

Oh, and side-note? Rob Liefeld, if by any chance you read this, the heck with you if you think the only reason anyone buys this is JUST for Batman and that Snyder is no good on his own. You were neither a good writer, nor a good artist for that matter. And I’m sorry, I know this issue is pretty much dead by now, but when it happened, I never really commented on that, so I just felt the need to get this off my chest. So, rant over, let’s continue.

“I had a child with the daughter of the leader of a group of assassins who are my mortal enemies, and then made him into my new sidekick even though he was trained to be an assassin and kills just about everyone we fight… … …Because I’m BATMAN!“

This has been kinda up and down for me. For the most part, it’s definitely an enjoyable read, but there are some times I really kind of miss the previous Batman & Robin title where Dick Grayson was Batman. And I know, I didn’t buy comics regularly before the relaunch, but I did read along with what was happening and picked up and read the comics at the shop if they looked interesting. But anyway, this book is still good, but lemme just say this: If you’re like me, and you don’t necessarily like seeing superheroes kill villains, the last thing you ever want to hear Damian say in this comic is “I will never kill again”, because that means he is, at best, five minutes away from killing someone. Granted, one was technically already dead, and one was threatening to kill Batman, but still…

…I wanna make a pussy joke so bad here, but I honestly don’t think I could do one that hasn’t already been used with Catwoman. -_-

Okay, technically I am buying this book, but really it’s just for the Death of the Family tie-ins. I WAS thinking of maybe getting the book past that since they changed teams, and while it is admittedly MUCH better than when Judd Winick was writing it, it still isn’t really my thing. Still, for those of you that wanted a better Catwoman book than the Winick book where he had Catwoman pretty much forcing herself onto Batman for no reason and then getting the crap kicked out of her in a VERY graphic manner, feel free to pick it up and make your own judgements. Maybe it’s just me, I don’t know.

“I’m a circus-boy acrobat that can kick the crap out of an undead assassin! Wanna know why? Because I was BATMAN!“

This is another book that I started picking up for the Night of Owls tie-in and decided to stick with. Basically, after spending a year as Batman, Dick Grayson has gone back to being Nightwing (in a new red costume, which I do not get at all) and now has inherited the deed to Haly’s Circus that he and his family travelled with. Making his life all the more complicated is that working with him in his attempts to bring life back to the circus is none other than the daughter of the mobster who had his parents killed, who apparently might also have feelings with him. The current mini-arc involving Lady Shiva isn’t all that great, mostly because it’s obviously just there to be filler, but I get the feeling it’ll go back to being awesome afterwards.

“I took my superhero alias and emblem and posted it worldwide as my own private army against crime, a move that should be getting me sued in EVERY conceivable way possible, but I got away with it scott free……………………..BECAUSE I’M THE GODDAMN BATMAN!!!“

This book is just a ton of fun. It’s not the best book going right now, but it’s a ton of fun, it picks up right after the book of the same name that existed before the relaunch, it goes a lot into the Batman stories of the past few years, and it just has fun with the concept. For those that don’t know, after a situation where Bruce Wayne returned from travelling through time, he decided to take Batman’s mission worldwide, thus creating Batman Incorporated. Their number one adversary has been someone called Leviathan, revealed to be Talia al Ghul, and a lot of the various Bat Family members, both old and new, have gotten involved in the battles against her. Also, it has frakking Bat-Cow. It is an awesome and fun read, end of story.

If at any point in this book, Calvin Rose actually says the words “Damn, look at those hooters!”, I will piss myself laughing. XD

From the first issue, actually since the issue before the first issue because before #1 was #0, but from that issue, I was officially sold on this book. Again, recap for those not in the know, but issues 1 through 12 of Scott Snyder’s Batman saw the Dark Knight facing off against this group called the Court of Owls and their undead assassins called Talons. This book, spinning out of that storyarc, deals with a single Talon that escaped the Court named Calvin Rose who is now on a mission to bring them down, primarily by taking down the last of the Talons not frozen by Batman following the Night of the Owls. Calvin is, for a lack of a better term, a hoot, and James Tynion IV and Scott Snyder’s writing for this book has been snappy as all hell. It CAN get a touch text heavy, which might be a problem for some people. Not quite WARRIOR level text heavy, mind you. Still, if you can get past that, there’s a LOT of enjoyment to be had here.

Anyway, those are the books I buy every month. Again, it’s possible I may drop one or two titles in favour of something else, but rest assured, if I do, I will keep you guys up to date. Ja né!