What I Bought Today – Earth 2 Annual #1, Yugioh 5Ds Volume 4 (WARNING – SPOILERS)

Say…it’s Wednesday! That means it’s time to check out…

So today, I bought a single western comic and a manga volume it feels like I’ve been waiting forever to get, so let’s start off with Earth 2 Annual #1.

Despite what the cover would suggest, this book is not solely about the new Batman. Instead, during the first half of the book, we catch up on The Atom, Al Pratt, as well as taking a look at his survivor’s guilt that he’s going through. He goes on a mission where he allows himself to be captured so that he can have a chase in giant form after a criminal, Henri Roy, piloting a giant robot through the streets of Phnom Penh, all the while wishing Captain Steel could be here instead. Thanks to a little help from the new Batman, who was creeping in the shadows nearby, Pratt loses his own pursuers and brings down Roy, who was sold out by his son, Henri Roy, Jr.

Back with Batman, we seem him in Colmenar Viejo 72 hours later, fighting a supervillain named Mister Icicle, who is either Earth 2 Mister Freeze, meaning James Robinson is really taking this ruling of his to not have an active character on Prime Earth appear in Earth 2, or he’s a revised Icicle. Batman manages to bring him down and interrogate him for some info regarding his boss, Kanto the Assassin of Apokolips, before…um, I’m not sure if he just knocked him out with those close-range explosives or if he just straight up murdered this guy. And before you say it, yes, I know the Golden Age Batman killed people, and so it would technically match up if Earth 2 Batman’s replacement did so, but my own modern views on who and what Batman should be just screams in the back of my head “BATMAN DOESN’T KILL PEOPLE!”. Other than that, I have a suspicion that this Batman might be Jean-Paul Valley, but not 100% sure.

And finally, in the last few pages, we see Mister Miracle and Big fucking Barda cleaning up monsters in the ruins of Gotham City, looking for the new Batman. Seems Big Barda has actually gotten to enjoying fighting giant monsters, and is not looking forward to going against Steppenwolf again, but it seems she’s not getting a choice in the matter, as Fury decides to jump her from behind. Overall, awesome stuff, which makes me all the more sad that James Robinson is leaving the book in a few months. 😦

CARD GAMES ON MOTORCYCLES!!!

Yugioh 5D’s Volume 4. Yes, I collect this manga series. Yes, I loved the show. Sure, the card games on motorcycles was kinda weird, but the characterization was great, the stories were engaging, and here is no different, except that they removed Speed Spells (thank goodness) and made it more like a race. In fact, if you read my Sonic 5D’s fanfic (that I will EVENTUALLY get back to, really), you’ll see the Duels are based a lot on how they work in the manga.

Anyway, in this volume, we see that Yusei Fudo is trying to win the tournament he’s in while also trying to save his friend, Sect, who has fallen under a dark power. To do this, he realises he must obtain the very same type of card Sect received: A Duel Dragon. Naturally, the Jewel Flare Dragon Stardust is a dead ringer for Stardust Dragon, only it’s LIGHT Attribute and has a different effect. In the end, Jack and Kalin begin their duel, only for them both to wind up with their Duel Dragons out on the field at the same time, giving us just enough action for us to want to see more, and then leave us hanging until November…dicks. lol

Anyway, that’s all for today. Next week, we once again travel to Earth 2 to see Captain Steel traverse the Fire Pits, we follow The Movement in their battle against the Coral City Police force, and Harper Row gets in on the action in Detective Comics. Ja né!

Related articles

• James Robinson Exits “Earth 2,” Leaves DC Comics (comicbookresources.com)
• Who Is The New Batman? (geek-news.mtv.com)
• EXCLUSIVE: Say Hello to Batman in DC’s “Earth 2 Annual” #1 (nerdist.com)