Featured this edition: All-New All-Different Avengers Annual #1, All Star Batman #1, Civil War II: The Accused, Deathstroke: Rebirth #1, The Flash #4, The Fuse #18, New Superman #2, and Superwoman #1.
All-New All-Different Avengers Annual #1 (Marvel)
I kind of had to buy this one as an early fan of G. Willow Wilson's Ms. Marvel, because this whole issue is dedicated to fan fiction, or Marvel creator versions of fan fiction, which turns out to be pretty funny.
All Star Batman #1 (DC)
Scott Snyder is never a sure-thing for me, although I did read through much of his New 52 Batman run, which was that era's biggest success story. I had to at least give his follow-up a shot. Turns out I love it, at least in this debut. This is a Two-Face story, which may have things to say about the current US presidential campaign season, and it's some of the best writing I've ever seen from Snyder. It doesn't hurt that he has John Romita, Jr., to help guide him along to greater creative heights. That's something few fans appreciated about Romita's Superman run, which was a real shame, but I think they'll have less of a problem accepting his style in this series.
Civil War II: The Accused (Marvel)
Screenwriter Marc Guggenheim has hopefully done enough comics where fans will accept him as one of their own. It can't possibly hurt his cause exploring one of Civil War II's touchstone moments: Hawkeye murdering the Hulk. Guggenheim helps Matt Murdock (Daredevil) navigate the intricacies of the resulting trial, exploring a range of relevant social topics. The only knock is that this could easily have been expanded.
Deathstroke: Rebirth #1 (DC)
Unlike other Rebirth one-shots, Christopher Priest's (he's now billing himself strictly as Priest) Slade Wilson primer doesn't really make the origin explicit so much as exploring his complicated history as a father, and the kind of morality he inhabits as DC's most famous mercenary and frequent star of his own series. The results are certainly fascinating, and they allow the reader to reach their own conclusions. I haven't read too much solo Deathstroke, but this may be the start of his best run yet.
The Flash #4 (DC)
Joshua Williamson continues to nail it. What else can I say? Even moreso than Sam Humphries' Green Lanterns, this is feeling like comics that will be remembered fondly for years to come. When this happens in the pages of The Flash, it usually means someone has managed to become the new standard by which all others follow. Williamson joins the ranks of Mark Waid and Geoff Johns in that regard.
The Fuse #18 (Image)
This issue was released earlier in the year, after which the series took a hiatus that just ended last month. The Fuse is Antony Johnston's police procedural set aboard a space station, and the issue concludes the "Perihelion" arc, which represents the day of the year Earth and the station are closest to the sun, which seems to bring about more communal chaos than usual. I like that Johnston (who became a legend, at least as I'm concerned, with his masterful Wasteland) not only builds scenarios but thinks of scenarios-within-scenarios like this. Also, the plot of what brought Ralph Dietrich to the station ramps up, and continues in the next arc, "Constant Orbital Revolutions." That's another Johnston trademark, the ability to build his stories a layer at a time, so that different arcs actually mean something and don't just mean another story in the series. This is much rarer than you'd think. Geoff Johns in his epic Green Lantern run would be another such example.
New Super-Man #2 (DC)
What Wilson's done in the pages of Ms. Marvel is something Gene Luen Yang is doing in the pages of this comic, introducing a unique cultural perspective that also presents a unique perspective on superheroes. I love that DC let Yang do this even after the lackluster response to his Superman.
Superwoman #1 (DC)
The blockbuster "Last Days of Superman" story that helped round out the New 52 era has proven to be reach creative groundwork for the Rebirth era, which now proudly includes Superwoman in its ranks of successes. Marvel has been swapping the identities and genders behind their icons for a couple years now, which in truth is kind of old hat in comics. On the surface, Superwoman probably seems like it's climbing aboard the bandwagon, but DC has at least put considerable thought into it. "Superwoman" is actually "Superwomen" in this issue, in which long-time creator Phil Jimenez gets another chance to shine in writing and art duties (he's previously done so with the likes of his early millennial Wonder Woman run), and features longtime supporting cast members Lois Lane and Lana Lang gaining powers. As Lois points out, this would hardly be the first time for her (perhaps the most famous example was in Grant Morrison's All Star Superman, but she also had Brainiac powers in the New 52, among other instances). Jimenez also acknowledges Lois's role in the controversial "Truth" arc, in which she exposed Superman's secret identity. The clever thing, though, is that Lana is along for the ride, too, and so any fans still grumbling about how Lois Lane was depicted in the New 52, and the lack of a romance with Clark Kent, can instead focus on Lana, Clark's Smallville crush. In fact, without giving too much away, Lana Lang is actually the star of this comic. I also like that her costume and powers harken to the much-maligned "Electric Superman" (as did Strange Visitor fifteen years ago). Good creators always know better than naysaying fans. This issue more than proves that Jimenez is a good creator.
Really Lois should be wearing the Electric Blue Superman costume. I mean come on, where's the coordination?
ReplyDeleteBTW, did you read Chris Claremont's Whom the Gods Destroy? In that Lois basically became Wonder Woman and Lana gained like witch powers or something.
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