Reading Comics 235 "Second Forbidden Geek Mystery Box"

I got my second Forbidden Geek mystery box, including a Supergirl statue, a copy of Justice League Vol. 2: The Villain's Journey (which was a very pleasant surprise; eventually I'll have the complete Johns collection), and the following comics:

All Star Batman #3 (DC)
Snyder once again in his nutshell, blowing everything up into possibly misguided epic proportions.  This time it's how Batman and Two-Face were actually childhood friends.  But, also features the KGBeast!  Alas, without his '90s Russian accent.

Captain Atom #7 (DC)
This is what I love about Forbidden Geek's mystery boxes, getting stuff I've always wanted to read but for whatever reason haven't gotten around to yet.  Captain Atom was one of those short-lived New 52 titles at launch.  I never had a clue what the series was like.  Now I finally do!  J.T. Krul, one of the dependable writers of that era who kind of disappeared without good reason, depicts his version of the character as Captain Atom has ever since DC gave in and acknowledged that Doctor Manhattan was based on him.  I first became acquainted with the character (whose main claim to fame is being but not really being the secret origin of Monarch in Armageddon 2001) in the pages of Justice League America and Extreme Justice, where he was depicted as more a Superman type, but a more aggressive version (just not to the degree that the original version of Supreme was, before Alan Moore made him a Silver Age Superman pastiche).  The art is from Freddie Williams II, who in recent years has come to be defined by the improbable Batman/Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics.  I've got plenty of experience with his work, which I often find too cartoonish but not cartoonish enough to be accepted as such.  Here he's got better line work, though he apparently has no idea what riding a bike looks like (the legs, particularly).  I would absolutely love to read a collected edition of this material.

Constantine #5 (DC)
The New 52 attempt to mainstream John Constantine (a concept begun in Brightest Day) may have been somewhat misguided (at any rate, DC has yet to figure it out) works pretty well in this issue, with John temporarily stealing Shazam's powers (for his own good!), thereby setting a template other tales would do well to follow.  You can't really have the guy (even if he pops up in other books and/or teams) attempting to replicate his Vertigo experiences without recontextualizing him properly.  Ideally, he needs a central story, the way Zatanna is forever associated with her father's career, which increasingly is itself irrelevant but nonetheless provides a springboard to ground her.  The writer, of course, is Ray Fawkes, another great writer in that era who somehow failed to garner due respect.

Deathstroke #20 (DC)
A late New 52 series still running in the early Rebirth era (one of several, including Earth 2: Society and Doctor Fate, given a chance to wind down naturally), Slade (the youthful Slade, sans white hair!) blows up a partnership with Ra's al Ghul to reclaim his children. 

Hinterkind #10 (Vertigo)
A vampire series.  That is all.

Justice League #18 (DC)
A trademark of League comics is the membership drive (something Snyder ignored in pushing a huge lineup with multiple titles right from the start, so that everyone and their mother is instantly included).  That's what happens this issue.  Some new characters (Goldrush is sort of a revision of Bulleteer; sadly neither character has had much of a shelf life to date) and even a tease for the Crime Syndicate saga called Forever Evil makes this a fine character piece in a series with far more character work than you'd think.

Justice League #32 (DC)
Element Woman (a riff on Metamorpho), also featured in the membership drive, and the Doom Patrol(with a vicious Chief whose rival is Lex Luthor), try to tackle Jessica Cruz in the aftermath of her obtaining the power ring of, ah, Power Ring, the Crime Syndicate's Green Lantern.  Cruz later flattened into a character who sort of hid away in her room for...reasons, but it seems Johns originally had a deeper portrait in mind. 

Legion of Super-Heroes #283 (DC)
The token Older Issue in the box, this is an early '80s Legion comic featuring the secret origin of Wildfire.  I actually became more interested in the potential of at least one of the recruits he was testing.  Did anything ever end up happening with Lamprey?   Some quick research says no.  If I ever do get to write comics, I will include her in my Legion!

The New 52: Futures End #39 (DC)
This and Batman Eternal seem destined to show up in mystery selections.  At least I don't seem to get duplicate copies of this one. 

Richard Dragon #12 (DC)
The Chuck Dixon/Scott McDaniel series that reprised their Nightwing act.  Somewhat handily, the final issue.  God, I still want to know why McDaniel ended up blackballed from any significant work following Static Shock.  The dude was a staple at DC for a decade in high profile projects, and then criminally overlooked material like The Great Ten.  He's a treasure.  I doubt he was that awful to handle creatively when given a chance to write as well as draw.  He still shows up randomly here and there.  But, someone, anyone, give him a significant new project.

Superman #5 (DC)
The Tomasi/Gleason Rebirth series (seriously; McDaniel is like Gleason before Gleason was finally recognized), featuring the Eradicator targeting Jon Kent as a human/Kryptonian "abomination."  I don't think Tomasi/Gleason quite nailed Superman the way they did Batman and Robin.  I just saw Gleason popped up in Marvel Comics #1000 (which I'll be reading this week and have thoughts on next weekend).  Give these two a new project together before either considers really jumping ship.

Reading Comics 203 "Fourth Trip 2017"

Grant Morrison's 18 Days #20 (Graphic India)
I love to keep tabs on it.  Would love to read the whole thing sometime.

Atomic Robo: The Temple of Od #4 (IDW) (2016)
Still an absolute pleasure to read.

Avatarex #3 (Graphic India)
This was the best issue of Grant Morrison's other Graphic India project to date.  Issues seem to be released sporadically.

Batman #20 (DC)
Best issue of Tom King's run so far, ties a lot of stuff together, including some further personal reflections he'd hadn't gotten to yet.

DK III: The Master Race #8 (DC)
Can't help but feel as if Frank Miller envisioned this as a career statement, his current role and how he remains as relevant as Batman.  Also, the Amazons are truly Amazonian basically for the first time ever.  Wonder Woman has really joined the trilogy.

The Fall and Rise of Captain Atom #4 (DC)
To say that Captain Atom has had an interesting publishing history would be an understatement.  Cary Bates returns from the past, too, to co-write a thoroughly considered story.

Green Lanterns #20 (DC)
Checking in.  Still loving it.  Still am hugely pleased that someone is finally getting Green Lantern(s) right again.

Ninjak #25 (Valiant)
Here's a character who always seems so important when I see him in other Valiant titles.  Despite the fact that Matt Kindt has been writing his solo adventures, I hadn't read them until now.  A mistake.

Providence #12 (Avatar)
The conclusion of Alan Moore's latest comics vision, an ode to Lovecraft and those obsessed with him.

WrestleMania 2017 Special (Boom!)
The recent Boom! launch of WWE comics has placed an emphasis on retelling stories originally presented in WWE programming itself.  There's a good bit of that to be found here, and it's done excellently.  Plus the New Day!

Superman #7, 20 (DC)
I had a look at an older issue because I'd heard Tomasi/Gleason were up to their old tricks of telling personal, standalone stories again.  I thought it was drawn by Gleason, too, but it turns out to have been Jorge Jimenez, who is typically excellent.  The latter issue is also the newest one, and once again features guest-stars from Tomasi/Gleason's last project, Batman and Robin.  You guessed it, Batcow and, ah who am I kidding?  Tomasi/Gleason continue to be master storytellers.

Old Man Logan #20 (Marvel)
Jeff Lemire will be taking a trip down memory line in his final issues, and this one's the setup.  A good one.