Okay! If I'd written this earlier, I'd be talking about less, but here we are and now there's more...
Apparently it was DC's decision for Tom King to leave Batman itself to finish the story in Batman/Catwoman? Or maybe there's an explanation that doesn't sound sinister? But, in news that's only relevant to people who aren't on the internet (yay troglodytes!), King's work is still appearing in the Superman 100-Page Giants found at Wal-Mart. I confirmed this (but have yet to read it) with the recently released Superman Giant #12.
Apparently DC has cancelled the Vertigo imprint. There will be a lot of fans freaking out over this, how DC's killing a part of its soul or whatever, but really...I don't see a real problem here. Vertigo hasn't really been Vertigo since Scott Snyder backed off of American Vampire, which was the last major series launched under the imprint. And in that regard, the big send-off for trade-friendly Fables might be considered the real end of the imprint, getting a trade-size (and published in trade format, no less) final issue. Fans will say it's because Karen Berger was released as managing editor, but Fables and the most recent issue of American Vampire were released in 2015. That's a long time for the imprint to linger in irrelevance. Meanwhile, times changed. The Walking Dead, which in a lot of respects was a Vertigo title published by Image, was a game-changer. Image itself transitioned into a Vertigo mentality after pushing the superhero format in the '90s. And there are dozens of smaller publishers now operating that also follow the Vertigo template, which itself began by collecting a number of existing DC titles that were intended for mature readers, which...
And that's the new plan, by the way. The new DC Black Label will now be the destination of anything that might've once been Vertigo. There's also Brian Michael Bendis's Jinxworld, which is its own DC imprint, which in earlier times would have been part of Vertigo. (Bendis was operating more or less this way with Marvel, too, which never made a serious move to expand into other creators producing creator-owned material.)
So again, I say there's nothing to complain about here. Paul Cornell was able to retrieve the rights to Saucer Country, which for all intents and purposes was a post-Berger Vertigo series, and continue it at IDW as Saucer State. The Vertigo mystique did nothing to salvage G. Willow Wilson's seminal Air, which sputtered under little critical or fan attention under Berger's watch from 2008 to 2010. What Fables did was itself signal the end of an era, in which Vertigo was previously known for dark genre instead became home to light genre material, which couldn't sustain the same cult following.
Anyway, here's some comics I read recently:
Batman: Last Knight on Earth #1 (DC)
Here's Snyder and Greg Capullo reuniting for one last grand Batman story. As suggested previously and as I hoped to see since Snyder's contribution to the 'New 52" era Detective Comics #27, it's finally an extended look at the concept of Batman producing a series of clones to continue the crusade past his original lifetime. I'm not sure this debut entirely squares with the concept, but I do love that Snyder heavily leans into his concept that Batman and the Joker are essentially an odd couple, having progressed well beyond hero-and-villain status. The idea of Batman carrying around the disembodied head of the Joker is the best thing I've come across in a Scott Snyder comic, where he's finally and truly gone as wild as he could imagine.
Daredevil #6 (Marvel)
Chip Zdarsky's wonderful run continues. I hope fans are registering its existence.
Ascender #2 (Image)
Lemire and Nguyen's Descender sequel continues.
Doomsday Clock #10 (DC)
I made sure to buy this issue (I committed to tradewaiting the series after missing too many previous issues, including the first one) after coming back to the Geek Twins, a break that corresponded with the death of my mother and the exploding of what had been a regular blogging habit, and finding that they heartily recommended it as a unique way for DC and/or Geoff Johns to once and for all reconcile the multiverse by redubbing it the metaverse. This issue sees Doctor Manhattan explaining his journey post-Watchmen by, in part, revisiting all the times DC has rebooted its continuity, starting well before the famous Crisis on Infinite Earths. And my fears that Doomsday Clock would duplicate what Johns had done previously in Infinite Crisis were alleviated. Basically the pivotal issue of the series and a landmark in DC lore in general.
Heroes in Crisis #9 (DC)
There ended up being a lively discussion as to what exactly this series accomplished over at Speed Force, and then DC solicited Flash Forward, which will act as a sequel and spotlight for Wally West, and I wonder if any of the fans upset over what Tom King "did to him" will begin reconsidering. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. Me, as I tend to, I thought King's work was brilliant.
The Immortal Hulk #2, 18 (Marvel)
Al Ewing put himself on the map with this one. Essentially an in-continuity of the classic Hulk TV series, Bruce Banner's back as the Hulk, but he's skulking around the country trying to keep the beast at bay, and stumbling into horror stories along the way. Anyway, it's good reading, and fans have certainly noticed, and I'm glad I had a look.
Naomi #5 (DC)
The other Bendis imprint at DC these days, Wonder Comics, launched Naomi with the promise that eventually it would seem important. Well, I finally got to have a look, and with exactly the right issue, in which we learn that she comes from an alternate Earth, which is an idea that surprisingly hasn't really been done before, even though DC has visited dozens and dozens of alternate realities over the years. The closest is Superman, probably, who in current continuity is actually a survivor of a previous one (which is something you don't need to know to enjoy his latest adventures, but sounds exactly like the insanity that led to Crisis on Infinite Earths to begin with).
Sasquatch Detective 64-Page Special (DC)
Originally a back-up feature in Mark Russell's Exit Stage Left: The Snagglepuss Chronicles, this is essentially DC allowing itself to have some family-friendly fan with something that isn't based on an existing franchise. If it were Marvel, there'd already have been an ongoing series and several dozen more concepts exactly like it. DC restraint!
Superman: Leviathan Rising (DC)
Originally previewed in Year of the Villain, this intro to the Bendis event conveniently called Event Leviathan was most appreciated by me for its preview of Matt Fraction's Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen, which was a real treat to read. And for those wondering, the Bendis Leviathan is the same as the Morrison Leviathan, this time with (seemingly) less Talia. So yeah, Morrison's Batman is the gift that keeps giving.
Showing posts with label Heroes in Crisis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Heroes in Crisis. Show all posts
Saturday, June 22, 2019
Saturday, May 4, 2019
Reading Comics 227 "Ascender, Heroes in Crisis, The Green Lantern, Batman, DCeased"
Ascender #1 (Image)
The sequel series to Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen's robot saga Descender, has already been compared to and/or described as Star Wars. I'm very glad to see the story continue. At some point I figure I will add the complete collected editions to my library. Among all the comics I've read from Lemire, it's my favorite.
Batman #70 (DC)
Tom King seems destined to anger and/or fascinate readers (see below!). His most recent arc in the series featured a series of nightmares. I've been adding every collected edition to my library, and have yet to be disappointed in reads or rereads. I haven't read the complete nightmare sequence; that'll follow in the collected edition (see above!). This issue sort of wraps it up and begins a new arc. Batman marches on Arkham!
DCeased #1 (DC)
Tom Taylor, who had some excellent material in the most recent Batman collected edition (Tyrant Wing), and has been toiling away in digital-first comics for probably too long, finally gets to seize the spotlight in a comic I think has been wrongly characterized as the DC equivalent of Marvel Zombies. But then, I haven't read Marvel Zombies and this is only the first issue of DCeased. But I like what I see. Besides Taylor, the coup here is art from Trevor Hairsine (Divinity).
The Green Lantern #7 (DC)
I've kind of officially become a trade-waiter. I haven't made an effort to read an issue of this Grant Morrison comic (!!!) since the first one. Issues like this are a surefire way to ensure I will get the trade. Morrison spends most of it in a literary disposition as he casually rewrites Green Lantern ring lore. Great issue.
Heroes in Crisis #8 (DC)
Well, it's official. Wally West did it. It's a Tom King comic, so of course it's controversial. A website I follow posted a bad review, which I'm inclined to take with a grain of salt, as it's admittedly a Flash site, and of course Wally West was the Flash, at least solidly in the '90s (most famously in the Mark Waid run, and how Geoff Johns first made his name writing Flash comics before solidly redefining it with Flashpoint).
Anyway, the site argued that King, who's made his career in comics drawing on his war experiences, somehow goofed the issue, which is clearly a PTSD story in an event comic about PTSD. Another site I follow gave the issue a poor review claiming it definitely betrays King having altered his original plans for Heroes in Crisis, which does have a documented history of change (first solicited as Sanctuary and as seven rather than nine issues).
Clearly I disagree with these negative reviews. I'm a fan of King, but I'm not a reader who uncritically accepts things. Every new project (whether a new comic, or a book, or a movie, or music, etc.) has to justify itself. Being a fan of a creator or franchise is merely a way to guarantee my interest.
King's thought process is clearly spelled out in the issue. He even goes back over ground he covered previously. This issue is mostly about explaining exactly how Wally did it. The Flash site claims the issue is a poor representation of PTSD. I respectfully disagree. I think everyone who suffers from it (or from anything) believes their suffering is unique. That's Wally's perspective throughout the issue. Believing a predicament is unique is intrinsic to human nature; believing any condition is unique is intrinsic to the species. We're often entirely bound up in our egos. But in pain it's worst, as we become despondent, and the pain only encourages itself to continue.
Wally reaches a breaking point. Interestingly, King actually explains it by expanding on Flash lore, the idea of the Speed Force and what it takes to use it, which has always been Wally's hallmark. His ability to command the Speed Force became Waid's ticket to a series of great stories. And yet, in his new circumstances Wally has been cut off from everything he once took for granted, the family Waid ultimately left him with. Even Barry, his famous "Trial of the Flash," endured considerable mental torment (with or without the intervention of Eobard Thawne). He loses control for a moment, and accidently kills a handful of heroes.
In panic, he deliberately takes more lives. At this point it becomes a Parallax situation. Parallax was the fear entity that took over Hal Jordan following the loss of Coast City. A momentary lapse of willpower compromised Hal for years. This is really no different. A Wally already suffering makes a terrible decision. That's it.
There's one more issue. And, folks, this is comics. Wally West will run again. He will be a hero again. And regardless, we have those great Waid stories. Hopefully, if nothing else, Heroes in Crisis will lead readers to read them for the first time. They're among the all-times great. I've listed "The Return of Barry Allen" as my all-time favorite in the past. One story can't change that. Why in the world would it? Could it?
This would be one thing if King were just mucking around. But King doesn't muck around. He tells compelling stories, that challenge, that go well beyond the scope other comic book writers typically conceive. Heroes in Crisis is no different. Fans heaped praise on King for The Vision. DC clearly expected that for Mister Miracle. He delivered, regardless of fan response, and he has delivered again with Heroes in Crisis. This guy's one of the all-time greats.
The sequel series to Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen's robot saga Descender, has already been compared to and/or described as Star Wars. I'm very glad to see the story continue. At some point I figure I will add the complete collected editions to my library. Among all the comics I've read from Lemire, it's my favorite.
Batman #70 (DC)
Tom King seems destined to anger and/or fascinate readers (see below!). His most recent arc in the series featured a series of nightmares. I've been adding every collected edition to my library, and have yet to be disappointed in reads or rereads. I haven't read the complete nightmare sequence; that'll follow in the collected edition (see above!). This issue sort of wraps it up and begins a new arc. Batman marches on Arkham!
DCeased #1 (DC)
Tom Taylor, who had some excellent material in the most recent Batman collected edition (Tyrant Wing), and has been toiling away in digital-first comics for probably too long, finally gets to seize the spotlight in a comic I think has been wrongly characterized as the DC equivalent of Marvel Zombies. But then, I haven't read Marvel Zombies and this is only the first issue of DCeased. But I like what I see. Besides Taylor, the coup here is art from Trevor Hairsine (Divinity).
The Green Lantern #7 (DC)
I've kind of officially become a trade-waiter. I haven't made an effort to read an issue of this Grant Morrison comic (!!!) since the first one. Issues like this are a surefire way to ensure I will get the trade. Morrison spends most of it in a literary disposition as he casually rewrites Green Lantern ring lore. Great issue.
Well, it's official. Wally West did it. It's a Tom King comic, so of course it's controversial. A website I follow posted a bad review, which I'm inclined to take with a grain of salt, as it's admittedly a Flash site, and of course Wally West was the Flash, at least solidly in the '90s (most famously in the Mark Waid run, and how Geoff Johns first made his name writing Flash comics before solidly redefining it with Flashpoint).
Anyway, the site argued that King, who's made his career in comics drawing on his war experiences, somehow goofed the issue, which is clearly a PTSD story in an event comic about PTSD. Another site I follow gave the issue a poor review claiming it definitely betrays King having altered his original plans for Heroes in Crisis, which does have a documented history of change (first solicited as Sanctuary and as seven rather than nine issues).
Clearly I disagree with these negative reviews. I'm a fan of King, but I'm not a reader who uncritically accepts things. Every new project (whether a new comic, or a book, or a movie, or music, etc.) has to justify itself. Being a fan of a creator or franchise is merely a way to guarantee my interest.
King's thought process is clearly spelled out in the issue. He even goes back over ground he covered previously. This issue is mostly about explaining exactly how Wally did it. The Flash site claims the issue is a poor representation of PTSD. I respectfully disagree. I think everyone who suffers from it (or from anything) believes their suffering is unique. That's Wally's perspective throughout the issue. Believing a predicament is unique is intrinsic to human nature; believing any condition is unique is intrinsic to the species. We're often entirely bound up in our egos. But in pain it's worst, as we become despondent, and the pain only encourages itself to continue.
Wally reaches a breaking point. Interestingly, King actually explains it by expanding on Flash lore, the idea of the Speed Force and what it takes to use it, which has always been Wally's hallmark. His ability to command the Speed Force became Waid's ticket to a series of great stories. And yet, in his new circumstances Wally has been cut off from everything he once took for granted, the family Waid ultimately left him with. Even Barry, his famous "Trial of the Flash," endured considerable mental torment (with or without the intervention of Eobard Thawne). He loses control for a moment, and accidently kills a handful of heroes.
In panic, he deliberately takes more lives. At this point it becomes a Parallax situation. Parallax was the fear entity that took over Hal Jordan following the loss of Coast City. A momentary lapse of willpower compromised Hal for years. This is really no different. A Wally already suffering makes a terrible decision. That's it.
There's one more issue. And, folks, this is comics. Wally West will run again. He will be a hero again. And regardless, we have those great Waid stories. Hopefully, if nothing else, Heroes in Crisis will lead readers to read them for the first time. They're among the all-times great. I've listed "The Return of Barry Allen" as my all-time favorite in the past. One story can't change that. Why in the world would it? Could it?
This would be one thing if King were just mucking around. But King doesn't muck around. He tells compelling stories, that challenge, that go well beyond the scope other comic book writers typically conceive. Heroes in Crisis is no different. Fans heaped praise on King for The Vision. DC clearly expected that for Mister Miracle. He delivered, regardless of fan response, and he has delivered again with Heroes in Crisis. This guy's one of the all-time greats.
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Reading Comics 224 "King is King, and Morrison's Green Lantern, and Orlando's Wonder Woman"
Batman Secret Files #1 (DC)
Back in the day the Secret Files comics were more or less updates of the old Who's Who files, and they were more or less excuses to hype upcoming events in a particular series or family of books. They also contained short stories and other throwaway materials like diagrams and timelines, all of it fun little celebratory stuff. But in the final analysis, you could probably skip them. Some readers complained when they saw this updated take, which includes...nothing but storytelling. Why even call it Secret Files? But if I may...repurposing a title is perfectly fine, especially in an era that really doesn't have any other space for the kind of stories that appear in it. It's like a one-shot Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight, or Batman: Confidential.
The lead is written by Tom King. It can be interpreted as a cheap way to get Batman thinking about the past, or as another way King ruminates on the cumulative toll being of Batman. Then a bunch of new creators have a shot at exploring Gotham, and that's pretty awesome. Ram V and Jorge Fornes set the tone nicely with a Brubakeresque tale of a cop who was caught in the crossfire of Scarecrow's latest caper, and can't shake the effects of his fear gas. Cheryl Lynn Eaton and Elena Casagrande offer fairly similar material, although they have a lot more space for Batman, and leave a lot more ambiguity to the aftereffects of a girl on the street being forced to defend herself with a gun. Jordie Bellaire and Jill Thompson help Batman spend time with himself, waiting to find out what Man-Bat's up to, and for someone like Batman that's almost as bad as confronting Man-Bat right away...Finally, Tom Taylor and Brad Walker revisit Dark Night: Metal's take on Detective Chimp as Batman acknowledges his skills and they try to help a former Riddler goon. It's a great collection of stories and showcase for these creators. Anyone who's begun to wonder whether King's the only creator outside of Detective Comics DC's willing to entertain in Batman comics should definitely check it out.
Batman #59 (DC)
After we learned that the Batwedding didn't happen thanks to Bane's manipulations, it was only a matter of time before Batman once again clashed with one of his most famous foes. This issue, solicited as part of Batman's unlikely team-up with the Penguin, is really all about Bane driving a wedge between Batman and Commissioner Gordon by pretending to be a vegetative inmate of Arkham, and even allowing the ruse to reach the point where Batman himself questions his conclusions. In the long run this will prove a highly crucial issue. Mikel Janin's art has apparently reached an evolution, meanwhile. He's begun taking on a more stylized approach as opposed to his cleaner look previously.
Green Lanterns #57 (DC)
The final issue of the series, Dan Jurgens completes a short run with another look at Cyborg Superman and whether or not his threat will ever be concluded, this time in the context of what he famously did during "Reign of the Supermen" to Coast City, and what effect that had on Hal Jordan. But the series ends with Jessica Cruz deciding to once and for all leave her comfort zone, and Earth!
The Green Lantern #1 (DC)
It's here! Grant Morrison is now writing the adventures of Hal Jordan! And of course, once again, he's managed to approach his subject as no one else has before! After more than a decade of storytelling dominated by the big ideas of Geoff Johns, Morrison grounds Hal back in a more personal context. In interviews he's described it as putting the focus on the effect Hal's life as Green Lantern has on him, which is something previous decades used to do all the time, how he went through a whole series of civilian jobs because he couldn't hold anything of them and have a power ring's responsibilities at the same time. And also the mundane oddities of being a space cop! Liam Sharp (I hate the composition of the cover image, which was available in poster form at the new location of Comics & Stuff, which I declined to accept on that basis, even though it would've otherwise been a great thing to celebrate on a wall) is great in the interiors, bringing a bright new vividness to Green Lantern. All I can say is, wow! Never expected this to happen, but am very, very pleased that it has, and that Morrison is clearly bringing all his celebrated wild imagination to it!
Heroes in Crisis #2 (DC)
A lot of fans have obsessed over the fact that Wally West died in the first issue. I just don't know how to make sense of that. Wally just returned. He's been gone for years! But...he just returned! You really think he can't, I don't know, do that again? Really? But we live in outrage culture these days. You really would think we'd never seen anything at all before.
Anyway, the idea of Booster Gold and Harley Quinn on the run, suspected of the massacre at Sanctuary, it's great, and it's a totally new story, and Booster and Harley are great choices as leads. Booster hasn't truly been relevant since 52 (anyone with even a fleeting grasp of my favorite comics knows how much I love 52, of which you can find an annotated commentary right here at Thought Bubble Comics). It's also crazy to think, and also funny that DC's event comics have slowed down so much, that since she became a significant corner of the DCU during the New 52 era, Harley has never been in this position before. This is acknowledging the changing landscape. This is helping legitimize Harley. I get that there's a certain style of Harley storytelling that's been the standard over the years, but allowing her to be seen in different ways, in more dramatic ways, in an important step in solidifying Harley's legacy.
Mister Miracle #12 (DC)
The end of King's epic mini-series (I also picked up a Director's Cut of the first issue, a rereading of which helped me understand this final issue) makes clear that the story was always about Scott Free coming to grips with life, basically, as a war veteran. It joins Omega Men and Sheriff of Babylon as a trilogy of King's experiences from the Iraq War, and as such an essential artifact of the modern era, in and outside of comics. Some readers, for any number of reasons, are just not going to be able to appreciate that. Fine. Good for them. Some of them are going to continue to look toward The Vision as King's definitive work, and Mister Miracle as a poor attempt to duplicate it for DC. A lot of them only discovered King through Vision. Having first encountered him as a solo creative voice in Omega Men, Vision for me was actually jarring, a slowed down version of what I already knew, impactful but at a scale that seemed small in comparison. Over the years I've come to appreciate Vision more, and have of course read a lot more King, and if anything, Mister Miracle helps put it in greater context. This is what he's been doing in the pages of Batman for three years. Just imagine if he'd done only twelve issues!
Nightwing #53 (DC)
What I liked about this latest installment of the amnesia saga was the cop who attempts to fill the Nightwing void. It's become a full-blown tradition for impostor Nightwings to pop up!
Adventures of the Super Sons #1-3 (DC)
With the dawn of Bendis Superman, Pete Tomasi was forced to vacate his space, and take his Superboy along with him, and also Robin, who he'd been bringing along since the last time he was asked to move on. This time he leaves with a huge parting gift! One grand adventure with Jon and Damian, and I think that's exactly the spirit of how he decided to approach this next generation World's Finest from the start. And just like that, his Superman has officially acquired its final context, just in case anyone was still wondering.
Wonder Woman #51-52 (DC)
I've spent a lot of time at the library over the past year reading comics. Most of them have been collected editions, but this particular branch also has a somewhat extensive collection of solo issues for Superman and Wonder Woman, which apparently began at the very end of the New 52, so that's how I ended up reading the majority of Tomasi's Superman, and how I eventually first read these two comics. The first was the one I definitely wanted to own. Steve Orlando's run is going to be more of a sprint, sandwiched between James Robinson and G. Willow Wilson, but as far as I'm concerned? It's going to loom large.
#51 is great issue. It's a one-shot in which Diana makes a series of trips across many years to visit a villain she randomly came across in someone else's story. It's a redemption arc, as the villain struggles to find peace with what happened, and Diana's insistence on the visits. It's a perfect encapsulation of what makes Diana different. You can't really picture Batman doing this, and for all the Superman stories that have been created over the years, I'm fairly certain he's never done it, either. Anyway, it was instantly one of my favorite comics of the year, and the reread confirmed that.
#52 is the start of an arc, and it features a new female Aztek, a character who debuted in the '90s, written by Grant Morrison and Mark Millar, who eventually joined Morrison's JLA. Kind of instantly became obscure, especially for having been a Justice Leaguer in an era where it was once again composed almost exclusively of all-stars. But Aztek was always a great concept, and Orlando instantly grasps it. He also brings in Artemis, who was recently part of Red Hood and the Outlaws, but who also comes from the '90s, the lesser known Wonder Woman replacement from a time when all the big characters were being replaced. It feels like a big Wonder Woman story in ways that rarely happen, and it's also kind of a comic book version of the allies she assembles in the blockbuster movie. Orlando's Wonder Woman will definitely be a collection I will add to my collection.
The Wrong Earth #3 (Ahoy)
Ahoy Comics launched to some amount of buzz in part thanks to landing a Grant Morrison prose backup feature. The company's whole thing seems to be another of those "we're bringing comics back to how you remember them!" deals. But these aren't comics as I want to read this. The Wrong Earth reads like a shallow parody. Nuff said.
Uncanny X-Men #1 (Marvel)
I haven't particularly cared about the X-Men since the Hope saga ended. Of course I've never been a dedicated reader. Still haven't even read Morrison's complete New X-Men! So to say I've been part of the legion (heh) of observers who've been wondering if the X-Men were ever going to be relevant again, it doesn't carry the same weight as fans who've spent more time with them. But I wanted to see what this latest effort was going to be like. I like Bishop being right there on the cover. Ever since I came across him in the '90s I've always thought this was a character with at least equal potential as Cable. Both of them were time-traveling mutants from dystopic futures, but Cable always hogged the spotlight. A number of creators working in converging narratives come together to explain the latest mutant crisis, another drug threatening to take their abilities away. But this time as a vaccine, that will prevent new mutants from ever knowing they were ever even mutants.
Now, this has a ton of storytelling potential. A lot of fans accused Marvel in recent years of trying to replace the X-Men with the Inhumans, whose major recent story was the roving Terrigan mists that randomly created new Inhumans. But this is something very different. This isn't people being scared that they're going to be victimized. This is a new twist on the familiar narrative of denying mutants a future. There's apparently going to be another Age of Apocalypse style event following the "X-Men Disassembled" arc, and Marvel fans, who complain about everything Marvel does these days (we're a long, lone way off from the old Marvel zombies days, which conveniently now exist in cinematic form), are complaining that Marvel is just piling event after event. But I suspect there's method to this madness, and I'd like to keep tabs on it.
Back in the day the Secret Files comics were more or less updates of the old Who's Who files, and they were more or less excuses to hype upcoming events in a particular series or family of books. They also contained short stories and other throwaway materials like diagrams and timelines, all of it fun little celebratory stuff. But in the final analysis, you could probably skip them. Some readers complained when they saw this updated take, which includes...nothing but storytelling. Why even call it Secret Files? But if I may...repurposing a title is perfectly fine, especially in an era that really doesn't have any other space for the kind of stories that appear in it. It's like a one-shot Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight, or Batman: Confidential.
The lead is written by Tom King. It can be interpreted as a cheap way to get Batman thinking about the past, or as another way King ruminates on the cumulative toll being of Batman. Then a bunch of new creators have a shot at exploring Gotham, and that's pretty awesome. Ram V and Jorge Fornes set the tone nicely with a Brubakeresque tale of a cop who was caught in the crossfire of Scarecrow's latest caper, and can't shake the effects of his fear gas. Cheryl Lynn Eaton and Elena Casagrande offer fairly similar material, although they have a lot more space for Batman, and leave a lot more ambiguity to the aftereffects of a girl on the street being forced to defend herself with a gun. Jordie Bellaire and Jill Thompson help Batman spend time with himself, waiting to find out what Man-Bat's up to, and for someone like Batman that's almost as bad as confronting Man-Bat right away...Finally, Tom Taylor and Brad Walker revisit Dark Night: Metal's take on Detective Chimp as Batman acknowledges his skills and they try to help a former Riddler goon. It's a great collection of stories and showcase for these creators. Anyone who's begun to wonder whether King's the only creator outside of Detective Comics DC's willing to entertain in Batman comics should definitely check it out.
Batman #59 (DC)
After we learned that the Batwedding didn't happen thanks to Bane's manipulations, it was only a matter of time before Batman once again clashed with one of his most famous foes. This issue, solicited as part of Batman's unlikely team-up with the Penguin, is really all about Bane driving a wedge between Batman and Commissioner Gordon by pretending to be a vegetative inmate of Arkham, and even allowing the ruse to reach the point where Batman himself questions his conclusions. In the long run this will prove a highly crucial issue. Mikel Janin's art has apparently reached an evolution, meanwhile. He's begun taking on a more stylized approach as opposed to his cleaner look previously.
Green Lanterns #57 (DC)
The final issue of the series, Dan Jurgens completes a short run with another look at Cyborg Superman and whether or not his threat will ever be concluded, this time in the context of what he famously did during "Reign of the Supermen" to Coast City, and what effect that had on Hal Jordan. But the series ends with Jessica Cruz deciding to once and for all leave her comfort zone, and Earth!
The Green Lantern #1 (DC)
It's here! Grant Morrison is now writing the adventures of Hal Jordan! And of course, once again, he's managed to approach his subject as no one else has before! After more than a decade of storytelling dominated by the big ideas of Geoff Johns, Morrison grounds Hal back in a more personal context. In interviews he's described it as putting the focus on the effect Hal's life as Green Lantern has on him, which is something previous decades used to do all the time, how he went through a whole series of civilian jobs because he couldn't hold anything of them and have a power ring's responsibilities at the same time. And also the mundane oddities of being a space cop! Liam Sharp (I hate the composition of the cover image, which was available in poster form at the new location of Comics & Stuff, which I declined to accept on that basis, even though it would've otherwise been a great thing to celebrate on a wall) is great in the interiors, bringing a bright new vividness to Green Lantern. All I can say is, wow! Never expected this to happen, but am very, very pleased that it has, and that Morrison is clearly bringing all his celebrated wild imagination to it!
Heroes in Crisis #2 (DC)
A lot of fans have obsessed over the fact that Wally West died in the first issue. I just don't know how to make sense of that. Wally just returned. He's been gone for years! But...he just returned! You really think he can't, I don't know, do that again? Really? But we live in outrage culture these days. You really would think we'd never seen anything at all before.
Anyway, the idea of Booster Gold and Harley Quinn on the run, suspected of the massacre at Sanctuary, it's great, and it's a totally new story, and Booster and Harley are great choices as leads. Booster hasn't truly been relevant since 52 (anyone with even a fleeting grasp of my favorite comics knows how much I love 52, of which you can find an annotated commentary right here at Thought Bubble Comics). It's also crazy to think, and also funny that DC's event comics have slowed down so much, that since she became a significant corner of the DCU during the New 52 era, Harley has never been in this position before. This is acknowledging the changing landscape. This is helping legitimize Harley. I get that there's a certain style of Harley storytelling that's been the standard over the years, but allowing her to be seen in different ways, in more dramatic ways, in an important step in solidifying Harley's legacy.
The end of King's epic mini-series (I also picked up a Director's Cut of the first issue, a rereading of which helped me understand this final issue) makes clear that the story was always about Scott Free coming to grips with life, basically, as a war veteran. It joins Omega Men and Sheriff of Babylon as a trilogy of King's experiences from the Iraq War, and as such an essential artifact of the modern era, in and outside of comics. Some readers, for any number of reasons, are just not going to be able to appreciate that. Fine. Good for them. Some of them are going to continue to look toward The Vision as King's definitive work, and Mister Miracle as a poor attempt to duplicate it for DC. A lot of them only discovered King through Vision. Having first encountered him as a solo creative voice in Omega Men, Vision for me was actually jarring, a slowed down version of what I already knew, impactful but at a scale that seemed small in comparison. Over the years I've come to appreciate Vision more, and have of course read a lot more King, and if anything, Mister Miracle helps put it in greater context. This is what he's been doing in the pages of Batman for three years. Just imagine if he'd done only twelve issues!
Nightwing #53 (DC)
What I liked about this latest installment of the amnesia saga was the cop who attempts to fill the Nightwing void. It's become a full-blown tradition for impostor Nightwings to pop up!
Adventures of the Super Sons #1-3 (DC)
With the dawn of Bendis Superman, Pete Tomasi was forced to vacate his space, and take his Superboy along with him, and also Robin, who he'd been bringing along since the last time he was asked to move on. This time he leaves with a huge parting gift! One grand adventure with Jon and Damian, and I think that's exactly the spirit of how he decided to approach this next generation World's Finest from the start. And just like that, his Superman has officially acquired its final context, just in case anyone was still wondering.
Wonder Woman #51-52 (DC)
I've spent a lot of time at the library over the past year reading comics. Most of them have been collected editions, but this particular branch also has a somewhat extensive collection of solo issues for Superman and Wonder Woman, which apparently began at the very end of the New 52, so that's how I ended up reading the majority of Tomasi's Superman, and how I eventually first read these two comics. The first was the one I definitely wanted to own. Steve Orlando's run is going to be more of a sprint, sandwiched between James Robinson and G. Willow Wilson, but as far as I'm concerned? It's going to loom large.
#51 is great issue. It's a one-shot in which Diana makes a series of trips across many years to visit a villain she randomly came across in someone else's story. It's a redemption arc, as the villain struggles to find peace with what happened, and Diana's insistence on the visits. It's a perfect encapsulation of what makes Diana different. You can't really picture Batman doing this, and for all the Superman stories that have been created over the years, I'm fairly certain he's never done it, either. Anyway, it was instantly one of my favorite comics of the year, and the reread confirmed that.
#52 is the start of an arc, and it features a new female Aztek, a character who debuted in the '90s, written by Grant Morrison and Mark Millar, who eventually joined Morrison's JLA. Kind of instantly became obscure, especially for having been a Justice Leaguer in an era where it was once again composed almost exclusively of all-stars. But Aztek was always a great concept, and Orlando instantly grasps it. He also brings in Artemis, who was recently part of Red Hood and the Outlaws, but who also comes from the '90s, the lesser known Wonder Woman replacement from a time when all the big characters were being replaced. It feels like a big Wonder Woman story in ways that rarely happen, and it's also kind of a comic book version of the allies she assembles in the blockbuster movie. Orlando's Wonder Woman will definitely be a collection I will add to my collection.
The Wrong Earth #3 (Ahoy)
Ahoy Comics launched to some amount of buzz in part thanks to landing a Grant Morrison prose backup feature. The company's whole thing seems to be another of those "we're bringing comics back to how you remember them!" deals. But these aren't comics as I want to read this. The Wrong Earth reads like a shallow parody. Nuff said.
Uncanny X-Men #1 (Marvel)
I haven't particularly cared about the X-Men since the Hope saga ended. Of course I've never been a dedicated reader. Still haven't even read Morrison's complete New X-Men! So to say I've been part of the legion (heh) of observers who've been wondering if the X-Men were ever going to be relevant again, it doesn't carry the same weight as fans who've spent more time with them. But I wanted to see what this latest effort was going to be like. I like Bishop being right there on the cover. Ever since I came across him in the '90s I've always thought this was a character with at least equal potential as Cable. Both of them were time-traveling mutants from dystopic futures, but Cable always hogged the spotlight. A number of creators working in converging narratives come together to explain the latest mutant crisis, another drug threatening to take their abilities away. But this time as a vaccine, that will prevent new mutants from ever knowing they were ever even mutants.
Now, this has a ton of storytelling potential. A lot of fans accused Marvel in recent years of trying to replace the X-Men with the Inhumans, whose major recent story was the roving Terrigan mists that randomly created new Inhumans. But this is something very different. This isn't people being scared that they're going to be victimized. This is a new twist on the familiar narrative of denying mutants a future. There's apparently going to be another Age of Apocalypse style event following the "X-Men Disassembled" arc, and Marvel fans, who complain about everything Marvel does these days (we're a long, lone way off from the old Marvel zombies days, which conveniently now exist in cinematic form), are complaining that Marvel is just piling event after event. But I suspect there's method to this madness, and I'd like to keep tabs on it.
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