CBF Quick Picks #88 : The New 52 – Week 1 Part 2
If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
 |
 |
We’re wrapping up the 1st week of the exhausting amount of titles that is coming out of the new DCU. Believe me, it’s exhausting – wait till you hear the podcasts I’m putting up soon for week 2.
The great thing about these new DC books is that all of these have the potential to surprise me. 4 of those of the the week 1 batch epitomized that:
- Justice League International #1 was not the Judd Winick-like book I was looking for, but it was a fine Dan Jurgens book to re-introduce the classic 80′s team to new readers.
- Batwing #1 spins out of the Batman, Inc. title and gives us a taste of what Batman would do if he was set up in the Congo.
- I did not know what to expect out of Omac #1 at all and that was what made it fun. Think Jack Kirby ideas and you got a great book.
- It stumbled out of the gate for me, but Stormwatch #1 was a fine start by Paul Cornell. I attribute the stumbling to my lack of Wildstorm knowledge more than to anything else. I’m sure in Cornell’s capable hands, it will pick up and give me explanations as to why this undercover authority team needs to be around.
Week 2 podcasts are coming soon! Stay tuned!
Music provided by The Bryant C Project – You and I
The DC Gotham City Women Re-Launch
With all the Batman hoopla, you’d come to expect some word on the ladies of Gotham City fame. DC’s blog confirmed that word not too long ago and here are the findings:
Batwoman #1 by J.H. Williams III, Haden Blackman and Amy Reeder
No surprise here – probably just as fitting to launch in this time frame given all the delays it’s experienced.
Batgirl #1 by Gail Simone and artists Ardian Syaf and Vicente Cifuentes
I’m not sure what to think of this. Bryan Miller has been writing some excellent Stephanie Brown arcs the last year or two. This may be a result of Batman’s plans to have Stephanie train in England. I don’t know. Still, Simone might just turn my opinion on this around.
Catwoman #1 written by Judd Winick and illustrated by Guillem March
Don’t love or hate Catwoman, but I’m a fan of Winick and I’m sure good work will come out of it.
Birds of Prey #1 written by Duane Swierczynski and Jesus Saiz
The description of the book screams “Uncanny X-Force” if we’re taking the article at its word. Then again, comics have been copying off of each other for years, so who am I to judge.
CBF Quick Picks #71 : Batman Gates of Gotham #1
Music by Unquiet Nights – Triggerfinger
If Scott Snyder co-writes it, a Quick Pick will come.
Snyder and Kyle Higgins tackle Gotham’s family history through a new mini-series in Batman Gates of Gotham #1. We’ve never really fully explore Gotham’s past in-depth and it looks like current events in the Bat-universe are forcing the heroes to look back on that. Say what you will about Grant Morrison’s run on all things Batman as of late – it’s at least opened new ground for other writers to explore in the already-rich Batman mythos.
Meanwhile, Judd Winick jumps on Batman and Robin #23 with a new arc on Jason Todd. Nothing we haven’t seen before, but it’s Winick writing a character he helped bring back a few years ago – we’re guaranteed something will be brewing and it’s not beer.
Uncanny X-Force #10 takes us into the Dark Angel saga that Rick Remender had been plugging at the March comic cons. We fully focus on Archangel’s struggles to control the inner rage Apocalypse is responsible for and it looks like that will be taking us to the Age of Apocalypse. 90′s nostalgia continues to run amuck in this book and it’s pure bliss for those that are into that.
CBF Quick Picks #60 : Justice League Generation Lost #21
CBF Quick Picks #60 : Justice League Generation Lost #21 [ 22:15 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | DownloadNOTE: We’re re-doing the intro song for our shows. Until then, enjoy my voice upon hitting play (if you’re ok with that, of course)
There’s not enough words any more to describe how awesome Judd Winick has been on Justice League Generation Lost. Issue 21 continues that trend with bringing things down a notch and showing us the team’s reaction to losing one of their own. This was great characterization that had been lacking at times in this series what with the focus being on JLI’s never-ending chase of Maxwell Lord. With the big cliffhanger at the end, the last three issues are looking promising.
Zatanna #10 supposedly ends the battle between the titular magician and the magically cursed puppet she finds out to be quite the bad guy her dad thought him to be. I say “supposedly” because anybody who read the last couple of pages knows things didn’t exactly go Zatanna’s way. Nevertheless, it’s enjoyable reading because of Paul Dini’s passion for the character.
I had been hesitant for a bit to get into Venom #1 until I learned that Rick Remender (of Uncanny X-Force and Fear Agent writing fame) was writing and Flash Thompson was taking on the symbiote suit. The first issue gave us a taste of what the Army’s plans are for Flash and the suit and how Flash will react to constantly being taken away from the suit. Those of you who know what Flash’s current physical state outside of the suit know what I’m talking about. There’s a lot of story ideas to come out of this next volume in the Venom series and I for one will enjoy this ride.
CBF Quick Picks #46 : Justice League Generation Lost #14
Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.
The Brightest Day tie-ins have been hit and miss as is usually the case with many tie-in books to major events. Justice League Generation Lost has been one of the surprise tie-in hits. Issue #14 took it to another level with another intriguing alternate future storyline that may be a result of Maxwell Lord’s actions in the present. Judd Winick has made this book his own ever since Keith Giffen left the series. I’m very curious to see where this particular issue plays into the next.
Had Generation Lost not come out of nowhere and throw a curveball at me, Detective Comics #871 would have received top honors for the week. This was the debut of Scott Snyder and Jock’s first arc and takes the Dark Knight back to the basics in detective work. Snyder is already showing a good feel for characterization in this book, particularly with Dick Grayson and Commissioner Gordan. Jock’s work didn’t knock me on the floor, but it was acceptable to compliment Snyder’s gritty writing style.
Uncanny X-Force #2 continues Rick Remender’s off-the-wall storytelling of a new covert ops X-Force group that is looking to take out the latest incarnation of Apocalypse. Character development is the stand-out here that was severely lacking in the previous X-Force book. And just seeing where they take “Kid Apocalypse” next in his indoctrination is definitely intriguing.
And then there’s Batwoman #0. Nothing more than a primer for J.H. Williams’ upcoming book in February, but an exceptionally good primer nonetheless. If you want to get up to speed on all things Kate Kane, this is a good start. I’d also recommend Greg Rucka’s awesome arc with Williams on art here as well.
Sign off on your thoughts on these books and anything else going on, peeps!
CBF Quick Picks #34 : Justice League Generation Lost #8
 |
We’ve hit the end of August with some intriguing books on the market: - I gave Avengers another shot with issue #4, but it still didn’t gel with me. Too much funny dialogue detracts from the story and whatever it is, John Romita Jr’s art is lacking in detail in some areas. - Action Comics #892 continues Luthor’s quest for the Black Lantern energy. A continually good character study of the popular DC villain from Paul Cornell, although Pete Woods’ art took away from some of the action scenes. I expect more when you have Deathstroke as a guest star. - Superman/Batman #75 gets a super-sized special and while the main story from Levitz is decent enough, it’s the back-up pieces that steal the show. Anybody who’s read the Luthor/Joker 2-page short here knows what I’m talking about. But when it’s all said and done, Justice League Generation Lost #8 is the clear winner. Judd Winick and company has made a believer out of me with this series of many former Justice League Int’l alumni banding together to pursue and capture Maxwell Lord. Each character gets standout moments and the dialogue between them is laugh out loud hilarious. It says something when this bi-weekly series has enough chops to compete with the main Brightest Day book (and sometimes surpass it). |
Podcasts!
