Gotham City Sirens #12
Detective Comics #865
Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #2
Dude.... if that's not a sweet cover I don't know what is. Ganthet, Kyle and John all look real, that's amazing. Great job. So, I'm going into this comic knowing hardly anything except that "If Gardner does this he an' Jordan are done bein' Friends. For Good." So anyway, Ganthet drops a bomb a few pages in that was pretty awesome. Seeing a power ring being created was a pretty epic thing, and definitely showed how such a little ring can wield so much power. We find out that Green Lantern Stel is missing so John Stewart and Boodikka go off to look for him. Also there's an abundance of new Alpha Lanterns but I won't spoil that for you. We never do see Guy again after the first couple pages, which leads me to believe Ganthet has something up his sleeve. This was a great way to start the arc and I'm happy it looks like GLC is still in good hands even with Tomasi moving on. I'll give GLC #48 an 7/10 rating, here's hoping the next issue bumps it up.
Ganthet: I, Ganthet of Oa, do hereby resign my status as a Guardian of the Universe.
Big bad Atrocitus riding the subway, now I've seen everything! His line about the rage was awesome and a good way to start the issue and pull us right in. The artwork is magnificent, I'm not a big art guy as I've always cared more about the story than how good the art is, but just the little touches like how the veins pop out of Hal's neck when trying to lift the White Lantern is what makes it good. Also, Geoff makes a lot of mistakes as we've discussed lately, (replacing Wally with Barry, new Boomer with old Boomer) but the dude writes a hell of a Sinestro. Whether he's supposed to be feared, a hero, or has funny lines, the smarmy attitude of his shines through. And the scene where all three Lanterns (Hal, Carol and Sinestro) touch the White Lantern was an awesome visual. The stuff with Sodam Yat was amazingly good, seeing the Daxamites fall from the sky... was chilling. As well as the Ion chained next to Parallax. Add in the surprise return of someone I've had a soft spot for since Superman: The Animated Series, and you've got a good comic with great art and a good mystery brewing up. I give this month's Green Lantern a 9/10 rating.
I have no idea what to expect from Rise and Fall of Arsenal, I gave the first issue a 4/10 and the second an 8.5/10 so maybe this will show us how this mini is going. I don't know what it is with this week but these covers have been amazing. One page in and we find out that next to Kendra/Shayera/Hawkgirl, Cheshire was the best in bed. Awesome, thanks for that information Roy. Roy and Cheshire do what's expected of them, then Roy goes out to fight crime because he's pissed he came to the field without a Bat, if you catch my drift. Anyway, Roy see's Lian after some... things he does that I won't say, but turns out like always it was a hallucination. A still hallucinating Arsenal blames Batman (Roy's former Teen Titan/Titans buddy Dick Grayson) for Lian's death, thinking he's The Electrocutioner. The fight with Roy and Dick was very well done, as was the scene that followed with Dinah. The last scene was a little too, grim for my tastes, I mean she's a little girl. But eh, whatever, all in all this was a good comic, and I'm enjoying it. Some will say it's a step back for Roy, which it is, but with everything he's been through it's expected of him. I'll give this issue a 9/10 and I'm eagerly awaiting the fourth and final issue of this mini.
Roy: I'm glad she's here, I needed an outlet--Something to take out my frustration on. Might as well be Jade. She likes it rough anyway.
I love how Cass, Superboy, Kid Flash, and more are on the cover, no Static, yet Blue Beetle is on the cover. And by love I mean hate, because I'm not a fan of Blue Beetle at all... anyway this is the start of a new arc called "The Hunt for Raven" which I'm hoping is exciting. I'm already annoyed with Beast Boy, he's been trying to lead a group when he can barely lead himself now every word out of his mouth is "Raven." We've gotta find Raven, Where's Raven, Let's look for Raven blah blah blah, how many times has she been kidnapped, turned evil or died and came back?! She's fine, go turn into a something and make yourself useful. And the comic hops around like it's taking a Brightest Day class in story telling etiquette. We also see the backlash or Cassie and Connor which is weird because they seemed just fine in Adventure Comics #2 (I believe) so them arguing now seems unnecessary. Can someone explain to me how turning into a monkey can allow Beast Boy to fix a computer that just short circuited? I mean if a Monkey can do it, why not just do it as a human... can Monkeys harness electricity or something because I didn't see that on Animal Planet. Also there's a page where it looks like Cassie is saying Miss Martian's words because they were placed in a weird place, then it continues in the next panel, making me think someone screwed up. Besides all that it was interesting, they wrote Jamie out so he could ruin, I mean be in, Generation Lost. But this wasn't a bad read despite the faults, It gets a 6/10.
I like Chess, I like Comics so I loved this cover. I hate Blue Beetle (Jamie Reyes) though, but whatever. Anyway, this starts off genius. Supes is staring at a picture of Wonder Woman holding a sword, well to him anyway, when actually it's a pic of her snapping Max Lord's neck! That alone shows that Max Lord is awesome as hell, I mean when this is over dude will be in my top five villains list because that's freaking awesome. Captain Atom saying Booster got "his ass whumped with a pipe" was awesome, I mean I don't know who says "whumped" but yeah, that was funny. During Booster's conversation with "The New Dark Knight" (Man I'm using a lot of quotes!) I loved hearing how Max has changed up history, and seeing classic Batsuits in the background. Once again the artwork is pretty good, this is one of the best drawn Wonder Woman's I've seen in a while, she looks powerful and like a woman and not one or the other. There's a lot in this issue, so much that I've barely touched upon it, but enough that I know that this comic deserves the rating it's getting. Seeing as how it'll probably drop now that Jaime Reyes is in it, makes it even better that It has a 10/10 rating. I really loved this and it seems Max has all his bases covered so what can the former JLI do? Only time will tell, but I'll definitely be waiting.
Skeets: I can only assume that the implication is that Booster's life needs no discrediting. Therefore making anything Mister Lord might do... redundant.
And now... More ranting. In all the comics I read this week there was a preview of the upcoming Batman: Odyssey. Between this and First Wave, what the hell is up with Batman using guns?! My Batman doesn't use guns, okay? Jason Todd does, and that's fine, but Batman doesn't. He did in the 1940's and even Geoff Johns doesn't want that Batman back, so that's saying something! Sure he used one on Darkseid, but he's a friggin New God. Just cause he used one on Darkseid doesn't mean he's gonna roam Gotham with a shotgun.... anyway, I have a question before I leave.
If Booster Gold had a movie, who would you like to see play him? My pick is Ashton Kutcher, cause he's a funny guy but could make Booster look serious, I wanna hear what you guys think though.
Well, that's it for me, like I said up top I'll be back with a new poll and a review for Get Mystique this weekend. Until then, You've just been Gobsmacked!
Brightest Day #3 , The Joker's Asylum: The Riddler, Superman/Batman Annual #4, Red Robin #13, and Red Hood: Lost Days #1 (Woooooooooooooo!!!!!)
The very well done cover by Guillem March deserves praise, Harley's mouth looks oddly big but it's a very good looking cover either way. The comic starts off interesting, as it promises to follow up to Blackest Night Catwoman which I enjoyed a lot. Seeing Harley jump across rooftops while holding an enormous mallet is kind of... weird but who am I to judge? Ivy's line confused me because she said the chick almost succeeded where Batman failed. Really? Batman tried to kill you with a big plant oven thing? (Patent Pending) Where the hell was I when this happened? I've seen him retain you but never has he said "Now I can kill Ivy with this big tube that'll wilt her like an old rose! Hahahahaha!!!" Man oh man, the scene with Maggie and the Nun lady was gruesome but I can't say I didn't like it, that was awesome in showing us who Maggie is and what she'll do. The remaining story focused on Maggie, Harley and Catwoman and was very good. I'm pretty anxious to read the next issue and I think if the writing remains this well Sirens could become one of the best comics out, now that they have a threat instead of running around the city fighting an old man or something. I'll give this a 8.5/10 rating.
Maggie: I'm glad she's in her work clothes, it'll make it easier to remember that I'm fighting the Cat, not my sister.
The conclusion to last month's Detective Comics and last years Arkham Reborn mini is here, and I'm anxious to jump into it. We finally find out about Arkham's Black Mask persona as well as his "Beauties", plus seeing Aaron Cash always lightens my mood as he's one of my favorite Arkham employee's. Seeing Hugo Strange with his huge beard sticking out of his Batman mask always makes me laugh, for reasons unknown to me. It's just so asinine. So without giving too much away, we discover the truth about the Beauties, find out who replaces Arkham as the head of Arkham Asylum and we see appearances by Jim Gordon, Zsasz and of course The Dark Knight himself. I loved the ending and we see things are just getting started here. I really really liked this comic, and the 9/10 rating should reflect that. I don't know where Detective Comics will go from here but if the writing is as good as this was I'll be happy.
Dr. Arkham: He wanted to remember me... So I carved my initials inside his eyelid.
Batman: Return of Bruce Wayne #2Can't say I'm anxious to read this after that horrible first issue but let's get into it, maybe Grant was saving everything for this one? I love how Bruce can't talk in one issue, then in the next the guy is randomly fighting a Kraken. Man this artwork was annoyingly bad. It was so simple that there was like no definition, Supes should look larger than life and he looks like a mailman in Superman tights. Rip Hunter doesn't even LOOK LIKE Rip Hunter! If I didn't know he's with them I'd have no idea who the hell it was! Then I read...and read...and got so bored that I couldn't finish it. That's right, this comic was SO bad that I stopped reading it and don't plan to finish it. I'm done with it. Unless someone who's opinion I value highly, and I mean highly recommends this maybe I'll pick up the trade but I'm done with this story, this arc, and everything else. I may follow Time Masters but I'm done with Return of Bruce Wayne. Rating: N/A
Me: I'm not reading this crap!
Green Lantern Corps #48
Dude.... if that's not a sweet cover I don't know what is. Ganthet, Kyle and John all look real, that's amazing. Great job. So, I'm going into this comic knowing hardly anything except that "If Gardner does this he an' Jordan are done bein' Friends. For Good." So anyway, Ganthet drops a bomb a few pages in that was pretty awesome. Seeing a power ring being created was a pretty epic thing, and definitely showed how such a little ring can wield so much power. We find out that Green Lantern Stel is missing so John Stewart and Boodikka go off to look for him. Also there's an abundance of new Alpha Lanterns but I won't spoil that for you. We never do see Guy again after the first couple pages, which leads me to believe Ganthet has something up his sleeve. This was a great way to start the arc and I'm happy it looks like GLC is still in good hands even with Tomasi moving on. I'll give GLC #48 an 7/10 rating, here's hoping the next issue bumps it up.
Green Lantern #54
Big bad Atrocitus riding the subway, now I've seen everything! His line about the rage was awesome and a good way to start the issue and pull us right in. The artwork is magnificent, I'm not a big art guy as I've always cared more about the story than how good the art is, but just the little touches like how the veins pop out of Hal's neck when trying to lift the White Lantern is what makes it good. Also, Geoff makes a lot of mistakes as we've discussed lately, (replacing Wally with Barry, new Boomer with old Boomer) but the dude writes a hell of a Sinestro. Whether he's supposed to be feared, a hero, or has funny lines, the smarmy attitude of his shines through. And the scene where all three Lanterns (Hal, Carol and Sinestro) touch the White Lantern was an awesome visual. The stuff with Sodam Yat was amazingly good, seeing the Daxamites fall from the sky... was chilling. As well as the Ion chained next to Parallax. Add in the surprise return of someone I've had a soft spot for since Superman: The Animated Series, and you've got a good comic with great art and a good mystery brewing up. I give this month's Green Lantern a 9/10 rating.
Sinestro: While you two are once again fanning the flames of a romantic fire destined to be doomed, we are standing in front of the single most powerful weapon in the universe.
The Rise and Fall of Arsenal #3
I have no idea what to expect from Rise and Fall of Arsenal, I gave the first issue a 4/10 and the second an 8.5/10 so maybe this will show us how this mini is going. I don't know what it is with this week but these covers have been amazing. One page in and we find out that next to Kendra/Shayera/Hawkgirl, Cheshire was the best in bed. Awesome, thanks for that information Roy. Roy and Cheshire do what's expected of them, then Roy goes out to fight crime because he's pissed he came to the field without a Bat, if you catch my drift. Anyway, Roy see's Lian after some... things he does that I won't say, but turns out like always it was a hallucination. A still hallucinating Arsenal blames Batman (Roy's former Teen Titan/Titans buddy Dick Grayson) for Lian's death, thinking he's The Electrocutioner. The fight with Roy and Dick was very well done, as was the scene that followed with Dinah. The last scene was a little too, grim for my tastes, I mean she's a little girl. But eh, whatever, all in all this was a good comic, and I'm enjoying it. Some will say it's a step back for Roy, which it is, but with everything he's been through it's expected of him. I'll give this issue a 9/10 and I'm eagerly awaiting the fourth and final issue of this mini.
Teen Titans # 83
I love how Cass, Superboy, Kid Flash, and more are on the cover, no Static, yet Blue Beetle is on the cover. And by love I mean hate, because I'm not a fan of Blue Beetle at all... anyway this is the start of a new arc called "The Hunt for Raven" which I'm hoping is exciting. I'm already annoyed with Beast Boy, he's been trying to lead a group when he can barely lead himself now every word out of his mouth is "Raven." We've gotta find Raven, Where's Raven, Let's look for Raven blah blah blah, how many times has she been kidnapped, turned evil or died and came back?! She's fine, go turn into a something and make yourself useful. And the comic hops around like it's taking a Brightest Day class in story telling etiquette. We also see the backlash or Cassie and Connor which is weird because they seemed just fine in Adventure Comics #2 (I believe) so them arguing now seems unnecessary. Can someone explain to me how turning into a monkey can allow Beast Boy to fix a computer that just short circuited? I mean if a Monkey can do it, why not just do it as a human... can Monkeys harness electricity or something because I didn't see that on Animal Planet. Also there's a page where it looks like Cassie is saying Miss Martian's words because they were placed in a weird place, then it continues in the next panel, making me think someone screwed up. Besides all that it was interesting, they wrote Jamie out so he could ruin, I mean be in, Generation Lost. But this wasn't a bad read despite the faults, It gets a 6/10.
Superboy: Want me to carry her, Bombshell?
Bombshell: I've got her. Could carry Miss Martian, You, and your enormous ego, if I had to.Justice League: Generation Lost #2
I like Chess, I like Comics so I loved this cover. I hate Blue Beetle (Jamie Reyes) though, but whatever. Anyway, this starts off genius. Supes is staring at a picture of Wonder Woman holding a sword, well to him anyway, when actually it's a pic of her snapping Max Lord's neck! That alone shows that Max Lord is awesome as hell, I mean when this is over dude will be in my top five villains list because that's freaking awesome. Captain Atom saying Booster got "his ass whumped with a pipe" was awesome, I mean I don't know who says "whumped" but yeah, that was funny. During Booster's conversation with "The New Dark Knight" (Man I'm using a lot of quotes!) I loved hearing how Max has changed up history, and seeing classic Batsuits in the background. Once again the artwork is pretty good, this is one of the best drawn Wonder Woman's I've seen in a while, she looks powerful and like a woman and not one or the other. There's a lot in this issue, so much that I've barely touched upon it, but enough that I know that this comic deserves the rating it's getting. Seeing as how it'll probably drop now that Jaime Reyes is in it, makes it even better that It has a 10/10 rating. I really loved this and it seems Max has all his bases covered so what can the former JLI do? Only time will tell, but I'll definitely be waiting.
And now... More ranting. In all the comics I read this week there was a preview of the upcoming Batman: Odyssey. Between this and First Wave, what the hell is up with Batman using guns?! My Batman doesn't use guns, okay? Jason Todd does, and that's fine, but Batman doesn't. He did in the 1940's and even Geoff Johns doesn't want that Batman back, so that's saying something! Sure he used one on Darkseid, but he's a friggin New God. Just cause he used one on Darkseid doesn't mean he's gonna roam Gotham with a shotgun.... anyway, I have a question before I leave.
Well, that's it for me, like I said up top I'll be back with a new poll and a review for Get Mystique this weekend. Until then, You've just been Gobsmacked!
- Jason Todd
Next Time on Ratings and Rantings
Brightest Day #3 , The Joker's Asylum: The Riddler, Superman/Batman Annual #4, Red Robin #13, and Red Hood: Lost Days #1 (Woooooooooooooo!!!!!)
There was so much reviewing goodness here I don't know where to start.
ReplyDeleteThe Rise of Arsenal sounds terrible. I get the point that the chracter is at his lowest, but it seems like I've heard nothing redeeming about the series so far. At this point I hope Roy Harper just goes nuts and becomes a full-on villain.
All I can say about Bruce Wayne #2 is that you've already paid for it, you might as well read it. Please understand, that's not a recommendation, just a cheap man giving you an idea.
GLC sounds like it's still pretty good! Glad to hear it!
Sorry, but I had to skip the Teen Titans review. I think there's a law that every 3 years the TT must have some kind of "Hunt for Raven" or "Death of Raven" or "Raven on the lam" type arc. Seeing as how I'm really old now, I'm kind of over that team.
And yes, your joke about Geoff Johns and 1940's Batman had me chuckling.
Now you know how I feel at your blog! How you manage to have two and still have feeling in your fingers is a mystery.
ReplyDeleteLol he's been Jason Todd'd, all thats left is a new costume and getting owned by his former teacher, and since Roy and Ollie are on the last cover it wouldn't surprise me.
I feel you, I really do Kello, but I've got so many other things to read, lets just say it's going to the bottom of the pile. I'll finish it one day, after I have nothing else to read, or when my glasses break and I can barely see what I'm reading.
Yeah I enjoyed the issue of GLC, I was hesitant after Tomasi and the rest of the team pretty much left but it's still enjoyable.
I don't even blame you, every two pages was Beast Boy saying "We've gotta find Raven!!!!" And I agree, I'm done caring about Raven, if it weren't for Superboy, Kid Flash, Static and Aquagirl I'd stop reading. Oh, and I like Bombshell.
Glad you enjoyed that, I was hoping someone would comment on it, haha.
I am in so much agreement on the Return of Bruce Wayne #2 issue. I wish I didn't have to pick up Final Crisis (ew...) or have crib notes in order to read my comics, thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteThe first one I laughed half-way through. I was talking to one of the comic book store owners here and he said exactly the same thing. So I was thinking: Good, good, it wasn't just me...
And as for Generation Lost? Wow, really enjoying that, too. And if I'd recommend anything, it would be Powergirl! Judd Winick and a new artist are taking over next month, but it really is a great little fun gem of a story.
Haha, Crib notes. That's pretty funny. And it's so true, you have to have read and remembered ALL his former stuff to make sense. I didn't like the first one either so yeah, I'm just done.
ReplyDeleteYeah Gen. Lost has been awesome, and I just told my girlfriend yesterday Judd was writing PG starting next month and I'll be picking that up as well. I read the first few issues with whats his face, uh... I can't think of his name, the big Gorilla thats not Grodd or Congorilla. Those were pretty cool.
Oh! Ultra humanite. Yes. I kind of also umm... "ship" Powergirl and Terra together and there's a lot of lovely stuff between the two of them.
ReplyDeleteThe last issue is particularly sub-texty. And the art! It's just glorious. It's so fun and detailed. Amanda Conner is amazing, I'm sad to see her go.
There's a few scenes with PG's cat that are too cute for words. I bet your g/f would love it.
YES! That bothered me that I couldn't remember his name. I saw the scan over at your blog with PG trying to name her cat and it was pretty funny. I think she may have picked up the issue that dropped last (12?) because she's sketching PG over at her art blog next week.
ReplyDeleteI started reading the second issue of Return of Bruce Wayne and I just wasn't feeling it either...and I liked the first issue a good deal. Whatever, maybe I'll get the trade when it's all done...but maybe not. Depends what I hear about the rest of the series.
ReplyDeleteWolverine: Get Mystique was really good, and I think you'll enjoy it. There's a lot more I could say about it, but I'll just wait until you read it and post your review!
Oh, and great reviews this week as always! :)
I gotta say I'm shocked Marc, I saw you liked issue one so I figured you'd like two as well, so glad to see I wasn't alone.
ReplyDeleteAnd yeah, every since you and X recommended it it's been sitting on my dresser so I figured why not get to it this weekend, I just finished up Origins this week and the Dark Wolverine books (there's only like ten haha) so now's the perfect time. And thanks for the kind words dude.
I think it was the art in the second issue that threw me off. I think Frazer Irving was going for a Dave McKean or Bill Sienkiewich approach with the painted artwork, but he just couldn't pull it off. He either should have tried to make it completely realistic or just gone all-out with making it as abstract and crazy as he could, but it seems like he tries to do both at the same time and it's just really off-putting.
ReplyDeleteHow were Origins and Dark Wolverine? Did you read the whole series (so far) for both? Origins was just starting up when I stopped buying single issues and I wasn't a huge fan, but X says the series has gotten pretty good since then.
Exactly! It's like they tried to go one way with it but he couldn't do it, but just kept trying anyway and that ruined it for me.
ReplyDeleteI loved them both and finished both series, I read through them in like a week so that should show you how much I enjoyed it. Then again a lot of that stuff I didn't know, so I enjoyed reading about Nuke, Cyber, Omega Red and such, but you being a big Marvel guy I can see how it'd be old for the most part for you. I'm a big fan of Daken and his mind games too.
I'm curious to what you think of Legion of Superheroes #1
ReplyDeleteI didn't pick it up actually, I'm not a big fan of the Legion, I haven't read a lot of their stuff except the Final Crisis Three Worlds or whatever when Kid Flash and Superboy came back.
ReplyDeleteThis new series is pretty good, and is different approach than I've seen before.
ReplyDeleteMaybe I'll pick up a trade if it gets good reviews or something, I've just never been big for future heroes, the only heroes from the future I like are Bart Allen and Booster Gold.
ReplyDeleteJason - Like you, I enjoyed Rise of Arsenal #1 & #2. I haven't read #3 yet, but it's being hailed across many sites as the single worst comic ever written (no joke). Have you seen these comments out there, and if so, how would you respond? Just curious.
ReplyDeleteThe Irredeemable Shag
http://firestormfan.com
Lmao... really?! Damn that is bad.. Must hurt JT Krul's rep too. I actually didn't care for the first issue but I really liked the second and third. I guess it;s all in the way people perceive it, I thought it was well written. There's some things I would've changed, and I still wish Roy had his arm and Lian but I really enjoyed that issue.
ReplyDeleteThank You and that i have a swell present: How Much Are House Renovations Stardew Valley house to renovate
ReplyDelete