Toying Around

THIS ARRIVED YESTERDAY!

I prefer my toys out of the closet and posing.

Buddy and Supernova are staying at the condo...

while Booster Gold, Skeets, Isis and Batwoman will be keeping...

the JSA company.

Time After Time: 52 Week 52

Hats off to DC.

Okay, so I'm scratching my head like crazy. If there's one thing about this massive effort called 52 it's the curve balls that are never easy to predict. Sometimes, to catch. Most of these must be Grant's doing. Mark Waid did say that if ever there was some high concept being pursued, that would be Grant's, specifically the evil Skeets part. No surprise that issue 52 shoulders a heavily unpredictable end...err, beginning...

As temporal adventures go, everything is debatable. But the time-spanning touch down (literally, touch down) is something that fans, at least my sister and I, will be discussing time after time.

If there's one thing that 52 was successful at, it's telling the stories, the sometimes literal, sometimes spiritual, oftentimes moral journeys of Ralph Dibny, Black Adam, The Question, Renee Montoya, the JSA, Cassie (Wonder Girl), Animal Man, Adam Strange, Starfire, Steel, and Booster Gold. And Lobo. Definitely a year of heroes above any other league.

World War III

52 #50, World War III 1-4

This is DC's fuck you to Marvel's Civil War, five installments in a day, kudos to the group just for this rare experience.

Twists and Dead Ends: The thing is, DC doesn't seem to be interested in attracting new readers. World War III's marketing blitz is a tiny, lonely spark compared to the fireworks display of Civil War or even Infinite Crisis. No doubt it is a major event with gazillion book crossovers but it does feel that it is solely for 52 readers. I can't imagine jumping into this arc without reading the past 49 issues of 52 and a few OYL titles (Supergirl, Trials of Shazam). With this frighteningly focused market, in this sense, World War III is an ambitious indy act, let's say Sufjan Stevens, let's say Sufjan Stevens' Avalanche album, an acquired taste, a collection of rarities and B-sides, and only for the loyal listeners. 52 #50 is, not surprisingly, the best of the bunch, drawing to a close Black Adam's murderous rampage. The other closures---the Question and Montoya's, Batman's soul searching, Luthor's rain of the supermen---all neatly tied, if a little too hushed. Black Adam's journey in contrast is superhero UFC smackdown, loud, fast and furious. The ending is quite a punch, mystical in nature but true to the characters.

World War III takes a close look at the events of 52 #50, with a few forced and useless plotlines, mostly found in Book Two. Supergirl comes back from the future changed. Duh. Or this is why she has two ongoing titles. Donna Troy picks up the Wonder Woman tiara, but never answers why. Bat Girl confused; Jason poses as Nightwing. Given, given. The return and death of Terra...whathafuck? How? And why?

But the books do succeed in telling the story of Black Adam and J'onn J'onzz. No spoilers here, but choosing Manhunter to be the narrator of the story worked beyond my expectations. The loss and guilt that connects both characters made the telling more...poignant. Not the greatest thing about a comic book mega-event but it's what is sorely lacking in Civil War. All fists. No punches.

Highlights and low life: Martian Manhunter vs. Black Adam. China's heroes vs. Black Adam. DCU vs. Black Adam. All sweet. Infinity Inc.'s response to Black Adam was hilarious. Loved the conversations between the DCU heroes before the final attack: love lives, rent woes, anything but what they were about to face. Major mehs: Teen Titans. Interesting pre-OYL line-up but too many questions left unanswered like why BB left the Titans in the first place. And Terra? When and how did this happen? Apparently it's the same Terra, GF's sister. And Frankenstein Jr.? Argh. Years worth of Teen Titans history in my head and the Titans are written out of sync. There's nothing remotely Raven about Raven, Gar's a mess, and...just too many gaps in the telling which started immediately after the OYL jump. Sorry, grumpy fan. And oh, the art. Not very good especially in the first two books. I guess it's what DC had to sacrifice to meet the shipping schedule.

All in all, a great story in the DCU continuity. And mired in continuity this is. Works for me but definitely not for walk-ins.

52 # 50 (Rucka, Johns, Morrison, Waid, Various artists) *****
World War III Book One (Champagne/Oliffe and Geraci) ***
World War III Book Two (Champagne/Smith and Snyder) *
World War III Book Three (Ostrander/Derenick and Rapmund) ****
World War III Book Four (Ostrander/Jadson and Ramos) ****

Bullet Points: April 12

Teen Titans #45 (DC) - They're going down fast much like the writing is devolving to cromagnon stating the obvious grunts. Damn you Beechen. Raven is all Deanna Troi, Wonder Girl's still weepy over Conner, Robin's still weepy over Conner, Bat Girl's all grr and hi-yaa but she gets kicked on the head by a one-armed C-lister, this from the girl who almost killed Shiva. Unbefuckinglievable. I love this book, used to be on the top of my pile. They're making dropping this title so much easier. *

52 Week 49 (DC) - Already? Sure, the art and writing were wobbly at times but the effort itself, the intersecting locations and characters, the simmering and the murderous boiling over as it reached the week 30 mark, everything, it's just mythic. Great Black Adam and Atom Smasher bit and the scientists in the Island of Dr. Morrow (funny, that) still mad giggly. It looks like I'm on board for World War III. ****

After the Cape #2 (Image) - The first issue was interesting enough. Alcoholic superhero gets booted out of super group and now robbing banks to buy a house, but the drinking still gets in the way. Nicholas Cage should star in the movie. Issue #2 is just meh. Pacing is slow and the plot is stuck in mid-air. And, yeah, that's about it. **

Fables #60 (Vertigo) - Finally back to its major story with the Frog Prince arc. Wheels are turning fast for Fly and his turn from bumbling fool to mighty avenger is both tragic and triumphant. The ominous soundtrack is back, new plots unravel and a few secrets are revealed. Yum. ****

R.I.P. The Question

You finally got your moment.
And we loved every paradox, every cryptic admonition.
The wasting away though, that hurt.
The conspiracy of a lifetime.
But you were always ahead of the game.
You always knew the answer.

Thor Says: The Best of 2006 in Comics v.1

A year of crisis, a year of reboots. And I’m not just talking about my personal life. This is the best year to get back into comics. Continuities are cleaned up; storylines are brassy new, and our heroes learn how to be heroes again. And oh, all Civil War titles will have to be runners-up for now since shipping is always delayed. Heh.

Best Story INFINITE CRISIS
Epic, cinemascope storytelling. Taking root in the universe-spanning Crisis on Infinite Earths and the more recent crime drama Identity Crisis, Infinite Crisis redefines taking a plunge with blind Juggernaut momentum. Johns and Jimenez take us from a nuclear detonation in Bludhaven to the imploding Rann galactica to a universe-bending portal powered by Black Adam and Power Girl among others. We might not always get it (instantly) but we are definitely swept away. By the palpable desperation of Superman. By the sheer bravado of the speedsters and the GL corps. By the sacrifice of a teenager in love.

Runners-up CIVIL WAR: Frontline (Marvel), RUNAWAYS: Parental Guidance (Marvel), TEEN TITANS: Titans Around the World (DC)



Best Book 52
A weekly comic by Mark Waid, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, and Geoff Johns. Cover by J.G. Jones. And there's no hype to live up to. Just writers telling stories and artists sketching the missing year between I.C. and the One Year Later jump all DC titles took before IC wrapped up. What was a gamble is now an extraordinary triumph of affected storytelling. And it lives up to its promise. Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman are not missed. At all. Instead we get to root for C-listers Renee Montoya, The Question, Steel, Booster Gold and Skeets, and almost forgotten fan favorites Animal Man and Adam Strange. And Lobo. The lost in space crew, the Black Adam family, the mysterious Batwoman, and Lex Corp.'s Infinity Inc. are all about to collide next year, and I'm guessing it will soon be time for JSA #1's opening panel World War III.

Runners-up FABLES (Vertigo), THE ULTIMATES 2 (Marvel), ASTONISHING X-MEN (Marvel), Y: The Last Man (Vertigo)

Best Hero IRON MAN
Because right now, he is both hero and villain and there's no one remotely more interesting in the Marvel Universe than this recovering alcoholic corporate mogul who cannot survive outside his armor. And Iron Man beating up Captain America, that's the sweetest. Turn around or not at the end of CW, he is the necessary catalyst that is changing the Marvel Universe.

Runners-up GREEN ARROW (DC), RENEE MONTOYA (DC), EMMA FROST (Marvel), BLACK BOLT (Marvel)

52 Week Thirty

52 #30
Written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid; Breakdowns by Keith Giffen; Art by various; Backup features by Waid and various; Covers by J.G. Jones

The Ah-Hah: First, a moment of silence for this week's Ginebra bilog-inspired cover.

Then.

Batwoman: I'm Batwoman.
Nightwing: Definitely not a Batgirl.

Heh. The Bat Family takes center stage, and it's a stage filled with Bat flirting and hornyness. This time we meet a self-conscious Batwoman who knows her ass is being watched by Buttwing while she kicked, um, assess; quite far from the grim Batdyke that Montoya knows. The Bat banter hasn't been this fun since...um...let me get back to you on that.

And now for the good, sad part. Charlie really is dying. I'm still hoping for an ex machina stunt here because I love this guy. I love the Question and Montoya tandem. They are my heroes of the year. In the middle of all the Bat madness is a quiet slice of consciously restrained writing. Much like a sigh.

The Uh-huh: Batman has gone Bat crazy after IC and appears to have successfully killed his inner batness, which doesn't really amount to anything because we all know what happens one year later. And we all know that he IS psycho anyway. Quite unnecessary, but still nice to know. ****

52 Week Twenty-Nine

52 #29
Written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid; Breakdowns by Keith Giffen; Art by various; Covers by J.G. Jones

The Ah-hah: JSA. The old timers Ted, Jay and Alan being old and obsolete. Hurts. Moment of realization comes crashing down on the three when a Thanksgiving Infinity Inc. parade walks down the street outside their headquarters with new Infiniter Jade. Obsidian goes berserk. Meanwhile, on the island of Dr. Morrow, nothing much happens. This is one of the more stand alone issues, and this goes out to all those who have been missing the JSA, me included. More of a homage than moving the story forward. All the talk on respect and what makes a superhero hit home. Nostalgia minus the Meltzer breakdown. Matter of fact, even a little cheeky. Loved it.

The Uh-oh: The island of Dr. Morrow scenes are overwritten and painstakingly slow. Bad egg Egg-fu was fun to see again sans the moustache but forgettable, really. Even Steel's getting predictable; we all kinda knew (guessed) that Lex Luthor's for everyman brew wasn't permanent. And I just cant wait to see all those Infinity Inc.-ers die really horrible deaths. After that big reveal in week 28 I was kinda hoping for more on our lost-in-space crew and the Questions. But what's great is...there's always next week. ***

52! 52!

Written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid; Breakdowns by Keith Giffen; Art by various

Week 22. 52's on a roll. Consistently solid writing, great, great stroytelling. This time around we meet Super Chief, and I'm thinking, man, this is gonna be cheesy. But it wasn't. The sort-of revered tone on the character's history leveled off the goofyness, and that last bit, that tragic twist, just powerful. Steel's somewhere in the panels, but a totally forgettable appearance. Lex Luthor is getting more paranoid and insists that Supernova is Superman (but that can't be him with being powerless and all). So, who is Supernova? Superboy would just be too easy. I like Connor, I grieved when he died, but I don't want to see him back. Not just yet. The guys over at the Raging Bullets podcast think it's Booster Gold. Now, that I like. We also get to see the Metal Men, thoush some have turned evil. But if you've been picking up Meltzer's JLA, you kinda know that they'll be surviving whatever's happening here. *****

Week 23. Couldn't wait for the Black Adam family to return, along with the Question and Renee Montoya, cos I just know this will all end badly. Black Adam hasn't made an appearance in any of the OYL books --- still waiting for the JSA re-launch this December --- and I kinda have a feeling that it won't be happily ever after for him and Iris. Especially after this issue, he just can't make an Adam Jr. without tragic repercussions. And they're headed for China! Week 24 has on its cover Firestorm and Bulleteer, and a hole bunch of other guys. I just love love love how this is expanding the DCU and (re) introducing heroes, though I still have no idea what the mystery of 52 is all about. ****

Infinity and beyond

52 #21 Written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid; Breakdowns by Keith Giffen; Art by various

Nothing much happens in week 21 but it does tell a good story. Infinity, Inc. is resurrected care of LexCorp., and the kids are likeable enough, ambitious enough, desperate enough, but not good enough to be heroes. A pre-OYL Teen Titans line-up also makes an appearance, and it's great to see a totally new dynamic, or the lack of it. The imperfect groups always make the more interesting read, and I want to see more of BB and Raven trying to get the Titans together, and the comings and goings of members. I want to see what made BB give up on the Titans. So, a good issue? Yes. But. It doesn't really move the 52 story forward. But still. Also, it looks like the Metal Men will be in the next ish, so there's still plenty to be happy about. ****

TEEN TITANS #39
Written by Geoff Johns; Art by Tony Daniel and Kevin Conrad
Part Two of Titans Around the World and we get to meet three ex-Titans: Zatarra, Miss Martian (who's like Miss Marvel, only green, or not) and a girly Captain Atom whose name escapes me right now but is downright annoying. The search for Raven is muddled, lost in transition, and much of the clues are frustrating to read or figure out. The banter is still quick and funny (Zatarra to Robin: You must be Wondergirl) but there's really nothing much happening except for that great reveal in the last frame. But I still like the way it's written, the realness of the dialogues (and the art's back to its original greatness). Out of all the books I'm reading, I'm closest to this title because by now the Titans have become real people to me (Man, I wish the boyfriend will never get a chance to read this or there goes my sex life). And playing catch-up is always fun, is always like that once a month drink at a bar with old friends. ***

SUPERGIRL AND THE LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #22
Written by Mark Waid and Tony Bedard; Art by Barry Kitson, Adam DeKraker and Mick Gray

How do you follow-up an almost great issue on Braniac losing his mind? You don't. This is all about flirting and dating, all about the boys loving Supergirl and the girls hating Supergirl, and the shortness of her skirt. Loved how Invisible Kid (?) explains to Cosmic Boy (with charts and tables) how its all about physics (the palpitation, the dizzyness) between Cos and Kara. Because Invisible Kid wants her for himself --- in which we get to see the Kara shrine and the freak factor goes a notch up. The kid's acting out of character and maybe it IS all about Kara. In fact, everyone has been a little different since Supergirl joined the team. Evil clone, anyone? I've been reading both Supergirl titles, and Kara's really messed up, and with the LSH, she's just too...cute. Hope there's an actual story in the next issue. **

SUPERGIRL #10
Written by Joe Kelly;
Art by Ian Churchill and Norm Rapmund

This is a curious creature, this book. It took me awhile before I finally picked it up, and I'm not at all regretting that I did. It's so fucked up that it's turning out to be good. After that strange Kandor arc (which hinted at lesbian and incestous sex in one issue), things are sort of back to normal for Kara. Normal being haunted by freaky flash backs on her last days in Argo while trying to fit in. It's Carrie meets Buffy, psycho instinct meets hero instict. Lots of moments to love here: that bit of girl talk between Cassie and Kara while Cassie's fighting a french-speaking gorilla grodd, Kara and Boomer hanging out, and THAT Carrie prom-night flash back, goosebumps over goosebumps. When Jeph Loeb brought Supergirl back to the DC universe, he made it a point to giver her an entirely different history from her previous incarnations. This Kara was sent to Earth to kill Kal-El, and has been brought up as an assassin (I'm assuming from the flash backs), which has made her monumentally mental. Can't wait to find out how she'll do Nightwing. Heh. ****

Perfectly sick. 52 #20

52 #20
Written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid; Breakdowns by Keith Giffen; Art by various; Backup feature by Waid and various; Covers by J.G. Jones

Great cover. Says it all. Perfect for this fickle flu bug that I can't just seem to shake. Well, it's not like I've been turning in early anyway. So it's our space cadets and church of the something fish priest Lobo in a crummy planet with strange, desperate aliens. A gazillion space bugs attack and each of our heroes get to show-off their decapitation skills. Kory grabs the eye and everything's all deathly glowy and a handful alien thingies are saved, but not yet really, because the glowyness caught the attention of a major, major bug. Everyone's so cool in this issue, but Lobo rising from his own blood and guts has got to be the coolest. The green eye is a, well, an eye-popper, and I kinda want to find out how it ends up with that villain lady in the 31st century. Or if it's even the same eye. Mark Waid made an announcement at a comic-con that not all of our heroes will make it home. I've always liked Starfire (Kory and Dick Forevah!), but I'm beginning to LOVE Animal Man. Adam Strange also has a family and all, and the man's blind for chrissakes. Grr. I wish it would be Lobo, but he can't die. There's also a Supernova appearance, and he's in ... the fucking Batcave. That alone got me bubbly rabid for the next ish, and it looks like the Teen Titans will also be in week 21, so, waiting and drumming fingers til they bleed. ****1/2