Mastering Time Masters

Time Masters: Vanishing Point #1

Time Masters: Vanishing Point is the lesser-known companion piece to the concurrently released Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne mini-series.  However, unlike the latter, the six-issue Time Masters: Vanishing Point mini-series was much better written and contained a more interesting (and easier to follow) storyline.  

In Time Masters, time-traveling Rip Hunter, along with his father Booster Gold, Superman, and Green Lantern Hal Jordan journey back and forth in time in search of Batman who has been lost in time since the events of the  Final Crisis/Batman R.I.P. storyline.  Dan Jurgens, creator of Booster Gold, wrote and drew Time Masters, and you can see that even after all these years, he hasn't lost his touch.  His characterizations of Booster, Rip, and Skeets were fantastic, as usual.  There were, however, some off-putting characterizations of Hal Jordan and Superman.  Hal criticizes Booster throughout the series, as if he's the self-centered, self-serving narcissist that he was back in the 1980s.  And Superman wants to intervene in situations they encounter during their time travels, despite being told that they can't change events in time because it could negatively alter the time continuum.  I would think he'd be a bit more rational than that.  

Rip Hunter with his sexy scruff

Each issue of Time Masters started with a two-page back story of Rip Hunter's up 'til now unknown past, showing him as a child learning about the timestream from his father, Booster Gold.  This was something I looked forward to in every issue.  Rip Hunter's past has been very secretive, but now we've been given a few glimpses.  The mystery still remains, though:  Who is Rip Hunter's mother?  We catch a distant peek of the back of her in one scene, but she's dressed and looks like Michelle Carter (aka Goldstar), Booster's sister, and that's just wrong.  I sincerely hope that Rip wasn't the result of some Carter inbreeding. 

Starfire #1 (1976)

As the heroes travel through time, they encounter some DC Comics characters who haven't made appearances in a long time.  There's Claw The Unconquered, whom I remember having a short-lived series back in the 1970s.  More interestingly, there's also the appearance of the original Starfire (before Koriand'r made her appearance in the New Teen Titans), who also had a short-lived series back in the 1970s.  Booster even makes a joke about Starfire copyrighting her name.  I remember her well because I had a copy of her first issue in my earliest comic collection, so I was excited to see someone give her a chance at redemption. 

Time Masters' connection to Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne is somewhat questionable and probably only mentionable for the purpose of driving sales.  Even Superman comments on what readers are probably thinking: "I think we're supposed to be working to find Batman, yet all we've done is chase our own tails!"  So if you're buying this mini-series for Batman, forget it.  However, if you're buying it because you're interested in Booster Gold, Rip Hunter, and events leading up to Flashpoint (or even the return of Starfire!), then you're on the right track. 

The final issue of Time Master: Vanishing Point was released three months after the five first monthly released issues. The ending cleverly leads into Booster Gold #44 and Flashpoint #1, both of which aren't scheduled for release for another couple of months.  The final scene leaves you with Rip Hunter's mysterious chalkboard which, as always, gives readers clues to upcoming events in the DC Universe:

Before I end this posting, can I just shout, "Hooray for Amethyst!!"  I'm looking forward to seeing the Princess of Gemworld again, but I hope she's back as her original Alice-in-Wonderland-type self and not the [yawn] mystical Lord of Order.

OH Mighty Is-Is-Isis!

I looked forward to the new 2008 Titans series when it was released because it brought together the heroes from my favorite 1980s comic: The New Teen Titans. Unfortunately, the stories were pretty weak up until the "final" issues when each character had their own spotlight issue.  With issue #24, Titans changed its format and became Titans: Villains for Hire (without the "Villains for Hire" in the title).  I'm still not sure why DC chose to revise the entire format of the Titans series and continue the numbering rather than starting anew like they did with Green Arrow, Birds of Prey, Red Robin, etc.  I don't feel that Titans is an appropriate title for this Villains for Hire book.  It's quite the tarnish to the Teen Titans name and doesn't accurately reflect the storylines or the characters.  Confusion aside, I enjoy seeing a regular monthly comic featuring some of my favorite characters: Arsenal/Red Arrow, Cheshire, Deathstroke, and Osiris, Isis' brother.

JoAnna Cameron as Isis

I can't thank DC Comics enough for bringing Isis back to life in recent Titans issues.  She's one of my favorite characters.  I have such fond memories of watching the live-action Shazam! and Secrets of Isis TV shows on Saturday mornings back in the 1970s.  So when Isis first appeared in the year-long series 52 in 2006, I nearly wet myself with excitement.  DC did a fantastic job of bringing her into the Shazam/Captain Marvel family (how apropos) by making her Black Adam's love interest.  See: my Black Adam mini-series review.  However, like with Conner Kent/Superboy, though, I was sad when she was killed off, but relieved now that DC is finally bringing her back to life in the current Titans series. I hope this time it's for good and she and Black Adam can finally have a life together.  Someone needs to calm that boy down.  In their own monthly series, of course.

As a side note, not only has Isis come back to life, but she's also been granted Double D-sized breasts.  Seriously, what's up with that?  Can we get those babies in check before they slip out of the gauze that's holding them up?





They're so big, in fact, that she's top-heavy now and can't even stand up.  (See below)  Poor Isis.  How the Mighty have fallen.  

Someone Needs *Their* Ass Kicked

Because of the success of the first Kick-Ass comic book limited series from 2008 (and the 2010 movie of the same name), a sequel, Kick Ass 2, was proposed.  The first issue of the second series was released on October 20, 2010.  It was extremely successful and sold out within a week. 

It's now the middle of March (that's five months later for those of you without a calendar or calculator handy) and we've yet to see issue #2.  Did someone give this assignment to Kevin Smith or Grant Morrison?  I wish I had a job where I could turn in my assignments five months late.  Can anyone even remember what happened in issue #1?  At this point, does anyone care?

Meet: the Venisher

 

Dear Marvel Comics,

Seriously?  The new Venom?  A cross between Venom and the Punisher?  The Venisher?  I think I'll pass.

Regards,

Former Fan of Venom 

The Lion Queen

Justice League of America #258

In the 1980s, when DC Comics changed the line-up for the Justice League of America to include fledglings Vixen, Gypsy, Commander Steel, and Vibe, I was not impressed.  These newcomers were JLA material?  A girl (Gypsy) running around in bare feet?  Methinks not.  In trying to add a bit of diversity to the DC Universe, it felt as though DC Comics was giving up on one of their most successful team titles.  They even assigned Luke McDonnell to the art chores, whose characters were all stiff-looking and unattractive.  Not surprisingly, this led to "The End of the Justice League of America" storyline which ran in issues Justice League of America #258-261.  I think everyone was thankful to see these new hated characters picked off, one by one. 

Present-day Gypsy

Cut to:  Today.  I have a very different opinion of the two newest members that have survived over the years.  Gypsy has (thankfully) donned shoes and a costume that's strikingly similar to Wonder Woman's new (and much talked about and reviled) costume.  She's also got some pretty formidable powers that make her one of the most underrated superheroes in the DC Universe.  In this regard, she reminds me of Marvel Comics' Invisible Woman.  Once Marvel recognized the extent to which the Invisible Woman's powers worked, she became the most powerful member of the Fantastic Four.  Same goes for Gypsy.  Of the four, she's probably the strongest member.

Vixen, however, has become the best of the bunch.  She's sexy and tough and deserves more recognition than she's currently given.  She was thankfully given her own mini-series titled Vixen: Return of the Lion in 2008, but we haven't seen her since.   The strength of this mini-series is in the solo adventures of Vixen as she returns to her homeland; the weakness is the inclusion of the Justice League.  Vixen can do just fine on her own.  She doesn't need other superheroes to help her carry a storyline, especially in her first solo self-titled mini-series.  Vixen: Return of the Lion was quality storytelling, and I recommend it to anyone who loves good writing (G. Willow Wilson) and exceptional artwork (Cafu).  Let's hope that one day Vixen gets her due.  She deserves a solo comic more than Static or Marvel Comics' new female Black Panther.

Wide Load Coming Through

Batman: The Widening Gyre #4

I haven't posted anything lately.  I guess I really haven't read anything really noteworthy to discuss.  I did read Kevin Smith's Batman: The Widening Gyre mini-series in its "entirety" about a month ago, though, so I'll write about that.  (You'll see why I put "entirety" in quotes later.)

First, I'll start with the title.  The title is taken from a poem called "The Second Coming" by William Butler Yeats.  The poem was written in 1919 in the aftermath of the WWI. While the various manuscript revisions of the poem refer to the Renaissance, French Revolutions, the Irish rebellion, and those of Germany and of Russia, others suggest the text refers to the Russian Revolution of 1917.  The poem uses Christian imagery regarding the Apocalypse and second coming as allegory to describe the atmosphere in post-war Europe. 

The poem begins:

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
    The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
    Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
    Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.

If you're interested, you can find the rest of the poem here.

With that imagery in mind, "the widening gyre" in Batman's case is the appearance of many of his villains all at once.  He's bombarded with different villains in each issue.  Meanwhile, there are subplots of Bruce Wayne/Batman's romance with Silver St. Cloud (that comes with a lot of jealousy from a famous feline lady), as well as the appearance of a new vigilante in town sporting a goat mask by the name of Baphomet.  (You can read about the origins of that name here.)  

"The Widening Gyre" was supposed to be released monthly.  However, like Kevin Smith's Spider-Man and the Black Cat: The Evil That Men Do, there were delays.  The six issues were released in October 2009, November 2009, December 2009 (so far so good), and then February 2010, April 2010, and lastly, September 2010.  Ouch.  Nearly a year for a six-issue mini-series.  (Note to Kevin: if you're not going to write them in timely manner, please don't take or ask for the assignments; there are many, MANY other comic writers out there who would LOVE to have the opportunity to write a mini-series.  Note to DC and Marvel Comics: don't start printing/releasing Kevin's comics until he's completed all issues of a mini-series.)  

Bruce and Silver frolic in the water.

Luckily, I didn't start reading the issues until I had them all, so it was fairly cohesive for me.   I enjoyed Batman facing off against his most popular foes, one after the other.  It reminded me somewhat of "The Gauntlet" storyline that just ran through The Amazing Spider-Man series last year.  Best of all, though, was the romance developments between Bruce Wayne/Batman and Silver St. Cloud.  She's the only non-superhero who could handle being partnered with Bruce Wayne, knowing what he does in his spare time.  She's mature, yet fun.  Attached, yet not clingy.  And she certainly doesn't need the Wayne fortune.  It left me wondering, though, if this series was a dream, took place in the distant past, was an Elseworlds story, was a "what if?" type scenario, etc., because this could seriously change Bruce/Batman emotionally, not to mention his relationship with Catwoman.

Kevin Smith

As I finished reading the sixth/final issue, it ended with a cliffhanger (I won't reveal what) and said to look for Volume Two.  WTF?  When?  2026?  This was supposed to be a six-issue mini-series and now there's more?   I want to know what happens, but I don't want to know on Kevin Smith's time schedule.  Imagine if Dallas had decided to take a three-year break to reveal Who Shot J.R.?  I enjoy Kevin Smith's writing and the stories he comes up with for such superheroes as Batman, Green Arrow, and Spider-Man, but I'm more than a bit frustrated with his lack of dedication, as well as DC and Marvel's acceptance of his flagrant disregard for deadlines.  He's not exactly winning over fans.  Perhaps the "widening gyre" refers to the gap in time between comic releases?