A Thorny Debate

National Comics' Rose & Thorn #1 (2012)

DC Comics again produces a better comic in a one-shot than numerous of their ongoing series.  What am I talking about?  National Comics' Rose and Thorn.  Like last month's Looker one-shot, Rose and Thorn reintroduces a character into the new DC Universe.  

Now, I absolutely loved the first Rose/Thorn character in the DCU.  It was later shockingly discovered that she was the mother of Jade and Obsidian from Infinity, Inc., having previously married the Alan Scott Green Lantern of Earth Two. That made for fantastic storytelling. 

Infinity, Inc. Annual #1 (1985)

The new Rose is a geeky high schooler whose Thorn persona comes out and does some wild things that impress even the Mean Girls.  She gets a tattoo from one of the Mean Girls' ex-boyfriend's dad and then turns into an S&M dominatrix, ties him up, and mutilates him by "branding" him with the word "MINE" across his chest.  We also discover that, as Thorn, she tried kissing her best friend in high school (another nerd) and, come to find out, the friend actually liked it.  How will Rose handle these new revelations when she can't control her second personality?

In my opinion, DC has done a better job reintroducing their characters through the National Comics medium than through their regular New 52 titles.  I hope we get to see Looker and Rose & Thorn in their own well-told monthly series one day...