She'll Cut a Bitch

Having fallen behind on some series, I just finished a Katana marathon, reading the last five issues of the cancelled 10-issue series.  

Wow.  Did that suck.  I shouldn't be surprised, though.  It's my own fault, really, for thinking that anything current by Ann Nocenti would be good.   I like Katana, though, as a character and wanted to be supportive of her solo series.  Correction: I like the pre-New 52 Katana.  This new one is defunct of personality.  When she was a member of the Outsiders back in the 80s, she had a distinct personality that was hard-as-nails, yet she had a mothering instinct toward the naive Halo.  Now we're presented with a character devoid of personality that talks to her sword.  ALL. THE. TIME. 

It didn't help that the entire storyline presented in Katana's solo series was so convoluted and poorly written.  Nobody ever really knew what was going on.  And the New 52 Outsiders is a society formed of various weapon clans?  Yawn.  

I really can't say much more about how bad the series was other than to quote an article I read online about Ann Nocenti's writing:  "It’s like if I was a food critic and you heard that there was a new restaurant down the block –- it’s a dumpster with the word “poop” scrawled across it in spray paint.  Do you really need to hear my recommendation?" 


With that, I bid adieu to Katana (and any future comics written by Ann Nocenti).

A Villain's Beauty is Only Skin Deep

Another DC Comics' villains month has come and gone.  After DC Comics' Faces of Evil concept disappointed me in 2009, I had low expectations for the latest villains month event/gimmick in September 2013.  Then came all the hype and positive reviews for the 3-D lenticular covers, the news of their limited availability, and the mad dash to collect them all, even if it meant spending ten to one-hundred times their "value" on eBay (see The Joker's Daughter #1).  

Fortunately, all of mine came pre-ordered, so I wasn't involved with all of the hair-pulling and name-calling. My monthly shipment comics arrived at the end of September, and I was mesmerized by the covers.  They really were pretty awesome.  I've almost finished reading all of them and all I have to say is that their beauty is only skin deep.  Some are origin stories.  Some are present-day stories.  Pretty much all of them, though, have been average storytelling.  There was no consistency or cohesiveness to them.  It would have been better if they were either (a) all origin stories set in the past or (b) all set in the present-day New 52 world.  The only good thing about them is that there has been some decent artwork from artists I've never heard of before. 

Two of the most interesting villains issues I've read so far have been Poison Ivy #1 and Killer Croc #1.  Both are set in present day with flashbacks to when they were young.  Both present terrible events in their childhoods that give us insight into why they've become the villains they are today.  I felt sympathetic toward them; the events humanized them.  Additionally, the Poison Ivy comic did something very creative with its flashbacks.  It presented the art with an old-timey look in pastel colors.  This is the kind of comic I'd love to see blossom into a regular series, as it really gives us an in-depth look into the life of Pamela Isley.  

Conversely, my most anticipated read, The Joker's Daughter #1, was a complete letdown, thanks mostly in part to writer Ann Nocenti's inability to actually, um, write. Nocenti's already killed Green Arrow, Katana, and Catwoman for me.  So, let's give her another title and see what else she can fuck up.  Does she have some sort of blackmail against DC Comics' Powers-That-Be that keeps landing her regular gigs?  What should have been an introduction to a new, reinvented, creepy character just turned out to be a big, convoluted mess.  Don't just take my word for it, though.  

Maybe one year DC will actually get a Villains Month right.   What a wonderful month it would be to have dazzling covers mixed with well-written stories and terrific artwork.  But, seriously, why limit it to a month?   Shouldn't we always get these things for our hard-earned dollars?  With the abundance of untapped talent that's out there, why waste time on spotty storytelling and crappy art? 

The New Gemworld is No Jewel

I hate to say "I told you so," but...aw, what the heck:  I told you so.  

DC Comics' Sword of Sorcery was cancelled after only 8 issues.  Is anyone surprised?  Not me.  

1) The title wasn't catchy.  It may have been catchy in 1973 when DC originally used that title.  Nope.  It wasn't even catchy then.  This recent series surpassed the original series by 3 issues.  

2) It carried a $3.99 price tag.  Batman comics can get away with it.  X-Men comics can get away with it.  No name comics with "minor" heroes cannot get away with it.  Even Superman comics are iffy. 

3) The back-up features sucked.  Big time.  They featured characters nobody had ever heard of.  In uninteresting stories.  Even with Marc Andreyko writing. 


4) Worst of all, Amethyst's return to the DC Universe and subsequent stories were lacking...in everything.  They weren't a joy to read.  In fact, they were quite boring.

The thing about Amethyst that made her somewhat popular in the 1980s was that she was fun.  She was a reprieve from the action-packed male-oriented comics.  She offered adventure and fantasy.  She also offered girls/women a comic book to read and call their own.  Amy Winston was a young teenage girl who was forced into the shoes of the adult Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld, much like Billy Batson and his Shazam/Captain Marvel alter ego.  We got to see how she dealt with being a teenager on Earth AND being a princess in Gemworld. 

During her original maxi-series and monthly series, Amethyst also wasn't linked to the other heroes in the DC Universe.  At least not at first.  That's when she was popular.  When DC tried to integrate her into the DCU as a Lord of Order, that's when she lost all popularity...and was basically banished from comicdom.  DC failed in this respect (again) when they tried to integrate Amethyst into Justice League Dark and had Constantine appear in her latest attempt at a series.

With the New 52 wiping clean the slate, DC had the perfect opportunity to revive the fun of Amethyst.  This was a chance to forget all about the Lords of Order and Chaos and get back to the magical land of Gemworld.  Unfortunately, the new Amethyst didn't bounce back and forth between Earth as a teenager and Gemworld as an adult.  Also, Gemworld wasn't very colorful.  It also didn't have the characters that we wanted to know about either.  How do we know what families/houses these characters belong to when they don't even wear clothing that match the color of their gem?  The stories aren't written well enough for us to care or remember.  You've gotta give us something! 

I appreciated that DC tried to make an effort to integrate Eclipso into Gemworld as a villain, as he seemed like a good fit gem-wise.  Unfortunately (again), the story pretty much sucked and was too dark.  Why does everything in the New 52 have to be so dark and dreary?  Why can't there be ANY fun anywhere in the new DCU?  

I'm writing this as an adult male who loved reading the original tales of Amethyst in the 1980s.  I was looking forward to reading her stories again, but was severely disappointed in DC's lack of attention to detail when reviving this young heroine.  Putting Amethyst into a Warlord type scenario was obviously not going to work.  Did no one read any of Amethyst's original stories to see what readers really liked "back in the day?"  And does every heroine in the new DCU have to carry a sword (e.g., Katana, Wonder Woman, Amethyst)?  Is that the token female weapon?  Enough's enough.  

Sadly, it's too late now to ever read another engaging tale of Amethyst.  My one hope was dashed.  Unless DC plans to have another Flashpoint that changes all DC history (again), the damage has already been done to this "new" Amethyst.  There's no hope of bringing back the fun to Gemworld and all of its whimsical characters.   

Birds of Prey: the team that never was?

Third time's the charm?  After reading DC Comics' newest Birds of Prey #1 (volume three), I'm not so sure.  Was there never a Birds of Prey team before in the new DC Universe?  Apparently not.  And this time, they're made up of a bunch of bad-ass chicks.  Think Secret Six with only women.

In this first issue, we meet Black Canary and a new character by the name of Starling.  They're both on the run from the law.  Black Canary killed someone?  Hmmm...a mystery to be discovered.  And the tattooed Starling sounds like she's just a crazy bitch.  

Black Canary is trying to form a new team called the Birds of Prey.  She enlists Starling and pays a visit to Barbara Gordon, the old/new Batgirl.  At least they still have some sort of a past in the new DCU.  Dinah tries to enlist Babs, but Babs shoots her down, suggesting Katana (from the previous Outsiders) instead.  Black Canary isn't too keen on that suggestion (another mystery), but she must eventually invite her since Katana appears on the cover (although never in the issue itself).  Poison Ivy also appears on the cover, but never in the book (she doesn't even get a mention like Katana does).   I guess after the cancellation of her Gotham City Sirens, Harley Quinn going to the new Suicide Squad, and Catwoman getting her own series, DC wanted to give Poison Ivy some prevalence in a new series, too. 

I'm not totally sold on this newest incarnation of Birds of Prey, but I'll stick around a few issues to see if I like it any better.  I may just end up flying the coop.