This Joker's No Joke

After Batman's lame reboot in DC's New 52 with the never-ending Court of Owls saga, they followed it up with one of the best Batman stories ever: "Death of the Family."  Yes, it mimicked the original late 1980s "Death in the Family" title to try to grab some headlines and piggyback on that popular story's sales, but we'll forgive DC for that cheap marketing tactic.  

"Death of the Family" gave us the New 52 version of the Joker.  And he is freakin' scary.  How scary is he?  He removed his own face and then loosely reattached it.  And with every issue, the reattached face decomposed more and more as it barely clung to him, tied only with strings, with flies buzzing around the decayed skin.  Twisted!  

The story involved Joker haunting the entire Batman family of superheroes, including Robin, Red Robin, Nightwing, Red Hood, Catwoman, and Batgirl (alas, no Batwoman), and the stories ran into their own individual titles.  This is the story DC should have rebooted the Batman series with, but I can see why they'd save it in their back pocket. 

I was a little disappointed in reading the conclusion of the storyline in Batman #17.  I thought, "That's it?"  However, after a closer second reading, I appreciated it more.  It established an interesting (new) bond between Batman and Joker, and delved a bit more deeply into the Joker's past than ever before.  Joker's still up to his games all in the name of dark humor, but they're much more serious and deadly.  And I like it.  This Joker is extremely psychotic, making him all the more interesting.  I'd love to see even more character development with this new Joker.  

All in all, DC did a fantastic job with the entire "Death of the Family" storyline in Batman, including all of the related titles.  I hope they collect all 23 issues in one chronological graphic novel.  That would make for one fantastic gift.  

I give DC an "A" for effort and an "A" for content, and it almost makes up for the ongoing Owls saga (know when to quit!).  Let's hope the next time we see the Joker, he's paired with the new, darker Harley Quinn (aka Harlequin). 

Batman Origin, Take 58.

With DC Comics having *just* rebooted their entire universe and uprooted and revised all established superhero origins, do we really need another Batman origin story that's different from the original Batman created by Bob Kane, different from the post-Crisis Batman, different from the post-Flashpoint/New 52 Batman, different from Batman starring Michael Keaton, and different from Batman Begins starring Christian Bale?  The answer, simply, is no. They're all similar, but each tells a slightly different tale, using different somewhat characters and string of events. However, Geoff Johns and Gary Frank did an amazing job with story and art in Batman: Earth One that it's hard to say no.

I'll be the first to admit that I was not a fan of the Superman: Earth One book that came out a couple of years ago. The story was lame and...another, different Superman origin?  Really?  And what's with the "Earth One" thing?  Don't the current series in the DC Universe take place on Earth One?  Is this a different Earth One?  Besides multiple Earths, are there multiple Earth Ones, Earth Twos, etc.?

Needless to say, I hesitated buying Batman: Earth One.  I had faith in Johns and Frank, though, so I decided to give it a shot.  If it were any other creators, I probably would have skipped it.  Luckily, I wasn't disappointed.  Johns provides a different take on Batman's origin, but still sticks closely to the original premise. The Penguin is involved this time around, as is a much younger, thinner, and sober Detective Harvey Bullock. There is no Robin, but there is hint of a Batgirl in Barbara Gordon, who makes a couple of brief appearances. Rather than Bruce's parents' deaths being an accident, it's more like a conspiracy. By far the most interesting twist was that Martha Wayne's maiden name was Arkham(!), that her bloodline was doomed for insanity, and -- I think -- that the house in which she grew up was abandoned and would one day become Arkham Asylum. I would love to see that detail added to Batman's mythos. It would make for some interesting stories. And while I liked the interaction between the young Bruce Wayne and a goateed war vet Alfred, I think it was too big of a change for one of the major characters in Bruce's life for people to digest.  Alfred was the only character on this alternate Earth who didn't even come close to resembling the "real" character. 

There were some sensitive, emotional moments that Johns captured between Bruce and his parents and Bruce and Alfred, but there weren't enough to really involve the reader emotionally in the story as much as they should have been.  I know Johns has it in him, so I was disappointed that there weren't more heart-tugging moments.  Gary Frank did an amazing job on the artwork throughout, and I loved looking at every detailed panel.

All in all, it's worth the read, even if you know Batman's origin inside and out. Just don't confuse it for his real origin...whatever it may be now.

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.

Welcome Back, Babs!

I know a lot of people have been skeptical about Barbara Gordon being able to walk and becoming Batgirl again.  This, however, was one change in DC Comics' "New 52" that I was actually looking forward to.  I was never a fan of Cassandra Cain's darker version of Batgirl and, though I read the entire series, I never felt that Stephanie Brown quite captured Batgirl's essence.  

I'll miss Oracle, but having Babs back in action is, I think, a good thing.  She is the one true Batgirl.  The only difficulty I'll have reading the series is picturing Babs as a free-spirited young adult again, instead of as the older,  wiser, cautious, and set-in-her-ways Oracle.  Does this mean that Babs is younger than Kate Kane?  And now we'll have a Batgirl and a Batwoman both as redheads.  What will Gotham City's villains think?  That they're mother and daughter?  

After some significant lagging in her writing abilities with the later issues of the Secret Six (did she stop caring?) and her Wonder Woman run, I see that Gail Simone is back at the top of her game in the new Batgirl.  It was a great opening story to what looks like a "fun" series and gave a brief, but reasonable, explanation for Barbara Gordon being able to walk again.  I also like that Babs has a recurring fear of being shot again.  It gives her a weakness, and it'll make for some great storylines in the future. 

I'm sold.  If no other new series, I look forward to reading Batgirl for years to come.

Batman's Girls

In reading the various Batman books recently, I've begun to notice a trend.  There seems to be an increase in the number of theme-costumed females making their first appearances.    Mind you, I'm not complaining.  I think it's fantastic.  It feels like a throwback to Batman villains of yesteryear, when Batman was a bit campy and fun, and the villains all had a particular, unique theme to their costumes, their mannerisms, and their methods.  The ones I've noticed (and liked) lately in the Batman books include:  Catgirl, Enigma, Peacock, and the Absence.  

Enigma

Catgirl

Catgirl and Enigma are like the Teen Titans: they're young proteges to older established characters.  In this case, Catwoman and the Riddler, respectively. I like that Catgirl is a more feminine version of Catwoman.  She's dressed like the pet that a socialite like Paris Hilton would carry around in a satchel, sporting a diamond encrusted collar and bright pink clothing.  Over the years, the Riddler has toned down his brightly clad costume, but not his daughter, Enigma.  She puts it out there, sporting a large, prominent question mark on her chest and bold striped pants.

Peacock

In addition to these two new teenagers to the Batman Family, two theme-costumed women have made their first appearances in the Batman books as well.  Like Bruce Wayne, Sasha Lo is a wealthy woman who also happens to have a different kind of nightlife.  She dons an Oracle-like mask, a vibrant costume, and goes by the name of Peacock.  Although we still don't know much about her, I'm looking forward to seeing her again from time to time.

The Absence

Last but not least, there's one of my new favorite villainesses: The Absence.  The woman has been shot in the head, leaving a gaping hole.  You know she's gotta be pissed.  Yet she's still a fully functioning (but short-tempered and unbalanced) person, now with heightened mental capacities. 

Goldie Hawn in
"Death Becomes Her"

She's extra pissed off because, as socialite Una Nemo, she used to date Bruce Wayne and she feels like she's been used and tossed aside.  (By the way, what's up with that name?  Una Nemo?)  She reminds me of Goldie Hawn's character from the classic 1990s movie Death Becomes Her.   

Kudos to the Batman writers for the introduction of these fun, new additions to the Batman Family.  I hope to see them around for many years to come, and I hope the tradition of introducing unique, themed characters continues.



And now, a parting glance from Batman. 

Hysterical.

The Anticlimactic Return of Bruce Wayne/Batman

In the crappy tradition of the Batman: RIP storyline comes the return of Bruce Wayne/Batman from the timestream in which he was caught.  That's not to say that the individual stories of the Bruce Wayne: The Road Home one-shots are crappy, but the manner in which they were released/are being released are.  First, there has been the ever-delayed releases of current issues of the supposed-monthly Batman and Robin and the mini-series Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne, both by the questionably talented Grant Morrison.  

This past week, I just picked up issue #5 (of 6) of the up-til-now-boring/lame Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne.  Additionally, I picked up four one-shots (yes, FOUR issues) of the Bruce Wayne: The Road Home one-shots, featuring (in no particular order) Batgirl, Red Robin, Batman and Robin, and Outsiders.  They were originally supposed to be released two issues per week, but apparently someone was slacking off.  Since they weren't labeled, I had to look at the back of each comic to see the "To be continued in..." box to figure out some semblance of order.  In each comic, Bruce Wayne appears to the other characters with no fanfare.  I take it that the people in his life already know that he's back, but we, the readers, have not seen this come about yet.  Maybe that's because DC Comics has only released issue #5 of the aforementioned Return comic.  For me, the "return" really lost its impact because of the delayed and crazy release schedules.  I'm going out on a limb here, but perhaps everything should have been pushed back to coincide?   And releasing four comics of the same storyline at $2.99 in the same week?  What about the Batman readers who are only kids who spend their allowance on comics?  Can they afford to shell out $12-$15 in a single week on a single character?  I know I wouldn't have been able to as a kid.  DC is really doing a disservice to its younger readers.  If kids aren't shown respect now, they're not going to show DC Comics respect later in life.  Those kids can grow up to be adult comic collectors, too, you know.  As an adult reader, I'm offended with being presented with all of this non-labeled material out of sequence.  I don't watch my Mad Men episodes out of order.  Why should I read my comic books that way? 

With all that said, I will say that issue #5 of Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne has been the best so far in that otherwise unnecessary series.  Bruce's parents have been recently murdered, and he learns some not-so-great details about their lives that he probably wished he hadn't.  I've only read two of the Road Home one-shots so far (Batgirl, and Batman and Robin), but both were well-written and enjoyable.  Perhaps, though, the stories would have fit better into their own series instead of one-shot issues so we the readers can, again, see some sequence to the events.  I would have liked to have seen the characters' reactions/reunion with Bruce Wayne.  I'm sure some were heartfelt.  

Sadly, since the Batman: RIP storyline, I've really lost interest in the Dark Knight and his cast of supporting (and not-so-supporting) characters.  Why?  The delays, the out-of-sequence releases, the nonsense storylines, myriad of one-shots, revamping of series titles (and starting over at #1 issues), Batman rip-off characters like Knight and Squire taking over the Bat-titles, the thought (and fear) of the too-many-to-name upcoming Batman series, the concept (and title) of Batman, Inc., etc.  Maybe I'll just stick to non-Bat titles until some of the titles fail and are cancelled and Batman becomes interesting again. 

The New Black Panther is the Cat's Pajamas

Marvel Comics' new Black Panther comic is fascinating and enjoyable on many levels. First and foremost, it's intelligent. The original Black Panther, T'Challa, is seriously wounded, but his country of Wakanda needs a replacement. In steps...a female version of the Black Panther. Unlike DC Comics' new Batgirl series, Marvel let the mystery of the new Black Panther's identity drag out a few issues to add some suspense.

What's intelligent is that not only is the series about the adventures of the Black Panther as a superhero, but it's about the story of Wakanda, its people, the royal family (including the X-Men's Storm), and people who are trying to cause political upheaval. Perfectly written between scenes of the Black Panther's adventures, a political, biased commentator interviews people on his show, trying to make the people of Wakanda turn against their new ruler, Shuri, T'Challa's sister.

Another positive aspect about the series is that it's mostly separated from the rest of the Marvel Universe, allowing readers to enjoy it for its own merit. Black Panther hasn't been involved with all the crossovers that get readers bogged down with buying multiple titles that sometimes leave them confused about the sequence of events and key story points (case in point, Marvel's Dark Reign mishap). I'm a little worried about the upcoming Doomwar crossover involving the Black Panther, the Fantastic Four, the X-Men, and Deadpool, though. I hope Marvel doesn't f*** up the quality of the Black Panther for the sake of another ploy to sell more comics. Thankfully, the mini-series Doomwar will be written by Jonathan Maberry, the current scribe of the Black Panther, so there's still hope.

Number Ones

Recently, DC Comics has been putting out a lot of number one issue comics, trying to reinvent themselves and bring back some old favorites, as well as introduce some new, but familiar, characters. With comics getting cancelled and reinstated all the time, starting from the beginning, it's a wonder that any comics ever make it to three-digit numbering.

In the past couple of months alone, I've started reading six "new" series: Adventure Comics, Batgirl, Batman and Robin, Gotham City Sirens, Red Robin, and Streets of Gotham. Unfortunately, although I love the characters, the comics haven't all wowed me. When I think of first issues, I think "spectacular!" This is the jumping off point, and it should be a story that really grabs hold of you and forces you to add the series to your monthly comic book order list because it's that good. The majority of these series hasn't done that, but I'm sticking with them because I love the characters.

I was most excited about the return of a Batgirl monthly series, and I was glad that it wasn't going to be about the most recent Batgirl in DC Comics history. That Batgirl, also named Cassandra (I guess someone really liked the name?), wore the mask over her entire face and never seemed to have that "flair" that Barbara Gordon, the original Batgirl, did. She was more like a vigilante/assassin. There was much mystery over who the next Batgirl was going to be. Would Barbara Gordon regain the use of her legs and take up the mantle again? Would it be a new Batgirl under Barbara's tutelage? I'm sad to report that the mystery was solved immediately within the first few pages of issue one. So much for intrigue. I thought DC would draw out the mystery and excite us with further anticipation. Alas, no. We find out it's Stephanie Brown, aka the former Spoiler character from the cancelled Robin series. Yawn. She's like the teenage girl that everyone's annoyed by. Barbara is still in the comic, though, and I hope she maintains a prominent role since her Birds of Prey series was cancelled.

Adventure Comics features the return of one of my favorite DC characters: Superboy. Not Superman as a boy, but the clone made from both Superman's and Lex Luthor's DNA. When he was created back in the 1990s to help replace the void from Superman's death (due to his fight with Doomsday), I did not like him. He was an arrogant punk who wore sign-of-the-times apparel, a surfer's cut, and even sported an earring in one ear. Now, Conner Kent (aka Superboy again now that the licensing battle over the name trademark has been resolved) is a sexy, young adult who's trying to find his place in the world, much like Superman once did. His costume is a T-shirt and jeans. How cool is that? He's like the jock that everyone idolizes, but without the superior attitude. Deep down, he just wants to feel accepted and loved like everyone else. Of all the "restarts," this is definitely my favorite. I've missed Conner since he "died" a couple of years ago. Teen Titans hasn't been the same since his absence. I'm very curious what will happen with his previous budding relationship with Cassandra ("Cassie") Sandsmark (aka Wonder Girl) now that he's returned. After all, she did lose her virginity to him.

After reading the putrid "Batman: RIP" storyline and Final Crisis mini-series by Grant Morrison, I swore that I would never pick up another comic book written by Morrison. But...there I was picking up -- and enjoying -- the new Batman and Robin series. There's never actually been a "Batman and Robin" title, so this is definitely a milestone. The series features Dick Grayson (the first Robin) as the new Batman and, as Robin, Damian Wayne (Bruce Wayne's son with Talia, the daughter of Ra's al Ghul). The relationship between these two is comical, and that's what makes the series enjoyable. Damian is...a smart-ass prick. But Dick deals with it because he's Bruce's son and wants to show him the ropes. I think Morrison must have (finally) set down his joint and started writing something coherent because I've enjoyed the first couple of issues of this new series thus far. And the art by Frank Quitely is amazing. The level of detail harkens back to the days of Kevin Maguire on Justice League International in the 1980s. And, as an aside, I love the title logo for the series.

Catwoman was cancelled and they put her in the new Gotham City Sirens, adding Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn to the roster. I like all three characters, but Catwoman's own series had so much more depth. Thus far, Gotham City Sirens hasn't done much for me. We don't get to see the women as individuals outside of their costumes. Who hangs around together wearing their costumes all the time? Don't they ever have to be washed? And I'm not crazy about the title either. It screams "unsuccessful series" and "cancellation." I'll keep reading it, though, because I like to support female-lead series. They're so few and far between.

Speaking of poor title choices, what's worse than Gotham City Sirens? Streets of Gotham. It's about the people of Gotham who may from time-to-time interact with Batman. The only reason I'm buying this is because the back-up feature is Manhunter, written by the fantastic Marc Andreyko. DC also cancelled her own series and put her here in small vignettes with a $3.99 price tag. I think this will be the first of the new series to go, if only for the series' lackluster title.

Lastly, we get to Red Robin. No, not the restaurant chain that serves up awesome burgers and bottomless steak fries. Red Robin is the new identity of Tim Drake, the former Robin. I find it odd that he'd take on that name when Jason Todd, the former-former Robin, took on that name (and very similar costume) during the Countdown series. It's like Tim's just following in Jason's footsteps every step of the way. And Jason isn't someone you'd want to emulate. Anyway, I'm still waiting for something spectacular to happen with this series since Tim left the Teen Titans and the Robin identity for it. The series is very action-driven, but seems to lack a lot of story-driven quality and character development.