Batman #693 – Though the I wasn’t blown away by Tony Daniel’s first issue I was impressed with how much his writing improved from the work he did in Battle for the Cowl. I am glad that he brought back the Falcone family but at the same time I still am not digging Black Mask. Still, I am looking forward to reading this issue to see if Daniel can give us another solid issue of Batman.

Batman and Robin #6 – The last issue of Batman and Robin was highly disappointing. It was Morrison’s worst issue on this title which has so far been enjoyable. Though I am interested to learn about the Flamingo and how Dick and Damien will get themselves out of the situation they have found themselves in last issue.

Daredevil #502 – For the past six or seven months Daredevil has been the comic I look forward to reading the most. This series has been on a role and Andy Diggle did a fantastic job with his first issue on this series. The last few pages from the last issue were freaking awesome and can’t wait to see more of Matt as the leader of The Hand.

Green Lantern Corps #42 – The last issue of Green Lantern Corps issue was nothing but popcorn for the brain with some it being completely dominated by the fight between the Green Lantern Corps and Black Lanterns, but I enjoyed it. While I don’t expect things to change in this issue Tomasi always provides some solid character work so this should be another fun issue.

Realm of Kings: Imperial Guard #1 – I have become a complete sucker for everything related to the cosmic corner of the Marvel Universe. And I loved War of Kings. DnA did a fantastic job with that event and I can’t wait to see what they have in store with Realm of Kings, though it is weird that Imperial Guard is coming out before the Realm of Kings one-shot.

Copyright © 2009 Good Books

Preview of the Week’s Releases for 11/11/09

Comics
Batman #692 – Tony Daniel did not impress me with Battle for the Cowl. His work on that mini-series was very amateurish. Still I have been enjoyed the new direction of all the Batbooks and seeing Dick as Batman. And because of that I have a bit more positive outlook to Daniel’s story arc that begins with this issue.

Blackest Night #4 – So far Blackest Night has been an utter failure in my eyes. While I have enjoyed the Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps tie-ins to this event Geoff Johns has made me less and less interested with each passing issue. And I hope that the Nekron reveal from a few months ago is not the big secret revealed here as I don’t care about that character. Here’s hoping Johns can turn things around in this make or break half-way point issue.

Blackest Night: Titans #3 – This mini-series has been surprisingly good. Though I know not much may happen in this issue I am still interested to see how this mini-series ends and how it will be integrated into Blackest Night.

Fantastic Four #572 – Jonathan Hickman and Dale Eaglesham have been awesome so far on Fantastic Four. They have brought the fun back to the Fantastic Four. I can’t wait to see what Hickman and Eaglesham have up their sleeves with the Reed Richards Corps and how the rest of the Fantastic Four will be involved in this storyline’s finale.

Green Lantern #47 – The last issue of Green Lantern freaking rocked. It was the best issue of Blackest Night related material Geoff Johns has written so far for the event. Hopefully the momentum of that last issue will be carried over to this one, and Blackest Night #4.

Guardians of the Galaxy #19 – DnA have been doing a fantastic job on all things cosmic in the Marvel Universe. And Guardians of the Galaxy has been a role with the last few issues. This title just continues to be one of Marvel’s best titles.

Nova #30 – See my comment for Guardians of the Galaxy. Great title that is among the best on the shelfs today.

Teen Titans #76 – Felicia Henderson did a solid job in her first issue of Teen Titans. It was nothing impressive but nothing horrible at the same time. Though I am not a big fan of yet another story with Raven and Trigon. Usually makes for a boring read this past decade.

Ultimate Comics Armor Wars #2 – The first issue was just a blast to read. Warren Ellis did a very good job nailing Ultimate Tony Stark’s character and setting up a 007-like story in this mini-series. Expecting this to be a fun and fast paced read.

Ultimate Avengers #3 – Ultimate Comics Avengers has been a great read so far. Sure it may be more popcorn for the brain blockbuster movie than a deep and intricate story but it is one fun blockbuster comic. Miller just knows how to write a badass Captain America and love his version of Ultimate Red Skull. Can’t wait to see where he takes the story next.

Wolverine: Weapon X #6 – While I am disappointed that Jon Garney is off this title I have to say Yanick Panquette is a great choice as an artist to follow up Garney’s work. And the story that Jason Aaron looks to tell in this new story arc feels new ground for a character like Wolverine. Should be another fun entry into the Wolverine: Weapon X series.

Trade Recommendation
Wolverine: Old Man Logan Hardcover – Even with the long wait between issues Old Man Logan was still one of the best Wolverine stories we have had in a very long time. Millar told a fantastic story of an old Logan who has given up his former ways only to go back to the ass kicker we all know and love. If that isn’t reason enough to get this hardcover than just get it for Steve McNiven’s gorgeous artwork as his artwork in this story was not short of amazing. Truly great stuff from the Miller/McNiven team.

Copyright © 2009 Good Books

Previewing the Week’s Releases for 10/28/09

Creative Team
Writer: Bryan Q. Miller
Artist: Lee Garbett
Inkers: Trevor Scott and Sandra Hope
Colorist: Guy Major

Story – Batgirl Rising: Point of New Origin Part 3

Review
Batgirl #3 is more or less the same as the previous two issues. Bryan Q. Miller is doing a solid job on the writing but it is just not impressive. And most of that falls on Stephanie as a character and not the writing of this series. After three issues it just does not feel that Stephanie as the new Batgirl is enough to carry an ongoing title.

Even inserting Barbara into the title in the mentor role hasn’t helped. In many ways this series feels like a Birds of Prey re-launch but with just Batgirl in the group. But it just feels that Stephanie is not enough to keep this title from lasting more than a year since she feels like more of a supporting character than a star of her own book.

As a fan of these characters I think what this series needs is more of a supporting cast to make it more interesting as the Stephanie and Barbara dynamic isn’t enough to carry this book. I think this title needs characters like Huntress and Misfit to play recurring roles on this series to give it something extra and keep it from going stale.

Now I will say that Miller does do a solid job with creating a nice master and student dynamic with Barbara and Stephanie. In many ways Stephanie is like how Barbara was in her early days of Batgirl. Miller does a good job paralleling the two characters in this issue, while showing how Barbara has changed.

With her battle with Scarecrow in this issue it is clear Stephanie has a long ways to go before being capable as a solo hero and Barbara should help her become her own character than just being known as Tim’s girl. Though I think the whole candle ceremony thing was a bit much and should have just been Bruce and Dick’s thing as it was special to the dynamic between Batman and the first Robin.

Issue Rating
Story: 6.6/10 – Miller provides some solid dialogue as he shows he understands both Stephanie and Barbara as characters. But supporting character feel of the star, Stephanie, makes the story feel very average.
Art: 6.7/10 – Lee Garnett again provides some solid artwork but nothing to impressive.
Overall: 6.65/10 – Batgirl #3 was an average read. While I would like to continue to read this series to see if Miller can make this a better read but with things like Realm or Kings and Siege coming up I am dropping this title. Still if you are a fan of Stephanie and Barbara this is the title for you as Miller has done a solid job setting up this title to improve with later storylines.

Blackest Night: Batman #3

Creative Team
Writer: Peter J. Tomasi
Artist: Adrian Syaf
Inker: Vicente Cifuentes
Colorist: Nei Ruffino

Story – Who Burns Who: Conclusion

Review
In what has so far been the best story of Blackest Night, Peter Tomasi does an excellent job finishing up Blackest Night: Batman with this final issue. The thing that has been killing Blackest Night is that the story has been very thin with every ones reaction to the Black Lanterns has been “Oh no it’s my dead friend. What do I do? They are about to kill us if we don’t do something.” That has been Blackest Night as a whole, save for Green Lantern #46, which has made the story a thin and boring read.

And while that theme is in this issue what really separates this issue and mini-series from Blackest Night is that we are actually seeing the emotional toll it takes on the characters, in this case Dick Grayson and Tim Drake. Tomasi perfectly nails how these characters would react to seeing their parents back alive. It is something that hasn’t been shown in Blackest Night as all the characters reactions so far to the Black Lanterns has been the statement I said before.

I like how in the beginning Tim thought seeing his father again was his second shot at saving them and Dick tried to be the voice of reason telling Tim that they weren’t his parents. Then when Dick looked into his father’s eyes he let himself go in the moment just like Tim and was the twelve year old kid who performed in the circus with his parents again. This paralleling of Dick and Tim is a good reminder how similar these two brothers are and how their history is similar to Bruce’s tragic history with his parents.

Then the scene were Dick and Tim come face to face to the ones responsible for the deaths of their parents was great as it is a very different way of having characters reach an emotional breaking point as Dick and Tim were filled with rage. It is much different to how other Blackest Night titles have used to make the characters reach their emotional breaking point.

Adrian Syaf helped make these scenes especially more powerful with his artwork. He showed a great range to illustrate emotion in the scenes with Dick and Tim seeing their parents. This is the first time I am exposed to his Syaf’s artwork and he impressed me very much. I hope I see his artwork on something like Batman again as he has a good style to fit with Batman.

It was cool seeing Etrigan involved in this issue as Dick had Deadman go get him for back-up. It was an effective plan and shows that Dick knew that the situation he and Tim were in was not something they could get out of alone. Also we got to learn that there are certain magical creatures that don’t register on the Black Lantern radars. Hopefully this means Etrigan plays an integral role in taking down Black Lanterns but he probably won’t from how Geoff Johns has been telling the Blackest Night story and the characters he is using.

Also it was good to see Dick take up more of an aggressive approach with Damian as he made Damian listen to him and not try to act on his own. It is a good way to show the master/student relationship the two are having with Dick finally taking the role of the master while trying to make the cocky student, Damian, listen to his instructions.

It was also interesting to see that the Black Lanterns can’t see people unless they have some emotion as they could not see Dick and Tim in front of them since they froze themselves. It adds another wrinkle to the Black Lanterns concept as works similarly to how infrared vision works as they need people to show some sort of feelings in order to see them or else they don’t see those people, even if they are in front of them. I hope that this means that Batman will play a bigger role in Blackest Night as it would be good to see how Dick as Batman handles the first big Crisis as Batman and stands side-by-side with Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Flash.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – Tomasi again shows why he should be helming a Batman title as he writes the best version of Dick Grayson and the entire Batfamily. I am hopeful DC wakes up and sees how great a story he wrote here, and with his Nightwing work, and actually gives him a one of the Batman titles starring Dick Grayson as Batman to write.
Art: 8.5/10 – Adrian Syaf provided some great artwork in this mini-series. He did a great job with all the action and the wide range of emotion that the characters in this issue showed.
Overall: 8.75/10 – Blackest Night: Batman #3 was a great issue and ending to this mini-series. This mini-series has so far been the best story from Blackest Night and I hope that with what was learned of the Black Lanterns is used soon in the main series and it is not pushed to the side. If you are looking for a fun action packed story with some emotional depth than I recommend picking up Blackest Night: Batman as it is a solid three issue mini-series by Tomasi and Syaf.

Green Lantern Corps #41

Creative Team
Writer: Peter J. Tomasi
Artist: Patrick Gleason
Inkers: Rebecca Buchman, Keith Champagne and Tom Nguyen
Colorists: Randy Mayor and Gabe Eltaeb

Story – Hungry Heart

Review
In another Tomasi written Blackest Night tie-in Green Lantern Corps #41 continues the current battle between the Green Lanterns and the Black Lanterns on Oa. For the most part Tomasi presents a very well told story. Still there seemed something off about this issue.

Before I get into that I will admit the thing that Tomasi effectively presents here is the chaos that the Black Lanterns appearance has on the War of Lights. In many ways Tomasi shows why the stars of Blackest Night should not be the heroes on Earth but the various Lantern Corps especially the characters we have gotten to know through GL and GLC titles like Kyle, Guy, Killowog, Arisa, and Soranik. Even if we have seen a lot of battles with the Black Lanterns already happen in Blackest Night it feels like the Black Lanterns pose much more of a threat when battling one of the members from one the Lantern Corps.

And similar to what he did in this week’s Blackest Night: Batman issue the thing he nailed in this issue is the emotional toll the dead rising from the grave as Black Lanterns. It was great how we were shown Guy, Killowag, and Arisa each overcoming their own battles with the Black Lanterns. It drives home why they are part of the Green Lantern Corps as they push through anything that is thrown at them and have the willpower to overcome even their dead loved ones.

What helped these battles out was Patrick Gleason’s great artwork. He continues to do a great job on this title and making each battle feel epic and bounce of the page. And the scene with the Black Lantern children was effectively creepy.

Also I am interested to see were Tomasi takes Kyle and Soranik’s relationship after their battle with Black Lantern Jade. It looks like Kyle may be in the dog house after Blackest Night is over.

Now the thing that keeps this issue from being great is that it suffers from the pitfall that has made Blackest Night into a boring read which is that the Black Lanterns are dull and uninteresting villains. This isn’t really the fault of Tomasi but more the execution in which the Black Lanterns are presented. Other than being different dead characters all the Black Lanterns are the same. There isn’t much of a difference from the dead heroes, villains, and characters loved ones coming back as Black Lanterns. They all have the same personality.

And this is very bad for Blackest Night as we haven’t even reached the midway point of the event and the main villains of the series are already becoming stale. It makes me question the choice of making the event eight issues long even more. With how Green Lantern and Green Lantern Corps are proving to be important tie-ins to Blackest Night I think the main series should only have been issue long as there isn’t enough material to justify eight issues.

Issue Rating
Story: 7.4/10 – Tomasi continues to do a superior job in telling the Blackest Night story than what Johns has been doing over in the main Blackest Night book. With that said the story suffers from the main villains of the story, the Black Lanterns, being dull and uninteresting characters.
Art: 8.2/10 – Gleason along with his inking crew, Rebecca Buchman, Keith Champagne and Tom Nguyen, and colorists, Randy Mayor and Gabe Eltaeb, do a great job presenting the chaotic feel of the Black Lanterns presence in the War of Lights, which had already thrown the universe into chaos.
Overall: 7.8/10 – Green Lantern Corps #41 was a very good read though it suffers from the main villains of the event being very boring. It would have been better if we could have seen other Lantern Corps members involved in this issue other than just the Green and Black Lanterns.

The Marvels Project #3

Creative Team
Writer: Ed Brubaker
Artist: Steve Epting
Colorist: Dave Stewart

Story – Chapter 3

Review
In what has been the surprise of the year, Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting continue to tell a very enjoyable and intricate story of the origins of the Marvel Universe. The reason I choose to pick up this mini-series was only because of me being a big fan of Brubaker and Epting’s work, specifically Captain America. But I did not expect to enjoy reading the beginning of the hero age in the Marvel Universe as much as I have been.

The big factor that is making The Marvels Project such a wonderful read is that Brubaker and Epting aren’t telling a parody story of the early age of the universe that is now filled with super powered individuals. Most of the time that is where most writers do, they try too hard to imitate the way people spoke during that time period making it hard to take the story seriously making it feel like a parody of that time period.

But Brubaker and Epting aren’t necessarily trying to imitate the time period. Instead they are taking a serious look at the 1940s and how people acted in a time of uncertainty and fear due to the war and the first super powered individuals appearing out of nowhere. It is really an amazing look as Brubaker nails the tone of that era in our history making this story feel like an extension of the story that he was telling in Captain America.

Brubaker is able to show both the wonder and fear in the people’s eyes as they witness the first battle between super powered individuals in Namor and the first Human Torch. That is where Eptings fantastic artwork comes into play as his artwork perfectly captures the mood of the time period and also making the battle between Namor and Human Torch feel like an epic showdown. Even though we have seen similar and even bigger fights happen in both the Marvel and DC Universe this battle feels like it has more of an importance as it is the first recorded battle between two super powered individuals.

And the tone of the time period is not the only thing that Brubaker nails but also all the dialogue in the various scenes we get. Whether it be Human Torch, Namor, Angel, Nick and his crew or the people on the streets all of the dialogue has a natural flow to it. Nothing feels like it being forced in for dramatic effect. It is just great character with the development of the early stages of what shaped what we know now as the Marvel Universe.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.3/10 – Brubaker continues to do a great job building the origins of the Marvel Universe and making me care for characters I had very little knowledge of before this mini-series.
Art: 9/10 – Eptings artwork is continues to be incredible. His artwork for the Namor vs Human Torch scene was especially well done as the inking and coloring for the scene make it stand out from every other scene in the issue.
Overall: 9.15/10 – The Marvels Project #3 was another great read. This mini-series continues to be one of the best written comic book on the market. Brubaker and Epting continue to build a wonderful tale of the beginning of the Marvel Universe. I highly recommend picking up this mini-series when it comes out in trade paperback format as it will read even better in TPB form than in individual issues.

Copyright © 2009 Good Books

Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 10/14/09

Batman #691 – I have actually been enjoying the latest Judd Winnick run on Batman. While it hasn’t blown me away this is still a solid story with Dick Grayson growing into the role of Batman. And with a Batman vs. Two-Face to wrap things up for this storyline I’m interested to see conclusion of this story.

Blackest Night: Batman #3 – Tomasi has done a great job so far on this Batman tie-in to Blackest Night. Even though I have not been a big fan of Blackest Night this Tomasi has done such a great job that I look forward to reading this issue as he writes the best version of Dick Grayson and the current Batfamily.

Green Lantern Corps #41 – So far the tie-ins have been doing a much better job with the Blackest Night story than the main series has. And Tomasi delivered a great issue in GLC #40. So I fully expect this issue to be another solid issue.

Red Robin #5 – The only thing that is keeping me from dropping this series is that I am a big fan of Tim Drake’s character. Chris Yost just has not impressed me so far in this title. I am still hopeful that Yost can turn things around on this title.

The Marvels Project #3 – Brubaker is really taking a slow and methodical approach to this mini-series which I has made this a very enjoyable read so far. This is really the first time I am reading a comic that actually takes place in this time period of Marvel’s history and not just some flashback from an ongoing series. So I look forward to seeing what Brubaker and Epting do with this story, even if we know how it ends.

Video Games
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves – I just started playing the first Uncharted video game and suffice to say I’ve love the game so far. And from the trailers for Uncharted 2 and early reviews this looks like not only a great game but also visually one of the best looking games that have come out. Will probably have to wait for Christmas to get this game but it looks forward to the day I get my hands on it. Highly recommend this series for anyone that has not played the first game yet.

Copyright © 2009 Good Books

Previewing the Week’s Releases: 10/12/09 – 10/18/09

Batman Annual #27 – I’ve never been a fan of Azrael so I could care less about the characters return. And originally I wasn’t going to get this annual but after seeing images for the Lil’Gotham back-up I am going to get this, and the Detective Annual, just for the back-up story alone.

Daredevil #501 – With Matt becoming the new leader of The Hand Andy Diggle has been given an interesting place to begin his run. It should be interesting seeing were this title goes with the new direction.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #3 – Cover price aside Ultimate Comics Spider-Man has been one of the most enjoyable series I get each month. Bendis has really returned this title to the brilliance it once had and I can’t wait to see what happens with Mysterio and a few other things.

Copyright © 2009 Good Books

Previewing the Week’s Releases: 10/7/09

Batgirl #2 – The first issue with Stephanie as the new Batgirl was an okay start. I’m still not sold that Stephanie can carry her own ongoing series and if this series belongs on my permanent pull list. But I am willing to see if Bryan Q. Miller can prove me wrong and turn in a good second issue.

Batman and Robin #4 – Morrison has been doing a fantastic job with Batman and Robin so far. This is the most fun I have had with reading a Morrison penned series. I’m interested to see what Morrison has in store for Batman and Robin with the Red Hood making an appearance.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #4 – This has been the best out of all the Batman titles. Dini has been doing a fantastic job with this series. Though I’m sad that he will hand over the writing duties to Chris Yost for the next arc I am glad that he is returning in the arc after that, as Matt Ampersand from Weekly Crisis reported. Looking forward to seeing how Dini ends this Zsaz and Hush arc and if Hush actually believes Dick will go through with his threat from last issue.

Blackest Night #3 – I have been one of the biggest critics of Geoff Johns work on Blackest Night, much to the hate of everyone who is loving this series. While I don’t want to give too much away from my review for Green Lantern Corps #40, which should be up tomorrow, I do want to say that I am already sick off the Black Lantern Corps. At this point I have seen more than enough of the Black Lantern Corps but hopefully Johns can work his magic on this third issue and make me start to like this book.

Captain America: Reborn #3 – This has been one strange mini-series involving the return of Steve Rogers. Brubaker is using a lot of sci-fi elements to bring back the character which goes against the more grounded approach this series has been known for. I am hopeful that Brubaker can recover with issue and turn in a quality read.

Dark Reign: The List – Daredevil #1 – Originally I was only going to get the Spider-Man and Wolverine issue of Dark Reign: The List but after Daredevil #500 I decided to give this one-shot a try as it suppose to serve as a continuation of Matt being the leader of The Hand. I’m interest to learn what Andy Diggle has in store for Daredevil with the new status quo for the character Brubaker has left him.

Invincible Iron Man #18 – The last issue of Invincible Iron Man was very disappointing. As an Iron Man fan I am still optimistic that Fraction can turn in a good end to this arc. Hopefully we see these final two parts turns up the action as these past few issues have been lacking any sort of action.

Ultimate Comics Armor Wars #1 – Warren Ellis + Iron Man = More money for Marvel from me. Ellis is always money when it comes to writing Iron Man. And I have enjoyed most of Ellis work so I sure to love this mini-series involving Ultimate Iron Man.

DVD/Blu-rays
Dragon Ball: Season One – While this anime has sort of become a joke within anime fans, specifically DBZ and DBGT, I will admit that Dragon Ball is the series that introduced me to the world of anime and manga. While I did not like the later parts of DBZ I really enjoyed the original Dragon Ball were we followed a young Goku around in his search, along with Bulma and others, for the Dragon Balls. While I would like to get this box set right away I will probably wait a while till I get some more money to buy it. Still if you are a Dragon Ball fan this is a DVD you should pick up.

The Big Bang Theory: Season Two – The Big Bang Theory is one of my favorite shows on TV. This is just an awesome TV show. If you haven’t given it a try then do yourselves a favor and pick this show up as it is hilarious nerd comedy.

X-Men: Volume 3 and 4 – While Spider-Man and Batman were the first comic book characters I was exposed to it is the X-Men that started my fanaticism with comics and made me go to the comic shop every week. And the reason for that is the 90s cartoon of the X-Men. For me this was my favorite cartoon as a kid because it had so many interesting characters that I could relate to. This series captured everything that was great about the X-Men and made me want to hunt down every issue of the X-Men, along with Spider-Man and Batman comics, that I could find as I wanted to learn more about these characters. These two DVDs are a must for any fan of this series and the X-Men in general. Personally, I’m looking forward to watching the “Dark Phoenix Saga” again as it was one of my favorite episodes of the series.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine – This first movie of Wolverine was a good action summer blockbuster. But nothing more. For the most part this movie while centered around Wolverine was mostly used as a catalyst to start a bunch of X-Men related movies. Will probably get it since I already have the first three X-Men movies. Damn me and my completist nature.

Movies
The Informant – I’ve always like Matt Damon’s movie and this new movie looks like it could be a good one. It should be interesting to see Matt Damon in a comedy role as he has done a lot more series action roles than comedic ones.

Video Games
Marvel: Ultimate Alliance 2 – I enjoyed the first Ultimate Alliance game. I am unsure about this second one though. It looks like it could be a fun game with all the Fusion abilities to play around with but I will probably rent it before buying it just to see how it is.

Copyright © 2009 Good Books

Previewing the Week’s Releases for 9/14/09 – 9/20/09

Creative Team
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist: Frank Quietly
Colorist: Alex Sinclair

Story – Batman Reborn Part 3: Mommy Made of Nails

Review
After a short delay we finally get the final chapter to Morrison and Quietly’s first story arc of Batman and Robin. Batman and Robin #3 was a fun read. These are the type of stories that I expect from Morrison.

No other writer in Marvel or DC does high concepts like Morrison. Even though his stories tend to be a hit or miss his work in these first three issue are a nice reminder why Morrison is so highly praised for his off the wall ideas and storytelling. This issue is dark, funny, disturbing (mostly coming from Pyg’s over the top bad guy personality) and sweat all in one.

Morrison does a great job with Dick and Damian’s dynamic not being the typical Batman and Robin dynamic we are used to. These are two very different characters who see their roles as very different. For Dick he sees that in being Batman he needs to balance out the dark persona he has to show to the bad guys with some of the sense of humor he had as Robin and Nightwing or he will turn into a clone of Bruce. As for Damian we see him take the role of Robin more seriously than previous Robin’s as he acts more darker and brooding since he sees Robin as a stepping stone to becoming Batman. This leads to an interesting dynamic as Morrison shows that it is Batman who has to try and show Robin the lighter side of things than the other way around.

Also I like that Morrison is continue the storyline from his Batman RIP story with the new Batman and Robin taking down Le Bossu. Even though I have admitted to not being the biggest Batman RIP fan I am interested to see Morrison continue his Black Glove storyline as he didn’t really finish it yet.

And what really helps Morrison’s story is Quietly’s artwork as it is just plain phenomenal. Quietly’s artwork in this issue is something you won’t find in any other comic as his style is very distinct with a great balance between the dark and humorous moments. Though it is to bad Quietly can’t continue to be the ongoing artist in this series as Phillip Tan steps in next issue to take over the art duties. Good thing is he will return for what is said to be the Joker arc later in this series.

Issue Rating
Story: 9.3/10 – Morrison continues to tell a deep read that is very enjoyable to read. I like how he writes the new dynamic between Dick and Damian.
Art: 9/10 – As with the previous issues Quietly’s artwork here is phenomenal. Quietly does a very good job being able to tell a story with his artwork alone.
Overall: 9.15/10 – Batman and Robin #3 was a spectacular read and a good way to cap off the first story arc of this title and begin the second arc. I am looking forward to seeing what Morrison has in store for the new Dynamic Duo with a new duo stepping on their turf.

Blackest Night Titans #1

Creative Team
Writer: J.T Krul
Artist: Ed Benes
Inkers: Rob Hunter, Jon Sibal, and JP Mayer
Colorist: Hi-Fi Design
Story – When Death Comes Knocking

Review
Yep you read it right I picked up Blackest Night: Titans #1. As seen with my previews for this week I did not have this issue on my list of comics to get but when I went to my LCS and flipped through this issue I liked what I saw and decided to get it. And I got to say I am surprised that this was actually a good read. While it is not as good as the Blackest Night: Batman issue this was still a solid addition to Blackest Night and another case for the tie-ins to the event being better than the main book.

With all the characters involved in Blackest Night the Teen Titans is one group that it actually feels like they need to have a mini-series to tie into Blackest Night. They have had the most losses in their team members out of all the teams running around in the DC Universe. J.T. Krul definitely did a great job showing the rich Teen Titan history, both good and bad. His characterization of all the various Teen Titans members, past and present, were spot on.

Ed Benes excellent artwork helped Krul’s story immensely in this issue. While Benes does overdue it with the model like poses of the female characters I liked how much emotion he brought into this issue through his artwork alone. The characters were all well designed and Benes was able to capure the dark part of the story while not going overboard with making the issue feel too dark that it takes away from the story.

I especially liked how Krul wrote Starfire and Beast Boy with each one providing an argument for Terra being considered either a villain or hero. I have always liked the Beast Boy and Terra relationship and it is nice to see a writer address the relationship. With Terra being back as a Black Lantern it should provide Beast Boy and Geo-Force, who had a non-speaking cameo in this issue, with plenty of drama as they are sure to be the center of this mini-series.

The other main part of this story involving Hawk and Dove was just as interesting. As we saw in Blackest Night #2 the original Hawk was revived as a Black Lantern while Dove was not. And in this issue we got another clue to why Dove is not brought back with the current Dove having a white aura that is unreadable. After thinking about this for a bit I am starting to think that this white aura that Dove had and the reason the original Dove was not brought back is not because of their heroic acts being unselfish but that they are characters in full control of their emotions from the time they were alive and when they died. And it would make sense that white would stand for serenity since that is what Dove stands for and it will be interesting how this concept affects what happens in the main series.

Though I do have one problem with this issue and that is that there is way too much going on. With the original Hawk’s, Terra, Lillith, Donna’s husband and son it seems that Krul is going to be juggling a lot as we will most likely see other dead Titan related characters return like the original Ravager and the recently deceased Kid/Red Devil. Krul is going to have to pick and choose which characters to return as Black Lanterns because if he doesn’t this three issue mini-series may be dealing with the problem Geoff Johns is having in the main Blackest Night series with too many characters to juggle.

Issue Rating
Story: 7.5/10 – J.T. Krul impressed me with his storytelling abilities. His strong character work in this issue was what sold me two pick up the rest of this mini-series.
Art: 8.2/10 – Ed Benes provided plenty of his solid artwork and he did an especially good job with giving plenty of emotion to this issue through his artwork.
Overall: 7.85/10 – Blackest Night: Titans #1 was a solid read and even though I was not originally going to pick up this mini-series Krul and Benes combined to tell a very good Blackest Night story that I will read the rest of this three issue mini-series.

The Flash: Rebirth #4

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Ethan Van Sciver
Colorist: Brian Miller

Story – Flash Facts

Review
Another Geoff Johns book released this week that showed signs of improvement and some actual plot progression. Unlike this week’s issue of Green Lantern though we didn’t get much development until the last half of the issue as the first part of the issue felt more like a recap than an actual story. Though for his part Johns writing in this issue is the strongest it has been this whole mini-series.

While Barry still came off as having a one note personality what helped make this issue better than previous three is that Johns was able to balance the Barry scenes with scenes that involved the whole Flash family. And that has really been one of the biggest problems facing this mini-series, as well as Blackest Night. While this issue still has that “Barry is the greatest” theme going it is good to see that Johns did not forget that Wally was the one that took the Speed Force to the level it is at right now since he did things with the Speed Force no one before him did.

Also I liked that the characters weren’t just mopping around like they have been for three issues and actually did something about the strange actions of the Speed Force. That is definitely one thing that made Professor Zoom’s appearance even better as he was his appearance made the story move forward and had the heroes act like heroes, yeah I know weird concept right.

And the dramatic moment when Zoom appeared in Wally’s house where his kids and Linda were was great as I was on the edge of my seat since I did not know if Johns would actually kill Wally’s family in order to show Zoom is the badass he says he is. I glad Wally’s family did not die as killing a main character’s family members has become too much of a cliché in comics now in order to darken up the character(s). For the first time in this series I was actually rooting, in my head of course, for the heroes when Bart and Jay showed up to save Wally’s kids as it was great to see them save their (extended) family.

I also liked the parallels Johns used with having both Wally and Barry run towards one another without the other knowing how close they were to one another. Along with the Zoom battle going on this made the issue tenser and dramatic as both characters were thinking of what makes them get out of the Speed Force’s is their loved ones. And it was great that it was Barry that helped Max find his lighting rod to get out of the Speed Force since it was the first time Barry did not act like a sad and depressed loner and showed a sign of hope.

With that said there were aspects of this issue that really keep it from being a home run. The first thing is that I don’t really like or understand the concept of Barry being the Speed Force. While it puts Barry above all the other Speedsters it makes the Speed Force an overly complicated concept that can become over convoluted. Because since all the Speedsters basically derive their powers from Barry does that mean how fast they can run depends on how powerful Barry is at that time? Also if Barry is the Speed Force were exactly does Barry get his powers? Does Barry’s power level depend on his emotional state similar to how the Lantern power rings work? Or is it something else? While it is interesting if mishandled Johns can turn the Speed Force into a very convoluted power source.

The other thing I did not like about this issue is that the first half of the issue felt more like a recap than actually moving the story forward. A lot of Zoom’s and Barry’s dialogue at the beginning felt forced and unnecessary. And all of the dialogue made the first part of this issue boring that I almost stopped reading the issue halfway through because of Johns overuse of the dialogue.

Issue Rating
Story: 7.5/10 – Johns finally stepped up his game in this issue. While he still had some of the same problems from the previous issues this was a much better executed story than previously.
Art: 9.2/10 – Ethan Van Sciver’s art is as strong as it has always been. Sciver’s art has really been the strength of this series and this was some of his best work as he finally was able to draw some action that turned out great to look at.
Overall: 8.35/10 – Flash: Rebirth #4 was the strongest of this mini-series and is what saved this series from being classified as one of the worse stories of the year. Hopefully Geoff Johns can carry the momentum from this issue into the last two issue of this mini-series.

Green Lantern #45

Creative Team
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Doug Maghnke
Inkers: Christian Alamy, Doug Mahnke, and Tom Nguyen
Colorist: Randy Mayor

Story – Love Hurts

Review
I have been one of the biggest critics to Geoff Johns recent work especially what he has been doing with Blackest Night. It is not that I am don’t want to like Johns work, specifically Blackest Night, but just like Bendis and Brubaker in Marvel I hold Johns work at a higher standard than all other DC writers. Johns has done such a fantastic job for the past few years to get me into reading other DC books other than the Batman titles that the past few months of his work on Green Lantern and Blackest Night have just not been at the level I expect from him.

But finally in the fourth Blackest Night related issue that Johns has written we get an actual story that is not a bunch of senseless action scenes with deaths that I could care less about. While there wasn’t much plot progression in the overall story being told in Blackest Night what Johns was able to do in this issue is finally makes this event feel like it has universe ramifications and not just another event that affects Earth and its heroes. This is really the first issue where I felt that the threat of the Black Lanterns is really a danger to the whole universe especially since there is a war that is spanning across the universe making the Black Lanterns arrival even less unwelcome to all the characters involved.

Also I am going to say this knowing I may piss of fans of these two characters but I believe the reason I liked this issue more than the two Blackest Night issues and the other Green Lantern tie-in issue Johns wrote is because Hal and Barry weren’t in it. While I like those two characters they aren’t characters who have very dull personalities and when they are together they are even more dull which is what has hurt Blackest Night so far. Which is why this issue stands out as we get a bunch of different characters interact with one another with each having their own distinct personalities. If Johns wants to make me enjoy the main series more he needs to mix in characters like Sinestro, Attrocius, Gathet, Carol, and all of the different Lantern Corps along with presenting the War of Light to give the story more balance.

I also liked how Johns introduced the Black Lantern homeworld in this issue as a living planet just like Mogo. While this wasn’t a big part of this issue it was a nice introduction at the beginning of the issue a good way to introduce more of to the Black Lanterns than just that they are characters risen from the dead. It should be interesting to see how Johns takes this plot line that he should pick up on in the main series.

As I said before the best thing about this issue was the involvement of the various characters that Johns has developed over the year. The stand outs of this issue were Sinestro and Carol. I have never seen these two fight before and their fight and back and forth dialogue was very interesting. These are two characters that have a long history with Hal and it is an interesting argument they each share with their views of what roles they and all the other Lantern Corps have in the War of Light. Also it was interesting seeing that one of Sinestro’s greatest love was Abin Sur’s sister and makes me wonder if she is Soranik’s mother or if it is another person.

And the interaction of this character as well as all the various battles going on made the reveal of Abin Sur and the rest of the Black Lanterns rising across the universe more dramatic. With the constant hectic battles going on the appearance of the Black Lanterns should pose as an interesting challenge for all the Lantern Corps since they were in the middle of the War of Light and now they may have to put the war on the back burner to fight the Black Lanterns. The best of the Black Lantern attacks was when they went to where Larfleeze is and his reaction to the Black Lantern rings appearing in front of him.

Also I like that the Indigo Lanterns were mentioned as being the most mysterious of the Lantern Corps since they are the only ones yet to make an official appearance along with the other Lantern Corps. This adds more mystery to the Indigo Lanterns as we still do not know what position they will take in the War of Light and the battle against the Black Lanterns as well as the powers the Indigo rings have.

Issue Rating
Story: 8/10 – Johns does a very good job balancing the War of Light along with the threat presented by the appearance of the Black Lanterns that Blackest Night finally feels like the big event that has been advertised.
Art: 9/10 – Doug Mahnke art is incredible in this issue. Mahnke gives the War of Light and the Black Lantern reveal the big epic feel that Ivan Reis has given the main series.
Overall: 8.5/10 – Green Lantern #45 was a big step up from the first three issues of Blackest Night related comics that Geoff Johns has written. With this issue I am finally excited to see what happens next in the event as Johns has built a solid foundation to pick up on in Blackest Night #3.

Guardians of the Galaxy #17

Creative Team
Writers: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning
Artist: Brad Walker
Inkers: Victoy Blazaba and Scott Hanna
Colorist: Jay David Ramos

Story – Adam Magnus

Review
After a weak issue last month Guardians of the Galaxy returns to form with this issue that deals with the aftermath of War of Kings. With everything that went on in War of Kings DnA do an excellent job continuing the story as this issue is a natural progression of what went on in the event.

What is great about this issue, and all of DnA’s work on Marvel’s cosmic universe, is that this is a team that embraces having a large cast in their titles. Team books seems to be the hardest type of titles writers to write in the modern era of comics as they it is hard for them to juggle a cast of 7 to 10 main characters. Which is why I love this series and this issue as we do not only get the Guardians of the Galaxy but also the Inhumans play a big role in the issue as well.

And as always the thing that puts this issue above most books is the strong character work DnA do with the two teams involved in the story. Even characters like Phyla, who is the only character in this series that I have not liked, was well written as she could be seen as the antagonist of this issue with her confrontations with Medusa, what she did to Warlock, and her fight with Gamora.

While I had to make a quick trip to Wikipedia to understand the ending with the alternate future stuff with Adam Warlock I thought it was a cool twist DnA threw in at the end of the issue. With the appearance of Adam Magnus along with what is happening in the aftermath of War of Kings the Marvel cosmic universe looks to get a lot more chaotic which translates to being fun for us.

Also I can’t do a review of Guardians of the Galaxy without mentioning how awesome one of my favorite comic book characters was in this issue. Rocket Raccoon was as awesome as he always is and I loved his interaction with the Inhumans specifically Crystal as they talk about Maximus and Groot. And I loved how Maximus basically says the Groot doesn’t say “I am Groot” but is actually talking but we are to dumb to understand him as he is a higher lifeform than us.

As for the artwork this was some of Brad Walkers strongest work to date. Walker is really a hit or miss artist on this title with how inconsistent his art is from issue to issue. But here Walker does a great job making this issue have an epic feel in the aftermath of War of Kings. Though he still had some inconsistencies in his art when it came to some character faces which I overlook because of the great action and ending he illustrated.

Issue Rating
Story: 8.7/10 – DnA continue to make Guardians of the Galaxy a blast to read and their strong characterization of the GOTG and Inhumans in the aftermath of War of Kings was great.
Art: 8/10 – This was some of Walkers best work thus far. He did a really great job with everything going on in this issue with only a few minor inconsistencies. Hopefully he can carry this quality into the next issue.
Overall: 8.35/10 – Guardians of the Galaxy #17 was a great read. With what happened at the end of this issue and all the problems falling out of War of Kings the Marvel cosmic universe continues to get more and more interesting and fun.

Teen Titans #74

Creative Team
Writers: Bryan Q. Miller (main story); Sean McKeever (back-up story)
Artist: Joe Bennett (main story); Yildiray Cinar (back-up story)
Inkers: Jack Jadnson (main story); Julio Ferreira (back-up story)
Colorists: Rod Reis (main and back-up stories)

Story – Child’s Play Part 3:….We All Fall Down (main story); Fresh Hell Part 3 (back-up story)

Review
Bryan Q. Miller has been doing a great job with this story arc and this final issue did a great job finishing up this fill in story arc. And this arc was one of the strongest story arcs this series has had since Johns work before Infinite Crisis. For the first time the Teen Titans felt like the Teen Titans as they worked well as a team and not as a bunch of individuals trying to work together.

As has been the case with the first two parts of this story arc were Miller excelled at in this issue is his strong characterization of the members on the team. The only character I still do not like is Bombshell, but of course I have never liked the character in the first place so it did not hurt this issue. All the members of the team were given great moments to show off their power levels and how close they became.

This was especially shown with the death of Eddie/Red Devil. While I never liked Eddie it was great to see Miller give the character a heroic moment to die in and not just some lame death that characters of his level in the Teen Titans usually gets. It is the first time that I felt the character was a hero and I like that in his death the team came closer together as they realize the risks they take as an official team.

The Fearsome Five came off as a very strong and competent challenge for the Teen Titans to face. Miller did a very good job building up the members of the villainous group to be the threat they once were to the original team. I hope that we see this group again as there are plenty of story possibilities with this team of villains. And the ending with the Calculator makes it look like this story isn’t over with yet and we will see him and the Fearsome Five again.

And the back-up by Sean McKeever was much stronger in this issue than the previous installments. Even Yildiray Cinar art was stronger in this issue. I love seeing finally kick some ass and hopefully this is a sign the back-up to Teen Titans is actually going somewhere.

Issue Rating
Story: 9/10 – Miller did a fantastic job with this filler arc. His strong characterization in this arc will make it tough for Felicia Henderson follow Miller’s short run. Also McKeever’s back-up story was very well written than the previous installments.
Art: 8/10 – Bennett and Cinar’s artwork in the main and back-up stories, respectively, was well done and did a very good job carrying the action packed issue from both the stories in the issue.
Overall: 8.5/10 – Teen Titans #74 was a great read. This was definitely a step-up from the stories we were getting in this series from the past year or so. Henderson has some hard shoes to fill after this arc by Miller.

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Weekly Comic Book Reviews for 8/26/09