Four Quickies and a Mini-Rant

I'll do these alphabetically.

Green Arrow 54
Things heat up as GA and Black Lightning hunt for Dr. Light. A nice cover, decent interior art, and a strong start for the next story arc made this an enjoyable read. The repercussions from Brad Meltzer's "Identity Crisis" continue as Dr. Light seeks what he feels is rightfully his, taking the light power from the only good Dr. Light, Dr. Kimiyo Hoshi, and setting the stage for a vengeance battle with GA. The bad Dr. Light has his memory back and to say he's pissed that the JLA mind-wiped him years ago would be an understatement. The issue smacked of setup, but first chapters are like that. I have high expectations for the rest of this story arc.

Hawkman 44
I was worried about this book when Johns left, but Palmiotti and Gray have been more than capable replacements and the art by Bennett, Jose, and Jadson keeps up the high standard of realistic art I've come to expect from this book. The story had a nice twist at the end, though I didn't really think Hawkman had really bitten the bullet. The real surprise was Charlie's revelations, or rather, the beginning of same, only to be interrupted by.... let's just say it'll be a long month while I wait for the next issue.

JSA 77
I'm not reading all the tie-ins to the Infinite Crisis lead-ins, but I've been able to follow the books that tie in with the mini-series, which I am reading. This is a "Day of Vengeance" tie-in, but stands fairly well on its own despite reading as setup for something bigger. Donna Troy's appearance was a nice bit of continuity with the mini-series events and it was nice seeing Hal Jordan. Still, nothing much happened. The cover is stunning, but the interior art, while easy on the eyes, is too simplistic next to what I've come to love about this title.

Outsiders 28
A very nice cover shows some very irritated heros in light of Indigo's death. Essentially a fill-in story, there were enough nice character bits and nice enough art to keep me happy. Roy hardly appeared, but his bit at the end was significant. This issue also sets up not only the next arc, but the next step in the development of this team, so I'm eager to see what comes next for my favorite group of heroes.

I skimmed the latest issue of Nightwing, but despite loving Hester and Park's art, I so don't like the direction the book is taking. I'm not opposed to change, but this total reworking of Dick Grayson has been bugging me for a while and the current arc just leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I don't know how much longer I'll continue buying it, but this isn't the Dick Grayson I know and love. I've been thinking he's really just undercover in the mob, but now I've been reading in CSN and elsewhere that that isn't the case. And that has me worried and irritated.