Reviews A - W

Sheesh, I've got a lot of comics here to read. I won't bother reviewing anything I've read that's over 6 months old. That should speed things up a bit here.

Batch 1 of many to come

Aquaman 49
This had a more emotional finale than I'd expected from the disjointed opening. The art was nice, kinda wet, which is appropriate. I am very happy with this new version of Aquaman. I really get a sense of this young guy coming into his own, trying to do the right thing.

Birds of Prey 103
The book's been feeling a bit disjointed with so many characters now to balance. I like them all, I like the intrigue, I like this new threat to Oracle's power, but it was a more cohesive book with Babs, Dinah, and Helena, with Zinda pitching in. I trust Gail to pull all the elements together because she writes team books (Secret 6!) so well, but so far, things haven't quite jelled here for me. Story-wise, things worked. Team-wise? I'm not so sure.

Brave and the Bold 1
A big hmmmmm..... With the Vegas cover here and on Jack of Fables, I got a lot more of that city than I'd've liked, but whatever. Interesting idea to have the various team-ups be part of a longer story arc with one character -- in this case, Hal -- being the one moving from place to place, temp partner to temp partner. Hal and Bruce worked better together than I'd've thought, given all the antagonism between them since Hal's return, and the mystery is decent. And I can't fault the Perez/Wiacek art.

Catwoman 64
Another stunning cover. Still one of my fav books. Selina's back doing what comes naturally -- stealing -- and intrigue abounds. And how can any book be bad if it's got Luther in it?

Checkmate 11
This run of this title is my first experience with many of these characters, so it's been fun getting to know them. Aside from cheering that someone's (a few someones) are now suspicious of Amanda Waller and wanting them to slowly and painfully make her pay for her all-around nastiness, I've been enjoying learning about the characters mostly new to me, like Beatriz/Fire and Tommy Jagger. This book is also a good example of how diversity can work in the DCU, with people of all ethnicities who are divided fairly among the good, the not-so-good, and the bad. With the political intrigue I enjoy being done so well, this is consistently one of my favs each month.

Helmet of Fate: Black Alice 1
I like the character of Black Alice, and this was more about her than the helmet. Nice character study of a girl with magic ability who's struggling to find her way in the world. I hope we see more of her. The near monochromatic coloring really suited the character and story.

Hawkgirl 60 / JSA Classified 22
Okay, the JSA comes first. Walt Simonson's art on JSA Classified 22 was nice to see and gave this an old-fashioned science fiction-oriented superhero book feel, reminding me of Carmine Infantino's work or Gil Kane's. And it was nice seeing Blackfire taken down, but this was mainly just one big fight. feh. The Hawkgirl was better. Renato Arlem's art is nice, and better than Howard Chaykin's "two facial expressions" that made Kendra look like she was chewing nails all the time. An interesting development in her relationship with the returned Carter. Maybe things will pick up in the book now. I'm hopeful, but wary.

Jack of Fables 7
This book is fun. Lots of fun. And a nice narrative transition from Jack to explain why the other story isn't being finished right now. Jack is such an opportunist, but his charm makes him so appealing. He handled the cliche "man wakes up in bed in Vegas married to a woman he doesn't know, with no memory of the ceremony" situation with his usual aplomb and own special twist.

Shadowpact 10
Another book I'm enjoying immensely. The group has a wonderful dynamic and they seem to genuinely care about each other. I'm wondering where the whole Eddie Deacon storyline's going. And I like newcomer Laura. I hope she sticks around. The new temp partners look to be fun, too: The Midnight Rider and Acheron.

Spirit 2-3
I had read only a few stories of the original Spirit, so I don't know how much this matches with that. But I loved seeing the background for P'Gell, which makes her less of a 2-dimensional ... well, cartoon character, in book 2. And in 3, the origin of The Spirit was nicely done. And I'm loving the art. I can't say if the book captures the spirit of the original Spirit, as that was never a big part of my comics experience, but on its own merits, it's one fine comic.

Trials of Shazam 5
Freddie is still too tentative and unsure of himself for someone who's been in the superhero game for as long as he has, but maybe, he's coming around. He's found his courage and looked rather Marvel-ous by the end. I love the art, too, which is much like a series of paintings.

White Tiger 4
We've reached the "uh uh, oh shit" part of the story, with Angela poisoned and maybe dying. Oh, and there were some plot developments, another clue, and she gained an informant. Solid storytelling, but I'm not as up on the Marvel universe as I am on the DCU, so a few things were lost on me, I think.

Wonder Woman 4
I was thinking of waiting to read this until the final chapter gets printed someday, but then figured, what the heck. At least, we get to see Diana back with her powers. And Hercules proved himself untrustworthy. Bring on Jodi Picoult.