More Catching Up

Hurt my shoulder, so I've been reading comics instead of playing Facebook games! Am all caught up on Green Lantern which is fitting in nicely with Brightest Day. I'm really loving Carol Ferris as a Star Sapphire. She has a real identity now and she's not a villain. Now if only they'd fix that costume. And Larfleeze is such fun. And Sinestro has become a wonderfully complex character. Good stuff here.

Caught up on the Bat books, too. Wow. I'm in awe of the details Grant Morrison worked into the books over time and how he set things up. Both Batman and Detective have been great and I especially enjoyed catching up with Batman and Robin. I loved The Return of Bruce Wayne and the way everything tied together with the other books. I was less impressed with the Return One-Shots, especially since I thought they were each standalones and got the ones with the characters I like only and didn't get the others. I could try to find those, I guess, but the overall story didn't thrill me. I was mostly interested in seeing everyone react to Bruce's return, and I got enough of that in what I did read. The scenes in Batman and Robin were my favorites. Dick's injured, Damian is ... well, Damian, and Bruce shows up. Great stuff there.

The only One-Shot I really enjoyed was the one with Batgirl. Bruce was right. Steph did need to prove something, to him, to herself, and it was a nice recap of their history together and taking things to the next level. She's now accepted by him as a member of the Bat team, which is awesome. She was never a character I cared about one way or the other, since I didn't really read her when she was Spoiler. I only started reading the Bat books again (other than Catwoman and Birds of Prey and Nightwing) when Dick took over as Bats. But I did read the crime war story and thought Steph got a raw deal. If Bruce had trusted her, she would never have done what she did and started the war. That's when I started to get interested in her and she was killed, so I was glad when she was brought back and became Batgirl. She's become a strong character and a fun one. She deserves this chance.

I liked the first story in Batman Incorporated, but will reserve judgment before deciding if it belongs on my pull list. I like Bruce, but he doesn't interest me as much as Dick. I guess it depends on the Bat folk Bruce recruits, what their stories and personalities are, that will decide it for me.

Now to figure out what to read next. The stacks are still rather tall.

Best for Last

I can't bring myself to spoil Suicide Squad 4. I just can't. That last page, the big revelation/cliffhanger, just wow. Waller, of course, is just as arrogant as ever since her ouster from Checkmate, but all I care about is the next issue to see the ramifications of what she tells Rick Flag.

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It really doesn't get better than this. Super-sized, with stunning art. The Sinestro Corps War was everything Amazons Attack should have been and more. Hal, John, Guy, and Kyle make for a formidable quartet, the people of Coast City prove themselves heroes, Hal's brother does have a backbone, and there were oodles of little details that added up to a great whole. Ramifications of changing the Guardians' Law about killing. Sinestro not being evil in the traditional sense, but wanting the GL Corps to match his image of them. The role of fear. The possibility of other Corps: Red, Violet, Blue, etc. and a Darkest Night that could destroy all. Guy stricken and he's still able to battle. Kilowog telling Coast City citizens: "It was our fight, Poozers. And it's our mess to clean up." Prime arrogant one minute, then crying like a baby for someone to help him. Hal and Kyle taking Sinestro down the old-fashioned way, with all 3 powerless, using just their human strength. People rushing to move back to Coast City brought tears to my eyes. And then, that full page of our 4 Earth GLs, flying proud.

And then, hints of the future, the Blackest Night. Coming in 2009! If any book earned the right to think epically, it's Green Lantern.

Another Two

Was busy taking photos of my Stargate action figures, telling a little story with them, but I did have time to read 2 more comics today.

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I know a number of GL fans, especially Hal fans, aren't happy with the direction the book is going or what Hal's been doing, but I've really been enjoying it. The political ramifications of the treaty and Hal crossing out of jurisdiction to rescue Cowgirl. I really like Cowgirl, so hope the ending isn't really that uh, dire for her. I like the psychology involved here with Hal, with Johns delving a bit deeper into Hal's motivations than we used to get. The whole issue of Hal not wearing his ring when he flies and the repercussions of that has really fleshed out Hal's character. He is without fear and that was part of his life pre-ring, so it would stand to reason he'd feel he didn't want to have to rely on it in his non-GL worklife. There was a time disconnect with the not-yet-formed in their own title Justice League showing up, but I loved that Alan was with them and his scene with Hal was strong. And in Amon Sur, Abin Sur's son, we have an antagonist who is more than a mere villain. He clearly didn't deserve his father's ring, has no clue or doesn't care that Hal came by the ring honestly as it was given to him by Abin Sur. Hal's had issues re: family, especially with his father dying tragically when Hal was growing up and Amon Sur clearly has similar issues. I hope Johns fully exploits this aspect of the characters in the next installment. And Reis' pencils with Albert's inks make for some very realistic art, even if Hal looks too young at times. Hal's going through some rough, real-life type of traumas with the whole POW storyline and with him being military, he's one of the few characters this can work well with. After the GL/GA book, he's associated with realistic plots and this continues that fine tradition of making comics relevant.

All-Star Superman 6
Another character with father issues, in this case, Clark/Supes losing his adoptive father. Good use of the Superman Squad and nice art. This title continues to show how good and fun comics can be. An excellent retelling of an iconic character.

For the Record

For the record, in case I haven't yet blogged about it, because I don't recall, I think this cover stinks. Now, I have no problems with cheesecake, or as I've mentioned numerous times, beefcake, but there is no reason I can think of to dress her this way. I feel slimy just posting the pic here. I did consider merely linking to it, but I think bloggers should make things convenient for their readers whenever possible, so here it is.

It makes so much sense, right? to cover her arms and legs, but not 99 per cent of the rest of her. It won't take much to get this cover an x-rating. And for no reason. Color in the body and leave it form fitting and it's still a sexy outfit, albeit one that's decent and even beautiful. A contrasting color, perhaps.

There really is a difference between cheesecake that's fun and in the spirit of comics' heritage and cheesecake that borders on porn strictly to try to drum up sales from male readers who don't need much incentive anyway to buy comics.

I'm enjoying the Green Lantern series post-OYL, but this cover leaves me cold. It's just not the right image for a mainstream title. Plus, she looks anorexic, which is another image DC shouldn't want to convey.

Earth's Other Green Lantern

This one's for you Green Lantern fans out there: Green Lantern 59, March 1968. I'm cleaning out the last of my longboxes, moving the comics into nice, shiny new shortboxes. This was the first comic I pulled out, one of the few Green Lantern issues I kept when I sold off 2/3 of my collection 15 or so years ago.

This is how I know Guy Gardner, although he's much cockier on the cover than in the actual story. In the story, he's earnest and cleancut. I've come to accept that what happened to him has changed him, and I do like him now, but probably not as much as I liked him in this issue.

IC and GL

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Lovely cover with the green guys, GA and GL. I thought this guest pairing would make me more emotional than it did, given that GL/GA was one of my all-time favorite comics. Ah well. You really can't go back to some things and recapture the feelings. Nostalgia is funny that way.

I am loving the slick paper, covers and inside pages. Makes for nice, vibrant colors. The banter between Hal and Ollie was well done and there were nice character bits, but I was a bit disappointed that Ollie's dream included Connor and not Roy. hmmmmm.... Anytime Roy's ignored, I get a bit peeved, so that's not a complaint about the comic, just my bias getting in the way. But still.... Nice start for the story, though, so I'm hoping the next issue is as good.

Infinite Crisis 4
This just gets better and better. So much so, it's actually tempting me to go back and actually read Crisis on Infinite Earths. All of it. Fortunately, I keep coming to my senses. I've said it before, but it bears repeating. I loved the multi-verse. As a kid growing up reading DC comics, I never had trouble telling everyone apart or what Earth they were from. I loved alternate realities in books and TV shows, too. The Mirror Universe on Star Trek, for ex. And now Stargate has been playing with the concept. Frederick Pohl's The Coming of the Quantum Cats and many other science fiction novels. I happen to think parallel time is cool. So, if we end up back to one timeline, one universe, I'll be disappointed, but I also know that the theory goes thusly: Every decision point can lead to an alternate reality. So from some point in the DCU after consolidation, more universes can be spun off once more as decisions are made, with all the alternate decisions and their ramifications. Some realities will be very similar, while others will be very different. Consolidation does not mean it has to be that way forever. I take solice in that, even if DC never follows up.

Okay, on to IC 4. This is a wonderful look at how even the noblest heroes can be corrupted, how good people can end up doing bad things for what they think are justifiable reasons. Superboy's battle with uh, Superboy (Conner) is a case in point.

A lot was packed in here. There was a lot to read, which is why I didn't read it right away (as in on the subway ride home), but saved it for when I had time to concentrate. The tying up of a lot of incidents to Alex and the Psycho-Pirate filled in a lot of gaps and snipped loose ends. Now we know for certain why OMAC went rogue and the true intent behind the Society of Villains, the attack on magic, and what happened with Shazam and with the Spectre.

We also took the big step to a new Blue Beetle and Spectre (the latter set in motion by the Day of Vengeance Special), so things are starting to come together in a big way. Of course, had I realized just how this month's Nightwing fit in with IC, I would have read it after, or at least, the events in Bludhaven wouldn't have been so startling when I read NW on the subway ride home on Wednesday.

Stuff I loved:

• The delicious art. It really doesn't get better than this. Every character is drawn as an individual, which in a crowded book like this, is no mean feat.
• Bruce and Dick's conversation. Bruce: "You've put an importance on keeping up relationships that I neglected. You care." YES! And Bruce: "The early years. I've forgotten if...They were good for you, weren't they?" Dick: "The best."
• Spectre resisting entering his new host, begging for another chance.
• The pitiable and pitiful Superboy after he's killed: "You're ruining me!" So unheroic to put blame on others. Too immature to see the evil that he's done.
• Jay admitting he's not fast enough, followed by Linda grabbing the babies and heading into the speed force: "Wherever you're going-- your family's coming with you."
• Bart's: "Grandpa?"
• The montage of Lois and Clark's life together (don't they number pages anymore so I can cite them?)
• And finally, Supes 2: "We're here, Lois. We're home."

I can't wait for IC 5.

Catchng Up with the Green Guys

Ever since I got burned by George Perez' never-finished Crimson Plague, I try to wait til I have an entire mini or maxi-series before reading it. In recent months, I've fallen behind. Yesterday, I caught up with Green Lantern, reading Rebirth and the first 3 books in the new ongoing series. All I can say is, Wow. If you need someone to resurrect a character, Geoff Johns is the writer for it.

There was a nice logic to how Hal Jordan was restored as a GL and why he'd been Parallax. That whole Parallax thing was when I wasn't reading comics, so I was an easy audience for any explanation that sounded good and this did. Tying it all into the weakness to the color yellow was a neat touch.

Guy wasn't as obnoxious as usual and I actually cared about him. He sure isn't the character he was when he first appeared back in the '60s, but I've accepted his makeover after Crisis. At least, they're using him. John Stewart was also nicely used and it was great that Ollie/Green Arrow was included. Batman was, well, Batman, as insufferable as always or at least as insufferable as he's been the past decade.

The series got off to a nice start and I'm looking forward to Hal's new adventures and boy, it sure feels great to say that.