At some point, we’ll get it right…

]]> https://www.thewebsiteofdoom.com/riding-in-cars-with-boys/normal-kombat-men-playing-games-on-couches/feed/ 0 https://www.thewebsiteofdoom.com/articles/the-batman-now-and-then-here-and-there/ https://www.thewebsiteofdoom.com/articles/the-batman-now-and-then-here-and-there/#comments Tue, 17 Jul 2012 16:08:51 +0000 http://www.thewebsiteofdoom.com/?p=6313 Reviews of BATMAN & ROBIN VOL. 1: BORN TO KILL and BATMAN: EARTH ONE

Here we have portraits of the Batman in two phases of his life: a young, inexperienced Bruce Wayne  in his earliest years as Batman, little more than a sack of vengeance with a costume; to a modern, self-assured Wayne in his mid-…thirties? forties? fifties?…mid-forfties, a father growing tired of his hardboiled, paranoid past, looking forward to carving a brighter, safer future for his son and city.

Batman & Robin Vol. 1: Born to Kill

Now we come to the third of Batman’s four headlining titles. The first was spectacular, the second a dud, so how will Batman and Robin fair against the respective ceiling and floor established by those books? Well, spoilers, this is no Detective Comics — far from it in fact, and thank Zod for it. So the question remains: how does this book stack up against Scott Snyder’s Batman? Well, let’s dive in.

The current Batman and Robin is the successor to Grant Morrison’s pre-relaunch Batman and Robin which featured Dick Grayson as Batman and Damian Wayne as Robin, a pairing that seems at first odd but in actuality created a new, fun dynamic for the duo. A fun loving, positive Batman and a hard-as-nails, moody Robin. Their growing mutual respect for one another became the backbone of the book’s emotional core, along with Dick’s quest to equal Bruce’s legacy and Damian’s fight against his violent upbringing. Their relationship worked so well that I was honestly sad to see them broken up with the return of Bruce Wayne and the reboot in September 2011. Now, Dick Grayson’s back to being Nightwing, Bruce Wayne’s back in the role as Batman, but Damian Wayne remains the current Robin. The worry then becomes how will Peter J. Tomasi create a unique dynamic for two characters seemingly so alike yet so at odds? At odds, in essence, the same way Batman and Jason Todd were at odds (i.e. Jason continually moaning and disobeying orders like an insufferable prick).

Batman and Robin opens with something completely audacious to Batman purists: Bruce Wayne deciding to put his parents’ deaths behind him, to move on, to honor who they were in life rather than live in the shadow of their demise. Bringing son Damian along, he even casts the playbill from that fateful night’s show adrift in the sewer below Crime Alley which is soon to be demolished to make way for a new housing, part of Wayne’s urban revitalization.

Wait a minute! An emotionally stable Batman trying to overcome his demons rather than wallow in them? What kind of cockamamie hippie bullshit is this!?

Yes, while the rest of the DC universe has turned back the clock, Batman seems to be moving forward with his life regardless of whatever timestream bullshit tries to unweave past developments. No, it’s onward and upward for Batman and Bruce Wayne, but the path uphill is fraught with perils. As Batman pits nurture against nature in bringing up Damian as both son and sidekick, a mysterious figure from Bruce Wayne’s past emerges to tear the two apart. (For a nice change of pace, why not a mysterious figure from Batman’s past who just wants to give him pie instead of the usual revenge plot?) And here we see how Tomasi changes up the dynamic between the two, focusing on their familial ties to define who they are and how they interact with one another. Batman struggles to be a father while Damian struggles to be a son. Neither character descends into being insufferable even when they do something wrong or betray one another’s trust because each step of the way we understand their mindset and motives. The books strikes at some universal themes here and will no doubt resonate with any father or any son with a troubled bond to their parent or child. (Insert “Cat’s in the Cradle” joke here.)

Along with Scott Snyder’s Batman, Peter J. Tomasi’s interpretation of the Dark Knight also marks a decisive move away from portrayals of Bruce Wayne as an ever brooding, ever moody sack of neuroses and paranoia, unable to trust anyone outside his insular adoptive family. A decidedly positive change for the character who was growing quite boring and lacking in development (as well as devolving closer and closer into Frank Miller’s All-Star Batman and Robin character assassination). While Batman brings the character back to his roots as a detective confronting the horrors of a city consumed by monsters, Batman and Robin introduces a new angle to the character we haven’t seen before. Mainly, Bruce’s new role as a father. Arguably, one could say Bruce Wayne always had a fatherly aspect to his character in his upbringing of Dick Grayson and Tim Drake, but those two always viewed him as a mentor more than a father (especially Tim with his living father still active in his life…well, pre-Identity Crisis, anyway). Damian, however, very much looks up to Bruce as a father and Bruce doesn’t really know how to respond in kind. In a particularly poignant scene, Alfred tells Bruce he should pay more attention to how he praises the boy, stressing the importance of demonstrating pride over simple approval. Bruce has trouble grasping the distinction and his actions shape Damian’s own.

Meanwhile, the development of Nobody, the latest addition to Batman’s rogues gallery, parallels our duo’s dilemma in both life and theme. Unlike Tony S. Daniel’s Dollmaker, who was just another dime-a-dozen psychopath, Nobody has an interesting past and motivation (building upon established Batman mythos, in fact). A vigilante operating outside the law, not unlike so many other of Gotham’s heroes, Nobody crosses that line Bruce promised never to breach, killing criminals to end their wrongdoings for good. Nobody is a foil in both practice and philosophy to Batman, making him the perfect alternative role model for Damian given his past among the League of Assassins.

Batman and Robin avoids all the pitfalls Detective Comics succumbed to. The eight issues collected here actually build on a singular story with a coherent sense of rising action and falling action. The characters are well crafted, their dialogue honed and meaningful, and the villain compelling, threatening, and the perfect foil for Batman in his current state. The only arena where Detective Comics may have the upper hand is in the art. And even then, Patrick Gleason’s pencils suit the book perfectly, lacking only in technical ability of Daniel’s penciling but perfectly capturing the mood and spirit of the book.

The strong emotional core of this book cannot be overstated. The relationship Tomasi builds between Bruce and Damian strikes some truly heartwarming chords while at the same time driving much of the action, leading to some intense, knuckle-biting scrapes and confrontations. Hearts will be racing one moment and tears welling in the next. Along with Scott Snyder’s book, this is a must-read for old and new generations of Batman fans.

Batman: Earth One

The ontology of Earth One is comparatively simple against our own universe. It exists as a playground for writers to explore the early days of a DC hero’s career, beginning, naturally enough, with Superman in J. Michael Straczynski’s Superman: Earth One. Therein, Straczynski recounts Superman’s first arrival to Metropolis and his transformation into the hero we know, exploring the various motives past and present driving humble Clark Kent to don the tights and do battle with forces cosmic. Ironically, Straczynski better captured Superman’s heart in this alternate universe tale than in his mainstream run on Superman: Grounded. The same cannot be said for Geoff Johns, however, who has perhaps proven more talent for crafting ongoing plotlines than short, closed stories.

Given the nature of the book, there’s little point in providing a plot synopsis save to note certain important changes made to Batman’s continuity. First, Bruce’s parents were killed on the eve a mayoral election wherein Thomas Wayne was a candidate, leading Bruce to believe his parents were assassinated as part of a political conspiracy. Second, Martha Wayne, Bruce’s mother, is no longer Martha Wayne née Kane but Martha Wayne née Arkham. What dramatic shifts does this turnabout offer? Surprisingly little. In fact, it’s mostly just setup for a needlessly contrived coincidence.

This book fails primarily because it telegraphs plot points in the worst possible way. Basically, every character begins at a place contrary to how we know them from mainstream continuity. Commissioner Gordon is cowardly, having bought into the Gotham’s corruption after the death of his wife, so obviously he’s going to go through a dramatic experience that brings him back to being the hero cop we know from every piece of Batman fiction ever. Harvey Bullock starts out as a thin, straight-laced, sober detective looking to do good in Gotham (while still harboring selfish ulterior motives), so you know he’s going to devolve into the grizzly, drunken “bad cop” famed to stalk the streets of Gotham.

Oswald Cobblepot, alias Penguin, in a surprising “twist” reveals himself as Gotham’s mayor, Thomas Wayne’s rival from all those years ago but, surprise, surprise, he’s just as corrupt and evil as he’s always been. That reveal pretty much spoils whatever “mystery” the book had to offer as Penguin’s villainy is played painfully straight. Moreover, rather than rely on a villain’s cunning and wit to make them a compelling threat, Johns falls back on shock value with implications of child molestation and murder. Johns deprives Penguin of the noteworthy traits that make him a named supercriminal in Batman’s mythos. (Seriously, the Penguin’s role here had more dramatic tension when he was running for mayor in the Adam West TV series.)

Alfred Pennyworth is the only character who begins with an altered backstory and doesn’t transmogrify into a mainstream version of his character by the book’s climax. And even then, his character amounts to an older, grizzled version of Dr. John Watson, complete with a cane, a limp, and history as a soldier. Ironically, the character to get the least amount of development is Bruce Wayne. You know, BATMAN. The character the damned book is named for. He goes through the exact same character arc depicted in vastly superior Batman: Year One and Batman Begins, only without the attention to detail and character that made those stories interesting. Johns does very little to get us into Bruce’s head, to make us understand his mindset and his drive.

Apparently, Geoff Johns simply found Batman the least interesting character to focus on in a Batman book as every other focal character — Gordon, Bullock, and Alfred — gets more time devoted to fleshing out their personality and backstory than Bruce Wayne. But, you know what? Fair enough. Batman’s origin has been told and retold a thousand times; it’s a tall order expecting Johns to bring a new spin to this old yarn, so focusing on the characters around Batman seems like an promising avenue for new stories, new developments, and a new perspective on an old character. The problem here being that every other character’s development comes at the cost of making Batman look like a fucking putz.

Ultimately, Bruce Wayne plays the least role of all the characters responsible for resolving what passes for a plot in this book. The sum total of Batman’s actions here amount to crashing through a window by accident, correctly identifying the presence of rust in a footprint, and beating up a big guy in a birthday hat. Gordon and Bullock end up being more decisive and effective in their actions and neither of them are the brightest bulb here. Gordon’s a coward, Harvey’s a douche, and neither of them should be outgunning the “world’s greatest detective”, inexperienced as he may be or otherwise. He did train with ninjas, after all. Though, for all we know, Johns may have omitted that part of Batman’s history. How else to explain a cop getting the drop on Bats and the fact that he gets physically bested by nearly every opponent he faces save the ultimate villain.

(SPOILERS: Scratch that. While Bats does indeed best the Birthday Boy, Alfred ultimately has to bail him out by gunning down the Penguin after Cobblepot managed to stab Batman through the gut with his trick umbrella.)

It’s one thing for Batman to be inexperienced, it’s another for him to be completely useless within his own story. The book purports to be about Bruce’s investigation into his parents’ murders, but that turns out to be a red herring in the end. A red herring Johns wishes were wrought with symbolism and irony but it feels more like an insult. One last contrivance to give Bruce motive to keep being Batman, proving that the forces of plot inevitably override individual volition. For this reason, the moment when Bruce truly “becomes” Batman, the defining moment of any Batman origin story, here given the typical full page spread treatment, feels hollow and unearned. The character hadn’t done enough to earn that moment because Johns’ writing sure as hell hadn’t earned it. It’s a shallow imitation of those same moments from Year One and Begins.

Moreover, a lot of the changes from mainstream continuity in this book end up arbitrary and pointless when all they do is place the character outside their comfort zone just long enough to throw the reader off till Johns feels comfortable putting them back where they belong. That shot of Bullock gazing longingly up at an imposing wall of liquor should hold a great deal of dramatic weight but all it really signifies is a return to status quo. The character hasn’t changed. Rather, he is now unchanged, relieved of those new and different aspects to his character Johns introduced in the beginning.

As a last parting shot at the reader, Johns teases us with a look at the Riddler studying Batman from a control room but I couldn’t care less at this point. The book utterly fails to achieve what Straczynski’s Superman: Earth One reached by that book’s end: a compelling story of a hero’s early days struggling to become more than the sum of their parts — more than their tragedies, their origins, their joys, and their fears — to become superheroic, an idea, a value given form. Straczynski put you in Clark’s head with every exchange of dialogue and internal monologue. Here, Johns completely forgoes narration while dialogue primarily moves the plot forward, developing character only as necessary. Given a playground of ideas and possibilities, Johns only musters a modest variation on an old story. One certainly not worth exploring unless one is truly desperate for Batman stories.

Yes, I’m going to comment on it too. It seemed a fitting thing to talk about in my return to the columning business. But I’m gonna talk a little controversy and say that this might be just what DC needs.

DC comics has had a less than stellar record over the past few years. Of their major heroes (Green Lantern, Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman, The Flash, Teen Titans, Red Robin, etc.) there are only a few that have consistently good books.

THE BUILDUP:

Superman and Wonder Woman went to hell with J. Michael Straczynski skipping his way down paycheck lane. The guy has written some damn good stories in the past, but John Cassaday has also drawn some damn good comics in the past and that hasn’t happened in a while.

Green Lantern & Green Lantern Corps. lost my interest after Blackest Night when Johns pulled the “Wait, there’s another prophecy that I didn’t tell you about!” card. It will usually work in a book, but after a major event that was supposed to affect the entire DCU (which it didn’t) and more than 50 issuThes of hinting up to the Blackest Night events, I felt a bit annoyed that it was all nothing more than a stepping stone for Johns to tell the story he really wanted to tell in Brightest Day (which is one of the most disappointing things I’ve ever paid for) and Flashpoint (which I can’t bring myself to give a damn about).

The Flash, if you’ll remember, was one of my favorite books of last year. Johns and Manapul had created a beautiful little arc about Barry Allen figuring out where he stood in the world after the events of Final Crisis/Rebirth/Blackest Night and realigning himself with the life that he had before the Crisis on Infinite Earths. I’ve quite liked it up until The Reverse Flash appeared. For some reason or another, I’ve always disliked the character. Maybe its due to the fact that he hates Barry Allen even though he should hate Wally West. Maybe its because his origin story plays like a poorly written Dr. Who storyline (wibbledy-wobbledy timey-wimey). Or maybe its because his name is Professor Zoom. I don’t know, he’s just never worked for me. Also, they keep giving him new powers to make him interesting, which is just lazy writing.

Batman has gone through some pretty intense changes over these past few years and if anything about this whole reboot has me miffed, its that DC has decided that it doesn’t dislike all of the changes that have happened recently, just some of them. Its absolutely ok for Damian Wayne to be Robin, and for Jason Todd to be The Red Hood, but Barbara Gordon is back on her feet, Dick Grayson is Nightwing again, Tim Drake has goddamn wings, and Batman, Inc.? I have no idea if that is going to exist or be brushed under the table.

DC created a continuity that was suffering under the weight of its own complexities. After Final Crisis and Blackest Night, no one really knew exactly what was going on outside of each comics’ isolated world. How was the Batman affected by Brightest Day? Does Superman care about Batman, Inc.? Does Green Lantern have a say in Superman giving up his citizenship? Why doesn’t anyone help Green Lantern with his defense of the entire universe? I understand the need for a dramatic realignment of the DCU, and I understand that they are trying very hard to keep to their “No More Crisis Books” promise, but Flahpoint shouldn’t be treated as anything other than what it is…an excuse to etch-a-sketch the DCU without calling it a crisis.

THE BOOKS:

Its a task, but I’ve split the DCU relaunch into 3 parts. I’ll be going over each title, the creative team and the story if I can. I’ll give a rating of whether I’m going to buy it (DOOM!) pass for a later date (POSSIBLE DOOM!) or pass completely (NO DOOM FOR YOU!).

1. JLA #1
Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art and Cover by JIM LEE and SCOTT WILLIAMS

I quite like some of the stuff Geoff Johns has done. I enjoyed the hell out of Green Lantern before Blackest Night happened. I even enjoyed The Flash with Francis Manapul and tolerated Brightest Day and so far Flashpoint has been ok. It has interesting ideas and, though its a bit messy, I like where its going. I have faith that with a bit of direction, this could be a great book. That being said, Jim Lee has been rather disappointing as of late. He hasn’t done any solid comic work for about a decade, his most recent work has been either covers (Invincible et. al), a few select pages (Image United, JLA, etc.), and the regrettable All-Star Batman & Robin. His art is still some pretty stuff to look at, but its well known that the man cannot keep to a schedule. I don’t see this book, with this team, reaching 10 issues.

In regards to the new costume designs and team, I’m mostly ok with it. Aquaman hasn’t looked better in years, The Flash, GL, and Wonder Woman costume updates are ok, Cyborg is still pretty much Cyborg, Superman is a bit young for my liking, but that might mean they’re moving him to less of a leadership role in the league and more towards an uncertain hero, which might mean great things or contrived things. Batman is still Batman, and I am eternally thankful for that. I don’t quite know if there are going to be any major character changes, but everything looks fairly solid and I’m looking forward to reading it despite any reservations I have.

Verdict: DOOM!

2. Action Comics #1
Written by GRANT MORRISON
Art by RAGS MORALES and RICK BRYANT

I’ve had my issues in the past with Grant Morrison. He writes stories that are beautifully weaved through with mystery and subtle references that aren’t revealed until the final pages, he also writes stories that I (among others) find to be tedious and ostentatious. He can write brilliant stuff like Batman & Robin, or something that I just struggle through, like Final Crisis. Animal Man was brilliant (while riding that line of excessive preachiness that he straddles so much) but I still haven’t finished The Invisibles because of its overtones of Grant Morrison being better than you. I think Morrison will do a great job with this flagship title though. He’ll bring some creative writing that Superman has been missing for quite some time and he’s the perfect man to keep DC’s first comic going at the moment. Rags, I haven’t seen too much of, but that’s mostly because he hasn’t done much. I liked Infinite Crisis, I liked Identity Crisis, and his recent work on First Wave has been pretty damn good. I have no worries about the artist here.

I have no clue about what the story is going to be, the cover looks like an older Superman. The jeans are…eh, but I don’t worry too much about it, at least not as much as the picture from Zac Snyder’s Superman worried me.

Verdict: DOOM!

3. Superman #1
Written by GEORGE PEREZ
Art by JESUS MERINO

DC is showing a love for the artist-as-writer idea. I’m not sure how I feel about this. It might be Jim Lee’s influence as a top man at DC, more of DiDio’s madness as a top man at DC, or just general madness from everyone at DC, but its a strange choice to be sure. Perez is really an unknown as a writer. He draws a hell of a splash page and has drawn Superman at some of his finest moments, but I really don’t know how I feel about this one. Jesus Merino is a capable artist and while his exact style isn’t my favorite, I think he’ll draw the shit out of this if the book is going to be as visually oriented as I imagine.

The story hints at classic Superman stories far removed from the political madness we’ve seen recently and more of what should be in a Superman story: Superman beating up things that only he can beat up and being an all-around good guy.

Verdict: POSSIBLE DOOM!

4. Superboy #1
Written by SCOTT LOBDELL
Art by RB SILVA and ROB LEAN

Scott Lobdell isn’t a name you see much. Its not for any particular reason, he just hasn’t done much mainstream stuff as of late. His work is solid and sometimes pretty damn good and sometimes absolutely terrible. He’s an odd choice because he’s an unknown to a lot of the younger crowd of casual comic readers and I don’t like that he’s been given three books to write. If DC was going for new talent and an open call for writers and artists, you’d think they’d spread it around a bit more, but they’ve gone with some markedly odd choices for 60% of their books. I think he can do a good job on Superboy if he doesn’t get lost in Teen Titans and Red Hood & The Outlaws. RB Silva, though, is a pretty damn amazing artist and I’ve loved everything that I’ve seen of his.

The story: I don’t know. Its the same Superboy story that I’ve read 6 times already. Johns and Manapul did a fine job of covering this in 4 issues in Adventure Comics a year or so ago. I don’t know why we always need to see him struggling over his origin. Its great, but damn is it getting old. I’ve also heard rumors that this is one of two different Superboys that will be in the DCU, how that works, I don’t know, but it sounds awful.

Verdict: POSSIBLE DOOM!

5. Batman #1
Written by SCOTT SNYDER
Art by GREG CAPULLO and JONATHAN GLAPION

I’m a huge Scott Snyder fan. I would pick this up based solely on his work on American Vampire, but his recent run on Detective Comics with Jock has been stellar and Gates of Gotham has been great. Capullo, I’m not overly excited about because I’m just not a big fan of Spawn. I prefer him to MacFarlane, but its always been very over-the-top and I haven’t seen much of him drawing a more subdued, understated character like I think Snyder will write.

I have no idea about the story, but this is one of the few that I think will essentially continue straight out of the previous DC continuity. They have done too much with Batman over the past two years that’s been good to want to just abandon it like they’re probably doing with Superman.

Verdict: DOOM!

6. Detective Comics #1
Written by TONY S. DANIEL
Art by TONY S. DANIEL and RYAN WINN

No. Just no. Tony Daniel writes boring stories. That’s just it. I haven’t really liked a thing that I’ve read of his and my reluctance towards this title is only compounded by the fact that he is writing and drawing it. I know that writer/artist is possible, but not at high quality and not on schedule. The same goes for David Finch. Daniel can draw a fair comic, and he’s done a good job of moving away from the Liefeld school of “Screw it, we’ll just add lines everywhere,” but its not at the point where he can do all the work on his own, stick to a schedule and make something that I want to read.

The story, hopefully, will continue where Snyder has left off and not go off on another Black Mask run that ends pretty much nowhere. The promo for the book uses the words “Ripper” and “game of cat and mouse”. I just am not excited about this.

Verdict: NO DOOM FOR YOU!

7. Batgirl #1
Written by GAIL SIMONE
Art by ARDIAN SYAF and VICENTE CIFUENTES

I love Gail Simone. Seriously. I might kidnap and marry her against her will. Secret Six has been a consistently amazing book, Birds of Prey has been great and her Wonder Woman was actually readable (which is a Herculean task). In regards to art, this book has the best named team I’ve seen in a long forever. Ardian Syaf and Vicente Cifuentes have both done some good work, I’m not entirely familiar with either, but what I’ve seen I liked (apart from a few odd proportion issues in some of Syaf’s work). I think this might go very well with these talented people working on the comic.

The story, however, I’m not very fond of. I don’t mind that Barbara Gordon is back on her feet, but I don’t like that DC won’t take a stand on The Killing Joke not being canon anymore. They’re using Flashpoint as saying that the world is coming back as Barry Allen mis-remembered it, and trying to have their Batgirl-cake, and eat it too. Another dislike is the dismissal of Stephanie Brown and Cassandra Cain, two great characters that have recently been shining in their comic appearances (Brown having only recently been revived) and are now being 86’ed by DC executives. I really want to like this one, but I think I’ll wait until someone else lets me know that it’s worth my money.

Verdict: POSSIBLE DOOM!

8. Batwoman #1
Written by J.H. WILLIAMS III and W. HADEN BLACKMAN
Art and Cover by J.H. WILLIAMS III

Damn J.H. Williams for being so talented. It would make it much easier for me to dismiss this book for the same reasons as Detective Comics and Batman: The Dark Knight if he was any less talented. I don’t have any idea how he will write this book, but at least he has the help of Blackman, who I know well from his Star Wars work. I think the team is solid enough to get it done, I just hope it doesn’t fall behind on schedule.

Again, I am unsure as to how the reboot will affect the story of the character. This book has been pushed back over a year, cancelled, uncancelled and then pushed back again so I have no idea where they’re going to start. There was a #0 issue released a while back but anything pre-reboot is not set in stone.I’ve waited long enough for this book, there’s no reason for me not to try it out after this much investment of hope.

Verdict: DOOM!

9. Catwoman #1
Written by JUDD WINICK
Art and Cover by GUILLEM MARCH

Oh, Judd, I wish you wrote a more consistent book. I was one of the few people who seemed to like your runs on Batman and I quite like your work on Power Girl and Green Arrow. I don’t know how you’re gonna handle Catwoman, but I assume that I’ll hear about it later and pick it up around issue 3. Guillem, I like your stuff, you draw pretty things and ladies that look soft. Keep it up.

I really have no idea what to think about this. I like the direction DC has been going with her recently, devoted to Batman, but still independent and absolutely willing to steal whatever she wants. Don’t know if that will stay, but I might check it out later rather than sooner.

Verdict: POSSIBLE DOOM!

10. Red Hood And The Outlaws #1
Written by SCOTT LOBDELL
Art and Cover by KENNETH ROCAFORT

Same reservations that I had for Superboy. Scott Lobdell is going to be overworked. Another downside to this book is that there is almost zero motivation for me to read it based on the idea. Rocafort, I’m unfamiliar with. From what I see that he’s done, it looks like a lot of cover work and a lot of drawings of intense-looking ladies.

I’m so very unaffected by this comic because I dislike the return of Jason Todd in the first place. He was Batman’s failure. He was the one that he couldn’t save. He hung over Bruce’s head and made him question himself in a way that nothing else really did. He reminded you that Joker was not a lovable prankster-villain, and if people don’t remember, he was killed off because the fans just. Did.Not. Like. Jason Todd. He was whiny and disrespectful and exactly the opposite of the kind of person that Dick Grayson was, just he had less of a reason to be unhappy than Dick. I never liked Jason as a character and I like The Red Hood even less. This book seems absolutely pointless to me other than for DC to have their magic number of comic books.

Verdict: NO DOOM FOR YOU!

11. Batwing #1
Written by JUDD WINICK
Art and Cover by BEN OLIVER

I’m not going to comment on Judd Winick again, I have the same complaints. Ben Oliver, I’m unfamiliar with, but he looks like he can draw a pretty good comic.

Batwing, is a bad idea. If you created a new hero to be DC’s watchman over Africa, great. However, by making him a Bat-hero, you’re reducing both him and the entire idea behind your Batman reboot. Batman Incorporate started because Bruce wanted Batman to be an idea, not just a single hero. That’s why he left Dick as Batman in Gotham while he went around the world doing crazy World-Batman things.Why not have a comic that follows all of these Batmen if you’re going to keep the idea of Batman Inc. alive? Why just focus on this one? Why not give a comic to El Gaucho or keep Knight and Squire in a book somewhere? This just seems like a forced idea and one that won’t last longer than a few trade paperbacks worth.

Verdict: NO DOOM FOR YOU!

12. Nightwing #1
Written by KYLE HIGGINS
Art and Cover by EDDY BARROWS and JP MAYER

I like me some Dick Grayson. I also like me some Dick Grayson as Nightwing. I also like me Kyle Higgins because the very few comics that he’s done have been funderful (yes, I said it, now back off!). Eddy Barrows, I also like. He’s done some great stuff in the past few years.

I hate to be repetitive, but I have no idea what they’re keeping of Dick and what they’re abandoning. Was he ever Batman? Are his parents still dead? Why is he wearing red as Nightwing? How is it that comic writers still believe that there are so many traveling circuses? I know that I want to find these things out. In summation, I really want to read this book, if just to see Dick as Nightwing again.

Verdict: DOOM!

13. Batman And Robin #1
Written by PETER J. TOMASI
Art and Cover by PATRICK GLEASON and MICK GRAY

Tomasi…not so much. I liked Green Lantern Corps, but not much else and it eventually became boring. Gleason, he’s worked with before but I’m not a huge fan of his style.

This is a very wait and see kind of book. I don’t know what to expect from it and I don’t really know if I want to be a part of it. I hope its good. I really do.

Verdict: POSSIBLE DOOM!

14. DC Universe Presents #1
Written by PAUL JENKINS
Art by BERNARD CHANG

I didn’t think I would be, but I’m really excited for this book. I’m a big fan of the idea of no star in the book, just a bunch of stories about heroes that might be forgotten. I can see this leading to some amazing one-shot stories and guest writers/artists. This book will probably be a great launching point for new artists/writers as well who DC doesn’t quite want to give their own book yet. If they use this right, this could be the best thing DC pulls out of the relaunch.

Jenkins has done great work on Hellblazer and great work on The Hulk, however, he also created The Sentry, which nearly absolves him of all his acclaim. Chang has done some good work but I don’t know enough about his bibliography to say if he’ll make or break the series.

Verdict: DOOM!

15. Green Lantern #1
Written by GEOFF JOHNS
Art by DOUG MAHNKE and CHRISTIAN ALAMY

Johns, despite my repeated requests, just will not leave Green Lantern alone. He keeps introducing new mythos that has barely been hinted at and has to be shoehorned into the story while pushing the idea that Hal Jordan is “teh rawkzors” [SARCASM] and everyone else obviously sucks except for Barry Allen, who is so much cooler than Wally West [/SARCASM]. I really am tired of the Book of Oa/Guardian/Rainbow Lantern shitake mushrooms. Sadly, the Green Lantern madness over the past few years, much like Batman, has had too much effort to be abandoned and will probably remain mostly unchanged.

I will say that Mahnke has consistently put out a good book, no matter what it is, he draws an amazing splash page with incredible amounts of detail and consideration of story. I just wish the writer could put out a story that wasn’t so unpleasant to read. If I hear that its better than the past year of issues has been, I might pick it up.

Verdict: POSSIBLE DOOM!

16. Green Lantern Corps #1
Written by PETER J. TOMASI
Art by FERNANDO PASARIN and SCOTT HANNA

Again with the Tomasi…

This book will probably be better than the main GL series, just because Hal Jordan annoys me so damn much. However, that’s not saying much because I’m not really a fan of Guy Gardner or John Stewart either. Its very easy to write both characters wrong and I haven’t read anything of Tomasi’s recently that convinces me that I should care.

Verdict: NO DOOM FOR YOU!

17. Green Lanterns: New Guardians #1
Written by TONY BEDARD
Art and Cover by TYLER KIRKHAM and BATT

The collective world of Kyle Rayner fans and I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw that Kyle was not only not being ignored by the restructure of DC, but he was being given his own book. I’m not a huge fan of the Rainbow Lantern idea. Yellow was fun, Red was interesting at first, Star Sapphires are…sexy?, and Larfleeze is perfection, but I can pretty much live a happy life without ever again seeing Saint Walker or Indigo 007 hanging around and being mysterious and/or frustrating.

I can ignore all of the faults because Kyle Rayner has his own book though. I’m good. Have Rob Liefeld draw it and Jeph Loeb write it and I’d probably still read a book that was based around Kyle Rayner being awesome.

Bedard has done some great stuff and Kirkham has done some good stuff. I’m looking forward to it.

Verdict: DOOM!

TOTAL FOR BOOKS:

DOOM! – 7
POSSIBLE DOOM! – 6
NO DOOM FOR YOU! – 4

So, what I’ve learned from this first batch is that DC is definitely going for a certain look with their comics at the moment. There’s no unique ideas so far in the artist choices. Playing it safe? Maybe.

DC is also trying their hardest to appeal to a crowd that they don’t currently appeal to. Books like Red Hood and the Outlaws are directed towards people who have no attachment to characters and are looking for books based on title and visuals alone.

Join me next week as I tackle the next 17 books. On the 24th, I’ll be talking about the final 18 books and giving my review of JLA #1.