Gashapon Reviews: December 30, 2009

So, even though it's a Gashapon Review, I love this cover, so, so, so much that I had to post it here. In fact as soon as I can order a poster, I'm going to. And it's a ridiculously quiet week, and the last week in 2009, so it's kinda a special occasion. Also, this issue was The Awesome.

Blackest Night #6 (*****)

Yes, that's right. I threw down five stars on this sucker. After the rather lack-luster Green Lantern 49, this issue just exemplified why I love this series. Barry Allen moving two-seconds through time to break the connection? Ganthet doing his thing with the rings? THE LAST PANEL? It's just awesome. I'd like to go in-depth and talk about some of the shit that happens, but that would ruin some fo the awesome for people. I have to say again that if you're not following Blackest Night, get out there and do it. It reminds me exactly why I love comics so much: Pretty art and great storytelling. Marvel needs to take notes.

So, short of my disappearing off the face of the Earth during December, we got a good start on this blog thing. I hope all four of you that read it have enjoyed it so far, and we'll keep it going in the new year. Happy New Years everybody!

Gashapon Reviews: December 23, 2009

So it's actually 2010 and this shit is just horribly late. I've been sitting on it for a while cause I just haven't taken the time out to write four sentences about Legacy. But it's done, and now we can start the new year on a clean slate.


Marvel:

New Mutants 8

Sadly I haven't been able to pick this up yet. Sounds interesting from what Arnab told me though.

Uncanny X-Men #519 (***)

I gave this three stars, but then when I tried to remember what happened, I had difficulty. I thought Scott sealing away the void in his brain because he learned to seal shit away while dating Jean was funny, but the Namor showed up and I lost interest. Also, I don't really get why Beast has his panties all in a twist lately. Cyclops is doing what needs doing. Then Namor showed up, and we all know how I feel about him. I'm curious how this whole nano-spy thing will turn out.

"To absent friends." "Amen."

World's Finest #3 ** 1/2
This one wasn't as good as the other two, to be honest. It could be because I have no emotional attachment to Supergirl and Batgirl still irritates me. This Toyman storyline is interesting, the artwork isn't the greatest, but it's fine. The fact that I know what part 4 is about (Batman and Superman's first team-up,) I can say that I am more excited about what's to come than what happened in this issue. I did enjoy Dick and Barb.

Gotham City Sirens #7 **** 1/2
I love that these gals have turned a new leaf. I hope it lasts for a long time, because I do really like them. Selina Kyle is one of my favorite females, Harley Quinn is enjoyable, and I'm growing to like Pamela Isley. This issue was cute, sweet, and just great all around. I can't say enough about the artwork and the writing in this series, Paul Dini and Guillem March have done an amazing job. I thought this issue was great. Selina interacting with Dick, Harley and her family, Pamela with nature, and then all coming together.

What if? Astonishing X-Men
This one was in two parts. These are my own titles for the parts, as I do not have my copy on me.
*** Rebirth of Jean: This one was interesting for a couple of reasons. One, the whole what if Jean was alive issue parallels the rebirth of the Phoenix and that's always interesting. More importantly, I would just love Jean coming back. I'm not altogether sure how to review this though. I liked the art. Would I like to see the story develop? Of course, but it won't. I thought it was a tad bit far-fetched to believe that if Jean came back instead of Colossus that 7 people would die (six that wouldn't have died otherwise.)

** Danger in Love: Danger falling in love with Ultron and attempting to conquer the world is just an altogether strange story. It's not that I didn't enjoy it but I didn't love it.

Captain America: Who Will Wield the Shield ***
I did not read the Death of Captain America. I do not particularly like Steve Rogers. That being said, I thought the one shot was decent. I personally like Bucky better than Steve. I found it sickeningly noble of Steve to let go of the Shield for Bucky's sake. And I will say, I found it oddly strange that Obama made an appearance, although not so much when you take into consideration that Marvel incorporates real time within their comics, while DC tends not to. Overall an ok read.

And if I don't end up posting again before the year is up, have a great New Year's Eve and I hope to see you in the New Year.

Blackest Night part two A

Here is your part two of Blackest Night tie-ins. I felt it would be best to do this in two parts because January is meant to be a special time for Blackest Night and its tie-ins. And who am I to mess with special time.

Doom Patrol 4-5 *
I guess it would be best to start with the fact that I don't usually read Doom Patrol. Now that that's been said, I feel as if I lost half an hour of my life that I will likely never get back again. Usually I can pick up an issue (especially if it's a tie-in, like I have all the other issues) and get the gist of the story. This was not the case with Doom Patrol. I even looked up each of the characters and that did nothing to get me into caring about them. The writing was less than great in comparison to the rest of Blackest Night. I don't expect all the writing to be like Geoff Johns, but still. The characters were boring, the plot was confusing at best, and the art was not great. It took me three times to get through the first issue and I couldn't tell you that I understood how the second issue ended. If you must read all the Blackest Night tie-ins, an endeavor I myself have taken up, leave this till the very end.

Booster Gold 26-27 ***
I don't read Booster Gold, but I guess what is different with this one, is that I know who Booster Gold and the new Blue Beetle are, so that's something. I found this to be fairly enjoyable. For the most part, the plot was decent, the writing was a bit more than just acceptable. I found it a tad strange that there was an artist change halfway into the issue, but not in a bad way. I felt both artists were fairly good, and there was practically no distinguishable difference between the two. I thought the machine "designed to approximate the emotional spectrum" was pretty cool. The scenes at the end surrounding the death of Ted Kord, which was also touched upon in the first issue, were touching, especially because I don't have any emotional connection to Ted. I didn't particularly understand the ending, but I guess it means Cyborg Superman is back. I did however, think that Rip was kinda cool, and I liked how he "reveals" (I don't actually been touched upon in another issue) that Booster is his daddy. So, to reiterate, this was pretty good, and hey I'm pretty sure they'll be making an appearance in other tie-ins (JLA.)

Adventure Comics 4-5 **** 1/2
Blackest Night Adventure Comics gave me a glimpse as to why I felt bad for Superboy Prime. Not to say that he didn't deserve to be punished for being the cause of Superboy's death, but, like with Jason Todd, there's still that part of me that felt bad for him. Adventure Comics 4/5 takes place in an alternate dimension where Superboy Prime now lives and everything that happens in the comics that we read, happens in comics he reads. If that confused you, pick up the comic, Geoff Johns does a better job at explaining things. I liked this tie-in. The story was entertaining enough, as would is to be expected. I mean c'mon, he attacks DC headquarters, how fun is that. Damn Geoff Johns for leaving Adventure Comics after the next issue. The art was interesting, but for the most part I enjoyed it. I think the big thing to talk about would be Superboy Prime grabbing a Black Lantern Ring and putting it on. Crazy, right? What happened next you ask? Read the issue. While I did enjoy this tragically mistaken Superboy Prime plot, I gotta say that I still prefer Connor. And in the second half of Issue 5 it was a second issue which revolved on Connor. I thought the giveaway at the end was great. And the art in the that, as usual, was fabulous. Geoff Johns and Franics Manupul have just been tremendous in this series. There's also a top secret Blackest Night tie in for issue 7.

R.E.B.E.L.S. 10-11 *1/2
To be quite honest with you, this one didn't do much for me. I didn't dislike it as much as I disliked Doom Patrol, but at the same time it takes an effort to even remember this exists. This follows the R.E.B.E.L.S. and I couldn't name them all for a million dollars. This much I do know, Brainiac 5 is their leader, Brainiac 3(Brainiac 5's genius son) hates his father, and they exist eons away from Earth. The only that I can take from this series was that I didn't realize a power ring could just reject a bearer for insubordination, that was amusing. Not bad, but forgettable.

JLA 39-40 ***
I learned a couple of things from reading this. The first being that I apparently don't know the majority of the JLA and the second is that apparently they're letting just about anyone join. Apart from Zatanna and Plasticman (who was unfortunately rendered fairly useless) the rest of them appear to be useless. That being said, I very much enjoyed Zatanna's little fight (if you could call it that) as well as the growth that each of the members took within the two issues. It made me care enough to remember them but not enough to read further.

Outsiders 24-25 ** 1/2
Not the worst read of them all, as I've mentioned, but not near the greatest either. For the most part, and this is probably because I had no clue who a soul was, I wasn't excited by anything. That being said, if I knew the characters I probably would have enjoyed it more. The biggest thing that I am taking away from this is a gal named Halo, who did two things for me. One, she brought to light (no pun intended) just how many superheroes wield the power of light. (There's Halo, Dr. Light, Dove, Vixen (kind of), to name a few.) And two, at the very end (Spoiler Alert) she got absorbed into the light! What's up with that, right? It's like she was getting high, talking about how beautiful it was and what not.

Superman/Batman 66-67 ***
The way Bizarro speaks drives me crazy. It's almost as if the writers thought to themselves, how can we make reading a more difficult endeavor and as a result Bizarro was created. Regardless, I knew enough about the characters in this to not have to look anything up. for the most part I enjoyd the storyline. I felt a little bit sad for Bizarro (shocking, but he kept talking about how he was lonely with no friends), it was weird to see Frankenstein (with two hearts!) and his bride. I've always had a soft spot for Manbat (Kirk Langstrom) and his wife, Francine, and the fact that she's spent millions of dollars and her whole life attempting to fix him. All in all, not a bad tie-in, though not the greatest.

Also, I don't particularly understand what that final page was about. Is cyborg Superman coming back? I don't even know where he went.

Teen Titans 77-78 ***
I'll be the first to admit that I am not nearly as caught up with Teen Titans as I'd like to be; I'm still on issue 37. However I do know, and therefore found it strange, that there is more than just one person in the Teen Titans, hence the plurality. Not say that I don't like Sage, I just don't know her enough to understand why both issues would focus itself around just her. Now, that being said, I preferred issue 78 to 77. I felt that there was a bit more of a plot in 78, whereas 77 was more action packed. There were a couple of things that were pretty cool, the main being when Joey (who can transfer his consciousness into other bodies via eye contact) transfered himself into different Black Lantern bodies, emanated an emotion, and left the body right as the other Black Lanterns destroyed the body. This was pretty awesome actually, considering only light has been used against them in the past.


I also left Wonder Woman, the Flash, and JSA out because all three of them are a three part mini-series and as of this month only part 1 has come out in each case.

January edition of Blackest Night Tie-Ins to come.

Happy Holidays folks!

"We can't save everyone. But we can try."

Batman #694 ****1/2
This would have gotten a five star rating, but I'm totally hating Black Mask's existence. The Falcone's are just slightly more interesting, and that's only because of Kitrina, who I am still wondering whether she will have any relation to Catwoman.
I've got to say that I am loving Tony Daniel as both writer and artist. Now it may sound like I've got a total hard on for this man, well, it's all true. I love the way that Dick is taking in becoming Batman, his complete growth into the role. Don't get me wrong, I love Bruce, but Dick as Batman is pretty damn awesome. That image of Batman on page 12, how awesome was that (to the right.) It was touching to see that even with his transformation into the Batman, there was still that essence of Dick within him. And that last page, pure agony.

I had finished my post, but then remembered, Damn that Huntress.

Streets of Gotham #7 ****
I just love when a story slowly unfolds. I have very much enjoyed the way Streets of Gotham has panned out. I think Paul Dini has done a great job with the writing and the story and I actually think Marc Andreyko has done well with Manhunter (though I will admit that I initially avoided reading this.) The artwork is great as well, Dusting Nguyen has done a great job with this. There are a couple of things that stood out in particular. For one thing, I am liking the way in which Dick has rubbed off on Damian, regardless of whether he wants to show it or not. Also, it makes Damian a little bit more likable every time he is ready to kill those who have harmed children. I still contend that this is the best looking Damian, artistically, in all of the Bat-issues. And those children? Talk about tragic.


Batman 80-Page Giant
A huge snow storm has hit Gotham.

1. Fire and Ice feat. Batman and Robin ****
I thought that this chapter was pretty good. The art was nice, similar in style to both Frank Quitely and Philip Tan. I'm not sure if the artist just has a single name, Grey, or if that's some sort of alias, either way, pretty cool. As I've mentioned, they aren't my favorite artists (something to do with the way their faces appear claylike.) The whole, tough times leads to crimes story wasn't so predictable that it became boring, especially the end.

2. Pure as the Driven Snow feat. Alfred Pennyworth ****
I do so very much enjoy Alfred. There was a line in an earlier issue where he's talking to Supes about Bruce, and how parents never wish to bury their children, that I absolutely loved. But I digress, this chapter gives an insight into what Alfred does in his free time. Which apparently is to spend the night with a Lady of the Night and then use his money to buy her a new and better life. The art was nice, although some of the facials proportions seemed odd and a tad cartoonish, if that makes any sense considering this is a comic.

3. The Hero of Orphan Alley feat. the Saint ****
For a chapter involving three guys I didn't know existed 5 hours ago, I thoroughly enjoyed this chapter. The artwork in this was great, Clayton Henry does an awesome job. The story goes, there are three friends, two orphans and one boy whose family was saved by Batman, who decide that there must be Batmen as opposed to a Batman, because he couldn't possibly do everything himself. So the three friends, really though it's one guy with the idea, one that is excited to follow, and one that agrees reluctantly, decide to become vigilantes of the night and protect Orphan Alley. In a short amount of pages, Mike Raicht actually got me to care about a random dude. And the ending, well not to sound like a broken record, but it was tragic.

4. Reveiled feat. Veil ***1/2
I've actually been wondering where Veil had run off to. Marcus To, if you recall is the artist for Red Robin, did a great job with this chapter. The story was pretty good, it definitely hit on the fact that Veil is ultimately just very lonely. It was nice to see her open up though. Maybe we'll be seeing more of her.

5. No Two Alike feat. Catwoman ****
Oh Selina Kyle, how I love you. Well it's true. I thought this chapter was great. First I must talk about just how fabulous the artwork was. I don't even know that there is any acurate way of describing the realistic feel that Kat Rocha and Josh Finney, who apparently work together often, bring to the art. Just fantastically beautiful. The story was nice also, in that Romance filled way, Ivory Madison did a great job showing off the more relatable side to Selina. As a fan of Ms. Kyle, I do enjoy seeing her being as portrayed in her true heroic nature, while still kicking ass, what more could a guy want. And the hope filled look when Bruce is mentioned is just heartbreaking. This also had a nice end scene, which seems to be the theme for the week.

6. The Wilt feat. Poison Ivy **1/2
This chapter was ok, albeit I was a tad confused. I hadn't actually realized that all this was occurring literally days within Battle for the Cowl, so it was odd seeing Ivy as the runaway, hibernating, plant woman. The artwork was ok, it reminded me of the original Batman animated series. The story wasn't bad, but the pacing and plot slightly bored me.

7. What Falls Below feat. Commissioner Gordon **1/2
I like the Commish, mainly because of his relation to Oracle, who I love. I totally understand Batman and the Commish's feelings at the end, that letting Mr. Freeze walk around would be a mistake, but I did feel for the guy. Living in a cryo-suite must be a pain, who wouldn't want the chance to walk around free as a bird. Rafa Garres' art was ok; nice in some parts awkward in others.

8. Snow Patrol feat. Batman **
This was a one page chapter and I'm not sure if that helped or worked against it. The artwork was strange, to say the least. The buildings were nice, but the figures, Batman especially, where drawn in a completely non appealing manner. Stephanie Buscema's art just isn't something that I can feel and for me art is a big part of loving comics. Being a page long there wasn't much room for story development, although it was slightly humorous.

Gashapon Reviews: December 16, 2009

With Christmas, it was impossible for me to keep up. So I've got another one of these puppies to write later.

DC:

Green Lantern Corps #43 (****)

Dude...

To recap: Guy was dual-wielding power rings, Kyle is back because of some Violet mojo, and Lantern Mogo is a fucking PLANET (maybe everyone knew that last part, I did not). I'm not sure what to say other than I love this Spectrum shit because the colors are gorgeous, and that I love Blackest Night because it continues to be great storytelling. The one thing I'm not sure I like is Kyle's resurrection, just because I'm tired of death not having any permanance. Like, I love Kyle and was very upset that he had died, but part of me wants to be upset by it. Otherwise it's just a cheap shock factor at the end of an issue, and I don't like to have my emotions toyed with like that. At least we get to see how Kyle takes on Guy the Christmas Lantern. Seriously, if you read this and you are NOT reading Blackest Night, get your shit together.

"Well, Bruce isn't here anymore, now is he?!?"

So I figured since Matt had a cool title for each of his posts, that I would get one myself. However, after a very long deliberation, and many options, I ended up going with another idea. That idea being, that I would just use a line from one of the comics I was reviewing.

Batgirl #5 ****
Well hot damn folks. I can say this much, that was pretty damn awesome. I can't say that I have loved the past issues, because I haven't. I mean, I've loved Barb, who is hands down my absolute favorite living female character. In all honesty, she's probably my favorite female ever. Jean Grey, as much as I love her, is more like number 1.2. This issue was great. Barb's interactions with Dick was awesome. Stephanie's interactions with Damian were highly amusing. I don't like where things are going with St. Nick. The ending cliffhanger was genius, because I did not anticipate it happening, at all.

Red Robin#7 ***
A couple of things about this one. I'm pretty sure I want this story arc to end. The Counsel of Spiders have the potential to be interesting, and I should add he the final pages did increase my level of interest. I did think that there was a slight moment in the issue where Tim may have begun to question his choice of actions, and I will welcome that realization at any point. Tammy Fox, I don't particularly care for her. She seems useless. Vicki Vale's role in the future might make things interesting for the Wayne clan, not so much the Bat clan, if you get my drift. All in all, I love Tim, love how he continues to kick ass and get his way everywhere. And so much has happened to this kid, that you just can't not like him. I just don't know where the writers are planning on taking this and I don't know if they're doing him justice.

World's Finest
The premise behind World's Finest amuses me. It's basically what would happen in the world, if all of the main Superheroes were gone, which they are not. Well, that could be debated.

1. This one came out a while ago. I enjoyed it. It had Red Robin and Nightwing (for those of you who don't know, Nightwing is Clark Kent's adoptive son Christopher.) I thought for just a one-shot this team up was fun. Nightwing and Red Robin worked well together as a unit, plus this reminded me that I was out of touch in all things Superman, other than Superboy. ***

2. This one involved Robin and the Gaurdian. I gotta say that while I don't like Damian, I do find it enjoyable when other characters pick on him. I wouldn't necessarily consider this a team up, seeing as for the most of the issue the Gaurdian was trying to arrest Robin, but their interaction was fun. There was a part in particular which showed Damian's dedication to his father, as well as a part that showed where Damian existed on the superhero totem pole (not high, kid.) ***


Adventure Comics ****
So I thought I would do a review of the series from the renumbering. Superboy is probably the only "Super"-person that I care enough about to follow. I don't hate any of the others, I just don't care to care. Now, I think that Geoff Johns is a fabulous writer. I am in awe of just how many things he has going on write now. The writing in Adventure comics has been great, the story has been cool. I totally dig the internal struggle of good and evil-Superman vs. Lex thing going on in Connor's head. I love that Connor is Tim's best friend and I like that Connor is taking a moment to just be a kid. The interactions between Con and Tim, Martha, Cassie, and even Krypto are just great to read. Frank Manupul is a tremendous artist. If nothing I've said makes you want to read this, the art alone should be enough. It's some of the most beautiful artwork you will see being produced on a monthly basis (at least for one more month.) Sadly, Geoff Johns and Frank Manupul will be leaving after the 6th issue. There haven't been that many, I suggest you all just go out and read these. Pronto.

p.s. Adventure Comics 4/5 are Blackest Night tie-ins and will be reviewed in my Blackest Night tie-ins part 2 post.

Berserker #3 **1/2
I thought the premise to this comic was pretty cool. The Berserkers being this ancient mythical race of Norse warriors who fought with an uncontrollable rage, and the comic following their modern day ancestors. I thought number 3 was a tad bit bloody and much more gore-y than needed. I also am beginning to prefer Farris' character to Aaron's. All in all, not bad. But I might have to let this one go, seeing as I can't afford all the comics I buy.

Gashapon Reviews: December 9, 2009

Yes, Yes. I'm aware this is over a week late. It's Christmas and my boyfriend is town and I'm starting a new job and a new play and trying not to get fired from my old job. Times are tough.

Marvel:

Dark X-Men #2 (****)

Given that Jean Grey could just sit and stare at the reader for a whole book and I'd be titillated, it should be no surprise that I also love her super-powerful genetic offspring Nate Grey. In fact when I (frequently) think of what character I would most want to be, his name is always top of the list. His name also appears rather high on the list of characters I would sleep with, but that's a different post. So the fact that he's back makes me happier than words. And the fact that he's running about in the collective unconscious of humanity is cool on so many levels. That he took out this giant conglomeration of psychics to do it is just icing on the cake. His response at the end, "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?" is very similar to mine when I came (back) to the Marvel universe. If you think about it a lot of random shit has happened the last few years, and hopefully Nate Grey can go about setting things straight. With increasing frequency though I'm wondering what Mystique is doing with Osborn. Or perhaps more to the point, with increasing frequency I'm wondering if Mystique is working against Osborn.

Nation X #1 (**1/2)

These anthology stories can be so...boring. Obviously they provide short bursts of character development with ideas that clearly couldn't sustain themselves through a whole book, but because the stories are so short, and because these characters have been around for decades and are thus pretty well developed, I'm always kinda bored after reading them. I have a hard time picking any one story that really grabbed me. There are parts I enjoyed (The cover, Anole saying "Fuck That", Bobby teasing Namor, "Psylocke or Domino?" "British or Japanese Psylocke?", the giant X memorial) and parts I didn't (The art for wolvie and kurt, Magick being a bitch). I don't expect the next volumes will be much different, but I guess it's good to check in on characters from time to time, especially if we get to see Northstar actually be gay for once.

X Necrosha: The Gathering (***1/2)

Seriously, my first thought upon reading this is "Why doesn't Selene wear some real fucking clothes?" My second thought is how I continually get annoyed when the artist is not the same throughout a work. Each section changing style throws me off, especially when I don't like the art of some of the sections. But after I got over those two thoughts, I kind of enjoyed this. In the overall scheme of things I don't think it's vital plot information, but it supports why Selene's Merry band of Murderers came together, which is kinda interesting. I think it would mean more to me, especially Wither and Blink and Mortis, if I had read their original appearances so long ago, but I think this was a better book than Nation X.

Gashapon Reviews: December 2, 2009

Another week, another set of comics! Blackest Night is back, although not as strong as last week. And somehow Uncanny is back again.

Eventually I'm going to run out of Gashapon pictures available on the internet.

Spoilers abound, watch your step.

Marvel:

Uncanny X-men #518 (**1/2)

After such a remarkably enjoyable issue last week, this week was just so NOT enjoyable. I won't say it's bad, but it was just sort of boring, and it really didn't feel like much happened. Who didn't think that this "psychic surgery" was going to be a terrible idea? Also, I find myself not caring much about Hank having issues, or about the island sinking. But I'm going to need a REAL good explanation as to why the Void chose Scott over an Omega Level Telepath. Scott's got a lot of power, but seriously?

"Together again for the first time"

Many apologies for taking so much time between posts, in the future I will try and have my reviews up at a quicker pace. So as of right now Matt is not following the Bat-verse(Batman Universe) so I will be doing these reviews. It pains me to think about starting my reviews smack dab in the middle, so I will do a mega catch up review on each arc and then start with weekly issues. The best place for me to start would be with Battle for the Cowl, so I will.

Battle for the Cowl: *****
What can I say, this was a fabulous read. As an aspiring artist I'm going to go ahead and start by raving about the artwork. Can you say awesome? Tony Daniel is like a comic book deity. First of all, to those of you who do not know, Tony Daniel did all of the writing and the penciling for B.f.t.C., which basically means he is the reason I loved it. Now on to the actual story. Going into B.f.t.C. I couldn't possibly imagine how anyone other than Dick or Tim could even make a claim for the Cowl, and to be even more honest it was my opinion that it could only be Dick. Dick is pretty much, in my opinion, the heir of the Batman Legacy for a multitude of reasons: He was the original Robin, he continued to follow Bruce's teachings as Nightwing, he was the closest to Bruce (even through all of the problems they had), he's Bruce's son in all the ways that count, it just had to be. B.f.t.C. did a great job in telling this story, showing both Dick's struggle with Bruce's wishes and the needs of Gotham. Ever since Infinite Crisis we've seen some major changes in Tim, the biggest shock was probably when he gave being Robin. However, since then there has been a drastic change within him, that I feel plateaued here. During the early stages of being Robin, Tim always insisted that his crime fighting days would be a short time thing and that eventually he would move on and get a stable job. In B.f.t.C. Tim is the one who is insistent on keeping the Batman alive, even if he was the one to take up the cowl. I welcomed and hoped for this change in him (mostly because I did not want to see him leave.) Nightwing's "Network" was a great touch. The biggest difference between Bruce and Dick was their willingness to befriend and remain in contact with others and the Network showed us this. Dick is by far the most liked character in the DC world (by the other characters), and their willingness to help him out exemplifies this. As a side note to it all, I want to like Jason Todd (if he weren't so damn crazy,) and getting some insight into his personality was a nice touch. Catwoman, I love that she cares about Bruce and is loyal to him even after his departure. Damien is annoying.
Basically, all of you should read this. It's pretty much a great read, has great art, and makes me feel good. Know this though, Battle for the Cowl really ends in Batman #687.

Batman 687-693:
As I just mentioned Batman #687 is really the conclusion to Battle for the Cowl. I know that we have star ratings here at Phoenix Lantern Corps, but since there are so many issues I don't think that that would work out so well. I can say that #687 is definitely a 5 star read, so pick it up right after Battle for the Cowl. Batman follows the trials of Richard Grayson [Wayne] in his attempt to take on the Cowl. He faces all the usual problems that seem to gravitate towards Gotham. Two-Face and Penguin are still fighting, Black Mask is still gaining leverage, and Arkham has been rebuilt. Dick also now has to face the problems that arise from his taking on the mantle: fighting with a cape again, the physical differences between Bruce and him and the way they moved, fought, etc, Dick also has to deal with all of the new pressure that falls on him because he is now Batman. In case it hasn't been apparent, this arc tends to focus on Dick's acceptance of the role as well as everyone else's acceptance. Nobody knows that Bruce has died or that the original Batman has died, but people do have their suspicions that something is up. The writing has been pretty good with Judd Winick at the helm and nice art with Mark Bagley. Tony Daniel has even made a return to writing and doing the artwork starting on number 692.

Batman and Robin 1-6:
Grant Morrison is a great writer, regardless of the flack he received for Final Crisis. Batman and Robin has some great writing, nice one-liners, and is just a great read in general. Starting up from Battle for the Cowl, Dick is now Batman and Damien is now Robin. This arc follows the struggles that Dick and Damien go through now that they have teamed up together. Dick is struggle with his new role as the leader, Damien still believes he should be Batman, and Alfred is pretty much amused with the whole situation. The story is bound to give some of readers the creeps, what with a gang of pig-faced criminals that replace your face with a monsterous or Flamingo, a crazed freak who eats people's faces, literally. Jason Todd returns, and I've got to say that I am still rooting for him to turn good some time in the future (although I know this to be unlikely.) All in all I have been greatly impressed with the writing, but unfortunately not so much with the artwork. Frank Quitely is fairly renowned for his artwork, but it doesn't as much for me. Personally, I prefer Philip Tan's artwork, which started with the fourth issue. This is a definite must read, I've even got Matt to give it a chance.

Red Robin 1-6:
This definitely a must read for fans of Timothy Drake Wayne (and who isn't right?) So Red Robin starts of with "The Grail", which is basically Tim's journey to prove that Bruce is still alive, even though everyone seems to disagree with him. I think the biggest problem I have, and it's more of a personal thing, is that Tim and Dick are having problems. Tim is mad that Dick made Damien the new Robin even though Dick explains that he doesn't see Tim as a sidekick but as an equal. Tim's decision to isolate himself from his family and friends is pretty much just another emulation of Bruce, which is not a bad thing mind you, it can just get tricky in the future. I don't know how I feel about Tim shacking up with Ra's Al Ghul and the League of Assassins, even if he says it's about taking them down. I love the cover artwork done by Francis Manapul, the writing by Chris Yost has been pretty good (even if I question the direction it is going) and I preferred the original artist, Ramon Bachs, to the new artist Marcus To, who took over starting issue 6. If you are a hardcore fan of Tim's definitely pick this up and read it. If you aren't a hardcore fan, you will probably want to catch up on the rest of the Bat-verse first.

Streets of Gotham 1-6:
Streets of Gotham ties most closely with Gotham City Sirens. Paul Dini takes the reigns in writing for both Streets of Gotham and Gotham City Sirens, which would explain the fact that they are so closely related. This story arc follows pretty much follows Gotham City and everything that goes along with it. Hush has broken out of his prison and is now galavanting around Gotham pretending to be the Bruce Wayne and has promised Gotham billions of dollars, Bruce's dollars. Black Mask is still terrorizing Gotham. Streets of Gotham also has more guest stars, including Huntress and Man Bat. Dustin Nguyen does the cover art as well as the pencil art, and let me tell you, the cover art is just beautiful and the artwork inside is great as well. In fact, Streets of Gotham has the best looking Damien out of all of the arcs. If you've read the others, you should definitely pick this one up. It has great tidbits of what goes on in Gotham when the Bat and the new boy wonder aren't watching.

Gotham City Sirens 1-6:
What a great idea this was. This follows the story of Catwoman, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn as they have now decided to live with each other. First, let me just get this out of the way and say, Goddamn that's some great art. Guillem March, man can he make a guy want to be with Catwoman. Paul Dini is doing great work with the Sirens as well as the Streets, but there is just a whole 'nother level of awesome brought by Guillem's artwork. I loved the second issue which surrounded Ivy and Harley's desire to get Batman's true identity out of Catwoman, with the use of some of truth serum. It is revealed that Talia came to Catwoman for this very reason. Talia taught Catwoman some secret techniques to push her knowledge to the deep recesses of her mind, where it would remain untouched by everyone else. Love it. The Riddler has also made appearances throughout (even had a single issue revolving around him) and I reckon we haven't seen the last of him. I thought the return of Gagsworth A. Gagsworthy aka Gaggy was also a nice touch. Overall, this has been a great read, definitely need to check this out. Of course, it helps if you actually care about these three characters.

Batgirl 1-4:
So I really just started reading this series in honor of my favorite Comic Female, Barbara Gordon. I've gotta say that I'm less than impressed with Stephanie Brown, who I just don't like in general. The artwork isn't so bad, some parts better than others. I'm not too sure if Lee Garbett and Trevor Scott switch off, or how that works, but it's overall ok. Sometimes they look weird, sometimes they don't. The writing isn't too bad either. My favorite parts are when Barbara is on (not that this is TV.) I love the Barbara and the Commissioner's scenes and the parallels that exist there. I also am loving Barbara's role as a leader, she's kinda the Batman to Batgirl's Robin. I love Barb, now if only she and Dick would get it together.




***Just in case. I obviously own nor claim any rights to these images (I wish I were that great.) Anyway, all artwork is done by and owned, I presume, by those that I have mentioned in the pertaining reviews.