We have a range of titles being released next week, along with a range of quality. If there’s one title I had to recommend though, it would probably be Batman/ The Shadow. If you passed on the first issue, I highly recommend you scoop it up on Wednesday when you visit your local comic shop! Trust me, you won’t be disappointed. Also, I suspect we’ll get solicitations early next week, so keep an eye out for that!
Alright, on to business! For a collection of our opinions pertaining to last week’s releases, make sure you check out This Week In Comics: The Boy Wonder Gets a Piggyback Ride. This week’s releases are listed in order of what I’m most excited to read, to what I’m least excited to read. For each title, I’ll include the official solicitation, the talent credits, a random comment (or rant), and the Batman News team member that will be reviewing each book. After I’ve overshared my opinions, you’ll find notes pertaining to other DC Comics titles/ delayed releases, as well as our Graphic Novel Watch. And finally, we want to hear from you! What titles are you picking up? What do you hope to see? Etc. So, without further ado…
May 24th
Batman/ The Shadow #2
The second chapter in the historic team-up of history’s greatest vigilantes is here! The Shadow must convince Batman of his innocence so the two can seek out their true common foe, the Stag, before he takes out Batman’s greatest allies. Co-published with Dynamite Entertainment.
Art by Riley Rossmo
Cover by Riley Rossmo
Variant cover by Chris Burnham and Tim Sale
Written by Steve Orlando and Scott Snyder
Josh’s stance: The debut of Batman/ The Shadow was terrific! It’s the best interpretation of Batman I’ve seen in a while, and there are a lot of great elements at play in the narrative itself. One of the best things about it though, is that the story – I believe – is part of continuity since the villain, Stag, was in Batman Annual #1.
Batman News Critic: Josh
Suicide Squad #18
“EARTHLINGS ON FIRE” part three! The moment SUICIDE SQUAD has been building to from the beginning is here! The Suicide Squad has everything they want. Deadshot is reunited with his daughter. Harley Quinn and Rick Flag’s mutual attraction is becoming a true romance. And Amanda Waller has defeated all her enemies. Or has she? Sitting in a Belle Reve prison cell is the biggest gamble the Wall has ever played, and it’s one for which the entire world will pay.
Art by Tony S. Daniel and Sandu Florea
Cover by Tony S. Daniel
Variant cover by Whilce Portacio
Written by Rob Williams
Josh’s stance: You should be reading Suicide Squad. Trust me. I’m smart… sometimes. This is definitely one of those times! Seriously, catch up if you’re behind. Williams delivers engaging, intense, and a hell of a lot of fun!
Batman News Critic: Josh
Action Comics #980
“REVENGE” part two! Both Superman and the Revenge Squad must traverse the deadly Black Vault in a race against time to reach General Zod! Amanda Waller’s secret Kryptonian weapon reveals himself to the world, but Cyborg Superman and Eradicator move in to recruit him. Tying directly into the events of this month’s Suicide Squad issues—and no matter who wins in this epic showdown, it spells certain doom for the Last Son of Krypton!
Art by Patrick Zircher
Cover by Rodolfo Migliari
Variant cover by Gary Frank
Written by Dan Jurgens
Josh’s stance: This issue appears to spin out of Suicide Squad and directly into the current arc of Action Comics… and yes, I’m excited!
Batman News Critic: Brian
Detective Comics #957
“The Wrath Of Spoiler”! Stephanie Brown wants nothing more than to save Gotham City from the epidemic of costumed vigilantes and madmen that regularly tear the city apart. But before she can try to stop them, she must face the challenge of one in particular: the insane idealogue the Wrath is back, and Stephanie knows what he has planned—but she refuses to let Batman risk more lives to stop him. That means it’s all on her…and a very unlikely ally!
Art by Carmen Carnero
Cover by Alvaro Martinez
Variant cover by Rafael Albuquerque
Written by James T Tynion IV and Genevieve Valentine
Josh’s stance: I feel as though this story should have occurred before the previous arc, and I also feel as though Stephanie should have had some (even if minor) role in “League of Shadows.” The small inclusion would have allowed Detective Comics to feel more cohesive as a book overall… Also, Wrath does nothing to excite me. You know what does excite me? Genevieve Valentine.
Batman News Critic: Brandon
Batman Beyond #8
“RISE OF THE DEMON” part three! Having only recently taken back the mantle of Batman and far from his familiar home turf of Gotham City, Terry arrives in Tibet on a dangerous mission to rescue Bruce Wayne from the League of Assassins. But when he finally gets an audience with Ra’s al Ghul, he’s in for the shock of a lifetime…
Art by Bernard Chang
Cover by Bernard Chang
Variant cover by Martin Ansin
Written by Dan Jurgens
Josh’s stance: Batman Beyond is pretty good at the moment, and the story involving Qurare and the League is definitely entertaining and interesting. Unfortunately, the weakest element of the story is Terry, so that does complicate things a little. I am curious to see if my prediction is correct though. I have a hunch that Ra’s won’t be Ra’s or Talia, but Damian… I guess we’ll find out on Wednesday.
Batman News Critic: Josh
Deathstroke #19
“THE LAZARUS CONTRACT” part three! Will Slade succeed in reuniting with his son even at the risk of cataclysmic disaster? Or will the Titans and the Teen Titans be fast enough to stop him from changing the world as we know it? Find out what happens when the World’s Deadliest Assassin becomes the Fastest Man Alive!
Art by Jason Paz and Carlo Pagulayan
Cover by Mike McKone
Variant cover by Tony S. Daniel
Written by Christopher Priest, Benjamin Percy, and Dan Abnett
Josh’s stance: So far, “The Lazarus Contract” has just been ok… I think we were all hoping for more. There’s still a chance for the story to improve, but I’m not going to hold my breath.
Batman News Critic: Jay
Batgirl #11
“Son of Penguin” finale! Batgirl races to free Burnside from Ethan’s plot…but has Burnside already changed too much to be saved? Even if she manages to save the day, will Barbara ever be able to truly go home again?
Art by Jon Lam and Christian Wildgoose
Cover by Jon Lam and Christian Wildgoose
Variant cover by Francis Manapul
Written by Hope Larson
Josh’s stance: I had hoped something good could come out of this arc, but it’s all pretty average and cliché. Hopefully the next arc will be closer to the quality of the first arc.
Batman News Critic: Elena
Batman ’66 Meets Wonder Woman ’77 #5
The action heats up in 1970s Gotham City as the Amazon Princess arrives in Man’s World in search of her old ally, Batman! Instead, she finds a new hero: a motorcycle-riding daredevil with a familiar face and a new crime-fighting costume!
Art by Karl Kesel and David Hahn
Cover by Mike Allred
Written by Jeff Parker and Marc Andreyko
Josh’s stance: I’ve mentioned that I’m not enjoying this as much as I expected to for a while now, but I haven’t fully been able to identify why. When it comes down to it, I feel as though there’s a battle for identity between what book this should be: Batman ’66 or Wonder Woman ’77. The story is still enjoyable, just not great.
Batman News Critic: Jay
Injustice: Ground Zero #12
The story of the original video game reaches its dramatic conclusion! It’s Superman versus Superman for the liberation of the Injustice Earth. Leads directly into the INJUSTICE 2 prequel comic series. FINAL ISSUE.
Art by Juan Albarran, Daniel Sampere, and Tom Derenick
Cover by Matt Clark
Written by Chris Sebela
Josh’s stance: I don’t have a problem with “filler stories,” but when you create a miniseries for the sake of covering time until Injustice 2 comes out, then make sure you finish that filler prior to the release of the new title. This book just feels pointless now that the (much better) Injustice 2 is out.
Batman News Critic: Elena
Mother Panic #7
A life Mother Panic once saved is again struck by tragedy, causing her to take a deeper look at her mission of revenge and her role in Gotham City. And with the shadow of the Bat looming ever closer, she may not have much time to decide where she stands!
And don’t miss chapter seven of the backup story, “Gotham Radio”!
Art by John Paul Leon
Backup Art by Phil Hester
Backup Written by Jim Krueger
Cover by John Paul Leon
Variant cover by Tommy Lee Edwards
Written by Jody Houser
Josh’s stance: I’m not looking forward to Mother Panic because I don’t have confidence that Jody Houser will deliver a strong script… However… I’m extremely happy to see John Paul Leon stepping in to take over the art. Also, there could potentially be some hope for Mother Panic in the future as Tommy Lee Edwards is supposed to return as both writer and artist!
Batman News Critic: Josh
Justice League of America #7
“FATAL ATTRACTION”! Batman and Xenos work on the Secret Sanctuary while the Ray and Vixen perform community outreach. But it’s not all fun and games for DC’s newest superhero team, as the Atom and Killer Frost face off against the Terrorsmith (and their own budding romance) while Lobo and Black Canary come to blows in a casino caper. And it’s all capped off with a moment fans have been waiting for since DC UNIVERSE: REBIRTH!
Art by Scott Hanna and Felipe Watanabe
Cover by Joe Prado and Ivan Reis
Variant cover by Doug Mahnke
Written by Steve Orlando
Josh’s stance: I’ve got my whiskey ready…
Batman News Critic: Josh
Notes:
- Additional DC Releases slated for this week: Blue Beetle #9, Hal Jordan & the Green Lantern Corps #21, The Hellblazer #10, and Wonder Woman #23.
- Justice League vs Power Rangers #5 has been pushed back to May 31, 2017.
Graphic Novel Watch:
Batman/ Wildcat – The fight of the century is on! In one corner, Justice Society of America member Wildcat, the greatest bare-knuckle scrapper on the planet. In the other corner, the Dark Knight himself, Batman! Who will win when two of the greatest fighters go toe to toe? It’ll take more than muscle if these two heroes want to try and shut down a secret superhuman fighting ring that’s killing their combatants…and that’s if they don’t kill each other first!
Written by critically acclaimed author Chuck Dixon, this graphic novel pits Wildcat against two Gotham City greats–Batman and Catwoman! Collects the full BATMAN/WILDCAT and CATWOMAN/WILDCAT miniseries as well as five additional classic Wildcat team-ups from THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD.
Batman: New Gotham Vol. 1 – After spending a year cut off from the rest of the nation as the lawless “No Man’s Land,” Gotham is rebuilding. The people have returned and law has been restored-as much as it ever can be in Gotham. Crime and gang activity are still rampant, and tensions are growing between factions of Gothamites who remained in the city throughout the military cordon and those who evacuated but are now returning to their homes.
With so much at stake, Batman and the police department have their hands full maintaining the newly restored peace. But that fragile status quo is threatened when Ra’s al Ghul and his shape-shifting accomplice, Whisper A’Daire, spur the city’s gangs into a turf war over a mysterious serum that offers eternal life to whoever drinks it…
Comics legend Greg Rucka (WONDER WOMAN, BATWOMAN) with artists Shawn Martinbrough (THIEF OF THIEVES) and Steve Mitchell (THE INVINCIBLE IRON MAN) bring Batman and his city back from the brink of destruction in this first volume of the sequel to the best-selling epic BATMAN: NO MAN’S LAND. Collects DETECTIVE COMICS #742-753.
The DC Universe by Mike Mignola – This new title collects Mike Mignola’s work on comics including SUPERMAN: THE WORLD OF KRYPTON #1-4, ACTION COMICS ANNUAL #2, SUPERMAN #18 and 23, BATMAN: LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT #54, BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHTS #36, SWAMP THING ANNUAL #5, PHANTOM STRANGER #1-4 and more! Also collects dozens of covers by Mignola!
