One month from now… San Diego Comic-Con will be behind us… I repeat, one month from now, San Diego Comic-Con will be behind us! It’s crazy to think the convention is less than a month away, much less that it will already be over in a month’s time. Clearly, I’m excited about the convention – as I always am – and can’t wait to spend a weekend discussing comics! Andrew, Jay, and I will represent Batman-News at SDCC, so make sure you follow us on Twitter! We’ll also provide updates throughout the weekend as we’ve done in years past. And if you’re going, let us know! We’d love to meet up with you! We might even have some giveaways throughout the weekend (another reason to follow us on Twitter)!
Alright, on to business! This week’s releases are listed according to our anticipation scale, with titles listed in alphabetical order within each sub-header. 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. Following that, you’ll find notes pertaining to other DC Comics titles, as well as our Graphic Novel Watch. And finally, we want to hear from you! What titles are you picking up? Why are you excited? What do you hope will happen in the book? Etc. So, without further ado, review our Anticipation Scale, and comment away!
The Anticipation Scale
NO! – A comic I downright dread reading and if I wasn’t a reviewer, I would never buy it.
“You Don’t Have to Thank Us” – The idea of reviewing it doesn’t make me ill or angry, but it definitely sounds like it’s going to be a chore. Still, I’m reading it for you. I’m putting it at the bottom of the pile, but I’m reading it for you.
Mixed – A middle of the pile comic. It’s probably got the same chance of being dreadful as it does of being stupendous. I’m neither looking forward to it or avoiding it, whatever happens… happens.
Intrigued – I think this comic has potential to be a fantastic read. There’s some slight hesitation there, but it’s definitely going to be at the top of the pile.
TAKE MY MONEY – Everything about this issue has me excited. If I don’t get to read this book on Wednesday, I will be furious. I would pay extra just to have it in my hands right now! That’s how much I’m looking forward to it!
And as a reminder, our review scale is based on a 10-point system. A rating of “5” means the book is mediocre/average, and the more toward “10″ we go, the more awesome/worth buying it is. The more toward “1″ we go the more awful/not worth buying it is. That’s how we rate things. It’s not like most video game review scores where everything under 8 is crap, and it’s not like a school report card where everything under a 7 is failing or close-to-failing. Please keep this in mind when reading our reviews.
June 27th
TAKE MY MONEY
Detective Comics #983
“ON THE OUTSIDE” part one! Duke Thomas. Cassandra Cain. They and other young heroes don’t intend to stand down, no matter what Batman thinks is best. Who can Batman trust to guide them? They need a teacher…and Black Lightning fits the bill!
Written by Bryan Edward Hill
Pencils by Miguel Mendonca
Inks by Diana E. Conesa
Colored by Adriano Lucas
Cover by Eddy Barrows and Adriano Lucas
Josh’s Stance: I was a little premature in my excitement for this arc two weeks ago… but it’s actually arriving this week! I’m not familiar with Hill’s writing, but I’m excited for this arc because I love the Outsiders!
Batman-News Critic: Elena
The Silencer #6
“PAYBACK TIME” part three! Silencer throws down with Talia al Ghul in a diner, and they’ll use everything-including the kitchen sink-to kill each other! So sit back and order one murder with a side of bullets-and don’t forget the disco fries.
Written by Dan Abnett
Pencils and Inks by Viktor Bogdanovic
Colored by Mike Spicer
Cover by Rainier Beredo, Sandra Hope, John Romita Jr., and Dean V. White
Josh’s Stance: The Silencer continues to be the best title under DC’s New Age of Heroes brand, and I’m happy to see that Honor will appear in other titles such as Nightwing! We last left off with Silencer discovering that Talia set this war in motion and forced her back into the underworld. This is the moment we’ve been building to since the series debuted, and I can’t wait to see how it plays out.
Batman-News Critic: Josh
INTRIGUED
Teen Titans Special #1
It’s the dawn of a new age of TITANS! The events of METAL and NO JUSTICE have left the team in tatters, but a strange new threat has emerged to lead Nightwing to reassemble the Titans with a mix of old blood and new. A rash of metahuman power fluctuations are threatening people around the globe, and only the friends who grew up as superheroes can help those whose powers have grown out of control! It all starts here in this special issue kicking off a bold new direction!
Written by Adam Glass
Pencils by Robson Rocha
Inks by Daniel Henriques
Colored by Sunny Gho
Cover by Hi-Fi, Robson Rocha, and John Trevor Scott
Josh’s Stance: This is the first full taste we’ll get of Teen Titans new direction. I liked that Titans developed a purpose for the book, and hope that Glass accomplishes the same task here. I’ve discussed purpose many times when discussing books, and if you can’t explain why a book, or team for that matter, exists, then perhaps it shouldn’t. So, if this is established, I’ll be happy.
Batman-News Critic: Josh
MIXED
Batgirl #24
After narrowly escaping the mazes of her own mind, Batgirl swings back into action to help Jacob Cesaro, an old classmate who has recently made some bad life decisions. Little does she know he’s now Two-Face’s latest recruit-and the key to his plans to take over the city! But Jacob’s not in it for the money and power promised by one of Gotham City’s greatest villains…he’s got something much more valuable in mind!
Written by Shawn Aldridge
Pencils and Inks by Scott Godlewski
Colored by John Rauch
Cover by Dan Mora
Josh’s Stance: This is the first of a few fill-in issues for Batgirl. I’m not expecting much, but I’m hoping for the best! You never know when you’re going to get treated to a nice surprise with these fill-in issues.
Batman-News Critic: Elena
Batman: Prelude to the Wedding: Harley Quinn vs Joker #1
Harley Quinn knows a thing or two about dysfunctional relationships. When she hears that her old flame is trying to get in the way of a happy new life for one of her best friends, the Maid of Mischief tracks The Joker down to give him a piece of her mind-and maybe a few blows from her hammer, too.
Written by Tim Seeley
Pencils and Inks by Sami Basri and Otto Schmidt
Colored by Jessica Kholinne and Otto Schmidt
Cover by Rafael Albuquerque and Dave McCaig
Josh’s Stance: Creatively, there’s no reason for this issue… but I get that Harley and Joker are both cash cows, so here we are. Honestly, I’m just ready to move past the wedding. DC’s milked this for everything it’s worth…
Batman-News Critic: Elena
Batman Beyond #21
“TARGET: BATMAN” part two! When a hyper-crime crisis strikes Neo-Gotham, Batman flies in to save the day. But why is the local news bashing him for his heroic deeds? Stranger still, why are the very people Batman saved suddenly turning on him with anger and almost uncontrollable violence?
Written by Dan Jurgens
Pencils and Inks by Will Conrad and Shane Davis
Colored by David Baron and Wil Quintana
Cover by Shane Davis and Viktor Kalvachev
Josh’s Stance: Batman Beyond is ok. It’s not a terrible book, but it doesn’t feel very inspired, nor is it much fun. Hopefully Jurgens will figure out how to accomplish one of these two soon, because the title has a ton of potential, it just needs some focus.
Batman-News Critic: Dan
NO!
Bane: Conquest #12
Bane! Batman! Their eternal feud continues in the heart of a Kobra stronghold! Who will live and who will die? And who will triumph in the end as this crime epic races on to its shocking conclusion, Bane co-creators Chuck Dixon and Graham Nolan bring their yearlong saga, the latest chapter in the life of the Man Who Broke the Bat, to a climax that you’ll never see coming!
Written by Chuck Dixon
Pencils and Inks by Graham Nolan
Colored by Gregory Wright
Cover by Graham Nolan and Gregory Wright
Josh’s Stance: Yeah, this is still a thing. Thankfully, this is the final issue. Mostly, I just look at Bane: Conquest and think, “What a wasted opportunity…”
Batman-News Critic: Dan
Notes:
- Additional releases from DC Comics: The Flash #49, Hal Jordan & the Green Lantern Corps #47, The Hellblazer #23, The Man of Steel #5, Mera, Queen of Atlantis #5, Mother Panic: Gotham A.D. #4, Raven: Daughter of Darkness #6, Scooby Doo Team-Up #39, The Terrifics #5, and Wonder Woman #49.
Graphic Novel Watch:
Super Sons of Tomorrow – Jonathan Kent isn’t a Teen Titan. He’s just a kid, and one of the most powerful beings on the planet. But what if he has the potential to hurt people without even meaning to?
That’s exactly what Tim Drake says will happen. But this isn’t the Tim Drake of today — this is the Batman of Tomorrow, and he’s traveled through time to kill Superboy. He tells the Teen Titans that if he succeeds in killing Superboy, he will save the millions of people that Superboy will kill in the future.
The Teen Titans have split in half over how to handle Superboy and don’t know whether to trust him or Drake. So, Superboy’s closest friend, Damian Wayne—the current Robin and leader of the Teen Titans—has Jon on the run from Drake … and from his own team.
Now, Earth’s most powerful teenagers are fighting against each other, with one angry Kryptonian father caught in the middle. If the Teen Titans aren’t careful, they just might cause the very catastrophe that Tim Drake traveled back in time to prevent!
Writers Peter J. Tomasi (Superman) and Patrick Gleason (Robin, Son of Batman) team with artist including Ed Benes (Justice League of America), Tyler Kirkham (Earth 2: World’s End) and Ryan Benjamin (The Odyssey of The Amazons) for an epic crossover between Super Sons, Superman and Teen Titans, featuring the return of some familiar faces to the DC Universe! Collects Super Sons #11-12, Superman #37-38, Teen Titans #15.
Teen Titans Go! Box Set – In these stories from TEEN TITANS GO! #1-24 collected in four trades, the team battles a pizza monster, a sentient video game console, a legion of incompetent super villains, a pair of robotic teeth and more! Also, they help cure Starfire’s super gross Tamaranean flu and face off against Teen Titans East in an epic baseball game!
