People! PEOPLE! SDCC is this week! I repeat, SDCC IS THIS WEEK! Now, while I’m excited for the event itself, I am a little bummed because I personally will not be attending this year. I’m looking to finally purchase a home by the end of this year, and I decided it would be better for me to save my money for this year. That being said, Andrew and Jay will be attending! If you’re not following them on Twitter, I recommend that you do (@AndrewBatReview and @JaYaws). And while you’re at it, you might want to follow @ComicsNowCast for all of your non-Bat comic book updates! Hopefully some new, fun updates or announcements will come out during the convention! And if you’re attending this year, have fun!
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.
JULY 17TH
INTRIGUED
Justice League #28
The Apex Predator rises! Justice-Doom War is coming! This is the culmination of the Legion of Doom’s master plan, and they will take the Justice League to far-out places they may never return from…and do things the DC Universe may never recover from.
Written by James Tynion IV
Pencils by Javier Fernandez and Daniel Sampere
Inks by Juan Albarran and Javier Fernandez
Colored by Hi-Fi
Cover by Jim Cheung and Tomeu Morey
Josh’s Stance: We have universal consequences at stake… but I’m honestly ok with it since it’s Justice League and the entire run has been leading up to this! I feel like we’re heading into some really big, bombastic stories, and I’m pretty excited for it.
Batman-News Critic: Brian
MIXED
Nightwing #62
After the epic conclusion to the Burnback saga, it’s clear that while he may have forgotten his past, Ric Grayson’s innate skills and instincts as a team leader elevate Team Nightwing to a new level. But what does that mean for the Blüdhaven PD, and what does that mean for a man who is looking to live a life without the baggage of his past to hold him down? Ric seeks comfort in Bea’s arms, but may find answers in another’s Talons as we dive headlong into the Year of the Villain!
Plus, Lex Luthor delivers the Court of Owls the means to own what they covet most: Ric Grayson.
Written by Dan Jurgens
Pencils and Inks by Ronan Cliquet
Colored by Nick Filardi
Cover by Dan Brown, Nick Filardi, Kyle Hotz, and Bruno Redondo
Josh’s Stance: I’m actually excited to see the Owls here! I’d love it even more if the saw that Dick is now Ric, and were like, “Oh… Yeah… Umm, no. Get that alien Luther guy back. This is not what we signed up for. Bludhaven can keep this douche.” But no, seriously, I’m really curious to see what Jurgens does with the Court of Owls.
Batman-News Critic: Josh
NO!
Batman #75
“City of Bane” begins! Bane’s minions have moved into Gotham City, taken control and are ruling with an iron fist—including rounding up any villain who refuses to sign onto Bane’s program—and Batman is nowhere to be found. At least not the Batman anyone knows. It’s like someone has replaced the real Gotham City with a twisted funhouse-mirror version of it.
Written by Tom King
Pencils and Inks by Tony Salvador Daniel and Mitch Gerads
Colored by Mitch Gerads and Tomeu Morey
Cover by Tony Salvador Daniel and Tomeu Morey
Josh’s Stance: I’m cheating a little with this one… But this is a huge no for me. Does King really need to go to issue 85? Really? Do I really need to endure another five months of this? *sigh*
On a side note, I will be revisiting Tom King’s Batman trades and posting reviews of them leading up to the end of his run. Make sure you keep an eye out for those in the near future. I’m curious to see if my opinion concerning certain things will change… Only time will tell.
Batman-News Critic: Josh
NOTES:
- Titles we’ll cover in This Week in Comics: Teen Titans #32, as well as the titles listed above.
- Collapser #1 by Shaun Simon, Mikey Way, and Ilias Kyriazis will debut this week under the Young Animal banner.
- Additional release from DC Comics: Aquaman #50, Lucifer #10, Pearl #11, Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen #1, and Wonder Woman: Come Back to Me #1.
GRAPHIC NOVEL WATCH:
There are no Batman-themed graphic novels being released this week.
