If you were concerned that I was M.I.A. last week and a little late with this post, then fear not. I just had a work conference that I attended for my day job, and I’m just now getting the chance to catch up. Granted, most of you probably didn’t even notice that I was abnormally quiet, and you’re now thinking, “Wait, you were gone? But didn’t you write a review? No? But you contributed to This Week in Comics. No? Hmm… Totally didn’t notice.” To which I reply, “Ouch.”
Seriously though, I was in Las Vegas for a work conference, and while that sounds fun, I didn’t really have any time to enjoy myself or site-see, which is a little depressing since it was my first time in Vegas. I even wanted to hit up the local comic book shops, and that didn’t happen either. Sad, sad, days… I feel like I could’ve won big and finished decorating my office had I had the chance to roll some dice… Next time.
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.
October 2nd
TAKE MY MONEY
DCeased #5
The world is dying at the hands of the infected, and the very survival of humanity is at stake. Facing extinction, Superman and the heroes will make a decision that will fundamentally alter Earth’s present…and future!
Written by Tom Taylor
Pencils by Trevor Hairsine
Inks by Stefano Guadiano
Colored by Rainier Beredo
Cover by Josh Middleton
Josh’s Stance: Ugh… Tom Taylor… Please don’t make me cry… Please?
Batman News Critic: Casper
INTRIGUED
Justice League #33
“The Justice Doom War” part four! Apex Lex Luthor is in ascendance, and he’s taking out the remaining members of the Justice League in the present just as his Legion of Doom is beating down the time-traveling heroes in both the past and the future. Batman, Superman and the rest of our heroes may have just figured out how Kamandi’s timeline works when terrible Hypertime quakes rattle their existence, threatening to strand them far from their own time. Meanwhile, the Flash, Green Lantern and the Justice Society take another leap through time, heading for…ancient Atlantis?
Written by Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV
Pencils by Bruno Redondo and Daniel Sampere
Inks by Juan Albarran and Bruno Redondo
Colored by Hi-Fi
Cover by Francis Manapul
Josh’s Stance: While I’m enjoying this – and I am – I feel like Snyder and Tynion are trying to write this as a film more so than a comic book. The way they’re choosing to feature certain groups, as well as how, doesn’t seem to be serving the book as well as it could. But seriously, this is a minor gripe for an excellent book. I mean… I’m literally over here going, “This is really good, but it may have been better if…” as if I actually know anything. *Whispers* I don’t know anything.
Batman News Critic: Brian
MIXED
Batman/ Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III #6
Krang has steered his Ultra-technodrome into the skies above the new Earth he sought to conquer and rebuild in his own image. He thought the heroes of the worlds he’d conquered were down for the count, but now he faces two sets of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, two Batmen and a whole host of angry heroes looking to save their worlds once and for all. If Krang can’t own the Multiverse, then he will destroy it!
Written by James Tynion IV
Pencils by Kevin Eastman and Freddie E. Williams II
Inks by Kevin Eastman and Freddie E. Williams II
Colored by Jeremy Colwell
Cover by Jeremy Colwell and Freddie E. Williams II
Josh’s Stance: It’s the final issue! Things are definitely winding down, but this has been a fun journey that has been anything but predictable. While I still think the first volume is the best, this series has definitely been better than the second attempt.
Batman News Critic: Jay
Young Justice #9
Oh man! Lost in the Multiverse with no way home, the teens of Young Justice find themselves trapped on a dark world that was once run by the evil Justice League known as the Crime Syndicate, but is now run by their younger, more feral, more anarchic counterparts…the Young @#$@#$@! They are not nice. All this and finally, the truth behind…Teen Lantern.
Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Pencils and Inks by André Lima Araújo and John Timms
Colored by Gabe Eltaeb
Cover by Gabe Eltaeb and John Timms
Josh’s Stance: Yeah… This is fun… But… I really just want them on their Earth so they can be heroes there. That’s all. I don’t think that’s asking too much.
Batman News Critic: Nancy
“YOU DON’T HAVE TO THANK US”
Batman #80
The bad guys thought they had it made with Bane in control, but with Batman back in Gotham they’ll be reminded what justice feels like…and how it hurts when it hits you in the face. With Catwoman at his side, the Caped Crusader is looking to take down Bane’s army and reclaim his city. But what happens when old allies like Gotham Girl also stand in his way? The legendary art team of John Romita Jr. and Klaus Janson join BATMAN for two action-packed issues that will rock Gotham City to its foundation.
Written by Tom King
Pencils by Tony Salvador Daniel, Mikel Janin, and John Romita Jr.
Inks by Mikel Janin and Klaus Janson
Colored by Tomeu Morey
Cover by Klaus Janson, Tomeu Morey, and John Romita Jr.
Josh’s Stance: Meh… I’ve lost almost all interest in this. And who cares if Gotham Girl stands in Batman’s way… It’s pretty clear at this point that Batman assisted Damian with information to stop Gotham Girl rather easily. And, Damian already showed a number of these bad guys what they have coming. Moral of the story: King just can’t craft an entertaining, linear art that’s written well.
Batman News Critic: Josh
NO!
Harley Quinn #66
The trials are over, and Harley Quinn has won! Or has she? Now imbued with the awesome power of the Angel of Retribution, Harley is given an impossible choice-and a chance to raise a loved one from the dead! Choose wisely, Harley…the fate of the universe hangs in the balance!
Written by Sam Humphries
Pencils and Inks by Sami Basri
Colored by Hi-Fi
Cover by Guillem March and Arif Prianto
Josh’s Stance: I’ll pass. Thanks. *sips coffee*
Batman News Critic: Matina
NOTES:
- Titles we’ll cover in This Week in Comics: The tiles listed above, as well as A Very DC Halloween.
- Additional releases from DC Comics: Batman #251 Facsimile Edition #1, Deathstroke #48, Doom Patrol: Weight of the Worlds #4, The Dreaming #14, The Green Lantern #12, Legion of Super-Heroes: Millennium #2, Lois Lane #4, and Superman: Up in the Sky #4.
GRAPHIC NOVEL WATCH:
A Very DC Halloween – Your favorite superheroes are usually busy keeping the universe safe, but when Halloween winds blow through the DCU, these heroes are transformed into nightmares! Batman is driven mad by haunting visions of The Joker! Wonder Woman brawls with an undead sea monster! Superman fights a demonic entity! Swamp Thing battles in the mystical realm of the Green! Harley Quinn urges a man to commit a brutal murder! All of these supernatural adventures-and more-are collected in A VERY DC HALLOWEEN. Collects 18 eerie tales from DC HOUSE OF HORROR #1 and CURSED COMICS CAVALCADE #1.
Batman: Nightwalker – A ruthless new gang of criminals known only as Nightwalkers is terrorizing Gotham, and the city’s elite are being taken out one by one. On the way home from his 18th birthday party, newly minted billionaire Bruce Wayne makes an impulsive choice that puts him in their crosshairs and lands him in Arkham Asylum, the once-infamous mental hospital. There, he meets Madeleine Wallace, a brilliant killer…and Bruce’s only hope. Madeleine is the mystery Bruce must unravel, but is he convincing her to divulge her secrets, or is he feeding her the information she needs to bring Gotham City to its knees?
Adapted by Stuart Moore and illustrated by Chris Wildgoose, this graphic novel presents a thrilling new take on Batman before he donned the cape and cowl.
Batman & the Justice League Vol. 3 – In the next chapter of the manga adventures of the World’s Greatest Super Heroes, Ocean Master has summoned a massive tidal wave to flood Gotham City! While Aquaman tries to reason with his brother, Batman is determined to stop him by any means necessary. Superman soon joins the fray, but the challenge becomes even greater when the mysterious oni known as Akurou summons a giant snake to engage the heroes. Plus, new villains arrive on the scene-Sinestro, Reverse-Flash and Cyborg Superman…and the nexus point of the greatest congestion of ley lines on Earth is revealed to be directly under the Batcave!
Batwoman: Haunted Tides – Monsters from myth and legend are preying upon the children of Gotham City. La Llorona, “The Weeping Woman,” drowns her victims in sorrow…or worse. Batwoman is no stranger to sorrow herself. Her mind, body and soul have been battered as never before, but she’s emerged stronger than ever. On a collision course with the mother of monsters, no one-not the GCPD, not the Department of Extranormal Operations and not the people who care about her the most-will stop her from seeking justice. Collects BATWOMAN #0-11.
Doomsday Clock: Part 1 – The world of Watchmen collides with the DC Universe in the most shocking story in DC history! Written by master storytellers Geoff Johns and Gary Frank–As the Doomsday Clock ticks toward midnight, the DC Universe will encounter with its greatest threat: Dr. Manhattan. But nothing is hidden from Manhattan, and the secrets of the past, present and future will leave ramifications on our heroes lives forever.
Something is amiss in the DC Universe. Following the events of DC Universe: Rebirth and Batman/The Flash: The Button, Geoff Johns (Flashpoint, Justice League, DC Universe: Rebirth) and Gary Frank (Batman: Earth One, Shazam!, DC Universe: Rebirth) reunite to rewrite the past and future of the DC Universe in a story hailed as a masterpiece!
Seven years after the events of Watchmen, Adrian Veidt has been exposed as the murderer of millions. Now a fugitive, he has come up with a new plan to save his once-adoring world: find Dr. Manhattan. Alongside a new Rorschach and the deadly Mime and Marionette, he arrives in the DC Universe and finds it on the brink of collapse. International tensions are running rampant with The Supermen Theory implicating the U.S. government in creating superhumans to maintain global dominance! But what is Dr. Manhattan doing in the DC Universe? And how is he related to the events of DC Universe: Rebirth and Batman/The Flash: The Button?
Collects Doomsday Clock #1-6
