Summary: In order to save Gotham Girl Batman must assemble a team to breach Santa Prisca Prison, defeat Bane and capture the Psycho Pirate. It's a mission with a questionable out come, a dirty job and so Batman breaks a gang of some of Arkham's worst to help him.

Plot: I dropped Batman (and Detective) after the dreadful Monstermen cross over but seeing as how it was by a different creative team and the I Am Gotham story line was okay I thought I'd give King another go...but I think after a short hiatus Batman is back on the "Do Not Buy" pile for me. To start with King doesn't give us a good reason to see why Bruce Wayne getting in bed with Amanda Waller in order to form his own Suicide Squad to fight Bane would seem like a good idea and that's especially important in light of Batman having his very own special ops team over in Detective. It's a terrible decision to work with a bunch of psychopaths so there needs to be a compelling reason to do so...and King doesn't even try to give us one even when he has Alfred ask Bruce why in the story which is just beyond dumb. On a second point we have the team itself, the story could have at least been a fun thrill ride even if the motivation wasn't there but other than Catwoman the villains he picks are as dull as dish water and I just can't see any drama out of them. And lastly, on the topic of Catwoman, why is she in Arkham...in a full face mask and straight jacket? She's not the Joker so why does she get that treatment? I don't know and King doesn't hint at it so it comes off as feeling like it's way out of left field. There are ways this story could have been fun but King isn't giving us any of them.

Art: The only saving grace of this issue is probably the coloring by Chung, especially in the opening scene with Bane struggling through a prison cell that floods with the tide as he grows up. The art is serviceable but the contrasts between the bright aqua of the water, the inky blacks and the amber yellow of the light outside the grate of his cell is just beautiful.

 Conclusion: It's a disappointing start that sadly leads me to think I'm going to need to wait it out until King is off the book to enjoy Batman again.

Grade: 4/10 (Plot:1, Art:3)

Summary: In the aftermath of the events seen in Star Trek Beyond Kink and his crew may have lost their ship for the time being but they're still out there exploring the galaxy. 

Plot: Taking up the story right after this summer's latest installment in the new film series Mike Johnson shows us where everyone landed after the big shake up. He captures the voices of the leads pretty well, gives each of them time to shine in their various assignments through out Starfleet sets up an event to bring them all together and introduces a bunch of new supporting characters. It's a tall order for a single issue but Johnson manages to do it fairly well without feeling rushed. As much as I liked his control of the various principles voices I found myself drawn to the supporting cast more tan anything, I loved the female Romulan first officer and her contrast to Spock and the relationship between Bones and the new chief of medicine aboard the ship was fun. About the only thing that bothered me plot wise was the catalyst to bring them all together: The Borg. Don't get me wrong, when done well they're great villains but it almost feels too soon to see them and I hope their inclusion here doesn't mean they'll make the next movie. 

Art: This is an ongoing problem with the Star Trek books by IDW, and to a slightly lesser extent all books at IDW, but the art is just plain dull. The scene compositions, while they adequately tell the story, aren't challenging or interesting to look at and the cheaply done digital coloring is with out nuance or much contrast so it all comes out looking flat and with out dimension. There have consistently been some pretty good Trek stories put out on this line in the past and this new one has my interest but invariably I just get sick of the bad art and drop the book despite enjoying the plot and it looks like that hasn't changed.

Conclusion: The plot really hits the spot for any Trek fan yearning to see what happened after the conclusion of Beyond but the remedial art is a huge turn off so I've yet to decide whether it's worth following in the future yet.

Grade: 5/10 (plot:3, art:2)

Summary: After the the death of his wife, Cave Carson(explorer extraordinaire)  tries to piece his life back together when a knock on the door of his secret lab pulls him back into a past that he and and his late wife Eileen thought they had left buried deep within the Earth.

Plot: Gerard Way continues to make his new Young Animal line worth while with this newest edition. While Doom Patrol and Shade the Changing Girl are more manic in their pacing and wild in their narrative structures Cave Carson is much more subdued which is a welcome change of pace. Way and Rivera take the time to introduce Cave Carson to the readers, which is necessary as prior to this I'd never even heard of him but if you're a fan fear not is more of a continuation than a reboot with the story taking place after his prior adventures. However, while the introductions to the cast are nice and the world is interesting I can't help feeling like the plot meanders a bit. It's not an unnatural progression, the way that Way and Rivera have Cave go around meeting the various other cast members makes sense but there is a lack of greater purpose and motivation that makes it hard to say where exactly they intend to go wit h the story.

Art: I've long been a fan of Oeming's cartoony art style and he doesn't disappoint here. Oeming's square jawed, angular look fits the pulpy sci-fi past of Cave Carson and the coloring by Filardi in the halucinations from Cave's cybernetic eye really pop. 

Conclusion: The plot's a little wishy washy and gives no real hint as to where it intends to go, but the thoughtful pace and melancholic tone in juxtaposition to the super hero persona make it intriguing enough to try and see it through.

Grade: 7/10