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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 20, 2021 17:26:24 GMT -5
OFF THE RACKS!!Real Readers, Real Honest Reviews  |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 21, 2021 16:35:21 GMT -5
Superman and the Authority #1Written by Grant Morrison Art by Mikel Janin Summary: With his powers waning Superman reflects and feels he has come up short and so decides the world needs a different kind of hero. Plot: This hold over from Dan Dido's aborted "5 G" timeline gives us Grant Morrison's look at a Superman at the end of his career looking to the future. At its heart it's an interesting concept: just days before his assassination in 1963, President Kennedy tasks Superman with creating a truly better tomorrow and when he fails to stop President Kennedy's death the Man of Tomorrow takes that oath to heart...but as his own life draws to a close many years later he feels like he has failed at his promise and so decides to make it happen by any means necessary. It's the kind of opening that has a suitable amount of oomph to it, allowing Superman to be the boyscout and yet giving him a sense of melancholy as well and Morrison does really nail Clark's voice and yet ( and this will come as a shock to shaxper) I think Morrison fails to hit it out of the park here. This was the start of a four issue mini and as such I feel like we should have had a much greater sense of what's going on past the bare bones of the concept I laid out above and yet despite its slightly longer than average page count there is little more to go on than my summary. It's a start...but there should have been much more than that in the pages allotted and that sluggish pacing doesn't fill me with optimism for the rest of the book. I'm usually bullish on any book Morrison is on but I just can't convince myself to be optimistic here. Art: Despite not a lot actually happening here I really enjoyed what Janin was able to do with what he was given. It's the little things that count with the art and he really shows his mastery of that here with using something as simple as posture to display a change in time and characterization in Superman, in the scenes with Superman and President Kennedy we see a Superman in his prime and he's ram-rod straight in every panel but when we see him later in the present day despite still possessing a fit exterior there's a slight sag to his shoulder and looseness to his gestures that instantly portrays a weariness and age that defies the other obvious signs of strength. It's a masterful touch that sells so much of the concept and though done so minutely it has a tremendous impact. Grade:6.5/10 |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 21, 2021 18:00:21 GMT -5
Superman: Red and Blue #5Written by Mark Buckingham, Daniel Warren Johnson, Joshua Williamson, G. Willow Wilson, Judd Winick Art by Mark Buckingham, Valentine De Landro, Daniel Warren Johnson, Ibrahim Moustafa, Chris Sprouse Summary: With stories ranging from the origin of Krypto the Superdog, Clark Kent coaching a robber to the nature of fatherhood, there's something for everyone.
Plot: I've been really down on this title in the past but with this latest issue this anthology finally hits the promise of the concept for me. We get a wide variety of story topics and themes here from a cute story focusing on the relationship between Krypto and a young Clark Kent to a story full of somber reflection on fatherhood with Johnathan Kent and latter Superman. And while I loved that first story by Winick as it focused on the pure fun of Superman and Krypto it was the final story Daniel Warren Johnson that was the real show stopper, I'm not a religious person by nature( in fact I occasionally have to stop myself from scoffing at spirituality) so a story about Johnathan Kent seeking guidance about being a new father from his local priest would normally be a hard sell for me...but the advice the priest gives to Johnathan was just so perfectly said that it honestly made me see the appeal of religion; the comfort he gives to Johnathan in his time of need just felt so right and the lesson taught to Johnathan about love and family played out so well in how it was applied to Clark as he was growing up and then again by Clark in his role as Superman. The original film may have made you believe a man could fly but this issue made me believe there was good in faith.
Art: Strangely, while I found the stories to be far superior to anything in the previous issues I think the art here was weaker than in the prior installments which sadly stopped this from being a perfect issue in my eyes. There was nothing sub-par here , all the art told the stories well here...but there wasn't anything that made you stop and soak it in either and the color scheme of red and blue wasn't really used to its advantage either.
Grade:8.5/10
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Post by majestic on Jul 21, 2021 18:18:37 GMT -5
Moon Knight #1. Written by Jed MacKay. Art by Alessandro Cappuccio.
Mr. Knight has opened the Midnight Mission. Moon Knight stalks the rooftops bringing violence to any who would harm his people. He fights Vampires and other weirdness. And their is another worshipper of Khonshu out there who thinks Moon knight is unworthy.
Moon Knight has had many ups & downs in his various series. He needs something that makes him different from Batman or Daredevil and MacKay has the nice twist to set up this run. I'm not sure of the current status of MK's supporting cast since it has been quite awhile since I have read a Moon Knight series. The 2006 series was the last one I read. I was aware of his Mr Knight persona that Warren Ellis developed in his run.
So far with one issue this creative team has grabbed my interest.
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Post by majestic on Jul 21, 2021 18:25:53 GMT -5
Shazam! #1. Written by Tim Sheridan. Art by Clayton Henry.
Billy Batson is at the Titans Academy looking for answers to why the rest of his adopted family has been cut off from the power of Shazam? Meanwhile his powers have been cutting out at the worst moments.
I'm not sure if the Johns' version of Shazam is still valid. This issue only showed Freddy & Mary as his family. And Billy was referred to as "The Captain" so I'm not sure what his name is. DC really needs to settle this and stick to a narrative instead of avoiding naming Capt Marvel directly. I also like that Jon Kent was referred to as Superman Jr. That makes more sense to me leaving Conner with the Superboy name.
So I'm not totally sold on this new direction since I don't think it will last since this is a mini series.
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Post by majestic on Jul 21, 2021 18:32:29 GMT -5
Nightwing #82. Written by Tom Taylor. Art by Bruno Redondo and others.
Melinda Zucco's story. Surprisingly Taylor nails it. I was worried at the last page reveal in #81. I figured there was no way he could pull off this shocker but he did.
I won't reveal details but I felt it was handled in a way that made sense.
Redondo supplied art for present day while Rick Leonardi handled the flashbacks.
This title continues to be my favorite DC title right now.
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Post by majestic on Jul 21, 2021 18:39:04 GMT -5
Flash #772. Written by Jeremy Adams. Art by Will Conrad.
With the first arc by Adams he puts Wally back as the main Flash. His life has returned to normal and it only took 5 years! Reunited with his wife, Linda, and their two children, he returns to being the Flash as well as getting a new job as Wally West. He is hired by Mr Terrific to be an engineer at Holt's company. Plus the return of Heat Wave.
For fans of Wally West this series is great! Not sure where Barry & Iris will be for now...
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Post by majestic on Jul 21, 2021 18:47:33 GMT -5
Project Patron #4. Written by Steve Orlando. Art by Patrick Piazzalunga.
The team has to deal with the return of the Patron's 2 biggest foes: WOE who killed the original Patron and his mortal enemy, Matthew Mammon.
This series was one of my impulse buys that surprised me on how much I have enjoyed it. I'm curious to see if Orlando can bring it to a satisfying conclusion next issue.
If you like superheroes but with something slightly different then check out this series.
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Post by The Captain on Jul 22, 2021 11:21:50 GMT -5
Moon Knight #1. Written by Jed MacKay. Art by Alessandro Cappuccio. Mr. Knight has opened the Midnight Mission. Moon Knight stalks the rooftops bringing violence to any who would harm his people. He fights Vampires and other weirdness. And their is another worshipper of Khonshu out there who thinks Moon knight is unworthy. Moon Knight has had many ups & downs in his various series. He needs something that makes him different from Batman or Daredevil and MacKay has the nice twist to set up this run. I'm not sure of the current status of MK's supporting cast since it has been quite awhile since I have read a Moon Knight series. The 2006 series was the last one I read. I was aware of his Mr Knight persona that Warren Ellis developed in his run. So far with one issue this creative team has grabbed my interest. I will buy any Moon Knight series that Marvel puts out, as I am a serious MK simp, so I was excited to see that a new one was coming out (probably due to the impending Disney+ series). This issue does a decent job of setting up the "new normal" for MK, while also helping those of us who haven't been reading Avengers and don't know what's been going on with him since his last solo series ended. Like the idea of him returning to his roots from way back in WBN #32 as someone who hunts the "things that go bump in the night", as it has some serious Angel (the Joss Whedon TV show, which is one of my all-time faves) vibes to it. Enjoyed seeing Vermin and 8-Ball in the book, as they are the type of Z-List villains that I am drawn to, and the reveal of another follower of Khonshu who has issues with MK's methods has promise. I bought two of the variant covers for this issue, which I rarely do (but with my pull list being so small, it's not a burden). One of them is the Skottie Young version, as I try to get all of his for the series I buy (fun fact that I learned at the LCS yesterday, is that the SY variant for a previous MK series sells for $125+ on eBay, and I got mine for $1 over cover back then). Will probably buy the regular cover at some point when it inevitably hits the $1 bin, as that will become my reading copy going forward. All in all, glad to see Mr. Knight/Moon Knight/Marc Spector back in action and am looking forward to where they go with this. Grade: 7.5/10 |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 22, 2021 18:15:10 GMT -5
Nightwing #82. Written by Tom Taylor. Art by Bruno Redondo and others. Melinda Zucco's story. Surprisingly Taylor nails it. I was worried at the last page reveal in #81. I figured there was no way he could pull off this shocker but he did. I won't reveal details but I felt it was handled in a way that made sense. Redondo supplied art for present day while Rick Leonardi handled the flashbacks. This title continues to be my favorite DC title right now. "I'm secretly your sibling!" reveals almost always feel forced to me...and this really wasn't an exception. Sure, the writing in and of itself was good but the concept still felt really contrived, the whole secret love affair and the closeness of their ages just felt really tacky to me. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out but it definitely has the makings of something that never gets mentioned ever again once it runs its course. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 22, 2021 18:28:54 GMT -5
Usagi Yojimbo #21Story and art by Stan Sakai Summary: Continuing their quest to deliver the sword Usagi and Yukichi are stopped by a band of rival samurai. Plot: Speaking of secret family revelations I was pretty shocked that Stan Sakai revealed that new rabbit ronin that Usagi encountered(Yukichi) turned out to be the hitherto unknown {Spoiler: Click to show}cousin of Usagi. Sure, given that the two are are both white rabbit samurai I figured that something was likely afoot... {Spoiler: Click to show} I never in a million years guessed that they'd be related. Other than the revelation itself and a few brief jokes after the fact nothing big was really made of the connection in this issue but as Yukichi is now joining Usagi on his journey south out of Lord Hikiji's lands I'm assuming that the relationship will be built up in the forth coming issues. While I'm certainly not opposed to Usagi having {Spoiler: Click to show} extended relations, I'm hoping Yukichi really develops his own unique personality and doesn't just become a stand in for Jotaro. As for the rest of the plot, aside from that surprise revelation the sword delivery was pretty rote with the son coming out as being predictably unworthy of carrying on his father's legacy and the rival school's corrupt nature was also very one dimensional as well with nothing about them being redeeming and zero characterization being given to them making them nothing but cannon fodder for Usagi and Yukichi. Hopefully their further adventures will have much more substantial plots to them. Art: Usually there's something to marvel at in Stan's art even when the story is a little simple...but it was pretty straight forward action here. I'm not knocking it by any means, the action was its usual kinetic and easy to follow self...but there was nothing to it that elevated the story either. Grade:7/10 |
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Post by wildfire2099 on Jul 23, 2021 12:20:13 GMT -5
Sounds like I liked Usagi a bit more than you did... I LOVE Yukichi. I don't think he's a stand in for Jotaro, but much closer to Usagi's equal (more like a sidekick than a student) I'm very pleased that he'll be around for a while. I kinda liked the ending.. while he was perhas not a proper warrior of the code, he wasn't evil, just more interested in the business side of the sword school. I thought this made sense both in the broader story of history at the time, and of Yukichi's general life lessons of how the world doesn't follow Bushido all the time. I'm hoping this is going to lead to some sort of big story with Lord Hikiji... and that is a good thing.
A couple minis I've been reading finished this week:
Nottingham #5 : A bit of a weak ending that was more concerned with setting up a sequel than completing the story. We get Robin's motivations, but not Marions... that was a big part of the story to me. If they do a follow up as I would assume they'll do, I'll definitely check it out since I'm invested now, but not sure I'd recommend it.
Minky Woodcock: Girl who Electrified Tesla #4 : A bit heavy on the bondage.. the mystery played out pretty nicely, but was a bit too easy... I would have liked a bit more conflict and a bit less cheesecake. Between the art and the fun history bits probably worth the read, but I think I'd get it in trade next time... not enough story to get the singles.
My DC books this week:
Superman & the Authority #1 : Why did I think Morrison would be good? I was getting this assuming it was going to lead in to the Warworld stuff, but if that's the plan, its not clear here. Also, I hate Manchester Black. Not in the good can't wait to see him get what's coming to him' way, but rather the 'go away and never come back' way. The bit with Kennedy was cool (and sad)...but I need to know WHY Clark is doing this, and starting with Black as his go to guy (besides Morrison). There's literally no reason. I also hate the idea that Superman time travels around and effects the past.
I don't see how this can be a story in 4 issues when we get 25% of it did nothing but remind us who Black is. We'll see.. I pre-ordered it, so I'm stuck with it.
OTOH...
Nightwing #82 : Totally brilliant. One of the most logical and smooth retcons I've read. I LOVED the sequences where Oracle called off the rescue... it was nice to see the 'real' Titans together, even for one random panel (no Wally, of course, does he even exist in the DCU right now? I've lost track). This is absolutely the best superhero book I've read new in quite a while.
Legends of the Dark Knight 3 : Not terrible, but nothing great, either. Robertson's Batman very driven, to the point of obsession in the mold of the 'Dark' age. Its not bad, but probably will get old. I kinda liked Quiz, even if she's just a rip off of Harley. PRobably would make sense for me to save 50% of the cost and just read it digitally, but I probably won't.
Action COmics ANnual 2021 : As much as I like this House of El stuff... I really am ready for the story and the context. It's time, DC.
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 23, 2021 15:56:39 GMT -5
Sounds like I liked Usagi a bit more than you did... I LOVE Yukichi. I don't think he's a stand in for Jotaro, but much closer to Usagi's equal (more like a sidekick than a student) I'm very pleased that he'll be around for a while. I kinda liked the ending.. while he was perhas not a proper warrior of the code, he wasn't evil, just more interested in the business side of the sword school. I thought this made sense both in the broader story of history at the time, and of Yukichi's general life lessons of how the world doesn't follow Bushido all the time. I'm hoping this is going to lead to some sort of big story with Lord Hikiji... and that is a good thing. A couple minis I've been reading finished this week: Nottingham #5 : A bit of a weak ending that was more concerned with setting up a sequel than completing the story. We get Robin's motivations, but not Marions... that was a big part of the story to me. If they do a follow up as I would assume they'll do, I'll definitely check it out since I'm invested now, but not sure I'd recommend it. Minky Woodcock: Girl who Electrified Tesla #4 : A bit heavy on the bondage.. the mystery played out pretty nicely, but was a bit too easy... I would have liked a bit more conflict and a bit less cheesecake. Between the art and the fun history bits probably worth the read, but I think I'd get it in trade next time... not enough story to get the singles. My DC books this week: Superman & the Authority #1 : Why did I think Morrison would be good? I was getting this assuming it was going to lead in to the Warworld stuff, but if that's the plan, its not clear here. Also, I hate Manchester Black. Not in the good can't wait to see him get what's coming to him' way, but rather the 'go away and never come back' way. The bit with Kennedy was cool (and sad)...but I need to know WHY Clark is doing this, and starting with Black as his go to guy (besides Morrison). There's literally no reason. I also hate the idea that Superman time travels around and effects the past. I don't see how this can be a story in 4 issues when we get 25% of it did nothing but remind us who Black is. We'll see.. I pre-ordered it, so I'm stuck with it. OTOH... Nightwing #82 : Totally brilliant. One of the most logical and smooth retcons I've read. I LOVED the sequences where Oracle called off the rescue... it was nice to see the 'real' Titans together, even for one random panel (no Wally, of course, does he even exist in the DCU right now? I've lost track). This is absolutely the best superhero book I've read new in quite a while. Legends of the Dark Knight 3 : Not terrible, but nothing great, either. Robertson's Batman very driven, to the point of obsession in the mold of the 'Dark' age. Its not bad, but probably will get old. I kinda liked Quiz, even if she's just a rip off of Harley. PRobably would make sense for me to save 50% of the cost and just read it digitally, but I probably won't. Action COmics ANnual 2021 : As much as I like this House of El stuff... I really am ready for the story and the context. It's time, DC. I loved Yukichi as well, his optimism was really fun I just hope he gets some proper development going forward. My slight disappointment was in that the thrust of the plot felt like it was a reheated leftover plot...I can't pin point the issue but I feel like we essentially already saw this same story told in the past. I didn't catch Superman time traveling in Superman and the Authority, when did that happen? Other than that, I agree totally, I've never been a fan of Manchester Black and recruiting him here was a weird move especially as we never got even a hint of the "why" of it. |
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Post by thwhtguardian on Jul 23, 2021 16:45:56 GMT -5
Black Hammer Reborn #2Written by Jeff Lemire Art by Caitlin Yarsky Summary: When Luce's (the new Black Hammer) daughter goes missing, her history with Skulldigger comes full circle.
Plot: While this continuation of the Black Hammer Universe is definitely a much slower burn than the previous iteration, Lemire still knows how to deliver the goods. In this latest issue Lemire proves that he can tell a story about comic book heroes playing on the tropes we all know while adding enough to make it worth while. In the flash backs to the past Lemire knows just how to toe the line with his pastiche of Frank Miller's Batman Vs. Superman showdown from DKR, making sure we totally get that's what he's playing off of while still using it to tell his own unique story. On top of that the mainline story of Rose exploring a part of the city affected by an inter-dimensional breech not only gave good reason to show that Batman Vs. Superman style showdown between Black Hammer and Skulldigger as well as an incredible mother daughter moment in the car. Comics that pastiche superhero stories we know are a dime a dozen at this point, so it's not enough just to play with the tropes you have to have a real sense of purpose and heart to make it worth while and Lemire is doing just that.
Art: When I saw how weird this issue was going to be I thought I would have sorely missed Dean Ormston as he always had a knack for truly trippy visuals...but Yarsky proved herself to be really up to the task. What I loved the most though was just how uncomfortable her spiraled layouts were to the eye, it was a truly disorientating experience and yet she achieved that with out the story being hard to follow which was pretty damn impressive.
Grade:10/10 |
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Post by Dizzy D on Jul 24, 2021 3:43:58 GMT -5
Superman and the Authority #1Written by Grant Morrison Art by Mikel Janin Summary: With his powers waning Superman reflects and feels he has come up short and so decides the world needs a different kind of hero. Plot: This hold over from Dan Dido's aborted "5 G" timeline gives us Grant Morrison's look at a Superman at the end of his career looking to the future. At its heart it's an interesting concept: just days before his assassination in 1963, President Kennedy tasks Superman with creating a truly better tomorrow and when he fails to stop President Kennedy's death the Man of Tomorrow takes that oath to heart...but as his own life draws to a close many years later he feels like he has failed at his promise and so decides to make it happen by any means necessary. It's the kind of opening that has a suitable amount of oomph to it, allowing Superman to be the boyscout and yet giving him a sense of melancholy as well and Morrison does really nail Clark's voice and yet ( and this will come as a shock to shaxper ) I think Morrison fails to hit it out of the park here. This was the start of a four issue mini and as such I feel like we should have had a much greater sense of what's going on past the bare bones of the concept I laid out above and yet despite its slightly longer than average page count there is little more to go on than my summary. It's a start...but there should have been much more than that in the pages allotted and that sluggish pacing doesn't fill me with optimism for the rest of the book. I'm usually bullish on any book Morrison is on but I just can't convince myself to be optimistic here. Art: Despite not a lot actually happening here I really enjoyed what Janin was able to do with what he was given. It's the little things that count with the art and he really shows his mastery of that here with using something as simple as posture to display a change in time and characterization in Superman, in the scenes with Superman and President Kennedy we see a Superman in his prime and he's ram-rod straight in every panel but when we see him later in the present day despite still possessing a fit exterior there's a slight sag to his shoulder and looseness to his gestures that instantly portrays a weariness and age that defies the other obvious signs of strength. It's a masterful touch that sells so much of the concept and though done so minutely it has a tremendous impact. Grade:6.5/10
I really like Wildstorm, but I don't think Grant Morrison, even at his prime, is a good fit for the universe and his few attempts at doing anything with Wildstorm were just embarrassing. It sounds like this is just using the Authority name and not the characters? (Quick look at the covers, I do see an Apollo and Midnighter)
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