September 2010

Superman/Batman #76

  • Title: Superman/Batman #76
  • Comic Vine: link

For a comic that boasts the names of two of DC Comics most famous heroes in it’s name Superman/Batman has been largely forgettable. There are several reasons for this which include so-so storytelling, hit-and-miss art, and the fact it takes place outside of DC’s continuity.

With issue #76 writer Judd Winick puts Dick Grayson under the cowl for the first time. The story begins just after Final Crisis and runs, roughly, up to the present. That’s quite a bit of ground to cover. Given that, the result is a bit mixed.

On the plus side the story gives us Superman’s perspective on the death of his friend in some pretty well-written scenes between Supes and Lois, and later with Wonder Woman, and (more than a few) shots of the Man of Steel staring into space. There’s also a very human, if completely un-characteristic moment when Superman sees Dick in the Bat-suit for the first time. It works, but it’s a little heavy-handed for my tastes.

For an issue of this title it’s one of the best, but that’s not saying much. Aside from a panel here and there (such as Batman being brought back to the Batcave) I’m not that impressed with the art by Eddie Berganza who can’t seem to draw Superman the same way in any two panels (there was even one panel I thought he was weaving Superboy into the story for a moment!), or draw him significantly different than anyone else with dark hair seen here. That said, it’s a story that should be told as well as read. Worth a look.

[DC $2.99]

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Human Target – The Complete First Season

  • Title: Human Target – Season One
  • wiki: link

Christopher Chance (Mark Valley) is a former assassin who now works to save lives as a security specialist by blending into the background, diagnosing a threat, and eliminating it.

Along with former police detective Laverne Winston (Chi McBride) and the unscrupulous Guerrero (Jackie Earle Haley), our hero tries to protect various clients by putting himself in harms way. The series is loosely based on the Vertigo Comics series about a detective/bodyguard who assumes the identity of the target as a master-of-disguise (which isn’t a skill set of the TV-character).

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Deadpool Team-Up #889

  • Title: Deadpool Team-Up #889
  • Comic Vine: link

Is that Deadpool, in a tank, chasing a talking gorilla, across an isolated island in the middle of nowhere? Why yes, I believe it is!

Seriously, what else do you need to know? Not enough? Hmm… what if I told you the next scene involves Gorilla Man in a giant suit of armor bashing the tank in and… oh, don’t want to give too much away now do I? (But one scene does involving Deadpool lassoing a pterodactyl).

The latest team-up pits Deadpool and Gorilla Man against each other by a beautiful damsel in distress who, it turns out, may not actually be in distress, or beautiful, or, in fact, a damsel. Don’t you hate it when that happens?

[Marvel $2.99]

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Darkwing Duck #4

  • Title: Darkwing Duck #4
  • Comic Vine: link

Darkwing Duck‘s return to crime-fighting continues in an issue filled to the brim with baddies (Megavolt, Bushroot, Quackerjack, The Liquidator, and Taurus Bulba), surprises (guard dogs riding guard flamingos, an appearance of the GizmoDuck armor under the the command of Gosalyn), action aplenty, and even a cameo by Scrooge McDuck and his three nephews.

All in all, not too shabby. Oh, and did I mention we finally get an appearance of NegaDuck, too? Darkwing and the gang save the day, but it appears more evil is lurking in the shadows. Worth a look.

[BOOM! $3.99]

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Castle: The Complete Second Season

  • Title: Castle: The Complete Second Season
  • tv.com: link

Mystery novelist Richard Castle (Nathan Fillion) returns for another season to shadow, and bother, NYPD Detective Kate Beckett (Stana Katic) in the second season of Castle. (Read the first season review here.)

Highlights from the season include the publication of Castle’s first Nikki Heatnovel “Heat Wave,” vampires, the “best case ever” concerning a dead con man who may, or may not, be dead (and may, or may not, be a secret CIA agent), models, a dominatrix (Dina Meyer), a missing bullet, a two-parter involving a serial killer obsessed with Nikki Heat, a murdered bigamist, a Mayan curse, a new boyfriend for Beckett (Michael Trucco), and Alyssa Milano guest-stars as Castle’s long-lost love, and the one who got away, in A Rose for Everafter.

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