Comics

Batman Beyond Universe #14

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Batman Beyond Universe #14Wrapping up the return of the Phantasm who attempts to prevent Terry Ginnis from learning that his father’s true killer is still at large (and tempting him into seeking vengeance), Batman Beyond Universe #14 offers more flashbacks to the events which splintered the Bat-Family and ended any chance of Dick Grayson and Barbara Gordon‘s happily ever after.

Although not as strong as the previous month’s set-up, and with several of the final pages setting up future stories I have little to no interest in, Batman Beyond Universe #14 should still be worth a look for fans of Batman: Mask of the Phantasm and Batman Beyond and curious to see a pivotal moment in the Terry/Bruce relationship unfold.

Filled with plenty of action, hard choices, and Bruce Wayne loosing another adopted son and apprentice, the latest issue of Batman Beyond Universe is worth picking up even for those (like me) who may not stick around to see how the fallout between Bruce and Terry is finally resolved. Worth a look.

[DC, $3.99]

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The Fade Out #1

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The Fade Out #1While I was busy moving and trying to keep up with the regular list of titles on my pull list Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips released the first issue of The Fade Out. Wasting no time after wrapping up Fatale, the new noir series is set in post-WWII Hollywood during the Red Scare. With a second printing of the first issue timed with the release of issue #2 (which I have yet to get to) I can begin to see what I’ve missed.

The Fade Out #1 opens with a flawed protagonist, screenwriter Charlie Parish, who wakes up from a crazy Hollywood party to find his movie’s star dead in the other room and no answers for how he or she got there. Fearful of how it looks, Charlie removes any signs of his presence and the studio’s security chief goes even further to re-stage the crime scene to appear like a suicide.

Although it lacks the strong female lead of Velvet or Josephine, there’s much to recommend here as Brubaker and Phillips go all-in for a period crime story with all the trimmings (making use of research assistant Amy Condit) whose motives may take quite some time to unravel. Worth a look.

[Image, $3.50]

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Daredevil #8

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Daredevil #8The latest issue of Mark Waid’s Daredevil returns an old enemy of Daredevil‘s in the Purple Man known as much for his colorful complexion as his ability to bend people to his will. After setting the stage for his current plans years ago, the Purple Man surfaces to begin abducting children all over the city. Revealing himself to be their father, the Purple Man awakes each child’s similar gifts, although he’s not prepared for the welcome deadbeat father receives from his progeny.

With the villain himself taken out by the children he created solely to love him the story takes a dark turn as the kids, now with powers they are only beginning to learn to control and no adult supervision, are left to their own devices. The twist now becomes in how Daredevil will fight the new threat without harming the children.

Daredevil #8 also includes Matt Murdock meeting Kristen McDuffie‘s parents (and offered a book deal for his autobiography). McDuffie’s a great character, but Waid’s decision to tell fans she isn’t the woman for Daredevil takes some of the fun out of these kinds of stories. Worth a look.

[Marvel, $3.99]

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Fables #144

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Fables #144Still unaware that the recently resurrected Bigby is being controlled by an outside force, the pair of Ozma (dressed like teen superhero) and Beast housed in the Big Damn Golden Armor) set out to stop him. Along with a giant castle appearing in the middle of Manhattan, the resulting chaos creates one of the funniest lines of the series as a New York cop exclaims “What in the bloody fuckhole of America is going on here?”

Despite magic and armor on their side both Beast and Ozma find defeating (or even slowing down) the wild Bigby impossible. Trying to fight the voice in his head, Bigby has no choice but to eventually murder both Fables continuing his bloody path straight to Fabletown and his wife.

With Bigby’s story in full swing the rest of Fabletown prepares for his arrival, as does Snow White who prepares to meet her husband for what might be the final time. Where Fairest seems to have lost its way a bit, Fables #144 provides a strong tale with an enjoyable back-up story offering the final fate of the Three Blind Mice. Worth a look.

[Vertigo, $2.99]

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G.I. JOE #1

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G.I. JOE #1After discontinuing the company’s various G.I. JOE titles earlier this spring, IDW launches a new series where a changing world threatens G.I. JOE. With Cobra renouncing its terrorist ties and becoming a peace-keeping organization Washington debates whether or not an organization like the JOEs need to exist.

As Cobra attempts to broker peace between Schletteva and Galibi, Scarlett is stuck in Washington attending Senate hearings defending her organization now that their primary threat has apparently seen the error of its ways. The question about what Cobra is really up to, with the help of Siren who continues to rebrand Cobra to the outside world, is left hanging as the first issue comes to a close but we do know not every Cobra soldier is happy in their new roles.

New York Times best-selling author Karen Traviss begins to lay a foundation for the series here but by the nature of the story is forced to be unnecessarily vague about the real intentions of all the players. The art on IDW’s JOE books has always been hit-and-miss. Steve Kurth’s work matches Traviss expositional storytelling but a little more traditional comic style would go a long way to help sell the storyline. For fans.

[IDW, $3.99]

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