Comics

Tom Strong and the Planet of Peril #6

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Tom Strong and the Planet of Peril #6Tom Strong and the Planet of Peril comes to a close with a perfunctory final issue where the various issues raised over the course of the mini-series (the fate of Tom Strong‘s daughter in childbirth, the disease ravaging the alternate Earth known as Terra Obscura, and Val Var Gram contracting the disease) are all wrapped-up without much fuss.

Because so much is covered (much off-panel) in the final issue Tom Strong and the Planet of Peril #6 feels more like an epilogue to Tom and Val’s adventure together than an actual final issue to the series. Several of the characters the pair met get cameos here, and there is some fun to be had, but those expecting a big payoff are likely to be disappointed as the various problems of Tom, Val, and Terra Osbscura have all fought dovetail so neatly they pretty much solve themselves.

Even if this is the weakest issue of the mini-series it still has some fun moments, strong (pun intended) character interactions, and the kind of off-beat humor you would expect. For fans.

[Vertigo, $3.99]

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Codename: Action #4

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Codename: Action #4Together Operative 1001 and Black Venus infiltrate the secret facility of Hexagon to rescue Operator 5 and get to the bottom of the shadowy organization’s plan to replace leaders around the world with doubles in an attempt to start World War III. However, they find far more than they expected.

Along with showing us the fate of all the missing heroes, including American Crusader (who offers some insight into the group’s experiments), the latest issue of Codename: Action offers the infiltration of a secret base, a mad scientist (who apparently is far more than just Hexagon’s head of the doppelganger program), torture, and plenty of action.

Codename: Action #4 ends with a late reveal and a cliffhanger that suggests Dr. Thorpe has his own agenda outside the plans of Hexagon as the mini-series moves into its final two issues with our heroes coming face-to-face with the series’ true face of evil. Worth a look.

[Dynamite Entertainment, $3.99]

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Batman and Two-Face #26

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Batman and Two-Face #26Continuing the “Big Burn” storyline Bruce Wayne attempts to talk some sense into Erin McKillen before the would-be crime boss he broke out of prison (under the guise of Matches Malone) and Two-Face take their vendetta to an entirely new level.

In more flashbacks to the series of events which led McKillen and Two-Face to their present war, Batman and Two-Face #26 offers a look at the death of Erin’s twin-sister Shannon (which has to be, without a shadow of doubt, the dumbest prison escape plan in the history of the written word). Letting her sister commit suicide (because in Gotham where everyone is on the take there was no plan that made a lick of sense), we see the horrifically stupid series of events that ended one sister’s life and has led the other obsessed with Harvey Dent’s death.

Although the comic has some nice moments, especially in the early scenes between Bruce and Erin, the flashbacks are so unbelievably dumb it wouldn’t surprise me if everyone who read this issue lost a couple of IQ points. Pass.

[DC, $2.99]

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Batman ’66 #6

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Batman '66 #6Okay, I love the 60’s Batman TV-show but I’m freely willing to admit not all the show’s villains were winners. For instance: The Bookworm. Two-thirds of a comic centered around the character is far too much (he would have been much better used, if at all, in one of the back-up stories).

The Bookworm’s main story has to do with the literary-obsessed criminal gathering every piece of evidence on the existence of Batman and Robin to determine their true identities. Not surprisingly, Batman tricks the villain into mistaking someone else (Alfred?) for the Caped Crusader and eventually apprehends the Bookworm.

…

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Transformers: Regeneration One #97

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Transformers: Regeneration One #97The sudden arrival of Jhiaxus and his armada on Cyberton puts the Autobots on full alert. Despite his inital offer of peace, Rodimus Prime quickly discerns why Primus labelled the former senator a threat as Jhiaxus fills the Autobots’ leader in on what he’s been up to in the centuries since he left his homeworld. Not surprisingly, Rodimus turns down Jhiaxus’ offer for Cybertron to join “The Hub.”

Of course the senator’s warriors don’t wait for Rodimus’ refusal before attacking both the primitive Transformers (who had just recently returned to the surface) and the Dinobots who attempt to stand-up for their new friends. Sadly, the Dinobots and Jetfire are severally injured in the attack meaning we might not see them for the next several issues.

The issue ends on an interesting note as it appears Shockwave and Starscream‘s roles on the sidelines as silent observers is at an end now that Jihaxus (who Starsream has some connection to) has returned. And on Earth Fortress Maximus comes back online, but he may not be the same loyal Autobot soldier as he once was. Worth a look.

[IDW, $3.99]

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