Comics

The All New Batman: The Brave and the Bold – Small Miracles

/ / Comics

The All New Batman: The Brave and the Bold - Small MiraclesSmall Miracles collects six comics from the two series inspired by the Batman: The Brave and the Bold animated series. The highlight of the collection is the inclusion of The All-New Batman: The Brave and the Bold #13 which features all six Robins (Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Tim Drake, Stephanie Brown, Damian, and Carrie Kelly) brought together through time by the Phantom Stranger to save Batman‘s life by taking on Ra’s al Ghul and The League of Assassins.

Also included in this collection is the entertaining adventure involving Batgirl fighting off the infatuation of Bat-Mite while helping Batman fight crime, Batman and Mister Miracle working to escape Darkseid‘s trap, and the Dark Knight Detective in a race with the Flash to solve a crime in Keystone City. The collection also includes the well-meaning but hamfisted true meaning of Chanukah, and several cameos from DC heroes.

It’s not a must-have but the inclusion of the Robin story, and a pair of fun team-ups with Flash and Batgirl made it worth adding this to my collection.

[DC, $12.99]

The All New Batman: The Brave and the Bold – Small Miracles Read More »

Fatale #13

/ / Comics

Fatale #13Writer Ed Brubaker and artist Sean Phillips provide a single-issue tale of another Fatale. Set in the Old West, we’re introduced to “Black” Bonnie Smith, a woman with the (eerily familiar) power to bend men to her will and a bloody past that includes the slaughter of an Indian village and dying twice before meeting a pair of men who would change her life.

Killed and then kidnapped by a Native American named Milkfred and a elderly snake oil salesman, both who are immune to her spell, Bonnie is saved from a (eerily familiar) cult who have been hunting her for days. For the first time in years Bonnie has more questions than answers and continues travelling with the unlikely pair to a lighthouse on the prairie to grab the group’s bible which may just have the answers they all seek.

Once again Brubaker and Phillips craft tale with familiar characters in new settings. I’d like a little more revelation about the cults as we see them over time, but the various protagonists continue to entertain. Worth a look.

[Image, $3.50]

Fatale #13 Read More »

Scarlet Spider #15

/ / Comics

Scarlet Spider #15Thankfully the Kaine evil super-spider creature storyline comes to a quick end with Scarlet Spider #15. By the end of the comic things are pretty much back to normal with the former assassin restored to his human form and still unsure if his new role of hero truly suits him.

There’s plenty of action here, including the Kaine creature ripping off one of the arms of Carlos Lobo in order to save Aracely from the werewolves. It’s a little unclear whether Aracely somehow mystically causes him to revert back to normal or if her words cause Kaine to consciously return to form.

Other than adding new enemies for Scarlet Spider, this short arc merely restated the comic’s main theme (hero or killer) that’s so ingraned in the series it really didn’t need to be reintroduced so forcefully. I’m glad human Kaine is back, but far less sure of the Vertigo-esque path the comic appears to be going down (which, from comic’s last few pages, looks sure to continue in the coming months). Hit-and-Miss.

[Marvel, $2.99]

Scarlet Spider #15 Read More »

Morning Glories #25

/ / Comics

Morning Glories #25Billed as the “Season Finale,” the double-sized Morning Glories #25 fills in several missing scenes, while revisiting others, from the first two dozen issues of the comic’s run. There are no big revelations (except this one), but we do get some clarity on a handful of the characters’ motivations (particularly those of Abraham and Irina).

Hisao (who is really Jun) dies in his brother’s arms, Abraham is forced to reveal more than he’d like to Ike who is holding the current version of Jade hostage, and Irina’s true mission is revealed to the rest of her group when Guillame reveals that Irina isn’t hear to save Abraham but to kill his son (which, according to how she reads the situation, is the only way to save them all).

Hunter is saved by an older version of Jade who gets him to uses his mysterious ability to try and set the events, which are currently spiraling out of control, back on their natural path. However, it’s the one character (Casey) whose story isn’t touched on here who we learn is the key to everything. Worth a look.

[Image, $3.99]

Morning Glories #25 Read More »

The Flash #18

/ / Comics

The Flash #18Things are going pretty well for Barry Allen. He’s in a committed relationship with a woman who knows his secret, the Flash is back in the good graces of Central City, and he’s working to get his old job as a police scientist back. However, there are still issues for the Scarlet Speedster to solve including helping repair the damage of the the ape attack, looking into who might be framing the Trickster for murder, and watching out for a pair of would-be super-heroes enhanced by their time trapped in the Speed Force.

Brian Buccellato takes over the sole writing duties for this issue and Marcio Takara steps in to do the artwork for a missing Francis Manapul giving the comic a sleeker look. The art is good, but the layered panels that flow into each other, which the comic is known for, don’t quite have the same zip.

Even with Manapul’s abscence the comic works pretty well, although I’m less sure of the storyline that unfolds concerning the Outlander Nation or Barry Allen inexplicably suddenly loosing his powers (I’m also less than pleased I have to read the next issue of Dial H to apparently find out the cause). Worth a look.

[DC, $3.99]

The Flash #18 Read More »