Comics

Fairest #12

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Fairest #12As Rapunzel faces of against the army of bezoars she created years ago to survive at the bottom of the well and use to escape and kill Ryogan, as well as Mayumi who wants her head, Bigby and Frau Totenkinder make their way to Tokyo only to get caught in the middle of Tomoko’s yakuza gangsters and Katagiri’s sumo school.

Things are certainly moving forward here as Rapunzel not only survives her reunion with her bozoars of hate and her run-in with Mayumi, but she’s made stronger by facing the past.

With one issue left to the arc and Tokyo about to erupt in a gang war started by Rapunzel’s old lover Tomoko you have to expect Rapunzel isn’t about to simply take he bozoars and go home. As to what final actions Bigby and that Chesire Cat may have to play, I guess we’ll have to wait one more month to find out. Worth a look.

[Vertigo, $2.99]

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Detective Comics #17

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Detective Comics #17While trying to hunt down and stop the Merrymaker and the League of Smiles before the Joker-obsessed group adds to the list of victims, Batman searches the past of the sadistic Dr. Byron Meredith who once treated all members of the group while employed as a doctor at Arkham Asylum.

Batman tracks the three mentally-unstable members of the League to the Gotham Children’s Hospital where he also finds the Merrymaker and reveals to his fairly angry followers the true reason behind the League’s murder spree. The issue also includes a backup story involving Meredith’s time at Arkham, how he used the Joker to further his own career, and the reasons behind his elaborate hoax.

Unlike much of the endless teasing, Bat-Family bickering, and grotesque nature of Death of the Family, the Merrymaker storlyine involves Batman doing a bit of old fashioned detective work and using his brains to take down another threat to Gotham City. Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

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Super Dinosaur #17

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Super Dinosaur #17Derek and Super Dinosaur continue to try and stop the Civil War on the moon by hunting down the missing children of both families in Paris and explaining what their Romeo & Juliet love affair and unexplained disappearance has wrought.

There’s a good amount of action here, including Super Dinosaur breaking out his new Stealth Jet Armor for the first time. While playing on a Shakespearean story, Robert Kirkman certainly doesn’t go too highbrow to turn off his younger readers (both Derek and SD are amused and disgusted to learn the alien bugs eat poop). It’s a little sophomoric (especially as Kirkman brings up the subject multiple times) but certainly not out of character for our heroes.

The comic’s B-story continues Dr. Dynamo’s search for his wife. The final pages bring Derek in on the truth of his missing mother and set the stage for the comic’s next big arc. Worth a look.

[Image, $2.99]

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Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow #21

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Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow #21I’m going to miss this series. As IDW prepares to reboot their entire G.I. JOE franchise with new titles and new collaborative teams, writer Chuck Dixon and artist Robert Atkins provide one final Snake Eyes comic for us to enjoy. In honor of Larry Hama‘s own silent issue of G.I. JOE #21, Dixon and Atkins provide a final Storm Shadow tale that needs no words to tell.

The story involves both the Hard Master and Storm Shadow’s attempts to retrieve a priceless Arashikage blade discovered in the rubble of a construction site. There’s tons of action here including a final staredown between Storm Shadow and the Hard Master as they former teacher and student, at long last, come to an understanding.

Although given recent events there is plenty for the student and teacher to hash out, the comic needs no words to tell the story. Dixon even leaves us with a nice final surprise from our other title character who doesn’t make an appearance here but whose absence is felt in every panel. Must-read.

[IDW, $3.99]

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Batman and Robin Annual #1

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Batman and Robin Annual #1This is more like it. As the Bat-books continue to be mired in Death of a Family we get a short reprieve here with this annual that’s a breath of fresh air. After Damian arranges a scavenger hunt to keep Bruce Wayne and Alfred busy overseas for a few days, Robin creates his own Batman costume (a nod to the future adult version of Damian as Batman presented in Batman #666) and heads out to defend Gotham on his own as Batman.

What’s great about this story is nothing is wasted. Bruce’s trip isn’t a complete waste of time only to get him out of the way as Damian has put the time and the thought into crafting a very emotional journey for his father which should only bring the pair closer together.

And as for a pint-sized Batman ruling the night in Gotham, it’s a blast! Damian truly works in brutal, but Batman-like efficency, and never becomes the isipid murderous twerp some writers use as his fallback setting. I know I have been hard on the Bat-books recently, but this is a perfect example of what they can be when a little joy is inserted into the equation. Must-read.

[DC, $4.99]

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