Beware the Batman #4

/ / Comics

Beware the Batman #4Obviously set to be released after an episode of Beware of the Batman that never aired, Beware the Batman #4 features a two version of Man-Bat long after Batman‘s unseen first meeting with scientist Kirk Langstrom and includes Barbara Gordon working with Team Batman as Oracle.

Despite building on events and relationships that neither the show nor the comic have covered, the latest issue works well enough playing on a familiar storyline of Batman and Man-Bat working together to find someone else who has been exposed to the serum and transformed into a Man-Bat (in this case the young student Barbara had been tutoring).

With the show not returning to the air in January as scheduled I have a feeling these gaps in continuity could continue which may be why DC has decided to end the comic series after issue #6. As to the fate of the cartoon, given that neither DC nor Cartoon Network have discussed it in months, one has to wonder if it will meet a similar fate. Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

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The Monuments Men

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: The Monuments Men
  • IMDb: link

The Monuments Men

Originally planned for a Christmas release, The Monuments Men finally makes it into theaters this weekend. Directed and co-written by George Clooney, who also stars as George L. Stout, the film is a war-time picture highlighting an unusual group of heroes. Based on true accounts, The Monuments Men tells the story of Stout and other over-aged art experts and connoisseurs who were put together by Franklin D. Roosevelt to save priceless art being plundered and destroyed by the Nazis during WWII.

The group of Monuments Men includes Matt Damon, Bill Murray, John Goodman, and Bob Balaban, along with Englishman Hugh Bonneville, and Frenchman Jean Dujardin. A little bit Ocean’s Eleven and a little bit old school war film, Clooney’s latest project begins with Stout stumping for the need for such and organization and recruiting old friends on what many in both Washington and on the battlefield see as nothing more than a fool’s errand. From basic training through searching abandoned German salt mines after the end of WWII, the film follows the fate of the unusual band of art experts and historians turned soldiers and the treasures they seek.

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Arrow – Heir to the Demon

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: Arrow – Heir to the Demon
  • wiki: link

Arrow - Heir to the Demon

As Moira‘s (Susanna Thompson) mayoral campaign begins, and the Lance family continues to deal with Laurel‘s (Katie Cassidy) substance abuse, Starling City gets a host of interesting visitors including Laurel’s sister Sara (Caity Lotz), her mother Dinah (Alex Kingston), and Nyssa al Ghul (Katrina Law) who arrives to return her former lover to the League of Assassins – whether she wants to come back or not. I had doubts about the show’s plan to introduce Nyssa, but Law proves to be a terrific choice balancing both the emotional dramatic moments and action sequences to deliver a passionate and deadly version of Ra’s al Ghul’s daughter, and the surprise twist behind her motives for hunting Sara are a nice touch.

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Person of Interest – Provenance

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: Person of Interest – Provenance
  • wiki: link

Person of Interest - Provenance

When the latest number turns out to be an Olympic gymnast turned art thief (Elaine Tan) with an obsessed Interpol agent (Henri Lubatti) on her trail, Shaw (Sarah Shahi) prevents the robbery of the Gutenberg Bible. After doing so, however, she learns the situation is far more complicated than it initially appeared. Discovering that Kelli Lin is being blackmailed into a series of robberies by a nefarious character (Gene Farber) keeping the gymnast’s child hostage, Finch (Michael Emerson), Shaw, Fusco (Kevin Chapman), and Reese (Jim Caviezel) all decide to help her pull her next job.

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Batman and Robin Annual #2

/ / Comics

Batman and Robin Annual #2My issue with Batman and Robin Annual #2, which is a mostly unremarkable recreation of Dick Grayson first day as Robin, is the comic is simply yet another example of DC continuing to shit all over their own characters’ beloved comic history by rebranding the first Robin costume as a crappy version of Tim Drake‘s pre-New 52 costume.

Although the Annual’s story allows it to weave in Damian (reminding us how much the Bat-books miss him right now), it doesn’t actually do much to compare Damian and Dick’s versions of Robin (which is really supposed to be the point). I will say the joke about an average day in school for Dick was funny (but didn’t need to be repeated). But the villain, Tusk, is completely forgettable, and even this younger version of Batman comes off like a complete prick through 90% of the story.

Even with the fan bait of giving Batman fans a taste of the character Grant Morrison killed only because he could, Batman and Robin Annual #2 is unremarkarkable except for the fact it will likely continue to piss off longtime DC fans. Pass.

[DC, $4.99]

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