2.5 Razors

Batman and Robin #1

/ / Comics

batman-and-robin-1-coverOne of the relationships taken away with the DC Reboot was that of the Dick Grayson as Batman with Damian Wayne‘s Robin. In its place DC relaunches the title with writer Peter Tomasi who gives us the first issue of Damian teamed up with the original Batman, his father, Bruce Wayne.

Since we last saw him it appears Damian has devolved a bit back into confrontational character minus the progress that he had made over the course of the last year as a partner for Batman.

Tomasi does give us a couple of good exchanges between Batman and son but it’s going to take a while for this relationship to work itself out (much like the Dick/Damian relationship in the previous title). The challenge is both of these characters are sullen, and neither has Dick Grayson’s humor to balance the other out.

The rest of the story deals with Batman putting the demons of Crime Alley to rest and the introduction of a new villain named Nobody who wants nothing more than to erase Batman’s mark on the world.

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Batman and Robin #1 Read More »

A Good Old Fashioned Orgy

/ / Movie Reviews
  • Title: A Good Old Fashioned Orgy
  • IMDB: link

a-good-old-fashioned-orgy-posterSome movies get rushed through production and hit theaters mere weeks after the final frame of film is shot. Others, for a variety of reasons, go through multiple edits and end up sitting on the shelf for years. A Good Old Fashioned Orgy (which was filmed back in the Spring of 2008) is the later.

The story centers around Eric (Jason Sudeikis) and his friends (Tyler Labine, Michelle Borth, Lake Bell, Lindsay Sloane, Nick Kroll, Angela Sarafyan, Martin Starr) who have thrown legendary parties at his family’s summer home for years. When his father (Don Johnson) announces his plan to sell the house the group tries to figure out how best to through their final end of summer bash. Their solution? An orgy!

The film is a mix of old friends saying goodbye to a tradition and a group of unsure thirty-somethings trying to recapture a youthful sexual spirit with a night of debauchery. The relationships work well, and we actually feel like these people would stay friends over the years. As to whether they’d all sleep together…

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A Good Old Fashioned Orgy Read More »

Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #13

/ / Comics

green-lantern-emerald-warriors-13-coverEmerald Warriors closes its run with a team-up with Guy Gardner and Batman aboard a space station. Fans of Justice League International will get the reference (especially after writer spells it out for them in the completely unnecessary final panel).

Even if Batman and Guy aren’t the same characters they were during Keith Giffen‘s glorious run the pair work well together (though it certainly helps if you were a fan of Giffen’s League). The mystery itself isn’t explored very well (Batman solves the case off-panel while Guy grills the suspects), and, as I’ve already stated, the comic ends with a panel that (with all the subtetly of a Michael Bay action flick) directly references one of the most memorable moments from JLI.

Since it’s creation this comic has been hit-and-miss for me from month to month. The last issue works well-enough (even if its somewhat hamfisted), but if you don’t have nostalgia for JLI I’m not sure the story is going to hold up on its own. Hit-and-Miss.

[DC, $2.99]

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FF #7

/ / Comics

ff-8-coverAfter a two-issue interlude which derailed the current story arc on the Council of Reeds to focus on Black Bolt‘s whereabouts since his apparent death in War of Kings, writer Jonathan Hickman finally gets back to the story we’ve been waiting for.

Maybe it’s the fact that this issue is two months too late, or the fact that Hickman’s jammed the final battle with far too many characters such as the Reeds, their subordinates, the Inhumans, the High Eveolutionary‘s minions, and the expanded roster of the Future Foundation, but still doesn’t go anywhere new with the story.

There are moments including Sue‘s dialogue with her father-in-law and Valeria‘s escape from her room, but the main battle (including a far too obvious double-cross) feels rushed, messy, and unfocused. We are given a couple of hints that everything Reed thinks he knows about his other selves might be wrong, but here’s yet another issue that’s not really about the Council of Reeds. At least this one does have the Future Foundation in it. Hit-and-Miss.

[Marvel, $3.99]

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Birds of Prey #15

/ / Comics

birds-of-prey-15-coverWhile Gail Simone‘s Secret Six has been consistently good, this run of Birds of Prey is best described as a shadow of its former self. Part of the blame has to go Brightest Day which saddled the team with a pair of members (Hawk and Dove) who never really meshed with the group, but although this volume has had its flashes (such as the Catman and Huntress issue) it has seemed in need of major tweaking for awhile now.

I was surprised that Simone wasn’t on hand to do the final two-issue adventure, but writer Marc Andreyko does manage to breathe a little life back into the book (with absence of Hawk and Dove), even if the story itself, involving a Nazi scientist, clones, and mental displacement, is pretty lame.

That said, the issue is an improvement over part one and does have some nice moments between Zinda Blake and the Phantom Lady. I also thought Manhunter worked pretty well with the team. Is it a great finale? No, not really, but for a comic that has struggled to live up to its own legacy (and struggles here without its trademark writer) it’s about what I expected. Hit-and-Miss.

[DC, $2.99]

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