Batman

Earth-2 Annual #1

/ / Comics

Earth-2 Annual #1I haven’t given Earth-2 much thought since its first couple of issues, but as the series’ first annual promised a new Batman I decided to give it a shot. Despite the cover featuring the new Batman, most of the comic actually centers around Al Pratt and his role of a soldier for the World Army since an atomic accident game him the power to grow big and hit enemies with an atomic-powered punch.

The story moves around too much for my taste as we go from Pratt’s exposure to various flash-forwards of his career dealing with the agents of Apokolips. Despite taking up 80% of the comic it’s actually less interesting than the introduction of the new Batman (whose identity isn’t revealed here), and various other storylines touched on involving Hawkgirl, and Big Barda and Mister Miracle.

For those like me who haven’t been keeping up with the events of Earth-2, the annual does a fairly good job of getting you up to speed and teasing you with reasons to think about picking up the title. Given it’s emphasis on Pratt’s story I’m not sure it’s worth picking up on its own but it has me considering paying a little more attention to what is happening in the monthly title. Hit-and-Miss.

[DC, $4.99]

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First Look

/ / Gaming News & Reviews 
  • Title: Batman: Arkham Origins
  • Wikipedia: link

We now have our first extended look at Batman: Arkham Origins, a prequel to the other Arkham games which features a younger Batman fighting off a series of assassins (including Deathstroke and an exceptionally bland version of Deadshot) hired by Black Mask to kill the Dark Knight Detective on Christmas Eve. Batman: Arkham Origins is scheduled for an October 25th release.

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Batman and Red Hood #20

/ / Comics

Batman and Red Hood #20How can a comic that starts off so well end in the kind of trainwreck that will damage two of DC’s Bat-books for months to come? The latest issue of Batman and… gives us a team-up of a more brutal Batman than we’ve seen in a while with Red Hood who has finally found some peace with his mentor after the fallout of mostly wretched Death of the Family.

The only good thing to come out of Death of the Family was bringing Jason Todd back into the fold. Well, that was short lived. When Batman tries to force Jason to face his death and resurrection, hoping for clues to do the same to Damian, the hard earned respect between the characters is thrown away in a handful of panels (perhaps for good).

Although I think Todd overreacts to Batman’s grief, the result is to push yet another member of the Bat-Family further from the Dark Knight Detective. Batman and Red Hood #20 also offers another appearance by Carrie Kelley looking for Damian, teasing that she’s not going away anytime soon. Pass.

[DC, $2.99]

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Detective Comics #20

/ / Comics

Detective Comics #20The Emperor Penguin storyline comes to an end as Batman battles Ogilvy, the self-proclaimed new crime king of Gotham who stole the Penguin‘s money and operation for his own. Underestimating his opponent, Batman arrives to discover Ogilvy has been busy by combining the stolen Man-Bat serum along with a version of Venom and a little contribution from Poison Ivy to craft himself into a legitimate super-villain threat.

Although I think Ogilvy is made too much of a threat too quickly, the fight between the would be king and Batman works well (even if it does require the Penguin to save our hero). It also gives us one of the better original New 52 villains. Batman makes up for the ass kicking he takes by putting down Ogilvy in short order, but he can’t take away Ogilvy’s short-lived victory.

The issue also includes a back-up story involving Ogilvy’s transport to Blackgate Prison and look at his origins. The story also brutally foreshadows the fact that the new Bat-villain is only getting started. Worth a look.

[DC, $3.99]

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Holy Die-Cast Batmobiles, Batman!

/ / Television Reviews

die-cast-batmobiles

Celebrating the awesome that is Batman, Eaglemoss Publications is putting out a series of the Dark Knight’s favorite mode of transportation over the years – the Batmobile. “Each Batmobile die-cast vehicle comes with a unique 3-D lenticular backdrop that creates a detailed scene of the Dark Knight and his vehicle. Featuring additional metal castings for extra detail, including gadgets, each vehicle also comes with an informative 12-page magazine that looks at the history of the vehicle – and Batman himself.” Each 1:43 scale Batmobile can be yours for the low, low price of $20 a piece.

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