Getting Back Into The Groove

Still a somewhat slower than normal week, reading-wise, but I managed to read a couple more back issues before getting the most recent month’s stash in the computer, then begin checking them out. So, let’s get right to those reviews.

Crisis On Infinite Earths 4 (DC Comics) — The cover tells it all on this issue: Death of the Monitor! Harbinger’s “betrayal” in killing her mentor while under the control of the as-yet unrevealed villain of the epic is what sets most of the rest of the action in motion for this series.

Legends of the DC Universe Special: Crisis On Infinite Earths 1 (DC Comics) — This 1999 comic came almost 15 years after the original maxiseries. Billed as “The Untold Story,” this tale by Marv Wolfman, Paul Ryan and Bob McLeod doesn’t really hinge on any major reveals. It focuses on Barry “The Flash” Allen as he learns what the Anti-Monitor and the anti-matter cloud are all about. The story loosely takes place between the events of the original series’ issues 4 and 5. What really sets this issue off, though, is Earth-D, as far as I know, a previously unvisited alternate Earth within the multiverse. Flash accidentally ends up on this earth and meets the members of the Justice Alliance of America — a Japanese-American Flash, yellow-skinned Hawks, a much nicer Batman and his son, Robin, husband and wife Superman and Supergirl, a Native American Green Arrow and husband and wife Wonder Woman and Atom. These heroes, later joined by several more familiar faces struggle — ultimately in vain, remember, we already know how this is going to turn out — to save Earth-D from the anti-matter cloud.The characters introduced in this tale show what makes our more familiar heroes great by their differences and similarities, and they passed away from the scene much too quickly. If you liked the Crisis, if you just like good alternate reality tales, or if you just love superheroes, go get this book and read it.

Powers 19 (Marvel Icon) — I like what is going on with this book right now, just not how slowly events are unfolding. Deena has powers now. Walker has gotten powers again. Calista has grown up to be the new Retro Girl. Now if they could just get the book out on a regular basis, that’d be great. And I love the letter column in this book. Especially how Bendis has to constantly remind people not to send him unsolicited work for both his and their protection. It sucks if you’re trying to break into the business, yes, but that’s the reality of things, people.

52 Week Nine (DC Comics) — OK, going by the little caption boxes, we only see two days worth of events in this issue. Not only is that not a whole week, but the story doesn’t feel like it moved forward much in those two days. I like the series, but it can get a tad slow at times.

That’s it for this time. Short and sweet, but unlike 52, it’s progress.