These Are Their Stories

Gotham Central (2004-07)
DC Comics
Ed Brubaker and Greg Rucka, writers
Michael Lark, Stefano Gaudiano, and Kano, artists

If you've never checked it out, this 40-issue comic book run is one of the best written series out there. It is set, obviously, in Gotham City, but focuses on the detectives of the Gotham City Police Department's Major Crimes Unit rather than the costumed vigilantes who also populate that fictional city. The moody artwork and muted color palette add to the crime noir feel of this series, complementing the writing beautifully.

No purse-snatchings or jaywalkers will be found in these pages; remember, this is the Major Crimes Unit. Some of the crimes the detectives of the MCU investigate include the murder of a young girl walking home after a baby-sitting job; the deaths of two women, both employees in the accounting department of the same pharmaceuticals company; an apparent suicide leads detectives to reopen a cold case that involved the murder of an entire high school athletic team; and someone killing young men after dressing them up in costumes that resemble that of Robin, the Boy Wonder.

A couple of the cases force the MCU detectives to investigate other officers, too. A pair of crooked beat cops accidentally causes the death of a young homeless girl while trying to cover up their illegal activities. A crime scene investigator long suspected of being on the take causes problems with some ongoing investigations, but both MCU and internal affairs detectives have trouble making any charges stick. And in an early story, one of the MCU's own detectives is accused of a double homicide.

Of course, major crimes in Gotham are often going to involve some of the city's more colorful criminals. One homicide the detectives investigate looks like it might be the work of Catwoman. Poison Ivy is involved in the homeless girl case. In the very first issue, two detectives following a tip on an open kidnapping case run into more than they bargained for in a rundown apartment building. Firebug and the Mad Hatter also pop up in the course of other MCU cases.

The detectives of the MCU aren't just throw-away characters created solely for this series, either. Many of the detectives had a history in DC Comics before the debut of Gotham Central in 2004. Fan favorite character Renee Montoya, for example, was originally created for "Batman: The Animated Series" as a recurring uniformed police officer. She debuted in the comics at about the same time in Batman No. 475, cover dated March 1992, and was often paired with hard-boiled police detective Harvey Bullock, a longtime supporting cast member in the comics. After spending several years as a uniformed officer, Montoya was promoted to detective and continued to be a recurring character in the pages of Batman, Detective Comics and other Gotham City-based comics.

Another featured player in Gotham Central is Crispus Allen, who debuted in Detective Comics No. 742, cover dated March 2000. This was during the time immediately following the "No Man's Land" story arc in the Bat-books, a long series of arcs that left the Gotham City Police Department severely understaffed. This was also during a time when then-Detective Comics writer Greg Rucka shifted the focus of that book so that it emphasized the detective nature of Batman's character and the Dark Knight worked very closely with a number of the GCPD's finest. Detective Allen was a recurring character in Rucka's run of Detective Comics and would eventually become Montoya's partner.

Capt. Maggie Sawyer is another name comics fans might recognize from beyond Gotham Central. Margaret Sawyer made her debut in Action Comics No. 595, cover dated December 1987, early in the post-Crisis reboot of Superman. The character's back story is that she was originally from Star City and moved to Metropolis to head up the new Metropolis Police Department's Special Crimes Unit. Sawyer was a mainstay in the Superman titles during the rest of the late-1980s, the 1990s and into the early 2000s. The character was popular enough among Superman fans that she was included in the cast of "Superman: The Animated Series" and even appeared in some episodes of the live action "Smallville" television series. In 2002, Sawyer's character moved from Metropolis to Gotham City to lead the GCPD's Major Crimes Unit.

One notable Gotham City cop not featured prominently in Gotham Central is James W. Gordon, who most casual fans know as the police commissioner in Gotham. Gordon has retired or been forced from office in elections a number of times in the history of Batman stories, but he rarely stays away from the familiar job for long. The entire run of Gotham Central hit at a time when Gordon was no longer serving as commissioner. In his stead, a man named Michael Akins serves in that role, but Gordon is still a Gotham City citizen and makes a number of cameo appearances in the title for various reasons. After all, in a city known for its often-corrupt police force, most of the detectives in the Major Crimes Unit were handpicked by Gordon for their positions, a source of pride for many of them.

Several of the other recurring detectives in Gotham Central had appeared in other comics prior to this title's debut, many of them during Rucka's run as writer of Detective Comics. These other characters include detectives Marcus Driver, Tommy Burke, Josephine MacDonald, Romy Chandler and Nate Patton and Sgts. Vincent Del Arrazio and Jackson Davies.

Of course, Batman also makes appearances in the title during the course of its 40-issue run. Again, this IS Gotham City. But the majority of the issues don't include Batman at all, and the ones that do have a specific purpose for including him, and they rarely involve more than a panel here and there. Mostly that is by design, as the writers truly wanted this series to be about the cops in Gotham City and their lives, not another superhero book, although these characters exist in a world populated by superheroes. In fact, the name Batman never appeared in the title of the individual issues, although later collected editions often were named Batman: Gotham Central.

From a storytelling standpoint, the absence of Batman is explained by the timing of the series. During a large portion of Gotham Central's three-year run, Batman and the GCPD were on the outs with each other as a result of another Bat-centric crossover called "War Games" and its sequel, "War Crimes." Rest assured, though, this run can mostly be considered a self-contained read requiring very little knowledge of events in Batman or other DC Comics of the time. In the few instances where a previous comic story is relevant to understanding a Gotham Central tale, references are available in the specific issues or in the trade collections.

And We’re Back To 1986 Like Marty McFly

OK, we’ve reintroduced many of the DC Universe heroes in the aftermath of the Crisis on Infinite Earths, so there aren’t very many more revamps to pour through before we’re caught back up to the “present” of 1986 where many of the storylines we’ve been following in New Teen Titans; Jon Sable, Freelance; the Thing; and the Warlord continue on pretty much unaffected.

Batman: Batgirl (DC Comics, 1997) — This prestige format one-shot was released about the time “Batman and Robin” was released in theaters, the film which introduced Batgirl to the movie franchise. This tale by Kelley Puckett, Matt Haley and Karl Kesel takes place shortly after Barbara Gordon’s debut as a crimefighter. In addition to worrying about what will happen if her police commissioner adoptive father learns of her nocturnal activities, the young heroine confronts the Joker for the first time.

Legends of the DC Universe: Batgirl 10-11 (DC Comics, 1998) — This two-issue story is another tale from early in the career of Batgirl as the young Barbara Gordon heads off to college. She is confronted by Batman, who tries to discourage her Batgirl career before it gets her killed. Barbara doesn’t back down, instead telling Batman that she will continue as Batgirl, and that if he is so worried about her safety, he should train her as he did with Robin. Batman obviously, eventually, relents. By Puckett, Dodson and Nowlan.

Legends of the DC Universe: Justice League of America 12-13 (DC Comics, 1999) — This tale features the satelite-era League, arguably one of the most enduring incarnations of the team. The bulk of the tale by Christopher Priest, Ken Lashley and Ron Boyd takes place in flashbacks, both to a very early case of the League’s and the current tale. At the outset, Flash, Green Lantern, Hawkman, Zatanna and Aquaman have been enlarged to gigantic proportions. The heroes, unprepared for the sudden size change, are disoriented and causing inadvertent damage. The Atom, with his mastery of size-change, remains unaffected but unable to help his friends as they continue to grow. The rest of the League joins in as they seek solutions in another old case before the giant League members die from their sizes.

Girlfrenzy!: Batgirl 1 (DC Comics, 1998) — Girlfrienzy! was a series of one-shot comics focusing on female leads in an effort to attract more female readers. Other books in the series took place more in current continuity and featured Secret from Young Justice, Donna Troy from the Titans and Wonder Woman, Lois Lane from Superman, the Mist from Starman, the Ravens from Birds of Prey and Tomorrow Woman from JLA. This book, however, depicts Batgirl in confrontation with another of Batman’s rogues, Mr. Zsasz. The relationship between Batgirl and Batman has obviously changed in this tale, though. At the end, Batman solicits Batgirl’s help with another case and the heroine declines, foreshadowing the time when Batgirl was semi-retired from superheroing. This tale is by Kelley Puckett, Jim Balent and Rick Burchett.

Legends of the DC Universe: The New Teen Titans 18 (DC Comics, 1999) — This tale is listed as featuring the New Teen Titans. In fact, this tale by Marv Wolfman and Butch Guice takes place just prior to the formation of the New Teen Titans. It shows a previously unknown adventure where Kid Flash and Raven cross paths. It plants the seeds that result in Raven bringing together the new Titans incarnation and explains Kid Flash’s motivations for joining the new team.

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight 132-136 (DC Comics, 2000) — Siege, by Archie Goodwin and Marshall Rogers, brings back Silver St. Cloud from the earlier Englehart and Rogers run of Detective Comics. It also involves a para-military leader who believes gold is buried on the land beneath Wayne Manor. The story contains a lot of historical information on the Wayne family.

Nightwing 101-106 (DC Comics, 2005) — These six issues of Nightwing bring back original series writer Chuck Dixon to re-examine Nightwing Year One, the time period where Dick Grayson decides to give up his costumed identity as Robin and adopt a new costumed persona. Several Bat-rogues make appearances and other DC heroes such as Superman, Batgirl and Deadman also have cameos. Continuity changes in this story include Dick wearing the new Robin costume with long pants that originally was first created for third Robin Tim Drake. The Nightwing identity is still based in part on Batman and in part on the Kryptonian hero, Nightwing, but the costume design mimics a circus costume worn by Dick in part of the story. Some readers online complained that this story negated the events of The Judas Contract in New Teen Titans when Dick adopts the Nightwing persona. I’ll admit it is a bit of a stretch, but I see this story as fitting in between the pages of The Judas Contract with only some modification.

And that brings us back to the “current” storylines taking place immediately after the Crisis ... sorta.

Warlord 98 (DC Comics, 1985) — Now we left the denizens of Skartaris, and specifically Shamballah, as only a ragtag band of outcasts, thrown from their homes by the New Atlantean invaders. I originally saw #97 as a good point to cut away for the events of the Crisis because the good guys had just lost a demoralizing battle and had gone off to lick their wounds and regroup. This issue begins with kind of a recap of the invasion and the lost battle, so it seemed like a good place to insert the Crisis, a tale in which Travis Morgan plays a small but important part. Well, this tale still makes a couple vague references to the Crisis as something yet to occur. Because of that, this story may have to be moved back to before the Crisis in my chronological filing system, but I’ll read on a bit more before I decide for certain.

And I think that’s a good place to stop for today. Next time, we’ll look at some more stories picking up following the Crisis. Plus, I have just received my most recent shipment of new comics released during the month of September. It may take me a day or two to get those comics inventoried and start reading them. So we’ll be back into some new comics, maybe as soon as later this week.

Silver Age Redux

We’re closing back in on the “present” — 1986 — as we look at superhero revamps following the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths. So far, we’ve seen the changes in Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Green Arrow, the Justice League and Robin, as well as a collection of villains. Next up is Captain Marvel as DC tries once again to introduce the denizens of Fawcett City into the DCU.

The Power of Shazam! (DC Comics, 1994) — Jerry Ordway updates the lives of the wizard, Shazam, Billy Batson, Captain Marvel, Mary Marvel, Black Adam and Sivana, among others. Things start out with Billy and Mary’s archeologist parents and explode from there.

Legends of the DC Universe 6: Robin and Superman (DC Comics, 1998) — Through team-ups in the pages of World’s Finest, Superman is almost as much an influence on the man young Dick Grayson will grow up to be as Robin’s “father,” Batman. This story reflects that influence and pays homage to those classic silver age tales by teaming the Man of Steel and the Boy Wonder.

The Brave and the Bold: Flash and Green Lantern 1-6 (DC Comics, 1999) — This is yet another tribute to the friendships and team-ups of the silver age, focusing on the friendship between Hal Jordan and Barry Allen. But along the way, their various extended families and relationships also play a role, so there are cameos by Iris West, Carol Ferris, Alan Scott, Jay Garrick, Ralph and Sue Dibny, Wally West, Oliver Queen, Dinah Lance and Roy Harper.

Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight 127-131 (DC Comics, 2000) — “The Arrow and the Bat” brings Green Arrow and Batman together and let’s the sparks fly between these two intense and explosive personalities. Along the way, both heroes are forced to examine the reasons why they put on their respective costumes and battle crime.

Batgirl Year One 1-9 (DC Comics, 2003) — Batgirl Barbara Gordon was another character changed pretty drastically by the Crisis, but mostly by accident. The character wasn’t seen much in the few years preceding Crisis. During the various revamps of Batman’s origin, the Dark Knight’s supporting cast was changed to the point where it was no longer possible for Barbara to be Police Commissioner James Gordon’s biological daughter and still be the right age to be Batgirl. So Barbara becomes Gordon’s niece, and later, his adoptive daughter. Still intact is the young girl’s fascination with Batman. This series also shows how others also inspired the young Batgirl, heroines like Black Canary.

The Batman Chronicles 9 (DC Comics, 1997) — Another element retained in Batgirl’s new origin is the infatuation Robin had for the new crime-fighter and how Batgirl felt the same way, up to a point. In the silver age, the two young heroes shared a number of adventures together. The first story in this comic shows more of that budding relationship that wouldn’t mature until several years later.

Legends of the DC Universe: Flash 15-17 (DC Comics, 1999) — These three issues focus on an early adventure of the Flash, or rather, his alter-ego, police scientist Barry Allen, and showcases a number of the Flash’s colorful rogue’s gallery.

Short entry today, but not as much time this time around. Check back next time for more stories revamping the past of the DC Universe in the wake of Crisis.

Everything You Know Isn’t Wrong ... Just Some Of It

Welcome back for some more retro-reviews, the kind that show some of the changes introduced in the aftermath of the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Not everything changed, of course. As far as I know, there were no major changes in the origin of the Barry Allen Flash, for example. But subtle changes were introduced in the origins of some heroes in the years following the Crisis. Krypton, for instance, became a sterile, emotionless world. Joe Chill was no longer the gunman who killed the Waynes, being replaced with a nameless shooter who was never caught. And Wonder Woman was no longer exactly a contemporary of the other Silver Age heroes. Continuing with these re-imaginings ...

Green Lantern: Emerald Dawn II 1-6 (DC Comics, 1991) — The first Emerald Dawn miniseries introduced some personal weaknesses into the character of test pilot Hal Jordan. Along with meeting the dying Abin Sur and inheriting the GL power ring, the growth Hal underwent in the story was learning to take responsibility for his actions.

In this series, the newly responsible Jordan turns himself in and is sentenced to serve 90 days in jail for drunken driving. At the same time, the Guardians of the Universe assign Hal a trainer, someone to teach him the GL ropes, someone who has excelled at being the best GL by keeping his own sector of space in order — Sinestro. This series gives readers just as much insight into Sinestro’s psyche as it does that of Hal Jordan. It also gives us some early brief looks at the lives of some future Lanterns.

The Man of Steel 5 (DC Comics, 1986) — This issue re-introduces Bizarro as a creation of Lex Luthor’s failed attempts to clone Superman. This new/early version of the creature never speaks and eventually sacrifices himself to help another, proving that there was some part of Superman in him after all.

Green Arrow: The Wonder Year 1-4 (DC Comics, 1993) — This series came out of Mike Grell’s successful run on Green Arrow. He takes GA’s previous origin and expands it so that the part readers knew before is just one small portion of an overall tapestry. The only real glitch this series’ placement causes is that by the end of the story, Oliver Queen is wearing the costume designed by Neal Adams in the 1970s. But since this is Ollie’s origin as Green Arrow, he really should have the green tunic and leggings with the red boots and gloves. But it’s a minor detail.

Catwoman annual 2 :Year One (DC Comics, 1995) — All of DC Comics’ annuals in 1995 played off the Year One theme. Many of them included “modern” framing sequences, so they won’t show up in my collection until the other comics from 1995. This one however, is a story firmly set in the past, yet Selina Kyle has obviously been Catwoman for a little bit when the events unfold. This story expands on the details of Selina’s backstory from Batman: Year One and the Catwoman minseries from 1991, adding in a martial arts element to explain some of the skills the character was regularly using in her own title at the time.

Legends of the DC Universe 7-9: Green Lantern and Green Arrow (DC Comics, 1998) — This story is obviously an early pairing of these two heroes, occurring before superhero team-ups became a common thing. The two heroes meet in an Asian nation and confront their ideological differences.

Legends of the DC Universe 26-27: the Joker and Aquaman (DC Comics, 2000) — Now this tale doesn’t so much change established continuity as it builds upon what has gone before. During the classic Englehart/Rogers run of Detective Comics, they had a truly perfect Joker story called The Laughing Fish. At the end of the story, the Joker disappears into the Gotham River and is presumed dead. In this story, the fledgling hero called Aquaman happens to be swimming by and thinks the Joker is merely a drowning surface-dweller. The naive hero offers the “persecuted” villain a place under the waves before he learns the Joker’s true nature.

The Man of Steel 6 (DC Comics, 1986) — The final issue of the Superman re-vamp shows us Clark’s revelation that he is really from the planet Krypton, information he did not possess before that point. Clark, as well as Jonathan and Martha Kent, learn this from Jor-El himself, via hologram. The revelation of his alien origins prompts Clark to wonder about his future, but he concludes: “I may have been conceived out there in the endles depths of space ... but I was born when the rocket opened on earth, in America. ... It was Krypton that made me Superman ... but it is the earth that makes me human!!” And thus the stage is set for the new Superman.

Batman: Shadow of the Bat annual 3: Year One (DC Comics, 1995) — Yet another Year One annual, but the Batman-themed annuals in 1995 all focused on villains. This story is a story, then, about Pamela Isley, Poison Ivy Year One, showing the first encounter between the Queen of Green and the Batman.

Catwoman 38-40 (DC Comics, 1996) — This three-issue story arc is subtitled Catwoman Year Two. Batman and Catwoman cross paths again, and each feels attracted to the other. Catwoman initially springs the Joker, Penguin and Two-Face from lock-up in an effort to distract Batman. The other villains don’t much like being someone else’s decoys and their machinations end up pushing together the Bat and the Cat.

Detective Comics 575-578 (DC Comics, 1987) — Having dealt once again with Catwoman, Batman gets his own Year Two treatment, going up against a new villain named the Reaper in this four-issue arc. It also has Batman questioning his decision never to use guns in his war on crime.

JLA Year One 1-12 (DC Comics, 1998) — We’ve spent a great deal of time re-introducing a number of heroes, and even had a few of them team-up from time to time. But eventually, there would come a day when a threat arose which no single hero could overcome alone ... oops, wait, wrong company, but you get the idea. Eventually all of these heroes had to get together, and one fine day, the Flash, Aquaman, Green Lantern, Black Canary and Martian Manhunter did just that. Green Arrow, Batman and Superman also play their respective roles. And Hawkman comes along as a representative from the legendary Justice Society to make sure the “kids” don’t screw up. In addition to the drama, this story includes some great character moments, especially the fact that noone can hear Aquaman’s mumblings when he talks in their early adventures. Seems sound waves travel better in water than air, and he’s never had to speak up before. Along the way, the team also meets other heroes such as the Doom Patrol, the Metal Men, the Blackhawks and the Freedom Fighters.

Batman Chronicles: The Gauntlet (DC Comics, 1997) — While the members of the new Justice League get used to each other, back in the Batcave, Batman is getting used to his new partner, a young lad named Dick Grayson, aka Robin, the Boy Wonder. This is the tale of Robin’s first real trial-by-fire.

Robin Year One 1-4 (DC Comics, 2000) — Next, Robin gets the Year One treatment in a four-issue prestige series depicting his first encounters with some of the worst of Batman’s growing list of rogue’s — characters like the Mad Hatter and Two-Face. But even those villains are no match for Batman’s wrath when Robin disobeys orders and is stripped of his costumed identity by his mentor.

Lex Luthor: Man of Steel 1-5 (DC Comics, 2005) — This story is a typical early match-up between Superman and his arch-nemesis, but it is told from Luthor’s perspective. In yet another bid to out-do Superman, Lex creates his own female superhero with the intent of using her to best Kal-El, then do him in. Batman guest-stars.

Batman: Full Circle (DC Comics, 1991) — This prestige format one-shot brings back the Reaper for a rematch with Batman.

Teen Titans Spotlight 11: The Brotherhood of Evil (DC Comics, 1987) — Few of these re-vamps seem to focus on villains, but this one does. It looks at the formation of the New Brotherhood of Evil, villains who would later take on the New Teen Titans. But the Titans group is not in existence at this point. Instead, a government agency is tracking the movements of the Brain and Mallah as they gather recruits, including a teleporter named Warp. Agents sabotage Warp’s power, sending the new group to an alternate reality where they meet future versions of Tin-Tin, the character created by Hérge, and his friends.

And, I think that’s far enough for today. Believe it or not, we’ve covered the majority of the re-vamps on our way back to comics which occurred in 1986. Again, not every character got a major overhaul following Crisis, and some who did, established the new changes within the context of “current” stories. So, there’s really not that much more to go to “catch up.”

Bidding Adieu To August So That We Might Better Reorganize The Past

Just a few books left from my shipment of August-release comics, so let’s jump right into what remains.

Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes 21 (DC Comics) — So they did manage to bring back Dream Girl, or did they? Maybe Brainy’s just crazy with heartbreak like Ralph Dibny over in the pages of 52. Still can’t make up my mind on this book. Subsequent issues haven’t been as good as the first arc, in my mind, nor as good as the work this team did on Empire a few years ago, but it’s just good enough to keep me hoping it’ll get better.

New Avengers 23 (Marvel Comics) — This Civil War tie-in examines how Jessica “Spider-Woman” Drew reacts to the registration act. The previous two issues focused on Captain America and Luke Cage; they were great. This issue, not so much. In fact, I was initially happy to see Brian Michael Bendis bring Spider-Woman back in New Avengers, but I’m just not sure I care for the convoluted mess they made of her origin in the recent Spider-Woman: Origin, and I didn’t much care for this book, either. Is she helping the good guys? Is she helping the bad guys? Is she making it look like she’s helping the bad guys to better help the good guys? Do the bad guys know this and use that against her, so she really is helping the bad guys? Know what? I don’t care anymore.

Jack of Fables 2 (DC Vertigo) — Another solid issue from Bill Willingham. This series is off to a good start, just like its parent title.

Justice League of America #1 (DC Comics) — The story moved along rather slowly in this book, but then Meltzer likes his set-ups. I like the focus on Red Tornado and Arsenal joining instead of Green Arrow. Some of the other focus characters make this seem like an interesting group. And while I’m really OK with the fact that Nightwing won’t be in the JLA, what does Wonder Woman have against him? For that matter, based on what is happening in her own title, why is Diana Wonder Woman here?

And that’s the last of my most recent shipment of new comics, which brings us back to the past of 1985 for some ...

Retro-Reviews
Crisis On Infinite Earths 8-9 (DC Comics, 1985) — Not only is the Barry Allen Flash killed off, but we find out why villains have been disappearing — they’re up to something. Brainiac and Luthor — both Earth-1 flavor — organize all the villains in a bid to take over the five remaining earths and succeed in ensnaring three of them before their plans are shut down. We also spend some time with various members of the New Teen Titans, which brings us to ...

The New Teen Titans 14 (DC Comics, 1985) — The Tamaranean ship we’ve seen heading for earth in the past couple issues arrives to take Starfire home. Nightwing and Jericho go along for the ride, thinking the Crisis is over and suspecting something sinister among the Tamaraneans. And Mento gives the rest of the team some trouble as the helmet drives wearer Steve Dayton insane. Oh yeah, and Arella is still looking for her daughter, Raven. This is an important issue of this book in that it helps set up several major storylines to come, but is also kind of a placeholder-type story as the events in Crisis are still ongoing and we don’t want to give away the ending.

Crisis On Infinite Earths 10-12 (DC Comics 1986) — The Spectre shows up and warns the assembled heroes of five earths that the Crisis is NOT over. Instead, the Anti-Monitor has merely fled to the dawn of time in an attempt to quash all life before it begins. The heroes follow and the Anti-Monitor and the Spectre battle it out, drawing power from the others.

The plan works and it doesn’t work. Life is allowed to develop, but instead of a multiverse, only one universe is created. Most of the heroes from the previous battle wake up to find themselves home and things seemingly normal again. But as they investigate, they learn that this new single earth combines elements from the histories of each of the previous ones while eliminating others. Some heroes and lives are seemingly unchanged, other heroes exist, but noone remembers them because their histories have been “erased.” It is also learned that while weakened, the Anti-Monitor still lives, and yet another assault is launched. More heroes are lost, including Kole, the Earth-2 Robin and Huntress and the Earth-1 Wonder Woman. When the villain is finally dispatched, few lives are left unchanged.

Last Days of the Justice Society of America Special 1 (DC Comics, 1986) — Even though this book came out almost a full year after the final issue of Crisis On Infinite Earths, it is written to be a follow-up to the Crisis. The older heroes of the Justice Society did not fare well in the Crisis. Noone remembers the elder Superman or Wonder Woman. Wildcat was crippled. Robin and Huntress were killed. This story was created to give the surviving members a heroes send-off while still moving them out of the way of newer, younger namesakes, some of whom — such as Wildcat, Dr. Mid-Nite and Hourman — debuted in the Crisis itself.

Those remaining heroes learn that the Spectre is left unconscious after his battle with the Anti-Monitor at the dawn of time. Unchecked, his powers combine with those of the Spear of Destiny, allowing Adolf Hitler to change history at the end of World War II, slaying the Justice Society members and destroying the world. This was achieved when Adolf used the power to bring about the Twilight of the Gods, or Ragnarok, from Norse mythology. The only way to preserve the normal time stream is for the JSA heroes to merge with their counterparts from Valhalla and eternally wage that final battle, over and over again. I just re-read this book, and even though the events herein told are later reversed, this is a worthwhile tale, largely because it is lovingly written by that great re-creator of the golden age, Roy Thomas. He gets these older heroes and allows them to shine in a fight they cannot win.

History of the DC Universe 1-2 (DC Comics, 1986) — This two-volume, prestige format book reveals the Monitor tapes and the recording of the altered history recorded by his assistant, Harbinger. It gives a broad overview of how some of DC Comics’ historical characters fit together in this new single earth, as well as providing some hints of what was to come in the coming months. It is also the point where my filing system goes the most nuts.

The recent Infinite Crisis explains continuity errors as Superboy-Prime punching against the barrier that separates him and his companions from the sole remaining earth after the events of Crisis On infinite Earths. I plan to use that excuse offered by DC Comics itself. However, shortly after the end of Crisis On Infinite Earths, several heroes’ origins were revamped. The trend continued for 10 or 15 years, at least to the 1995 annuals which all had a “Year One” theme. No matter when these things were released, the bulk of them have been placed at this point in my comic book collection filing system. The history of the new earth was different from what it had been. What better place to “make” such changes and explore them, in “chronological order,” as we catch back up to the titles I was collecting in 1986?

So, while retro-reviews before the Crisis were focusing on The New Teen Titans and The Warlord from DC, The Thing from Marvel, and Jon Sable, Freelance from First, it will be a little bit before we catch back up to those stories where we left off. I think it’ll be an interesting bit of jumping around when we pick up next time.

Closing Out July On The Heels Of August

Today we have reviews for the last of the comics which came out in July, as well as a few older comics I managed to read before the August shipment arrived at my door this weekend. I’ll get those books ready to read so the next batch of reviews should be of August books, which is good since August is almost over.

Daredevil 87 (Marvel Comics) — So DD is out of prison now. He managed to escape while salvaging his secret identity thanks to some help from others, and he can start getting to the bottom of who’s setting him up. So really, this entire last arc didn’t really advance the overall plot at all, but damn, it was sure some good reading.

Birds of Prey 96 (DC Comics) — This title seems to be floundering somewhat since Infinite Crisis. Don’t get me wrong; Gail Simone has a great writer’s voice for these characters, but I just don’t care so much for some of the storylines, particularly this one about Black Alice. I just don’t care about her much, I guess.

Civil War: Front Line 4 (Marvel Comics) — More of the same from this title: I really enjoy the insights offered in the Embedded storyline about the reporters covering the events in the Marvel Universe, and I am loving reading about Speedball’s persecution in The Accused, but I’m not so sure about the Sleeper Cell storyline, and don’t much care for the pretensious parallel story that always ends the book. I get the similarities between the Civil War storyline and real world events such as the Patriot Act and the internment of Japanese-Americans during World War II, etc. I don’t need to be beat over the head with it or made to feel like these stories are more emotional than they are.

Action Comics 841 (DC Comics) — Not sure about this arc yet, but decided to give it a try since it seems to guest-star Nightwing and the Titans. Seems people outside of Metropolis are concerned about whether or not the newly-returned Superman is the real deal or just another pretender. Nice tie-in to previous events. After what happened when Superman died, I can see why people might be suspicious.

New Avengers 22 (Marvel Comics) — Another good Civil War tie-in. Last issue showed us Captain America’s views on the registration act. This issue focuses on Power Man Luke Cage, Jessica Jones and their newborn daughter. Nicely done.

Batman 655 (DC Comics) — This is the opening arc of Batman and Son, the follow-up to an earlier Batman graphic novel in which Bruce and Talia have a son, a boy whom Bruce believes was stillborn. This story has a great deal of potential for emotional conflict considering Bruce’s feelings on family responsibilities. Not too many impressions so far, although this version of Talia seems somewhat darker and colder than usual.

JLA Classified 22-25 (DC Comics) — I’ve never been a big fan of the Detroit-era Justice League, surprising in that I have always liked Aquaman, and he was in charge of that incarnation of the team. But I didn’t know the other main new characters. However, I have always been rather fond of the various incarnations of the Royal Flush Gang. I don’t know why, they always seem kind of lame, power-wise. But I’ve just always liked them. This story ties together a couple different incarnations of the Gang, retroactively adding some sense and cohesion to the two teams, while also making me care a little bit about the Detroit Leaguers. It was a fun read, and is making me look forward to the sorta sequel in JSA Classified 14-16.

Jack of Fables 1 (DC Vertigo) — I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I don’t much care for Bill Willingham writing superhero comics. His run on Robin was mostly bizarre and seemed to take the character back to being a novice, ignoring about 10 years’ worth of stories in the process, not to mention current continuity. But the man can write these Fables characters. I have been hooked on the original title since it began, and decided to give this new spin-off a try. I wasn’t sure if I’d like it or not, but I WANT to see issue #2 right away after reading #1. That doesn’t happen very often anymore. I’ve read enough comic books that good stories leaving me wanting to read the rest and see what happens, but not really anxious about it. I’m anxious to read this book next month.
Retro-Reviews

Crisis On Infinite Earths 5-7 (DC Comics 1985) — These books comprise the heart of the series. The first four issues are a lot of set-up. Issue 5 comes along with the revelation of the Anti-Monitor as the villain. Issue 6 brings the final five remaining earths together and introduces the coming villains coup. And issue 7 gives us origin and back story details for the new characters created for this series as well as the intensely dramatic death of Supergirl. Heroes and villains have died before this point, but Supergirl’s death lets everyone know that anyone could be next. For those still not convinced, check out issue 8 for the death of ... but we’re not there yet. (Like somebody out there hasn’t read this series yet.)

DC Comics Presents 87 (DC Comics 1985) — This story is one of the better Crisis tie-ins taking place right after Supergirl’s death. Superman is mysteriously taken to Earth-Prime, the earth that is supposed to be the one we readers live on. While there, he witnesses the dawning of powers on Superboy Prime, a character who will play a role in this Crisis, as well as in the later Infinite Crisis. A good book to have if for no other reason than that.

Well, that’s it for today. See ya next time.

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.

Real Life Interlude

Been kind of a busy few days filled with real-life concerns and little leftover time for comic book concerns. My most recent batch of new comics arrived over the weekend, but I still haven’t had time to add them to my inventory list. I also received two packages of older comics. One was a recent trade of books from the Web site for all 33 issues of the original DC Checkmate series. I’ve always been curious about that series; now I can try it out and parted with some of my excess to boot. The other package was a bunch of back issues I’ve been looking for recently. Purchased them during a sale at Mile High Comics. That gets me several series I have been recently looking for except for one. In the mid 1990s, Mike Grell did a spin-off series from Jon Sable, Freelance about Maggie the Cat, a cat burglar. I have the first two issues and thought the series ended there unexpectedly. I recently learned issues 3 and 4 do exist. If anybody knows where I can find copies of those last two issues, I’m searching. Anyway, I just mailed out another package today of comics from the site, so it’s just been updated too. And that’s about all of the comics stuff I have time for now, except ...

I did manage to read through Crisis on Infinite Earths #1-3. The story still holds up although there’s a lot of exposition in these first few issues. Next time.

Oops! Call In the Time Repair Specialists

I’m back with a few more reviews, but first, this little jaunt down comic book memory lane has paid off as it was intended to do. Recently, I talked about how I store my comics chronologically, as if the characters lives were real, linear spans, so not all of the books are in numerical order. For more on that discussion, see the March 2, 2006, post "Meanwhile, back in the Comics Den ..."

Well, in 2000, Ben Raab and Michael Lark did a three-issue, prestige format Legend of the Hawkman miniseries. Now, the events in this story clearly deal with the pre-Crisis Katar and Shayera Hol from the planet Thanagar. So, sometime after reading the story for the first time, I filed the story just before the events of the Crisis, along with other books from 1985. I don’t remember exactly why I chose to place the series so close to the Crisis, maybe it was just easier to find at the time.

Now, in 2006, I’m re-visiting this portion of my collection, and I come across this series, still quite good, dealing with not only heroics, but also issues of faith and bonding. It’s really quite good. But, as I re-read the story, it has the feel of something that should have come earlier. The Hawks still seem somewhat new and unfamiliar to the earth in this tale. The clincher is a cameo by Superman in the second issue. It is clear from the brief exchange between the Hawks and the Man of Steel that this meeting takes place before most of the members of the Justice League have decided to trust one another with their respective secret identities. Superman seems to have no idea that the Hols are also museum curators Carter and Shayera Hall (why is it that only the male had to change his name?). Obviously, this series needs to “occur” much earlier in the history of the DC Universe. Finding and correcting little continuity errors such as this one is one of the reasons I’m revisiting these older tales.

Other books I’ve read in the last few days:

Jon Sable, Freelance 28-30 (First Comics) — These three issues revolve around a charity auction of Hollywood memorabilia and the disappearance of the famous statue from “The Maltese Falcon.” Sable’s friend, Sonny Pratt, gets the mercenary involved in the case, which nicely adds character bits to the relationship between Sable and Police Capt. Josh Winters.

Red Tornado 1-4 (DC Comics) — This was a four-issue series from mid-1985 by Kurt Busiek and Carmine Infantino which explores the android hero’s desire to be more human. I’m not a big fan of Infantino’s artwork, especially during the mid-1980s when everything he drew was so angular (see his work on The Flash during this time), but this book isn’t so bad. Busiek chooses to pit the Tornado against an old JLA foe, The Construct, another mechanical entity. The story has some nice character development for Reddy, as well as his surrogate family, Kathy Sutton and Traya.

Nightcrawler 1-4 (Marvel Comics) — This is another four-issue series, this time both written and illustrated by Nightcrawler creator, Dave Cockrum. A mishap in the Danger Room sends the swashbuckling X-Man to a series of ever-increasingly bizarre alternate universes, finally ending up in one based on a fairy tale imagined by Kitty Pryde and inhabited by cartoonish versions of the X-Men. This series doesn’t do much to change Kurt Wagner’s character or bring about any major changes in his continuity; it’s just a fun romp through some strange adventures, a tale befitting the devilish mutant.

The Thing 27 (Marvel Comics) — Ben Grimm is still on the road, this time running across the Fabulous Thunderiders, a motorcycle group. I don’t know much about the Thunderiders, but from the dialogue within the story, this group has apparently either starred in a title of their own or at least shown up in other titles. They obviously have some history, including some kind of mystical link which can manifest as the Black Marauder, a daredevil cyclist hero, or is he?

The New Teen Titans (second series) annual 1 (DC Comics) — The main story in this book features Tara Markov (Terra) as member of the Titans, which places it before the events told in the Judas Contract storyline from a couple years earlier. But there is a modern framing sequence which shows new Titans Joe Wilson (Jericho) reading through files of the team’s past cases that keeps the story placed with other 1985 tales. In this adventure, the Titans meet a group of representatives from yet another intergalactic police force, The Vanguard, and is obviously an attempt to launch an off-shoot title which never came to be. This is one of the weaker Titans annuals during the Marv Wolfman era (George Perez had left the title by this point), but since I have everything else in this run of the group, I keep this book as well.

And lastly, The New Teen Titans (second series) 12 (DC Comics) — This story wraps up some loose ends from the group’s recent past in a rollicking “Ghost Story.” An occasional recurring foil for the team since it’s 1980 relaunch was a crime family headed by Donna Omicidio. Among other storylines, she played an important part in The New Teen Titans (first series) annual 2, the first comic of this series I ever purchased, and the book responsible for getting me interested in comics again. (For more on this annual, see the February 2, 2006, post "What the hell are 'kiddie cops'?") With the help of an eight-year-old apparition, the Titans are able to solve a 50-year-old murder mystery. A very good read.

And that brings us to the doorstep of the Crisis on Infinite Earths. If you recall from last time, Warlord #97 showed some early effects of the anti-matter wave on Skartaris. The New Teen Titans #13 and #14 both take place in the midst of the Crisis. That’s the next thing in the chronology to read through. I may not offer reviews of every single one of those issues. I think, for a time, I will try offering reviews only of select books for which I have something significant to say instead of saying something about each and every one. Plus, it may be just a bit before I get to the Crisis books. My July shipment of new comics has been sent and should arrive in a few days, so we’ll be back to reading current comics within a week.

See ya next time.

A Crisis Is Brewing

Just some brief thoughts today on the comics I’ve read over the last few days moving into the year 1985.

For one thing, several of the comics, regardless of publisher, have been running an advertisement listing the results from Amazing Heroes Best 10 Books of 1984 poll, per R.A. Jones in Amazing Heroes #63. The list is first, Swamp Thing; second, Jon Sable; third, American Flagg; fourth, Teen Titans; fifth, Fantastic Four; sixth, X-Men; seventh, Blue Devil; eighth, Atari Force; ninth, Dr. Strange; and tenth, Power Pack. Two out of those top ten are complete runs in my collection.

I’ve also been paying more attention to the letters columns, editorial features and First Notes and such as I read over some of these comics than I used to when I was younger. I still don’t read every letter or comment, but I notice writer’s names and editorial opinions and such a tad more than I used to. I am seeing a lot of letters by “T.M. Maple,” a pseudonym not unfamiliar to a large number of comics collectors. T.M. was a very prolific and insightful writer to many letter cols. I don’t know the entire story of this individual, but I’ve read some things. It is interesting to see the number of books in which his missives appear.

For specific storylines, the Thing has finished up his adventures on the Beyonder’s planet and returned to Earth. I knew there was a point when his long-time girlfriend, the blind Alicia Masters, started dating the Human Torch instead. Now I know more about how and when that event came about in the life of Ben Grimm. One of the reasons Thing stayed behind on the Beyonder’s world was to sort out his feelings for Alicia. He was thinking he should break up with her because he was too dangerous for her to have a relationship with. Ben resolved to go through with the break-up and returned to Earth to find that Alicia had suspected what was coming, and when he didn’t return right away from space, she took the hint and moved on with her life. Johnny Storm was there to help out, and their relationship grew while Ben was away.

In the New Teen Titans, the team recovered from their emotional and psychological battles with Trigon. Then they discover something of the true origin of Lilith, a longtime, on-again-off-again member from the old days. It seems that Lilith is the daughter of Thia, one of the Titans of Myth, parents to the gods of Olympus. The goddess Thia kidnapped Lilith claiming to have been searching for her since she was stolen away as a baby and commenced to usurp control of Mount Olympus with designs on Earth next. Before defeating this menace with some mythical help, the Titans meet Kole, a young crystal-powered teenager whose parents the Titans attempt to track down in their next story arc.

Jon Sable’s title included a three-part story taking him to the Middle East titled, The Contract. A special back-up feature in those three issues was a real-life prose account of Sable creator Mike Grell’s first safari in Africa, complete with photos and sketches to illustrate the tale. Next begins a two-part story about Jon Sable’s mother before her death.

In addition to these regular books, I also have Sword of the Atom Special #2. In late 1983 or early 1984, artist Gil Kane and writer Jan Strnad turned the shrinking hero's world upside-down. In a four-issue miniseries, they took physicist Ray Palmer from his Ivy Town university job, ended his marriage to Jean Loring-Palmer, and plopped him down in the middle of the Amazon rainforest among a hidden civilization of six-inch tall yellow aliens stranded and living in the jungles. It sounds hard to believe, and the Atom probably wouldn’t have been most people’s first choice as the next big sword and sorcery hero, but the story and art in the series were incredible and the characters likable. The series was popular enough to generate two sequels, a 1984 Special and the second one in early 1985, but never an ongoing series of its own.

And then there’s the Warlord. For quite some time in that title, Travis Morgan and his Skartaran mate, Queen Tara of Shamballah, have been in hiding, building their forces and preparing to re-take their kingdom from the New Atlantean usurpers who have been little more than a subplot since they took over the land. But what is most interesting to me about the recent Warlord stories is how often the Monitor has been depicted watching the exploits of the characters. The Monitor is a mysterious figure, always shown in shadow at this point, who appeared in several DC books over the course of 1983 and 1984, usually as just an observer watching events transpire, but sometimes acting as a type of referral agent, connecting bosses with super-powered muscle for a fee. Readers wouldn’t learn who the Monitor was or what his motivations and goals were until the maxiseries Crisis on Infinite Earths. This is my first time reading Warlord stories from this period, so I am curious just how much of a role the Crisis plays in the life of the Warlord and vice-versa. I know Travis Morgan is pictured in the Crisis series in several group shots of heroes, but the number of appearances of the Monitor in the the pages of the Warlord, makes me wonder if the Crisis will play a large role in Skartaris.

Moving forward from here, in addition to Titans, Warlord, Sable and Thing, I also have a four-issue Red Tornado series and a four-issue Nightcrawler series from early 1985 and a three-issue Legend of the Hawkman prestige series from 2000 which I have placed here chronologically because it obviously deals with the pre-Crisis Hawkman from Thanagar. Then, of course, Crisis on Infinite Earths, after which the dates in my collection get really muddy. But more on that when the time comes.

What the hell are 'kiddie cops'?

OK, while it's not officially a comment, my wife did ask that question (or one along those lines) after reading my most recent post. So, you get the answer, too.

"Kiddie cops" is one of those terms or phrases I use occasionally in my speech which comes from something I read, in this case a comic book. Specifically, The New Teen Titans annual 2 (1983), the comic which is directly responsible for my adult interest in comics.

Both my brother and I had read comics when we were much younger, but we didn't "collect" them. We'd get random issues of Spider-Man or Justice League of America or World's Finest Comics when Mom let us buy them from the grocery store, but they'd never last long enough to be collected. But in 1983, while on a youth group trip with friends, I spotted this comic book in the spinner rack convenience stores all used to have. To be honest, I didn't recognize most of the characters on the cover, but I was pretty sure the "floating head" on the lower right was Robin, the Boy Wonder. I picked up the issue and fell in love with the storytelling and intrigue, not to mention those stunning George Perez illustrations.

The story in the comic picks up in the middle of an investigation by the New Teen Titans (Robin, Wonder Girl, Kid Flash, Changeling, Starfire, Cyborg, Raven and Terra) and Manhattan district attorney Adrian Chase. The Titans believe that Chase and his family have just been killed by the organized crime family they are pursuing. In an audiotape left by Chase for the Titans, he refers to them as "kiddie cops." I thought it was clever at the time, and the phrase became part of my vocabulary.

This issue has much more to offer those interested in comics. Chase is, in fact, not dead and goes on to become the costuned vigilante ... Vigilante. Many others would use this moniker afterwards, but Adrian Chase was the first. This issue also features an appearance by a mysterious power broker for heroes and villains named the Monitor, a shadowy figure seen in various DC titles throughout the year. He would soon be revealed as an extra-terrestrial "monitoring" and testing various meta-humans for the upcoming blockbuster Crisis on Infinite Earths series. And at one point in the story, the Monitor is called upon to provide several assassins-for-hire to slay the Titans on behalf of that nasty organized crime family. Most of the villains make their one and only appearance in this issue, but one in particular, the Asian-American assassin Cheshire, would go on to be a major presence in the DC Universe.

Probably, I won't talk about comics every time I post, but this time I did, so it makes a nice transition into another quick topic. In a previous post, I had mentioned comics to sell which I had listed on a site called iOffer. That worked pretty well for a while, but I have so many comics to sell, I ended up creating my own site listing all of them. If you happened to find your way here and are interested, check out the site at http://www.angelfire.com/comics/tsgnightwing

And so long for now, kiddie cops.