Another solid read no longer delayed

Y: The Last Man
DC Vertigo
Creators: Brian K. Vaughan, Pia Guerra, Jose Marzan Jr., Paul Chadwick, Goran Parlov and Goran Sudzuka
Release date: July 2002 – January 2008

I’ve been on a bit of an unplanned Vertigo kick of late.

Now, I’ve never been a stranger to Vertigo titles. I started buying Fables while it was still in the midst of its first story arc and continued to buy the title in single issues throughout its entire run. I read the entire run of Transmetropolitan in trade form shortly after the series ended. I’ve also read a number of limited series and tried various issues of other titles released under the DC Vertigo imprint through the years. Some I’ve liked. Some I’ve really enjoyed. Others were simply meh.

But I unexpectedly decided to try reading Preacher for the first time not long ago after hearing the series recommended on a podcast I was listening to. You can read about my first impressions of that title here, if you haven’t already done so.

Since writing that post, I have finished reading all of Preacher, including the various one-shots and the Saint of Killers miniseries. Overall, I continued to enjoy the read-through, and hold the series in very high regard. I especially like how Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon make you care about the characters and root for them as they move along their respective journeys, even though they are not very likeable people. Even the protagonists in the story do things that I would otherwise find abhorrent and despicable, but I still wanted those protagonists to come out on top in the end.

Speaking of the end, I’m not entirely sure how I feel about the ending of that series. After liking and rooting for those protagonists through some seventy-plus comic issues, they didn’t exactly end up where I might have hoped they would. That’s not to say I think the writing was bad or faulty. The ending just left me unsure of how I feel about it.

My family has also recently watched and very much enjoyed the entire first season of “Sweet Tooth” on Netflix. I’ve never read the Vertigo title by Jeff Lemire in any form. But I’d heard some good reviews of the show by friends online, and my wife had heard many of the same positive reviews. We decided to try the show and were pleasantly surprised by just how much we enjoyed it. We definitely plan to watch the announced second season when it drops.

And that brings us, finally, to Y: The Last Man. I read the Transmet trades in late 2002 or early 2003, shortly after that series ended. Just before Transmet came to an end, Y: The Last Man began publishing. I decided to buy it in trades, but I also decided to wait until the series ended and I had the complete story before I would read it. That’s how I’d read Spider Jerusalem’s story; I figured it would work well for Yorick Brown, too. I bought each of the Y: The Last Man trades as they were released, and then I put them on the pile of books to read later, after I collected the entire thing.

I bought the series based on liking Transmet, so it seemed fitting to decide now was the time to read it after reading and liking another Vertigo title, Preacher. There was also the incentive of reading the entire series before it, too, becomes a streaming television program. “Y: the Last Man” the TV series is set to debut on the FX network next month, I believe. So I have spent the past couple weeks reading all 60 issues of Y.

Like the characters in Preacher, the people readers meet in Y: The Last Man are flawed individuals who do not always do the right thing. But I still found myself liking the main protagonists, being drawn into their world and rooting for them through all the twists and turns of their story.

The set-up for the story is a mysterious plague which immediately kills every mammal on the planet with a Y chromosome — every one except for a young man named Yorick Brown and his pet monkey, Ampersand. The other principals in the story include Hero Brown, Yorick’s older sister and an EMT when the pandemic hits; 355, a government agent assigned to protect Yorick as he travels; and Allison Mann, a researcher who thinks she might be able to find a way to counter the effects of the pandemic with Yorick’s and Ampersand’s help. The story follows their adventures as they seek answers and solutions in the world that remains.

Of course, there are many, many more characters in the cast along the way. Our heroes come across hate groups, zealots, soldiers, former supermodels, secret agents, scientists, actors, astronauts, sailors, pirates, spies, journalists, ninjas and many others in their travels to Washington, D.C.; Massachusetts; California; Australia; China; France; and other stops all along the way.

Honestly, I don’t want to give away too many details of the story for anyone who hasn’t read the books or who plans to watch the upcoming FX program. Overall, Y: The Last Man was a fun, enjoyable read. Brian K. Vaughan writes an engaging tale that kept me riveted page after page. Primary artist Pia Guerra’s work is a nice mix of realistic and cartoony, and the fill-in artists, when used, produce a similar style, giving the entire series a uniform, cohesive look.

I’m glad I finally made time to give this title a try, and I’m looking forward to seeing what FX does with the streaming series. Once again, I had a bit of an issue with the ending of the series. I was not entirely happy with how some things turned out, including the explanation(s) of what exactly caused the plague which killed most male mammals on Earth. But I will say I liked the ending of this title a bit more than I did the ending of Preacher. And I have no problem recommending the series to anyone interested in giving it a read.

I think they gave too much away last time

Batman: Earth One Vol. 3
DC Comics
Creators: Geoff Johns, Gary Frank, Jon Sibal and Brad Anderson
Release date: June 2021

I bought and enjoyed the first two volumes of the Batman: Earth One series. The twists and turns these creators took with the familiar Batman origin tale kept me guessing a little bit, entertained even when I saw twists coming, and left me feeling satisfied with the final product. This third and final chapter is still a good read. But something feels just a little bit off or not quite as good as the first two installments.

I’m not a fan of the Earth One idea, in general. I tried the first two volumes of Superman: Earth One, and while I found them — especially the first one — entertaining, the stories just didn’t quite feel like "my" Superman. They didn’t feel quite right. Your specific reaction might have been different. That’s part of the fun of comics. Not every comic is every reader’s cup of tea. But for me and Superman: Earth One, something was off.

I tried Teen Titans: Earth One and hated it. Several of my favorite characters were excluded, and the story was so different, that I didn’t recognize the characters that were “included.” Based on those two experiences, I’ve never even tried Wonder Woman: Earth One or Green Lantern: Earth One. Flash: Earth One and Aquaman Earth One graphic novels were planned at one point, but neither has been printed to date.

But when I decided to give Batman: Earth One Volume 1 a try, I was pleasantly surprised.

First, the creators wisely opted to ignore the Joker right out of the gate. Too many similar projects feel a need to make the Joker the premier Bat villain, and that has led to the Joker being way overused. He’s no longer exciting if he’s everywhere and in every story.

Second, this Gotham was different from previous iterations of Gotham City. Bruce Wayne was different from previous iterations. And Alfred was introduced in a different way. That set the stage for many great changes to come — changes to heroes, to villains and to supporting cast members.

I normally try to keep spoilers to a minimum on this blog, but there will be a few here, especially for the earlier volumes of Batman: Earth One. Stop reading now if you want to avoid spoilers, and just know that I liked the series overall, but the most recent chapter a little less than the others.

******** SPOILER WARNING! ********

You’ve been warned.

The first volume of Batman: Earth One begins with Thomas Wayne running for mayor against a corrupt opponent. His campaign staffers are celebrating some early polling victories when Alred Pennyworth arrives at Wayne Manor. Alfred is a former member of the Royal Marines. He and Thomas Wayne served together or worked together in some unspecific capacity. They forged a friendship, and Thomas has sent for Alfred to head up his campaign security team. But first, Thomas and Martha have promised their young son a night at the movies.

That sense of foreboding you now feel is well-deserved as Bruce’s parents never make it back home from the theater. But rather than being killed by Joe Chill or a random mugger after seeing “The Mark of Zorro,” the Waynes never even see the film they planned to see. Instead, the theater’s electricity is cut before the movie begins, and the Waynes are attacked as they exit the theater through an emergency exit.

Bruce is left an orphan. Alfred, who wasn’t even certain he wanted the security job, now finds out that the Waynes have entrusted Bruce’s care to him in their wills. He feels honor-bound to accept the responsibility to keep the boy from becoming a ward of the state, but he has no real interest or knowledge of caring for a child.

Bruce vows vengeance as readers expect and is firmly convinced that the corrupt mayor was behind the hit on his parents. That mayor — Oswald Cobblepot — wins re-election, at least a couple more times, as he is still the mayor of Gotham when Bruce returns from boarding school a young man with a plan built on revenge.

The Batman that begins his career in this tale is new and inexperienced. He makes some mistakes. He has very few detective skills to draw upon, but he is smart. Alfred thinks the entire idea is ludicrous and tries to talk Bruce out of his plans. When that tactic repeatedly fails, he insists on training Bruce in a number of fighting techniques.

The big bads of that first volume are a new creation called The Birthday Boy and Cobblepot, who I don’t believe is ever referred to as Penguin in the story at all. But there are a number of other familiar names with not-so-familiar backgrounds and roles. Some of these include Jim Gordon, Barbara Gordon, Harvey Bullock, Lucius Fox, Harvey and Jessica Dent and Killer Croc.

The second volume continues the trend of giving readers familiar names and faces, but often throwing them into the mix in unfamiliar ways. For instance, I strongly suspected that Barbara Gordon might become Batgirl in the second volume of the series. She was introduced in Volume 1 and was shown to have a keen interest in the Batman’s activities. Instead, the creative team sidelines her throughout this second story with an educational trip abroad.

The villain of this second installment is the Riddler, but he sets himself up as a punisher of Gotham’s ongoing corruption. Mayor Cobblepot is no longer in the picture, but others have taken his seat of power and continue to benefit off the citizens of the city.

Batman faces off against the Riddler, but he does not do so alone. He continues to grow his team of misfits, or Outsiders, as more familiar names and faces are added to the mix. And along the way, the creators do a bit of foreshadowing that easily telegraphs the villain for the third installment, at least in my mind.

The third and final original graphic novel under the Batman: Earth One banner begins with a new “mystery” villain supplying weapons and materials to all the criminals of Gotham. No secret is made about this being Two-Face; but who is Two-Face? That is the question the characters in this story face. But most any reader who read Volume 2 already knows the answer to this question. There’s no mystery here.

Johns, Franks and the crew try to mask that fact by also adding a long-lost relative of Bruce’s and some Wayne/Arkham family history into the mix. But ultimately, while this is still an engaging read, this third installment in the series feels weaker, in my opinion, because of the too-early reveal.

As I said at the top of this post, this is still a worthwhile read. More familiar faces make an appearance, including some not usually associated with the Batman family of titles. More characters are introduced or fleshed out within the story itself. The wrap-up also shows where the story would likely head next, further expanding Batman’s team of Outsiders and finally bringing the Joker into the mix.

Overall, this is a good series, and the best of the Earth One titles I’ve read. But if I’m being honest, this third installment is the weakest of the Batman series.

The partnership continues for another generation

Batman & Scooby-Doo! Mysteries No. 3 of 12
DC Comics
Creators: Ivan Cohen, Dario Brizuela, Franco Riesco, Saida Temofonte and Michael McCalister
Release date: June 2021

A little shorter post today, but be sure to read to the end for a small announcement.

The Caped Crusader and the canine crime-buster have worked together on many occasions. Batman and Robin first teamed up with Scooby and Mystery Inc. in two episodes of “The New Scooby-Doo! Mysteries” in the early 1970s. The pairing made sense as Hanna-Barbera, the creators of Scooby and the gang also owned the rights to the Super Friends. The reaction was so positive that Batman and Scooby have continued to cross paths on television in more recent shows, including “Batman: The Brave and the Bold” (2009) and “Scooby-Doo and Guess Who?” (2019).

These team-ups have also happened in the comics. Batman and Robin were the first guest stars in the Scooby-Doo! Team-Up comic book that began in 2013, which I discussed on the blog here. The title paired Mystery Inc. with a variety of DC superheroes and other Hanna-Barbera characters during its 50 issue-run, and members of the Bat-family appeared in several of those issues.

Is it any wonder that DC has returned once again to that very popular idea for this new 12-issue limited series?

To be sure, these are simpler stories than one might typically find in a modern Batman comic book. Keeping things fun and light is the entire point. But that doesn’t mean these are childish or dumbed-down stories.

Ivan Cohen does an excellent job capturing the voices of each of the familiar characters, even making this Batman seem to be a believable mix of all past interpretations. Dario Brizuela’s art maintains the cartoony look of the Scooby gang while not making Batman look out of place. Also, Brizuela was the artist on many of the Scooby-Doo! Team-Up issues, so he’s no stranger to this task.

This issue centers around Scooby-Doo and Ace the Bathound being invited to serve as honorary guess judges at a Gotham City dog show. The abundance of two-themed items in the story make it pretty clear for any long-time readers that the villain of this issue is Two-Face, but readers are left to wonder how the heroes will thwart the villain’s schemes.

My only complaint with this issue — or the series so far — is hinted at in the page above. Fred and Velma are missing from the events in the beginning of this issue, although they show up before the end. Read Daphne’s explanation to Batman on the pair’s absence and tell me that wouldn’t have been the perfect moment to at least name-drop Swamp Thing. But sadly, that isn’t the route the writers take.

I have no problem recommending this series to fans of either property as a fun, enjoyable read. And who among us couldn’t use a little more fun in our lives, right?

And now, briefly, to the announcement: I’m going to switch the blog’s frequency to every other week rather than weekly. When I started the blog back up a few months ago, I had a number of comics I wanted to write about, making for a nice backlog of possible posts. But my time to read of late has been a bit more limited. Rather than having the posts become sporadic, I thought I’d try to post a little less often, but still maintain a regular schedule.

So, I hope to see you back here in two weeks for another, somewhat lengthier post. Until then, happy reading, and make sure you are enjoying the comics you are reading. Otherwise, what’s the point?

They were right; this IS a worthwhile read

Preacher Vol. 1: Gone to Texas (collecting issue Nos. 1-7 of the original series)
DC/Vertigo
Creators: Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon
Release date: March 14, 1996

Strap in, folks; it’s a lengthy post today.

I wasn’t much into Vertigo titles in 1996 when Preacher made its debut on comic store shelves. I was in the thick of buying mostly super-hero titles at the time. I was still holding onto buying New Titans in hopes the title would return to its former glory, and I was, of course, picking up Aquaman and Green Arrow at the time. Nightwing’s solo series had not come along quite yet, but most of the other Bat-books were on my pull list, including Robin. I was a regular buyer of the Superman titles at the time. Other DC titles I was grabbing included Damage, Darkstars, Deathstroke, Flash, Green Lantern, Guy Gardner, Legionnaires, Showcase and Wonder Woman. I was also picking up occasional issues of the Spider-Man titles with some regularity, as well as Dark Horse’s Ghost.

That’s not to say I was ignorant of the Vertigo titles. I bought and enjoyed the first several issues of Grant Morrison’s Animal Man before the magazine was even considered a Vertigo title. I was also vaguely aware of Swamp Thing, Sandman and Hellblazer, several other Vertigo greats. Likewise, shortly after the debut of Preacher, when the title really started to generate some buzz, I’d heard of it and had a simple awareness of the title’s existence. It just wasn’t something I had much interest in.

So why am I reading the title now? Because it came highly recommended. Those of you who have been reading this blog for a while know that I also listen to and enjoy a number of fine comics-themed podcasts. I like a number of shows out there and have gotten to know some of the various podcasters through their respective shows and through friending a number of them on Facebook.

I was recently listening to an episode of “Views from the Longbox” by Michael Bailey that featured guest hosts Andrew and Micheal Leyland of “Hey Kids, Comics!” The specific episode was No. 166 from October 15, 2013, and was titled “TC and the Chicken.” On this episode, the three co-hosts discussed the Preacher series in general, and focused specifically on the third story arc, “All In the Family.” All three gentlemen talked about the series in glowing terms.

For instance, Andrew Leyland, while describing the series as “depraved” also said that he followed Ennis and Dillon from Hellblazer to Preacher and considered the pair of creators “one of the best comic book teams ever.”

Leyland continued: “I can see how it wouldn’t be to everybody’s taste, but I think it’s genius. It is the single best piece of work in Vertigo’s history, and one of the best finite comic series ever.”

That’s pretty high praise indeed. And Leyland wasn’t alone in his opinion of the series.

Michael Bailey said, “The strength of the series is Garth Ennis’ ability to have you care about these characters and how he engages you as a reader. Even as messed up as this story can get, at heart, you still like these people and root for them.”

After hearing that kind of praise, I throw the question back: How could I not give it a try?

Again, while these guys talked a lot about the series as a whole in the episode, they focused on the third story arc of the series, specifically issue Nos. 8-12. But I can’t give something a genuine try starting in the middle of the series, so I started with this first trade, collecting the first two story arcs.

I’ve said before that I try to focus this blog on comics that I have enjoyed and can feel good about recommending to someone else. So it should come as no shock to regular readers that I enjoyed this first bit of Preacher very much, otherwise I wouldn’t be writing about it, and you wouldn’t be reading about it here.

Everybody has to decide for themselves about the level of gore, sex and language they want to accept in the comics they read, but I was expecting something a little more graphic from what I’d heard about the series before reading it. Maybe the series will get worse later on, and maybe my expectations were at a level where what I got in this first trade was not as bad as I feared. But I had no problem with what was shown and what happened “off panel.”

For anyone like myself who had not read Preacher before, the title character is Jesse Custer, a small-town Texas preacher who is suffering a bit of a crisis of faith when something miraculous/disastrous happens to him. Jesse’s transformation leaves him merged with Genesis, an angelic/demonic entity recently escaped from captivity in Heaven. The merger leaves Jesse with the Word of God, the ability to command others to do whatever he says, and they have no ability to resist. The merger of Jesse and Genesis leaves the rest of the town dead.

The death of everyone in a small Texas town brings Jesse to the attention of the police, as well as the Saint of Killers, another supernatural entity sent by Heaven to recapture Genesis. By chance, Jesse is first found by Tulip, a former girlfriend Jesse abandoned five years earlier, and Cassidy, an Irish vampire. Tulip and Cassidy first met the day before when Tulip failed at her initial attempt to pay off some debts by becoming a hitperson. Fleeing the ensuing gunfight, Tulip happens on Cassidy and begs for his help getting away.

The first story arc in the first Preacher trade introduces these three major players and the situation they find themselves in. The three fugitives must first deal with their initial pursuers, the Texas authorities and the Saint of Killers. In the course of doing this, they learn that God has left Heaven, and the three decide to seek out God to have a word with him about his behavior. This leads into the second story arc in the trade: Cassidy leads the trio to New York City, where they meet up with an old friend of his and try to gather intel on God’s possible whereabouts. Instead, they end up running afoul of a serial killer.

To be sure, this is some violent content, and there is plenty of swearing in the dialogue. Many people are killed and/or tortured in the course of these two story arcs, and there is a lot of graphic content some may find more disturbing than others. But again, from all I’d heard, I’d expected much worse than I got. I’ve also read Ennis’ later series, The Boys, which is also very violent and graphic. So Preacher didn’t bother me as much as I expected it might. Your tolerance may vary.

One thing that counters the graphic violence is the series’ sense of humor. Ennis can have a biting, nasty edge to his humor at times, too, to be sure, but there are some genuinely touching and simply humorous moments between the characters in this series, especially between the three leads. Ennis writes them as three-dimensional characters, not cookie-cutter caricatures of real people. The writing is often filled with subtle moments that counter the more over-the-top ones. Michael Bailey and the Leylands also mentioned the subtlety in Ennis’ writing for this series in their review, and I very much agree with that assessment after reading this first trade.

I’d never read Preacher before as it never seemed like a good match for my tastes, but after hearing this podcast enthusiastically recommending people give it a try, I decided to do just that. I enjoyed the first trade as I got to meet these three characters on their initial adventures together, and I’m looking forward to reading the next story arc, which Bailey and the Leylands covered so well in their podcast review, and beyond. If you’ve never read the series either, maybe this post will inspire you, too, to try Preacher.

The time was ripe for betting on green

Maestro: War & Pax Nos. 1-5
Marvel Comics
Creators: Peter David, Javier Pina and Jesus Aburtov
Release date: January-May 2021

This series was timed just right to grab my attention.

I’ve long been a fan of the Hulk. I like most of the more “monstrous” Marvel characters like Hulk, Thing, Beast after Hank McCoy sprouted his blue fur, and Nightcrawler. They appeal to me visually, I guess, but I’ve also liked the characterizations of Hulk and Thing a great deal.

When I was a kid, my family watched the Bill Bixby/Lou Ferrigno “Incredible Hulk” television program every week. I also read and very much enjoyed a nice run of Incredible Hulk beginning with issue No. 212 while visiting a friend around that same time in the late 1970s. I’d read some other issues of the character from time to time, but never on any consistent basis.

I also enjoy the writing of Peter David, be it in the form of Star Trek and other prose novels or in comics. I like how he makes his stories character-driven and always includes touches of humor. Some of my favorites among David’s comics writing include Young Justice, Fallen Angel and Supergirl. I’ve long been curious about David’s lengthy run on Incredible Hulk. He lasts a good long time on the title, and it’s a character I like, but I’d always been unsure where to start reading.

I decided to do something about that curiosity several years ago by picking up the first couple Hulk Visionaries: Peter David trades, but then they got dropped on my to-be-read-sometime pile. Last year, I decided it was time to finally satisfy that curiosity and make sure I did the big Hulk read-through by tracking down the rest of the Visionaries series of trades and the Marvel Epic trades that picked up Peter David’s run on the title.

I also picked up a number of back issues from before Peter David’s run and settled in for a lengthy but enjoyable reading project that stretched from Incredible Hulk No. 195 through No. 448. There were some gaps, especially early on, but I revisited that run from my youth and read a number of later issues I truly enjoyed for the first time. And Peter David’s run was mostly complete, including every issue from No. 331 through 448. I was not disappointed. In fact, I enjoyed reading these Hulk adventures so much, I began following the new Immortal Hulk title in trade form as well, and I’m also enjoying Al Ewing’s take on Hulk.

Included in those Incredible Hulk Epic Collection trades of Peter David’s run was the two-part Future Imperfect story arc. This prestige format limited series by Peter David and George Perez was originally released in 1992. I bought and read these issues when they were released and enjoyed the tale of the modern-day Hulk being transported to a dystopian future where he has to fight a twisted version of himself named the Maestro.

Re-reading this series as part of David’s collected Hulk run, I was better able to appreciate the context around which Future Imperfect was written. I got to not only read Future Imperfect again for the first time in a long time, but I was able to see the beginnings of the story slowly develop in the regular monthly title and then explore the repercussions of the limited series on the characters going forward in future issues. Then shortly after I finished reading those collected Hulk editions, it was announced that Peter David was going to return to the concept of the Maestro for more tales nearly 20 years after the original story was printed. Now that’s serendipitous timing.

These new series would focus on how the Maestro came to be, and I was excited to try them. The first of the announced trilogy of miniseries was simply titled Maestro and explained how Hulk came to be alive in this future war-torn time. It also showed how he encountered another familiar face, who was then using the title of the Maestro.

This second series, War & Pax, picks up the story after Hulk has assumed the mantle of the Maestro and shows him coming into opposition with Dr. Doom and the members of the Pantheon, Hulk’s former teammates. I’m sure this was a welcome callback for any fans who first read about the Pantheon 20 years ago, but it was also a nice callback for me, who had just discovered the Pantheon members about 20 months ago, give or take a few weeks.

Both of these first two Maestro series were fun codas to Peter David’s earlier run writing Incredible Hulk. I’m looking forward to the third installment to begin in a few months. And I expect it to be just as much fun.

Pricey but worth the cost of admission

Friend of the Devil hardcover: A Reckless Book
Image Comics
Creators: Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips
Release date: April 2021

Welcome back for another great comics read recommendation. This time out I’m offering up the second hardcover original graphic novel to chronicle the adventures of Ethan Reckless, the latest invention of writer Ed Brubaker and artist Sean Phillips. This creative team has my full confidence; they’ve produced a couple comic series that, while not among my absolute favorite reads, were still solid tales. But they have also produced titles like Scene of the Crime, Criminal and Kill or Be Killed, some of the best comics, in my humble opinion.

The new Reckless series is a little different than these creators’ past offerings. Instead of being released in single-issue format, then later collected in trades, these are full, done-in-one hardcover OGNs, a new one released every few months. That means these books have a little more hefty price tag than most of the comics and trades I usually buy. But again, this creative team has earned my trust, and so far, the Reckless series has not disappointed.

Much of the action in the stories takes place in the 1970s and 1980s, and the action is very reminiscent of television private detective fare from that same era, but told with a definite modern sensibility. So far, both adventures have gone in some very dark directions. This latest volume is more than the surface missing persons case it appears to be as Ethan Reckless follows the trail through various cultists, neo-Nazis and worse. If you enjoy shows like “The Rockford Files” or “Mannix,” then you will like these tales. But also, if you just like a good story that is hard to put down until you’ve finished it, then this still might be just the read you’re looking for.

Celebrate our independence, but safely and quietly, please

 

I'm taking a little break from the comics talk this week in honor of American Independence Day -- the Fourth of July -- this weekend.

I don't wish to dictate the right or wrong way for anyone to celebrate; we all celebrate our independence in our own way. But I do want to make a short appeal on behalf of my own and others' four-legged friends.

Pets don't understand the bright lights and loud noises often associated with July Fourth festivities. In fact, many pets experience stress and are frightened into running away from their owners in fear because of such celebrations. That's not fun at all.

Here are some basic tips to consider when planning your own Fourth events:

- Don't take pets to large fireworks presentations.

- Ensure pets have a safe, comforting retreat away from the noise and lights.

- Monitor pets' behavior during nearby celebrations.

- Never aim fireworks at pets or deliberately try to frighten them.

- Be respectful of neighbors with pets when planning your personal celebrations.

For more on considering pets when planning Fourth activities, visit here and here or Google ideas.

Be safe, everyone, and have a happy Fourth!

Here’s another comic-adjacent project with an interesting sci-fi pedigree

Leonard Nimoy’s PriMortals: Target Earth prose paperback
Aspect Science Fiction/Warner Books
Author: Steve Perry
Release date: March 1998

Leonard Nimoy’s PriMortals was a comic series first published by Tekno Comix beginning in 1995. The actor most known for portraying Spock in "Star Trek: The Original Series," as well as in subsequent films and Trek television series, reportedly got the idea for the series after visiting a SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) installation. Science fiction author Isaac Asimov was credited with adding several more concepts to the narrative, and a variety of comics writers and artists also contributed to bringing the series to life.

A race of aliens called the Paxus Majae visited Earth during the Jurassic age and harvested a number of species from the new planet. In the centuries since, the Majae have elevated the intelligence of those former Earthlings and others from a number of other planets. Zeerus, a criminal Avitaur (think a humanoid pterodactyl), escapes from Majae custody and heads back to his native Earth in the late 1990s in a stolen spacecraft. His goal is to trick humans into helping him fight the Majae, who are likely following him.

I was curious about a number of the Tekno Comix titles including Gene Roddenberry’s Lost Universe, Isaac Asimov’s I-Bots, Mickey Spillane’s Mike Danger and others. Most of the company’s initial offerings focused on the concepts and contributions of known authors and celebrities, and I must confess, their strategy worked on me.

The comic version of Leonard Nimoy's PriMortals followed Zeerus as he makes first contact with a number of humans on Earth. Zeerus is indeed pursued by representatives of the Majae, chief among them a being known as PriMaster, who looked like a slightly more alien Martian Manhunter to me. The story was indeed interesting and lasted for 15 issues before Tekno Comix changed its name in 1997 to Big Entertainment and relaunched most of its existing titles with new numbering.

The second volume of PriMortals lasted nine more issues, plus a two-issue limited series and a few one-shots. The story never ended, but as I recall, Zeerus made planetfall on Earth, followed by PriMaster and his entire crew, drastically changing mankind’s view of our place in the cosmos as well as throwing the planet into the middle of an interstellar conflict.

As I said, the story never ended. Instead Big Entertainment stopped publishing its comics titles. While I liked the series when it was coming out, the lack of an ending caused me to lose interest over time, and many of the Tekno and Big Entertainment titles I once owned have since been sold off to other comics readers.

Just before Big Entertainment stopped publishing comics, however, this prose paperback novel appeared on book store shelves in March 1998. The story is much the same as I remember the comics portraying, but this must have been intended to be the first of a series of novels, fleshing out only the earliest stages of the comic tale. Many of the characters in this novel were also in the comic series, but their respective stories are much more detailed, and this novel makes for an interesting read.

As the escaped Zeerus enters our solar system, he send a message to Earth. It will still take the Avitaur nearly six months to travel to our planet, but he wants to reach out, establish contact and begin his manipulation of humans as soon as possible before PriMaster arrives. Among the human characters are Stewart Davies, a college student, computer game designer and part-time SETI worker, who first receives and de-codes Zeerus’ message; Jake Holcroft, the young computer hacker who stumbles on the top-secret communications; Major Steve Hayes, the Army officer charged with tracking down Jake; General Larry Hightower, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the United States; and Hightower’s girlfriend, White House Chief of Staff Laurie Sherman.

The novel focuses on Zeerus’ and humanity’s preparations for this historic first contact and ends when the giant Avitaur lands his craft on Earth. PriMaster and a few members of his crew are mentioned in flashback thoughts Zeerus has to give the reader Zeerus’ background, but the tale is really just getting started when this nearly 300-page book comes to an end. I’ve looked for subsequent books in the series, but while Steve Perry has authored many other novels, this is the only PriMortals book I have ever found besides the comics themselves.

Having said that, Target Earth is still an excellent read that held my interest despite my already being familiar with the story being told. It has my heartiest recommendation, and if anyone connected with Big Entertainment is still out there looking, I would be interested in more of the story.

Switching from trades to comics-adjacent

Justice Society: World War II Blu-ray
DC Animated Universe movie
Creators: Jeff Wamester, Jeremy Adams and Meghan Fitzmartin
Release date: May 2021

I’ve talked about a number of trades in the past few weeks. This week, I’d like to turn the focus to the latest DC Animated Universe direct-to-DVD — or in this case, Blu-ray — Justice Society: World War II. And let me warn readers right off that there will be some spoilers in this post. Generally, I try to avoid spoilers so new readers can experience the material fresh. In this case, I can’t really address some of what I’d like to say without some spoilers. You have been warned.

I’m also going to say right from the beginning that I very much enjoyed this film. I want there to be no mistake about that despite me leveling a few criticisms of the movie in the following paragraphs. I’ve said before that I prefer to focus this blog on celebrating the good in comics, not on the bad. This movie is good despite a few quibbles.

I’ve long liked the Justice Society, and the promise of an adventure following this group set firmly in the World War II era sounded like an excellent idea to me. I enjoyed some of the brief flashbacks to this era in the Justice League cartoon, and this film goes those one better, ramping up the action and the consequences of war, as viewers would expect from a feature movie rather than a 30-minute episode. This Justice Society is led by Wonder Woman and includes Hourman, Hawkman, the Flash and Black Canary. They also are joined by Steve Trevor and a couple other cameo heroes I won’t spoil here, except to say kudos to the creative team for tying in the Showcase Short moreso than I have seen a previous DCAU film do.

*** SPOILERS BEGIN NOW ***

The cover art for this movie offers one of the first spoilers, i.e. the inclusion of the modern-age Barry Allen Flash alongside the other golden-age heroes. Yep, this is a time-travel story, sort of. While the framing sequence of Barry and Iris West traveling to Metropolis for a picnic leads to a team-up between Flash and Superman, Flash’s unplanned trip to meet the Justice Society, and serves to inspire Flash to suggest a Justice League of heroes upon his return to his own place and time, I wish the creators of this film had simply told the Justice Society tale and let it stand on its own. The title says this is the Justice Society fighting during World War II. The framing sequence is nice, but unnecessary.

My other quibble involves the inclusion of Aquaman in this film. Again, the package art for the Blu-ray spoils this as Arthur Curry is prominently displayed on the back cover of the jewel case. I like the touch of giving Aquaman the yellow gloves the golden-age Marine Marvel is usually depicted with. I also like the fact that one of my favorites is included here when he easily might not have been. His inclusion is one of the reasons I was anxious to see this film when it was released.

What I wasn’t as thrilled to see is Aquaman’s inclusion as an ally of the Nazis, albeit a mind-controlled unwitting pawn. It’s not so much that he was mind-controlled into helping the Nazis; that kinda thing happens to superheroes a lot. They eventually shake off the mind-control and redeem themselves. Aquaman was denied this heroic turn in this film. He almost shakes off the mind control once or twice, but ultimately fails until the very end of the film. Then, instead of redeeming himself, he runs away in shame and is not seen again for the rest of the film. That hurts.

It reminds me of a couple other recent story arcs in the comics that I have enjoyed overall despite unkind characterizations of Aquaman in the process of telling said tales. The first is the “Legacy” six-part story from Justice League Rebirth Nos. 26-31. The other is Aquaman’s characterization in the Flashpoint reality from the limited series of the same name. Neither series had very flattering portrayals of one of my favorite heroes, and I hope this trend does not continue.

But again, overall, I think this film is good and well worth a watch.

It’s an intense, worthwhile package

Batman: Creature of the Night tpb
DC Comics
Creators: Kurt Busiek and John Paul Leon
Release date: May 2021

I had pretty low expectations when I pre-ordered the trade collection of this miniseries. Not because I have been disappointed previously by the creative team. I was not familiar at all with John Paul Leon’s art, and I’ve rather enjoyed a number of projects written by Kurt Busiek, so no problems there.

I’ve read several other tales loosely based around a particular comics character’s mythology yet supposedly based entirely in the real world, without super-powered heroes. The conceit has yielded some good stories and some I haven’t cared much for.

This story focuses on Bruce Wainwright, a normal boy in the aforementioned real world who loves Batman comics, based in part by the similarity of his own name to that of his hero. But when crime makes Bruce an orphan, he becomes obsessed with the idea of Batman preventing crimes like the one that took his family from him. He wrestles with the unfairness of life and a yearning for a vigilante who can tip the scales in favor of justice. Bruce wishes so strongly for such a hero to exist that one suddenly, inexplicably does.

This story is populated by a number of other similarities between Bruce’s life and that of his comic book hero’s — some of the similarities are real while others are conveniently created by Bruce himself. These parallels don’t really detract from the story or stretch a reader’s suspension of disbelief too much, simply because Bruce himself is aware of his tendency to “create” some of them.

Rather the young boy’s intensity of emotion, his earnest yearning for justice and a hero who can make the world right with his fists and his intellect draw the reader in and make him or her hope right along with the protagonist. John Paul Leon’s moody illustrations emphasize that very intensity and passion. Even the back matter, of which this trade includes a lot, enhances the experience of this book.

This was a truly enjoyable read I did not want to put down until I finished it. If you enjoy a good Batman story, I think you’ll like this one, too. Give it a try, and let me know what you think.

More early adventures of the first kid sidekick

Showcase Presents Robin, the Boy Wonder tpb
DC Comics
Creators: Too many to mention
Release date: 2008

I marveled recently about how Robin, the Boy Wonder, had a number of solo adventures in Star-Spangled Comics as early as the 1940s and 1950s. Dick Grayson is one of my all-time favorite characters, and I had not known that he headlined his own solo series that far back. Those stories are collected in the Robin Archives Volumes 1 and 2.

I bought this giant phone-book sized black-and-white trade paperback collection when it came out back in 2008, but at that time, trades like this one were tossed onto a pile of stuff to read when I had more time. I decided to make the time after reading those Robin Archives volumes, and I’m glad I did.

This collection covers stories from the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s. It begins with a re-telling of Robin’s origin from Batman No. 213 from 1969. From there, it drops back to 1964 for World’s Finest Comics No. 141 and the formation of a Robin-Jimmy Olsen team. The junior partners fake their own deaths in an effort to aid their respective mentors.

Several other Robin-Jimmy Olsen team-ups follow from the pages of World’s Finest Comics and Superman’s Pal Jimmy Olsen, as well as Robin solo stories and team-ups with Batman, Batgirl, Superman and the Teen Titans from the pages of World’s Finest Comics, Batman and Detective Comics.

The adventures also see the Boy Wonder leave high school and Wayne Manor for the campus of Hudson University and the new name, the Teen Wonder. There’s even a two-part adventure with the Justice League of America and the Justice Society of America in 1971 in issue Nos. 91 and 92 of the League’s own title. That last even has the Earth-1 Dick Grayson meet his Earth-2 counterpart and briefly adopt a new costume.

As sometimes happens with Silver-Age stories, some of these tales seem a bit dated now. But most all of them are fun reads showing the continuing growth and development of a classic comics character. I’m definitely calling this a worthwhile purchase!

This is a fresh start I can get behind

Werewolf By Night: New Wolf Rising tpb
Marvel Comics
Creators: Taboo, B. Earl, Scot Eaton, Scott Hanna and Miroslav Mrva
Release date: April 2021

I’m a werewolf fan; the wolfman is my favorite among the various great Universal monsters. Always has been.

I don’t recall when I first learned of the Marvel Comics character Werewolf By Night/Jack Russell, but the great Mike Ploog art was surely a part of that first exposure. I have all of that first run of the character in my collection now thanks to the Marvel Essentials series of black-and-white reprints.

There have been some attempts to update the Jack Russell/Werewolf By Night character, either in the pages of Marvel Comics Presents or self-titled miniseries throughout the 1990s and early 2000s, but I never much cared for those stories. They often seemed to focus more on gore and killings, things I’m not really a fan of in my horror fiction.

I heard some good things about this title in single issues. I wasn’t entirely sure I would like a Werewolf By Night updating without the Jack Russell character at all, but making a new werewolf character a Native American youth and setting the adventure in the southwest was intriguing. I decided to give the mini a try in trade format, and I was pleasantly surprised by the result.

This series doesn’t ignore Jack Rusell’s history; although the previous WBN title character does not actually appear, he is name dropped a few times. The story of 17-year-old Jake and how he chooses to deal with the family curse that afflicts him is interesting. But the creators here also throw in a classic Marvel western character, Red Wolf, and a secret group of bad guys genetically experimenting on folks.

It all adds up to a very solid read with some beautifully nice artwork. Like a lot of modern comics, this story doesn’t actually come to a final resolution in these four issues. Rather it sets up events that may or may not continue in a future series or another title. I hope to see more of this new Werewolf By Night cast of characters.

I’m back, these creators are back and these villains are bad

Dear Super-Villains 
DC Comics 
Creators: Michael Northrop and Gustavo Duarte 
Release date: April 2021 

Hello, Kiddie Cops, and welcome back to the first new blog post in a spell.

I initially stopped posting here for two reasons. First, I’d recently started a new job that was taking up more of my time. Second, my comics buying was dropping to very few titles at the time, and I was getting a little worried that I might be just talking about the same handful of titles over and over again. I didn’t want the blog to suffer because of that.

Jump ahead almost two years, and I’m still not really buying that many new monthly comics. But I am still buying and enjoying a handful of new titles every month. My decreased regular pull list has allowed me to try some new things. And buying fewer new comics each month has allowed me time to read some of the many, many comics, trades and more that I’ve purchased over the years but never had a chance to read before and to finally re-read some favorites I haven’t explored again in several years.

Now, this blog has always been about celebrating comics that I love. You try some new things and not every one of them is going to be to your liking. But I don’t want to dwell on comics I don’t like. If I didn’t like it, why spend more time with it and make myself continue to feel bad about it? I’d much rather give a shout out to creators, characters and projects I enjoyed in an attempt to help others discover the same delight for themselves.

And I’ve found myself doing just that over the last several months again. I just wasn’t doing the celebrating here. I was writing much shorter bits of praise for some recently read comics, then sharing those thoughts on other platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. In the past few months, I’ve shared praise for books like The Marvels Project by Ed Brubaker and Steve Epting; Batman Universe by Brian Michael Bendis and Nick Derington; Point of Impact by Jay Faerber, Koray Kuranel and Charles Pritchett; The Booster Gold hardcovers – The Big Fall and Future Lost – by Dan Jurgens; Pulp by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips; the two Robin Archives from DC Comics; Infinite Frontier Nightwing by Tom Taylor, Bruno Redondo and Adriano Lucas; and Somerset Holmes by Bruce Jones, Brent Anderson, April Campbell and Ed King.

There’s nothing really wrong with posting about comics on those platforms. I’m sure I will continue to do so. But my comics-related posts on those platforms were mixed in with other kinds of posts – politics and job and family and real life, those kinds of things – and not likely to be seen by too many people outside my immediate circle of followers and friends.

At one point, this blog had a decent following, and if I start posting regularly again, it may have more of an audience again, giving my attempts to promote good comics a potentially wider audience.

Which brings us to this digest-sized modern original graphic novel, a sequel to the popular book I reviewed in my last post here nearly two years ago. Once again, the book focuses on some inquisitive youngsters who email their questions to super-villains this time instead of the members of the Justice League. As you can likely tell from the image above, the villains featured include Harley Quinn, Lex Luthor, Catwoman, Grodd, Giganta, Sinestro, Black Manta, and for some reason, Katana.

Michael Northrop’s words and Gustavo Duarte’s illustrations make for a whimsical, fun follow-up tale to Dear Justice League that I heartily recommend. To my taste, this volume was a little more loose than the first volume, but what do you expect from a group of villains all vying for the top spot? They’re not going to act the same as the heroes, obviously.

Dear Super-Villains is absolutely another fun read. Check back soon for something else from the realm of comics that I’ve recently read and believe might be worth your time to check out.

A refreshingly fun palate-cleansing read

Dear Justice League
DC Comics
Creators: Michael Northrup and Gustavo Duarte
Release date: August 2019

I just finished this delightfully entertaining and fun graphic novel. That’s right; it was a fun read. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Comics can be fun. They should be fun. There’s no reason you can’t have a serious, griping, nail-biter of a story; I’m not saying those are bad. But if comics aren’t fun to read, what’s really the point?

Dear Justice League is based on the idea of young children writing to their favorite heroes and asking them questions. Most chapters focus on a single hero and his or her response to a different question. But the book also features a plot that runs through its entirety that has the Justice League fighting an alien insectoid invasion. The threat allows the heroes to demonstrate what makes them super while never rising to a “scary” level that might frighten younger readers. And the children’s questions and the heroes’ answers are delightful and well-reasoned to fit their most basic personality traits.

The Justice League for this adventure is made up of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Flash, Hawkgirl, Cyborg and Green Lantern Simon Baz. It’s a nice mix of personalities while still in keeping with recognizable faces and power sets.

Dear Justice League is the latest of these thick, digest-sized original graphic novels DC has been putting out targeted at a middle-school audience, but they are just as appropriate for any age. I loved the book, and after telling her about it, my 8-year-old daughter wants to read it next, or better yet, have me read it to her. She’s old enough to read it on her own, but she’s still at the age where she likes to have my wife or I read to her, too, and this type of book makes that easy.

I know she could easily read it herself because I know my daughter, of course, but also because she has been checking out and reading the Secret Hero Society series of books from her school library. These are more of these DC digest OGNs that place teenaged versions of Bruce Wayne, Diana Prince and Clark Kent together in a Gotham City high school setting with several other familiar faces. My daughter has already read “Study Hall of Justice” and “Detention of Doom.” Other titles in the series include “Field Trip Disaster,” “Science Fair Crisis” and “Fort Solitude.” I just found out about the other books in the series myself, and when I told her about them, her eyes lit up and she yelled with excitement.

I’ve also seen her bring home dragon-themed books from the school library. These were also graphic novels, specifically Dragon Girl: The Secret Valley by Jeff Weigel and Wings of Fire Book II: The Lost Heir by Tui T. Sutherland and Mike Holmes. What can I say? I’m trying to raise her to love reading and embrace all forms of storytelling.

This is how we get a new generation of readers interested in comics, folks; make it fun for them!

His inclusion was a nice bonus

Batman Beyond Vol. 5: The Final Joke
DC Comics
Creators: Dan Jurgens, Brett Booth, Norm Rapmund, Cully Hamner, Marco Santucci, Evan “Doc Shaner, Andrew Dalhouse, Val Staples, Jordie Bellaire, Travis Lanham, Viktor Kalvachev
Release Date: July 2019

My history with “Batman Beyond” has been very bumpy.

I was curious when the concept for the new television show was announced in the later 1990s, and I tuned in for the series debut in January 1999. The opening scenes with an aging Batman were thrilling, and it was a nice nod to continuity that Neo Gotham still had a Police Commissioner Gordon in the future. But I wasn’t completely convinced by Terry McGinnis as the new Batman, and I wasn’t a fan of the techno-influenced music that ran throughout the show and its theme song.

I gave the next few episodes a try. Some of the villains were more interesting than the Jokerz gang from the premiere, and it was nice to see the Royal Flush Gang was still around; they’ve always been a favorite villain team for me. But there just wasn’t enough to hook me full-time on the show. I pronounced it “Not my Batman” and moved on.

I grew curious from time to time when I would read that the show was popular in various comic magazines or online. But I stayed away until after the show ended and it was controversially tied into the animated Justice League continuity. My reaction to that episode was mixed, but it prompted me to buy the entire series on DVD, although I still haven’t watched all of the episodes.

I also had very mixed reactions to the direct-to-video “Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker” movie in 2000. It was fun to see the Joker back facing an aged Batman and his new protégé, but I did not care for how that film treated Tim Drake or how it mashed together his and Jason Todd’s origins and stories.

With all of that, I don’t think I’ve ever picked up an issue of the comics based on the concept. But I’ve again been curious a time or two. I’d heard interesting things about this arc, focusing as it does once again on the return of the Joker to Neo Gotham. And I know I’ve mentioned before that I am a fan of Dan Jurgens. So I decided to give this trade a try.

I was not disappointed. This was a solid story with some nice added bonuses. For one thing, we got the genuine, real deal Joker this time. We also have Terry’s younger brother, Matt, assuming the role of Robin. All of that I knew going into this trade. The best bonus of all, though, was the inclusion of the mayor of Bludhaven, Dick Grayson, in this story. That was a pleasant surprise.

One of my complaints about “Batman Beyond” on television was that I had always wondered what became of Dick. I believe he was name-dropped in the pilot episode when Commissioner Barbara Gordon fills Terry McGinnis in on her history with Batman. But what she said was vague. I don’t believe Dick ever appeared previously in either the show or one of the comics. He’s one of my favorite characters; I always wanted to know what became of him in this continuity.

There are still questions here regarding the former Nightwing and first Robin. For instance, there is no mention of a spouse, but Dick’s adult daughter, Elainna, also appears. Dick and his daughter are not relegated to mere cameos either. Both play pretty prominent roles in this tale. Enough so that I really do wonder if this is Dick’s first appearance in the world of Batman Beyond, if Jurgens has used him in a previous arc, or if some other creative team first dreamed this up, and this crew is simply building on what has gone before.

Someone please leave a comment if you know more about Dick’s role in Batman Beyond; I’d appreciate the info. But either way, this was a fun read, and this trade has made me seriously think about hunting down more of Jurgens’ run on the title.

Something to watch you might find interesting

“Batman: The Scheme Is Sound”
Parkview Elementary School (Van Buren, AR) Music Club
Release date: 2019

 
It has been a crazy couple of weeks, both personally and professionally, and I haven’t had as much time as I would like to read or blog about what I have been reading. Along comes this group of talented fourth- and fifth-grade students to save the day, once again completing a project that touches on topics near and dear to my heart.

The Parkview Elementary Music Club videos are pretty famous in this part of the country, and they have garnered some celebrity attention for their efforts in the past. But there may still be parts of the nation and world who are unfamiliar with these talented students.

Each year, they complete a video project employing acting ability, singing talent, choreography and so much more. Last year’s project was the Easter-themed “The Adventures of the U.S.S. Parkview: A Star Trek Fan Film.” It followed the crew of the starship Parkview as they tried to free the kidnapped Easter bunny from a crew of ruthless Klingon warriors. That was when I first heard of the group. Among the luminaries who applauded the students for their video was William Shatner, who tweeted that the video was “impressive.”

This year, the students created “Batman: The Scheme Is Sound,” a video modeled after the cast and themes from the campy 1966 “Batman” television program. All the favorites are there from Batman and Robin to villains Riddler, Penguin, Catwoman and Joker, heroic associates like Commissioner Gordon, Chief O’Hara, Alfred, Aunt Harriet, the Batmobile, Stately Wayne Manor, and even Bruce and Dick and their “fishing trips.”

Check out the Parkview video channel on YouTube for these and many other hilarious, nostalgia-filled, fun videos. They’re great!

A fine sendoff for Ms. Cruz

Green Lanterns Vol. 9: Evil’s Might
DC Comics
Creators: Dan Jurgens, Mike Perkins, Marco Santucci, Scott Hanna, Hi-Fi, Andy Troy, Pete Pantazis, David Sharpe and Wil Quintana
Release date: June 2019

I guess you could say that I’m a Jessica Cruz fan.

My first exposure to the character was her debut in the pages of Justice League (The New 52 version) No. 31 during the “Forever Evil” event. She was created by Geoff Johns and Ethan Van Sciver. Now, for the purists among you, I know her true first appearance was in The New 52 Green Lantern series, issue No. 20, a few months earlier. But that was just a closeup on her hand, and I didn’t read that issue. So, I was first exposed to Jessica Cruz in Justice League when she appeared in full view both on the cover and the interior.

Jessica stood out among Earth’s many Green Lanterns for a number of reasons. She had issues before taking possession of a power ring; she was introduced as someone so very agoraphobic that she could no longer leave her apartment. Her natural anxiety was only increased when an alien ring from an alternate universe tried to assume control of her life. That’s right, Jessica’s first ring was from the Crime Syndicate’s Power Ring. The Latina heroine was at first terrified of the power the ring gave her and the control of her life it sought in return.

I continued to follow the character in the pages of Justice League. She gained confidence alongside the other heroes of the League while also briefly dating the Flash. She was a fine addition to the team at that time. When the “Rebirth” era came along after The New 52, Jessica and the other newbie GL, Simon Baz, both became stars of their own title, Green Lanterns, with an “s,” and Jessica was also one of the stars to headline the new title Justice League Odyssey following the “No Justice” story arc. As much as I liked the character, though, neither of these titles held my attention for long.

Enter Dan Jurgens, a writer and artist whose work I very much enjoy. Jurgens was the writer of Green Lanterns when that title recently ended. I’d been curious to try the title again when Jurgens took over the writing chores, but “Evil’s Might” was the first arc to really grab my attention. This storyline featured not only Jurgens’ writing, Mike Perkins’ fine art style and Jessica Cruz as one of the lead characters, but it also promised a story featuring the return of Hank Henshaw, the Cyborg Superman, a character created by Jurgens way back in 1990 in Adventures of Superman No. 465.

I’m not really giving away spoilers about the big bad of the story since he appears on the cover of this trade. Cyborg Superman is one of those villains I love to hate. He’s right down there with Black Manta, Solomon Grundy and Gentleman Ghost as one of my “favorite” villains. And he’s a great choice for a villain to face off against the entire GL Corps and the Guardians with his ability to access and manipulate any kind of technology. Cyborg Superman, imprisoned in the Arctic Fortress of Solitude, manages to gain access to the Guardians’ central power battery on Mogo and through it, nearly all of the thousands of GLs across the universe.

This trade did not disappoint. The story features not just Jessica, but the entire GL Corps, in a gripping story that held my attention and kept me turning the pages. Perkins’ art was gorgeous to look at. But the real attention grabber is how this volume ends, nicely showcasing Jessica’s growth since “Forever Evil.” At the end of this story, she announces that she feels she has grown enough and is confident enough to leave Earth and seek other adventures and discoveries among the stars.

Perhaps this was meant to explain how she is alone out in space at the beginning of Justice League Odyssey. I prefer to think of her boldly exploring, overcoming the fears that once held her captive back when she was stuck in her apartment. I wish her Godspeed on her explorations and hope this is not the last we see of this fine character.

To trade or not to trade

Superman/Wonder Woman Vols. 1 and 2 (Power Couple/War and Peace)
DC Comics
Creators: Charles Soule and Tony S. Daniel
Release dates: 2013/2014

I picked up these two trades during a recent trip to the library with my family. I wasn’t overly interested in the New 52 versions of either Superman or Wonder Woman, so I didn’t much care when this new title was announced amid the hype surrounding the blossoming relationship between the two heroes. But I thought I would give these two trades a try after seeing them among the growing graphic novel section at our local library.

The first volume is all about Superman and Wonder Woman exploring their new dynamic, and it tells a nice little story about the pair, how they interact with each other and the world, and how their respective world views differ from each other. All of that is juxtaposed nicely against the action scenes that start out with a surprise return by Doomsday, progress into an attack by Kryptonians Zod and Faora, and end with the renewed threat presented by the still free Doomsday.

While some of writer Charles Soule’s scene transitions can be a bit jarring, this is mostly an enjoyable read that moves along at a brisk pace. It was an entertaining read that gave me a satisfying chunk of story despite continuing into another trade. And Tony Daniel’s art is very pretty to look at. The New 52 Superman’s hair always seems too spiky to me, but that is “on model” for the character at this time. Daniel’s Wonder Woman and Lois Lane are drawn beautifully. I’m very glad I decided to check this trade out, and it is a good example of what a collected edition of a modern comic can be.

Then everything went off the rails.

The Doomsday teasers at the end of the first volume and my enjoyment at reading that trade had me glad I had borrowed both volumes from the library. I was eager to continue with the story. But I was immediately lost. The fight with Doomsday was already over when the second trade begins, and Superman is suffering severe aftereffects of that battle.

I went back and looked to see if I was missing issues not collected, but that wasn’t the case. The first trade collects the first seven issues of Superman/Wonder Woman. The second begins with issue No. 8. That’s when I recalled that a storyline around this time and focusing on Doomsday had run through all of the various Superman titles at the time, but none of these other titles were collected in either of these volumes. There weren’t even any editor’s notes or other indications beyond my own memory as to where to look for the missing pieces of the story.

And the gaps didn’t stop there. More of the story apparently took place in other Superman titles between Superman/Wonder Woman Nos. 8, 9 and 10. I was only getting pieces of a multi-title crossover. There was a text page at the beginning of each of these issues masquerading as a Daily Planet article from Lois Lane that might have served to keep readers in the know at the time, but they did little to address the missing action from the trade.

Rather than a cohesive narrative, this second trade gave me interesting snippets of a story, but no matter how well-crafted the snippets were, they just reinforced the notion that there was much more I was missing. As good as the first trade was, as enjoyable as it was to read, the second volume seemed more like a train wreck than a story.

This second trade also collects two Future’s End stories published at the time that have nothing to do with the Doomsday/Brainiac storyline that picks up from the end of the first trade. DC editorial should have excised those tales and left them for another trade, and instead focused on giving readers the complete Doomsday/Brainiac tale that is severely truncated here to very ill effect. Otherwise, they seem to be telling readers who bought the trade, “You’re lost? Sorry. Guess you should have bought all the various issues of the crossover instead.” Not cool.

Glad I gave it a try

Cover tpb Vol. 1
Jinxworld/DC Comics
Creators: Brian Michael Bendis, David Mack, Zu Orzu, Bill Sienkiewicz and Michael Avon Oeming
Release date: May 2019

The advance solicits for this series caught my eye with its mixture of comics culture and international spycraft. Add in the creative team of Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack, and I was very curious. The fact that the narrative was a fictionalized version based on some actual events from David Mack’s life was just icing. And now that I’ve held the book in my hands and read its contents, I can attest that it did not disappoint.

Mack writes the graphic novel’s foreword and tells a bit about the real-world events that both inspired and led to this book’s creation. As I’m already recommending you go and buy Cover, I’ll let him tell those details for anyone who follows my recommendation and heads to their LCS.

As for the fictionized story, it follows fictional comic book artist Max Field, who is gaining no small renown for his latest creation, “Ninja Sword Odyssey.” Suddenly, he finds himself being recruited by a government spy who wants Field to engage in some basic spycraft under the cover of attending international comic conventions. The novelty and thrill of being a covert spy, however, quickly takes a dangerous turn for Field as he learns that his recruitment is not a unique situation and that not everyone is recruited by the same side.

I’m usually more of a story consumer, and it’s no secret that Bendis can weave quite a story when he is hitting on all cylinders as he is in this book. I’m sure Mack also had a hand in the writing chores here as this is his story. But I have to give a lot of credit where it’s due on the art side of this book, too. Mack uses a more traditional comic book cartooning style for much of this book than I am used to seeing from him, but that feels right in the passages about the conventions and the fictional creator’s everyday life. Mack’s excellent painting skills are also expertly showcased in the sequences of “Ninja Sword Odyssey” that are presented here, and also show up from time to time in the more intense moments of Field’s life (as depicted above). Bill Sienkiewicz and Michael Avon Oeming also lend their talents to portions of the book that need additional styles to further differentiate portions of the narrative. So the art style truly follows and shapes the story being told in different ways at different times in this book.

Overall, it adds up to a very nice, engaging package that was a joy to read. Well done, all!

She’s getting ready for her TV debut … and so am I

Stumptown Vol. 1 hardcover (The Case of the Girl Who Took her Shampoo (But Left her Mini)
Oni Press
Creators: Greg Rucka, Matthew Southworth, Lee Loughridge and Rico Renzi
Release date: March 2011

In case you haven’t yet heard, Greg Rucka’s and Matthew Southworth’s creation Stumptown is headed to ABC as a television pilot sometime this next season. The pilot will star Cobie Smulders as the main protagonist, Portland, Oregon, private investigator Dex Parios.

I don’t have any experience with Southworth’s art, at least not that I can recall, but Rucka is one of my favorite writers. I have followed his comics work on titles like Gotham Central, Batman, Adventures of Superman, Wonder Woman and Queen and Country, even following that last series into some of his prose work. He is well known as a writer who can easily handle strong female characters. I can’t argue with that assessment, but I think he handles most of the characters he writes with skill and an ear for dialogue and consistent characterization.

I purchased this first volume of Stumptown a couple years ago with a few other independent graphic novels Rucka authored with the intent of trying them out. They went on that ever-growing “sometime” pile and stayed there. That is, until the announcement of the new pilot made me decide to move this particular hardcover to the top of the stack. It did not disappoint.

Dex is a typical P.I. in the vein of Jim Rockford of television’s “The Rockford Files”; she has a good heart, a lot of brains, a quick wit and really crappy luck. That crappy luck extends to the gambling table, where Dex has racked up quite a debt to the house at the beginning of this story. The owner of the casino, Sue-Lynne Suppa, agrees to forgive Dex’s debt if Dex will find Sue-Lynne's missing granddaughter. This first hardcover includes all four issues of the initial Stumptown series as Dex tries to track down the missing 18-year-old despite opposition from several sides. Players in opposition to Dex seem to know immediately the case Dex is investigating before she has any chance to uncover who or why someone might want to harm the missing girl. Rucka weaves an engaging whodunit that takes readers along for the ride as Dex tries to finally make sense of the forces lined up against her.

Southworth’s art is dark and moody, which suits a title like this one, without being “muddy” like some dark comics can tend to get. Loughridge’s and Renzi’s colors help with the atmosphere, as well. They keep the color palette simple and sparse, except when a few carefully placed bright colors are needed to emphasize a dramatic panel or two.

If you haven’t tried Stumptown and like P.I. fiction, I heartily recommend this volume. I plan to seek out the subsequent three volumes in the very near future, and I also plan to give “Stumptown” a watch on television when it debuts.