Adam Graham's Blog: Christians and Superheroes, page 37

Book Review: Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor, Vol. 9: Vortex Butterflies

Doctor Who: The Tenth Doctor, Vol. 9: Vortex Butterflies by Nick Abadzis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Vortex Butterflies begins with the Doctor, Gabby, and Cindy are mopping with Cindy saying goodbye to her clones who are probably her ancestors. The Doctor drops Cindy and Gabby off and goes off to deal with anomaly he doesn't if they can handle, but is that why she's leaving Cindy and Gabby in London with Sarah Jane or is there another reason, and why has Gabby almost become a secondary companion even though she's been with the Doctor longer.

This book has great art as well as a good story that ties into the relationship these characters have. As you might be able to tell you from the Volume 9, this is definitely not an entry point book. It's heavy on continuity and you have to appreciate what's come before. Still, this penultimate book does a good job setting the stage for the finale.



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Book Review: Batman Beyond Vol. 2: Rise of the Demon

Batman Beyond Vol. 2: Rise of the Demon by Dan Jurgens

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book collects Issues 6-12 of Batman: Beyond

In the main story in issues 6-11, Terry and Bruce are re-united after Terry was missing and Bruce was assumed dead but quickly find themselves thrown into a crisis. Terry's wearing a dangerous prototype Batsuit that will ensure Batman always wins even if Batman has to kill , but has no time to return to the Batcave because a crisis is coming involving the league of assassins now under command of Damian Wayne, the former Robin.

This book works on both an action level and a character level. There were some great fights between Terry and Damian that are well-drawn and packed with surprises. The big thing was the character relationship, particularly between Bruce and Terry. Unlike most other Batman Beyond writers, Dan Jurgens wasn't afraid to have the relationship change and Bruce actually learn after so many years of stupid decisions. I also think the fight between Terry and Damian really puts some great conflict for Bruce.

The final issue is a one-shot. It's an okay story with Max, Commissioner Barbara Gordon, and the new Batgirl teaming up. The main purpose it serves is showing that the Batgirl Beyond created in the DCAU comics is now part of the DCU continuity.

Overall, a pretty good installment in this series.



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Book Review: Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man: Ultimate Collection, Book 3

Miles Morales: Ultimate Spider-Man: Ultimate Collection, Book 3 by Brian Michael Bendis

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Miles Morales deals with Cataclysm, the seeming return of Peter Parker and Green Goblin, learns his dad's backstory, and reveals his secret identity to someone close to him and faces the consequences.

The plot isn't groundbreaking, but the artwork is solid even beautiful at times. The art on the big battle against Green Goblin is epic and the entire book is pleasing to look at, even though the artist chooses some boring blank backgrounds at times

The characters also make this a winner. Characters like Ultimate J Jonah Jamison, Maria Hill, and Cloak and Dagger make the book lively and entertaining. The return of Peter Parker also serves to provide some good human drama.

My big complaint about the story is that some questions, particularly about the seeming return of Peter Parker aren't answered, and Bendis' dialogues goes overboard (as Bendis is apt to do.) Still, this is a worthwhile read to wrap up Miles' as the Ultimate Spider-man.



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Book Review: Trinity Vol. 2: Dead Space

Trinity Vol. 2: Dead Space by Francis Manapul

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This book collects issues 7-11 of Trinity, the comic featuring Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman.

Issue 7 doesn't feature our heroes at all but rather some of their most noted villains: Ra's al Ghul, Circe and Lex Luthor they meet somewhere and talk and set up a story several issues down the line.

Issue 8 is a one-shot in the aftermath of Superman: Rebirth that is a very talky story between our heroes.

The final three issues find them on the Watchtower where mind-controlling aliens have taken over the other Justice Leaguers and another who was carrying them says the only solution is to destroy his ship and the Watchtower. This story's not bad. It's not particularly original, but it does have one interesting twist and a couple good moments.

Overall, a somewhat messy and mediocre book with some decent artwork.



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Book Review: Rocky & Bullwinkle: Classic Adventures

Rocky & Bullwinkle: Classic Adventures by Al Kilgore

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This book collects the first twelve issues of Bullwinkle and Rocky Comics from Gold Key, published between 1962 and 1976. I picked this book up on a digital sale, not sure what I'd get. Media adaptation comics of this era are somewhat dodgy. Many Looney Tunes comics are far duller than the TV series and many gold key Star Trek comics were written by people who didn't appear to have ever watched the show.

This is something entirely different. This captures Rocky and Bullwinkle, Dudley Do-Right, Peabody and Sherman, and Fractured Fairy Tales perfectly. The art looks just the same and the humor is just the same. The book captures the wordplay and goofy situations perfectly. This is like having extra episodes of the TV show. The only thing you really miss is that you don't get the long serials, but given that Gold Key would go years between issues, that's probably just as well. The covers are also very fun and vibrant.

One potential issue with these books is in the Dudley Do-Right strips, there are a couple of odd moments such as Dudley appearing on TV or testing out a modern airplane in policing that seem to forget Dudley Do-Right was set at the turn of the Century, but that could also be the writers ignoring that in order to do their gag and I could totally see the writers of Rocky and Bullwinkle doing that.

What is definitely an issue is that IDW reprints these as Gold Key printed them. In issue 12, Gold Key reprinted three stories from Issue 1. This was understandable from Gold Key's perspective because Issues 1 and 12 were 14 years apart, however it's far more typical for an archivist not to reprint material they've already reprinted elsewhere. It would have been better had IDW reprinted the original stories in Issue 12 along with Issue 13 rather than reprinting three stories twice in the same book.

I'd knock half a star off for that, but that still makes this a 4.5 star book. If you loved Rocky and Bullwinkle as a kid, you'll love this book. Make no moostake about that.



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Book Review: Batman: Detective Comics, Vol. 4: Deus Ex Machina

Batman: Detective Comics, Vol. 4: Deus Ex Machina by James Tynion IV

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


This book features a five-part arc and a solo story featuring Stephanie Brown.

The five-part arc has two elements. First is a story focusing on Jean-Paul Valley (Azrael), the cultic order of Saint Dumas is back to mess with him and perhaps introduce an AI version of Azrael who is not subject to doubts. The B plot of the story involves Bruce Wayne and Zatara reminiscing over old times while Bruce seeks access to all-knowing relic.

The B plot is the better plot by far. Zatara and her magical world are beautifully drawn and we get some insight into Bruce's character and past. It's nice to see.

The Jean-Paul Valley plot is far less enjoyable. It's hard to get into him as a character. The story attempts profundity but mostly offers up cliches on issues of faith and philosophy. It's not horrible. There's some action that's not bad to look at.

The one part story with Stephanie Brown is mixed for me. It's nice to see her in a solo adventure, and she does a good job taking on the criminal. But, I find her lack of self-awareness annoying. Vigilante Superheroes are problematic. She is not a superhero. She is dressing up in a costume to fight crime and is not an authorized agent of the law, but she is not a vigilante superhero. Nope. Nope. I get that her reaction is partially due to the apparent loss of Tim Drake in Vol. 1 but that doesn't make her much less annoying.



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Book Review: noble: God Shots

Noble Vol. 1: God Shots by Brandon Thomas

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Noble follows the adventures of David Powell, an astronaut who lost his memory after "the event." while acquiring strange powers. He's presumed dead and hunted by an evil corporation.

The art remains good. I like his wife. She's an interesting character. The villain's motives are intriguing. The problem with this book is that we have four issues with a lead character who doesn't know who he is and it's hard to get a sense of who he is. Add to that the fact he has amnesia and you have the makings of a confusing story. I don't think this is bad, but it really didn't succeed in drawing me in.



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Book Review: Batgirl, Volume 3: Point Blank

Batgirl Vol. 3: Point Blank by Kelley Puckett

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



This book collects Issues 26-37 of Cassandra Cain's Batgirl series.

Issue 26 has her worn out by her battle with Lady Shiva and someone needs to go back to the temple of Shiva. It's a Spoiler story with her imaging Batgirl with her. It's an okay story.

Issue 27 is a story that ties into Bruce Wayne being wanted for murder. Batman tries to get her to beg off, but she looks into it on her own with a method that no one else would use.

Issue 28 saw Spoiler wanting to train with Cassandra and a guy's coming after Cassandra with robots because.

Issue 29 is another crossover with the Bruce Wayne storyline. This one a particularly dull issue that has the great fighter Batgirl serving as a stand-in for the victim in Nightwing's crime scene re-enactment.

Issues 30-32 is written by Chuck Dixon and has her team up with Conor Hawke to hunt down a killer who uses an arrow. This story isn't bad, but when you throw in a visit from Robin and Spoiler, Batgirl practically becomes a side character in her own book.

Issue 33 has her confronting Cain in the aftermath of Bruce Wayne, Fugitive as she delivers an ultimatum.

Issue 34 has her team up with Batman to catch a child killer and she comes to a realization about her own career.

Issues 35 and 36 begin with her searching for a man named Alpha and finding an amnesiac, who she teams up to stop a nuclear bomb from going off in Gotham. It's interesting to see how she plays it as she becomes aware of the man's identity.

In Issue 37, she's hunting down a criminal who has kidnapped her daughter from a mother who only appreciates her daughter's talent. It's an interesting tale that suggests her own Daddy issues play into her judgment.

Overall, the book has some problems, with Batgirl often being drawn into events that have little to do with her. Still, she got to acquit herself fairly well in two of the three Bruce Wayne crossovers. The book has many solid character moments worked in. The art is very expressive and stylistic to show the fluidity of our heroine's fighting as well as to convey the emotions of a character who still isn't very talky.

Even though, it's not quite as good as previous volumes, this one is still worth a read.



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Book Review: Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor - The Sapling Vol. 2: Roots

Doctor Who: The Eleventh Doctor - The Sapling Vol. 2: Roots by James Peaty

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Root's collects Issues 5-8 of the Eleventh Doctor's Year Three and has three stories plus one short:

Time of the Ood: This story has the Doctor, Alice, and the Sapling traveling to an outpost where a group of Oods were unable to hear the Ood Song after the Tenth Doctor liberated their planet and are happy slaves on a resort world. This isn't a horrible story, but it's a bit thick of continuity and it has a somewhat unsatisfying revisit. I did like one of the ideas it had about activists and extremism.

The Memory Feast: The TARDIS crew arrives on a strange spaceship where strange things are happening and interacting with the Doctor's memories. This was a bit confusing. Not horrible mind you, and the art is pretty solid.

Fooled: The Doctor takes Alice and the Sapling to a local fair and people began to lose their memories at an alarming rate and the Sapling has something to do with it. This has a slight emotional kick and is the best story in the book.

The short, "Something Borrowed" is unimpressive. It tries for comedy but really misses.

Overall, this book isn't horrible, but it's disappointing. It's easily the weakest Eleventh Doctor title that Titan has put out. It feels like its waiting for the finale in the book and marking time.



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Book Review: Legends of the Dark Knight: Jim Aparo Vol. 1

Legends of the Dark Knight: Jim Aparo Vol. 1 by Jim Aparo

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book collects the beginning of Jim Aparo's legendary run as artists on Brave and the Bold, collecting Batman team ups from Issues 98, 100-102, and 104-122. The stories are all by Bob Haney

Rather than detail each team-up , I'll offer some highlights both good and not so good.

The good:
Jim Aparo has been an overlooked talent who brought so much to Batman with so many great panels, and little added touches that bring emotion and power to the work.

Wildcat Returns (#88)


Batman has to deal with ritual sacrifice and discovers the chilling truth about a late friend's family. One of the most disquieting Batman Comics I've read from this era. (#98)

Metamorpho returns to rescue his girlfriend from an assassin and Bob Haney retcons his horrible conclusion to the Metamorpho solo series with something far better. (#101)

A good youth activism story as Batman helps kids positively clean up their neighborhood. (#102)

Batman teams up with mod Wonder Woman to deal with intrigue in a Latin American country. (#105)

An heiress has sold shares of her estate, yet the shareholders are being killed off and Oliver Queen (Green Arrow) is on the list. (#106)

A great team up with Black Canary as they try to foil a $3 million skyjacking. (#107)

Batman thinks the Joker committed a murder, then concludes the Joker didn't do it and the Joker wants to catch the one who did, setting up a "team up" with the Joker and a surprising end. (#111)

Batman and Mister Miracle head on a collision course inside an Egyptian tomb. (#112)

Batman wants to find out about a plane brought down that was carrying an important witness and is shocked when Aquaman claims responsibility. Some good twists in this one (#114)

The Joker infects a prison population and its up to Batman and Wildcat to save the day, but the Joker makes them fight each other if they'll have any prayer of saving the day. (#118)

Swamp Thing is put on display by an unscrupulous promoter but Batman needs Swamp Things help when the city is attacked by a strange vine. Really good Swamp Thing tale. (#122)

The Bad:


Batman is wounded in a Wheel Chair and decided to play Ironside to bust a drug ring. He gets a team of four heroes to help him. However, Black Canary almost ruins his plan when she goes inside to keep her hair dry. (Horrible treatment of the character.) Denoument ends up disappointing as well. (#100)

Gotham City decides to force Batman and Gordon into retirement and have the Metal Men replace Batman. This goes about well as you'd expect. (#113)

The Metal Men and Batman are forced to battle undercover Native Americans who are hijacking the Freedom Train to hold the Declaration of Independence and Constitution for ransom. (#121)


The So Bad It's Good:


Batman falls into a well, panics, screams he'll sell to get out, is rescued by a man who claims Batman's soul for evil. Batman finds out that Sergeant Rock believes that the man who bought Batman's soul is Hitler who is still alive. (#108)

Batman is brain dead, but the Atom goes into Batman's body and restarts his nervous system so he can finish his last case. It's a superhero version of Weekend at Bernie's. (#115)

Batman is sent forward in time through Indian magic while his body in the 20th Century put into a coma. He discovers a post-apocalyptic world where Kamandi is the hero and a copy of Brave and the Bold #118 survived the apocalypse and they have a working tape recorder. (#120)

The Annoying:

The book leaves out covers that Aparo didn't draw even for issues that he did. I missed the covers. However, any comic cover can be found online, so this is a minor quibble.

Overall, despite some mixed quality stories, the book is a fun read and the art is superb throughout.




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