Adam Graham's Blog: Christians and Superheroes, page 62

TV Episode Review: Supergirl; Human for A Day

Supergirl loses her powers just when her city needs her most.

*Big Time Spoilers Ahead*

Positives:

---Cat Grant's germaphobia was absolutely hilarious.

---This episode really gave James and Kara a chance to get to know each other as they have a lot of scenes together and it all flows really naturally

--Glad to see our nefarious evil libertarian supervillain Max Lord was out (um distributing disaster relief.)

The Awesome

(Because when this episode was good, it was Amazing.)

--I was nervous about a "She lost her powers" episode this early in the Series but I was very pleasantly surprised by the way went. Usually these episodes give way for comic moments of inconvenience for our hero. Here she loses her powers and then the city is hit with an Earthquake and she's powerless to help anyone. A man dies who she can't help and she's totally heartbroken and her decision to go into stop a robbery with no powers and no weapon is emotionally powerful. The show manages to portray a character whose core strength is her goodness. It's a beautiful moment when she takes the gun from the robber and it's very powerfully played.

---It also plays into a powerful idea of ordinary people reaching out to help others in need, following supergirl's example with James having some great heroic moments himself.

---The reveal that Hank Henshaw was J'Onn J'Onzz was brilliantly done. I can't say that it was a total surprise. The red eyes were a hint but I think the scene with Henshaw blackmailing Alex's father. However, the explanation in the episode that the real Henshaw was dead makes this make sense. J'Onn J'Onzz is a fabulous character, one of the most noble people in the DC Universe and it's a great gift to have him on the show.

----Kara's non-violent solution to the robber is balanced out by an awesome action sequence where Alex Danvers shows her total awesomeness by pumping two clips into an alien and trying to blow it up. The sequence earned the show a TV-14 rating but it was well worth it.

The Bad:

---The idea of Winn discovering Kara needed an adrenaline rush to jumpstart her powers was absurd. On one level, it was contrived. On the other, the idea that the CatCo IT guy found the answer while doctors didn't was dumb.

---As a character, Winn really doesn't work for me. Beyond a growing tendency of providing improbable infodumps, he's also got that sort of pathetic thing for Kara going on. In this episode, it came out as faux moral outrage over James giving Kara a hug because James has a girlfriend. It's self-serving and petty. The character hasn't been well-developed and is either being a plot device or wallowing in a sea of self-pity.

---Lesson in Kryptonian physiology. Getting a broken arm cures the common cold as Kara's cold symptoms disappear completely after that.

---Kara's powers are recharged by her having an adrenaline rush as James is about to fall to her death...and she takes time to change into costume.

Overall: Another amazing episode that shows it's not the powers that makes Kara a hero while revealing there's another hero on the show. Despite a few minor points, it continues a strong run for the show. 8/10

TV Episode Review: The Flash: Running to Stand Still

It's Christmastime and you know what that means....Supervillain showdown and family drama.

***Spoilers Ahead***

Positives...

---Mark Hamill had some great moments as the Trickster even though he got upstaged in the climatic scene by the more powerful Weather Wizard. The scene with the Trickster, the Weather Wizard, and Captain Cold. I liked the scene where he essentially was serving as the Elder Statesman of the super criminals in the fight between Weather Wizard and Captain Cold. His broadcast had a whole, 'Christmas with the Joker' vibe to it.

---Joe's reaction to finding out he had a son were so beautifully realistic and spoke to so many men her with lost Fatherhood, and also showcased the Flash's unique on the importance of Fathers.

---The fight between Flash and Weather Wizard was great particularly with Weather Wizard having figured out to fly. The effects the show has are really astonishing in making these superhuman characters seem very authentic.

---What a great episode for Patti. We got to see her in a light we hadn't all season. This was great for making her a fleshed out well-developed character. I found charmingly endearing when she objected to the Flash picking her up since she was in a relationship.

---The themes of forgiveness and not letting bitterness reign really were well played out.

---Harry coming for kids Christmas presents was hilariously silly.

---When the door swung open, it was so powerful and a great twist that hits like a ton of bricks. It was such a perfect surprise and very well-played by the writers.

Reserving Judgment:

---The deal between Harry and Zoom. If Harry is serious about keeping it, he's an idiot. However, the writers could planning something clever for later so we'll see how that plays out.

Negatives:

---In an incredibly busy episode, the supervillain plot was really an afterthought. Despite the great fight in the sky, the overall plan was really not all that spectacular, and Trickster spends most of the scene sitting down. It's an evil plot but a lame one.

---Captain Cold was so transparently broken out of prison so he could appear in Legends of Tomorrow. His visit to Barry's house was a great cliffhanger to go to commercial break but turned out to be a pointless moment where he revealed that he'd upgrade his cold gun in the few hours he'd been out on the run from the law.

---I usually don't go after swear words in this complaint, but Cisco standing alone, staring at the sky and swearing in triumph after Harry invented a way to fix this. What was that all about?

---And while we're at it, where did Patti get a Flash leg "Bear Trap" from and will those work on Zoom.

Results: Overall, a very solid Christmas episode that explores fatherhood and forgiveness, while also growing the character of Patti. The supervillain portion of the show is a bit below par, but the episode has so many emotionally compelling moments it can be forgiven. A solid episode that leaves me eager to find out what will happen in January 8/10.

Superhero Audiobook Sale with the Indestructible Powerhouse

As part of its sidewide sale, all of the Adventures of Powerhouse Audiobooks on Audible are 50 perfect off retail price for audible members which means the full audiobook version of Tales of the Dim Knight is less than $12.50 with Fly Another Day and Powerhouse Hard Pressed being less than $10 each.

You can also pick up the Powerhouse Heroic Adventures Bundle containing all three books for $14.97.

Book Review: Doctor Who: The Eye of Torment

Doctor Who: The Eye of Torment by Scott Gray

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book collects the first three Twelfth Doctor story lines from Doctor Who Magazine as a two part story featuring the Paternoster gang.

The Eye of Torment is a classic base under siege story with the Dhoctor and Clara arriving aboard a ship sailing across the sun with an all-female crew hired by the ship's male owner who wants to be the "first man" to complete the task. Overall, this is a fun story with an intriguing villain and a humorous solution. Grade: B

Instruments of War: The Doctor meets Rommell. Rommell, as a loyal German who wasn't a Nazi, and would later try to kill Hitler, is a fascinating character and this story did hupim justice. We also have a visit from an old group of enemies. Overall, a wonderful tale. Grade: B+

Blood and Ice: Clara and the Doctor go to Antarctica where there are mysterious goings on. Said goings on are weird but some typical. What makes this story special is that the idea from, "Name of the Doctor" is revisited with the splinter Claras spread throughout time and space as she meets a splinter. Interesting plot and some fantastic Antarctic artwork, particularly the last splash. Grade: B+

The Crystal Palace: A two parter starring the Paternoster gang and made to fill the time between the eleventh and twelfth Doctor. The plot involves nefarious goings on at the Crystal palace and is a solid but not spectacular plot, ,really lifted by the artwork. Grade: B

Overall, these are all solid stories. What hurts them is that it's clear the writers are struggling just as much as many in the audience were to get a grasp on Capaldi's Doctor and there were moments which seemed to lack some of the nuances or interesting twists Capaldi put in. Still despite that, this was a solid installment.





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Book Review: Doctor Who Classics Omnibus, Volume 1

Doctor Who Classics Omnibus, Vol. 1 by Grant Morrison

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book collects nearly 350 pages of comics from Doctor Who Magazine, mostly starring the Fourth Doctor but with two sixth Doctor strips and a seventh Doctor strip thrown in. The comics were originally in black and white but are colorized beautifully in this collection.

The book begins with "The Iron Legion," the first Doctor Who comic story to appear in Doctor Who Magazine. In many ways, it had hallmarks of the previous TV comics strip that many Doctor Who stories appeared in previous with a companionless Doctor travelling into danger. However, this story of a Roman Empire in space is simply fantastic with so many great twists and turns. It's fast paced given the demand of weekly publication that there be some dramatic moment every four to six pages.

The City of the Damned into a city where emotion is a crime and the Doctor is set to have his emotions extracted. He's rescued by a ragtag group age of rebels who have a problem of their own, they can feel emotions but they can only each feel one. The story has some serious points but also some incredibly light touches with a great ending.

Time Slip is an eight page comic that creates an excuse for the Doctor to change back to his prior regenerations. With only four, it's a lot less impressive than stories involving ten or eleven. This story is noteworthy for featuring Canine.

Doctor Who and the Star Beast introduces the twisted evil of a very cute looking character called, "The Meep" and also gives the Doctor his first DWM Companion in Sharon, an English teenager.

Doctor Who and the Dogs of Doom features the Doctor battling Werelocks, a sort of Werewolf style creature and one of the Doctor's oldest enemies.

Doctor Who and the Time Witch has the Doctor and Sharon pulled into a pocket dimension controlled by the Titular Time Witch. This is an okay story but Sharon ages forward four years and is sort of non-plussed about the whole thing.

The Dragon's Claw plays off the popularity of martial arts films in the late 1970s and we meet yet another old foe in a believable and exciting story.

The Collector is a story reminiscent of War Games with someone kidnapping people from history. The ending is a bit of copout as it involves the Doctor travelling through his own timestream for a very weak the time stream for a very weak reason. It's the type of plot device that could be overused to solve every problem the Doctor faces.

The Dreamer of Death is a sort of a precursor to 1990s tales warning of Virtual Reality machines. It marks Sharon's unceremonious departure marry random person, reminiscent of how Leela left the TV series.

Then we get three Grant Morrison stories from the mid-1980s. "Changes" is an amusing but predictable tale of the Sixth Doctor, Peri, and Frobisher encountering another shapeshifter in the TARDIS. The story is fun but predictable. The Seventh Doctor talks to a cell culture and seeds a planet with life in, "Culture Shock."d

The Sixth Doctor reunites with Jamie in a mystery involving a dead Time Lord in a story that's interesting but with a sort of cynical edge that John Byrne brought to American comics with Man of Steel.

The Fourth Doctor Comics resume after this but with less of a Doctor Who feel and more of a genery. ral science fiction story, perhaps to match John Nathan Turner coming to helm Doctor Who on TV.

The Doctor meets Promethus and explores Greek mythology in, "The Life Bringer." in "War of the Words," the Doctor finds a clever way to stop a war. In, "Spider-God," the Doctor doesn't really anything but lecture humans for doing something foolish. In, "The Deal," ia criminal hijacks his way on to the TARDIS. In, the "End of the Line," The Doctor lands in a post-apocalyptic city and has an adventure with a very depressing ending. In, "The Free-Fall Warriors," the Doctor gets involved in a space race in a limited plot episode where the Doctor mostly takes backseat.

Overall, I thought the first 60% of the book was simply smashing with the early adventures of the Fourth Doctor in Doctor Who Magazine which told stories that were good and which worked great in the comic format (looking even better colorized). The rest of the book is okay, but just okay as we get some interesting stories, but many of them are also pretentious or don't really fit into the world of Doctor Who. So, it's a mixed bag but much more good than bad.



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Book Review: Essential Avengers 2

Essential Avengers, Vol. 2 by Stan Lee

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book marks some turning points for the Avengers, collecting Issues 25-46 and the First Annual. It sees Stan Lee's departure as writer after Issue 34 (replaced by Roy Thomas) and Artist Don Heck is replaced by John Buscema in Issue 41.

The Avengers team changes, though mostly through addition. It begins with a team of Captain America, Hawkeye, Quicksilver, and the Scarlet Witch. In the course of the book, GoTliath (formerly Ant Man), and the Wasp are added to the line-up as well as Hercules, though Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch leave in the middle when the powers are on the wane,.

The feuding between Captain America and Hawkeye comes to an end thankfully. When Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch leave and are replaced by Goliath and the Wasp, he figures he has no chance of gaining leadership of the Avengers plus he seems to have developed a genuine respect for Captain America. He still manages to push back and challenge every other male to come on the team including Goliath and Hercules who could tear him apart.

This book also reprints the origin of the Ant Man from Tales to Astonish #27 and that's because Henry Pym plays such a "big" role in the book. He goes through a period where he can't shrink at all and is 10 feet tall and becomes the real muscle on the team prior to Hercules joining the team. He also takes on a leadership role when Cap has to disappear to deal with a long adventure in his own book. Pym is a central character and this has to got to be a high point for Pym in the role of Goliath.

Overall, the book has two big moments. The first is the first appearance of the Sons of the Serpents in Issues 32 and 33 and they make a great appearance as a sort of extension of the hatemonger character. Then, the Annual #1 is written by Roy Thomas. Those who have read the DC Archives know Thomas was a huge fan of the Golden Age All Star comics in which heroes would come together and the break up to go and fight individual evildoers and that's what he does in this story as the Mandarin heads up a team of supervillains, the Avengers split into smaller squads to take on the villains. It works really well here because they took nearly 50 pages to tell the story and split the Avengers and villains into three squads. It also featured the return of the "Original Avengers" which was silly as a gimmick because only Thor and Iron Man were returning for the issue and it was still a very fun and enjoyable issue.

Also, there's a plot regarding the Black Widow and her status that works its way throughout the book in a fairly interesting way. Beyond that, the Avengers take on a stable of solid Silver Age villains including Doctor Doom, the Super Adaptoid, and the Mad Thinker as well as battling Submariner.

Overall, these are enjoyable stories. They're certainly not on the same level as the Fantastic Four, but they're still solid tales for fans of the Silver Age of Marvel Comics.



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TV Episode Review: Supergirl: Seeing Red

What's the difference between General Lane and the Red Tornado?

Answer: One is a pestilence that wreaks mayhem and causes massive amounts of problems.

The other is Red Tornado.

***Spoilers Ahead***

The Awesome:

---Supergirl's fights with Red Tornado are simply stunning. They're not quite the stylized stuff we get on the Flash but from Supergirl tunneling underground to Red Tornado generating a hurricane to the awesome final confrontation, these were simply stunning battle scenes. It's a pity that Red Tornado is destroyed as he's been a hero in the mainstream DC universe but the writers can always bring him back if they decide to go that direction

Positives:

---Kara snapping at Cat is set up beautifully as we see her go through one frustration situation after another building up to the moment where she tells Ms. Grant off and then regrets it.

---We got more insight into Cat's character as she encounters her mother. She clears her calendar to have dinner with her mother only for her mom to cancel and she earns our sympathy and then gives some of it by picking on Kara.

---Cat points out that Perry White could get away with throwing a chair through the window if a deadline was missed while she could get away with far less if she showed her anger because of gender. There may be some truth to that. It also may be why she tends to take an arm's length relationship to her employees as opposed to White's much more personable relationship because she feels a need to maintain control and her position and can't take those risks, although she seems to be willing to with Kara.

---I think Kara actually emerges a better and even more admirable character. It's easy enough to be "little Miss Sunshine" if you've not been hurt. Yet, we understand she's a person who's never quite felt like she fit in, is afraid she won't have a normal life, or even have a man in her life. She'd found that revealing herself to the world hadn't helped either. Yet, she's still a kind person despite the hurt which is hard.

---Despite some dubious means to get there (see the negatives), the investigation into the disappearance of Alex's father actually becomes wide open with a lot of questions as to whether he's alive, and whether Henshaw is really Henshaw or an alien impersonating him. Henshaw could have been an alien for a long time and entirely innocent in what happened to Mr. Danvers. Or he could be the mastermind of it all. There's a lot of questions and I look forward to finding out more as the season progresses.

Negatives

---A bit of a continuity slip. In the episode, "Live Wire," it was proclaimed that the villain didn't vote for Hillary in '08 which put the show within the real world's political continuity. However, in this episode, a woman president is referenced by Lucy Lane. I actually prefer Superhero shows have their own President as opposed to the real one because it allows plots involving the President to actually work on the show. However, you really have to decide which way you're going to go.

---That your office IT guy can hack any government system is a silly cliché and I don't really buy it with Witt. Also, in the pet peeve department, 'The Insurance Office' of solitude is back. Grrr.

---Finally, the lead up to a very good scene for Supergirl was the weakest part of the show. James asks why she needs to work out her anger on a used car hung like a punching bag while Clark never did. And she responds by saying that it's different because Clark is a man. James explains he's a black man and they're not encouraged to publicly express anger, so it's okay for him to hit a punching bag.

The dialogue was incredibly unnatural. Why would James ask that? The obvious answer is that either by the time he'd met James, Clark'd found his way of dealing with anger or Kara was a different person. And while I understand the points about social pressures might impact how different groups express anger, the point is force fed and it attempts to change a universal issue of dealing with anger to an issue of race and gender.


Overall: A great episode of Supergirl that has her performing her mightiest deeds yet, while also deepening and enriching our understanding of the character. Yes, her problems are resolved in forty-five minutes or less, but that' the nature of family viewing. Cat grows more interesting by the week and the show has a strong point when it doesn't try too hard to make it. A solid 9/10.

TV Episodes Review: Flash/Arrow Crossovers: Heroes of Today/Heroes of Yesterday

The Flash/Arrow crossover episode has them battling Vandal Savage in a two part extravaganza as Vandal Savage tries to run his record in battles to the death against Hawkman and Hawkgirl to 207-0. Below are the highlights of the battle.
***Spoilers Ahead***
Positives:

---After last year's sort of lackluster crossover with them having episodes where they met not really related, we get a battle with Vandal Savage, one of the DC Universe's best villains and he's well realized here as an immortal full of arrogance and quite deadly. He's a great menace and ultimately he makes this an event rather than an obligatory gimmick.

---Oliver Queen has some great moments and really works well off Barry with his annoyance at having a woman who Savage wants killed dropped into his lap with no clues about her and resistance to it. One great moment was in the second part when he learned that Barry had time traveled back in time and he decisively moved in favor of correcting the timeline without the hemming and hawing Barry would probably have probably on his own. I also like that Ollie questioned the idea that the timeline would really care whether he told his girlfriend about his son. Finally someone questioning the personification of natural forces like "time" and "the universe" by cast members in the Flash.

---A great story for Cisco as he struggles with being supportive while also slowly losing his girlfriend to her "Soul Mate." for four millennia where they fought evil (in between being beaten by Vandal Savage.) There's a great deal of sweetness and protectiveness in the way that Cisco is portrayed that really makes the story work.

---Shorter first scene of, "Legends of Yesterday": "Yeah, we're ripping off Avengers: Age of Ultron. You want to make something of it?

---Finally, some acknowledgment that trying to work out personal issues while trying to save the Universe isn't always a good idea.

--While I'm no fan of the reincarnation plot with Hawkman and Hawkgirl, it is something borrowed from the DC Universe and it's true to the characters golden age version. At lease they didn't trying to combine it with the Silver Age Alien police story from the Silver Age like Justice League: Unlimited did.

The Negatives:

---If you're not following Arrow (as I'm not), then much of the first half of The Flash seems like you're attending a friend's high school reunion. A lot of- characters (particularly from Arrow) are just there. Maybe next year, a smaller scale crossover with the Flash going to meet Ollie or vice versa. When two team-based shows meet, it just gets overwhelmed with everyone catching up with everyone else and meeting the new guys and the new headquarters.

---I know John Barrowman best as Captain Jack Harkness but in The Flash, he gets to be Captain Exposition as his character Malcolm Merlyn gets to show up to do an info dump on Vandal Savage's history. That was the best way they could think of to do that?

---One should not try to do Ancient Egypt on a budget.

---There's so much wrong with the DNA test in Part Two. First, just because you're the fastest man alive doesn't mean you can do DNA tests at the speed of light. The worst way to hide something is to try and hide it at superspeed because it makes a sonic boom. Finally, the idea that Felicity recognizes Oliver's DNA pattern on sight had my wife and I both laughing at the absurdity of it.

---The way the fight between Felicity and Ollie plays out is over the top and the "I recognize your DNA" makes it seem contrived. I think the way the whole set up of the long lost son is handled was melodramatic as well with the mother unreasonable and Ollie unwilling to even try and counteroffer to just tell his girlfriend and no one else even apparently knowing the consequence of keeping this from Felicia.

---Hawkman is another character from the upcoming Legends of Tomorrow who doesn't have a particularly strong introduction and this may not bode well for Legends of Tomorrow.

Overall: A fun, but flawed romp with Vandal Savage, flying heroes, and some truly fun moments between the Flash and Barry. It's definitely a step up from last season's crossover. Still, bigger isn't always better and there were lots of characters getting lost in the shuffle. Rating: 7/10

TV Episode Review: Supergirl: How Does She Do It?

How does Supergirl manage to balance fighting a mad bomber with watching a well-behaved teenager who will sit in front of video games and managing a moderately busy day at the office. Spoilers follow

Positives:

--The same week Netflix treats us to the exploitative and sexualized opening of Jessica Jones, we get Supergirl kindly offering to babysit for Cat Grant, so she can obtain fictional reward. The idea of kindness without some secondary motive behind it. But it's certainly a welcome difference.

--On the same note, Kara makes a thoughtful (thought not totally unselfish suggestion) to James to resolve his relationship with Lucy Lane which leads to it continuing. It's a very ironic thing the way it leaves her feeling, but it's ultimately a very wise and noble thing that most women wouldn't do, even though it sends her back into the "Friend Zone."

--Also, the scene where she tries to talk the bomber down is played with a great amount of sincerity and caring.

--Supergirl gets put through her paces and Lord tests her to the limit. It was fun to see her use so many superpowers.

--The writers give Maxwell Lord some interesting motivations and Peter Facinelli really gives a great performance. The reveal of Lord as a villain sets some interesting dynamics particularly with the character's history in the DC Universe.

---While it creates a few hiccups, I can definitely understand why this episode wasn't broadcast after the Paris attacks, particularly the scene involving the business bombing. We just have to keep tracking. We're trusting Colonel Henshaw this week even though we learned we couldn't trust him last week because that episode wasn't supposed to air until the week after this one.

---This episode does make a lot more sense of the Lucy-Jimmy relationship and I thought his driving to the airport to help Lucy was incredibly sweet. Still, doesn't explain why he was looking like he was a hostage in last week's show, but for this episode, it was solid.

Mixed thoughts:

---Government ID that changes Department names is good, psychic paper is better. Still, the fact that a woman who can hold up a five story building finds these badges "cool" just shows the innocent nature of Kara. Also, wouldn't have been cheaper to print another ID card.

The Negatives:

---As my summary referenced, this episode wasn't all it cracked up to be. I think the writers wanted to avoid portraying Cat's son as any troubled or problematic due to not being raised by both parents or by being raised by nannies. However, the problem with that is that the comedic value suggested by Kara's predicament doesn't happen and there's little drama in it until Carter gets on the train.

---Because of that the feminist moral of the week seems forced as Cat gives a completely non-applicable lesson to Kara on balancing life and learning to juggle challenges one at a time rather than having it all all at once. There's some merit to the advice, but it's not really applicable. This is an issue that could easily afflict any hero and I actually dealt with it in Ultimate Mid-life Crisis. For the point to actually have any salience, the hero has to be pushed to his or her limit. Kara wasn't pushed. Indeed, her Sister seemed to think so, but there's no evidence of it in the story.

---It's a predictable trope that Maxwell Lord is presented as a government-mistrusting Libertarian whose claims of benevolence in private sector capitalism belie his sinister goals and with Henshaw, we have our sinister military figure. All we need is a corrupt preacher as a recurring villain and we'll have a progressive trope villain hat trick.

Overall:

As Carter observed, what makes Supergirl a hero is her heart and that heart was on display all episode long. Supergirl is the type of hero you want kids to look up to. Maxwell Lord is an interesting character, like Lex Luthor, but more complex. However, the "B" plot for this episode has problems doesn't quite deliver. The greatest potential risk to the series is that there's a tendency to allow the desired message to get in the way of a good story. Still, I enjoyed this episode despite its flaws. 7/10

Book Review: All Star Comics Archives, Volume 4

All Star Comics Archives, Volume 4 by Gardner F. Fox

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This book collects four issues of All Star Comics from 1943 in Issues 15-18. This volume sees the Justice Society back off a bit from the war. While Americans were all for our War Efforts, they didn't want to hear about war in every book, movie, radio program, and certainly not every comic book. However, Issue 16 would be an exception to this.

Each issue told one over-arching story with the Justice Society together at the end and the beginning of the story while each hero had his own six page mini-adventure.

First off, Issue 15 has every member of the Justice Society so busy they can't attend the meeting but not too busy to send their secretary Wonder Woman their excuses. Wonder Woman's biggest role in this book is getting her and all the girlfriends of the heroes captures. (Wonder Woman couldn't take part in battles because she was only the secretary.) The story itself introduces a great supervillain for the Justice Society in Brain Wave. Still, his plot using mirror images does get a little old plus the nonsensical girlfriend plot weighs this down. Grade: B-

Issue 16 has the Justice Society taking on a series of Nazi spies trying to pit Americans against one another. It's a beautiful patriotic story. For those of us who admire the greatest generation's sense of unity and purpose, this is a gorgeous illustration of that, particularly the last couple pages. Grade: A-

Issue 17 marks the return of Brain Wave and this time he's shrunk the Justice Society. The story is better than the last time though there are a few sore points. It doesn't even make sense to shrink the Spectre given his powers, the Thunderbolt has to appear in all the stories to bail Johnny out. Grade: B+

Issue 18 sees the Justice Society battling King Bee who has turned men into human bug creatures with the powers of Insects. It's a fun concept and a b it educational too. Overall, a decent final story. Grade: B

The book has a warm and nostalgic introduction by James Robinson who wrote the modern day Starman revival. Overall, this is an enjoyable installment and a step up in quality from Volume 3 and a very enjoyable chapter in the career of the Justice Society.



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