The New DC Universe: Week 11 Reviews

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The New DC Universe: Week 11 Reviews

You know a project is nearing the end when you actively look forward to not having to do it anymore. These last few weeks I have been sort of dreading writing the reviews. Not because I don't want to share my opinions but because it is really hard to get everything done in a short period of time. I don't want this to become about the reviews. It takes away from the enjoyment of reading the comics. There are only two weeks left and a lot of books are going to get purged but this is one of my favorite weeks because it has several of my favorite books. (Here are the previous weeks reviews).

Batman #3

Written by SCOTT SNYDER; Art by GREG CAPULLO and JONATHAN GLAPION; Cover by GREG CAPULLO

I really enjoyed the first book and was crossing my fingers hard for the second. I have been mostly disappointed with the Batman family in the new 52. I am glad to say this comic keeps going strong. A great mix of mystery and action. Still a fan of the art and like the fact we haven't been introduced to any of the normal Batman villains. It also had a great exchange between Batman and Nightwing which left me chuckling. This series came out strong and stayed there. 9 out of 10.

Birds of Prey #3

Written by DUANE SWIERCZYNSKI; Art by JESUS SAIZ; Cover by DAVID FINCH and RICHARD FRIEND

This book is killing me. I want to like it but so far the story has not caught my attention. Plus, I really don't like the art. I find it plain and distracting. I know art is a very subjective thing but the art in this book is killing it for me. If the story was a little better I might be able to overcome it but so far I have really not cared one iota about what is going on. This continues to be my biggest disappointment of the new 52. I have always loved Birds of Prey. Now it is almost certainly getting voted off my DC island. 6 out of 10.

Captain Atom #3

Written by J.T. KRUL; Art by FREDDIE WILLIAMS II; Cover by STANLEY "ARTGERM" LAU

The first book of this series surprised me a little. I didn't think it was spectacular but I enjoyed it. Not so much with this one. It wasn't terrible but it was very average. I wasn't a fan of the story this time around and I thought the story moved at a snail's pace. I know they are trying to do something a tiny bit different with this book but it feels like it is running in place for this issue. They will have to pick it up considerably in the next round. 7 out of 10.

Catwoman #3

Written by JUDD WINICK; Art and cover by GUILLEM MARCH

So this is one of the first round of books that caused such a furor. If you read my first review you know I didn't exactly see eye to eye on some of the things which were pissing people off. I will say right off the bat (excuse the bad pun) that the cover and first few pages of this comic are not going to make the earlier critics any happier. For me the biggest problem is I don't feel they are letting me know who Catwoman is. The story is taking a little while to get going. The last few pages were great though. It was the first time I felt like a story was developing and maybe we were going somewhere. This book will probably get another issue out of me but it had better get going. 7 out of 10.

DC Universe Presents #3

Written by PAUL JENKINS; Art by BERNARD CHANG; Cover by RYAN SOOK

This book is wildly uneven. The beginning was slow and boring. I almost didn't want to keep reading. Then somewhere around the middle it exploded into a generally interesting book. For me, they should have started the story with the middle of this book and filled in some of the boring back story later. The last half was the Deadman story I was hoping for and the comic actually ended in a place I wanted more. Kind of annoying really because I was about to drop it off the DC island. Now I might have to give it one more issue. 7 out of 10.

I, Vampire #3

Written by JOSHUA HALE FIALKOV; Art by ANDREA SORRENTINO; Cover by JENNY FRISON

Justice League #3

Written by GEOFF JOHNS; Art and cover by JIM LEE and SCOTT WILLIAMS

I don't really know why I liked this issue so much better than the first one. Something about the first one felt off, where this one was funny and full of action. I didn't like Green Lantern's interaction with Batman in the first one but loved it with Flash. The mystery of the world and the formation of the Justice League really caught my attention in this issue also. Unlike other 2nd issues the art stayed really strong. It moved this book up into a definite buy book. The introduction of Wonder Woman in issue 3 should only continue to improve the book. 8.5 out of 10.

Legion of Super-Heroes #3

Written by PAUL LEVITZ; Art by FRANCIS PORTELA; Cover by CHRIS SPROUSE and KARL STORY

Not as good as the first issue. I think the problem for me is the story is starting to lack a little focus. They are going for a giant world building story but it is hard to get involved with the introduction of so many characters. Personally, I think this book fails completely at giving new readers a chance to jump on board. I can't imagine anyone but devoted Legion fans are reading this book. Maybe that is okay for DC but I didn't think it was their goal. The story moved a little slow and part of me felt like I have been there and done that in past Legion stories. 7.5 out of 10.

Nightwing #3

Written by KYLE HIGGINS; Art and cover by EDDY BARROWS and JP MAYER

I want this book to be more. There is nothing awful about it. There is nothing great about it. It is just kind of there. It has all the normal superhero clichés. The witty banter, the letting the bad guy go to save an innocent, the mysterious past. None of it has been all that interesting. The rolling back of Dick Grayson's age has not done him any favors. It feels like he has lost a lot of the character I used to love. I will probably give it one more issue but not much more. 7 out of 10.

Supergirl #3

Written by MICHAEL GREEN and MIKE JOHNSON; Art and Cover by MAHMUD ASRAR

Tough book for me because I still really like the story. However, I went back and looked at the first issue to see if my mind was playing tricks on me about the art. In a common theme with the issue twos I thought the art was noticeably worse. This is a problem with this book because I thought the art was just average in the first issue. So we have this really interesting story which verged on painful in the art department. DC is going to have to figure this out in a hurry. Some of these books are going to be drops for me because I don't like looking at them. 7.5 out of 10.

Wonder Woman #3

Written by BRIAN AZZARELLO; Art and cover by CLIFF CHIANG

Ah, the bright and shiny star of the new DC Universe. I loved the first issue. I loved the second issue. Wonder Woman is everything a good comic should be. A great story, interesting art, and a kick ass main character. I have read a few good Wonder Woman stories over the years but this one is shaping up to be amongst the best. I also love how it actually fits with the concept behind the new universe. The story being told is introducing you to Wonder Woman's world and the character in a perfect mix of action and exposition. It should be required reading by all the other creators who are struggling to get their story to fit into the new universe. 10 out of 10.

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DC Power Rankings

1) Wonder Woman -

2) Animal Man – Staying strong but not quite ready to bump Wonder Woman out of the top spot.

3) Justice League Dark –

4) Swamp Thing – I was a tiny bit worried after the first issue but this book is just getting better and better. Another large jump.

5) Red Lanterns – Trying to do something I have never seen in a mainstream DC book. Explore hatred and pain. May end up being the only Lantern book I keep buying.

6) Batman -

7) Aquaman -

8 ) Action Comics – I liked this issue better than number two. Grant Morrison continues to make Superman interesting to me. A major feat considering how uninterested I was.

9) Batwoman – Staying a very strong comic. It has also had the most consistent artwork in the new DC universe.

10) I, Vampire –

11) Grifter – Had it's first drop in ratings this week. Hopefully this is not a trend.

12) Batgirl – The appearance of Nightwing worked well. Batgirl's journey is going to be a hard one. No change in rankings this week.

13) All Star Western -

14) Stormwatch – Continues to tumble-down. It needs to stay in the top twenty for me to keep reading it. Not sure it is going to make it.

15) Justice League -

16) Superboy – A slight bump up. Right now the best book with super in the title.

17) Teen Titans -

18) Batwing – Jumps another ten spots up and climbs into the top twenty. Not sure how many more than twenty I am keeping but amazingly this book looks like it may make the cut now.

19) Supergirl -

20) Superman -

21) Legion of Super-Heroes -

22) Resurrection Man – No change in placement but very close to the line in the sand I will be drawing. Right on the bubble of being cut.

23) Frankenstien, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. – This book is in the land of books which could be cut but it has caught my interest. Will last another month.

24) Deathstroke – This book has sunk straight down. If I were a betting man it is not going to survive my next cut.

25) Green Lantern – I might end up buying the next book just to see where it goes but otherwise this book was probably heading to cutsville.

26) Men of War –

27) Flash -

28) Men of War – Another book which can't stop its tumble downward. A great first issue but I won't be reading it much longer.

29) Detective Comics – Not sure how much longer I will keep buying this book. There are other Batman family books that are far more enjoyable.

30) Captain Atom -

31) Catwoman -

32) Demon Knights –

33) Nightwing -

34) The Savage Hawkman-

35) Batman: The Dark Knight -