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Green Lantern Volume 3 The End Review

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Time to head back to the world of comics with this review! The Green Lantern comics have been very good for as long as I can remember. As a result, I was not surprised in the slightest to see that this was an enjoyable read. The series is full of cosmic threats and likable characters, which have served the series well. It’s come at the expense of Hal Jordan being in the Justice League comics for quite a while though so it just goes to show that the grass can’t be all green for very long.

With a title like “The End” you can bet that some pretty big changes happen in this comic. In case you did not know, Hal Jordan and Sinestro were destroyed by Black Hand so they fell into DC’s version of Limbo/The Negative Zone. Luckily, they were able to charge their ring full of energy and quickly shot it out. The ring looked for a suitable replacement and found Simon Baz. Simon Baz was a smalltime crook who stole things to try and get money for his friend who was now in the hospital due to a past accident. One day, Baz stole the wrong van and ended up blowing up an abandoned area.

In a way, Baz just stopped a terrorist, but the cops don’t see it that way. Baz is arrested, but the GL ring breaks him out so the Justice League quickly arrive to investigate. They’re not about to let a new criminal into the mix. Baz has no time to explain so he heads off to save Jordan and Sinestro, but he has to watch himself since the Guardians can no longer be trusted and Volthoom, The First Lantern, is getting ready to make his big move at last. Forces are at work here and the green Lanterns may need some backup if they’re going to walk away from this!

The main plot with Baz is a fun way to start off the collection. The Justice League are around and it’s always a good idea to have guest stars when you’re introducing a new main character. It just makes sense, although the Justice League don’t look all that great here. They were certainly very aggressive and essentially picked a fight with Baz as soon as they saw him. The Flash not being able to tell which car Baz went into was a little iffy, but I’ll let it slide since the Power Rings can be really flashy after a while. Not to mention that it’s understandable for the league to be a little upset since they finally realized that they probably should have gone into space to check on Hal once in a while. For all they know…he’s gone for good. He actually did die so they did a poor job of looking after him.

It’s also nice to see the government appear for a second. They discuss the many Green Lanterns who have been recruited from Earth and it’s always interesting to see things from their perspective. I’m glad that they still trust John Stewart though, which shows that they are smart. In a lot of media, you’ll see the government instantly decide that they can’t trust their operatives once the person has super powers or they just want a dissection. No, it’s much smarter to use the asset and having a Green Lantern in the army is always smart. It was also cool to see that even the government didn’t have any info on Kyle Rayner. That’s just how mysterious the guy is!

Once the story gets into space, we see the stakes rise quite a bit. I can’t say that I’m surprised at how the Guardians have turned evil, but it’s an interesting twist. Their lack of emotions have really gone overboard this time and they even had a civil war with the old Guardians. Needless to say, I still don’t like any of the characters. They’ve clearly been committing evil acts behind the shadows for a very long time and you don’t even mind seeing Volthoom take them down. The little guys were practically asking for it.

As for Volthoom, he makes for a decent villain. As the First Lantern, it almost goes without saying that he’s immensely powerful. He can rewrite reality at will because he’s just That good and anything that the other Lanterns can do, he can do better. He can heal and has many other useful gifts at the ready as well. That being said, the only way to beat someone like this is with plot hax and that’s exactly what happens in his fights. The Lantern feeds off of emotions so he gets stronger with every passing moment, but he didn’t count on Hal Jordan being so tough. In his defense, Volthoom was up against two conceptual deities and assuming that Volthoom is one such entity at this point, then he probably shouldn’t be able to defeat 2. On that logic, then it wasn’t really plot hax, but the way that he lost was a little iffy. One hit and in one page…hmmmmmm. Ah well, he was actually still a rather interesting villain. This guy didn’t mess around and he always made sure to have a good time while crushing the other Lanterns.

As for Sinestro, he gets a fairly large role in this comic. Next to Hal Jordan, Sinestro is known as one of the strongest Lanterns and it’s safe to say that he can easily defeat most of the others. He is able to control the abstract entity of fear, Parallax, which lets him give Volthoom a pretty good fight. His new form is definitely pretty neat and we all certainly know how powerful you get when you’re in command of a whole army’s worth of energy. He was still a villain despite his intentions most of the time though and nearly destroyed Simon Baz just so he could escape the underworld. It worked, but while he helped the heroes, we definitely can’t call him one.

As expected, Hal Jordan came through in the clutch. He made the tough calls and then arrived as a Black Lantern. His skills really have no upper limit since his will power is nigh infinite and it was great to see him put on the Green Lantern ring near the end and do battle once more. It’s easy to see why Hal had to be written out of the Justice League comics a while back. While the writers would like you to believe that he is quite weak, Geoff Johns understands Hal’s true strength. He could easily hold his own against any JL member, including Superman and Wonder Woman. While I’m not saying that he would win, Hal Jordan is an S class fighter and someone who I would take over the whole Avengers team. He’s definitely one of the best DC characters when written well and this comic did a great job of adapting his character. Now that he’s finally back in action, it’ll be epic seeing him in the next volume.

We had a lot of characters quickly jump in at the end to help out against Volthoom including Guy Gardner, John Stewart, Kyle Rayner, Star Sapphire, and quite a few others. The many different Lantern cores showed up and naturally Simon Baz and his handheld gun were also at the ready. It was nice to see everyone and since this was effectively seen as the end of an era (No more Geoff Johns) it certainly ended off with a bang. Many of the characters even got epilogues as we found out the end for everyone up til the point where someone is telling this story. It was a fun wrap up.

As this review wraps up, let’s quickly go back to Simon Baz. I didn’t really talk about him, but he’s a fairly likable character. Naturally, he needs to stop stealing cars, but I like to think that he’s put all that behind him at this point. He’ll be a hero and everything, but I wonder if he’ll stick around Earth or if he’s going to go for greater pastures. I have the next volume with me so I’ll probably find out one way or the other. He’s better than Guy Gardner, but I still prefer John Stewart and Kyle Rayner. Kyle didn’t get to do much here like Stewart, but he did get a little hype and would end up dying as a very wise sage who doesn’t back down from anything…or anyone!

As expected, the art is great in this comic. This is really how you draw an action adventure and the sci-fi battles would do any other comic proud. The Limbo world has dicey art to show us why that place isn’t cool. It’s basically black and white the whole time, but the real art is exceptional and that’s what counts. After reading a recent Justice League volume, I have to say that the art here wins out. The facial expressions are good along with the streamlined battles. You can’t get much more complete than that right!?

Overall, I highly recommend checking out this volume. Green Lantern continues to perform at a high levels and his comics have proven to be consistently good for quite a while. If I ever had to recommend a comic series for a new comic reader, Green Lantern would be right under Justice League as far as my recommendations are concerned. It’s a nice series that anyone can get into with its great battles and fun imagery. Hal Jordan also makes for a very complete main character. Whether you’ve read a comic before or not, this is a great way to get yourself started in the comic world!

Overall 8/10

Superman Adventures Volume 1 Review

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Mail time Mail time…Mail Tiiiiiiime! Anyone remember that classic jingle? Well, it’s time to dip into the DCAU for some fun comics. If there’s any character who can always give you a good time, it’s Superman. These comics are a nice blast from the past and really feel like they could have been Superman episodes from the TV show. Everyone’s in character and that means you can expect the colorful cast to each play their parts with good ole Superman in the center of it all.

This collection brings 10 issues although the back only talks about 5 of them. A little harsh to the half that are left out right? Well, each issue will get its turn in this review. Starting things off in this collection was when Lex Luthor made a fake Superman to frame the real thing. This takes place very early on in the show so Lex Luthor wants to eradicate Superman since he knows nothing about him. Lex can’t control the Man of Steel after all, but Superman’s one step ahead of him the whole time. It was a fun way to start the collection and the fight between the two was definitely great. The android was tough, I’ll give him that. Superman always has the last laugh though and the ending was pretty hardcore since Superman made Lex give him more credit. That’s how you get the villains in line.

Another story had the return of General Zod and Mala. They had been shrunk down to an ant’s size, but thanks to prison guards allowing the cell to be attacked, they escaped and Zod turned into a giant. Can a pea sized Superman stop Zod and force him to turn from his evil ways? I don’t think so, but it would be pretty intense! It was a fairly amusing story, but not quite as action packed as the others. Dan Turpin certainly looked good though and he actually got some good shots in. It’s always good to see the cops and detectives get some props over here.

One of the most interesting comics was about Clark Kent remembering his days as Superman. He once came upon a plot that actually blew up Metropolis. So, his classic pal, Mr. Mxy—-etc decided to rewind time to give Superman a fighting chance. Superman got to follow the cause of the explosion a very long way and it turns out that it all started because a clock exploded, which made a kid throw a curve ball, which, etc, etc. Superman also had to deal with a guy who had a kryptonite rock, which made things very difficult as well. It was fun seeing the chain reaction in motion and Superman had a pretty good line when he told the kids not to play Baseball. Just a fun story through and through.

One of the sadder stories involved Livewire. She realized that the world had grown to be very sexist so she decided to control the media so that whenever a guy would be seen on screen, the station would only play static. The female news anchor loved this, but it was pretty extreme so Superman decided to step in. He got crushed since it’s hard to trap lightning so this comic saw the big team up between him and Lex Luthor. The big fight with Livewire happened and it was pretty epic. I only say that the story is sad because then Livewire is locked up and the people around her start to make sexist comments once again. It was a bit much since Metropolis shouldn’t be quite That bad and I felt like the comic didn’t need to add that in. Superman’s around to keep everyone in check after all right? Still, Livewire is one of Superman’s deadliest foes so their fights are always fun.

Continuing on from that, another story involved a kid who looked up to Lex Luthor and Superman. Little did he know that his father was framed and died because of Lex though and his mom finally breaks the news to him alongside Lois. Visibly shaken and startled, the kid must try to get past this as he attempts to save his sister from a burning building. It was a decent story and it actually tried to make Lex look at least a little good. If nothing else, he never meant for the kid to get hurt and actually wanted to honor his part of the bargain about helping the guy’s son since he would end up staying quiet on the Lexcorp issue. Unfortunately, minions aren’t very good at counting and the karma caught up to Lex. No real fighting in this story though.

Toyman’s back in town and he means business! He starts to sell a lot of Superman action figures in Metropolis and then a lot of thefts occur in the city. Everyone is baffled by what’s happening, but a little girl tells Clark that it is all the action figure’s doing. he decides to follow up on this lead and the kid was right! Can Superman stop Toyman from damaging the Superman brand? It could hurt his marketing sales for years to come if something is not done. Another good story and the plot is definitely classic. The figures are relying on quantity vs quality and they manage to cause some damage, but Superman’s always got the edge. Even if Toyman escaped rather easily.

Many black cats appear on the streets and it turns out that Brainiac has decided to attack Metropolis to get Superman’s orb and find out what it knows. Superman will not stand for this and decides to fight, but the black cats can merge into a Super Fighting Robot. It’s actually a pretty even fight and lasts for most of the issue. That instantly makes this one of the better issues. Lois doesn’t look too good here though as she is easily turned into a captive and as a result, Superman is forced to let Brainiac get to the orb. He can’t really do anything while inside of there, but the memories have now been defiled. Noooooooooo.

Due to an enraged citizen telling her hot dog stand owner that she is Superman’s girlfriend, Metallo decides to kidnap her. This story was another decent one, although you wouldn’t expect the super villain to walk around thinking that just anyone who claims to be related to Superman is on the money right? Either way, it’s a good thing that Superman is always around since he comes through when things are at their diciest. Metallo is usually a good villain although it depends on the continuity, but in this case, he was just a little bland and didn’t actually put up much of a fight, which was a little disappointing.

Finally, we had a comic where Jimmy tried to prove himself as he took pictures of Superman in action. It was probably emotional for his fans to see Jimmy in such duress, but he proved that with a little guts and some pizzazz, he could take pictures with the best of them. There were no super villains this time, but a new gravity gun took away Superman’s ability to fly, which made for a neat tribute to the old comics as Superman had to run everywhere. He even got an epic burn against Lex, although I give Luthor credit for going through the front door. He is certainly courageous.

As for the art in the collection, I’d say that it’s good. Superman’s chin can be a little too big, even for him, but I suppose that the art can’t be perfect right? It’s still pretty smooth and makes for easy reading as you blast through the collection. It’s bright and fits the Superman tone. It’s certainly a far jump above the Teen Titans Go issues, I’ll tell you that much. I also do like how the artists are able to draw the DCAU to the point where you could look at a single pace and say “Ah, that’s from the Superman TAS designs right?”

Overall, This collection does the Superman series justice. I highly recommend this to any Superman fan and certainly to anyone who likes to see a good fight scene. Superman may be the strongest comic book character of all time, but he doesn’t let it go to his head. He never forgets about the smaller folks and comes across as a really nice guy, even if he has to pretend that he’s a little meek as Clark Kent. Unlike most collections, I can’t say that I actually disliked any of the issues. I didn’t like the ending to the Livewire one and the Jimmy comic wasn’t very eventful, but they were all fun and entertaining with their respective plots. Hopefully the library gets more volumes of this series since the Superman Adventures is definitely a keeper.

Overall 8/10

Dial H Volume 1 Into You Review

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I remember reading the classic Dial H comics back in the day. It was definitely a pretty neat concept about how a phone dial could let the kid turn into many different superheroes. This modernized version definitely takes a darker twist on the classic series, but keeps in the key elements. It’s a fairly interesting start to the series, even if it is very convoluted. It can’t quite match up to the original, but it’s safe to say that it’s a little better than expected.

The main character is an overweight guy by the name of Nelson. He smokes a lot and his body’s not doing so well anymore. His friend tries to get Nelson to adopt a healthier lifestyle, but the guy won’t hear it. He likes the way that he is and doesn’t plan on changing. Of course, Nelson has little choice in the matter when his friend is beaten up by the gang that he had been working for. Nelson finds a dial and manages to turn into a superhero! He has fun messing with the gangs for a while, but the villains hire a super powered thug of their own. A mysterious individual by the name of Roxie (Well that’s her real name. I forgot the alias) appears to help Nelson fix his dial so that they can stop an evil threat that is quickly approaching. Will they be able to stop the villain?

Throughout the whole collection, we don’t really get to see what the Dial can really do since Nelson’s is broken the whole time. This means that he can’t control which hero he will turn into and some are definitely weaker than others. There was an interesting Chicken form, which had a chicken whose legs were just a cycle. Another form was an Indian who was essentially just a guy with arrows so he wouldn’t be much help against the monsters that the heroes would fight. Nelson actually got off pretty easy for the most part since he mainly just had to deal with ordinary crooks.

Towards the end of the collection, we got to see the all powerful villain, Abyss. He’s essentially made of cosmic energy and seemed to be just about invincible although X.N. was able to injure him a little. He doesn’t make a whole lot of sense like several of the other characters and speaks in backwards/fragmented English a lot of the time. Despite his gibberish, he is powerful and I like the design, even if the actual character is pretty bland as a result of his nonsensical dialogue. X.N. was also pretty insane. She tortures Roxie even when it’s obvious that the hero doesn’t know anything about what’s happening. None of them really had a clue since everyone was guessing with the dials. She wanted to revive Abyss, but didn’t think too much about what would happen after that. Naturally, Abyss wasn’t about to listen to an ordinary human and he was too powerful for her to control afterwards. She had a dial as well and got some pretty cool forms like a robot suit. It’ll definitely be neat to see how many other forms the author can think up as the issues go on.

I’m not a big fan of Nelson or Roxie either, which makes the cast one of the comic’s weak points. Nelson arguably means well as he uses the Dial for good, but he doesn’t have much of a personality and he certainly didn’t look so good in the intro comic. Hopefully he’s taking better care of himself now though and he’ll need to be ready for action since the Dial villains are only getting stronger. To clarify, Nelson’s not a bad character, but he’s not ready to be called a good one yet either. I’ll need him to get more personality in future volumes.

The art isn’t my favorite style as it’s more noir centered, but it’s not bad. The writing keeps the issues interesting and the art is clear enough for you to follow with what’s happening. It shows signs of being a DC styled book artwise during some of the scenes, but naturally takes a different approach from the average superhero adventure. I’d say that the art is “good” if I were to give it a ranking and is definitely passable in the end.

This volume was a little light on the superhero action bit, which makes sense for the series. Abyss made for a decent antagonist, but I’m certainly more hyped for the next arc. Near the end of the fight, the heroes were saved by another character wielding a dial. This character defeated Abyss with ease and we finally got to see a dial that could work. One that lets you switch between heroes in the blink of an eye. I definitely look forward to seeing more of that character, especially since the scene proved to be too much for the art. It couldn’t keep up with the forms and that’s one moment where the art could have been better.

Furthermore, the final issue showed us a glimpse into the other world where the heroes are from. As you likely suspected from the first issue, the heroes are real. That’s why they come with their own set of personality and memories. Whenever Nelson or another character summons them from the dial, it steals away their abilities in the other world. It proved to happen at a fatal moment so one of the heroes went into the real world and destroyed the Dial user. She went to jail willingly, but this does prove to be a serious issue for the residents of that planet. If Earth continues to suck away their powers whenever the users feel like it, the heroes will always be in danger. I’m assuming that they are going to have to invade Earth soon and maybe that could be an opportunity for some guest stars since the Justice League should be present for something like that. Yes, I’m definitely anticipating that to be a fun arc and hopefully it happens before the series is over since I found out that Dial H only made it to 15 issues.

Overall, Dial H was an interesting comic. It went for plot over action and that’s always a decent option to have at the ready. I nearly gave it a 7, but the weak characters coupled with Roxie getting kidnapped and Nelson just chilling out at home while she was being interrogated was a little iffy. Nelson shouldn’t need to be reminded that he has a job to do. Throwing in the new characters should definitely be a lot of fun and it’ll give us some extra action as Nelson hopefully fixes his dial so we can have some hero against hero battles. I recommend checking this volume out if you’re looking for a unique superhero story. It’s not like the usual comics so it’s a good change of pace.

Overall 6/10

Batman vs Superman The Greatest Battles Review

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With the Batman vs Superman film coming out, this collection definitely makes a lot of sense. Now I can read what various authors feel would happen in this famous fight. I feel like more issues could have been included since these two have fought many times, but maybe it’s for the best since there would almost inevitably be some terrible fights that would make you cringe through the years. I’d say that the selection is pretty good and both characters get some props depending on the issue. I’d say that Batman seems to be favored more of the time, but most of the fights are from his point of view, which really changes how you look at the fight. Well, let’s look at each fight.

The first fight is from when Poison Ivy brainwashed Superman. Superman’s will power was not enough to keep up with Poison Ivy’s tricks so Batman finds himself in a position where he must take the Man of Steel down once again. Catwoman is also around so Batman tells her to go take a hostage from the Daily Planet to snap Superman out of this while he distracts him. This fight is from Batman’s perspective and he gives Superman a lot of credit as the dark knight takes him down a few pegs. He has a Kryptonite ring, which helps out a lot in this fight. While Superman would win in the end, Batman fared pretty well considering that he had no real prep time and Superman’s superior strength and speed were only mildly useful. That’s how crafty Batman is, but I suppose that we should give Superman the win here. The bulk of the issue was the large fight scene and the art is really good. I’ve seen bits and pieces of this fight many times before and the art is the classic 2000’s look that is nice and detailed. The characters aren’t thin and streamlined like in the New 52 so you can really appreciate how tough they are. I love both styles and I still prefer New 52, but this is another great moment in DC’s character design history.

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The second issue isn’t really a fight as the two never go at it. Superman finds out that Batman is in his city and he sees that the Dark Knight is being a little excessive in his interrogation so Superman quickly puts a stop to that. Batman knows that he cannot get away, but he does pull a quick vanishing act and plants a bomb on himself so that Superman can’t make a move. It was a very good plan on Batman’s part and it definitely worked, no going to jail for him this time! The actual villain was Magpie, who’s psychotic and manages to create a lot of havok and destruction considering that she has no real super powers. She doesn’t last long against the two heroes. The art was a little on the retro side to the point where I almost thought that it was going to be about Batman and Superman Jr when I had flipped through the issue. It’s another fun style and this was another very good comic. The heroes didn’t really fight, but we can chalk it up as another Superman win since Batman had to use the bomb plot.

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Next up, is the comic with the best art, but the fight can’t really be counted…or can it? Two kids are debating whether Batman or Superman would win if both of them were fighting. These kids are the two magical imps who are always causing the heroes a lot of trouble so their imaginations are pretty vivid. We get references to many comics and both heroes get to have their laughs as they try to debunk the arguments of the other. It’s a lot of fun and as I mentioned, the art was actually very good. The real Batman and Superman even get to appear as they listened to the story. Batman admitted that Bat-Mite did a good job of explaining many of the ways that he would take Superman down. Superman gets a little worried at this so I’ve gotta give Batman the win here. A fairly fun comic, even if none of it was real in the end.

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After that is a very quick issue from the New 52. It’s so bite sized that you would almost think that the collection just grabbed a few pages from the issue. It’s the famous moment where the Justice League first met in the new universe. Batman is taken out instantly since the issue is actually the one after Batman has already been defeated. I think I know who gets the point here. It’s a great comic though and even has the Flash vs Superman fight that was cut out of the movie for some bizaare reason. It was probably one of the film’s biggest failings since it was an incredibly impressive moment for Superman since the Flash had just displayed an incredible feat of speed. The New 52 really did have a great beginning with the League forming there. Green Lantern also got to throw some hits in, but Superman’s win was never in doubt here. Technically, this issue has the best art, but since it’s so small, I’m not really counting it for anything other than the score.

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Superman would be mind controlled yet again as the Joker takes him over this time. He has managed to take over the Justice League so that they can finish off Batman once and for all. Batman clears out a section of Gotham City so that he can take the League out without hurting any civilians. He takes out the members very quickly, but Superman proves to be another story since the Man of Steel isn’t holding back this time. The fight is very close with both fighters getting their due credit as the match escalates. It’s effectively a draw, but since Superman has more stamina than Batman, I think we’ve got to give him the win here. Keep in mind that it is hinted that the fear toxin that Scarecrow hit Batman with is still in effect so the whole thing may have been a dream. Personally, I’m pretty sure that it’s all a dream since Batman mentioned that all of his nightmares end with the Joker’s laugh. An interesting ending to a very good comic. It’s neat to see how Batman would handle the Justice League and you always have to debate whether it is plot hax or just prep time.

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Finally, the collection wraps up with the famous Dark Knight Returns battle. I’ve never been a fan of the comic and even the fight is a little lackluster next to the others. This saga got 2 issues though so they could fit in as many pages as possible. The art is the worst from all of the stories in the collection as I’m not a fan of this style. It’s very cluttered and makes the encounter a little hard to read as you have to go through it slowly. Regardless, this is a decisive victory for Batman as he shows Superman what it’s like to be a man. He falls first, but could have destroyed Superman if he had wanted too. Superman was weakened before the match started, but we don’t hand out excuses here. Of course, it’s hard to root for anyone here since Batman is crazy and Superman seems to have lost his sense of justice as he grew older. Ah well, some issues are just like that.

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Wow, did I originally say that Batman was favored? When you really look at the comics, it doesn’t matter who was more likable, Superman had a tendency of winning their encounters. It’s possible that Batman’s wins were left out intentionally, but more likely, Superman just ends up taking the wins because he’s incredibly powerful. No amount of prep time can come close to compensating for the large gap in ability between the two. That being said, Batman and Superman are some of the best comic book characters out there. Superman is actually number one for me. So, regardless of who wins the fight, I am typically satisfied. I may call for plot hax either way, but I can make arguments for either side winning since I love the concept of Prep Time while I also believe that Superman’s might is essentially unrivaled.

Overall, This was a great batch of comics. Many different art styles collide and they were all great in different ways aside from the final saga. These were definitely some great battles between the two iconic heroes and hopefully a lot of people are able to read these stories before the film hits theaters. I highly recommend checking out the collection and while it feels incredibly short since the issues have so much action, they are quality stories that definitely deserve to be read. I look forward to reading more DC comics soon as I have reviews for Batman, Superman, and Green Lantern coming up in the very near future. Even a DC hero who is often overlooked, but is always the first one dialed when someone needs help!

Overall 8/10

Teen Titans Go! Volume 1 Truth Justice and Pizza Review

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Teen Titans was a great TV show and I definitely enjoyed the animation and action scenes back in the day. It was so good that I still consider it to be better than Young Justice and is the best DC show that wasn’t in the DCAU. Teen Titans Go, the current comedy show is pretty bad, but this comic is about their normal return so it’s still shown seriously and the characters are in their original designs. The stories are fun for the most part and it’s great to see the old characters back, but the art is verry wonky. It feels like the artists are either very bad or some of the illustrations were done on purpose because some of the pictures feel like they must have been on purpose…right!?

There are quite a few stories here and each one is a stand alone, which naturally means that some will be good and some will be bad. One of the decent stories involved Cyborg feeling bad because some kids thought that he was boring. His reaction to this was very overblown though and the plot could have been a side issue instead of the whole issue. It seemed to be a little out of character if you ask me. It was a decent story aside from Cyborg randomly getting a crush on the teacher. That basically wrecked the story and destroyed the moral at the end. Cyborg shouldn’t have needed to be reminded that he’s a cool fighter.

The worst story of the bunch involved Raven getting a zit and having the rest of the Titans tease her about it. That’s something that I would expect from their parody selves in the flash cartoon, not the characters form the real deal. Even Robin and Starfire get in on it at one point and the whole thing is pretty grating. The Trigon appearance comes out of nowhere and even though we did get a little action, there was nothing that could save the story at the end. You could tell that the writers were simply desperate for attention at that point.

The best story was the first one, which is pretty good from the writer’s point of view since it means that you can hook the readers in very quickly even if the stories go downhill from there. The Teen Titans had a blast playing video games, but little did they know that the HIVE was using the intel to see how the heroes were able to fight. It’s pretty ingeniious and computer software can help villains to try and anticipate what the heroes will do next. That being said, the villains have to still be strong enough to do something about this and I feel like Gizmo and his little crew will never be a match for the Teen Titans. Even Slade gets a small appearance here, which was neat. Action and video games make for a deadly combo and that’s really why this story could not be beat.

Another story featured the Gordanians. As I had just seen Justice League Starcrossed, it was neat to see them again. They arrive on Earth looking for the Dodo birds, but as the creature is basically extinct, that will be tough. Beast Boy must get his teammates to trust him so that they can all stop this alien menace. Unfortunately, BB has a tendency to lie for fun and his teammates can’t be sure if he’s telling the truth or not. It wasn’t a bad comic, but Beast Boy was way too mean and there’s no way that Starfire should have brought him a pizza at all since he tricked her in such a mean way. There was some action though and that’s always good.

There was also a Valentines comic where Robin had to take Starfire to an amusement park to show her why the day isn’t celebrated quite as nationally as days like Christmas and Thanksgiving. Unlike Teen Titans Go, this version of Robin isn’t interested in romance and it was a nice contrast to his parody self. He was too busy breaking high scores in DDR to worry about anything else and that’s the Robin that I remember. A fight is squeezed in there somewhere I think, but it was only a decent comic. Not a bad one though since Robin looked quite good and that’s always a big positive.

Finally, Thunder and Lightning returned as they had an argument with each other. It’s pretty nonsensical and they start fighting for no real reason, but the Teen Titans decide to join in and the big brawl starts very quickly. It’s mainly through misunderstandings, but it was good to see Robin charge in to stop the nuisances. Thunder and Lightning made for good villains in the TV show, but as heroes they aren’t very interesting and don’t add anything to the table. They certainly won’t be the next Dynamic Duo.

As for the art….it’s pretty bad. I still feel like it must have been at least partially intentional because of how bad it was. Seriously, I’ve seen fan art and fan comics that were drawn more accurately than some of these issues. The issues have many artists so the style keeps changing, but most of them turn out to be subpar. The anatomies will be seriously out of proportion in some moments and then the characters will have odd facial expressions in another. There is no sense of consistency and this also makes it difficult for any fight scenes to gain a whole lot of traction. The first issue was the best and had the best art, I don’t think that this is a coincidence. The art is clear and easy to read so it automatically beats some other styles like, dare I say, The Dark Knight Returns? Still, it’s way too spacy for me to call it anything other than bad art. It may not take a full star away, but coupled with the fact that the stories don’t knock it out of the park, I can’t give this comic the usual 7. It’s just not fun or good enough to get that kind of praise.

This is much better than the new Teen Titans Go and I’ll look forward to reading future collections of this series, but Teen Titans can do so much better. The series had a rich cast of super villains to choose from and the characters are also interesting enough to hold their own stories so the comics shouldn’t be afraid to give us some epic battles. The art needs to improve though and in this modern age there is no excuse for the art to not be dynamite. Daredevil and Black Widow’s new series may have bad art, but in their case it is completely intentional. For this collection, it’s just hard to say for sure if that is the case.

Overall, I recommend this comic to Teen Titans fans and to people who enjoyed the TV show. It’s nice to see the old characters back and that they are in character. Unfortunately, the stories aren’t the greatest and while some are good, others are downright bad. It’s the problem with stand alone stories since the quality always varies. The next comic that I’m reviewing has a similar format, but it works a lot better since the stories are all decently action packed.

Overall 6/10

The Amazing Spider Man Volume 5 Spiral Review

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It’s back to The Amazing Spider Man! Once Dan Slott brought Peter Parker back, he seemed determined to make the main character as unlikable as possible. The comics went through some dark times, but these issues aren’t related to Slott. I believe it’s because they are .1 issues, but at the same times, the plot feels relevant enough where these issues could be main ones. Regardless of where this takes place, Spider Man is back to being a good character with an engaging plot like the good ole days. It’s a pretty good Spider Man story. While I won’t let me enthusiasm get the better of me and say that this is worthy of a 9 or that it’s one of the best Spider Man comics ever, it’s a good improvement and hopefully this sets the bar for future Spider Man stories.

There is a gang war going on with the various villains trying to grab some power. Wilson Fisk, Tombstone, and a gallery of other big gang members want to seize control and that’s being really bad for Yuriko. She is a cop who is in charge of the district where all of the action is and while she may be good, she’s not ready to tackle supervillains. She decides that it’s time for Wraith to take command again (Her alter ego) and she slowly starts to cross the line between being a hero and a villain. Spider Man tries to warn her many times, but then he must make a choice. Does he continue to try and persuade her to join the light again or should he take her down before innocents are hurt? These questions are pondered as all of the villains make their move.

As mentioned earlier, this comic was fun to read the writing was actually well done this time around. Spider Man felt like the experienced veteran that he should be portrayed as. He was able to easily dispatch foes like Bullseye and Hobgoblin with no real effort. Spider Man is powerful despite only having the “proportionate strength of a spider” and his spider sense is an invaluable ability that can get him out of just about any jam. Spider Man also has to make a hard choice with Wraith and I’d say that he made the right one. He gave her a chance, but at the end of the day, Spider Man can’t let the fight against crime get personal. If she’s crossing the line, then it’s time to go and take the win.

It was interesting to see some of the gang members also show some loyalty for once. When Black Cat tried to move into the territory, the minions were not buying it. They still work for Tombstone even if he’s in jail. It’s commendable for what it’s worth. I can’t say that Tombstone and Hobgoblin should really invite that much respect considering that they’re always getting busted, but they can fight, which is always a game changer. In fact, Tombstone gets his his own fight in this comic, which is actually pretty impressive. It’s not very surprising to longtime comic readers who remember the days when he would actually fight, but still good to see. Some villains stop fighting and get rusty like Green Goblin.

Black Cat’s sideplot seems like it’s going nowhere fast as she still blames Peter for what Ock was doing for so long. I suppose that it can be tough to accept that someone else was controlling Spider Man’s body for so long, but in a world where aliens visit every other Tuesday, that should not be a huge issue. These things happen and not being friends anymore is one thing, but she turned back into a complete villain. I do like the new costume though and the ASM series has been pretty good with giving old characters new designs that are an improvement over the originals, but I hope that Black Cat makes a move and soon to avoid the usual formula.

Mr. Negative gets a fairly large role in this comic collection as he helps to steer Wraith down the wrong path. He presents Wraith with the alluring offer of some evidence to take down other villains so that he can gain some territory. It’s an intriguing proposition since Wraith can take down some villains, but then he can make a move. Personally, it sounds like a good bet, provided that Wraith keeps some perspective on this. If you got some evidence that could take down a few big mobsters, wouldn’t you accept it even if it was from someone who was not exactly a law abiding citizen? I personally don’t have a problem with this.

Naturally, the issue isn’t black and white. The evidence helped Wraith put a corrupt judge behind bars, but the judge’s family was also in a bind, which is why he made the move. The evidence was also only partially accurate. So, Wraith can take the judge down, but some innocents will be lost or she can let him go free and then more innocents may be convicted or the flip side of villains getting away scott free with more blackmail. These are some pretty heavy choices and Wraith has made this very personal because one of her comrades was destroyed in the line of fire during one of the earlier gunfights.

Of course, Wraith goes too far when she takes a life and acts like a vigilante through and through, but up until that point, she hadn’t really crossed the line. A little breaking and entering, intimidation, deceit, but these are things that you could picture Batman or even Captain America doing when necessary. I think Spider Man may have blown some of these acts out of proportion, but a small spark can lead to a fire and in the end we see that Spider Man was right to be worried.

Of course, you can sympathize with why Wraith is frustrated with the system. Villains break out of jail constantly and consistently get around to hurting more people. Batman is used to his villains getting out of jail within a day and the same could be said for Marvel’s prisons. The system is very corrupt in the comics with a lot of cops being on the villain’s payroll. Lawyers are so good that felons get to leave jail on technicalities a lot and justice is rarely served as more and more people are added to the body count. Still, Spider Man is right when he says that this essentially doesn’t matter.

Saying it like that looks bad so I’ll clarify here. Of course it matters and that’s why you have the people without powers trying to fix the system or at least improve it. At the same time, the heroes can’t take justice into their own hands or they will become villains and be a problem for the others. They can just keep on taking out the villains as quickly and efficiently as possible to save as many people as possible. They can help the cops, but they can’t actually become the executioners. Spider Man’s certainly been tempted to go too far, but he keeps himself in check and that’s where his famous responsibility comes from. That’s why being a superhero isn’t for everyone. Some just can’t handle it and turn into the next Punisher.

One area where The Amazing Spider Man is typically not lacking is in the art. It’s nice and streamlined for the duration of the issues and the fight scenes are pretty good. Good art makes a good comic even better so I was able to blast through this collection while standing in line for the new Star Wars film. It’s a good way to get yourself hyped for the feature film. With the writing also being solid, this made the comic a complete experience.

Overall, This is probably the best Amazing Spider Man volume that I’ve read in the modern era. If we’re counting special events like Ends of the Earth, then that changes, but this was definitely a good comic. Wraith also makes for a compelling vigilante/villain who tries to do the right thing, but is a little too extreme about it. I’m almost positive that her character will return at some point, but it’s definitely hard to say when this could be. If you’re looking for an emotional collection that discusses morality and letting the system do its job, this is the comic for you. You can finally see Spider Man as he was meant to be portrayed. Eventually I’ll probably check out another volume in this series with the main issues so hopefully it can be this solid.

Overall 8/10

Ultimate Comics Spider Man Volume 5 Review

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Miles is a character who I’ve given a lot of grief in the comics. Mainly because he comes across as a little overconfident, but not in a fun Kirito kind of way. It’s hard to differentiate, but there are many characters who act overconfident, but simply can’t pull it off as well as others. Maybe it’s because Miles also tries to act inexperienced and gets upset constantly at the drop of a hat. He’s too all over the place. That’s not the case here…but is that a good thing or have we traded personalities for another negative one? All that and more in the review!

It’s been a year since Miles gave up the Spider Man mantle. His mother was destroyed by a stray bullet and his dad was injured so Miles just figured that it wasn’t worth it to being a hero. A lot of other characters have gone through this decision in the past and it’s always wince worthy, but it’s worth pointing out that it’s not a Miles specific issue. That being said, the issue is presented in different ways based on who the character is and the situation. Here, everyone is telling Miles to get back on the horse. Whether they do it through blackmail (practically) or peer pressure, they eventually force him to get the costume back on.

Two new vigilantes have appeared by the names of Cloak and Dagger. They are hunting a meta human who has explosive abilities. SHIELD isn’t looking into the matter since this relates to an evil partner of theirs, Roxxon. This is why Jessica Drew needs Spider Man back in action to help her take this group of scientists down. The scientists aren’t purely academic geniuses, but they can also fight when necessary. The final pair or issues is where the bulk of the action is in this volume and the fights are pretty good.

I enjoy the art for this series for the most part. I feel like the humans can look a little odd at times. It’s like they’re always pouting. That all goes away once the action scenes start though. The art really looks vibrant during the meta battles like when Cloak and Dagger first appear. The final group fight against the scientists was also well done and Taskmaster’s bout was a nice hand to hand fight. It’s why I’m always open for a good comic book fight after a long period of dialogue. Dialogue is good as well of course and the first half is still solid, but I was certainly pleased with the ending.

I was actually worried a little that the heroes would lost to the scientists, which would kick off the next arc, but luckily that didn’t happen. The villains were decently tough with one of them even looking like the ultimate Sinister, but Spiderman’s group has this. I don’t care for Cloak, but his powers do make him decently OP. (Overpowered) Spiderman’s venom shock still proves to come in handy in just about every fight and it’s a power that would really aid the original as well. It’s a great ability for escaping from a tough situation or for launching a quick attack.

This is Cloak and Dagger’s debut so it was interesting to see them. They both seemed like decently likable character before the switch. After that…I can’t say that they looked too good. Cloak went from being a respectable fellow who seemed like a very nice guy to someone who didn’t really care if he destroyed someone. He casually puts people into his cloak even though he knows that they could blow up or be seriously injured. Dagger seems more grounded in that respect as she wants vengeance, but not for it to be fatal, even if she hasn’t really thought about how to accomplish this. Cloak is certainly stronger since his all consuming cloak can really cause a lot of damage, but Dagger’s no lightweight either. The way that they quickly assumed that a metahuman was working with the villains was very iffy though. They seriously didn’t have much of an excuse to go after the bomb user.

Bombshell was easily a more likable character than Cloak and Dagger. She didn’t ask for these strange powers, but took them really well. She wasn’t panicking or on a quest for vengeance. Bombshell just kept on living her life like usual until she was attacked out of the blue. She doesn’t really have anywhere to go, but it seems like SHIELD’s got their eyes on her. Bombshell could certainly be a valuable asset to the team and was one of the heavy hitters here. Spider Woman’s role is mostly that of a mentor to Miles here. She finally lets him know that she was a clone of Peter Parker this whole time. Jessica Drew can certainly still fight and she does well against Taskmaster, but without Spiderman’s venom sting, she seems to be at a bit of a disadvantage in these fights. She needs some kind of extra edge, but her hand to hand experience will suffice against most opponents.

As for Miles, he’s still not the greatest of main characters for me. He’s not as bad as he was in other comics, but deciding to stop being a hero for a whole year is a little iffy. Particularly when he decides not to step in when Bombshell was getting double teamed by two new figures. It’s one thing to not actively suit up, but another to just watch as a fellow super human is being attacked. It feels like he is always wondering about whether he should tell his girlfriend that he is Spiderman or not. I reviewed the first graphic novel of the sequel series to this one so I can safely say that he does make a choice soon. His friend isn’t much help though and that guy’s pretty annoying. It doesn’t help that the comic decides to randomly have two characters tell Miles that his friend was actually never his friend and one thought that they were actually together. Why do we need to keep on adding politics to our comics? Miles denies this which is good, but I wouldn’t put it past the comics to try and make this happen. Let’s hope not. I don’t think Miles needs to be in a relationship with the girl either though. Comics don’t need romance, I just want to see some action. Now that Miles is finally back in costume, that should happen soon.

It’s always something to think about just how different this Ultimate Universe is. There’s no Peter Parker, but he’s actually known as a hero here. He managed to really help a lot of people in his final acts and even Jameson accepted him. There aren’t Avengers around typically and the X-Men are hard to find as well. The flip side is that super villains aren’t a regular occurrence like in 616 and the world isn’t ending every other week. It’s definitely a more grounded universe and it’s a fun alternate universe that has been developed. It’s just a shame that most of the titles typically aren’t that good.

I do hope that Miles tells his Dad about his secret identity soon though. The guy seems pretty reasonable and I’m pretty sure that he would take it well. Even if he doesn’t, Miles has SHIELD to fall back on, but at this point, he should probably consider that it’s a necessary step or he may end up having some regrets soon. With the drama mostly tucked away, I’m ready for some more action packed volumes coming up although this was the last one for this series so back to the sequel or to the older titles.

Overall, This was a solid Ultimate collection. A little light on action, but the final 2 issues had enough action to cover the volume. The first half’s drama wasn’t that bad either. It can be a little annoying to see Miles give up on the costume for a whole year though since that’s no small stretch of time. I like his Dad, but the other supporting characters aren’t so good. I can’t say that Gwen’s great here either, but Aunt May’s decent. It would be hard for her to be an unlikable character I suppose. Miles seems to be less overconfident now so in costume he’s good now. He just needs to work on the alter ego now. Writing out his friend from the series would be a great start. I’d recommend checking this volume out and it’s a good jumping on point if you’ve never read Ultimate before.

Overall 7/10

Birds of Prey Volume 11 Metropolis or Dust Review

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This is the first Birds of Prey level that I’ve played so that was interesting. Unfortunately, I can’t say that it was very good. The main characters aren’t the greatest and there are no real villains in this collection. Ah well…maybe next time I suppose. The concept is still pretty neat and as the group is made up of hand to hand fighters for the most part, that will give the series a chance for many hand to hand fights.

The Birds of Prey were on a routine mission when things quickly escalated in Metroplis. A lady became a big crime lord once her father was out of the picture, but the other mobsters didn’t take her seriously. That was their mistake and she decided to eliminate them all at once with her giant robot. Oracle’s preparations were sabotaged by Misfit and the thing became a big incident with many fatalities. Oracle’s confidence was shattered through this. Can she trust her instincts now? Meanwhile, Huntress must help Lady Blackhawk defeat an enemy from the past.

The plot in and of itself isn’t bad I suppose, but it’s not exactly an eye opener for someone walking through an aisle of comics. Seeing Superman was cool though and he made a lot of good points as expected. Oracle should have called in some extra heroes as soon as the giant mech appeared. That being said..who actually does that? You can bet that the Teen Titans or a fellow JL member would not have called for backup. While it is sound advice, nobody uses it and that includes Superman.

It’s also sad for Oracle since her group was doing just fine. In a way, Misfit saved the day by teleporting into the robot in the first place, but then she also wrecked everything by pushing the big red button. It was an odd scene as you would expect it in a comedy situation, but it actually had some real ramifications behind it. It’s always interesting to see that because when you really look at a comic, the heroes take crazy risks all the time. “Don’t move or the hostage gets it!” Heroes often ignore the villain and quickly charge in or throw something. It works out, but should it? Seeing these attempts and hunches fail sometimes is always intriguing for that reason, but it still makes Misfit look absolutely terrible as a character.

Oracle isn’t a likable lead, which probably hurt the comic a little. I’ve always thought that Batgirl was a character who could be likable one minute and irritating the next. She’s had a mixed track record, but I can’t say that I’ve ever seen an incarnation of Oracle that I was a big fan of. Barbara’s better as Batgirl and it would be nice to see her in that role again. Oracle is just too harsh with the characters and always acts as if she is in the right. Oracle isn’t actually helping on the field so she should act with a little more modesty. These heroes have a decent amount of experience under their belt at this point as well.

Huntress was easily the best character of the bunch. She still talks a little tougher than her skills can actually back up, but I would not call that a bad thing. It’s good to have one character who’s ready to take the win even if she’s not all that powerful. Lady Blackhawk is essentially DC’s Black Widow in terms of personality. At least, that’s how she is in this graphic novel and I can’t say that I’m a huge fan of her. That being said, she spends most of the comic being brainwashed so she didn’t have a chance to stop being a little on the generic side. We’ll see how she improves from here, but strength of will is something that she’s lacking.

Manhunter’s role was very small as she was mostly the group’s informant who went around doing the hard work. She seems like a good character and is certainly a tough one even if that’s part of why all of the members start to blend together. Each of the members is the tough and stern character who beats up on the bad guys. I feel like Misfit, Black Alice, and Huntress are the only characters with actual personalities and with the exception of the latter, the other two characters aren’t likable.

Black Alice is basically a villain who only pretends to be a hero when it’s convenient. She certainly has no business being on the Birds of Prey squad. She is decently powerful as she can steal your powers, which will come in handy when fighting someone like Superman. This technique seems to be activated by thought, which makes it nearly impossible to neutralize. That being said, she’s pretty whiney and isn’t a team player. It’s just hard to root for her.

Likewise, Misfit isn’t really a good character either. Oracle never lets her into the field, which makes you root for Misfit a little. That is all thrown out the window though when Misfit’s comic relief tendencies destroyed hundreds of people in a big explosion. Now we see why Oracle keeps her out of the field and it destroyed any chance that Misfit had of being a good character. I also don’t really care for jokesters if that’s their only gimmick. You have to have something to compliement it unless your jokes are just That good. If you’re great at that role, then it can work, but that’s not Misfit’s strength.

This comic would have been a lot better without the Killer Shark plot. One guy found some drugs in his grand father’s stuff and decided to become a super villain. It’s apparently easy to get into that profession once you have a costume. He was able to find Blackhawk’s apartment somehow and then he even made a villain lair as he defeated the two heroines. Do we really need more cheap villains like this? They seem to pop up all the time now. The plot twist about Lady Killer Shark also smells like a retcon to me. I hope that’s not the case because that would be a really bad change. Why not take things at face value like characters randomly being evil in the past? Of course, maybe this wasn’t a retcon, in which case it’s still bad, but not a bad twist since there wouldn’t have been a twist.

I did enjoy the art though. It’s smooth and fairly streamlined. The action scenes are fun when they happen and I’m always up for a good hand to hand fight scene when it’s done right. Good art can take a comic a long way. It won’t end up saving it in the long run, but it can win you part of the battle. This series just needs to step up with the rest of its sections to truly be a strong title. The writing wasn’t bad so we really just need a good villain and for the main characters to get a little more likable.

Overall, Birds of Prey is still a good concept, but this volume just didn’t work out for me. It could be a one time deal though and every series can have an underwhelming trade paperback at some point. There have been several Birds of Prey series over the past and this is volume 11 of one so maybe the series was just about to get good or it had jumped the shark. Instead of waiting to find out, check out the early Supergirl volumes in the New 52. That was a great series!

Overall 5/10

Gotham Academy Volume 1 Welcome To Gotham Academy Review

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Gotham Academy was very popular when it first came out. Everyone raved about how awesome it was, but then the series slowly died down as the issues kept going. Eventually, everyone dropped it..or so it seems. Well, I finally took the plunge and read the graphic novel. I can’t say that it lived up to the hype for me…at all, but it’s a fairly decent comic. The art and characters just hold it back a little, but the art’s the main problem.

Gotham City is tired of always being super gloomy and gritty. They don’t deserve that reputation when they have such a nice school right? (Bullies aside….) This comic series focuses on the school and one of the students in it, Olive. Olive mysteriously vanished during the summer and lost her memories of what happened. Only a few people seem to know what happened to her, but they’re not spilling the beans and Olive always has to dash off so she can’t interrogate anyone. Bruce Wayne may hold all of the answers, but how can she talk to a billionaire while at this school? For now, Olive won’t worry about it and she’ll just try to enjoy the school life. Try being the key word.

Perhaps it is due to the memory loss, but Olive isn’t a very nice person anymore. Her friends say so anyway. One of her friends is Maps, a fairly nice kid who’s always very eager and optimistic. Maps is easily the best kid in the comic although she could go downhill fast if she starts to take the situation with her brother and Olive personally. If Olive decides to pull the friendzone card, Maps just needs to roll with it. I won’t judge her on actions that have not yet happened though so I’ll give her a brief slide for now. Maps helps to make the comic fun as without her, the school would be a little lifeless.

Olive, Maps, and some other classmates decide to have fun poking around the parts of the school that are forbidden to them. It’s what these kids do for fun after all! They manage to find Killer Croc which was interesting. I’m tempted to say that Killer Croc is completely out of character here, but I haven’t officially seen him in the New 52 yet so maybe not. Either way, he is looking after Olive a little during her stay at the school because he got along with her mother. Although, he may not ultimately get a say in that since Batman is on the prowl. Batman’s role is very small as the comic is trying not to rely on star power yet so he just has a cameo along with Bruce Wayne. He looks like the bad guy to an extent, but you have to remember that Killer Croc is a wanted felon for a reason. He may act pleasant on the outside, but he’s really a very sinister fellow at times.

The ending of the comic was pretty intense as Damian got a quick cameo and outsmarted the other kids. Given his professional training, Damian would be very overpowered in this series. To an extent, I can see why people wouldn’t want him in this school. He will certainly change the dynamic of the comic and also shift away a good amount of focus from Olive. Still, I think this may have been what the series needed to get a little bit of a boost.

As mentioned earlier, I do think that the art really hurts the comic. People seem to love the art, which continues to show the gap between critically praised art and my kind of art. Batman, Walking Dead, Attack on Titan, I consider all of those to have bad to terrible art. Instead, look at Superman, Justice League, and All New All Different Avengers for the art that really sells a title for me. If this volume had that level of art, it would be a completely different experience. I dunno, I just find it really sub par here and the art just isn’t clear or bright enough to really snag your attention. There also isn’t a deep plot yet so it can’t get away with a darker art style like Secret Avengers can.

One subplot that is definitely not good so far is Olive’s plot with Maps’ brother. The guy can’t really take a hint and at least the two are basically solo acts at the moment, but how long will that last? Romance is the last thing that this title needed as the plot threatens to turn the comic into your average school story with romance. That’s definitely not the way that I would have written the script. The romance plot continues to thicken though as a Teenaged Man Bat shows up for some more drama. If you don’t see the parrallels to Twilight yet, you will! It was also a very anticlimactic way to end Olive’s fire plot from her origin.

Sure, we’ll likely find out more about that, but it really doesn’t explain why she has such an aversion to Bats. I just don’t see how the fire memory would be traumatic after the flashback that we got. Olive may end up getting fire powers or something, which would be neat though. The comic hints that she may also have a split personality, which would explain things, but the mystery will likely unfold more as the series goes on. The first arc essentially ended here as we were introduced to Olive’s story. The other classmates aside from Maps don’t have much character or personality yet so we’ll see if they ever end up becoming likable. I doubt it to be honest since they all seem shady or just not very ethical, but anything’s possible I suppose.

Overall, I wouldn’t call it a bad comic, but Gotham Academy’s not a very good comic either. It’s essentially middle of the road, although I would have given it a solid six had the art not been so underwhelming. The series has a lot of potential though. As long as it steers away from the romance and we maybe get an action scene once in a while, I’ll be satisfied. Hopefully, Olive’s mystery continues to be interesting and doesn’t end in an anti climactic way. Damian’s inclusion to the series will also change things and the writers will just have to be careful about how he is portrayed here. If handled right, he could definitely give the series a boost. If you’re looking for a happy school story, then check this one out. It may be up your alley. If you’re looking for a story with a little more charisma…check out My Little Pony Pony Tales. Superman Unchained.

Overall 5/10

Secret Avengers Volume 2 Iliad Review

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This shouldn’t be confused with the other Secret Avengers comic that I reviewed as this is a completely different run. While there isn’t a lot of action this time around, the plot is interesting and the comic series certainly has a lot of promise. As expected, Shield (Not going to bother with the periods) is very shady and does things that do make them villains in a sense. Batman certainly wouldn’t put up with their shenanigans!

Daisy (AKA, the main character of the current Shield TV series) is the director of Shield and she led the Secret Avengers on an attack to destroy an AIM Agent. Maria Hill did not like this so she forcibly took control of Shield away from Daisy and shut down the whole project. This was simply crossing the line and tarnishing Shield’s reputation. Hill has a point here although things wouldn’t have gone so smoothly if Daisy had decided to actually fight back. It’s a little convenient for Hill that Daisy was so cooperative this time. This switcheroo in terms of leadership did leave the Avengers in a tough spot though, namely Mockingbird.

The concept of the Secret Avengers here is that they don’t even know that they’re on a mission. Their minds are hijacked by Shield before going into each mission and their memories are erased once the battle is over. Once Maria Hill goes back to being in charge, she scrubs their memories and forces them to evacuate the mission. The problem is that this also forced the heroes to leave Mockingbird stranded in the villain base ruled by Taskmaster and stuck in the body (or appearance) of an AIM agent. Getting out of that pickle is certainly going to be quite the feat for her.

As you can imagine, I definitely disagree with Shield’s methods here. Controlling the minds of these heroes (Hawkeye, Black Widow, Mockingbird, Hulk etc) is definitely crossing the lines. The end doesn’t justify the means, but Shield never seemed to really understand that. In Shield’s slight defense, the Hulk shouldn’t be able to be mind controlled at this point, but it certainly doesn’t change the fact that Shield should not have attempted this. I do love to see what Shield’s been reduced to though. Nick Fury is now just an average field agent and likewise with Coulson while Maria Hill and Daisy call the shots. (Until Daisy was fired) Things are just so loopy right now.

There isn’t a whole lot of action like I said earlier, but we do get to see the Hulk take down Graviton with a quick shot. I actually thought the villain was Hyperion for a second since the costume was so similar, but it was more realistic this way. Hyperion would not go down after a single punch! Taskmaster is actually one of the Secret Avengers and spends his time acting sort of like Deadpool. He can be serious one second and then total comic relief the next. He’s a fun character even if he’s totally ripped off from Prometheus. (Now he was an epic villain!) We didn’t get to see Taskmaster fight all that much, but he’s a valuable asset to have on the team.

This volume was mainly for the origin of the Secret Avengers as we saw Daisy and Maria Hill discuss the operation. The main plot with the AIM assassination was really just an excuse to have a little plot going. It was entertaining enough, but nothing really happened since the mission was scrubbed aside from Mockingbird’s plot. I’m looking forward to seeing the team go on an actual mission to see what they’ve got. I also look forward to seeing the rest of the heroes find out about their comrades being used like this. I definitely don’t think that it will be taken very well at all.

The art is solid. It has a darker backdrop than the average Marvel comic which did give me some trouble distinguishing Daisy and Maria Hill a few times, but it looks good for the most part. It looks professional and that’s always a good thing. It’s hard to describe the fight scenes, but they seemed to be good from what I saw. I believe that the writing was also good and the plot was interesting from start to finish. When a comic lacks action, you definitely want the plot to be engaging.

A missed opportunity here for me would be that we didn’t see Bruce Banner much. Since this is essentially the Indestructible Hulk, that would have been a lot of fun since his personality during this time period was really cool. With the Avengers all being mind controlled, we didn’t get to see them talk that much at all. At least they were loyal though and weren’t going to abandon the mission until forced too. Although, since the mission involved destroying someone….it may come at the expense of their heroics. You can see why they didn’t grab Iron Man or Captain America for this team. They’d probably ask a whole lot of questions. (Plus, Extremis should be able to protect Iron Man if you ask me. That was years ago, but the effects should linger)

There really weren’t any unlikable characters. Even though I disagreed with Daisy’s decisions, I could see her (unfortunate) train of thought. None of the characters were over the top or had pointless lines for the chuckles. The comic was serious, but without being over the top and handled itself well. This is a comic series that I could see being very good. With the origin of the team out of the way, the plot can really start and some of the seeds were sown here. Two of the villains (One of them being Graviton and the other being a lady with super strength and/or lasers) have decided to team up because things may get rocky in the future and Mockingbird’s going to have to escape from the big meeting that she was thrown into. The chips have been set and the ball is in the comic’s corner.

Overall, If you like to see your favorite (B) heroes taking on secret stealth missions, this is the comic for you. There is a lot of dialogue, but that shouldn’t be a problem for you because it’s all pretty interesting and you’ll get to learn about the history of the team. It’s also an interesting way to tie into the Shield TV show since Daisy gets a big role. I would have liked to have seen her use some sonic powers though, but maybe in the next volume. I don’t know if I’ll be reading that one anytime soon, but that’s another matter. Seriously though, with the plot out of the way, I’m ready for some action!

Overall 7/10