America vs. The Justice Society Review

Posted on August 22, 2015 by dreager1

It’s time to look at a very interesting Earth 2 story. I haven’t read almost anything with these guys except for the very old comics from way back in the day. This was an interesting way to find out about a lot of their adventures since then as the danger comes very close to home in this personal arc. I always root for America in films, but can I really root for them over my favorite heroes?

The plot is fairly straight forward. Shortly before dying, Batman gave his diary to an old scientist, who gave it to the newspaper to publish. The diary told a very frightening story about how the Justice Society actually worked for Hitler and the Nazi’s in World War II and have been covering it up ever since. Naturally, the Americans are outraged and decide to take the heroes to an unofficial trial to hear both sides of the story. The Justice Society decides that the best way to clear their name is to start from the beginning and recount their entire history to counter the diary’s lies. The thing is…are they lies? Robin isn’t so sure!

Naturally, this is Earth 2 so you should definitely expect some changes. This world seems to be farther in the future than Earth I so Superman and Wonder Woman are already quite old. Likewise, the Green Lantern and Flash have always been old in this place. The team isn’t exactly young anymore and the Sand Man has had a few strokes recently. They’re not in their prime, but they’re still tough enough to handle a villain or two when they pop up. That being said, old age has also changed them a little. Superman mentions a few times how he will probably abandon Earth so that he can finally retire with some peace and quiet. Wonder Woman wants to go back to the Amazons to take care of Steve Trevor, who’s in a pretty critical position after being injured recently and she does make a few outbursts in the comic.

This stresses the point that these aren’t the happy go lucky heroes that you are used too. Superman is even tempted to burn the diary several times even if it meant destroying something that could have been very important. Luckily, the heroes don’t take the easy route and even get a lawyer to help their case. That’s where the story really gets interesting and I was pleasantly surprised to see just how long the court case lasted. I’ve always been a big fan of seeing the courts so mixing that in with the superheroes was a winning combo.

That being said, it did come at the expense of the action as there are no real fight scenes to speak of in this collection. It’s all about trying to make a solid case and convincing the US that the heroes are for real and weren’t working for Hitler. The very premise is a little hard to swallow as you can’t imagine this ever being true and even the US acknowledges this except for the fact that Batman wrote it. That’s the only reason why anyone actually buys this.

Naturally, everyone reading the story probably figured that he had some kind of reason for doing this. Naturally, he did, but it was only a half reason. In the DCAU, it is acknowledged several times that Bruce Wayne actually believes himself to be Batman with Bruce Wayne as his alter ego. That seems to be the case here except it’s even more extreme as both of their personas now believe themselves to be completely separate. Bruce Wayne had gone crazy and was now completely suspicious of the League while Batman was still sane, but dying of cancer. It led to some interesting developments and Bruce making a lot of mistakes, which forced Batman into the ring. The plan was really convoluted and it’s hard to actually picture it succeeding, but this is Batman so we have to trust his plans.

If you haven’t read many Earth II comics before, then this can also be seen as a very large wrap up of just about everything that has ever happened on this planet. I believe some of the events may have been created for this arc, but I also think that most of them had simply happened and this worked as a nostalgia trip while reminding fans why they liked Earth II so much in the first place. It was definitely a pretty cool DC continuity even if the current Earth II is in shambles. This is really how Earth II should always be portrayed. An alternate Earth with similar heroes so that we can have more inspiring adventures!

Of course, due to the nature of the issues, there’s not really much to discuss. The heroes certainly saved the day very efficiently in all of their past cases and they won in the court setting fair and square. It was neat of the Spectre to offer to destroy this Earth though. A nice reminder of how powerful he is. Unfortunately, Robin did not look so good. He wanted to know Batman as a mentor who always took the right path so he decided to believe the diary. He mostly just spent every issue flinching, crying, and wondering why the heroes were trying to make Batman look so bad. It was their lives or Batman’s legacy and one has to hold more weight than the other.

I will admit that Batman’s version of the story was a lot of fun to read though. It was almost like an abridged version of a show as he showed many true events, but tried to make them look sinister by adding his own commentary. Batman essentially summarized all of the stories into one comic and then the Justice Society would expand upon that for the next 3 issues. It took a while to clear up the shadows that Batman had left, but the Society was certainly ready for the task. Superman and Wonder Woman were not really left in any danger since they weren’t accused of the same crimes (Even Batman couldn’t pull that one off) but they stuck around to support the team. All for one and one for all right?

The art is fairly solid as you can expect from a classic DC arc. The art definitely carries that retro feeling across while also being modern enough where you can picture it having some real action scenes. I definitely would not have minded a game changing villain for the ending to have a quick bout, but with the League members so old, the villain could not have been made to be That powerful. This League is definitely not as strong as the main one. Still, the good art just added another positive to the collection.

Overall, America vs. The Justice Society is a great DC collection. Finally, we get a full length court case where Superman and the rest of the League has to debate against the US. It would have been even better if Batman was here, but I suppose that the plot would have been completely different in that case. Still, the art is good and the writing is exceptional. You’ll be on the edge of your seat during the debate as the Judges continue to give the heroes a lot of time. You will need to be prepared for a lot of reading though as the collection is certainly very text based. Each page will take you about as long to read as 3-4 in the average comic. There is text everywhere as dozens of the team’s adventures finally come to light and we learn why they did not end the wars sooner. I’m going to miss the DC comics as I may not be checking one out in a while, but if you wanted to see a Superman who felt like Superman…this is definitely the comic to check out! It’s an AU future that actually feels fairly realistic and it could work with some mild tweaks in the New 52 someday.

Overall 8/10

Batman/Superman Volume 3 Second Chance Review

Posted on August 17, 2015 by dreager1

I said that there wouldn’t be another DC comic review for a bit, but I completely forgot that I had checked this one out. The Batman/Superman series in the New 52 always looked intriguing, but not necessarily in a good way. I really didn’t like the art in the first volume and I always stayed away from the series. It struck me as a random/non canon event that just didn’t look very entertaining. Surprisingly, it seems to actually be treated as canon. This volume actually ended up being pretty good even if it could have been better.

The first few issues are main stand alone stories until the arc begins. One story takes place during the Doomed event as Superman has been infected with the Doomsday virus. Batman, Steel, and Wonder Woman head to the Fortress of Solitude to look for a cure when they find out that Superman’s villains have managed to modify the Phantom Zone and they can actually deal real damage now. Taking them down will be tricky for the three heroes!

Another story had Batman get sick as a microscopic hero died inside of his blood stream and was poisoning him. Superman decided to go along with the Atom inside of Batman to fight off the intruders. Unfortunately, one of the men got past them so a weakened Batman had to deal with him. This was probably the most action packed of the stories and my personal favorite of the adventures. We got a lot of Batman hype and Superman also did a good job during the fight.

Next was the big arc where a cosmic being decided to mess around with Batman and Superman. She decided to get rid of their memories and throw them back onto Earth to see how they reacted. Another cosmic being who rules the dark part of the DC universe captured her, but decided to let the whole situation play out since it was very amusing for him. Batman became a happier version of himself while Superman became the dictator that everyone expected him to be. Yup..another evil Superman story!

Still, it was handled much better than the average one would be. Superman certainly lost his qualms about actually injuring people and destroying them, but he actually felt like a realistic version of himself despite that. If Superman was not a hero, but did whatever he wanted, then this could look a little like how it should. With Catwoman as a bad influence on him, it makes sense that he would make quite a few mistakes and at least he started out by trying to help her fight off giant machines.

Meanwhile, it was probably a little tougher for Batman although his plot was more enjoyable on the whole. He decided that he did want to be a hero, but he’d do it his way. Since he was no longer burdened by the murder of his parents, Batman took on crime with a smile. He even teamed up with Lois Lane for the climax as she became the new Bat Girl. The only unfortunate part was that his Bruce Wayne side kicked in and he actually hung out with the mayor’s wife. That part was really unnecessary and definitely didn’t add anything to the adventure.

One of the weaknesses for the comic was certainly the art. As mentioned earlier, I thought that the artwork for the Atom comic was actually pretty good for the most part although a lot of the faces would be out of proportion and even funny to look at sometimes. The story arc part mainly just had problems with trying to look too live action esque. Similar to the Kingdom Come event from way back when. It just doesn’t work so well for the action scenes and a more cartoony/colorful look just works better. It’s why I like the vibrant style of the New 52 comics so much.

I do find it funny how Batman and Superman are probably portrayed better here than in just about any other New 52 comic that I’ve seen. Superman Unchained is even better if we choose to count that, but otherwise, this was impressive. Even considering that Batman and Superman lost their memories, they were pretty good. Ignoring that one regrettable Batman scene, his new persona was decent and before that he looked perfect. He was able to take on a super villain while barely conscious and at less than half power. Superman looked as heroic as he should and this could have even felt like the Pre 52 hero that we’ve always loved.

The collection was a tad light on action, but we did get a Mongul fight, the Atom battles, and the arc had some battles against the mechs that were after Catwoman. That’s all right though since the writing was pretty good and the comic was interesting. Being interesting is one of the most important parts in a comic collection after all and this one certainly had my attention. Perhaps I’ll check some other Batman/Superman comics at some point. If this series is not currently ongoing, DC needs to add another one since the Batman and Superman team up stories are always a lot of fun. I can’t think of a single pair of superheroes who are more interesting and fun to read about.

As far as plot hax goes, this comic was pretty good. There’s only one part that is guilty of it and that’s the whole plot of the arc. I still say that Superman cannot be mind controlled no matter who is doing it! I have to say that the evil monster who rules everything looked pretty good and that was one time where the gritty art worked quite well. He felt extremely evil and ominous. I don’t recognize the character, but he could make for a great mastermind even if it does seem like he may end up being a little overpowered. I’ll be interested in seeing how his plot continues.

Overall, this comic was a success. It’s too bad that Krypto got poisoned by Superman, but luckily he still held his own as he took down the villains and it was handled as well as that could be handled. The mayor’s wife moments were not handled well though and while Catwoman looked a lot better than usual, I also wouldn’t have minded if she was not here. Although, I like how Superman saw through her attempt to frame Lois Lane immediately even if he didn’t have his memories back. That’s how these things should always go. Between the art and everything else, I’m slightly keeping this comic from the standard 7, but I still recommend it if you’re looking for a good Batman/Superman story. The writing is good and the characters are in character which is always a good thing. Steel and Wonder Woman make for nice guest stars as well and they get their moment to shine. Now, it’s going to be time for a Marvel comic review next!

Overall 6/10

Superman Krypton Returns Review

Posted on August 15, 2015 by dreager1

It’s time to look at yet another Superman comic! I have to say that I feel a little bad for the casual comic enthusiast who may be trying to keep up with the Superman trades. DC certainly didn’t make it easy as you have the Superman Action Comic volumes, Superman volumes, and then the unnumbered Superman volumes like this one and Doomed. It makes it kind of tricky for fans to know when they all take place. This one only has 1 actual Superman issue along with a .3 in there somewhere, a few zero issues, and then issues from the other members of the Super family. I guess you could say that this is actually Superman volume 4.5. We temporarily get a break from the Psy War plot, which is certainly a good thing!

Superman was just minding his own business when he bumps into Supergirl and Superboy in space. For reasons unknown to them, they have been summoned to that area! After a little wondering, a cosmic being appears and his herald lets the heroes know that H’el has begun his latest assault on the universe. If he succeeds, everything dies! Each hero is given a task to complete to save the timestream. Superboy must go to the past and make sure that Supergirl gets onto the rocket. Supergirl must defeat the clones in one of the battles of Krypton’s past. Finally, Superman needs to make sure that Krypton actually blows up since H’el wants to stop that! It’s a race against time, but the heroes are ready!

Unlike the first arc where H’el showed up, this is a very small event. It’s so small that technically, the heroes aren’t even on screen together for almost the entire adventure. I thought that was a bit of a cop-out as some more team fights would have been a lot of fun. Each comic is a stand alone adventure for the heroes like in the classic DC/Marvel comics of old, but there are some cutaways so they aren’t completely isolated.

Before the plot began though, we got to see the 0 issues for Superman, Superboy, Supergirl, and H’el. It’s interesting because I’d already read Superman’s and Supergirl’s in the past thanks to their respective collections, but Superboy and H’el’s were new. Origin stories are always intriguing. The Superboy one definitely had some interesting plot points that would probably come into play in his series. The main villain certainly has a cool design at any rate. It’s also neat how Superman’s actually foreshadowed an event that happened in this collection as he witnessed Krypton explode in person. It’s impressive since the issue came out way before this arc began.

H’el’s is a little tragic for the character even if he seriously overreacted. It turns out that everything he has ever known was basically fake so his life was a lie. Now, he doesn’t want to save Krypton so much as he just wants to rule it and destroy everyone who gets in his way. Any sense of heroism is gone now and only the villain remains. He looks a lot weaker than he was in hte original event, which is a good thing since the fights won’t be so lopsided now. He didn’t really get to fight anyone though so it’s hard to say if his true ability was really lowered or not, but that’s just how it goes.

Supergirl’s adventure was likely the most straight forward. As she was under a red sun, she needed to use her hand to hand moves to defeat the clones. She does know some close combat skills thanks to an old friend of hers so she manages to hold her own. After that, she has a quick rematch with H’el as he tries to fight the heroes across time and space. The issue was good although I wish that she had maintained her super abilities since a high speed fight with H’el would have been cool.

Superboy’s issue was surprisingly the best one as it easily had the most action. He got to fight the actual essence of Krypton when it wanted to explode. It turns out in a neat twist that all planets have a hidden life form that makes sure that the planet will die when it is supposed too. It’s one of those random things that will likely never be mentioned again, but this also gave Superboy a good opponent to fight so I am certainly fine with that. The design for the villain was cool and Superboy even got to get along with Supergirl for a change. Their rivalry is certainly very intense on Earth so their’s no shot of getting along there.

Still, they put aside their differences when necessary. I like all three of the Super characters and I assume that they can patch things up eventually. As for the Superman story, not much happened there for a while, but eventually he got to meet up with H’el and have a fight. Granted, H’el was super weakened from fighting Superboy and Supergirl while also having most of his body melt thanks to Superman’s father, but Superman still took a decisive victory in this match. It was a decent climax and while H’el’s end in the first arc was probably better for him as a character, at least this one cemented him as a villain.

As expected, the art is solid. The weakest issue in that regard would likely be Superman 0, but they’re all quite good and live up to DC’s strong reputation for having well drawn comics. The fight scenes are good and the character models stand out as usual. The art would have likely been even more impressive if the collection had only had some more action. Alas, it was simply not to be!

As for the writing, it’s certainly a step up over the last two Superman volumes. This time, Superman actually acts like his typical heroic self for the most part. Even at the very end of the comic where his father tries to destroy H’el, Superman quickly stops him. Destroying the guy simply isn’t right and Superman took a stand. That being said, Superman’s father actually managing to get into space and go across the timelines was a little iffy. I think that the comic went a little too far trying to show how much of a genius he was in that scene. It’s also very intriguing that he would create H’el in the first place as it seems a little out of character to do such morally dubious acts.

If there’s just one issue that I had with this event, it’s that it just felt like filler. I feel like DC only half heartedly brought H’el back and just used him as a time waster. As I explained earlier, it doesn’t feel like much of an event because of how isolated all of the heroes were. Some plot elements also feel random like Superman’s father arriving and Superboy fighting the essence of Krypton. As a result, the collection was also decently light on the action angle. I think that a few more issues for the event would have helped it out a lot. As it stands, half of the collection was made up of origin issues.

Overall, Krypton Returns is still a fun collection. It’s certainly a big step up from the last Superman volume that I read! The action scenes that we got here were much better than the Psy War’s and the writing has also improved. It’s always nice to see Supergirl and Superboy as well. Especially Superboy as I never see him anywhere else and he seems like a fairly good character in the New 52. I prefer this streamlined version to his Young Justice counterpart. H’el was not as impressive as last time, but that’s probably a good thing. Maybe he will return again someday and the cosmic being will have to call Superman to action. If so, I’ll be ready for that! I’m afraid that the Superman reviews will likely stop here for a while, but no worries. Soon I shall have a Marvel one up to counter this! If you’re a comic fan who likes some action, then I definitely recommend this trade paperback to you!

Overall 7/10

Superman Volume 4 Psi War Review

Posted on August 7, 2015 by dreager1

It’s time to take a look at volume 4 of the Superman series. Unfortunately, it ended up being the weakest one yet and a sign that the series needs to improve and fast. When you have Superman as the main character of a collection, it should be nothing short of amazing! Instead, the poor writing and uninteresting plot just take you away from the adventure.

As the title suggests, there is a Psi War going on between two of the villains. Hector Hammond is duking it out with the Hive Queen as they both want control over all of the humans. Hammond decides to play his trump card by hiding himself inside of Superman while messing around with all of his friends. With everyone acting a little crazy, Superman is not sure of what to do. This is one battle that he can’t punch his way out of. Oh yeah, the Psycho Pirate is also on the loose and he’s the toughest baddie yet!

One of the shining lights that still glimmers through this volume was that the art quality stayed as sharp as ever. The New 52’s always been good with that and I’m glad since the rest of the volume was woefully average to below average at times. Let’s start with the writing as that was one of the issues here. Granted, Hammond and the other telepathy users are making everyone a little crazy, but the lines still come across as off. For example, Superman tells Orion “You can tell me now or through a straw in intensive care!” as he punches the guy. The sad thing is that this isn’t out of character for New 52 Superman, but it’s still one of the issues that I have with the character. Jimmy’s asks Wonder Woman if she could have his babies when they first met and it was a terrible moment. There are sad lines scattered throughout the comic and they could certainly prove to be distracting.

This collection also had one of those generic bath scenes that are always sad and unnecessary. It’s certainly not the way to go to make the villain seem more threatening. The main problem though is the villains. None of them can actually fight so the collection is filled with mind control shenanigans and I still believe that Superman should be completely immune to such techniques given his genius intellect as well as his Kryptonian Strength. I’ll never buy into the “Superman can be mind controlled” theory.

At least one comic gave us a real fight thanks to the appearance of Orion! He arrived to destroy Superman because the hero might bring about the destruction of everything. The poor guy just didn’t realize that he never stood a chance against the Man of Steel! The fight is brief and doesn’t get to end, but I was happy just to see a good punch thrown against someone who could take it! I’m definitely not much of a fan of Orion here so his appearance didn’t do the character any favors. At least Superman got his telepathic resistance up a little thanks to Orion’s tech.

One subplot that’s still entertaining is how Clark Kent has been roped into helping out on a website that an ex employee of the Planet started. Clark’s been pretty aloof and cold to her even though she’s been trying to help out a lot, but he’s finally trying to help with the story. While I wouldn’t trust her and think that this is all some kind of elaborate ruse, it’s good to see him actually helping out with it now.

I kind of skimmed over talking about the villains earlier, but they simply aren’t that good. Hammond is basically a ripoff of Modok. He has a huge head and telepathic powers, but he can’t really move so his followers have to actually lift him up. There’s really not much to like about this guy and I only enjoyed the banter between him and the Queen at times as they keep creating illusions into each other’s mind. That was certainly an interesting concept, but you can only tackle it for so long before it gets old. The Queen’s only notable feature was the fact that her true form looks like the Brood. That was definitely pretty neat and certainly a welcome twist. Beyond that, she was fairly generic.

The Psycho Pirate was certainly much better than those two villains. At the very least, he had a decent backstory and his powers were far greater than theirs. See, experiments had been done on about 100 people by Brainiac, which gave them all telepathy thanks to their newfound mental capabilities. While some used their abilities to help reporters like Lois get a story, others used their powers to try and take control of the situation. The Psycho Pirate is one such guy and he even managed to take out Superman. Naturally, the power went to his head and he turned evil, but at least he was a cool villain.

Lois got a super form out of this as the telepathy transferred to her, which was neat. It came at the expense of her future so it may not have been a big deal, but this is Lois, so Superman won’t let her die. It’s been a while since Lois had anything to do related so reporting so this subplot was neat to have. It wasn’t terribly interesting, but hearing about how the telepathic people infiltrated the world was definitely cool.

Really, it all boils down to the fact that I just wasn’t a fan of this arc. I suppose that it can happen to the best of series, but it will definitely be a bad sign if the next volume is also sub par. I may be getting that at some point in the near future provided it’s up to snuff! (Talking about Superman volume 5 as 4 is mainly a tie in event) I also hope that Superman starts to look a little more like the good ole hero that he used to be!

Overall, Psi War was more of a flop than I had anticipated. Still, despite all of the negativity, I wouldn’t actually call it a bad comic. It’s just bad by Superman standards, but I’ll still keep it away from the negative ranks. Superman and his pals are still interesting even if some of them are out of character. The art is still good and the fight with Orion was fun. We just need the writing to pick up the pace a little and then everything will be all right again. Also, where’s Lex in all of this? Until then, you can expect another DC comic review soon!

Overall 5/10

Justice League Gods and Monsters Review

Posted on August 5, 2015 by dreager1

It’s time to check out the latest DC film. The company has started to become a trainwreck with their animated films, which is unfortunate since they used to be so good. Yet another thing for us to blame the New 52 on I suppose. Unfortunately, this is actually the worst one yet and it’s horrifically bad. The climax helps it save some dignity as well as a possible choice that could help the sequel, but it’s safe to says that Gods and Monsters is dead before it ever got a chance to truly begin.

The story takes place on an alternate world where there aren’t really any good guys left. Superman was raised by Mexican Immigrants who taught him how to live under a harsh government. Superman has no qualms with murdering all those who stand in his way and will do anything necessary to secure his planet’s safety. Batman is not Bruce Wayne, but Kirk Langstrom and he is a vampire who loves to murder his victims by drinking their blood. Certainly not the heroic figure that you would expect. Wonder Woman is probably the least changed in that regard as she always murdered her opponents while in battle. She is similar to Thor from Marvel from that respect as war takes no prisoners. That being said, the film balances that out by having her flirt with everyone and be willing to allow everyone to be with her at times. It’s a terrible part of her personality.

We’ve already established that the characters are all warped versions of themselves. Don’t worry, if this wasn’t clear to you from the cover, the first scene makes sure to show this off as the heroes brutally murder everyone inside of a building. Their justification is that the people who were murdered were all villains and villains basically have no rights to keep their lives. The Justice League naturally has a very strained relationship with the government and it gets worse when they are framed for killing a bunch of scientists. Can the Justice League clear their name and do we even want that to happen?

As this is an alternate universe story, it allows the writers to kill off as many actual characters as possible since it has nor repercussions on anything else. So, expect a lot of cameos before the characters are blown up in various ways. This film was really a train wreck because it committed just about every big negative that a film could really add, which was quite sad.

First stop on this train is the excessive violence problem that has plagued DC for quite a while. The very first scene with Batman has him immediately snap someone’s neck and then he goes on to do the usual vampire sucking bit. Characters are ripped apart, dismembers, and burned into oblivion. The violence just keeps on coming and a lot of it is just there for the gritty vibe that is unnecessary. DC is basically just trying to counter Marvel’s Daredevil and while this is an improvement, it’s really not saying much.

Another reason why I wouldn’t be able to like this film was the fact that Batman is a vampire. If you recall from some of my earlier reviews, I really don’t like vampires. There are very few vampire films that I could even call good at this point and I’ve never liked the concept of blood sucking. It’s just gross and never adds anything to the story. Batman tries to pretend that he is a hero through it all, but he doesn’t resist the urge to suck blood at all so I really don’t believe him. Even in the end, he is the voice of doubt.

Before I go into more negatives, it should be noted that the characters are all pretty terrible here. I definitely disliked Batman from the start and Wonder Woman’s alternate version is essentially what could have happened if she was introduced to the comics nowadays without an established history. Superman is as far removed from the character as possible. His only good moment is the fact that at the end of the film, he mentions that maybe they shouldn’t kill people anymore. Batman quickly doubts the idea, but If Superman goes through with it, he’ll instantly be a better character. That being said, he’s still not a likable one so he’ll need to improve. Even insulting Lois behind her back just felt really petty.

For the side characters, Lex was decent at least. He was probably the most true to character, which is a good thing. He’s let himself go over the years and he probably won’t last much longer, but at least he was cool. He was constantly one step ahead of the other characters. The main villain was pretty cheap once you find out who the mastermind is. His origin story about how he became evil is terrible to be frank and he never became a cool villain to root against.

The three androids had cool designs and made for good villains. Their final form was certainly powerful and made for a good end boss. That was good because the film had basically had no good fight scenes the entire film. We had a brief scuffle with Batman vs the Robots and that was it. Certainly less action than you would expect from a so called “Justice League” film. The end scene definitely helped to alleviate that. Also, now’s a good time to talk about why the ending gives the sequel some slight hope.

Superman mentioned how maybe they shouldn’t be killing people and that could be a plot for the sequel. If the heroes go through with it, then that will certainly be a good thing. The question is “Will they?” and another one follows. Will this this be enough to save the film? I doubt the latter, but if they do follow through, it would certainly make that one an improvement as these alternate versions would be less of a mockery of the originals.

It should also be noted that there is some unnecessary animal violence here. The film just really wanted to push my buttons didn’t it? A miniature horse is seen getting eaten by a wild animal and we also see some test mice die because the humans were using them as guinea pigs. It’s certainly not an heroic act and it just made Batman look even worse for me. There’s some mild language, but it’s been cleaned up a little since the last film so that’s definitely a good thing. Hopefully the films continue to improve in that area.

This film really should have been called the Justice Lords. In effect, that’s how the team operates. They don’t like to reason and they destroy whoever gets in their way. I’d also like to point to that two part episode in Justice League to show how an alternate universe should be. The team was evil, but they still acted like their original selves and you can see why Superman made the critical choice. It was a dark world, but the show explored that without being over the top with violence and grit. It felt more natural and was much better handled.

Gods and Monsters was treated more like an AU that really had no purpose. A good example of how the movie just doesn’t care is when the scientists are all getting murdered. Once all of them are finished off and Batman is about to be taken down, the Justice League arrives and then the hero music plays. Hero music after literally every one of the targets were killed while Batman was on duty? It just didn’t make any sense and that’s just how the film operates. It doesn’t matter how many innocents die, as long as the League lives, it’s all okay.

On a slight bright side, the soundtrack was good. It had a lot of fast paced themes that helped make the scenes a little more bearable. The animation was also solid although it didn’t get to show us what it could do until the fight scenes finally arrived. More battles with the androids would have been a lot of fun. After all, Androids are just made up of parts and such so the film would have a tough time making it gritty.

Overall, Gods and Monsters is horrifically bad. It’s the kind of film that I actually have less fun seeing than Pixels. At least Pixels gave you a lot of laughs. It’s a slightly better film on a technical scale though and I’m giving it an extra star thanks to the soundtrack/final fight and the promise of the ending. The ending gave the film a glimmer of hope and now I can say that the next movie has potential although I don’t see it being that much better. Hopefully DC steps up its game as Batman Unlimited really looks like the only decent DC film coming up at this point. Maybe the next Justice League film will be good, but I’ll have to see some screenshots or a plot summary before I start getting my hopes up. Until DC’s movies start shaping up, at least I have the classics like Sub-Zero and Starcrossed to keep me busy!

Overall 2/10

Superman Volume 3 Fury at World’s End Review

Posted on August 2, 2015 by dreager1

It’s been a while since I reviewed a Superman comic and I believe that this is the first trade paperback of the Superman series that I’ve checked out. I read the first two volumes of Action Comics earlier though. It’s cool how Superman had two series at once for a while like how Batman has his Detective Comics alongside his main title. This volume is an immediate upgrade over the Action Comic titles when it comes to the fights as Superman finally gets to deal with some serious threats, but the portrayals and writing may not be as good.

Superman is starting to realize that the Daily Planet isn’t the paper that he thought it was. They don’t really print the news anymore and Superman blows up at the staff and is effectively fired. He’s also venting because he found out that Lois is now seeing someone. He decides to head home and thinks about what to do when Supergirl arrives along with a Kryptonian monster (Which Superman destroyed) and a mysterious figure known as H’el. H’el plans to eradicate the solar system in order to go back in time and save the Kryptonian race, but Superman can’t let that happen! Along with Superboy and the Justice League, Superman must convince Supergirl to leave H’el’s side or defeat her if necessary!

I definitely enjoyed the fact that this volume has a lot of nonstop action. Superman’s fights against H’el are quite good and even his generic action scenes like fighting the large monster was neat. The rest of the Justice League doesn’t get much action although they fight some minions and Wonder Woman deflects one of H’el’s shots. The stakes are definitely really high the whole time and it’s good to see the League come in to help since the solar system being in danger is certainly something that should capture their attention.

That being said, this volume did have a few weak points, which likely relate to The New 52 status. For starters, Superman is a little out of character. The whole first issue makes him look really bad as he’s very petty in his jealously about Lois moving on. Worse was how he blew up at everyone. He may have had a point, but completely went about it the wrong way. The old Superman would have tried to calmly talk with the managers about getting in some credible articles. Superman is also very rude and condescending to Superboy the entire time, but not in a campy/enjoyable way. He even threatens a scientist depending on how you read the line. To his defense, he didn’t realize it until he was flying away, but he just disregarded the thought as quickly as it came.

He even antagonized H’el a lot before they actually started fighting like turning his back while the character was still talking. Superman essentially showed a lot of characters no respect here. The bright side is that Superman is portrayed as the super genius like he is supposed to be. In an instant, Superman put together all the pieces of H’el’s plan and he may have done it even faster than Lex Luthor although both of their intelligence are roughly on the same level. It’s always good to see Superman be portrayed as more than the stereotypical powerhouse. Of course, Superman’s raw strength also looks good like it should.

It was cool to see Superboy here since his comics have always looked interesting. I like the new neon suit that he has and his version of the Teen Titans also looked cool. Superman isn’t impressed here, but those comics always sounded fun. I also think that Superboy looked fairly decent even if he was a hostage for a little while. (Probably Superman’s best scene though since he immediately rammed H’el to save the kid) He apparently started out evil as we get a quick origin story as well as a new one for Superman, but Superboy is certainly trying to be a hero now. His abilities seem to be far weaker than Superman’s or Supergirl’s, but he’s a clone so that makes sense. Hopefully he is able to destroy whatever code inside of him that gives Luthor the current edge over him.

Lex Luthor’s portrayal was a little on the odd side. The New 52 has always had a lot of continuity issues and I would count Lex as one of them. It’s not totally a plot hole, but his personality is insanely different from any of the other titles. Lex basically tells Superman what the Man of Steel already knows and explains what Superman’s thinking to the audience. The problem is that instead of sounding logical and calculated, he’s a little on the crazy side. He threatens to destroy Superboy for talking to him and the whole plot of Superman tricking him into building a prison was also odd.

Some parts of the New 52 still feel odd and not canon at times, but it’s something that probably won’t be leaving anytime soon. The bright side is that the Justice League as a whole looks good and H’el makes for a good villain. H’el is overpowered though so I’m going to have to take another shot at the comic. H’el is shown to be powerful enough to basically shut Superman down without any effort in their first encounter. Superman bounces back for the final showdown and puts up a decent fight, but he is still outmatched the entire time. Authors love bringing in new characters who are randomly stronger than Superman, but this is still pushing it. H’el is also a Kryptonian, but due to sun exposure while in the ship, he’s far stronger than Superman. It’s not terrible logic I suppose, but Superman’s been fighting for ages so he’s still been exposed to the Sun while also getting combat experience. H’el also has the ability to teleport objects and people, which definitely makes him overpowered since he could just teleport everyone to the sun while they’re in a room or something like that. He doesn’t because the plot demands it, but that’s why a villain should never be given that kind of ability unless the writer has a clear plan for his defeat.

In the end, there is an appeal to his emotional side by Supergirl and his X-Ray vision wasn’t working properly so he didn’t notice that she was holding something. Just his detailed vision should have been enough for that. As for Supergirl, she doesn’t look very good here. We get more insight into the whole thing in her comic series (Which I already read from this arc) but it still doesn’t excuse how gullible she looks. This takes place towards the beginning of her career, but common sense should have still been enough to guide her away from working for H’el. The guy acts openly evil from the start.

The art is solid as I’ve come to expect from DC. The fight scenes transition into each other very nicely and all of the characters look good. It’s been one of the best parts of the New 52 as all of the mainstream DC titles have looked great with the exception of the Batman series, where I have not cared for the art so much. Particularly the Eternal series, but the main ones don’t look great either. The vibrant colors here suit Superman.

I definitely seemed to grab a lot of negatives in this review, but they really all boil down to the writing angle. I don’t think that the writer really understands the characters too well and Superman snapping and blowing up at everyone just doesn’t feel right. The drama between him and Lois is even worse when you consider the fact that Superman had just gotten together with Wonder Woman an issue or two ago. Makes him look even more petty right? That’s still the only real negative here though as besides the portrayals, the rest of the comic was solid. We still had good art and a lot of solid fights with high stakes.

Overall, This is a solid comic to check out. I’m always happy to see another Kryptonian on board even if H’el ends up being just another guy for Superman to fight. He doesn’t really do anything for me on the personality front and his romance with Supergirl isn’t handled well, but at least he knows how to throw a punch. With the solar system in danger, the threat is certainly real. While some plots like the Lex Luthor one weren’t really needed, they weren’t terrible. The writing will never make you cringe, you’ll just shake your head in skepticism at times. I’m looking forward to seeing how the next two volumes handle these issues as I’ve already got them on the shelf. I expect Superman to look better in those even if the action scenes drop a little there. Seeing the Justice League have a cameo was certainly enjoyable and if they fought H’el, I like to think that they could have done a good stopping him. It should be noted that this comic does jump all over the place as DC doesn’t even try to make the comics transition into each other. If you want to really see what’s happening here, you’ll have to buy 2-3 other graphic novels. It’s odd as collections usually try to include everything, but there have been exceptions like Supergirl and New Avengers. It’s not a big deal though as you can still follow what’s happening and enjoy the fight scenes. Of course, if you want to check out a Superman comic that really hits it out of the park, check out Superman Unchained. That’s still the greatest comic book of all time!

Overall 7/10

JLA Volume 7 Review

Posted on July 25, 2015 by dreager1

Time to look at another volume in the JLA saga! The series has been pretty solid, but now we’re getting towards the latter part of its run. This volume isn’t quite as good as the last two, but it’s a good adventure nonetheless and is still about the Justice League so how can you go wrong there right? The Martian Manhunter gets a very large role here, but it’s at the expense of his likability.

This collection brings together a lot of issues (They were pretty small for this series for some reason) so there are several arcs to be found. The first one involves a war over on another planet and the Justice League hesitantly decide to end it. The tough question is, how can they end the war without choosing sides and interfering with the politics?

It’s a decently interesting mini arc and Superman reminds us why he’s the leader of the group. That being said, the heroes may have been thinking too much on the subject. Defeating the oppressors is always the first step. No matter what the repercussions are, it’s their job to help. Superman even reminds the readers at the end that evil flourishes when good people do nothing. So, inaction is still an action and I’m glad that the heroes made the heroic call and stopped the alien civil war.
Another arc had the Justice League framed for destroying a whole lot of people and the worst part is that they seem to believe that they really did it. The telepath who’s behind this must be powerful. Can the Justice League defeat a threat with their minds instead of through brute strength for once? Although, the brute strength part does come into play since the villains are pretty skilled as a group although Superman would likely defeat them all without any real effort.

Aside from the political intrigue on that part, there was even a character who made reference to the politically correct era that we are in now as he asked if the JLA was just meeting their quotas by adding the two new members. Whether it was coincidence or not, it’s definitely something that people would discuss nowadays. Superman’s response was off screen so we couldn’t see what he said. Naturally, this topic wasn’t as big back in the day, but it was still intriguing to read.

This was an interesting collection of stories, but it made the heroes look weak against mental assaults once again. I still don’t think that Superman can be mind controlled or mentally influenced so this was a little iffy. It gave some plot development to Major Disaster and Faith along with a subplot that could come back someday that involves her past. I don’t mind if it doesn’t though since I didn’t find it particularly interesting. The villains were all one shot characters who were effectively doomed, but the premise of the arc was still fun. After all, how can the League recover from a natural disaster that doomed so many people? (Or so they thought anyway)

After that, the big arc begins with the Martian Manhunter. He had been getting some counseling from an ex villain. She would help him brave the fires while he would help her forget the past and move on. Unfortunately, Scorch does her job a little too well and Martian Manhunter awakens his true, fiery form. He completely goes off the deep end and decides to destroy the Justice League once and for all. Stopping him will be tough and Batman is forced to bring in one of the classic Justice League members from his retirement.

Well, this was the big arc! I believe that it spanned around 10 issues, which is certainly impressive. A little less so when I remind you that the issues appear to be a little on the short side, but it was still intense. The White Lanterns even got mentioned at one point, but Martian Manhunter took down the whole army by himself off screen. It comes back to how I think the writers overdid it trying to make his new form look very powerful. He got a lot of hype and Superman even says that the Manhunter is one of the scariest opponents to face and maybe the strongest.

I don’t typically mind the Martian Manhunter and the guy can even be a decent character at times. That being said, I’ve never considered him to be anywhere near Superman or Wonder Woman in terms of power. After those two, you can make a good argument for him to take down Green Lantern or the Flash, but it’s a battle that I could easily see going either way. The White Lanterns were on Superman’s level at times and they gave the League a good fight so I don’t see how Martian Manhunter could have possibly taken down all of them in such a short amount of time. The only explanation that I can buy is that his telepathy overpowered all of theirs and he basically broke them before destroying the beasts. That would be slightly feasible, but only slightly since he shouldn’t be quite that good compared to them.

The arc definitely started off with a bang as the heroes found Superman partially phased into a table and then the rest of the League was quickly defeated aside from Batman who managed to escape in time. The Flash may have been able to have put up a decent fight, but he was taken out before he could really try anything. There was definitely a lot of action here and the League was really on the defensive until Plasticman arrived onto the scene and Martian Manhunter also helped to stop himself from the inside. This was the highlight of the collection even if it couldn’t beat the big arcs from the other volumes like the original White Martian saga.

After that big arc, things died down for a little while as a one shot showed us what could happen in the future if Batman and Wonder Woman ever got together. Wonder Woman went into a mind chamber that showed her how the future could be, but is really more just about looking at the subconscious. None of these things might actually happens, but Wonder Woman thinks that they can. It’s really an AU and some ideas were decent, but I’m not much of an AU guy and since each story would abruptly start and end, the issue didn’t do much for me. As least it finally ended the whole Batman and Wonder Woman angle.

Finally, the volume concluded with a small arc about an alien who was shocked that humans became the dominant species on Earth. He went around the world checking out the sites and ultimately decided to just blow the planet up. The heroes stopped him of course and the guy just destroyed himself instead. It was certainly a bit of a morbid ending, but not as much as it could have been because of the art.

The art in this mini arc almost makes you a little insensitive because it’s just verrrry abstract. Almost cartoony in a sense that everyone was constantly off model and the issues were hilarious to look through. It’s one of those “so bad it’s good” moments for the collection. Beyond the art, I can’t say that the final mini arc was all that interesting and was really just there to show us how Earth has really gone down over the years aside from all the good that’s also been done. It is a cruel world out there for sure. On the whole, the art is quite good and unique as always. JLA is definitely a title that believes bigger is better as it uses a lot of big panels for the action scene and everyone is larger than life. The splash pages of the heroes always look quite good and naturally the fight scenes follow suit. One scene that will likely make you chuckle is when someone asks Wonder Woman if she is interested in Superman and she has a laugh that is extemely dramatized. It comes so suddenly and takes up a huge part of the page. Wonder Woman even apologizes afterwards and basically just states that it would never happen. It’s great to see that the writers knew not to go down that route back in the day. If only they had stayed true to that right?

Batman looks good here like you would expect, but his role isn’t a very large one. He forces the Justice League to apologize to him after they go on a mission without consulting him and then saves the team. It’s neat to see Batman in control like usual and aside from the plot with Wonder Woman that ended in a good way anyway, he was definitely in character and always had a plan. If not for his decision to bring an old member out of retirement. It would have been Game Over for the world.

Superman ‘s great as you would expect. There’s not much to say about his portrayal because it was really spot on. He was completely heroic and always did the right thing. He may have gotten crushed in his battle with the Martian Manhunter, but it was mostly due to the fact that Superman didn’t actually expect a fight and trusted the guy. That’s definitely a good reason for losing to someone!

Wonder Woman gets a fairly large role here thanks in part to the subplot with Batman as well as just being present for all of the adventures. She looks good and is actually the first member to want to help out in the alien civil war so she deserves major props for that. Even Superman was unsure about participating, but he was quickly brought on board. Wonder Woman’s initiative certainly saved a lot of lives there and I like how she is the one who decided to break things off with Batman. She made a very wise decision.

This time, the Green Lantern who is present is John Stewart. That means that we’ve now seen the big three through the span of the JLA series. John Stewart’s a good Green Lantern even if I slightly prefer the other two most of the time. The battle between John and Kyle is a close one. Stewart’s role isn’t very large, but still much bigger than the Flash. He manages to keep some people inside of his bubble for over a day, which is a great feat of concentration and he definitely gave it his all to save the day. After the Justice League cartoon, it’s always cool to see him in the comics.

The Flash is a complete non factor here. Seriously, it’s like he’s a ghost. He gets almost no lines and doesn’t really impact the plot in any way except to save civilians in the background. His speed is always amazing and he certainly makes rescues that nobody else could, but I really wish that he could have gotten a bigger role. He’s still one of my favorite Justice League members. Barry is my favorite, but Wally can be great as well.

Firestorm can be a decent hero at times, but I didn’t care for his romance subplot here and that really accounted for around 90% of his screen time here. His powers have the potential to be great, but he is constantly knocked around before he can even activate them. He’s just out of his depths here and this is one character who could possibly use some character development. Faith also has no real character development, but it’s intentional as she is a bit of a mystery at the moment. Her abilities are certainly useful as she has the classic telekinesis skill, but she hasn’t gotten to fight too much yet since this volume wasn’t as action packed as you may have expected. She’s a good character so far, but we’ll see where it goes from here since she was already tempted to go back to the dark side once. Hopefully she doesn’t make that mistake.

The Atom has a minor role in this collection, but it’s enough of one that I should at least give him a passing mention. He doesn’t have much of a personality yet, but he does like to sing and gets along well with Green Lantern. While he’s certainly not one of the more dangerous League members, he’s fairly talented. Plasticman is a Justice League member that I’ve never been crazy about, but he ends up getting a critical role in the fight against the Martian Manhunter. It involves a lot of plot hax and even some toon force as Plasticman’s erratic style of fighting confuses the Martian. How this is enough to overcome the Martian’s superior speed and strength dozens of times over is what I don’t buy and Plasticman should have died after a single hit. Still, he’s back with the team now and as long as he isn’t as exaggeratedly bad as he used to be, I suppose that I can live with it. He just needs to act a little more reserved and respectful to his teammates.

Manitou Raven was one of the new characters who joined the team and I can’t say that I was a fan of his. Considering that he just joined the team, he seems to already be quite vocal with his opinions and seems to not be trust worthy. I can already picture him trying to take out Firestorm at some point and his scene with Green Lantern definitely felt suspicious. I don’t trust the guy, but maybe it’s just a red herring. Still not a likable member though.

Likewise, I’m not a fan of Major Disaster. Maybe I just didn’t want any extra members on the Justice League. The roster was already fairly strong so it’s not like the team needed any extra firepower. I actually thought that Disaster was just a depowered Guy Gardner for a while since he looks so similar. This guy could improve as time goes on I suppose, but his personality just isn’t a likable one for me. He wants to be a hero, but he’ll need to work better at being a team player to win me over. (Or just being likable as a solo act)

This was not a good appearance for the Martian Manhunter and the whole collection made him look bad. After he took a drink that he shouldn’t have, the Manhunter basically lost his mind and turned evil. Sure, he was able to gain control again, but only after nearly destroying the heroes several times over and being pounded into submission. I don’t really see how the League can trust him again after this so I can see why the vote was so close. I still think that he was slightly overhyped in this volume, but I do acknowledge him as a strong fighter. The worst should be over for him now so maybe I’ll like him more in future volumes. When he’s on top of things, the Manhunter can definitely be a good ally/character.

Overall, This was a solid volume of JLA. I do think that it was weaker than the others, but JLA can’t hit it out of the park every time right? An 8 is still great so they did well in my book. This is also the final volume out over here so I’m caught up for the moment although I haven’t read a lot of the older volumes. I may go back to those someday. If you’re looking for a JLA story with political intrigue and some action, then this is your bet. After all, it doesn’t get anymore dramatic than a traitor within the league right!?

Overall 8/10

Superman vs Darkseid Review

Posted on July 19, 2015 by dreager1

This is a comic that I knew would be good right from the start. I’m a big Superman fan after all and Darkseid is one of his best villains. A compilation of some of their biggest battles was sure to be good and I wasn’t disappointed. The comics did a good job of showing Darkseid’s strength without nerfing Superman. This was how the characters were meant to be portrayed!

The first few issues are about Superman getting trapped on Apokolips and he also loses his memories once he falls into a large area of fire. He decides to lead the rebels to fight Darkseid, but there is a big twist at the end of this and we find out that Superman is being manipulated. This was probably the only part of the collection that I wasn’t crazy about. I’ve gone over this a few times already, but Superman cannot be mind controlled. It simply isn’t done and to lose his memory like that….I don’t think so. Such a thing just wouldn’t happen to Superman!

It’s actually a fairly tragic story because the rebels basically had their hope shattered. Superman is not allowed to keep his memories of what happened and that is probably for the best. Still, he definitely gave Darkseid a good fight and Superman managed to come out on top. It was a fair bout, which was the best part of the whole match. It was a good fight between two powerhouses and both of them were giving it their all.

See, Darkseid and Superman have always been evenly matched, but I consider Superman to be stronger thanks to his speed advantage. In this collection, Superman comes out on top each time except for one comic where Darkseid got unlimited cosmic power, which naturally doesn’t count. If we bring in Superman 1 Million, then we can talk. That being said, the fights are always really good and the intensity never lets up for a second!

Another issue was taken from the Superman/Batman series where Darkseid brainwashed Supergirl so Superman brought Batman and Wonder Woman along to free her. Big Barda led them to Darkseid’s palace and the heroes messed the place up. Superman handled Supergirl while Batman took down Darkseid….verbally although he could have done well in a physical confrontation. ~~if he had prep time~~ Then we got a really good battle between Superman and Darkseid. Superman was in total rage mode so it wasn’t really that close as Superman wrecked him with ease and planted Darkseid into the source wall. I don’t even have anything against that because an enraged Superman should be far stronger than Darkseid. There is no comic book character who can beat Superman at this point and I consider the Man of Steel to be on top of the food chain.

While I liked the Superman/Batman Apocalypse film a lot, the comic was so much better after reading this issue. The fact that Batman and Wonder Woman apparently suspected that Darkseid would be back and followed Superman/Supergirl to the farm was brilliant. While they didn’t get to fight much since Superman wanted to end things, it made the characters really look good. In the film, Superman got wrecked by Darkseid, but he was the one doing the wrecking here in the comic. It came at the expense of Supergirl’s fight, but the fight was certainly more accurate here since Superman’s speed is his biggest asset. This issue was definitely a lot of fun.

Another comic had Superman assemble a team of Kryptonians to battle Darkseid for Steel’s soul. Superboy, Supergirl, Supergirl 2, and the Eradicator were the guys that Superman brought with him. The reason why he only brought Kryptonians was so Darkseid couldn’t take it out on the rest of the world if Superman’s plan failed. (Really dicey plan since Darkseid would likely attack Earth to spite Superman) Darkseid’s minions engaged the Kryptonians and did fairly well thanks to the insane numbers advantage. It was essentially hundreds to thousands of opponents against the heroes, but each Kryptonian is incredibly powerful so that wasn’t a problem for them. The Eradicator is a character who I haven’t seen very often, but he certainly looked impressive here and even had a super form where he turned giant.

Naturally, the main part of the comic was the fight between Darkseid and Superman. Both of them were really confident going into the match. It was another decisive victory for Superman, but they both gave the fight their all. Superman properly utilized his speed in order to get the edge over Darkseid. In the end, Superman was able to win Steel’s soul back and it was a really nice ending to a good comic. From the Superman vs Darkseid battles in the collection, this was certainly the best one and both fighter looked impressive once again.

Another issue featured a big battle between Darkseid and The Source. Somehow, Darkseid was able to steal the cosmic being’s abilities and gained near limitless power. The Source put up a valiant fight, but he was outmatched and even Superman could really due nothing thanks to the large gap in power. He was a distraction at best, but that allowed Orion to come in and stall Darkseid as well. The cosmic feats were a lot of fun and Darkseid was still fighting physically, which is always a good thing. While the Superman and Darkseid fight was essentially nonexistent here, it did give us an issue where Darkseid came out on top and Superman even had a long monologue about how he now knows what it feels like to be the weak guy surrounded by powerful players who are out of his league. Luckily, that didn’t stop him from entering the fray.

Jimmy Olsen also got to enter the fray in one comic where he gained immense powers and got to fight with Darkseid. I believe that this may have been during the same arc with Orion or a different one. Regardless, it was also a fun tribute to the Silver Age since Jimmy’s old lizard/reptile form got to make a comeback. Obviously not the most memorable part of the issue since I don’t remember the full context, but still a cool occurrence.

There’s also a very short issue about Darkseid’s origin and how he destroyed all of the old gods to gain almost unlimited power and a quick Justice League issue from the New 52 where we learn that Darkseid has been travelling around the multiverse and destroying dozens of Superman versions until he lost to the New 52’s version. That’s some good hype for Darkseid although I would consider many versions of Superman to be stronger than the New 52 one. I suppose that these guys just didn’t have it in them to win.

In the comics, Darkseid seems to be much stronger than New 52 Superman although these comics definitely show that Superman typically has the edge. It’s why I enjoyed the battles so much as they were all fairly close except that Superman always won in the end. One of the fights wasn’t even close because Superman was already enraged. His portrayal here is naturally excellent and this is the hero that I know and remember. Darkseid made for a good antagonist and he’s always been an interesting character. Having a trade paperback just about these two characters was a genius idea. Especially because I haven’t read many DC comics from this era.

The art switches for all of the issues of course, but they all look really good, which helps the overall experience. If I had to decide which art was my favorite, I’d probably go with the issue from the Superman/Batman series. Of course, I’m very used to the art at this point so it shouldn’t really come as a surprise. The issue with the Eradicator would be a decently close second.

Overall, Superman vs Darkseid is a great collection of comics and one that I would definitely recommend you to check out. Each of the stories is pretty epic and there aren’t any real negatives to speak of aside from the opening chapter where Superman was mind controlled. I really didn’t buy that for a second and evil Superman is a concept that has never worked from the beginning. Luckily, the rest of the comics are really just about showing how great Superman is and why he can’t be stopped by any threat. He is the ultimate comic book character and I never let anyone forget it. The size of the collection is decent. It’s short enough that I would still call it short, but not quite as quick to read as the average modern trade paperback, which only brings 4 issues. This is a steal for any current price!

Overall 8/10

Supergirl Volume 3 Sanctuary Review

Posted on July 2, 2015 by dreager1

Time to check out the third volume of the Supergirl series! This collection is mainly just made up of tie in issues so the main plot doesn’t move all that much, but what is the main plot? Debatably it’s just about Supergirl getting used to life on Earth. In which case, you can make a decent argument that this all helps to further that aim a little. At the very least, she can learn more about Earth’s superheroes through this debacle.

Supergirl heads underwater to discover that her ship has made it to Earth in one piece. It only responds to her commands so it’s a fairly safe headquarters. Unfortunately, a villain has broken in and his physical abilities are almost on par with Supergirl’s. How will she be able to take this guy out and reclaim her base? It’s a fun one shot story and the ship plays a big role in Supergirl’s series after this. The villain was one of the first ones to appear in the series as well so it was a pivotal issue and was handled well.

After that, the H’el arc started. Naturally, a lot of it is covered in the Superman series as well as the Superboy title so we only see bits and pieces here, which makes for an intriguing read. Unfortunately, Supergirl looks bad in these stories as H’el plays on her emotions quite easily. Supergirl never really questions the fact that he is randomly teleporting everywhere and messing with the headquarters that she found as well as the Fortress of Solitude. He seemed to be rather evil from the start and I feel like Supergirl should have realized this. Of course, this may not have happened if Superman had tried to get along with her a little more, but things are still really rocky between them so that was out of the picture.

While the H’el arc was all over the place and made him look seriously overpowered, it also gave us some of the best fights in the volume. First, Supergirl challenged the Flash. Given that the Flash was holding back against her, he did very well and was actually defeating her. Supergirl was actually trying to destroy him so that shows just how skilled the Flash is. He’s always been an underrated fighter and at his best, he could easily take on any DC fighter including Superman. While my money’s on the Man of Steel, it’s a fight that I’ve always enjoyed no matter who ends up as the victor. I wouldn’t even need to worry about plot hax here.

The second fight was Supergirl vs Wonder Woman. I may have called a little more plot hax here as I feel that Supergirl is definitely stronger than Wonder Woman, but in the New 52, Wonder Woman is very impressive so I don’t mind her claiming victory here. She certainly does have more experience than Supergirl and it was a close fight although I feel like Supergirl would have done better than she was given credit for. These were two power packed battles and they were definitely a lot of fun to watch. Supergirl didn’t get to fight Superman, but they already had a scuffle a while back I suppose.

Finally, there was another comic, which starts to get us back to the main plot. Power Girl arrives to help Supergirl fight a major powerhouse. They manage to escape, but then Supergirl’s headquarters turns against the two heroines because it believes that one of them must be a clone. It was a very entertaining comic because the ship has a nice sense of humor. It burns the Supergirls logically with its witty comebacks. The ship never gives up or backs down and I loved its dialogue. I dare say that it instantly became more likable than Jarvis or Batman’s computers. (Although they never really talk….) It may have been a little rude considering that it works for Supergirl, but that’s just the way that these things go right? I like for A.I. programs to have a little personality!

That being said, I didn’t care for the fact that Supergirl and Powergirl had to retreat from the new villain. Someone sent him to test their strength so he’ll probably be back, but there’s no way that he could stop those two. I feel like Supergirl is criminally underpowered in this series. The villains should be as weak as play dough when compared to her incredible feats of power. Whoever this guy is, the author is clearly making him out to be stronger than he should. I’m all for new villains who are tough though so maybe he’ll be likable.

Still, it seems to be something that the writer just likes doing. Look at H’el. He is apparently strong enough to fight off Superman and Superboy at once. Plus, he can teleport and do all kinds of things. He effortlessly beat the Flash and his master plan nearly succeeded. I don’t care for the guy and his sob story wasn’t great, but he does make for a very imposing villain. Perhaps a little overpowered, but that beats being underpowered though. As long as Supergirl, Wonder Woman, and Superman are able to give him a good fight, then I’ll be satisfied. If any of them ended up losing to him very quickly in the main series, then I would definitely be a little sad at that outcome.

In the end, I’d actually say that this was the best Supergirl volume because of all the cool guest stars. Even Batman had a cameo as he warns the heroes that it’s almost too late to stop H’el. The Flash and Wonder Woman were both portrayed well and Power Girl also made for a nice assist. Since Power Girl really is Supergirl from an alternate timeline, it’s cool to see them interact. I’m still waiting for Supergirl to really get to meet the other heroes though as she still seems to be so separate from them. She regards them from afar as if she’s never even seen them before. The sad truth is that Supergirl may not have seen them since she is so new to the superhero gig. Still, she can’t stay a newbie forever so that experience will come at some point.

The art is fairly streamlined although the character models can still get a little iffy at times. Particularly the faces. Maybe I’m just taking a harder look at the art now as I’ve been saying that more lately like with World War Hulk, but there are some panels that are clearly off. One of them was when Supergirl was talking to H’el as her pose made her look terrified for some odd reason. It’s just one example though. Naturally, the fight scenes are quite good though and I still like streamlined art a lot as it makes the action scenes that much better.

Overall, Supergirl continues to be one of DC’s better comic book titles. I enjoyed the addition of her Sanctuary, which will make for a very good supporting cast if it can be recovered. Let’s just say that the heroes had to use some rather drastic measures to stop him from destroying Supergirl. Now that H’el’s arc is over, the series can get back on track without worrying about tie-in issues although they were quite good this time. What I’m looking forward to the most is the return of the World Breakers from volume 1. That group had a lot of potential and they were awesome. Of course, being stronger than Supergirl doesn’t seem like much of a feat anymore, but they were still a fun group of new/powerful super villains. This series has always been very interesting and I do like Supergirl’s portrayal even if she is a little naive. Hopefully she won’t be falling for any more romance traps in future volumes. If you want to see some nice action and even some well written humor, this is a comic that you definitely want to check out!

Overall 8/10

Batman’66 Meets The Green Hornet Review

Posted on June 27, 2015 by dreager1

The classic incarnation of Batman is back once again in a crossover with the Green Hornet. As soon as I saw this collection, I knew that I had to check it out. The Adam West Batman show was pretty great and the comics have done a good job of capturing why this series is so much fun. As good as the first two Batman collections were, this one is the best. Whether it is the added hype of the crossover effect or just the fact that the writing has gotten better, this is one collection that you don’t want to miss.

It was just another day for Batman and Robin until they learned that some rare items were leaving from Gotham to another city. Bruce Wayne felt personally responsible for this and decided to go onto the train as well. Gotta keep up the Wayne reputation right? The Green Hornet in his alter ego also decided to come along under the pretense of a story for his newspaper. The two heroes try to out hype each other as they brag about the local heroes (or villains in the Green Hornet’s case) until someone breaks into the train. The General has arrived and his glue weapons could mean the end for the Dynamic Duo. Batman and Robin prepare to stop him, but the Green Hornet is in their way. As far as Batman and Robin know, the Green Hornet is just another criminal. Can Batman drop him while also dealing with the real villains? Speaking of which, the General is not alone. He is joined by the Joker and stopping both of them will be difficult.

This comic is a blast to read from start to finish. It really feels like you are looking at a new Batman episode from the good ole days. The heroes are constantly making puns, but also reminding each other about defending the law. Batman can barely even stand the thought of working alongside the Green Hornet since the masked man is a known criminal. Seriously, the comic is incredible and the dialogue is easily top notch. You’ll thoroughly enjoy the issues and even the villains have honor as they outsmart the heroes using technicalities instead of tricks.

It almost goes without saying that Batman makes for an excellent main character. He really embodies truth, justice, and the American Way in this collection. He always stands up for what’s right and he gives everyone a fair shake. It’s just what he does and Batman never backs down from a fight. The Green Hornet may have surprised him in round 1, but it’s safe to say that Batman bounced back from that. In a fair fight, I don’t think that the Green Hornet would last very long. Batman also proved that his Batcave and its gadgets are better than the Green Hornet’s.

Robin is essentially the Yes Man on Batman’s group. He always agrees with Batman although you can hardly blame him since the Dark Knight tends to always be right about everything. Robin’s a good sidekick and this is really how he should be portrayed. He can fight and he’s also smart, but he’s just not ready to match Batman in those categories yet. Give him a little time and then he’ll be all ready to roll. His counterpart in the form of Kato wasn’t quite as likable. I found him to be rather arrogant and undeservingly so since he’s not a great fighter. I’d say that he’s weaker than Robin when you think about it. He likes to quote philosophers to psych out the opponents and get some subtle burns in. Kato’s not a bad character per say, but I do find him to be rather annoying. Of course, it helps that I’m on team Robin so the burns get personal.

As for the Green Hornet, he’s a fun hero to have around. He’s similar to Batman although he’s not nearly as heroic. The Hornet is still a hero, but he pretends to be a villain to deal with the crooks. I wonder if it’s a plan that Batman would approve of since it skirts the lines of the law. Telling Batman his secret would have saved them all a lot of hassle, but I can see why he wouldn’t want to divulge such a big secret so easily. So, I don’t blame him for that. The Hornet is a fun foil to Batman and I’m guessing that his old comics would probably be a lot of fun as well. I wonder if he has an ongoing at the moment to match up with the Batman’66 stories.

The art on the covers is trying very hard to look like it’s a live action piece to match the TV show. I’m not crazy about how it looks so I’m glad that the art inside of the issues is normal. It flows rather easily and while Batman’s uniform can still take a little getting used too, it looks sharp. Likewise with the rest of the cast. The art is simple and managed to pull off the TV show vibe that they are going for. The fights are certainly fun to look at.

I almost forgot to mention the villains! The Joker definitely looks like the mastermind of the operation even if he doesn’t get as much screen time as The General. The Joker can hold his own and I was satisfied with his portrayal as he showed a good amount of wit and skill. The General isn’t quite as charismatic and comes off as a generic villain. That being said, his plan was quite good and it would have succeeded against the average hero although the final demand for the millions was rather suspicious.

Naturally, Batman and Robin ended up fighting Green Hornet and Kato on one occasion. The battle was a quick one hit knockout so Batman and Robin fans would likely be disappointed by it. I can safely say that I wasn’t thrilled by it either. Although things essentially equaled out by the end, I just don’t see such a tactic working on the Dynamic Duo. If you ask me, Batman and Robin would win the fight quite easily and you could say that they had the upper hand in all of the other skirmishes. While the outcome wasn’t quite as accurate as I could have hoped, I appreciate the fact that the crossover actually picked a winner instead of making it a generic stalemate. Nothing’s worse than a tie…

Overall, This is a great crossover! From how the characters are portrayed in the collection, I have a feeling that each comic title could holds its own. I’ve already read two Batman’66 volumes so I can say with confidence that it is a good series. I haven’t read any Green Hornet issues so far, but if there are any retro styled ones where the characters act like they do in this collection, it would definitely be a lot of fun. If you’re a Batman fan, you really need to pick this title up. The constant stream of quality dialogue will keep you going and the art is sound. This is a style that I hope more comics emulate in the future and hopefully the library will pick up more collections for the Batman series.

Overall 8/10

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Batman’66 Meets The Green Hornet Review

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