DC Preview Review For January Part 2 of 2

Jim: Let’s get back to the regular books and see if there anything worth commenting on. I think I will pick on marginal books that I may drop to at least point out what I find as flaws in the new DCU. Books already dropped are not eligible for picking.

Gwen: Wait, why do we have a second into? You know I'm awful at finding something to say for these :(

JUSTICE LEAGUE INTERNATIONAL #5
Written by DAN JURGENS
Art by AARON LOPRESTI and MATT RYAN
Cover by DAVID FINCH and RICHARD FRIEND
On sale JANUARY 4
32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
RATED T
The JLI has one last chance to stop the alien powerhouse known as Peraxxus before he and his SignalMen bring about the end of the world. Will the team be able to work together, or will they bear the responsibility for Earth’s destruction?

Jim: On one hand I miss some to the old DCU continuity, but on the other hand if you are going to blow everything up, why do a super hero group book by the numbers. Don’t get me wrong, it is professional and in general a well done book, just not creating any buzz or striking me as anything new.

Gwen: Ah the world of comics, where the Earth is on the brink of destruction everyday!

GREEN ARROW #5
Written by KEITH GIFFEN and DAN JURGENS
Art by DAN JURGENS and RAY MCCARTHY
Cover by JASON FABOK and RYAN WINN
On sale JANUARY 4
32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
RATED T
His touch melts flesh and burns through steel, and now the nightmare creature known as Midas wants Green Arrow dead! What secret from Green Arrow’s past fuels Midas’s rage, and how does it all tie in to the enigmatic woman known only as Blood Rose? Secrets are revealed as Ollie Queen’s past comes back – to kill him!

Jim: If it wasn’t for the new creative team I would have dropped this book. I hear this is more like the Smallville version of the character, but I’m just lost in trying to figure out what the heck is GA in this new DCU. How did he have a sidekick or is Speedy in the Red Hood series not a former sidekick? Is GA Tony Stark with a bow and arrow? Is he a true vigilante? Why is he out being Green Arrow? He is too undefined and after three issues we should have a feel for the character.

Gwen: You know, I hadn't thought of that before, but he really is like the Green Arrow from Smallville. As much as the few seasons of Smallville I saw were entertaining it never had any staying power for me but I know it was extremely popular with the WB crowd. Maybe DC is just trying to pull in a different crowd to this book?

DETECTIVE COMICS #5
Written by TONY S. DANIEL
Art by TONY S. DANIEL and SANDU FLOREA
Cover by TONY S. DANIEL
1:25 Variant cover by TONY S. DANIEL
On sale JANUARY 4
32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
RATED T
Retailers: This issue will ship with two covers. The variant cover will feature the standard edition cover in a wraparound format.
There’s been a series of assassinations in the criminal underworld – and The Penguin is among Batman’s first suspects! But when seemingly ordinary women become part of the killings, Batman discovers a common denominator that leads him on the trail of a vicious killer who is spiraling down a path of destruction. Bruce Wayne’s girlfriend, investigative reporter Charlotte Rivers, ends up on the killer’s hit list. And with her missing, can Batman uncover the layers of lies and deception within the underworld in time to save her?

Jim: One of the hardest things in the world is for me to drop a Batman book, especially something I would consider to be a core book. Tony Daniel is close to achieving that feat. Tony can’t tell a cohesive story. He always tries to grab too many elements into one story and never keeps it all together. In his first arc it appears to be a Joker story and by issue #3 with have a story about the Dollmaker. Batman gets shot with an anesthetic and recovers with no explanation. Batman solves a mystery that was never even laid out to the readers. Tony should have a writer paired with him and can be a co-plotter, but his stuff needs work.

Gwen: I just never care much about Batman's random girlfriends. They're like Bond girls - one-shots. The only exceptions are characters that appear elsewhere of course - Catwoman, Talia and the like. But really, have we even come across Silver St.Cloud recently? I only remember her because Jim named our dog after her when I was a kid.

BATMAN: ODYSSEY VOL. 2 #4
Written by NEAL ADAMS
Art and cover by NEAL ADAMS
1:10 Variant cover by NEAL ADAMS
On sale JANUARY 18
40 pg, FC, 4 of 7, $3.99 US
RATED T
Retailers: This issue will ship with two covers. Please see the order form for more information.
Ra’s al Ghul’s underworld has taken Batman to the brink of cold-blooded murder – now beyond. Will Batman step up to the hard decisions? And what if Robin gets in the way? This is a cold cruel place, this underworld.

Jim: Nothing to do with the new DCU, just Neal’s current work, it is horrible. This book is unreadable, his art is very weak and I think maybe be being “ghosted” by his studio. Neal was one of the most important creators in comic history, I worry current fans are only seeing this stuff and are wondering what the hype was about.

Gwen: Jim's right, but this cover looks nifty as far as the evil Anubis guy. Makes me want to watch Stargate!

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #5
Written by PAUL LEVITZ
Art by WALTER SIMONSON and DAN GREEN
Cover by WALTER SIMONSON
On sale JANUARY 18
32 pg, FC, $2.99 US
RATED T
Legendary artist Walter Simonson comes on board for an ambitious single-issue story that walks you through a day in the life of the Legion, checking in with every single member along the way! It’s a race against time to find the meaning of Dream Girl’s predawn vision before its secret can catch the team by surprise!

Jim: Outside of Batman the Legion is my favorite characters in the DCU and my favorite group of all time. Levitz, who was great back in the eighties, is killing this book. Plus the changes have been so helter skelter I no longer have a handle on characters I used to know like a sibling.

Gwen: UGH, get someone else to write the Legion DC! I'm begging you!

Jim: DC is now starting to get deeper into their runs with the new stuff, but I’m anxious to see them produce some other series. Also, I think I have been programmed to look for a couple new books every month.

Gwen: Ok, now I really am going to watch old school Stargate. Mostly because I don't want to finish off thinking how much I dislike the current Legion stuff.