Double Shot Wonder Woman #8 & Amazons Attack #1

Wonder Woman #8
Writer: Jodi Picoult
Artists: Terry & Rachel Dodson

Amazons Attack #1
Writer: Will Pfeifer
Artist: Pete Woods

I'm including both of these books in one review because they kind of run together. Wonder Woman has been mediocre since Jodi Picoult took over. She's not really blowing me away, and it's not until this issue that she starts to set up Amazons Attack. Last issue in Wonder Woman, Diana was captured, the government wants the "Purple Death Ray" the worst name for a weapon ever, and they are holding her captive until she gives up the information. Meanwhile, Circe, who's being used again and again in this book, is the villain setting up the war to meet some of her needs. The Dodsons return this issue, and are kind of aping Drew Johnson's work, or it could be that the darker tone that Picoult is writing. Wonder Woman sees Washington DC being attacked at the end of the issue, but not a whole lot of the fighting, for that you have to read Amazons Attack. Wonder Woman, is just treading water right now waiting for Gail Simone. C-

Amazons Attack was a much stronger issue than Wonder Woman. The Amazons come out of nowhere and start going apeshit. Some Amazons kill a man and his young boy for no good reason at the Lincoln memorial, and then take of Abe's stone head! Ouch! These ladies mean business! The president is attacked, and saved by Black Lightning, who calls the rest of the JLA for back-up. The rest of the issue is the Amazon Leader, who was introduced in Wonder Woman #8 and not this issue, goad the Amazons into anger and go nuts. Not bad for a first issue, but not that great as well. The best part about this issue was the Pete Woods art. He's done Batman, Superman, and now he's moving up. I'm a new Pete Woods fan since he did the "Up Up and Away" storyline One Year Later, and I'm still loving his style here. I think he's a good choice for this mini-series as he can draw strong, hot women, as well as strong, imposing men. All of his characters look different, and he proves his strength as an artist here by drawing all of the Chimeras, Pegasuses, Trolls, and F-14's very well. He's also given the Amazon warriors a few different degrees of armor, showing the different ranks and such, and a lot of them are variations on the Wonder Woman battle armor. This is cool because we see where Wonder Woman gets her wacky get-ups. C'mon, the Woman doesn't wear pants or sleeves, who does that? At least Black Canary has a jacket on most of the time. Anyway. It's not a bad start to a series that could turn out ok. They haven't explained where they Amazons came from yet, but I'm sure that's coming. My only problem is that the back of the issue points you to read Wonder Woman #9 next rather than Amazons Attack #2, proving that Wonder Woman's arc is not an ancilliary story. If you're interested, pick it up in the shop and give it a look, we'll see where it goes from here. C+

Blue Beetle #14

Writer: John Rogers
Artist: Rafael Albuquerque

Another enjoyable issue of Blue Beetle. Suprise Suprise. Guy Gardner comes back into Jaime's life and after a short confrontation, Guy tries to school Blue Beelte in being a hero, and how cool he is, because in Guy's mind, he's the best there is at what he does. Er, wrong company. Anyway, Jaime tells Guy about the Reach being on Earth and hiding their secret installations with phase shift similar to Brother Eye was doing. After a brief battle with the Ultra-Humanite, Guy and Jaime go back to Jaime's house for some burgers. Guy actually stops being a jerk here, and gives Jaime a book on strategy that Ted Kord gave him a long time ago. He tells Jaime that he needs to "Stop thinking like some scared kid with fancy armor, and start thinking like the Blue Beetle." This is as much passing of the torch as Jaime will get, unless he meets Booster Gold soon. Rogers writes really well, as usual. The character moments between Jaime and Guy are great, as well as Guy and Jaime's mother. Is the woman going to intimidate Batman next? She means business! Alburquerque turns in some great art as usual, and on time as well! This book continues to be a solid read each and every month that I'm running out of things to say about it. The only place it can go is down, and it's not like Flash that can only go up after it's terrible first arc. It's not the best issue of the series, that would be #7, but it's one of the stronger ones, tying up themes from the first issue. B-

Flash #11

Writer: Marc "Save this Book from Hell" Guggenheim
Artists: Tony Daniel and Art Thibert

DC should renumber this book and call this issue #3 instead of #11. Wipe that mess away, and let this be the beginning of the Flash book. Guggenheim has a good handle on the character of Bart and his motivations, and writes a damn good Flash issue. This issue and the last really blew me away with how much this book has turned around. Guggenheim is setting Bart up with some major trials, and I'm looking forward to where this will lead. The Rogues are gathering, with the help of Inertia, and it's going to be big. We find out why Bart's Grandmother and Zoom are around, and the why the cops are after Bart. Something big happens, and Bart is forced to take action or let people die, leaving up to a great cliffhanger splash by Daniel.

Tony Daniel is a little stiff coming off of Teen Titans, but it may be the inking. On Titans, his inker used Daniel's pencil shading to great extent, leaving it in and letting the characters look a little rough edged. It added some depth and dimension here and there and was a great effect. Art Thibert does the exact opposite here, cleaning up the pencil shading turning it into solid lines and blacks stripping away the depth from Daniel's art and exposing his weaknesses. That's not a knock against the book, it's just that it will take a little time for Daniel and Thibert to click, as obviously, thier outlooks on inking are very different. The outlook for this book is good with Guggenheim and Daniel behind the wheel, so give this book another try. B+

Brave and the Bold #3

Writer: Mark Waid
Artists: George Perez and Bob Waicek

This issue was a lot of fun. It also had Blue Beetle in it, upping the fun factor. The best part about this issue was realizing that Mark Waid has actually read the new Blue Beelte series. He writes Jaime as the young, insecure, untrained, and awkward hero he is. He incorporates a lot of the character traits and even the La Dama villain from the Blue Beetle series into this issue. Waid's not just swapping off characters every issue, he's using them to their fullest extent whenever possible. Plus, Jaime's interaction with Batman are phenominal. He keeps asking Batman questions, responding with "yessir," and telling Batman that he is intimidated by him. Pre-IC, Batman would have responded coldly, but with our new friendly Batman, Bruce guides Jaime just as he would Dick or Tim in the situation. This shows Batman's skills as a mentor, and why Dick and Tim are shaping up to be great heroes in the DCU. If Jaime didn't live in El Paso, he should move to Gotham, just to be tutored by Batman. The Fatal Five show up and have to fight Batman and Jaime. Normally I would say, never in a million years would Jaime and Batman win, but with the intervention of the probabilty altering Haruspex, I was okay that they won, though Batman has some issues at the end. Another great thing about this series is that each issue is not just a random pairing, there is a reason for them, and they are all set up in the previous issue. Batman met up with Jaime last issue, and Supergirl meets up with Lobo here, setting up next issue. I'm enjoying this series as a whole, but this issue, as well as the first were the best so far. That's probably because of Batman's appearences in them anyway.

George Perez is doing a wonderful job. Unlike some other artists whose art has ages with the new computer coloring (see Dan Jurgens in Nightwing) Perez is still full of life and doing some of his best work in years. Perez nails Blue Beetle, and proves he can draw an intimidating Batman. I think a lot of the vibrancy in Perez's art comes from Bob Wiacek's inks and the colors by Tom Smith. Nothing feels out of place, and the Smith's colors don't overpower Perez's artwork. He knows that multilayered glows don't look that well on Perez's art, and keeps it simple in some places, and goes all out in others. The book looks damn good because of this. I was reading this in the car, and my girlfriend noticed it out of the corner of her eye and went "Ooh pretty colors!" My girlfriend's not that ditzy, but it's a rarity that she ever notices the comic I am reading. Here's hoping the Brave and the Bold can keep up some great stories and art from Waid and Perez. If they can manage it, then this will be a book to be looked back upon. A

Nightwing Annual #2

Writer: Marc Andreyko
Artists: Joe Bennet and Jack Jadson

Well, this was a suprise. A good, well written Annual that pretty much finishes the Dick and Barbara engagement storyline. We see Dick propose, get hurt in Infinite Crisis, how he was healed so damn fast, and then left on his trip with Bruce and Tim. This Annual takes place in between all those moments, mostly Dick recovering from his injury to go on the cruise. You see, there is something wrong with IC and 52's timeline concerning Batman. I'm not entirely convinced they in 52 week 1, more like week 6, 7, or 8. Dick has injuries that ruined his muscle and nerve timing, so he has to retrain with Barbara as his cheerleader to get back up to speed. During this time, we see Dick and Barbara work out their relationship issues, and rebuild what they had lost. They reminisce some major times in their relationship, outlining for new readers, and revisiting it for long-time readers. It has a lot of sweet moments, and some funny ones as well (See the scene with Dick and Babs stuck in a small safe together, for some reason, Dick can't stand up straight in front of Batman when he gets out). Andreyko handles the teen angst and lust very well in this issue, as well as the post-teenager maturity that comes without warning. The resolution to the proposal, that there is no current engagement, feels like a logical conclusion after reading this issue and ties in nicely with what Marv Wolfman is currently doing in Nightwing, find Dick Grayson. Dick has been serving everyone else his entire life, and never once thought of himself. He goes on the cruise not only to help re-build Batman, but to re-build Dick Grayson. Barbara loves Dick, but doesn't know the real Dick, so she can't marry him until both of them know the real Dick Grayson. Some may find this cliche, but I think it plays nicely with what Batman is doing in 52. Both Dick and Bruce had become some really dark people before Infinite Crisis, they both needed help, but in different ways. If you're not reading Nightwing, or Birds of Prey, you can still pick up this annual to enjoy it. I think this is a great book to hook people on Nightwing, or the Dick and Barbara love story. Hell, I might even make my girlfriend read this issue, she might enjoy it. Anyway, Andreyko does a great job. Someone please put him on a book that doesn't get cancelled all the time.

Joe Bennett does the art here, and does a fantastic job. Barbara is hot, Dick looks as he should, and Batman is menacing. His best talent is drawing faces and expressions, so he is a great fit for this annual. Let's hope he gets another ongoing at DC too, I'd hate to lose him to Marvel. B+

World War Three Mini-Series

Writers: John Ostrander & Keith Champagne
Artists: Pat Oliffe, Jack Jadson, Andy Smith, Tom Derenick

Well, I'm more than a little dissapointed. I was told and read that all or most of WW3 would be in 52 Week 50. That account was wrong, only the last 2 days of the War were included. I understand the reason behind this (to explain the difficulty and the ending with Black Adam), and 52 was the best comic of WW3, but I'm still dissapointed. I bought all four of these issues thinking that they would be more character pieces, explaining the OYL changes with the backdrop of WW3. What I got was a 4 issue mini-series about Jonn J'onzz changing his look and outlook on humanity. OYL pieces were glossed over, with Firestorm getting most of the spotlight. Jason Todd never trully explained why he became Nightwing (that responsibility speech was crap), and Batgirl's change was better explained in Teen Titans with the serum than here. Why did she take over the League of Assasins? Who knows. We found out how Aquaman became "Squid-face" but were offered no explanation as to who those Water Gods were, and what exactly Aquaman wanted. We saw Supergirl return "changed" but that was never explored, as she's painfully different in Brave & Bold and Superman titles than she is in her own book. We saw Donna Troy as Wonder Woman, but like Jason Todd, offered no real explanation as to why other than "it had to be done." We saw the Titans fail, and Amanda Waller go after some dude whose signifigance or identity was never explained. And in the final issue, we had a re-write of 52 week 50, only to include Martian Manhunter, when he was only seen in one panel in 52, but according to the Minis, he had a much larger part to play in the battle. In the end, I'm left with a bad taste in my mouth with WW3, and $10 less in my pocket. I skipped out on the Batman Mad Monk trade this week because of this? Get me a time machine. For me, the WW3 mini's lacked a sense of purpose and direction. Jonn proved a good narrator, but his story could have been told in one or two issues of this mini. I wanted more moments with Firestorm, Donna Troy, Jason Todd, and the Titans, and I only got a quarter of what I wanted or thought I was getting. If a new reader starts DC with 52, and grabbed this mini, he/she would ultimately be lost, because there are so many characters here who are not in 52, or even that well introduced or written for that matter. The writing was not bad, just okay, and a stronger sense of direction would have helped a lot in this department. When 52 is eventually remembered, WW3 will be the event that sucked, and was uneccessary. Yes I wanted answers to all my OYL questions, but I didn't wanted them to be glossed over so quickly. I felt that they deserved much more respect than they got here, and a lot of these OYL mysteries have been forgotten in their books. Hell, we're just now getting to the Dick and Barbara marriage Proposal, OYL. It's clear to my now that 52's plot hijacked the original plan (which I like), but the solution for that hijacking was made and put to the side until it was time to make it. Johns, Morrison, Waid, and Rucka had no hand in WW3, and it shows when reading the titles. The art got progresively better with each issue, but that was not enough to save it. D

Trails of Shazam #6

Writer: Judd Winick
Artist: Howard Porter

Damn. This felt like a long time coming. Issues 4 and 5 dealt with Achilles and Courage, and issues 6 and 7 look to be a two parter featuring Hercules (who looks like a tattooed version of a Street Fighter character). My only issue here is that we just had a two parter and that this issue is all build up for the fight next issue. There is not a whole lot to the trial here. In fact, now I feel like this issue was nothing. Winick rehashed the whole "Magic is being re-written" thing that plays into this story, but does nothing past that. We haven't checked in with Mary Marvel since issue 2 or 3. I thought they were close? I like the whole idea of earning the Shazam power, but the pacing is killing me. Why not get the trials out of the way and have a big task to complete at the end, or unravel this Council or Merlin that is trying to de-rail Freddie. It feels like this will end up like Ion, leading into something entirly else, and leaving my stomach empty. This issue is definately skippable, if you're picking this title up on and off. Winick needs to pick up the pace if he's going to keep readers from over the 2 or 3 months it takes this "monthly" book to come out.

Howard Porter continues his digital style here, and will for the rest of the series. It works, but I wonder if it is also slowing him down. Porter is doing the color as well, whereas other digital artists like Freddie Williams II on Robin are only doing the line art, and Robin is never late. I think Williams is 3 issues ahead of where he's supposed to be. Back to Porter, his storytelling and composition are on, its just the wait that kills me. If this were coming out more frequently I might be more excited, but I forgot this book existed until it showed up in my folder this week. And to forget that a book exists it a bad thing, especially for a mini-series that needs monthly readers to keep the idea of a future Shazam book after this alive. The concept is cool, but the wait is killing the book. D

Justice League of America #7

Writer: Brad Meltzer
Artist: Ed Benes & Sandra Hope

Justice League #7 is an iffy comic book. While I'm glad that we finally have a team, and now a headquarters, to leave everything to chance just seems like a waste of issues 1 - 4 where the Trinity was looking at all of those pictures. We spent so much time in tha Batcave reading the thoughts of the heroes, about other heroes, only to have that all thrown out in this issue. There are some major holes and inconsistencies, but the overall result was still entertaining. For me, the jury is still out until I can read 1 - 13 back to back, like you all should do with Identity Crisis. Like #1, this issue is mostly talking and jumps around between characters and moments, which makes it all the more confusing. Geo-Force makes an appearance, but is still not on the team. He doesn't do much to tease the upcoming crossover with JSA, if that is what he is there for. Other than those complaints, I cannot complain about the characters. Meltzer writes them all with an individual voice, and even without the color of the narration boxes, you can still recognize who is talking. Benes, as usual is bringing his A game, and Sandra Hope turns in some wonderful inks. If you're thinking about dropping the book, stick around for the first parts of the JLA/JSA crossover starting next month before you make your decision. B-