How Many Green Arrows is Too Many?

First, I want to thank geist0 for the link to his article about the number of potentially redundant characters running around the DCU these days.  You can read his original article here.  In the article, geist0 suggests that all of these characters shouldn’t be running around the DCU at the same time.

It’s a difficult situation.  And as a big fan of some of those characters, it’s one that’s near and dear to my heart.  So, I’m going to borrow/steal his topic and ramble on for a few paragraphs.  Thanks again, geist0! 

I started reading comics in the early 90s.  It was a strange time to get into comics.  Superman had just died.  And suddenly, every character in comics was getting replaced with a newer, hipper, edgier version.  Most of these replacements were never intended to go the distance.  But some of them had pretty good runs.

I remember when Kyle Rayner first replaced Hal Jordan.  I’ll admit, I was won over really quickly.  I grew up on Hal, but was never really attached to him as anything more than a cool costume and cool powers.  But I could relate to Kyle.  We were about the same age and we were both struggling to find our places in the world.

In those early days, I was always afraid someone was going to pull the rug out from under Kyle.  DC frequently hinted that Hal Jordan might return as Green Lantern.  Each time they pulled that stunt, it worried me a little less.   Eventually, I accepted that Kyle would have a good, long run as Green Lantern.

I always figured one day he would be replaced.  But to tell the truth, I didn’t think Hal would ever be back as GL.  DC had gone to great lengths to make that seem impossible.  First they turned him into a sympathetic villain.  Then they gave him a redemptive death.  And finally, they turned him into the Spectre!  It just got cazier and crazier.

Probably my favorite book at the time was Mark Waid’s the Flash.  I came on board at the same time as the late, great Mike Wieringo.  But I quickly caught up on back-issues to the beginning of Waid’s run.  Wally was my Flash and I loved him.  I related to him just as much as I did Kyle.

I came to know Barry Allen too in flashbacks or the occasional time travel story.  I liked Barry in his role of patron saint of Flashes.  And I was fine reading about his past adventures.  But it always confused me that anyone wanted this guy back as the Flash.  Wally was just so much more interesting to me.

Another phenomenon of the 90s was the creation of new teen heroes.  The third Robin was getting his own mini-series which eventually let to his own series.  One of the replacement Supermen became Superboy who also got his own series.  And a new Kid Flash (but don’t call him that!) showed up in the form of Bart Allen/Impulse.

Yep, I loved all these guys too.  Even with Superboy’s ridiculous costume.  They were just a lot of fun.  To tell you the truth, I miss fun comics.  There’s still a few of them around, sure.  But it seems like they are fewer and fewer in the post-Identity Crisis DC.  (And yes, I still miss Young Justice.)

Well, nothing good lasts forever.  Although sales on his book are still solid, the Connor Hawke Green Arrow book was canceled to make room for Kevin Smith’s relaunch featuring Ollie Queen.  While I enjoyed Smith’s take on Ollie’s return, I read each issue waiting for the inevitable.  I figured Connor would have to be bumped off to make room for Ollie.

To me, the smartest thing Smith did in his relaunch was to keep Connor alive.  He even made room for him as a supporting character.  It seemed like the best of both worlds.  To my surprise, the DC Universe was big enough for two Green Arrows plus Arsenal.

Later on, Judd Winick took over the book.  One of his largest contributions to the GA mythos was transforming Mia Dearden from a wayward teen into the new Speedy.  As the Green Arrow family grew, you started to wonder how many archers the DCU really needed.

Meanwhile, Kyle Rayner’s run as Green Lantern came to an unglamorous end.  Hal Jordan’s return was the next big thing at DC.  And once again I read each passing issue with a sense of dread.  Surely, Kyle was a goner.

To my surprise, Kyle stuck around.  DC didn’t seem to know what to do with him.  But they kept him around nonetheless.  The Green Lantern book belonged solely to Hal.  There was no room for Kyle even as a supporting character.  Instead, he would be part of the ensemble cast of the Green Lantern Corps.

And then, he wasn’t.  Instead, he was turned into Ion and given his own on-going series.  Then the series that had been previously announced as on-going became a 12-issue maxi-series.  The maxi-series just kind of ended in an unsatisfying non-conclusion that set things in place for Kyle’s next transformation.

In the Sinestro Corps War storyline, Kyle was stripped of his Ion power and possessed by Parallax.  I had a bunch of reactions to this.  One was that it was a pretty cool, unexpected twist.  But I also knew right away that Kyle would be forced to kill someone as Parallax to even the score.  Kyle fans could no longer hold Hal’s crimes as Parallax against him.  The score would be evened up.

Then things got weird.  Unfortunately, Kyle got dragged into the mess that was Countdown.  The less said about Countdown, the better.  But dammit, I don’t know when to shut up.

When I saw the teaser art for Countdown, the thing that excited me the most was the shot of Kyle standing next to Donna Troy.  In the early days, the Kyle/Donna relationship was one of the things that sucked me in.  And thanks to John Byrne, that relationship ended suddenly.  Byrne wanted sole use of Donna.  So she was ripped away from Green Lantern.

For years, I waited to see some kind of resolution to the Kyle/Donna relationship.  I didn’t need to see them back together, but I wished DC would give them a better parting.  But with Donna’s death and resurrection, DC just never got around to it.  So, when I saw that image on the Countdown teaser, I thought I would finally get the resolution I was seeking.

Instead, Donna had a weird and uncharacteristic crush on badboy Jason Todd through most of Countdown.  And when Kyle showed up, everyone started acting weird.  Kyle seemed jealous of Jason in spite of the fact that 1) there didn’t seem to be anything going on between Donna and Jason and 2) Kyle and Donna had broken up years ago.

Anyway, Kyle finally settled down in Green Lantern Corps.  He gets treated pretty well there.  But he’s definitely been marginalized as a character.  Personally, I’m just happy to have him around in a book I can read without wretching.

Connor and Kyle are one thing.  Wally West is something else entirely.  Wally has been the Flash for a long time.  Barry Allen died over 20 years ago.  His death was considered one of the few constants in the DC Universe.  Anyone else could be brought back.  But bringing back Barry was considered a sacrilege.

Besides, Wally had gotten very popular as the Flash.  Mark Waid had a long and popular run which was briefly interrupted by a year-long run by Grant Morrison.  And when Waid finally left the book, a young upstart named Geoff Johns took over the book.  Johns stepped up with a long, popular Flash run of his own.

Little by little, the seeds were sown for Wally’s downfall.  Mark Waid ended his run with a wedding.  In interviews, he said he did so to keep DC from killing off Linda Park – a character he had grown to love.  Later, Johns had the couple get pregnant.  At first, the storyline seemed to end in a miscarriage.  But through the magic of comics, Johns ended his run with the Wests having twins.

Suddenly, the former Teen Titan seemed older than most of the other superheroes in the DCU.  He had more responsibilities than Superman.  The once relatable Wally West was starting to seem like dad.  Or worse, Reed Richards.

DC’s solution was to more or less move Wally and the Wests off stage for a while.  In Wally’s place, we got an age-accelerated Bart Allen as the Flash. 

(Age-acceleration is never a good idea.  Remember I said that.  It will come back later.)

DC has said that they never intended Bart to be the Flash for long.  But surely they never imagined the backlash that followed.  Bart’s run was a disaster.  Bart was quickly killed off and Wally was brought back from the Speed Force limbo he had been sent to.

Fan-favorite Mark Waid was brought back to write the new adventures of the Flash.  But Waid had a problem.  What do you do with the twins?  His solution was to age-accelerate them to a more acceptable age.  Suddenly, Wally seemed a lot like Mr. Incredible.

No one wanted to read about Wally as a suburban dad and Waid was more or less booed offstage.  Wally’s book ended again and the once-unthinkable happened.  Barry Allen was brought back.

There was a time when I would have been outraged by such a move.  Barry’s death should never be reversed.  Wally has earned his place as the Flash.  But by now, DC had screwed up Wally so badly that I almost welcomed Barry back.

We’re merely two issues into Barry’s return.  So, who knows what the future holds.  So far, I’m a little underwhelmed (read my review of issue 2 here).

Back to the original question. How many Green Arrows (or Flashes if you will) are too many? Some people feel like having a bunch or archers or speedsters (or Kryptonians) running around dilutes the concept. It’s hard for me to argue against that.

But, we’ve also seen what happens when DC limits itself to one version of each character. When DC enforced a 1-Kryptonian law after the John Byrne reboot, the old Superman concepts slowly crept back into continuity anyway.

During the Kyle years, there was a decree in place that Kyle would be the last and only Green Lantern. Guy was stripped of his ring and given ridiculous new powers. Alan had to change his name. But eventually, the whole Corps came back.

DC EIC Dan Didio came very close to killing off Dick Grayson based on the idea that he was just a watered-down Batman. Thank goodness Geoff Johns talked him out of that one.

My point is, I don’t think having these characters around is inherently a problem. What I do see as a problem is when DC tells bad stories just to keep them around. (See Kyle Rayner in Countdown.)

Recently, Judd Winick ended his run by revamping Connor Hawke. It was the kind of hatchet job Winick’s critics expect of him. Everything that made Connor unique was stripped of him. The peace-loving vegetarian who was raised in a monestary started wolfing down meaty chili and beating thugs to a pulp on rooftops. Suddenly, he couldn’t shoot an arrow to save his life. But he had a kewl new healing factor to make up for it.

And then he was written off stage. DC butchered the character only to write him off stage anyway. Why?

Needless to say, I’d have been happy if they just sent Connor back to the monestary without the extreme make-over. He’s got a built-in way to be moved on and off-stage as DC sees fit. This one seemed like a no-brainer.

But what about Wally? Didio has said in interviews that he sees Wally’s future being bright just like Kyle Rayner’s. What? Look, Kyle’s got a pretty good thing going all things considered. But in no way is this a fitting treatment for Wally. Wally should not be marginalized to a supporting role in Titans (a book in desperate need of a new creative team).

I’d rather see Wally written off stage for a while. Let him live with his family. (No getting rid of them now!) He can come back in a dramatic fashion for the big Flash stories and DC events.

But, here’s my concern with the “off stage” solution. I don’t trust DC to handle it elegantly. When a character moves off stage in the DC Universe, they become cannon fodder for those “event” stories DC is addicted to these days.

In order to justify it’s existence, every event story needs at least one “shocking” death or resurrection.  It’s sad.  But as long as people keep buying these things, DC’s going to keep killing off and resurrecting characters in a morbid, vicious cycle.

So, what’s the answer?  Do we need two Green Arrows a Red Arrow and a Speedy in the DCU?  Is the world better off if Connor Hawke or Mia Dearden are killed off in some bloody fashion?  Can we trust DC to keep them off stage until a story warrants their return?

I don’t know.  But I love a lot of these characters.  And I can only hope that DC does right by them.  Unfortunately, DC’s track record tells me to expect otherwise.

For more comic goodness, go here.

Review: Superman: World of New Krypton #3

James Robinson and Greg Rucka, the writers of Superman and Action Comics respectively, team up each month on a third Superman title – World of New Krypton.  As I’m sure you know by now, WoNK is the only of the Superman titles actually starring Superman at this time, but as luck would have it, it’s also the most consistently impressive of them.

New Krypton is a place desperately in search of an identity.  They still cling, as we see, to the way they’ve always done things – a way that Superman feels is in need of a change.  We begin to see why in this issue as we learn about some of the societal ramifications of a planet full of Superfolks.  The Labor Guild of Krypton, almost a slave class, ended last issue by taking Alura and a number of other important Kryptonians hostage, leaving the cold-blooded General Zod in charge of the situation.  Clark manages to talk him down from the expected blood-bath, though, depowers himself and offers himself up as a hostage.

Clark without powers, however, is still smart, confident and attentive – skills he needs as he negotiates the freedom of Alura and the rest and does his best to institute change in the system.  The drama that drives the issue – that of a society on the brink of revolution – is relatively compelling, despite being vastly oversimplified, and offers far more to keep us coming back each month than a simple Superman vs. General Zod plot might… even if, at many times, the plot places Superman and Zod against each other.

Wood’s work is competent, if unspectacular, managing to capture the diverse types of dress common in Kryptonian culture.  Actually, given how rarely many books seek to venture into such completely unknown territory, it is rather spectacular is only to note how natural the background and costumes are throughout the book.  Wood handles both the action and the dramatic scenes with a deft hand, and appears to work quite well with Rucka and Robinson.

The book takes what could very easily have been a placeholder mini and has begun to use it to really flesh out the Kryptonians – culture, dress, attitudes.  The book is far from perfect and never quite achieves the heights it could, but it is nonetheless a consistently entertaining read and a worthy place for the Man of Steel to spend a year.

Grade: B+

Read/RANT

Review: Seaguy: Slaves of Mickey Eye #2

Seaguy: Slaves of Mickey Eye comes from what I can only imagine is a strange, strange place inside Grant Morrison.  Despite that, or perhaps because he has cut loose for the first time in a few years, the newest Seaguy mini, Slaves of Mickey Eye, has been some of his best work in a long time.  Still reeling from the half-forgotten loss of his best friend, Chubby da Choona, Seaguy escapes a mental institution with the help of Tree Guy, Peaguy, and Three Guy, three superheroes who claim to have been inspired by his escapades.  Of course, far more than that happens, and there’s far more going on behind the scenes – Seaguy winds up in Los Huevos, hiding out from the omnipresent Mickey Eye as a bulldresser while starting a relationship with the fiery Carmen… or so he thinks.

In reality, Seaguy: Slaves of Mickey Eye deals with a whole lot of trust issues as we learn about betrayal after betrayal of the titular hero, from people he’s trusted and people he barely knows.  It is tempting in a review to begin to do a critical unpacking of the many and varied themes of the book, because that’s half the fun, but there are folks better suited to that for now.  Instead, I will say this:

Seaguy: Slaves of Mickey Eye #2 is a fun, funny, fascinating book.  Stewart’s art has never been better, and he seems to be getting more comfortable working together with Morrison to craft a complex narrative that never sacrifices its sense of visual wonder or its emotional power when it digs in deep.  While some of Morrison’s recent work left some fans cold, it is hard to imagine people having the same reaction to Seaguy - it’s a book that downright demands an emotional investment from you, and it’s more than earned one.

Grade: A

Read/RANT

Grant Morrison’s Multiversity

Dreams can come true!

Check it out!

It won’t come out until next year, but it will be awesome! Man, Grant Morrison is the best. He just completed this huge event, Final Crisis, an event that could barely fit on the page, and now he’s working on something bigger! How does he do it? That article has the details, but this could be the big DC event of 2010. It’ll even have Captain Carrot!

Note: I’m sure you’re wondering about that Power Girl image. I searched for “DC Multiverse” and that Ed Benes, border-line nudity popped up. With all the popularity of Starfire nude and comic book nudity in general, this is sure to be the most popular post ever!

-Bruce Castle

Review: Irredeemable #2

(****)

Those who complained about the first issue having “too much action” and “not enough substance,” should be much happier with Irredeemable’s second issue, an issue that has almost no action and is all about substance. It’s only natural that a book supposedly all about Internet insults has already gotten quite a few. Really, why would you ever complain about lack of substance or too much action in an ongoing series’ first issue? Well, Mark Waid, determined to quickly deflect the Internet’s barrage, is already getting the Plutonian’s Superman connection out of the way. This issue pokes fun at the Clark Kent/Lois Lane/Superman love triangle. It’s very wise of Waid to get this stuff out of the way, quick.

Unfortunately, that means that Irredeemable still seems to be about “Superman Gone Bad,” but even if that’s all it is, what’s so bad about that? Waid loves Superman. He’s presenting Superman stories that only exist in the “What Should Have Been” file. I’ve wanted to see Superman tales like this. They’re about realistic consequences of fictional mistakes. Waid’s writing is flawless. He handles every character and situation with professional ease. Everything is executed perfectly.

Peter Krause continues to handle the art chores well. The bright, optimistic view of the past and the dark, apocalyptic view of the future both continue to add a nice touch to the book. Krause also renders the characters and storytelling wonderfully. Last issue was all about action and this issue was all about emotion. Krause hasn’t missed an artistic beat.

Though Waid’s still setting things up, I’m already excited about this book. The big twist at the end involves a character introduced in this very issue, and yet the impact is still powerful. Though not as heart-pounding as last issue, the second issue still manages to give you your money’s worth, and then some.

For more comic goodness, go here.

Review: Power Girl #1

I’ll admit it – I bought this largely because I love Adam Hughes covers and Amanda Conner art.  I almost never buy a book because of the art, but between those two, I did.  I also tend to at least try and support new books, especially with characters that deserve a shot at the limelight or creators who don’t do nearly enough work.

The book, largely set-up, reacquaints us all with Power Girl – after a brief one-page rundown of her origins, Palmiotti and Gray are off, stepping deftly between two different timelines.  In the first, Power Girl is flying throughout a Manhattan that is under attack by an army of giant robots while the entire city comes under increasingly intense psychic assault.  In the other, they have her restarting her secret identity of Karen Starr and buying back Starrware Labs, an up-and-coming R&D thinktank that she feels will give her focus and allow her to try and save the world in a different way.

Both segments are fun and at least a little frivolous.  The action is well-paced and beautifully illustrated, never resorting to cheesecake shots of the titular heroine to keep us interested, and the Karen Starr scenes are treated with the same level of respect… though with significantly more humor from both sides of the creative team.  Each segment has its ups and downs, but it is the Karen Starr scenes that really shine.  As the action plot moves forward quickly, Power Girl meets the mastermind behind the attack, the Ultra Humanite, but the confrontation between the two is as bland as possible, offering the issue’s weakest moments.  

Despite its flaws, however, the opening issue of Power Girl was, by and large, a success.  Conner, Gray and Palmiotti are clearly having fun, and regardless of the issues flaws in plotting, invite us to join them.  There may not be a great deal of thematic depth, big ideas, or huge crossover appeal, but it is a fun, engaging superhero story throughout, with promises of more to come.  If Palmiotti and Gray can cut back a little on the excessive narration and refine the plotting, the series may have a great deal of life to it.

Grade: B

Read/RANT

Review: Final Crisis Aftermath: Run! #1

Final Crisis was an epic series – say what you want about the quality, but the scope was undeniably enormous.  When it was announced that there would be a series of titles spinning out of it, I was reluctantly excited.  Though Escape made no sense and had a minor-league creative team at best, the other three had, I felt, some promise.  

Run!, the first of the four minis, does not live up to any of that promise.  Sturges has done some excellent work, most recently over in Blue Beetle, and his Vertigo titles have generally been fairly high quality, but Run! feels bland through and through, with none of the boundless creativity of Final Crisis, the wit demonstrated in Blue Beetle, or the darkly comic horror seen in House of Mystery… and the book desperately needs to be grounded in one of those.

Instead, it, much like last year’s Salvation Run, is a generic book about a villain in over his head.  It is by no means a bad book – the art by Freddie Williams II is great throughout, aptly illustrating just how much of a slob the Human Flame really is – but there just isn’t anything to get excited about.  It’s too slow for a balls-to-the-wall action book, but with no compelling drama to back it up and a purposely witless narrator telling us the story, the human element doesn’t work either.

Final Crisis Aftermath: Run! is a book that could’ve gone anywhere, and, faced with so many choices, couldn’t make up its mind.   Sturges is clearly a competent writer, but he just doesn’t seem to have a handle on villains just yet, and while there are a number of genuinely fun moments in the comic backed up by some solid art, there’s little that begs for five more issues.

Grade: C

Read/RANT

Review: The Flash Rebirth 2

Let me be up front with my biases.  I’m a Wally fan.  For me, Barry was the guy who showed up when Wally really needed a push in the right direction and then he went back into the Speed Force until the next time he was needed.  He was kind of like Ben Kenobi in Empire Strikes Back.  So, to have Barry back pushing Wally out of the spotlight is kind of like if Ben was the lead character of Return of the Jedi.

This book is entertaining.  You probably won’t be bored.  But I kind of wonder who it’s aimed at.  The story requires you to know quite a bit of Flash back story if you want to have any chance of following it.  But people who have read a lot of these stories may not take kindly to the trade-mark Geoff Johns retcons in this issue.

I don’t think this book is being written for Barry Allen fans.  (Which is probably a good thing, because I think they are a dying breed.)  I imagine some Barry fans are thrilled just to have Barry back.  But I also have to think there are some that are wondering why DC bothered to bring him back if they are going to change the character so completely.  This new spin on Barry isn’t grim and gritty, but he’s not the Silver Age Barry Allen I read about in JLA: Year One and Brave and the Bold.

Johns goes to lengths to get Barry dirty.  He goes so far as to have Barry run through a list of his sins and failures.  He also has Barry act like a bit of a jerk sometimes.  Oh, and there’s an entertaining retcon regarding Barry’s fashion sense.  But after all the tweaks, the guy I’m reading about just doesn’t feel like Barry.

The main plot deals with Barry’s investigation into Savitar’s death.  If you don’t know who Savitar was, I suppose it’s okay.  Johns used him as cannon fodder last issue.  You may scratch your head a few times wondering where he came from or how he got trapped in the Speed Force.  But ultimately, it doesn’t really matter much.  Savitar’s death is just a plot device.

We also get some flashbacks (no pun intended) to Barry’s early days as a forensic scientist and how he met his future wife, Iris West.  A subplot is introduced regarding the death of Barry’s mother.  Apparently, Barry was trying to clear his father of the crime.  I’m not a big enough Barry fan to know if this is an established part of Barry’s history or another retcon.  But it felt like something Johns was adding on to deliver a more angsty Barry.

The issue ends with a shocking revelation regarding Barry’s new status quo.  Presumably, this explains why Barry has remained in our world rather than returning to the Speed Force.  I guess I’d be a little more shocked if I believed this change would remain in place after the conclusion of this mini-series.

If you like what Johns has been doing with Hal Jordan in Green Lantern, odds are you’ll like this Rebirth too.  I admit, I enjoyed the book too.  I just wish it was a little less heavy-handed in the reinvention of the title character.

For more comic goodness, go here.

Review: Superman #687

Another Superman title without the titular Superman, eh?  The road has not been smooth in the Superman titles without the infamous alien in them – quality has varied greatly from issue to issue, despite powerhouse creative teams, and it seems as though the most consistent work has been going into Superman: World of New Krypton, the only title with Superman himself in them.  That said, the most recent issue of Superman kept to a relatively high standard throughout as Robinson goes to great lengths to set up future stories without sacrificing the excitement of this one.

Opening with a page spectacularly illustrated by Renato Guedes, Robinson brings the action.  Life without Superman is tough – Mon-El is good, but the Science Police have had to step up, and they’re in some pretty dangerous situations, as we see from the wounds suffered in a brief skirmish with C-list villain Shrapnel.  Black Lightning, Steel, and Zachary Zatara all make appearances as Metropolis-based characters with a stake in making the sure town stays safe.  Much like with Robinson’s famed masterpiece Starman, Robinson is throwing a lot of balls up in the air, and we’ll see how many of them he can hold onto as the series progresses – but while Starman made every event seem like it existed to further the plot of Robinson’s book, which largely existed in its own, private corner of the DC Universe, this book is far more at the whim of editorial mandate and crossover potential.

While I can make no predictions on the future quality of Robinson’s run on this book, I can say that this particular issue was quite enjoyable.  Guedes’ art was as superb as always, well inked and colored by Jose Wilson Magalhaes and David Curiel, and it offered both a little bit of action and a great deal of promise.  While it was far from perfect, the issue remained enjoyable throughout.

Grade: B+

For more comics goodness…

Rant: Who Defiled Hal Jordan’s Grave?

Let me be up-front with this, I’m picking a nit here.  But, it’s the kind of thing that Geoff Johns does (especially in Green Lantern) that really grates sometimes.  If it was an isolated thing, it wouldn’t bug me at all.  But Johns does this sort of thing habitulally.

What am I talking about?  Retcons.  And not just retcons for the sake of making fixing a broken character.  I can handle Johns’ Hawkman retcons.  I can even swallow his Parallax retcons because (even though they fly in the face of years of Green Lantern continuity) they were necessary to make Hal Jordan viable.  So, okay.  I’ll play ball.

But the retocn in blackest Night #0 just felt completely unnecessary.  It’s so minor, most readers probably didn’t notice it at all.  The line I’m referring to is when Hal tells Barry that after he died, his grave was defiled.  And not by his enemies.  No, Hal claims his grave was defiled by his former allies.

This claim seems to have gone unquestioned by most of the internet, but it just rang false to me.  I haven’t read Final Night in years.  But my recollection is that everyone responded to Hal’s death respectfully with the possible exception of Batman.  I seem to recall some grumbling from Batman, but nothing of the “I’m going to go out and defile his grave variety.”

Remember, Hal died re-igniting the sun to save life on earth.  In the eyes of most of the heroes, Hal redeemed himself for his attempt to recreate the universe in his image during Zero Hour.  Truthfully, most heroes never seemed all that angry with Hal to begin with.  They understood his loss.  Even as a villain, Hal was not totally unsympathetic.  He was just trying to “fix” things.

So, which former allies of Hal’s might have done something as despicable as defiling his grave?  Well, let’s look at the list of suspects.

First, I suppose one might consider Kyle Rayner.  Certainly, Hal’s replacement could be accused of defiling Hal’s legacy in the meta sense that DC stripped away the Corps and everything that was associated with Hal in order to make room for Kyle.  But Hal and Kyle had not been allies.  And while Kyle could sometimes be portrayed as immature in his early days, desecrating graves just wasn’t his style.

Most of Hal’s allies in the Green Lantern Corps were dead or MIA at the time of Hal’s death.  So we can pretty much rule most of them out of the suspect list.  Unless Hal is suggesting that a lesser-known GL who’s whereabouts were unaccounted for found their way to earth and defiled his grave off panel.  Unlikely, but possible.  Hardly worth mentioning to Barry though.

I think we can all agree that there’s no way Alan Scott would even consider desecrating Hal’s grave.  And while John Stewart was depicted as a bitter and broken man, it would be out of character for him to do so either.  Ganthet was the only Guardian left and while he certainly had reason to be angry with Hal, Ganthet mostly seemed to regard him with pity.

(I know I’m leaving out Guy.  I’ll get to him.  Obviously, he’s one of the prime suspects.)

If we rule out all of Hal’s allies from the Corps (except Guy and possibly a lesser-known Lantern who’s whereabouts were unknown), we’re looking primarily at members of the Justice League.  By large, the Leage represents the best of the best.  You don’t really expect to find any grave robbers on the Justice League.

First, there’s guys like Booster Gold and Blue Beetle.  These guys did some pretty stupid things back in the day.  Some of their schemes to get rish were borderline criminal.  And, at his worst, I could maybe see Booster digging up a grave for cash.  But Hal went into the sun and never came out.  His grave was empty.  And neither of these guys had any serious beef with Hal.

Then there’s Batman.  Of all the heroes, Batman has always been depicted as trusting Hal the least.  He’s been especially reluctant to forgive him for his actions as Parallax. 

(This paints Batman in an especially bad light given that Hal’s actions have been retconned to be involuntary.  Since every superhero gets possessed or brainwashed somewhere along the way, Hal has a big fat “get out of jail free card” and Batman’s the only one who seems to have a problem with it.)

I could see Batman digging up Hal’s grave if it were part of an investigation.  But as was stated above, Hal’s grave was empty.  And even if Batman was working a case that resulted in him digging up Hal’s empty grave, that could hardly be considered a desecration.  Would Batman have desecrated a grave?  The son of Thomas and Martha Wayne.  No way.  Batman visits too many graves to do something so disrespectful.

But Guy Gardner is the most disrespectful hero around.  And he barely tolerated Hal when Hal was alive.  If anyone was likely to defile Hal’s grave, Guy Gardner seems like the prime suspect.  But would he do it?

Seems unlikely.  After Hal’s death, Guy put the Corps behind him.  He opened his own themed bar/restaraunt (Warriors) which had a room full of GL memorabilia including a veritable shrine to Hal.  Frequently, Kyle would visit and Guy would tell him stories about the good old days and about Hal.

Even the prime suspect seems like an unlikely candidate to have desecrated Hal’s grave.  It may seem like a minor point, but this line just rings completely false if you’ve read GL storied prior to Rebirth.  This is a small example of the kind of needless retcon Johns fills his stories with that just rip me right out of a story.

For more comic goodness, go here.

Review: Uncanny X-Men #509

(***)

This book continues to suffer from the same problems. The most recognizable, is its inability to move the plot forward. This is a prime example of why Indie comics can be so much better then mainstream ones. When you have to service so much continuity, and more team members than the JSA, you have problems telling a story.

I hate to bring it up because so many people kick him, but Land’s art really bothered me, here. Photo references aside, the comic looks so damn mechanical. Fraction writes characters well, and really, at the heart of it all, the X-Men are about characters. So, when you have everything looking so cold and stationary, it really hinders the comic’s quality. Why can’t Daniel Acuna replace Land? He’s worked with Fraction before, on the X-Men, and he draws beautiful women. Please, Marvel?

What does occur in this issue has me excited. I’m interested in the Sisterhood. What they’ve done so far intrigues me. They’ve already switched Psylocke’s body. Who else are they going to try that on?

For more comic goodness, go here.

Review: Dark Reign: The Cabal

(**)

“Forgettable and useless.” Sounds harsh, but that’s the name of the game. I’m a Matt Fraction completionist, so that’s why I bought it. I’ll never read it again and I’ll forget about it in a month or so. It’s basically an advertisement for titles like Uncanny X-Men and Thor.

Now, does that mean that what is here is terrible? No. Marvel must have told the creators involved to write about whatever the hell they wanted. The five stories break down like this:

Doom wants to kill everybody.

A deeper look at Emma Frost (The Fraction tale, and probably my favorite).

The Hood is keeping a secret.

Namor is Solomon-esque.

Loki is trying to move in with Doom (That’s old news).

I’d only recommend this to hardcore fans of the creators or characters involved.

For more comic goodness, go here.

Review: Final Crisis: Legion of 3 Worlds #4

(***)

Nice cover trick, putting Bart on the cover is a nice touch. This series feels like Geoff Johns’ version of Sin City. No, it’s not full of hookers, but like Sin City, this comic is incredibly indulgent. Just about everything and everyone Johns loves is in this book. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Hal Jordan showed up in the last chapter. I won’t even bother to mention that Final Crisis, which finished late, ended three months ago.

I’m actually going to keep this review spoiler-free. I’m pleased with the return in this issue. If you want to know who came back, check this out. Even though there are too many characters returning from the grave, especially in DC, I was happy with this. It had a great “Hell Yeah!” feel to it, and it was explained well. I am, however, not that fond of Bart’s return. The Legion bottled his youth? WTF!? It’s a bit nonsensical.

George Perez provides the art, and it looks very pretty. “Some of his best work,” I would say. However, with the way Johns is writing this comic, and with Perez on the interiors, this really does feel like a 70′s comic, and that’s a bad thing. Now, I’ve talked about how Hulk feels like a modern Stan Lee comic, but it’s still modern. Legion of 3 Worlds seems to be leading the charge of an old man telling kids to get off their lousy skateboards. Attempting to regress the medium is horrible.

However, even with all of this book’s flaws, I’m still enjoying it. This issue is filled with exposition and action. Also, if you’re a fan of Johns’ recent Legion work, there are a couple of nice character moments. Once again, this comic provides a last-page reveal. I have a feeling that a lot of fans are going to be pissed about it.

For more comic goodness, go here.

Review: Wonder Woman #31

Rise of the Olympian, part 6

Gail Simone’s 8-part Wonder Woman arc Rise of the Olympian is beginning to wind down, and while her run has by-and-large been something of a roller coaster of quality, Olympian has remained solid throughout.  Unfortunately, it is the epic scope of Olympian is responsible for #31, perhaps the worst issue of the arc and one of the least impressive of her run on the whole.  

In this issue, we learn quite a lot.  Why can Genocide handle the lasso?  Where did it come from?  How are the Olympians operating?  What the hell is up with Athena?  The answers are interesting, but all that and more coming in a 22 page package is a little too much.  The exposition almost completely overwhelms the chilling atmosphere the arc has excelled at thus far.

That said, the issue isn’t bad.  Bernard Chang, taking over for Aaron Lopresti, has improved vastly over his last arc on the series and previous work I’ve seen by him.  Though his art is less ‘pretty’ than Lopresti’s, in some ways in suits the rather somber story better while not being such a noticeable divergence from Lopresti’s own style.  

Also featured is a confrontation between Diana and the Olympian, and it is extremely well-handled.  The running internal monologue of Diana reveals a keen strategic mind, but we’re never overwhelmed by faux-cleverness.  Simple solutions like wrestling an enemy who’s too fast to punch combined with Chang’s dynamic portrayal of the fight give the issue’s ending a punch that the rest of the issue lacked as we gear up for the big finale.  I’m excited, and Simone has done a good job building suspense and revitalizing Wonder Woman’s supporting cast, but on the whole, it seems like the issue was sacrificed to make sure we had all the pertinent information going into the climax.

Grade: C+

Review: Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk #5

(****)

I love comics. When a comic reminds you of that, it’s pretty damn sweet. This is a medium where you can do just about whatever you want. You’re not hindered by the burdens that come with TV. So, Lindelof totally cuts loose. This comic is broken into five parts:

Part One: In Which Logan Pisses Off A Panda

Part Two: In Which Logan Loses His Head

Part Three: In Which We Once Again Flash Back In Time To Explain Things Better (How Original)

Part Four: In Which Logan Makes A Valuable Ally In His Toilet Bowl

Part Five: In Which Logan Ignores The Panda’s Advice And Thusly Screws Himself Good At The End Of The Issue

That’s actually what happens. Logan really does fight a Panda, which reminded me of this. Logan’s head really is detached from his body. Hulk and She-Hulk…wrestle with each other. Forge’s (Why is Forge everywhere right now?) head pops out of a toilet. All this stuff is absolutely ridiculous, but it makes for a highly entertaining and memorable comic. If it wasn’t my favorite comic this week, it was definitely the most fun. Oh, and Leinil Yu is still drawing really pretty pictures.

For more comic goodness, go here.

DC July Solicits + Commentary

BLACKEST NIGHT #1

Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis raise the dead in the most anticipated comics story of the year! Throughout the decades, death has plagued the DC Universe and taken the lives of heroes and villains alike. But to what end? As the War of Light rages on, the prophecy of the Blackest Night descends upon us, with Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps at the center of it all.

Review: Dark Avengers #4

(***)

I have good news and bad news. I’ve always been one to take the bad news first. That way, you leave things on a positive note.

The Bad: There are so many, but a lot of them are little things. I’ll do my best to keep it brief. The characters are handled poorly, particularly the ones Bendis doesn’t know how to handle, like Noh-Varr. I don’t think he’d ever say, “I’ve got my hands full!” There’s also a “joke” where Noh doesn’t know what eBay is. This is the guy who learned everything about Earth, why wouldn’t he know what eBay is? Or why couldn’t he tell that Ms. Marvel (Moonstone) was hitting on him? He’s already had two loves. Also, Morgana Le Fay continues to be written horribly. She’s a lovesick bitch who dies again in this issue! What is that, four times now? That of course brings up the whole time nonsense, something a writer should never use unless it’s very clear and very necessary. This was neither. There’s even a moment in this issue where Doom talks about not screwing time up, and then by the end, Doom himself seemed to have done quite a bit of time-screwing.

The Good: My god, the art is beautiful. I mean, Deodato has always been good, but this is ridiculous, even his page layouts are getting more dynamic. As I’m sure you all know, Bendis loves his splash-pages. There’s about six or so, in here. Even though we’re wasting six of the 22 pages in a four-dollar comic, you probably won’t complain much because Deodato’s renderings are so gorgeous. You can get wallpaper from this issue here. It should also be mentioned that Rain Beredo’s coloring adds tremendously, as well.

Final Word: There are some good moments. The last page is pretty cool. Then again, it’s mostly Mike Deodato that makes it cool. The writing isn’t terrible, but there were certainly a lot of mistakes. The first arc concludes, an arc that probably should have been an issue or two less. This issue should probably be about two stars, but I’m a sucker for the art. I do like the characters, despite Bendis’ occasional mishandling, and I am interested in where things are going. I’ll probably stick around until the end of Fraction’s upcoming arc, and then we’ll see. For the rest of you, proceed with caution.

Justice Society of America 26

This really is the end of an era.  Geoff Johns has been writing the JSA since almost the beginning of the last series.  Since that time the team has expanded to Legion of Super Heroes size.  The cast has rotated several times.  And across both series, it has been the most consistently entertaining super hero team book around.

This is also the final issue for Dale Eaglesham.  I think he’s one of the great unsung talents out there.  His art isn’t especially flashy.  But look at the cast of characters he’s dealing with.  Every one of them is unique and identifiable whether they are wearing their superhero costumes or their civies.  You can look at a big two-page cast shot of all the characters sitting around a table and know exactly what each of them is thinking just by their body language and expression.  I look forward to following Eaglesham in his future endeavors.

So, how’s this issue?  If you’re looking for a big fight, you’ll be disappointed.  But I don’t think many JSA fans will be.  Johns’ run on JSA has always been about family.  And this issue really embodies that approach.

There’s almost no plot to speak of.  Instead, we check in on the great big cast of the JSA as they celebrate Stargirl’s birthday.  Stargirl is obviously near and dear to Geoff Johns’ heart.  She was his creation and the star of his first on-going title.  I’ve read that Courtney was named after an loosely based on his sister.  His affection for the character
(for all the characters) really shows.

So, if there’s no plot, what can you expect?  Lots and lots of great character moments as the JSA does the mundane things a family would do to celebrate a teenage girl’s birthday.  There are presents, and cake… well not so much cake as it seems someone has eaten it.  There’s an ice cream run that is simply hysterical.  There’s a touching moment between a father and his son.  And several family moments that will touch all but the most cynical reader.

Okay, okay.  There was at least one moment that I thought may have pushed things a bit too far.  But with all the good will Johns and Eaglesham have built up on Justice Society, I was willing to give them their cheese.

It wasn’t a perfect send off.  But it was darn close to it.  And that final page, well, that was just perfect.

Thanks, guys.

Adventure Comics – Spoilers

Did you read Legion of Three Worlds 4 yet?  If not, go read it before you scroll down.

I’m not kidding.  Spoilers below.

 

I take it you either read Legion or you just don’t care about being spoiled, right?

 

Okay, suit yourself.

I’ll use some spoiler space to give you a little background.  First of all, I don’t give a damn about the Legion of Superheroes.  Never did.  Although Geoff Johns excellent Superman and the Legion of Superheroes arc in Action Comics did warm me up a little.

Most everything I’ve read featuring the Legion was an incomprehensible mess.  Legion of Three Worlds, while fun, has been a pretty big mess of continuity as well.

Last issue we saw the return of Bart Allen.  And I cheered because I love Impulse.  Never really cared for what Johns did to him in Teen Titans by making him the new Kid Flash and giving him a Barry Allen Jr. make over.  But I came to terms with it.

This issue, we see another return…

Last chance on those spoilers…

 

An announcement has been posted at The Source announcing that the upcoming Adventure Comics will star none other than Superboy/Conner Kent.  Like Bart, I’ve been a fan of Superboy since he first appeared.  (Well, maybe not at first.  They were both kind of unlikable jerks in their early appearances.  But from early on.)

By the way, the art previewed at the Source looks amazing.  Be sure to check it out.

Given my lack of interest in the Legion, I wasn’t all that excited about Adventure Comics.  I planned to give it a look because Johns’ Action arc was a good read.  But it wasn’t something I was actively looking forward to.

I am now officially stoked about Adventure Comics.

I wish DC would stop killing and resurrecting characters the way they do, but that’s a rant for another day.  For today, I’m just happy with this announcement.

JLA Done Right

I’ve been planning a rant about the current state of the Justice League. (It’s coming!) But, in the meanwhile, I saw this article at Newsarama about the Grant Morrison’s run on JLA. This is wasily one of my favorite runs on any book. And since the JLA is my favorite team, it’s my favorite run on any team book. (In spite of the weak Howard Porter art.)

Anyway, here’s a link to the article. Read it and remember when the JLA was great:

http://www.newsarama.com/comics/040930-Ambidextrous.html