A debilitating toothache has made it hard to read, let alone review, comics this week, but I persist. Apologies if some of the below isn’t my best work.
I don’t know if painkillers are leveling me out, or what, but I seem to have dished out a lot of 4s this week (and no obvious failures). Either these titles have achieved a fairly high level of quality across the board or I’ve completely lost it. You decide.
As usual, each comic is scored out of five and at the end I have a cumulative leader board to show which are consistently excellent, which are on the rise, and which are circling the drain (excluding reviewed one-shots and mini-series).
Warning, there could be spoilers ahead (although I try to avoid them).
Suicide Squad #6
I think this is the strongest issue for the title so far, with a strong character focus on one of my personal favourites, Harley Quinn, who the squad is hunting after she goes AWOL in search of her beloved (and presumed dead) Joker – 4.5
Resurrection Man #6
The worst thing I can say about this excellent issue is that it’s almost too fast-paced, as I think Mitch Shelley’s stint as a patient in Arkham Asylum could have stretched quite satisfactorily over two issues instead of wrapping up in just one – 4.5
Green Lantern #6
Two storylines – Hal’s attempt to adjust to civilian life and Sinestro’s efforts to track down Lysa Dark, which bring him in contact with an old, broken adversary, whom makes him appreciate Hal’s virtues as a hero – converge in a fairly entertaining way in this issue – 4
Batgirl #6
The end of the last issue teased Batgirl vs Batman (or at least Bruce Wayne) and, while this issue delivers, I think such a conflict needn’t be wrapped up as quickly as it is here, in fact I think the Gretel storyline was interesting enough that it could have gone for at least one more issue – 4
Batwoman #6
Not everyone can do non-sequential storytelling as well as Christopher Nolan and often the trick ends up just being unnecessarily confusing, which is how I initially felt about this issue, but Reeder artwork is beautiful and after re-reading it I was able to follow the story just fine … it was just a bit of hard work – 4
Batman and Robin #6
Like the previous issue, this one is a bit inconsistent and at times awkward– it’s boring when it focuses on Nobody’s predictable back story and highly engaging when it puts a spotlight on Batman’s desperate attempt to save (bodily and spiritually) his son – 4
Legion Lost #6
It’s a shame this title has been so inconsistent because if every issue was as good as this one, in which the time-lost Legionnaires work to rescue two teammates from a government facility, then I’d want to read it every month – 4
Demon Knights #6
This issue starts “The siege of Little Spring begins” … finally, but the slow pace up to now has hampered this series, but #6 features some great scenes, like Amazon Exoristos taking down a giant, rampaging rhino beast– 4
Superboy #6
Like this week’s Frankenstein issue, this one (which follows on directly after Teen Titans #5 and features a Supergirl guest appearance) is a very philosophical, with Superboy really struggling with his identity and role within N.O.W.H.E.R.E. as well as what direction he should go in the future – 4
Deathstroke #6
Despite being driven to be the best, Slade Wilson sure was a crappy dad, but this issue does a good job of reinforcing his credentials as DC’s pre-eminent badass – 4
Mister Terrific #6
A very solid issue that once again shows that Mr. T is a character with potential –it’s a shame this title didn’t secure a strong enough readership to avoid cancellation – my only complaint here is that the costume design for new villain, the Tomorrow Thief, was distractingly similar to Michael Holt’s – 4
Frankenstein – Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #6
This is the most philosophical issue of the series so far and I think, while it comes at the expense of some of the title’s strong action-adventure elements, that contemplative tone suits the subject matter … it won’t be to everyone’s taste, but I liked it – 4
Penguin – Pain and Prejudice #5 (of 5)
I was hoping for a big finale and instead got just a fairly okay one, although there were a couple of character moments for the title villain involving his blind girlfriend that made it all worthwhile – 3.5
Grifter #6
Dark ritualistic sacrifices seem like fickle things – easily disrupted and all that – and so it is in this issue, which is solid but a tad predictable – 3
Huntress #5 (of 6)
Nice artwork and plenty of action make this a passable issue, but – like the other issues of this miniseries – I’m not overly engaged with the heroine or her mission in Italy – 3
If you haven’t already, check out last month’s reviews:
Please note, since a title is only as good as its last issue, the books are ranked firstly by their average score, then their most recent score (shown in brackets), and the number of issues is the final number.
LEADER BOARD
1. Animal Man 4.3 (4.5) 6
2. Swamp Thing 4.3 (4) 6
3. Batman 4.1 (5) 5
4. Resurrection Man 4.1 (4.5) 6
5. Aquaman 4 (4.5) 5
6. Justice League Dark 3.9 (4.5) 5
7. Batman and Robin 3.9 (4) 6
8. Batwoman 3.8 (4) 6
=9. Green Lantern 3.7 (4) 6
=9. Green Lantern Corps 3.7 (4) 5
=11. Batwing 3.7 (3.5) 6
=11. Birds of Prey 3.7 (3.5) 5
=11. Blue Beetle 3.7 (3.5) 5
=11. I, Vampire 3.7 (3.5) 5
15. Justice League 3.6 (4) 5
=16. Stormwatch 3.6 (3.5) 6
=16. Wonder Woman 3.6 (3.5) 5
18. Suicide Squad 3.5 (4.5) 6
=19. Batgirl 3.5 (4) 6
=19. Batman – The Dark Knight 3.5 (4) 5
=19. Blackhawks 3.5 (4) 5
=19. Demon Knights 3.5 (4) 6
=19. Teen Titans 3.5 (4) 5
24. Supergirl 3.4 (3.5) 5
=25. Catwoman 3.3 (4) 5
=25. Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. 3.3 (4) 6
=25. Justice League International 3.3 (4) 6
=28. Action Comics 3.3 (3.5) 6
=28. Green Lantern – New Guardians 3.3 (3.5) 5
30. Detective Comics 3.3 (2) 6
=31. Deathstroke 3.2 (4) 6
=31. Superboy 3.2 (4) 6
33. Nightwing 3.2 (3.5) 5
34. Captain Atom 3.2 (3) 5
=35. Mister Terrific 3.1 (4) 6
=35. O.M.A.C. 3.1 (4) 6
=37. The Flash 3.1 (3.5) 5
=37. Red Lanterns 3.1 (3.5) 6
39. Voodoo 3 (3.5) 5
40. Men of War 2.9 (3) 6
41. DC Universe Presents 2.8 (3.5) 5
=42. Legion Lost 2.7 (4) 6
=42. Red Hood and the Outlaws 2.7 (4) 5
44. All Star Western 2.7 (2.5) 5
45. Static Shock 2.6 (1) 6
46. The Fury of Firestorm 2.5 (3) 5
47. Green Arrow 2.4 (3) 6
48. Grifter 2.4 (3) 6
49. Superman 2.4 (2) 5
50. Hawk and Dove 1.9 (1.5) 6
51. Legion of Super-Heroes 1.7 (1.5) 5
52. Savage Hawkman 1.6 (2) 5
read/RANT! 
I’d rate Batgirl definitely lower. Probably a 3 myself. While I found Gretel to be more interesting and have a better background, I still felt her reason to do what she was a bit weak. Not to mention Babs feels a bit weak to me as Batgirl still, and part of the issue almost felt that she is (re?)proving herself to Batman that she can handle the job.
Batman & Robin I’d rate lower as well, but higher than Batgirl (prob. a 3.5). As you stated, the back story is bland and rather predictable. Its also makes no sense that this is Bruce telling Damian the story, yet Bruce is in no contact at all with the boy! It would have made sense if it started with a “I should have told Damian about…” or something.
Superboy I still enjoyed, though I think it would have made more sense if it wasn’t quite a fly in then run approach between the two. A bit longer, and they could have had some understanding at least, I think. Instead, Supergirl just randomly takes off (also, I can’t help but think she should really toss a skirt on with that costume…)
Penguin I will have to agree that the ending fell short for me.
Man, lots of 4s today.
What can I say, I was high on codeine.