ZATANNA #1 #2 #3 Review

RATING 4 out 5 

I love it when a story exceeds my expectations.  Zatanna, by writer Paul Dini ...is wonderful, and I can't wait to get into the next storyline.

REVIEW some SPOILERS
   
I actually didn't know what to expect. I've not read any other Zatanna comic (I'm not sure if there are any), and  what I know of her character... is from her interaction with the rest of the DC universe, specifically Batman and the Justice League.

The first thing I noticed...in this series, was that Zatanna was...um ..bigger... in certain areas... than I.. remember.  It was like whoa... "Za...Tan ..Na, PUT those away before you put a eye out."

There were some serious[smile]  discussions on forums, pertaining to, if she exceeded the norm, or not.  I had to go to the resident expert...my husband.  He confirmed, without biased, that Zatanna has had those... large ...boots... since she was first introduced.  Lets just face it, some people are just ...jealous... of other people's well drawn... boots.[wink]

Getting pass the discussions on attire ...and onto the story, Paul Dini is a story-telling expert. 

 In the first issue, he does a setup of the characters that surround Zatanna, without being a boring recite.   He gets us emotionally vested in these new characters, from Zatanna's crew on her magic show, to the Detective who is investigating a bizarre crime.  Dini also gives us a truly evil bad guy, called Brother Night. "He wants to expand his crime empire to include the human world."

Having Zatanna on his heals, Brother Blood sends a demon named Fuseli.
Fuseli travels by dream to dream causing each dreamer to have nightmares, using their insecurities against them, until he lands into Zatanna's dreamworld. He is one nasty little meanie.


The third issue is the final showdown between Zatanna and  Brother Night with his underlings, Ronalithi (Transforms victims by touch), Ember(Buns up victims), and Teddy (likes to share his pets). Dini really knows his characters, and the ending is great.

I highly suggest these issues for a fun read.  I love the teasing art, of the sexy sorceress, and  I can't wait to see her in action in the next issue.

ZATANNA:
Issue 1 title: there's no title shown.
Issue 2 title: Fuseli's Nightmare
Issue 3 title: Night on Devil Mountain
Writer : Paul Dini
Penciller: Stephane Roux
Inker: Karl Story/Stephane Roux
Letterer: Pat Brosseau
Colorist: John Kalisz

Publisher: DC Comics
Jul Aug Sep 2010

NEXT ISSUES

ISSUE 4:
Intel from DC website

Zatanna loves Vegas, and Vegas loves her – but should Zee be wary of the attentions of a handsome, well-connected casino owner? She can hold her own against the most ridiculous Royal Flush Gang ever assembled, and she can just about cope with her cousin Zachary's immature antics, but she'd better watch out for the sultry fire demons that are hot on her heels!

ISSUE 5:
Intel from DC website

Zatanna and her cousin Zachary might have their differences – okay, they drive each other crazy – but if they don't stick together, they'll be taken to the cleaners by one of Hell's most powerful demons! He's betting it all on a chance to claim Zatanna's soul, and in Vegas, the house always wins!

ISSUE 6:
Intel from DC website

Zatanna has been taken captive by the demon who intends to steal her soul – and it's up to her playboy gadabout of a cousin, Zach Zatara, to free her!

The TPB is not out till March 2011

ADVENTURE COMICS # 516 Review

RATING 2 out of 5

SPOILERS FOR THE STORIES

Feature story>
Superboy and the LEGION of super-Heroes: The early years:
Brande Speaks
This is a re-telling of how R J Brande became R J Brande.  Mostly captions by R J Brande. I didn't know that much about R J, now I know more then I wanted. Yawn...
It is... a complete story in this one issue.
Co Feature>
The Atom: Nucleus: Part 1 
 Title: Splitting the Atom
This is a continuation from The Atom: Brightest Day special(One shot, ah ha hahahahah)  featuring Ray Palmer as The Atom. Only 8 pages.

Mostly Captions.... again.  The color of the captions makes it hard to read.  The Atom's father is in the hospital, without much hope of recovery. He knows that someone is after him, and he finds the guy that was hired to do the planning, "The Calculator." (This contradicts what happened in the Batgirl 12 where Calculator was put out of the way  for awhile.) It has a cliff hanger continuation into the next Adventure Comics #517, but I'm not on the edge of my seat.  It was a meh... kind of a story. Maybe if there were more pages to give more story to it,  or maybe I'm just tired of seeing Calculator... but I'm not interested in the story.



Adventure Comics #516 Credits:

Feature Title: BRANDE SPEAKS
Writer: Paul Levitz
Penciller: Kevin Sharpe
Inker: Marlo Alquiza
Letterer: Travis lanham
Colorist :Blond
Cover : Scott Clark and David Beaty


Co-Feature: The Atom: Nucleus  part 1 Splitting the Atom
Writer: Jeff Lemire
Penciller: Mahmud Asrar
Inker: John Del
Letterer: Sal Cipriano
Colorist: Pete Pantazis

BATGIRL RISING TPB :Review BATGIRL #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 2009

RATING 4.5 out of 5

This series just gets better and better with every issue. Stephanie Brown, as the new Batgirl, was the best move that DC has made in a long time. The series reminds me so...much of the original Batgirl, when she first appeared in the comics.  Barbara Gordon as Batgirl, wasn't always confident, and sometimes acted before she thought, and her detective skills increased as time went along, but most important she had excitement for what she was doing. I see all these things when I read the new Batgirl with Stephanie Brown. This storyline is complete within the TPB of issues 1-7, but I have a feeling, that once you  read it, you will be as hooked as I am with this series and want more.

Full Review, some Spoilers:

When this series started, the Batfans didn't like Stephanie Browns character for the choice of Batgirl, and was critical of everything.  I wasn't a fan of Steph's either, but I thought I'd gave the series a try.  The first two issues were building on Stephanie and the interaction with Oracle, Barbara Gordon who was the original Batgirl, they were solid issues but didn't "wow" me.
 The third issue..., Oh it hooked me, and.... I'm convinced that Stephanie was the perfect choice. 

The title, Batgirl Rising,  does rightly describe these issues. It is a uplifting story of an underdog becoming the hero.



 To help with the enjoyment for the series it might help to know about...

SPOILER, but it's not necessary.  If you already know about Spoiler you can skip this paragraph.

 Before this series, Stephanie was a crime fighter called Spoiler (picture on the cover to the right).  Her father was a bad guy called The Cluemaster. She got the name Spoiler because she would spoil her fathers plans. Every time her father escaped from prison, she would don the costume, and find ways to help police, and Robin, to capture him.  She decided she liked being a heroine and started following Robin around. 

Several adventures followed:

She had a baby that she gave up for adoption, 

She trained with Batgirl(Cassandra Cain) and with Batman,

She became Robin when Tim Drake quit.

She was raped and tortured by Black Mask and Dr Leslie Tompkins faked her death,

She came back sometime later as Spoiler and under Batman's orders helped the villains of Gotham make Tim a better Robin, 

Tim felt he couldn't trust her anymore and Ordered her to never put on the Spoiler costume again.  

This is where you start in issue #1, Stephanie is seen in the Cassandra Cain's  Batgirl costume.  In a really nice flashback, Cassandra Cain as Batgirl, fights side by side with Spoiler against some Bad guys.    Steph admits she shouldn't be in the Spoiler costume because of a promise.  Cass says, "That symbol...his crest, his fight, I fought for HIM. But no more. Now the fight is yours."  Then Cass disappears leaving behind the Batgirl costume.  

Oracle, Barbara Gordan, is also doing her own soul searching. She has a lot of pent up anger because she will never walk again.  Her father says, "It's like you don't want to be Happy." 

Batman/Dick Grayson, gives her a call, and tells her of seeing Stephanie wearing the Batgirl costume.  When Steph sees Barbara in her kitchen, she knows it's not good.  Barbara is pissed that Stephanie would dare ...wear that costume, with the Batgirl name, her Batgirl name.

In issue 2, a confrontation in the kitchen, and later in the issue Barbara has a caption, “And just like that, I suddenly realize I’m trying to break her on purpose.  And so does she.”

In issue 3, (the issue that converted me) it all comes together, in a scene where Scarecrow has Stephenie beaten and broken on the floor.  She pulls herself up, and turns the tables on Scarecrow and by the end of it, I'm crying, and Barbara's crying, because she was monitoring Batgirl from the Batcave, and Stephanie has earned being called Batgirl.  At the end of the issue Barbara has a new Batgirl suit to give  to Stephanie.

In issue 4, Barb and Steph start working together as a team, instead of against each other, becoming friends.

Issue 5,6,7.... I'll just sum these up...because I don't want to spoil everything, but Stephanie proves herself to Batman/Dick Grayson and Robin/Damian as they go up against Roulette. The interaction in these three issues is awesome.  A panel from issue 5 is to the right, and shows the confrontation between Dick and Barbara,  BUT by the end of issue 7, there is another misty eyed moment  as Barbara and Dick reconcile. Damian is his typical bratty self,  these issues are really fun.

I highly recommend these issues, or the TPB.  They are great and they leave you with a uplifting feeling, and a reason to shout, "Yea! You ...Go... Girl!









BATGIRL: Issues 1-7
TPB Title: Batgirl Rising 
Issues Title:
1-3: Point of New Origin
4: Field Test
5-7: Core Requirements
Writer:Bryan Q. Miller
Pencillers: Tim Levins & Trevor Scott & Lee Garbett
Inker: Trevor Scott, Dan Davis, Aaron Sowd, Sandra Hope, & Oliver Nome
Colorist: Guy Major
Letterer: John J Hill
Covers: Phil Moto

Publisher: DC Comics
2009-2010






 
 

WONDER WOMAN #600 REVIEW

RATING: 2.9 out of 5

The only thing that I liked about the issue were the pin up posters, because they gave me a walk through memory lane, which made the issue worth the price.  The stories, seemed really lack luster..., at best.

FULL REVIEW: Some Spoilers

This was  a milestone issue, and with the caliber of talent that was involved,  this..is... all... they can come up with.  This book should have knocked my socks off, but didn't, and I was disappointed.  If these creators were within reach when I read it, I would have flipped the back of their heads. 

They had one of the most gorgeous, sexy, SMART, powerful, exotic, independent, and recognizable W-O-M-A-N in comics, or the world, and I thought this was the most pitiful bunch of stories to be put in a Milestone issue.

I'm a woman, a married mother of three, and when I was a kid, I looked up to Wonder Woman.  I had a Wonder Woman doll. I absolutely loved that doll, because I felt more in tune with that doll, then I did with any of my Barbies.  Wonder Woman stood STRONG in a man's world and I wanted to be just... like... her.  

I've learned from her that I could take care of myself as a woman.  I didn't need a man to make me feel pretty, or to take care of me, or to make me happy, or to succeed as a woman.

I love my husband, and I love men (especially nicely drawn men).  I like being treated like a lady and being put on a pedestal, BUT I've learned from Wonder Woman... that I can make that damn... pedestal myself.  I don't need someone else to do things for me, and I've learned to accept.. nothing less... then to be treated as I should be treated, with respect.

The first story, Valedictorian, by Gail Simone, was great in the beginning with Wonder Woman leading a team in battle, but then I realized it was a all female team. Yes, I understood that the story premise was that the men couldn't be involved, but I felt that the whole ideal was placating to male readers, who think that the only time a woman can be in charge is when it is a female only group, AND what do they fight, Fembots.  Fembots being the villains, on top of it being a all girl team... pissed me off. 

Then Simone's story just got worse because it became boring.  Wonder Woman was being idealized by the other heroines in the group, who looked up at her with googly eyes, which didn't describe those individual characters very well.  Gail Simone is one of my favorite writers, and it pains me to say this,  but this sucked for a Wonder Woman story in a Milestone issue, or any issue.

The second story, Fuzzy Logic,  by Amanda Conner, was amusing, and Power Girl was at least able to talk to her as equals, but the subject matter of a... cat, that had problems, was a little lame.  I didn't know Wonder Woman ever had a cat to even be able to help Power Girl with hers. This would be a good story as a co-feature to a regular issue. But for a Milestone issue? not so much.

At least Wonder Woman,...who can't lead men, ...or fight men in the previous story with Simone, has another talent given to her by Conner... Everyone needs a back up plan.  She can give advice on ...pets, kind of ah "Pet Whisperer".  Perhaps Bruce can ask Diana about his dog,  Ace, when he chews the furniture or chews Robin's homework.

The third story, Firepower, by Louise Simonson, was a better fit for a Milestone #600 issue.  In this story, Wonder Woman stands on the same level as Superman.  They are fighting together as partners and as equals. She saved the pilots of the plane, who were grateful to be alive, and Superman saved a arm load of stewardesses(that did make me smile).  The story showed that Superman, a man, and colleague, had a lot of respect for her.  It was a charming read.

 The fourth story, 

The Sensational Wonder Woman, by Geoff Johns, was really a good story, but there needed to be more of it. 

It seemed rushed, and I guess it was because it was a lead into J.Michael Straczynski's story, ODYSSEY.  The last  line in John's story was "Let the ODYSSEY of Wonder Woman BEGIN." but his story was the only story in the book that made me want more, even though it wasn't meant to be more then it was.

The last section of the issue, ODYSSEY: Prologue: Couture Shock, by J. Michael Straczynski.

I guess the title has something to do with the makeover/redesign of Wonder Woman. 

Couture means custom clothing, or hand made clothing, or the redesign of the outside wrapper not changing the inside, which all could describe what  DC and Straczynski is trying to do with Wonder Woman.

The prologue was okay, until she was shown trudging through a sewer drain(EeeeU) with the stoic bald headed ladies dressed in gray, who were a little creepy. 

Then we meet, who I've termed "Chatty Cathy", or who Straczynski calls "Oracle".  I think she is Athena, but at this point, I'm really not interested and he's lost me as a reader. 

BUT.... I've got to say that I'm a fan of the TV series  Babylon 5, which was largely written by Straczynski,  and even though that first movie that started the Babylon 5 series, was bone braking boring, the TV series itself was awesome, so I may check in later on this story to see what's going on.

So there you have it, the MILESTONE issue, feels like a pebble in your shoe.

SECRET SIX: CATS IN THE CRADLE TPB Review SECRET SIX #19 #20 #21 #22

REVIEW: 4 out of 5  points

Te he he he

The Secret Six series is such a guilty pleasure.

The interactions between characters are more then worth the book price, who cares if it has a storyline, but Gail Simone  doesn't  go half way with this four part story.  It has a great storyline, packed... full... of...REVENGE.

FULL REVIEW, Some spoilers

Eeny, Meeny, Miny, Moe,

Catch CATMAN by his Toe,

If he Hollers you will PAY,

You'll NEVER.. see Your next Day

Not because you're good

Not because you're bad

It's 'cause you've made him F#@#$%G  mad.

When this storyline first started I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach because of the  Deadshot mini that came out in 1988(written by Ostrander and Yale).  It was sick and twisted, but in a way that gave nightmares to parents.   

BUT  this was written by Gail Simone, I should have known better then to be trepidatious, because SHE knows how to handle sick and twisted, without going to the places that the Deadshot mini went.  It's hard to really describe how Gail makes sick an' twisted appealing, but she does, and so effortlessly, or so it looks.

In this story, Catman's baby boy gets kidnapped (similar to Deadshots son). The kidnapper demands that Catman do the unthinkable.... and KILL his teammates,
OF course, we know that they... themselves ..are savvy fighters and will survive anything that CATMAN could dish out. Wouldn't they?  Um....  I'm not... so... sure...anymore. Especially after reading these issues.

Catman took his gloves off, so to speak,  and went all out... as he takes revenge on the so called Bad guys of this story.  He works his way up the line of henchmen to the main man who was behind the kidnapping.  Flashbacks are used to get behind his psyche and explains a lot about the character.  A special plot twist at the very end, has Cheshire (mom to the boy)  face consequences of her past.

Catman has not been my favorite character in the Secret Six team. I could take him, or leave him, but after this, Catman is a must for this team, and in the future stories, I'll enjoy reading this character, a lot more.

Gail Simone-

My MAMA told me to pick the very BEST one

And it's Y-O- U

SECRET SIX Issues #19 #20 #21 #22

Title: Cats in the Cradle
Writer: Gail Simone
Cover: Daniel Luvisi
Artist: J. Calafiore
Colorist: Jason Wright
Letterer: Travis Lanham

Publisher: DC Comics
May - August 2010

BATMAN: Gotham after Midnight 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Review TPB

REVIEW:
1.5 out of 5


I've read worse.
Truly, I have.
BUT none of those...have lasted so freakn' long.  I SWEAR... I couldn't keep myself... from putting this down.  I would be in the middle of reading a issue, and would find something to sidetrack myself.  I even got sidetracked reading some of the old JLA Classified issues.  I had to stop myself and tell myself, "No..put that down, you haven't finished Gotham after Midnight yet."  AND force myself to sit and read it.

I even did....housework.  YES, I cleaned... just to avoid reading these issues.

I've been wanting  to read,  Gotham  After Midnight, since that FIRST issue came out.  The title seemed awesome, and the covers, one right after another , were amazing. SO dramatic... They drew your eyes to the issues when your were looking through the stacks.  Luckily... I managed not to succumb to  their sirens song.   It was such a long min(longer then I even knew then) I decided to hold off.

   

Before buying...I read a few bad reviews and tried to stay away from the spoilers.  I thought IT can't be that bad(and maybe it wasn't. It's just so ....long).   THEN about a month ago... I found them at Half-Priced Books, a dollar a piece. I will say, after paying $12 for the mini ...that now...I feel jipped.  Maybe .25 a issue, if you gotta have it.

The first two issues were okay, but then the series seemed a little overly dramatic when there was no point to being dramatic, and campy without being funny.  In the panel above you can see one of the cookie looking gadgets Batman/Bruce would have, so it started to have a old 1960 TV Batman feel to the campiness, which would have been Okay, if it was at least funny.  If Gotham After Midnight was intended to be funny, I didn't laugh...,  not once.  I was expecting more of a moody drama detective story and maybe that had something to do with my enjoyment of the book.  It wasn't what I expected.   As the series went along, it just got worse,  the campiness made Bruce/Batman look pathetic.  Really... pathetic.  I can't stand a pathetic Batman.

                                        

              

                     NOW... I can say, "Phew!! Finally its over." AND my floors have been mopped, so something good did come out of it.

BATMAN: Gotham After Midnight

Mini Issues1-12 of 12

Writer: Steve Niles

Artist: Kelly Jones

Colorist: Michelle Madsen

Letterer: Pat Brosseu

Publisher: DC Comics

2008-2009

 

SUPERMAN & BATMAN vs VAMPIRES & WEREWOLVES #1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 TPB

REVIEW:
Rating: 4 out of 5

 A good indication of a great mini is when you can't put it down.  I got all six issues Friday night, had them read by Saturday afternoon.  This is definitely one of the better Batman Vampire stories.

FULL Review :Some Spoilers

Be WARNED, there is a third party narration throughout the series.  We've become use... to the personal captions coming from the character's point of view, so at first,  this can be a little off-putting.  What you need to do, is think of the old horror movie narration, or WWF commentary (wink), both would work. None of the narration is coming from the personal thoughts of the characters.



What really really sells this story.... is the art.  It has an old 1960's  Horror movie feel to it, without being pretentiously artistic, or artsy fartsy.  

The way this story is told, they should have placed "Batman" in the title first.  He is the main character searching for answers through out the issues,  doing the detective work.  Superman doesn't show up til the LAST page of the second issue, and barely gets out of just being a CAMEO character in the story.  Superman is concerned with a boy that he had save, who ended up being turned into a Vampire anyway. He is looking for a cure for what transformed the boy before it is too late.

   

 The bad guy... is Dr Combs (Yes, yet another ... Dr..., in Gotham, that is criminally insane, Ba Wa Ha ha).  He wants to turn the world into the Undead.  In flashbacks, before  Dr Combs  came to Gotham,  his first test subjects were Marius Dimeter and Janko. He turned Dimeter into a Vampire and Janko into a Werewolf,  when they were in Russia. 

    Dimeter and Janko, track Dr Combs to Gotham, in hope of being turned back into normal Human beings.  In the mean time, Dr Combs is using Dimeter's and Janko's blood, in a serum, and injects it into others, turning these new subjects into Vampires and Werewolves, filling the streets of Gotham with the UNDEAD. Chaos and havoc fill the streets of Gotham.

     
CAMEOS;
Wonder Woman
Nightwing
Green Arrow
The Demon: Etrigan/Jason Blood
Dr Langstrom/ Man-Bat

Which eyes goes to which character?
Aw ...come on...guess.

SUPERMAN & BATMAN vs VAMPIRES & WERE WOLVES
Issue 1: Seize the Night!
Issue 2: A Nightwing and a Prayer!
Issue 3: An Unspeakable HORROR!
Issue 4: Give Blood Save Lives
Issue 5: Dead of Night!
Issue 6:Fear the Night!

Writer: Kevin VanHook
Art & Cover : Tom Mandrake
Colors: Nathan Eyring
Letters: Travis Lanham
Publisher: DC Comics
2008-2009


EYES: Superman, Entrigan, Langstrom, Dimeter, Batman, Dr Combs, Jason Blood

NEMESIS: The Imposters: Issues #1, #2, #3, #4 of 4 Review

RATING: 3.9 out of 5 points

This was a enjoyable surprise.  This series was not on our pull list but we quickly changed our minds, and looked forward to each issue as it came out.  I've become a big fan of the character and I want to see more of Tom Tresser, aka Nemesis, but be warned this does not end in this series, it's a continuation, which is the main reason I didn't give it a 4.

FULL Review with some SPOILERS:

       In this mini, Tom Tresser, has trouble trusting the people around him, because he believes them to be impostors.  I didn't read the previous mini, Final Crisis: Aftermath Escape, but in that series he was captive and in a hallucinatory city called Electric City.  In this mini, there are hallucinations of Brother Eye, who keeps asking him to come back to Electric City, and it lets you believe that he may be... still there.  

      From beginning to end the mini is well paced.  Tresser's line, "My Invention." never gets tiring.  The gadgets he uses are comic book believable and quite inventive.  Joker turned out to be one of  the impostors hired by The Council.  Since Joker was a impostor, it was hard for Nemesis to believe that Batman was real, especially because this is the first time he has met Dick Grayson as Batman  when before  Bruce Wayne was Batman.

      

   

     The fight between Tresser and Batman/Dick Grayson was perfect.  When either one thought they had the upper hand, they didn't.  The art really carried the action and made it come to life.  Batman and Wonder Woman seem real and not the impostors, because they are tracking him, but there are doubts.  Ivan Brandon's characterization of them are pretty pat.  It's important to remember that Wonder Woman and Tresser use to be an item. Brandon is able to establish that fact with one sentence.  Batman saying, "Maybe next time you date a dentist."

    I know nearly nothing about Tom Tresser and I fully enjoyed this mini.  At this point, I do want to know more about The Council and why his brother died.  This does NOT have a finished ending, so I'm a little dissatisfied.   I hope... hope...hope.. another Nemesis series comes out soon to finish this story line.  Especially if it is the same team of artists doing it. 

        Ivan Brandon, Cliff Richards and the rest of the team of artist on this book did a excellent job. They need to stay together and do more.  If you like action/adventure with a espionage spy feel to it, I recommend it, but only if you realize it's a continuation.


NEMESIS: The Impostors
Issue 1: Close Your Eyes
Issue 2: Almost Right
Issue 3: Something Small Enough to Break
Issue 4: Here we go
Writer:Ivan Brandon
Art: Cliff Richards
Colors:Matthew Wilson
Letters: Swands/ Sal Cipriano/Travis Lanham
Covers: Danel Luvisi

Publisher: DC Comics
2010

BLACKEST NIGHT Directors Cut #1 Review

RATING: 5 out of 5 points:

If you've read Blackest Night, then you would want this issue.  It is sooo.... worth the cover price of $5.99.  It has the commentary from the creators, but then it has everything else too.  If you are yearning to be a comic writer this has the script of one of the best writers in the business.

This book has 80 pages of  material. Almost the size of 4 regular issues.

IT HAS:

1. The Directors Commentary:  Thoughts on almost every panel of what they were discussing and what they wanted to happen, behind the scenes.

2. Cover Gallery: Every Cover from cross over to main event. Some of them are quite small but it is still awesome to see them all together.  Even with smaller pictures, there are about 8 pages inlcuded in this section.  This would be the only part of the book that I've seen before, but it was fantastic to see all these covers laid out together.

3. BLACKEST NIGHT #1 Script: If you are interested in writing comics, this is a good template to see how it is done.  It is amazing to read how Geoff Johns' thoughts gets passed onto the artist.

4. Scenes from the Cutting Room: Which included the following;

-Script of the deleted Rainbow Raiders Scene by Geoff Johns   

-Script of the deleted Ragman scene by Geoff Johns. I wish they could  have incorporated it into one of the books because it was cool to read.

-A unused Black Lantern Cover by Greg Horn

5. Blackest Night: The Toy Line: Gives insight in the toy process.  It is my least favorite part of the book but only takes up four pages.

6. Raising the Dead: Blackest Night Character Design: This was an awesome section and takes up about a third of the book.  In this section the Black Lanterns designs are shown and a small bit of background information on how they died.  Batman,  Nekron, White Lantern Sinestro, and The Entity, each, have a page a piece.

BLACKEST NIGHT: Directors Cut #1 (One Shot):

Writer: Geoff Johns
Penciller: Ivan Reis
Inker: Oclair Albert
Inker: Joe Prado
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Letterer: Nick J Napolitano

Publisher: DC Comics
June 2010

BATMAN: Streets of Gotham #12 #13 Review

RATING: 3 out of 5 points:

This rating is on the story written by Paul Dini, not on the co-feature in the back of the issues.

These issues were good, but it was about a very minor character that I personally could care less about.  These issue lead into the sequel of Heart of Hush that starts in issue 14, but are not necessary to enjoy that next story line.

FULL REVIEW: ******SPOILERS of the Story included:

I'm reminded of a joke..., but  what was the punch line?

A Carpenter, a Broker, and a Director went into a bar....they all ordered a beer.

-The "Carpenter" asked for a Ridgeway Santa's Butt (yes that is a real beer).

-The "Broker" asked for a McQuire's I'll Have What The Gentleman  On The Floor Is Having Barley Wine(also a real beer)

-The "Director" asked for a Miller lite.

-The "point": I'm not sure.

Yes, I still love my entro...BUT all joking aside,  this story is about the Carpenter, Duffy,  who gets a commission from the Broker to do carpentry work for the Director. The Broker takes 40% of the commission, and the Director gets a death trap built for Batman, so that he can make a movie out of it.  Some fighting, as Duffy proves that she can fight.

Batman only plays a cameo role in these books but saves the day, and is the best part, but there is not enough of him to swing my view of these issues as a whole.

If you are Damian and Abuse fans, there are a couple pages of them being buddy buddy in issue 12, but doesn't look like any major character development.

If you are wondering about Hush, yeah he has three pages of issue #13, which only has him making nice and a caption from him saying "... bide your time...the next phase is about to begin".

Ohhh.... I've got it... The punch line:

All three are kicked out on their ....dare I say ...duff, because this bar only serves... Ky Bourbon.

In the end, this story, left me dry. [wink]

Note: Duffy had appeared before in Gotham City Sirens doing some work for Selina because her place had been trashed.

BATMAN: Streets of Gotham #12 and #13

Title:The Carpenters Tale Part 1 & 2 of 2

Writer Paul Dini

Penciled & Cover: Dustin Nguyen

Inker/colors/letters: Derick Fridolfs/John Kalisz/Steve Wands

Publisher: DC Comics

BATMAN: THE STREETS OF GOTHAM VOL. 1: HUSH MONEY TPB

RATING: 3.4 out of 5 points: 

This TPB is mostly filler. It gives the background as to how HUSH became the puppet to the Wayne family by being  Bruce Wayne's face to the public, but it is not all inclusive story with a set end.  It has its moments, but when you get to the Streets of Gotham you will find that you have to wade through a lot of unnecessary additional story lines that also don't end in this trade paperback.

Reading order for the books that are included in this trade paper back:


1. DETECTIVE #852
2. BATMAN #685
3. BATMAN: Streets of Gotham #1
4 .BATMAN: Streets of Gotham #2
5. BATMAN: Streets of Gotham #3
6. BATMAN: Streets of Gotham #4

BELOW are my Reviews of the individual issues as they came out.

REVIEW 

 DETECTIVE #852

 

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 points:

This was a cool character development issue of HUSH.  If you like the criminal Hush, this is the issue for you.  If you don't know anything about Hush, this is still a good issue to read.  Dini quickly gives  a refresher on who Hush is in the first couple of pages, and then goes on to show  the despicableness of Hush's character.  This story continues in BATMAN # 685, so... IF you buy this issue you will end up buying that one. 

This is a great read, but nothing of Batman is actually in it.

FULL REVIEW: ******SPOILERS of the Story included, go to the next review in Blue if it isn't for you.

  

This issue takes place directly after the story line of  Heart of HUSH. Tommy Elliot, HUSH, thinks that he is finished and tries to commit suicide by jumping off a bridge.  A couple of fisherman find him and mistake him for Bruce Wayne.  Thus..he discovers that the everyday man on the street can't tell the difference between him and Bruce. The rest of the issue is of Tommy.... diving into the role of Bruce Wayne so that he can goose Wayne for as much money as he can.  It's important to know that at this point in the continuity, Tommy doesn't know that Bruce is really missing in action, and that is why, he doesn't try to take over at the top,...yet.

REVIEW 

  BATMAN # 685

The interaction between known characters was fun to read, but it felt like a filler issue.

FULL REVIEW: ******SPOILERS of the Story included, go to the next review in Blue if it isn't for you.

  

HUSH, while masquerading as Bruce Wayne in the jungles of Vietnam, meets up with Catwoman, who takes a bit of vengeance upon his hide.  I enjoyed the story but found it very uneventful. It does give transition in the overall story because it does tell how HUSH gets captured. 

REVIEW 
BATMAN: Streets of Gotham #1 #2 #3

Issue #1: IGNITION!, Issue #2: CITY ON FIRE, Issue #3 HUSH MONEY

RATING: 3.5 out of 5 points: 

This rating is on the story written by Paul Dini, not on the co-feature in the back of the issues.

These first three issues of the Streets of Gotham series, is a mosaic of backgrounds for several different stories lines that Dini develops later.  While it would make my life easier if he didn't shuffle these stories like a stack of cards, it does give you the feel that the  characters lives  are not singular, but weaved together upon one another, even if they don't knowingly acknowledge it.

I had to go back and reread these issues to actually understand what Dini was trying to do with these issues.  They contain background information that set up different stories that he will touch on in the future, but I also can see the interplay between the villains on the 'Gotham streets' and how their actions affect each other.

The storyline that got my attention the most, was the one with Thomas Elliot, Hush.  It travels through all three of these issues and is the reason why I grouped these issues together.  All story lines, even those in other series, that use the Wayne name, is affected by this plot, because it where Hush starts impersonating Bruce Wayne on a full time basis, with Wayne family approval, with limits of course.

In these issues we do see ABUSE for the first time, but it is not explained who, or what he is until issue 10. Also these three issues has Zsasz, and how he becomes "Mr Zsasz", but nothing of what he plans to do with his new persona.  Although... ,this information is nice to know, and helps with characterization, you don't necessary need to read these issue to enjoy the other stories when they finally unfold.

BATMAN: HUSH MONEY

Writer Paul Dini

Penciled & Cover: Dustin Nguyen

Inker/colors/letters: Derick Fridolfs/John Kalisz/Steve Wands

Publisher: DC Comics