Daredevil #2: Oddfellow and I discussed this title in Episode 8 of the LBR podcast, and upon further reflection, I really like how Matt lawyered his way out of Captain America taking DD in to pay for his crimes while possessed. DD’s comment to Cap about handling Cap’s shield plays so well into the focus by Mark Waid on Matt’s super-senses. It’s this aspect of the title that I’m really liking. The issue ends with a nice cliffhanger moment featuring my first DD villain (again, listen to Ep. 8!), Klaw.
Flashpoint: Abin Sur, the Green Lantern #2-3: A few posts ago, I wrote about reading some other Flashpoint tie-in number ones, this title being one of them. It turned out that Abin Sur was the only one of the bunch that I wanted to finish. I found it interesting that some elements from the GL film worked their way into this series. For example, we get a flashback scene showing Abin Sur training Sinestro. At one point, Sinestro constructs swords to attack Abin Sur, much like Hal did in the movie. The GL uniforms and the look of the Guardians also are influenced heavily from the movie. So . . . does that mean that the movie takes place in the Flashpoint universe??? In issue 3, I really loved the scene where Abin Sur creates a hand from the ring (after Sinestro cuts it off in the previous issue), yelling, “This. IS. WILLPOWER!”. Later, though Abin Sur dies trying to save England and stop the war, but he’s chosen by the White Entity to LIVE. The issue ends with him trying to keep the world from tearing itself apart from the Geo-Force bomb. But that’s the problem, it just ends. There is no resolution to the story that had been built up over the series, or at least one that feels satisfying to me.
Flashpoint: Wonder Woman & the Furies #3: Yet another weak ending to a Flashpoint tie-in. I thought I’d end up liking this series more than others, but it didn’t rise to my expectations. It ended. Meh.
JLA #60: What an interesting issue, and not in all good ways. Please listen to Ep. 8 for my and Oddfellow’s thoughts about this issue, but to follow-up, out of the stories that this JLA team supposedly handled after the Eclipso event, I would have loved to read the Saturn-Thanagar War, followed by the Fortress of Solitude’s renegade robot story, mostly for the focus on Supergirl, which is one of the characters that I actually enjoyed as written by Robinson. I know I’ve written many times about how I’ve been disappointed with Robinson’s run on the title, but I did really like seeing some of the former Titans being on the big team, even though they were portrayed out of character at times (or all the time).
LSH #16: When I saw this issue being solicited and the hand shown on the cover, I knew it would Earth Man to die. Which is too bad, because he’s been the most interesting character of Paul Levitz’s newest run on the title. I never really understood the relationship between Shady and Earth Man, but again, I found it an interesting plot point that never really went anywhere, so Shady’s grief shown towards the end of the issue doesn’t really connect with me. This title used to be full of interesting characters and relationships, but this latest volume has been pretty much devoid of that, preferring action over character. I have read that the new LSH #1 coming in September will be more of the same as the Legion is largely unaffected by the new DCU. If that’s the case, I’m afraid I won’t be long with this title (or its sister title, Legion Lost), but I am hoping that Mr. Levitz wows me because I love the Legion so much.
Spider Island: Amazing Spider-Girl #1: While I didn’t love the Spider-Girl series as much as I did Batgirl, I still was not happy when it was cancelled after only 8 issues. So, at least I get a little more of Anya Corazon in this Spider Island tie-in. It’s nice to see Anya back with spider powers, but will she keep them after this mini-event is over? I hope so. The splash page ending of the Kingpin wall crawling was pretty cool to see, too. I’m looking forward to seeing where they take Anya next.
Zatanna #16: Yet another title that Oddfellow and I discussed in Ep. 8 (I hope you’re not tired of the plugs). While we had our issues with the plot, I thought it was a nice enough ending to a troubled series, and by that I mean it ended without aggravating me. We remain hopeful that the character will get to shine in Justice League Dark (but what a horrible name for a book).
Longbox Review 