Another week of buying absolutely no DC comics. I was in a rush, admittedly. Black Adam was pretty good, but I'ma give it a few issues before I commit.
Countdown #38
I
almost picked this up, actually, but then the Monitors started talking again which, yyyyeeeeaah, no.
Looking back, I'm really glad I didn't. I don't know if this issue is really bad so much as it is really stupid and, yeah, the two somehow managed to be mutually exclusive here. We get a whole bunch of junk with Oracle and Calculator IMing each other 'cause he's all up in her grill and she's all "lol pwnt im r0x0rZ" and...and it comes out of absofckinglutely nowhere and
goes absofckinglutely nowhere. We apparently just wasted an entire issue on a plot that has nothing to do with anything that's been going on for the past two months and will have nothing to do with anything that's coming up. That's
stupid, people. That's
stupid. And, yet...it's not that badly written. Oracle does get some good lines in and the storyline itself might've made for something interesting...
elsewhere. It's completely out of place here, so no matter how competent it is, it's still
stupid.
Renee and Kate corner Piper and Trickster...and Renee lets them go, because she's convinced (through a genuinely humorous puppet show moment) that they're too stupid to have actually done it. Uh. What? I didn't realize that intelligence was required for someone to be a murderer?? Especially if they were working with other people anyway? Especially since these two have a genuine history of being crooks anyway, even if they've reformed sometimes? Isn't the DCU crammed to the brim with dumbasbricks career criminals who still manage to be a genuine threat? In fact, I don't understand why Renee would think that
both of them were too dumb for murder considering that only
Jesse pulled the puppet shenanigans. What about
Piper?? Why would she think that
he was dumb? What, did she just smell The Gay on him and decide not to bust a kindred spirit? I mean, I joke, but honestly that's about as likely here. Even if she's completely convinced of their innocence, they're still fugitives whose lives are in danger; shouldn't she bring them in for their protection, or
at the very least as material witnesses??
And to be honest, I actually don't have as much a problem with Renee letting them go -- in retrospect it does seem like sort of the quirky logic she might have picked up from her predecessor -- as I do with the fact that we got two whole issues setting up this amazingly pivotal first-post-52-appearance from Kate and Renee where they perform the amazingly pivotal task of not actually doing anything. What in the hell? This seems to be the staple with this series; slowass buildup and no payoff.
(3.8 out of 10)
New Avengers #33
Bendis seems pretty determined to make me regret everything I've ever said in his defense. I defended his depiction of Strange's magic a while back...only to have him write that horrible, ludicrous plane crash from last issue where Strange is for some reason utterly
useless. I've defended his decision to have Luke Cage lead this team...only for him to turn Luke Cage into one of the most incompetent, most undeserving, most
half-assed leaders I've ever seen on any team...not to mention a strong contender against Tony Stark, Maria Hill, and defending champion Sally Floyd for the title of Most Unsympathetic Jerkass Alive.
The lesson here, then, is clear: no one should ever defend Bendis for anything.
I do commend his depiction of Spider-Man here as someone who actually has a spine and would stand up for himself. Now because I just said that, let's all sit back and watch Peter become a spineless yesman again!
(5.9 out of 10)
Green Lantern #22
Meh.
There's nothing wrong with the writing or the story. In fact, I'm sure it's all very exciting if you liked the Sinestro Corps Special. But I didn't, and I really dislike the state of the current GL Corps...oh, it's fine in the GL Corps comic itself, but it's really unlikeable here in Johns' book. The Guardians are gigantic, insufferable JERKASSES and everyone with even a modicum of storytelling-savvy knows that they're just making a Big Mistake with their conservative and dogmatic approach and that by the end of this they will have to learn an Important Lesson about they way they do things or else everything is doomed...which, by the by, may be the third or fourth time this particular subplot has occurred in a GL seres. Most of the Corps members here are insufferable JERKASSES and it's practically a relief when they die like the cannon fodder that they are. Kyle is still a jerkass with Parallax up his ass and my only consolation here is that even when he murders people, he
still manages to do it
much cooler than Hal did. There's a lot of talking and text here, and yet at the end of the issue we still don't know any more than we did at the start. Hank Henshaw gets a marginally interesting scene, though.
(6.4 out of 10)
Wraith #2
And we thought
Penance was emo. This guy needs to get hurt in order to...feel?
I'm still not completely sure what I think of this. It's competently written, for sure, and there's nothing wrong with Wraith himself...but I get the feeling that if it weren't an Annihilation tie-in, this would be one of those titles that I would
never read. We'll see how it goes. So far his origin is not so interesting and his character hasn't gotten to do much. I'm practically reading this more for Ronan than for the protagonist, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.
(6.9 out of 10)
Black Adam: The Dark Age #1
Wow. Didn't see that end coming at all.
Don't let Adam's horrible showing in Countdown deter you from this comic, which is gritty and intelligent and intriguing. A lot happens in this first issue, building up flawlessly from the events at the end of 52, and anyone who's a fan of that Black Adam will want to read about this one. And hey, cannibalism. Can never have enough cannibalism.
(8.5 out of 10)
Nova #5
So...checklist.
The Kree Empire's been conquered and separated from the rest of the universe. Ronan's been converted. The Super-Skrull and Praxagora have been converted. Gamora's been converted. Quasar's running out of energy, going in the
opposite direction, and hearing Annihilus in her head. Peter Quill has a talking raccoon and some primitive assault weapons. And now Nova, who may be the single most powerful force for good in the known galaxy, has been converted.
In other words, everyone's totally farked. And it's all so very awesome.
I like Ko-Rel. She's totally bewildered by these new developments and yet she's infinitely pragmatic and experienced; it's sort of refreshing 'cause usually the first thing a new hero does is to freak out on everything and then possibly whine. Not here, though, and I approve.
(8.5 out of 10)
X-Factor #22
Oh, Monet. Never change. Never.
I'm sure Layla will be fine -- it's practically a statistical improbability for her to die right now -- but it sure made for a jaw-dropping ending to the issue. So let's get this straight...the French girl that Siryn an Monet rescued from a mob a few issues ago turns out to be an associate of the guy, Huber, who we just met last issue and are the characters are meeting this issue and she tries to kill Layla, apparently on Huber's behalf. Oh, and she's keeping someone's pregnancy a secret. That someone is probably Monet, who is stuck in a desert with Siryn. Rahne and Richter are farking each other now. Richter still has some of Quicksilver's Terrigen Mists. Did I cover everything?
Oh, Peter David. Never change.
(8 out of 10)
on my face.
