The General Comic Discussion Thread - Part 2

[Babillygunn]

My FCBD haul. I had no idea DC re-issued some old issues like Batman Adventures #12.

I’m so angry that I missed FCBD!

 

[blueharvest]

Absolute Batman #8 Preview: Freeze Puts Gotham on Ice

Batman faces a chilling confrontation with Mr. Freeze while uncovering dark secrets about Ark M and the Joker in Absolute Batman #8, hitting stores Wednesday.

bleedingcool.com

 

[blueharvest]

 

[Babillygunn]

Last Days of Lex Luther #3. I read the whole story in one sitting. The conclusion left me fairly cold. While I can somewhat appreciate the nods to the silver age zaniness and Birthright, I found the whole thing to be pretty underwhelming. The philosophical challenge of Superman wanting to save Luther has some merit, but the ultimate twist of the story feels a bit like a cop-out and lacks any of the emotional resonance such a story needs to really make an impact. The IDEA of the conclusion is appropriate and very much in-character. The execution just felt too distant to land solidly. On top of that, I really don't like Hutch's artwork. Whatever dynamic he once had back in the 90s and early 2000s has been replaced by a lifeless, "dead eye" look that not even master Kevin Nowlan can save. Ultimately, if you threw this down at the poker table, I'd see you and raise a certain two-part Alan Moore story that would compel you to fold with shame.

Funny enough, I really enjoyed this quite a bit. Admittedly though, Mark Waid’s writing essentially panders to my sensibilities. I love the way that he embraces the silliness and zaniness of the settings and the overall medium but still yet elevates things with themes that are profound and mature. Now, was this his best work? Not at all. Was it a solid entry into Superman mythos? I’d wholeheartedly say yes, it is.
I do agree with you on Hitch’s artwork. His drop in quality is astounding. This was outright bad art that was ultimately a disservice to the story.

 

[blueharvest]

Marvel and DC's Deadpool and Batman crossover revealed — See a first look (exclusive)

Deadpool, meet Batman! Marvel and DC finally reveal their next big comic crossover event. The top brass behind "the Big Two" exclusively tell EW about what's in store this year (and next), including their creative teams.

ew.com

 

[CrimsonMist]

Grant Morrison and Deadpool. Two things in comics I couldn't be more uninterested in. This is a pass. But hopefully the other one-shots have better creative teams and more clever team-ups.

Anyways, I made the decision to dump the Absolute books from my pull list and go digital on all of them. The recent Batman arc left me cold (no pun intended) and I thought the Brainiac issue of Superman was the first revelation of my suspicions about this line would go. Still digging Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter, but like Flash and GL, it's digital reading from now on. At 5 bucks a pop, my wallet is doing me a solid.

Reviews!

Wonder Woman #21. The best distillation of Batman and Wonder Woman's friendship. The writing from Tom King here is some of his absolute best. A very moving issue, and a great conclusion to this 2-issue breakaway from the main narrative.

Mark Spears Monsters #1. I kept seeing these books on the shelves and ignored it because despite the awesome covers, the interior work felt a little wonky. And then I got the Free Comic Book Day issue and I was intrigued by the writing. So I grabbed this. And I'm all in on this one. This was a lot of fun. Aspects of Monster Squad, Universal and Hammer Horror, and some superheroics. It was a lot of fun and I'm very, very impressed. Now I need to track down the back issues or the trade paperback.

New Gods #6. Crawling along. Great artwork but the story is operating on DragonBall Z time. Still, what story and character work we get are pretty introspective and profound as we deal with Lightray in the afterlife and High Father's mourning of him. Wonderful stuff.

Batman: Dark Patterns. Doesn't quite scratch that Raid itch that the first chapter implied but this it was solid enough. This arc, dealing with Scarface as an entire apartment building, was interesting but the examination of the downtrodden of Gotham was downplayed a bit compared to the first arc. Still, this is the single best Batman book on the stands. The next arc sounds fantastic. If you're not reading this you're missing out!

 

[Babillygunn]

@CrimsonMist thanks for continuing to give your reviews. One of the things that I love about this site are all of the recommendations for comics.

I typically don’t read the myriad of Batman books out there and tend to only read Detective and the main title. But based on your reviews, I am going to give Dark Patterns a look.

 

[blueharvest]

Preview: A First Look at Absolute Batman #9 – Bane Returns!

DC Comics has shared a sneak peek of Absolute Batman #9, coming out on June 11, 2025. This issue begins a brand-new story arc called Ark (M). The comic is

www.comicbasics.com

 

[Lobo]

While Batman/ Deadpool doesn't interest me much, what are some other potential crossovers you'd like to see explored?

 

[Vakanai]

While Batman/ Deadpool doesn't interest me much, what are some other potential crossovers you'd like to see explored?

Swamp Thing and Man Thing is an obvious match up, and much needed.
Batman and Daredevil feels like a better match than Deadpool - stupid popularity contests though.
Teen Titans and Power Pack perhaps.
Whole Batfam and Spider-Fam at this point.
Superman and Captain America.
Red Hood and the Punisher.
And for some reason, Wonder Woman and Hulk seems like it'd be fun.

 

[Lobo]

Swamp Thing and Man Thing is an obvious match up, and much needed.
Batman and Daredevil feels like a better match than Deadpool - stupid popularity contests though.
Teen Titans and Power Pack perhaps.
Whole Batfam and Spider-Fam at this point.
Superman and Captain America.
Red Hood and the Punisher.
And for some reason, Wonder Woman and Hulk seems like it'd be fun.

Nice choices. I know there's two Batman/ Daredevil ones from years ago, but I never read them. I agree Wonder Woman and Hulk would be fun. I'd personally love Batman/ Wolverine and a Superman/ Iron Man team up if only to see Tony and Lex interact.

 

[CrimsonMist]

Ambush Bug and Moon Knight would compliment the Batman/Deadpool book quote well.

Batman/Daredevil seems like a given if the proper team was chosen to tell it.

An Etrigan/Son of Satan book could be a lot of fun too.

 

[Milk Tray Guy]

Nice choices. I know there's two Batman/ Daredevil ones from years ago, but I never read them. .

Those two Batman/Daredevil crossovers are okay. Not brilliant, but okay. One is definitely better than the other.

 

[CrimsonMist]

Those two Batman/Daredevil crossovers are okay. Not brilliant, but okay. One is definitely better than the other.

I will forever hold Joe Quesada in contempt for derailing the (then) very real possibility of a Batman/Daredevil book by Bendis, Brubaker, Maleev, and Lark.

 

[Babillygunn]

I’d go with:
Nightwing/Daredevil and Spider-Man
Red Hood/ Winter Soldier
Deathstroke/ Captain America
Constantine/ Dr Strange
Or I’d love to see something where Dr Stramge joins with JL Dark.

 

[blueharvest]

 

[CrimsonMist]

Small week between this and last week.

The Flash is just trudging along. At this point, I'm buying this book more as a courtesy than anything else. I'll flipped through the book, read a panel or two, and then put it down. It's amazing how uninterested I became with this book. More to the point, it's amazing how this book has basically become a D-list title. The writing gradually disengaged and the art is not good, especially when one considers that Mike Deodato kickstarted this book. Here's hoping some changes come along later in the year.

The New History of the DCU. I got more of a kick out of the list of events in the backpages of the book (with works cited!) than I did with the main book. I'll take Jerry Ordway art any time of the week, but the whole presentation was practically "This happened. And then this happened. And then that. And that. And this." I'm not exactly sure what I was expecting out of this. It was fun enough but some of it felt like it could have used a bit more info. We get an initial mention of the origin of the Amazons. Then later, were told that Hippolyta is part of the JSA but there's no explanation as to why. There are a few other instances throughout where I felt one or two more sentences just to provide a context would have worked. Instead, some of the captions left me scratching my head. But as I said, it's the timeline for lack of a better word (as no dates are provided) that I really enjoyed reading.

My shop didn't pull a copy of Wonder Woman for me so I'm out on that title until next week at least. But next week is also a dead week. No new books for me at all.

 

[Babillygunn]

The Flash is just trudging along. At this point, I'm buying this book more as a courtesy than anything else. I'll flipped through the book, read a panel or two, and then put it down. It's amazing how uninterested I became with this book. More to the point, it's amazing how this book has basically become a D-list title. The writing gradually disengaged and the art is not good, especially when one considers that Mike Deodato kickstarted this book. Here's hoping some changes come along later in the year.

Seriously, the drop in quality between the Adams run to the Spurrier run has been enormous. It went from one of my most anticipated releases to me completely dropping the comic.

So disappointing.

 

[wentaway]

 

[Babillygunn]

Has anyone caught the new Robin and Batman: Jason Todd by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen?

I loved the first mini that focused on Dick Grayson. And they are exceeding that already high bar in this one now.

Also: Dustin Nguyen is one of those artists who, when he puts out a book, it’s an event. He’s in Alex Ross territory in that vein. Nguyen’s watercolors are simply next level and fit Batman so well.

 

[gohei_]

Has anyone caught the new Robin and Batman: Jason Todd by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen?

I loved the first mini that focused on Dick Grayson. And they are exceeding that already high bar in this one now.

Also: Dustin Nguyen is one of those artists who, when he puts out a book, it’s an event. He’s in Alex Ross territory in that vein. Nguyen’s watercolors are simply next level and fit Batman so well.

View attachment 141606

I'm waiting for the collected edition Really enjoyed the first one.

 

[Gee]

DC's next event is a tournament arc... 5-issue miniseries; I'll wait for the trade.

Heroes will rise. Legends will fall. It’s time for a cosmic throwdown! DC today announced its next comic book event by co-architects Joshua Williamson and Scott Snyder: DC K.O.! This fall, the gloves come off as the greatest superheroes in the universe enter the arena in a thunderous tournament where the stakes are sky-high, and the cost of victory may be too steep to bear. Starting in October, this publishing event puts heroes to the ultimate test of strength, loyalty, and knock-down, drag-out brawls. Which 32 fighters will enter the tournament of champions? Who will rise through the brackets and rival Darkseid against his ever-growing Omega powers? And what sinister secret lies at the absolute heart of Apokolips? Get ready for the most fun you’ll have all year (at a death tournament)!

DC Comics Announces 'DC K.O.' Event! | DC

DC today announced its next comic book event by co-architects Joshua Williamson and Scott Snyder: DC K.O.! Which 32 fighters will enter the tournament of champions?

www.dc.com

DC’s Next Big Publishing Event Revealed as Superhero Slugfest ‘DC K.O’ (Exclusive)

Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson are co-architecting the publishing initiative that will launch this fall.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

 

[blueharvest]

DC's next event is a tournament arc... 5-issue miniseries; I'll wait for the trade.

View attachment 141890

DC Comics Announces 'DC K.O.' Event! | DC

DC today announced its next comic book event by co-architects Joshua Williamson and Scott Snyder: DC K.O.! Which 32 fighters will enter the tournament of champions?

www.dc.com

DC’s Next Big Publishing Event Revealed as Superhero Slugfest ‘DC K.O’ (Exclusive)

Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson are co-architecting the publishing initiative that will launch this fall.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

View attachment 141889

So what are the odds that Batman ends up winning the whole thing?

 

[Mani-Man]

Has anyone caught the new Robin and Batman: Jason Todd by Jeff Lemire and Dustin Nguyen?

I loved the first mini that focused on Dick Grayson. And they are exceeding that already high bar in this one now.

Also: Dustin Nguyen is one of those artists who, when he puts out a book, it’s an event. He’s in Alex Ross territory in that vein. Nguyen’s watercolors are simply next level and fit Batman so well.

View attachment 141606

Have only read issue 1 so far,i like it.
You can sell me a lot with Dustin Nguyens art alone...his style is just so fun to look at and keeps your eyes on the pages.

DC's next event is a tournament arc... 5-issue miniseries; I'll wait for the trade.

View attachment 141890

DC Comics Announces 'DC K.O.' Event! | DC

DC today announced its next comic book event by co-architects Joshua Williamson and Scott Snyder: DC K.O.! Which 32 fighters will enter the tournament of champions?

www.dc.com

DC’s Next Big Publishing Event Revealed as Superhero Slugfest ‘DC K.O’ (Exclusive)

Scott Snyder and Joshua Williamson are co-architecting the publishing initiative that will launch this fall.

www.hollywoodreporter.com

View attachment 141889

Not a huge fan of Fight Tournaments, its always so weird in Comics.

 

[Lobo]

Who's Lobo fighting in that pic? I don't recognize her.