TITLE: Catwoman, Vol. 1
AUTHORS: Darwyn Cooke, Ed Brubaker
PENCILLERS: Darwyn Cooke, Brad Rader, Cameron Stewart
COLLECTS: Excerpts from Detective Comics #759-762, Catwoman: Selina’s Big Score, Catwoman #1-9
FORMAT: Hardcover
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $29.99
RELEASED: January 25, 2012

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Wow. I’d forgotten how much I miss this era of Catwoman. Containing content from 2001 and 2002, this book captures the beginning of a creative high in the character’s history, shortly after she lost the purple costume with the tail, and about a decade before she and Batman bumped uglies in-costume in a public place. Ed Brubaker and Darwyn Cooke cast Selina Kyle as a woman trying to rediscover her purpose, serving as a valiant yet at times uncertain defender of the defenseless in Gotham City’s east end. It’s done with a delicious street-level noir flavor that, when you read it, you start to pine for it in the New 52 Bat-books.

Set several months after Selina is believed to have been killed in an explosion, she goes broke after a job turns into a dead end. She heads home to Gotham, and catches wind of a $24 million money train heading into Canada to pick up some heroin. She plans an intricate heist with help from Stark, a grizzled face from her past. Meanwhile, the mayor of Gotham City tasks private eye Slam Bradley with tracking down Selina Kyle. Bradley’s not as young as he used to be, but he’s honest to a fault and determined to find answers no matter whose feathers he ruffles, including Batman’s. Later, Catwoman takes on a prostitute killer and dirty cops as she returns to her roots on the east end, with help from her younger sister Holly, and her new therapist Dr. Leslie Thompkins.

Ah, the sins of a young comic book reader. This 2001/2002 period was about the time I started seriously getting into the medium. As such, I didn’t necessarily have a good sense of what I had in my hands with these books back then. Now, I really want to be ashamed of myself for not knowing. Cooke’s art, which has been described as a blending of artists like Jack Kirby, Bruce Timm and Alex Toth, isn’t what would normally come to mind when you think of Catwoman, the places she inhabits, or the things she does. But my God, does it work. I’ve always said that Selina Kyle should have an inherent sense of sophistication, maturity, and even class about her. Selina is not an older woman, but she’s been hardened by her life as an orphan-turned-prostitute-turned-vigilante. She can’t just be a hot chick in a catsuit. Catwoman has to have a certain aura about her. Cooke’s art, which is in some ways a throwback to a more dynamic mid-20th century style, mixed in with some explosive action sequences (see Catwoman’s fight with the revealed prostitute murderer), provides that aura very well. Brad Rader and Cameron Stewart are given the unenviable task of following Cooke in the later part of this collection. The transition is fairly smooth, but you still find yourself missing him.

In some ways, this book is a tribute to both the classic American heist film, and the definitive street detective story. If you know your heist stories, you should feel more than welcome in the pages of Selina’s Big Score. Selina never actually appears as Catwoman, but given the nature of the story and the timeframe in which it takes place, she doesn’t need to. And, in many ways, Slam Bradley is the quintessential trenchcoat-and-fedora-wearing gumshoe. He’s a grizzled, incorruptible, cigarette smoking, head knocking troublemaker who tends to have more guts than brains. He’s a perfect fit for Brubaker, and a surprisingly natural partner for Catwoman. And of course, you’ve got a lot of your classic superhero elements in here too. This book pulls from so many different sources, which even today makes it a unique offering.

This collection was undoubtedly released to coincide with The Dark Knight Rises, which comes out this July. If DC was looking to give fans a definitive Catwoman story to prep them for the character’s appearance in the film, they succeeded on almost every level. The content in this book is unquestionably the definitive Catwoman content of the last decade.  At times, it’s a downright beautiful thing.

RATING: 9.5/10

Front page image from mognetcentral.files.wordpress.com. Image 1 from maxmiliani.tumblr.com. Image 2 from joblo.com. 

TITLE: Winter Soldier #1
AUTHOR: Ed Brubaker
PENCILLER: Butch Guice. Cover by Lee Bermejo. 
PUBLISHER: Marvel
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: February 1, 2012

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Between this book and Fatale #2, Brubaker had a pretty good week.

In Winter Soldier, Brubaker takes James “Bucky” Barnes, the character he resurrected in 2004, and expands on the tweaks he made to the character’s history. Namely that Barnes had been trained to undertake covert missions that Captain America would be unwilling to do, and that after his alleged death during World War II, an amnesiac Barnes was found by the Soviets and brainwashed into becoming a covert assassin for them. His code name? Winter Soldier. Following yet another alleged death in Fear Itself, the world now believes Barnes to be gone (Steve Rogers, Nick Fury and Natasha Romanova, a.k.a. Black Widow, are the only exceptions). He takes this opportunity to resume his work as Winter Soldier, this time for the US with Black Widow at his side.

Obviously when a writer works with a particular character long enough, it becomes almost second nature. That seems to be the case with Brubaker and Bucky Barnes here. His dialogue with Natasha all comes off natural and effortless, even during a scene when they’re discussing restaurant selections while being shot at. We get the vibe that this sort of Jason Bourne, life in the shadows existence is simply another day on the job for both characters. Such a demeanor is obviously a little far-fetched, but it avoids being too hokey in a “you still alive, baby?” kind of way.

Butch Guice provides the sort of art you’d expect to see in a Brubaker story like this. It’s got a darker tone, and a texture that almost looks painted at times. But it’s a perfect fit for the tone Brubaker seems to be going for. Bettie Breitweiser’s colors, especially her serene yet somehow sour blues, round things out perfectly.

All in all, this book is a no-brainer for fans of Brubaker’s work with Captain America and his cast of characters. Fans of espionage/secret agent/covert ops type stories should enjoy it too.

Front page image from legacycomics.net. Interior image from comicsalliance.com. 

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

DC Entertainment announced today that it will publish seven Watchmen prequel miniseries’ this summer, under the collective title Before Watchmen.

The books and creative teams are as follows (artwork can be seen at the bottom of this post).

- Rorschach, a four-issue story by Brian Azzarello and Lee Bermejo (the team behind books like Joker and Lex Luthor: Man of Steel.

-Comedian, a six-issue story by Azzarello and J.G. Jones (this explains Jones’ sketch of The Comedian, which was leaked online recently).

- Silk Spectre, a four-issue story by Darwyn Cooke and Amanda Conner (a sketch of Silk Spectre by Conner was also leaked).

- Minutemen, a six-issue story by Darwyn Cooke.

- Night Owl, a four-issue story by J. Michael Stracynski, with Andy and Joe Kubert handling the art (ditto for Nite Owl by Andy Kubert).

- Dr. Manhattan, a four-issue story by Stracynski and Adam Hughes.

- Ozymandias, a six-issue story by Len Wein and Jae Lee.

Each issue will also feature a two-page backup story called Curse of the Crimson Corsair, by Len Wein and John Higgins.

A press release quote attributed to DC Entertainment Co-Publishers Dan DiDio and Jim Lee reads: “It’s our responsibility as publishers to find new ways to keep all of our characters relevant. After 25 years, the Watchmen are classic characters whose time has come for new stories to be told. We sought out the best writers and artists in the industry to build on the complex mythology of the original….Comic books are perhaps the largest and longest running form of collaborative fiction. Collaborative storytelling is what keeps these fictional universes current and relevant.”

Alan Moore, the iconic comic book writer who penned Watchmen, has predictably spoken out against the idea of reviving the Watchmen characters. In a New York Times interview, he called the idea “completely shameless,” adding: “I tend to take this latest development as a kind of eager confirmation that they are still apparently dependent on ideas that I had 25 years ago.”

Moore has said he won’t try to prevent the project with a legal battle..

“I don’t want money,” Moore said. “What I want is for this not to happen.”

Dave Gibbons, who did the art on Watchmen, is much more compliant. DC’s release quoted him as saying: “The original series of Watchmen is the complete story that Alan Moore and I wanted to tell. However, I appreciate DC’s reasons for this initiative and the wish of the artists and writers involved to pay tribute to our work. May these new additions have the success they desire.”

Sources: The New York Times, DC Comics, ComicBookResources.com

TITLE: Transient
AUTHOR/ARTIST: Justin “Coro” Kaufman
FORMAT: Hardcover
PUBLISHER: Massive Black Entertainment
PRICE: $45
RELEASED: January 2012

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Mythology, both modern and classic, is filled with heroes. Think Osiris, Prometheus, King Arthur, Frodo Baggins, Luke Skywalker, Harry Potter, and the like. Some would even add Jesus Christ, Moses and Buddha. In Transient, we meet a brand new name for the list: Bob the homeless guy.

No, seriously,  Bob the homeless guy. He’s our hero in this monomyth parody/black comedy by Justin “Coro” Kaufman.

In Transient, we find that our main character is a homeless man who once led a fairly prosperous life with his wife and son. He eventually left them because of a series of freakish visions he’d been seeing on and off since childhood. In said visions, Bob is visited by strange, and sometimes rather disturbing creatures, who insist that he’s destined to protect humanity and save the universe. Fast forward to present day, and Bob witnesses the bizarre murder of a friend by a man who appears to be wearing a jacket made up of live pigeons. An unconventional investigation into the killing sets Bob on a path to Sacramento, where he must find those behind the murder, and save the universe once and for all.

First and foremost, Transient has some of the most creatively designed monsters I’ve ever seen in the comic book industry. Frankly, they’re right up there with whatever creatures you’d find in any other storytelling medium. Granted, they’re rather morbid-looking at times. For instance, at one point Bob runs into a female creature who seems to have numerous breasts arranged like a fruit-basket on her head, a mouth that looks eerily like a vagina, as well as exposed intestines and a penis-like protrusion extending from her groin. They’re not all that graphic, but you get the idea. They all fit the same depraved, yet somehow amazing mold. Kaufman, or whoever designed all these monsters, must have an imagination that’s…very unconventional. Yeah, let’s go with very unconventional.

What’s all the more interesting is that we don’t know whether the things Bob is seeing are actually real. He is told he has the rare ability to see into different planes of existence, which explains why no one else can see the creatures. But even though we learn that Bob is a genuinely good person, we’re never sure how sane he really is. We trust his heart, but not his mind. In the end, Bob may simply be trapped in his own personal land of Oz, unable to wake up.

The art in this book is absolutely beautiful. It’s got the grimy feel you’d expect a book about a homeless man to have, but at times it’s also got a great sense of awe-inspiring wonder about it. I’d compare it to seeing some of the other-worldly creatures in a Star Wars or Lord of the Rings movie. That wonder helps instill a sense of believability in Bob’s visions. They look so real, you can’t help but believe they are real.

As for the comedic aspect of this book, it’s not hilarious, but I chuckled a few times. Obviously, it helps if you have at least a vague familiarity with Joseph Campbell’s concept of the hero’s journey, so you can pick up on some of the things Kaufman’s making light of. But there are funny little moments that add to the tongue-in-cheek nature of the book. One of my favorites is when Bob and his love interest Peaches are having sex, and she tells him: “Bob, it feels like we’re the only people on Earth right now.” Then we pull back and see they’re out on the sidewalk.

Transient isn’t the best book I’ve ever read, but it accomplishes it’s goal in manner that’s so creative and clever that you can’t help but recognize it as a wonderful piece of art that it is. Not bad for a homeless hero…

RATING: 9/10

Front page image from awesome-robo.com. Interior images from webcomicoverload.com. 

TITLE: Batman & Robin: Dark Knight, White Knight
AUTHORS: Paul Cornell, Peter Tomasi, Judd Winick
PENCILLERS: Scott McDaniel, Patrick Gleason, Guillem March, Greg Tocchini. Cover by Gleason.
COLLECTS: Batman & Robin #17-25
FORMAT: Hardcover
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $22.99
RELEASED: January 25, 2012

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne have a lot on their plates in this book. A crazy lady with a hole through her head, an angel-themed villain who’s dropping people from high places, and even their “brother” Jason Todd. But one person you won’t find in this book is Grant Morrison. Dark Knight, White Knight collects this title’s first nine months of existence without Morrison at the helm. It still manages to do well, but Morrison is definitely missed.

This book collects three stories, each lasting three issues. In the first, one of Bruce Wayne’s old flames is shot through the skull during an attempted robbery, but manages to survive due to a condition called dandy walker syndrome (long story, look it up). Obsessed with the fact that Wayne didn’t attend her funeral (he was lost in time at that point), she becomes a supervillain named Absence and vows to get revenge on him. As Dick and Damian are in charge of Gotham in his absence, they step up. I’ve talked about this story already, and for the most part my opinion hasn’t changed. I’ve softened up a bit on Absence, though the hole-in-the-head thing is still a huge stretch for me. Her crimes all force Batman and Robin to figure out what’s missing from a bigger picture, which is a nice little quirk. Scott McDaniel handles the art, and I’m not a big fan of his. But all in all, it’s a worthy addition to a book.

Next, our heroes go up against the White Knight, a luminous angel-themed villain who’s enforcing his own brand of merciless justice. The trouble is, are innocent citizens. Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason take the reigns on this one, and manage to deliver something solid. It’s a bit more intriguing than the Absence story, especially once we discover what White Knight’s pattern is. We also get a really interesting, yet tense little moment between Commissioner Gordon and Damian. I’d love to see that dynamic explored further.

Finally we run into Jason Todd, a.k.a The Red Hood, who’s freshly sprung from prison, but quickly finds himself at odds with a bizarre gang of South American gang called The Menagerie. Inevitably, Batman and Robin find themselves dragged into the situation. Judd Winick, who ushered in Jason’s return from the dead, gives us an okay story here. There’s a decent-sized flaw, in that we never find out exactly why these gangsters are targeting Jason (is it just because they’re evil?). Guillem March, who pens the early portion of this story, has done better but is still alright. Greg Tocchini finishes it with a respectable effort. It’s not Winick’s best work with Jason Todd. Still, few are better at writing the character than him.

All in all, a respectable addition to the Batman & Robin series, but it’s certainly not at the level Morrison left it at. Considering three different writers worked on this volume, along with even more artists, that’s understandable. It’s a fairly entertaining read, and that’s what matters.

RATING: 7/10

Front page image from comicartcommunity.com. Interior image from bubblesbounce.tumblr.com.
For more Batman & Robin, check out Batman Reborn, Batman vs. Robin, and Batman Must Die.

TITLE: King Conan: The Phoenix on the Sword #1 (0f 4)
AUTHOR: Timothy Truman
PENCILLER: Tomas Giorello. Cover by Andrew Robinson
PUBLISHER: Dark Horse Comics
PRICE: $3.50
RELEASED: January 25, 2012

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

Well this is interesting. Last week we took a look at Tarzan’s origins getting the comic book treatment from Dynamite. Now this week we see Robert E. Howard’s first short story about Conan the Cimmerian getting the same deal. It’s always nice to see the classics revisited, so long as it’s done well. Rest assured, it’s going to be tough to find a take on Conan that’s much better than this. Suck it, Jason Momoa.

The Phoenix on the Sword tells the story of Conan’s attempts to rule the kingdom of Aquilonia, whose evil king has been slayed by our hero. But as we know, Conan is fighter, not a ruler. The kingdom of Aquilonia turns against their former savior, and a band of rebels seeks to kill him.

Truman and Giorello aren’t new to Conan and his world. They previously collaborated on King Conan: The Scarlet Citadel. Those who enjoyed their work in that series should be happy with what they see here. The first thing that really struck me about this issue, and Scarlet for that matter, was the art. Giorello’s characters look so vibrant and real. The older version of Conan we see at the beginning of this issue has a face that’s so convincingly ravaged by both time and war. Later, when we see his youthful counterpart, it’s such an amazing regression. Couple that with the Earthy, “used universe” sort of tones that Jose Villarrubia brings to the table, and this book would almost be worth it’s price without any dialogue.

Fans looking for some of those trademark Conan action scenes will have to wait a bit longer, as this issue sets everything up. But I have no doubt they’ll deliver. We’re introduced to Conan’s future arch enemy, Thoth Amon, who also looks lovely thanks to Giorello and Villarrubia.

All in all, if you’ve never read a Conan story before, this is likely as good a place as any for you to dip your toe in the water. And even if you’ve read them all, the classic never dies.

Front page image from omnicomic.com. Interior image from comicsbulletin.com. 

TITLE: Lord of the Jungle
AUTHOR: Arvid Nelson
PENCILLER: Roberto Castro. Variant covers by Alex Ross, Ryan Sook, Paul Renaud, Lucio Parillo. 
PUBLISHER: Dynamite Entertainment
PRICE: $1.00
RELEASED: January 18, 2012

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

I’d wager that when the average person hears the name “Tarzan,” they think of a cartoony guy in a loin cloth swinging from a vine. I’ll admit to that image accounting for a great deal of my knowledge of the character. But by remaining faithful to Edgar Rice Burroughs’ Tarzan of The Apes, Dynamite Entertainment is giving us what may turn out to be an eye-opener for readers less familiar with Tarzan and his world.

We kick the book off with John Greystoke and his pregnant wife Alice being marooned on an island. They are forced to survive on their own, which becomes complicated when they are forced to fend off the native wildlife, specifically the apes. Eventually, an ape attack leads to the infant son of Lord and Lady Greystoke ending up in the hands of the apes, sending him down the path to becoming the one and only lord of the jungle…

What surprised me about this issue was how gripping it was. The story makes it difficult to suspend your disbelief sometimes, particularly when it comes to the apes and some of the things they do. But Nelson and Castro do a great job making the apes look both natural and imposing. Corny as it sounds, it actually made me consider how frightened I’d be if I ever came face-to-face with a hostile ape.

Still, Nelson adds a bit of unneeded silliness to the equation by limiting the apes’ dialogue to sounds like “Oo oo!” and “Aah aah!” Given the choice, I’d actually prefer the apes have no dialogue bubbles, so that Castro’s art could do the talking.

One might argue that this issue has a logic problem. Firstly, there’s not a definite reason as to why the apes attack the Greystokes near the end of the issue. It appears to occur in response to a tragedy that occurs among the apes, but the tragedy doesn’t necessarily merit an attack like that. Theoretically, they could simply have stumbled on to them immediately afterward. But from a storytelling standpoint that seems a little too convenient.

In any event, Lord of the Jungle is downright educational from a mythology standpoint, as it draws readers into the true story of Tarzan. One would hope that trend will continue. And for only a dollar, it’s certainly worth the asking price.

Front page image from comixology.com. Interior image from comicbook resources.com. 

TITLE: The Scarlet Spider
AUTHOR: Christopher Yost
PENCILLER: Ryan Stegman
PUBLISHER: Marvel
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: January 11, 2012

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

I suspect The Scarlet Spider #1 is a more fulfilling read if you have an understanding of the Kaine character, and what he’s gone through since his debut over 15 years ago. If you do have that knowledge, congratulations! You have more patience for unraveling tangled plot threads than I do! Either way, this book is alright.

A spinoff from Marvel’s recent Spider-Island storyline (which was then briefly continued in Marvel Point One), this new series tells the story of Kaine, a clone of Peter Parker who was deemed a failure by his creator, The Jackal. Kaine subsequently became a villain, but was ultimately redeemed. We’ve seen a few characters take on this Scarlet Spider identity, most notably Ben Reilly (also a Parker clone), but this is Kaine’s first crack at it. It’s also his first crack at being a hero. He’s got some lessons to learn, and he’ll need to curb his murderous instincts, but ultimately it looks like Kaine’s heart is in the right place.

This issue is more or less what I expected it to be: Anti-hero Spider-Man. He goes through the usual “I’m not a hero, this isn’t who I am, I’m not like [insert hero's name]” sort of thing, but predictably starts to come around at the end. The story is fine, and the character is fine. It was just rather predictable.

I do have to take my hat off to Ryan Stegman, and whomever else was involved with the layouts on this issue. A few of the early pages in this issue have spiders pencilled on top of the art work, so it looks like we’re literally looking into a comic book that’s got spiders crawling all over it. I’ve never seen this done before, and it’s a really nice touch! Other than that, Stegman’s art can be a bit on the cartoony side sometimes, but all in all he does a good job.

Amidst the predictable stuff, we did get a lovely moment where Kaine saves an old woman from being run down by a semi, and then screams at her about what the &@#$ she was doing in the middle of the street. Yost and Stegman also do a nice job of summing up Kaine’s often convoluted history in only two pages.

All in all, I wasn’t blown away. But I’ve certainly seen worse.

***

TITLE: Whispers
AUTHOR/PENCILLER: Joshua Luna
PUBLISHER: Image Comics
PRICE: $2.99
RELEASED: January 11, 2012

This issue has one of the better first pages that I’ve read in the last several months. The first panel of our first page introduces us to Sam Webber, an obsessive compulsive, socially awkward young man who’s terrified at the prospect of touching the handle on the door into a coffee shop. He’s frantically arguing with himself about it. “All I have to do is go through the door. No–it’s not that simple. I have to make sure the door handle is safe before I can touch it. Please don’t let there be a spot, a stain, a blemish…”  It may seem like an extreme scenario to some, but if you’ve ever dealt with any kind of mental illness, or know someone who has, you know it’s very much based in reality. It’s a fantastic hook, though how it will factor into the rest of Whispers, if at all, remains to be seen.

Shortly after breaking up with his girlfriend Lily, Sam discovers that his consciousness can somehow travel through space in a “ghostly” state, visiting people he knows, or has known over the course of his life. Though he can’t be seen while in his ghost state, he can apparently influence the thoughts of the people connected to him. For instance, when he sees an ex-girlfriend in trouble, he influences her actions, and thus the outcome. But now that Sam has discovered his gift, the question becomes: How will he use it?

I’ve always wanted to see a story like this. I’m not sure exactly how old Sam and his friends are, but the idea of a young person being able to see into the thoughts of others is such an intriguing concept, because the younger you are, the less developed your perspective on life is, and the more emotional and irrational you can be at times. Sam certainly seems to possess those qualities to an extent. His psychological disorder can send him to pieces in public, and as we see a couple of times in this issue, he’s prone to the occasional outburst. I’m definitely interested to see how some of these ghostly interactions effect him.

Depending on where Joshua Luna takes this story, it could really become a gem. I’m anxiously awaiting what’s next.

Front page image from rogue-element.blogspot.com. Scarlet Spider interior from toylegiondotcom.blogspot.com. Whispers interior from playeraffiinity.com. 

TITLE: Superman/Batman: Sorcerer Kings
AUTHORS: Cullen Bunn, Joe Kelly, Jack Kelly, Chris Roberson, Amanda McMurray
PENCILLERS: Chris Cross, Jesus Merino, Brett Booth, Ed Benes. Cover by Travel Foreman
COLLECTS: Superman/Batman #78-84
FORMAT: Hardcover
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $22.99
RELEASE DATE: October 26, 2011

By Levi Sweeney
Contributor, Grand X

Of the many titles existing prior to the New 52, Superman/Batman was one of the titles not rebooted back to number 1, but was just ended. It was becoming a bit of a drag, despite originally being a wonderfully creative idea with mountains of potential. From my perspective, this drag was mainly caused by poor handling of large multi-issue story arcs, many of which started as great concepts, but petered out into… well, a drag. By drag, I mean that the stories kept going on, and they weren’t bad enough to make you want to stop reading, but not good enough to make you react in any way other than “Uh huh… uh huh… uh huh…”

This particular trade paperback consists of two 1-issue stories, followed a two-parter, and then the four issue story arc at the end which provides the title of the TP; Sorcerer Kings. These stories range from great to okay, with only one being sub-par.

The first story (appropriately titled “Who Would Win?”) concerns a conversation between two kids, one a Superman fan, and one a Batman fan, about which one would win in a fight. It was pure fun, in that no matter what wildly over-the-top stuff happened, you knew that it was only the speculation of the kids, so go figure. The ending is superbly done. My only complaint about the story was that it was only 15 pages long, and I would have loved to see this extended to the standard 20-odd pages. The art was nothing short of fantastic.

The second story, titled A World of Their Own (which is actually a back-up feature for the previous story,  published in the same issue), is about Power Girl and Huntress teaming up to find some random alien whose ship has crash-landed in Gotham City. This story felt awkward and forced. The characters aren’t working, and it doesn’t help that Power Girl’s characterization here isn’t exactly what I’m familiar with. In my experience, Power Girl is a smart, no-nonsense, get-things-done take-charge type, these traits being tempered by her innate empathy. In this issue, however, Power Girl spends most of her time moping about how she misses Earth 2 or wherever the heck it was she came from.

On the other hand, Huntress is almost impossible to write out of character, simply because she’s an unbelievably two-dimensional and underdeveloped one. Every story involving Huntress that I’ve ever read goes something like this: Someone does something bad, Huntress gets ticked and immediately wants to kill the person (because as we all know, killing is bad, and bad people are stupid), Batman or somebody else steps in to say “Hey, don’t kill that dude,” and Huntress is humiliated, and becomes more sour than ever. Three, the story is narrated by a third person narrator, as opposed to, say, a dual narrator technique between Huntress and Power Girl, which could have made this story maybe strong enough to score as average. I’ll admit, the idea of a brooding, really dark anti-hero like Huntress teaming up with a lighter-and-softer hero like Power Girl (let’s face it, Superman is about as serious at Batman half the time) is an appealing idea, and a great opportunity to develop Huntress. But this opportunity, like many in the history of Superman/Batman, was unbelievably wasted.

The third story, the two-parter, is an absolute joy for Silver Age fans to read. Titled Worlds’ Finest, it is told from the perspective of time-traveling villain Epoch, the Lord of Time, and his elaborate scheme to use technology from the future to conquer the past. Fortunately, the Superman and Batman from the 853^rd Century (from the DC One Million continuity) are there to put a stop to his antics.

This story is loaded with Silver Age paraphernalia, such as an extensive use of thought bubbles, a no-doubt clever but hopelessly over-the-top and arrogant villain, and guest-starring 70’s era Superman, Batman and Robin! It even has a few well written uses of all of the silly “super” powers Superman suddenly had in the Silver Age (think “super-weaving”, or “super-mathematics”, or “super-ventriloquism”), in the form of a Checkov’s gun. Well, there is this one use of “Super-ESP,” but it’s immediately followed by Batman swearing at their predicament, bringing to light the absurd contrast of the situation. The art wasn’t bad, and actually had a Silver Age vibe to boot. This story is obviously designed to be very Silver Age-ish, and it does that very well. And it’s not a bad story period either, in that it coalesces as a sort of small character study of Epoch. I thought that was pretty neat.

I’m a bit iffy on “Sorcerer Kings.” It deals a lot with magic (well, duh). It all starts with the Shadowpact on a mission for Phantom Stranger (at the “Kilgore” Abattoir. Seriously? “Kilgore”?! ), when they stumble upon a big fight between a bunch of demons or whatever and a guy dressed in blue and red, with medieval-esque armor, and a giant glowing blue sword. The Shadowpact helps this guy defeat the demons. But unfortunately, the guy gets killed during the fight. So the Shadowpact takes off the guy’s helmet and find that he’s none other than… Superman? Later, a similar Batman doppelganger from the future is discovered. This future Batman, with Scream Queen of all people as a sidekick, uses a combination of magic and medievalized gadgets to kidnap present-day Superman and bring him to the future. And no, it’s not the Star Trek future. It’s the future where Felix Faust, Morgaine Le Fay, Brother Blood and Blackbriar Thorn teamed up to invoke a huge demonic bargain; destroy the sun in return for control of the Earth (okaaay…). This timeline’s Justice League now need Superman’s help to save the world, as Batman, Detective Chimp (the world’s…ape-est detective?), Dr. Occult and Klarion The Witch Boy conduct an investigation in the present.

This story, like a lot of other stories in Superman/Batman, started off as a great idea. Unfortunately, a lot of bountiful prospects are horribly botched. For one thing, the present-day Superman and Batman do not interact in this story at all. Aside from a small little exchange at the end of the story, they two don’t even talk to each other. Instead of arranging for Superman and Batman to go to the evil magic future together, and present dual-commentary on the situation, the story instead has Batman tramping through the sewers with a bunch of underdeveloped guest stars, while Superman tramps around in the future with a bunch of underdeveloped one-use characters.

In addition, all of the guest stars are terribly flat and underdeveloped. This is the one problem that consistently plagues stories involving alternate or future versions of characters; more often than not, little time is spent developing these characters, just because the cast is so big, and there’s usually not enough time. While I agree that Superman/Batman is the sort of comic book that requires you to have a competent knowledge of the DC Universe, almost no background at all is given to these other characters, except maybe Aquaman. Also, I can’t for the life of me believe that future Batman is actually Batman. He just doesn’t feel right. He doesn’t sound or feel like the Batman we know at all. Other than that, the rest of the guest characters and one-shotters are just there. To add insult to injury, I actually kind of like Shadowpact, who are pretty marginalized here, even for guest stars. And the way Warlock’s Daughter is drawn is very unflattering to the character. I mean, it just looks sloppy.

The “Sorcerer Kings” are just as superfluous and forgettable as the guest stars and one-shotters. Almost no menace or threat is given to these villains at all. They’re kind of like the bosses in video games whose idea of fighting is to keep running away to the back of the room while they send hordes of minions at you. The only people the heroes actually fight during Sorcerer Kings are a bunch of random demons or monsters or whatever they’re called.

TITLE: Fatale #1
AUTHOR: Ed Brubaker
PENCILLER: Sean Phillips
PUBLISHER: Image Comics
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASED: January 4, 2012

By Rob Siebert
Editor, Fanboy Wonder

True story: When the cashier at my local comic shop saw Fatale at the top of my stack, he looked at his boss and said, “This guy’s got good taste.”

Yes, the comic book industry’s quintessential crime noir team is back, this time at Image with a book called Fatale. But what they’re giving us this time around is a story that seems to have a foot in more than one genre. The mystery/crime noir element is there of course, but we’ve also got some horror involved, and perhaps even a trace of science fiction.

We open the story with one of our main characters, Nicolas Lash, at the funeral for his godfather Dominic Raines. Raines was a successful crime novelist, if not a good one. When he notices some strange symbols on the tombstone, he is approached by a woman named Jo, who says the same symbols were on her grandmother’s tombstone. Later that night, Lash finds an old manuscript at Raines’ home, but is then startled by attackers. Jo jumps in to save the day, but a subsequent car crash leaves him in a hospital bed without his left leg. Lash starts reading the manuscript. It’s about a woman named Josephine, who’s sleeping with a dirty cop named Walt Booker. A reporter named Hank is trying to break the story on Booker. But as he investigates a gruesome murder, Booker may be getting himself mixed up with a bizarre cult that could spell grave things for all of them…

Though we only see him in one shot during this issue, the appearance of a bizarre squid man (shown in the teaser at left) is rather conspicuous. Apparently he’s some kind of Nazi gangster squid man. So when Fatale is over, I’m sure he’d make a great bad guy for Spongebob. This, combined with the gruesome murder scene we see depicted in this issue, obviously indicates that Brubaker and Phillips are starting to blur the lines between genres a bit. That’s a healthy move, considering how often they’ve worked together on these kinds of stories. It’s a nice slice of something a little different.

Also curious are the characters Jo and Josephine. Same person? Grandmother and granddaughter? Freaky time travel thing? I’m leaning toward option one, but you never know.

With a tone that’s very reminiscent of a 1940′s black and white film, with elements from something you see in today’s CGI-ridden era, Fatale looks like it’ll be every bit as masterful as Brubaker and Phillips’ work on Criminal and Incognito. Which is to say, it’ll be among the best stuff being published today.

Front page image from warrenellis.com. Teaser from surebeatsworking.blogspot.com.