Pick of the week 18/01/2016 Aquaman #15

The List:

Aquaman #15
Justice League vs Suicide Squad #5
Justice League #13
Superman #15
Batman #15
Green Arrow #15
Green Lanterns #15
Night wing #13
Justice League of America Rebirth: The Ray
Trinity #5
All New X-Men #17

So this was the easiest PoTW so far, not so much because the quality was bad with the other books but because this book was SO DAMN GOOD! So for the 2nd time Aquaman attains the prestigious honour of being my Pick of the Week.

 So issue 15 sees the end to the exceptional Deluge story arc, this run so far has been an absolute joy to read, its this and Superman that I really look forward too every fortnight. Abnett work has just been exceptional here, I have said it before but it bears saying again he has absolutely nailed it with this book it seems crazy that we live in a world were the Aquaman book is better than Batman but that is the truth so far at least.

So this issues marks the end of the Deluge arc wherein Black Manta took control of N.E.M.O and using their substantial assets created a war between the US and Atlantis, Arthur has been put through hell, the league and the US don't trust him, hes doubting himself and so are his people, with all of that the pay off had to be good, and this is so often where books fall down *cough*Convergence*cough* but happiliy as he has done for the 14 previous issues Abnett knocks this out of the park. The last issue ended with Aquaman busting into N.E.M.O's lair what follows in this issue is 9 ages of action where Arthur beats the holy hell out of Manta, I loved this, theres no talking, no attempt to reason Arthur is just hear to kick Manta's butt, its cathartic and just super satisfying. The action ends when Manta blows up his base seemingly killing himself, Arthur of course is fine.
Next taking Mantas helmet he goes before President Obama and makes him see what has been happening, to cap things off and end the conflict Atlantis surrenders! A joint press conference follows and all is good and well, Superman and Aquaman have a really nice moment afterwards where  Superman tells Arthur how much he admires him and hands him a  new Justice League Card (he lost his last one teleporting Shaggyman into space) I can't wait to see what comes next but Dan Abnett must never be allowed to leave this book!

5/5

Elsewhere in comics;

Justice League vs Suicide Squad #5: This was really good, using the Justice League who are under his thrall Maxwell Lord conquers the US. Theres a problem though, Eclipso is an evil son of a bitch and as the issue progresses he is slowly twisting Max's intentions and sowing chaos death an destruction, the issue closes with Batman and the rest of the Suicide Squad along with Lobo who managed to grow his head back (naturally) arrive to throwdown with the JL, as this happens the sun is completely eclipsed and Eclipso pushes Maxwell Lords mind to the side and takes full control over his body, you just know that isn't ending well.

Justice League #13: Spinning off from the pages of JvS this issue focuses on Steve Trevor, its actually a really good issue, most of the people in the city are under Eclipsos control and this issue is all about Steves attempt to fight his way home to his sister and her children, theres a cool element to this book where Eclipso for whatever reason hasnt been able to take control of Steve I quite liked that, he manages to only to get to his sisters find they have been taken over, there's a swerve where you think everyone will be ok but then Eclipso takes control of EVERYONE.

Superman #15: Multiplicity continues and its pretty cool, Supes and the Justice League Incarnate are using the Ultima Thule (Final Crisis!) to traverse the Multiverse, this ship is awesome it was created out of frozen music for gods sake, thank the stars for Grant Morrison eh? They decide to take the fight to Prophecy only at the last minute Superman decides to spare everyone and goes it alone teleporting them all away, he confronts Prophecy who is having trouble detecting Superman and theres a classic Superman bit at the end which is just wonderful.


Batman #15: This is pretty good, I did think the last issue should have been a stand alone story but I was wrong this works. So Catwoman we find out didnt kill all those people it was Holly Robinson, she, she tries to Slit Batmans throat and nearly succeeds, Catwoman saves the day and then disappears leaving Bruce to be tended to by Alfred. One other thing to mention is the books starts brilliantly as they Bruce and Selina try and remember how they met and you get some flashbacks to the golden age of comics which I thought was a really nice touch, well played Mr King well played.

Green Arrow #15 This was really good Ollie takes on a team of ex cops who are taking the law into their own hand killing criminals, they get the drop on him but Red Arrow saves the day! Special mention to Juan Ferreyra whose are here is simply gorgeous.

Green Lanterns #15: This was fine, its a nice one and done issue really focussing on Jessica and her daily battle with anxiety. I really like that they are not sweeping this under the rug and being likes "shes fixed now" anxiety is a battle every day and its nice to see that recognised. There are some really nice moments with Simon as he tries his best to understand what shes dealing with, the issue ends with  Batman calling them both in setting up the GL Batman crossover.

Nightwing #13: This was just ok,  I haven't really loved this arc, its nearing its end here we find out that the bad guys is in fact Mr Nice who we met earlier (well d'uh) its been fine but I am hoping the next arc is better.

Justice League of America Rebirth: The Ray: This is our introduction to the Ray, the issue is fine but they try to do an awful lot in a small amount of pages. Ray is battling with 2 issues his sexuality (hes gay) and the fact his powers mean he has never left the house, he cracks and escapes into the world the theme of isolation is a bit heavy handed but its still an interesting read.

Trinity #5:  I feel like I should like this more than I do, I am thrilled to see Mongul in the house but so far this entire arc (barring the excellent 1st issue) has left me rather cold. I just wanna see Superman and Wonder Woman punch Mongul in his face, is that too much to ask?

All New X-Men #17: A supplement to IvX young Ice man travels to Attilan and he and his boyfriend attempt to flee and escape the law. This was ok, I did like how the theme of Bobby and his BF being trapped between 2 warring factions was executed.

Pick of the Week 11/01/17 Titans #7

The List;

Titans #7
Flash #14
Wonder Woman #14
All Star Batman #6
Justice League of America Rebirth: Atom
Justice League of America Rebirth:Vixen
New Super-Man #7
Detective Comics #948
Red Hood and the Outlaws #6
Action Comics #971
Superwoman #6
Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #12
Suicide Squad #9
Justice League vs Suicide Squad #4
Uncanny X-Men #17

Ok this was a wallet busting week of comics, despite the glut of titles there was nothing of the same quality of last weeks Superman or Aquaman, still there was some good moments, the standouts for me though were the ones that evoked old school memories, both Flash and Titans took me down memory lane, but there is just something about the Flash and Superman racing that I love so Titans edged it for me this week.

Titans #7
I really like this kind of book, its a one and done story and sometimes its really nice to have some of these interspersed in the run,  I love big huge convoluted story lines and events but sometimes its good to have to a simple one shot story.

This issue is light on action but big on character development, this is a huge step in the right direction in taking the Titans back to their core and what makes them great. The issue opens with the Titans taking down a gigantic jabroni meta, theres a disagreement between Roy and Wally which leads into Superman arriving, Roy and Donna are clearly star struck, I always enjoy that reaction to Supes. Superman recognises Wally and then shoots off, this kicks of the race between on the two shown on the cover, while the two are racing Nightwing Garth and Lilith are arranging legal forms for the new yet to be revealed HQ, the detail Abnett goes into here is something he does really well. Back to the race Superman is back in his role of moral centre of the DCU here and there's finally someone Wally can speak to about Linda and get advice from someone who knows the history they have, we are also teased again about the acknowledgement of the altered timeline.

The dialogue here is just pitch perfect which isn't something you have been able to say bout this book, whilst Abnett smashed the ball out of the park with Aquaman this title has taken a bit longer to get going but this is a great start, and the way the issue closes is PERFECT and it sums up the one of the entire issue.

"This reminds me of the old days"

4/5

Elsewhere in comics;

Flash #14: This is a bit of a tease issue, about the return of  Captain Cold and I am so ready for that! Barry has his detective hat on as he tries to figure out what CC has planned, its a solid issue but it ends brilliantly with the Rogues together again! Shut up and take my money
Inhumans vs X-Men #2: This is enjoyable despite the dark tone, the X-Men open up a can of whoop ass, which surprised me I thought this would be a bit more even but all the IH heavy hitters are taken out by X-Men and exiled to limbo, so the big come back for the IH is still coming and I am betting it will be a doozy.
Wonder Woman #14
All Star Batman #6: This was really different, there is pretty much no standard dialogue here its mostly all all monologue and text boxes but its great stuff you expect that from Snyder and replacing JRJ on pencils is Jock so the book looks stunning. I am ssuming the point of this All Star Batman is going to be taking each one of Batmans core rogues and take them back to their core and reintroduce them to the DCU as was done very effectively with Two Face. This time round its Bats vs Mr Freeze, its a really atmospheric issue Freeze is looking to create a race of people like him whilst releasing a deadly bacteria which could wipe out all life on earth Batman foils the plot because Batman I am interested to see how this arc works out.
Justice League of America Rebirth: Atom: This was cool, I dug this I am looking forward to the team, I wish that it was going to be the Ray Palmer Atom as I haven't seen any of Ray since before Flashpoint, but this was fine.

Justice League of America Rebirth:Vixen - This was fine, it introduces Vixen in a serviceable way, but I just don't really care about here as a character at all.
New Super-Man #7: This was fine, this issues focuses on the Bat-Man of China which is a good shout,you see some development of the relationship with him and WW and we find out where Batman was trained, he clashes with the typical Jock bully who goads him into putting his Bat mantle on the line in a competition.
Detective Comics #948 This was cool, I didn't really care for the the last arc but I loved the 1st arc and the Night of the monstermen, this is just Bats and Batwoman here, picking up the dangling plot thread of Monstermen arc, someone is stealing the venom based formula form the dead bodies the colony are back in town and one of their top guys/agents? Arrives to break out Kate's father.

Red Hood and the Outlaws #6 I really enjoyed this issue, this is the blow off to the 1st arc, we see the bond between the Dark Trinity and Black Mask well and truly gets his comeuppance and ends up a vegetable. There is a really nice ending where Bruce and Jason meet up and Bruce lets Jason know how much he believes in him.
Action Comics #971: This is fine, Superman teases he is going to execute Luthor before breaking him out, its kind of cool to see Superman and Luthor working together, I am still not completely sure where they are going with Luthor as he saves Supes bacon here, the issue closes with their escape goes pear shaped and the two are stranded on a world where Superman has no powers.
Superwoman #6: This was a strong issue, which delves deeper in to the relationship between Lex and Lena, you see that from Lex perspective he really was trying to help Lena despite it being clear to most normal people that he was being selfish and doing it for himself, as much as she doesn't want to you can see Lana getting it and seeing that Luthor actually thinks hes been selfless, the issue closes with Atomic Skull breaking free and offering to free Luthor for a price.
Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #12 This was fine, a solid GL issue. We see a knock down drag-out brawl with the Green lantern and Sinestro Corps joined by Hal and Kyle and Larfleeze this was a lot of fun eventually the good guys beat Larfleeze and free all of the worlds  & creatures he has bottled, one interesting development is Larfleeze kills braniac thus focing him to become one of the Orange Lanterns forever, another interesting moment is the unification of the GL and Sinestro Corp, this adds a new dynamic and could be quite compelling.
Suicide Squad #9: This was ok, this is another flashback issue as we saw last week in JL as we see Amanda Wallers 1st SS in action, without brainbombs the whole thing is a disaster.

Justice League vs Suicide Squad #4 This issue is big on drama and action as the 1st Suicide Squad Hit Belle Reve and there is a full on brawl between all 3 teams, which leads to some great set pieces, Batman for example takes Lobo out by literally blowing his head clean off his shoulders...excellent. The issue closes with the villains on top as Max Lord endgame is released he is here to get the Heart of Darkness, he get is freeing Eclipso who takes over the entire Justice League.
Uncanny X-Men #17: This is good, but I do object to just how dark this title is, its been that way with Uncanny for a while but its still bugs me, this is all about the relationship between M and  Sabertooth, Creed is looking to stop the Inhumans all being Slaughtered by the demons of Limbo along the way he finds M and tries to stop her from giving into her dark impulses she has since Emplate merged with her, but some of the young Inhumans see too much Creed can't in his mind let this get out so he feeds them to M.See what I mean? This should be an X-Force book not the Uncanny X-Men, we have been walking in darkness so long I really REALLY hope X-Men Gold and Blue are more upbeat and positive.

Pick of the week 05/01/2017 Superman #14 Multiplicity part one

1st comics of 2017! Nice haul, some really nice books here and an absolutely agonising decision, it was definitely going to be either Superman or Aquaman both books were really excellent but Supes just edges it for me this week.

The List;

Superman #14
Aquaman #14
Green Lanterns #14
Batman #14
Justice League vs Suicide Squad #3
Justice League #12
Nightwing #12
Green Arrow #14

I really LOVE DC's multiverse so this new arc Multiplicity was always going to be an easy sell for me, I really enjoy the cover here, its simple but really effective seeing all the Multiverse Supermen I was already sold before I even turned the 1st page. I love the art by Ivan Reis in this issue and as always Tomasi's writing for Superman is just pitch perfect it just feels like my Superman where the New 52 one never really did. So the story here is someone called Prophecy is using a army of hive mind like creatures called the Gatherers to collect the Supermen of the Multiverse. Clark comes across the Superman of Red Son who has managed to evade capture but its looking pretty beat up and the 2 team up to fend off a group of Gatherers, Superman is the confronted by the rather awesome Justice League Incarnate a Justice League filled with leaguers from throughout the Multiverse including Mary Marvel, Aquawoman,Red Racer, Green Lantern and Machine Head the team is lead by the President Superman who I believe is form Earth 2.  Realising that the Gatherers next natural Target is Keenan Kong they hustle to save the Chinese Super-Man, they were unsuccessful but manage to snag a Gatherer to interrogate. Meanwhile we see a mysterious prison full of Supermen form the Multiverse even CAPTAIN CARROT! Fantastic, Prophecy is doing something to these supermen as we see CC taken from his cell and his powers are taken causing him to revert to a normal Rabbit. Overall this was a really fun issue there's one line of dialogue which really made my day when helping Red Son Superman our Superman tells a Gatherer "The only person making lists around here is Santa Claus" that's the kind of line you would expect in the Golden Age Superman to say it would have been totally out of place int he New 52 books but felt totally right in this post Rebirth world.

4/5

Elsewhere in comics;

Aquaman #14: Sometimes a comic creates a new villain or villains that are so daft that its brilliant, that s the case here enter The Aquamarines! A team of genetically modified special ops soldiers using a mixture of human and Aquatic DNA I am sorry but that is fan-bastard-tastic! The Aquamarines are here to assassinate Aquaman, there is a pitched battle but Arthur prevails, he also gets a lead which takes him all the way to N.E.M.O mobile base and the issue ends with the amazing visual of Aquaman leaping into the air with trident in poised over Black Manta! This story has been great form start to finish Dan Abnett is just knocking it out of the park on this book, really looking forward to the conclusion and seeing what comes next.
Green Lanterns #14: This issue wraps up the Phantom Lantern arc, Frank Laminski is still with us which I am happy with I like the idea of keeping him around. There were a couple of good moments in this issue Simon managed to resist the temptation to use the Phantom Ring Jessica doesn't but the ring reveals to her that she is a Green Lantern at heart, so I guess this will help settle the confidence issues she has which can mean the character  can start to grow, we also see the 2 Earth Lanterns interact with Isamot Kol and Vath Sarn 2 Lanterns who I really like, and the issue ends with a twist Volthoom has taken over the body of the Guardian Rami.

Batman #14:  This was good I enjoyed this more than I did the last run, the premiss of this is Catwomans last night of freedom, spent with batman they plow through Bats D list villains everyone from Film Freak to Zebra Man the issue is great fun, the issues ends with Catwoman and Bats getting it on on a rooftop, I am sure that will upset some people but whatever, the only criticism I have is this could have been one and done but its just part 1 of 2 which seems to be stringing it out a bit.

Justice League vs Suicide Squad #3: This is a set up issue more than anything Batman breaks free from Wallers prison, it turns out the JL haven't been fitted with brain bombs this was all to set up a scenario where the JL would be in Belle Reve penitentiary she knows Max Lord is coming with his team to get something Waller has, we don't find out what this is but we do learn that Max's team were in fact Wallers 1st attempt at the Suicide Squad before she got round to using Brain bombs.

Justice League #12: Max Lord Rebirth, 1st off I love the cover for this issue, I am a big mark for Max Lord as a villain, this issue shows us Lords history with Waller, his mistrust of the JL,  how he came to be in charge of checkmate, we also so some of his childhood and how the death of his father affected him, its a good issue that achieves what its set out to do which is get us inside Max Lords head.

Nightwing #12: Nightwing continues to dig into what's going on in Blud Haven, mostly the issue is just ok what I did enjoy the inclusion of The Orca into this, I have liked how this title has been using the Z List villains of the past, I am enjoying this book I really like the idea of former supervillains support group.

Green Arrow #14: This was a really enjoyable issue Ollie manages to clear his name plus we find out who it is whose been filling Seattle citizens with arrows Malcolm Merlyn! This was pretty good what I did not like was how Ollie cleared his name, he throws himself infront of one of Merlyns arrows to save a cop, this I am fine with, the problem was the scene was pretty unbelievable as Ollie is standing pretty much next to Merlyn but somehow out runs a flying arrow.... :-/

Pick of the week 29/12/16 Justice League vs Suicide Squad #2

This was a pretty good week all being said, I did cut 2 books form my pull list today after giving them one more issue to grab me, the pick ultimately came down to 3 books JvS, All Star Batman and Wonder Woman.

The List;
Justice League vs Suicide Squad #2
All Star Batman #5
Wonder Woman #13
The HellBlazer #5
Action Comics #970
The Flash #13
Extraordinary X-Men #17
Detective Comics #947
Deathstroke #9
Titans#6
Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #11
DKIII: The Master Race #7

Ultimately JvS gets the nod again, I have been looking forward to the 1st big event from DC since the Rebirth one-shot, I wasn't overly sure when it was announced what it would be but I was pleasantly surprised with issue one which was my pick last week. If the 1st issue was a nice set up this issue really pays off quite nicely, I was wondering how on earth they were going to make the SS competitive against the JL I mean lets be honest they are vastly under powered in comparison. The writing though is creative by Joshua Williamson and the art by Tony S Daniel is really top notch. Ultimately the JL big guns win their individual fights, except Superman who is put against the Enchantress so that makes sense as he is weak against magic, Croc, Diablo, Boomerang and Harley are soundly beaten by Aquaman, Flash,The Green Lanterns and Wonder Woman and that's as it should be, whilst Killer Frost is written very strongly taking down the Cyborg while Deadshot puts up a good fight before being taken down by Batman. So thats all good, the other thing I thought was well done and that has me excited is the excellent choice of villains and the continued tease of the mystery behind Rebirth being resolved, we find out that Emerald Empress, Johnny Sorrow and Maxwell Lord are all aware of the tampered time line plus I am just LOVING seeing Lobo the way he should be. Finlly I really liked the ending of the book, using Killer Frosts ability to absorb peoples life force to take down Superman and the whole of the league was well done and it really surprised me, the issue closes with the whole League imprisoned by Waller and welcomed to the Suicide Squad, great ending and it really has me excited to see what happens next and thats how these big events should feel.

Elsewhere in comics:

All Star Batman #5 - I have really enjoyed this series so far but this is definetly the best issue so far, I genuinely wasnt sure how this would play out, I am looking to the Mr Freeze arc.

DKIII: The Master Race #7 - A couple of really interesting things happen here, Hal coming back and Batman being put into the Lazarus pit by Superman that was a great way to close the issue, the problem as mentioned before is there is simply too long between issues, and you end up disconnected, that being said the idea of a de-aged Bruce Wayne in Miller DK Universe is pretty exciting.
 Detective Comics #947 -  Well thank god this story is over, it really didn't work for me, though its interesting what they have done with Spoiler and I liked the checking in with the captured Tim Drake again.

Wonder Woman #13 - This was excellent, I really like what they have been doing on this book this whole story line is interesting and I really hope it pays off.

The HellBlazer #5 - Yawn, I just cannot get into this, I really want to like this book but its not working for me and I just don't care, I will be dropping the title now.

Action Comics #970 - This book has slowed down a bit for me, the whole trial of Lex Luthor thing with Superman having to save him is interesting but its not really working for as much as I would like.

The Flash #13 This was a fun issue, with a great ending (for me at least) Wally polices Central City allowing Barry and Iris to go on a date, there were some nice moments here and the issue closes with Captain Cold evidently back on the scene for the coming Rogues reloaded story which I cannot wait to read.
Extraordinary X-Men #17 - This was very good, what this issue does really well is setting up in a believable way why Storm would go to war with the Inhumans. Its a touching story where a young mutant girl dies of M-Pox but not before Storm can make her an honorary X-Man, Storms response is in character and very believable.
Deathstroke #9 -Meh I DON'T CARE. Full disclosure I meant to drop this but didn't do so in time to avoid this issue.

Titans#6 - This issue was really good and it does 3 things which I approve of, firstly showcasing the feelings Wally has for Linda, secondly after Kadabra is beaten we find out second hand he was terrified of someone called "Manhattan" finally the Titans are being secretly observed by none other than Deathstroke, I may not be digging the solo book but I like Slade as an antagonist, so Titans vs Deathstroke? Shut up and take my money.
Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #11 A good issue in what's been a great series Ganthet and Kyle bring the returned Hal upto speed and the Green Lantern Corp teaming with the Sinestro Corp to escape Larfleeze