Happy All Saint’s Day, everybody! Isn’t that the one that comes after Halloween? I don’t know for sure and I don’t have the energy to look it up at this moment. Just know it’s nice. Not a lot of reviews this week, though for anyone interested, I have finally caught up on Power Rangers Prime.

Comic Book of the Week goes to Absolute Batman Annual #1 because Batman beats up some white power shitheads.

Meanwhile, I’m still working my way through Ghost of Yotei and enjoying myself. Very fun game. I just finished watching the Jason Momoa show Chief of War, which was cool. Nothing really special, but a solid watch.

Also meanwhile, my comic friends at Very Big Comics have a new Kickstarter coming out in the week ahead: LobStar #1. It’s about a Maine fisherman who gets the powers of the lobster god! It’s a very New England story. Head on over to the Kickstarter preview and sign up, if you could please. The more people they have signed up ahead of launch the better it looks for the Kickstarter algorithm!

Comic Reviews: Absolute Batman Annual #1 and Power Rangers Prime #11.

Absolute Batman Annual #1
Writer and Artist: Daniel Warren Johnson
Colorist: Mike Spicer
Letterer: Clayton Cowles

I’ve been on a big Daniel Warren Johnson kick lately, reading Wonder Woman: Dead Earth, Space Mullet and currently Murder Falcon. So I am fully on board with Johnson doing an Absolute Batman story!

While getting supplies from an out-of-town weapon store, Bruce Wayne comes across a gang of pig-masked white supremacists who are going to bust heads at a local homeless camp full of minorities. So Batman suits up and just goes to town on those bastards, though he’s stopped by a local priest who doesn’t want to see anyone get hurt. Bruce is forced to reflect on his actions when he realizes the priest is a former friend of his father’s, who also used to protest with him.

There’s also a back-up story by James Harren on writing and art, and a brief little thing about bats by Meredith McClaren. The back-up is about a very spooky Batman messing up some leftover Black Mask goons, and the brief little thing is just a cute bat factoid cartoon with some development. Both are excellent.

Comic Rating: 9/10 – Great.

So basically, DC got one of the hottest writer/artists in the industry today, known for his excellent action artwork, and put him to work writing and drawing a story where Absolute Batman just goes ham on some really bad dudes. What more is there to love? How about mixing in some good messaging and some character introspection? You’ve got a winning strategy right there! That’s comic writing 101! Tell a good, contained story and give it some truly spectacular artwork. Bim, bam, boom, you’re making comics, baby! And good comics at that! Johnson’s artwork does not disappoint. And the writing is top notch as well. Good, solid, entertaining story.

The back-up feature is almost just as good, and I say that with no way to define how it’s not just as good, other than not being Daniel Warren Johnson. But James Harren delivers nonetheless. His Absolute Batman isn’t a total unit punching faces in. His Absolute Batman is scarier and more menacing, moving around a house like a ghost and using those cape arm hook things to be especially menacing and awesome.

TL;DR: This comic was two awesome Absolute Batman stories where he’s basically just a force of nature defeating some bad dudes, with some extra story thrown in for good measure.

Power Rangers Prime #11
Writer: Melissa Flores
Artist: Michael Yg
Colorist: Joana Lafuente
Letterer: Ed Dukeshire

Once upon a time, I was really enjoyed Power Rangers Prime, the new relaunch at BOOM! Studios! But this past summer, after Prime #7, something went wrong and Prime was no longer being uploaded to Comixology, where I get my comics. But those problems have been fixed as of the most recent issue, Prime #11, and I’ve been able to get caught back up!

I’m afraid my interest has largely waned over such a long break.

To get everybody caught up, the Prime Rangers are more or less united, but not really. Rita Repulsa is the Green Prime Ranger, which I don’t care for, and nobody really trusts her. The Eltarians have Lauren held prisoner, along with her dad, which the VR Troopers are wary of. And we’ve met Jun’s dad, a real Eltarian warrior jerk, who has come after the Rangers. Jun’s mom, who is less severe, wants to work with them to get rid of the dad.

Comic Rating: 7/10 – Good.

The best thing issue #11 has going for it is, at long last, an explanation of whose armor means what. Red is a T-Rex, which we knew, but now we know for sure that Pink is a Velociraptor, Blue is a Unicorn, Black is a Basilisk, Yellow is a Griffin and Green is a Dragon. Thank you for finally just laying it all out, because their uniforms just weren’t very clear. I do still enjoy those designs, though.

Beyond that, the issues have been mostly fine. There’s still a nice focus on the characters first, but it’s been really jumbled a bit, I think. Not that it’s spread too thin, just…not as focused as I’d like. There’s no foundation. I forget if these Rangers are all students somewhere, or if they have day jobs, or what. So there’s no life they’re trying to balance, and that’s something that is sorely missing. Of course, we’re also still in the setting up stage, it feels. There’s no Command Center and no greater sense of purpose. Are they going to use their Ranger powers to get the Eltarians off Earth? That doesn’t seem to be the case. So what are they going to do with their Ranger powers? All five are pretty committed to being Power Rangers…but they could use a purpose.

We’ve gotten a little more backstory on the history of Power Rangers in this universe, but not enough to make the most sense yet. We still don’t know why Power Rangers are so forbidden, but VR Troopers are accepted. Why do the Eltarians want to get rid of Power Rangers? Didn’t they invent Power Rangers? I would like some more explanation.

Overall, it’s still a good comic. And if it stays digital, I’ll definitely keep reading. But between issues 8-11, I can’t really say a lot has happened. A lot is happening, the characters are definitely doing a lot of running around and butting heads, but nothing overall has happened.

And, honestly, I just don’t like the idea of Rita as the Green Prime Ranger. It just sort of pops up. I love the idea of Rita in the mentor/Zordon role. That’s great. But then to also make her a Ranger? And to just rush through the Sixth Ranger storyline like that? Eh. Maybe there’s more to come, and someone else will get a proper Sixth Ranger storyline. I’ll hold out hope for that. There’s nothing I love more than a green sixth ranger with gold highlights.

TL;DR: There’s a little too much noise and not much actual forward momentum in Power Rangers Prime right now. A lot is happening in the pages, but not a lot has happened to solidify the status quo and move the overall story forward.

The comics I review in my Hench-Sized reviews are just the usual comics I grab from Comixology any given week, along with a few impulse buys I might try on a whim. So if there are any comics or series you’d like me to review each week, let me know in the comments.

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