What a banger week it’s been! Great TV shows have come to an end, great, uh, other things are probably happening somewhere, and we got some damn good comics to enjoy, like Absolute Superman and Daredevil.

Comic Book of the Week goes to Batman #9 because it’s an exciting issue with good energy, nudging it just a little bit above the second issue of a so-far excellent Daredevil series.

Meanwhile, I very much enjoyed the season finales of both Maul: Shadow Lord and Daredevil: Born Again. Great shows that were super fun to watch! I’m going to try to put together some List of Six thoughts/reviews for both over the coming week or so. We’ll see how that goes. Beyond that, I’m deep in the paint on Crimson Desert. It’s exactly my sort of open world game with lots of pedantic little things to do throughout the game world. Super fun! And I’m still deciding whether or not to see Mortal Kombat II in theaters. I really don’t have any interest…but it’s Mortal Kombat II…but it’s not that Street Fighter movie, which has me actively excited. I dunno. It should be in theaters for a while, so I’ve got time to decide.

Comic Reviews: Absolute Superman #19, Batman #9 and Daredevil #2.

Absolute Superman #19
Writer: Jason Aaron
Artist: Rafa Sandoval
Colorist: Ulises Arreola
Letterer: Becca Carey

Black Adam is finally having the impact The Rock always wanted for him!

King Shazam is awake and he’s not happy with the world or the people around him. He punches Superman several states away and eviscerates Ra’s al Ghul. Superman returns with a vengeance and the fight takes off around the world, with John Henry pulled along for the ride cause he tried to get involved. They finally crash on some beach and are soon joined by Hawkman. Also, we do see a bit of John Henry’s backstory.

Comic Rating: 8/10 – Very Good.

Damn fun issue that easily brings Black Adam into the Absolute Universe in a way that feels powerful and impactful, both through the writing and the artwork. King Shazam has a similar cape to Superman, and the way Sandoval and the art team turn it into this all-encompassing black cloud is very impressive. King Shazam is an immediately intimidating presence and a real challenge for Superman, so that’s nice. I’m a little disappointed that he tore through Ra’s so quickly because I was enjoying his redemption arc, but it definitely works for the story. It really pushes Superman into the fight and the issue easily sells how epic this will be.

And even with all of that epicness, the issue doesn’t miss out on the smaller stuff. I liked getting to know John Henry in this issue and he adds a nice touch to the story. Good supporting character to have. He has a line about this being the “Reign of the Superman,” which is a great callback to his origin. I like that he’s just this normal dude dragged into this battle between gods as it rages across the world. And, as always, I love the inclusion of Absolute Hawkman. I think he’s quickly becoming my favorite Absolute character. Just the way Aaron has designed him as a real son of a bitch who nonetheless is there to put down bad guys is just so darn fun.

Oh, and Sandoval really steps up their game this issue. If you thought the full-page battles were great with that one fill in artist, Sandoval proves why they aren’t to be pushed aside.

TL;DR: Black Adam arrives in the Absolute Universe with all the pomp, attitude and epic battles you could hope for.

Batman #9
Writer: Matt Fraction
Artist: Ryan Sook
Inker: Wade Von Grawbadger
Colorist: Tomeu Morey
Letterer: Clayton Cowles, with Sook

Time to ramp things up and kick this story off with some real bangs!

Commissioner Savage’s Operation Peregrine goes into effect with a citywide crackdown on suspected Batman bunkers. Batman recruits Signal and Batgirl to clean out the bunkers, with Oracle running point and Robin offering back up. But after a heart-to-heart with Brain Alfred, Bruce realizes Damian needs some encouragement, so Batman will offer back up while Robin does the biggest job. There are harrowing encounters, some cool theatrics, and then it all comes crashing down. Father and son join together to blow up Wayne Manor, and Oracle gets arrested.

Comic Rating: 9/10 – Great.

This was a pretty exciting issue, with all the characters racing around. The Bat-Family sure has shrunk if Bruce has to rely on Duke and Stephanie to do the heavy lifting, but that’s neither here nor there. They play their parts perfectly and Fraction slips in some character work. Having Stephanie react to Tim’s sabbatical is a nice touch. But the real meat of the issue is Batman and Oracle doing their things. Bruce has a great moment with Brain Alfred (what I’m calling him now) about dealing with Damian. The Damian stuff has been slowly burning in the background with this series, especially with Tim being such a focal point Robin, but the scenes of father and son in this issue work very well. Sad to see Wayne Manor blow up, but it was silly to put Vandal Savage in there in the first place.

Also, Batman clearly wasn’t doing his job good enough if Savage and the GCPD knew the location of so many bunkers. But, again, that’s neither here nor there. This issue does an excellent job of changing the status quo and giving us some real excitement, while touching in on all the characters that matter. Oracle surrendering and getting arrested feels OK. She hasn’t really been a character in this specific series, but it still works for this issue. She’s known. It works. And hopefully that new series about Barbara Gordon in prison is a good one.

TL;DR: The excitement ramps up for an excellent ensemble issue that successfully shakes up the status quo.

Daredevil #2
Writer: Stephanie Phillips
Artist: Lee Garbett
Colorist: Frank Martin
Letterer: VC’s Ariana Maher

Second issue is pretty much just as fun and engaging as the first!

In an effort to get info on the new masked bad guy who foretold Matt Murdock’s death, Daredevil beats up the Owl for information. He doesn’t get much. Matt then heads to class to teach and his conversation with his students makes him realize that the bad guy said “Matt Murdock” would die…not Daredevil, not both of them, just Murdock, so someone doesn’t know the two are the same guy! Matt rushes out of class lest he put anyone in danger, and he starts to lose focus on the street because anyone could be the bad guy…and then Spider-Man saves him from being hit by a truck.

Meanwhile, the cops continue to investigate the bodies that have had their eyeballs surgically removed. They are led to an international freighter and sneak inside, where they find one of those conspiracy boards pointing toward Matt Murdock!

Comic Rating: 9/10 – Great.

Second issue is just as engaging and enjoyable as the first, which is always a good sign. Phillips has done a lot in only two issues to really flesh out and engage with the reader on the current status quo, with exceptional artwork by Garbett and the team to make the whole comic very inviting. There’s a new threat and it’s freaking Daredevil out, so he gets into some classic superhero stuff to get info…and then it all builds to a nifty reveal of Matt learning the little detail he missed. I really liked that scene. Classic scenario where working with his students made him realize something he’d missed. Of course, he immediately storms out of the classroom, leaving them all hanging. I hope we don’t get too many tropes of Matt being a bad teacher. I think it makes for a nifty status quo and I hope he can maintain some semblance of actually doing the job.

I really liked the Spider-Man cameo at the end. It was a classic bit in the 90s or so that Spider-Man would always show up in the second issue to help support a new series, like Darkhawk or something similar. So he’s a fun cameo to drop into this series. And the artwork and colors really make him pop on that final page. Good times all around with that.

I really am just digging this series so far. It’s not dependent on previous continuity and has new stuff set up nicely, while maintaining the normal Daredevil and Matt Murdock and we know and enjoy. So it’s a light, easy read with more than enough story and art to get someone hooked. Quality project all around.

TL;DR: Fun and engaging series that easily mixes new storytelling opportunities with classic Daredevil action.

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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