Category Archives: DC
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 11/1/14
Happy Day-After-Halloween, henchies! Or better yet, Happy All Saints Day! I wonder if anybody in the world actually celebrates All Saints Day. I know I had to Google it to remember what November 1 was actually called. No worries if you don’t celebrate, but hopefully you have plenty of candy to tide you over.
This week was very light on new comics because it’s a Fifth Wednesday week. Comic publishers usually only plan for 4 Wednesdays a month, so when a fifth week comes along, they usually throw out some minor comics. DC put out a couple of annuals that I didn’t bother to read. But I did pick up All-New X-Men and Batman Eternal.
The week’s crowning jewel, however, is the final issue of Brian Azzarello’s Wonder Woman! He’s been telling one ongoing, epic saga since the start of the New 52, and it all comes to an end with this issue, the Comic Book of the Week!
Meanwhile, Marvel put out the first issue of their new Deathlok series. I wrote a pretty thorough review at Word of the Nerd that you can check out.
Comic Reviews: All-New X-Men #33, Batman Eternal #30 and Wonder Woman #35.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 10/25/14
Whatever happened to holiday theme comics? Next week is Halloween, but I don’t know if there are any Halloween comics coming out! Whatever happened to those great comics about fighting giant pumpkin monsters? Or meeting demonic hell spirits? Or what about the greatest Halloween superhero adventure of all time? You henchies remember that one, right? Whatever the case may be, there isn’t nary a Halloween reference in any of this week’s haul!
But we’ve still got a pretty good haul. I picked up new issues of Aquaman and Harley Quinn, while also checking in with the ongoing craziness happening in Axis and Multiversity. One is a little more crazy than the other. I also picked up the first issue of the new Arkham Manor series…but I doubt I’ll be picking up any more. Fortunately, the latest issue in Jonathan Hickman’s ongoing Avengers saga is amazing! Avengers #37 easily scoops of Comic Book of the Week for the high quality, character-based drama!
Some day they’ll laugh about this
You can also check out my coverage of the soon-to-be cancelled She-Hulk over at Word of the Nerd. That title should have survived for the Matt Rocks cameo alone!
Comic Reviews: Aquaman #35, Arkham Manor #1, Avengers #37, Axis #3, Batman Eternal #29, Harley Quinn #11, and Multiversity #3.
Robin Watch: Has the New Robin Been Spoiled?!
The biggest break in Robin Watch may have hit the web this afternoon! DC Comics’ solicitations for January hit the web today, and it seems that DC isn’t going to hide the identity of the new Robin on the front cover of Batman and Robin #38! Because of that, writer Peter J. Tomasi took to Twitter and spoiled the reveal ahead of time!
This could be it! Today could be the day we discover our new Robin!
Pick me, Alfred! Pick me!
For spoiler purposes, I’ll post the picture after the jump. If you don’t want to be spoiled, then don’t click over and don’t read DC’s solicitations today!
I’m Taking the New Robin Rumors With a Massive Pile of Salt
Buzz around the Internet is that actress Jena Malone is going to play Robin in Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice, most likely the Carrie Kelley version from The Dark Knight Returns. Batman v. Superman is already taking a lot of inspiration from that seminal work – including an older Batman and the Bat-armor – but will they go all the way and cast a female Robin?
I hope so…but I don’t believe it, at least not yet.
But I want to believe!
I would love for this to be the case. I have zero problem with a female Robin, and I would give almost anything to have Robin play a solid, entertaining role in Batman v. Superman. Heck, I was even willing to let Justin Bieber play the character if it meant Robin could be in the movie. I also don’t have a problem with the Carrie Kelley version of Robin making the movie. I may not want Carrie to become Robin in the comics, but in this movieverse? Bring it on!
I just don’t believe these rumors.
The story comes from Variety magazine by way of WILX10 in Michigan, so that alone should worry you. Apparently the movie is filming some scenes at a college in Michigan, and the local TV station went and interviewed some of the students filling in as extras. One of those extras dropped the hint that he overheard someone talking about a female Robin.
And that’s it. That’s the scoop.
But is it enough?
Intrepid reporters then linked this tidbit with the fact that Jena Malone has been spotted on set, and that she recently dyed her hair red. But again, this is all anyone has. The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that Malone has some role in the film, but they can’t say if she’s Robin. She could very well be Barbara Gordon, another redhead from the Bat-verse. Or she could be Jill the Girl at Bruce Wayne’s Favorite Coffee Shop!
Listen, I work in local news. I’m a newspaper reporter, and I know my fair share of local TV reporters. I know how they operate, I know what they consider to be stories; I know how this works. And there is no way I would give 100% credibility to some local TV station out of Michigan. If my local news stations reported something like this, I wouldn’t believe it.
Remember when the rumor was that Adam Driver would play Nightwing in Batman v. Superman? That was an entire year ago, and we still don’t have any confirmation whatsoever that Nightwing or Dick Grayson will appear in the film at all.
Casting rumors, especially on superhero flicks, are part and parcel of the whole process. And as much as I would love for Robin to appear in the film, especially Jena Malone as Robin, I just don’t believe these rumors.
Not yet, at least. Get me some official confirmation and I will be through the roof!
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Review: Teen Titans #3
I realized something kind of important after reading Teen Titans #3: I don’t really like any of these characters. I don’t mean that in the general sense, not like ‘Beast Boy sucks!’ or anything like that. I mean I don’t like them as people. I don’t really want to spend any time with them or be seen with them. The Teen Titans are kind of uncomfortable to be around. I realized this because new writer Will Pfeifer is kind of doing exactly what I wanted him to do in the relaunch: he’s treating the Teen Titans as people first, superheroes second…kind of. He’s not exactly there yet, but this new issue is filled with scenes of the teens just hanging out and being friends, and subplots that don’t have anything to do with punching super-villains.
Teen Titans #3
The problem is that DC and the previous writer, Scott Lobdell, have made the Teen Titans so unlikable that I just don’t care that Pfeifer is doing exactly what I want.
Comic Rating: 5/10 – Alright.
The great thing about this new issue of Teen Titans is that it is filled with character-based subplots. The main plot is still all about that dumb robot chick and whatever ax she’s grinding (I have seriously forgotten), but Pfeifer fills the rest of the issue with actual, worthwhile character interaction. That was the #1 thing missing from Lobdell’s Teen Titans. He was only interested in bringing on new super-villains for the team to fight. Pfeifer, at least a little, views these characters as teenagers. They’re still mostly in costume all of the time, but he’s getting there. He’s mixing real teen drama with superhero drama, and I think it has a chance to be interesting. He just needs to work harder at making me (or anyone) care about these characters.
I think part of the problem might be the art. Kenneth Rocafort is a damn fine artist. He’s great for superhero comics, but I just don’t think he fits Teen Titans. His characters look pointy and fragile. He’d be great on one of those excess Batman books, like Detective Comics, where he could draw awesome pictures of Batman in a big, scary cape. But Teen Titans needs to be a softer book than Rocafort’s style.
For my money, I wish Teen Titans had been given the Batgirl treatment. They need an artist like Babs Tarr to really sell them as likable teen characters. As it stands, Pfeifer and Rocafort have a long road ahead of them to rehab these characters, and frankly, I don’t think both of them are up for it.
Join me after the jump for a full synopsis and more review.
Henchman-4-Hire 