DC Comics’ most dysfunctional family returns in Wonder Woman Vol. 4: War. The potential baby of doom is finally in the hands of his mother Zola, but the baby isn’t out of the woods yet. His oldest brother just spent 7,000 years digging himself out of a hole in order to rule Olympus and the baby is one more obstacle in the way of him seizing the throne. Considering the fact that he’s had that long to dwell on his plight, he’s not going down easy.
To say that Zola’s baby had a rough start to life sure is an understatement. From the moment the baby was born on Olympus, it was immediately stolen away from its mother by Hermes, who we thought was one of the good guys. Now in Wonder Woman Vol. 3: Iron, she must track the tiny tot down before something terrible happens. Along the way, she meets even more members of her complicated family tree and something new is brewing in Antarctica.
An uncharacteristically stubborn Bruce Wayne refuses to believe in the existence of a shadowy organization that has run Gotham for over a century. He sure did pay for it in Vol. 1: The Court of Owls, as Batman narrowly escaped death at the hands of the Talons. But what can he do when a gang of Talons get the drop on Bruce in Wayne Manor while the rest of their army terrorize Gotham?
Had I not bought the first three volumes of Detective Comics in one shot, I would have stopped after the second one. The first showed potential, yet had a few glaring holes, while the second only made things worse with a droning story that didn’t go anywhere. I picked up Vol. 3: Emperor Penguin with the mindset that I would just plow through to get it over with, but then I noticed that the names on the cover were completely different.
Kudos to Tony Daniel for all the work he’s done in the past. I think his art in Detective Comics is great. I even liked his writing in Savage Hawkman #1. But as far as his work with this series, it really fell off a cliff. With a new creative team at the helm, this may be the kick start it needs to get back on track.
Between the myriad of solo stories, team-ups and Justice League responsibilities, Batman is the busiest man in comics. His life is only going to get crazier from here, as Batman Eternal #1 is the start of a new weekly series for The Dark Knight. Have we reached the saturation point for Bruce Wayne stories? Well, if they continue to be as good as this one, then the answer is no.
Ever since Harley Quinn severed ties with the Joker, she’s been on a roll. First, she’s made her presence felt as a member of the Suicide Squad. Now she has her own best-selling series. Harley Quinn #4 follows the same story template that have made the previous issues a success, but it falls short of the mark set by its predecessors.
Of the dozens of comics I’ve read in the last month or so, Wonder Woman has been the surprise hit. It’s mix of Greek mythology, superhero action and Maury-style baby mama drama make for a compelling read unlike anything else I’d experienced to-date. Vol. 1: Blood was a great first effort and Vol. 2: Guts picks up right where things left off.
Gotham never sleeps and Batman is back on the patrol in Batman – Detective Comics Vol. 2: Scare Tactics. Last time out, I generally enjoyed the book, but felt it was a bit too straightforward and one note. Also, I had concerns with the revolving door of super villains that made it difficult for a story to develop into anything meaningful. Well, this time, Batman squares off against The Mad Hatter, Black Mask, Scarecrow and the Court of Owls. Also, Two-Face is heavily featured towards the end of this book. Uh…lesson learned?
I came into Batman: The Dark Knight #23.4: Joker’s Daughter essentially blind. I haven’t read any of The Dark Knight line besides issue #1, and I didn’t even know that The Joker had a daughter. With that said, curiosity got the best of Steff, who picked this up when she saw it at Toronto Comicon.
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Before venturing off on her own New 52 adventure, DC Comics released Harley Quinn #1. This “100-page spectacular” is meant to act as a greatest hits of sorts for the Joker’s on-again-off-again lover. Within this collection you’ll get Batman: Harley Quinn #1, Joker’s Asylum II: Harley Quinn #1, and stories from Batman: Gotham Knights #14, Countdown #10, Batman Gotham Knights #30 and Batman Black and White #1.
In Third Person 