Comic Book News
A Comics Odyssey - Issue #24
By Wayne Hall Oct 8, 2011, 5:13 GMT
The New 52 is fully underway, so during this issue, I\'m going to concentrate on the new DC Comics offerings!
The New 52 is fully underway, so during this issue, I'm going to concentrate on the new DC Comics offerings!
1. ¡®Batgirl¡¯ #1. There¡¯s been a lot of concern expressed that, much as Batman is a symbol for justice, Barbara Gordon has been a symbol for those with disabilities. As Oracle, she was confined to a wheelchair, and her example inspired readers. I¡¯m glad Paul Cornell has a character in the upcoming ¡®Demon Knights¡¯ comic who can¡¯t walk¨Chopefully she will fill the void!
Here's the book's description: ¡°Barbara Gordon is back as Batgirl ¨C and she¡¯s going to have to face the city¡¯s most horrifying new villains as well as the dark secrets from her past. You won¡¯t want to miss this stunning debut issue from fan-favorite ¡®Bird Of Prey¡¯ writer Gail Simone!¡±
For me and for many others, Barbara Gordon has been the main Batgirl for decades. So having her back in the black, blue and gold again is something special for me. Also, having Gail Simone writing the comic is a pleasure as well.
We don¡¯t find out exactly how Barbara¡¯s cured this time, but I expect we¡¯ll find out in upcoming issues. But it is so good to see her able to put on the cape and cowl again! She¡¯s smart, she¡¯s strong, she¡¯s cunning, and she¡¯s the best Batgirl that ever was, bar none, to me!
Barbara Gordon is like Dick Grayson in my mind. Both are excellent athletes, brilliant sleuths and as honorable as they come. They don¡¯t carry guilt to the same degree that Bruce Wayne does, so it makes them more fun people and less obsessive and compulsive. It¡¯s going to be fun to see what Gail has in store for Batgirl. This book is off to a great start!
2. ¡®Justice League International¡¯ #1. Any book that has ¡°Justice League¡± in the title has sold well in the past¨Cat least, at the start. DC is counting on that to be true again with ¡®JLI¡¯ and ¡®Justice League Dark.¡¯
Here¡¯s what the book is about: ¡°With the growing presence of super beings around the world, the United Nations resolves to create a new group called Justice League International. Batman, Booster Gold, Green Lantern Guy Gardner, August General in Iron, Fire, Ice, Vixen and Rocket Red are charged with promoting unity and trust¨Cbut can they reach that goal without killing each other first?¡±
What¡¯s always made JLI fun is the fact that they are dysfunctional. Unlike the totally united, completely together Justice League, this group struggles to get the job done. Frankly, I like both since each has their strong and weak points. Not every group that one joins is completely perfect, so it makes me smile to see Guy Gardner run off out of disgust at his not being chosen leader. (That¡¯s what really happened, after all!)
Batman is getting around a lot these days, and he even shows up in this group despite the United Nations¡¯ objections. Some of the humor of the original Keith Giffen/J. M. deMatteis/Kevin Maguire days is there, such as Batman¡¯s response to Booster Gold about the U.N. After all, this should be the lighter book ¡ even though the Dark Knight is there!
It¡¯s a nice mix of the old and the new, as well as a team with members from around the world. Fire and Ice are back, there¡¯s a new Brit involved, and the Russian and Chinese heroes don¡¯t like or trust each other very much! That¡¯s trouble, and it sounds like fun to me! Another great kick-off!
More ¡®New 52¡¯ Reviews: I¡¯m going to give some quick thoughts on the other DC books out this week. I very much enjoyed ¡®Action Comics¡¯ #1 and hope it revitalizes Superman! It does harken back to the very early Man of Steel stories. Next, I was happily surprised by ¡®Hawk & Dove,¡¯ which was more interesting than I expected! I also liked ¡®Swamp Thing¡¯¨CScott Snyder continues to rise in the ranks of my favorite writers. The new Superman even appears! ¡®Green Arrow¡¯ is an adventure story, which I like¨Cand I never turn down the winning combination of JT Krul, Dan Jurgens and George Perez! ¡®Detective Comics¡¯ was really, really unsettling, and I¡¯m anxious to see where that story goes! ¡®Animal Man¡¯ was reminiscent of ¡®Darkest Night¡¯¨Cinteresting! ¡®Static Shock¡¯ and ¡®Men Of War¡¯ were both enjoyable¨Cagain, the first issue did whet my appetite for more! The one I liked least¨Calthough I did like it¨Cwas ¡®OMAC.¡¯ But I¡¯m not giving up on it since I want to see where that goes, too!
Good first week for the ¡®New 52!¡¯
Wayne Hall contributes to the Smallscreen, Film and Graphic Novels/Comic Book sections of the Monsters And Critics.com website. He writes recaps for Fox¡¯s ¡®Bones,¡¯ Syfy¡¯s ¡®Warehouse 13¡¯ and the BBC¡¯s ¡®Doctor Who.¡¯ He is co-editor and a news writer for SciFiPulse.Net. He also serves as a host for the ¡®SFP-Now¡¯ weekly podcast and produces and stars in the ¡®Wayne¡¯s Comics¡¯ weekly podcast. You can check both of them out at http://www.sfp-now.com.
