Posts Tagged ‘Batman Chronicles (TPB)’

January 1st, 2012  Posted at   The Stack
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Now that is more like it. As I mentioned last month, there was a mix-up in my comic order, resulting in me getting two months’ worth of books at once, so I had a lot of ground to make up. And make it up I did.

Here’s December:

Action Comics (Vol. 2) #1-3
All-New Batman: The Brave and the Bold #12-13
Billy Tucci’s A Child is Born
DCU Holiday Special 2010
Green Lantern (Vol. 4) #2-3
Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 3) #2-3
Green Lantern: New Guardians #2-3
Green Lantern: The Animated Series #0
Red Lanterns #2-3
Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes #1-2
Superboy (Vol. 3) #63-72
Supergirl (Vol. 4) #33-42
Superman (Vol. 3) #2-3
Team Superman #1
Tiny Titans #45-46
Young Justice (Vol. 2) #9-10
Young Justice #9-18
Young Justice in No Man’s Land #1
Batman Chronicles Vol. 6 trade paperback
Showcase Presents: Legion of Super-Heroes Vol. 3 trade paperback

Total: 56 comics, 2 trades (Year total: 410 comics, 17 trades)

The Legion Showcase continued from last month, and I also started the second volume of Heroes, so more on that in the next installment.

But what a way to end the year, eh? The most productive month of the year, hands down. It was really nice to end the year on a high note — not just with reading a lot of books, but reading a lot of books that I truly enjoyed (more on that in a minute).

All said-and-done, the year-end total was 410 comics and 17 trades, not including any podcast-related reading. That averages out to roughly a book and a half per day. That’s not at all a bad rate.

So, as for the books from this month themselves… well, let’s start with the not-so-great. I’m a little sad to say I’ve just not been overly impressed with any of the “New 52” books. None of that I am reading are bad… they just aren’t great. A lot of it feels very much like business as usual, just with a new coat of paint that will wear off quickly.

The best is probably Grant Morrison’s ACTION COMICS. I actually went back and re-read the first issue before re-reading issues two and three, rather than just skimming it as I did the others. I actually wanted to re-read it. On the other hand, we all knew it would be among the cream of the crop and even given that, it still feels like something that will be far more enjoyable in trade form.

But, we’ll move on. I was dismayed to learn about the pending cancellations of TINY TITANS and ALL NEW BATMAN: THE BRAVE AND THE BOLD. Neither are surprising, especially the Batman book with the cartoon off-air now, but, still, both were solid reads pretty much month-in and month-out and I will miss them both.

“Johnny DC” titles traditionally don’t last more than a few years, which is unfortunate since, for some reason, it takes them a while to hit their strides. The good news is, the current YOUNG JUSTICE book is strong and the first issue (or is that “zeroth” issue?) of the Green Lantern book tying into the comic was fun, even though it felt like they were biding time. So, maybe there is hope.

On the reading project front, I got through just shy of a year’s worth of SUPERBOY, YOUNG JUSTICE and SUPERGIRL. SUPERBOY has been a little tepid, to be honest. Karl Kesel is doing Superboy through Kirby-vision goggles, which is fine… just not quite to my taste. And I can’t get into the Wildlands characters at all. But, Kesel still has a solid grip on the character and the book has taken a stiff upturn with the blockbuster “Evil Factory” storyline. Unfortunately, I know Kesel’s final departure is looming just around the corner. I can’t say I’m looking forward to that.

I haven’t been enjoying SUPERGIRL as much, but, as I recall, this is a bit of a lull period for the title. The last issue I read this month feature the return of Buzz, so things should start picking up soon as we hit the run-up to issue #50.

YOUNG JUSTICE is incredibly fun and very awesome. I can’t believe it took me so long to read this series. I’ve got one more issue, and then it will hit the “Sins of Youth” storyline, which I hope to be able to read in a concentrated dose over the period of a few days. Good times ahead!

Looking ahead to 2012, I have decided to keep going with The Stack. I should be able to wrap up the reading project by spring or early summer and plan to start another after that. I don’t know what that project will be. But, stay tuned!

November 1st, 2011  Posted at   The Stack
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I did a bit of a double-take when typing the headline for this post. It’s hard to believe we’re through October already. It seems I just started this feature! It doesn’t seem like it was 10 months ago.

But, nonetheless, here’s October:

Action Comics (Vol. 2) #1
All New Batman: Brave and the Bold #11
DCU Halloween Special 2010
Golden Age #1-4
Green Lantern (Vol. 5) #1
Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 3) #1
Green Lantern: New Guardians #1
Red Lanterns #1
Secret Origins 80-Page Giant #1
Superboy (Vol. 3) #57-61, 1,000,000
Supergirl (Vol. 4) #26-31, 1,000,000
Superman (Vol. 3) #1
Tiny Titans #44
Young Justice #3-7, 1,000,000
Young Justice (Vol. 2) #8
Young Justice Secret Files #1
Absolute Justice hardcover
Batman Chronicles, Vol. 6 trade paperback

Total: 35 comics, 2 trades (Year total: 349 comics, 13 trades)

THE GOLDEN AGE was a series I picked up on a recommendation from Michael Bailey (of Takes of the Justice Society of America, From Crisis to Crisis and several other podcasts. While I was a bit bored with it for the first two issues, it turned out to be an excellent story. I highly recommend it. Just don’t get turned off for the slow start. It’s a lot of build up and character, but it pays off. Trust me.

I don’t have much else by way of commentary this month. But, since the DCnU has begun in earnest, I thought I’d offer some very brief thoughts on the first issues of the six DCnU titles I’m reading. I probably won’t continue this in future Stack installments. But, I thought some might be interested. Plus, it might be nice to have them saved for posterity. I wrote these throughout the preceding month, soon after reading each book.

ACTION COMICS (Vol. 2) #1: An entertaining and solid read. But then, we knew it would be. While I may not be a believer that a reboot was warranted and I certainly question the wisdom of taking this tack with Superman in 2011, I have not yet doubted Morrison. I know he will ultimately do right by the character.

GREEN LANTERN (Vol. 5) #1: Good, but an absolute failure. This issue reads like just another issue in Geoff Johns’ run. Good, yes, but newcomers would feel none of the emotional resonance of Hal being ringless and Sinestro (Sinestro!!) having a green ring. We get no back story, no history, no connection to our hero (who comes off as a deadbeat loser). I see what Johns is doing and it’s fine if you’ve been reading his run to this point… but it’s a failure in regards to The New 52.

RED LANTERNS #1: Less violent than I thought it would be, but… meh. It was rather dull, but at least, unlike the above-mentioned GREEN LANTERN (Vol. 4) #1, we got a proper introduction to the character for the uninitiated. I’m curious, though, how they plan on sustaining an ongoing title where the protagonist is based on hate and rage — yes, a villain — without turning him into a hero. (Prediction: They won’t.)

(Side thought: I wonder if they would not have been better off replacing this book with an LEGENDS OF THE DARK KNIGHT-type “Tales of the Corps” series, where the creative team (or rotating creative teams, if needed), could tell arcs featuring members of the various Corps. Fruitless naval-gazing, I guess.)

GREEN LANTERN CORPS (Vol. 3) #1: Overly-gruesome for a book rated T. (RED LANTERNS is rated T+ and had less blood and gore.) Other than that, though, I though it was a strong lead issue. A great basic primer to the concept of the Green Lantern Corps, as well as the two main characters of the book (Guy and John) for the new readers, without being tiring to the returning. The strongest of the opening issues for four GREEN LANTERN-related books.

SUPERMAN (Vol. 3) #1: It’s curious… this issue seemed to be dancing around, loudly proclaiming, “Look! We’re new! We’re neeeeeeeew!” While at the same time trying to throw in Easter eggs to placate the old readers and bide their time, waiting for Morrison to establish more of their playground. But looking at it more objectively… this seemed more like an introduction to Lois Lane (and Metropolis and Morgan Edge) than the titular character. I’m not sure why new readers and non-fans would care about the main character or want to pick up the second issue beyond, “It’s Superman.”

GREEN LANTERN: NEW GUARDIANS #1: Another failure, but not to the degree of GREEN LANTERN (Vol. 4) #1. We did get a recap of Kyle’s back-story, but we got no context for it. We got no explanation of the Green Lanterns Corps or the other colored Corps. Granted, we didn’t need a detailed explanation… but something would have been helpful. It was just a thin read, and what we did get… I don’t think it was enough to hook the new folks. As a first issue of this magnitude, it just needed to be more.

I’ve seen a lot of comments (not about these six titles, but others) that said, in not so many words, the second issue was better. A hopeful thought, but not exactly a good thing when DC was putting a lot of bank on this slate of number ones. I can’t help but wonder if many of them simply didn’t suffer from too many cooks in the kitchen. We shall see, I guess.

Oh! I didn’t talk about the reading project. Hmm… maybe that’s because there’s simply not much to say. It’s progressing and I’m enjoying the titles across the line. Early 1999 was a strong time for the Superman Family titles (odd since the four Superman books themselves, to the best of my recollection, were pretty lukewarm).

I’ve also decided to add in Mark Waid’s run LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES (Vol. 5) when that comes up. Since I’ll be transitioning and following Superboy into TEEN TITANS (Vol. 3), at least to the end of Geoff Johns’s run… and Waid’s Legion kind of spins from that, courtesy of the TEEN TITANS/LEGION SPECIAL, it should be a natural extension, even if it’s not strictly Superman Family, despite Kara Zor-El joining the team in the last third.

September 1st, 2011  Posted at   The Stack
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My reading list for August was a bit shorter on the surface. But, I spent some time getting caught up on some issues of Alter Ego magazine which had been piling up. I don’t list magazines and other like materials in The Stack. But, there is still plenty of comics. Here’s August:

Action Comics #903
All New Batman: Brave and the Bold #9
Batman Chronicles Vol. 5 trade paperback
Brightest Day Aftermath: The Search For Swamp Thing #2
DC Comics: The New 52
Green Lantern (Vo. 4) #67
Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 2) #61-62
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #12
Shazam! The Monster Society of Evil trade paperback
Steel #45-50
Superboy (Vol. 3) #46-51
Superboy and the Ravers #16-19
Superboy/Risk Double Shot #1
Supergirl (Vol. 4) #16-21
Supergirl/Prysm Double Shot #1
Superman #713
Superman/Batman #86
Team Superman Secret Files #1
War of the Green Lanterns: Aftermath #1
Young Justice (Vol. 2) #5

Total: 37 comics, 2 trades (Year total: 285 comics, 10 trades)

I started the BATMAN CHRONICLES volume last month, but finished it up in August. I also started SHOWCASE PRESENTS: JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA Vol. 4. This volume collects JUSTICE LEAGUE OF AMERICA #61-83. These issues wrap up Gardner Fox and Mike Sekowsky’s runs and kick off Denny O’Neil and Dick Dillin runs. The JLA/JSA crossover in these issues introduces (again for the first time) the Superman of Earth-Two (though he was mentioned in a line of dialogue in prior issue).

On the Reading Project front, in August I bid farewell to SUPERBOY AND THE RAVERS and am winding down on STEEL, with only a couple more issues to go. I really feel bad for that title. It never really got off of the ground. John Henry Irons is a strong character, but I’m not convinced Louise Simonson had a completely fleshed out idea of where she wanted to go with the character when the title started. And then there were many events and crossovers that derailed the title even more. By the time Priest came on, I think it was too far gone.

Crossovers have to plagued the character from his beginning. He was born out of “Reign of the Supermen.” Nothing wrong with that; characters frequently spin out of from events. But when given his own ongoing, that title was dragged into “World’s Collide,” “Zero Hour” and the Zero month all within the first nine issues. Less than a year later, issue 21 saw an “Underworld Unleashed” tie-in. It was finally crossover free for nearly two years, but had some uneven times when Simonson left and Priest started.

Issue 43 saw the title involved with “Genesis” and the title’s 50th issue was derailed by the “Millennium Giants” story. A non-A-list character making fifty issues today is an extreme rarity and even in the nineties it was nothing to sneeze at. Granted, the character had a little higher profile spinning out of “Reign,” but dozens of characters have had even higher hype behind them and never made it near 50 issues.

Sadly, “Millennium Giants” might have been the final nail in the coffin for Steel’s ongoing and the title was canceled two issues later. Steel then moved on to being a member of the JLA and eventually a run as a supporting character during Mark Schultz’s run on SUPERMAN: THE MAN OF STEEL. However, little significant was done with the the character in either place, save for being crippled and taken out of the game during yet another crossover, “Our Worlds at War” (and the aftermath).

Eventually he got better, but the character was pretty much off the table until 2006 with 52 and the spin-out book, INFINITY INC. (yep, another event or spinoff from). Even worse, 52 and INFINITY INC. were less about Steel and more about Lex Luthor and Natasha Irons, respectively. (In INFINITY INC., he made only one or two brief appearances as Steel; the rest of the time, he was the armor-less John Henry.)

He was then brought back into the super-titles, but ended up being used as cannon fodder and put in a hospital until the big “get all the heroes together to beat the bad guy” ending. Most recently, he was to finally get his own one-shot. but the original plans for that were jettisoned in favor of using that issue to kick off another event: the “Reign of the Doomsday” storyline.

I really hope “Flashpoint” and the DCnU won’t be the death knell for the character. As I recall, Grant Morrison said he would be appearing in his first issue of ACTION COMICS, but would be “much different.” As I write this, that issue is a week away from release and we likely won’t get the full scope of what has been done to him for a while. So, let’s keep our fingers crossed.

Anyway… getting back to The Stack.

SHAZAM! THE MONSTER SOCIETY OF EVIL was a very fun read. I highly recommend it for those of you who have young children. The all-ages title BILLY BATSON AND THE MAGIC OF SHAZAM! loosely follows it. But, you don’t need to read or know anything about one to enjoy the other.

But that’s it, I think. In just a couple days, I will be receiving my latest shipment, which will have the last month’s worth of books prior to the DCnU. So, I will be saying my own farewell to the prior continuity over the next month and at the same time, welcoming the new.

June 1st, 2011  Posted at   The Stack
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May brought a slight rebound in the ol’ comics reading. Still not where it was, but with the comics I read for “The Thrilling Adventures of Superman” and “Legends of the Batman,” which aren’t included in The Stack, this may be what is now a normal month. Here’s May:

Action Comics #899
Brightest Day #23
Eradicator #1-3
Fallen Angel: Return of the Son #3
Green Lantern (Vol. 4) #64
Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 2) #58
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #8
Jimmy Olsen #1
JLA 80-Page Giant 2011
Justice League of America/The 99 #6
Steel #29-33
Superboy (Vol. 3) #30-32
Superboy and the Ravers #1-2
Superboy Annual (Vol. 2) #3
Supergirl (Vol. 4) #1-3
Supergirl (Vol. 5) #62
Superman/Batman #82
Batman Chronicles, Vol. 4 trade paperback

Total: 28 comics, 1 trade (Year total: 153 comics, 7 trades)

That’s not a complaint, mind you. I love doing both shows. It just has the unfortunate consequence of cutting into my regular reading.

I also started reading SHOWCASE PRESENTS: SUPERMAN FAMILY, Vol. 3. (Oddly, this is my first SHowcase volume of the year!) But, it has been great Silver Age goodness from Jimmy Olsen and Lois Lane titles. It’s a shame this is the last Superman Family volume to date (and that the Showcase Presents line has slowed period, as there is a lot more material DC could use for future volumes).

But, hey, look at that there reading project! ERADICATOR, SUPERGIRL (Vol. 4) and SUPERBOY AND THE RAVERS finally made the list this month. I’m only three issues in, but enjoying SUPERGIRL just as much this time around. Good stuff. Even SUPERBOY AND THE RAVERS is again enjoyable, which surprised me.

Last month, I mentioned I might be dropping the Green Lantern titles post-“War of the Green Lanterns” if that story didn’t renew my interest. I’m only three parts in, but have really been enjoying it. So far, it’s done a lot to reinvigorate my interest in those titles. So if the rest of the story holds up, I’ll be sticking around. We’ll see.

April 1st, 2011  Posted at   The Stack
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Well, March was a little better than February, but I’m still not back up to reading what I was. Too many other things taking up my time lately, it seems.

Here’s March:

Action Comics #897-898
Adventure Comics #523
All New Batman: Brave and the Bold #4
Brightest Day #19-20
Fallen Angel: Return of the Son #2
Flash (Vol. 3) #9
Green Lantern (Vol. 4) #62
Green Lantern Corps (Vol. 2) #57
Green Lantern: Emerald Warriors #7
Justice League of America/The 99 #4
R.E.B.E.L.S. #25
Steel #21-25
Superboy (Vol. 3) #21-25
Supergirl (Vol. 5) #61
Superman #708
Superman 80-Page Giant 2011
Superman/Batman #81
Time Masters: Vanishing Point #6
Tiny Titans #37
Young Justice (Vol. 2) #1
Batman Chronicles Vol. 3 trade paperback
Diana Prince: Wonder Woman Vol. 1-2 trade paperbacks

Total: 30 comics, 3 trades (Year total: 106 comics, 4 trades)

In March, I also started on the third DIANA PRINCE: WONDER WOMAN volume, so I’ll very likely finish it and the fourth volume in the coming month. These are interesting reads — very much products of their times. I’m enjoying them, but they’re a bit of a nag because they have the same “problem” I find with a lot of Bronze Age DC Comics. And that “problem” is that they’re doing a lot of revving the engine, but not quite willing, yet, to put the pedal to the floor. They’re trying to be more socially relevant and turn things on their ear, but still hesitating slightly. Still, I’m enjoying them and am glad I picked them up. (And who thought I’d say that about a Wonder Woman comic?!)

On the reading project front, I’m still working though the re-read of the Superman Family titles from the ’90s. I didn’t quite keep pace like I thought I would, so I didn’t start on either SUPERBOY AND THE RAVERS or SUPERGIRL (Vol. 4). Both books were a little farther down the pike than I thought. I might get to them in April. I’ve also decided to toss in the four-issue ERADICATOR mini-series, just for good measure, so I’ll get to that in the next month or so, as well.


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