Before I get rolling, I have to make a correction. The R.I.P. story began in BATMAN 676, not 675 as I alluded to in the last post. Also, the trade ad has it in BATMAN and the OUTSIDERS, but I have not seen it, nor do I really care about it.
It was pointed out to me by Jim that the spin-off books have been not really all that helpful in driving the story forward. I would agree. To me the poorest effort has been in ROBIN. He spends the night looking for someone who took a camera phone picture of Batman to determine if he really has gone nuts. OK, challenge time. Go find the issue (#176) and look at the photo on page 5 ( or maybe 6 if you count ads). Go ahead, I'll wait. Find it? Good. Tell me something. Other than some stubble, how can you tell if he's gone nuts? Wouldn't Batman look like that to any street thug or criminal lowlife? Wouldn't he scowl at them to make them wet their pants? This is the determining factor that Robin us using? I know he found the dossier that Bruce made in his early days, but the photo was the tipping point? And don't get me started on the whole Spoiler thing. I think she brings waaay to much drama into Robin/Tim's life. Should have stayed with Zoanne, but that's for another time. NIGHTWING is just started to get into the R.I.P. story, or at least I think so. In his book, Dick is taking on a task for Two-Face and gets shot by someone. There is very little if any mention of what is going on in BATMAN. Then why do they bother to put the R.I.P. label on the top of the book? Considering that Dick is in Arkham drugged out of his mind over in BATMAN, we have no idea where Nightwing is going to end up.
Onto the main book, BATMAN. Maybe this is a slow burn, I'm not sure or not that smart. There are plot threads which only have 2 more issues to wrap up. How does Jezebel Jet fit into all this and where the heck is she? After showing her the Batcave, is most intimate place in the world, she basically calls him psychotic and implies that the whole "Black Hand" could be in his head. Is Alfred supposed to be the mastermind behind this? One moment it looks that way, the next he's getting the living snot beat out of him in the Batcave. Then out of nowhere, Bat-Mite appears and Bruce spends most of the next issue having a conversation with him. The Black Hand has taken control of the Batcave and the next issue teases the Joker. They sprung him in the first part but haven't seen him since.
I think we'll find out that this "Zur-en-arrh" trigger was planted in Bruce's mind when he was Narda Parabat while he has mediating during the 52 mini series. Someone, maybe Ra's al Guhl did this to him to strike at Bruce's heart and soul. I found something recently and it grabbed my attention. In DC UNIVERSE Zero, basically a primer for all the big series they are going to be doing, there is a conversation between Batman and Joker in Arkham. In it, Joker tell Batman that he is about to get his head handed to him by some "some very, very bad people have decided to hurt you. Because they can, Because they think you deserve it.". Obviously the Joker will play some part in this, because "Robin has been promised to him.".
So, what is the endgame here? Will Bruce give up the mantle of the Bat to someone like Dick or Jason? Unlikely, since Dick is doing well over in NIGHTWING and I don't think that Tim would trust Jason enough to continue on as Batman and Robin. We saw in the opening page of this story that Batman and Robin are still together six months in the future. Will there be some wild card out there who will show up to help? Again, unlikely. Does anyone out there have a clue, outside of Grant Morrison? Because I fail to see where this is going to end. I guess I'm just not that savvy.
Overall, I've enjoyed the story. It does take you out of your comfort zone in reading it, and if done properly, that can be an enjoyable thing. I do know this. Once this wraps up, I'll be breaking out all the issues to see where I missed something and how it will all be tied together nice and neatly.
I hope.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Batman- R.I.P......or DOA?
Hey there gang.
Rather than write a review of an individual book, I was asked for my opinon on the storyline of Batman- R.I.P. (Thanks for the suggestion Jim, I am sorry about the lateness of the post.)
Now, I have to say that while I am not a Grant Morrison fanboy, I have enjoyed most of his work. JLA, X-Men were fun reads more often than not. So far, this has been a disorienting read. Bruce has gone certifably nuts and is talking to not only Bat-Mite, but gargoyles and other objects. The wording and look of his word balloons give the appearence of someone who has come completely unhinged, almost like someone from Arkham. The Black Hand has taken control of the Batcave and have beaten the living crap out of Alfred. Poor Alfred. The Star Trek redshirt of the Batman universe. The guy controlling the Black Hand is "Thomas Wayne". I put quotes around this because we are expected to believe that this is Bruce's long-dead father? If this turns out to be true (and I suspect it won't), Morrison will have committed the ultimate sin in my book. At least when they have brought back Bucky and Jason Todd, they have done it with some conviction and a decent backstory as to why (Bucky's is better than Jason in my book).
Originally I thought that this was going to be self-contained in the two core books (BATMAN and DETECTIVE), but this was spun into both NIGHTWING and ROBIN. This illustrates my point about "event" books. If had stayed with the two, you would have had only input from 2 writers (Paul Dini writes DET.) but now you have to include 2 more (Peter Tomasi writes Nightwing and Fabian Nicieza has just taken up the writing chores for ROBIN right before this started) so now Grant's story becomes even more diluted. Yes, I'm sure that the other writers had a hand in planning this, but this is supposed to be Grant's opus. The spin-off books have been just that. DETECTIVE is working the origin of Hush into this. It turns out that he was introduced to one of Bat's rogues (Scarecrow) at an early age. It looks as if the 2 are working together. My one problem with this is continunity. Not the Scarecrow/Hush angle. That I can live with. It's the fact that in here, Batman is sane and working with Robin and Nightwing and even Catwoman. He hasn't gone 'round the bend yet. There is a mention of the Black Hand in here, but would it be too much to put a box saying "These events occur before Batman 675"?
There is so much to go on about that I am going to break this post up into 2 parts. The next post will address ROBIN, NIGHTWING and BATMAN books and what I think it going to come out of all this.
Rather than write a review of an individual book, I was asked for my opinon on the storyline of Batman- R.I.P. (Thanks for the suggestion Jim, I am sorry about the lateness of the post.)
Now, I have to say that while I am not a Grant Morrison fanboy, I have enjoyed most of his work. JLA, X-Men were fun reads more often than not. So far, this has been a disorienting read. Bruce has gone certifably nuts and is talking to not only Bat-Mite, but gargoyles and other objects. The wording and look of his word balloons give the appearence of someone who has come completely unhinged, almost like someone from Arkham. The Black Hand has taken control of the Batcave and have beaten the living crap out of Alfred. Poor Alfred. The Star Trek redshirt of the Batman universe. The guy controlling the Black Hand is "Thomas Wayne". I put quotes around this because we are expected to believe that this is Bruce's long-dead father? If this turns out to be true (and I suspect it won't), Morrison will have committed the ultimate sin in my book. At least when they have brought back Bucky and Jason Todd, they have done it with some conviction and a decent backstory as to why (Bucky's is better than Jason in my book).
Originally I thought that this was going to be self-contained in the two core books (BATMAN and DETECTIVE), but this was spun into both NIGHTWING and ROBIN. This illustrates my point about "event" books. If had stayed with the two, you would have had only input from 2 writers (Paul Dini writes DET.) but now you have to include 2 more (Peter Tomasi writes Nightwing and Fabian Nicieza has just taken up the writing chores for ROBIN right before this started) so now Grant's story becomes even more diluted. Yes, I'm sure that the other writers had a hand in planning this, but this is supposed to be Grant's opus. The spin-off books have been just that. DETECTIVE is working the origin of Hush into this. It turns out that he was introduced to one of Bat's rogues (Scarecrow) at an early age. It looks as if the 2 are working together. My one problem with this is continunity. Not the Scarecrow/Hush angle. That I can live with. It's the fact that in here, Batman is sane and working with Robin and Nightwing and even Catwoman. He hasn't gone 'round the bend yet. There is a mention of the Black Hand in here, but would it be too much to put a box saying "These events occur before Batman 675"?
There is so much to go on about that I am going to break this post up into 2 parts. The next post will address ROBIN, NIGHTWING and BATMAN books and what I think it going to come out of all this.
Friday, August 15, 2008
DC Superheroes- The Filmation Adventures
A review.
If you're older than 35, you probably remember Saturday morning cartoons. From usually 7am until noon, they populated our universe. Sadly, like much of what was good and fun, it's been taken away or diluted. If you were a comic lover, it was a great time. There was Spider-Man, and the Superman-Batman Adventures. Sure the animation wasn't Disney, but there were our heroes in all their technicolor glory having the fights and adventures with the bad guys we read in the comics.
This DVD is composed of those adventures with the "supporting cast" of the SBA crowd. I always look forward to these since they were a cool change of pace from Supes and Bats. The lineup consists of the Atom, Green Lantern, Flash, Hawkman, Justice League of America, and the Teen Titans. Their origins and even the titles are taken from the Silver Age, which fits since these were all created in 1967 or '68. There is 3 stories for each character or group, with no real underlying story thread tying them together. They were written by George Kashdan, except for one Flash cartoon.
I must raise my geek flag and nit pick a little. They introduce Aquaman in the JLA cartoon beginning but never use him. They use Superman, I guess for name recognition, but not Batman? Also, they use Aqualad in the Teen Titans but not Robin? Upon reflection, maybe it was because the live action show was on at the time. But back then there wasn't a term like "synergy", so I don't know why he wasn't there. I wasn't a big GL fan the way I am today, but the kid sidekick from Venus? What's up with that? Hawkman and Atom didn't have sidekicks (OK there was a bird for Hawkman, but he wasn't getting into trouble, so he doesn't count) in their toons.
In watching these, you remember that while you loved these, you were also somewhat frustrated at them. The use of stock footage over and over became a gag for shows like the Simpsons and Family Guy. The fast and easy resolution to these were sometimes (OK most of the time) hokey and headscratching. You wanted to see more action, more of your hero doing what he does best. The use of flashing lights and piercing sounds could give you a headache if watched for hours. Still, these are great peeks into the past. The voiceovers are a trip in the way back machine (anyone else remember and love Ted Knight from the Mary Tyler Moor Show? He does all the narration and some of the minor character voices.) and consistent. The actors who do the voices for Superman and Aqualad do them here. They strike a tone of who the character acted like in the comics back then. For Silver Age fans, these are a great look back at your heroes in their prime.
Fun? Yep. Mindlessness? You betcha. But also a nice remembrance of a time not that long ago that we may never see again.
Grade: B-/C+ (would it have killed Warner to clean these up just a little?)
If you're older than 35, you probably remember Saturday morning cartoons. From usually 7am until noon, they populated our universe. Sadly, like much of what was good and fun, it's been taken away or diluted. If you were a comic lover, it was a great time. There was Spider-Man, and the Superman-Batman Adventures. Sure the animation wasn't Disney, but there were our heroes in all their technicolor glory having the fights and adventures with the bad guys we read in the comics.
This DVD is composed of those adventures with the "supporting cast" of the SBA crowd. I always look forward to these since they were a cool change of pace from Supes and Bats. The lineup consists of the Atom, Green Lantern, Flash, Hawkman, Justice League of America, and the Teen Titans. Their origins and even the titles are taken from the Silver Age, which fits since these were all created in 1967 or '68. There is 3 stories for each character or group, with no real underlying story thread tying them together. They were written by George Kashdan, except for one Flash cartoon.
I must raise my geek flag and nit pick a little. They introduce Aquaman in the JLA cartoon beginning but never use him. They use Superman, I guess for name recognition, but not Batman? Also, they use Aqualad in the Teen Titans but not Robin? Upon reflection, maybe it was because the live action show was on at the time. But back then there wasn't a term like "synergy", so I don't know why he wasn't there. I wasn't a big GL fan the way I am today, but the kid sidekick from Venus? What's up with that? Hawkman and Atom didn't have sidekicks (OK there was a bird for Hawkman, but he wasn't getting into trouble, so he doesn't count) in their toons.
In watching these, you remember that while you loved these, you were also somewhat frustrated at them. The use of stock footage over and over became a gag for shows like the Simpsons and Family Guy. The fast and easy resolution to these were sometimes (OK most of the time) hokey and headscratching. You wanted to see more action, more of your hero doing what he does best. The use of flashing lights and piercing sounds could give you a headache if watched for hours. Still, these are great peeks into the past. The voiceovers are a trip in the way back machine (anyone else remember and love Ted Knight from the Mary Tyler Moor Show? He does all the narration and some of the minor character voices.) and consistent. The actors who do the voices for Superman and Aqualad do them here. They strike a tone of who the character acted like in the comics back then. For Silver Age fans, these are a great look back at your heroes in their prime.
Fun? Yep. Mindlessness? You betcha. But also a nice remembrance of a time not that long ago that we may never see again.
Grade: B-/C+ (would it have killed Warner to clean these up just a little?)
Monday, August 11, 2008
Is it just me?
Gang, I really, really need some input on this please.
Is it just me or does it seem that people really don't give a crap about how they go about their job anymore? I realize that I am wired differently than most. But it drives me nuts when in the course of doing my job, I encounter some shabby or really shitty work done by someone who is supposed to be in a position of authority. When I go to someone else in management, I usually get dismissed or told something along the lines of "well, that's the way so and so does it".
But if they are doing it in a halfassed way, shouldn't someone say "look assclown, either do it right or don't bother doing it at all."? Maybe they are waiting for someone to say that so they don't have to do the work, I really don't know.
I know that I am old school. I don't care what your job is, take some freaking pride in doing a good job. It should reflect well on you and hopefully someone will notice.
So, am I stupid or what?
Oh by the way, review is on deck for tomorrow.
Is it just me or does it seem that people really don't give a crap about how they go about their job anymore? I realize that I am wired differently than most. But it drives me nuts when in the course of doing my job, I encounter some shabby or really shitty work done by someone who is supposed to be in a position of authority. When I go to someone else in management, I usually get dismissed or told something along the lines of "well, that's the way so and so does it".
But if they are doing it in a halfassed way, shouldn't someone say "look assclown, either do it right or don't bother doing it at all."? Maybe they are waiting for someone to say that so they don't have to do the work, I really don't know.
I know that I am old school. I don't care what your job is, take some freaking pride in doing a good job. It should reflect well on you and hopefully someone will notice.
So, am I stupid or what?
Oh by the way, review is on deck for tomorrow.
Saturday, August 9, 2008
DUH!!!
That above sentiment is directed at yours truly after seeing that he labeled the last 2 post the exact same thing. ASSHAT!
-Caught a bit of the opening ceremonies at the Olympics. Wasn't going to, but took a peek and man was I glad I did. That opening part was mindblowing. The choreography, the tech, the costumes, it was awe inspiring. I don't give a crap about the politics of the country, all I know is that the people put on one hell of a show.
-I am deciding which book to review for your enjoyment later on in the weekend. Have a couple of obvious choices, but may go off script.
I take my leave of you all as I go climb into bed next to the love of my life. Yeah the wife will be there too (KIDDING!!!).
Be good all! =)
-Caught a bit of the opening ceremonies at the Olympics. Wasn't going to, but took a peek and man was I glad I did. That opening part was mindblowing. The choreography, the tech, the costumes, it was awe inspiring. I don't give a crap about the politics of the country, all I know is that the people put on one hell of a show.
-I am deciding which book to review for your enjoyment later on in the weekend. Have a couple of obvious choices, but may go off script.
I take my leave of you all as I go climb into bed next to the love of my life. Yeah the wife will be there too (KIDDING!!!).
Be good all! =)
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
Some thoughts and musings
I'm awake so it's time to put some things down.
-Why are the "event" books this summer feel like they are just spinning their wheels? I know this may seem like heresy, but the 3 I am following (RIP,SI,FC) feel like maybe a too slow a burn. But it's probably me.
-The news that THE DARK KNIGHT is about to overtake that piece of crap TITANIC fills me with both elation and dread. I can finally stop hearing from my wife every time she pops that piece of dung in the DVD player that, "well, it is the highest grossing movie ever." If she stopped after grossing I would have agreed with her. My dread is that this is it. We have it hit the pinnacle of movies as comic fans. After living through DAREDEVIL and and the first HULK film, we have climbed the mountain to achieve our little piece of success. We saw the fantasy genre hit the high water mark with the LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy, and they have not been able to top that since. Mind you, it was the BATMAN franchise that sort of killed us before (thanks Joel Scheumacher) and we have been slowly climbing back from the rubble since. The X-Men and Spider-Man franchises were big components to letting us shine our geek and comic lights. Now with both IRON MAN,HELLBOY and TDK earning both critical and commercial success, we stand proud in the light and say "Yes, I do read comics! And you know what? 300 and so on are based on comics! HA HA! We WIN!" But as we all know, once you've hit the top, there is only one way to go: down.
There is hope that the inevitable fall will not be so dramatic as last time. The WATCHMEN movie has people giddy and non comic fans asking about it. But, even there some of my fears are being realized. It's almost a year before it is due for release, and it's on the cover of Entertainment Weekly? Most of us were worried about the hype surrounding TDK killing it. WATCHMEN may outdo that, if that's possible. Some of the other ones that have been announced (Ant-Man?!?!?) leave me scratching my head. But for now, I will enjoy my walk in the sun as a proud unabashed fan of comics and will never let my flag hang low. I will, however, enjoy bashing the hell out of the posers who claim they "know" the comics of which they try to speak of. Let's try to keep them from eating us from within, shall we?
-On a final note, I read my friend Jim Martin's blog about the Image previews. Jim, I used to read SPAWN for many years, much to Shawn's dismay. The solicit for not only McFarlane but Portacio to come back to it on a regular basis has me somewhat geeked. I might (stress the word MIGHT) be tempted to pick an issue and see what happens. SPAWN was the comic that brought me back to comics (much to my wife's eternal frustration) so I feel like a first love or girlfriend has asked me to try again. I've been burned before, but you can't say no to that first love.
-Why are the "event" books this summer feel like they are just spinning their wheels? I know this may seem like heresy, but the 3 I am following (RIP,SI,FC) feel like maybe a too slow a burn. But it's probably me.
-The news that THE DARK KNIGHT is about to overtake that piece of crap TITANIC fills me with both elation and dread. I can finally stop hearing from my wife every time she pops that piece of dung in the DVD player that, "well, it is the highest grossing movie ever." If she stopped after grossing I would have agreed with her. My dread is that this is it. We have it hit the pinnacle of movies as comic fans. After living through DAREDEVIL and and the first HULK film, we have climbed the mountain to achieve our little piece of success. We saw the fantasy genre hit the high water mark with the LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy, and they have not been able to top that since. Mind you, it was the BATMAN franchise that sort of killed us before (thanks Joel Scheumacher) and we have been slowly climbing back from the rubble since. The X-Men and Spider-Man franchises were big components to letting us shine our geek and comic lights. Now with both IRON MAN,HELLBOY and TDK earning both critical and commercial success, we stand proud in the light and say "Yes, I do read comics! And you know what? 300 and so on are based on comics! HA HA! We WIN!" But as we all know, once you've hit the top, there is only one way to go: down.
There is hope that the inevitable fall will not be so dramatic as last time. The WATCHMEN movie has people giddy and non comic fans asking about it. But, even there some of my fears are being realized. It's almost a year before it is due for release, and it's on the cover of Entertainment Weekly? Most of us were worried about the hype surrounding TDK killing it. WATCHMEN may outdo that, if that's possible. Some of the other ones that have been announced (Ant-Man?!?!?) leave me scratching my head. But for now, I will enjoy my walk in the sun as a proud unabashed fan of comics and will never let my flag hang low. I will, however, enjoy bashing the hell out of the posers who claim they "know" the comics of which they try to speak of. Let's try to keep them from eating us from within, shall we?
-On a final note, I read my friend Jim Martin's blog about the Image previews. Jim, I used to read SPAWN for many years, much to Shawn's dismay. The solicit for not only McFarlane but Portacio to come back to it on a regular basis has me somewhat geeked. I might (stress the word MIGHT) be tempted to pick an issue and see what happens. SPAWN was the comic that brought me back to comics (much to my wife's eternal frustration) so I feel like a first love or girlfriend has asked me to try again. I've been burned before, but you can't say no to that first love.
Monday, August 4, 2008
MIA....again
Hey there all.
I am really sorry about not posting more, but things have been conspiring to keep my brain fried.
I promise that in the coming weeks, there will be more content.
Oh, and one other thing. I have decided that when I do a review of some comics, it will be a one at a time deal. That way I can give it more time and thought.
Thanks for your patience. I love ya, guys! =)
I am really sorry about not posting more, but things have been conspiring to keep my brain fried.
I promise that in the coming weeks, there will be more content.
Oh, and one other thing. I have decided that when I do a review of some comics, it will be a one at a time deal. That way I can give it more time and thought.
Thanks for your patience. I love ya, guys! =)
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