DC Comics Thread

[Sven]

So what are you going to stick with?

Lesse. Definites:

Justice League Dark
OMAC
Action Comics
Stormwatch
Demon Knights
Captain Atom
Red Lanterns

Maybe:

Suicide Squad
Superman
Swamp Thing
Men of War
Batwoman
Batman
DC Universe Presents: Deadman

I recognize the wonkiness of a definite OMAC and a maybe Superman given my prospective ratings. But believe it, baby.

[ledfloyd]

i was underwhelmed by justice league dark, but i actually really enjoyed all-star western. i like how it plays off the gates of gotham, the return of bruce wayne and gotham by gaslight. i've never read a jonah hex book before, but i dug it. also, the art was gorgeous.

issue #2s i intend to read.

Action Comics
Animal Man
Batman
Batwoman
Demon Knights
Swamp Thing

and i'll probably give Wonder Woman and Justice League Dark another shot more out of allegiance to the creators than the strength of the #1s. i thought Batgirl and All-Star Western were enjoyable but i'm not sure i will bother keeping up with them month to month. Justice League, Detective Comics and Frankenstein just didn't do anything for me. i think that covers everything i've read.

[megladon8]

I love George Perez.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Hey E, if I download the digital copies from DC's website, is it stored on my HD, or does it just give me access to it on their website? Would I be able to transfer the comic to another computer?

[Ezee E]

Hey E, if I download the digital copies from DC's website, is it stored on my HD, or does it just give me access to it on their website? Would I be able to transfer the comic to another computer?

As far as I've figured, you can only get it by logging into the website. I haven't tried saving it to my own computer yet.

[Ezee E]

As far as I've figured, you can only get it by logging into the website. I haven't tried saving it to my own computer yet.

With that... I'm really glad 8 spoiled that awful look of Dark Knight, cause I got a comic I wouldn't have otherwise...

All-Star Western - might be my favorite out of the whole "New 52." Exactly what I want out of a comic. A story that doesn't mind just throwing characters into a new situation instead of showing how they got their powers, etc. Good artwork, and nothing cheesy or over the top in the panels. Yeah. I dug this a ton.

Superman - As mentioned, not a big Superman fan. This wasn't something I was intending on getting, but with Dark Knight out of the way, I was poised for something. Sven's 4-star rating caught my eye, and boy, this was actually quite good too. An advanced Superman story, so it felt like you were brought right in, and a hell of a way to start. Damn.

Flash - Booooo... Who cares.

[Ezee E]

With that... I'm really glad 8 spoiled that awful look of Dark Knight, cause I got a comic I wouldn't have otherwise...

All-Star Western - might be my favorite out of the whole "New 52." Exactly what I want out of a comic. A story that doesn't mind just throwing characters into a new situation instead of showing how they got their powers, etc. Good artwork, and nothing cheesy or over the top in the panels. Yeah. I dug this a ton.

Superman - As mentioned, not a big Superman fan. This wasn't something I was intending on getting, but with Dark Knight out of the way, I was poised for something. Sven's 4-star rating caught my eye, and boy, this was actually quite good too. An advanced Superman story, so it felt like you were brought right in, and a hell of a way to start. Damn.

Flash - Booooo... Who cares.

So....

STICKING WITH:
Action Comics
Detective Comics
Animal Man
Superman
All-Star Western
Batman
Batwoman
Batgirl

MAYBE....:
Swamp Thing

EW...:
Suicide Squad
Men of War
Flash
Batman & Robin
Wonder Woman

Anything I should check out last minute?

[number8]

The biggest surprise was Aquaman

Not I, Vampire? People are calling it the sleeper hit of the whole relaunch, and you seem to think it's good, too.

[sevenarts]

EW...:
Flash
Wonder Woman

This is just crazy talk, those are 2 of the most fun issues out of the whole relaunch. Otherwise, out of my favorites you're missing Demon Knights and Justice League Dark.

I've been posting reviews of all the New 52 titles and I've done the last week now:
http://thinkinginpanels.blogspot.com...r-28-2011.html

[number8]

Not interested in Teen Titans because Lobdell = meh, but ha, I love the idea of Tim Drake being behind wikileaks.

[Sven]

Not I, Vampire? People are calling it the sleeper hit of the whole relaunch, and you seem to think it's good, too.

Yeah, on further consideration, I think higher of it. It was kind of a difficult read. Temporally jumbled story with projected dialogue at the service of a vampire romance. My brain was seriously fighting it, but two-thirds of the way through, it all started clicking and understanding, as well as emotion and good will, began to cascade through me. "This is a good book."

So yeah, you're probably right that it was a bigger surprise.

[number8]

I think my problem with Aquaman is that it's too much of an apologia. Johns basically crammed every criticism anyone can have about Aquaman and actively refutes them. It came across as desperate to me.

"Talking to fish is stupid."
"NO I DON'T TALK TO FISH FISH ARE STUPID I TELL THEM WHAT TO DO."

"You know, nobody thinks you're cool."
"YEAH WELL I'M STILL HERE HELPING PEOPLE ANYWAY. DO YOU FEEL GUILTY NOW?"

Meh. I do admit, though, that it was surprisingly funny and fast for a Johns book. He's usually too stoic to enjoy.

[sevenarts]

I agree with number8 on Aquaman. It really hammers the Aquaman-is-a-punchline thing home, and all Aquaman himself does is glare at everyone while they make fun of him. It's pretty silly. It's not a bad issue but so far Johns seems to be setting up the hero to be a bit of a humorless jerk. The flashes of horror setup at the beginning and the end were much more promising to me than the bulk of the rest of the issue.

[Sven]

It's not a bad issue but so far Johns seems to be setting up the hero to be a bit of a humorless jerk.

Well, that's always been a bit of an Aquaman trait. An aggressive loner with no patience for BS, which is why he's such a great foil on team books. But the image of the character from this issue that has resonated with me is that of his pensive stare against a backdrop of ocean through the glass of a seafood restaurant window.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Made a pull list at our comic book store for my son. He's getting Action, Demon Knights, The Flash, and Swamp Thing, with the caveat that I have to read the issues first to make sure they're appropriate.

We're doing this as an incentive with school. Each week that he comes home without any grade lower than a B, he gets whatever new issues came out that week.

I'm going to be getting other titles digitally. Haven't decided which ones yet.

[number8]

If you're gonna get some for yourself, make sure you get Batman and Batwoman, yo.

[Kurosawa Fan]

Read the four comics. Would rate them as such:

1. Swamp Thing (this was awesome)
2. Demon Knights (cool opening, sets up an interesting premise)
3. Action Comics ("cocky" young Supes seems like a stale premise, but I liked the writing)
4. The Flash (meh to both the art and the writing)

So far, nothing objectionable. My son already devoured all four as well. He LOVED Swamp Thing, liked Action and Demon Knights (but he thought this was a bit slow), and was indifferent toward The Flash.

[megladon8]

So glad both you and your son dug "Swamp Thing", KF!! I think it may be my favorite of the bunch so far (the only thing that may best it is "Batwoman").

I wasn't sure about the gruesome ending - if you would worry about your son reading that. I guess it wasn't a problem.

[Kurosawa Fan]

I wasn't sure about the gruesome ending - if you would worry about your son reading that. I guess it wasn't a problem.

Nah, that wasn't too gruesome. He has cousins (one of whom is only six) that can play pretty much any video game they want, and are always telling him about Resident Evil and Left 4 Dead and the like, so he's pretty "zombie" obsessed, and always feels left out when they're telling him about that stuff. This will give him a little bit of ammo the next time they're around.

[Sven]

Yeah, maybe sevenarts can illuminate The Flash issue a little more...? It's so limp. Talk about a nothing hook: oh no! Many Manuels! How is this supposed to interest me when the Flash is a master of dimensional space and can time travel? Not to mention that opening action scene where he appears to be moving way too slowly. I like Manapul's art, sure, but a writer I fear he is woefully not.

KF, I'm happy to hear of your experience and set-up. Many people are grumbly and dismissive of the reboot, but I've also heard too many stories like yours to be pessimistic. Plus, more comics is a categorical positive.

[EyesWideOpen]

I haven't been reading any of the new DC 52 but I have been reading this thread and checking the usual sites to hear about peoples thoughts on them.

ifanboy a comic site I respect and have been going to for a long time gave The Flash their "book of the week" award. It's interesting seeing the wildly different perspectives on sites and then here.

[sevenarts]

Yeah I loved The Flash. The art is gorgeous, and not just in a "oh it's a bunch of pretty drawings" kind of way - this is really sophisticated visual storytelling. Like the page I highlighted where the Flash falls into the sewer and the middle column of panels shows his progress. I like that in order to communicate speed, Manapul has, paradoxically, slowed things down so that many of the action scenes give the impression of catching glimpses of the Flash frozen at a particular instant, then another instant, then another. The effect is a little like Muybridge's rapid-succession motion photos, and that sense of movement is really important in a comic about a super-fast man. I love the busy, detailed page where the Flash, out of costume, darts all around his apartment doing various domestic chores even while trying to figure out what's going on. I love the way Manapul shows the slight dazed smile on Flash's face and then follows it with a big panel of Iris looking down on him through the hole he made in the ground, so that at first we think Flash is just dazed from the fall and then the real source of the smile becomes clear. I think this is just first-class superhero comics: fun, funny, fast-paced and with just enough character beats to suggest that there's a real guy under the mask.

The bad guys initially seem a little generic, so I can understand being somewhat disappointed in that, but the twist at the end points the way forward to some fun sci-fi shenanigans. Not every superhero comic has to be about facing some huge, overpowering threat. I thought this was just a joy to read, especially since so many of the other New 52 titles are really conservative and backward-looking in terms of art. This is a comic that takes full advantage of the visual possibilities of a speeding hero, and that's all the hook I need.

[Kurosawa Fan]

I'm squeezing these in between school work, so extra commentary probably won't happen too often. What I've read so far:

Loved:
Batman
Batwoman
All Star Western
Swamp Thing

Liked:
Justice League Dark
Demon Knights
Action Comics

Indifferent:
Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.
The Flash

Disliked:
Catwoman

[Sven]

I like that in order to communicate speed, Manapul has, paradoxically, slowed things down so that many of the action scenes give the impression of catching glimpses of the Flash frozen at a particular instant, then another instant, then another. The effect is a little like Muybridge's rapid-succession motion photos, and that sense of movement is really important in a comic about a super-fast man

How many Flash comics have you read? Because that motion-photo technique has been the standard method of communicating his speed since his inception, pretty much. Definitely not invented by Manapul.

I love the busy, detailed page where the Flash, out of costume, darts all around his apartment doing various domestic chores even while trying to figure out what's going on.

Shots like these are a Flash standard. Manapul renders gorgeously, but he's not breaking any molds.

[Ezee E]

Woot for All-Star Western.