TOP TEN BEST COMICS OF 2022

[10] Justice Society of America #1 - "Legends Die Together, Too"

~ Geoff Johns & Mikel Janin

Yes! The main reason I loved this so much is because I had previously read the old Paul Levitz Adventure Comics E2 JSA stories with Huntress in them, specifically the one Johns uses as reference where Soul Thief empowers a criminal to kill Batman. This is the kind of continuity mining that I want in my comics!

The fact that this issue is titled "Legends Die Together, Too", a clear response to the Adventure Comics #462 title "Only Legends Live Forever!" is awesome.

I loved the roster of the future JSA, and the generations spanning conflict creates such a fun and epic scope for the twin JSA/Stargirl books that is 100% my bread and butter.

Sure the Watchmen stuff is extremely self-indulgent, but I'll give it a pass for my continuity-porn cape popcorn roller coaster comics.

[9] Riddler One Bad Day - "Dreadful Reins"

~ Tom King & Mitch Gerads

Riddler's Killing Joke!

I loved how terrifying King and Gerads were able to make the emerald enigma in this book. The flashbacks were great and addressing the cyclical nature of Batman and his rogues was done extremely well.

I'm a big fan of Batman when a writer is willing to evolve the character or take him in new directions that stay true to his portrayal across his entire history. This evolution of the Riddler was very fascinating, although this story does the most possible to elevate his threat level compared to all the other rogues.

Killing Joke was about two broken men taking trauma in polar directions: a study on the limits of sanity and the breaking points of good men. Dreadful Reins is all about the game; the rules of engagement when two geniuses decide to use the world as their chessboard. The last page was brilliant, and the ambiguous nature of if Batman broke and killed the Riddler vs if he just put him away once more to continue the game is thematically perfect for the overall Killing Joke parallel. I also loved Batman's final riddle, which reminded me a lot of one of Morrison's best Batman stories: "Time & The Batman". The mystery always comes knocking! It's for you to decide to get up and answer the door!

[8] Dark Crisis: Worlds Without a Justice League: Superman #1 - "Out There"

~ Tom King & Chris Burnham

Wow. I hope this issue brings Chris Burnham to the spotlight because he is one of the top 5 artists in the industry right now.

The backup brought this book down for me. I could feel a lot more pages left while reading my physical copy, and when I flipped to the last page and saw the transition to the aquaman story, I was pissed as heck.

Not the biggest fan of King dunking on Orion again, but I get the parallel between him and Jon (could have used Kalibak or Grayven!).

That last page hits hard, and the ["Fourteen"] sequence was one of the standouts.

Tom King's writing has really grown on me. I get that I have very different takes on characters than he does, but that doesn't mean his writing isn't good. It's like reading Identity Crisis; some of the Dibny + Jean Loring stuff may have gone too far but the book is still good IMO.

[7] A.X.E. : Judgement Day #1 - "A Victory By Erosion"

~ Kieron Gillen & Valerio Schiti

"Patience, Moira, Patience. Eternals are Eternal. If nothing else, we will win by erosion."

One of the best openings to an event comic I've seen in a long time. I'm a DC fanatic, but this year Gillen wiped the floor with Dark Crisis. The pacing was fantastic, and the stakes feel grounded because of all the build-up since Eternals and even Inferno/Immortal X-men.

I always find it interesting to see how certain writers and their works end up inspiring and influencing the next generation of creators. You can most definitely create a timeline starting with Kirby and Gardner Fox through Moore and Morrison all the way down to Johns and Hickman who then laid the foundations for Al Ewing and Kieron Gillen. This kind of multi-title/multi-year grand design storytelling is always a pleasure to consume, and I can't wait to see what Marvel pops out in the next year (and I pray that one day both of these creators will try something out at DC!).

[6] Defenders Beyond #4 - "Da'at: The Land of Couldn't-Be-Shouldn't-Be"

~ Al Ewing & Javier Rodriguez

And what then -- when your new timeline doesn't "make the grade"?! "Reboot after reboot", you said!! And each sooner than the last -- always hunting for the "perfect fix" until not even we know if we're the "true story" or your latest "maybe-verse"!

If you want to know what's wrong with DC right now, read this comic. Al Ewing just freaking gets it. He understands the mundaneness of the story serpent; every human on the planet knows the "Hero With A Thousand Faces" like the back of their hand! Al Ewing understands this, and that's why his stories are so good, because he takes it in a direction that is not on the map, a direction in a higher plane.

This is what art needs to do! It needs to evolve, and Al Ewing is one of the few actively trying to push the veil of comic book storytelling.

[5] Swamp Thing #14 - "The Alien Idea"

~ Ram V & Mike Perkins

Holy goated.

Not a page is wasted in this issue, every word chosen by V becomes a piece of this great debate's foundation. Mike Perkins' pencils are only a glimpse into the true vision of Ram V's elemental epic, but even that is more than enough. The symbiosis between Perkins and Spicer is incredible, and their ability to adapt V's world of cosmic beauty and horror to the page is a godsend.

This issue especially goes up against some of the best of Moore's original saga. I would even dare say that it's some of the best stuff done with the character ever.

[4] Black Adam #6 - "Akhet: Sins of the Father"

~ Christopher Priest & Eddy Barrows

Well god damn, that was fantastic. I love Rafa Sandoval, but Eddy Barrows killed this issue! Priest is the last bastion of kino cape-comics at DC right now, and I am loving every second of his run so far.

It's fascinating to see competent and skilled writers tackle a showdown story between two heavy hitters: something so simple to conceive but so simple to execute in an uninteresting and uninspired way. Priest both presents the clash in an unexpected and innovative way as well as loading it with powerful and relevant dialogue and stakes to give it some weight.

Let this be known: I am not a fan of the Rock's version of Black Adam. If the popularity boosts sales of Johns' JSA and 52 I'm all for it, but if it results in the character being shifted to resemble his movie's counterpart then you've completely lost me.

Thank God we're blessed with having Chris Priest working on this title to prevent any sort of movie influence from truly affecting the character.

[3] Danger Street #1 - "Atlas The Great"

~ Tom King & Jorge Fornes

Loved this! Now to read all the 13 issues of "1st Issue Special" to get backgrounds on all these characters!

I've been one of King's harshest critics in the past. I'm not a fan of his Batman. I'm not a fan of Heroes in Crisis. Even if I dislike his interpretations of our beloved Silver Age characters, I will admit that he is without a doubt one of the best writers of this generation.

The way Tom King structures his mini-series is brilliant: 12 issues is the perfect pace, a design that hits the sweet spot of publication and trade quotas while facilitating the growth of narrative at an optimal rate.

Another thing I adore is his use of obscure Silver and Bronze Age characters. Tom King is that invisible hand, plucking untapped potential from Limbo to exploit and debase! I hate myself for saying this, but I've hit the point where I'm eager to read anything he puts out.

It's only been one issue as of this blog post, but I have very high hopes for these next 12 chapters, and I can't wait to see what angles King will bring us.

[2] Action Comics Annual 2022 - "A Tale of Two Titans"

~Philip Kennedy Johnson & Ian Churchill + Dale Eaglesham

Everyone needs to be reading this book right now!

The Clark section was beautiful. It was reminiscent of Jeph Loeb's tribute to his late son in "Sam's Story" back from Superman/Batman #26, but the continued reinforcement of the Kent's lessons of humility and moral virtue in Clark are awesome. I hope that this gets more popular so we can phase out all of the Hack Snyder DCEU supes personality from the zeitgeist.

The Mongul section was enjoyable as well, the reverse moral code of war-world to ours is extremely fascinating. It makes a lot of sense that the Mongul dynasty would be "Mongol-like"; Genghis Khan fathered so many children, the Mongul's spread their seed and wait for the successor to come and pay for the throne with blood.

Phillip Kennedy Johnson continues to impress with his take on Superman, and I believe this is shaping up to be one of the best modern takes on the character since Morrison's Action and Rucka's Adventures of Superman.

[1] Flash #781 - "All Pedal, No Brakes"

~ Jeremy Adams & Fernando Pasarin

This is easily one of the best Flash stories I have read in a while. I started reading comics during the cusp of the Rebirth era, so I was caught in a tale of two Wallys and have great appreciation for both of them. Jeremy Adams does character interactions better than anyone in the industry right now. He does Bendis better than Bendis. This was an entire issue of two cousins having a heart to heart and it never failed to keep me interested. Pasarin's art suits Adam's style better than any other artist, the expressions along with his beautiful rendition of Wally's Flash suit is always great to see. This was a brilliant issue and I continue to look forward every month to picking up this book.

Adventures of Superman #627-640 Review

Come one, come all to the Countdown before Countdown! We are post Identity Crisis, the powder keg paving the way for the event to end all events. I will stand here and say that this era of the DCU might be the most unified and exciting it has ever been (though a close second would have to be 2016-2017 Rebirth era). I would even dare call Countdown itself an event with how much impact it has line wide. With Geoff Johns, Greg Rucka, Gail Simone, and Judd Winick at the helm maneuvering all the power players into the places they need to be, there's not much that can go wrong!

 [Superman : Unconventional Warfare] ~ {Written by Greg Rucka}

• Adventures of Superman #627 - Battery, Part I : "Girls, Guns, & Replikons" = Interesting. Rucka sets the stage for Superman and his supporting cast: Clark seems to be working with other reporters as correspondence at the Metropolis Police Headquarters, Lois gears up to report on an American invasion of Umec (Unidentified Middle Eastern Country, hilarious Rucka), and Superman deals with a wonderful bronze age pull in the form of Xum, the Replikon! Matthew Clark's art fits the tone Rucka is going for, and I'm eager to see who the major villains will end up being (if there are any).
• Adventures of Superman #628 - Battery, Part II : "You Used To Be A Reporter..." = Not much to say since not much happened, but I will defend Rucka's slow burn style of story-telling. I felt a little ambivalent at the start of his Wonder Woman, but once the train catches steam it does not stop for anybody! I think the dialogue is the strongest part of his books, and the fleshing out of new characters like Lupe and Jerry is done in an extremely smart and competent way. Some creators can get obnoxious with their OC's, but Rucka makes it so seamless that I have to check and see if they were pre-established before this run. The Replikon stuff is ok, but I enjoy the nonchalant cameos of Diana and John Stewart that emphasize the interconnected-ness of the DC universe at this time. Who attacked and killed Replikon's family? Who is the "weapons test" at the end of the issue? Is it another Replikon? Finally, the Lois/Clark sequence was brilliant: the stakes are there, Clark can't save her if stuff goes down since Superman can't be seen in the midst of a war (a very interesting angle). You can really tell that Clark is trying to suppress his concern and let her do her job, but he just wants to keep his wife safe! If you didn't already know, Rucka frekaing rules.
• Superman Secret Files and Origins 2004 - "Suicide Watch" = Very much a mixed bag. The idea of clandestine agencies colliding with the White House in the DC universe sounds awesome to me, but man are both the script and art rough. Jim Fern looks better suited for Japanese manga, while Johns' dialogue is bogged down by having to work with his brother (I assume?). I enjoyed the Pete Ross stuff, but Amanda Waller's dialogue sucked, and the end sequences made no sense at all whatsoever. Amanda didn't want to rat anybody out, but she did to Clark so the Daily Planet could take the credit? Who was Nemesis working for? It has to be Checkmate because of the chess piece calling card, but does that mean Maxwell Lord is behind this? Is that who threatened President Horne at the end of the issue, and does that mean that the blueprints we see are for Brother Eye satellite?! As for the Rucka Mxy story, holy smokes that was so much fun! Jon-Bog killed it with the pencils and the fusion of the two imps has me hyped for his appearances in this upcoming run.
• Adventures of Superman #629 - Battery, Part III : "War-Zones" = Lois seeks truth in times of war, a hostage alien fights against an unknown puppeteer for his own free will, and Superman comes face to face with... sexual tension? Even though nothing crazy is happening, the pot is still stirring, seeds are being sown, and Rucka continues to kill it. Lois writing to Clark at the beginning of the issue was some beautiful prose, while her shenanigans in UMEC are entertaining as mess. The fact that the Replikon we see is the son of Xum is depressing, and it really puts into perspective the fact that Rucka took a Bronze Age one off and debased his entire family to prop up a villain. Who is this mysterious entity with a hate boner for the Man of Steel?
• Adventures of Superman #630 - Battery, Part IV : "Villain Interruptus" = The best issue yet, and one of the best Mxy stories I've ever read! What can't Rucka do?! The use of Mxy is so much fun and I loved how they embraced the meta 4th wall breaking nature of his character, referencing STAS, the Matrix, and even whatever's happening in the other books of the Superman line. My favorite page had to be Mxy's warning, which essentially amounted to him spouting self-reflexive nonsense that incorporated titles of various events from that era. I loved his  short term memory, the ballistic nature of his concentration, with Clark having to remind him every couple panels. Matthew Clark does a phenomenal job with the visual gags, something I was not expecting since I had gotten so used to his gritty and grimy style from the first couple issues. The check-in on Lois was great, and I'm surprised we've been introduced to Ruin this early, but his motivation sounds interesting; animosity because Superman's powers steal solar energy? Loved the reveal of Replikon's weapon charging Ruin's battery (the title of the arc), and as for Mxy's final tip: who or what are the twins?
• Adventures of Superman #631 - Battery, Part V : "Casualty of War" = Fuuuuuuck! I wish the cover didn't spoil it! Without a shadow of a doubt, Lois' segment in Umec stole this issue. Her and Beau pinned down at the mercy of a lone sniper created some wonderful tension that one would never expect to find in a Superman book of all places. It's perfectly juxtaposed with Supes getting trashed by Xlim and Ruin. Matthew Clark's pencils were great in the Star Labs scenes, but Renato Guedes carried the weight with Lois' plot. Even the little moments like Clark stopping Xlim from killing Ruin echoes one of my favorite Superman quotes: "Vengeance is not Justice" ~ Action Comics #796 (Joe Kelly). Lois looks like she got tagged around the heart, but will being faster than a speeding bullet get her to proper medical attention in time?
• Adventures of Superman #632 - "Time Elapsed" = I think this was the issue that cemented Rucka's work on Superman so far as one of the most compelling I've ever had the pleasure of reading. Paired with the brilliant Paul Pelletier, this book is simply unstoppable. Everything about this was awesome, not a single page wasted, not a single dull moment. Ruin continues to develop as a fascinating villain while Superman shuts out the world, locked on to Lois' heartbeat. We finally get who the twins Mxy warned us of are, Ruin's motivation, Wally dressed up like a GI, and a cameo by the best JSA member, the chad himself Pieter Cross Doctor Mid-Nite! Best sequences were the prison transport, Jimmy and Perry, and that heartbreaking final page.

[Superman : That Healing Touch] ~ {Written by Greg Rucka}

• Adventures of Superman #633 - That Healing Touch, Part I : "Twin Parasites" = Wonderful opener to this arc, very interested to see how the twins play into the grand design of Ruin's plans. Did he always plan for them to get doused in chemicals? I assumed that the explosion occurred from Mxy removing that one piece from the battery, but maybe Ruin was going to use the chemicals on them anyways? I loved the interaction between Lupe and Supes, while the cat & mouse style hunt for Ruin is something I'm constantly fascinated by; I've said this before but, Jesus, you never see this kind of stuff in  Superman comic and I love it! Don't care for the melo-drama with Lois' family, but I enjoy that it's reflected onto Lois and Clark since they're sick of it as well.
• Adventures of Superman #634 - That Healing Touch, Part II : "Narrative Interruptus Secondus" = Jeez if that boy Mxy is tweaking about how it ends, I have no idea what cataclysm is approaching! Loved the sequence where Mxy interacts with the early 2000's DC bullpen, I felt as if I was traveling back in time to that era while still being immersed in the present plot. Rucka is able to pull off this fourth wall break so expertly as to not jump the shark, and it doesn't feel forced at all. The twins are interesting enough, but Mxy stole this whole issue. 
• Adventures of Superman #635 - That Healing Touch, Part III : "Drained" = Even though I've had a lot of fun with this arc, I will have to admit that it has been the low point so far (and that's just a testament to how good "Battery" was). Loved the John Henry cameo as well as the Lupe confessional, while the fight with the Twins ended up being some dumb fun even with their flimsy motivations. Matthew Clark continues to kill this book, and I'm excited to see this Superman/Ruin confrontation.

[Superman : Road To Ruin] ~ {Written by Greg Rucka}

• Adventures of Superman #636 - Road to Ruin, Part I : "Identity Compromised" = HE KNOWS! Is this when Batman first finds out? Or did he know at the end of Identity Crisis? This was absolutely fantastic, even if the whole issue was Supes getting dunked on. I love moments like this where the Trinity has to go head to head on the difficult decisions, and it's just so cool to have creators like Johns, Meltzer, and Winick on the same page as Rucka while they all simultaneously craft an epic throughout all the books DC is releasing. Rags on art was the icing on the cake, and Ruin is working for Luthor!
• Adventures of Superman #637 - Road to Ruin, Part II : "Two Truths & A Lie" = Not a fan of Renato Guedes art, but at least we got some Matthew Clark in there. Besides that, while not much happens, we still get some wonderful set up on a couple of fronts. I'm not sure if the Luthor/Pete flashback took place prior to "Ending Battle" since Manchester Black erased the secret identity from Luthor's mind at the finale, but they're definitely doing a whole lot to set up Pete as the prime suspect of Ruin. The Lois subplot seems the most interesting, and if her shooting was really connected to Ruin, then Clark is in much more trouble than he thinks. Getting Jimmy to hit on Jerry was hilarious, but tragic that he got dunked on immediately. Laughed out loud about that final panel since I'm pretty sure this next issue is a Mxy one: super-antics ensue! 
• Adventures of Superman #638 - Road to Ruin, Part III : "Narrative Interruptus Tertiarius" = YES YES YES! I live for these Mxy issues! Revelations from the trickster, invisible string cast across times not yet passed, a slot machine of futures to unfold! Composite beast villain, which of his rogues gallery will strike!?! Superman and Lois, mother and father of DC Comics, everything really does happen because of them!
• Adventures of Superman #640 - Road to Ruin, Part IV : "Exposed" = God damn was that a good comic. I love it when writers and artists try to experiment with the storytelling format, and this definitely reminded me of how Wolfman and Perez interspliced the Harbinger sequences with the main narrative during the final issues of Crisis on Infinite Earths. Very interesting that the top half was presented through various forms of media after the fact: newspapers, security footage, cellphones, web images, live television, etc. Makes you wonder who was watching? Lex? Max Lord? The REAL Ruin? Lois's narration stole the issue, and it really makes you wonder; how many red herrings on top of red herrings are we being fed? Lex to Pete to even Emil Hamilton, suspicion unbound! But this reveal, there's no way it's over! He's a pawn!

Identity Crisis + Flash: The Secret of Barry Allen Review

[Identity Crisis] ~ {Written by Brad Meltzer}

• Identity Crisis #1 - "Coffin" = And away we go! Coming back to this after so many years was a breath of fresh air. For all the haters this book has, Meltzer and Morales show them up completely with sleek and yet classic art paired with powerful prose. Meltzer does an incredible job of sucking you in; while many dig on the retcons, Meltzer finds a way to stay true to the personalities of these characters, it all feels real. I can't recall a death in the DC universe being this meaningful since Supergirl and Flash during the Crisis, or even the Man of Tomorrow himself. The use of minor characters by Meltzer is excellent as well; Bolt and Calculator on the phone makes the universe seem so big, a commodity that just doesn't seem to exist in today's DC landscape. The foreshadowing is wonderful as well, and I do believe the murder-mystery to be one of the strongest aspects of this story.
• The Flash #213 - "Slow Motion" = So that's why Mirror Master's nose was bleeding! This issue suffered from the same problem I have with most Flash books; any villains besides the classic Rogues and Reverse Flashes are absolute trash. You can try to spin the Turtle to be a foil of Flash as much as you want, but at the end of the day he's still a stupid and boring character. The reveal that Ashley Zolomon didn't die in the crash came as a surprise to me, but the fact that Hunter somehow got out is even more interesting. Howard Porter's art wasn't that great in this, I'm hoping it gets better in time for Rogue War. The Identity Crisis mentions were fun, my only peeve was the discrepancy between how Boomerang looks in this compared to the actual IC book.
• Identity Crisis #2 - "House of Lies" = This is a tough book! As much as I understand the criticisms, everything else is so good! The c-listers and their underworld, the satellite league justifying themselves to the Wally and Kyle, and my boy Pieter Cross gets a sequence! Compared to any Millar or Ennis indulgent edginess, the rape scene done in this book was done as tastefully as one of these scenes can be done. The framing of the Leaguers mentalities at the moment of the mind-wipe makes sense, and I enjoyed the mention of Barry's decision being influenced by the death of Iris West. Merlyn dishing out crap on each of the villains is so much fun, and I'm excited for more of these snippets across the rest of the book.
• Identity Crisis #3 - "Serial Killer" = Super-Brawl! I for one love this fight; a perfect fusion proving and disproving the famous adage, "No plan survives first contact with the enemy...". Ollie breaking Slade's concentration is such a great way to take out the one-eyed assassin, and the quarrel that ensues is hilarious. Meltzer's internal monologue for Ollie is fantastic, and definitely makes me want to check out his Green Arrow run. The manner in which Light's memories are reactivated is wonderful, and I sure as mess spotted the foreshadowing in the flashback discrepancy. Ollie explaining to Wally the justifications for the mind-wipes may create a sense of grimdark infecting the bronze age, poisoned nostalgia, but this stuff makes sense! The clean-up works in the League's continuity! Ollie's line regarding him and Carter's differences is great, that is easily one of my favorite rivalries/friendships in all of comics. The Tim Drake sequence is easily the least interesting, but the set-up makes sense given what happens later in the series. Framing the ending with Jimmy cutting to Jean being "attacked" works flawlessly, and Rags executes every panel with grace and precision.
• Identity Crisis #4 - "Who Benefits?" = Gah damn, it just gets better and better! While the red herrings increase by the page, what gives this book life is how the DC universe responds to the mystery. The sequences with the villains, Batman's increased paranoia, the Slipknot scene, and even Spectre Hal coming down to increase the stakes. We can definitely say that Ollie is secured as our viewpoint character going forward, and I am not complaining whatsoever: he's the perfect fit for the tone of this story. The villain scenes are still my favorites, Meltzer has turned Merlyn and Calculator into some of my favorites.
• The Flash #214 - The Secret of Barry Allen, Part I : "Dear Wally..." = Fantastic issue! Johns was able to balance the run's current plot points alongside the fallout from IC extremely well. Wally's built-up despair has snowballed since Blitz and Ignition, and it spilling into this arc sets us up for some fascinating character exploration alongside this mystery surrounding Barry's letter. I enjoyed the reveal of the League's meeting with Wally from #209, connecting the mind-wipe themes. Once again, Ollie stole this issue and is continuing to steal this whole event with his witty dialogue and engaging pathos as a result of him and the League's sins being found out.
• Identity Crisis #5 - "Father's Day" = Dang! This book is a blast to read, mainly because I can agree with the criticisms while still getting everything I want out of it. You can definitely see the editorial mandates starting to seep into the narrative: Firestorm's random death, Jack Drake pruned to get Tim Drake into the orphan club and give him some pathos. The Boomerang death sticks for me, mainly because I'm eager to learn more about Owen Mercer. That whole sequence was very well put together in my opinion, and even though the image of an obese and disheveled Captain Boomerang busting into the Drake home is pretty jarring, Meltzer and Morales find a way to keep me engaged through every single panel.
• The Flash #215 - The Secret of Barry Allen, Part II : "Reformed" = Wow, I guess I was expecting something completely different. Let's get this over with; I don't care about the Top or whatever happened to his mind as a result of Zee's magic. The hilariously dumb and convoluted silver age lore dump on Roscoe Dillon brought some chuckles, but Barry's plan and execution was absolutely trash. I'm glad they're following up on the Top's scene from #210, but if we could just get to the Rogue War stuff already! The Wally pathos is still great, and the IC snippets were the standouts; let's see Zatanna try to put this rabbit back in the hat!
• JSA #67 - "The Autopsy" = Just wow. This might have been one of the best issues of JSA ever. Dave Gibbons killed this entire issue, though I shouldn't be surprised since he drew the greatest comic book ever. This whole book was a perfect storm: great art, great writing, tie in to a great event, and centered on the best member of the JSA: my boy Pieter Cross. The pacing and splicing of the check-ins with each JSA member were fantastic, but that Wildcat Mirror Master sequence had to be the best. The Power Girl stuff had me a bit confused until I remembered that at the end of the Loeb Supergirl S/B arc they kept Kara in hiding to prevent Darkseid's forces from coming back to kill her. Terrific and Mid-Nite cement their bro-bond (if they haven't already) in this, and I loved Michael going to confront his wife's accidental killer in the midst of all this IC chaos.
• Identity Crisis #6 - "Husbands & Wives" = Aftermath! The sequence with the lost family members of the JLA was fascinating: so much history in each member, a wonderful fusion of Bronze Age and Post-Crisis elements to give each character weight like we've been alongside their struggles and losses for years. There's something about Doctor Light remembering the rape that is extremely unnerving, I'm eager to see how this plays out in the upcoming Teen Titans arc. If I'm not mistaken, this whole event is what spawns the Green Arrow/Deathstroke rivalry that gets folded into the zeitgeist (Arrow) which I think is really cool. Now about that final sequence... GAH DAMN! Meltzer does an insane job of building that tension, and the biggest red herrings of all red herrings is planted, a twist to trick before the twist of the final issue!
• The Flash #216 - The Secret of Barry Allen, Part III : "Spinning" = I'm not sure if it's a result of the heavy hand of editorial, but why do comics require the invasive recap in the first couple of pages? It's kind of hard to get to the plot when there's a giant info dump shouting in your face. As for the twist, I get what Johns is going for, and I will admit that I am intrigued. The idea that this d-list villain used his powers to trick the Flash Rogues Gallery into reforming while maintaining the ability to turn it off at any moment is kinda cool. The classic Rogues may not get personal, but Johns has created the circumstances for Wally's villains (Top, Zoom, Grodd) to get pretty damn personal. It's a lot easier to see now that the Top will in fact be a major player in the Rogue War, given the scene with James Jesse's Rogues framing them as the future victims of the Top. The lovely red herring during the final sequence had me genuinely happy; someone needs a win right now!
• Identity Crisis #7 - "The Hero's Life" = What is most impressive about this final twist is that the set up for Atom being the murder has some perverted sense to it. Atom wanted his wife back, so he engineered this entire crisis to make way for her back into his arms. He leaves the JLA during #214 of the Flash to go set up that attempted murder of Jean Loring, he hires Boomerang, he sends the letter to Lois and the gun to Jack Drake. But it's not him, Ray is a Silver Age darling, nothing could justify him breaking bad, he's untouchable, it couldn't be him... but it could be his wife! Man, this one hurts, but it's supposed to I guess. Like the Arthur Miller quote included in this, Identity Crisis is the death of the Silver Age. It's a tone setter, a prelude for the end of the Post Crisis universe, an appetizer for the comics Dark Age of the 2010's. It hurts, but this book is so damn good that I just might have to keep on chewing. One of the saddest parts is that we won't be seeing Ray Palmer until that horrendous Countdown book (which I may or may not force myself to read in the far future). As for the mind-wipe ramifications, this is exactly what leads into Countdown to Infinite Crisis and the OMAC Project; that final scene with Bruce staring down Wally was perfect, the framing of Wally and the lasso of truth, and I like to think that in that moment he knows.
• The Flash #217 - "Post-Crisis" = WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT LAST PAGE? Jesus Christ, that actually made me audibly gasp. I really enjoyed this issue, great segmentation of Wally/Linda + Digger's funeral + Batman confrontation. The Hunter/Cheetah stuff was fun as well, and it seems like it's setting up the upcoming two part crossover. I do wonder what Bats said to Dick when he joined the Titans, but I was expecting some kind of mention of the mind-wipe stuff to follow up the Identity Crisis threads a little more. Then again, I don't think Bats would go to his face; he's definitely more likely to take other measures...
• The Flash #218 - "Rogue Profile: Heat Wave" = That was fire! I can tell it's hit or miss with these Rogue centered issues based how much I care, but when you get Johns and THE Peter Snejbjerg to do a book on Heat-Wave, you best know I'm going to read the mess out of it. It was so easy to get sucked into Mick's narration, and I love how Johns is able to set him and his motivations apart from the others. I get that the whole gallery has distinct personalities, but you can really tell when Johns hits the mark. The re-framed rivalry between Heat-Wave and Cold sets up an exciting conflict for the upcoming Rogue War, and I'm very interested to see how this and the other threads play out.

JSA/Hawkman Black Reign + JSA #59-66 Review

 [JSA : Black Reign]

• JSA #56 - Black Reign, Part I : "Men Became Gods Overnight" = THIS JUST GOT REAL! Loved this first chapter even though most of it was Black Adam giving expo on the members of his task force and stuff we already knew. The focus on Al and the "true" justice of murder and vengeance is fascinating, and brings forth a significant amount of thought and discussion to the entire "do superheroes kill" debate. It's going to be argued to death for the end of time, and Johns has already spent a huge amount of his run dealing with that theme, but man does it bring some good stories! Let's see how the JSA (and especially my boy Carter) respond to the liberation of Kahndaq.
• Hawkman #23 - Black Reign, Part II : "No Rest In St. Roch" = The JSA takes St. Roch! Power Girl hinting, Pieter giving out doctor's notes, Rick getting over his genetics, and Carter severely maiming a D-List villain; what's not to enjoy! I loved Jay's expression as he noticed Courtney and Billy, while Ted recounting the glory days is always hilarious. I wonder what Nabu said to Hector? You can definitely tell this is moving at a breakneck pace, and Carter taking over is great but also pretty alarming. Onto the next one!
• JSA #57 - Black Reign, Part III : "The Liberators" = From bad to worse! Civil war in the JSA! The handling of the no kill stuff is actually really interesting, and the entire scene inside the meeting room before they invade Kahndaq was fantastic. You can tell everyone cares about each other, and they hold their code to the highest standard. Who or what is plaguing Al's mind? What is Brainwave Jr's true purpose? What is Carter's job for Pieter? The dichotomy they're creating between Adam's faction and the JSA is interesting, and the lines drawn with conflicting perspectives brings some compelling pathos. The Nabu sequence was great as well, with Nabu, Carter, and Adam all relics of a bygone era; each with possibly antiquated moralities in relation to today's world.
• Hawkman #24 - Black Reign, Part IV : "The Invaders" = YOOOOOOO! Rex Tyler is freaking back! This was a great chapter, and now that we're past the halfway point, the endgame's design starts to come together. Is the voice in Al's head Ray Palmer? After the T-Sphere scene I'm definitely starting to think it's him. Nabu hijacks Hector, Courtney's staff gets sliced, Al stomps on everyone, and Billy gets smacked to oblivion. What is the secret within Carter's mind? Is it just the fallout from the fight with Headhunter that has him messed up? The final gambit Rick makes is crazy: time runs out!
• JSA #58 - Black Reign, Part V : "Judgement Comes From Inner Voices" = Holy mess! The Venusian Worm is back! Easily the best reveal of this storyline so far. This issue was a standout, WTF comics all day - every day! Love that Hector uses the Fate pantheon against Nabu, and the struggle between Jay and Carter was compelling as mess. What sets apart the JSA from other super-teams is that they are veterans of the war to end all wars, they've seen combat and the horrors, which is why Jay and Carter's argument maintains so much weight. The deaths of Nemesis and Eclipso caught me off guard; god's wrath plays the long game and Alex was stupid to think he could truly master the Black Diamond. The Billy/Adam sequence was fantastic as expected, and I love the taunting Adam does to cement his purpose and place in this world. I'm happy I got the Ray Palmer reveal but Mister Mind coming back was something I had no way of expecting. Is that Brainwave's true purpose: to be used as a vessel for Mister Mind? Did Mister Mind cure him of his troubles like Adam mentioned in the earlier chapters? 
• Hawkman #25 - Black Reign, Part VI : "Sunrise in Kahndaq" = What a crossover! Very interesting how everything ended up going down, I could definitely feel this was analogous to the then-current wars in the middle east. Sometimes America (and in this case the JSA) can't and shouldn't be the world police, and sometimes westerners have no business trying to force their vision of prosperity onto a culture that they have no understanding of. So the JSA does the right thing: there's been too much bloodshed, it's time to pull out. When an unstoppable force meets an immovable object, the only outcome is for one of them to surrender. I do think it's the right move for Carter to leave the Society, and I hope he gets his stuff together. Very sad to come to the end of Johns' time on this title, though I can confidently say this goes up there as one of the best explorations of the character I've ever encountered.

[JSA : Lost]

• JSA #59 - "Time & Time & Time Again!" = Well dang! This was a wonderful issue, and I am really hoping it isn't a one off on Degaton's character. The non linear storytelling was a lot of fun to piece together, and the character interactions were super interesting. Sean Phillips art is great as usual, and the new dynamic post Black Reign is something I'm very eager to see play out in the following issues. How will Jay Garrick die? What will happen to Rick? Was it Daniel Hall who talked to Degaton through the mirror?
• JSA #60 - Redemption Lost, Part I : "Anatomy Of A Murder" = Terrific spotlight! Having Mandrake do the pencils for the flashback sequence was awesome, and I love the recontextualization of Spirit King/Sloane/Spectre dynamic that sets up this arc. Terrific and Mid-nite having back and forth is exactly what I want to see from this series. The debate is intriguing as well; Johns tackling some of these themes is so refreshing considering how bland his work throughout the 2010's is. The continuation of the Rex Tyler/Hourman stuff is great as well, and the pathos associated with this generational legacy brings you into the headspace of Rex, desperate and broken, distracting himself from his missing son with a d-list clean-up overload.
• JSA #61 - Redemption Lost, Part II : "Revenants" = Loving this! Kramer is killing it with his pencils, but Mandrake's renditions of the JLA/JSA crossover with the death of Terry Sloane had to be the highlight of the issue for me. The angle Johns has tackled with regards to the Spectre and Hal is very dynamic. No part of this arc has been dull so far, and it's break-neck action paired with quiet character moments are making this arc stand out as one of the best Johns has done for JSA. The real question is how Terrific can still be an atheist when God and the Devil have made their presences known through battles against superheroes over and over again. Denial is a heck of a drug?
• JSA #62 - Redemption Lost, Part III : "Vengeance & Judgement" = Johns has once again unveiled his grand design! This whole thing was merely a prelude setting things up for GL Rebirth!. The various pathos presented between the members of the JSA were so fun to witness: Jay is especially one character who's had some great moments throughout this entire run (Injustice Be Done, Black Reign), and the collusion with Spirit King brought forth some tragic growth for the golden age speedster. Mid-Nite and Terrific's dynamics are a delight to read as always, and I'm glad Mike got his full circle after this religion plot got set up in his All-Stars issue. Now that I think about it, this arc is also paving the way for Day of Vengeance too!

[JSA : Smoke & Mirrors]

• JSA #63 - Waking The Sandman, Part I : "Insomnia" = Neil Gaiman's Oneiromancer meets Gardner Fox's All-Stars! The weaving of the Sandman lore into the DC Universe is pretty god damn mind blowing. I simply can't believe we're getting this many concrete references. Granted, we did see Daniel in the first issue of the run, but this is still crazy! Jerry Ordway's art is a joy to look at, and the fact that he's still this good makes me so happy. Love the use of Cave Carson and the mighty mole squad, as well as the Fate pantheon putting Nabu in time-out. Development of Fury is super interesting, and finally resolving the Sand loose end is dope (I'm assuming that's him in the Kirby costume?).
• JSA #64 - Waking The Sandman, Part II : "Night Terrors" = Excellent! Return of Brute & Glob, references to the Endless, wholesome Fates, Power Girl/Wildcat banter, and Rex finally reveals himself to his wife! The icing on the cake is Ordway's art, who truly knocks it out of the park with every freaking page. Bringing back the Hawkgirl angle for Sand is a little out there in my opinion, but it works in the context of the story since she acts as his "lightning rod". Johns folding in the events of Sandman is awesome, and it really hurts to think that we might not have this wholesomeness for very long... for Day of Vengeance is waiting at the door! A wonderful obscure reference I caught was Cave Carson's mention of the 90's Resurrection Man series where Immortal Man and Cave team up with Mitch and Vandal to beat the cosmic Warp-Child. Love you for that Johns!
• JSA #65 - Out of Time, Part I : "Dead On Arrival" = Just when I thought I was going to be bummed out for good, Johns throws a curve ball to keep me guessing! Rick jumping in to take his father's place has me assuming that we'll see a redux of the Extant fight from Zero Hour, but how does Per Degaton factor into this? As of the time I'm writing this, Johns is using Degaton as the main villain of his new JSA series; will this build-up be put on hold and only followed up in the present JSA? The Rex reunion sequence was heart-breaking, but I'm glad that his internal turmoil was resolved and he can go out in peace like a champ. Hourman Android coming back was dope as well, and I hope to see more of him before this run ends. 
• JSA #66 - Out of Time, Part II : "Time To Die!" = Hype, Hype, Hype! Definitely did not expect Rex to survive this issue, and him getting a happy ending is a bright light in this endless cloud of grimdark fog leading up to Infinite Crisis. Hourman Android's sacrifice was epic, the recreations of the sequence from Zero Hour was on point, and the fact that Rex will spend his time rebuilding the Android makes everything come full circle. Don Kramer's art was spectacular, possibly even better than his work during Black Reign. The final sequence with Al and Rip Hunter has me super excited for the penultimate arc before Countdown (and I have hope that the Degaton stuff will be resolved too!).

Wonder Woman #195-205 by Greg Rucka Review

[Wonder Woman : Down To Earth]

• Wonder Woman #195 - "The Mission" = Awesome! Supporting cast seems to be a lot of fun, though it might take some time to learn everybody since they're all regular humans (besides Ferdinand ofc), but the dynamic and framing of this run's direction is extremely interesting.
• Wonder Woman #196 - Down To Earth, Part I : "Publish or Perish!" = I am loving the heck out of this! Wonder Woman's world and supporting cast and rogues have never been more interesting and engaging than this since the Rebirth run written by the same author! The Psycho sequence had to be my favorite; a perverse misogynist with psychic powers playing around in your mind is way scarier than any Doomsday or Darkseid brawl. The Olympus sequence got me hooked right from the start; presenting these gods so casually brings a fascinating juxtaposition, let me see more of that! I had no idea this was Veronica Cale's first appearance nor did I know that Rucka created her (I know she's based off of a golden age character called Veronica Callow). Even without any world ending Geoff Johnsian threats or Morrisonian meta-trippiness, this book stands tall leaning against the enormous monolith that is Rucka's prose. Everything in this is spectacular.
• Wonder Woman #197 - Down To Earth, Part II : "The Flash & The Furious!" = Flash is on the cover, but even though he only has a brief sequence it's still freaking great. That whole forest fire scene really epitomizes Diana's character: she sees the whole picture, she isn't impulsive like many attempt to characterize her (Johns, Azzarello, sometimes Kelly). I loved Kelly's Golden Perfect arc during his JLA run, but Rucka's presentation of Diana is much more an attempt to move forward from the headstrong and instinctive Diana, which I think is really cool. Also, Cale is Texan? I wonder what her motivations are going to be for the smear campaign of destroying the Amazon Princess.
• Wonder Woman #198 - Down To Earth, Part III : "Bad Medicine!" = It just gets better and better! One of the biggest strengths of this book lies in Rucka's ability to bring relevance and intrigue to every single subplot. I'm baffled by my investment in Diana's human entourage, Cale's machinations are scene stealers, and the Olympus check-ins are so much fun! I have to give a mention to Drew Johnson, who's pencils fit the script so freaking well. it does tend to fall in the 2000's cringe color trope, but his line work makes up for it. The use of Bastalleros and Silver Swan has me hyped, and that debate sequence was perfectly written. At the end of the day, I'm pretty depressed that anthropomorphic minotaurs don't exist to make me crepes. 
• Wonder Woman #199 - Down To Earth, Part IV : "The Truth Hurts" = Wow. Ares committed the robbery and stole the heck out of this issue. The mirror sequence with him and Diana might be some of the most fascinating comic book writing I've ever had the pleasure of reading in my life. I absolutely love the idea of shifting hierarchy in Olympus based around the emotions and fears of humanity. Having the Olympians tethered to the sentiments of every day people brings a whole new perspective to how these gods operate (alongside the wonderful fashion choices). Was that feather connected to Silver Swan? Why does Ares want collusion between Zeus and Artemis? What is Cale's animus with Diana? What horrors will Psycho unleash?
• Wonder Woman #200 - Down To Earth, Part V : "Sensational" = Dang! I had to do some research regarding the current state of Themyscira/Paradise Island (apparently they're floating islands now post Our Worlds At War?), but Hera kicked that thing down like a sandcastle. Diana's monologue was wonderful, and the Silver Swan fight was brutal as mess. Loved her refusal to give up on her friend, who is most likely being controlled by Cale. The Psycho stuff was great, but even though the bait was laid out, I know he isn't dead due to his presence in the Secret Society during Infinite Crisis. Wonderful back-up with Cassie and Ferdinand, excited to see the Gorgons return hopefully later in this run.

[Wonder Woman : Bitter Rivals] ~ {Written by Greg Rucka}

• Wonder Woman #201 - "Ripples" = This one felt so short! Love the introduction of the Gorgons as well as Circe, her dialogue especially is a lot of fun what with the references to Odysseus and Achilles. The stressful back to back dilemmas plaguing Diana create an interesting conflict for her; it appears that both Ares and Cale's machinations have resulted in a don't stop till you drop barrage of ordeals: Silver Swan to riots to flooded Themyscira to stopping a tsunami and sacrificing the invisible jet's consciousness. No time to breathe for the amazon princess! Let's see where this arc takes us.
• Wonder Woman #202 - "Leaks" = Fascinating dive into the enigma that is Veronica Cale! IIRC the motivations here are different from Rucka's Rebirth stint, but I do still love this female-Luthor type character, not necessarily embodying the anti-Wonder Woman traits but more of a rival without super-powers. Sadowski's pencils were great, and it's nice to see him outside of Johns' JSA run. Interested to see Cale's counter-attack now that she's dealt with the mole who leaked the playbook.
• Wonder Woman #203 - Bitter Pills, Part I : "Amazons In Need" = Very much a calm before the storm issue, checking in with each subplot with some connecting tissue starting to manifest. I'm not sure if it works as well as an opener to a story arc, but Rucka's writing continues to be captivating. The most interesting sequence has to be with Artemis on Themyscira; I'm a total sucker for any of the Greek mythology dumps. The gorgon stuff is fun as well, but I would love some more of the Olympus plot-line that was hilarious during the first volume.
• Wonder Woman #204 - Bitter Pills, Part II : "Behind The Veil" = WHAT THE MATH!?! The Fallon body reveal and the final twist with Psycho has my head spinning! How does the continuity work? Was the Cale we saw in #202 not Cale? No way, it has to have been after #202 because of the origin stuff and Fallon being alive... wait! That Fallon could have been Psycho all along, and the real Fallon murdered after the Embassy crisis in #200! I would also like to say that the Circe/Poseidon segment was so good that I had to go back and read the Cassie story from #200 where she explained the backstory behind the Gorgons. Everything is coming together!
• Wonder Woman #205 - Bitter Pills, Part III : "A Gorgon Reborn" = What an arc! The funniest thing about this issue is the payoff for the cover; I spent so much time trying to think about how Rucka was going to introduce Joker someway into the storyline, just for it to be one of Psycho's hallucinations! Brilliant! The chase was so much fun, expertly conveying why Psycho is so dangerous, while the Leslie/Veronica stuff brings up an interesting theory: did Cale really fake her capture to trick Wonder Woman? That would explain Psycho getting out, but it doesn't justify killing Fallon (unless she needed less loose ends because of the embassy incident?). We need these answers! Medusa coming back was cool, and I wonder how she will factor in with the Cale/Psycho stuff.

Teen Titans (2003) by Geoff Johns #8-19 Review

[Teen Titans : Raven Rising]

• Teen Titans #8 - "Family Lost" = History lesson! This chapter was a lot of fun, and I'm all in for this series now that I've gotten used to the cast. The Raven backstory was much needed, but it was the Tim Drake sequences that stood out the most in this issue. I loved Tom Grummett's pencils, they bring a Perez-esque quality to this book that McKone's didn't seem to have (no hate on McKone, his art is dope). There were some wonderful tid-bits in this: Alcatraz reopened, Gizmo and Mammoth, Batman/Starfire foreshadowing about Raven, + Deathstroke and Ravager on the move is fun as well, but I wonder how we get to modern Rose Wilson from this.
• Teen Titans #9 - "First Blood" = Out for blood! Fasten your seatbelts everyone, we are getting into grimdark territory for the Titans! Was having Brother Blood rip the gem out of bald Raven's forehead with his teeth truly necessary? One of my main concerns with this issue is the fact that it suffers from Act I syndrome: a bunch of stuff is thrown at you in a short span of time, you feel overwhelmed, but that's the point. These mystery-boxes will be clarified (hopefully) by the time the story arc ends. The schematics of the ritual + cryptic deliberations by the cult members are the biggest peeve, while the grey energy possessing Beast Boy and Krypto spewing ravens does entice some intrigue. The Conner/Krypto stuff was fun, but that Cyborg page was awesome, hats off to McKone.
• Teen Titans #10 - Raven Rising, Part I : "New Blood" = Great opening, loved the page of the huge mass of birds over the San Francisco bay area as well as the giant skeletal Trigon they had to fight. The grey energy bringing out the paternal insecurities was also a huge plus, and Ares snapping Cassie out of hit was a great way of reminding us about that plot point. Although I do want unity, the split between the YJ leftovers and the Wolfman titans brings a fun dynamic to how this fledgling team is operating; of course Tim is going to be skeptical about Raven and plan for the worst! It's stuff like that, the small character moments, that really holds a team book together: putting characters in tough situations and having them act like they would to solve the problem. The main issue with team-books these days is the mundane characterization, rarely do I get super invested in a character compared to some older runs like Joe Kelly's JLA or Johns' JSA. Besides that, I care very little for the edgelord Brother Blood, though I thought it was pretty funny when he revealed his age.
• Teen Titans #11 - Raven Rising, Part II : "Soul Survivor" = Loved this! The Raven pathos really did a whole lot to carry this issue, very compelling in it's ramifications to her character history as well as relation to this hostage marriage. Cyborg and especially Beast Boy get some great moments, with Gar and Raven having the best scenes. Can't deny that the Starfire and Tim stuff was fun too, and I'm eager to see how that relationship evolves. Deathstroke and Ravager as the wilds cards get more spotlight, and act as a great segue into the final pages. Rose must be under some kind of mental hold, because her dialogue is comically two-dimensional. Best moment: Blood getting sniped by Robin's birdarang.
• Teen Titans #12 - Raven Rising, Part III : "Titans Together!" = Hello wtf? This Wilson-Family plot thread is soap storytelling on god damn meth. That last page was stupid as mess and I honestly thank god that Priest actually gave Slade and Rose personalities in the Rebirth run, because anything is preferable to whatever the heck this is. The finale was fun and I enjoyed Beast Boy turning into a parasite and Cyborg clapping up OP Jericho with the freaking task manager application. I'm guessing Brother Blood is in one of the rings of DC Universe's version of Hell; I hope his return holds a better plan than this absolute failure, I don't know why he would bank everything on Raven acting against his will.

[TEEN TITANS : Beast Boys & Girls]

• Teen Titans #13 - Beast Boys & Girls, Part I : "Concrete Jungle" = Now that's how you open an arc! Great premise; I'm assuming that somehow these kids have been infected with Sakutia while Gar's power have been negated. Could this have been caused by Doctor Register, the scientist in the flashback sequence? Maybe infecting these kids with the disease helps immunize them in a different way, Gar mentions that he's never been sick since he was 6, and Register is trying to help children in his own twisted way? This is a pretty big leap for a first issue, but we'll see what ends up happening. The Raven/Cass interaction was dope, and it appears that Raven used her empath powers to sap her sadness away? Stephanie Brown Robin makes a fun appearance, though I wonder how far out from War Games we are in the timeline. Tom Grummett's art is like a Jim Lee/Paul Pelletier mashup and I loved every page.
• Teen Titans #14 - Beast Boys & Girls, Part II : "Wild Life" = We love accurate predictions! Horrifying opener, but the lightspeed pacing of societal collapse as the Titans try to hold everything together is fun as mess. Loved the sense of urgency paired with Gar's internal turmoil due to his return to normalness vs the loss of the Beast Boy persona. The Conner/Tim stuff was easily the highlight of this issue, and I admire how Johns was able to drop the fill-in exposition for those who aren't reading the Batman/Robin runs at the time. Great continuity weaving, and it all fits with what's going on in Tim's story throughout this run so far as well. Very interested to see what Ares agenda with Cass is, and I loved how she calls him a pedo.
• Teen Titans #15 - Beast Boys & Girls, Part III : "Changelings" =God dammit Johns! Stop with the anti-climax deus ex machina! At least Tom Grummett's art was here to add a nice coating to this flimsy arc. Loved the Cass/Ares sequence + possible Conner death foreshadowing during IC!? Aquaman + Lorena Marquez cameo was a little out of place, Tim is back, Raven is going to high school (but it makes sense because her new body is a teen?). The Legion sequence at the end was great, but I have no idea what is going on with Legion chronology at this point (I believe Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning are working on it at this time).

[TEEN TITANS : The Future Is Now]

• Teen Titans #16 - Superboy & The Legion, Part I : "Wherever Tomorrow Takes Us" = Spotlight Legion! Loved the feeling of being overwhelmed by the overly-complicated and bombastic nature of the LOS future, the monstrous amount of members and an absolutely fascinatingly rich landscape: this kind of possible tomorrow is so much more interesting than any of the dark Kingdom Come/Dark Knight Returns worlds. So I take it that our Superboy was dropped off in the 31st Century as a result of his future self coming back to the past? Or could it be that he was taken to the future by something else? Loved the Fatal Five hundred reveal, and excited to see how this transitions into Titans of Tomorrow. 
• Teen Titans/The Legion Special - Superboy & The Legion, Part II : "Future Is Foreshadow" = Temporal shenanigans turned up to eleven! A wonderful little two-parter to revamp our Legion, get the Titans where they need to be, and cap it off with a smooth though not so subtle layers of foreshadowing! Ivan Reis' art is a blast, and Geoff blows a silver age load all over the book; you can 100% tell he loved every second of this book. The Kid Flash stuff was a lot of fun, along with Superboy's whole arc coming in full circle. I loved the little snippets we got of each Legionnaire, and I am eager to get into some of their runs in the future to familiarize myself with those characters (besides the basic ones like Brainy, Lighting Lad, Cosmic Boy, Saturn Girl).
• Teen Titans #17 - Titans Tomorrow, Part I : "Big Brothers and Sisters" = World-Building! Exposition! In Your Face! Johns flourishes when given the opportunity to write anti-heroes, these dark titans from the world-to-be are doused in 2000's edge! I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy this, spoon-fed lore introducing us to a grimdark prison for our heroes, the gods are gone, it's Tartarus for the Titans! Joker's Daughter is easily the most creatively bankrupt concept ever, but at least she had a mouthful of lead for her last supper. Interested to see what Tim's plan is regarding the present titans as well as if Slade ends up making it through the night.
• Teen Titans #18 - Titans Tomorrow, Part II : "Tales of the Titans" = It's really obvious that Johns and the other architects of the DCU at this time are radically shifting the polarity of continuity towards this edgy grimdark BS, with this storyline being a pseudo-commentary on that while simultaneously shifting itself in that direction: criticism while creating more grounds for that very criticism = hypocrisy? Tomorrow-Tim is literally wearing the N52 Batman costume 7 years before Flashpoint! Overall, not as good as the first chapter, but the Tim stuff was interesting while Slade jerking around was hilarious. How did the Titans East split off? Where is Starfire?
• Teen Titans #19 - Titans Tomorrow, Part III : "East Meets West" = DANG! Great final sequence, great issue overall. Enjoyed the glimpses of hope in the tomorrow-verse with Cyborg and the East-coast gang maintaining the status quo on the other half of the country. Foreshadowing is always fun and we got Star + Dick ships, Bette Kane + Ra's Al Ghul, Ravager/Bart, and endless mentions of the Crisis. Funny that this whole arc was an engine for the Titans to finally embrace each other as a team. I think it's fascinating that Johns really had them stick it out with tension post Graduation Day; it's nice to think that it would take this long after Donna's "death" while doing a lot of service to the importance of her character.

 

Flash by Geoff Johns #201-212 Review

Ignition [#201-206]

• The Flash #201 - "Driven" = Very interesting premise. The art is a little jarring at first but once I got used to Dose's style, I could see that it very much suits the story Johns is trying to tell. The new continuity/status quo of Keystone is really fascinating, and I'm stoked to see how this played out. Did Wally lose his powers completely? Did the lightning hitting the car re-activate them, or is he regaining them? Who gave Wally the Flash ring?
• The Flash #202 - "Shifting Gears" = What the heck is going on! This issue was huge step up, and the last one was not bad in any way at all. Dose's art reminds me of some kind of fusion between Warhol Pop art + Steranko/Kirby + Hernandez Love and Rockets styles. Johns is a master of dialogue when he likes the character, and his internal voice for Wally is perfection. The mystery boxes are scattered all across this issue: who is the blonde on the motorcycle (golden glider?)? What's the deal with that new rogue profiler Petrov? Why can't Wally control his power? Is it because of the amnesia, or something else entirely?
• The Flash #203 - "Crash & Burn" = I'm loving this! The Snart/Wally sequence in the diner was fantastic and easily one of the best moments in this storyline so far. The Ashley Zolomon reveal was great, and Reece being suspicious makes me think that she might be the mysterious racer. The final twist with Mister Element was hype, and direction this seems to be going is totally my kind of story. I'm beginning to see the intention of "Ignition": an attempt for Wally to deal with his guilt following Run Riot + Blitz as well as giving Johns a Silver Age-esque imaginary story for him to play around with. Whatever it is, we are winning a great story out of it.
• The Flash #204 - "Cold Reality" = "WTF comics" everybody! I caught the bats foreshadowing in the Linda sequence, but I did not expect him to show up with memory of the previous reality! Newbaddie Ashley Zolomon, Mister Alchemy set-up being paid off in this Mister Element persona, and Wally is finally starting to remember the truth. Could Ashley be the mysterious racer? Is Linda really infertile! What is Element's motive? How does Bruce factor into this?!
• The Flash #205 - "Secrets" = So I guess I've been misunderstanding this entire storyline up to this point? No new reality, no lateral timeline, just a big ole mind-wipe. The interaction with Bats is great: his hostility to even the slightest mention of Hal is pretty hilarious and in-line with how Johns seems to want to characterize him from this point forward (alongside all the other cynicism that will be coming). I figured out the final reveal the minute Petrov said the words cold shoulder to Zolomon; the Alchemy explanation last issue was way too simple. What was Iris talking on the phone with Jay about?
• The Flash #206 - "Up To Speed" = A bit of an anti-climax for such an engaging set up. Some great moments: I especially enjoyed the dynamic presented with Cold and Wally. "Born good or bad. We'll never know, will we, Len?" We get a classic escape route trope of classic villain kills new edgy villain, even though Petrov as a new Mister Element was pretty interesting in his own right. The melo-drama isn't as interesting, but this new angle with Ashley could be cool.

Before The Storm [#207-212]

• The Flash #207 - "Rush Hour!" = From bad to worse! For as fast as he is, Wally West can never seem to catch a break. Up to this point in my journey through John's DC bibliography, I would have to say that Flash is probably the weakest of his works. The main reason I say this is because of the inherent mundane/repetitive nature of the Flash book, and the reliance on the charisma of Wally West and Barry Allen. The threats will always be the Rogues or a "reverse-flash" of the month, while the soap-trope drama is what keeps the book standing on two legs. This is why arcs like Blood Will Run and Ignition are so much fun, mainly because the Flash is put into a situation we've never seen before (cultists + mind-wipe): a much preferred story than the tiresome Rogue wars and freak of the week stuff. Johns has already written the ultimate Rogue story (Crossfire) and the ultimate Reverse Flash story (Blitz), so an issue where the Rogues are yet again planning against the Flash + fighting the Flash at a parade (oh but this time they're led by Abra Kadabra!) falls pretty flat. The Spectre stuff was great, and seeing the Golden Giants were cool, but I could care less about fighting Tar Pit and Plunder.
• The Flash #208 - "Red Carpet" = Regardless of my concerns in the previous entry, this issue was a lot of fun, mostly because of the inclusion of Jay Garrick and Bart Allen. The angle Johns is tackling in this arc is very interesting: a commentary on the hero worship that the twin cities has for the Flash lineage. The guards in Iron Heights, the civilians rebuilding the museum, all coming at the worst possible moment for Wally West. The anecdotal background stuff Johns includes about Garrick cements my love for him, and I think it's very interesting that Hal/Spectre came to them and Iris to reveal the nature of the mind-wipe. What do they need to tell Wally about Iris? We finally get some continuation of the James Jesse plotline, and I had to go back and find where he last appeared, almost 20 issues back during the Pied Piper spotlight (#190). James is working with Piper and Heat-Wave IIRC, and if this blonde is the mysterious racer from the Ignition arc (possibly Ashley Zolomon or Snart's sister Golden Glider?), then we are in for something fun. Mentions of Boomerang hint at his role in Identity Crisis, Grodd lurks behind the scenes, and the JLA prepare to interrogate Wally (sans Batman, who already knows).
• The Flash #209 - "Fast Friends" = If your wife leaves you, your city is attacked by colorful criminals every waking second, and the whole world doesn't remember your name after the embodiment of God's vengeance wielding the ghost of a dead friend mind-wiped the planet, Superman is there to fix everything with charisma, understanding, and his mother's cooking. The highlight of this chapter was John's internal monologue for Wally. His skill getting into the mind of his POV characters is a feat to behold, and this has been without a doubt one of the biggest strengths of this run. I loved Wally's perspective on each member of the JLA, and it made me sad to see how the DC universe was operating right before the storm that is Identity and Infinite Crisis.
• The Flash #210 - "Reconnected" = Flash and Nightwing team up! The Batman influence since Ignition is extremely apparent, and the similarities between both of these heroes and their families is highlighted to the highest degree: massive rogues galleries, big legacies/families, associations with the law and police, and now with Blitz being Wally's very own Killing Joke/Death in the Family. I love the dynamic between Wally and Dick, the idea of characters having a literal in universe history of over 80+ years of friendship is something that only comics have. You can truly feel the earned friendship and bond between these heroes, the weight of their emotions is cemented by their sprawling adventures in the Teen Titans. I'm interested in the James Jesse plotline, and the hinting towards Rogue War has begun. The Ashley Zolomon stuff was fun too, although we haven't uncovered what her place going forward will be.
• The Flash #211 - "Animal House" = They really just killed Ashley Zolomon? Was it the Top? Was it Hunter? Was it Wolfe? I don't know whether to be angry or sad because I was hoping/expecting a completely different angle for her character in the following issues. I'm sure this will have consequences when Hunter eventually gets out (if he didn't kill her himself). The Grodd fight was great, more enjoyable than the past two fights (maybe because of recency bias). Howard Porter's art has been fantastic these past couple issues, a worthy follow up to Scott Kolins. Wally's arc getting through his martial struggles is very compelling, and brings some serious weight to the results of Blitz and Ignition. I very much enjoy how Johns has brought Wally's support system to showcase in these chapter, each bringing a new and differentiated perspective to help Wally. Let's see how Johns finishes this one off before Identity Crisis.
• The Flash #212 - "Mirror, rorriM, On The Wall" = EYM NEVAR LEEVIN WUNDERLAND! Great issue, only slightly brought down by the mid-tier art. Loved the backstory on McCulloch, and especially loved that Johns connected it to his original first appearance in Morrison's Animal Man series. The internal monologue for MM was so much fun, and I loved some of the themes overlayed between his life pre-costume and embracing the rogue persona with the never-ending cycle of hero vs villain; the reflection never ends! Still no answers as to what James Jesse is planning, or what they were doing to give MM nose bleeds, or what happened to Wally in the Ashley situation, but that's for next volume I guess!

Titans/Young Justice Graduation Day + Teen Titans (2003) #1-7 Review

 

Graduation Day

• Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day #1 - "Invocation" = Judd Winick's writing took a little to get used to. His Nightwing is a little off, much more like Batman in his aggressiveness. The concept of a mega-corporation trying to hire YJ and the Titans for tax write offs is hilarious, and I wonder if they have any link to this mysterious blue girl who's trying to repair herself using cybernetic individuals in the DCU. This group of Titans is interesting: I remember Argent from Rock of Ages (even though that was a future version), and I have no idea why Roy is using a gun? The Donna Troy dream sequence was interesting too, and Cyborg states Indigo is apparently benevolent, setting up a couple plot points for the rest of the mini. Not too crazy about the art, but at least I won't have to deal with it for very long.
• Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day #2 - "Commencement" = This one was a bit of a step up. I am not a fan of Winick's characterization of Dick, he makes him so damn angsty which doesn't seem to fit in with his personality whatsoever. Tim was also on edge, and that makes me wonder if this is somehow related to the Batman line stuff with Hush and Murderer/Fugitive keeping the whole bat-family on edge. If not, then this gets really messy. The Donna moments are great, and Vic is always fun. Besides that, not much happens until the shock value final sequence. Omen is merc'd by a Superman robot that STAR apparently has? I have no care for Indigo, and I'm just excited to be done with this so I can move on into the Johns Titans series.
• Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day #3 - "Recessional" = An excuse for a soft reboot. This was mediocre at best. The art is bleh. Winick's characterization of Nightwing sucks. RIP Donna, but I'm more excited for the Jimenez min than this. I think I had way too high expectations for Winick, and I'm praying that I enjoy his stuff in the lead-up to Infinite Crisis.
• Teen Titans/Outsiders Secret Files & Origins 2003 - "A Day After" = Phil Jimenez section carried the hell out of this. His writing and art work in tandem so well, a fusion that shows how much Jimenez really cares about the Wonder Woman mythos. Very hyped to read his Donna Troy mini-series leading up to IC. The Johns/Winick stuff was fine, but I really don't care for the grumpy Nightwing. The prelude to both Teen Titans and Outsiders was serviceable, but forgettable.

A Kid's Game [#1-7 + 1/2]

• Teen Titans #1 - "Teen Titans" = Interesting opener. Fun that it's the JLA getting the proteges together for a new Teen Titans post events of Graduation Day. I think them making that effort displays an extremely healthy relationship between both generations that I wish was more present in current continuity. There are some interactions that came off as jarring: Wally being cynical about Bart, the Cassie teen angst stuff, Conner and Tim. I guess everyone is super on edge after the death of Donna and Lilith, so it makes sense (I sleepwalked through that mini-series, and I know Donna comes back so I didn't care much). The final twist was cool, I know Johns has had this in his fanfic for quite some time, so it's fun to see it implemented for the first time.
• Teen Titans #2 - "Child's Play" = Gah damn that last page. Still getting some weird vibes off of the dynamic; the novelty of the teen angst has worn off. Tim is the most jarring, but maybe that has to do with Johns' characterization of Batman. Conner is the standout, but everyone else is just annoying. I know for a fact that Johns can write good teen characters, I mean just look at Stargirl, but he's 100% doing this intentionally. I already know the Deathstroke twist, but the disposal of Wintergreen sucks since he ends up being so good in the Priest-Stroke run.
• Teen Titans #3 - "Too Young To Die!" = All I felt reading this was how similar the interactions were to Johns writing the League in the New 52. Teen angst is not for me, but I will certainly power through it while reading this run. The mausoleum sequence was cool, and the foreshadowing leading up to the final page reveal worked out really well. The McKone art is growing on me, but I hope the plot accelerates soon, because the writing is certainly not carrying the book. Also, I'm assuming the girl in the church of blood sequence is Raven.
• Teen Titans #4 - "Breaking the Rules" = Great last page. Seeds are being sown with Cassie, Raven, and Conner; everything else seems meandering. Starfire, Beast Boy, and Cyborg are the weak links while Jericho possessing Slade maintains sufficient tension as an introductory villain in classic Johns "sins of your past have come to haunt you" type fashion. McKone's art is great, the fight scenes are dynamic and brutal as hell. The Bart stuff was the stand out, makes sense too since Johns is a Flash-fanatic.
• Teen Titans #5 - "Clash of the Teen Titans" = I think I'm past the transition point and have finally got used to the characters. Johns obviously seems to have an affinity for the YJ remnants over the Wolfman titans, but I wonder if that'll change over the course of this run. A pretty unsatisfying anti-climax to this whole arc, and Deus Ex Raven showing up out of nowhere to yoink Jericho didn't make it any better. Bart becoming Kid Flash was dope, and Diana yeeting Conner on that last page was hilarious. 
• Teen Titans #6 - "War & Peace" = Titans vs JLA! Heroes vs Heroes over an understanding, one of the stupidest tropes to ever exist in comics. The only justification to make it work in this context is the fact that these are goddamn hormonal super-teens, of course they're going to let the angst turn to punches and kicks (the older titans should be in their 20's, so that's pretty inexcusable). Mike McKone continues to deliver wonderfully choreographed art, very much cemented in the 2000's era ambience. Nightwing coming in was hilarious, and the evolution of the Tim/Conner brotherhood is still great. One thing that has bugged me is the fact that all the YJ leftovers seem so distant even though they were on a team together for multiple years; they act like they first met each other recently! Conner and Tim have been friends since the dang 90's, where is all this disconnect coming from, because if it's really a result of Graduation Day, than I don't know what to tell you.
• Teen Titans #7 - "Wednesday" = The best issue yet? Drop-ins for every member of the Titans (sans Vic sadly) with little old Slade as our bookends. Conner and Bart had the best internal reflections (makes sense given it's Johns) while Tim and Kori were some great runner ups. Still adjusting to pre-flashpoint Deathstroke since I'm so used to his characterization during Priest's run. 
• Teen Titans #1/2 - "The Ravager" = I think this was fine, nothing too crazy. The use of Wade LeFarge was cool, but I'm not sure how I feel about this characterization of Rose. Like I mentioned in the last entry, the Rose I'm used to is from Priest's Deathstroke, so John's half-baked/newborn personalities are not doing it for me. The Ivan Reis art was fun, and I'm sure the flashback panels were great for fans of Wolfman's Deathstroke run in the 90's, but the Titans were pretty useless in this.

JSA All-Stars + Tis' The Season (JSA #52-55) Review

JSA All-Stars

• JSA All-Stars #1 - "Legacy" = This dude's name is really Legacy? That's dumb as hell, but I'm down for the ride I guess. He looks like an evil King Mob which I think is hilarious. All I was thinking while reading this was how it was going to fit in continuity, either before or after Princes of Darkness. I was worried about the art, but I actually enjoyed it. I think this is the same guy that drew issue 46 of JSA, and he did great!
• JSA All-Stars #2 - "Flying High" = Fantastic issue, much better than the first. I love the Hawks, and this was an excellent adjacent touchstone for the character of Kendra. Her biological daughter brought into the fray yields some crazy considerations and ramifications for her dynamic with Carter. So much context is brought to the rebellious brawler we saw in the beginning of JSA. She was scared to have a family, because she was scared to lose one again! Phil Winslade was a major upgrade from whoever did the first one, and Johns/Goyer keep killing it!
• JSA All-Stars #3 - "Challenging Fate" = The continuity is going to drive me insane! I'm not sure where to put this; before Princes of Darkness, but also before Savage Times? The premonitions of a confrontation with Hawkman are interesting too, and I love to see that Nabu action after the great JSA #48. No way he's going to kill Hawkgirl, I call serious BS, but maybe they'll put an interesting spin (could this be during Princes of Darkness?). Barry Kitson did a great job on art, and I loved the Darwyn Cooke backup chapter.
• JSA All-Stars #4 - "A Star Is Born" = Probably the best issue yet. I love Courtney and Pat, I love their dynamic, and I loved every page of the original Stars & STRIPE series. This is a great epilogue to the run, and dealing with her biological father was fantastically painful to endure. The tragedy is done really well, and I'm so glad that she has finally matured and moved on. I'm assuming this is the first time she uses the name Stargirl, which is awesome. The Mike Mckone art suited the story really well, and I'm excited to see his work on the Titans run.
• JSA All-Stars #5 - "An Hour at a Time" = This was a lot of fun. Rex is one of the best additions to the JSA, and his own personal pathos is unique and interesting to explore. Had no idea who the artist was, but I ended up enjoying his style, kind of a Stephen Sadowski/Leonard Kirk reminiscent style consistent with the other JSA book coming out.
• JSA All-Stars #6 - "Out of the Shadows" = The dream team is back! Sadowski returns for a wonderful Mid-Nite story as Johns/Goyer tackle the classic pregnant woman in labor during a major crisis trope. I'm not sure if the backstory presented in this was from the Matt Wagner series that introduced Pieter, or if Johns and Goyer concocted this yarn for this chapter. Nevertheless, I loved this, and the naming of the child was extremely touching.
• JSA All-Stars #7 - "Fair Enough" = This was probably the worst out of all of them since it was the shortest. I guess Holt had a new grave made at the end, but I'm not sure how that makes things make sense in his head. Maybe because if there is an afterlife, his wife isn't there alone? I'm not sure, but I am sure that the art was the weakest out of all the issues.
• JSA All-Stars #8 - "And Justice For All" = Solid! The art wasn't great in the first half, but Vellutio pulled it off once they faced off against Legacy. I enjoyed the Wizard twist and the character devs for everyone. The best thing about this was the dialogue: you can always tell when writers care a whole bunch about the characters they're interacting with, and Johns + Goyer absolutely love the JSA and their respective pathos.

[JSA : Tis' The Season]

• JSA #52 - "Brand New Day" = The bait is crazy! This was a fantastic issue following the bombastic POD arc. The new status quo is great, and I loved checking in with the whole team. You could give me a JSA book where they sit around and hang out and I would still buy it, that's how much I like these characters. The Cave Carson segment and the Jesse Quick/Hourman stuff were easily my favorites, although Alex getting recruited into Black Adam's task force spices things up. Jakeem/Billy/Courtney love triangle? Very interested in this Crimson Avenger plot, and I'm glad it's getting payed off after so long. Is the man Wildcat supposedly framed the father of the Killer Wasp? Yellow Wasp abducted Ted's son and raised him as his own, however according to Killer Wasp, Jake is dead and Wildcat killed his dad. Now that I reread JSA #37, Charles Durham is a completely different person. But I hope that Killer Wasp plotline gets picked up at some point. 
• JSA #53 - "Blinded" = I'm a little let down because we didn't get any answers to the Killer Wasp plot, but this was still great. Pieter stuff is kino, Power Girl and Wildcat have an incredible dynamic, and that epilogue was so much fun. A nice way to wrap up that Nemesis thread which never fit, ends up working in favor for the lead up to Black Reign. Can Mid-Nite get redemption from fumbling Canary and bag PG instead?
• JSA #54 - "Virtue, Vice, & Pumpkin Pie" = Wholesome in excelsis. This was fantastic. Don Kramer's pencils bring an almost Kevin Maguire-esque feel, while Johns shines brighter than the god damn starheart with his dialogue and character interactions. That sequence with Pieter and Dinah hurt my soul, let my boy catch a break please! The Rick and Jesse tension was fantastic as well, and it was great to see Liberty Belle. Batman and Terrific as the bookends ended up being super fun, and I'm glad that Johns enjoys highlighting this friendship throughout this run.
• JSA #55 - "Be Good For Goodness' Sake" = AHHHHHH! For all the crap Johns has churned out in the 2010's, JSA has my heart forever. This was something spectacular. The twist turning this into a spotlight issue on Ma Hunkel, who would have thought of that! Issue of the goddamn year man. Leonard Kirk knocks it out of the park with his art, and the dynamic between the old stallions of the JSA never fails to be a pleasure to read.