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.

Hawkman by Geoff Johns #13-22 Review

 

[Hawkman : Killers // The Thanagarian]

• Hawkman #13 - Killers, Part I : "Hunted Hawks" = Sheeeit! The Nedal reveal had me shaking! EVS art was great, and the pacing was on point throughout the entire issue. I had to go back and reread the first 12 just to get the full cover-up: Nedal hired Warwhip to deliver the telegram and lure Kendra's parents back to St Roch, where Nedal himself killed them. Johns seems to be fascinated with the morality of should superheroes kill, since this is one of the main themes going on in the JSA title. We get some more answers about the Absorbacon, it restored her full memories of her killing the officer (maybe it was suppressed?). Warwhip's line about the rats makes a lot more sense now. As for the other stuff, Oliver Evans is still missing (was it an art error at the end of the last book?), Jaiyta and Carter subplot romance is addressed (and concluded?), and Gentleman Ghost has finally been brought into the fray.
• Hawkman #14 - Killers, Part II : "Haunted Hawks" = Wow , this was fantastic! Don Kramer on pencils was a very seamless transition from EVS. The only issue I could point out is the flip flop between stances on killing by Carter and Kendra, it's very sloppy and inconsistent. Gentleman Ghost is a delight to read, and he becomes the Hawks own personal Mxyzptlk by the end of this chapter. The death of Jaiyta messed me up, and the fact that they used it to wrap up her storyline is very unfortunate. The death of Nedal was great (more use of the trope where the villains kill other villains), and Craddock's final mic drop is perfect: "Many heroes make enemies that last a lifetime. But you, the both of you, your enemies last forever. Farewell, Killers." The last page reveal sets up some good speculation: if this is Shayera Thal, then has she come searching for her husband, Katar Hol (who got fused with Carter into the Hawkgod, and then rebooted during the JSA arc). Great two-parter, I would put this up with Slings & Arrows as the best of the series so far.
• Hawkman #15 - The Thanagarian, Part I : "Wings Of Fury" = History lesson! And I've been following the entire time! Shayera was so much fun, and the interaction with the Hawks was fantastic! The last page reveal had me shaking, but I sadly got it spoiled for me when I checked the wiki for the cameos in the flashback sequence. Surprised we didn't get any Fel Andar references, I would love to see that get a follow up at some point. Can't help but wonder what Danny's arc will be after the death of Jaiyta, and I'm happy to see Shadow Thief back. He was one of my favorite parts of that first arc.
• Hawkman #16 - The Thanagarian, Part II : "Hawk VS Hawk!" = Great final page! The Animal Man sequence was easily the standout, and I loved getting the need to know on the post-Morrison lore. I had no idea they introduced the Red during this era (I thought it was a N52 thing), and I had only known it as the morphogenetic field. Glad he mentioned the Yellow Aliens, and the Avatar stuff is actually really interesting. The interactions between Carter and Kendra are super healthy now: he respects her boundaries and their rapport has improved significantly. Pissed that I had the reveal spoiled for me, but this is still a super fun arc.
• Hawkman #17 - The Thanagarian, Part III : "In This Life Or The Next" = What a wholesome arc. I absolutely loved the character of Shayera, and I think it's so great that they reconciled the incarnations. Katar lives on in Carter due to the spirit-merge, but the lore differentiating them post-crisis still makes sense! However, I do think it still is cool that Vendetti incorporated the incarnation across space and time so that Katar and Carter are variations of the primordial Ktar Deathbringer, since it allows them to retain their relevancy and merit. The Snyder stuff gets messy, and I need to reread that JL Hawkworld arc + the whole run in general. The action and art were fantastic in this issue, and I super stoked to see how this leads up to Rann-Thanagar War.

[Hawkman : The Headhunter]

• Hawkman #18 - "Bloodlines" = Huge change of pace for this series, and the whole interaction with Jonas felt very Shakespearian in nature. I hit the end of the issue only to be downright confused, but the interaction with Ray and the fascinating exploration of how Carter deals with his immortality in a way we've never seen before was thought-provoking to say the least.
• Hawkman #19 - "Hunting for History" = Very solid issue. I loved all of the lore dumps, tying together the threads set up in JSA; a whole unified ancient history of the DC universe! The exploration of Kahndaq, paving the way for Black Reign has me so excited. I feel like we've been setting this up since Black Adam's first appearance in JSA #6, and looking back at Johns' bibliography you can tell he loves using that character. This Headhunter teasing seems interesting since I have no idea who he is. Who did he kill and boil/dismember?
• Hawkman #20 - The Headhunter, Part I : "Pray For Angels" = What the heck is going on? Voodoo rigamarole in excelsis. Who is Pani? What is Tsanta? Like genuinely what the heck is going on. The university/slice of life sequences were great, and I love the interactions with Ray in this series. The fashion choices of Carter and Kendra are so much fun as well, and depict a lot about their character. The mentions of silent film got me giddy: we know Johns is a film buff with his dialogue for Sand in JSA.
• Hawkman #21 - The Headhunter, Part II : "Taking Off The Mask" = The soap continues! I get Kendra's frustration, but come on, after all you and Carter have been through you have got to cut him some slack! Tying Headhunter into the past incarnations of Carter brings some new momentum, and I'm eager to uncover whatever the heck is going on. Who are the voices speaking to Headhunter? Is that Pani? The convo's with Ray are always wonderful, and the fact they brought back issue 18 gets me interested in how Johns is going to wrap this up before Black Reign.
• Hawkman #22 - The Headhunter, Part III : "Blood & Lies" = Dang man! I hate seeing my boy like this! Battered and mentally broken, Hawkman has embraced the 90's edge; the Savage Hawkman is back. I can't help but wonder if Black Adam had anything to do with this, or if the Headhunter coming out of the woodwork was just a coincidence right before Black Reign. The Headhunter lore dump was sufficient, but no answers on any of the colorful words like Pani and Tsanta. 

JSA #39-51 Review

Savage times [#39-44 + JLA/JSA Secret Files + Virtue & Vice OGN]

• JSA #39 - "Power Crush" = This was hilarious. D-Bomb is a walking meme and ended up functioning as a wonderful foil to Power Girl. The last page convo with Star and Kendra was great, and the internal monologue of D-Bomb kept it all fun.
• JSA #40 - "...Do No Harm" = I will not lie to you, the last page reveal came out of nowhere. I get that Atom-Smasher and Black Adam have had their bro-bonding moment, but I did not understand where the animosity towards Marvel came from. The issue itself was okay, the Marvel narration was good and I always love more Stargirl, but I was hoping for more Pieter. The Shadower villain was OP as hell, but he folded immediately after being confronted with the power of the storytelling climax. The kids standing up for themselves was great, but I can't help but wonder what the heck would have happened if he stuck to his plan? The JSA would have been useless as mess. Also, I just found out the golden age lore dump was all made for this issue, and the Shadower and Shadower II never appear again. Kind of disappointing.
• JLA/JSA - Secret Files & Origins - "The Day Before" = This special was great, the Batman/Terrific sequence was awesome. I love seeing the post-crisis reconciliations for Golden and Silver age events into one unified New Earth continuity. The conversation between two of the smartest men on the planet is obviously going to be a lot of fun. The hockey game scene was also wonderful, Plastic Man is just such a joy to read, and it's especially fun to see how each writer tackles his dialogue. The Power Girl/Courtney/Diana scene was terrible, and aged very badly. Good stuff, but at the end of the day this is going to be enhanced by the actual Virtue & Vice book.
• JLA/JSA - Virtue & Vice (One-shot/Graphic Novel) = Great graphic novel! Loved the return of Johnny Sorrow and Despero, as well as the crazy pulls like Bedlam, Typhon lord of chaos, and freaking Surtur! The geography of the story was so much fun, and I loved the splinter groups that formed when stuff went down. The scene stealers were Canary, Mid-Nite, and Ollie; the relationship (now love-triangle) between Dinah and Pieter was one of my favorite things during the first 30 issues of JSA. With the return of Ollie, it makes sense that they are an ultimate pair, but shafting my boy Pieter was cruel. He's a total chad, while Ollie is our lovable douche. We hit a couple tropes: Captain Atom nuked, Hourman's time vision, Supes with no sunlight, and Despero wearing the American flag as a cape. Mid-Nite and Batman's fight/moment was really great. I'm excited for the next cross-over!
• JSA #41 - "The Unborn Hour" = Unborn hour was interesting. What got me the most confused was the Hector Hall sequence. In the first JSA arc, the team brought back Doctor Fate using a newborn Hector Hall as the host who aged up in seconds to full maturity (weird right?). He found his wife Lyta, but somehow Mordru had cast her under a sort of sleep spell. The strangest thing however, was the fact that Lyta was actually the one who gave birth to Hector's baby form during the first arc! This and the Gemworld stuff were surprisingly interesting since I normally don't care about Amethyst and the crystal people or whatever. I recognized Flaw from the latest season of YJ, but I am unfamiliar with Cutter. The Black Barax stuff was super cool since they used him on the cover of #34 and during the Sand dream sequence in that issue. His design and giant cube ship is dope, and the set up with Terry Sloan on the cliffhanger was dope. Black Adam and Marvel's banter is great, and this makes me more excited for the upcoming confrontation with Atom-Smasher and the characters shown in last issue's final page.
• JSA #42 - "Paradox Play" = I feel like I've been reading so much Kendra stuff lately, and I'm not complaining! She's been in JSA, Hawkman, and recent Obsidian Age arc of JLA. Her personality and no-nonsense attitude is so much fun that it makes sense as to why everyone wants to use her. Michael Holt has been a goated character, and his dynamic with Terry Sloan was fantastic. The cover did a great job of subverting expectations, and Terry's gambit with Black Barax was so good that it even had me doubting it for a second. I wonder how this interaction will lead to Terry Sloan's fall and the eventual rise of Roulette. Seeing the Freedom Fighters was so awesome (never seen a male firebrand before) and the cliffhanger with Savage + some king of ancient Metamorpho elemental was cool. This ancient Egypt continuity is bonkers, as it seems there are time travelers visiting them every day. As for the Fate stuff, the Lords of Order/Chaos lore was super dope, and the story of Fate's amulet is converging with some of the information we just got in Hawkman #9 (I desperately need to find a way to reconcile the reading order!). I can't help but wonder if Mordru has been manipulating Hector the entire time, as well as who his chaos energy spirit originally possessed in Gemworld.
• JSA #43 - "Yesterday's War" = The more I read JSA & Hawkman, the more stressed I get about how to put together this reading order. I love the ancient DCU lore, the various incarnations of characters in Egypt is my kind of subversion. Johns and Goyer nail these character moments, with Teth-Adam and Marvel easily the standout. Johns is actively pushing the veil with the Hawkgirl stuff in both the Hawk and JSA books, and I'm excited to see how this ends up concluding. The Fate stuff was good, I don't care for the host/familiar because Gemworld is lame as hell, but the fact that Cutter ended up being Child blows for Hector. This man has suffered to the highest degree, and now the machinations of the Chaos Lords are going to royally screw him. Something that I have loved about this mini arc is the inclusion of a bit of poetry on the credits page; it really elevates the book to a more erudite vibe.
• JSA #44 - "The Tears of Ra" = I really liked this one. Echoes of Hal and Sinestro between Marvel and Black Adam (even though this happens a decade before that moment). The sequence in the afterlife was fantastic, and the execution of Ahk-Ton was extremely in-character for Teth. The chrysalis vault stuff is wild; but if you approach this with a "the past is being rewritten = future memories are rewritten" mindset instead of the "whatever happened, happened", then this will make a lot more sense. Terrific and Kendra going back to save Marvel is creating a new future. They did not exist in chrysalis pods preserved until the present until they had that conversation with Nabu. Adam didn't remember to wake them up until he actually sealed them in the new past. Retcons being made in the actual narrative! As for the final reveal, I have completely lost track of what's going on. Here are the facts as we know them: A woman was found in the sea off the coast of Vancouver, she was pregnant. The child was born, she remained comatose, that child was destined to be the next Doctor Fate. This child was the reincarnation of Hector Hall, former Silver Scarab and Sandman. He searched for his missing wife, Lyta Hall, and also found her in Vancouver, discovering that she was the woman who gave birth to him. In order to awaken her, the Helm ordered Hall to go to Gemworld to find answers. He met Flaw and Cutter, the original creator of the Amulet of Fate, who brought him to the corpse of the mortal host of the chaos lord Mordru, Prince Wrynn. Hall took his head, and after leaving Cutter was revealed to be a disguised Chaos lord known as Child. Everything ended up being a ruse, Hector never found Lyta, and the woman was actually Dawn freaking Granger. How is she not dead post-Armageddon 2001? How did Mordru engineer all of this? Did he manipulate the helm to send Hector to Gemworld? Were Flaw and Child in league with Mordru the entire time?

Princes of Darkness [#45-51]

• JSA #45 - "Peacemakers" = That was incredible. The Dove sequence was fantastic, and I love that they are bringing everything full circle, taking elements from Justice Be Done (Mordru + Fate) and Hunt For Extant (Kobra, Bones, Hawk/Dove, Atom-Smasher). The reveal of Mordru as the cause behind Armageddon 2001 and Zero Hour is kind of crazy if you think about it, and the fact that he wrested control from Hector is also great. Hector was a newbie in relation to dealing with Fate's power, so I wonder how Mordru escaped from the prison and took out the spirits of Kent and Inza as well as convincing Nabu to let him take hold? Kobra is a fantastic villain, and the discussion of if heroes should murder is dealt with in an extremely solid and competent way. The Teth-Adam and Atom-Smasher dynamic intensifies while Terrific is actually brought to a stalemate for once. The most surprising things were the Alex Montez subplot and the cameo appearance of Crimson Avenger (yay they didn't forget that subplot!). The Alex Montez stuff is interesting, because Yolanda was killed by Eclipso during some kind of 90's event (the same issue Beth Chapel Midnighter got offed as well). Him getting some kind of Heart of Darkness injection from Bruce Gordon (the OG host of Eclipso) is wild, and I'm sure they'll bring in Eclipso and Obsidian for an event called "Princes of Darkness".
• JSA #46 - Princes of Darkness, Part I : "Into The Valley" = Very interesting opening. The recap with the Legionnaire-phone was cool, but kind of spoiled the Obsidian reveal (but he's on the cover so...). Mordru is supposed to be OP, but I have the same issue with this as the first chapter of the Injustice Be Done arc, where the Society (specifically Sentinel) gets soloed by the big bad beyond repair. At least Mordru and Obsidian are established bad mofos, so it's not as jarring. Sand turning into the classic Sand Creature was cool, and Mordru's mercilessness was great (especially when he muted Jakeem). I was a lot more into the Dawn/Pieter sequence, with the revelations about Hector and Mordru being very fascinating. The retcons regarding Zero Hour are messy to say the least, but the connection between Hawk/Dove + Order/Chaos + Fate/Mordru works extremely well. Mordru is currently possessing the host body now, with Hector trading places and now trapped in the amulet? The concealment spell on Dove is weird because if he knew where she was, they why was he searching for her during Justice Be Done? The Eclipso stuff is cool too, but I'm still wondering if Alex and Bruce had sinister intentions since the letter from last issue showed he didn't want Eclipso to gain power again. This one seems to be Bruce Gordon, but we still don't know what happened to Alex.
• JSA #47 - Princes of Darkness, Part II : "Eclipse" = This was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed the balance of the pacing in this chapter: the first half was a conclusion to the brawl with some fantastic action, while the second half functioned well in advancing the plot as well as upping the stakes. Eclipso and Dove crashing through the walls of the brownstone is just so fun to me. Power Girl getting to slap around Mordru was also satisfying. Very formidable entourage for the villains, and I hadn't even realized that Mordru retained the power of the Star-Heart until he used it in the eclipse incantation at the end. If the Shadowlands are equivalent to the Chaos Beyond Hell, then it's very interesting to think that the Wizard's power cannot reach the outer membranes of creation (as I write this I remember that the Multiverse did not exist at this point, so New Earth is probably just sitting at the center of the Orrery). Alex Montez set up was good, and if he's pumped up with heart of darkness juice, will he be the answer to taking down Eclipso? Where are Al and Teth-Adam? I loved the last page reveal of the Fate pantheon, and they even included Kid Eternity + Jared Stevens Fate!
• JSA #48 - Princes of Darkness, Part III : "Enlightenment" = Possibly the best chapter yet? Spotlight on Courtney & Billy + Hector and the Fates! This was so good. Courtney and Billy have a fantastic chemistry, and the anecdotes Goyer and Johns bring in work so well to allow the personalities to grow. The Alan-Thorn history lesson was really good and really sad, but the pathos is so intriguing and engaging. As for the final page, love to see my man Shade, but this is bait at its finest. The Fate sequence was brilliant; I got confused on Mordru's hosts, but after rereading bit it all makes sense. Mordru's first host was Wrynn, but he freed himself and took over Arion's body, using it to fight the JSA in the first arc (that's why he's a red-head!). As of now, Mordru is not possessing Hector's body, but is in the Arion body while Hector is in the Amulet. The interactions with the Fate family were so fantastic, but it makes me sad that they were never really there. The emotional moment shared between Nabu and Hector was fantastic (and I loved the images of Hector's time as Sandman, as well as Morpheus himself in the background of that sequence.)
• JSA #49 - Princes of Darkness, Part IV : "Army of Darkness" = Very much a transition issue setting stuff up for the finale. The opening with Airwave circulating through the heroes was great, and I think it's so cool that the reserves are all made up of former members of the All-Star Squadron! They remembered Nemesis from the annuals! Pieter and Michael are a dynamic duo at this point and I love Terrifitech so much. The set-up of Mordru taking Arion's body connected to Power Girl's retconned origins as the granddaughter of Arion is masterful set-up. Inclusion of Doctor Occult was awesome, and the continued dynamic between Shade and now Stargirl is just great. Wildcat's hard-light armor was dope, and I wonder how this Alex Mont-Eclipso is going to go down.
• JSA #50 - Princes of Darkness, Part V : "The Last Light" = This was fun! Some of the stuff might have been a little deus ex machina for my tastes, but it was still good. Eclipso got wrapped up quick, and Sand got saved once Mordru was inhibited before the final sequence. It was hilarious how in-out the Gemworld stuff was; Karen shattering Flaw and Kendra KOing the Child was gold. The Power Girl revelations are intriguing, if she is from E-2 then how would Arion have known her mother? The Jakeem stuff caught me off guard, he looks like he's applying to be an extra on the Borg cube-ship. He needs his hair asap. The Alan vs Obsidian stuff was really well done, but I wonder how they will evolve this from Darkness Falls. This seemed like a culmination of that (and I really loved that arc), and I'm assuming they go forward with his rehabilitation. Sand holding the Earth together was dope, but there's no way they're taking my boy out like that. Kobra got dealt with super fast, Mordru's plan fell apart pretty quick in these last two issues, and I wonder if he has a couple tricks up his sleeve. Let's see this Chaos vs Order showdown! Justice for Hector!
• JSA #51 - Princes of Darkness, Part VI : "Coda: Justice Eternity" = I am at a loss for words! Geoff Johns did Doomsday Clock 15 years earlier, in the pages of Infinite Crisis and this fantastic event. Although it sags during some of the transition issues, this is easily the best arc JSA has done so far. Issues 45, 48, and 51 were absolutely the standouts; Johns and Goyer have made this team into something that will truly be remembered forever. The final sequence with Hector's mic drop was brilliant, the themes set up will be enhanced and retouched across all of Johns' body of work. Even the epilogue acted as an integral aspect of the team going forward: Al and Teth have crossed the Rubicon, but I can't say I didn't get at least a little satisfaction from Kobra's death.

JLA #78-90 by Joe Kelly Review

 

Rules of Engagement [#78-79] / White Rage [#80-82]

• JLA #78 - Rules of Engagement, Part I : "The Price For Peace" = I already knew about the last page reveal, but man was this great. I love this era of DC, because it seems like the writers aren't afraid of putting the JLA in difficult positions and have them confront tough issues. Kelly did this during Golden Perfect, and now Rules of Engagement is attacking the moral quandaries of the JLA in full force! The JLA's jurisdiction has always been a great debate, and you could arguably see virtue on both sides; I would agree with Batman because they are heroes, not a police force. The Green Lantern Corps however, is something that is much more suited to deal with this (even the United Planets!). However, Bureaucracy gets in the way of things happening, and Diana is always going to choose to be proactive anyways. The Faith stuff is interesting as well, and I'm sure that brings more clarity to the scene we saw during issue 69. Manitou Raven and Dawn are awesome, and all the new members including John Stewart have meshed really well into the lineup. I do miss Plas and Kyle though, even if he got mentioned at the beginning.
• JLA #79 - Rules of Engagement, Part II : "Look To The Tribe" = Those first couple pages were hilarious. Joe Kelly is a master of dialogue in this run, and I've said this a billion times but he really gets these characters. Manitou Raven is still my favorite, although Supes and Diana were fantastic in this. The space plot got resolved pretty quickly with the deus ex faith, as well as Kanjar Ro getting caught in 4K, but this chapter gave us a lot of great set-up for the rest of the run. Who is Manson? How did Batman find Faith? What is her connection to the US military, and who is the evil that she worked for? Why has she been referred to as the fat lady? Is Firestorm trying to hit on Dawn? Where did J'onn go to get over his pyrophobia?
• JLA #80 - White Rage, Part I : "Safe Haven" = The art killed this one for me. I did not enjoy Rouleau's style; his caricatures are a huge departure from the sleek figures of Doug Mahnke. The plot was fine; the pacing was very off. I'm interested in the Bats/Wondy stuff and the J'onn/Scorch dynamic, but this Haven arc was not as interesting. There were a couple good lines about sovereignty in the US, but besides that... I honestly feel like the art skewed my enjoyment of this. The final page with Faith is either a machination by this clandestine group trying to take her down, or she just lost control of her powers for some reason.
• JLA #81 - White Rage, Part II : "Dead Dreams" = There was one good page: the Martian Manhunter/Scorch mental sequence. Besides that, the art is killing this book. We learn that the whole situation last issue was a cover-up, the Safe Haven metas are part of an Elite 2.0 called Axis America. These Neo-nazi's come out of nowhere, and this either sucks or I've just completely lost the plot. I enjoyed the J'onn sequence. That's pretty much it: I would call this book a slog, but it reads pretty fast. The dynamics and dialogue aren't good enough to save this book from bad art. Let's pray Joe Kelly can save this arc before the end.
• JLA #82 - White Rage, Part III : "Clockwatchers" = At this point I'm just going through the motions of this story. I don't care for Axis America, I don't care for the Faith plot. The fights were fine. The revelations were meh. The J'onn/Scorch last page was wild. Ready for some better art please!
• JLA #83 - "American Nightmare" = Art upgrade! This one needs a reread at some point, but a great piece on Superman and the concept of the JL as an American super-team. How does that affect their goals, ideologies, jurisdiction? Some cool ideas and dialogues, but like I said I definitely need a reread bc of the wonderful twist that threw things into flux.

Trial By Fire [#84-89]

• JLA #84 - Trial By Fire, Part I : "Life Is A Strange Play" = What a way to get me hooked back into this series! Mahnke's art is fantastic as always; there's something about it that keeps my eyes glued to the page. So glad that we traded Duncan Rouleau's style for this godly depiction of the JLA. The first three pages had my jaw drop, and I absolutely loved the premise of this arc. The flies returned in the Dawn/Ronnie sequence! What do they mean! What does the flashback mean? What caused the mental incursions across the DCU? Who gave these gifts to the JLA? What's really going on between J'onn and Scorch? And what the heck is that Firestorm creature at the end?
• JLA #85 - Trial By Fire, Part II : "Something Extraordinary" = "WTF" comics is back! What did J'onn see in tree form? What has possessed him, because he clearly looks like it in the Scorch sequence. John and the GLC are obviously connected to this because of the Guardian in last issue's flashback. The caveman with the bloody sack last issue was Vandal! And in his sack was the severed head of a martian! He refers to them as Dakath/Destruction/The Burning, which is totally dope. The pacing is excellent, and those final pages were nerve-wracking: now I definitely think it's J'onn since he phased Clark into the table. Btw, were those guys phased into that citadel the same soldiers outside of Major Disaster's trailer, forced to look at the sun?
• JLA #86 - Trial By Fire, Part III : "Fernus" = Page after page, I become more certain that I am reading a banger JLA story for the ages. This is so good! The brawl on the Watchtower, the Vandal backstory, the Ganthet stuff, and that last page reveal! Come on! Interesting that this Burning Martian is a sub-species just like the Green & White Martians. If Scorch somehow activated this personality within J'onn, I'm assuming that means that the Greens are the Dakath? Is Fernus a dark personality of J'onn, or something/someone else? Is Scorch in on it? What are the guardians' involvement? Ganthet implies they created the Burning.
• JLA #87 - Trial By Fire, Part IV : "Barbaric Ancestry" = History lesson! Oh my god, Joe Kelly is one of the best at power scaling, a master at maintaining continuity of powers without diminishing the feats demonstrated previously by characters. The formidability of Fernus is terrifying, even more so than the evil Superman analogues we see so frequently. The lore was fantastic as well, with the decision to implant a weakness to fire intentional due to the euphoric and procreative nature it causes on the Burning Martians. The plastic man stuff was awesome as well, so happy for him to finally be brought back to the fray. The identity switch is interesting and fits very well as a foil for Fernus/J'onn.
• JLA #88 - Trial By Fire, Part V : "A Burning Earth" = Escalation in Excelsis! Joe Kelly finds a way to pit the JLA against Earth shattering threats while simultaneously telling such a personal story about the League and how they operate. I was very let down with the stories post Obsidian Age (Rules of Engagement was actually really good), but this has raised my standards so freaking much. Doug Mahnke is one of the greatest JLA artists - scratch that one of the greatest artists in the entire history of the industry. I cannot stress how much I love his style. Plastic Man stole this issue, and I can tell Kelly is just as happy as I am that he is back amongst his heroes to curb stomp this world-breaker. Forget the last page bait, let's finish this arc with a bang.
• JLA #89 - Trial By Fire, Part VI : "Out of the Ashes" = Brilliant ending to this arc. Easily one of the best Martian Manhunter stories ever, I would definitely put it on level with New World Order. This really made me want to check out Ostrander's run on J'onn with Tom Mandrake (I believe?). Bittersweet that I only have one last issue with Joe Kelly before this run comes to a close, but I'm so happy I finally got around to reading it because oh boy this is Grade-A cape storytelling. What's not to love about this arc: great lore, great character development, powerful dialogue, unbelievably good art, the whole shebang!
• JLA #90 - "Perchance..." = NOOOOOO! I think this might have cemented wonder-bats forever in my eyes. To frame the relationship in the context of either destroy the world or bring in into utopia is kind of brilliant, both agents of war and peace in some ways, trying to find the good in each other. Perfect issue, only complain I have is that with a better artist (cough cough Mahnke) this would have been elevated a lot more.

Justice League by Christopher Priest Review [#34-43]

Justice League #34 - "Three Rooms" {Art by Pete Woods}

• Crisis Times Three? Priest knows how to start things off with a bang, and I absolutely adored this. The roster in this run is really interesting, and I'm excited to see how Priest explores each of their characters. I read this back when it was coming out monthly and I remember liking it, but I'm super excited to jump in now that I've become accustomed to Priest's writing style, which is ten times more engaging then the stuff modern cape comics put out. This reminds me a lot of the Joe Kelly run (which I'm actually reading concurrently), and these kind of grounded JLA stories if done well are just as much fun as the cosmic stories we all love. Pete Woods' art suits the script in a big bad way, and this partnership is getting me hyped the more I think about it.
• Subtitles : "Praying Man" , "Day Three" , "Thirty Percent" , "Day Four"

Justice League #35 - "Swarm" {Art by Pete Woods}

• I am loving every page of this. The inclusion of Wally was so much fun, and the intro to Glenn Gammeron was cool. Priest seems to be using freak of the week (more like month) vignettes while linking them with the overall plot thread of the first issue's league-failure. It's only #2 so this prediction isn't that substantial, but regardless, this kind of storytelling continues to be engaging. Pete Woods knocked it out of the park with this one; the depiction of the Swarm was terrifying, but this is coming from a guy who hates bugs with a passion. The personalities of the team are well-fleshed out, I think we're just missing Priest's voice for Supes and Arthur. The hinting of Cyborg to League leadership warrants consideration, and I hope we see Glenn later in this volume. The final pages with the absurd accusations towards the League verily pissed me off. I hope Priest can do something interesting with this trope.
• Subtitles : "Evidence" , "Glenn & John" , "The Plan" , "Pinkeye"

Justice League #36 - "The People vs. The Justice League" {Art by Pete Woods}

• A pretty wild opening to set up the overarching villain of this run. The standout of this issue was Aquaman, although I was most interested in the discussions regarding the jurisdiction of the JL as a super-hero peacekeeping force. They're not the JLA in this era, but they do have a charter with the UN, and each side brings an interesting/worthwhile point to the debate. Batman losing support in the team is interesting, and he himself having doubts sets up for some great character development. The scenarios Priest puts these heroes in always end up surprising me and keeping me hooked; he just finds a way to make the solutions and interactions so much fun.
• Subtitles : "Which Hunt" , "Leaders" , "The Speech" , "Die Kunst der Diplomatie" , "Carbon"

Justice League #37 - "The Fan" {Art by Phillipe Briones}

• And that's when things got knocked into twelfth gear! The Fan is a fascinating exploration of a JLA worst-case scenario. Scratch that, this whole book is a JLA worst case scenario! Not a page is wasted, not a line of dialogue is insignificant, everything in this chapter was incredible. I love Priest writing these characters, and I'm so excited to continue. Phillipe Briones takes over the art from Pete Woods, and it's still fantastic. Maybe the colors could be improved, but his depictions of action and framing is picture-perfect.
• Subtitles : "Identity Crisis" , "Master Mind" , "Shadow Boxing" , "Snapshot" , "Watching the Watchers"

Justice League #38 - "Entropy" {Art by Marco Santucci}

• Thunk! Spotlight issue, The Flash! Regardless of the science jargon that I maybe caught 25% of, this was so much fun! The so called poetry in (and between) the lines is turned up to 11, an I love how distinct Priest allows each issue to be. The vignettes have been perfect up to this point, and I'm interested to see if he ends up fleshing out each Leaguer to the fullest. I suspect the Batman we saw in this was actually The Fan since there is no way in hell that he kissed Jessica. And the appointing of Cyborg as the chairman, fanboy move to the max!
• Subtitles : "Home Alone" , "The Enemy of Good" , "Five Stages" , "In Limine" , "Thunk" , "Come to Jesus" , "Complications"

Justice League #39 - "The Race" {Art by Ian Churchill}

• They're tearing us apart! Modern Media vs the JLA! A PR Nightmare! Who the hell would load trains with cargo that would cause a major chemical spill/outbreak if involved in an accident? I'm not sure how the logistics work for the oversight in the final sequence: were they just going to let the toxic fallout affect the rest of the neighborhoods? How the hell did Cyborg not vet this Lawyer? (Great twist btw). The Aquaman sequence was great, and the shark metaphor warrants some thought: is he trying to get the JLA to kill him, become more authoritarian? Is it one of those where "the villain tries to better the heroes"? Or when he says he shouldn't have killed that shark, does the Fan want him to let the League crumble so it can evolve into something more efficient, void of all the moral noise that prevents it from being the true vision Fan desires? Then again, it doesn't really matter compared to the fact that SIMON BAZ DOESN'T KNOW WHAT THE LUNCH MEANS!
• Subtitles : "Shark Tank" , "Mr. Chairman" , "Westies" , "Batmen" , "The Ball" , "Mr. Ed"

Justice League #40 - "Selection" {Art by Pete Woods}

• Saving the Multiverse? Give me a break. Giving the Legion of Doom a slap? Puh-Leaze. Preventing the Watchtower Satellite from burning up upon re-entry into Earth's atmosphere? OH CRAP. This was so much fun! I've never seen anything like this, apart from the storytelling style presented in Kelly's run (which I've already mentioned). The mental gymnastics regarding the weight and worth of sacrifices, the pseudo-science barely keeping our heroes alive, and the banter, oh god the banter is so good! So this lawyer is one of the pawns of the Fan? Or is it the Fan himself? I guess Batman really did kiss Jessica! Lobo jettisoning himself out of the satellite was hilarious, and I loved that Batman just sat back and watched everyone scramble. It's so obvious, the League(s) are teams, of course they are going to trip up over new chains of command! The only criticism I have for this is the fact that Pete Woods didn't do his own colors, and it really shows.
• Subtitles : "¡Salir!" , "Thunk Redux" , "Ninety-Five Cents" , "Selective Service"

Justice League #41 - "Saigon" {Art by Phillipe Briones}

• The JLA PR nightmare continues! Heroes vs jurisdiction, heroes vs non-interventionism, heroes vs ethics! Priest is taking the League into the pits, an abyss much deeper and more nerve-wracking than any crisis they have ever faced. IT'S ALL SO MESSY! Bringing back Ja Zaki was such a delight, and I think it's great that the League is getting whupped mainly due tot he fact that they've been bombarded non-stop by someone who's been planning to take them down since he was a kid. Prometheus step aside, The Fan is here to stay! The twist about his identity as an engineer on the Watchtower was fantastic; only serving to enhance (or diminish depending on your perspective) the threat of the Fan. I guess Regina was down for his plan and just as capable, but there's no way he planned for the crash landing in Buredunia or the collusion with Bland and the natives. That Diana shock moment caught me off guard bad.
• Subtitles : "Lunch Break" , "The Apple Tree" , "Mad Maxine" , "Spunky" , "Three Rings" , "The Problem"

Justice League #42 - "A Strange Place of Dying" {Art by Pete Woods}

• DEATHSTROKE GO JACK SOME MESS UP BOYYYY. At the end of the day, Priest has excellently proved to us that some issues are too big for the League to handle. They are not global police, they are heroes acting to save the innocent from evil. You cannot use a hammer to fix a malfunctioning computer. There is no black and white in a culture war, only different perspectives and practices and traditions that are impenetrable to outsiders. However, when you need to kill a shark, morals and ethics are useless compared to a harpoon. Let's see the one eyed assassin close this contract.
• Subtitles : "Men in Tights" , "Lies My Mother Told Me" , "Palace Intrigue" , "Titans" , "On the Wall" , "Better Never Than Late" , "Invade Thy Neighbor" , 

Justice League #43 - "Justice Lost"

• I am at a loss for words! Priest has said in 10 issues more than any JLA writer has since Morrison, Kelly, or even Meltzer. The League learned a hard lesson, cleaned up the mess, and got a good slap all in an afternoon. Deus Ex Deathstroke worked really well, and the Thanatos segment brought it all full circle from the first issue. The epilogue left me sad since right after this Snyder and Tynion arrived and injected liquid cocaine into the book, and once it came off the high and dropped to the low of Bendis' snorefest. And then Williamson killed them in the dumbest way, so we as fans are left waiting for the Dark Crisis bs to pass over. After finishing this, I found myself eager to embrace an evolving League; Orlando and Priest were doing such innovative things with both books, but Snyder just rehashed Morrison and Bendis stuck his OC and Black Adam of all people on the team. I have no problem with a classic league, but it's one of those situations where I find myself wanting my cake and eating it too.
• Subtitles : "Leftist" , "Frenemies" , "Empathy" , "The Menu" , "Catspaw" , "Saturday"

Flash Run Riot & Blitz (#192-200) Review

 

Run Riot [#192-196]

• The Flash #192 - "Run Riot, Part I : Awakened" = I audibly said, "Oh Crap", when the gorilla paratroopers descended on Iron Heights. Warden Wolfe has some savage comebacks in this issue, and I'm shaking every time Hunter is on panel since I know the end times are nearing. Wally and Linda are wholesome af, and that also hurts since I know a little bit about how Blitz goes down (screw spoilers honestly). I'm kinda over the usual rogues at this point, but the Doctor Alchemy sequence was so good. Crazy that Wally's hand was broken just by punching the gorilla (speed-force field?) and he gets banged up by Double-down and Tarpit. Blacksmith getting yeeted was hilarious, and Scott Kolins is just murdering on art page after page after page! I'm assuming they will explain how Grodd got out and summoned the gorilla henchmen to jailbreak.
• The Flash #193 - "Run Riot, Part II : On The Run" = This one read super fast. Interesting that they finally decided to give Wolfe some character development. Rip Zolomon's legs, at least he go to have some time without pain before getting mauled. Grodd is so OP not even Fallout's nuclear beams did anything to him.
• The Flash #194 - "Dead or Alive" = What a great issue. The first page was absolutely fantastic; comics 101 on how to grab a reader with an opener. Kolins knocks it out of the park with the depictions of Gorilla City. Nnamdi is pretty goated, and the new/improved incarnation of their society brings a lot to the table. It's fascinating to see Wally at his breaking point, I just recently read Ending Battle, and it seems like Johns enjoys pushing the veil with his favorite heroes. Broken and battered by a barrage of psychic assaults, Wally is forced to make a decision; how far will he go for vengeance? The use of Linda is great too since we just got the reveal of her pregnancy; of course Wally is going to be on edge! The last pages with Zolomon were heartbreaking. The countdown to Blitz begins!
• The Flash #195 - "Off Balance" = This one was okay. I don't care for the Top, and the Linda stuff didn't have any legs to stand on before this issue. The Zolomon stuff makes me sad, and the Peek-A-Boo final page did nothing because I also don't care for her. The most egregious thing in this issue was the shade thrown at ABBA by the Rogues; excited for Flash to whoop them very soon.
• The Flash #196 - "Helpless" = One more Rogue I care very little for. The Zolomon Wally stuff was great as usual, but the title has been meandering lately. I was surprised by the fact that Wally defended Flash killing Zoom, which I'm not a big fan of. Honestly screw Peek-A-Boo, she's an idiot. What could you possibly do that a team of doctors couldn't? I actually enjoyed the Phil Winslade art; reminded me of a Neal Adams or Mike Grell kind of style. With the final sequence at the Flash museum, let's see how believable they make this transition to Zoom.

Blitz [#197-200]

• The Flash #197 - Blitz, Part I : "Rogue Profile: Zoom" = Don't know how I feel about this 180 for Zolomon. The motivation is just stupid, Wally didn't do anything wrong, time travel is dangerous, and the desire to be a villain in order to better the Flash is wonky at best. Johns did the same thing with Batman during Three Jokers, and it was even worse than this seems. The Zolomon backstory was great, and the art by Kolins was unbelievable, but this transition to evil doesn't make much sense to me right now. He even addresses the 180 during the final pages, wondering if the cosmic treadmill accident has caused him to go insane. If that's the case, then I will give this some leeway.
• The Flash #198 - Blitz, Part II : "Rush" = This whole chapter was a calm before the storm. The union of the Flash family is always a pleasure to see, mainly because it's something we lack in today's comics (then again, Jeremy Adams and Williamson have done a great job rebuilding). My jaw dropped when Spectre Hal showed up, the harbinger for tragedy. The Bart stuff is interesting as well, I think it's too early to tell if they're trying to cause a rift between the two. From the little panel time, we can already tell that Zoom is a different kind of rogue: he's not going to waste time, he's efficient, not allowing distractions to his goal. Kolins continues to kill it on art, and I feel that this reads much better together in a binge instead of the chapters standing on their own.
• The Flash #199 - Blitz, Part III : "Into the Fast Lane" = This is something else. Let me first say that Scott Kolins is a mad genius with his art in this issue. Props to him, Doug, Ken, and James; y'all did a stand up job. As much as I don't find the transition from goated left-brain Hunter to psychotic abortionist Zoom, this issue was fantastic. Zoom is threatening, more so than any villain the Flash Family has ever encountered. The fact that no one has been able to touch him yet is crazy. I've only read the Williamson and current Adams run on Flash, but nothing has ever compared to this. He's so fast that he's ripping holes in time, windows into the past and future. The heartlessness of Zoom is appalling, and I'm just so shocked at the fall from grace in such little time. Then again, this is a book about fast people, so maybe those moments in that hospital room were more than an eternity for Zolomon. I enjoyed the power up scene, and I enjoyed the fact that it didn't work (take that CW Flash!). Those final pages were awesome, and I couldn't be more hyped for Flash #200.
• The Flash #200 - Blitz, Part IV : "The Final Race" = Wow. What an issue. The explanation for Hunter's powers was really cool and made the scaling work a lot more substantially, while Jesse giving up her powers for a temporary boost ended up as a competent and unproblematic deus ex, since Jay and Impulse utterly failed last issue. Hunter trapped in suspended animation and forced to watch the death of his father in-law was brutal as hell, but he deserved it after last issue. The second half of the book was easily the standout, with Barry and Hal hitting the cosmic reset and OMD-ing the mess out of the Flash timeline. The art shift was fantastic, and I could not be more excited for this new direction the book is going!

THE FILTH BY GRANT MORRISON REREAD/REVIEW!

 THE FILTH REREAD

A DEEP DIVE INTO THE BOWELS OF THE ULTRA-SPHERE! You have no idea how proud I am to say that I loved every second of this reread. Let's dig in!

Chapter One : "US vs THEM"

• Greg Feely is your average Joe Schmo working nine to five and coming home for R&R with his cat and a 1v3 against lotion, kleenex, and exotic porn. However, Greg Feely is not Greg Feely. He's actually a para-personality, a vacation-avatar used by Ned Slade, agent of a ultra-clandestine organization known as The Hand (their agents are known as The Filth). He's been called back to the fray by another agent, Miami Nil. One of the interesting dynamics I enjoyed was the fact that Ned's grown very comfortable living as Greg, and he's not completely ready to leave his life of mediocrity as well as the adorable cat, Tony. As Ned leaves, his place will be filled by a doppelganger, Douche Greg. Absolutely heartbreaking to see Tony watch as they speed off (crazy car design by the way). Forget that, crazy designs everywhere! Chris Weston knocks it out of the park with this, and the page featuring LaPen, the hyper-sex scene, and the reveal of the Soon Experiment with her burning corpse on it were my favorites. Who is the redhead chick with glasses at the beginning? Who is this mercenary in magenta? Who is Simon?

TF #2 - "Perfect Victim"

• This one was great. The concept of I-Life is absolutely fascinating, and as of today I'm sure we're not a few years out from some technology like this, unless it already exists. The banter between Dmitri and Nil was great, and I'm really digging Morrison's wacky dialogue conventions more than I ever have. The hierarchy of the Hand was super cool (Fist, Palm, Finger, Horns, Frequency), but I just need to get familiarized with the bonkers environment. I find it strange that every time Mother Dirt speaks, the frames are concentrated on LaPen. The showdown with Hughes was cool, and his cryptic final words will hopefully mean something by the end (honest to god I'm coming to this super fresh). Why can't Ned fully remember time before Greg Feely? Who is Cameron Spector? Who is Babalon Mandrill? What is the Science Gestapo? Where is the Hand headquarters (The Crack) located? Why do those dolphins have Nazi markings? Who is Man Green/Man Yellow?

TF #3 - "Structures & Ultrastructures"

• Brilliant, but freaking depressing. The sequence with the halo jumpers exiting the comic-book world was mind-bogglingly awesome. I live for meta-mess like that (done the right way!), and of course Morrison and Weston are going to deliver. Harlotte and Mercury were fun, but Secret Original was no doubt the highlight. Him revisiting his past was sad as heck; Morrison is great at making you relate & sympathize with these characters who've descended to the lowest of the lows, becoming pathetic and depressed (something we've all felt at some point). I'm finally feeling that sense of existential dread, the post-9/11 reality that is so contrary to everything shown during The Invisibles. The Ned returning to Greg sequence was also sad, the funeral + Dmitri's nihilism did not make it better. At least he tied up Douche-Greg. Why did they bring back King Mob's scorpion gun from the Invisibles? Why was Ned cutting out a picture of an ant?

TF #4 - "S**t Happens"

• What a fascinating read. The back-half was great, Ned finally getting some of his groove back to take out anti-person filth. Interesting to see his development as a character, he's become a bicameral personality, composite, maintaining a mixture of elements from Ned and Greg. One of the most intriguing parts of this chapter were the tidbits regarding the geography of the Drains. These under-dimensions where the Hand operate (referred in this chapter as The-World-In-The-Crack) are so crazy and fun, only acting as proof of Morrison's skill as a world-builder. The relativity/entropy associated with the Drains was very cool, and I wonder how someone would arrive in these under-dimensions without one of those mouth-vehicles that the Hand uses. Arno Von Vermun was fun, and this very much was an analysis of his character, though I loved the subversion of the serial killer luring his prey with it being the opposite and giving us ultra-Ned Slade. Drowning in piss while confessing a horrific murder was wild, and Ned still having to make it back was great. So who is Max Thunderstone? What is up with Douche-Greg? Why do the vehicles have mouths?

TF #5 - "Pornomancer"

• Very much a "WTF" issue, but not in the conventional sense. Anders Klimakks is a pornstar who's has an irresistible aura as well as black jizz. Yup, bro shoots obsidian loads from his ten inch penis. He's hired by a psychotic experimental porn director named Tex Porneau, who walks around naked wearing a cowboy hat and holding a camcorder at all times. Tex uses Anders' magic black cum to create giant sperm creatures that burst through females in an attempt to procreate. I would say you can't make this stuff up, but Grant really did. The main theme of this chapter was stated by Tex perfectly: "Fucked or Be Fucked." Literally, everybody gets fucked in this issue. Two LAPD detectives are introduced: they get fucked and collared. A new Filth agent, Jenesis Jones: she gets fucked and then obliterated by a giant sperm cell. The mailman drops off a package, he gets fucked while wearing a bird mask. Ned Slade and Dmitri-9 appear in two panels of this issue: they do not get fucked. Only question I have is what the gimp dudes were building that giant ball of junk for inside the mansion?
  

TF #6 - "The World of Anders Klimakks"

• Ho-lee-math. I was having so much fun with this issue, and then the last couple pages literally turned into Ander Klimakks and absolutely mind-donked me into jet black oblivion. This had a great opening, we finally get to see how LaPen functions; they linked her up with Moog Mercury who is now sporting drip feeds that convey info between them. I finally found out who Cameron Spector is (I went back to issue 3 and saw mercury refer to her as they escape the comic book dimension). Why are Mercury's intravenous terminals infected? So this chapter reveals the reason why Anders doesn't remember jack: he's an answer for infertility, a homunculus designed to repopulate the planet! However, he's designated as an anti-person since his repopulation will make his children exact clones of him until humanity is replaced by Anders Klimakks. Miami probing Tex was great, and him getting devoured by the kaiju sperm was even better. Crazy to think that they can just resurrect agents into new host bodies after they die; it's truly the para-persona makes the agent effective. We finally learn why the vehicles have mouths; to clean up the filth! Before the finale's mind-blowing sequence, Ned states his memory has come back, and he remembers why he asked for so much time off; hope that gets elaborated on. Now, this is where it gets weird: Ned arrives home to find everything in shambles, but was it actually he who's been losing his mind? Has everything that's been happening a fabrication in his own head? The pictures of the kids with the ant-heads are still an enigma: we saw him cutting the heads out in issue 3, but why did he put them on the kids? He states he wanted to learn photoshop? As for the kid killing, that's clearly just seeing Dmitri-9 coming in, the gunshots were also Dmitri, and the coffins are the buried cats (revealed that he's buried multiple besides Barney). Mentions of missing twins, as well as the neighbor's Laurie; is there a kiddie killer? Where did Douche-Greg go?

TF #7 - "Zero Democracy "

• My mind is falling into the pit! Spotlight on the Libertania! A colossal cruise ship society descends into chaos! The return of Spartacus Hughes got me good: this brings light to what he stated before his death in issue 2. "Anyone can be Spartacus Hughes", the agents of the hand are all para-personas, this blonde rando now has the cunning of Hughes. His recruitment and seduction of Neville Quain into the religion of sadistic A-holes was fascinating to watch, the equivalent to a ten car pile up on a massive interstate highway. I can't help but wonder if the morphine he gave to the president was some kind of contagion that spread to the population and caused them to go mad. Money means nothing; art is our god. The final sequence with Greg's interrogation was interesting too: we are still on the fence between delusion and framing. Him talking about children as soulless monsters makes me think he is crazy, but the mention of Thunderstone + taking out the guards turns me in the other direction. The final pages where he finds the tampon from earlier was brilliant. This series has my head in a vice grip. Excited to continue. Who sent this new Spartacus, and how did he come to be? Who were the masked opera phantoms in Italy? Who is the woman with the flowers?

TF #8 - "<3*%$ Police"

• The Libertania Experiment revealed! This truly is the anti-invisibles: the whole point of that book is that humanity is one collective organism that forgot and split into tribes, but when Glitterdamerung comes and we ascend we will have awakened and born into the new medium of existence as one fully realized being. This shows that idea as an evolution of the destruction of society, out of the ashes rises this hive mind virus that consumes all. Spartacus is definitely employed by someone against the Hand (Thunderstone perhaps?). I liked the mention of Dmitri missing his first shot on purpose because it ties into the JFK thing, and if you go back to issue 2 he does the same with the OG Spartacus (however, in issue 6 he does not shoot twice to kill Anders). Douche-Greg is back somehow and leaving Tony to starve to death! Is he someone else, or just a manifestation of Greg's psychosis? What do the ant-heads mean!?

TF #9 - "Inside The Hand"

• Here's the thing, for the sake of my pride as a Grant Morrison fan I will not admit that I have lost the plot. So instead, let's dissect the mess out of this. Fact: I hate having to decipher Spector's glaswegian dialect phonetically. Man Green/Man Yellow revealed! I'm assuming that they are the Science Gestapo? the art in this sequence is phenomenal, and I would rather have this kind of schizophrenic storytelling 10x over the Spector exposition (which I definitely think Grant is cheeky enough to have done on purpose). So the world-in-the-crack is a meta-physical ethereal dimension, where all the booboo of humanity rains down. This sequence and real-captain noxinnixon describe it as discarded blueprints by some creator in a higher world. The mention of being dull angels without the crack seems to imply that this dirtiness is essential to making humans human: a similar parallel message seen in the Invisibles where the Outer Church and the Invisibles college are two sides of the same coin: no dualities, only symmetries. We get some answers regarding the Horns as well as a mind-donk revelation. The dolphins harvest ink for subs to transport, ink from a giant hand holding a giant pen. The ink apparently gives life: possibly the life in those comic book sequences seen during issue 3. Lore dump: first explorers in the crack built the headquarters until realizing the entropy decaying their age, using an atom bomb to break the pen nib. I wonder if the entropy in this dimension is a representation for how whole years can occur in the span of pages in the comic world? Relativity between dimensions? They say the hand could belong to the blueprint-maker who cut off his hand after seeing the horror he wrought, or maybe it's still attached and he's just stuck with writer's block. Was he writing the suicide not they call existence? Bio-ship Sharon Jones returns from the second issue (she was the lady with the flowers) and possibly blows I-Life into Tony's corpse to resurrect it? Diving into this next filthy issue!

TF #10 - "Man Made God"

• This might be one of my favorite issues of the entire series. The tragedy of Max Thunderstone was engaging from beginning to end; a life and death of a man devoted to bringing enlightenment to humanity. This is framed brilliantly; a beautiful anti-invisible, where Max is our King Mob against the Hand's outer church. There is no US vs Them, only symmetries! So Greg's para-personality was working with Thunderstone the whole time? That's the only way to reconcile this, or maybe he was sent to be Greg undercover for so long in order to lure thunderstone out and defeat him.

TF #11 - "A Very English Nervous Breakdown"

• Sheeit! Greg was working with Thunderstone's invisibles against the Hand the entire time! I just wonder how they were able to inject the Ned Slade para-personality to disrupt his memories of working with Thunderstone. Spartacus Hughes was created by them and infiltrated the Hand, which makes it more interesting that they got their own mole in Greg to go against him. The fact that they inject these para-personalities into anti-persons is fantastic, I read up on a blog comparing this to how our immune system co-ops threats as part of the cure. Greg apparently broke into the drugstore with the para-personality backups and contaminated them? Death of Dmitri with the visions of the space apes was hysterical. The neighbors finally believe him, his name and mind have been cleared. We meet Babalon Mandrill, a female homonculus with enough breasts to make up for a lack of arms. What does the scorpion gun signify? It's a hyper-weapon from the comic book world, but it was King Mob's gun in the invisibles as well. Tony is dead, but I thought the Bio ship sharon jones resurrected it? I want to jump into this finale right now!

TF #12 - "Schizotype"

• None of it was real. All of it was real. My brain is fried. I need to finish this.

TF #13 - "THEM vs. US"

• Right before I go to bed. In an interview with Morrison at SDCC in 2003, a couple months before the release of the final issue, they revealed that Greg had actually created this fictional world + adventures as a way of self-therapy. He's cleaning out the filth in his mind, or better yet, embracing it to grow stronger. The I-Life is a result of himself accepting all the filth and negativity he retains in his body, mind, and soul. It's a cycle: everything decays into mess, but that mess can help cultivate new life. Everything that happened is a psychic spring cleaning: the porn chapters (5-6), the comic books (3 & 10), the class warfare (7-8), the violent/intrusive tendencies (4). All of the adventures, all of the world-inside-the-crack, all of it happened in those few seconds before he died, before he made friends with the filth within him. That's the entropy, that's the decay. This book is also about understanding the futility of US vs THEM: freedom is not chaos and order is not oppressive control. Those are the extremes, but once you realize they go hand in hand, balance brings more prosperity for all.