Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #47

Batman/Superman World's Finest #47 came out this last week, the finale of the Absorbascon storyline pitting the Batman/Superman Fusion against the Lex/Joker Merger. And boy, it ends ... quickly, neatly, and semi-easily.

Writer Mark Waid is almost always a fun and entertaining read and this title has been a revelation in the four years it has been out. This story seems to have some elements that fit the quality of this book. Seeing how the fused heroes work together while the meshed villain minds sometimes are fighting each other is a good insight into the characters. Seeing how our heroes deal with their secret identities revealed also has some meat on the bone to delve into. (Indeed, the Lois scene in this book is my favorite.) And perhaps this characterization deep dive was the impetus for this story. But the plot, with the Absorbascon as a deus ex machina becoming both a receiver and a transmitter that needs to be shut down then saved then reverted seemed too big to wrap up. This was a three parter! But honestly, I don't know if a longer version of this story would make the ending more palatable.

Adrian Gutierrez gets to really stretch in this arc with crazy action, a large cast of cameos, and some emotional beats. It is a rapid fire book going from magical battles to quiet apartment conversations to fistfights. That is a lot for one tiny issue. It must be hard to step into Dan Mora's shoes but I have come to really like Gutierrez's style on this book. There is an energy here that works. 

On to the book.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #46

Batman/Superman World's Finest #46 came out last week, the second part of the Luthor/Joker team-up arc and basically a issue-long brawl between our main characters ... but with a twist.

This is a standard Mark Waid story, digging into some old DC concepts like the Thanagarian Absorbascon while giving it a nice updated feel. Last issue, the Joker and Luthor fused into one body. This issue we get to explore what that mind is like, with two completely dueling mindsets trying to work one body. Through some plot shenanigans, we get a fusion Superman/Batman being (harkening back to World's Finest #4 ). So we then get to see what two minds thinking together sound like as opposed to the villains. It is a nice little writing trick, giving us a nice dive into the thoughts of our main protagonists and antagonists.

But the real joy of this issue is the art by Adrian Gutierrez. It probably isn't the best word but there is a frenetic feel to his art. There is a wild energy to it. And in this issue where two fused beings are just throwing down, the art just sizzles. This just feels like a Dragon Ball episode with overpowered fused-form beings are zipping around the skies trading blows. I don't mind a brawl issue now and then.

I don't know why this issue got a Chuma Hill variant cover with Supergirl and Catwoman but it is an interesting composition.

On to the story.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #45

Batman/Superman World's Finest #45 came out last week and it is hard for me to think this book is almost 4 years old. The format of intermittent adventures from some elsewhen in the past has worked perfectly in giving us fun, entertaining stories reaching into the deep recesses of the DCU with a both a classic feel and a modern sensibility. Time flies!

This issue starts a new arc bringing us a Joker/Luthor team-up, the perfect contrast to our heroes. Throw in a guest star and some nods to some Silver/Bronze age goodness and you have another win. Writer Mark Waid has been walking that tightrope of classic and new for a while and definitely continues to shine. For me, the best part of this set-up issue is that a Lex/Joker team-up would not be an easy alliance. These two would not get along even if they have similar difficulties with heroes.

Adrian Gutierrez remains on art and his scratchy, energized style works very well with this story. An intangible Lex falling through a building? A violent Hawkman lashing out against the villains? A mash-up of Lex/Joker? All those things leans into his strengths and he hits it out of the park.

This is an opening chapter to an arc so we are just starting out here but there is a zaniness to this story already which was refreshing. 

On to the book.

Review: World's Finest #25

Batman/Superman World's Finest #25 came out last week and was incredibly entertaining, giving us two stories which shined. I love this book and I hope the current team never leaves.

One thing that Mark Waid has done on this book is follow a big story arc with a sort of rest issue, a done-in-one story before the next big plot begins. He also seems to like to explore the concept of World's Finest.  Who could forget World's Finest #12, the blighted date between Robin and Supergirl, a team I have dubbed 'the Next World's Finest'. He did a two issue story looking at the origin of the World's Finest team. And now, this issue, he gives us the opposite .. Lex Luthor and the Joker, The World's Deadliest.

This story compares and contrasts the two villains, their approaches to crime, and their world views. We have seen Waid use the compare/contrast grist to look at Batman/Superman. We get a very fresh peek into The Rock of Eternity, surely fodder for a future story. And, for an old timer like me, I got just a faint whiff of the plot of the Batman Vs. The Hulk treasury.  The art is a sort of realism occasionally tinged with insanity by artist Steve Pugh. If this was the only story in the book, I'd be thrilled.

But we also get a second story by the standard WF team of Mark Waid and Dan Mora. It is a delicious tease to what looks like a bonkers story bringing in the 5th dimensional imps. I'm ready for it!

On to the book!

Review: Action Comics #1063

Action Comics #1063 came out this week, one of the most baffling and therefore unsatisfying reads of recent memory. And because of that, this is going to be, perhaps, a baffling review.

Writer Jason Aaron completes his 3 issue Bizarro story in a story that flips from Superman's mind (for some reason) to the devastated real world as our hero tries to figure out how to save the world without falling prey to possession by Bizarro. So much of the story before this part seemed to come out of nowhere (Bizarro going crazy because he was teased, Bizarro learning sorcery, the world on fire and detroyed). Now this issue is a rapid fire, convoluted finale with our hero literally beating himself up, our hero not really saving the day, and the destructive genie stuffed back into the bottle. And in the most heroic, important moment in the book (a moment given to the Joker not Superman), Aaron uses what I consider one of the worst 'outs' a writer can do.

It is a shame because John Timms' art is quite beautiful. Timms' can give us insane battles, an iconic looking Superman, and some solid story-telling when things veer more philosophical. So maybe the right thing to do is just look at the pictures and not read the words. 

I have been reading comics for nearly 50 years. I consider myself an experienced reader of the medium having read every genre and style out there. This was a rough one. On to the book.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #10

Batman/Superman World's Finest #10 came out this week, the penultimate chapter of the Boy Thunder storyline. 

I'll start out by saying this issue ends with a doozy of a twist and a cliffhanger. As I have said before, when you surprise a grizzled comic reader like me and you surprise me in a good way, that is a victory. I did not expect what I saw and I loved it.

That said, the last page is probably the best part of the issue. I expect a lot from this book. From the first issue, writer Mark Waid and artist Dan Mora have been hitting it out of the park. Every issue has been just about perfect. That's hard to maintain. This issue just didn't sizzle the way the others have.  Maybe it is my Joker fatigue?

Dan Mora continues to shine but this is also a bit rougher than I am used to seeing his stuff here. It's funny. I have seen Mora churning out cover after cover which just glitter on the rack. I love his work. Perhaps all that is impacting things?

I don't always buy the expensive variants but I loved this one by Brandon Peterson and so spent a little bit too much for it. Love the trading card look and that Supergirl is present.

On to the book.

Review: Batman/Superman World's Finest #9

Batman/Superman World's Finest #9 came out this week and was once again a near perfect comic book. Writer Mark Waid and artist Dan Mora have been hitting it out of the park month in and month out. 

Waid writes the perfect voices for DC characters and this issue there is no shortage of them. From The Flash to the Teen Titans to even the villains, everything sounds perfect. The actions of the characters feel right. But most importantly, he knows how to give us the perfect Superman and the perfect Batman. We see how the two differ in their lessons for Boy Thunder. Given the roles of Robin and Supergirl in the earlier arc, this story about mentoring has some extra juice to it. 

Heck, he even gives me a Joker I'd read. And I have been tired of the Joker for years.

Meanwhile, Dan Mora is revelation. As I say each issue, whenever I see Mora focus on a new character I say 'I hope he does that character's book some day'. From the Doom Patrol to Green Lantern to old school Titans, everyone looks great. That said, I hope he stays here for a long long time.

Everyone should be reading this book. Everyone. 

On to the details.

Review: Justice League #6

Justice League #6 came out this week and continued its insane pace, tossing aside some plot lines and barreling forward with others. Scott Snyder and returning artist Jorge Jimenez continue to just dazzle me with this arc as huge ideas are brought up and wrapped up in panels. The threat level is huge which feels right for the League. All this in the era of trade waiting is so fresh it feels innovative. It also feels rather classic, akin to the classic Dick Dillin era satellite stories. I have thoroughly enjoyed this book so far.

I also feel that unlike prior issues, Snyder gives us a little backstory, a little more information, a little more explanation to some of the proceedings. As a reader, huffing and puffing to keep up with this pace, any crumbs of exposition to keep me grounded is appreciated. But even these are done within scene, don't feel like an information dump, and are really just niblets.

The art continue to dazzles on the book. Jimenez brings such a sense of motion and energy to the proceedings that the pictures have a kinetic feel. There is some high stylized action, with bodies just slightly warped. It is enough to make you think you seeing someone move out of the corner of your eye.

But it is the story that gets me as every member has a moment to shine here. Plus the issue opens and closes with such dramatic splashes that I remain hooked. I don't know the last time I have so enthusiastically love a Justice League book. High praise.

On to the book.

Review: Justice League #4

Justice League #4 came out this week and has been the mode of this book, things happen crazy fast. There are huge plot points that are unfolding here. But there are so many, I feel like I only have a sense of what is happening as supposed to deep understanding. From the Totality to mystic glyphs to the Still Force to Ultraviolet Corps to the living evil sun Umbrax, there is a lot happening here. And I just haven't connected it all. It's a puzzle that I can see all the pieces but I haven't out together.

Scott Snyder seems hellbent on leaving me reeling as a reader. There is a big sense of grandeur here. This seems like a massive, universal threat; this is the sort of thing the League should be going after. There are enough small character moments to keep us invested in who the heroes are. But I'll admit, I feel a little bit confused. It's definitely a fun ride. I feel a little punch drunk.

The art by Jorge Jimenez is insanely good. Everything is just a bit stylized, just a bit off of reality, enough to keep it feel like a warped universal threat. I cannot get enough of his work here. It is frenetic, energetic, and brutal. This book is visually delicious.

But can it all be brought together. Will I be able to put the pieces together in a way that I actually understand what has been happening? Or is it one of those 'bigger than life' arcs where I simply have to let it wash over me.

On to the book!

Review: Batman/Superman #16

Batman/Superman #16 came out last week, the first issue post-Doomed. But it is hard for me to actually place it in any sort of particular time. This is a clean-shaven Superman and one who is actually active and happy to be active. This isn't the bearded glum Superman debating being a hero in Action Comics even though both are written by Greg Pak.

The concept of the story is a solid one and plays well in the context of a (gasp) happy Superman. Just as things start to look up, someone begins targeting Superman's loved ones. Just like that, Superman has a Joker-equivalent in his rogue's gallery. And as a result Superman needs Batman's help. It is a great contrast ... Superman's happiness and his knowing a psychotically obsessed murderer trying to kill off your friends? It also sets up one of the more established themes of this book, to contrast Superman from Batman.

Adrian Syaf replaces Jae Lee as the artist on the book. I will admit to missing Lee's work. But Syaf channels Eddy Barrows a bit and puts in a couple of very solid artistic moments including a powerful splash page for Batman. He'll work well on this book.

Lastly, I posted the variant cover of this issue. The chalk outlines with bloody S's is a nice visual. And I like the tag line 'Who shot Steel and Supergirl?'

It reminded me of this cover which asked the famous question 'Who shot Laurel Kent?'

The opening pages of the issue present a sunnier world than I am used to seeing in the New 52.

First we meet a couple of men who are dressing up as Superman and Batman to cheer up some kids in a hospital. It is had to imagine kids liking the heroes in the New 52 where they are generally distrusted and targeted by our military.

And then we see the extended Super-family helping bring some beached whales out to the deep ocean. Look! Superman doing a random good deed with Supergirl, Krypton, AND Steel! No anger or angst. Just doing something good. And nearly as unbelievable, people are on the boats and shore cheering!

It is sort of sad that a positive image of heroes working together is so rare these days.

Even Superman knows it.

In the New 52, Superman is 'just not used to happy endings'.

For me, that's sad.

Unfortunately, this is the New 52. The 'happy ending' is brief.

A whale is killed. The hospital volunteer in the Superman costume is shot in the chest.

And the super-family is shot! I guess there can be no happiness in this DCnU.

Shockingly, the heroes are relatively unharmed. So this isn't as big a deal as the cover or solicits made it out to be. Could this just be a way to let Superman know that this assassin is out there.

However the man volunteering in the hospital is dead.

It is alarming to Superman that all this is happening. At the autopsy he learns that it is unclear how the wound happened.

This is an interesting exchange between Lois and Clark as she basically calls out both aspects of Clark/Superman as falling below her expectations.

She thinks Superman should be out hunting who killed this man. He isn't. He is right there.

And she thinks Clark should be out running down the story.

This Lois is challenging. And Clark picks up the challenge. This is a murder mystery. He needs the world's greatest detective.

So it is off to the hospital to check out the murder scene. Now why the hospital would let kids play within feet of the bloody crime scene is beyond me. But they do.

The initial scan doesn't turn anything up but one of the patients was an eye witness and saw that it wasn't a bullet but some type of superfast drone that killed the guy.

What I did like was how easily Superman slips into 'nice guy' mode, juggling and cheering up the kids.

Batman tries to put it all together. Killing the whale, targeting the family, killing the man dressed as Superman. It shows an unnatural obsession ... akin to the way the Joker is obsessed with Batman.

Unfortunately it is a Joker with big technology.

Who is Superman's Joker? I don't have a guess ... yet.

And then we get a very strong page from Syaf where Batman admits that he hasn't won every battle with the Joker.

There is a blood stain in the form of the Joker's face. And then we see the failures - Jason being killed, Barbara being paralyzed, the Death of the Family, and the piles of bodies of those killed.

I thought this worked.

Superman asks Batman if he ever thinks of killing the Joker and Batman says yes.

Again we see that contrast of the heroes. Superman is wide-eyed, almost scared about who his friend is. And about his desire to never become like Bruce.

And Bruce is almost smiling, agreeing he doesn't want a Superman to be dark.

The split face panel composition is a well-worn use of panels. But I liked this one as the faces are so starkly different that this trick works well.

But the mystery deepens. The Bat-computer is hacked and whoever 'Superman's Joker' is, he feeds active video of attack on Lex ... and then two other people. Anyone recognize the pop star? Or the military figure?

I thought this was a good issue and a nice beginning to a new arc. This is an issue of opposites playing off each other. The good feelings of the opening sequence is foiled by the stark images of death and murder. The bright light of Superman is contrasted by the darker thoughts of Batman. Now maybe this is a little forced. It is interesting that the first time I can remember seeing such optimism and old-school heroics like the opening scenes is in the issue where we want to go into reverse suddenly. And I still don't think Batman would ever be a killer given his origins.

It is all wrapped around the mystery of who is obsessing over Superman? And who knows Superman so well to attack those closest to him? Or get under his skin? Who has the capability to be tracking a non-entity like the guy in the hospital who was killed simply for wearing the S-shield? Let the guesses begin.

Adrian Syaf's stuff is very solid here and I welcome him to the book.

Overall grade: B

Review: Action Comics #897

Action Comics #897 came out this week, sporting a rather maniacal looking Lex on the cover. That means we are 8 books in with 3 books left of this Luthor-centric arc by Paul Cornell and Pete Woods. Will this story be able to be wrapped up in that short period of time, even if Action Comics #900 is double-sized? Unlike how I felt with World of New Krypton, I think the answer is yes. Paul Cornell is moving things along here, revealing more and more clues about what is behind the scenes.

As for me, I love mysteries like this in comics. Who is behind the presence of these globes? Who is pulling Luthor's strings? Are we really reading a long arc where Luthor basically isn't in total control of his faculties? And with all my issues of not having decent Superman stories right now, how wild is it that I am liking this sans Superman story??

In particular, this issue really crackles. Unlike interactions with Grodd and Deathstroke, there is something special about Luthor interacting with the Joker. They really represent the opposite ends of the spectrum ... order and chaos, fascism and anarchy. Much like their arch-nemeses, I don't think these guys would be easy pals. Cornell captures that as we see each character reveal what they think of the universe, what they want in the world.

And Pete Woods is doing such tremendous work here. I think it is his best stuff to date.

Last issue we learned Loisbot working for someone else. My guess, giving the origin of her technology, is that she is a servant of Brainiac. But now that we know she might be leading Lex down someone else's desired path, it makes me question everything she has done so far. Now that we know that, Cornell doesn't necessarily need to be coy.

It turns out that Spalding has discovered that the articles which Lex downloaded in the 'isopod' way back in Action Comics #890, the articles which spurred him to start this black energy quest, may have been planted. All that information may have been the bait to get Lex to go out and harvest this energy for someone else.

And Lois seems all to eager to quash that reveal. She doesn't want Lex to question what he is doing ... why he is doing it. She wants him to continue down this path. I have said it before, I have come to like the LoisBot. She is funny and has the best wardrobe. I hope she isn't simply the pawn of a Brainiac.

The latest globe has manifested in Arkham Asylum with the Joker. This no longer seems like arbitrary concentrations of energy. These have been placed.

Somehow Lex has arranged a meeting of the minds. Surprisingly, the Joker seems to be ready and waiting, having set up two jelly jars on the table.

As they start their discussion, Joker plays a sweet and subtle joke on Lex. Joker says he just wants to kill Batman, that that will save the world. Of course, that mirrors Lex's feelings about Superman. It takes Lex a second to realize he is being teased.

Luthor's reaction is definitely not your typical Lex. He throttles the Joker, Loisbot backing him up with her weaponry. After being hit, he tells Lex through grit teeth that he boiled a baby and made the father drink the soup. Creepy. Cornell really does a great job writing the Joker, moving back and forth between intense anger and lunacy.

 Finally he makes Lex pick a jelly jar so he can reveal what is contained. The jar Lex picks has a My Little Pony in it, described by the Joker as a magical singing pony, echoing something Lex told Death in their conversation a few issues back. How could the Joker know that?

I love ... and I mean LOVE ... that the Joker calls it a camp version of Blade Runner. I love Blade Runner. A reference to the famous unicorn scene! Just perfect.

 Under the opposite jar is the black energy globe, this one remarkably smaller than the prior ones.

The Joker reveals that he has some control over the globe, able to touch it and shrink it. That is something Lex has not done. We have seen what happens to people in the vicinity of these globes. They go mad, lashing out violently. How interesting that the Joker can interact with it so intimately.

 The Joker does not want Lex to analyze the globe and transmute it to white energy.

In a rare moment where you can look deeper into his psyche, the Joker says that what he really wants is for there to be order in the universe, so that what people do matters in some way. I wasn't sure if we were going to see him fall over laughing in the next panel, a sign that the Joker was just shining us on again. But Cornell plays it straight. This is the Joker. It is him almost praying that he is wrong about things; it is him pleading that he hopes the antithesis of what he believes is the underlying power in the universe. In some ways it reminded me that in Blackest Night Luthor admitted he wanted to be Superman.

I also like the cross-hatching behind the Joker. At first it seems chaotic, overlying scratch marks. But then it also seems orderly, straight lines crisscrossing. And then it seems like both, an ordered pattern laid on top of itself so many times that it becomes chaotic. It has the feeling of a fractal. I thought it worked well with this panel, the duality of Joker's speech.

Giving us some more exposition, the Joker says that the globe simply appeared to him one day, probably because he is such an archetypal personality. The globe was attracted to him.  And because it sought him out, he is immune to its influences.

Looking back, are the other villains we have seen archetypes like the Joker? Certainly Grodd and Vandal Savage are big personalities. Is that some sort of hint?

Moreover, the globe is a portal of some sort. With the globe, the Joker can hear all conversations. That's how he knew about the Lex and Death dialogue. Again, Cornell has a nice grasp of the Joker. When discussing Death, he says she is a tease because she 'ignores all the gifts' he sends, all the people he has killed. Fantastic!

But the Joker knows that the whispers are a minor attribute of the globe. The Joker knows there is a power behind the globes.

LoisBot again tries to deflect any new information from Lex. Lex doesn't know that someone or something is manipulating him, doing these things to him. And Lois doesn't want him to know. She says that the Joker is trying to confuse Lex with his rantings.

I keep waiting for Luthor to finally sort of snap out of it. The way he is acting, the things he is doing is so out of character sometimes. I keep waiting for a panel where he says 'what am I doing' even if it is only for a moment.

 The Joker agrees to give Lex the globe if he increases it in size first. At its normal size and power, the Joker can use it to leave Arkham.

Spalding feeds the globe power and it grows to fill the room. The Joker tries to slip out but whatever he saw in that globe was too horrifying, the future too terrible, to want to be out there. A vision that is scary enough to spook the Joker? I don't know if I want to see it. And neither does he.

The Joker begs Spalding to analyze the globe, stopping what he saw, and change it to white energy.

Shaking Lex, Joker implores him not to force a cataclysmic joke on the universe. Whatever future he saw, Lex is at the center of it.

The last time I heard of some plot being called a big joke was the Commedian referencing Ozymandias' plans to lay waste to New York City.

What could the Joker have seen?

Who is behind all this?

Lex leaves, the white globe now under his control.

When Spalding says he is going to have to reveal those planted articles to Luthor, LoisBot shoves him into the energy globe, killing him. Almost immediately afterward, she seems to show remorse. I am telling you now ... LoisBot has become a bit human. She loves Lex. I guarantee you that at some point she is going to go against her programming, disobey whoever her 'master' is, and save Lex.

Amazingly, the Joker takes credit for killing Spalding, leaving Lois appearing pure as the driven snow.

The issue ends with Larfleeze in Las Vegas demanding to see Lex.

So we continue to learn more about this cosmic chessboard where Lex is simply a game piece. I still think that Brainiac is on one side of the board, the LoisBot his tool. But who is Mister Mind working for. I still think it's Darkseid. I don't think Sivana or Mxyzptlk fit the bill anymore.

But the high point of this issue was Lex and the Joker playing off each other. Cornell definitely has a feel for both characters. In particular, his Joker was spot on, scary, loony, and sad.

Pete Woods continues to shine in this book. His Joker is frightening and goofy. And he has the right body type. I hate the emaciated look for the Joker.

Can you imagine a Brainiac, Darkseid, Luthor, and Superman throwdown in Action Comics #900? I think I am aiming too high.

Overall grade: B+