Review: Summer Of Supergirl Special #1

Last year the Superman movie hit the screens so a Summer of Superman Special hit the racks.

This year ... indeed this very day ... a Supergirl movie will hit the screens. So DC did the right thing meaning a Summer of Supergirl Special #1 hit the stands this week. And what a special it is. We are talking big name creators are on the book. Mark Waid, Sophie Campbell, and Gail Simone write stories. Cian Tormey, Belen Ortega, and Emma Kubert are on art. And most importantly, the stories all say something. 

Campbell and Ortega are on 'Main Man's Best Friend', finishing the story started in Lobo #4. That means we get a story truly in current continuity.

In 'Lost Girls', Simone and Kubert give us a sweet story pointing out, quite elegantly, the similarities between Supergirl and Mary Marvel. It even sets up Supergirl as a sort of mentor for Mary, a nice new wrinkle if kept in continuity and built on. We have seen Kara be a role model for Lesla in her current book. We have seen Kara be Superman's second in command. Why not have her be a 'big sister'.

But the absolute winner of the book is Waid and Tormey on 'Who Is Supergirl?'. I have always known that Waid is a fan of Kara. But in this story, he sort of double downs on what he wrote in the recent New History of the DC Universe. In fact, Waid almost seems to be pulling a 'Morrison on Batman' take on Supergirl's continuity. It all happened. But baked into the story are some funamental truths about who Supergirl is, not just her history but her character, her ethos. Most wonderful.

This truly is the Summer of Supergirl and this special is a great way to kick it off.

On to the book.

Review: Superman/Spider-Man #1 Back-Up Stories

I reviewed the main story in the DC released Superman/Spider-Man crossover here. But just as satisfying were the back-up features teaming up members of the Super-family with the Spider-verse. 

I liked all of them, some more than others.  But they all were entertaining and that isn't something I can say about many of the anthologies DC puts out. And obviously on a project this massive, DC brings in the big guns. This isn't some lesser known creators that DC is letting dip their toes in the DCU. These are veterans and superstars. 

The good thing about families as big as the Supers and the Spiders is that there are enough to give us 7 different team-ups. Impressive. 

These will be bullet reviews of these quick stories. 

We'll start with 'The World's Finest' by Tom King and Jim Lee teaming up Lois and MJ.

While Superman and Spider-Man fight off a Sentinel tracking down a surprise guest-star mutant, Lis and Mary Jane talk about life as the better halves. How many times have they hung from bridges, met other-dimensional versions of themselves, and even died.

As someone who thinks Peter should have ended up with Gwen, I like that MJ talks about how Spidey has a thing about bridges.

Review: Action Comics #1069

Action Comics #1069 came out this week, the last part of writer Gail Simone and artist Eddy Barrows' three part story. This one was a winner for sure, both the issue and the arc. 

I have always been a fan of Superman and one of the reasons why I love the character is that he is an inspiration. I can think of all the ways that someone with Superman's powers would work in this jaded world. Many of them would be selfish or unsavory. But he is a hero. He fights for what's right. He believes in truth, justice, and the American way. And when he is at his best, he inspires people to do what's right as well.

Simone and Barrows leans into that in this story. That is basically what this is about. Superman fighting for us, fighting for what's right. Superman fighting even when he could stop, when he is battered, when he is exhausted.  But instead he keeps at it. It is a simple concept ... Superman as inspiration. But it works. We have seen this story type before. But it still works. Whether it is Tom King's Up in the Sky, or Phillip Kennedy Johnson's Warworld or even All-Star Superman, Superman as inspiration works. 

Barrows is one of those artists who can't stay long on a book. So a three parter is perfect for him. He shines here, giving us a beautiful book. 

But wait, there's more. We get the conclusion of the Rainbow Rowell and Cian Tormey story focusing on the journalistic integrity of Clark working as a reporter for the Planet. This was another winner.  I really liked this story too.

Tack on a variant cover by Nicola Scott focusing on Supergirl and you get a big winner. I love this cover. DC should make a poster or a t-shirt out of it.

Review: Action Comics #1068

Action Comics #1068 came out last week and was another crackling good issue with two very entertaining stories in the issue.

In the opening story, writer Gail Simone and artist Eddy Barrows give us another very Bronze Age feel tale of Superman thwarting aliens who are putting Superman through a series of contests he must overcome. The reason? Gambling! Last issue was a love letter to Superman Vs Muhammad Ali. This issue continues that early 70s feel from invulnerable capes to Lois demanding to be called Ms. to Jimmy's signal watch, it screams Bronze Age in the best way. Barrows art is dynamic with more action lines than you can shake a stick at. We end on a great cliffhanger. I have loved this more than I thought I was going to.

Just as entertaining, but in a different way, is the back-up written by Rainbow Rowell with art by Cian Tormey. Last issue, Lois took Clark off the Superman beat. This issue we see the fallout .. personally, professionally, heroically. This is a great story as I can understand both sides of the professional story. I appreciate seeing how this seeps into the marriage. And it ends with another great cliffhanger. Cian Tormey brings a very thick-lined approach to this grounded story which works very well. 

No complaints here on this very entertaining issue. On to the specifics! 

Review: Action Comics #1067

The second installment of the 'Superman Superstars' initiative on Action Comics began this week with Action Comics #1067. The latest superstar creative team to join the book is writer Gail Simone and artist Eddy Barrows.

I have been a fan of Simone for a while having been there for her Birds of Prey run (hard to believe that was 21 years ago) from the beginning. I liked her Wonder Woman run as well, especially the Ends of the Earth arc which brought in some of my favorite DC Sword and Sorcery characters. So i have been a bit interested to see what she'll do with Superman.

I also have been a fan of Barrows since his brief stint on Action Comics back in the New Krypton arc. My problem with Barrows has always been his inability to stay on a title long. So perhaps a brief story like this, written well in advance, might mean we'll see his art on the entire thing. His precise work is always wonderful to behold. And this issue, filled with moments big and small work, shines.

'Challenge from the Stars' includes the credit page which dedicates the story to Denny O'Neill and Neal Adams. And this opening chapter shows us why that dedication is present.

This fast-moving first issue is a definite riff on the classic Superman Vs Muhammad Ali treasury (one of the few treasuries I still own from my youth). In that story, an alien race challenges Earth's greatest warrior to a one-on-one fight for the planet. 

And that's the plot of this story too as Superman, early in his career, must take up the mantle to protect another planet from destruction.

A lot happens in this issue. No complaints about deconstruction here as Simone whips through the events a record pace, with Barrows bringing it all together beautifully. Nice cliffhanger too! This was a solid opener. 

On to the particulars.

Final Psi Sighting: Secret Six #17 & #18

Just when you thought it was safe to forget about Psi, the misunderstood empath from The Daring New Adventures of Supergirl, I show one more Psi-sighting. I have really gotten a big kick out of this look back at the character, spurred by the reintroduction of her to the New 52 by Sterling Gates in Forever Evil: A.R.G.U.S..

So we have seen her fight Supergirl as a dupe for Mr. Pendergast, trying to stem the tide of Decay. Then we saw her turn on Pendergast. We have seen her die on a mission for the Suicide Squad. And we have seen her resurrected as a Black Lantern.

So what did she do as a revenant? The sad answer is 'not much'.  Secret Six #17 and #18 were Blackest Night crossover issues, co-written by John Ostrander and Gail Simone. And art is done by Jim Calafiore, whose style perfectly fits the grimy mayhem of these issues.

The plot itself is an insane mix of action. Amanda Waller's Suicide Squad is trying to rein in and maybe even absorb the Secret Six, a similar group of super-villains. This brawl takes place on 2 fronts - one Belle Reve prison, the other in front of the Six's headquarters the House of Secrets. But added into the mix is a group of dead ex-Suicide Squaders, raised as Black Lanterns and led by the Fiddler. Brief alliances, back-stabs and treachery, retreats and attacks - it is all there in 2 crazy issues.

But I was so hoping that the Black Lanterns would have more lines. The Fiddler and Yasemine get the most. Psi unfortunately remains silent (Psi-lent?). And there would be so much fun there ... taking about decay, etc.

 Instead we see her (far right) tearing through Belle Reve guards and prisoners.

 And then taking the fight to the Secret Six outside the prison walls.

 Somehow this group - Bane, Black Alice, and my gal pal Nightshade - are able to hold them off until some back-up arrives. But these are Black Lanterns. Any physical damage done can simply be regenerated. This will eventually be a losing fight.

It is clear that both the Six and the Squad, now temporarily united against this common foe, have to retreat. They use Nightshade's shadow-path power to head to the House of Secrets.

Unfortunately, it is Black Alice (who has drained Nightshade of her powers) who opens up that path. And, like the novice she is, she leaves it open. Suddenly, the Black Lanterns, including Psi (over on the right) are there and ready to brawl.

Luckily, Amanda Waller has an ace in the hole. She has a partially powered old Manhunter robot. And she uses it as a Green energy grenade.

Now it has been a while since I read Blackest Night. Is this a valid weapon for Black Lanterns?

At least in this book, it is.

The Black Lantern rings connections are severed and the zombies blow away like ash.

And that my friends ... I promise you ... is the last we saw of that Psi.

I wish we could have had some lines from her in this form!

Outside of the Psi sighting, these issues are a wild romp. And if you see them in the 50cent box, you should buy them just for the action and some excellent moments. I wanted to share a couple.

First off, look at Nightshade just hammering away at Bane. He can't lay a glove on her. I love how she is shown to be strong and battle-savvy.

But this was my favorite moment.

Yasemine looks at Deadshot to see his emotional energies. I love how Deadshot has buried his emotions so deep inside his psyche that we only see cracks of will and rage. Just a nice little characterization moment.

So this certainly isn't important from a Supergirl point of view. Heck, it isn't even important from a Psi viewpoint. But it is her last moments. So, for completeness sake, I figured I would finish off the Psi-sightings.

Hope you enjoyed this look back at this purely Supergirl rogue.

Psi Sighting #4: Wait ... What??

With her reintroduction in Forever Evil: AR.G.U.S. , I have been reviewing the past appearances of old Supergirl rogue Psi. So far I have looked at her Who's Who page, her initial adventure in Daring New Adventures of Supergirl, and her death in the Doom Patrol/Suicide Squad Special.  You can read those peeks into the past here:  http://comicboxcommentary.blogspot.com/search/label/Psi

 I know you all thought it was over.

But I can't keep going back to Psi.

Despite being dead, she returned just a couple of years ago in the Blackest Night crossover event. In a story called Danse Macabre mixing the old Suicide Squad book and the 'Suicide Squad-like' Secret Six, writers Gail Simone and John Ostrander bring back some notable villains and characters who died as a member of the Squad.

I have to say I liked how DC resurrected some old titles for one last hurrah in Blackest Night. Suicide Squad was one of a handful that got dusted off for one last hurrah. And I love this painted cover by Daniel LuVisi.

And it is an interesting book pitting the Squad against the Six in a prison brawl. Who wouldn't want to see a fight between Catman and Bronze Tiger? Or a duel (albeit shortlived) between assassins Deadshot and Jasemin, neither of whom never miss? Add to that great art by Jim Calafiore and this was a fun issue for both Squad and Six fans.

But this is a 'Psi sighting' post. So where is she?

At the end of the book, the risen Black Lantern Fiddler, who spent times on both teams decides to make his own team of Zombies.

And so he resurrects those who died either at the hands of the Squad or as a member of the Squad.

Simone and Ostrander make the readers do a bit of research, giving only the secret identity of those rising. So I need to dig a little to see that his team includes Squad enemies Manticore, Ravan, and Shrike. It also includes prior Squad members Punch, Mindboggler, and someone who took up the mantle of the Atom.

Oh yeah ... and in the background is Gayle Marsh of Earth. You know her better as Psi!

So looks like I have one more twirl around the dance floor at my look at this character. At some point soon I will review Danse Macabre!

The Rest Of My Week One DCnU Purchases

I figured I would comment on my pull list/purchasing decisions for at least the first month of the 'new 52'. Things are in flux and I have to decide who stays on the long haul', the 'short term' and the 'better grab me' lists. These won't be in depth reviews, more broad strokes.

As I said before, I was a fan of the Morrison, Milligan, and Delano runs on the old Animal Man book. I also enjoyed Jeff Lemire's weird take on Superboy. When I read that this new Animal Man would be something of a horror book, I put it on my 'short term' list.

While I don't know if this issue really floored me, it certainly showed a lot of promise, laying down a lot of mystery while showcasing who Buddy Baker is, who his family is. There is enough weirdness going on that I think this book stays on the 'short term' list. I definitely want to read the next issues to see where all this is going.

The one thing that I thought was lacking here was the art. Travel Foreman's work is so sparse in places it looks unfinished. The lack of backgrounds at times was jarring. While there is some interesting panel construction (like above), I thought the art sort of detracted from the book.

Initial placement: 'short term'
Verdict: On board for now

The beauty of a 'buy 4 DC #1's get one free' promotion at my local comic store was that I was able to pick a book I wasn't intending on reading and give it a shot.

As someone who thinks that the loss of Oracle is the biggest travesty of the DCnU (as well as someone who thought Miller's Steph Brown Batgirl was a fantastic comic), I was planning on staying as far away from Batgirl as possible.

Then I read on line some positive comments and since it was 'free' I figured I'd give it a shot.


Gail Simone has a nice understanding of the Barbara Gordon character and her comments of feeling alive again and feeling lucky in combat ring true. But the other aspects of the book, the PTSD piece of Babs persona now, the goofy roommate, the inconsistent caption boxes (sometimes dialogue, sometimes internal monologue) took away from the book.

Some of the dialogue is a bit heavy handed, like here where Babs comments 'he pointed his gun at my spine and I froze!'

The art from Ardian Syaf really is slick, detailed and dramatic, it was the best thing of the book.

Initial placement: Not buying
Verdict: I think I am going to buy one more issue and make a decision. My gut tells me I am going to drop it.

Justice League International was really the comic I was on the fence of buying. As I said before, I am not a big Booster fan. It was really going to take something special by Aaron Lopresti to get me to keep coming.

And Lopresti's art is as beautiful as I thought it was going to be.

But this first issue didn't do much more than that to grab me. We see how the UN has decided to form their own super-hero team, not necessarily based on power or chemistry. Instead, it seems like the team was picked to appease political pressures as well as to heroes easily controlled.

Guy isn't happy. Booster wants to be leader but doesn't seem in control. And Godiva is a saucy lass.

Despite Lopresti' work, nothing about this team or their dynamics interested me. I am not surprised.

Initial placement: 'Better grab me'
Verdict: Not grabbed. One and done.

Other people have recommended other titles I didn't try: OMAC, Swamp Thing, and Detective (long sold out at my LCS). We'll see if I decide to pick anything else up from last week.

Review: Secret Six #29

The Lex Luthor/Secret Six crossover ended this week in Secret Six #29. Written by Gail Simone and penciled by Marcos Marz, this issue concentrated mostly on the Lex and Vandal confrontation. It also added a layer of complexity to Scandal Savage, making her a more interesting character than I thought before.

I admit that this is the first issue of Secret Six I have purchased from this run. I bought the Villains United mini-series and the Secret Six mini-series from 2006. But neither grabbed me enough to have me throw this title on my pull list. I have heard some very good things about this title recently so in the end I didn't mind picking up this issue, hoping I would get a good taste for what Simone has been doing here. Unfortunately, since so much time was spent on the Vandal/Scandal relationship that the rest of the team didn't have much time to shine. For instance, I have no idea who the woman with the white hair is or what her powers are. That's after the 2 issues of this story.

This isn't to say I didn't like this issue. I enjoyed it quite a bit, especially the Savage family interactions. It was a very nice ending to the story started in Action Comics. But I don't know if I saw enough here to make me think about picking up this title again. (Of course, they are crossing over with Doom Patrol next month, so I might be back in anyways).

Last issue ended with Vandal Savage having put explosives throughout the LexCorp headquarters and the remote to them being activated.

Well, it turns out it was something of a ruse cliffhanger. The remote landed face down on the ground with the button only partially depressed. Any further depression will activate the bombs. I thought that was fitting given the more slapstick nature of the last issue with the remote bouncing around like a ping-pong ball.

And I was also happy to see that despite being bisected, that the LoisBot is still around and able to talk to Lex. She is too much fun to have been eliminated from the story.

Infuriated, Savage reiterates why he has started this whole mess. He received a prophecy long ago that Luthor would lead Savage to happiness. Savage assumes it has something to do with the Black Lantern energy globes. But he suddenly has an epiphany. At this moment, nothing would bring him more happiness than to kill Luthor.

That sort of logic is perfect for a madman like Savage. In fact, that is the only answer that makes any sense for Vandal.

As always, Lex is one step ahead of everyone. He had a personal defense system installed in the board room, one not on the blueprints of the building, one Savage didn't know about.

Safe behind his force bubble, Lex begins to gloat. And who can blame him. Not only is he safe, but he has the rooms cannons aimed at Scandal. He knows now that Scandal is Vandal Savage's weakness. In fact, that is the only reason why he hired the Six. Lex must have known that at some point he would battle Vandal Savage and who better to add to the mix than Scandal.

You can definitely tell that Simone has infused this team with a lot of sarcasm and bitterness. I like Deadshot's response to Luthor's insults. Deadshot reminds Luthor about the discrepancy in their hair.

Luthor instructs Black Alice to use her powers to remove the majority of the explosives. And then he tells Savage he intends to let the rest explode, killing the Six ... unless Vandal surrenders and agrees not to interfere with Luthor's plans.

Incredibly, Vandal does. He not only gives up, he is forced to say out loud that Luthor beat him. It is a beatdown. Nothing could disgust Savage more than to admit defeat.

With no time left to deactivate the explosives, Luthor lets the Six, Vandal, and some LexCorp employees enter the protective bubble.

Again, so much of this story is serious and so much of it borders on silly. The building explodes and the bubble is tossed out like a rubber ball. Even more amusing is Black Alice channeling the Alan Scott Green Lantern and making a catcher's mitt to retrieve the ball.

In another subtle hint that Luthor isn't his usual calculating self, that he is pushing things a bit too much, Luthor demands that Savage not only surrender but that he agrees to serve Luthor. That is asking too much ... in fact I don't know why Lex would ask for that after he has basically 'won'. Unless he isn't thinking normally.

When Savage refuses to serve, Lex ups the ante telling the LoisBot to kill Scandal. Nice pic of the halves of Lois melding together.

The Six fly into action trying to stop the robot while Luthor and Vandal slug it out. The LoisBot is eventually decapitated, not that that means much it seems.

Surprisingly, despite having been shot at by Luthor, Scandal jumps to his defense. It is completely self-serving. If Luthor dies, no one will hire the Six for protection. And Scandal can't have that. She ends this whole situation with the point of her blades.

Savage agrees to form an alliance with Luthor since Scandal is indeed safe.

The Six then threaten Luthor and Savage. Their contract with Luthor is over, they quit. And Savage better not come after them.

In what is the best part of the book, Savage talks to Lex about Scandal's mother. It turns out that she was the one woman that he has loved in his long life. And since he loved her, he sort of settled down with her, had a child with her. In a fantastic twist, the woman (who had rebelled when Vandal first came into her life) kills herself to rob Vandal of this slice of happiness and normalcy, knowing he would mourn literally forever. Talk about emotional sabotage, talk about the ultimate revenge. That was great.

And to make that moment resonate even more, we learn that the tool the woman used to kill herself are the Lamines Pesar, the very weapons Scandal uses. Scandal uses the blades her mother used in suicide.

That is twisted and appropriate and loving and disturbed all at once. Suddenly Scandal is more that an Elektra wannabe, another bladed bad girl in comics. She has some real emotional wounds, some real depth.

But before we get too serious, Simone turns the table one more time telling us that Luthor's payment would have been a solar system of nymphomaniacs. Yes, it's silly and fitting of the title. Unfortunately it's 2 panels after the one above. I would have rather simmered in the moment of Scandal's pain a bit longer before returning to the nonsense. I would have liked it more if the panel where Scandal tells the origins of her weapons was the last panel of the book, making me ruminate even more. That moment was too fantastic to leave so quickly.

Anyways, we still don't know what happiness Savage will get which leads me to think that his role in this Luthor arc isn't over yet. And it was nice to see the Six, in the end, stand up to two of the heaviest villain hitters in the DCU and hold their own.

Marco Marz art is nice here, ranging from crazy action sequences to quieter moments of introspection.

Overall grade: B+ (up half a grade just for the Scandal moment at the end)

Review: Wonder Woman #600, Pt 1

With the comic world awash in Wonder Woman talk, I wondered if it was okay for me to join in the fray. I figured why not; I'm a Wonder Woman fan too. So here is the review of Wonder Woman #600. Plus, Supergirl appears in the first story so it is an easy rationalization.

Much like Superman #700, this is a over-sized anniversary issue with multiple stories, the last being an opening chapter of a radical new arc by J. Michael Straczynski. And just like Superman #700, there is too much to cover in one post.

My thoughts on the new arc are here.

But the thing that bothered when reading about this issue was the "need" for this new direction; many of its proponents imply that something is wrong with the character of Wonder Woman or her current stories/fan base ... something so wrong that her very history and look need to be completely torn down and rebuilt. And frankly I don't agree with that assessment.

Ironically, I thought the very issue that introduces the new arc does a great job of showing everything that is right about Wonder Woman.

The first story, 'Valedictorian', is written by Gail Simone and drawn by George Perez. It showcases both of these mega-stars' talents perfectly while encapsulating everything that is Wonder Woman.

A story of two halves, it opens with Diana leading a veritable army of women super-heroes against Professors Ivo's Cyber-sirens, robots with the power to enslave men.

Look at the fierce expression on Diana's face as she jumps into the fray.

Diana the Warrior.

Okay, I feel compelled to show the Supergirl parts of the story too.

The sirens have two major pieces of artillery, a grounded war wagon and a flying tank. Wonder Woman sends Supergirl (Diana's big gun in this group?) to take out the airship.

As with his interpretation of her in Brave and The Bold, Perez does a great job with this Supergirl. She takes off to handle the gunship.

Diana the Tactician.

It is something of a motley crew that Wonder Woman has brought together. It includes anti-heroes like Ravager and innocents like Misfit. Why would someone like Ravager join? Because Diana asked her too.

Diana the Unifier. Diana the Ambassador.

As expected (hee hee), Supergirl is able to corral the flying tank and toss it. Wonder Woman hoists the assault vehicle and flings it into the tank, ending the fight.

Diana the Powerful.

With the battle over, the members of Diana's army fall over themselves to talk to her.

Despite the utter respect they all have for Diana, they also want to be friends with her as well. Batwoman wants to hang out in a bar with her.

Diana the Friend.

Unfortunately, Wonder Woman has a prior engagement. She can't stick around. She praises her friends for fighting so bravely and leaves.

The heroes all wish they were her, have whatever it is Wonder Woman has. Even a gadfly Black Alice has a look of grudging respect on her face. They would all follow her again.

Diana the Leader.

Diana had to get to Vanessa Kapatelis' graduation and her Valedictory speech.

Vanessa had a rough time with Wonder Woman in the past, even being changed into the villain Silver Swan for a time. But Vanessa acknowledges that you need to have the strength to make it through the hard times. As Diana has taught her, you need to keep the faith.

Diana the Role Model. Diana, who Perseveres.

When Diana bemoans the fact that she could have done more for Vanessa. Maybe if Diana was there more, Vanessa would have had an easier life. She could have been a better friend.

Diana the Humble.

Vanessa chastises her; the world needs Wonder Woman. She taught Vanessa to face her problems and conquer them.

Diana the Teacher.

Diana the super-hero.

In 7 short pages, Gail Simone boiled down the character to her essence and showed how great stories are possible with this Wonder Woman. Heck, Simone had been doing it on the title for a while already.

I mean, that is just a great great comic story.

But wait there was more.

In another great story, written and drawn by Amanda Conner, Wonder Woman gives Power Girl some relationship advice. Not relationship advice about men ... it's about Karen and her cat.

It is a fun little story, showing a Diana during a down time, relaxing.

It also has a hysterical opening where the two fight Egg Fu.

And there is another great story by Louise Simonson and Eddie Pansica in which we see the friendship that Supermand and Wonder Woman share, the respect they have for each other. While Superman is on rescue duty, Wonder Woman does the heavy lifting by fighting the magic-powered Nikos Aegeus, laying him out with a bone-crunching right hook.

Nothing but home runs so far ...

And like the best anniversary issues, Wonder Woman #600 also includes a gallery of her by great artists. This also felt ironic since the costume change was such a big deal about the upcoming Straczynski run. Again, there was this undercurrent that the old costume just can't work any more. And yet we are treated to images like these ....

This one by Shane Davis, my favorite in the book. Nothing wrong here.

And this one by Nicola Scott, which came in a very very very close second to Davis'. This is screaming to be made into a poster.

Nothing wrong with the costume here.

Even this one by Guillem March while provocative in showing a sultry Diana (and maybe a little too much butt cleavage), is great. Here it isn't the costume which shines so much as the layout. The angle looking down from directly above, the 'animation' of her arm blocking the bullets, the lasso coiled and ready to lash out ... it is innovative a 'pin-up'.

And I didn't even scan the Adam Hughes, George Perez, Ivan Reis, and Francis Manapul ones ... all of which are stunning.

With all this sheer goodness in the issue, it made me wonder why there is a need for an extreme take on the idea of a 'bold new direction'.

Kudos to all involved here ... especially Gail. Your Wonder Woman will be missed.

Overall grade: A+