DC August 2020 Solicitations

The DC August solicits have been posted and for the most part they are simply the pre-COVID solicits resolicited with a nice addition. Here is a link"
https://www.newsarama.com/50230-dc-comics-august-2020-solicitations.html

One thing you won't see? Supergirl #41. As stated before, Supergirl #41 will only be available digitally. I am still a bit peeved about the whole thing. That said, we needed a new Supergirl book. A new direction. A creative team that actually likes the character. But when you end a character's title this way, it just makes the whole IP feel toxic. Will we get another Supergirl book any time soon?

SUPERGIRL: COSMIC ADVENTURES IN THE 8TH GRADE TP NEW EDITION
written by LANDRY Q. WALKER
art and cover by ERIC JONES

Supergirl’s cosmic adventure is back in print in this new all-ages book! Supergirl meets Belinda Zee, a new junior high adversary, in this all-ages title collecting the six-issue miniseries. And that’s just the start of the fun that includes super-powered pets and cosmic adventure!

Now this is a pleasant surprise.

One of the best Supergirl properties to come out in the last 2 decades, Cosmic Adventures is a treat. And it is the perfect Kara palate cleanser for the more recent mainstream DCU fare. Go out and buy it. And buy it for any young fan of the series. A young Lena plays a huge role.

And by all means, go back and read my reviews when the issues came out!

ACTION COMICS #1024

written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
art and cover by JOHN ROMITA JR. and KLAUS JANSON
variant cover by LUCIO PARRILLO
Wonder Woman 1984 variant cover by FRANK CHO

The city of Metropolis has been rocked by Luthor’s latest attack and the drama surrounding Superman’s truth, and that gives the invisible mafia a new foothold to change the City of Tomorrow forever. Meanwhile, the Daily Planet is under siege! The fallout from Superman: Villains continues as Clark Kent steps out into the world as a reporter for the first time.

I am still not a fan of John Romita Jr.

But I have been pleasantly surprised by how this Truth storyline has unfolded.

And you know I love the more city-based Action Comics plots. So looking forward to this.

SUPERMAN #24

written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
art by KEVIN MAGUIRE and JOHN TIMMS
cover by IVAN REIS and JOE PRADO
variant cover by BRYAN HITCH
Wonder Woman 1984 variant cover by GABRIELE DELL’OTTO

Superman’s legendary susceptibility to magic is about to turn his life inside out and upside down. A mysterious new villain has come into Superman’s world to pit him against the most powerful sorcerer and agent for the Lords of Order: Doctor Fate!

There is a little bit of weird karma that Dr. Fate is going to get a big storyline in Superman so recently after Marty Pasko, the main Fate writer in the 80s, has passed.

I do want to see Maguire's take on Fate. Should be cool.

BATMAN/SUPERMAN #11

written by JOSHUA WILLIAMSON
art by CLAYTON HENRY
cover by DAVID MARQUEZ
card stock variant cover by JAE LEE 
Wonder Woman 1984 variant cover by JENNY FRISON

It’s Superman versus Batman as the deadly machinations of the Ultra-Humanite crash to their end! The Dark Knight has been transformed into a human atomic bomb, all in the name of wiping Superman from the face of the Earth! As Batman struggles against the urge to kill his friend, Superman must undo the damage done and help the other victims of the Ultra-Humanite’s experiments. It’s the thrilling conclusion to “Atomic” that will reverberate across the DC Universe for months to come!

As I said before, I love the Ultra Humanite.

And I am interested to see how the relationship between Batman and Superman is pushed forward in this book. Will Williamson continue the dual text boxes to see how they are thinking and how they feel about each other?

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES #8

written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS
art by EVAN “DOC” SHANER, JEFF LEMIRE, DUSTIN NGUYEN, JOËLLE JONES, MICHAEL AVON OEMING, LIAM SHARP, ANDRÉ LIMA, SANFORD GREENE, CULLY HAMNER, YANICK PAQUETTE, DAN HIPP, DAVID MACK, DARICK ROBERTSON, DAN JURGENS, BILQUIS EVELY, FABIO MOON, MICHAEL ALLRED, RYAN SOOK, ALEX MALEEV, JOHN TIMMS, DUNCAN ROULEAU, and NORM RAPMUND
cover by RYAN SOOK
variant cover by DUSTIN NGUYEN

Beginning a special two-part comics storytelling event! Over the course of two spectacular issues, 44 artists will dive into the 31st century—with each page starring a different Legionnaire! It starts when the team is arrested by a galactic authority that does not approve of the Legion—and it leads into an intergalactic showdown that will affect every member of the team!

Looks like a new issue for me to bring to conventions and try to collect signatures! That is a murderers' row of names. I can't wait to see this book. I mean, they had me at Fabio Moon. But there are many favorites listed here.

I do love that each page gives us a different team member. We haven't really met the whole team yet so this will be a good primer.

YOUNG JUSTICE #17

written by BRIAN MICHAEL BENDIS and DAVID F. WALKER
art by SCOTT GODLEWSKI
cover by JOHN TIMMS
variant cover by MIRKA ANDOLFO

This very special issue focuses directly on the friendship at the heart of Young Justice: Conner, Tim, and Bart—a.k.a. Superboy, Drake, and Impulse. As younger men, these three iconic heroes built Young Justice on their friendship. Now their dream has grown and changed as much as they have. And with the demands of adulthood pulling them in different directions, they realize that nights like this one may never happen again.

With Supergirl off the board, maybe I should add Young Justice to the review list. I mean, technically, there is a Super-family member here.

I like these characters and I like what Bendis is doing here.

Hey at least we have comics!

Still, I am irked. No print Supergirl. It again proves they just don't care.

Supergirl Episode 519: Immortal Kombat

The Supergirl Season 5 finale aired this week and I will say it is going to be hard for me to know what to make of it.

Between the COVID-19 pandemic and the pregnancy of Melissa Benoist, 2 episodes (maybe 3) were shaved off the end of the season. Filming had to stop. As a result, this finale feels a bit rushed. There is one segment that is more unbelievable than an alien being able to process sunlight to give them the ability to fly. And, unfortunately, that very same scene is one that is almost a retread of several other season finales.

Do some plots come to an end? Yes. Are things left at an odd cliffhanger? Yes. Do the characters grow? Yes.

But it all seems like this was a 'let's do what we can with what we have' as opposed to 'let's bring this season to the conclusion we had in mind'? I hope that somewhere down the line, maybe on an extra in the season blu-ray collection, we have the writers spell out what they had hoped to do and how things were impacted.

Look, I liked this season a lot. I think I liked it more than many. I definitely feel like it was better than last season. But I wonder what might have been.

And I also think that all of that wondering is going to make me give this finale something of a critical pass as well.

Back Issue Box: Superman #362

I figured it was time for me to take a break from my look at Kandor and switch to a different sort of topic on my mind these days! COVID-19!

I've covered a couple of back issues recently dealing with various viruses and Superman's afflictions and cures. So why not go back to the well and cover Superman #362 and #363, a two-parter dealing with a tropical plague.

Today I'll cover the first part, Superman #362.

I remember buying this issue off the rack at the time, intrigued by the cover. I didn't get the second part at the time. And I lost my original copy somewhere in the parental purge. I recently was lucky enough to get both parts and the disease story is apt for the time.

But ... spoiler alert ... White Kryptonite is not used to save the day. And that despite it being used frequently in continuity as a germ-cleanser and plant killer, like here, here, and even here!

So how does this plague get cured? We'll find out.

On to the book.

Supergirl #41 And #42 Now Digital Only

It has been a very tough year for Supergirl in regards to her own title.

For me (and I feel for many) the series has suffered a series of creative missteps since the Brian Michael Bendis era on the Superman books began.  Bendis himself has treated Kara with a great deal of respect in the Superman titles. But in her own books, and in the wider DCU, Supergirl has been a mess. From angry, overly emotional, near murderous axe-wielding space explorer to angry, evil, near murderous, 'Batman Who Laughs' victim, Kara has been hardly super or heroic.

Of course, I have said over and over during my 12 years running this site that a dark and grim take on Supergirl never works, DC always returns to the scene of that creative crime. The last few issues of the book we have a literally unrecognizable Supergirl terrorizing Smallville and fighting Wonder Woman.

The book was announced and canceled. And then the COVID-19 pandemic happened, shelving comics as a whole for over a month.

With comic companies just starting to shake of the dust and put out books again, Supergirl has now been cast aside near completely by DC. The last two issues of this series won't even see print. They will be available digitally only and included in the last trade. Here is a link to that news:
https://www.newsarama.com/50238-supergirl-to-conclude-digitally-with-issue-42.html

Review: Lois Lane #10

Not a dream! Not a hoax! I read a new comic this week in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic!

And to make it even crazier, I read it digitally. (Don't worry, I'll get the printed copy too.)

Lois Lane #10 came out this week,digitally only. It feels like a long time since the last issue was released by this creative team of writer Greg Rucka and artist Mike Perkins.

One of my complaints about this maxi-series so far has been the somewhat plodding pace of the actual storylines. Rucka set up a bunch of 'inspired by real events' plots. Unfortunately many of these issues have felt like treading water.

This issue continues that trend. We don't really get to learn more about immigrant detention, government corruption, or murdered Russian journalists. Instead we get a rather detailed discussion of multiverses and quantum theory. Now I am a classic DC reader so I understand the concept of the multiverse. But I don't exactly know if I can truly explain the exact details of what Rucka is saying about the characters here.

Moreover, this lengthy science fiction discussion seemed just a little bit out of place for this comic which has been, for the most part, a street level drama.

Mike Perkins does his usual solid job on art here. I think his expression work is a bit inconsistent. But there is a Superman/Lois scene in the middle of this issue which is perfect and Perkins is really the star there. And the multiple splash pages discussing the multiverse are also very strong.

But let's not bury the lede. This was a new comic!!!

The Passing of Marty Pasko; Superman #332

I learned on Monday night that writer Marty Pasko had passed away.

Pasko was one of those names that I learned to recognize and associate with a good story even at a young age. I was heavily into DC even as a wee lad and people knew I loved Superman even back then. So the books that I cut my teeth on, the books that cemented my love of Superman and super-lore often had Pasko's name on them.

Whether it was Bizarro or the Atomic Skull or the Kryptonoid, Pasko always meant a happy reader. And I was lucky enough to meet him and thank him for his impact on me a few years back at Terrificon (here on the far right next to Keith Giffen and Paul Kupperberg).

Now you might think that Action Comics #500 would be my favorite Pasko story and it is close.

But I have to say that Mr. Pasko also wrote what might be my single favorite issue of all time, First Issue Special #9 starring Dr. Fate. That issue is brilliant.

But Pasko also taught be about dramatic turns and mature story telling in comics.

Here is the climax from Superman #329. In this story, Kryptonian microbots have fused with a Superman robot and a General who loathes Superman, blaming the Man of Steel for an accident which cost the General his arm. At the end, Superman points out that it was the robot the man fused with who was responsible for that accident. The resulting mental anguish incapacitates the Kryptonoid.

As a kid when I read this I was floored. I remember these panels vividly. But those aren't the only dramatic panels that are burned into my brain.

Whenever a hero of mine from the Bronze Age passes, I always grieve with good friend Mart Gray. We both have similar comic histories so we can commiserate and talk about shared stories and favorite issues.

When the news broke, Mart and I decided to honor the man by reviewing one of our favorite stories, Superman #331 and #332. Head here to read Mart's coverage of part one. Here is my cover to part 2, one of those Whitman pack variants!

For me, I am thrilled to review part two because the last panels in this issue taught me how powerful a medium comics can be, how the art can complement the story so well, and how tough topics like adults and romance could be covered in books aimed for kids.

Godspeed Mr. Pasko. Read on for more coverage of this issue.

Supergirl Episode 518: The Missing Link

Supergirl episode #518, 'The Missing Link', aired this week and it is the penultimate episode of season five of this show. Between the COVID pandemic and Melissa Benoist's pregnancy it seems the show has had to truncate itself by a couple of episodes.

As a result the last 2 episodes, last week's Deus Lex Machina, and this episode move at a brisk pace with a lot of exposition. It just feels that some things come out of nowhere without the buildup that I would expect. Whether by design or with unanticipated, creative editing, the season seems set up for a finale.

This episode does a great job of bringing us to the final conflagration of Lex/Leviathan/Heroes by wrapping up and pushing forward a number of plots. Non Nocere. Brainy's duplicity. Alex's identity crisis. Supergirl and Lena's feud. All are finished or pushed to the finish line here.

Moreover, this episode continues one of the themes that has made me smile this season, the recognition of the show's internal continuity. Here, we see a couple of minor characters again show up.

But some subplots, like the unanticipated return of M'Gann, seem like they came out of nowhere and that felt a bit strange.

Still, this season has been one solid story despite or because of the universe-shattering Crisis which bisected it.

On to the details.