May 16th RoundUp

posted by JediSheltie @ 7:42 PM

Lots this week, picked a few of the ole standbys. I've got some things to say about Jimmy Olsen in Countdown, but I'll save that for an 4-issue wrap-up.

Batman 665

"The Black Casebook" continues in this issue, where we learn what, exactly, said Casebook is. It's right up the alley of Grant Morrison, a guy known in the industry for "going big." His run on JLA was known for its epic story arcs featuring the "gods" of the DCU duking it out across the heavens in world spanning battles. Outside of Morrison's natural talent as a writer, the announcement he'd be doing a Batman title seemed a bit of a poor fit in terms of usual choice in story. Batman, after all, was generally not quite so well known for being involved with such large dust-ups outside of the JLA.

Morrison proves that things in Gotham can get just as epic without the help of the JLA. In this issue we see the as-yet-unidentified Venom user get hit by no less than 2 vehicles and nearly do what his "inspiration", Bane, accomplished in breaking the back of Batman. Bruce Wayne starts putting the few pieces together as he realizes the hulking Bane/Batman hybrid is meant to tap the fears that still linger from one of his more spectacularly unsuccessful fights. It's clearly spelled out here this guy is not Bane, simply someone using the same drug that gave Bane his size and strength.

Bruce realizes someone is taking pages from the Black Casebook, which is basically Batman's "X-Files." All the aliens, ghosts, para- and supernatural encounters he's logged are in the Black Casebook. The Joker is just a homicidal maniac with a bad facelift, after all, he doesn't have super-powers. There is a specific reference to an encounter in the casebook where this Batman/Bane hybrid was seen before, along with 2 other Bat-analogs, one of which has Bruce more concerned than the 9 foot tall hulk. Not having been a reader prior to Infinite Crisis, I'm not sure if Morrison is making this up. I doubt it, I'm just not familiar with the original story.

Giving Batman an "X-Files" is something that really seems to go with Morrison writing the title, as it provides a way to give the character those more "epic" encounters for which Morrison is so well known. This story and the solicits for issue 666 make it clear he's going to milk the numerical significance for all it's worth. The only oddity to the book is it veering off in last few pages back to Talia and his son, dropping the Black Casebook story entirely in something that seemed a bit tacked-on. The two stories will probably mesh next issue, but it did seem like a strange gear shift after the fight and the revelations about the Casebook.

Supergirl 17

Okay, so, apparently the sun went red in #16. I'm not sure I remember that, but now that I check, I think I just assumed all the redness on the last page was just an "artistic" interpretation of the dire events unfolding. Like the skies in all the, er... Crisis-i. It was that, too, perhaps, but now we know that Earth's sun is now red. This, as one might imagine, has a bit of a deleterious effect on the local Kyrptonian population at a rather bad time, namely when the ghosts of the Phantom Zone are loose and possessing most of the population of Earth.

Kara, who we learn has been napping for a month or so while the sun went red and the ghosts overwhelmed the Earth, finds herself still powered. It appears pop planned for just this kind of eventuality by implanting the sun crystals inside her body. As we've been learning, pop Zor-El planned for a lot of stuff that Kara's fuzzy memory is not very great at spelling out for us, the helpless reader. Finding herself alone on a ghost possessed Earth, Kara is confronted by the possessed versions of people and heroes she'd encountered over the past few issues, like Wonder Girl and Robin, before unsuccessfully seeking out Batman for a little bit of non-crazy fatherly advice.

Failing that, she has only one person to turn to.

Clad in what we assume is the Kryptonian equivalent of red-sun environmental armor, Clark is still trying to save the world. It's perhaps unintentionally ironic that we could assume this is something like the armor Superboy Prime used to feed himself yellow solar radiation upon his return to the DCU for the climax of Infinite Crisis. Clark's doesn't look like the Anti-Monitor inspired suit at all, but it seems to serve the same purpose.

Kara explains all her weird-ass dreams about whats going on with the ghosts to Clark and they decide to work together to save the day. Only, what I'm guessing is the reason the Auctioneer found 3 Kryptonian life forms on Earth back in Action shows up at the end to put the kybosh on that team up idea. I won't spoil it, but close perusal of World War III's few Supergirl related pages is all you need to figure out "who" shows up.

Kara's going to be on the new Teen Titans book, so all her major mental problems are going to be sewn up one way or another soon. This McKeever guy who's doing Teen Titans seems to like the character, and I'm almost disappointed they're throwing the main book to some relative unknown when this guy, who's known for doing good "teen" work, is now on the DC team. Maybe he'll get the book eventually. In fact, after my not officially writing down my Simone/Wonder Woman prediction, I'm going on record, here, now, as saying McKeever will eventually write Supergirl.

I'm banking on it.

Justice League of America 9

One of the problems with having a set of characters set 1000 years in the future of your current storylines is that, when your current storylines undergo massive revision, your characters 1000 years later are invariably effected. Thus the history of the "Legion of Superheros" is something constantly in flux with the myriad Crises and a retcons over the years. The current, Supergirl-assisted Legion is not the same Legion from the character's "heyday" of years past.

It seems the main upshot of this epic JLA/JSA "Lightning Saga" crossover so far, other than being a little confusing, is that all that stuff with "Superboy" and the Legion of Superheroes, perhaps the most famous part of "Legion" history, actually happened once more. Why else would Clark have statues of "old" Legionaries in his Fortress of Solitude? Not being a big fan or student of that period of Legion history, I'm assuming a lot of this designed to tug nostalgia strings for people a little more "in the know" than myself.

Outside of the LSH issues, the JLA and JSA's team-up is flowing rather smoothly, if also somewhat confusingly. Character beats with Powergirl and Hawkman seem an odd, forced aside to the main story. Though Arsenal's somewhat "meta" assessment of the team-up was one of the more enjoyable aspects of the script. He notes that it certainly is not proceeding by the usual team-up numbers, so to speak. This is certainly a plus, as the "meet them, fight them, team-up in the end" formula is, I've noted in the past, so completely overused.

Another moment of interest is the Legionaries describing the recent events in Infinite Crisis as the "middle" Crisis. Since this weeks issue of Countdown featured the fight between Batman and Karate Kid from last installment of the Lightning Saga, it's further evidence that something big remains on the horizon. The line could almost be overlooked as a throwaway, making the foreshadowing all the more enjoyable. Events from this crossover are going to have major implications for both Countdown and the DCU as a whole.

Which kind of makes me long for better understanding than I have had until this point. I was totally lost on the big "villain reveal" for instance. No clue who any of them were. I assume some names will be dropped sooner or later, but I feel I'm a bit in the dark about the overall direction of the story. Foreshadowing is nice, of course, but I'd like to have an accessible story supporting it.

Art's nice. People are complaining about Benes' Power Girl boobs, but they look just spiffy to me. I mean, it's a comic book, not an anatomy textbook. I have little patience for armchair plastic surgeons who moan about how they disagree with an artist's interpretation of the human form. I have a similar, and I think reasonably analogous, peeve about artists who can't draw military aircraft well, but I'm not going to hold their feet to the fire over it. It's my own little pet peeve, I understand that and move on. Sure, the human form might be more "elemental" to comics, but still, if you have that big a problem with it, just skip the book.

May 9th RoundUp

posted by JediSheltie @ 7:22 PM

Slow week, with one extremely notable exception, of course.

Countdown 51

Fast on the heels of weekly comic even 1, we have weekly comic event 2, Countdown. I'm not sure how I'll be handling this one, as ignoring 52 until the end might not have been the best course of action. Still, I don't want a weekly 'fixture' in the column. Supposedly these issues will be divided into monthly sub-arcs, so I might go with reviewing those, wrap-up style. Obviously the premiere issue is the premiere issue, so can't just ignore that.

As a bit of a mea culpa, and as absolutely no one pointed out, my "wrap-up" of 52 overlooked Ralph Dibny's story arc completely. A significant oversight, as he ended up being the much-promised "death" indicated at the beginning of the series.

Countdown promises many things, according to various press releases, but primarily it seems to attempt to continue the idea of plucking some lesser known inhabitants of the DCU and building interesting stories around them, while adding in some of the "headliners" to the mix. Thus there's a big guy in a blue suit with an "S" on his chest right in the middle of the big wraparound cover to this issue.

Unlike a lot of big events, this one doesn't start out with the proverbial world-shattering bang. They've got 52 issues to fill, so perhaps they're saving the world shattering for something in the lower teens. Not to mention whatever this is “counting down” to. To wit, we find Duela Dent, sometime member of the Teen Titans and self-professed daughter of the Joker, performing the petty heist of the latest pop starlet and getting foiled by recently “resurrected” Jason Todd. Most people didn't find her linage claim credible, but it turns out that was only because all those people were not from her earth.

Duela, like a few others rattling around "Earth 1" are refugees from different parts of the multiverse, and the Monitors are on the job... monitoring them. And killing them, it turns out. Duela meets her maker basically for being out of her universal jurisdiction. Todd is next on the list before another Monitor intervenes to stop it. The idea of "rogue" Monitors seems to provide the initial foundation for the bigger events of the series, and being a veteran of the original Crisis, is one I find quite interesting.

Such larger events are equally foreshadowed in a move that picked my fond Superfirends memories. Darkseid is back, with his usual ill intent. After being absent from the DCU for almost 2 years, we learn he's actually managed to ratchet up his ambitions from simple universal domination.

Like 52, there's more than 1 thread here, not all initially portending a massive altering of the status quo in the DC Universe. Mary Marvel, now de-powered, is shown recently awaking from her coma, finding out she's no longer able to wield the power of a god and finding “normality” a rather odd sensation.

Two members of the Flash's "Rogues Gallery" get together to banter a bit briefly in the one introduction that doesn't really go anywhere. It's not to say I might not be attached to these characters 1 year from now, but, out the gate, that segment didn't 'wow' me. Experience with 52 has shown that time is on their side if the story is good enough.

Paul Dini pens the issue, of Batman The Animated Series fame, and recently of Detective Comics. As the guy who created Harley Quinn, he has fun with Duela Dent before he kills her. Seems like a bit of waste, but I'm not going to mourn her passing too greatly. After all, there's a few extra universes out there and one of the probably has a Duela left over. The rest of the script is generally setup, and as such the dialog is mostly expository in nature. It's the first issue, so none of this surprising.

Art chores went to Jesus Saiz, who performed well. Again, I'm in the "it's fine" category here, where I find myself on most art except the very best or very worst, and even those categorizations are so subjective as to be useless. Countdown is off to a good start. Great, not yet, but it's only issue 1. There is a different creative team here than on 52, but the lessons of 52 should be relatively fresh. I'm confident this will be a worthy successor, even without the “rock stars” of DC penning it.

JLA Classified 38

Though better than "Red King" this effort doesn't seem to be doing much of the proverbial "justice" to the so-named League. I've seen in numerous places the claim that recent stories have been composed of stories that were initially planned for release in the main "JLA" title, prior to Infinite Crisis and the ending of the JLA series. Seeing stories that were "tabled" is, in part, interesting, but like deleted scenes on a DVD, sometimes you can't help but say to yourself, "Yeah, they deleted this for a good reason."

May 2nd Comic RoundUp

posted by JediSheltie @ 8:05 PM

Welcome to the multiverse, where everybody has a number, not some dumb letters or any of that 'Prime' crap...

52 – All of It

Think of this as the review of the upcoming trade...

After the column where I complained about Wonder Woman going bi-monthly and sucking down column space, you've probably figured out why I haven't been doing 52. I've been reading it from the start, and I enjoyed it quite a lot, but with a weekly, you're going to have your ups and downs. Tracking every single one of them kind of misses the point. The point is that, despite a few downs over the year, the endeavor as whole was well worth your time each week.

52 started with a number of reasonably daring premises, not the least of which was putting out an issue weekly at a time when the industry as a whole was well known for suffering common delay on high profile titles. That fact didn't change over the past year, and only worsened in some cases. But 52 was there, every week. An impressive feat, one that some are keen to blame for the delays on other titles, in fact. True or not, I'm not qualified to say. Perhaps it was one element of many that lent itself to delay, that and some major miscalculations on high-profile creators.

The other more daring aspect of the series was using lesser known characters as tent poles to the story. The tag line was “A year with Superman, Batman, & Wonder Woman”, so there went your 'major draws' right at the start. It certainly delivered on that promise, as only Clark Kent made any significant contributions to the story. Even his role faded out as the series went on, though Newsarama interviews indicated this, like a lot of other things, wasn't exactly planned.

Enough about what was missed. 52 wove five different stories through the last year. Each ebbed and flowed, appeared for a while then sunk to the background for a time. The four writers on 52 steadfastly refused to acknowledge who wrote what, but interviews over time have nailed down who was largely responsible for each individual story arc story.

Of the characters, John Henry Irons and Booster Gold were perhaps the best known. Booster's story covered the entire year, despite his "demise" early in the piece which kicked up a wave of rather premature protest from all those JLI fans out there. He ended up saving not only the Universe, but the new Multiverse. John Henry Irons as Steel stood in for the absent Superman in opposing Lex Luthor's plan to grant superpowers to anyone who afford them.

Black Adam's arc provided the penultimate climax of the piece, as he moved from anti-hero, to hero, to villain over the course of the year, dutifully remaining self-righteous at all of these intervals. The creation and destruction of the Black Adam family was one of the more compelling aspects of 52. After watching them come together over the course of the year, it was somewhat easier to understand Adam's pain at their death. Still, his subsequent bloody, world-wide temper tantrum qualifies either one of the largest overreactions in history or the signs of serious impulse control problem.

A lesser known import from Paul Dini's Batman: The Animated Series, Rene Montoya rose from a background player in Batman's Gotham to assume the mantle of The Question, meeting up with former girlfriend and current Batwoman Kate Kane along the way. Rene's story was the most personal, and, in replacing an elder character, one of the more controversial. My previous familiarity with Montoya was from the cartoon, where her future sexual preference was probably not scripted. I had no special affection for the "previous" Question, so this transfer did not particularly concern me. The story of the transition gave me an appreciation for both characters.

Finally there was the story of Buddy Baker, Animal Man, and his rather long trip home from the depths of space, where in he, Lobo, Starfire (Note to Editor -who is the only person who'll get this- not my dead dog, nor was my dog named after her), and Adam Strange manage to head off an interstellar invasion force that bore a passing resemblance to the bad guys from The Chronicles of Riddick. If that was the inspiration, they were probably pretty safe in choosing that as a source, considering how many people actually saw that movie. Buddy is another "much beloved" figure from years ago- years I wasn't reading comics.

It was the power of these characters and stories that took the project away from it's creators, who had planned from the start to devote time to explaining all that stuff they were putting out with "One Year Later" after Infinite Crisis. The loss of those explanatory elements necessitated the World War III event, which wasn't exceptionally well executed. Its certainly a testament to the power of the story that it took the writers with it, and not the other way around. I know the feeling from back when I indulged in fiction.

Too bad I generally sucked at it.

All these stories were told by four guys and a slew of artists. Thus art was all over the board. They generally managed to maintain in-issue continuity, but you could certainly count on seeing a new style virtually every week. Considering the circumstance, it was unavoidable, and the strength of the story was such that it didn't distract much at all. The artistic variance will probably be somewhat more noticeable when the trades start hitting, which I'm betting will be soon. I'd like to see the entire thing bound up in one book with notes, etc. Even though there is quite a bit in there, one of the great elements of the story is that, unlike Infinite Crisis, you don't really have to be DC historian to enjoy it.

In choosing characters that were not "banner" and have 50 year histories, they could craft a story that kept you in the moment, without worrying about the 80 issues or so of a comic you never read before. Anyone should be able to pick up a trade and, with a short forward, enjoy the story from start to finish. For a comic spanning 52 real-time issues, that's yet another major accomplishment.

Superman 662

The scheduling problems with Action are being felt again in the namesake title. After a couple "one-shot" issues that dealt with Prankster and a guest shot from Wonder Woman, we return to the plot we left back in 659 with Arion's warning about Superman's effect on the world. But things are a little cloudier now. Since, well, whatever was going to happen in Action basically, "hasn't" at the moment, we find Clark considering the advice of the sorcerer while checking up on the world and investigating a little untied thread from the “Back In Action” arc featuring the Auctioneer..

It was a thread your's truly pointed out at the time, in fact. "3" Kryptonians. Clark, Kara, and whom? Power Girl was too easy, and, in an-all-to-brief cameo, eliminated as a suspect in the first few pages of this latest issue of Superman. Krypto, who apparently has some story waiting in the wings for... something... is also written off as being "missing". Finally, as I pointed out, the Auctioneer made his statement prior to... the kid... being shot into this world.

Did I mention the kid is in the issue? With Lois, in their condo, in some kind of domestic bliss? I've been accepting this whole arc in Action on the vague promise that the status quo will be returned when its over. Now, it's not over, and doesn't look to be until some Annual, so now we're stuck with the kid until it's finished? This also introduces continuity issues. It didn't really seem like a lot time passed in Action between the kid's arrival, adoption by the younger Kents, and the appearance of Zod. This story has to happen during that period before Zod and company arrived. The kid is there, but there sure aren't a few thousand Phantom Zone villains flying around.

No, Clark is considering his role in the world, whether he will eventually cause a cataclysm by holding back disaster too long. Perry White fills in for Lex Luthor by weighing in that Superman could be bad for humanity, in that he could be holding us back from pulling ourselves up by our proverbial boot straps and reaching our true potential. Or we could just be extinct, right Perry? Jimmy defends Superman, of course. He's gonna die, soon, right?

Beyond the possible continuity issues and the moments of thought, nothing really happens here. It's a setup to the next issue, basically. I like the issues raised here, but I think this one went a little too deep on the philosophy side, and I say that as someone with a degree in it. There could been a bit more action. Art chores were handled by Carlos Pacheco, who did a good job. Nice clean, reasonably detailed lines. Nothing like Adam Kubert, but then again, you really need to wait for that kind of work, apparently.

Busick is doing good work, it's just annoying to see his efforts being hamstrung a bit by the problems with Action. It will be interesting to see how all this is sorted out before the next Johns / Donner arc returns to Action, if at all. We were promised some huge "changes" after their first arc, and now it seems like the lack of those changes is on the way to upsetting the ole apple cart.

"Tomorrow Is Yesterday" (Star Trek: Remastered edition)

posted by Tygrrius @ 11:39 AM

Star Trek (Remastered): "Tomorrow Is Yesterday"
Remastered Episode #29 (5/5/2007)
Original Episode #21 (1/26/1967)

After last week's light-on-effects installment of Star Trek: Remastered, "Tomorrow Is Yesterday" provides the CBS Digital team the opportunity to show off a bit.

Though I unfortunately didn't receive them in time for a preview article, I've intermixed pictures from CBS for this weekend's episode with my review. Click on each picture to view larger versions.

After encountering a black star that hurls her across time and space, the Enterprise falls into a low Earth orbit, nearly out of control. The year: 1969. Just a week before the launch of Apollo 11.

The initial shot of the Enterprise in 1969 is somewhat disappointing. The tiny ship wobbles unrealistically, a little too reminiscent of the 1967 effect for my tastes.

After a return from the opening credits commercial break, though, CBS Digital more than makes up for the weak start with an awe-inspiring view of the Enterprise as she flies over the US midwest (below).

I'm sure that RiffTrax's Mike Nelson would call this "fanboy porn," but if so I'm definitely a fanboy when it comes to TOS. I replayed this sequence several times before proceeding with the episode.

For me, this marks the true achievement of Star Trek: Remastered's potential, a chance to see the original Enterprise as we always imagined her. The new series has been a classic Trek fan's dream come true.

Spotting the Enterprise on radar, the US Air Force sends up a jet fighter to intercept. As the crew regains control of the starship, Spock notes that the fighter's nuclear weapons could prove a danger if the pilot were to open fire.

The Enterprise snags the fighter in a tractor beam, but the aircraft begins to break apart. With no other choice, they beam pilot John Christopher (Roger Perry) aboard.



Throughout the episode are fantastic shots of the Enterprise orbiting Earth (including the one above). Though the pilot has been beamed aboard a ship from 300 years in the future, Kirk naturally decides to give Christopher a tour of the vessel, with no restrictions on what he learns.

As they enter the bridge, Christopher is relieved to find that Kirk is from Earth of the future, rather than an alien. "I never have believed in little green men," says Christopher, who then looks up to see Mr. Spock for the first time.

"Nor have I," replies the Vulcan.

There's a bit of fun in this episode, as the ship's computer has recently been reprogrammed on the female-dominated Cygnet XIV to respond as a flirty woman rather than in the normal monotone, much to Spock and Kirk's dismay.

Kirk and Spock soon must deliver bad news to Christopher: he cannot return to Earth of 1969, for he has seen and heard too much about the future and could pose a danger to the timeline. There are other problems, though, for no one is sure how to return the Enterprise to the 23rd century.

Though it is a solid episode, "Tomorrow Is Yesterday" is not stellar. Parts of it drag on, including a subplot to retrieve footage of the Enterprise taken by Christopher's aircraft while in flight. A subplot rendered meaningless by the episode's conclusion, I might add.



The updated effects are mixed, alternating between unbelievably great and disappointingly mediocre. I'm not sure why there is such a marked difference, except perhaps for the issue that plagues all projects: lack of time. I will say that the good stuff here is terrific enough to make up for the mediocre. I'm left with a feeling of awe, which is how Star Trek is supposed to be.

One aspect of Star Trek: Remastered that I've failed to highlight in previous reviews is the overall enhancement to the picture throughout each episode, not just the effects. Even compared to the 2004 DVDs, these newly broadcast versions have much more vibrant colors and a crisper look.

In many ways, "Tomorrow Is Yesterday" is the perfect episode for the Star Trek: Remastered concept. The original version suffered due to the limitations of the 1967 effects (one shot of the Enterprise leaving Earth had portions of the warp nacelles disappearing, for instance). Now, today is yesterday and it is as if Remastered line producer Michael Okuda and crew were able to slingshot around the sun and give the 1967 team a bit of 2007 technology.

Dramatic Content: 7 (out of 10)
Effects Upgrades: 8
Overall Experience: 8

* * *

Episodes and air dates for Star Trek remastered

US stations carrying Star Trek remastered

For more information

Images are copyright, © 2007 by CBS Studios Inc. All rights reserved. Star Trek and related marks are trademarks of CBS Studios Inc.

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"A Piece Of The Action" (Star Trek: Remastered edition)

posted by Tygrrius @ 4:57 AM

Star Trek (Remastered): "A Piece Of The Action"
Remastered Episode #28 (4/28/2007)
Original Episode #49 (1/12/1968)

The Enterprise discovers a planet of mobsters who have patterned their lives on a book called Chicago Mobs of the Twenties. The book was among the items left behind by the USS Horizon, which visited about a hundred years ago and prior to the adoption of the non-interference directive. It's up to Kirk, Spock, and McCoy to undo some of the damage.

William Shatner proves yet again that he's great with comedy, when given the right material. As Spock, Leonard Nimoy is the ultimate straight man. In fact, much of the back and forth between Kirk and Spock in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, the pinnacle of Star Trek comedy, is reminiscent of "A Piece Of The Action."

After riding along in a 1920's style car driven in fits and starts by Kirk, Spock dryly notes, "Captain, you are an excellent starship commander but as a taxi driver, you leave much to be desired."

Later, when they need the car again, Spock hesitates and notes that it's not as safe as walking.

"Are you afraid of cars?" asks Kirk.

"Not at all. It's your driving that alarms me."

The mildly insulted look on Kirk's face after Spock's retort is priceless.

* * *

I'm having a harder time getting excited about Star Trek: Remastered versions of episodes with little or no effects. That's no reflection on the shows themselves, as "A Piece Of The Action" is one of the best.

It's also no reflection on the quality of work by CBS Digital. I'd be the first to complain if they added barrel rolls or other such nonsense to spruce up the few seconds of time that the Enterprise appears in this episode. For the effects that need upgrading, their work is great.

The main problem is that I've gotten used to watching the classic Star Trek episodes on DVD over the last few years and it has spoiled me. No commercials to fast forward through, and, more importantly, unedited versions.

Since fewer commercials aired when Star Trek was first broadcast in the 1960's, most of the classic episodes are around 52 minutes long. To fit the commercial requirements of a one-hour timeslot today, about ten minutes of episode has to be trimmed. That means the edited versions have lost an astounding 20 percent of their original content.

Though CBS makes both edited and unedited versions of the syndicated Star Trek: Remastered episodes available, my local station chooses to air the edited versions. They have to pay the bills, after all. Apparently, most of those bills are paid by 900 numbers offering a variety of services, at least in the wee hours of the morning that Trek airs.

This is a fun episode, one of the all-time classics. Make it a double-feature with Star Trek IV and laugh all night.

Dramatic Content: 10 (out of 10)
Effects Upgrades: 7
Overall Experience: 10

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