comicopia: 2006-09-24 reviews\synopsis and more!

9/30/2006

Teen Titans #39 DC comics

Well, the titans are on the hunt for the traitor in their midst. Of course speaking for the writers, this whole titan hunt is simply a way for us to be introduced to the titans that quite over the missing year. Here the first new titan we get introduced to is Zatara. Zatanna’s male cousin Zachary Zatara who received his powers after magic went crazy during infinite crisis. His powers and abilities are pretty much the same as Zatanna’s, and he has a similar stage act to hers. Speaking things backwards and having them happen, and he’s quite the prim Donna. The titans show up in his dressing room to ask him if he knows what Raven was looking for, and what she said when they talked. He tells them that she wanted to know the answer to questions about herself. Then we go through a recap of Ravens origin, and rebirth at the hands of the church of blood. Zatara’s information doesn’t seem to lead anywhere, so they leave, but ask Zatara to come with them. He tells them no, and that joining the titans was a mistake and he was embarrassed that he ever joined. After they leave he turns his picture around and sees a picture of Raven, and has an emotional moment. He tries to run after the Titans but they have already gone. “The show must go on!”

Back in the air the titans are wondering where to go next, the twins Marvin, and Wendy are going through the tower looking for what the traitor stole and the only missing thing is an encyclopedia I through K.

The next stop on Ravens list is Brisbane Australia and the home of Miss Martian (M’gann M’orzz), who is very busily dealing with the second tier villain Gunshot. She throws him off the roof, melts his gun with her heat vision, and starts talking to him as he falls. She is very flighty, and giggly, and makes him promise that he will stop being a bad guy before she will stop him from falling. If he breaks his promise she will know, and she knows where he lives because she’s a telepath…. Despite the giggling, “tee hees”, and cutesy act, the actual stuff she is saying and doing are quite menacing. Her “origin” is that when the White Martians started to slaughter the Green Martians her parents sent her in a rocket to the Vega system. When she heard that there was a Martian on earth, the Martian Manhunter, she came to earth and stayed. She decided to setup shop in the Australian Desert because it reminded her of home.

Raven wanted her to user her telepathy on the Titans and find out what one was the traitor, but that was against her personal code, she doesn’t user her telepathy on anyone good people. Ravager was her roommate for a few days until they got in a scuffle because Miss Martian threw a pie in her face after watching three stooges. Ravager made her cry and she quit the Titans. She refuses to telpahically scan the titans, but she does tell them that she was going to the China sea to meet her next contact, the loud titan who makes all the noise…

Next on the menu is Bombshell. A young woman covered in the same alien metal that gave Captain Atom. The fact that she is wearing dog tags, and is fighting Nazis with the USS Ranger leads me to believe she has some military ties like the original Captain Atom. Apparently Raven and Bombshell were working together to find out who the traitor was, Ravager! Deathstoke’s daughter. After this though we have a scene with Miss Martian, she is floating in a meditation pose telepathically sifting through different thoughts about the Titans, most of them from what appears to be Titans themselves, going against her “code” Zeroing in she finds someone saying that the titans greatest weapon is theirs, and the world traitor. The scene, a zero in on her eyes shows grayish skin and red eyes. She says “Oh my” Then the next page…. She has fully transformed Miss Martian is a white Martian!!! She flies off saying “I think I’ve found the bad guy.”

Well, oh my god. Miss Martian is a white Martian! No wonder Martian Manhunter hasn’t talked to her yet, I imagine she would want to give him as wide a berth as possible. I really like the character design, and think that she is an interesting concept. I hope she isn’t a one trick pony and simply an “evil” white Martian sent as a spy on the superheroes. I hope she is something else entirely.

[+/-]

Batman #657 DC comics

Well, we finally have it, the thing that was hinted at in Kingdom come, and was speculated at by fans for years, Ibn al Xu'ffasch the Son of the Bat, of course he is named Damien here… how appropriate is that? Talia has finally revealed Batman’s son to him, a rather precocious little fella who was raised by the league of assassins. This issue is sort of an introduction to the bat family for the little tyke. When Batman arrives at the cave with Damien the boy is less than impressed, more interested in how he deals with the methane the bats produce. “I’ve lived in caves before.” After a little scuffle Robin arrives and is introduced to the precious little scamp. Batmen, tells Alfred to take the boy to his temporary quarters in the mansion, the boy tells Alfred “@#$@# you.” This apparently takes Alfred back down memory lane… Some kid slouching up those stairs in a mood must seem like old hat for him.

Robin and Batman have a brief conversation on where the boy came from, and if batman thinks its possible, which he does. Then something interesting happens, Bruce tells Tim that it won’t change anything between them, and if the boy is his son he deserves some love and respect… Tim doesn’t react well to that at all. He tells Batman that he should earn it like the rest of them have had to do. Hmm, I see some juicy conflict there. It’s a good way to introduce some bat type family conflict into the book while agreeing with the post year later status quo of the bat family. Robin tells Batman that the Spook is held up in Blackgate prison with the mayor as a hostage, and that he can handle it himself. Then he storms off…

Next we have Damien in his very very well appointed room complaining about not having a laptop or his sword. Bruce tells him that until they can trust him, he isn’t getting them. He then throws a tantrum over the food splattering it all over the walls. Batman quells this looming over him in a rather menacing pose telling him that he is a disgrace to his sensei, and that his rage is born of fear and is unbefitting a student of the martial arts, and he will be given opportunities to prove himself. This knocks the boy back into line and he bows and acquiesces saying “yes father”

Then we cut to the sewers under Blackgate. The spook, a rather generic villain wearing green robes and flying around going ooooaaauuuu! Lol, kind of funny stupid villain, but a generic staple of the batman rogues gallery, but he isn’t the focus. The focus is on the discussion between two fo the Spooks underlings. Both carrying big guns, and wearing sheets with holes for eyes, very Casper. The taller one is asking the smaller one about his previous “novelty” acts. Wondering who else he’s worked for and so on, they talk a bit about how the spook isn’t actually a ghost and uses tricks and illusions to pull of his ghostly theme. Realizing the guy doesn’t talk like a villain this tips the short one off that this isn’t actually a bad guy, but an undercover cop. Calling for help from Gordon Batman shows up and saves the day. They find the hostages, and the Spook.. Who apparently has lost his head in the confusion, literally.

Back at the batcave Robin finds Damien playing with his sword in the batcave. He asks Damien how he got out and Damien tells him how he cracked his room lock, then he mimics Robin’s voice perfectly. Damien is quite interested in how to get into the more secure parts of the bat cave. Then he does something rather disturbing. He tells Robin that Batman challenged him, challenged him to prove himself and fight crime. And apparently Crime lost, pulling out a severed head, with a grenade in the mouth. He throws the head in the air and it explodes, starting a battle between him and Robin. They race up the top of the dinobot that Batman has had in his cave for like ever and apparently it still works, as it tries to eat Damien! On top of the dino Robin asks Damien why he is being such a jerk, he replies that it’s because Robin doesn’t deserve any of this and is adopted, but when robin is gone he will inherit everything as Batman’s son, he strikes Robin who falls off of the dino. Then we cut back to Batman who is swinging through Gotham. He finds a hooded figure in the shadow and asks him how he got out. He tells Batman that he wants to help him, and that he is the only one who can help him stand against his mother. He tells him that he already has a partner, and where is Robin, what has Damian done with Robin. Damian pulls the robes back to reveal that he is wearing the robin tunic and mask, and that there is a new Robin now. The next scene shows Robin (Tim) unconscious lying in the shattered glass of Jason’s Robin costume.

Well.. This was interesting and fun read. I liked the introduction of the son of the bat, and hope its not a fake out. We have Helena over in Catwoman, and now we have the son of the bat in Batman. Very very good. I like it.

Oh btw, over here at absorbascon there is an fascinating dissection of the trophies mentioned in this issue.

9/29/2006

[+/-]

Amazing Spider-Man #535 Marvel Comics

Well, the shit has hit the fan. Peter has realized exactly who is working for, and what they are doing. It starts out simply enough. Peter wakes up the morning after Goliath died, and watching the news realizes that Stark is making insane amounts of money from the civil war… Next we have peter, being uncharacteristically serious asking Tony to show him the detention facility. Arriving at the Baxter building Reed opens the Negative Zone Portal and in they go. We also get indications from Reed that Tony has been keeping things from Peter, and getting no clear answer where the rest of the Fantastic Four are. Entering the Negative Zone Tony gives Peter a tour of the prison complex. The first prisoner they happen upon is Prodigy, one of the Slingers, the sort of Spiderman groupies from years gone by, a costume and identity that Spiderman himself started.

Then we get some nameless woman who is being kept in a virtual reality suite, while Tony calls it some form of recreation, the woman is begging for help.

This is where things get strenuous. Peter asks Tony flat out if this is a temporary thing. He says no. They get into quite a heated argument about it, basically that since this is the negative zone, the US laws do not need to apply, and that She-Hulks legal maneuvers trying to get people released will come to nothing as it’s an act of congress signed by the president. The only way to get the people out of the negative zone would be to get the Supreme Court to sign off on it, and Tony knows they won’t. The people that are being restrained are in that prison until they register as superheroes, and become one of the governments Avengers.

When they return and Tony leaves, Peter asks Reed one question. “Why?” Reed sort of hums and haws a bit about the answer, but finally reveals his reason for backing registration, his uncle. Reed had a writer/eccentric Uncle Ted Richards, his father’s older brother. During the Communist witch hunts of the McCarthy era he was called in to testify, he basically told them to go to hell. They held him in contempt of congress for six months. This destroyed him. He wasn’t able to find work, people wouldn’t talk to him, he was a pariah. Reed never spoke to him again. After a pause, Reed admits that this killed him… I think he killed himself by the reaction Reed gave.

Reed continues that basically his uncle was in the wrong, and that we give the law the power to take everything away from us to be safe, if we murder, if we kidnap, or even tell powerful men to go to hell…. Basically Reeds point of view is that he law is the law and they must support it even if its wrong. Peter leaves Reed in the dark telling him that he would have liked his uncle, but Reed loved him. This looks like it gives Reed Pause.

Later Tony and Peter are talking, Tony wants Peter to take a break, and peter tells him no, he doesn’t need one. Later that night Peter starts gathering up his family, telling aunt may, and Mary Jane that they need to get out, find safety, that he’s made a horrible mistake, and that he’s been on the wrong side.

Hearing some booms he dons the new Stark Spiderman suit and goes to see what’s going on. Iron man busts through the wall and attacks him, “I thought you knew what side you were on?”

[+/-]

Clinton VS Fox

9/28/2006

[+/-]

Civil War #4 Marvel comics

Oh holy god! This was a pretty severe issue. The battle of the civil war has finally
begun, and boy oh boy is it bad. The battle, not the war. AT first it seemed like just the
usual hero on hero type of thing. But then... THOR shows up! and we are talking old school
smite the unjust thor, and he is royally pissed off. He goes all medievil on the anti
registration heros, blasting Captain America with Mjollnir. The battle is pretty violent,
and the heroes know that what is going on is just wrong. The battle culminates in Thor
blasting a lightning bolt straight through Goliath killing him instantly, and then turning
to the rest of the anti registration heroes and letting loose another bolt. The heroes are
saved by an unlikely saviour. Sue Richards, Invisible woman. She covers the heroes in a
forecfield which deflects the blast. Containing the pro registration heroes she tells the
anti reg heroes to run. Cloak teleports most of them away, not able to get everyone,
Wiccan being one of the ones left behind. Reed Richards disables Thor, who is apparently a
clone and not the original god of thunder.
stark holds a funeral for Goliath, who they couldn't shrink back to human size. He meets
Goliaths mother who tells him that she understands why what happened happened, and tells him
to keep up the good work. Meanwhile the anti reg heroes are holed up in their shield base
talking about what happened. Some heroes leave saying that things are too crazy, and they
didn't sign up to fight cops and heroes. Cable, Stature and Nighthawk leave and a shodowy
figure watches them from the shadows.
The pro reg heroes ae gathered and are watching as the new thor "Clor" is having maintenance
done t find out what is wrong with him. Why he killed Goliath. Hank Pym muses that maybe
they need to fuse him with a Donald Blake to make him right... The thor Clone with an
insturment in the side of his head gives this weird look.
Reed and Tony understand that the disaster in the battle made a lot of people change sides,
and rethink what to do. The pro registration side is going to lose a lot of heroes over
this. They know that they cannot push up the fifty states initiative, so they fallback on
the thunderbolts... Who are really nasty villians in this case, none interested in
redemption. Basically a nasty marvel Doom patrol, including Jack O'Lantern, Lady
Deathstrike, The Jester, Taskmaster, Venom (Mac Gargan), and Bullseye.
Now, at the end of the issue we have the real fallout. Sue leaves Reed. It's not a firy
battle, its just she and johnny leave a note, and simply leave. They cannot be a part of
what Reed is doing, and they beg for him to regain his sanity. They leave the children
there and leave, the Thing watching from the window. The thing, having decided that he is
going to leave for Canada. It's down to the Fantastic 1.