DC Zero Month Reviews | Flash #0, JLD #0, and Savage Hawkman #0

Flash #0 Review
Rating: 4 / 5
Pros: Manapul's art; Manapul's script; a feast for the eyes
Cons: Still waiting for Wally West

Francis Manapul is quickly becoming my favourite double threat as writer/artist.  His art may be considered "cartoonish" by some when in comparison to the crisp and often photo-realistic work of Ivan Reis or Alex Ross... but, god, his dynamic panel layout and page designs are a thing of beauty.  The flow he creates is like a little ballet of colour and form.  One scene sneaks into the next, seamless, without flaw.  His art is thankfully continuing to break boundaries in the major comic book industry (... but the boundaries which have already been pushed by the independent publishers for years).

By playing both roles as writer/artist, I believe this is a great benefit to clearly actualize his vision, and aid his  captivating, non-linear story-telling. Past and Present jump back and forth... just like out own consciousness does.  No one stays in the present without memories or influence from the past... especially someone with the lightning-fast thoughts of the Flash.  Manapul accurately portrays this.  In fact, I feel this is one of the most honest first-person portrayals of a character I have since in ages.

I loved this issue.  We got enough background.  We got enough secrets (...so his costume is a weird shrinking metal?).  We got just a bit more mystery (...so his costume is a weird shrinking metal?).  Some more about his family (... but I'm already tired about his father's did-he-or-didn't-he murder mystery).  And unfortunately there is still no Wally West, we are introduced to Daniel West instead.  Dan Didio had previously made the comment off-the-record that in the new 52 Wally would be considerably younger than his last apperance... and that they would introduce him eventually, at the right time, at the appropriate age.  So it could be years before we see him.  I'm fine with that.  I can wait a little longer... if only to get more familiar with good ol' Barry Allen.

And I can't get enough of Manapul's "DC Comics Presents... the Flash"... which was used for great effect this issue with the arrival of the new hero to Central City.

Justice League Dark #0 Review
Rating: 4 / 5
Pros: Constantine and Zee as a couple... kinda; the first appearance of the coat
Cons: Formulaic third wheel character

More than anything, this series has been about John Constantine playing around in the world of "super-heroes"... as opposed to the mucky-muck world of Vertigo.  Fittingly enough, this zero issue is about him... and certainly less about the other mytics and misfits keeping him company these days.  I've honestly been waffling with how I feel about this series.  The more I want to not like it (as a fan of Hellblazer), the more new and interesting tidbits and storylines develop.  I keep thinking "This will be my last issue", but I can't help but be drawn back to the next.  Kudos to Jeff Lemire for his intriguing characters and satisfying mix of super-hero genre & the dark abyss of Vertigo magic.

When we are introduced to a young Constantine here, you could tell he was just a punk who was up to no good.  A hooligan looking for trouble... but he had a softer side.  He still wanted to make the world safe, I guess, unfortunately he wanted to also play around with the darkest of magics.  His depiction in the first panel threw me... "Where's the coat?"...I mean, you can't have John without his quintessential outerwear.  In time, though, we were able to see the growth of Constantine as he sheds his dark graphic t-shirts, moves toward the shirt & tie...and after we have forgotten about his young, punk-ish roots, we climatically see the source of his coat.. and the old familiar character we have known and loved for decades has emerged.

Nick Necro was a bit of a basic good guy gone bad.  Maybe not the most original character... but he at least played an important role in the development of both Zee and John.  (Just dreaming here, but I'd love to see him come back Johnny Sorrow-style one day).

I'm glad that John's relationship with Zee is explored more thoroughly.... but more significantly, there is the revelation that her father, Zatara, was more than just a fancy stage performer who lightly used real magic to solve crimes.  Zatara was apparently secretly a knock-down badass magician holding back the dark forces trying to burn down civilization.  More of that, please.  Likewise, I'm intrigued to see where the typical cult of the Cold Flame guys will show up next.

Disappointed not to see any mention of ARGUS or the Black Room (if only in the shadowy background of the events from this issue).  Maybe that's a good thing.  Maybe ARGUS shouldn't be meddling too much in John's life.  Personally, I'm still having difficulty connecting the "Justice League" part of the title with a group "led" by John Constantine.  He may not act based on a sense of "Justice"... and he certainly doesn't fit well in any "League".  What this issue may solidify is that maybe what he brings to the team is that intimitable sense of the "Dark".

Savage Hawkman #0 Review
Rating: 2 / 5
Pros: Joe Bennett
Cons: Rob Liefeld

To date this whole series has follwoed a scattered path of missed opportunities... or rather, ruined opportunities.  With a chance to make Hawkamn a substantial and thoughtfully-developed force for good in the DC Universe, he has been jumping back and forth between unfinished storylines and inconsistent characte portrayal.

Rob Liefeld's plot and script still leave a lot to be desired.  I'm not certain if he himself knows where this will be going, ssince he doesn't play itn he realm of grand epics.  I wonder if he's taken a whole new approach to the character of Carter Hall/Kata Hol... by drawing on all the confusing elements that have plagued this character for the last several decades.  The new 52 was a way to start over this whole controversy... wipe the slate clean... but in 12 issues with Tony Daniel's attemtped (mis)guidance now with Liefeld's pen, we are right back where we started after the Crisis of Infinite Earths.  Is he human?  Is he alien?  Then what did he burn in that first issue?  If Carter had (the tired, overused, day-time-soap-opera plot device of) amnesia, who was the dead Shayera mentioned in the first issue?

I am a fan of the writing approach of "show, don't tell"... which is nto what we see here.  The amount exposition and revelation in this issue is mindboggling.  Liefeld is a big supporter of revealing every little inconsequential tidbit about the character (see Deathstroke #0).  This easily removes the reader from the action and impaits tha ability to have empathy for the characters.  There is no emotional connection with this Thanagarian past, or who is the rightful king, or who is fighting who.  Telling the story as if it were a shopping list does not create an environment for pathos.  It creates disinterest... and unfortunately makes it harder to establish that conenction later on.  This issue was just another missed opportunity

I understand the benefit of the addition of a writer who may not be completely familiar with the subject, and the advantages that a fresh eye can have on a long standing character... but I wonder if Liefeld did any investigation into Hawkamn just to know which storylines and faults to avoid?  If he did, he has now writen the complete opposite of what  would have been recommended by other writers... but especially the fans.

On the other end of the spectrum, Joe Bennett's art is crisp and dynamic. A lot of action and impact with his panel flow. His detail of the Hawkman outift is pretty good. Joe Bennett is keeping this series afloat... his art is the smoke and mirrors hiding the poor writing of Rob Liefeld. A lot of flash and sparkle to keep the reader distracted from the formulaic plot devices and unoriginal one-dimensional characters.

Geoff Johns has to come back to Hawkman and work his magic.

DC Zero Month Reviews | Batgirl #0, Batman & Robin #0, Team 7 #0, Deathstroke #0

Batgirl #0 Review
Rating: 5 / 5
Pros: Origin revelations, Babs' first costume, Joker
Cons: Hmmm...

So of course Gail Simone is handling her script of Barbara Gordon with ease, with intrigue, and with great TLC.  She is welcomingly portraying Babs' character as hero-to-be, as the daughter of police officer, and a highly intelligent and skilled individual.  After growing up in a policeman's family, she is revealed to have been training to protect herself since her youth.  She is revealed to be pursuing her criminology degree in order to perhaps one day follow her father's footsteps, to be a hero... and she is revealed to have the fascination with this new Batman that we would all have as a resident of Gotham.

What would you do if you had all her training behind you?  What would you do if you and your family was threatened?  What would you do if an innocent you just met was threatened?  Gail Simone effortlessly throws in a little internal monologues to keep the reader up to speed... but the action shows that Babs would kick some ass when the trouble starts (even to her own surprise).

Ed Benes has been around for a while, but I've never really paid much attention.  His art and page layouts are quite similar to Fancis Manapaul's work on the Flash, if he was teamed up with Jim Lee's crisp lines and designs.  I like it.  He's got a great style that compliments a female lead.

That final panel is the clincher.  I whole heartedly approve Gail's commitment to including the single most defining "pre-new 52" moment of the character of Batgirl.  I'm glad she kept that tale as a part of the new continuum, of the new Bab's character arc.

Batman & Robin #0 Review
Rating: 5 / 5
Pros: Pat Gleason art, Damian's coming of age
Cons: Hmmm...

To be honest, I'm not a huge Batman fan.  Yeah, I was swept up with the 1986 excitement of the film and, in the following years, I read and learned almost everything I could about Master Wayne.  But in my teen years, I grew tired of the hero who could do-it-all, and felt more attachment with Dick Grayson and the Teen Titans, as the heroes who are still trying to get it right.  I grew up some more and lost touch with the Dark Knight.

Then came Damian.  Out of curiosity (and because of Frank Quitely) I picked up the last volume of Batman & Robin.  Loved every minute of it... almost.  The majority of Grant Morrison's intersecting storylines and years old plot points were lost on me as a new reader.  When Peter Tomasi and Pat Gleason tooks the reins the New 52 (after their successful partnership with Green Lantern Corps), I just had to see what Damian was up to.  This is an awesome kid, hands down.  Tomasi has really developed an interesting 11 year old, fighting his own demons as he tries to live up to being the first Robin who is also a Wayne.

This issue shows that progression from "son of Al Ghul" to a "son of Wayne".  He certainly didn't have the easiest childhood (being raised by Talia and her assassin minions)... but it seems that Tomasi is really defining the Wayne charactersitic in him as the part that wants answers, the part that wants justice.  Tomasi has cleverly crafted little Damian into a complex and frightening child, with a hope that he will grow up to be a Batman one day (in my humble opinion).  The demons he battles with are the inate Al Ghul characteristics of never giving up and doing anything to get the job done... anything, at any cost.

Gleason's art is above par here.  I fell in love with his work in GLC, but he is really finding his stride in B&R in terms of page layouts, panel designs, and storyline flow.  Some very powerful pages here, especially Damian's birthday sequences on pages 10 and 11, or the creepily adorable toddler in the bat suit on page 8.  Gleason's art my be considered cartoonish by some (exaggerated facial expressions, round features) but his work fits perfectly for Robin.  He nails it.  I mean, he makes Damian both creepy and adorable!  Not many can pull that off.

Team 7 #0 Review
Rating: 3 / 5
Pros:  Foundation for very interesting character conflicts
Cons:  A lot to absorb

This issue is pretty much an Ocean's Eleven "getting the gang together" sequence.  Following these characters 5 years ago... we get to see the governmental reaction to the rise fo the super-hero in the public.  We are shown some type of collective that is gathering these forces to work together... a band collected by Dinah Drake (a.k.a. Black Canary) and Kurt Lance (new guy?).  Once you throw in Amanda Waller, you know this will end up being a Suicide Squad/Checkmate kind of title.  Writer Justin Jordan is differentiating this title from those other Waller-connections seemingly by treating this as a well-crafted ensemble piece, with a number of highly volatile characters and personalities bound for conflict.

The one major drawback I felt, with this being the introduction to the series and the Team, is that the sequences were very short and quickly snapped together.  I was getting kind of lost when character after character were thrown at the reader.  Some familiar.  Some not.  I spent some time between panels trying to figure out if I knew this guy already or not, which unfortunately pulled me out of the story.  Same with seeing Dinah over and over again.  It actually took me a couple of times to realize that it was her and Kurt that were getting the band together (although that was partially me just not paying attention).  There was a lot going on.  Too much.  Too quick.

This may have been a difficult start to the series... kinda going in blind, as opposed to typically learning a backstory to a familiar name like the other Zero issues.  There's hope.   It will be interesting to see what type of world is being created here... and if the fact that it is told as if it was 5 years ago will cause any confusion or discord with any present day storylines (especially in Grifter, Deathstroke, Birds of Prey).

Deathstroke #0 Review
Rating: 1 / 5
Pros: Hmmmm... I always like Slade
Cons:  I feel worse for having read it

Ugh.  So, in the early 90s, I fell in love with Rob Liefeld for a weekend.  I liked his different approach to art and design.  I liked his attitude and for sticking it to "the man" when he helped start Image.  I was impressed by the fact that he helped to define an entire shift in the comic book industry!  ...and then I turned 14.  Then I had personal growth and tried to understand the multi-facted answers to "what is art?".  Then I understood and could identify plot and character development.  Then I realized Mr. Liefeld wasn't as talented as I thought.  I grew up.  The comic industry grew up.  Things got dark.  Things got fun again.  Amazing writing emerged (from Bill Willingham and Tony Daniel to Geoff Johns and "non-Vertigo" Grant Morrison).  The readers were forced to be challenged again... seemingly for the first time since the early 80s when "adult reader" direct market titles were released.

He's okay.  He does better art than I can... but then I haven't spent the last 25 years honing my craft (not that it shows in his work either).  The problem with Liefled is that his storytelling, his art, and his creations have not changed since 1992.  This may as well have been the origin story of anybody in Youngblood or New Mutants or X-Force.  I'm not going to get into his poor portrayal of anything-near-accurate body structure, or his understand of depth perception and scale.  Nor will I even mention his need for excessive shoulderpads and pouches.  That's his thing.  I get it.  I won't mention it anymore. 

It's his writing that bothers me so deeply.  Even though there are diverse writers and characters and publications in the industry today... Liefeld still seems to me like a Michael Bay film in a world of Merchant Ivory!  Things are just that much more formulaic and simple.  Everything is two-dimensional.  Man goes to war, man falls in love, man loses wife and son, man raises other son to be his sidekick killer.  Right there is almost as much plot detail as Rob gives in 22 pages (I know I'm exaggerating, but I'm trying to make a point).  Action sequences are not plot, Rob.  Text boxes ares not character development, Rob.  With this issue, I was led to believe that his wife and youngest son died... kinda.  That his eldest son became of stone cold killer... kinda.  Liefeld follows these plot points with a couple explosions and splash pages... but he shows very little for character development.  All the reader is given is a little text box that "explains" what he are seeing between the  "Blam Blam Blam"s.  I appreciate authors who "show the audience" and not "tell the audience".  I was not drawn in at all.  I felt no connection, no pathos for Slade Wilson.  I cared nothing at all for any of these characters... I didn't understand any of their motives at all (despite what Liefeld told us what they are).

I'm also led to believe that Slade killed ALL the North Koreans... like, the whole country?  Misleading and unclear prose is not the finest quality of any writer.  I love, have always loved, Slade as a character.  I collected much of his appearances in Titans and his own self-titled series.  I still love seeing him (although I skipped this recent series).  My appreciation of him is the only thing keeping this from being a 0 out of 5.

DC Zero Month Reviews | Earth-2 #0, Action Comics #0, Phantom Stranger #0, Worlds' Finest #0

Earth-2 #0 review
Rating 3.5/5
Pros: Mr. 8 was intriguing
Cons:  Inconsistent art style, mysterious hints for the sake of mysterious hints; Mr. 8 wasn't too original

With the telling of this Zero Month story, James Robinson reveals more about the Earth-2 world under the constant threat and attacks of Apokolips. Some good hints to future plot lines were dropped in this issue... and really cranking up the mystery.

He shows the battle-frought Wonder Woman, Superman, and Batman alongside the newly revealed Mr. 8 (although he may be better known as Terry Sloan aka Mr. Terrific from the old Golden Age of comics).
The design of Mr. 8 is pretty modern considering the source of the character, but it's a good look.  It's the kind of "battle-suit" a non-powered, super-smart guy would think up.  Now instead of Terry Sloan being an advocate of "Fair Play", he is playing the role of the smartest man alive and is using his logic to "save humanity from itself"  Unfortunately this means disasterous results for large chunks of Earth's population and turning the Trinity of Wonders against itself for his own desires.  This type of hero/villain is really taking the lead from characters like Ozymandias in Alan Moore's Watchmen... or Owlman from Grant Morrison's JLA:Earth-2  Maybe not the most creative plot twist, but if you're hanging out with writers like Moore & Morrison, you're in good company.

The art was a bit rough looking.  Full of action and explosions, which looked great... but the faces were quite inconsistent.  At times, Terry Sloan is shown as a beat-up bruiser with large proportions, but he is seen again looking not-so-thick and normal.  Same with Superman, where apparently when driven crazy by kryptonite, his eyes bulge out and with face looks lumpy. 

Not totally happy with the art, nor the writing.  This was mainly an issue to lay down groundwork for the rest of the main storylines featured in the monthly comic.  I hope Robinson keeps up the work form the previous issues, before settling again with these formulaic plot devices.

Action Comics #0 review
Rating 5/5
Pros: Great storytelling, great character developement, beautiful art.... I could go on.
Cons: hmmm... the back up story wasn't necessary, but that's it.

Grant Morrison really has a handle on this young incarnation of Clark Kent / Superman.  He is able to show the quiet complexities of the character, and the struggles he is facing with his new life in Metropolis.  Morrison really draws in the reader and we instantly develop a fondness for this sweet, nice, mild-mannered Clark who is just steps away from being the greatest hero ever.

Amidst all that, Morrison is able to take a side-step into a sub-plot of the impact the S-image has on the innocent against the backdrop of domestic abuse.  We see how a simple cape can bring power to the weak...and we are shown that the guy with the big red S is going to come to our rescue!

The great (painted?) art by Ben Oliver was breathtaking.  Great panel layout, great facial expressions, great flow of movement (just check out the scene with kid fighting off his father for the first time).  Although I was sad to not be able to see Rags Morales, Mr. Oliver did a fine job.

Phantom Stranger #0 review
Rating  3/5
Pros: "Origin" of Phantom Stranger, finally... kinda, essential keypoints for the New 52
Cons: "Origin" of Phantom Stranger, finally... kinda, sloppy art

This is going to be a pivotal series in the upcoming Trinity War (or whatever the cross-over tag line will be for the next year with DC).  For that reason alone, this is an important series and an important issue.  Worth the price right there.

This series is also Dan Didio's take on one of the most mysterious character in the history of the DC Universe.  In this single issue alone, we learn more about the Stragner than has ever been revealed... but could it be too much?  I liked that we didn't know.  I liked that he was a force for order and for good... and the he was just around, like everywehere, and would help anybody.

Without outright saying it, Didio has identified the Stranger as Judas Iscariot, and that he is serving his penance for his betrayal to Jesus.  He was judged for sins that continue to affect the course of the world.  He was judged along with the newly mysterious figure, Pandora as well as the 3rd sinner, who is arguably Vic Sage aka The Question.  Although Didio is revealing a lot here... he is introducing just as many new mysteries... I just hope he is able to drag them out for 4 or 5 decades to make up for ruining my appreciation of the Stranger.

The art was difficult to deal with, though.  In an industry where most artists almost attempt photorealism nowadays, Brent Anderson's pencils were a struggle.  His body designs and panel flow and sometimes cartoonish expressions were distracting. I kept stopping half-way through the page ro the dialogue to ask "Why does that look like that?  That's weird".  The style was reminicent of a really bad Jerry Ordway, or more acurately a bad impression of Don Perlin from the early Valiant days 20 years ago (when great writing made up for not-so-great art).  Scott Hanna has been inking well for some time, so I don't have issue with his work... but I hope Anderson cleans up his pencils and learns more about body structure for future issues.

Worlds' Finest #0 review
Rating 4.5/5
Pros: Character development, great dialogue, Kevin Maguire's art!
Cons: Wes Craig's art

Why aren't you reading this already?!  It's been mentioned elsewhere before, but Paul Levitz is writing the best series of his career.  Throw in Kevin Maguire's amazing artwork and you can't be beat!

The only drawback to this issue was the artistic assitance of Wes Craig.  Not that his slightly-stylized art is a distrction from Maguire's more clean, realistic approach... but some of Craig's design and body proportions are so difficult to grasp at first, it completly removes you from the flow of the story.  At one point I actually had to look back at his drawings of Huntress's arms just to make sure that they were arms... of weird sticks, or something. 

Okay, that's just a minor glitch in an otherwise perfectly written book.  Love these characters, love Maguire... best of all I love seeing Kara & Helena in their "old" Supergirl and Robin costumes.  Just go out and read it already, seriously!