Batgirl And The Birds of Prey #18 - A Review

Approached by her former employers with the covert organization Spyral, Huntress uses Barbara Gordon's recent invitation to speak at an energy developers conference as a means of bringing an international arms dealer to justice. Naturally the rest of The Birds of Prey are happy to help but can the three friends triumph when the arms dealer upgrades his arsenal with stolen super-villain technology and a new super battery to build the ultimate climate changer?



I hate to harp upon this point but Batgirl and The Birds of Prey really needs a good, regular artist and it needs it soon. Guest artist Marcio Takara's work here is, to put it politely, a far cry from their previous work on All-New Wolverine. The pencil-work here is even sloppier and more heavily over-inked than Takara's recent run on Detective Comics! The detail work in the small panels is particularly worthy of lamentation. The one bright side to the artwork, quite literally, is the vivid colors of Jordan Boyd.


It's a crying shame because the story by Julie and Shawna Benson is wonderful. Saving Paris from rogue weather events is a fantastic concept and there's a neat little link between this issue and this week's issue of The Flash to boot! It's just a shame that such clever writing and dialogue has to be paired with such ugly artwork. Get the likes of Rachael Stott or Emanuela Lupacchino on this book and it could easily be one of DC Comics' top titles.

The Final Analysis: 5/10. Great story and good coloring but the art makes it nearly unreadable.

Detective Comics #956 - A Review

The battle for Gotham ends here. Orphan has freed her family from the clutches of The League of Shadows but can they save Gotham City from certain destruction? Even if they can, will Cassandra survive a battle with her birth mother, Lady Shiva?


Two weeks later and Marcio Takara's pencils are back to being sloppy and his finished artwork over-inked. The red-orange dominated palette utilized by Marcelo Maiolo doesn't do this issue any favors either. It's a shame because James Tynion's writing is as fine as ever but even his scripts aren't worth suffering this kind of hack-work.

Final Analysis: 4 out of 10. And that's purely for the writing.

Detective Comics #955 - A Review

With Batman and most of his allies captured and held captive in the caverns under Gotham City, only Cassandra Cain remains to save the city from the League of Shadows. Can she overcome her conflicted feelings regarding her birth-mother, Lady Shiva, and be the hero her friends need? Or is she doomed to remain an Orphan at heart?


I don't know why but the artwork for this issue seems to suit the story better than it did two weeks ago, despite the creative team not having changed. I think this is due to most of the action taking place in a dark cavern where the heavy inks and extremes in color suit the emotional turmoil of Cassandra Cain at the time. James Tynion's scripts remain excellent however, and this issue is a fantastic character study of Orphan. As I've said before, I've never been a fan of the Cassandra Cain Batgirl... but I think after this story I might be transformed into one.

Final Analysis: 7 out of 10. The artwork still looks overly dark in the scenes that aren't set n a cave but things look less sloppy than in the last issue.

Detective Comics #954 - A Review

With The League of Shadows laying waste to Gotham City and all of his operatives abducted, Batman is in little mood to indulge Ra's Al Ghul's desire to talk. Can the two old enemies find common cause against Lady Shiva and her splinter group? Or will "The Detective" have one more enemy to face this night?
Detective Comics #954 is a decidedly average comic. James Tynion IV's writing is in fine form, presenting that rarest of all sighs - an emotionally out-of-control Batman who is off-balance and fighting blind. His take on Ra's Al Ghul is solid too. Unfortunately, the artwork by Marcio Takara is uncharacteristically sloppy and over-inked. It's difficult to follow the action of the issue and the muted palette utilized by Marcelo Maiolo leaves everything looking dull and washed out. Hopefully the art game will be stepped up in two weeks.

Detective Comics #950 - A Review

Detective Comics #950 is an over-sized anthology special. More than that, it's a showcase of everything this series has to offer in the Rebirth era, giving both the regular art teams and guest artists Marcio Takara and Dean White a chance to display their talents bringing James Tynion IV's masterful writing to life.


The first chapter - a prologue to the upcoming League of Shadows storyline - is told from the perspective of Cassandra Cain a.k.a. Orphan. I've never been a big fan of the character but damned if this story didn't make me see Cassie in a whole new light. Her frustration with being unable to communicate her thoughts verbally will be sympathetic to anyone who has ever had trouble expressing themselves. The artwork is easily the best thing I've ever seen drawn by Marcio Takara and Dean White's colors are perfectly applied.



The second story, Higher Power, is a short one which focuses on two members of the Bat Family in need of further development - Batwing and Azrael. Tynion's script goes beyond its simple faith vs. science set-up, focusing upon the odd friendship and differing attitudes between the two tech-based heroes.  The artwork by Alvaro Martinez, Raul Fernandez and Brad Anderson is consistent with their usual output - entirely excellent.


The final chapter, The Big Picture, details a flashback conversation between Batman and Tim Drake. Despite nominally serving no purpose other than setting up the Dark Days crossover event due to run through all the Batman books in 2017, its an solid character piece for both characters. The artwork by Eddy Barrows, Eber Ferreira and Adriano Lucas is damn good too.

All-New Wolverine Annual #1 - A Review

Being a superhero makes one accustom to all kinds of weirdness. Yet nothing can prepare you for waking up in a body that isn't your own in a parallel dimension! Such is the fate that has befallen the Gwen Stacy of Earth-65 (aka Spider-Woman) and Laura Kinney of Earth 616 (aka Wolverine). And unless they can figure out the cause of the switch quickly, they'll be sent back to their respective realities without any kind of body at all!



Body-swapping comedies tend towards the cliche, yet Tom Taylor manages to twist the classic trope enough to make it amusingly fresh. The artwork by Marcio Takara is lively, flowing smoothly with the action of Taylor's story. And Mat Lopes' colors are vibrant and well-chosen. This is a fine-one shot story, sure to please fans of both the former X-23 and Spider-Gwen.

All-New Wolverine #9 - A Review

Laura Kinney doesn't work for SHIELD but she is willing to lend a hand when Maria Hill asks nicely and pays for her take-out. It seems they lost an agent investigating some new bio-weapon, which turned out to be pheromones meant to attract Fin Fang Foom. And the missing agent turns out to be an alternate universe version of the original Wolverine, from the future. And those facts are the least strange thing about the day the all-new Wolverine is about to have.


The cover may say this is a Civil War II tie-in but Tom Taylor keeps the script mercifully free of any reference to that event, save for gratuitous (and hilarious) cameos by Iron Man and Captain Marvel. This issue is high on laughs and short on drama, which is as it should be.

Marcio Takara's artwork is most enjoyable. The lack of backgrounds and pixelated skies in some panels threw me off a little bit but his character designs are good and the action of the issue flows well. And Matheus Lopes continues to impress with his color work.

All-New Wolverine #8 - A Review

Laura Kinney (AKA Wolverine) is trying to establish a normal life her "sister" (i.e. younger clone) Gabby. Well, as normal as can be managed when you're raising your younger clone in Manhattan, you have a pet wolverine and you work as a freelance problem-solver whom the director of SHIELD has on speed-dial. So it is that Maria Hill has interrupted Laura's attempts to expose Gabby to the wonders of Chinese take-out so that Wolverine can sniff out some trouble. Literally.

Thankfully, despite the big THE ROAD TO CIVIL WAR II banner on the cover of this book, this issue is surprisingly free of pesky tie-ins to bloated crossovers I care nothing about. Tom Taylor keeps the focus firmly on Laura and Gabby, whose interactions are both cute and hysterical as they cope with the general insanity that dealing with SHIELD tends to require. While not as over the top as series like Howard The Duck or The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, Tom Taylor still delivers comedy on the sly amid the excellent action sequences one expects in a Wolverine book.

Artist Marcio Takara proves capable of matching the manic pace of Taylor's scripts. There is a sense of dynamic action to Takara's work, with the characters always seemingly in motion. The color art by Jordan Boyd also matches this sense of high-energy.

All-New Wolverine #7 - A Review

Laura Kinney isn't sure what to do about her semi-sister Gabby - one of her clones that is several years younger and a whole lot sweeter than her. Laura isn't exactly sure how to be a parent or a sibling, having had what might be called an unusual upbringing if one were inclined to polite understatement. Unfortunately, figuring things out will have to wait for a while. The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl is in need of help.. But maybe it is Squirrel Girl who will wind up helping Laura...

Tom Taylor perfectly captures the anarchic spirit of Squirrel Girl in this issue. Doreen Green may be a silly character, especially in comparison to the dour Wolverine, but she isn't a stupid or unskilled hero. The two heroines play remarkably well off of each other and the ending of the issue proves to be as touching as it is hilarious.

Marcio Takara's artwork perfectly suits Taylor's story. Takra's style proves equally capable of depicting the lighter, more ludicrous moments of the action as well as the moments of high-action. And Jordan Boyd delivers an exemplary performance on the color art.