Batman: White Knight #4 - A Review

Working with firebrand community organizer Duke Thomas, Jack Napier has launched his next attack on the corrupt administration supporting The Batman. First, by running for City Council in the racially repressed Backport district then by offering the GCPD a plan that would buy their SWAT team better toys than Batman's using existing funds. Unfortunately, as Jack and Harleen enjoy their new life together, the other Harley Quinn, Marian Drews, plots to get her Puddin' back.


Though lacking in the surprising revelations and action of earlier issues, Batman: White Knight #4 continues the trend of every issue of this series outdoing the previous one. Sean Murphy continues to impress with this spirited tale of a Gotham City where The Joker proves to be an even greater threat to The Batman as a civic-minded citizen than an anarchistic madman. And let's not forget Matt Hollingsworth on the color art and Todd Klein's lettering!

The Final Analysis: 10 out of 10.

Batman: White Knight #3 - A Review

An organized attack by all of Batman's Rogues Gallery of enemies taxes Batman, his allies and The GCPD to the breaking point. Yet this is only the opening salvo of Jack Napier and Harleen Quinzel's plan to bring down The Bat and the rich elites and corrupt government that back him. Yet even as they plot and plan, so too dos Marian Drews - the second Harley Quinn, who wants her Joker back!



There is a theory among film fans that the ultimate goal of The Joker in The Dark Knight was the destruction of the corruption that ran Gotham City. On the surface, this seems crazy, but consider the outcome of The Joker's actions. By the end of the movie, the police department is under the control of the most honest cop in town, Jim Gordon, most of the gangsters who ran the city are dead or defunded and a dangerous vigilante who inspired numerous incompetent copycats is forced to retire.

This theory came to mind while I was considering the action of Batman: White Knight #3 and the irony that an orderly-minded, civilly-active Joker is a far greater threat to the machine that runs Gotham City that the chaotic Clown Prince of Crime ever was. He's also far better at pushing Batman over the edge and encouraging people to question authority.

What Sean Murphy is doing with this series is a miracle on every level. It is simultaneously a tribute to everything we love about Batman and yet nothing like anything we've seen before done with the character. If you aren't already reading it, you should be.

The Final Analysis: 10 out of 10. Great story. Great art. A modern masterpiece! 

Batman Who Laughs #1 - A Review

Now we come to the last of the Dark Knights. Their leader. The Bruce Wayne who gave himself over to madness after his final battle with The Joker created a monster far worse than The Clown Prince Of Crime... The Batman Who Laughs!


It's no surprise that this final one-shot detailing the origins of The Batman Who Laughs should involve The Joker's victory over Batman even in defeat. What is astonishing is how utterly creepy James Tynion IV' makes this comic despite the audience having some vague idea of what is coming. Riley Rossmo - Tynion's artist on Constantine, The Hellblazer - proves the perfect partner in bringing this horrific tale to life, his skewed yet lively art being a good fit for the tale at hand, particularly once Ivan Plascencia's colors are added into the mix.

The Final Analysis: 10 out of 10.

Injustice: Ground Zero #20 - A Review

The Joker is subdued but his Joker Clan is still running loose in Gotham City. With Batman and the parallel Earth Justice League focused on bringing down the tyrant Superman after his vicious murder of Lex Luthor, it will fall to Harley Quinn to save her city. But she isn't fighting alone...



With this series, Christopher Sebela has written the best Harley Quinn focused story in the last decade. He interjects a few good bits into the subplot taken directly from the Injustice game (I particularly like Aquaman offering to let Green Arrow ride one of his giant shellfish friends as a consolation.) but Injustice: Ground Zero has been Harley's tale from start to finish. Much as I'm looking forward to Tom Taylor's Injustice 2 book, I'll be sad to see this story end.

Miguel Mendonca joins Daniel Sampere on the art duties this time around. Their styles clash but thankfully both artists are individually devoted to different subplots so the sudden changes in the art are not as distracting at they might have been. This is my first time viewing Mendoca's work and it is quite good, as are the inks and colors by regular creators Juan Albarran and  J. Nanjan.

Injustice: Ground Zero #19 - A Review

Still a captive of The Joker from another Earth, Harley Quinn is still struggling to find a way to break free. Will a chance encounter with Lex Luthor - now revealed as part of The Resistance - give her the chance she needs?


One of the few flaws the Injustice: Gods Among Us game was how poorly it represented most of its female characters. Wonder Woman in particular was horribly out of character, portrayed as having no reason for backing Superman's efforts at world domination other than her unrequited love for him. Harley Quinn suffered similarly, with her efforts at breaking free of The Joker coming about almost entirely because of Lex Luthor causing The Joker to admit that he had just been using her.

Injustice: Ground Zero #19 recreates this scene, but with a greater focus on Harley Quinn's emotional state and a more proactive role for Harley. The ultimate end is the same, but Christopher Sebela's script gives Harley more agency in how she breaks free of The Joker's control, showing that she was already looking for a way out when Lex Luthor showed up.

Jheremy Rappack's artwork is somewhat sloppy, loosing detail in the long range, However, his close-ups are to die for! I particularly like Raapack's designs for The Joker and Harley and the physiognomy of the characters from the fluidity of The Joker's movements to the stiff methodology of Lex Luthor. J. Nanjan's vivid colors finish the artwork nicely.

Injustice: Ground Zero #18 - A Review

With most of her gang turned upon her and out destroying Gotham on the parallel Joker's orders, Harley Quinn is in dire straits. At the same time, Cyborg struggles to commandeer the Watchtower and escape before the Tyrant Superman figures out what he's doing...


This week's Injustice: Ground Zero is an enjoyable comic. Christopher Sebela continues to build upon and around the story of the original Injustice, with his portrayal of a Harley Quinn struggling to break free of her codependency remaining the serie's high point.

The artwork is somewhat weaker this week, with Secret Six artist Tom Derenick delivering some uncharacteristically sloppy work. There's some slight inconsistencies from panel to panel, such as how low-slung Harley's pants are and how high her underwear is riding up on her hips. Still, Derenick does draw some great expressions, such as the forced smile Harley wears in dealing with The Joker that does not match her horrified eyes at all.

Injustice: Ground Zero #17 - A Review

The jail-break to free Batman hits a snag when Cyborg has trouble hacking the Watchtower teleporter, And as Lex Luthor flies off to confront the tyrant Superman, Harley Quinn faces a new crisis. The Joker from another world has freed himself and turned most of her gang against her. Can Harley fight against Mistah Jay AND her own followers?


While Ground Zero has never been a bad book this issue shows a marked improvement on recent issues, where the need to show the action of the Injustice game for the benefit of those readers who haven't played it slowed the pacing a bit. This chapter has no such issues, with the various subplots moving at a rapid pace. Harley's story remains the high-point, however, with Christopher Sebela showcasing a true command of Harley's rich character and internal conflict.


The artwork is just plain fantastic. I've been a big fan of the collaborations between Daniel Sampere and Juan Albarran for a while now and their work here is a prime example of why that is so, Rex Lokus' color art provides the perfect finishes to the pencils and inks

Injustice: Ground Zero #16 - A Review

Sent forth from The Tower of Fate, Harley is stuck struggling with the revelation that her soul is bound to The Joker across all of time and space. Will she be able to use the magic word Fate gave her to free herself when her army is threatened by Joker's madness? And what of the jailbreak to free the Batman of another world from the tyrant Superman?


Injustice: Ground Zero continues to be a solid read. Christopher Sebela's command of Harley Quinn as a character is impressive, but the story's pacing is hampered by the continual cutaways to retell the events of the Injustice game. The artwork is wonderful, with Marco Santucci turning in a fantastic showing, backed by J. Nanjan's vivid color art.

Injustice: Ground Zero #15 - A Review

Back under the spell of Mistah J (albeit one from a parallel Earth), Harley Quinn is unable to help Batman and his otherworldly allies from the parallel Justice League in their raid on Stryker's Island. But Harley isn't entirely helpless and a twist of fate and a little magic may help her save her army... if not herself.


If ever a comic proved that a good inker can make or break a book, it is this latest volume of Injustice: Ground Zero. The difference between the two inkers who worked on this issue is like night and day. One uses a light touch that enhances the original pencils of Derlis Santacruz. The other uses thick lines to outline everything, leaving the finished artwork looking like a coloring book page. Granted, it's a fantastically colored page thanks to Rex Lokus, but it's still distracting and amateurish.


Christopher Sebela's script remains the high point of the series. There's little he can do fight the repetitive feeling within the sections of the story which replicate the action from the original video game Injustice: Gods Among Us. His take on Harley Quinn, however, is pitch perfect, presenting a Harley who only acts dumb and is crazy like a fox.

Injustice: Ground Zero #6 - A Review

As Harley Quinn fights her conflicting feelings regarding a new Joker entering her life, her army of protesters wage a more physical battle against Superman's Regime forces. Meanwhile, The Regime has captured Batman... but not the one they expected!


While a solidly written piece of work, Injustice: Ground Zero #6 lacks the luster of previous issues. Half of this is due to the book's intrusion into the story of the original game, when the appeal of the original Injustice comic was that it told us all the stories we didn't see in the five-year gap between the game's prologue and first act. The other half is the lack of Harley's narration in the later part of the book, as the action shifts to focus on The Regime torturing Earth Prime Batman.


While the story may seem somewhat repetitive to those who have played the original game, the visuals of the artwork more than make up for it. Marco Santucci has a great gift for depicting facial expressions and the close-ups in this book look fantastic. The rich colors by J. Nanjan are also worthy of special praise.

Injustice: Ground Zero #5 - A Review

Harley Quinn was finally finding some degree of contentment (not peace because... well, this IS Harley Quinn we're talking about!) as an honest to goodness superhero. Unfortunately, her ex is back. Or at least a reasonable facsimile of "good ol' Mistah Jay"is in Gotham and Harley isn't sure just how to feel...


Pop Mah's artwork is a little uneven this time around. The individual splash pages look fantastic but some of the panels in the action sequences appear to be a little rough. Thankfully, even the rough patches look merely good rather than great.


What really makes this issue shine is the story. Chris Sabela does a fantastic job getting into Harley Quinn's head and portraying her central conflict - the heart and the mind at war between what feels right and what you know logically is wrong. This dichotomy is what has endeared Harley to many readers and these fans will truly love this issue.

Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Five #40 - A Review

The wolf is at the door for Batman and what remains of his Insurgency. The Regime has discovered the location of his last refuge and Bruce Wayne is cornered by Superman, Wonder Woman and the Yellow Lantern Hal Jordan. Now the only hope for the world rests on Batman's ability to stall for time as Barbara Gordon tries to activate the portal that will summon reinforcements from another Earth...


The final chapter of Injustice: Year Five is somewhat muted. Brian Buccellato does the best he can to push the suspense but there's only so much you can do when the reader already knows how the story must end. Mike S. Miller's art is unusually off-kilter, with a variety of forced poses and one laughable sequence in which Superman is somehow able to slap the mask off of Batman!

Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Five #40 - A Review

The wolf is at the door for Batman and what remains of his Insurgency. The Regime has discovered the location of his last refuge and Bruce Wayne is cornered by Superman, Wonder Woman and the Yellow Lantern Hal Jordan. Now the only hope for the world rests on Batman's ability to stall for time as Barbara Gordon tries to activate the portal that will summon reinforcements from another Earth...


The final chapter of Injustice: Year Five is somewhat muted. Brian Buccellato does the best he can to push the suspense but there's only so much you can do when the reader already knows how the story must end. Mike S. Miller's art is unusually off-kilter, with a variety of forced poses and one laughable sequence in which Superman is somehow able to slap the mask off of Batman!

Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Five #38 - A Review

Injustice: Gods Among Us: Year Five #38 continues into the story of the game's opening sequence. This time,we see The Joker and Harley preparing to set-up a nuclear bomb in the middle of Metropolis. The twist is that the story is told primarily from Harley's perspective.


With little room for action in this issue, Brian Buccellato delivers the funny instead. Thankfully, his takes on The Joker and Harley are quite amusing. Marco Santucci manages a splendid sense of motion throughout as well as a few fantastic splash-pages as we see the action from afar. And Rex Lokus' colors are as wonderful as usual.

Suicide Squad - A Spoiler Free Review and Some Spoiler-Filled Discussion

Is Suicide Squad a good movie?  Yes.

Is it a perfect movie? No.

Is it an abomination that will surely end the era of the superhero movie and/or DC Comics Cinematic Universe? To the dismay of many a snooty critic and Marvel Zombie... if I may quote Will Smith, "Oh HELL no!"

The best way I can describe the movie, for those who have read the Suicide Squad comics by John Ostrander and Kim Yale that largely inspired the movie, is to compare it to The Ataris' cover of Don Henley's Boys Of Summer. They may have changed the orchestration and the lyrics a little but the spirit and message are exactly the same. 

The performances are all good. Some changes have been made that many annoy certain purists but the choices generally work to improve the story flow. It is worth noting that Viola Davis captures Amanda Waller perfectly. And however you may feel about her costuming, Margot Robbie IS Harley Quinn in all her paradoxical glory.

So yes - I'd recommend it. And be sure to stick around for the scene mid-way through the credits.

More in-depth discussion under the image. Abandon this web page lest ye be SPOILERED!

WHAT WENT WRONG?

Let's just get this out of the way, shall we?

* Rick Flag Jr. is mishandled. The character's defining characteristic in the comics has always been that he's been a good soldier who tries to live up to his dad's legacy.  Apparently that was too complicated for a flashback, so instead we find out that Amanda Waller manipulated events so that Rick would fall for June Moon and that she used his love for her to manipulate him into being the field commander for Task Force X, despite his objections to employing criminals for military missions.

* For that matter, the romance between June and Rick isn't developed very well.  I suspect that they may get the least screen time out of all of The Squad members, which is unfortunate since the main plot of the movie is focused on Enchantress.

* Katana's presence is kind of pointless and she doesn't get nearly enough to do.

* Captain Boomerang is criminally underused. And I want to see what his perfect world would look like.  (Maybe that was one of the cuts made to get the movie down to PG-13?)  Ditto Killer Croc.

* The unicorn doll. I don't know if this was added in because of Deadpool or was shot before it came out. Either way, that little gag probably should have been cut.

* The Juggalo fashion designs for Joker and Harley just look ridiculous. And not in a funny ha-ha ridiculous way.

* The soundtrack goes a little overboard in trying to provide appropriate themes. I'm honestly we surprised we didn't get Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic for Enchantress or Down Under for Boomerang.

* Enchantress' dancing while working her spells just looks goofy as all hell.

* A lot of the action-scenes are shot way too close and are way too dark. Maybe it was just the settings in my theater, but I could barely see some parts of the final fight.


Now, with that out of the way... let's look at some of the bits I think we were most worried about.



THE JOKER/HARLEY RELATIONSHIP

I've seen some critics complain that this is ambiguous but honestly, I think that's the way to go with it. Batman: The Animated Series dithered on this point as well up until Mad Love and there''s enough textual and metatextual evidence to make a case that The Joker (or at least one of his personalities) does harbor some genuine affection for Harley AND that The Joker (or one of his personalities) just sees her as one more prop to be used in his performances.

In one flashback, The Joker offers Harley to one of his business associates and Harley plays along with it. Joker winds up offing the guy but it's unclear if it's because he's insulted the man refused his gift or that said associate was even willing to entertain making time with Joker's gal for a moment. Is it romance or possessiveness? Can't it be both?  Or was it because it was Tuesday?

And then we have Joker's line to Harley right before she freely dives into the chemical vat. The one which sounds like a lost line from 50 Shades of Grey - "Desire leads to submission. Submission leads to power." Of course in a consensual BDSM relationship, the submissive does have all the power, but how much control did Harleen Quinzel have over her transformation into Harley Quinn?  Again, it could go either way.

To that end, Margot Robbie is a perfect Harley Quinn. She is both the bad-ass moll and the romantic who dreams of settling down somewhere that's green with The Joker as needed. Which is as it should be. They may seem contradictory to some critics but Harley's whole character is contradictory. That's part of her charm!



THE FRESH PRINCE OF GOTHAM

They did change Floyd Lawton a little bit for the sake of having Will Smith play him but the changes are largely cosmetic. Lawton's famed death wish is present (we see him insulting the guards in Belle Reve and spoiling for a fight when his cell doors are open) as is his snarky attitude. And while it's somewhat rushed, there's even a hint of the odd frienemy relationship that developed between Rick Flag and Deadshot in the original comics. For that, I can tolerate Will Smith calling The Wall "gangsta" after she shoots several of her own men.

We don't learn much of Lawton's history here, but it seems to take more from the New 52 origins where Lawton was the product of a poor family rather than a rich scion and a dark mirror of Bruce Wayne. There's also a fair bit of the character as written by Christos N. Gage in the 2005 Deadshot mini-series, where it was revealed Deadshot had an illegitimate daughter and he made an honest effort to try and clean up her neighborhood and take care of her despite his realization that he had no idea how to be a good guy OR a father.

The desire to do right by his daughter is this Deadshot's main motivation and we see some of that awkwardness in Smith's portrayal. There's a sense that he knows he's a bad man and that won't stop him from at least trying to be the dad his daughter needs.  Even if this does lead to him making a geometry lesson more complicated by trying to factor bullet weights into calculating the hypotenuse of a triangle.



FINAL THOUGHTS ON WHAT WENT RIGHT

* Despite certain members of the cast being criminally underused, there isn't really a bad performance in the whole movie.

* Viola Davis is PERFECT as The Wall.

* The scenes of the characters talking to each other are great. The movie needed more moments like that and less action scenes of the team fighting Lovecraftian beasties.

* The Flash cameo was pretty much perfect.

* As much as I hate The Joker's blinged-out teeth, I genuinely liked Jared Leto's performance as The Joker. Oddly enough, he reminded me of the Caesar Romero portrayal of The Joker, with the nightclub scene seeming like a modern update of the old Batman episodes where you would see the villains openly going out in costume to enjoy a night on the town.

* Jay Hernandez pretty much steals the movie as El Diablo.

* Overdone as they were, a lot of the music-video sequences are pretty good.

* Loved the shout outs to John Ostrander. Both of them.

* The mid-credits sequence. Perfect.

Batman #40 - A Review

This is it! The final battle between The Dark Knight and The Clown Prince Of Crime. This one is for all the rupees! The soul of Gotham!  Everything hangs in the balance and things will never be the same again!


It's rather difficult to review this issue clinically and without spoilers. Having had the status quo of the Batman books post-Convergence spoiled for me, I am reluctant to do the same for others. Suffice it to say Scott Snyder writes a very satisfying conclusion to the current arc and writes one hell of a Batman vs. Joker fight scene.  Let us leave it at that for now.


Greg Capullo and David Miki do their usual stellar job on the artwork. What really makes this issue stand out, however, is the color art by FCO Plascencia. Vibrant, neon hues that would not look out of place in Joel Schumacher's vision of Gotham City help to visually punctuate the action of the issue in a surprisingly effective way.

Batman #39 - A Review

As Joker's madness-inducing virus spreads over Gotham and a raid on the Batcave yields trophies for a macabre parade, Batman will be forced to make an equally mad choice.  With his allies and resources limited, he will turn to the rest of his rogue's gallery for help fighting The Joker.  But will even they be enough to tip the balance of power in Gotham City?


Scott Snyder's story continues to spiral out of control. Whether that spiral is going up or down remains to be seen but the ride is an enjoyable one so long as you don't worry too much about the sudden stop at the end.  Greg Capullo and Danny Miki's artwork continues to be a real treat - the ice cream on the pie that is Snyder's script.


The best part of the issue, however, may come at the end.  James Tynion IV's twisted take on The Canterbury Tales - where a number of Arkham inmates related how Joker had told them all the REAL story of how he became The Joker - has been a fairly amusing tale so far. But this issue - in which we learn the doctor's story and "the truth" that The Joker gave her - takes this story to a whole other level.  And the artwork by Dustin Nguyen and Derek Fridoles makes this conclusion even stronger.

Batman #38 - A Review

Things in Gotham City have gone from bad to worse.  Not only has The Joker released a virus that spreads his unique form of madness but he's found a way to give himself a superhuman healing factor!  But Gotham's salvation may lie in the hands of one Dr. Paul Dekker - a soft tissue specialist committed to Arkham, who may be even crazier than The Joker!


Scott Snyder excels at delivering the unexpected and his run on Batman has contained a number of surprises.  Yet I think this issue, which finds a way to establish Crazy Quilt in the modern day, may prove to be his biggest surprise yet.  Not because of the reveal but because of how well it is carried out.  And the artwork of Greg Capullo and Danny Miki has never seemed more ominous and creepy than it does here.


The same can be said of the back-up story. The artwork by Sam Kieth - another veteran horror artist - proves a perfect fit for James Tynion IV's tale this month.  This story involves a madman who spins a tale about being recruited for a secret army of Batmen - a tale that seems less outlandish in the wake of Batman Incorporated.

Batman: Annual #3 - A Review

Five years ago, Tommy Blackcrow was a newcomer to Gotham. A hard-nosed reporter of the old-school, Tommy didn't believe the mystique that Gotham's supervillains generated - particularly The Clown Prince of Prime. Tommy's courage took him places few would dare to go... including The Joker's lair! And it was there that Tommy did something brave but foolish. Tommy laughed at The Joker as he played nice with his minions and boldly declared that The Joker didn't have any real friends.

Little did Tommy realize that bold statement would change his life and that the next five years would seen him changing his name and running around the country. Because it turns out The Joker appreciates honesty - particularly honesty expressed as an insult - and decides that only a true friend could be so honest. And Tommy Blackcrow is about to discover that the only thing worse than having The Joker as an enemy is having him as a friend.


It's been said that some of the best Batman comics don't feature Batman as a character. That's certainly the case with Batman Annual #3 where Batman's presence is limited and the focus is firmly upon Joker's new best buddy. The script by James Tynion IV is a strong one, with a lot of honest humor as The Joker goes through great lengths to try and bond with the increasingly unbalanced Tommy.


The artwork isn't quite as strong as the script, unfortunately. Roge Antonio does a decent enough job in general. His design for The Joker is truly terrifying but nothing else in this issue really stands out or demands attention. The coloring by Nick Filardi is a bit off at points, with Harley Quinn's hair-coloration continually changing in regards to which side is red and which side is black.

Injustice: Gods Among Us - Year Three #13 - A Review

Thanks to John Constantine's magic and a cunning attack by Batman, Superman now lies in a deep, enchanted sleep.  But what does the most powerful man in the world dream of in a slumber so strong even The Spectre cannot break it?  

The same thing Superman always dreamed of... a better world.



There is little I can say about Injustice: Year 3 #13 that is not hinted at by its title - For The Man Who's Lost Everything. With a story centering around Superman trapped in a dream, comparisons to the classic Alan Moore story For The Man Who Has Everything are inevitable. One wonders though - especially after the powerful ending of this issue - is Superman the titular man?  Or is it someone else?

The artwork by Bruno Redondo, Juan Albarran, Xermanico & Rex Lokus does a fine job of conveying the story. More, it is filled with lots of novel little touches. I particularly like Harley Quin biting her lip as she realizes just how screwed she and The Joker are on a scale of 1 to 10.