Batman vs. Robin

BATMAN VS. ROBIN

** SPOILERS **

The toughest challenge for a costumed billionaire crimefighter isn't so much protecting Gotham City from an endless parade of murderous psychopaths, it's trying to keep his own baby boy from becoming one of those very murderous psychopaths. Batman vs. Robin, a dynamic, triumphant sequel to last year's Son of Batman, continues the coming of age story of the ferocious Damian Wayne (Stuart Allan), 10 year old heir to both the Wayne family fortune and the legacy of Ra's al-Ghul, and the new Robin the Boy Wonder. Since accepting the mantle of Robin, Damian, an arrogant, dangerous, conflicted soul, hasn't had an easy time adapting to his father's brand of justice. "Justice, not vengeance," is the Batman's meme-ready mantra, which he finds drilled in his head and ringing in his ears when he single-handedly uncovers a child kidnapping and mutilation ring and captures a ghastly rouge called the Dollmaker (voiced by Weird Al Yankovic!) Robin stays his hand and his razor sharp batarang from the killing stroke, only to find the Dollmaker sanctioned by a new bird-themed costumed killer in town - the Talon (Jeremy Sisto).

Batman vs. Robin loosely adapts the blockbuster "Court of Owls" storyline from the best selling The New 52 Batman comic series by the dynamic duo of Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo. The most intriguing and successful new addition to the Batman mythos, the Court of Owls are a centuries old secret society nested firmly in Gotham comprised of its wealthiest and most prominent citizens, all of whom, men, women and children, wear pallid owl masks, even when dining or conducting cryogenic experiments in their underground labs. The Court are a legend; thought to merely be a nursery rhyme used to scare young children, but they are in fact very real -- and have been secretly controlling Gotham's fate since the city was raised. It seems Bruce Wayne (Jason O'Mara) is the only wealthy son of Gotham who'd been unaware the Court actually existed before now, when the Court kidnaps him and finally offers him a mask of his own, not suspecting Wayne prefers bat masks to bird masks. Wayne plants a tracking device in the mask to later locate the Court's nest, but it really doesn't seem necessary -- if you want to find the Court of Owls, you can start by scoping out the sinister mansion on the outskirts of Gotham with the owl statues all over it. 

Little does Wayne suspect the Talon, one of the Court's private army of assassins, has plans to steal his son Damian away and recruit him as his own sidekick, since, you know, the kid's both an amazing warrior and already dressed like a bird. The Talon sees a lot of himself in Damian; all the best assassins have daddy issues, and the Talon explains he himself was once apprentice to a master thief, his father, whom he didn't see eye to eye with. The Talon also balks at the Court's plan to kill and then cryogenically freeze him, ready to be resurrected at their whim to do their killing. Can't blame Talon there. After Batman is overwhelmed and nearly killed by the Court of Owls and Robin ultimately rejects his offer to become the less catchy team of Talon and Robin, the Talon decides to go on a rampage and massacres the mighty Court himself. This would seem to solve Batman's Owl problems, but Talon unleashes an even bigger one when he releases the dozens of other Talon assassins on an assault on Wayne Manor and the Batcave. This rousing sequence is straight out of the comics (though smaller in scope than the all-out attack on Gotham that utilized the entire Bat family of characters). Batman, Alfred, and Nightwing (Sean Maher) engage in a brutal battle against the Talons where Batman dons a giant suit of Bat armor that would make Tony Stark call his lawyers.

Despite all the owl madness, the focus of Batman vs. Robin is strongly on Damian Wayne and the external and internal battle for his betterment. Damian does fight his father mano e boy wonder-o as the movie's title implies and it's fascinating to see both Damian overcome the Batman and Batman's strategies on how to physically handle someone of Damian's size and capabilities without harming his son. Damian threatens to strike out on his own more than once, but always by keeping the suit and weapons his father gave him. Batman vs. Robin continues the DC Animation push for more adult fare in these animated movies. The violence is ultra - we see Batman and Nightwing repeatedly stabbed bloody, the Court of Owls hacked to bits (even the little children in the Court), and even the Talon's demise is a sai to the throat that would make Elektra from Marvel Comics nod with satisfaction. There's even a little sprinkling of sexual innuendo when Dick Grayson practically pops a boner on the phone with "Kory" (Starfire from the Titans) over which thong she's wearing. The animation is stunning, especially every time the Batmobile is in play, whether roaring through Gotham's streets or being used as a battering ram against the armored Batman. Bruce doesn't really overcome his deficiencies as a father to Damian, who ultimately chooses a path that echoes the one Bruce ventured on to become Batman. Though the boy could save the future of Gotham or be its demise, Batman vs. Robin finds rays of hope for Damian Wayne. He's the Robin we deserve, but maybe not the one we need right now...

I, too, am a member of the Court of Owls.
Seen here with their creator Scott Snyder at San Diego Comic Con 2013

Justice League: Throne of Atlantis

JUSTICE LEAGUE: THRONE OF ATLANTIS

** SPOILERS **

The Justice League meets Game of Thrones in Justice League: Throne of Atlantis and it isn't all wet. Following up last year's Justice League: War, which introduced a younger, rawer The New 52 Animated Universe version of the World's Greatest Superheroes, this time Superman (voiced by Jerry O'Connell), Batman (Jason O'Mara), Wonder Woman (Rosario Dawson), and their super friends encounter a challenge from beneath the deep blue seas. Throne of Atlantis plunges us into the origin of Aquaman (Matt Lanter), a boozing, orphaned, superpowered lighthouse keeper who has no idea he is destined to become the King of the Seven Seas. Aquaman finds out in rapid-fire fashion who he is and how he came to be heir to the throne of the undersea kingdom of Atlantis when he and the League are swept up in the nefarious schemes of Aquaman's ruthless, pure-blooded half brother Orm (Sam Witwer), the self-styled Ocean Master, who wants to rule Atlantis and destroy the surface world. 

Adapted from the comic series penned by Geoff Johns and also incorporating elements from Johns' "Aquaman" comic series, Throne of Atlantis reveals that Aquaman is the "son of two worlds." He was born to Atlanna (Sirena Irwin), the princess of Atlantis, who came to Mercy Reef, Maine when "she was very young," and fell in love with Thomas Curry, a guy who owned a lighthouse. After their son Arthur was born, Atlanna bailed on her surface family to take her place as Queen of Atlantis and speak all of her dialogue in loud, haughty royal exposition. Arthur never seemed to realize he has gills and can breathe underwater and didn't bother to find out why he has super strength and endurance until, as an adult, he started getting attacked by armored soldiers from the sea and humanoid fish monsters from "the Trench." Arthur also never questioned why his best friend was a lobster whom he could communicate with. Yes, Aquaman can talk to and command fish, and it's an awesome power, shut up. Aquaman is aided by his new hot redheaded Atlantean bodyguard Mera (Sumalee Montano), who is destined to be his bride, and boy, did those two not waste any time seeking that destiny.

Meanwhile, the Justice League is a team in name only, not having officially assembled since they repelled the invasion by Darkseid in the previous movie. Superman and Wonder Woman start to get romantic, commiserating as only two lonely demigods can, going on dates in Greek diners while incognito wearing glasses. ("I can't believe this works!" Wonder Woman gasps. Neither can logic.) Cyborg (Shemar Moore) also has sparks flying with his STAR Labs assistant. The more juvenile members of the League like Shazam (Sean Astin) and Green Lantern (Nathan Fillion) find all this mushy stuff kinda icky pants. There's a retread of one of the most unwelcome aspects of Justice League: War where Green Lantern again makes an ass out of himself interfering in one of Batman's Gotham investigations, but it is kept to a minimum this time around. The Flash (Christopher Gorham) is in this movie too, by the way, but he doesn't contribute much to this mission besides some cool super speed action. Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen also get in some screen time and for some extra fan service, there's a cameo by John Henry Irons, setting up his inspiration to becoming the armored, sledgehammer swinging Steel. Superman and Batman also set aside some time to do a team up detective side mission where Superman bristles at Batman's condescension. "I am an investigative reporter, you know," Superman reminds Batman, who bizarrely retorts, "Journalism's dead."

When the Justice League does hit the water with Aquaman, they find themselves immersed in Game of Thrones-lite Atlantean family politics, complete with the alien, the space cop, the robot, the boy who says the magic word, etc. scoffing at how "impossible" it is Atlantis exists. Orm, with help from armored pirate Black Manta (Harry Lennix), who somehow is assumed to have the ability to open diplomatic negotiations -- with the Justice League, mind you, not with any government or the UN -- decides to stab his mother in the back, literally, and take the throne of Atlantis for himself. Orm immediately leads an invasion of the surface world, Metropolis, specifically. (The invasion is considerably scaled down from how multiple cities, including Metropolis, Gotham, and Boston were attacked by Atlantis in the comics, and the mighty tidal wave Orm raises is purely for show. Orm hardly brings a massive army with him either; just a few dozen soldiers and some vehicles.) What ultimately drowns Orm's short, eventful reign as king of Atlantis is his big blabber mouth. Cyborg recorded him bragging about killing his mother and seeing that footage is enough to make the Atlantean forces lay down their arms and turn on their new king. What's utterly bizarre is Aquaman's speech about how they should all accept him as their king, because he's their "beacon of hope." Mind you, these Atlanteans had no idea who Aquaman was or that he even existed before that moment. Plus Aquaman immediately starts making out with Mera in front of the troops. But sure, he's the king, now, whatever, let's go home. No punishment for attacking Metropolis!

And yet, Throne of Atlantis marks an improvement over the previous Justice League installment. The superhero action is entertaining and at its best can be summed up in five words: Superman. Fights. Giant. Sea. Monster. When unleashed against the cannibalistic creatures from the Trench, the Justice League gives no quarter, not even Batman, whose "no killing" rule apparently doesn't apply to sea monsters, judging from how he explodes them with missiles from his Batplane. While Wonder Woman and Mera engage in sword-to-trident combat with the Atlantean soldiers, Green Lantern uses his Power Ring to whip up a nifty giant robot to vacuum up those pesky fish folk. Cyborg's famed white noise cannon works wonders against Atlanteans, but if one has questions about just how much white noise would affect the equilibrium of people who are aquatic -- move along, there's more punching to be done. The single best moment of Throne of Atlantis validates how great Aquaman's power to talk to fish is via how he uses it to end Black Manta (Samuel L. Jackson in Deep Blue Sea can relate.) The infuriating characterizations and interplay between the Leaguers is toned down; all of the superheroes come off as reasonably more competent and less insufferable than they did in Justice League: War. In the end, Aquaman is both installed as King of Atlantis and joins the Justice League, as he must. He certainly boasts the necessary trapezius muscles to be in this Justice League. The heroes decide to make being the world's greatest super team a more permanent thing, and for the best reasons possible, because they - and we - don't want to miss "whatever weird thing" happens next.

Justice League: War

JUSTICE LEAGUE: WAR

** SPOILERS **

War is Bad

Justice League for Dummies might as well be what Justice League: War is titled, though perhaps Justice League as Dummies is even more appropriate. Justice League: War launches the rebooted New 52 era of DC Animation, as Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, et al meet each other for the first time and band together to fight off an alien invasion. Adapted from the best selling comic book series "Origin," by Geoff Johns and Jim Lee, itself no bastion of sophisticated storytelling, War follows the mandate of making the Justice League younger and raw, as prone to fighting amongst themselves as they are battling the Parademon hordes of the evil Darkseid. They're the World's Greatest Superheroes in potential only; Batman is the sole hero presented as competent as ever, the only relative adult in the group. Everyone else seems like they fell off the back of the short bus.

Justice League: War follows the basic plot of the comic book: Batman (voiced by Jason O'Mara) and the staggeringly arrogant and idiotic Green Lantern (Justin Kirk) hunt down a Parademon in Gotham City, quickly determining it's an alien invader, which leads them to Metropolis and the most famous alien in the world, Superman (Alan Tudyk). More following the tradition of Marvel Comics where the superheroes first fight and then team up (the overall story is similar to the final act of Marvel's The Avengers, though "Origins'" publication does predate the Joss Whedon blockbuster), the Justice Leaguers gradually come together as Darkseid launches his full invasion of Earth. Wonder Woman (Michelle Monaghan), the Flash (Christopher Gorham), Shazam (Sean Astin), and Cyborg (Shemar Moore) join the fray in short order, bickering with each other as they rip Parademons to shreds and combine their powers to battle Darkseid (Steve Blum).

The screenplay is embarrassing, with its dubious efforts to make the Justice League "edgy" and "cool." Within seconds of introducing Wonder Woman, a character says she dresses like "a whore." When she confronts her accuser, her Lasso of Truth reveals he secretly cross dresses like Wonder Woman because it's empowering. Wonder Woman agrees that her uniform is indeed empowering. The very next scene Wonder Woman appears, someone hollers at her calling her a "bimbo." Not that Wonder Woman is depicted as particularly admirable; in War, she is a sword-swinging, bloodthirsty simpleton who has never tried ice cream before. Cyborg is a self-pitying whiner with serious daddy issues. Superman is hardly an inspirational champion of inherent goodness; he's a Heat Vision-first, punch-second bruiser with no brains who tries to carve Batman in half with his laser beams the first time they meet. (Superman also chokes Desaad to death later in the movie in a forehead-slapping ode to Man of Steel.) Shazam is probably the worst of them all; his childish alter ego Billy Batson is a lying, obnoxious thief, and when he magically transforms into The World's Mightiest Mortal, he sounds and acts like a drunken college kid at the local sports tavern. But no, Green Lantern is still the bottom of the barrel, by far the most insipid and infuriating of these "heroes," hardly worthy of the responsibility of being a police man who "protects the entire universe."

Action is the viewer's reward for wading through the extent of Justice League: War. With countless Parademons Boom Tubing their way to Earth, there are ample opponents for the Justice Leaguers to tear asunder, incinerate and eviscerate. The full range of the superheroes' superpowers are on display, and when Darkseid (grotesquely redesigned and sporting a Mohawk that makes him resemble a stone-faced Mr. T) arrives on Earth to do battle with the League, no one holds back in the savagery department. The Justice League's master plan to defeat Darkseid is, I shit you not, poke his eyes out with Wonder Woman's sword so he can't shoot Omega beams from his eyes anymore. When the Justice League stops talking, i.e. behaving like 8 year olds playing with their action figures, and starts fighting (like 8 year olds playing with their action figures), the action has entertaining moments. (Though for a more satisfying fight on all levels against Darkseid, see his smackdown with Superman and Supergirl in 2010's Superman/Batman: Apocalypse.) Watching the Justice League fight is the only passable enjoyment gleaned from Justice League: War. Best to watch the Justice League wage war with the sound off.

Zack Snyder, David Goyer, and Warner Bros. Pictures, whatever you do when you make your Justice League feature film, please don't do this.

Batwoman Forever: Her Greatest Eight

With a heavy heart (indeed, for fans as well), writer-artist extraordinaires J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman announced they have left their groundbreaking, award-winning Batwoman title. Batwoman was my favorite comic book published by DC Comics. Circumstances and any controversy aside, Williams and Blackman, along with former Batwoman scribe Greg Rucka, and frequent artistic collaborators like Trevor McCarthy, leave behind a truly remarkable body of work about the first gay superheroine to headline her own comic book, as well as an unquestionable artistic masterpiece. Their Batwoman will stand the test of time as a benchmark of mainstream superhero comics, one that should be read and reread by fans new and old and continually celebrated for its beauty, boldness and bravery.

Here are what I feel to be the Eight Greatest Moments of the Williams/Blackman/Rucka/McCarthy Batwoman era. Why eight? Because the numeric '8' is also a Mobius strip, the infinity symbol. Batwoman's adventures will continue onwards in the pages of DC Comics, but these eight moments are the shining examples of why the J.H. Williams era of Batwoman will, in the hearts of her fans, be Batwoman forever.

Just Say No to Batman Inc. 

A few years back, having returned from traveling through time after he shot Darkseid with a God bullet (don't ask), the Batman decided to expand his crime-fighting operations into a Bat-branded global network called Batman Incorporated. Batman approached Batwoman about joining Batman Inc. She turned him down, to the amazement of her sidekick Flamebird. But it really was a no brainer. Batwoman, though she wears a Bat symbol, is not one of Batman's little helpers like the Robins, Nightwing, or Batgirl. Batwoman is busy saving Gotham her own way against her own foes. The last thing she needed was to be dragged into Batman's messes like the Night of the Owls and his war with Leviathan. Kate Kane is her own woman and has her own enormous problems. Boy, does she.
(Read it in: Batwoman #1-2)

Hawkfire's Training

Bette Kane, the former Flamebird, wanted to be her cousin Batwoman's sidekick, but tragically paid a dear price for it. Surviving a debilitating injury (more on that in a bit), with the help of Kate's father Jacob, Bette returned to action better and more dangerous than ever under a new guise: Hawkfire. No longer a thrill seeker fighting crime for kicks, Bette was put through her paces by Jacob and his army buddies, the Murder of Crows, displaying a new seriousness and formidable fighting skills that rival even Batwoman's. It's a remarkable and inspiring turnaround, and the start (hopefully to be continued by the new Batwoman regime) of an important new heroine in DC Comics.

(Read it in: Batwoman #17, #22)

Kate Kane's Training

How Batwoman begins, who she is and how she came to be, is a tale every bit as harrowing and inspiring as Bruce Wayne's, and even more groundbreaking. Expelled from the US Army because of Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Kate Kane survived over two years of the most brutal military training imaginable to turn herself into Batwoman. Her origin is best told in Batwoman #0 (2012), where she narrates her own story to her estranged soldier father Jake. Kate didn't gallivant around the globe to learn her skills. She sacrificed her body and endured incredible hardships and horrors to earn the right to return to Gotham and wear the black and red of the Batwoman.

(Read it in: Batwoman #0 (2012))

Batwoman Takes Down Bane

This is the guy who broke the Batman? He doesn't seem so tough. On a mission from the D.E.O. to track down Batman's most physically formidable foe, Batwoman and Hawkfire run across Bane in the snowy woods of Alaska. In record time, Batwoman uses her wonderful toys to subdue Bane. He doesn't ever get the chance to snap her back or anything. To see Batwoman and Hawkfire battle Bane together and have Batwoman brilliantly take him down is probably my favorite Batwoman fight, and one of those moments that simply make you cheer while reading a comic book. In this instance, Batwoman > Batman.
(Read it in: Batwoman #22)

Bette Kane Gutted

Batwoman's Gotham is in some ways more violent and horrific, often even more supernatural and ghastly, than Batman's. No one knows the dangers the Gotham nights bring better than Batwoman herself, but despise being grounded as her sidekick, Flamebird wouldn't listen. Taking to the streets with a point to prove, Flamebird battles a monster aptly named The Hook, and suffers one of the most gruesome injuries inflicted on any superheroine: The Hook used his blade to slice Flamebird's guts open, leaving her bleeding to death, holding in her intestines, in a snowy alleyway. Bette Kane survived and heroically battled back from her injury, ultimately gaining revenge on The Hook as Hawkfire. Still, that terrible moment is an eternal reminder of what can happen to a costumed crime fighter in Gotham.
(Read it in: Batwoman #4)

World's Finest

For my money, the single greatest super team up (male or female) of the rebooted New 52 DC Universe, the "World's Finest Team" of Batwoman and Wonder Woman banded together on a quest to end a supernatural power threatening Gotham. Uneasy allies at first, the vividly contrasted women of Bat and Wonder slowly earn each others' trust on a global hunt for the mythical Gorgon monster Medusa, which ultimately lead to them, Hawkfire, and the D.E.O. waging war against all the supernatural creatures of the evil Greek monster Ceto for the fate of Gotham. This arc brought the storylines involving the Drowned Woman and various supernatural foes Batwoman faced since the first issue of her ongoing title to their conclusion, as well as spotlighting the most dynamic and mature incarnation of Wonder Woman yet in the New 52. But Batwoman is the star of the show, proving her mettle as one of the foremost superheroes (male or female) in the DC Universe.

(Read it in: Batwoman #12-17)

Elegy

Arguably the classic Batwoman story, Greg Rucka and J.H. Williams III's "Elegy" is heart-wrenching, violent, fantastic. Locked in a war against the Religion of Crime and their leader Alice, Batwoman's personal version of The Joker, Kate Kane endures being stabbed in the heart (literally!) on her quest to stop Alice, uncovering shocking and long-buried family secrets. To say more would ruin the joys of reading "Elegy" for the uninitiated. Suffice to say, once you've read "Elegy," you will become a Batwoman fan for life.
(Read it in: "Batwoman: Elegy")

Marry Me!

At the heart of Batwoman's brutal, nocturnal crime-fighting life is Kate Kane's romance with Gotham police captain Maggie Sawyer. At the conclusion of the "World's Finest" arc, seeing Gotham nearly fall to a horde of supernatural gods and monsters, Kate decided that life is too short to hold back her potential happiness any longer and proposes to Maggie, revealing her secret identity to her. In our world, it was a groundbreaking hallmark moment in comics: a proud lesbian superhero asking her lover, a tough as nails cop, to marry her. Sadly, what would have been a historic marriage and a true leap forward for gays depicted in mainstream superhero comics, will not be. What does the future hold for Kate and Maggie (besides the "unhappy personal life" dictated by DC Comics)? We'll find out in future pages of Batwoman. But perhaps, in an alternate Earth to ours, readers of Batwoman got to see their J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman take their epic Batwoman story to their intended conclusion.

Finally, one last sincere thank you to the creators of Batwoman, J.H. Williams III, W. Haden Blackman, Greg Rucka, Trevor McCarthy, and the collaborating artists and editors of DC Comics, for this miraculous comic book series.

Batwoman Forever.

 My prized copy of Batwoman #13,
my favorite single comic book of 2012, signed by J.H. Williams III
Why is it my favorite? Because of this.

Untold History of the New 52

Superman Unchained is the number one blockbuster mega-series by writer Scott Snyder and artist Jim Lee. Only in its 3rd issue, it's become clear Snyder and Lee are currently crafting what has to go down as the one of the finest Superman tales in recent years and most certainly of the two year old rebooted DC Comics New 52 era. 

Depicting the current interpretation of Superman, younger, raw, impulsive, only five years into his career as the World's Greatest Superhero and not yet fully comfortable or, to be honest, completely deserving of that title, Unchained sees the Man of Steel encounter a circumstance he's entirely unprepared for: his role in the world as a hero questioned outright. For There Is Another in the world with powers beyond those of mortal men who has been serving the betterment of the world for decades in ways Superman never imagined.

But what's most interesting to me about this uber-tale Snyder is telling isn't the moral and ethical questioning of Superman's modus operandi or even the outrageous super action between Superman and his new alien rival, a being called Wraith. It's the revelation that Wraith has been covertly serving the United States government and directly impacting the course of history in the 20th century into today without anyone being aware of it. Touring a hidden bunker called The Machine beneath the Salt Flats of Utah, Superman learns of the course of human events changed by Wraith via one of Superman's greatest detractors (inconveniently the father of Lois Lane), General Sam Lane:

While the primary focus of Snyder's story is assessing Superman's greater responsibility to the world as a hero (Lane accuses him of being "a coward" and "the greatest mass murderer in human history" - quite a bit out there - for Superman's "need" for applause and wasting his powers "saving kittens from trees"), Snyder has struck a goldmine of story here, perhaps without fully realizing it. 

One of the most intriguing but underappreciated aspects of Watchmen, and a major contributing factor to why it holds the lofty and unchallenged title of Greatest Comic Series Ever, is that Alan Moore addressed how a superhuman being like Dr. Manhattan would actually change the world. Not just by saving it from alien invaders, super villains, or natural disasters - the more comic booky threats to humanity. Dr. Manhattan's presence in the world altered technology, culture, elections, and America's standing as a global superpower. 

Snyder is lobbing the same compelling ideas about Wraith. Wraith landed on Earth in 1938 (the same year Superman's first appearance in Action Comics #1 was published) and served the United States government covertly since that time. Snyder overtly states Wraith has directly participated in every major conflict of the 20th century, sliding the scales and balancing the peace on the side of the United States of America. The very first pages of the first issue of Superman Unchained reveal Wraith himself was "the bomb" that was dropped on Nagasaki, which finally ended World War II.

This is fascinating stuff!

Akin to Oliver Stone's recent documentary series Untold History of the United States (which any fan of 20th century history really should watch whether or not Stone's point of view suits yours), Snyder has found the promised land of story potential. The New 52 version of the DC Universe is a clean slate, with superheroes like Superman and the Justice League only emerging 5-6 years ago, and very little is known about what the New 52's history was like before then. By rebooting the universe, The New 52 wiped clean the previous "history" of DC Comics where superheroes have existed since the 1930s and 1940s. 

Snyder has now blown the doors open, establishing the first glimpse of the history of the last century in The New 52. Snyder is telling us that everything we assume happened in history, which is a reflection of our own history, was affected and even molded by the actions of Wraith and The Machine. World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the fall of Communism, etc. all presumably happened and Wraith had a hand in it all. Did 9/11 happen? Or maybe it didn't; did Wraith stop it? Or if it did, why didn't Wraith prevent it? There is story here! 

There's a golden opportunity for DC Comics to pounce on to one day tell the Untold History of The New 52 and reveal to us just how and in what ways Wraith altered the course of human events. It could be an amazing funhouse mirror of our own real-world history. For Snyder, this could be a chance to deliver something akin to his own Watchmen; to be the architect of the New 52's Untold History. Snyder, a disciplined storyteller who does his research, has ample skill dabbling in historical settings in his marvelous creator-owned series American Vampire and Severed. 

I sincerely hope one day Snyder and DC Comics do finally tell the Untold History of the New 52. It's a history worth revealing.

Although, "Wraith", it turns out, is a pretty silly acronym.

Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox

JUSTICE LEAGUE: THE FLASHPOINT PARADOX

** SPOILERS **

Flash! Ah-ha! Savior of the Universe!

To be fair, the Flash (Barry Allen, voiced by Justin Chambers) is also the destroyer of the universe. Or rather, the "old" DC Universe. Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox (a mouthful of a title) adapts the 2011 mega-event "Flashpoint" written by Geoff Johns, in which the DC Universe is completely remade and obliterated to make room for the current rebooted "New 52" DC Universe. Story wise, it involves the Flash using his superspeed to time travel and prevent the rather ghastly murder of his mother in her own home, unwittingly upending the universe in strange, significant ways:

The rocket that carried baby Kal-El to Earth landed not in Smallville but in Metropolis, causing a catastrophe that killed thousands and ended with the infant Kryptonian held in captivity for 30 years by the US Government. In Gotham City, the Waynes are mugged by a gunman, but it is 10 year old Bruce Wayne who dies in Crime Alley, leaving behind his grieving father Thomas Wayne. Meanwhile, a peace accord between Diana, Queen of the Amazons and Arthur, King of Atlantis leads to a sexual tryst discovered by Arthur's wife Mera. Which leads to Mera trying to murder Diana, Diana killing her instead in self defense, igniting war between Atlantis and Themyscria that engulfs Europe. Also, Barry Allen discovers he no longer has superspeed and that all of this is his fault. All because he used his powers to save his mommy.

Allen recruits the ultra violent Batman of Gotham City to help him regain his powers (in hilarious fashion: strap Allen and a bunch of chemicals to a lightning rod so he can get struck by lightning). Expecting to find his friend Bruce Wayne in the Batcave, Allen instead finds the Batman is now Thomas Wayne (ably voiced by Kevin McKidd), an alcoholic living like the Unabomber in the caverns beneath the demolished Wayne Manor. Still, they form an uneasy alliance with each other, and with the government superheroes lead by Cyborg (Michael B. Jordan), who works for President Barack Obama (not voiced by Barack Obama)! Aquaman (Cary Elwes) and Wonder Woman (Vanessa Marshall) are about to plunge the world to its imminent end with their war. Meanwhile, Allen discovers the real culprit behind this bizarre DC Universe is his arch enemy Professor Zoom, the Reverse Flash (voiced with menace by C. Thomas Howell).

The Flashpoint Paradox is a grim exercise in "what if?" alternate reality storytelling. It's not for young viewers: sex and adultery are key plot points, Batman and the rest of the superheroes swear like sailors, and boy, are these superheroes bloodthirsty. By the end, millions of people are dead, including most of the superheroes, who brutally use their powers to kill each other in cold blood. It's exciting to see such unapologetic bloodletting to a degree, but it also makes for depressing viewing. No one is actually "heroic", no one learns anything of value. The kicker of course is the Flash manages to run at superspeed back in time to reverse all of this so that none of it ever happened, but to do so means he lets his mother get murdered in her kitchen. So yeah. It's also strange that, like in the comics, The Flashpoint Paradox is designed to transition from the previous DC Animated Universe to an animated New 52 Universe, but the previous DC Animated films mostly did not share continuity. Does this mean all future DC Animated films will solely be based on the New 52 comics? That seems unnecessary. Ultimately, so does The Flashpoint Paradox.

Justice League of America #1

It was better than Justice League #1. Busier, more interesting, more detailed, less... stupid. Better art, too. 

But there was practically no difference between what happens in JLA #1 and in that issue of the old JLA series when Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman sat in the Batcave and picked who they wanted to be in the League with Magic: The Gathering cards. That book was great, right? No? No.

This time, it's Amanda Waller and Steve Trevor arguing over why there needs to be a government controlled Justice League team and who gets to be in it. The reasoning makes sense if you, you know, don't think about it and just go, "Whatever you say, yeah, uh huh." The Waller and Trevor dialogue goes like this:

Waller: "[This superhero] will be in it."
Trevor: "That's a terrible idea."
Waller: "Irrelevant. Also [this other superhero] will be in it."
Trevor: "I object."
Waller: "Makes no difference."

It is a pointless sham of a conversation or debate and its only purpose is to deliver the exposition of why each member of the Justice League of America was picked. Most of the new Leaguers, some of whom are unaware they are now Leaguers, get a vignette introducing their circumstances and why they are fit to be cajoled or blackmailed or bamboozled to be on this very special Justice League. It is unsavory, the opposite of 'superhero', but that's DC's M.O. with The New 52 - our heroes aren't meant to inspire. Be afraid of them. We are.

Speaking of such things, one of the stated reasons there "needs" to be a Justice League of America is because the people of the world "don't trust" the Justice League. Their public trust is at an all-time low. This. Makes. No. Sense. Because the Justice League - the one with Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman in it just saved Boston, Metropolis and the whole world from a watery invasion by the armies of Atlantis. Everyone saw it. It just happened. Somehow, this is a terrible thing for the League and people don't like them? What?

There's also The Kiss. Superman and Wonder Woman super liplocking wondrously. Something like that would be a public sensation. People would go nuts over it, in a good way. But not in this DCU. Everyone is terrified of what could happen. What if they break up? What if Wonder Woman gets Superman pussy whipped? What if they spawn Superbrats? These are the actual reasons given as to why this sexy Super coupling is a Very Bad Thing. (And to be fair, it's not an unreasonable fear, and it feeds into the rumor that Alan Moore's "Twilight of the Superheroes" story will eventually be done by DC.)

So anyway, now we have another Justice League. It's got scary aliens (Hawkman, Martian Manhunter), teen girls with braces(!) (Stargirl), assassins (Katana), criminals (Catwoman), suspected terrorists with alien powers (Green Lantern Simon Baz), neophytes (Vibe), and TV stars (Green Arrow, kidding.) Waller promises a P.R. campaign will cover up what a ridiculous team this is to the layman. Somehow this group of weirdos will be more publicly beloved than the Justice League with Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman on it. Because, apparently, the public thinks they are jerks.

Then we get a couple of reveals: That there's a Secret Society of Super-Villains with Professor Ivo involved that also hates the Justice League. Presumably any and all Justice Leagues.

More importantly, we learn that Waller picked her League specifically to take out each member of the other Justice League. Her math goes like this:

Martian Manhunter > Superman
Katana > Wonder Woman
Catwoman > Batman
Stargirl > Cyborg
Hawkman > Aquaman
Vibe > Flash
Green Lantern Simon Baz > Green Lantern Hal Jordan

Clearly, Amanda Waller sucks at math. What about Green Arrow? Oh, well, he's got a different role in the League and the Society found him out and now he's dying. Right when his TV show got renewed for season 2, too.

Batman #17

** SPOILERS! **

Honestly, I wasn't digging Death of the Family overall. It was the inverse of Court of Owls; I loved Court all the way through but the ending and shocking twist left me cold. With Death of the Family, despite the great horror opening of the Joker stalking and killing though Gotham Police headquarters and some cool high points (yes, Batman punching a horse), I wasn't as enamored with the story. Scott Snyder's take on The Joker, a cross between Mark Hamill's manic, animated clown and the weirdly homosexually-fixated Frank Miller Dark Knight Returns version with all his talk of "darling" and "you love meeee the mosssst, Batssss" grated on me. Just not a take on Joker I enjoy.

However, in reverse of how I felt about Court of Owls, I thought Snyder stuck the landing. Batman #17, the conclusion to the saga, was gangbusters good. Snyder pulled it all together, with some nifty slight of hand on the Bat Family and on the readers. Snyder and Greg Capullo delivered, by my count, FOUR huge, gasp-worthy moments. They really had me going with each veritable slap to the face. There's one page in particular with what may well be the sickest visual ever depicted in Batman that honestly made me wonder, "How the fuck did DC allow this? And how can they fix it?!?"

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Spoiler Below: Highlight text to read

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The Joker cut off Damian, Batgirl, Nightwing, Red Hood and Tim Drake's faces just like he cut off his own. Snyder and Capullo throw you for a loop, thinking this is for real until the big relief reveal that he did no such thing. But then Joker gasses the Bat Family with Smylex and they all become Jokerized and fight each other.

The endgame showdown between Batman and Joker is where Snyder reveals his cards and we see he not only fully understands the dynamic between those two arch enemies, but he provided some new insight that is thoroughly satisfying and makes perfect sense.

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Spoiler Below: Highlight text to read

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Bruce Wayne visited Joker in Arkham Asylum years ago and outed himself as Batman to him. And Joker didn't care. Didn't acknowledge it. Settling the idea: Regardless of whether Joker knows who Batman is, he simply doesn't care who the man is behind the mask. He only cares about waging war with Batman. Awesome.

Batman #17 is a stunning, magnificent conclusion to what will go down as a landmark Joker story. Even after 70+ years of Joker stories, Scott Snyder found something new to say about Batman and Joker that honors their epic rivalry and allows you to see the ties that bind them in a new way. Just when you think you've read it all about The Joker, Batman #17 grips you with a joy buzzer. It never ceases to shock and awe.

I need to reread the entire Death of the Family story in one sitting to take it all in as a whole, now that I fully understand what Joker was doing and what it all meant. Bravo, Mr. Snyder and Mr. Capullo. 

Batwoman #13

Batwoman #13 is amazing! 

This is part 2 of "World's Finest", the team up of Batwoman and Wonder Woman, as they travel to the Greek Myth version of Arkham Asylum and face Greek monsters while searching for Medusa. Batwoman #13 is proof a team up book of the Women Bat and Wonder by this creative team, J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman, ought to be a regular thing. 

The artwork by Williams  is unbelievable. There's a two page spread of Batwoman and Wonder Woman going through a maze shaped like her Bat symbol littered with the corpses of Amazons and monsters that I would hang on my wall. I mean, look at this:

The character beats between Diana and Kate Kane are fascinating, as they get to know, evaluate, anticipate, and slowly try to trust one another. I also really like everything going on in this two page spread:

Batwoman and Wonder Woman are both warriors, two of the best in their fields, regardless of gender. Gender is never an issue. Their competence is never an issue. They both kick ass, can do what needs to be done, are fearless, ready for anything, can beat anything or anyone. (Just like the man in the Bat costume and the Amazon's current alien boyfriend when they tag up.)

There was a lot of Wonder Woman in DC Comics' output this week. She was in Justice League, Batwoman, and in her own book, but I liked her with Batwoman the best of the three, which is saying something considering how good her own book is. 

Guys, I'm in love with Batwoman. It's serious. And Batwoman and Wonder Woman should take this show on the road permanently.

Batman #13

"Death of the Family"

** SPOILERS **

Over a year ago, both in DC Comics continuity time and in the real world, The Joker allowed his face to be cut off. Then he vanished for the entire year. Batman had many, many other problems to deal with and no one in Gotham City nor the DC Universe, save perhaps Harley Quinn, was particularly upset to have an entire year without The Joker menacing their lives. Of course, it was only a matter of time until The Joker returned.

Batman #13, a bone-chilling blockbuster written by superstar writer Scott Snyder and superstar artist Greg Capullo, kicks off the massive "Death of the Family" storyline throughout the Batman line of titles. The Joker has come back to make a deliberate statement about the Batman and his allies, Robin, Nightwing, Batgirl, the Red Hood, the ever-vigilant, ever-suffering Commissioner James Gordon, and - shockingly - Alfred Pennyworth, loyal butler to billionaire Bruce Wayne. Oh no, Alfred is not safe either. The Joker has done his homework in his time away, it seems. 

Setting up the crossover aspect of the story, members of the "Batman Family", the current Robin Damian Wayne, Bruce's ultraviolent ten year old son, Nightwing, Red Robin, and Batgirl, chime in when they hear The Joker's back in town. Batgirl, whom The Joker shot and paralyzed, is naturally alarmed for herself and her father the Commissioner. I liked Damian's flippant attitude towards The Joker the best. As per usual, the Batman decides The Joker is his problem alone and eschews the aid of his "family". But we know from the nature of this story, The Joker has other ideas.

The best stuff Snyder and Capullo deliver in Batman #13 are the pure horror and the callbacks. First, the horror: The Joker chooses one of his favorite targets for torment, Jim Gordon, as his way of announcing his return. He knocks out power in Gotham Police Headquarters and methodically snaps the necks of the cops present in the dark, taunting Gordon all the while with his maniacal jokes and laughter. Batman arrives too late and playing catch up (a common theme in this issue). Later, The Joker slaughters even more cops, using a new version of his Joker Toxin (I wish DC Comics would just call it Smylex) that twists their mouths into frowns instead of smiles. The Joker isn't playing quite the same old game.

Snyder's worship of Batman's legacy is stunning. He homages the very first appearance of The Joker in Batman #1 (1940) by having Joker kidnap the son of the very first person Joker ever murdered in a Batman comic, cited by Batman in The New 52 continuity as Joker's first-ever kill. (With a nod that Joker threatened his life on television instead of the radio as in 1940). Joker's haunting of Gotham Police headquarters and Capullo's visual presentation of Joker harken to Heath Ledger in The Dark Knight. The Joker making his television announcement brings back fond memories of Jack Nicholson's televised threats in Tim Burton's first Batman (1989). When Batman thinks he confronts The Joker at Ace Chemical Plant, where The Joker fell into the vat of chemicals that turned him white and gave him his perpetual smile, Batman meets The Red Hood, Joker's original alias, who turns out to be Harley Quinn. Harley springs The Joker's trap, as The Joker brings his vengeance straight to Batman's - Bruce Wayne's - home.

The Joker's current appearance, with his face pinned and belted onto his head, is probably the most shocking and grotesque he's ever been. Nor is Harley Quinn, his devoted lover, spared the horrors of The Joker's new attitude, in a grim and saddening back up story by Snyder, co-writer James Tynion IV and artist Jock. The Joker's not back to make friends, or even keep the old friends he once had.

In the end, this is all about the Batman. In his taunts, The Joker calls Batman "fat" and "slow" and "soft", mocking him for his year-long war with The Court of Owls that cost Batman nearly everything, including his sanity. And maybe The Joker has a point. The Joker claims he has returned to strip Batman back to basics, make him what he used to be. If anyone can do it, it's Mr. J.

DC: The New 52 Zero Month - Week 4

It's been a fun experiment but I'm glad this is the end of #0s.

Aquaman #0. I can sum it up thusly: Swim swim swim. Look out - a shark! Talk talk talk. Exposition, exposition. Off to find Atlantis. Found it! Right away! The end.

Okay, there's a bit more to it. 6 years ago Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are specifically cited as existing (I thought Batman was just an "urban myth"?) but young Arthur Curry watches his daddy die after being attacked by pirate Black Manta. Everyone already knows he's half Atlantean, so he's chased into the ocean. Where, pretty art aside, Geoff Johns wastes like five pages of Arthur just swimming and then fighting and telepathically talking to a great white shark. Aquaman saves some people from a storm, they tell him they heard of another Atlantean in Norway, he goes to Norway and meets Vulko. There's a lot of blah blah blahing about Arthur's mother Atlanna, who is dead, and his half brother Orm, who killed her. Vulko gives Arthur a treasure map and some jewels and then they go off to find Atlantis. And they do. The end.

Batman: The Dark Knight #0. The secret origin of Joe Chill! Well, not really. Filling in some blanks spots from Batman's origin story, it deals with young Bruce Wayne hero worshiping his dead father and obsessed with the idea that they must have been killed to fulfill some nefarious purpose. He hunts for answers until he's 18, looking for the sinister reason his parents were murdered, until he finds the gunman in that alley, Joe Chill. And Bruce find out there was no conspiracy, no greater purpose to the Waynes' murder. Joe Chill was a pathetic drunk who happened upon the Waynes by chance in Crime Alley and wanted Martha Wayne's pearl necklace. That's it. Disappointing for Bruce, slightly less so for the reader. But you know, it's still better than the old continuity where Joe Chill helped Batman fight The Reaper in Batman Year Two. That was terrible. Still, I prefer Batman Begins as Batman's definitive origin.

Batman Incorporated #0. The only things here of real interest was a bit about the board room meeting where Bruce Wayne introduced the concept of funding Batman Inc. to the Wayne Enterprises board members (sold as "Wayne private security worldwide") and a comment at the end where Batman tells Alfred he's never seen him eat. Other than that, it's a Grant Morrison-y, dizzying worldwide romp meeting all the weirdo characters Morrison is so fond of that I couldn't care less about. Dark Ranger, El Gaucho, Knight and Squire, Wingman, whatever. I'm interested in the eventual showdown between Batman Inc. and Talia al Ghul's Leviathan.

Superman #0. Scott Lobdell and Kenneth Rocafort, the creative team behind Red Hood and the Outlaws, take over Superman and deliver something really different. The most fun, entertaining, action packed depiction of Jor-El and Lara ever, as Jor-El discovers Krypton will explode, discovers Lara is pregnant, and the two of them get attacked by the Eradicator's Doomsday Cult out to implement Cosmicide. Jor-El is kind of like Reed Richards and Lara turns out to be an ex-military action heroine - it's a cool spin on Superman's parentage, and Rocafort eschews the cold white ice crystal world to turn Krypton into a colorful futuristic super world. One about to blow up, as there are strange bio-entities in its core facilitating its demise. Two extra big surprises: the story is narrated by Superman himself, who is somehow there on Krypton wearing his black suit, and there's some kind of monster at the end heralding the arrival of something called Oracle. (One presumes, not Barbara Gordon.) Superman has been such a drag all year, I'm surprised by how much I enjoyed this. As I said, it was just different and unexpectedly fun. The best issue of Superman since The New 52 started by far.

Talon #0. The launch of the major new character spinning from the Court of Owls storyline in Batman. Talon's theme is escape. Calvin Rose is an escape artist who was treated cruelly as a child and escaped to Haly's Circus, where he was then recruited by the Court of Owls as is custom. We get to see some of the brutal ritual that goes into the Court training their Talons (I especially liked the creepy, bloodthirsty little kids in Owl masks watching the Talons), and soon, Calvin is ready to kill as the Talon. Wouldn't you know it, his first assignment and he freaks out, can't kill his targets. So now he's on the run. Five years later, still on the run (but remaining in Gotham?), he is nearly killed by a new Talon, stuffed in a trunk of a car and thrown off a bridge. He escapes, of course, and upends the Talon. And Calvin Rose is back on the run. It's good, holding up to the standards of the twelve issues of the Batman Court of Owls story. Calvin Rose is kind of like Mr. Miracle, if Scott Free dressed up like an armored bird instead of that ridiculous red, green and yellow costume.

Teen Titans #0. Narrated by Batman, this is the new origin of Tim Drake, boy wonder, future Olympic athlete, A+ student, natural detective, headstrong, independent, who made a project out of discovering who Batman is. Tim applies for the job of Robin but Batman tells him to get lost, all the while evaluating him with Alfred. So Tim decides to get Batman's attention by stealing the Penguin's fortune. (Does he give it back is the question.) To keep Tim's parents alive from Oswald Cobblepot's revenge, they are placed in federal protection. Meanwhile, Tim comes to live in Wayne Manor and chooses not to take on the late Jason Todd's mantle as Robin but instead becomes Red Robin. So there. Tim Drake was never Robin in The New 52. He was always Red Robin. Because he must love hamburgers that much.

A lot of Batman this week. A lot. Too much. Two Batman titles plus Teen Titans is really Batman and Robin. And Talon is a Batman spin off. I'm surprised Batman didn't show up on Krypton too.

Now that the zero issues are wrapped, I walk away from all these comics with one new addition to my pull list: Batwoman. I remember not really understanding Batwoman #1 when it came out a year ago, but Batwoman #0 was the only zero issue that got me so interested in a DC comic I wasn't reading that I went looking for what I'd missed out on. I'm glad I did because Batwoman is great. 

Other than that, nothing has changed. I still like the books I like and already read, I wasn't moved to add anything new besides Batwoman. The DC Universe seems healthy and vibrant a year after The New 52 launched and looking back to fill in some gaps in the new continuity seemed beneficial overall. It's a nice new DC Universe they're building. If they just fix Superman, they'll really be in business, but a new, improved Man of Steel might just be in the cards for 2013.

And Where Is The Batwoman?

Hello. I'm an adult male and I now read Batwoman.

What is Batwoman? No, seriously, what is that, you may ask? Obviously, we've all heard of Batman. We all love Batman. We've heard of Batgirl, of course. And Robin, naturally. And Nightwing too, probably even non-comics fans know of him. Batwoman? What the hell is the Batwoman? The publishing and character history of Batwoman is long and complicated. It's here if you want to read about it. But it doesn't really matter.

What does matter is what Batwoman is today, which is what I regard as perhaps the finest ongoing comic book series currently published by DC Comics, starring its most unique and interesting superhero. It's the best comic book you're not reading. It was the best comic book I wasn't reading until recently. But now that I've read as much Batwoman as I could get my hands on (the collected volumes of "Elegy" - with an introduction written by Rachel Maddow - and "Hydrology", the current run of Batwoman #1-12 in The New 52, and the two comic books numbered as "Batwoman #0", published in 2010 and 2012), I've come back from Gotham City heralding the news: This book is phenomenal. This character is phenomenal. Batwoman is phenomenal.

You should read it.

Batwoman is Katherine Rebecca Kane. The quote from the introductory blurb on the splash page of most of her adventures tells you all the basics you need to know:

Did you get all that? Have you ever heard of a superhero like that before? I hadn't. You read enough superhero comics, watch enough superhero movies, they all blend together. All origins sound alike. This one is different. Because this heroine, Kate Kane, is very different. She's flawed, headstrong, dedicated, dangerous, sexual, tough, and brave. She's an adult. She's very real.

All of the trappings of the superhero are there: tragic past, desire to seek justice, gaudy costume of red and black, the "colors of war" (iconography borrowed, initially without permission, from the Batman). On the surface, Kate Kane is like Bruce Wayne, an heiress to a fortune, posing as a dilettante, but is highly trained, armed with specialized bat-motif weaponry and vehicles. What separates Kate Kane from the Batman, and from the rest of the superhero pack, is who she really is. A lesbian? Sure, she's that and proud of it. That already makes her unique. She was a soldier, and in a way she still is.

But what sets Kate Kane, the Batwoman, apart is that she's a survivor. Terrible things happened to her, and continue to, but she endures. She's not a thrill-seeker or out for fame or fortune or even out for revenge. She's a crusader, a caped crusader in the best tradition. In Batman's tradition. In fact, in Batwoman #0 (2010), the Batman himself narrates his investigation of Batwoman. What's interesting is that Batman, evaluating her for his global crime-fighting network Batman Inc., regards her not as  a subordinate as he would one of his Robins or even Batgirl. Batman regarded Batwoman as a peer. He offered her a spot in Batman Inc. as a peer. Then she turned him down.

The Batwoman comic series is a joy to read. Written initially by Greg Rucka and now penned by J.H. Williams III and W. Haden Blackman, the series boasts evocative, eye-popping artwork primarily by J.H. Williams III that looks like nothing else in mainstream comics. Most issues contain multiple two-page layouts that read like some kind of twisted Game of Life game board involving the Batwoman facing down psychotics with hooks for hands, enormous mutated crocodile men, and even werewolves. Batwoman's rogues gallery is a gathering of ghastly grotesques. She faces down dead women reborn as wailing water ghosts, murderous shapeshifters, and her primary enemies, the Religion of Crime. Its leader is her thought-dead twin sister Beth Kane, reborn as Alice, her insane mirror image, her own personal Joker of sorts. Just about everything Kate Kane faces is deeply personal.

And boy, is Batwoman violent. Gotham City, already the least pleasant locale for a superhero to ply his trade, takes on even more shadowy, terrifying layers for Batwoman. She's stabbed repeatedly, thrown off of buildings, gassed, nearly drowned, and is a hair's breath of being killed several times. As well trained as she is (her origin story, depicted in "Batwoman #0" (2012), includes two years of absolutely brutal military training around the world that would make Bruce Wayne himself raise an eyebrow), and as well-equipped as she is (her arsenal is futuristic, with a bullet proof batsuit and other wonderful toys even Batman doesn't have), Batwoman still gets the hell kicked out of her. Her sometimes-sidekick Flamebird suffers one of the most horrific beatings ever when a villain slices her open with a hook from groin to sternum. Being Batwoman, living in her world, is not a lark. Reading Batwoman is not for the faint of heart.

To me, Batwoman is to the current DC Comics New 52 era what The Question, written by Denny O'Neill and drawn by Denys Cowan, was to the 1980s DC Comics. (I can think of no greater compliment to pay it.) Batwoman has that same gritty but honest, questing nature. It's mature comics, at times profound, eloquent, gorgeous, heartbreaking, uplifting.

Kate Kane is worth getting to know. Batwoman is worth reading.

If there's room for one more Bat in your comic book life, make it this one.

DC: The New 52 Zero Month - Week 3

Week three was not weak by any means.

Batwoman #0. Arguably supplants Wonder Woman #0 as best #0 of the week. The origin of Kate Kane as narrated by Kate Kane to her father. Other than she's a lesbian and a soldier, I knew next to nothing about Batwoman, but #0 brings you up to speed eloquently and efficiently with who Kate Kane is and how she came to be. You learn all about her family, her upbringing, the kidnapping that happened to her, her relationship with her father, and the intense training she went through to become Batwoman that kind of puts Bruce Wayne's to shame. So far Batwoman is the only #0 issue I've read that convinced me I should start reading her book from now on.

Also, it's been established now in The New 52 that neither Batgirl nor Batwoman asked Batman's permission before they started wearing Bat costumes and infringing on what's now his copyright (Batman Inc.). He must have a soft spot for chicks dressing like him.

Birds of Prey #0. How Black Canary met Starling and it's kind of clever - they both have bird codenames and they met when Starling was working security for The Penguin and Black Canary infiltrated Penguin's organization to capture a terrorist who was selling a Mutation Bomb. Then Batgirl crashes the Iceberg Lounge and they ended up working together. Thing is, this story is set "One year ago..." which means Batgirl had to have been just recovered from her paralysis and recently taken up the cowl again. Mostly, the story is Black Canary looking for redemption from the mysterious circumstances where she killed her husband and Team 7 was dissolved, but there's a big swerve at the end where it's revealed Starling is working under Amanda Waller's orders and has been the whole time to stay close to Black Canary, and Kurt Lance, Dinah's husband isn't dead but in some kind of bacta tank. The guest spot of The Penguin automatically scores points with me and I hope he returns since Oswald owes these Birds some payback for screwing him over. Wak wak wak.

Catwoman #0. Judd Winick's gone, Ann Nocenti is writing, and Selina Kyle has a new status quo. A Gotham orphan who has been a thief all her life, Selina Kyle has no idea who she is or even why she does what she does sometimes. Turns out years ago, she was manipulated into thinking she works for a special office of the Mayor that doesn't exist and when she discovered she might have another name that isn't Selina Kyle, they try to kill her - in a tribute to Batman Returns I rather loved, where Selina is thrown off a roof, survives a fall to her death and is surrounded by cats in an alley. Then she stitches the Catwoman costume for herself. She then learns all records of "Selina Kyle" were wiped clean and "Selina Kyle" doesn't exist. This all sets up her coming inclusion into the Justice League of America, which it seems like she'll join because Steve Trevor knows who she is. It's a very different spin on Catwoman and I'm not sure I like it, but it's better than Frank Miller's "she's a prostitute".

Justice League #0. It must be great to be Geoff Johns, Chief Creative Officer of DC. You can do anything you want! And apparently, no one will ever tell you "Don't!" or ask "Why?" Anyway, it's Justice League #0 and guess who isn't in Justice League #0? The Justice League! Any of 'em! No, this issue is all about Shazam, finally paying off months of back up stories about Billy Batson, a contemptible little shit who makes Jason Todd look like Theo Huxtable, but what do I know? Batson finally meets The Wizard Shazam and inherits the powers of Captain Shazam, becoming Captain Shazam, the World's Mightiest Mortal. We get some groundwork too about the new Shazam status quo, that Black Adam was the first champion of the Council of Wizards and killed them all except Shazam. The Wizard peered into Billy Batson's soul and saw what a nogoodnik he is, but on second glance, he saw Batson also does some selfless things for people, occasionally. Batson lays out that there are no PURE GOOD people in the world, and maybe not, but that doesn't mean Batson is worthy of the power of Captain Shazam. But then, the Wizard is dying and he has no more time for several months of back up stories about a better kid, so Billy Batson is who he's stuck with. Billy says the Magic Word and SHAZAM! He's now Captain Shazam. (Johns also established that Billy has to say "Shazam!" a certain way, thinking about goodness and family or something, so just saying the word willy-nilly won't bring the lightning.) Now Shazam, Batson finds his friend, foil a stick up, and earns a $20 reward. Hey, the World's Mightiest Mortal gots to get paid!

The back up story is about Pandora, who tries to shoot open the skull inside Pandora's box with a gun(!) and fails. The Wizard Shazam then shows up for the last time and apologizes to her for that whole condemning her to an eternity of hell thing. (He only waited many thousands of years but better late than never). Cut to HUB CITY! The cops are after a kidnapper, and finds him tied up with a note with a question mark. And we see The Question from behind!

Nightwing #0. The new origin of Richard "Dick" Grayson. It's a lot like the old one with some new changes: Dick's parents were killed (trapeze non-accident) on his mother's birthday after they were shaken down by Tony Zucco, a low level criminal (no longer "Boss" Zucco). Bruce Wayne gave Dick a home in the Wayne Care Center instead of making him his ward and Dick got a "part time job" at Wayne Manor to explain his detective and ninja training. Turns out Dick would sneak out at night looking for Zucco and would fight crime with Batman. Batman finally just brought him to the cave and started training him. Was this story written before Tom DeFalco and Kyle Higgins saw The Dark Knight Rises? Because there's a nod to John Blake in there - Dick Grayson figured out Bruce Wayne was Batman by reading his body language. In a tangle with Lady Shiva, Dick finally donned a prototype Robin costume ("Robin" was his mom's nickname for him, sort of a nod to Batman Forever.) The first Robin suit is armor; short pants and bare legs officially never happened in The New 52. The issue is good, highlighting the differences and similarities between Bruce Wayne, Dick Grayson, and how each dealt with the impact of their parents' murders.

Red Hood and the Outlaws #0. Shut the door, have a seat. This one is pretty major. Most of the issue is narrated by Jason Todd, narrating his origin, starting with his hard luck life. Ever see The Wire? His life was like that, only everyone is white. Horrible drug dealer father, drug addict mother, a life of crime, dad died in prison, mom OD'd. Jason ended up in the car of Dr. Leslie Thompkins and met Batman after stealing prescription drugs from her (no swiping tires off the Batmobile). In the biggest "HUH?" moment, somehow Batman decides to let Jason live in Wayne Manor (contrast to Dick Grayson, who lived in Wayne Care Center), followed by the next biggest "HUH?" when Bruce Wayne just decides to blab out he's Batman. I guess he just wanted another Robin that badly. Then we move into the broad strokes of A Death in the Family and Jason is murdered by The Joker, and resurrected in the Lazarus Pit. Okay. Ready for the swerve? The Joker takes over the story and we learn every terrible thing that happened to Jason was orchestrated by Joker. So he could create his very own Robin! And then murder that Robin. The biggest question I had regarding Joker and Jason Todd was whether Joker ever knew the name of the Robin he murdered. Well, shit. He did, and moreso.

Supergirl #0. Kara Zor-El's final days on Krypton before it goes kablooey is as much Zor-El's story. Zor-El, who helped create the villainous World Killers who fought Supergirl in the first year of the series (culminating in #7, which was the best Super Family comic of the year), experimented on Kara. This explains some of the extra abilities Supergirl has been manifesting on Earth. We see Kara visit Jor-El and hold baby Kal, setting up the grudge between her father and her uncle. In the end, Zor-El gives Kara her Supergirl suit and drugs her into the rocket that will save her life, despite her mother Alura trying to stop him. The weird thing was Superboy showing up - I don't read Superboy so I don't know what that's about despite knowing Superboy is a clone and clones are banned on Krypton. Anyway, this was pretty good. It totally beats the Helen Slater movie, that's for sure.

Wonder Woman #0. Quite awesome. Cliff Chiang's art is superb and the issue feels like a Tintin adventure starring young Wonder Woman. Set in Princess Diana's tween years, she deals with the prejudice of the Amazons against her birth (she still has the "made of clay" origin - this is years before the current reveal that she is Zeus' daughter). She meets War (Ares), who is amusingly the spitting image of writer Brian Azzarello. War personally trains Diana in combat and war and then sends her to take on the Minotaur. There's a surprisingly sweet mentor-student relationship between War and Diana, despite his bluster and random temper flare ups. You know, they may be dating now, but the evidence in their respective books shows Wonder Woman is way too good for Superman. 

DC: The New 52 Zero Month - Week 2

This week's Zero Issues are a mixed bag. What was expected to be excellent was, and then there's everything associated with Team 7...

Batman #0. Riddle me this: When does the back up story actually eclipse the main story? Nothing against the very good Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo tale that takes place during the Year One time period (established as 7 years ago.) In that one, the Red Hood Gang (yes, Joker under the hood, it's strongly implied), with echoes to the Heat tribute heist that opened The Dark Knight, robs the Gotham National Bank. The Red Hood quickly and cleverly determines one of his gang is an impostor, and he is - Bruce Wayne, pre-Batman. Bruce has all the tech and resources he needs but not the symbol he can become. A tense meeting with James Gordon then leads to a cliffhanger that will be continued... in 2013? Wha--?

The backup by James Tynion IV and Andy Clarke is excellent. Set five years ago, Gordon is in full on "I love the Batman!" mode, and explains to Barbara Gordon why the Batsignal is so important to Gotham. We see who Tim Drake, Jason Todd, and Dick Grayson were and where they were in their lives concurrently when Gordon lights the Batsignal for the first time, and how it affects the three future Robins and the future Batgirl. Just terrific.

Batman and Robin #0. The secret origin of Damian Wayne from test tube incubation to the day he met his father. You want fucked up motherly love? Look no further than Talia al Ghul. First revelation: Talia had her nursemaids breastfeed Damian; she protects her nipples first and foremost. No other mother would sword fight duel her son every year on his birthday, dangling the carrot of telling him who his real father is if he wins. But it does seem like the question of when Bruce Wayne impregnated Talia is moot - no doubt they had sex in their past, but Damian is clearly referred to as "scientifically created", so Talia never actually was pregnant with him. All she needed was Bruce's DNA to mix with her own in a cocktail. Thus, the most messed up, violent little Robin of all. I liked this a lot, just as I like Damian Wayne a lot.

Batgirl #0. No, we do not find out how Barbara Gordon is able to walk again. The issue ends with Joker appearing at her door in "The Killing Joke", but the story here is set four years ago when Barbara was in college. She and James Jr. were at Gotham City Police working on one of her school projects when the station is attacked. A killer named Henry X stalks the young Gordons through the station and Barbara dons a mock costume of Batman the Police were using for a briefing (the Batman is an urban myth at this point) to fight off and beat Henry X. Then Batman arrives and gives her an attagirl. We learn Barbara was taken under Batman's wing as Batgirl and fought crime with Batman and Robin (Dick Grayson) for one year. Then she retired to concentrate on school. Then Joker shot and paralyzed her. She was never Oracle, apparently, though she worked with the Birds of Prey in some capacity. It's as fine an issue as Gail Simone's run has consistently been since Barbara Gordon came back in black.

Deathstroke #0. Horrible. The details of Slade Wilson's origin are rejiggered a bit: He was an exceptional soldier who served under Adeline, who would become his wife and mother of his two children Grant (Ravager) and Joseph (Jericho - not mute). Slade joined Team 7, was injured in combat, and experimented on to gain his superhuman strength and reflexes. Then he became Deathstroke the Terminator, the world's greatest mercenary. Rob Liefeld writes and draws it and it's no good. For one thing, the book can't even decide how old Slade is by his hair color. He's blonde in some scenes and then white haired in others and then blonde again. The details are incredibly sloppy. We find out Grant fought alongside Deathstroke and then the next panel later, there's an offhand mention that he's dead or something. Slade suddenly has an eyepatch with no explanation of how that happened. Deathstroke was such a cool character under the classic New Teen Titans but whatever was great about him is just lost now.

Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #0. I dropped Frankenstein a few issues into its run even before Jeff Lemire left the title. This deals with the origin of Frankenstein, you may have heard how it goes. Mad scientist Victor Frankenstein creates a creature out of dead body parts (his machine is powered by souls of over fifty people he murdered). The creature, also referred to as Frankenstein, breaks free. Victor hunts him all the way to the Amazon. Frankenstein actually walked there UNDER the Atlantic Ocean and communed with The Green, setting up his role in the upcoming Rotworld Animal Man/Swamp Thing cross over. Then we find out how killing Victor got Frankenstein hired by S.H.A.D.E. Still a weird ass book, man.

Green Lantern Corps #0. The secret origin of Guy Gardner is now as follows: Ever watch The Wire? It's a little like that. Guy is part of a legacy of cops in Baltimore. His dad, older brother and younger sister (all with initials G.G.) are cops. Guy is a washout. All the best future Green Lanterns have daddy issues. Guy saved his brother from being killed by black street gangs when the Power Ring arrived (who's ring?) and made him a Green Lantern. After training with Kilowog, Guy stopped an alien killer and earned his badge, then changed his costume to the vest and moon boots. And he never got along with Hal Jordan from the start. So Guy, who couldn't be a Baltimore Cop, is now a space cop.

Suicide Squad #0. Basically, the secret origin of how super action spy Amanda Waller decided she needed a Suicide Squad after she gets involved in some crisis that ended up getting a friend of hers killed. Waller decides it's better to have people she doesn't care about and are expendable risk their lives on these missions, which would be super villains they have incarcerated. This is mainly notable for how many times "Team 7" is mentioned in the book. It's a broken record. Team 7. Team 7. Team 7. Team 7. We get it, there's a new book you're putting out you think is important called Team 7. Which brings me to...

Team 7 #0. This is one of the next wave of 52 books and it's set five years ago at the dawn of "the superhuman crisis" when the Justice League's appearance, the reality of aliens, and the discovery of the metagene caused the US government to freak out and come up with protocols to deal with all of these new threats. A team is recruited and formed, innovatively called Team 7, consisting of Black Canary and her husband Kyle Lance, Deathstroke, Grifter, Amanda Waller, and some new characters. It's really light on compelling characterizations and I don't think I'm into the spy genre within The New 52. Team 7, A.R.G.U.S., N.O.W.H.E.R.E., whatever, none of it floats my boat.