The Geek Dungeon

WRITER: ADAM GLASS

ARTISTS: FEDERICO DALLOCCHIO & RANSOM GETTY & SCOTT HANNA

So, as the resident Secret Six fan, I took it upon myself to use one of my “draft picks” to grab Suicide Squad, the former’s “replacement” book in the New 52. 

The writer is Adam Glass, who has written episodes of Supernatural, The Cleaner and… Monster Island?

Uh oh.

But I found myself pleasantly surprised. Borrowing some of it’s narrative style from Resevoir Dogs, we see how the Squad was formed and how they ended up in a horrifying torture chamber. 

Also, there’s some controversy about the “new look” for Amanda Waller and the appearance of Savant. Personally, I don’t think Amanda needs to be fat. Being fat doesn’t make her “The Wall”, it’s her attitude.  As far as Savant goes… well I didn’t come here to read about Savant.

I’m going to say something that I know a lot of people are going to be upset with. I love Harley Quinn in this. Finally free of The Joker (and in the hands of a writer who wants to see how her character can develop on her own), we see someone who’s just as strong a character as anyone else. I’m looking forward to seeing how she develops under Glass’ writing. 

THE GEEKS GIVE IT FOUR RAT WOUNDS OUT OF FIVE

WRITER: SCOTT LOBDELL

PENCILLER: R.B SILVA

INKER: ROB LEAN

I own the issue where Kon-El made his first appearance in the DCU, in which he defiantly shouts to never call him “Superboy”. Now we get a look at the all new Superboy and… 

He’s a little different. 

What we’re given here is a calmer, more down to earth clone-baby. He’s patient, intelligent, and fully capable of wreaking all kinds of havoc on secret underground bases.

What Scott Lobdell has done is work out a whole new corner of the DC Universe in N.O.W.H.E.R.E. . What is their purpose? Why did they clone Superman? What sinister undertones does his membership to the Teen Titans now hold?

As far as his supporting cast, fans are going to love the inclusion of Rose Wilson, and there’s been more than a little bit of fan sleuthing as to who the mysterious “Red” may be. 

Needless to say I’m definitely going to stick around for the next issue. 

THE GEEKS GIVE IT FOUR UNIQUE FORMS OF TELEKINESIS OUT OF FIVE

WRITER: GEOFF JOHNS

PENCILS: DOUG MAHNKE

I have to give props to Green Lantern #1 in that it’s gotten me back into the Green Lantern universe again. After the debut of the “Skittle Corps” and the Lantern Mania that gripped DC soon afterwards, I found myself drifting away from GL more and more, until the first image of the cover surfaced.

And whoa buddy. Sinestro back in his greens caught my interest.

So what we have here is the fallout from GL Corps War, with Hal loosing his ring and said ring choosing Sinestro to take his place as the guardian of his sector.

Needless to say, this goes over about as well as you’d suspect. The Guardians are pissed, Hal is reduced to slapstick-y comedy on Earth, and Sinestro’s homeworld is now under the command of his former corps. 

Consider me in. 

Johns’ writing is always best when he’s writing GL, and Mahnke’s art is consistently good.

All and all, I say jump on this book!

THE GEEKS GIVE IT FIVE EVICTION NOTICES OUT OF FIVE

WRITER: PETER J TOMASI

PENCILS: PATRICK GLEASON

INKS: MICK GRAY

So I’m a big fan of the Morrison/Post Morrison B&R series, and Tomasi wrote my second favorite arc of the Post Morrison series, so I was pretty excited to see the creative team on this one. 

So we are briefly introduced to The Batman of Moscow fighting crime as a member of Batman Inc, before he is mercilessly shot by Tomasi’s new villain, the enigmatic “Nobody”. We are then taken to Gotham, where we get a fantastic bit of character development for Bruce Wayne, coupled with some regression on the part of his son Damien.

This bothered me. My favorite Robin is Damien Wayne. He was the first Robin that I’ve read since his debut, and it’s a little weird to see him reverting back to the spoiled Brat Wonder that he was at first, rather than what he’s grown into under Dick Grayson’s tutelage.

Then it hit me. Damien is acting out… much like a boy his age would as the result of a major change in his life.

Well played Tomasi.

Gleason’s art is always good, and that’s true for this book. I really dig the design of Nobody and Batman!Moscow! (for the short while we saw him).

While not as good as it could have been, I’m more than willing to chalk that up to the cast shake up (I’ll admit that I miss Dick).

THE GEEKS GIVE IT FOUR TANKS OF IRRADIATED FUEL TANKS OUT OF FIVE 

WRITERS: DAN ABNETT AND ANDY LANNING

ART: FERNANDO DAGNINO

This book was something else I picked up in the “Draft”, and I literally knew nothing about the character other than his unusual power set. 

So let’s recap.

Mitch Shelley is “blessed” with the power to come back to life after he dies, and with each new resurrection comes a new superpower. 

Conceptually, it’s a really fascinating idea, and I wondered how the series would hold up against the original idea.

And it sort of does. 

There’s a lot of internal dialogue from Mitch here, and whole some of it works really well (He describes the manifestation of his magnetic powers as ‘tasting metal’) and some of it doesn’t, in fact, a lot of the dialogue is sort of stilted. Nothing that a little practice won’t fix, but it’ still a little annoying to see on the page. 

As far as the art goes it’s above average (my reviews are going to be a little biased, as nothing looks as good as Batwoman this week), but nothing spectacular.

Not that I didn’t like it, mind you, I am picking up the next issue for sure. I’m interested to see how this goes, and if you’re looking to pick up something a little of the beaten path, why not give it a try?

THE GEEKS GIVE iT FOUR SCREAMING ENGINES OUT OF FIVE

CO-WRITER AND ARTIST: J.H. WILLIAMS III

CO-WRITER: W. HADEN BLACKMAN

At long last, I hold in my hands the first issue of Batwoman’s ongoing. It was announced more than a year ago, and was consistently held back and “put on hold” much to the annoyance of Kate Kane’s devoted fanbase.

And after all that time, was the wait worth it?

Oh hell yes it was.

The art, as to be expected from J.H. Williams III, is simply incredible. From the introduction to the mysterious La Llrona to a simply fantastic splash page that essentially recaps “Elegy” and it’s aftermath, this is probably the prettiest book of the whole relaunch.

But how’s the story? 

There are ghostly child abductors, sidekicks in training, and shadowy government dealings, yet it all manages to flow together, much like the book’s artwork.

I really really dig Kate Kane as a character, and it looks like this book has got the stuff to keep going on and on and on. And that’s a very good thing.

Plus how cool was it to see Mr. Bones?!

THE GEEKS GIVE IT FIVE WEEPING WOMEN OUT OF FIVE

 Today we get edgy with Suicide Squad and Deathstroke, find out what makes Super Dinosaur so super, and we finally get to read Batwoman!

So who’s your favorite superhero? Why?