Ranking the DCnU Reboot Titles

DC is launching or relaunching a whopping fifty-two new titles in September. That's way too many to buy all of them, and this makes for a good opportunity to re-examine what I usually purchase. So here's my take, based on the available information (mainly the solicitations); all 52 of the DCnU relaunch titles, ranked according to my likelihood of buying them:

Definitely Yes

1. Action Comics - They had me at Grant Morrison + Superman.

2. Superman - I'm actually a bit apprehensive about the Superman reboot, like I am with every Superman reboot. But with Morrison & Perez at the helm, I'm fairly optimistic this time out. Plus, I've bought every issue of Superman since 1982, and I'm likely not stopping until I'm dead or it stops being published.

3. Batwoman - Finally! And with Williams switching off story arcs with Amy Reeder, this will likely be the best looking book on DC's slate.

4. Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. - This looks to possibly be twenty pages of four-color awesome every month.

5. Justice League - I've bought every regular JL comic since the 80s, and this big-guns approach with Johns & Lee looks to be what I'm after in a JL comic.

6. Justice League International - A return to my second-favorite JL era, with Aaron Lopresti on art, makes for a winning combination.

Yes, with Reservations

7. Batgirl - Yes, I wish she were still Oracle as much as the rest of you. But I will read a Gail Simone Batgirl comic staring Barbara Gordon.

8. Animal Man - Every Animal Man take since Morrison's has disappointed, but I have hopes for Jeff Lemire giving it a shot.

9. Static Shock - One of my favorite Milestone characters. I wish Rozum were still doing Xombi, but hey, I'll take what I can get.

10. All-Star Western - Gray & Palmiotti's Jonah Hex has been consistantly entertaining for going on five years now, but I'm not sure it needs to lose the done-in-one stories nor does it need a Gotham City tie-in.

11. Wonder Woman - Normally Cliff Chiang drawing anything is an automatic yes, but I'm usually disappointed in Azzarello in general and his super-hero stuff in particular. But, when Azzarello & Chiang got together for Doctor 13, it was wonderful, so I'll hope for the same magic again here.

12. The Fury of Firestorm - Big fan of the character from the 80s and the recent Jason Rusch version as well. It will be interesting to see how Van Sciver & Simone merge their sensibilities in writing.

13. Blue Beetle - Glad to see Jaime Reyes given another go. If the new creative team can recapture the charm of the original, this this will be a winner.

14. Green Lantern - Looks like business as usual, so I'll likely stick around for a while.

15. Green Lantern Corps - Ditto.

16. Legion of Super-Heroes - Ditto.

17. Batman - I've really liked Snyder's writing on Detective as of late; I just wish he was being teamed with his 'Tec cohorts Jock and/or Francesco Francavilla here as well (I can take or leave Capullo).

18. Swamp Thing - Not completely sold on the reboot premise, but I like the creative team.

19. Demon Knights - Again, not sure about the premise, but Paul Cornell hasn't let me down yet.

Maybe/Provisional

20. Hawk and Dove - It'll be a race to see whether this or Batman: The Dark Knight is the first DCnU title to fall behind.

21. Stormwatch - Again, Cornell has yet to let me down, but I really don't see this Wildstorm concept fitting in to the DCnU, and Martian Manhunter seems like a really odd fit.

22. Mister Terrific - Like the character and the idea of his headlining a series, not too enthused by what I've seen from writer Eric Wallace in the past.

23. Supergirl - Not sure about the reboot here, but I've liked Green & Johnson's work on Superman/Batman, so this book gets the benefit of the doubt for now.

24. Batman and Robin - If this can maintain the punch and action I expect, then I'll stick around.

25. Batwing - 'The Batman of Africa' could be a good concept, but I'm not sure that Winick is the best choice for it.

26. Legion Lost - Yet another Legion in their past/our present story? But I like Pete Woods, so I'll check it out.

27. O.M.A.C. - Giffen co-writing and drawing bumps a concept I normally wouldn't care about up into the provisional category.

28. I, Vampire - I want to support this title, but man, that cover... ugh.

29. Aquaman - I always give new Aquaman titles a try, but am often disappointed.

30. The Flash - Can Manpul write? I'll give his a shot, but I'm not a huge Flash fan so this will be a very short trial.

31. Green Lantern: New Guardians - Not a huge Kyle Raynor fan, but Bedard generally writes pretty good super-hero science fiction-y stuff.

32. DC Universe Presents - Paul Jenkins' super-hero stuff normally leaves me a bit cold, but Deadman may be a good character for him. We'll see...

33. Justice League Dark - Horrible title, interesting premise. And that Milligan guy, who will now be writing both the Vertigo and DCnU versions of the character.

34. Detective Comics - I've been floating along with Daniel's work on Batman, but this may be a good place to drop off.

35. Resurrection Man - I never really read this the first go-around, but the premise always struck me as interesting.

36. Voodoo - This will really depend on execution a solid but not exciting creative team.

37. Suicide Squad - One of my favorite high-concepts ever in comics returns, but everything about that cover screams at me to stay away.

38. Blackhawks - Could be interesting, but could also go disastrously wrong. (Now if Jock were drawing this, I'd be all up for it...)

Probably Not

39. Men of War - I think I'd rather see this as a straight war comic without the super-hero-y stuff.

40. Grifter - Nothing much exciting here for this Wildstorm transplant.

41. Catwoman - The cover indicates that this is everything I don't want in a Catwoman comic.

42. Captain Atom - I like the charatcer and have very fond memories of the old Cary Bates series. But I don't care much for either creator.

43. Superboy - Looks like they're throwing away all the Superboy continuity. I really liked with Jeff Lemire was doing with the character, so this looks like a huge step back. The new creative team doesn't much appeal either.

44. Batman: The Dark Knight - Haven't really cared much for Finch on this title the first time around. Then again, committing to this title would only mean buying two or three issues a year...

45. Red Lanterns - I really don't think that I need twenty pages of characters vomiting blood each month.

Definitely No

46. Teen Titans - Seems like for the last five years or so I've always been on the verge of dropping this title, but there was always another new creative team around the corner. But this looks to be the final straw.

47. Nightwing - My level of not caring for any aspect of this is pretty darn high.

48. Birds of Prey - I've bought every single issue of BoP up to this point. And now? Ugh.

49. Red Hood and the Outlaws - Absolutely no appeal here.

50. Deathstroke - Ditto.

51. Green Arrow - One of my least favorite writers on a character I could care less about.

52. The Savage Hawkman - Non a huge fan of Tony Daniel's writing, and even less of a fan of Philip Tan's art. A very easy no.


Final totals:

Definitely Yes: 6 titles
Yes, With Reservations: 13 titles
Maybe/Provisional: 19 titles
Probably Not: 7 titles
Definitely No: 7 titles

Batman: Dark detective #1-6

Batman: Dark detective #1-6
CBR/ZIP | English | 6 Issues | 68 MB
One of the most popular Batman creative teams ever reunites for a twice-monthly- shipping 6-issue miniseries! Writer Steve Englehart and artists Marshall Rogers & Terry Austin set a high standard with their acclaimed run on DETECTIVE COMICS in the late 1970s! Now that team is back with BATMAN: DARK DETECTIVE, a miniseries that pits the Dark Knight against the most famous and feared members of his Rogues Gallery! In the startling debut issue, the Joker enters a gubernatorial election using the campain slogan "Vote for me or I'll kill you!" Will it persuade voters? Plus, Bruce Wayne's old love interest Silver St. Cloud returns, as do Two-Face and the Scarecrow! And the action continues in the startling second issue, as the Scarecrow manages to overcome Batman in the one location where he's most vulnerable: the Batcave! Meanwhile, the Bruce Wayne/Silver St. Cloud relationship heats up! Issue #1.
Download MIRROR #1

Download MIRROR #2

Batman #711

Batman #711
2011 | English | 24 pages | CBR | 9.57MB
Batman acts on his suspicions of a newly elected political figure in Gotham City and finds himself in deep water. With piranhas. Meanwhile, Two-Face fights his way back from the brink of death to find an unlikely ally who will show him that there are two sides to every story.
See MIRROR #1

See MIRROR #2

Monkey Covers comic

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover!

The Justice League battles a giant gorilla on the cover of JLA #92 (2004) by Doug Mahnke & Tom Nguyen.



(Standard disclaimer about wrathful apes not really being monkeys applies.)

Image courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.

Grimm Fairy Tales: The Library #1 [First Issue's Day]

Grimm Fairy Tales: The Library #1
2011 | English | 33 pages | CBR | 18.6MB
Grimm Fairy Tales presents an all new miniseries that explores an alternate reality of the Grimm Universe. When fourteen year old Sela Mathers discovers an ancient magic book in a condemned library her and her younger brother cast a spell that unlocks the amazing worlds and characters from the books and novels around them. Hercules, Robin Hood and Pecos Bill all come magically to life. But heroes aren't the only characters in stories. Villains too are affected by the magic spell and soon the children find themselves in a race against time to reverse the spell as evil characters from all of literature threaten to take over the world. Their only chance lies with the heroes they've brought to life. But even that may not be enough to stop the Frankenstein, Baba Yaga and the Wicked Witch of the West!

DCnU Reviews, Week 3: Blue Beetle; Legion of Super-Heroes

(Back in June when the new DCU titles were announced, I ranked all 52 titles on my likelihood of buying them. Only fair then to look back and see if my initial assessments hold up. My plan is to review each of the new titles as they come out.)

Blue Beetle #1
by Tony Bedard, Ig Guara & Ruy José

Original Rank/Assessment: 13 (Yes, with Reservations) - Glad to see Jaime Reyes given another go. If the new creative team can recapture the charm of the original, this this will be a winner.

I'm not sure we needed to go back to the beginning with Blue Beetle. Sure, his origin story was tied in with the likely-no-longer-cannon Infinite Crisis, but those bits are easily ignored. I'd rather that this series pick up where the previous series (and the Booster Gold back-ups) left off rather than retreading the old stuff. But that said, this is still mildly good. It could do with a little more of the aforementioned charm, like some of the witty repartee that Jaime had with his friends, but for an origin story it does the job. The art is pretty good though it struggles at times on the edge of being too busy, and at times the orange coloring overwhelms. Still, worth sticking around for a few issues to see where it goes (hopefuly quickly away from the origin!)

Rating: 3 (of 5).

Legion of Super-Heroes #1
by Paul Levitz & Francis Portela

Original Rank/Assessment: 16 (Yes, with Reservations) - Looks like business as usual, so I'll likely stick around for a while.

How many #1s does this make for the Legion? I've lost count. And since the Legion tends to do its reboots at times when it doesn't renumber, this is pretty much a continuation of the previous Legion's iteration, though it appears that some time has passed since last month's issue. The effect is that out of all of the New 52, this is probably the most hostile to new readers. But then that has always been the case with the Legion: when I started reading it back in the 80s there was a huge cast of characters and tons of back story. I managed to deal with it back then, and I suppose new readers will manage now (on the plus side they have the Internet & Wikipedia; on the minus side, they have to deal with multiple reboots!) This is the classic 'for those of you who like this sort of thing, this is the sort of thing you'll like' comic. Portela's art is nice and at times very busy, but luckily Javier Mena's coloring saves it in places where it otherwise would be hard to distinguish what is happening. And a few more body types would be nice—do Chameleon Boy & Brainiac 5 really need to be so buff? (And a shout-out to the cover by Karl Kerschl, which has an appropriately sci-fi paperback vibe.)

Rating: 3 (of 5).

Monkey Covers

Sunday is Monkey Covers day here at YACB. Because there's nothing better than a comic with a monkey on the cover!

Alien gorillas are invading the Earth, and only one woman can save us on the cover of Weird War Tales #123 (1983) by Joe Kubert.

(Standard disclaimer about invading alien apes not really being monkeys applies.)

Image courtesy of the GCD. Click on the image for a larger version.