The Rebirth Universe... Sounds like a good idea

Well... I don't see the recently restored Elongated Man in there, but I still have to tip my hat to Dan DiDio, Geoff Johns and the rest of the DC guys for this brilliant decision.

The next incarnation of the DC Multiverse seems to be a mix of the New 52 (or the "DCnU") with the pre-Flashpoint multiverse but with some improvements:

• Legacy characters like Ryan Choi or Jaime Reyes work with their predecessors instead of replacing them out of the blue.
• The original Teen Titans generation of sidekicks is restored, with a place for Wally and Donna.
• The golden age superheroes are back and World War II is part of their history again.
• Romance is back. Aquaman and Mera, and Lois and Clark are couples again.
• Love, hope and optimism is allowed again. 

Personally, I think it's an excellent change.

The time might seem odd, but if the grimdarkness of the New 52 was damaging the properties, it was smart to cut it before it does worse.

Some people believe DC to distinguish itself from Marvel, by being "the dark one", but it has only been that way in recent years. Traditionally, DC covers all sorts of genres an tones: comedy, romance, western, war, dark, etc. It became darker as it started imitating the tone of stories like Watchmen or Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, rarely with the same level of success outside its Vertigo imprint.

DC's superheroes were more optimistic than Marvel's during the silver and golden age. Usually more assertive and civic minded. Romance and couplehood isn't new to them either. Hawkman and Hawkgirl marry very soon in every incarnation, the Elongated Man was married by his third appearance, Aquaman married in 1964, followed by the Flash and the Atom.

The Rebirth Universe sounds great. So, let's see where it goes.

DC Universe: Rebirth #1 —Johns's love letter to hope, optimism, and legacy

The first issue of DC Universe: Rebirth is out, and everybody seems to be in love with it. It is yet another revision to the DC Universe continuity, it is driven by nostalgia, and it threatens to commit sacrilege to the most sacrosanct masterpiece of Alan Moore... But with good reason, it was well received.

Rebirth in a nutshell.

The issue, written by Geoff Johns, opens by showing a perfectly good watch clockwork with one bad gear preventing it from working. By the end,

—minor spoiler— 

the gear is fixed. This metaphor is a no-brainer: the DC Universe is all wrong. This first chapter promises to fix the DC Universe and starts by satisfying a demand of many long time fans; more hope and optimism. The metaphor works as a possible presage to the way this series will change the DC Universe.

The Renaissance of the DC Universe.

The narrator of Rebirth criticizes the continuity created in 2011, officially called the New 52 and created after the Flashpoint mini-series. Like all previous continuities, it didn't start with the new origins of each character —those came later—, but with new stories that didn't rely on a baggage of previous stories. It was an efficient introduction for many new readers, but a sacrifice of millions of pages of DC history.

As the past of this new "the New 52" continuity was revealed, long time readers learned that many of their favorite characters and storylines never happened. In the New 52 multiverse sidekicks like Wally West and Donna Troy don't exist, the new versions of the golden age characters like Jay Garrick or Alan Scott are way too different, the Martina Manhunter, the Elongated Man, and Zatanna never belong to the Justice League, Tim Drake barely knows Batman, and so on. Furthermore, all titles lost their numbering, even those that started it in the 1930s. For many readers, the New 52 seemed to be denialism.

One of the inaugural images of the New 52.

Another perceived problem was the excess of violence and pessimism. After Flashpoint (2011, also by Geoff Johns), the first issue of Detective Comics shows the face of the Joker peeled off, the first Red Hood and the Outlaws shows a Starfire with no memoríes or emotional attachment, the first Batman shows a psychopath version of James Gordon Jr. And along with that, many marriages and love relationships (Arthur and Mera, Lois and Clark, Ollie and Dinah) ceased to exist.

This is what is at stake in Rebirth.

Wally West narrates the story (no spoiler there) and he talks about all the hope and optimism that was lost after Flashpoint. Not that things were exactly happy after Identity Crisis (2004), but all the previous DC history was still there. In Rebirth, the cause is recovering DC's legacy.

Geoff Johns also did Infinite Crisis in 2005, which is also about the perception of the DC Universe as a pessimistic dark place, only that time the guy who wanted to restore hope and optimism, Superboy Prime, was the villain and a parody of nostalgic fanboys. In Flashpoint nostalgia and legacy is perceived and celebrated as a good thing, something that the heroes want.

The identity of the antagonist of the story, of course, is a meta-commentary on Watchmen (Alan Moore, 1986) and it's influence on comics. This raises many questions. Is the story actually blaming the pessimism on it? Will Rebirth keep the point of Watchmen? This seems like a cliffhanger of the 1966 Batman show ("Tune in tomorrow. Same Bat-time, same Bat-channel, same Bat-peril") with Watchmen in Geoff's trap, but it's too soon to think negatively. Dealing with that franchise and its characters is a complex task, we will see if Johns is able to pull it in the upcoming issues.

 As a first act, it offers previews of Ted Kord and Ray Palmer having Jaime Reyes and Ryan Choi as their protegees instead of their replacements, as well as a promise to bring back the golden-agers, and love relationships. This is what is at stake for the rest of the series.

As a story it is fine. As it usually happens in Johns's stories there is a lot of emphasis on father-and-son issues, on the stuff that heroes remember as absolutely great or terribly tragic, and on how they have their hearts in the right place and they overcome after school special bullies.

DC Universe: Rebirth #1 isn't a Moorean masterpiece, but an effective hit with lots of teasing and a long expected editorial message of optimism and hope. It works fine as a story but excellent as a mission statement.

Hope, optimism and legacy.

THEY ARE BACK! THE DIBNYS ARE FINALLY BACK!!

Well, it finally happened. It was a very pleasant surprise, a perfectly satisfying return and… I didn’t have the time to report it.
Anyway, the Dibnys are back and just as we remember them. Literally, since these are not the New 52 versions but the ones from the 80s Earth-One.
As part of the Convergence crossover, Ralph, Sue and the entire Justice League roster of the Detroit incarnation are back in  Convergence: Justice League of America #1,  written by Fabian Nicieza.

Convergence: Justice League of America #1

The issue is part of a longer story and doesn’t stand alone. Which means there will be more of our favorite couple. The best part of this is that Sue is the POV character, so, predictably, Ralph will be the hero of the whole story.
A great surprise is that Fabian gets the characters just right. They feel just like Nick and Nora Charles, which is actually a great improvement over most of their original appearances (Justice League Quarterly #6, being the most notable exception). If in the next issues he solves a mystery, we would have the full deal.
If this wasn’t good enough, according to the USA Today article about this issue “Fabian Nicieza is eagerly awaiting the call to do a monthly detective comic book featuring Ralph and Sue Dibny”. That would be great news. I don’t know how serious is that, but I found that so exciting that I even went to Dan DiDio´s facebook wall to congratulate him on the decision. Fabian clearly gets the characters and the current DC line could definitively use a book like that.
As soon as I read the whole JLA Detroit story in Convergence, I will write a review here.

UPDATE 

The mystery of how the actual heroes are not on the cover.

The second part of "Heroes Interrupted" in Convergence: Justice League of America #2 is even greater than the first. Well, at least for Ralph and Sue.

Finally a story that revindicates the Elongated Man as a JLAer!

...Just not on this panel.

The story make a nice showcase of Ralph's fighting abilities. He is basically all around stretching more than he ever did on a JLA book.

The issue also focuses on his skills; however, in this case, it isn't on him as a detective, but as a strategist and a field leader.
In addition to being the POV character, Sue also becomes the problem solver, along with an anachronistic Detective Renee Montoya (she debuted in 1992 as a regular cop in blue). Sue didn't actually started to take initiatives like that until Justice League Europe #9, when she helped save Power Girl.

The downside of so much Dibny focus, to be fair, is that the rookies are not really showcased. The story could have used about 5 pages to focus on the fight of the Justice Leaguers against the Secret Six after spreading. However, this isn't really a bad thing, the story is clearly about the Dibnys: it shows how Ralph and Sue can do a lot with very little. 

This image says it all!
Enlarge if you don't mind spoilers.

New Elongated Articles

Hi, everyone,

I've been really busy with work and life in general, and it seems that the situation is going to stay like that for a long while. Luckily, other bloggers have not forgotten about Ralph and Sue.

WTF, DC? Elongated Man/Digital Comics

Whoever writes WTF, DC?  decided to do a nice recap of the Dibny tragedies and their current status. A pretty neat job; the auhor nailed all the highlights and reminded us that DC still owes us an explanation: Why?

Why indeed.

Perhaps that was intended as a saga that never materialized. Perhaps TPTW were not Dibny fans. We're unlikely to get to know now.

I agree that Identity Crisis put the Dibnys on the map. And that was front and center in a way that I don't think they have ever been. Barry went with a bang on Crisis on Infinite Earths, Hal did the same on Zero Hour and somehow, the JLI's comic relief got his moment as well. After that, Blue Beetle II, and Booster Gold followed. However, despite the peak moments of fame that those stories provided for their protagonists, they normally don't sit well with their fans, which is why Barry and Hal eventually returned and why people like the author of WTF, DC? still expect the return of Ralph, Sue and Ted in the New 52.

If I had to do some constructive criticism on the article, I'd say it needs to go back a bit more, before JLI, when Ralph became mostly comic relief. His past as supporting cast of Flash, mystery solver and the idea guy of the JLA (mostly after Batman left) could have been mentioned.

DC Couples

Here's an interesting pick of four of the most iconic and solid DC couples.

As far as I can track it's origin, the original poster of this image seems to be Mecha Rebekah, from Tumblr. Maybe she drew it too.

A bio thingy

Frank Diabolu just sent me this. He received it from Shag. Further than that, which is not much, I have no idea of its origins. Enjoy it, anyway.

25  characters still missing from the New 52

And finally, here's a list of characters that still need to return in the new DC continuity. After even Year One has gone out the window, the common opinion seems to be that the new Ralph and Sue should just pop up with a somewhat clean story. I insist, detective fiction sells greatly on TV and books, so, it should do fine in comics (more so now that DC has no couples).

The Enigma of the Elongated Man and the rest of the missing characters!

#1 & #21 of Buxton's list. Chunk, btw, is yeat another missing Flash character.

Den of Geek's Marc Buxton has written a fine list of the missing characters in the new DCU, which puts the Elongated Man's situation in perspective. Check it out at http://www.denofgeek.us/books-comics/45461/25-characters-still-missing-from-the-dc-new-52

And now, for something really special...

The same whining, but in Spanish.

Like any decent geek with self respect, I love to waste time googling useless trivia. If that's not glamouros enough, you can picture me laying in my sloppy bed wearing boxers and a sweat shirt and balancing a bottle of mayo and breadsticks in my belly before my lap. You can add some 20 kg to my belly to make it more dramatic. (Just kidding).
Anyway, in my case, the useless trivia I love to google is the possibility of Ralph and Sue's return. Which is sort of becoming a thing in some circles. The DC Message Boards has at least a couple of threads (that I didn't start), CBR has The Elongated Man: Where is he in the new DC?  , and among the bloggers, The Fellowship of the Geeks has For What It's Worth: Dear DC, Please Bring Back Elongated Man , DC Comics Fan Blog had The Elongated Man, Pendragon's Post made and erased a couple of post that generated an official facebook reply from Mattel's people.  Among the toy collectors upset that the Ralphster doesn't seem to be getting a figure for the DC Universe Classics collection, The Fwoosh has Elongated Man Support Thread, and Bleeding Cool made an article about the controversy. To my surprise, the whole "where's Ralph" thing has crossed the language barrier, now being noticed by Spanish speaking fans. "El Hijo de Chuck Norris", from Multiverseros, asks "Dónde está Ralph Dibny?":

"En 2004, una miniserie escrita por Brad Meltzer quiso demostrar que los héroes de DC también son humanos (al menos los que lo son), pero destruyó la hermosa pareja formada por Ralph y Sue Dibny. Con tantos relanzamientos, ¿no sería hora de arreglarlo?"

I.e.:

"In 2004, a miniseries written by Brad Meltzer wanted to demonstrate that the heroes of DC are also humans (at least those who are), but it destroyed the beautiful couple formed by Ralph and Sue Dibny. With so many relaunches, wouldn't it be good to fix that?"

To read more on the topic, well, you can read the stack of articles I've done on the matter; but if you also want to see if some Spanish sticks with you for a change, read Chucky Jr.'s full article, "Donde está Ralph Dibny?".

I wonder if there are articles in French. Maybe DC will listen when the complains start being written in German. Every thing sounds tougher in German.

...

Wo ist die Längliche Mann?!!
...
Nein, Nein, Nein!!!

The Elongated Man and Wife: Embargoed?!

As I mentioned before, the Dibnys had a brief period of hype from 2003 to 2004; however, since 2007 they have been making less and less appearances. I'm talking comics, animation and action figures. For a while, I have been suspecting that the respectable DC powers that be were avoiding him, and now I just learned something that seems to back that. Brian "Pendragon" Isaacs posted this at his blog:

"I got a chance to talk to Scott [Neitlich, AKA Toy Guru, from Mattel] at New York Comic Con about when, we the fans will be seeing Ralph in action figure form. If DC Comics has anything to say about it, it’ll be never.

"For those who don’t know, or can’t tell, Scott himself is a comic fan, and a big fan of the JLA Satellite Era. He went to bat for us collectors and got shot down. Mattel’s hands are tied, as this is a license they have to pay for.

"DC Comic’s reasoning…They don’t feel Ralph is a significant character, not deserving of an action figure, and don’t want to invest any more money into him."

(Read the full article at his blog).

Why indeed. Their importance is being recognized both by Flash and Geoff Johns, but what's the point to this scene? Why leaving the Dibnys out of this scene if there were not going to be part of another story? 

I once managed to get a direct confirmation from Dan DiDio that there are no plans for the Dibnys; however, according to Brian, this has nothing to do with him or Jim Lee, this one comes from upstairs.

Brian's proposal is to have a respectful letter writing campaign, asking to make the Dibnys part of the DCnU and Mattel's DC Universe Classics collection (I'll add DC Universe Online and Young Justice). So please spend $.44 on a stamp and send your letters to:

Diane Nelson
President
DC Comics
1700 Broadway # 7
New York, NY 10019-5905

It's also important to spread the word and figure out other strategies to get Ralph back. Remember that we should avoid pointing fingers; disrespect won't get us anywhere.

Here are some reasons to restore Ralph and Sue:

• He was a member of the 3 first incarnations of the Justice League and was one of the longest staying member (about 20 years). At one point around the mid 90s, he was the member with the longest mileage. Not even Lois belongs to the JL, Sue became bureau chief (this means control outside the field, like Max).

• They are a silver age legacy. Their most important stories were handled directly by Julius Schwartz, John Broome, Gardner Fox and Carmine Infantino. Len Wein put Ralph in the League, Keith Giffen in JLI, Mike W. Barr created the modern version and Mark Waid and Grant Morrison gave him his ultimate mystery.  
• They are both basic to the Flash (Barry) mythos, which is not that rich without the Gallery. During the first decade of Barry, only Iris and Wally were more recurring than Ralph (Mirror Master matched him when he got his 'tec feature). Barry's supporting cast are basically Iris, Wally, the Allens, Dexter Myles, Hal, Fiona and the Dibnys. They were on his last thoughts before he "died" and on his first thoughts after Brightest Day. 

• The Elongated Man is a Detective Comics classic. He had the most recurring feature after Slam and the Martian Manhunter. 

• The Dibnys belong to DC's top social circle. They knew the secret identity of anybody who's somebody (Bruce, Clark, Diana) and double dated with the Allens, the Halls, the Palmers, the Stranges, Ollie and Dinah.

• Ralph offers diversity to the DC pantheon. He's the only hero that truly represents the classic detective genre (which TV still capitalizes in series like House, Monk, the Mentalist, the Murdock Mysteries, etc.). He's one o the few heroes that never lost the lighthearted spirit of the Silver Age. Just read the first 5 issues of his 'tec run, no DC couple has ever been as charming as the Dibnys. They are like Mad About You, The Dick Van Dyke Show and Columbo rolled into one.

• They are not obscure yet, much less with their notoriety from Identity Crisis, Formerly Known as the Justice League and 52. 

•  If Morrison pulled a series lead by Animal Man, a detective superhero modeled after Nick Charles and Sherlock Holmes writes itself. Just get DeMatteis, Barr, Dixon, Giffen, Morrison or Waid on it, I know as a fact that all of them love those characters.
• If the Japanese managed to make a franchise out of a stretchable pirate who gets his powers from a fruit (Luffy D. Monkey from One Piece), I think a ductile detective superhero set in the DC Universe has great chances.
• Ralph makes crowd scenes look pretty cool.

And that's right, Timm and McDuffie thought he's awesome enough to go against DC's toughest villain! 

Update - 10 / 24 / 11

Scott Neitlich released the following statement on his Facebook page:

"Okay. 100% not true. I must have made a statement (as has always been the case) reconfirming that, yes, it is still true that DC and Warner Bros has final say on our character selection, but in no way have they ever bared us from doing a character like Elongated Man! "In fact just the opposite; DC and Warner Bros. have been amazing partners, always helping us to push the limit on character selection like Lobo in JLU and Swamp Thing in DCUC!
"Ralph is in no way off limits. In fact we have already done him several times. We even did an Elongated Man figure in JLU in an outfit he didn’t even wear on the show. That is how cool he is. There always seems to be one figure “we haven’t gotten to yet” that fans have thoughts was off limits or wasn’t going to happen. Be it Martian Manhunter, Flash 1 or now Elongated Man. The answer is always; just because your favorite figure is not out yet does not mean he or she won’t be in the line one day, keep your suggestions coming!
If any websites reported a quote from me stating the opposite, I did not give any sit down interviews at NYCC, so this “quote” may have been strung together from different things orally overheard in the booth to different people. No statement of this type was officially announced or provided by Mattel or given to any site as a quote or interview. It sounds like it is a misinterpretation of a few things overheard in passing and then attributed (falsely) to me as a direct quote.
"Hope this clears this one up! Ralph is not banned in the least and we are really excited to get to him one day!"

The whole thing was the top trending topic on Sunday at Bleeding Cool, its own Mark Seifert said:

"The Elongated Man too obscure to have a new action figure? I don’t think so.  First, there’s an excellent case to be made that there are no insignificant characters in post-internet comic book fandom — I mean, Geoff Johns could turn him into one of the stars of the New 52 by ground hog day, if he wanted to.  And second, he’s not an obscure character at all.  A classic of the Silver Age and beyond.

I hope that's true. Ralph and Sue's absence in the DCnU, DC Universe Online, Young Justice's Justice League and even in the DC Universe Classics still makes me glad I wrote that letter and I hope other Elogated Man fans do the same. Ralph is still absent without a reason.

For more information, go read the  "The Mattel - DCUC - Elongated Man quagmire" at Comics-X-aminer, or read the Toy Guru's original facebook note.

Update - 10 / 26 / 11
Friend of this blog, Frank Diabolu, from the Justice League Detroit blog (among other awesome blogs, like The Idol-Head of Diabolu) noticed that the Elongated Man pic from the Bleeding Cool post about the embargo is the same that he modified from a Kevin Nowan image from 52, week 13 for his blog and that I kind of stole for this blog:

Which makes it very possible that Rich Johnston, author of that post, was tipped by this very blog before reading the original and now deleted post from Pendragon. So, if I'm right, Rich, you're welcomed, ha, ha.

Update - 10 / 26 / 11

It turns out that the outcries for Ralph and Sue's return started a bit earlier, and that the clamor is not only for action figures. Roughly at the same time, while Brian "Pendragon" Isaacs was encouraging people to demand the Elongated Man action figure, Robert Eddleman, from Panels on Pages, wrote a column asking DC to use the Reboot possibilities in favor or the Dibnys, restoring them among the living. In his words Retcon This! The Deaths of Ralph & Sue Dibny, a thought that I couldn't support more.  

Update - Nov 21, 2011

Comics Nexus confirms that DiDio claims there are no plans for Ralph Dibny.

According to John Babos, DC Comics Co-Publisher, Dan DiDio conirmed on Facebook that there are no plans for Ralph Dibny, Ted Kord and Garth (Aqualad). 

A while ago I managed to get the same confirmation from him.

This is doesn't mean that they are gone forever, but at leat that, for the time being, DC's Co-Publisher claims (he could be misleading people) that there are no plans for them. He didn't say that they are gone forever.

  

The best of the new 52: October 2011

I have no idea about the number of issues that DC is going to release this month, and since I have no intention of finding out, I will still call them the "new 52". Anyway, here are my reviews:

Wonder Woman #2
My rating: 9.5 out of 10

I fell in love with this issue from page one. Azzarello clearly knows how to tell Greek mythology type of stories, and his gods are fascinating. Cliff Chiang art is just as cool. He makes those god physically intriguing, not to mention that the rest of the art consists of beautiful women, a sophisticated style and terrific compositions. Mathew Wilson also has to be mentioned. Colors are usually a given, but in this case, they really stand out and contribute to the mood.
So far, this series is a must. It's literally becoming legend--
--dary. Azzarello is making Wonder Woman's mythos bigger than life.

Action Comics #2

My rating: 9 out of 10.
I actually liked it better than the first one. In the previous issue, Lex helped the U.S. Army capture Superman, in this one, he is helping them "test" the resistance of Superman (ie, inhuman, anti-constitutional, torture). The characterization is great: Luthor's apathetic sadism steals the show; however, Superman, Lois and Sam are very interesting too. Rags Morales is doing the art (which is great as always), consequently they feel even more compelling and human. Morrison is pulling the same type of origin story Bruce Timm did in Superman: The Animated Series, in which a number of villains are tied to the first adventure of Superman. Incidentally, The Last Son of Krypton also ties Luthor, Metallo and Brainiac, only Grant is adding Sam Lane and John Henry Irons to the mix. Along with the previous issue, thi one forms a self contained story that serves as an introduction to a longer story arc; additionally, it leaves enough loose ends to leave us totally hooked.

OMAC #2
My rating: 9 out of 10.

For whatever that's worth, it's not that hard to rank hi in this list; writers that actually complete a story in their issues get a great head start. In this case, OMAC faces a new threat and defeats it without isolating the story from the overall story arc (which seems considered quintessential to DC suits these days). Additionally, both Giffen's art and his co-writing with Dan DiDio, feel refreshingly retro without making the dialog hard to follow for modern audiences. I love the caption boxes, specially the one with the editor's note (they should do that in all of the 52).
With the previous issue I said that it feels like a cross between the Hulk and Freakazoid! That doesn't change with #2; however, the creative team added a tone that makes it feel like the Bill Bixby Hulk TV series of the 70s.
The only bit that might cloud my judgement is turning Maxwell Lord into a villain. However, maybe he'll go from villain to hero this time around, which is something that I'd love.

Frankenstein, agent of SHADE #2
My rating: 9 out of 10.

Great action , intiguing backstories and we get to a point. This customer is satisfied.
Classic Universal monsters against creatures from another dimension, how B-list is that! Frankenstain feels like a cross of Hellboy with the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and something with Vin Dissel on it. Lemire is the Tarantino of comics; he knows that he can take any genre and make it cool as hell! Go buy it... Now!!


Swamp Thing #2

My rating: 9 out of 10.

Ok, the plot thickens. Basically we learn the nature of the evil that appeared in the first issue. It is an entity known as the Sethe, responsible all plagues throughout history. It is the anti-thesis of "the green", a realm that connects the minds of all plants and that created the Swamp Things precisely to fight it. I get the impression that, like Morrison in Action Comics, writer Scott Snyder is pretty good at dosing us information so that there's plenty of mystery to keep us hooked. We get a clear picture on the status quo of Dr. Alec Holland and the threat that he's facing; however, there are a couple of surprise twists that complicate things and we are still clueless about the way Swamp Thing is going to save the day.

Yanick Paquette's clean yet grotesque art fits perfectly the mood of this book. Comics are not normally good at hiding the face of  the evil being like horror movies (artists seem desperate to draw ugly monsters), but Paquette's art is as good as it gets in that sense.
The pacing is good, but it is still one of those books in which you sense that nothing really happened. I'm sure I would rate this story better as a trade.

Animal Man #2
My rating: 9 out of 9.

We explore the weird blood stains that appeared on Animal Man's body as well as the odd powers that his daughter, Maxine, showed at the end of the last issue. They both seem related to a real called 'the red', which seems like the animal kingdom's equivalent of 'the green' (see the Swamp Thing #2 review). Maxine is somehow aware of it; she recognized her father's blood stains as a map of it and took him there. Additionally, something weird is happening with the animals of the San Diego zoo (which seems related to the threat that Swamp Thing is facing).
There's great characterization in this one. I love the family drama that Lemire created here; average writers should take notes: We don't need to have rape, infidelity, murder or psychopathic behavior as the source of drama among the supporting cast, the simple fact that they live with a guy that is risking his life on a daily basis is more than enough. The great thing about Travel Foreman's art is that it is very detailed but it feels like he is not trying to make things appealing at all, which gives it a lot of character. It's clinical style it also very effective when it comes to illustrating the eerie bits. I can tell that this is going t form part of a great story; however, it doesn't really stand alone as an issue.

Justice League Dark #2
My rating: 8.5 out of 10.

There's great art and the story is really interesting. How does a couple satisfy their needs when one of them is a ghost who can possess people? However, there's too little going on. Maybe this will read a lot better as a trade.

Batman #2
My rating: 8.5 out of 10.

This issue follow the patented Snyder formula: small talk about something that is familiar to the main character, a bizarre mystery, a bit of action, new faces, and the introduction of a very dark, mysterious and mean villain. In this case, gargoyles, a murder victim with tooth filling with the logo of some "court of owls" legend (that somehow the missed), Batman stopping some thieves or whatever in a train, a politician that is an orphan like Bruce, and some huge ninja with a costume that resembles a black owl and survives great damage.  It's well written, but I don't feel like I'm getting something new. When it comes to Batman, new weirdos rarely do the trick. Some of my favorite Batman: The Animated Series episodes had very new odd situations and, to everyone's surprise, the villain would end up being one of the old  guys: the Mad Hatter, the Scarecrow and Spellbinder were the kings of this (there was another planed with Hugo Strange), but it was also pulled with the Joker and Two-face a couple of times. Snyder is trying to hard to stuff the rogues gallery, why not taking the dust off of guys like the Tweedles or Sterling Silvermith?


The Penguin: Pain and Prejudice #1

My rating: 8 out of 10.
In this book, we learn about the story of the Penguin and the person he became because of that: hated by everybody but his mother he became a nasty, hateful crime boss. It feels like a decent introduction for a 5-part mini series.
Taking his cue from Joker's Asylum: The Penguin, Greg Hurwitz is doing at least part what I've always said that should be done with the Penguin: to portray him as a histrionic bastard raised by a spoiling mother. Histrionic people are self-obsessed, hyperactive, manipulative and neurotic brats, with no empathy or conscience. In other words, the Penguin is the Eric Cartman of Gotham, and, if portrayed properly, he has the same chances of protagonism. Burgess Meredith, proved that, if portrayed this way, the character can even steal the Joker's thunder.  
Where I feel this story is failing, is with the dark comedy; there are tons of darkness, but no comic tone. Why am I insisting with comedy? When one is not dealing directly with them, histrionic people can be quite funny, and charming (which is why the Penguin managed to run for mayor a couple of times in the past). That is how they become overachievers. As the art indicates, this version is just too tragic and dark. The bit with the vengeance from the guy that called him fat was a bit too much, considering how trivial the offence was. It doesn't work if we're supposed to believe that the Penguin is the top crime boss of Gotham. Turning the glasses into a monocle was a bit silly as well. 

Aquaman #2
My rating: 7.5 out of 10.

There we go. Cloying emotional scenes, nothing gets done... I had the gut feeling that this series was not going to be good enough. I don't understand how are we suposed to get impressed with Aquaman if his powers are finally portrayed right, but the dialog keeps making excuses for his lack of fame? The narrative and art is spectacular, it feels like a great blockbuster, but it also feels like we're getting a piece of that blockbuster every month, which is something I do not like. Nothing is achieved in this issue and I can't really tell if the story is going to be any good.
I don't get it, if DC wants slow and impressive pacing, they should publish more graphic novels not a bunch of issues with nothing on them!

Justice League #2
My rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Superman acts like an idiot, Green Lantern and Batman call the Flash to fight him. They come to their senses and start focusing on the mysterious boxes left by the parademons. The box they have, along with another one in Start Labs actvate and transport a buch of parademons. That's basically it. Uh, and Cyborg's origin story is shoved into that last scene. So far, we arely have a JLU teaser scene.
I don't undestand it; Lee is very slow to produce his impressive art... and Johns wastes it in a couple of issues with nothing happening?
Also, the story of Cyborg is cloying, corny and feels like a lame after school special. I'm betting that he's going to be some sort of canon Mary Sue. And let me get this, his father is a scientist at STAR labs, he has coworkers that are experts on health, and yet, he talks about fitness as obsolete? I can already imagine the Carebears ending next issue, with the JL, the Parademons and Vic's old man holding hands and chanting "We Care" to fix Cyborg.

Batgirl #2
My rating: OK.

Batgirl chases some villain who murders people who survived terrible accidents just because he did just that. He is a big and strong villain, like a bit of a lesser Batman, nothing noteworthy. I'm sure I'll forget all about him after the next adventure. However, this Barbara feels too clumsy and weak when she fights him; as if even the wheelchair-bound Babs from the previous continuity could take her. The supporting cast seems a bit cloying, the art is indifferently good. The good part is that we have the witty and practical Babs back. Now with a bit more of life experience after surviving the Joker.  

Huntress #1

My rating: Meh.
Forget about it. It's not a bad-bad story, but it's hard to care about it. Women traffic is an interesting real-life issue and yet, Paul Levitz presents it as if they were traffickin cows. How about a little back story sketch of one of those girls, like in that Liam Neeson movie? And the rest is the same Huntress is just some bimbo fighting crime (ugg, and not even a decent bimbo - they are covering all her sking again) and the "big bad" is just some Italian dude that kills any henchman that fails (great, another Black Mask wannabe). No backstory for any of them either, which means this story also fails as an introduction. Yes, it might get better the next issue, but that wouldn't make this one any less boring.

Related articles:

• The Best of the New 52 - September 2011 

The Dibnys and the new Crisis-Free DC Universe!

From Newsarama.com
By Graeme McMillan
October 3rd, 2011

"Add this to the mild-confusion over continuity in the new DC Universe: No Crisis event has taken place in the New 52niverse. Or, at least, so said Dan DiDio on Facebook over the weekend:

"This doesn’t just knock out Crisis on Infinite Earths and Infinite Crisis, but also Zero Hour, Final Crisis and, potentially, Identity Crisis, which opens up all manner of new possibilities for characters and storylines for creators to play with. Perhaps understandably, DiDio was forced to clarify this statement a day later:

"What I really want to know is, does this mean that Ralph and Sue Dibny are still alive now? Because, if so, I really, really want to see them have their own strip in DC Universe Presents sooner rather than later".

I somehow I don't think the Dibnys are going to get lucky. At least not anytime soon. Don't ask me how, but I know as a fact that DiDio says that he has no plans for them. For some reason, I think he doesn't like them (albeit it seemed the same way with Aquaman - and look at him now!). Then again, I managed to ask their opinion to 3 or 4 of really talented writers and they prefer the real deals to come back instead of the detective ghosts.

Please, read the original article and its reply posts at Newsarama (DC Comics: Crisis-Free Since 2011).

Update - October 6th, 2011

Cyriaque Lamar, from io9.com, just published 10 "Crises" We Won’t Miss Now That The DC Universe Rebooted Itself, an article sharing interesting thoughts on the negative aspects that won't be missed from the Crises events. Sue gets to be the negative aspect #4:



4.) Sue Dibny Gets Thrown Under The Bus
"Sue Dibny was the plucky, no-nonsense wife of Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man.



Not an image I like either.



"For a long while, Sue and Ralph were a goofy couple who were mostly used for comic relief. But in 2004's Identity Crisis, Sue was brutally murdered in the first issue.



"Readers next discovered in the second issue that Sue had been secretly raped by Dr. Light, a bumbling doofus supervillain. If you're confused as to why this was a big deal, replace the names "Sue Dibny" with "Mary Tyler Moore" and "Dr. Light" with "Abbott and Costello." Now you know why absolutely nobody liked Identity Crisis".

Please, go to io9 to read the full article. 

The best of the new 52

POLL: "The best of the new 52"
I have to say, personally, I find more uncomfortable changes about the DCnU than cool ones. However, I'm not going to get into that ranting now; instead, I'm going to recommend the best stories I read of the "new 52". Whether we like the DC reboot or not, some stories are good and some are bad. Here is my ranking of the best issues:

10. Justice League Dark
My rating: 8 of 10.

I'm not sure about the concept. It reminds me of those themed Justice League teams they made for a 2001 story. Having heroes with diverse backgrounds and powers is kind of the point of Justice League. Having said that, this story feels like it's going to be good, but like Aquaman #1 and most of the 52, this first issue doesn't stand alone. We do get to see more than two of the members gather (take that, Justice League #1!) and the introduction of an interesting threat that justifies a team like this, though.

9. Aquaman

My rating: 8 out of 10.
I can't believe it, but Geoff Johns did it once again. Aquaman #1 might have that fanfic aftertaste that characterizes its writer, long with the feeling that nothing happened; however, it feels really solid and it got my attention. This is the cool Aquaman portrayal I've been waiting for ages. He's not just some guy who talks with fishes, but a true superhuman king. I just wish he didn't have the bitter attitude. If it were a perfect world maybe he wouldn't be like the version from Batman: The Brave and the Bold, but he would be a bit like Destruction (from the Endless).

8. Action Comics

My rating: 8.5 out of 10.
Grant Morrison is taking Superman back to the basics. The new Action Comics #1 echoes the original one of 1938, showing a Superman that makes no apologies to fight injustice and corruption and a Clark Kent that still has a lot of character to develop. In a role that echoes his cameo in Alan Moore's Swamp Thing #52 and 53, Lex Luthor is introduced as the idea man who helps the army to take down Superman. We also get the start of his envy of Superman. All in all, this issue didn't blew my mind, or showed something unseen before, bu it is definitively a nice setting for the rest of the series.

7. Superman

My rating: 8.5 out of 10
An old hallmark building is not demolished (never) but sold, changing the timeline can't possibly make white people black and I'm already tired of the drama that we're going to have between Lois and Clark before they move in together. With that being said, Superman #1 is a terrific issue. It completed an adventure, worked as a great story arc hook and introduced Clark Kent's world. The rest of the 52 rarely accomplished the three things. The story focuses on the new Daily Planet and its coverage of a fight between Superman and a strange alien; and while doing so, George Perez took the classic Superman supporting cast to the modern world.


6. O.M.A.C.

8.5 out of 10.
Keith Giffen and Dan DiDio rock! This book is pure Kirby fun. It mixes all previous versions of O.M.A.C., a bit of TVs Freakazoid! and some Hulk, which is probably why it feels like a Kirby power punch. This is the only book that truly stands on its own. Yes, it leaves a lot of unresolved issues, but it freaking feels like a complete story, something I didn't get from any of the other issues I've read so far. The story is basically about the mysterious O.M.A.C. hurricaning his way through Cadmus in order to get some secret files for Brother Eye. We learn that the blue hulk is Kevin Kho, a nerdy researcher for Cadmus who is dating his coworker, Jody Robbins. The rest is intelligently left as the mystery that will get us to buy the next issue.

5. Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.



My rating: 8.5 out of 10
Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #1 presents a world that is as much of a pastiche as the body of the main character itself. This campy cocktail includes classic and modern horror, battle, disaster, super spy fiction and super science; so, what's not to love? This issue we learn about the Super Human Advanced Defense Executive (S.H.A.D.E.), a really weird super government organization that manages a network of strange creatures (the Creature Commandos) who take care of super natural situations. Once the introduction is over (as simple as that sounds, a lot of the new 52 didn't get past that) this issue truly delivers the sensation that the survival of the World depends on the super bad-ass Frankenstein and his awesome team.

4. Wonder Woman

My rating: 9 out of 10.
I've waited so long for the Wonder Woman title to be great! The only reason this issue doesn't go higher in my rank is because it felt a tad short. The storytelling is solid, bold and interesting. Azzarello just made Wonder Woman rock by setting her in a very contemporary world that is still being manipulated by creepy and menacing supernatural forces from Greek mythology and by presenting her as a seasoned warrior that can defeat them. I know this had been done before, but this time you can't take the supernatural for granted. She's not a strong woman anymore, she's just strong, period. Strong compared to men, women or gods. You name it, this Wondie is going to kick its butt, so go buy it... Now, b*tch!
...Sorry, I got carried away.

3. Swamp Thing

My rating: 9 out of 10.
This issue makes it official for me: Scott Snyder is the king of horror and suspense, and the master of creepy introductions. Swamp Thing allows his macabre tales to finally go supernatural within the world of DC and, contrary to Batman #1, this time he skips the introductions to go straight to the first mystery of the series, which is masterfully presented. After resurrecting, a more cynical and pessimistic Alec Holland is dealing with his new life - a one day at a time sort of deal. He is not the ecologist he used to be. Meanwhile, the world is plagued by a really bizarre and eerie force that could give the Linda Blair a run for her money.

2. Animal Man

My rating: 9.5 out of 10.
Writer Jeff Lemire and artist Travel Foreman are people to watch. I applaud DC for picking this creative team. They are reinfusing DC line with the good old postmodernism that was lost when a number of properties became Vertigo territory in the mid 90s. Following the tradition established by Morrison with the original series, Animal Man #1 mixes elements of horror, suspense and action to present the life of Buddy Baker, a "regular" Joe that has to balance his everyday family issues with the hard and frequently surreal situations and dilemmas he faces as a superhero. Foreman plays with the format to take away the typical sense of balance we would get from conventional comic art.
In this issue, we learn that Buddy has reached fame as an environmental activist / actor / superhero, and that he is not quite sure about the career path he should take. He has not been very active as a superhero, but he goes on to save the day after hearing a report, anyway. However, in the process, he finds out that really strange things are going on with his powers and with his daughter, Maxine, who develops her own.

1. Batman

My rating: 9.5 out of 10.
Scott Snyder takes us for a full joy ride of the Batman universe. In a single issue he delivered a fight against most of Batman's rogues gallery, a couple of twists, a new situation, a mystery, and introduction to most of the supporting, a description of Gotham City and a the start of a new story arc. If the homework for the writers of the new 52 was to produce 52 comic book issues that introduce new readers to the DCnU and leave them hooked along with old readers, Snyder aced it with Batman #1.

Other readings that were decent or OK for me were:

• Stormwatch: 7.5 out of 10, your typical recruitment story with another otherworldly threat. However, I think it delivers and that its very well worth a shot.
• Demon Knights: 7.5 out of 10. The story was OK, but I thin Paul Cornell got most of his ideas from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. In my mind I was hearing its music in my mind the whole time - maybe that's why Jason Blood (the bearer of the Demon) and Madame Xanadu didn't seem to use horses. The baby scene reminded me of this:
• Batgirl: 7 out of 10. I liked the new take. Barbara Gordon can once again start his career as a tap dancer. -- Wait!... I'm being told she used to be a superhero / librarian, not a tap dancer. So, just eliminate the mental image of the tap dancing ginger. Anyway, Gail Simone used DC's universal timeline alteration to imagine a compelling comeback for Barbara as Batgirl, complete with the challenge that victims from extremely violent crimes usually suffer. Perhaps this was what Alan Moore originally had in mind for her after making the Joker shoot her in The Killing Joke. 
• Justice League: 6.5 out of 10. Yes, wonderful art, great cinematic scenes, but this is barely more than a teaser, which doesn't really work for 22 pages. As an issue, it feels exactly like this:

         I think the South Park kids truly have the same reaction as most of te JL fans, though.

• Justice League International: 6.5 out of 10. When people read "Justice League International", they expect to see campy and maybe surreal superheroics with tons of great sitcom type of humor. However, since DC seems to have something against humor after 2004, this time we only get a bunch of talking bureaucrat heads and a generic superhero team. I trust Jurgens, so I wouldn't be surprised if it gets better, though.

For different reasons each, I strongly recommend avoiding Catwoman, Detective Comics, Red Hood and the Outlaws - since I don't like to rant in this blog, I won't bother you with the details.

One flaw that I bet DC didn't see coming was the number of mysterious threats that are happening at the same time: the Swamp Thing plague, the Aquaman creatures, the Frankenstein creatures, the Greek gods thing in Wonder Woman, whatever is going on in the Outlaws, the Justice League Dark things, the Stormwatch cosmic menace, etc. The theme was a bit more repetitive with the Dark line of comics. I hate huge crossovers, but would be a bit more credible under an overall event that is related to the Mayan Apocalypse of 2012.

In general, all the issues that I've read seem to follow a similar format. We get a general introduction to the main characters, their setting and to the story of a first arc, leaving in a cliffhanger. I find extremely disappointing that there seems to be no stand alone issues and that a lot of issues don't even finish with the introduction. A constant problem that I'm seeing, perhaps due to the influence of Brightest Day and Justice League: Generation Lost, is that a lot of issues are mere teasers in which little happens. I understand that they are thinking about the way they are going to look when they compile them as trades, but the single issue format demands that, whether it is part of a longer story or not, it has a three act structure (setup, confrontation, resolution) so that the readers get something out of it. Multiple part stories in a comic book shouldn't feel like a mere story that has been elongated and randomly split. Each issue should be an adventure, even if it's part of an arc. Take any trades of great series like Swamp Thing, Sandman or Animal Man  to see what I mean. I invite everybody to back to The Anatomy Lesson and see how it's done. As Stephen King described them in his introduction to Sandman: Worlds' End, these issues should be "installments in a longer, unified tale", "eggs in a single basket", not bits of an installment or "an egg".

POLL: "The best of the new 52"

Related articles:

• The Best of the New 52 - October 2011