Detective Comics #1000 Review

Writers: Kevin Smith, Warren Ellis, Geoff Johns + many more

Artists: Kelley Jones, Neal Adams, Alex Maleev + many more

Rating: 7 of 8

Detective Comics #1000

Milestones are a very important part of our lives. They help to mark certain days as significant, making them stand out from any other. You mark an anniversary with a card, or a meal, maybe both; while a birthday's got a cake adorned with candles, gifts, cards. So how do you mark comic book milestones? 

Some are marked with more artists, or writers, often with an increased page count. Sometimes they even set up upcoming stories. Detective does a mix of all the above, with Brian Bendis teaming with frequent partner Alex Maleev on a future set tale where an older Penguin informs a silver haired Bruce he knew who Batman really was.

I was both surprised and delighted seeing Bendis' name here and seeing him working with Maleev once more made perfect sense. Both Daredevil and Batman have a similar feel, between darkness, crime and though DD does have a radar sense, they've both a lot power than other heroes. It's a solid story, inked beautifully, with some very good looking villains gathered early on.

Maleev gives us a range of emotions for Cobblepott, between anger, deep thought and satisfaction. I even found myself scared at the angry Penguin, while we got a silent rage from Wayne and even a welcome smile. A story I didn't really enjoy was Christopher Priest's Heretic, on Batman investigating the death of a young Asian man, needing both Dick Grayson's help and Ra's Al Ghul's. The art wasn't really to my taste, preferring the style of others, such as Maleev or Steve Epting. I find other art a bit cleaner, while this has a sketchier style, though Adams has done some very impressive work outside this.

It might've just been this particular plot, how it went, but I wasn't really gripped. There isn't that much to say about Ellis' The Batman's Design, but I will say it flows well, with art that suits the story, even if I don't enjoy it as much as some others this issue. It features Batman taking down a gang, though more enhanced than they usually are, so he doesn't have to hold back to the same degree he usually does. Good story, with a positive ending.

 You'll probably get the feeling I like really good, deep inking reading this and I do. That's certainly on display in Denny O'Neill's Return to Crime Alley, where the Knight returns to the spot where his parents were killed so many years ago. He and Leslie Thompkins talk for a while, before a bunch of youths, one armed, interrupt. It might well have proved an interesting counterpoint to Leslie's argument, or with Wayne's brutality, could've easily proved her right. The story's very well drawn and Batman looks simply amazing here.

 At one point, we see just his head and each side of his cape, above a memory of Joe Chill killing his parents.That very image of him is one we would've seen many times at the top of Detective covers years ago. It's a welcome homage. It's kind of interesting seeing an older Leslie here, especially when in the most recent arc she was a fair bit younger. I feel this story ended a bit earlier than it should've and that there was room for it to continue.

There's a host of other stories, with Batman trying to close his longest case in one, while in another, he assumes his Matches Malone identity to get one of the most important guns there is. But I wanted to talk about the story that closes the issue, which is Medieval.

This issue has not only the privilege of being the 1000th issue, but also of introducing the Arkham Knight to the comics. He was first introduced in the game Batman: Arkham Knight, though I doubt they will be the same person here, as there wouldn't be any surprise for those that played the game. As well as this, the one who was the Knight in the game has another identity here, so it wouldn't make sense if they were the Knight as well. We don't get to see them in action here, but get a lot of their thoughts on Batman and possibly what they intend to do in Gotham. This story's set to continue next issue, so hopefully it does some interesting things with AK and sets him apart from the game's version.  

It's a mixed issue, with some stories not so impressive, while others are really great. It's worth picking up, even if you don't usually read the title. Some stories are enhanced by familiarity with the character, like Kevin Smith's, or Johns', but most work well enough without it.

Spider-Man: Life Story #1 Review

Writer: Chip Zdarsky

Artist: Mark Bagley

Rating: 6 of 8

Spider-Man: Life Story #1 Review

Spider-Man has always been an intriguing character. On one hand, he's got all these powers, like enhanced strength, agility and is able to stick to walls. But at the end of the day, he's still just a man. He worries about his Aunt, tries his best to pay the rent, to do right by his friends, or girlfriend. 

All of these things really add to the web slinger emotionally and make him a character you can really invest in. But after so many years, you might want to add something unique to pull readers in, especially when so many probably have a great deal of familiarity with the character.

Life Story definitely has this going for it, though maybe not as much as I'd like. Peter may have lived through the 60s, 70s and onward, but he didn't age as if he had. This is how it is for most Marvel or DC characters, but here, Peter's set to age as the decades go on, with real life issues like the Cold War and the Vietnam War impacting both his life and that of those around them.

In this issue, Peter's friend, former high school bully Flash Thompson, is heading off to fight in the Vietnam War, which makes him wonder if he should be doing the same, especially with his abilities. Seeing Iron Man fighting there only increases his doubts. The question of whether Captain America will go is raised, which brings up some very interesting discussion between him and Spidey later on.

There's a very welcome chat between Peter and Flash, on how even now, he still struggles to get Thompson as his high school bully out of his mind. Zdarsky offers up some very interesting alternatives to how things might've gone with Gwen Stacy, or Norman Osborn, scenarios I'm surprised haven't been explored before. 

The issue ends on a very exciting, cheer worthy ending, as the Vietnam War takes a very dark turn. When it comes to the artist, I'm used to seeing him drawing a younger Peter with shorter hair, as in Ultimate Spider-Man, so I was curious to see how he'd draw another universe's Peter, who has a fairly different look.

Ultimately, he did a pretty good job, with Peter's hair reminding me of how John Romita SR had done it. Overall, the issue was good, though I was hoping it'd do more with the premise and stand out a bit more from some other Spider-Man I've read, though I liked how differently certain parts of his life went.

It was very refreshing seeing something as real as the Vietnam War affect Peter, something we don't often see.  Osborn was as threatening as ever, the ending really exciting and Bagley's art as satisfying as it's always been. This could be worth checking out for web-slinger fans looking for a different spin on the wall crawler.

The Freeze #2 Review

Writer: Dan Wickline

Artist: Phillip Sevy

Rating: 7 out of 8

The Freeze #2 Review

 

One of the most important parts of any story is a compelling idea. You could have well rounded characters, a tight pace, or even a compelling story. But before anyone gets to reading your story, you need an idea that hooks your reader and pulls them in. Stories like Revolution and Green Lantern certainly did this for me, getting me watching a lot of Revolution and reading a great deal of GL.

The Freeze definitely has this going for it, with almost all of humanity frozen still - except for Ray Adams. In the opening issue, he discovers he's the only one with the ability to unfreeze people. This leaves us with a number of questions; what made everyone else freeze? Why didn't Ray - and what gives him the ability to unfreeze people? Why is he the only one that can do it?

This issue does a good job showing what's changed, both since the freeze and Ray's unfreezing of those affected. It seems everyone isn't happy with his ability, or what he's doing with it. There are some contrasting opinions over what to do with his attacker, with some interesting points brought up. 

Amidst all this, we're introduced to Adom Biakabatuka, who seems to be an ally at the moment. Though a decision he makes might cause a fair degree of division if discovered later on. The issue isn't just about major decisions, as we also get to explore Ray's emotions regarding his mother, with a very difficult dilemma presented.

One of my favourite parts of the series is when we get to see Ray later on, with him and a few others under a lot of pressure, leaving me curious why and how they got here. It's an interesting contrast, as in the past, he and the others have time to make decisions and don't really have to rush, but don't have that luxury in the present.

There's an interesting cliffhanger at the end and it'll be interesting to see what happens next. It will be especially interesting to see how Ray and the others get to where they are now. My only criticism so far is in the art. I feel it could be a bit more fluid at times and sometimes comes off a little stiff. Overall, an interesting series and I wouldn't mind finding out the answers to some of the questions posed.

Oberon #2 Review

Writer: Ryan Parrott

Artist: Milos Slavkovic

Rating: 6 out of 8

Oberon #2 Review

  

Sometimes in life, you begin to wonder if something's amiss. Is everything as it should be? In the 1st issue, young Bonnie began to wonder. This doubt was only exacerbated by Oberon himself, former King of the Faeries. So far, we don't know why he's no longer their King, though I'm sure future issues will not only explain this, but also continue to expand the world.

When it comes to expanding the world, Parrott does a good job. For me, this expansion can be as simple as explaining parts of it, like Oberon explaining a goblin to us. Interestingly, they seem to be susceptible to sunlight, something I would've only associated with trolls.

Throughout both issues, I never felt confused and found them easy to understand. Something I can praise both issues with is how well they flow, though ultimately I enjoyed the 1st issue a bit more than this one. I'm not sure why, but it could be that the 1st had the advantage of introducing a new world, while mixing in fantastical elements to an everyday one.

Whereas this issue focuses on that fantastical one, so doesn't have the mix of the two. In the previous issue, Bonnie started to believe what Oberon had told her about her parents, so summoned him, who brought her to his world using his coat. She doesn't get much time to get used to this new place, as she needs to venture through a labyrinth in order to prove herself. If she dies, Oberon was wrong about her, but if she lives, that's another story.

Slavkovic brings pretty solid art, particularly when it comes to light in Oberon's house, which is really well done. When Bonnie meets Mother Mayie, the sunlight looks almost real in its' brightness. He brings a nicely devious expression to the man himself, imbuing his outfit with dark reds. One criticism I have is his reuse of the same expression for Bonnie when she's in the labyrinth, something he does twice.

If he'd changed a few more details about Bonnie, or had reused it once, that might have been better. Ultimately, the series so far is pretty good, with mostly solid art, decent flow and some intriguing characters, like Oberon himself, or Mother Mayie.