New 52 Trade Paperbacks

I recently received the list of the DCNU trade paperbacks. Below is the schedule and the issues contained.

May, 2012

• Justice League (#1-6)
• Animal Man (#1-6)
• Batman (#1-7)
• Justice League International (#1-6)
• Green Lantern (#1-7)
• Catwoman (#1-6)
• Stormwatch (#1-7)
• Green Arrow (#1-6)

June, 2012

• Detective Comics (#1-7)
• Red Lanterns (#1-7)
• Batwoman (#1-5)
• Mister Terrific (#1-7)
• Frakenstein (#1-6)
• Static Shock (#1-6)
• Legion of Super-Heroes (#1-7)

July, 2012

• Batman and Robin (#1-6)
• Suicide Squad (#1-7)
• Batgirl (#1-6)
• Demon Knights (#1-7)
• Batwing (#1-6)
• Men of War (#1-6)
• Grifter (#1-6)

August, 2012

• Action Comics (#1-8)
• Superboy (#1-6)
• Deathstroke (#1-8)
• OMAC (#1-6)
• The Dark Knight (#1-6)
• Hawk and Dove (#1-7)
• Swamp thing (#1-8)
• Resurrection Man (#1-7)

September, 2012

• Aquaman (#1-6)
• Teen Titans (#1-7)
• Birds of Prey (#1-7)
• The Fury of Firestorm (#1-6)
• Green Lantern Corps (#1-6)
• Legion Lost (#1-6)
• Voodoo (#1-6)

October, 2012

• I, Vampire (#1-6)
• Justice League Dark (#1-6)
• Nightwing (#1-7)
• Green Lantern: New Guardians (#1-7)
• Supergirl (#1-7)
• The Savage Hawkman (#1-6)
• All-Star Western (#1-6)

November, 2012

• The Flash (#1-7)
• Red Hood and the Outlaws (#1-7)
• Superman (#1-6)
• Blue Beetle (#1-7)
• Blackhawks (#1-7)
• Captain Atom (#1-7)
• DC Universe Presents (#1-8)
• 
  

Hawk and Dove DCnU Review: #1 - #3

I didn’t want Hawk and Dove to be so far down on my list. But it just wasn't that good. Every time I went to rate it against one of the other titles I had to pause, but ultimately it lost a lot of the comparisons. Don't get me wrong, there are things about Hawk and Dove that are praise worthy. Some of the art is pretty smart and the coloring is excellent. Where Hawk and Dove falls flat are the characters and the story.

In this first story arc we see that Hawk and Dove are the embodiment of war and peace, touting such powers as strength and compassion, respectively. The enemies that we set up for them are the infamous Condor and Swan. Okay, I would like to think that I can get past these names, but the story telling is still scattered and inconsistent, promising enough just to be disappointing.

Here’s my reason for disliking Hawk and Dove so much. It has so much potential that it could live up to, but it fails. A great scene in the second issue is the creation of Swan, who achieves this status by sacrificially killing another avatar. But despite some great hints of story, I don’t know what is up with these characters. It doesn’t help when Deadman shows up, bringing up his past relationship with Dove. In the third issue, the presence of Deadman shows us that there is something dark and sinister lurking within Condor and Swan, but I feel that this could have been portrayed with the two title characters. I mean, what else are super powers of compassion and intelligence useful for. In addition to these gripes, I've been spoiled with characterization in some of the other New 52. Although we get to see both characters outside of their uniforms, the ingredients of their social life are off and its not yet interesting.


This incarnation of Hawk and Dove is brought to us by Sterling Gates and Rob Liefeld. Overall, Liefeld's art is okay, though some of the scenes are downright awesome. Unfortunately, those just highlight the inconsistencies. Sadly, the writing follows this same pattern. Turning to Gates, he is a relative new comic writer and, according to Wikipedia, was hired by Johns. I wish I had read some of his other work, and I would love to know what he is/was thinking with this book. Did he choose the title or was it offered to him? Again, parts of the story are intriguing, and I'll keep reading it, but there were so many other titles that DC could have released.

Review of Static Shock #1 to Static Shock #3

Static Shock is one of the New 52 that provides an extraordinary adventure story. Three issues in and the action and story telling are still coming strong. Number 1 does a great job of introducing the character and the setting. Virgil Hawkins just moved with his mother and sisters from ‘Dakota’ to New York City. His move just happens to correspond with the disappearance of Zoom and the appearance of the new Static Shock!


I knew I was enjoying this story through #1 and #2, and was actually wishing I felt this much excitement for some of the other new titles. I wasn’t, however, expecting it beat 37 other New 52 titles. The target of corporate sponsored villainy, Static not only has to stay alive but also contend with both cantankerous New Yorkers and a family pushed to uncomfortable limitations.  All of this gives Static Shock a strong atmosphere and pulse pounding sense of adventure.

Mostly, Static Shock is adventure and action. To issue three it has maintained its adrenaline rush, with Static Shock the target of unwelcome attention. While this is exciting, I think it is the underlying family story that actually makes Static so memorable. So far there have been great fights and action sequences in the new series of books (e.g., Batman, Resurrection Man, Green Arrow). However, the story of Static's mother, his sister, and his sister’s clone is present just enough to hook us, and Scott McDaniel and John Rozum reel us in.

I sadly admit that I'm still learning the authors of all these books. There are a few that stand out to me, both from times of yore and from my recent re-emergence into the DC world, but I haven't given these fine writers the attention that they are due. However, both McDaniel and Rozum have some excellent websites that fans should check out.

Rank Order of the New 52

Having read the first two issues of all the New 52, I decided that it would be a good idea to rank order them. Using a pairwise comparison method and my wife's iPad to review issues, I made the 1,326 comparisons necessary for this process. I must admit, I was a little surprised by the results. I knew I liked Animal Man and Blue Beetle, but I wouldn't have guessed they were at the top. Also, just a couple reviews ago, I was commenting that Superboy was probably in my top 10, but this title actually falls at 16. I guess, what I really learned is that there are a lot of new DCnU titles out there. Here's looking forward to the #3's!

Below are the rankings (along with how many other titles a particular title was rated better than in parentheses).

1 Animal Man (50)
1 Blue Beetle (50)
3 Batgirl (47)
3 DC Universe Presents (47)
5 All Star Western (46)
6 Frankenstein (45)
7 Demon Knights (44)
7 Green Lantern Corps (44)
9 Justice League (43)
10 Teen Titans (10)
11 Supergirl (41)
12 The Flash (39)
13 Nightwing (37)
13 Static Shock (37)
13 Superman (37)
16 Superboy (35)
17 Batman The Dark Knight (34)
18 Detective Comics (32)
19 O.M.A.C. (31)
19 Suicide Squad (31)
21 Aquaman (30)
21 Catwoman (30)
23 Birds of Prey (29)
23 Red Lanterns (29)
23 The Fury of Firestorm (29)
23 Wonder Woman (29)
27 Swamp Thing (24)
28 Batman (23)
29 Resurrection Man (22)
30 Action Comics (20)
30 Batman and Robin (20)
30 Batwing (20)
30 Justice League Dark (20)
30 Stormwatch (20)
35 Deathstroke (19)
36 Justice League International (17)
37 Voodoo (16)
38 Men of War (15)
39 Mister Terrific (14)
39 The Savage Hawkman (14)
41 Red Hood and the Outlaws (14)
42 Green Lantern: New Guardians (12)
43 Green Lantern (9)
44 Blackhawks (8)
45 Legion Lost (7)
46 Captain Atom (5)
46 Green Arrow (5)
46 Legion of Super-Heroes (5)
49 Batwoman (4)
50 Grifter (3)
50 Hawk and Dove (3)
52 I, Vampire (0)

Animal Man #1 and Animal Man #2

Jeff Lemire is penning two of the DCnU New 52: Animal Man and Frankenstein. Before this I was a little familiar with Lemire's Sweet Tooth, but not his older works. So far, hands down, Lemire is my favorite writer among the list that makes up DC's new titles. Before discussing the story, let me mention Travel Foreman's art. In the first issue (9/7), he shares the spotlight with Dan Green, but receives sole billing for the followup (10/5). The art is great and provides a feel to the book that wouldn't have been achieved without it, but it takes some getting used to. In fact, in September I recall complaining about the same style that I was praising in October.

At least in this first arc, Animal Man is a horror story. Buddy Baker, a.k.a. Animal Man, is a costumed hero with the ability to borrow powers from the animal world. The readers of the New 52 enter Buddy's life during a slump, where he has left most of his superhero days behind him and is less well known now as an actor and activist. Slipping back into the role of the hero, Animal Man is beset by a deeply unsettling experience that spreads to the world around him. While the first issue sets up the coming of the Red, the second sees Buddy and his daughter Maxine preparing to travel to it.

Lemire fills the path of Buddy and Maxine with a sense of dread, danger, and impending disaster. The art that I at first disdained maintains the feel of the story with an air of surreality. If you are looking for a horror story containing a depth of story and characterization, then Animal Man appears to be a good match.

The Dark Knight #1 and The Dark Knight #2

Batman the Dark Knight is written by David Finch and illustrated by Paul Jenkins and Richard Friend. There are both flaws and great things contained in this project. Number 1, published on 9/28, covers an outbreak at Arkham Asylum. We see a personal side of Batman for a moment, as he reminds the guards about the human costs of the riot. Helping lead the charge, Batman and Arkham’s security force storm the asylum. During all the action, Batman first spots the White Rabbit.

Issue 2, published on 10/26, shows the investigation and mop up following the Arkham riot. After being bloodied by an enraged Two-Face, Batman traces the White Rabbit to where another villain waits at the end of #2. The second issue is also full of action, with great scenes of Batman's Gotham allies taking down drugged escapees from Arkham.

The White Rabbit is more interesting than the drug that she is pioneering, but I'm a little surprised by the physical effects. We see that both heroes from Batman's past are physically ripped, their muscles swollen beyond reasonable expectations. Although we see Dent's enormous guns and the physical pounding that Batman takes, the only discussion we get is of its emotional effects.

Overall, I think the first story arc of The Dark Knight will be an action packed story that highlights the human side of the Dark Knight with not so subtle hints of his fighting and detective skills.

Superboy #1 and Superboy #2

So far, I'm really enjoying the Superboy title among the new 52. Perhaps top 10. Superboy #1 was released on 9/14 and Superboy #2 on 10/12. Written by Scott Lobdell, so far we've gotten an exciting adventure about a clone grown by N.O.W.H.E.R.E. along with a healthy dose of mystery.

Perhaps more than other DCnU titles (excluding the "Bat" titles), Superboy pulls together a wide web in the DCnU. We see Lois Lane leaked information about a cloned "Superboy". Among the scientists cloning and growing Superboy, we learn that part of his genetic material comes from Superman and a mystery person. Perhaps this will explain his telekinetic powers? Finally, we see a mysterious director setting him against the Teen Titans.

Sadly, this was all #1 and #2 doesn't give us much more. Instead, despite the fact that Superboy has involuntarily destroyed multiple labs when threatened, he painfully learns the limits of his abilities as he attempts to prove his abilities to his captors.

The artwork of R.B. Silva and Rob Lean is enjoyable. Superboy really is an adventure and its their work that brings it to life and makes it pop. If it wasn’t for their action scenes #2, the series would have already lagged. Perhaps the best examples of their work is the contrasting of the frail, vulnerable being barely months old to the cocky and sure teenager that is Superboy.