DC Comics omnibus thread

[twiztor]

Big news on Dick Grayson...

 

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=article&id=52155

 

Interesting turn of events. Feels like a DC Winter Soldier doing spy work from the shadows. I like Dick Grayson, the Winter Soldier and the use of Spyral from Grant Morrison's Batman run.

 

i let this churn for a couple hours. i really am looking forward to the idea. as a big Grayson fan, a change was needed. this finally feels like it.

[Eivion]

Batman Eternal. Wasn't sure how I would feel about this one, but two issues in and I'm completely sold. I'm liking the current story with Gordon and the diverging opinions among the characters with Gordon completely ready to admit his failure, some wanting to spit on his grave, and a good deal of others being in complete denial.. At the same time Snyder and Tynion are doing a wonderful job setting various storylines while also reintroducing a good deal of characters into the new52. It will be interesting to see just how much of it connects together in the end and just how many characters will finally be making their new52 debut.

[twiztor]

read Batman: Year Three. i'd read it before, but never in line with the then-current bat books.

wow, it was fantastic. i can't believe its never been collected in a trade. may have to track down the physical issues since i'm such a Grayson fan.

looking forward to Lonely Place of Dying. not sure if i've read that before but can't wait to check it out tomorrow

[WholeFnMachine]

I think I have one physical issue of Year Three stored away in my attic. I know that I have the entire Lonely Place of Dying story line up there. From what I remember it was very good,

[dogwelder]

Ready for another possible DC reboot?

 

All DC WEEKLIES Done In March 2015: So What's Coming In April?

[Brian Fowler]

There's really nothing there that implies they are planning another reboot (although with this company, who the fuck knows) just that they are getting a whole bunch of ducks in a row again for something.  Maybe just, as the article suggested, a lightening of the load on editorial when they make the big cross country move, or maybe some other big sales stunt event.  April will be just about right for a summer crossover to be looming.

[Ryan]

Heroes Divided: Forever Evil II, this time it lasts 16 months.

[Matt D]

At this point they should just gut the whole thing and make Injustice-Gods Among Us the official universe. You get the feeling they kind of want to do that anyway. 

 

It'd be a mercy killing and probably make them more money.

[Ryan]

They could always cancel everything and replace it all with 52 Batman books. It would probably somehow increase business at this point.

[WholeFnMachine]

Comixology is running a sale on DC Origin stories:

 

https://www.readdcentertainment.com/Secret-Origin-Sale/page/1613/?adid=CRMDCSALE20140422&click=DCDIGclick 

 

I picked up Robin: Year One, Batgirl: Year One, & Nightwing: Year One.

[Brian Fowler]

So, I read a new DC comic for first time since, I think, Forever Evil #2 (which feels like years ago, somehow)

 

Flash #30.

 

So, Wally's first New 52 appearance confirms both what had been suspected (his race has been changed, which bothers me not a bit) and what I expected (it is, at least as of right now, Wally in name only.  Will be a teenager 5 years from now, clearly no Linda, no twins, and presumably was never the Flash) which means my interest is pretty much back down to just above zero.

[LooseCannon]

So, I read a new DC comic for first time since, I think, Forever Evil #2 (which feels like years ago, somehow)

 

Flash #30.

 

So, Wally's first New 52 appearance confirms both what had been suspected (his race has been changed, which bothers me not a bit) and what I expected (it is, at least as of right now, Wally in name only.  Will be a teenager 5 years from now, clearly no Linda, no twins, and presumably was never the Flash) which means my interest is pretty much back down to just above zero.

 

I kind of wonder

 

If Linda and the kids are so important to your idea of the core of Wally West's character that it would have ruined him for you if they had decided to make him gay in the name of diversity?

[The Natural]

American Vampire (Vol. 5). This book collects American Vampire #28-34 and American Vampire: Lord of Nightmares #1-5, both take place in 1954. The book begins with American Vampire: Lord of Nightmares #1-5 as Vassals of the Morning Star Agents Linden Hobbs and Felicia Book have to contend with the freeing of the most powerful vampire out there. American Vampire #28-33 sees Pearl Jones/Preston out to get the vampire who attacked her husband, Henry and who set the hit. Past events meet up with her along the way. American Vampire #34 is a welcome return to Abilena Camino/Book. I finished the book last night. This was a terrific collection. I’m a big fan of the American Vampire series. I strongly recommend American Vampire but start at the beginning with American Vampire (Vol. 1).

[Brian Fowler]

 

So, I read a new DC comic for first time since, I think, Forever Evil #2 (which feels like years ago, somehow)

 

Flash #30.

 

So, Wally's first New 52 appearance confirms both what had been suspected (his race has been changed, which bothers me not a bit) and what I expected (it is, at least as of right now, Wally in name only.  Will be a teenager 5 years from now, clearly no Linda, no twins, and presumably was never the Flash) which means my interest is pretty much back down to just above zero.

 

I kind of wonder

 

If Linda and the kids are so important to your idea of the core of Wally West's character that it would have ruined him for you if they had decided to make him gay in the name of diversity?

 

 

 

I wrote a lot about this basic point a while back in this thread, but I'm attached to the incredible, and more or less unprecedented in big corporate IP comics, character development that turned Wally into such a complex, fascinating character.  Linda and the twins are a major part of that. It's not so much an attachment to them as it is to the entire package.  Wally isn't just the name, or even the basic personality traits, it's that he was actually developed into that character.  And it's gone, and they painted themselves into a corner where it basically can't exist anymore with the fucking stupid New 52, which after an initial sales bump, they are now not really doing any better than they were before the reboot.  Which is why I have all but completely stopped reading DC, because it just breaks my heart to generally dislike what is being done with what was for 20 some years my favorite retreat in fiction.

[LooseCannon]

 

 

So, I read a new DC comic for first time since, I think, Forever Evil #2 (which feels like years ago, somehow)

 

Flash #30.

 

So, Wally's first New 52 appearance confirms both what had been suspected (his race has been changed, which bothers me not a bit) and what I expected (it is, at least as of right now, Wally in name only.  Will be a teenager 5 years from now, clearly no Linda, no twins, and presumably was never the Flash) which means my interest is pretty much back down to just above zero.

 

I kind of wonder

 

If Linda and the kids are so important to your idea of the core of Wally West's character that it would have ruined him for you if they had decided to make him gay in the name of diversity?

 

 

 

I wrote a lot about this basic point a while back in this thread, but I'm attached to the incredible, and more or less unprecedented in big corporate IP comics, character development that turned Wally into such a complex, fascinating character.  Linda and the twins are a major part of that. It's not so much an attachment to them as it is to the entire package.  Wally isn't just the name, or even the basic personality traits, it's that he was actually developed into that character.  And it's gone, and they painted themselves into a corner where it basically can't exist anymore with the fucking stupid New 52, which after an initial sales bump, they are now not really doing any better than they were before the reboot.  Which is why I have all but completely stopped reading DC, because it just breaks my heart to generally dislike what is being done with what was for 20 some years my favorite retreat in fiction.

 

 

Their long-term plans are to have:

 

Black teen Wally West become romantically involved with forty-something transgendered Asian Linda (formerly Lee) Park. Eventually, they get married and adopt a Native American boy and a Hispanic girl, nicknamed "the Twins" since they coincidentally were born on the same day.

Plans are held up while they decide which character they will also stick in a wheelchair. They are also considering making one twin a Muslim and the other a Wiccan.

[Eivion]

Fables: Cubs in Toyland. The main story was depressing as we see a cub lost, another with a dark future implied, and one having gone through terrible changes she never should have went through. Whats more the actual people at fault aren't even really punished beforehand, being allowed to be redeemed when they really don't deserve it. This was generally good, but still so disappointing to see such young characters dragged into the horrible shit that normally happens to the older Fables. The volume did manage to end on happier point though with a story from Bigby's past and one of the cubs' futures.

 

Batman Eternal #4. Easily the weakest issue so far. Layman's dialogue was quite weak, and the art change to Nguyen was really jarring, probably made worse by Fridolfs inks. Even with my complaints its still a decent issue for the plot and story in of itself. Still its making me kind of glad Layman is off the weekly in the later stages. Hopefully there will be less Nguyen and Fridolfs as well.

 

Batman Beyond Universe #9. This was the first part of Justice Lords Beyond. So far its off to a pretty great start. I'm enjoying the history of what happened to the original Justice Lords group over the years along with our version of Diana who joined in the fight against them. It makes the current situation of not knowing whether the returning Diana is the real one an interesting mystery especially since all hints turn towards this Diana taking a darker turn regardless. Whats more I'm happy Gage/Higgins have kept the general idea that the Justice Lords aren't simply an evil Justice League, but more what can easily happen to even the regular universe members when pushed in certain ways and facing certain choices. You already get to see some of this with the alternate version of Terry who is rocking blond hair and a member of the Jokerz. Even through all of this you can still see the normal Terry within him feeling guilt for his actions. The new Justice Lords team is a decent comparison to the current JLB team though it has an interesting member in Curare who has been given unexpected ties to Green Lantern Kai-Ro and actually talks. I'm not sure what I think about this development yet as its very different from the Curare who was a member in the League of Assassins. Hopefully these will be threads picked on later by Higgins in after the crossover 0is done.

[Eivion]

I'm curious if any of the following Batman trades are worth checking out:

Death and the Maidens

Broken City

As the Crow Flies

City of Crime
Face the Face

Detective

Death and the City

Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul

Gotham Underground

 

I'm trying to see what else I might want to read aside from Morrison's run, Heart of Hush, The Black Mirror, and Gates of Gotham.

[The Z]

The two Paul Dini collections, Detective and Death and the City, are all done-in-one issues, which is almost unheard of these days. Pretty good stuff, but not essential.

Face the Face was also pretty good I think, but I don't remember anything about it.

Stay far away from Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul. Awful stuff.

 

I just read the paperback that collects both the Robin: Year One and Batgirl: Year One miniseries.

The Batgirl portion was extremely good and I would highly recommend it. Probably the definitive Killer Moth & Firefly story.

The Robin portion was pretty mediocre however, even though it was done by the same team.

They did have a pretty hard job, though. It's a hard sell, that it's ok for an adult to train a child to fight against psychopathic mass murderers.

[odessasteps]

Death and the Maidens is solid. It might depend on how you feel about the introduction of Nyssa.

[Spritenaut 32]

I'd recommend As the Crow Flies and Broken City.   

[Eivion]

The two Paul Dini collections, Detective and Death and the City, are all done-in-one issues, which is almost unheard of these days. Pretty good stuff, but not essential.

Face the Face was also pretty good I think, but I don't remember anything about it.

Stay far away from Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul. Awful stuff.

 

I just read the paperback that collects both the Robin: Year One and Batgirl: Year One miniseries.

The Batgirl portion was extremely good and I would highly recommend it. Probably the definitive Killer Moth & Firefly story.

The Robin portion was pretty mediocre however, even though it was done by the same team.

They did have a pretty hard job, though. It's a hard sell, that it's ok for an adult to train a child to fight against psychopathic mass murderers.

That is disappointing to hear on Resurrection as Ra's is a favorite of mine. Will check out the Dini stuff though probably via library.

 

I liked Robin Year One, particularly for the Alfred narration. That said, I found Batgirl Year one to be the better read as well when I read both several years ago. Its nice to see I'm not alone of this as most seem to prefer the Robin story.

 

Death and the Maidens is solid. It might depend on how you feel about the introduction of Nyssa.

I actually started reading this two months back, but the prologue story was so bad it honestly put me off of reading the rest. I thought it went too much out of its way to make Ra's look bad to prop up Nyssa. It was more a knee-jerk reaction than anything else so I was wondering if I should give it another try.

[J.H.]

Ressurection of Ra's was  just bad. It should have been Morrison to tackle it but he took a break to prepare Batman RIP and let Milligan handle and I've never liked Milligan on Batman.

 

Death & The Maidens is a solid Rucka story but feels like it should have been out of continuity.

 

James

[Matt D]

Fables: Cubs in Toyland. The main story was depressing as we see a cub lost, another with a dark future implied, and one having gone through terrible changes she never should have went through. Whats more the actual people at fault aren't even really punished beforehand, being allowed to be redeemed when they really don't deserve it. This was generally good, but still so disappointing to see such young characters dragged into the horrible shit that normally happens to the older Fables. The volume did manage to end on happier point though with a story from Bigby's past and one of the cubs' futures.

 

 

Fables is such a weird book. You get the sense a few times that you're veering into new status quo, where they can tell stories for a while, but it never stops for long. In some ways, it's a book that sort of proves how much we'd lose if big 2 comic books moved in real time.

[Eivion]

Ressurection of Ra's was  just bad. It should have been Morrison to tackle it but he took a break to prepare Batman RIP and let Milligan handle and I've never liked Milligan on Batman.

 

Death & The Maidens is a solid Rucka story but feels like it should have been out of continuity.

 

James

So far I haven't been big on the little Milligan I have read so that itself is probably enough for me to leave it be.

 

I guess I'll try Death & The Maidens again.

 

 

Fables: Cubs in Toyland. The main story was depressing as we see a cub lost, another with a dark future implied, and one having gone through terrible changes she never should have went through. Whats more the actual people at fault aren't even really punished beforehand, being allowed to be redeemed when they really don't deserve it. This was generally good, but still so disappointing to see such young characters dragged into the horrible shit that normally happens to the older Fables. The volume did manage to end on happier point though with a story from Bigby's past and one of the cubs' futures.

 

 

Fables is such a weird book. You get the sense a few times that you're veering into new status quo, where they can tell stories for a while, but it never stops for long. In some ways, it's a book that sort of proves how much we'd lose if big 2 comic books moved in real time.

 

Agreed, still I would like to see at some point a move to the next generation for the Big 2.

[The Natural]

I'm curious if any of the following Batman trades are worth checking out:

Death and the Maidens

Broken City

As the Crow Flies

City of Crime

Face the Face

Detective

Death and the City

Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul

Gotham Underground

 

I'm trying to see what else I might want to read aside from Morrison's run, Heart of Hush, The Black Mirror, and Gates of Gotham.

 

I thought Resurrection of Ra's al Ghul was alright but no more than that.

 

You've not read Morrison's run, The Black Mirror and Gates of Gotham? You're in for a treat.