Wednesday 12 December 2012

Comic Book Reviews for 12/12/12

This week is another riveting chapter of the Joker's return in Death of the Family, plus two tie-in issues that were pretty great. At Marvel, two new Marvel NOW! debuted while we said goodbye to the current iteration of Wolverine.

We're down a reviewer this week (I'll get you, Bailey), so if you are angry with us for not reviewing your favorite book of all time, please let us know in the comments.

DC COMICS

Batgirl #15

Written by Gail Simone | Art by Daniel Sampere

"Batgirl must marry The Joker to save her mom. You read that rather twisted statement right; would you expect anything less from the clown prince of crazy? Gail Simone has The Joker’s messed up mentality down pat, making every beat of his time with Batgirl an unsettling one. Add in a flashback of the Joker planning this unholy crime and the resurgence of James Gordon Jr. and you’ve got yourself the best tie-in to Death of the Family." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.3

Batman #15

Written by Scott Snyder | Art by Greg Capullo

"It’s probably no surprise that Batman #15 once again ups the ante for Batman and his beloved Bat-family. This issue picks up right where the last left off, leaving Bats to confront the Joker on a bridge surrounded by police offers, in which Joker has announced to his nemesis that he knows the secret identities of the entire Bat-family. Of course, Batman gets himself out of this situation and soon retreats the Batcave. But looking at this book as a plot-driven narrative would be a mistake, because as Scott Snyder proves once again, this series is 100% centered on character." -Joey

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

9.4

Batman and Robin #15

Written by Peter Tomasi | Art by Patrick Gleason

"The sign of a great crossover event is that it brings the best out in every book it touches. Death of the Family has arrived in Batman and Robin, and writer Peter Tomasi, penciller Patrick Gleason, inker Mick Gray, and colorist John Kalisz have brought their A-games." -Poet

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

9.3

Before Watchmen: Dr. Manhattan #3

Written by J. Michael Straczynski | Art by Adam Hughes

"Doctor Manhattan is practically a god in the Watchmen universe. How does one cook up a conflict worthy of that power scale while still conforming to the events of the original series? J. Michael Straczynski has managed to crack that nut by pitting Jon against the very fabric of time itself. Issue #3 weaves an enjoyable tale of one all-powerful man reflecting back on a lifetime of choices. Unfortunately, it leaves very little room for the fourth and final issue to continue the conflict. As short as this series is, even four issues might have been too much for the conflict at hand." -Jesse

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

8.5

Before Watchmen: Rorschach #3

Written by Brian Azzarello | Art by Lee Bermejo

"Here's the thing about Before Watchmen: Rorschach. Nothing about this book is necessarily of poor quality. It's a perfectly serviceable tale about a lone vigilante battling the worst sort of scum 1970's New York has to offer. But nothing about this series takes particular advantage of the Watchmen license. With a few modifications, this could just as easily be a story about Punisher, Wolverine, or even Daredevil if he were in a particularly cranky mood. So the question quickly becomes -- why bother doing a prequel to Watchmen if it's going to be so formulaic? How does that serve the brand?" -Jesse

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

6.5

Deathstroke #15

Written by Justin Jordan | Art by Edgar Salazar & Amilcar Pinna

"It feels good to be able to pick up Deathstroke again. While Justin Jordan’s debut isn’t a home run, it’s a far cry from what we’ve had to suffer through since Kyle Higgins left the book. Jordan’s narrative here is a straight-forward tale of Slade’s next job, but it’s written with a sharp lock on Deathstroke’s personality and a solid hook that we’ve seen before but ultimately one that works well for Slade: how does he kill an unkillable man?" -Joey

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.4

Demon Knights #15

Written by Paul Cornell | Art by Bernard Chang

"At the center of three converging armies, the Demon Knights protect Merlin’s fragile body. Sounds like the makings of a thrilling episode, packed with wall-to-wall action, right? Meh, not so much." -Poet

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

6.8

Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. #15

Written by Matt Kindt | Art by Alberto Ponticelli

"Scope and scale. Those are the things that Frankenstein: Agent of S.H.A.D.E. does best, and those are the things that I love about the series. Everything is massive. He fights Colossi and the Titans of the Monster Planet, assembles things with names like Soul-Grinder, and piles the corpses of the unjust into mountains. Even the distances he travels in an issue are epic. Just when you think it’s all eye-popping cinematic sequences, though, you get some of the most realistic and touching character moments you’ll find in comics." -Poet

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

8.9

Green Lantern Corps #15

Written by Peter Tomasi | Art by Fernando Pasarin

"Seeing how Hal Jordan was also kicked out of the Green Lantern Corps not too long ago, I was interested to see how Guy Gardner’s reaction would differ. Peter Tomasi delivers an interesting twist. Instead of getting his life back together, he gets jealous of Batman and takes to the streets to deal out some justice, only without a ring. With issue after issue of intense ring-slingin’ battles, it’s nice to get a break to be reminded who Guy is as a character." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

7.0

Suicide Squad #15

Written by Adam Glass | Art by Fernando Dagnino

"Suicide Squad #14 was easily the most jumbled installment of the series to date. Half of the book was a scatter-brained tie-in to Death of the Family, while the rest offered a series of pointless scenes featuring various individual Suicide Squad members. Issue #15 improves by focusing more squarely on the Harley/Joker conflict and briefly dragging the rest of the cast into the picture Even so, the characterization is mixed at best." -Jesse

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

6.4

Superboy #15

Written by Tom DeFalco | Art by Various

"There’s a part of me that enjoys the throwback nature of this comic’s silly plot. It has Superboy and Superman at odds with one another, some truly over-the-top visuals, and heaps of grossly overstated dialogue and captions and even some thought balloons thrown in for good measure. If feels like one of those old school funny books you'd find in your grandparent's attic that just causes you to laugh at how ludicrous comics used to be without even trying. Unfortunately, this comic was produced in all seriousness with no kitsch intended, and it’s actually quite bad." -Joshua

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

3.8

Team 7 #3

Written by Justin Jordan | Art by Julius Gopez

"For everyone who has complained that the New 52 universe lacks a sense of cohesiveness and inter-connectivity, Team 7 is there to argue otherwise. The series features a variety of familiar names and faces carrying out various clandestine missions in the early days of the New 52 continuity. It's a testament to writer Justin Jordan that, despite the fact that most of the Team 7 members appear in other books set in the present day, their roles here are much more satisfying." -Jesse

Click to read the entire review!

Final Score:

6.8


Source : ign[dot]com

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