POBB August 21, 2019

Pick of the Brown Bag

August 21, 2019

By

Ray Tate

Thanks to everybody who reads the Pick of the Brown Bag, and for those who have just found this wonderful corner of the Internet, welcome.  My name is Ray Tate.  I’ve been reviewing comic books since the nineties.  This week I look at Aquaman, Eve Stranger, Ghost Spider, John Carter Warlord of Mars Attacks, Red Sonja Birth of the She-Devil, Star Bastard, Vampirella, Wonder Woman Come Back to Me and in the Spoiler Section Batman.  If you haven’t any time for the repast of reviews, check me out for a few bites on Twitter: #PickoftheBrownBag.

Eve Stranger born with an unknown medical condition.  The cure repairs her.  It also wipes out her short-term memory.  This issue reveals the nature of the cure and some of Eve's inherent abilities.

The revelation explains how she can be batted around a bit more than the average human.  A popular power for almost every hero. 

The EVE Project provides Eve with the cure.  In turn, they take bids for Eve's skills.  Considerable and integrated with her long-term memory.  The bids must be serious.  The Project will not sell Eve's body, and last issue, we saw how they deal with such suggestions.

Think Scanners.  The serious bids are still varied.  So far, Eve rescued a child from abductors.  She played body guard and companion to a rich fellow fulfilling his bucket list.

As it turns out, the Project isn't hoodwinking Eve.  Sure.  They're getting rich off of her, but Eve needs the serum.  Her father first engineered it.  Amnesia is the true side-effect.  His partner heads the EVE Project. 

Don't mind the colors.  Eva De La Cruz hued the snapshots of Eve's past in more faded tones.  The colors in Eve Stranger are definitely more vibrant.

When last visiting Eve Stranger Eve began reveling in her new rocket pack.  The Project tasked her to fight a giant ape.  

This issue's inscrutable cover doesn't describe Eve's latest mission, which surprise is dealing with a giant gorilla.  

Upon reading last issue, I thought this encounter was just a tag scene.  A gag.  I didn't actually think writer/co-creator David Barnett would follow through.  Mind you, it's not exactly what you expect, and I shan't spoil the hilarity of the whole thing.  I also like how he takes something humorous and turns it into credible science fiction drama. 

Of course this could all be just the dream of a small town reporter, who has chosen to seek out a therapist.

Vampirella survived a catastrophic plane crash, caused by one of her arch-enemies.  Now she’s in survivor therapy recounting bits and pieces of her life to an eccentric psychologist named Daktari.

Lilith is Vampirella’s mother.  Her introduction was part of V’s foray into a more Biblical translation; transmuting Drakulon into a city in Hell, or something like that.  This was about ten years ago.  

Lilith according to mythology was Adam’s first wife, but she appears in older religious texts as a succubus.  You kind of get where Vampirella's scribes were going.  

In Christopher Priest’s update, Lilith telepathically nags her daughter.  I can’t help but wonder if he’s not making a joke out of the original Wonder Woman/Hippolyta relationship.  

Priest is by and large known for is work in DC Comics.  He’s written for Wonder Woman, expressing at least respect if not affection for the Amazon.

Vampirella features a lot of small, amusing things like the telepathic connection.  These tit-bits. all add up to overall enjoyment and fit smoothly with the bigger issues.  

The major scenario centers on a cult inadvertently worshipping a classic monster.  The cultists think they’re discipling Satan, in an existential sort of way.

In reality, they fall victim to criminal supernatural forces reflecting the way real life cults victimize lonely vulnerable people.  Vampirella isn't alone in her fight.

V originally teamed up with her lover Adam and an arch sorcerer named Pendragon.  For most of the nineties however, Vampirella fought alongside of the Church’s secret monster-fighting wing.  This is actually the most curious thing about the series.   

One of the most recent Vampirella writers horror author Nancy Collins’ opined that The Church always intended to kill V after they had exploited her human loving sensibilities.  No doubt they would deem it a mercy killing.

Priest though as you can see incorporates the different opinions about Vampirella economically within the Six Marys of the issue's title.  So though this story occurred a year ago.  All is not forgiven.  Just some.

Daktari implies that Leader of the Mary Team may be attracted to Vampirella.  She’s not the only one.

In the sixties, Vampirella fell in love with Adam.  Their relationship fit with the gothic, romantic vampire tradition. Modern Vampirella stories hinted that V is bisexual.  This one makes it explicit.

Warren Publishing always intended Vampirella to be for adult audiences.  Certainly not children.  So it’s nice to see V back to mature roots.  That said.  Priest and sensual illustrator Ergun Gunduz appear to be trying too prove Miley Cyrus correct:

"America's actually fine with tits, it's nipples they don't like."

No nipples were harmed in the making of these sex scenes.  It's kind of silly.  We can see ass, boob and Rated R lesbian scenes but not nipples?  Weird.  

Unlike Priest and Gunduz writer Luke Lieberman and superb artist Sergio Davila in Red Sonja do not seem to be on the same page.

That’s not fighting.

And that’s not fighting either.  

A few explanations.  Davila didn’t want to draw women ripping each other apart.  I concur with that.  Lieberman changed his mind at the last minute, or the script just wasn’t clear.

Birth of the She-Devil gives a kind of origin story to Red Sonja that’s a very soft reboot.  Lieberman binds Sonja to a father figure who teaches her thievery, the art of the scam and the sword.

The addition of Ozzyus doesn't change anything.  Sonja looks the same and behaves the same.  Albeit she’s a bit more reckless, which is expected given her youth.  This tale would actually agree with the Frank Thorne era.

Lieberman’s plot is a good one and fairly complex for the genre.  Sonja is on the hunt for an old friend, taken from her by one of her adopted “father’s” associates.  

Raka worships chaos.  Whether or not this chaos is the same to be found in the Vampirella stories remains to be seen.  V and Red Sonja will be starring as partners in their own series.  So, I wouldn't be surprised if Birth of the She-Devil actually sneakily introduces the first Cult of Chaos.

Raka obviously raped Sashana.  The depiction is quite clear. Given her shitty situation, I can't see how she would have been spared.  Ozzyus' narration tries to downplay the violation.  I see this as another disconnect between Lieberman and Davila.  

Lieberman emphasizes the corruption of Sashana's spirit. The tainting of the soul is just hocus-pocus.  Rape is real.  It's an abomination, and Davila and colorist Ulises Arreola are justified to show the terror in the girl's eyes.

On the flip side, Lieberman, Davila and Arreola are in synch when creating a rarity in a Robert E. Howard inspired story.  A bona fide good king.

Andol is a remarkable noble contrast to the shitty chaos attacking his subjects.  He looks the part, and he also acts the part.  He takes the lead.  He investigates.  He sees a practical strategy in teaming up with Red Sonja and doesn’t try to take advantage of her like others attempted to their short sorrow.

Steve Trevor has a habit of getting lost on uncharted islands, and this year, is no different.  While testing experimental aircraft equipment, Steve and his crew end up on an isle in the Bermuda Triangle that’s far from Paradise.  His soulmate Wonder Woman follows in the Invisible Jet to save him.

At first this island seemed to be your typical Lost World type of locale, with dinosaurs and other prehistoric beasties, but this locale is a wee bit different.

If you’re wondering how Diana can converse with the Titan, you only need to look at her origin and the last issue of Come Back to Me.  Amanda Conner and Jimmy Palmiotti remembered that Diana’s deific namesake granted her the ability to commune with the beasts.  

As the story continues, more anomalies surface on the island.  As well as surprising guest stars.

Come To Me is actually set in the off-tangent DC universe in which Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti brought Jonah Hex to life.  This story takes place after Hex retired with fellow Bounty Hunter Tululah Black becoming sailors on a private charter.  Palmiotti must have been grinning like a maniac when he realized he had already foreshadowed an explanation for Hex’s appearance.

Further exploration of the island leads to even more surprises.

Though the alien Princess appears to have amnesia, her green complexion and blonde hair combined with an affinity with technology suggest Coluan.  Brainiac Five’s planet.

Artistically and in terms of cast, Wonder Woman Come Home to Me is easily one of the most vivid and diverse of the Amazon’s adventures. 

Spider-Woman/Spider-Gwen officially becomes Ghost Spider as she journeys to Earth 616 to enter college.  I know what you’re thinking.  How on earth can Spider-Man get her a fake ID and other things.  He's amazing and spectacular but not a master forger.  The Iron Man movies got that covered.

Tony Stark never used to care this much about ordinary people.  The movie turned him into a philanthropist in the same mold as Bruce Wayne.  If you’re looking for action, you might be disappointed with this issue, as the subject of the adventurous team-up is a giant rat.  Not necessarily from Sumatra.

Ghost-Spider is for people invested in these characters: the Mary Janes, the alternate J.Jonah Jameson and Captain Stacy.  All have their moments, and if you're a fan of the series, you'll enjoy this laidback setup story.  That said.  Series writer Seanan McGuire addresses the loose ends of the previous series.  Spidey comes up with a working hypothesis on why Gwen's symbiotic suit is malfunctioning.  The Jackal appears at the cliffhanger and promises to make Gwen's life just as hellish on Earth-616.  That's proper Marvel earth for those not in the know.

In John Carter Warlord of Martians Attack, the aptly nick-named Moon-Heads wreak over the top havoc.  They make a big mistake when bringing their earth invasion to the diner where John Carter fuels up and learns of modern social advancements.

A nearby Native American hypnotist entrances John Carter to remember what transpired on Barsoom, in issue one.  

Scientist Maven Keyes posits a theory that can restore the status quo.

This idea that Mars exists in two different quantum states is a neat idea.  It banks on the Unified Theory and at once settles the conflict between the science we know of Mars, and the exotic Barsoom of Burroughs' tales.

The catalyst for the flip is John Carter himself.  So, he’s the observer.  When he observes Mars its Barsoom.  When he’s away from Mars, it’s the red, dead planet.  Mind you.  Edgar Rice Burroughs didn't exactly turn Mars into an oasis like earth.  He knew enough about period science to keep Mars mostly desolate.

With the plan in play, there’s still plenty of time to kill the Martians, which John Carter does with gusto illustrated by Dean Kotz.  With each kill, John acquires Martian technology and instructs his new found friends on its use.  Although these ships cannot be used to transport John Carter back to Mars.  He must duplicate the experiment that Burroughs set up long ago.  He essentially wills himself to Mars.  He becomes the observer that changes the outcome.

The blue aliens of Meracorp believe they have Captain Greeves by the short hairs.  What they haven’t considered is that he doesn’t possess shame.

That’s all right.  Maybe they can extort his cooperation another way.  

Actually Greeves isn’t all that broken up about his doll-like comrade’s plight.

Finally, Molly, who is actually the brains of the outfit acquiesces.  The blue cheese hold Greeves' shipmates as collateral and sends him out to retrieve a corporate exec gone native.

When Captain Greeves, our title Star Bastard starts killing a horde of Muppet, alien gnomes with extreme prejudice, it shouldn’t be funny.  Oh, but it is.  Reminiscent of The Simpsons attack on jockeys. 

Aquaman properly introduces the new Aqualad into the comic book.  The animated Young Justice fledgling is the son of Black Manta, somehow gifted with Aqua powers.

Other than this, the sea gods begin their inhabitation of Amnesty Island, and Mera plans her wedding with another.  It’s all pretty pleasant writing and drawing with the interaction between Aquaman and Aqualad funny and entertaining.  As to the tease on the cover, nah.

Spoiler Section

Batman

Wow.  

Okay.

Harsh.

Despite being warned off by the Batman Family and other superheroes, Damien Wayne doesn't listen.  He invades Gotham City.  Damien is horribly reckless and never faced the consequences of his actions.  Batman changes everything for Damien.

Still, there’s several ways out of Batman where everybody ends up alive.

First and foremost, Batman isn’t actually happening.  Tom King invested in several issues where Batman dreamed up and characterized associates with such detail and observational knowledge that you could have mistaken them for the real thing.  Within the capacity of fiction.  Batman, the real Batman, is actually imagining this entire saga as he embarks on a turning point in his life.  That would piss off a lot of people. 

Second, the Martian Manhunter.  Batman could have deduced the tactics of his opponents to such an extent that he asked J’onn J’onnz to replace the individual in question.  The person most vulnerable to his enemy's machinations.  J’onn already impersonated Catwoman in Justice League of America when it looked like she was on the hook.  He shifted not only into her form but her mind-set.  J’onn in fact could have sealed the impersonation by blocking Batman’s memory of the request. King has yet to utilize this actual detective who frequently crossed paths with Batman.  He's due for a surprise visit.

Third, there’s a new reboot heading our way thanks to Doomsday Clock or Year of the Villain.  If King were knowledgable of the reboot, he may have been give extra leave to do what he wanted.

Fourth, a very obscure established alter-ego that manifests when the individual in question comes to mortal harm.  Like the Hulk, the alter-ego may be able to regenerate any damage to the host personality.

Whatever the explanation, Batman is not for the easily scarred, and you may want to forgo a meal before reading.

POBB August 14, 2019

Pick of the Brown Bag 

August 14, 2019

by

Ray Tate

Welcome to the Pick of the Brown Bag, in this review blog, I examine the previous week's comic books, so you'll be ready to pick them up or save your coin on your next visit to your local shop.  This week's subjects include Captain Marvel, Catwoman, Detective Comics, Fantastic Four, Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, JLA and Black Hammer, Outer Darkness, Red Sonja, the Unbeatable Squirrel Girl,  Unearth and White Trees.  In the Spoiler Section I’ll look at Doctor Who.  As always, should you not have the time to read the entire blog, or even skim through it, you can check me out on Twitter: #PickoftheBrownBag.  This week, I'll mention some of the books that were all right but didn't merit a full review.

Before specialty comic shops, I used to subscribe to Peter Parker the Spectacular Spider-Man.  As in, it would arrive by snail mail.  When the newest version of the Spider-Man title hit the stands, nostalgic feelings convinced me to give this old favorite of mine a chance.  I liked Chip Zdarsky’s Spider-Man writing.  You can find several reviews on this blog dedicated to each issue.  I wish I could speak so highly of Zdarsky’s White Trees.  

Zdarsky made me balk during the first clutch of dialogue.  He throws out alien names at me.  Bad enough “Sir Krylos the Bold is the son of Sir Tanghar the Proud and Lady Sherock, the wild general,” but I apparently also need to know Sir Krylos grows “tantaflower and grains” and “The Trilonians have been advancing south again.” All within three bloody panels.  It just gets worse from there: Seatonia, Cannahn, General Targrand, Trahlax Gate.

When creating a language rules apply.  Klingons, Romulans, Vulcans.  Roots and cadence explain why Star Trek alien names are so resonant.  Optimus Prime, Megatron, Starscream.  Daleks, Cybermen, Zygons.  Rutans, Sontarans, Silurians.  Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael, Donatello.  Venus De Milo, the female Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.  They didn’t just call her Bertha.

All of the White Trees names amount to gobbledygook without any real backing.  They contribute to an overall lost feeling.  You named them, but I have no idea who these guys are.  Cat dude? Gracefully aging Human? Native American Village People Elf?

Sure, I get some explanation as the story unfolds, but on the whole they’re a trio of Dungeons and Dragons amalgams with some sexual fluidity thrown in for spice.  

No! Not Jaxward! Not Shelan!  Wait.  Who?

Actually, these Dungeons and Dragons characters have more personality and uniqueness about them.

I get that the sausage party is looking for their kids; abducted allegedly by their former enemies.  I still don’t know what they did to deserve this revenge.  Were they honorable? Dishonorable? Did they just live too long? What stirred up the pot?  Why wait so long to snatch the kids?  They’ve had them for awhile now.

Zdarsky spends a wee bit more time on Krylos (Gracefully Aging Human) Krylos experiences memories of his missing son Chaka.

Sorry, Chal-Kra.  These memories are stereotypes for the most part.  Get out in the field and work, boy.  Oh, well you're a painter.  I hate your painting subjects! That sort of thing.

In what should be the most rousing scene, Krylos faces a dragon.  The trouble is I never once thought any of these fellows were in danger.  It would have been bad manners to burn cardboard.

When we finally reach a female character in the story, she turns out to have a bond to the Cat Dude.

All right that explains the daughter of Now Bisexual Cat Dude.  I’ll give you that, but why is Krylos staring at his son's painting for so long? I understand that it's his son’s work, but why three panels of it?  There’s simply a lot in this book I don’t comprehend, and the writing doesn’t persuade me to try.

White Trees is suggested for mature readers, and when the trio of questers make camp among the title objects you find out the why of the warning label.   

In fact the only solid thing, pun not intended, White Trees has got going for it is sexual content.  Gay sex doesn’t float my boat, so to speak, but if you’re into that, you’ll probably appreciate the well-illustrated scenes.  I furthermore applaud the book for sticking to its guns and unabashedly showing penis all over the place.  Batman: Damned got all the hype in the world for spotlighting a heavily shadowed member of the Justice League.  Oh, yeah.  That pun, baby, that was intended.

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man finds a parasite named Helminth at the center of the web of an Internet scam.  So, Spidey calls in a favor from Tony Stark, but it’s not the team-up you think.

What Spidey wants is a clever solution that reflects his intellect and his experience.  He’s doped out the best means to extricate this pest.  It shouldn’t involve violence, but there are some people that just deserve it.

The older woman is named Marnie.  She was a superhero back in the day and can still throw a mean punch.  A little searching identifies her as the Rumor, a retro-planted Nazi fighter who teamed up with Captain America.  She’s not the only hero in the building.

The Prowler is technically a gray subject, but mostly known as a hero.  He reformed a long time ago, and when he puts on the suit its usually for the side of angels.  

His heart’s in the right place, but being a sometimes superhero means that you frequently find yourself way over your head.

Fortunately for Hobie, the underlying theme of this issue of Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is experience.  The Rumor is packed with it.  So is Spider-Man.

Prowler as we learn in the upbeat conclusion has a different kind of experience that’s nevertheless necessary.  

I really enjoyed this issue of Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man.  Despite coming in on the tail end of the story, I understood all that transpired and appreciate that it was about something.  The visual mention of Captain Jean DeWolff was a nice touch.  She’s too often forgotten, and I still miss her.  I also love Spidey being the inspirational figure that he used to be as well as a humiliation for villains of all ilk.

The Puppet Master controls the Immortal Hulk to disturb Ben Grimm’s and Alicia Masters’ honeymoon.  

Apparently Phil Masters didn’t know Alicia happened to be on the island paradise.  This demonstrates how short-sighted Puppet Master is.  It's the honeymoon.  You kind of need two to tango.

The fight continues pretty much as expected, and artist Sean Izaakse takes this privilege of a Marvel tradition to heart, giving it his all in the kinetic choreography as well as the human moments.

The aftermath of the fight feels like the conclusion of a Fantastic Four cartoon where everybody’s laughing, cracking wise and having a good time.  I liked that epilogue but you may find it cheesy.  On the flip side, the second piece depicting the Hulk’s revenge may throw you off if you don’t read the Immortal Hulk.  Even so, I'm not sure the Hulk would enact such brutality.  It's more likely that the Hulk would beat up all the guards to get to Phil and threaten the life out of him.

Captain Marvel got booted out of the Air Force and tolerates a peppy young competitor that seems to coincide with bouts of health issues.  These appearances happen when creatures called the Kraken manifest to cause havoc.  Carol’s pretty sure her old Kree enemy Dr. Minerva is up to no good.  Although, last issue, she offered her help.

A lot of the basis for this material originates from Margaret Stohl’s Life of Captain Marvel, which I didn’t read and only know second hand.  Apparently, in the comic books, Carol is half-Kree.  Carol’s mother Marie Danvers whom you may have met in the seventies original volumes of Ms. Marvel turns out to be Kree all along.  Presumably, her tough-as-nails construction worker dad is still human.  The Supreme Intelligence who is mostly responsible for triggering Carol’s power kept up the ruse for some reason.  I can buy that the Brood scientists hadn’t a clue.  Since they were so incredibly shrewd that they snuffed themselves out when re-triggering Carol’s abilities as Binary.

A lot of this life-kicking-teeth stuff could have really taken Carol into a Garth Ennis type of nose-dive concluding in a likely suicide.  Kelly Thompson though, emphasizes the positives in Carol’s life to balance out the negatives.  Alpha Flight still wants her.

So does Jim Rhodes.  

There’s much talk about pairing Carol up with Valkyrie to cement Marvel’s promise of a lesbian relationship in the cinematic universe.  I have no problem with that, but it’s not very practical with Carol being helluva gone most of the time.  I also like Carol’s relationship with Jim Rhodes in the comics.  Either or both is fine by me.

Carol has super-friends.

Marvel attempted to bolster their female readership in the nineteen seventies with the release of The Cat, Spider-Woman and Ms. Marvel.  Marvel unfortunately canceled The Cat due to poor numbers.  Buyers probably thought it was rip-off of Catwoman, and due to the lack of specialty stores, it was always hit or miss that you could get a comic book you had seen in advertising.  The Cat incidentally became Tigra.  So, blessing in disguise.  

I was glad that years later Spider-Woman and Ms. Marvel found each other and became the best of friends.  She provides one of the best lines I've ever heard describing Captain Marvel.  I was less pleased that Kurt Busiek turned Carol into an alcoholic, but this led to a bond with Iron Man that Kelly Thompson handles beautifully.

The visual narrative by Carmen Carnero throughout Captain Marvel is utterly gorgeous and paced with precision.  With colorist Tamra Bonvillain the scene below shared between Carol and Tony is perfect.

At the lab, Tony figures out what’s wrong with Carol.  I was very surprised that Thompson cut to the chase.  The answer once again goes back to The Life of Captain Marvel.  Don’t worry.  You don’t have to buy the book in order to understand what’s going on here.  Thompson and company explain the whole thing, and how it seems to tie in the evil schemes of Dr. Minerva.  Or does it?

Somebody’s kidnaped Brain Drain, and a message that seems to be a weird sort of spam turns out to be something else.

The explanation leads to more edutainment from Squirrel Girl writer Ryan North.  I had no idea any of this computer tomfoolery could be done.  

Though I could talk more about The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl in the Spoiler Section, it’s not really necessary.  Ninety percent of Squirrel Girl’s worth comes from the gags.  Spoil a joke, ruin a joke.  There’s a plethora of comedy types, and I can guarantee that you’ll find at least one funny that will make you laugh aloud.

The ten percent of the plot blows up Squirrel Girl’s life literally and figuratively as a tin-plated face returns to these pages.  Is it really Dr. Doom behind all the troubles Squirrel Girl faces in the story? And would I outright spoil that information if it was important to the story? These are the questions you’ll have to ask yourself if you listen to my recommendation and purchase The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl.

Ram V returns to Catwoman with a delightful done-in-one that could have happened anywhere and at any time in Catwoman’s life.  In short, it’s a tale that you having never read a single issue of Catwoman can pick up and enjoy.  The story draws on a lot of pulp themes which suit Catwoman perfectly.

Catwoman is bisexual.  Maybe that wasn’t the intent or always the case, but Ed Brubaker first implied it, and another Catwoman writer made the suggestion explicit.  That’s why Selina emulates Rick Blaine in the scene.

If you want to dismiss the attraction, you can always take it as Catwoman having read a lot of pulp novels, recognizing the moment as straight from purple prose and maybe seeing Casablanca.  Doesn’t matter.  The point is last time Ram V engaged Catwoman in a superb heist.  This one is a setup.

Catwoman listens to the story.  In the best of pulp tradition, the damsel plays on Kitty’s weaknesses, which are also her strengths.

The story flies like a feline in pursuit pausing only for Catwoman’s reverie over the wedding.  Ram V imitates Tom King expertly as she has a dialogue with a stray.  The wedding subtly plays into why she took this job in the first place.

Back to the plot.  It’s of course a trap, and Catwoman soon finds herself battling a new villain, or an old one with a new take on life and threads.  This fellow however isn’t the only Batman Rogue who makes an appearance.  I was delighted to see an old friend from the Bronze Age.

Mr. Freeze returns to cause Batman loads of trouble in Detective Comics.  Not however in this issue.  Mr. Freeze fans will only get two pages with he and Nora as part of the Year of the Villain tie-in.  So, any of those just Mr. Freeze fans.  Statistically there must be a few.  They can comfortably skip this issue.

Detective Comics starts off amusingly with a one page depiction of Batman on patrol, wiping out at least eleven miscreants all in a single night, all to the tune of Alfred in his ear reminding him of Bruce Wayne’s obligations.  Batman of course doesn’t listen, and goes home to find only Ace waiting for him.

After literally two minutes of sleep, Batman as Bruce Wayne awakens.  At first he promises death to Alfred but accepts that this whole thing is on him.

Writer Peter J. Tomasi and artists Christian Duce and Luis Guerrero juxtapose a meeting of Wayne Enterprises with the introduction of the Big Bad.  Our villain of the issue is a Batman Rogue that was second tier but through association became a hit.  That’s the only clue you’ll be getting. 

Tom King doesn’t really deal with the Bruce Wayne persona.  He deals with Batman, the real man.  We had a taste of Tomasi’s Wayne image from the Detective Comics Annual, but since he was with a genuine friend, the smart and lovely Sophia Zervas, Batman projected a more realistic Wayne.  This version is a farce but plausible.

Tomasi’s Bruce Wayne is different.  He’s mercurial, but also brilliant.  The role creates a believable character that could build an empire yet still be a million light years from Batman.

Another cost-saving, environmentally friendly measure puts Bruce Wayne on a plane amongst CEOs to Singapore.  One of those CEOs is the Big Bad’s target, but when lightning strikes the plan goes to blazes.  Bruce Wayne lets his Cape show, though not too much.  Again, there's a an apropos idea that Bruce Wayne could end up the hero and not be Batman.

The Justice League, including Batman find themselves imprisoned in the place of Black Hammer.  This creates a lot of problems for Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and Cyborg.

Batman’s breakdown isn’t just in his fruitless patrols.  It also lies in flawed observational skills regarding Superman.  Wonder Woman though immortal finds this imprison tortuous.  Cyborg has it even worse since he cannot blend in with the crowd.

Meanwhile, the Black Hammer heroes confront Starro but mostly squabble among themselves.  It’s not until the remaining Justice League members show up that Starro lies defeated.  Starro wasn’t the gist of the tale anyway.

The League want to know where their friends are, but the answers to that lie in space where John Stewart and a team of Green Lanterns confront another Black Hammer figure.

This is a pretty interesting “team-up,” and it’s always great to see Hawkgirl again.  

The story is out of continuity, and writer Jeff Lemire takes advantage of the freedom to not only toon up Hawkgirl but also to revisit a planet in the DCU that no longer exists.  Hasn't existed since pre-Crisis days.  The final page is a keeper.  I really didn’t expect that shocker and look forward to how Lemire will extricate himself from this bit of writing.

A stand-alone Outer Darkness has Riggs and the crew of The Charon in Star Trek mode. 

But brothers and sisters, this ain’t Star Trek.  Gory murders that better suit a splatter movie open the book.  The only reason why Riggs wants to investigate personally is because of a name on the manifest.

The investigation goes as one may expect in Outer Darkness, with violence, murder and betrayal through demonic possession.  Good stuff albeit a little short.

A body transforming malaise drew scientists and marines to Mexico.  A pair of boys identified the mouth of a cavern from whence the disease is thought to originate.  

At first, the scientists experience an exotic alien world ripe for exploration.  To the marines its a clear and present danger, and a giant from H.G. Welles soon punctuates the hazards.  Still, it's all a just an extrapolation of the science fiction visions of the past.

There's a sense of wonder about Unearth that quickly becomes a sense of dread.

You don't feel it right away, even though early scenes from Amelia's memories foreshadow what's to come.

It's a simple table top game, or is it?  As the team moves, on Dr. Amelia Reyes exhibits greater knowledge of the cavern system than their foundling.  Foundlings are always bad news in these types of stories.  They're like Changelings left behind by dark faerie.

Before long, we get an idea of the horrors to expect.  The magnificent giant is actually a malignant wyrm.  The bizarre creatures are symptoms of a cosmic plague.

Ythog-Raa.  That sounds a lot like Yog-Sototh.  Who needs no further explanation if you're student of H.P. Lovecraft.  The girl furthermore refers to it as the Beastmother, which is a damn shame.  Because nobody I think will be getting out of this alive.

Unearth started as a simple updating on Jules Verne's Journey to the Center of the Earth via Aliens.  I totally dismissed the body horror element.  Incorporating it into science fiction.  This issue diverts into some very unexpected territory.

Appointed Queen of Hyrkania, Red Sonja defends her people from the ravenous Zamoran Empire, led by Dragan who comes off as a cross between Groucho Marx's Rufus T. Firefly and Idi Amin.  No, he's too smart to be Trump.  

Sonja uses the tactics taught to her by a grand warrior named Domo, and she flashes back to these teachings when she employs them.  Last issue, Dragan kidnaped Sonja's cousin Kyron and planned to use him as a hostage to force her into marriage.  It doesn't matter that Dragan is already married and sire to a son.  This is after all the Hyborean Age.  Something unfortunate happens to Kyron.  Now, Sonja doesn't just want to protect the people of Hyrkania.  She wants revenge.

Red Sonja is the instrument of plenty of gory murders this issue, many of them quite spectacular, as she nears ever closer to the delivering demise of the would be emperor of the world.  

Her strategems evolve from memories of her cousin and parallel her lessons with Domo.  In the middle of this exercise, in a simply strong Red Sonja story, writer Mark Russell expounds on political ambition to make Red Sonja his.  I'm reminded of the sometimes philosophical diversions in spaghetti westerns.

It also doesn't matter if the figures exude resonance.  Sonja overcomes everything and everybody in her way.  The methods she uses are remarkable in their variation.  Some of them lack a single moment of fair play but for some reason you're unbothered and still see Red Sonja as the hero of this picture.  Perhaps because she only attacks warriors where as Dragan tortures innocent, helpless captives.  Dragan's callousness identifies who is truly savage.

The Spoiler Section

Neil Gaiman in dialogue introduced the Corsair.  The Time Lord that gave proof positive that Time Lords could in fact switch gender.  This wasn't the first indication which still belongs to Steven Moffat when he wrote Matt Smith's Doctor's first lines in "The End of Time," but it was another first.  Jody Houser, Roberta Ingranata and Enrica Eren Angiolini is the first to introduce the Corsair in a proper Doctor Who project.  Even beating the audios to the punch. 

Last issue, the Doctor after being tried for a crime she didn't commit traced the clues to her old friend the Corsair.  Because she knows that the Corsair will die, and horribly at that, she wanted to spend as much time with her as possible.  The Corsair says that the Doctor's rubbed off on her.  She's actually stealing for the benefit of universe.  It may not have mattered.

The Doctor's probably not lying either.  Though the Doctor is a hero, she's also a thief.  Stealing the TARDIS, willfully breaking the laws of her people, bucking the system.  Fighting the Man.  Her friendship could have overridden her altruistic instincts.  Missy in the television series has a great line about her friendship with the Doctor.  It does make one think.

So, our friends go to Radoplina to face the vault of vaults and steal the treasure for the good of the cosmos.  Or is Corsair just playing the Doctor?  Either choice would be good, and Houser makes it actually immaterial whether or not Corsair is on the up and up.  It's just a lark to see the Doctor and the Corsair interact.

When the Doctor figures out how to open the vault, all is revealed, and the answer determined.  That said, the Corsair hasn't run out of trickery and does things that the Doctor wouldn't do.  On a good day.  All of the chicanery leads to a surprise at the conclusion.  You didn't expect a Doctor Who Big Bad behind the whole thing, but thar she blows.  Darned if that identity doesn't make sense.

No, it's not Missy.