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A REVIEW OF BATMAN: DEATH MASK #1 OF 4

Acclaimed manga artist and writer Yoshinori Natsume makes his American debut with a four part, manga style Dark Knight comic with Batman: Death Mask. It must be said that this is most likely an attempt to help build hype for the DVD cartoon of Batman: Gotham Knights due out later this year which is drawn in the same style as this manga by Natsume. The DVD is a short collection of anime style adventures of Batman as he takes on some familiar foes such as Killer Croc and Scarecrow. This way, true diehards of Batman will not be caught off guard with this art and story style and the fair-weather fans will most likely buy it because of its short release after the new live action movie in July.

That’s enough about something that won’t be out for another six months though. We’ll get more into details on the movies as they get closer to their respective releases. Onto the review! This comic series had been hyped for weeks up till its release since it gives you a sense and style you never see from Batman, but is a nice, fresh twist on the franchise, at least in terms of art style. Starting with having to read the comic from right to left, just like a Japanese manga, the story is driven by a somewhat stereotypical Batman plot. The Dark Knight is questioning his identity, whether Batman or Bruce Wayne are the dominant parts of his personality, driven by nightmares of him in a cage with a Batman-esqe silhouette acting as warden on his self-made prison. Meanwhile, a Japanese corporation has come to Gotham to work with the Wayne Foundation on a new project that they feel with help both the US and Japan, which sparks flashbacks to Bruce’s training in the Far East as a young man, long before becoming “The Batman”. A fundraising dinner is thrown and the eccentric Japanese businessman reveals Oni masks that he intends to put into the Gotham art museum as a show of goodwill and hope to spark an interest in Asian art and history. He encourages an attendee of the dinner to don one of the masks and, of course, when he puts the mask on, his personality severely shifts from happy, fun-loving partygoer to a martial arts master who puts down several of the art bodyguards before running out of the party. Bruce chases only to find the man with his face and the mask slashed off, a ridiculously clean cut, similar to something Bruce had seen in his dreams and also what looks like the mark of a new serial killer in Gotham. Batman must now come to terms with his own mask, try to recover the stolen art, and stop the new serial killer who takes the view that we all wear masks a little too literally as he wishes to “help us” remove them.

A strong showing by Natsuke, this looks like it will fit well into the Batman mythos. Although nothing revolutionary beyond the art style for Batman, those are waters you do not wish to disturb much to begin with, I can see Natsuke’s effort getting a warm welcome from the Gotham Guardian obsessed. I would recommend this story just for the sake to look at the well drawn characters and to try something different from what we are used to. If you are a casual Batman fan or a fanatic, I would definitely pick this up and add this to the collection. I look forward to the rest of the four issue series.

-Ray Carsillo

Mighty Avengers Issue 11

Hey guys, let me start by admitting that I absolutely loved this issue of Mighty Avengers for numerous reasons. The interaction between Morgana and Dr. Doom was priceless mainly because it seems very random. They aren’t even in the same time and the reader realizes that Dr. Doom cheats time and space, to see her. From the feel of their meeting, you can also tell that they are not only flirty with each other, but Doom frequently uses magic or technology to see her, which definitely makes for a very intriguing story.

Let me also say that I love the way Brian Michael Bendis uses dialogue and thought balloons to add an enormous amount of levity to the title, which I can’t get enough of. The best highlight of this is when Doom bombards Ms. Marvel with insults on her body and weight. This leads the best quote so far of 2008 which is “that actually hurt my feelings!” That is followed by Wonder Man comforting her with “no you’re not”. The second best highlight is Wasp questioning “you saw Luke Cage naked” with a grin on her face after Spider-Woman admits that she’s seen all the New Avengers(not the Mighty Avengers) naked.

It is also very interesting how most, if not all, of the teammates distrust Spider-Woman. Think about it! She has always been a double agent, or triple agent, or whatever number we are up to at this point! She’s always changing teams and always has a secret or two. Her being on the Mighty Avengers is great because you never know what will happen next with her.

If I had anything to criticize so far for the Mighty Avengers, is their lack of diversity as far as ethnicity and ability. Having an all white cast at times can make it hard for readers(or maybe just myself) to feel interested or connected the title. Let’s face it, in the Avengers there have been PLENTY of minority characters to choose from and it’s too much of a coincidence that none of them made it to be members of the most powerful super-team in America. Also as far as abilities, there are too many men who are super-strong fighters(Sentry, Ironman, Ares and Wonder Man) and too many women who can fly and fire energy (Spider-Woman, Wasp, and Ms. Marvel). Overall, this book has gotten a lot better to read and the art is Amazing because of Mark Bagley. This issue gets my recommendation, so go check it out!

@~~~~~~~}~~~~~~~~~~~ Devin Peacock

Young X-Men #1

I’ll start this review on a positive note. This issue is penciled by Yanick Paquette and his art is very refreshing, yet gritty at the same time. I personally like his interpretation of characters and I loved his time on Ultimate X-Men.

Unfortunately, his artwork could not lower my annoyance with other aspects of the comic book. I’m really sick of seeing the same X-Titles and names recycled. Come on, you know what I mean! This book has an entirely new roster of mutants, but they call themselves the “Young X-Men” which I hate. In the recent years, there has been Young X-Men, New X-Men(with Nightcrawler, Stacy X, etc), New X-Men (random students at the academy that Frost threw together), New Exiles, and the list can go on forever. This isn’t just X-Titles, this is across Comic-dom and SUPER irritating. If the roster is mostly, if not completely different, and the concept is different please choose another title for the book/team!

Also, what’s going on with these characters? Two of these characters I’ve never heard of before and normally that would be fine. After reading the issue through, I still don’t know their powers, back story or not even their damn names. This issue doesn’t even explain why he’s putting together a team of X-Men and NOT using the senior members to face the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants. What is Cyclops’s plan? For right now, this book makes very little sense, the characters are bigger enigmas than in any other first issue of a comic and there still hasn’t been an explanation of where two more mutants came from, if no more can be born. Hopefully issue #2 will be much better and will give the readers something to be excited about for this title. At least the new X-Force has a lot of blood and guts flying!

@~~~~~~~}~~~~ Devin Peacock

PICKING UP JIGSAW'S PIECES (A Review of Punisher: War Journal #18)

What has been one of the most refreshing titles to come out in recent times has been the reintegration of the Punisher into the Marvel Universe with the relaunch of the Punisher: War Journal title. Much tamer than the explicit rating his normal comic receives, this title appeals to a much broader and younger audience with just enough of the crazy badass ex-marine with a skull on his chest that we all have come to love so much. They even gave him a sidekick in the former technovillian Stuart Clarke, better known to some as Rampage. They did a great one-shot detailing his background some in the last issue in case you need a memory jog. With the relaunch of the title, they have finally begun to reincorporate some of his best known villains as well, including finally, Jigsaw. Hinted at several issues ago, Jigsaw has come to the forefront with some plan involving him and his henchmen dressing in white jumpsuits with black skulls on their chests as they go around killing crooked cops. Similar, but still different to our man in black and the full plan has not been revealed as of just yet. Also in this issue, in case you did not remember, they make sure to show the obsession Jigsaw has with the Punisher as Jigsaw was one of the few that got away from the Punisher, but not before having his face mashed in again and again, turning him into the raving, Punisher obsessed, lunatic that he is today, wondering why Punisher never finished the job.

Overall, a solid foundation for the six issue story arc that is starting now. If you’re just getting into the Punisher and his brand of justice or thinking about it, this would be the time to jump in because you’re most likely to see him at his best in the coming issues. The only drawback I have with this issue is the artwork. Normally, I do not comment on artwork because I know how difficult it can be because of my own lack of drawing ability, but this is a rare occurrence that I have to just come out and say that the drawing for this issue was an abomination. Howard Chaykin is the artist for this issue and I have to say that I remember his style from the recently short-lived Blade: Takes One to Know One series and it sucked then and it sucks now. All the men look exactly the same to the point that it is almost impossible to differentiate between characters and the concept of a solid line seems to escape him. The artwork done up to now on the series has been exquisite and I have to say that it is a great disappointment to see Chaykin still have a job. Don’t let the artwork take away from your enjoyment of this issue too much, but it definitely keeps it from being a full blown great recommendation. If you’re a Punisher fan or want to become one, jump on now as we prepare for the new Jigsaw 6-part story arc. It should not disappoint and if it does, you’ll hear it from me in 5 months.

-Ray Carsillo

BLUE BEETLE #25

Ahh…a 25th issue. A special time in a comic book’s life. You are a quarter of the way to 100, halfway to 50, and been in publication for at least two years now. Usually, you like to either end a decent story arc, or begin one with a 25th issue and DC was true to form with this by ending the “Reach” story arc. First off, let us analyze this character because this was a great move on DC when they decided to make a new Blue Beetle after killing off Ted Kord in the Infinite Crisis. They created a young, inexperienced, minority super-hero with everyday problems just like the rest of us and some that we probably do not have, tackling tough street issues and home life, and oh yeah, a piece of alien technology strapped to his back with the power of a nuclear bomb. I usually complain in these pieces, but I was really impressed by this move by DC and the character is extremely likable right off the bat, so you know I am a huge supporter of the new Blue Beetle, especially as he stumbles his way around the DCU, becoming an honorary member of the Teen Titans, fighting Guy Gardner on the moon, and annoying Batman due to his ignorance as a superhero. Heck, the kid’s main allies are his two best friends, a crazy war veteran named Peacemaker, and a couple of obsessed super-fans from the Blue Beetle fan-club. What’s not to love?

Since the beginning of this new Blue Beetle, young Jamie Reyes has been looking for all the answers as to where the Scarab came from and what are its powers. He finds along the way that the Scarab is a piece of alien technology from an advanced alien race called The Reach. He also finds out that they are mortal enemies of the Guardians, so we’ve already had a couple of Green Lantern crossovers in this, and that they come to Earth proclaiming peace, but Jamie knows the truth due to the scarab. Now the basic purpose of the Reach is the same as most intelligent alien races, enslaving mankind. Jamie infiltrates their mothership and gets himself captured. The scarab plays possum as it is ripped out of Jamie’s spine (ouch) and the de-powered Jamie finds a way to escape and make his way through the Reach mothership to the control room. There, he confronts the Reach monarch and the two have a long conversation, which of course, is to buy the scarab time as it plants a virus in the Reach computers as they are analyzing it. Jamie wakes the scarab up, it reattaches itself to his spine (ouch again) and they destroy the Reach mothership with the help of many of Earth’s superheroes. This issue was great because you see the character grow in ways that you usually have to wait 10 times as long for (that’s 250 issues for you math whizzes out there). They also reveal that the scarab has actually developed a mind and personality of its own, due in large part to Jamie, and the two have actually become friends. I am sure this will be crucial for future story arcs and help with the character development.

This was a great story arc and by far Blue Beetle has become one of my favorite superheroes in the DCU now. From the honesty of a young kid trying to do the right thing, to the amazing powers the Scarab affords him, to the enemies he fights and the friends that he makes along the way, this comic book has it all. If you have not been reading Blue Beetle, start picking it up NOW. If you want to see what this guy is all about, then definitely see if you can find back issues of this. Kudos to DC once again.

-Ray Carsillo