Review- TEEN TITANS VOL. 3: DEATH OF THE FAMILY

TEEN TITANS VOL. 3: DEATH OF THE FAMILY (DC, Second Printing, 2014; Softcover)

Collects Teen Titans #0, 15-17, Red Hood And The Outlaws #16, and Batman #17 (cover dates November, 2012- April, 2013)

Writers: Scott Lobdell, Fabian Nicieza, and Scott Snyder

Artists: Brett Booth, Greg Capullo, Jonathan Glapion, Tyler Kirkham, Batt, Norm Rapmund, Jon Sibal, Timothy Green II, Wayne Faucher, Eddy Barrows, and Eber Ferreira

Colorists: Andrew Dalhouse Blond, FCO Plascencia, and Alex Sinclair

My son checked this out of our local library and asked me to read it with him. While I am glad that I did so that I could censor out the cursewords (regular readers of my blog know of my disdain for superheroes swearing), it was a chore to read. Only my love for my son could have made me endure this nonsensical hot mess of a story.

While I loathe decompression-style writing in comics, the overwriting by '90s holdouts Scott Lobdell and Fabian Nicieza is far, far worse. Reading their dialogue is like chewing chalk. This is some stupid story about The Teen Titans teaming up with Red Hood And The Outlaws to save all twenty Robins from The Joker, or something like that. It was so difficult to read that I zoned out a few times while rattling off the story to my son, who seemed to enjoy it.

My 9 year old son's take: He liked that two different Robins were fighting each other. He also liked the fact that there is not a lot of swearing in it because it is more enjoyable for all ages. He said that it was a pretty good storyline too. He disliked the way that The Joker looked in it. He disliked the tricks that The Joker played on them, like when he had tricked them into thinking that he had removed their faces.

The writing was stiff and clunky while the artwork suffered from a '90s Image influence. My apologies to those who consider bombastic, hyper-stylized '90s comic book art to be in good taste. The coloring was overdone and lifeless. I am just grateful that this was free from the library. I can't imagine how awful I would have felt if I spent my money on it or if my son spent his allowance money on it. Avoid this turkey at all costs.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 0.25 out of 5.

The OCD zone

Paper stock: Good weight glossy coated stock.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover. 

Review- BATMAN: KNIGHTFALL VOL. 3- KNIGHTSEND

BATMAN: KNIGHTFALL VOL. 3- KNIGHTSEND (DC, Third Printing, 2013; Softcover)

Collects Batman #509, 510, 512-514, Catwoman #12, 13, Detective Comics #676, 677, 679-681, Robin #8, 9, 11-13, Batman: Legends Of The Dark Knight #62, 63, and Batman: Shadow Of The Bat #29, 30, 32-34 (cover dates July, 1994- January, 1995)

Writers: Doug Moench, Alan Grant, Chuck Dixon, Jo Duffy, and Denny O'Neil

Artists: Pencilers (*also inkers)- Mike Manley, Bret Blevins*, Graham Nolan, Ron Wagner, Tom Grummett, Jim Balent, Joe Rubinstein*, Barry Kitson, Mike Vosburg, Mike Gustovitch*, Romeo Tanghal*, Lee Weeks, Phil Jimenez*, MD Bright, and John Cleary

Inkers- Dick Giordano, Bob Smith, Scott Hanna, Ron McCain, Ray Kryssing, Rick Burchett, Mike Manley, John Stokes, and Klaus Janson

Christ on a stick, would it have killed DC to do a complete run in any of their books? Did they have to omit the Zero Hour crossover which ran across the titles? They included one issue from it in this book while omitting the rest. Between this and the omitted issues from Vol. 2 it is apparent that DC will forever be second to Marvel's Collected Editions department. DC used to lead, and indeed helped define, this market segment but in the past decade became complacent. Marvel upped their game and raised the bar, leaving DC in the dust. All of the people who helped to build DC's collected editions department have long since left, leaving the clueless buffoons we have now running the show

This book starts out with the Knightsend crossover which ran across twelve comics. In that arc we see Bruce Wayne ready himself to return and resume the mantle of Batman. The problem is that his chosen successor, Jean Paul Valley (Azrael) is mentally unstable and is unwilling to give it up so easily. So Bruce Wayne has to defeat him in a pitched battle that requires not one, but two Aftermath issues to wrap things up. It is disgusting that this arc required folks to buy so many different titles in order to get the complete story. That is everything that is wrong with this industry. They should just slap a label on the cover reading ATTENTION COMIC FANS: We think that you are stupid sheep and will buy any and every piece of swill that we shovel at you.

The next arc is Prodigal. Bruce Wayne is not yet ready to resume his role as Batman, and picks Robin (Dick Grayson) to be the new Batman. The real Robin, not to be confused with the then-current Robin (Tim Drake, the third one). I used to spit at DC because of these multiple identities but Marvel has followed suit in the past decade, making me spit at them just as much. Ridiculous. At least this arc shows some true character development for Dick Grayson, as he regains his confidence while battle Killer Croc and Two-Face. Bruce Wayne returns at Batman on the final page of this twelve issue arc. He is wearing an all black costume reminiscent of the 1989 movie.

The writing and artwork are all good to very good, depending. While it is easy to lump in all '90s comics in together I think that DC was doing better superhero stuff than Marvel at this point in time. These three Knightfall books were an enjoyable line marred by DC's omissions. I would love to see DC go head to head with Marvel and do a chunky line of full color trade paperbacks which will eventually collect everything. These 600-650 page beasts are a good place to start.

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4.5 out of 5.

The OCD zone- I love thick chunky trade paperbacks of complete runs.

Linework and Color restoration: Things look good overall. The linework is tight and clean. The original color palette is maintained if certain liberties are taken where the original gradient blends are.

Paper stock: The paper stock is slightly thicker than the cheap paper that DC uses in most of their collections of classic material. It looks like real pulp comic paper, which is nice, but I don't know how well it will hold up over time. Then again, a recent trip to John King Books in Detroit showed me how durable paper can be. I was flipping through books that were 70 plus years old and the paper was solid if browned.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Review- BATMAN: KNIGHTFALL VOL. 2- KNIGHTQUEST

BATMAN: KNIGHTFALL VOL. 2- KNIGHTQUEST (DC, Second Printing, 2012; Softcover)

Collects Batman #501-508, Catwoman #6, 7, Detective Comics #667-675, Robin #7, and Shadow Of The Bat #19, 20, 24-28 (cover dates October, 1993- June, 1994)

Writers: Chuck Dixon, Alan Grant, Doug Moench, and Jo Duffy

Artists: Pencilers- Graham Nolan, Vince Giarrano, Mike Manley, Barry Kitson, Jim Balent, Bret Blevins, and Tom Grummett; Inkers- Scott Hanna, Vince Giarrano, Mike Manley, Eduardo Barreto, Dick Giordano, Bob Wiaceck, John Beatty, Josef Rubinstein, Frank McLaughlin, Robert R. Smith, and Ray Kryssing

Ahh, the '90s. I quit this hobby during the turn of that decade (as 1989 gave way to 1990), but I occasionally popped in a comic shop to see what was shaking. Whenever I peeked into various comics I was appalled by the artwork (see cover image above). The “Image” look was in vogue, and the speculators lapped this stuff up. Buried under this horrid artwork are occasionally good stories, as evidenced by this very book.

The 1990s were !!!TOTALLY EXTREME!!!, and comics always move with the order of the day. Lame old-fashioned Bruce Wayne Batman was out, and in was the new, almost amoral badass replacement Jean Paul Valley Batman. He had psychological damage due to his programming when he was Azrael, only adding to his !!!TOTALLY EXTREME!!! '90s-ness. He even redesigned the costume with !!!TOTALLY EXTREME!!! weapons. This was a new Batman for today, man. I find the macho posturing of 1990s superheroes to be amusing.

The Joker kidnapping Hollywood studio heads and making a movie, The Death Of Batman, was the best arc in the book. Pretty funny stuff there. Both Catwoman and Commissioner Gordon have realized that this is not the Batman that they knew and loved. Other memorable issues were the ones with Mr. Freeze and Clayface, although why even the cops would refer to this third Clayface as Clayface 3 struck me as being dumb. Abattoir and Gunhawk are both '90s to the core, and were enjoyable adversaries in their own way. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed many of these stories, to be honest with you. They are fun, and while the !!!TOTALLY EXTREME!!!, dark and grittiness can get tiresome I enjoyed this book in 2-3 issue doses. The artwork was mostly decent, although there is some that is painfully dated and ugly.

I drink Diet Mountain Dew by the gallon. It is the nectar of the gods.

In typical DC fashion, this book is far from being complete or comprehensive. The entire Knightquest: The Search storyline (Bruce Wayne's quest to heal his back) is omitted, resulting in Bruce Wayne reappearing completely healed “on set” in the final issue in the book with no explanation. The issues omitted are Shadow Of The Bat #21-23, Justice League Task Force #5, 6, and Legends Of The Dark Knight #59-61. Only Robin #7 from that crossover was included in this book. What a joke. (Thanks to rifft for clarifying this to me.)

I already have Volume 3 and hope to read it someday. Stay tuned!

Junk Food For Thought rating: 4 out of 5.

The OCD zone- DC should do more of these complete runs in chunky trade paperbacks. Marvel has been doing this with their Epic-branded line, and I have been buying them all. I am a sucker for complete runs, and even if I am not very interested in the material I tend to pick them up. Think of it as a Blu-Ray box set of a complete series that you will likely never watch...only for comics that you will likely never read.

Linework and Color restoration: Very good overall. While the original color palette is faithfully maintained, it is the gradient shades that come up short. There were gradient shades in the original comics, and the blends here come up short when compared side by side with the original issues. Again, the colors are correct, and I would say that the blends are better than 90% accurate. For DC, this is good enough.

Paper stock: This being a value priced full color phonebook means that by definition it will have cheap paper. The pulp paper here is slightly thicker than the original issues and a tad heavier than what DC usually passes off on folks in their collections of classic material. I can live with it with this page count at this price point.

Binding: Perfect bound trade paperback.

Cardstock cover notes: Laminated cardstock cover.

Reviews: Batman & Robin Vol. 3- Batman & Robin Must Die; City of Dust- A Philip Khrome Story

BATMAN & ROBIN- THE DELUXE EDITION: BATMAN & ROBIN MUST DIE (DC, 2011; Hardcover)

Collects Batman and Robin Nos. 13-17 and Batman: The Return No. 1 (cover dates August, 2010- January, 2011).

Writer: Grant Morrison

Artists: David Finch and others

This is decent, but I'm done with Batman for now. I'll wait for the Chronicles trade paperbacks to catch up. I've enjoyed Grant Morrison's run (what I've read of it) but have no interest in Batman, Inc. There are loads of different artists involved in the issues in this book, and all of the are above average in terms of quality. There are many super violent, over the top fight scenes.

I am not crazy about seeing heroes kill villains, although I do realize that this routinely happened in Batman's earliest adventures. It probably wouldn't bother me if I didn't have a 5 year old son. It's too bad that the 'real' Batman titles aren't in that middle ground where they can appeal to us adults, yet I wouldn't cringe giving them to my son to read. In any case, this was a fun read, and Pyg and the whole contagious addiction thing was a trip to say the least.

The OCD zone- This book has decent paper and glued binding, but it does lay reasonably flat. This can rest comfortably in one hand while reading and lay flat on the bed as well. I can live with glued binding on skinnier hardcover collections like this.

CITY OF DUST: A PHILLIP KHROME STORY (Radical, 2009; Softcover)

Collects City of Dust Nos. 1-5 (cover dates October, 2008- March, 2009)

Writer: Steve Niles

Artist: Chng

I like Steve Niles' writing, but I am sick and tired of dystopian views of the future. This series riffs on a number of familiar stories (1984, Farenheit 454, Blade Runner) but is decent in its own right. The artwork and computer coloring are breathtaking, which is par for the course for Radical Publishing's output. I have no problem plunking down cash for their products. My major gripe is that the title of this series has nothing to do with the events that occur here. Yes, it takes place in a city, but there is no mention of dust. No metaphor, no dust superpower, no drug called dust...nothing. It's as dumb a name as the movie Murder By Numbers with Sandra Bullock, in which the story had nothing to do with numbers.

The OCD zone- Heavy duty, high quality coated stock paper really brings out the artwork and colors. This book also has sewn binding, which makes me feel all warm and fuzzy. I am ill, but at least I don't hurt anybody. 

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Reviews: Untouchable Vol. 1; Batman & Robin- Batman Vs. Robin; Classic G.I. Joe Vol. 8

UNTOUCHABLE VOL. 1 (Dynamite, 2010, softcover original graphic novel)

This is the format of the future, kids, at least as far as hard copy comics go. A beefed-up 'prestige format' from the days of yore, this is like a 1/3 trade on nice paper with a cardstock cover. Radical does the same thing, offering 50+ pages of story, in this case $5.99 MSRP. When you compare that to DC's 20 pages for $2.99 and Marvel's 22 pages for $3.99, you can begin to see where this is going. Plus, titles tend to have diminishing returns. If this were a 5 or 6 issues mini-series it might not make it, but people are more willing to stick around for 3 bi-monthly books like this.

Mike Carey and Samit Basu deliver an Indian (no, not Native American) flavored tale with a creature that reminds me of the Nabu from Avatar. Ashok Bhadana's artwork is unbelievably gorgeous. The hybrid of pencils and computer "painting" give this a lush, detailed look and feel. The story works and I want to read the rest of it. I'm not sure if I will trade wait or not, though. Bluewater has been cancelling many of the titles that I have been trade-waiting on (the second Vincent Price Presents trade, Black Scorpion), so I am re-thinking my format preferences for the smaller publishers.

BATMAN & ROBIN: BATMAN VS. ROBIN (DC, 2010, hardcover)

Collects Batman & Robin Nos. 7-12 (cover dates March- July, 2010)

Issues 7-9 were Blackest Night tie-ins and were not done by the regular creative team of Grant Morrison and Frank Quietly, so the quality was way down. Thankfully, things picked way back up with Issue 10. I am not reading all of these various Batman titles and tie-ins about the disappearance of Bruce Wayne through the ages, but I was able to follow this well enough. This ends on one helluva cliffhanger, and Volume 3 hardcover is featured in this month's Previews, so I guess that I am on board.

Terror Inc. Nos. 1-4, 8 (Marvel, cover dates July, 1992- February, 1993)

I will read almost anything if it is cheap or free, in this case these issues which I found in the .10 box at Big Ben's Comix Oasis in Allen Park, MI. They were blowing out the .50 box back issues for .10 a piece, thousands of them. I spent three hours in there one day after work, piecing together an entire run of Nightmask in F/NM and nice chunks of the '90s Morbius The Living Vampire series, among other treasures. I had never even heard of this title, but for .10, who cares? I grabbed what was there.

The basic concept of the series is that Terror, a bounty hunter whose origin is not revealed in any of these issues, somehow can use the body parts of other people and gain their abilities and memories, i.e. an Olympic runner's legs help him run fast, etc. This is black humor big time, filled with gore and an air of '90s "extreme"-ness. Amusing for a dime, but at full cover price...probably not. The artwork is typical '90s scratchy garbage. I like looking at old ads and checklists in these back issues. I was staggered by how many crappy titles Marvel produced back then. Then again, I am staggered by the amount of crappy titles that Marvel produces today. The more things change...   I look forward to reading today's "lost" masterpieces out of some .10 box in 2030.

CLASSIC G.I. JOE VOL. 8 (IDW, 2010, softcover)

Collects G. I. Joe: A Real American Hero Nos. 71-80 (cover dates May- Late November, 1988)

I had already abandoned ship when these issues were originally released, so this was all-new to me. The linework and restoration are spotty throughout the book. Most of it looks fine, but there are some pages that you can tell were not re-colored by "hand". All comics are colored on computers these days, including collected editions like this. The colorist matches the original color palette as closely as possible, and there are two methods to doing this. One is by hand, very time consuming but very nice, and the other is to let the computer fill in the shapes, which often obliterates linework. This is the case here. Also, some of these issues were scanned in poor resolution, with pixelated linework being the result. While nowhere near as bad as Volume 6 or 7 (or some of the later ones...reviews forthcoming), it still annoys the ***t out of me because I know that this is laziness and not the limits of technology. Every other company has long since learned how to collect Classic (read: pre-digital file) material properly, so why can't IDW?

The stories are fun, action-packed, never a dull moment fare. Writer Larry Hama is a genius with these characters, even making the mandated insertion of new characters and vehicles (toys) seem plausible. Marshall Rogers (of '70s Batman fame) even alternates artwork duties with Joe stalwart Rod Whigham.

This book smells fantastic, with it's toxic yet pleasing aroma undoubtedly being the result of that magical Korean printing. It smells much like the Chinese printing, which I have characterized in the past as such: The result of asbestos tiles, lead paint chips, and mercury from recalled thermometers. The Korean printing has one extra delightful ingredient, though: the tears of the children forced to make these books in sweatshop conditions. It's funny how in these issues Roadblock bashes a motorist who doesn't drive an American vehicle, and there are a few other pro-American references in this title, and now these things are printed in Korea.

Reviews: Spider-Man- The Gauntlet Vol. 5, Grim Hunt, One Moment In Time; Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery Archives Vol. 2; Batman & Robin: Batman Reborn

SPIDER-MAN: THE GAUNTLET VOL. 5- THE LIZARD (Marvel, 2010, Hardcover)

Collects Amazing Spider-Man Nos. 630-633 and selections from Amazing Spider-Man No. 629 and Web of Spider-Man No. 6 (cover dates May- July, 2010)

Zeb Wells is the weak link in the writers of the 'Spidey Brain Trust'. He writes in a more Bendis-esque, ultra-padded style than any of the other cats involved with this title. Couple that with Chris Bachalo's manga-crap-infused "artwork", and you have one unenjoyable book. I would dump this book in a heartbeat if not for my Amazing Spider-Man completist OCD. At least they tried to do something new with the Lizard. It wasn't any good, but it was new, and they tried.

BORIS KARLOFF TALES OF MYSTERY ARCHIVES VOL. 2 (Dark Horse, 2010, Hardcover)

Collects Boris Karloff Tales of Mystery Nos. 5-10 (cover dates October, 1963- June, 1965)

This series is fun and entertaining. While not great, the stories are paced nicely and have artwork by many Golden and Silver Age greats, such as Alex Toth, Frank Springer, Paul S. Newman, Jack Sparling, and Joe Orlando. This book is worth checking out if you are a fan of the Horror/Mystery genres or appreciate vintage comic books.

BATMAN & ROBIN: BATMAN REBORN (DC, 2010, Hardcover)

Collects Batman and Robin Nos. 1-6 (cover dates August, 2009- January, 2010)

I picked up the .99 reprint of Issue 1 and was blown away. I ran out and bought the first two hardcovers (sucker!!) and really enjoyed this one. I have not been a regular reader of Grant Morrison's run, but quickly picked up what was going on in Issue 1. Bruce Wayne is dead. Check. The original Robin (Dick Grayson) is now Batman. Check. Batman's 10 year old son that he had with Ra's Al Ghul's daughter is now Robin. Check. With that basic knowledge, I was able to follow this with ease. I am not a huge fan of either Grant Morrison writing or Frank Quietly's artwork, but it seems to work here. This is pretty gruesome stuff, so parental guidance is suggested. I am more than a little sad that I can't share modern Batman comics with my son.

I have a double-standard with Marvel and DC. With Marvel, things must strictly adhere to continuity and characters must adhere to the foundations set by Stan Lee. Anything else pisses me off. I am also a completist with Marvel titles like Spider-Man, Avengers, etc. With DC, my knowledge is limited mostly to the Golden Age (1930s/1940s). I have no urge to own the complete run of anything, rather I am more than happy to cherry pick arcs here and there based on either the creators involved or any other whim I may have. Again, this is my 'big two' double-standard, and I am sure that there are DC fans somewhere griping about this the way that I gripe about Bendis' Avengers.

SPIDER-MAN: GRIM HUNT (Marvel, 2010, Hardcover)

Collects Amazing Spider-Man Nos. 634-637, The Grim Hunt Digital Prologue and selections from Amazing Spider-Man Extra! No. 3, and Web of Spider-Man No. 7 (cover dates May, 2009- September, 2010)

So this is supposed to be the payoff? After plowing through all 5 Gauntlet hardcovers, this is what it all leads to? While not horrible, I felt underwhelmed after that much investment, both in time and money. No spoilers, only these gripes: Ret-cons suck, as do resurrections. There is some sucky dialogue in here too, with Spider-Man doing several "..." replies, and even Arana saying "BTW...". I wish that I were kidding about that, but Joe Kelly is such a lazy writer that he saved a few keystrokes by doing that. Rather than have her say "By the way", they had her say something that has more syllables, as if anyone would really do that. Horrible writing.

SPIDER-MAN: ONE MOMENT IN TIME (Marvel, 2010, Hardcover)

Collects Amazing Spider-Man Nos. 638-641 (cover dates September, 2010- October, 2010)

G-R-O-O-O-A-A-AN-N-N....What a piece of crap! With the exception of the outcome of The Gauntlet/ Grim Hunt arc(s), I feel that the Brand New Day run has given us the best Spider-Man comics in 25 years. Rather than putting the whole messy Mephisto thing behind us and moving on, Joe Quesada feels that drudging everything up with more ret-cons is a good idea. This is borderline DC/ What If...? style storytelling.

The last few pages is Issue 641 were padding to the maximum. Showing the same panel 10 or 11 times, but with different coloring, and then on the 12th panel showing the same pose but with something different going on is piss poor storytelling. Oh well, we had a great run that lasted nearly 100 issues. Now we are getting Humbero Ramos' sucktastic "artwork" after this. Let the new 'dark ages' for Spider-Man begin.