DC Comics: The New 52! (Part 3)
Dec. 13th, 2011 06:36 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
chuckroIf I was buying these at retail, I’d probably shell out for Animal Man, Blue Beetle, Justice League International, Resurrection Man, Static Shock, Wonder Woman, and possibly the two Superman books. There are several books that have the potential to get up to that list, and of course any of them could fall off of it, but that seems the best of the lot so far.
The Savage Hawkman – Full reboot. Carter Hall is an asshole who may be clinically depressed. He used to be Hawkman, but when he tries to destroy his Nth metal harness it turns into the Venom symbiote and merges with him, giving him lots of new powers. (No mention of Thanagar, hawk gods, reincarnations, Egypt, or Hawkgirl; it seems his previous career was uneventful.) The first two issues set up a bunch of villains then anticlimactically kill them off. I’m no impressed.
Static Shock – Unclear reboot. The only Milestone character to get his own book, Virgil Hawkins has apparently been operating as Static in Dakota for some time and mastered his powers before moving to New York City to join Hardware at STAR Labs. Unlike Mr. Terrific’s writer, Scott McDaniel has a moderate understanding of science—or at least enough to fake it for a smart teenage character, and to make the physics seem plausible. And plausible physics makes Static a total badass. (Also, they’re setting up a plotline with his sister and her identical doppelganger which could be pretty awesome, in an El Goonish Shive kind of way.) This was one of the strongest books out of the gate.
Stormwatch – Full reboot. The Martian Manhunter, Adam One, Jack Hawksmoor, the Engineer and Jenny Quantum are part of a secret society (operating under the radar of most superheroes) that has protected the Earth for generations from their extradimensional headquarters. They’re trying to recruit Apollo and Midnighter to join them. A great darkness is coming and a creature that survived it is coming to test the Earth and make it stronger. This is basically the cosmic-menace-level Authority book that never made sense in the DCU, but what the heck. The cover to #2 is a shout-out to the classic JLA vs. Starro cover.
Suicide Squad – Full reboot. Super-criminals are offered time off their sentences by going on suicide missions. Deadshot is the Only Sane Man, King Shark is the berserker, El Diablo is the repentant sinner, Black Spider is a ninja, and Harley Quinn is the Cloud Cuckoolander. There are other new characters; they’re there to die horribly. Opens with torture porn, follows with techno-zombies.
Superboy – Full reboot. The Men from N.O.W.H.E.R.E. grew Superboy in a tank out of a hybrid of human and kryptonian DNA, causing him to develop a new and strange sort of telekinesis. His handlers are “Red” (very obviously Caitlin Fairchild, who may or may not have superpowers) and Rose Wilson (who has two eyes but so far doesn’t seem to be Ravager). They’re trying to explore the implications of both his powers and the sociopathic tendencies that came from one of his DNA donors.
Supergirl – Full reboot. Kara Zor-El’s rocket lands on Earth. As far as she knows, she was in Argo City with her baby cousin Kal-El three days earlier. She doesn’t speak the language and wants to go home. The first two issues are 90% fight scene. (I’d be more excited about this if that hadn’t done basically this reboot on Supergirl five years ago.)
Superman – Full reboot. Superman “now”. The Daily Planet is being subsumed intoWGBS WGPN under Morgan Edge; Lois and Clark are just friends though he obviously wants more; mysterious alien menaces defy physics as they come to Metropolis muttering in another language about Krypton. George Perez understands putting a complete story with a beginning, middle and end into a single issue, to his credit. (Ties into Stormwatch, except not really.)
Swamp Thing – Unclear reboot. Seems to consider Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing to be canon and nothing else; picking up from there with the events of Brightest Day. Alec Holland is encouraged by the Green to really become Swamp Thing, because the original one was just a copy of him imprinted on plants. And if he doesn’t, a death-monster that uses bugs to turn people into backward-headed zombies will destroy the world.
Teen Titans – Full reboot. Tim Drake was Robin, now he’s Red Robin. He’s trying to gather and protect metahuman teenagers from a global conspiracy dedicated to killing or co-opting them. His first recruits include a magically-empowered thief named Cassie Sandsmark (Don’t call her Wonder Girl!), an impulsive Kid Flash (Bart Allen, though apparently not connected to Barry in an obvious way), a revised version of Solstice (who seems a cross between the initial character and Raven) and newcomers Skitter and Bunker. This briefly mentions there having been a previous incarnation of the Teen Titans, which presumably was Dick, Garth, Kory et al.
Voodoo – Full reboot. A shapeshifting, telepathic alien who typically looks like a beautiful woman has come to study humanity but is hunted by the government. (Including a character who seems to be a rebooted Major Force.) In the first issue, she works as a stripper and gives a lap dance. In the second, she changes into a man she killed to sleep with his former partner. Yeah, it’s that kind of book.
Wonder Woman – Full reboot. The Greek gods are totally rebooted into the bloody violent soap opera they always were in myth but never were in comics. Jethrien’s digging it, I’m cautiously optimistic. This has the potential to be Azzarello’s Superman and Batman: Generations.
All-Star Western – Unclear reboot. Stars Jonah Hex and Jeremiah Arkham in a young Gotham city investigating dead hookers and shooting lots of people. Definitely pulls from the recent Gates of Gotham miniseries; not clear how much it ties into recent appearances of Hex. Adds a backup story of the original El Diablo in the second issue. The art is hard to follow, but honestly, I’m inclined against western comics in general. I've never really liked the genre.
The Savage Hawkman – Full reboot. Carter Hall is an asshole who may be clinically depressed. He used to be Hawkman, but when he tries to destroy his Nth metal harness it turns into the Venom symbiote and merges with him, giving him lots of new powers. (No mention of Thanagar, hawk gods, reincarnations, Egypt, or Hawkgirl; it seems his previous career was uneventful.) The first two issues set up a bunch of villains then anticlimactically kill them off. I’m no impressed.
Static Shock – Unclear reboot. The only Milestone character to get his own book, Virgil Hawkins has apparently been operating as Static in Dakota for some time and mastered his powers before moving to New York City to join Hardware at STAR Labs. Unlike Mr. Terrific’s writer, Scott McDaniel has a moderate understanding of science—or at least enough to fake it for a smart teenage character, and to make the physics seem plausible. And plausible physics makes Static a total badass. (Also, they’re setting up a plotline with his sister and her identical doppelganger which could be pretty awesome, in an El Goonish Shive kind of way.) This was one of the strongest books out of the gate.
Stormwatch – Full reboot. The Martian Manhunter, Adam One, Jack Hawksmoor, the Engineer and Jenny Quantum are part of a secret society (operating under the radar of most superheroes) that has protected the Earth for generations from their extradimensional headquarters. They’re trying to recruit Apollo and Midnighter to join them. A great darkness is coming and a creature that survived it is coming to test the Earth and make it stronger. This is basically the cosmic-menace-level Authority book that never made sense in the DCU, but what the heck. The cover to #2 is a shout-out to the classic JLA vs. Starro cover.
Suicide Squad – Full reboot. Super-criminals are offered time off their sentences by going on suicide missions. Deadshot is the Only Sane Man, King Shark is the berserker, El Diablo is the repentant sinner, Black Spider is a ninja, and Harley Quinn is the Cloud Cuckoolander. There are other new characters; they’re there to die horribly. Opens with torture porn, follows with techno-zombies.
Superboy – Full reboot. The Men from N.O.W.H.E.R.E. grew Superboy in a tank out of a hybrid of human and kryptonian DNA, causing him to develop a new and strange sort of telekinesis. His handlers are “Red” (very obviously Caitlin Fairchild, who may or may not have superpowers) and Rose Wilson (who has two eyes but so far doesn’t seem to be Ravager). They’re trying to explore the implications of both his powers and the sociopathic tendencies that came from one of his DNA donors.
Supergirl – Full reboot. Kara Zor-El’s rocket lands on Earth. As far as she knows, she was in Argo City with her baby cousin Kal-El three days earlier. She doesn’t speak the language and wants to go home. The first two issues are 90% fight scene. (I’d be more excited about this if that hadn’t done basically this reboot on Supergirl five years ago.)
Superman – Full reboot. Superman “now”. The Daily Planet is being subsumed into
Swamp Thing – Unclear reboot. Seems to consider Alan Moore’s Swamp Thing to be canon and nothing else; picking up from there with the events of Brightest Day. Alec Holland is encouraged by the Green to really become Swamp Thing, because the original one was just a copy of him imprinted on plants. And if he doesn’t, a death-monster that uses bugs to turn people into backward-headed zombies will destroy the world.
Teen Titans – Full reboot. Tim Drake was Robin, now he’s Red Robin. He’s trying to gather and protect metahuman teenagers from a global conspiracy dedicated to killing or co-opting them. His first recruits include a magically-empowered thief named Cassie Sandsmark (Don’t call her Wonder Girl!), an impulsive Kid Flash (Bart Allen, though apparently not connected to Barry in an obvious way), a revised version of Solstice (who seems a cross between the initial character and Raven) and newcomers Skitter and Bunker. This briefly mentions there having been a previous incarnation of the Teen Titans, which presumably was Dick, Garth, Kory et al.
Voodoo – Full reboot. A shapeshifting, telepathic alien who typically looks like a beautiful woman has come to study humanity but is hunted by the government. (Including a character who seems to be a rebooted Major Force.) In the first issue, she works as a stripper and gives a lap dance. In the second, she changes into a man she killed to sleep with his former partner. Yeah, it’s that kind of book.
Wonder Woman – Full reboot. The Greek gods are totally rebooted into the bloody violent soap opera they always were in myth but never were in comics. Jethrien’s digging it, I’m cautiously optimistic. This has the potential to be Azzarello’s Superman and Batman: Generations.
All-Star Western – Unclear reboot. Stars Jonah Hex and Jeremiah Arkham in a young Gotham city investigating dead hookers and shooting lots of people. Definitely pulls from the recent Gates of Gotham miniseries; not clear how much it ties into recent appearances of Hex. Adds a backup story of the original El Diablo in the second issue. The art is hard to follow, but honestly, I’m inclined against western comics in general. I've never really liked the genre.
