Happy Holidays from BasementRejects!
The Bat and the Cat face off against Luthor and his team, Batwoman faces a superhuman art thief, and Aquaman tries to crack open a giant crab…seriously.
With two rather small weeks and all the holiday madness, I decided to just do one “This Week in Comics” for the two holiday weeks. This is probably a good thing with only three books two review though two books almost did make the cut.
I passed on The Star Wars #0 which was a companion book for the rather confusing pre-movie version of Star Wars that has been unfolding at Dark Horse. While I think this is probably a good idea, it should have been released months ago…either before the first issue or right after the first issue to help clear up storylines and characters.
The second title I passed on was Origin II #1. I read all of origin when it was released and enjoyed it. This second volume seems a bit unnecessary and doesn’t appear to advance the story enough to make me want to go out and get individual issues…I’ll read the collection (and a hefty price tag doesn’t help there either).
This Week in Comics—December 31, 2013 includes: Forever Evil #4 (from 12/24/13), Aquaman (5) #26, and Batwoman #26.
Forever Evil #4
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Writer: Goeff Johns
Artist: David Finch
Date: February 2014
Title: “Hide and Seek”
Forever Evil #4
The Syndicate have taken over the world and now Batman and Catwoman have formed an unlikely team to stop them. Meanwhile, Luthor and his agents are seeking ways to stop the villains who have overtaken Earth. As the Syndicate begins to have infighting, Batman and Catwoman are about to come face-to-face with the Luthor.
It is basic, it is simple, but I do admit I’m kind of enjoying Forever Evil. What makes it stand out for me is that I’m not reading any tie-in to the story, but I am still understanding what is going on in the story…that is the sign of a good mini-series to me. I just wish that Forever Evil wasn’t taking “forever” to develop.
It feels like Forever Evil has been going on for ages. The that whole “Villains Month” I feel really screwed DC’s flow and caused struggling titles to struggle more. The last two issues of Forever Evil have picked up the pace again, but I hope that the comic rolls out a bit faster.
I also wish that the series just didn’t come down to a Batman story. Batman obviously is still DC’s moneymaker (Superman might be their flagship, but Batman is where the money is), but I like other stories. I enjoyed the Catwoman/Batman interaction but I was more interested in Luthor, his team, and Bizarro.
Forever Evil has three issues to go and I feel like it has a long way to go with those three issues. I hope that the series maintains its stand-alone aspect and I look forward to a conclusion. I can however recommend this issue.
Aquaman (5) #26
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $2.99
Writer: Jeff Parker
Artist: Paul Pelletier
Date: February 2014
Title: “Pressure”
Aquaman (5) #26
Aquaman is back in charge of the seas and trying to maintain his kingdom with Mera. When a strange new behemoth from the deeps rises, Arthur finds himself in one of the greatest battles of his life to stop the raging creature.
This is the first issue of Jeff Parker’s take-over of the Geoff Johns’ signature title from the New 52 relaunch. I have enjoyed Jeff Parker’s writing in the past with Agents of Atlas, Marvel Adventures: Avengers, and X-Men: First Class so I am interesting to see where he goes with the series.
Aquaman was a surprise hit for the character with a long history, and I did like what Johns did with him. The only problem I had with this issue is that I felt like I missed an issue. A lot of stuff happened at the end of Aquaman (5) #25, and I feel that there needed to be a better transition between the writers.
I also am a bit worried about this storyline with just another big sea monster attacking. One thing Johns tried to do with Aquaman is to bring him out of the ocean. It would be good to see a completely different Aquaman story where he has to show his abilities out of the water…going against character does often help distinguish writers.
Aquaman is still on my buy list but I’ll need to keep an eye on its direction. I never thought I’d have a 25+ run on Aquaman but DC has done a good job keeping the title fresh and fun…let’s hope it maintains this.
Batwoman #26
Publisher: DC Comics
Cover Price: $2.99
Writer: Marc Andreyko
Artist: Jeremy Haun
Date: February 2014
Title: “Strands” Webs Part 1
Batwoman #26
Batwoman finds herself team-up once again with her cousin Bette as an art thief sets out to steal the works of ’20s Gotham artist Eisenstadt. When the art thief target’s Kate friend Evan, Kate finds herself in a life and death battle.
This is an interesting issue of an interesting series. When the big hub-bub of the departure of the creators over the marriage of Batwoman and Maggie Sawyer was revealed, it felt like Batwoman’s edginess had been neutered. I feel this issue is an issue to show that despite going against DC’s wishes, the new writers aren’t backing down from the character.
Honestly, not much happened in the issue but there is a very frank conversation between Kate and her friend Evan over their relationships. Claims that DC wanted to less of Kate’s relationship with Maggie can be refuted by this issue which I felt tackled it head on…I just wish the fighting aspects had been a bit more through.
The art does continue to be strong and the series is surprisingly faring decently. I don’t see Batwoman, however, having much of a future simply because it is such a fringe book. It hardly even feels like part of the Bat Family and generally skips most of the events…which I actually like. I think the new creators have added a bit of spark to Batwoman, and I hope it sticks around.
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This Week in Comics—December 18, 2013
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