Well Into DCnU Now

And yet, I'm still working my way through a stack of DCU, aka pre-DCnU, books.

I'm taking my time with these "older" universe books, savoring them like the fine wine they are.

For instance, Batgirl. The Steph Brown BG. I love(d) this book. And Batgirl 24 epitomized all that was wonderfully perfect about this book. From the awesome cover to the last panels with Steph and Babs, this book rocked. Steph has her showdown with dear old dad who's now in prison, and has a lovely scene with her mother. But then, we also got to see amazing pages of her remembered hallucinations while under the influence of Mercy, the powerful hallucinogen her father doused her with, and well, this was a bittersweet sendoff for one of DC's best and brightest books and I can't begin to explain how much I'll miss it.

As for the new DC, I tried Grifter and Voodoo, two characters from the Wildstorm universe which I didn't mind seeing rebooted in the DCnU proper. Both diverged quite a bit from the original versions of the characters while keeping the flavor of who they were in WildCats.

Grifter shows the most promise of the two, with Cole being as badass as he was before and the book setting up an intriguing mystery. The art was nice, too, though there was more spittle in mouths than I like. Makes him look like he's drooling.

Voodoo also sets up a mystery, and introduces both Pris and agents hunting her. Hard to tell yet who's good and who's bad in this, and it might be more complicated than good vs. evil. Pris is an alien of some sort, but from where and why she's here, we have yet to discover. I'm hoping the journey to the answers are worth the time I'm going to give this because I did love Voodoo in Wildstorm. Sure, there's a titillation factor, but Pris, as I recall, was a very sexual woman, one who used all she had, including her body, as a means to an end, but she was no pushover. I do recall vulnerability in her and some self-confidence issues. It's been a while since I read Wildcats. But I'm willing to go along with this here, because the women working in the sex club, while stereotyped, are knowingly pandering to a class of men who objectify women and I want to see if Ron Marz will take this to something more empowering for women, especially Pris, who as an alien, clearly has other issues to deal with, too. And I so love the cover. So I'll stick with this through the first story arc.

Which brings me to the books I haven't read nor plan to read. The ones being vilified all over the comic blogosphere. Namely, Catwoman and that Red Hood book that Roy Harper is unfortunately starring in, Red Hood and the Outlaws) and all I can say is that I'm very glad I'm not reading either. You can find lots of links to posts about there on Dispatches from the Fridge because I can't begin to link to all of them, let alone the best of them.

So, for the record, I like when Bruce and Selina are romantically involved. I liked in the old DCU when they had sex, or it was at least, implied. I like that there was emotion there, and on Earth 2, they were actually married before she was killed, and the had a daughter.... excuse me. I got caught up in a moment of nostalgia.

But those panels/pages I saw posted were just ugly. Sorry, Judd Winick, but edgy they ain't. They sure weren't sexy, except possibly to teen boys and the men who never grew up. Aside from the art, which seemed odd in places, especially Batman's torso, I just didn't like seeing Selina like that. I'm no prude, no, that's not my objection here. But Selina of the DCU had come so far and was such a cool character, and while she took what she wanted, she certainly wouldn't take Batman like that. That Selina was above that, miles past it. She wanted Bruce, but she wanted him the way a mature woman wants a man. As an equal. As someone desired for herself and not her body.

As for the Red Hood book, I'm not reading it because I detest Jason Todd, but now, seeing how sexualized Kory is, based on the pages I saw, and how moronic Roy is, all I can say is, "Feh." Sorry, DC, but that's not how a woman who enjoys sex would act. That's how a damaged woman, a vulnerable woman would act. And the guy who goes with her is essentially agreeing to rape her. And while the old Roy would hop in bed with any female who was interested, I like to think he'd draw the line at taking advantage of someone clearly as vulnerable as Kory seems. They were friends, for crying out loud. And I can't see him hanging out with Jason, either, so he clearly isn't the Roy of old.

But then, that's why I'm not reading these books. Because I can't get what was out of my head. I can't get past who these characters are/were to me. I wish someone would just wake me when the DCnU is over.

She Was on Sale

Well, not just her. All of Forbidden Planet NYC. Twenty per cent off everything in stock. Today only. So, well, I had to get her. She's a limited edition from Tonner. I think they really need to do a Power Girl. And maybe the new Batwoman.

Catwoman

She's not an action figure and she'll cost much more than an action figure, but I so want this upcoming Tonner Catwoman doll.

Attention Span of a Gnat

I have been reading comics, just not all that quickly, but I hope I have a good excuse. I've been playing with my new digital slr camera (a Canon Rebel T1i). I got a nifty macro lens for it and have been playing. This is a shot with the macro lens of the Catwoman Heroclix figure.

The pile of comics here continues to grow and I suspect it soon will be as tall as me (and I'm just under 5'3"). I'll get to them and reviews of them soonish, or at least, that's the plan.

Happy Father's Day to all fathers out there.

Another Round of Reviews

Coming up with titles for these posts is getting harder and harder. Anyway, here's the latest batch. I can't believe how many more comics I have sitting here waiting to be read. Ack. I haven't been this far behind in decades.

Wonder Woman 23
I'm happy this arc is over, although there have been scenes setting up the next one. The art by Lopresti and Ryan is very nice and I'll be happy to see their art on a story I enjoy more.

Flash 243
A nice ending to the problem of the aging kids, though I was wondering if at the end of this they would physically revert to their actual chronological ages. But toddlers are tougher to write than older kids, I guess.

Blue Beetle 30
Jaime is really in the thick of it. This book continues to be a delightful mesh of superheroing and teen angst, while firmly establishing a minority community in the DCU. If you're not reading this, why not?

Trinity 12 - 13
This is becoming quite enjoyable. Things are happening, the pieces are starting to fall together, and while the focus is the big 3 of the DCU, other characters get to shine, especially in the backup story, although Hawkman is getting rather extreme here.

Teen Titans Year 1 6
A bit of a letdown. This book was so much fun, but well, I guess I was expecting more. Still, a pleasant mini-series. Wish Roy had been in this last ish, though.

Birds of Prey 121
That cover is great, maybe my favorite Joker cover. Just having the Joker in this book rocks and I'm caught up in the storyline focusing on Misfit and Black Alice. I'll be interested in seeing where both stories lead.

Manhunter 33
Aside from concerns that Kate was returned to us at the expense of Selina (see Catwoman review below), I'm glad to have this comic back. This is a great cast of characters, and Kate's life is a complicated one. Having the Suicide Squad show up is an intriguing development.

Justice League of America 24
Nice action, and Animal Man! 'Nuff said.

Dreamwar 5
One of the better multi-world team-ups, IMO. I like how the teams are lining up, and it's fun seeing the differences in the various WS universe teams as well as comparing them to the DCU groups. The situation that pits the WS universe against the DCU is solid and forms the foundation of the story, rather than being an excuse for heroes bashing each other.

Simon Dark 11
Nice and creepy as we near the story's conclusion. I suppose this will continue beyond the first story, but I think I would prefer this as a mini. I'd prefer to keep the Catwoman book around and leave this as a 12-issue run, if the first story could conclude in 12 issues. I like the experimentation of putting something like this in the DCU rather than in Vertigo, but while I'm enjoying it, it isn't essential reading for me.

Justice Society of America 18
So, Magog is born. Not what I'd expected. I'm sure many of you out there did and it's just me who's dense, but whatever. It was well-played, I thought. I do like how Gog's gifts have a negative side, except perhaps for Grant's face being restored, and I can't help wondering if at the end of this, if the good will be lost, and things will revert back to what they were pre-Gog. There's a lot to chew on here.


Brave and Bold 16
Superman and Catwoman together equals fun times! Selina's disguise for Supes had me chortling. She was clearly having fun, flirting with him and all. Nothing and no one intimidates Selina.


Catwoman 82
*sigh* I am so gong to miss this book. I am going to miss the joy this book has brought into my life once a month, from Adam Hughes' magnificent covers to Wil Pfeifer's marvelous words. Pfeifer really gets Selina. I loved Brubaker's take on her and Pfeifer took what Brubaker set up and ran with it. I wish more people had supported this book. Selina is a complex character, a good soul who crosses the line of the law and feels justified to do so. Her appearances in books like Brave and Bold above don't get to delve into her psyche the way stories that focus on her do. I don't want to read the Batman books in hopes of seeing her and maybe seeing her written properly. When I got back to reading comics, I decided to not read all the Batman and Superman titles so I could keep up better (HA!) and given how far behind I am now, I'm not about to add more comics to the unread stacks of them here. As with the current Blue Beetle and Booster Gold titles and a few others (too few others), there was never a misstep in this title. Some stories might not have appealed to everyone, but I found them all well done. Even when I didn't like the art (Gulacy), it didn't ruin the book for me. And every story built on the one before. There was a solid chronology to this book, a true sense to Selina, who she is, who she was, and where she's headed. All the folks who worked on this book should be proud.

This Just Sucks

Will Pfeifer announced that the August issue of Catwoman will mark the end of the book due to inadequate sales. I loved this book. I loved it when Ed Brubaker was writing it and I loved it even more when Will Pfeifer took it over. I'm so gonna miss it. I'm going to miss seeing Holly and Slam, as well as Selina, because I don't read other Bat books except for Nightwing, and if it can be considered a Bat book due to the starring role of Oracle, Birds of Prey. I'm going to miss seeing if Selina is ever reunited with Helena. I'm really bummed about this.

And with Manhunter coming back, I'd hate to think DC canceled Catwoman because they worry the market can't support more female leads. I'm probably just being paranoid, right? Damn.

Got My Comics

Read 2 of them on the way home.

Justice League of America 11 (Of course, I read this first, duh; it featured Roy)
This was actually not what I'd expected. I didn't realize it would be just Roy and Mari. We don't see the building collapse and trap them, nor do we see them safe and on the way to the hospital (for sure), darn it. But what we got was tight, claustrophic (thanks to tightly drawn panels and lots of black space around the panels), and emotionally gripping. Even Turner's cover was tolerable. Gene Ha's art was more a series of tiny paintings than comic book illos and the effect worked well with Brad Meltzer's words (dialogue plus Roy's narration). I love how Roy stayed cool and kept Mari focused. I also was surprised at the shift in Mari's abilities and am intrigued by it. Nice issue. Nice look at two heroes.

Catwoman 69
Continuing the total destruction of Selina's personal life. Will Pfeifer is a sadist when it comes to Selina, but such a good writer. I was glad for the glimpse of Holly and loved Bruce's tenderness with Helena. But that car seat, I believe, should be facing the other way for a kid that young. At least it was in the back, where it should be. Wonderful cover. Can't wait to see how Selina gets out of this mess, or if she does. And I hope bad things don't happen to Helena.

More later.

A Few in Review, with Maybe Spoilers

Catwoman 68
From the stunning cover to the last page, this book delivered the goods. My heart was in my throat with Selina when she was racing to save her daughter only to find Helena sitting in the middle of the street. Rather than be a story-killer, Helena has been nicely worked into the stories, thanks to Pfeifer's skilled handling of her and all the other elements. But my favorite part was Holly's rescue of Selina and Helena. In this issue, Holly fully came into her own. Selina's narration:

"I looked up to see who saved us, and I could barely believe my eyes. it was Catwoman."

That said everything. Holly's off, on the run, and I hope we see her again. Soon. She rapidly became one of my favorite supporting characters thanks to her loyalty, to Selina, to Karon, to helping people.

Justice League of America 10

Don't read this if you still haven't read the issue and don't want it spoiled.

The one with the nice "action" cover. Power Girl's boobs are front and center, but then, so is she, in full kickass mode. I love these versions of the Legionnaires. I love all the little bits that Brad is so good at showing. I love the hugs. I love Bruce's disappointment and that he isn't always right. I know another panel or two with Wally's family would've been nice, but I love that there was a family moment there. I'm intrigued that they came back with the twins aged to their teen years. That should make for some interesting developments. I'm gonna put Flash back on my pull list. I'm glad Wally's back Wally and Roy in the JLA together. The two redheads in red costumes, boyhood pals. Could be very interesting. And what does Karate Kid still need to do? There are definitely loose ends here that I hope will be explored, sooner rather than later. Excellent JLA/JSA crossover. And for the record, I'm a big crossover fan. It helps the whole "one big happy universe" concept of the DCU.

Mystery in Space 8
A nice ending for the story and the Weird was a big part of it. I've really gotten hooked on him.

Trials of Shazam 7
More than halfway through and I still can't decide if I like this or not. Let's just say I like the art overall more than the story, though some issues have been better than others. This one was somewhere in the middle.

Hawkgirl 65
Appropriately nice art for the big showdown to end the series. This could've been a better book than it's been. It's a real shame. At least this issue held my interest more than the previous few.

Green Arrow 75
I loved Tuckman's political manipulation. Nicely done. The big proposal was nicely done, too, better than I'd expected from Ollie. He can be a real heel, a complete jerk, but he does have his romantic side. The JLA showing up to save the day, for now, was a nice touch. But that ring... that ring was everything.

Countdown 46
I'm still enjoying this and I'm still fairly confused, which works in the book's favor. It's written well enough to keep me interested and wanting answers.

Good Week for Comics

Many of the titles on my pull list are addicting and most of them, it seemed, were out this week. I think this is the most I've read in one night in a l-o-o-o-n-g time.

Batman/Spirit 1
A holdover from before. I love how they number these one-shots. I'd love even more to see a sequel. This was fun, the way comics are supposed to be and once were. Art that harkened back to an earlier time. Snappy dialogue. Intrigue. Danger. A villains convention to counter a cops' conference so dastardly plots can be implemented.

Shadowpact 8
This isn't a fluff comic despite its lighthearted tone at times, and some of the flakiest good guys in the DCU. Rory learning the true nature of his Ragman's suit and finally having one of the taken find redemption was wonderful, giving the story a solid, emotional thrust beyond the whole good guy/bad guy dynamic. So, I feel really petty mentioning the itty bit that made irritated me. Rory's narration that his grandfather shortened his Jewish name to an Irish one rankled a bit, since it made it sound like there weren't and aren't Irish Jews. Which there are. But I loved learning that the suit has such a long history.

Secret 6 6
Finally. This felt rushed. And since it was so long since the issue 5, I forgot how that chapter ended. Hatter was at his loopiest best, as was Dollman. Gail's dialogue was sharp and snappy as I've come to expect from her. The art was perfect, especially for Hatter's dream. I was just a tad disappointed with how easily Savage was defeated, if it could be called that, after all that led to this. And I would love this to become a series.

Aquaman 47
Nice resolution to the story-from-the-past story. The art is well suited for a book set mostly under water. It's been a long time since I've enjoyed a book titled "Aquaman" this much.

Catwoman 62
I teared up when I skimmed this during my lunch hour and I teared up again when I read it on the subway ride home. And (spoiler ahead), much as I knew Sam was dead, it still got to me when Selina confirmed it. I really enjoyed him. He was far from perfect, but he was a good guy and would've been a great father to Helena. I'm glad Selina got to tell him. And I love how Selina has this family, only one (Helena) who is related to her by blood. No matter what happens in this book, no matter what Selina does, she has these people who care about her. That's a recurring theme in most of the books in today's post. The cover was stunning. In the DC Nation on the last page, DC announced a best cover poll/contest. This one is a good candidate. I'll have to think long and hard about this.

Birds of Prey 101
Another great cover. One thing Gail Simone does in her books, especially this one, is keep me hooked, eager to learn how she's going to get our heroes out of the latest mess she's gotten them in. I also like Lois' cameo appearance, reminding us of how connected the DCU is now. And Misfit promises to be a fine addition to the book. I hardly missed Dinah at all. ..... Okay, I'm lying, but still, this is a strong cast.

Checkmate 9
Another interconnected story, with Shadowpact guest-starring. I always have loved spy/espionage intrigue and this book delivers, even if it gets confusing at times. Okay, confusing for me because I keep losing track from month to month what's going on. And when books are late, oh boy. Again, great cover, solid art inside. This story has the feel of something really bad going down. I love it.

52 33
So much to love in this book, so I'll get my annoyance out of the way first. Can anyone do a bit of research and find out how many candles on a Chanukah menorrah, for pete's sake? There are eight. That's 8. Eight, plus the shamus which is used to light the others. Not 6 plus 1. This really isn't hard to check.

Okay, now that I got that out of my system, the things I loved about this issue:

• Ralph and the helmet of Fate. Talk about buddy bonding. Ralph has been stellar in this series.
• Nightwing giving Batwoman a genuine, returning batarang and Kate being unimpressed at first, then, after he explains and demonstrates it, "Wow." Wow, indeed.
• Just when you think Luther might actually have a heart, he proves he doesn't. The poor schlub who dares to recover is just a research project to Lex, valuable dead, not alive.
• Infinity Inc acting like the bunch of teens, which they pretty much are, when getting their cars as gifts.
• Renee and Charlie. This scene just about tore my heart out. Life isn't always pretty and dying never is and this book is not shying away from real life with their fictional meta realm. There are plenty of fun comics out there, and this is fun, too, but it's also very grounded in what could be real. With all the evil supervillains, it's cancer doing Charlie in.
• Kate comforting Renee.
• The most natural inclusion of Jewishness and a Jewish holiday I've seen in a comic, far better than the forced Batwoman story in Infinite Holiday Special.
• The 2-page "catch-up" with characters we haven't been seeing in the book (much) as they celebrate Christmas. Obviously, GA didn't spend the entire year on that island recovering and training.
• Black Adam and his new family and what they do in an attempt to prove he's changed, by showing their humanness. Wonderfully done. I also like the whole "a boy and his croc" aspect of this family.
• The Suicide Squad, Waller, and the first move in explaining how Capt. Boomerang Jr ended up with the Outsiders, perhaps. I like that his hair was colored blondish, not red. He didn't look like Roy here.

Criminal 3
Yet another great cover, more a painting than comic art. Sean Phillips' interior art sometimes reaches the same level. He's been doing amazing work on this title and Ed Brubaker's story sizzles. I love these characters with all their quirks. And I'm really rooting for them because the bad guys are so sleazy, they make our good guy criminals almost seem like heroes. The noir quality is in fine form here.

The Lone Ranger 3
Another book where too much time between issues eroded my memory of the previous installment. The pacing didn't feel as smooth as the previous 2 issues, but this is still a compelling read with probably half the amount of words as the other books I read today. So much is said by the art. Great stuff here.

I'm going to really try to read and review White Tiger tomorrow. And Spirit 1. Then I'll be ready to tackle Wolverine: Origins and catch up on Manhunter and....

Three OYL

Vandal Savage 1 JSA Classified 10
I have 2 problems with this issue.

1. On the cover: "Featuring Green Lantern." Now, I get that they mean this arc features him, but if you put it on the cover, it's a reasonable reader expectation that we'll see the character in the story somewhere.
2. No JSA. It's the JSA's book. Shouldn't one or two of them have shown up? Did they miss the bus? Not get the memo? Take a wrong turn after Infinite Crisis?

Seriously, I get the whole prologue to fill folks in re: Vandal Savage, but a whole issue devoted to that? With dull flashbacks that didn't add anything needed to understand the character. Maybe one would've been okay, but all the flashbacks accomplished was kill any sense of pacing or urgency, and forget about suspense. At least, in The Outsiders, some Outsiders showed up before the issue ended. This was just a waste of my time. Even the art failed to enthrall me. Is Gulacy incapable of drawing normal sized chins?

Hawkgirl 50
Interesting that they kept the numbering despite the title change. Especially since some books, like Wonder Woman, will start with #1. Ah well. Apparently, Carter is gone. Not dead. Or so it seemed to me. Kendra's dream of him to open was a cheat and beneath Walt Simonson, IMO. However, once things got going, they intrigued, although the pacing seemed a bit abrupt in places and following the dialogue was a bit tricky with the placement of panels. Chaykin's art still thrills me, but I wish all the characters didn't look like they were grimacing when speaking. All that baring of teeth would make an oral hygenist proud. At least things happened here and I'm looking forward to the next issue.

Catwoman 53
This was the OYL title I've been most eager for. No surprise, and therefore, no disappointment, as to the new Catwoman's identity. It was nice to see Slam. The cover is more stunning than the previews hinted at. The interior art was nice. Selina grew her hair out. She named the baby Helena, which was pretty cool for some reason. Bruce is still Bruce and no word, naturally, on Helena's daddy, or even why Selina got pregnant, went to term, and is keeping the baby. But, as with Hawkgirl, things happened, story threads were set in motion, and things look to get very interesting. I've been having conflicting feelings re: books getting all new teams vs keeping at least the writer. In this case, I'm glad Pfeifer is staying on. He's got a nice feel for Selina.

Catwoman and the Moral Ambiguity of Killing

My comments on this post on Mortlake on the Schuylkill just begged to be a post. So here's what I said, slightly edited for clarity, and some more thoughts.

It's been interesting reading everyone's take on this. I suppose in part, one's reaction will vary depending on whether or not you believe some killings can be justified. Are Superman and Batman really taking the high road or are they simply out of touch? Not everyone can find another way. And some folks would say that not everyone has the courage to do what Selina did.

Way back when, in Magnum PI, Magnum killed in cold blood. A man with diplomatic immunity had killed his close friend and military contact and the most that could happen to the guy was that he'd be deported. So Magnum arranged an ambush and with no witnesses, blew the man away. The episode ended with the camera on Magnum as he fired his gun.

There is a difference in killing in self-defense and killing that is in essence an execution and in the latter, you'd better be right that the person you kill is the one who deserves it. It's a moral quagmire and one that can be debated without resolution for centuries, and has been.

I think you can look at the fact that the females were put in this postion in more than one way. That it is the usual sexism. Or that it is finally equal treatment, in that the females are allowed to be more agressive, are allowed to make the hard choices, and are then allowed to be shown dealing with that. These are the things that make characters more interesting, that add complexity to them.

I'd rather Selina be shown grappling with what she's done and is capable of doing, than Bruce acting out on Gotham and with anyone who tries to get close to him from his basic dysfunction that stems from his parents' murder. There have been times I want to shake him and say "Grow up, already." I'd love to see in many of the male characters the growth I've seen in many of the females recently.

I suppose that's one reason I love Roy Harper so much. He's had so much personal crap to overcome, and he has overcome it in a stumbling, very human fashion.

AND in answer to concerns re: what comes next...

I've never enjoyed playing that guessing game. If they screw it up, I'll be annoyed, maybe drop the book. But I prefer to see what they do with it. I've enjoyed most of what Johns has written and what DiDio has brought to the DCU. ADDED: I had worries that Pfeifer would do justice to a character Brubaker had written to perfection, and he proved himself more than up to the task.

I think a lot of what folks feel about Batman in this and the situation with other characters, ie Wonder Woman, depends on their own perceptions of the character. Me? I've thought Bruce has been a pompous ass for a while now. He's often right, but he's as often wrong. He came out looking bad to me due to the OMAC mess. I think Black Mask needed to be killed and Selina was probably one of a very few characters, as developed over the years, who could do it. Batman certainly couldn't, not without it being a complete character/personality shift. IMO.

And of course, he has to act superior to Selina or to anyone else who kills, given his feelings about it. Look at how he treated Dick when Dick joined the Bludhaven police force? Was Bruce right? Was Dick? Or were they both right for what they are and believe?

I think someday, when more women are writing comics, especially in the DCU, and are in charge of decisions overall; when there is a better balance between male and female characters, we'll finally see a wider spectrum of character personalities. Because right now, for a male hero to do what has become the female job (as either damsel in distress -- a role only males like Jimmy Olson was allowed to assume -- or the character to perform the morally ambiguous act) would garner an outcry of a different sort.

I look at the characters, not at their roles in the greater picture. I've never really read things into how gender issues play out in comics. I grew up with what would be considered anti-feminist views and became a feminist, not because of what I saw in fiction, but because of what I saw in the real world and from my parents teaching me that everyone deserves the same chances.

AND now....

I don't want Selina not affected by the killing. She took a life, albeit a despicable one. She wouldn't be human if she wasn't affected. Nor is she a soldier or warrior trained in the necessity of killing and its aftereffects. Even soldiers suffer PTSD. I write spy stories and deal with this issue. My various characters handle killings differently. Some act as assassins, some kill in defense, and others have made judgment calls for what could be considered executions. Each acts and reacts as per his/her personality, not to fill some gender role.

Has it been so long that no one remembers Dick "killing" the Joker? Bruce will always be Bruce, always self-righteous. As with any long established character, he's changed over the years. As with any longstanding character, he has a personality and has been interpreted by many writers over many years. He wasn't always anti-gun, but that's become a defining characteristic as times changed. Every decade or so, he's been returned to his roots. The campy Batman of the '60s gave way to a darker caped vigilante of the '90s, but the anti-war movement, the striking down of the death penalty, and the CCA battles and a whole change in public opinion pretty much prevented Batman from ever becoming an avenging vigilante.

I wish more male characters were ambiguous. The most I've seen such things played out was in Green Lantern/Green Arrow, where Ollie had seen the light and was as zealous as any convent to a cause, debating Hal whose eyes were first being opened to inequities. I saw Ollie's personality sharpened, I saw him become an arrogant, self-righteous jerk whose opinions I mostly agreed with, because he had to change in order to remain a viable character and not be simply a clone of Batman who used bows and arrows instead of batarangs. More typical, it's been the junior heroes who have struggled emotionally. Roy Harper and most recently, Dick Grayson.

Superman is "truth, justice, and the American Way." He can't accept killing. He also can kill with a tap and has had to keep his powers in check unless going up against a being as powerful as himself lest he accidentally kill someone. He's not someone we can expect to sympathize with Wonder Woman or Selina and the choices they made.

Batman had taken a stand against what he views as murder -- any killing -- and his ego won't let him back down. His ego never lets him back down, even when he grudgingly allows himself a gesture of decency, most recently, in the latest Green Lantern (I'll review that soon). And his speech to Dick in the latest Nightwing was wonderful. He's right a lot of the time; just not all the time as he seems to think he is.

Wonder Woman, and to an extent, Catwoman, are characters who were never so clearly defined. They changed over the decades, becoming different things. Diana even went powerless for a stretch and there was a time she wasn't even Wonder Woman. Selina, too, has changed, and the mind wipe revelation was the best explanation of a retcon I've ever seen. And right now, percentage-wise, I find the female heroes in the DCU more interesting than the males. They are more emotionally complex. They struggle more with their feelings. They deal with issues beyond good vs evil. Roy Harper, dealing with the stigma of past drug addiction he can't seem to shake, fears for his daughter, and the aftermath of being shot 5 times and nearly dying, and Dick Grayson, struggling with the aftermath of his complicity in Blockbuster's death, are notable exceptions.

Some people will always view killing as unjustified murder no matter what, where others draw different lines. The philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein wrote about core concepts and their fuzzy borders. Applied to killing, muder can include or not executions, self-defense, euthanasia, etc. And yes, more female characters lately are excluding more types of killing from murder than the men, but we can't expect the men to turn around and say, Yes, Diana, Yes, Selina, you were right and we were wrong. Those bastards needed to be killed. It's simply not in their nature, as established over the years, to see it that way. Comics today, characters today if they existed for a lot of years, are still the product of all those years and stories.

There's a spectrum of gender-related personality. At the far ends are the stereotypical males and females, with most folks falling somewhere in the middle, at some point on the bell curve. That we are seeing female characters taking stands, making the tough decisions, doing the dirty deeds that need doing isn't, IMO, sexist or putting out the wrong message. It's simply good character development. How well it's handled is what concerns me, not that it happens at all. And I consider the lack of understanding of the men to reflect on their character, not on the storytelling. And I wish we would see more of this sort of thing with the male characters. Then trhings would truly be equal. When we no longer feel the need to discuss this issue.

At least, that's how I see it. And I could probably rant on about this for quite a while longer. But I won't. At least, not now. :)

Catwoman 52

Computer problems again (damn thing rebooted in the midst of my first version of the previous post) and Blogger acting up (not letting me save what I had so far, but letting me publish it) made me decide to split up today's reviews.

Catwoman 52
By far the best I read tonight, though the night is still young enough for me to probably fit in Green Lantern 9. The cover is wonderful as usual, showing a very pissed off Selina. I could feel her anger and hatred. The interior art is a bit too cartoonish but nice, and in some panels, Selina looks wonderful. Peter Woods does manage to capture emotion in few lines. And this issue goes out with a bang prior to OYL, literally. Black Mask seriously underestimated his adversary. But then, he had no idea what Zatanna had done and recently undone to Selina. Still, she'd never been a killer, not in the stories I read over the years, but then again, she'd probably not been pushed this far, or this hard. She plays by different rules and while I would have liked her to be like Bruce in Bats 650, when he tells Jason he never killed Joker because it would be too easy and he couldn't cross that line, I was also glad there was no cop-out here. She vowed to do something and she did it. In a way, it was no worse than exterminating vermin. This is one of the books I'm most eager to read OYL. I can't wait.

Catwoman 51

There's always a thrill when "AH!" graces a cover. Hughes continues to outdo himself, especially on this book where he gets to show a protagonist who isn't pure of heart. The look in Selina's eyes, with the mascara running down her face (a nice touch) is just stunning. The realism of the cover art is a mismatch for the nice, but far more cartoonish art of Pete Woods inside.

As for the story, Pfeifer increases the pressure on Selina, as she struggles to come to terms with what was done to her, seeking answers from Bruce Wayne. Meanwhile, pressure is placed on her when Slam is taken hostage and tortured, setting up an emotional rescue by his son. With the clock winding down on One Year Later, anything goes and next issue should be an exciting finish. Well, it better be. So, with the story still unfinished, I can say I'm enjoying it so far.

Catwoman: A Review

Catwoman 50
I've been awaiting this one with both nervousness and eagerness. Zatanna has come to tell Selina she isn't who she thinks she is. Given the revelations in Identity Crisis, this was a no-brainer, yet my brain refused to indulge in the obvious speculation. And of course, the obviousness won.

I've always liked Selina. Sure, she was a villain, but she never hurt anyone, was sexy and clever, and gave Batman a run for his money. On Earth 2, she reformed, married Bruce, and had a daughter, Helena Wayne who became the Huntress (and that's still my preferred version of Huntress, though I have warmed considerably to the current one). Selina was a complex character, but I didn't read her solo title til the reboot. She already had a comic when I was back to buying comics and I was going slow. A book devoted to someone who was a criminal didn't really appeal to me and I didn't really like what I saw when I flipped through the pages.

When they rebooted the book, giving Selina yet another costume and a nice, noir look with an emphasis on mystery, adventure, and firmly putting Selina on the side of right even if her methods and some of her motives made Batman seem a member of the establishment, well, I was willing to give it a try, because there are so few good, strong female characters with their own books.

I was rewarded with topnotch writing from Brubaker and luscious art from Cooke. I managed to deal with art changes because the writing was still topnotch and the art was okay, even if Slam started looking like Robert Mitchum. This past year, I started to worry that the book was losing its edge, that the tales were veering away from the book's stengths. And then we got this issue.

All so predictable and yet, so very well done. From the gorgeous cover to Selina's confusion on the last page (of very nice art) as she stares down at all the costumes she's worn laid out on her bed, this was a tight, emotional rollercoaster. I felt Selina's confusion and pain, her sense of violation at what had been done to her. And yet, I'm of a mixed mind as to the revelation, itself.

See, I wanted Selina to have decided that helping people was better than stealing from them, albeit that they were different people. I liked her being the protector of the East End. I liked the fact that she had a drive to do this. That she was single-minded in this pursuit and that she dared do what even Batman wouldn't. I liked that she'd come to this stage in her life, had reevaluated her needs and yes, her life, and had made some tough decisions. And now, thanks to one simple spell cast years ago, all that is gone.

A thought about Zatanna's role here is needed. This is a complex issue, too, one I don't know has been explored because I don't read all the DCU books involved in the Crisis storyline. I don't read the JLA books. I like that Zatanna's conscience has bothered her about the mind wipes. I like that she's trying to set things right. She's also been a favorite character of mine, but there's a double edged sword here. She and the JLA had no right to do what they did to the villains, no matter how well-intentioned they were, but now Zatanna is once again disrupting someone's life. Yes, as she tells Selina, Selina had the right to know. And yet, in doing so, she's once again affected someone else. She tells her, then throws her back to the wolves. She tells her because it's right that she does so, yet her motives aren't pure. Absolving herself, clearing her conscience, is also part of it. And that is a key factor in doing things to people without their consent; setting things right, or making the attempt, can be as disruptive. It isn't without consequences. I would so love to see an awareness of that from Zatanna.

The whole DCU upheaval Identity Crisis ushered in has real impact here, moreso than in many other books because this affected the very nature of the lead character, her motives and actions, and has put both in question. It has changed everything and yet, perhaps, nothing, in that this is a continuation of Selina's life as she deals with the toughest challenge she's had to face. Not the dastardly deeds of a parade of villains. Not attacks on her friends and family. Not brushes with death. This time, she has to sort out her true feelings and decide who and what she is and will be. In the hands of a skilled writer, that can produce the most compelling fiction of all.

I like Selina too much for her to revert to her criminal life, yet I don't think she can. Despite the memory wipe, she has years of experience as a "do-gooder." Those experiences remain and can't help but influence her. I can only hope Will Pfeifer, or whoever continues to write Catwoman, understands that and gives us a Selina who is better than ever, someone I will continue to want to read about. I'm going to bet that we've got a lot of interesting, exciting reading ahead of us.