Big news from the final week of The New 52, year one! The status quo is getting rocked in the upcoming months, and it looks to be a wild ride! Let's watch the seeds grow...
Justice League #12 - "People like us are really alone, aren't we? Do you ever feel alone?"
The big news from the Justice League is right there on the cover, isn't it? Superman and Wonder Woman...now THAT'S a "Shared Moment."
OF course, that's nowhere near everything that happens this month! The Villain's Journey plot with David Graves is wrapped up as he tries to reunite everyone on Earth with the spirits of their dead loved ones, including the League! Hmm, he might not be aware, but typically when someone offers you something too good to be true, well...
In other news, the line-up and leadership of the team are both in question after the big, public breakdown they experienced last month. Wonder Woman and Green Lantern literally brawling in the streets of Washington D.C. has shaken the world's faith in the "Gods Among Us." Big changes and even bigger threats are on the horizon! If the League cannot stand united, who can???
The attack of the Annuals and more, after the JUMP!
Green Lantern Annual #1 - "For billions of years the Guardians have watched over the universe with great care. That ends today."
"The Rise of the Third Army" story arc begins here as the Guardians flip their lid, decide that all of the chaos in the universe is caused by free will and that it's their new job in existence to wipe out that pesky side-effect of consciousness. See, apparently the Guardians are opposed to Chaos, and that's why they created first the Manhunters and then the Green Lanterns. I had thought that they were opposed to EVIL, as it is mentioned TWICE in the Lantern oath, but nope...it's Chaos! Well, Guardians...good luck with THAT.
Meanwhile, Hal Jordan and Sinestro are still battling Black Hand on Earth. Well, technically the battle is over...Hal wakes up buried alive with no charge left in his ring. He digs himself out with the power of stubborn, only to find Black Hand mocking him and a freshly dug grave marked "Sinestro" with a shovel sticking out. Sigh.
Of course, by the end of the issue the two plots intertwine. We also get a new mystery...who or what is the First Lantern? With his power, the Guardians plan to enact their nefarious plans!!
As for the fates of Hal Jordan and Sinestro? I...don't know. However, consider this: "Green Lantern of sector 2814 deceased. Green Lantern of sector 1417 deceased. Rings reintegrated. Error. Error. Scanning immediate sector for closest sentient replacement."
Hal?
Aquaman #12 - "The seventh relic holds the secret to Aquaman's past. It holds the secret to his ultimate destruction. The destruction of everything he loves and everything he thinks he is. I'll drown him in misery."
Black Manta's got the seventh relic, the Atlantian artifact that held the power to sink Atlantis! Aquaman's left The Others and Mera and is on his way to kill Manta, alone. Luckily for Arthur, even though he's ditched his friends, his friends haven't quite ditched HIM.
Unfortunately, even the combined might of The Others along with Aquaman and Mera seems insufficient to stand against the might of the seventh relic! Black Manta leaves his mark yet again and Arthur loses yet another friend, even as he's haunted by Manta's parting words..."One-by-one, Aquaman."
Superman Annual #1 - "Everything I've accomplished, every life I've saved----what good has it all been if someone so much more powerful than I am can just come and...take it all away?"
Helspont of the Daemonites returns to Earth just to check in and teach Superman a little humility! He knows that the Man of Steel is the most powerful being to call our little blue orb home. He also knows that Superman has no chance of standing in his way. Now, Superman knows it as well.
While he's stopped by, Helspont also sends some emissaries to some of the OTHER aliens that call Earth home, namely Martian Manhunter, Starfire, and Hawkman, to see if they want to join his cause. It has something to do with something called the "Thirteen Scions of Salvation." What does it all mean? I imagine it won't be too long until we find out!
Detective Comics Annual #1 - The Black Mask was let off his leash back in Detective Comics #9 to stop the Talons from killing everyone during the Night of the Owls. It turns out that during this time, he managed to implant a hypnotic suggestion in Dr. Jeremiah Arkham and thus make good his escape from the asylum. Now he's putting his old gang back together in hopes of resuming his career as a major player in Gotham's underworld.
Not if the Batman has anything to say about it though.
One complication. Black Mask isn't the ONLY guy running around Gotham city with an interest in mind-control and flashy gimmicks. He's got a little competition with the storybook villain known as the Mad Hatter!!
The Flash Annual #1 - "There's only one problem with speed...when you get in the zone, the adrenaline becomes addictive. All you want to do is go faster. And faster...And when you're going as fast as I am----the world around you can become a blur."
Practically everything that's happened to the Flash since Issue #1 comes together here! The seeds that have been planted with the Rouges, Dr. Elias, Patty Spivot, Turbine, the Pied Piper, David Singh and even Gorilla Grodd!! There's no way I can even begin to explain all the different plot threads, but it's great to see everything clicking into place! Not only that, but we are treated to an awesome all-out battle between the evolved, superhuman Rogues and the Flash! Nice! Even the World's Fastest Man is having trouble keeping up with all of this!
Before Watchmen: Minutemen #3 (of 6) - "Higher moral standard? Is that a joke?"
The cracks are starting to show in the Minutemen organization as they vote to kick out the Comedian following his sexual assault of (the first) Silk Spectre last issue. Meanwhile the rest of the team accomplishes almost NOTHING worthwhile...Nite Owl and Dollar Bill attend a bank opening while Silk Spectre and Silhouette bicker over a publicity shoot. Silhouette, at least, has better things to do and leaves to actually FIGHT CRIME. The results are...dismal and unsettling...just like the Watchmen universe. Bleak and doomed...
Not a bad haul for the fifth week of the month! All those annuals were a nice touch! That's nothing compared to what's about to happen though, as this week marked the end of year one, September marks the beginning of the second year of the New 52! To celebrate each title is releasing a #0 issue, all of which promise to spill secrets and set the stage for the year ahead! I can't wait!
On a personal note, you may not be aware but I started collecting comics again with the New 52 in an effort to quit smoking. I only allow myself to buy comic books during weeks that I have not had a cigarette. As of last week, I officially have NOT had a cigarette for an entire year! Comic books FTW!
Don't forget new comic book day tomorrow! Action Comics, Green Lantern, Detective Comics, Green Arrow, Earth 2 and more! All #0 issues! Interesting...
Oh and yeah I wrote a new Stryder's Dementia. Do you have a calling? Do I??
Have a great first week of September! This is the beginning of my favourite time of year...time to get productive!!! Peace, babies!
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