Justice League #16 - "We are done fearing the surface, We are done living in terror. It is time for WAR."
Part three of "Throne of Atlantis" shows the Justice League just how tough the warriors of Atlantis really are! Aquaman's attempt to reason with his brother Orm, the Ocean Master, has failed and Atlantis is ready to attack. First goal? Defeat Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman and yes, of course, Aquaman! There's a battle even an army of underwater warriors may have some difficulty with!
Meanwhile, Cyborg is working behind the scenes gathering allies and assistance to try and end this war before it starts...but what will the youngest and least experienced member of the League do if he's the last hero standing? Might he be forced to call for reinforcements??
We also get another Shazam back-up this month! Black Adam has caught up with Shazam and proceeds to KICK HIS BUTT!! Seems experience beats youth in this battle!! Not to mention that the weird magic-eye dude that freed Black Adam is still going around awakening the personifications of the seven deadly sins! Last month was Sloth, this month...Pride! What's THAT all about??
Of course there's TONS more going on in the DCU...check it out after the JUMP!!
Nightwing #16 - "What kind of host would I be if I didn't have a little something extra for the worst of the bat-fakes?"
"Death of the Family" continues and The Joker really does seem to know everything there is to know about Nightwing, or at least all he NEEDS to know to take away everything that Dick Grayson's been working for since reestablishing himself away from Batman! Joker's lured Dick into Haly's Circus by way of an invitation he carved into the stomach of Dick's ex-girlfriend Raya after murdering her last issue! As if that's not enough, now Dick faces a Haly's Circus that Joker's taken over and given "a more personal touch."
For Dick, this is just a huge nightmare...the circus is paying for his life choices. the Joker really MUST know his identity! At least the rest of the circus performers safely fled Gotham though, right? Er...right???
Red Hood and the Outlaws #16 - "We don't need career counselling from a guy in a baseball cap."
The Outlaws and the Teen Titans team up to find Red Hood and Red Robin, both prisoners of the Joker, in this month's "Death of the Family" tie-in! Before the two teams can find their respective leaders, they first must stop a mob of Joker-Gassed homeless people with crazy drug-strength and aggressive tendencies! I think Joker laced his laughing gas with meth or something this time around...Well, it's Kid Flash's fault the homeless are suffering so (he kicked up the poison running around carelessly searching for Red Robin in Teen Titans #15) so it's their responsibility to try and help! If it's even possible to cure this disease...
Cool moments as Arsenal steps up and takes control of the mega-team, much to both Starfire and Wonder Girl's surprise! We also get a little flashback moment between Roy and Killer Croc of all people, hinting of Roy's past...hopefully we'll explore this more, later. Also, Solstice and Starfire seem to know each other and share some secret that none of the others are privy to! I wonder what it could be? Finally, there's two brief seeds sown for future plots...one by the Joker, and one in a cameo by Deathstroke!
Superboy Annual #1 - "Step aside, Mr. Action. We need a more subtle approach."
The very first Superboy Annual brings us another chapter of "H'El on Earth" as Superboy and Superman are trapped inside an alien machine that transported them into a series of seemingly never-ending pocket dimensions! This machine, used by some space pirate as a prison for his enemies, has been sitting around in the Fortress of Solitude since Superman "liberated" it. Now it's costing precious time as Superman and the Justice League may already be too late to stop H'El and Supergirl from destroying our solar system in a bid to travel back in time and save Krypton from destruction. Whew!!
Well, this little jaunt through the alien machine actually gives the Last Son of Krypton and his young clone some time to get to know each other...the seeds of a future relationship that could be beneficial to both heroes are planted here! No one can do more to help Superboy learn what he's capable of than the Man of Steel! Likewise, no one else dares to talk to Superman like his snarky clone, the boy who just does NOT care whose toes he steps on. They both stand to learn a lot, if they can only survive!
Supergirl #16 - "Who is this man? How does he make it look so easy?"
Poor misguided Supergirl has her hands full as "H'El on Earth" continues here. Kara is holed up with HE'l in the Fortress of Solitude while the Justice League and Superboy attempt to break in and stop them from completing their plan to suck all the energy out of the Sun! While most of the League came in through the front door, Superman sent The Flash vibrating through the wall into the Fortress! His mission - rescue Supergirl, WHATEVER it takes!!
Of course Supergirl doesn't WANT to be rescued. Flash knows that's the case and means to do it anyway! He has the advantage of experience, and Kara's (H'El-fed) underestimation of the "Earthlings" also works in his favour! Unfortunately, Kara and H'El might not be the only dangers in the Fortress...Unbeknownst to the Flash, Superman's got a guard dog named Krypto!
Before Watchmen: Minutemen #6 (of 6) - "The Truth? There is no truth. There are only truths."
The final chapter of the saga of the original Minutemen as told by Hollis "Nite Owl" Mason is presented to us here! We learn about how Nite Owl and Byron "Mothman" Lewis finally tracked down Hooded Justice...believing him to be guilty of the sexual assault and murder of at least one child...
Of course, Eddie "The Comedian" Blake is also in this issue...explaining to the shockingly naive Nite Owl that the truth is a relative concept. It all depends on one's point of view. Perhaps Nite Owl doesn't have the clearest view of the situation. Since the death of Ursula "Silhouette" Zandt, he's not exactly unbiased.
In the end, there's a lesson to learn about the nature of perception and about what's truly important in life as opposed to what's just ego and noise...
Birds of Prey #16 - "Can't we recruit a new member without having to bloody each other's faces first?"
The Birds of Prey have been losing members lately...first Poison Ivy betrayed and poisoned them (naturally leading to her being tossed from the team) and then Katana decided last issue that she needed to stay in Japan and now there were THREE....So naturally, when Batgirl once again encounters the silent female Talon who spared her life way back during the "Night of the Owls", she immediately thinks "teammate!", names her Strix (it's ancient Greek or Roman or something for "Owl") and invites her out to play! Of course, Black Canary and Starling aren't too eager to work with an undead assassin, but then, they don't know the WHOLE story.
Oh, if that wasn't complicated enough, Condor, the Japanese superhero that helped the Birds in Japan over the last few issues has followed them home to Gotham! He wants on the team too, it seems. Well, he's got the bird-theme part going for him, but he's not quite the LADY that the others are...regardless, looks like the Birds are going to give him a chance...In any case they have bigger things to worry about than gender issues...Black Canary's powers are somehow being amplified in a very unpredictable way...making her unintentionally very dangerous!!
Wonder Woman #16 - "I can see a Bird Man...in a castle of roots...with a Tree Lady. And the Baby...with stars for eyes..."
Wonder Woman's family troubles seem to be coming to a head as more and more demi-gods and god-like beings, including Orion and Diana's newly discovered half-brother Milan are gathering together, all focusing on poor Zola's kidnapped baby! Each of them seem to think that the child will be the last of the line of Zeus and possibly the harbinger of the end of TIME! Orion in particular is disturbed that he may have been sent to Earth to fight an infant? Only Diana has the presence of mind to ignore everyone and insist on rescuing the child...as she says "a child is never born bad...that's something learned."
Of course, none but Hades yet know of the escape of Zeus' first born in Antarctica! There's still a lot more going on here than we or Wonder Woman yet know! At least Diana's learned one thing...thanks to Milan's help she's one step closer to finding Zola's baby!
Catwoman #16 - "I'm floating above myself, watching myself lose control, but I don't know how to stop."
Catwoman was hired last issue to break into the Black Room at A.R.G.U.S. and steal the Black Diamond from a safe within. She's accomplished that mission, with the unwitting assistance of a scientist named Darwin...and that's when all hell breaks loose! See, the Black Room is where secret government organization A.R.G.U.S. stores all of the magical items that've fallen into their hands over the years. Now Catwoman's sealed in this space with dozens of supernatural evil artifacts, she's broken the spell that kept them dormant, and they all want to attack! Not only that, the Black Diamond is also sort of possessing Catwoman, impairing her judgment while increasing her lust for violence!! Selina may have stolen what she came for, but escaping with her life and SOUL intact? That's another story...
Green Lantern #16 - "Sinestro's a bit mad, though I've always admired his ears."
Simon Baz is finally learning exactly how this whole Green Lantern thing works, thanks to some help from squirrel-like Lantern B'Dg! Everyone's favourite rodent-like hero has come to Earth to find Hal Jordan and get help stopping the insane Guardians and their Third Army! Finding Simon Baz is something of a let down for B'Dg...however, beggars can't be choosers. Besides, the two Lanterns working together finally manage to figure out at least some of the circumstances of both Jordan and Sinestro's disappearances!
We also get some hints that Simon Baz might just be a worthwhile Lantern in his own right...once he learns what his new ring can do, he immediately heads to the hospital to try and heal his comatose brother-in-law. B'Dg tells him that the ring won't work like that...that it can't cure ills or raise the dead...but Simon's willpower is STRONG...
And that's it! Whew...lots of comics! Of course there are more where they came from...tomorrow's another New Comic Book Day! Next week I'll have the Flash, Aquaman, Batman Incorporated and so many more...stay tuned!!
Don't forget to check out Stryder's Dementia this week as I grow sick of griping!
That's it! I'm done...go home! Have a good week! Peace!
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