Picks of the Week - October 20, 2011

This week is a big one.  DC’s new 52 continues its second month, and Marvel’s Fear Itself event wraps up.

WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD

Justice League #2 – It’s Batman and Green Lantern against Superman, who holds them responsible for an attack on him.  The league grows by one as Green Lantern calls in reinforcements in the form of Flash.  This issue actually gives readers an idea of what a fight between Superman and Flash would be like.  We also learn more of Victor Stone’s story as he draws closer to becoming cyborg.

Catwoman #2 – The action picks up as Catwoman meets Bruce Wayne.  This issue takes a brutal turn as Catwoman meets Bone, the man who she’s been stealing from.  There is still a lot of Catwoman skin to rile people, and the violence of the final pages of the issue is sure to strike more nerves.

Blue Beetle #2 – I still have to admit that I am still a Ted Kord/Blue Beetle fan, but this issue manages to step up the action and pull me into Jaime Reyes story.  Blue Beetle becomes a battle of wills as Reyes’ morality fights against the weaponized nature of the scarab.  The issue still manages to bring in some humorous moments which help to break the tension built by the Beetle’s struggle to keep the scarab from turning him into a killing machine.

Batman #2 – The mystery behind Dick Grayson’s connection to the murder in issue 1 is explained.  But, who are the Court of Owls, and why are they targeting the Wayne family?  The mystery deepens, pulling me in and leaving me eager for the next issue and more clues.

Wonder Woman #2 – Diana brings the wounded Hermes to Paradise Island along with Zola, who is carrying Zeus’ child.  Brian Azarello brings back Wonder Woman’s connection to the Greco-Roman mythology that has been missing in the issues prior to the restart in a big way.

DC Universe Presents: Deadman #2 – Deadman enters the supernatural side of Gotham city as he sneaks into the Moonstone Club looking for answers to the mission he’s been given.  The issue gets more and more fun as Deadman pushes deeper into the Moonstone Club,and travels deeper into the strange supernatural underbelly that the club conceals.

Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes #1 (IDW/DC Comics) – The original crew of the Enterprise and members of the Legion of Super-Heroes find themselves in a world unknown to them.  Fans of the original Star Trek will recognize elements of the alternate reality explored in “Mirror, Mirror” Wit elements of the Legion’s reality mixed in (Durlans are attacked by an Enterprise-like starship, etc).  Though the two groups do not meet in this issue, they each come to the same conclusion.

X-Factor #226 (Marvel Comics) – During their investigation of a murder in Lawrenceville, Kansas, X-Factor comes into conflict with the Hangman.  But, is he the one responsible behind the murder, or someone far darker.  Peter David manages to make a one-trick pony like Hangman a bit more interesting in a story that still manages to work in all of the classic Peter David elements into the story.

Fear Itself #7 (Marvel Comics) – Marvel’s summer event wraps up as the Marvel heroes, armed by the Asgardians, face Sin’s army.  A lot of action happens in this issue, but none of it seems to really leave much of an impact as this rather lackluster series wraps up with the death of yet another Marvel hero.  In spite of this being the last issue of the series, we really are not at the end of the series since this very issue has an add for Fear Itself 7.1, 7.2, and 7.3.  We are also teased with the next major event with a 2 page spread of what is obviously the Phoenix force with the title “It’s Coming.”

Related articles

• My Overall Take on the New 52 (graphicpolicy.com)
• DC – The New 52 (7) (hilobrow.com)
• What’s New in the DCU – 10/19 (readrant.wordpress.com)