How much did I read in two weeks?
Birds of Prey 25, 26, 29-36, 42, 44
The rest of my Chuck Dixon run. Dixon throws in an odd romance between Dinah and an ancient Viking - Apparently, a one night stand with Black Canary is enough for him to pine away for her for the rest of his life. Poor guy, if only he knew about Ollie. Or Ra’s al Ghul, Canary’s rebound relationship after Viking dude.
Generally fine but unmemorable issues. Not boring enough to drop, though.
Regret buying: No
Would buy again: No
Would read again: No
Rating: Fine (Dumping 36 and 44, a stupid Last Laugh crossover issue and a random issue from a storyline I don’t have the rest of the issues for)
Birds of Prey 62-68, 70, 74-78, 80, 83, 84
The Gail Simone run. The first arc I bought in trade. The rest I picked up for free at some giveaway event at work. Safe to say I made the right decisions - The first arc, worldwide jaunt with Oracle, Canary, Huntress, Shiva, and Cheshire is full of fun and energy that was sorely lacking by the end of Dixon’s stint. I can’t remember if Simone or Dixon was the one to introduce it (if it wasn’t someone else completely), but the idea that Shiva keeps a ranked list of the best martial artists in the world is awesome. Would love to see how that list constantly evolves.
Ed Benes may be a poor man’s J. Scott Campbell, but he’s grown into an artist whose work I actively enjoy. He’s certainly better suited to the lighter tone of this title than Butch Guice with Dixon. (Guice is a good penciller, but his art’s a little too dark and realistic for something so fanciful.)
The rest of the issues after issue 68 signal a surprising plummet in quality. Maybe it’s all the fill-in artists, maybe it’s how Simone takes Oracle out of the clock tower and into a private jet. More likely, it’s the uninspired monster of the month stories that drag on for far too long.
Regret buying: No (Didn’t buy the ones I’m dropping :) )
Would buy again: Yes for 62-68, No for the rest
Would read again: Yes for 62-68, No for the rest
Rating: Pretty good for 62-68, Fine to boring for the rest. (Cutting 74, 76-78, 80, 83, 84)
Bird of Prey 1
The New 52 version. Completely forgettable.
Regret buying: Yes
Would buy again: No
Would read again: No
Rating: Boring (Cutting)
Black Lightning 1
Tony Isabella returns to the character he created. I’m still searching for a Black Lightning story that’s made any kind of impression on me. (Judd Winick’s done some cool stuff with his daughter, Thunder, in Outsiders, though.)
Regret buying: Yes
Would buy again: No
Would read again: No
Rating: Fine (Cutting)
Blue Beetle 1-26
Jaime Reyes, created by Keith Giffen, John Rogers, and Cully Hammer, is Miles Morales five years before Miles Morales - a teenage reluctant hero of color with a loving, supportive family and wisecracking best friend. I love how they double down on his ethnicity, even spending an entire issue with his Spanish-speaking extended family. (Translation came at the end of the issue.)
Cully Hammer does good work at the beginning, and things really start to sing when Rafael Albuquerque comes on board.
I totally didn’t realize until now that John Rogers is also the guy who created the TV show Leverage. So in addition to creating an amazing show that’s super fun to watch, he writes great comics as well (along with Giffen, who really knows how to craft a funny line).
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| This one feels like Giffen. |
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| Is even Batman that good? |
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| Batman knows the score. |
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| He's really in an impossible situation. |
But is the Endgame arc at the end of Rogers’ run that really shines. It’s the culmination of this two year story as Jaime takes on The Reach and their plans for global domination. The desperation, intricate plotting, excitement, and flat out epic superhero-ness are a joy to read, and it’s what convinced me to change my “Would buy again” rating to a yes. Awesome stuff.
Regret buying: No
Would buy again: Yes
Would read again: Yes
Rating: Goes between Pretty good and Nice before climaxing with a well-deserved Good.
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