Y'know what? I've had a really good reading year so far. I've read more than a few books that have blown my mind, started and finished a new 1.5 stars
Y'know what? I've had a really good reading year so far. I've read more than a few books that have blown my mind, started and finished a new incredible series (Postal), conquered the numerous volumes of what is probably my favourite event in DC comics (Blackest Night), actually got ahead in my reading challenge (imagine that - ME!), and re-read some old favourites.
What I'm getting at is that it was probably inevitable that I'd eventually stumble across something that was basically a mess from the first dozen pages. I reeaaalllyyy wanted to like this. I found it in the library (of course), saw the ratings, saw the reviews, and shrugged while whispering "what the hell? Maybe they're wrong!"
Spoiler: They were not wrong. I was wrong. So very wrong.
I'm not dishing out an actual 1 star because 1, I reserve that for books that make me viscerally angry, and 2, the art was really well done... sometimes.
I admit I was looking forward to reading something that could at least somewhat stand on it's own without having to reading 14 other assorted volumes to get a basic understanding of the plot, but with confusing plot twists, constant flashbacks that really don't add much (we get it, John was in the Marines), problems that magically solve themselves, constant [bad] advice on what it means to be a leader, shameless boob and ass shots a full panel wide, art styles that randomly change mid-volume, and a seemingly never-ending stream of internal dialogue from an incredibly out-of-character John...
Yeah. This was definitely one I had to push through just to get to the end. Don't waste your time, the only fun thing about this was Guy being his usual entertaining jack-ass self, and you can find that daily dose of goodness elsewhere....more
I'll start off with this: The Green Arrow issue was phenomenal. If every other issue in this bind up was straight-up horrible, I still would've felt lI'll start off with this: The Green Arrow issue was phenomenal. If every other issue in this bind up was straight-up horrible, I still would've felt like this was worth the read solely for that issue alone. Honestly, quite a few of the other issues were horrible (I'm looking at you, Weird-ass Western Tales #71), but the Green Arrow story with Dinah and the kids - wow. Just... wow.
Alrighties, now that I've got that out of my system, a little more detail. This add-on to the Blackest Night event shows us what was going on with some of our heroes - and villains - who weren't included in the main bind-up or didn't get much "screen time". That being said, the big exception is the first issue where we see The Atom and Indigo-1 trying to contact her home world to help save the universe.
We started off well, and then it was a bit of a roller coaster. Some issues were fantastic all around, and others were sorely lacking in plot, dialogue, art, or all three.
The Good: Again, L-O-V-E-D the Green Arrow issue. Still in shock. It didn't pull any punches, and reading Ollie's inner turmoil was absolutely heart-breaking. I displayed every colour on the emotional spectrum (minus Avarice) while reading that amazing creation. Epic. Also I honestly enjoyed the Superboy/Wonder Girl issue waaayyy more than I thought I would. They also brought in Krypto, which will always be a plus for me. I'm not huge on a lot of romance in DC comics, but they wrote it well here. I liked seeing the values and trust between them instead of mindless 'ohmygod I love him sooooo much, s/he's so attractive I can't even concentrate'. Imagine that last bit in a Valley Girl voice, in case you really needed to be told. Good plot, good execution. Solid. I also liked The Atom issue; that dude is pretty damn awesome and I need to read more of him. The Black Adam issue was a complete surprise, but it left a really good taste in my mouth to close off the volume. That kid had my heart in his hands by the end there, gah. So heartbreaking, but so damn excellent.
The Bad: Hoo boy. I'm gonna start off with the Starman issue because I have no freaking idea who let that happen. I get really nervous publicly hating comics, but this was just bad to me. The writing was wooden and ridiculous, the art frankly looked unfinished (I know, art is subjective), and there was absolutely nothing in this that I could claim as a redeeming feature. Nothing. The "romance" was painful to read, and I just couldn't get through this fast enough. However, it somehow still managed to be better than the aforementioned Weird-ass Western issue. I'll be honest - I couldn't get through this. About 3/4 of the way through this I quit and skipped to the end and I don't even feel guilty because the every second I spent reading that 3/4 felt like an utter waste of my time. Our cowboy is a grade-A jackass and misogynist, and I get that that's his character, but frankly he was so insufferable I couldn't stand reading it. And I honestly didn't give a shit about the plot either, so yeah. Hard pass on that one.
Everything else falls into the "Meh" category. I will say that I managed to care about Catwoman for maybe 10 seconds, which is impressive because I straight-up hate that woman (sorry Sarah). It was good writing and it got real dark and twisted, which I always appreciate. I liked the Question issue too, because Montoya is both badass and incredibly attractive (I might have a crush), but Tot was an utter tool in that story and that dragged it down.
Anyway, this was worth the read, but like most of the other additions to the Blackest Night event, a bit of a mixed bag.
Meh. I liked some parts, I was bored through other parts. Quite a few parts. I admit I had to do some searching on some new faces for me and for some Meh. I liked some parts, I was bored through other parts. Quite a few parts. I admit I had to do some searching on some new faces for me and for some I had forgotten the details of. In general I just didn't get into this volume like I have through other collections from this event. There was very little adrenaline, I didn't have my emotions ripped out in the same way... This probably had something to with the fact that I haven't read much of Flash on his own and that I'm rather ambivalent about Wonder Woman as a character in general (sorry Sarah) so the foundation and love for the characters wasn't cemented in the same way it was when I read the Bats or Teen Titans story arcs.
Also I didn't give a single shit about The Rogues. They could've left out that entire plot line and I probably would've been happier. Just. Don't. Care.
I did enjoy reading more of Flash though. I like the mix of humour with the deep care for their family and friends they all exhibit. I've been meaning to give Barry and Wally the time they deserve and pick up some of their individual runs to delve deeper into those arcs, so this definitely pushes me forward towards that.
It took me awhile to decide on the rating of this, honestly, because both the Bat-family and Titans storylines were A+ easy Well this was a mixed bag.
It took me awhile to decide on the rating of this, honestly, because both the Bat-family and Titans storylines were A+ easy 5 stars will read again, and Superman storyline in the middle was... yeeahh. Not. It probably rated somewhere in the land of 1.5 because the art was literally the only thing I liked. Anyway. I'll try to do this in order.
The Bat-family storyline: Holy shitballs this gave me all of the possible emotions on the GL colour spectrum. I feared for all their sanity (and safety), I had hope that the Robins would somehow find a way through the utter disaster that was upon them, I had immense love for both Tomasi and the artists/pencilers etc. for creating such a masterpiece, I felt compassion for both Tim and Dick because goddammit (view spoiler)[their dead parents came back to life and these boys can't get a second of closure (hide spoiler)], and you better believe I had rage against the Black Lanterns for the pain they put my favourite boys through. As for willpower? Well, after reading this, despite the lack of funds in my savings due to Christmas extravagance, my great willpower led me to purchase this volume despite the odds. Lucky me. Anyway, without getting too spoilery, this was just wonderful. You got ass-whooping, a plethora of Robin banter, drama, tears, Deadman being a helpful yet eternally snarky Deadman, fire, fire, more fire, and a whole lotta feelings. So good.
The Superman/Superboy storyline: I won't spend a lot of time here because I didn't enjoy my stay and frankly the read felt like a waste of time so I won't waste much more on a review. First of all, I'm not a big Superman fan. He just annoys me in whatever universe or version of himself he's in, so yes, I'm biased, I realize that. If you like Superman, give this a try, don't take my word for it. That being said, the writing was often clunky to the point where it took you out of the story to shake your head and wonder how that got past editing. Example from Psycho-Pirate: "Feel the love for everyone. While others feel other things!" Also Ma's dialogue had me cringing the whole time. My favourite: "Yeah, I'm a widow that's gonna cook your goose!" Also the use of exclamation points was just overwhelming. Anyways. Enough of that, moving on.
Titans storyline: Alright. So it's no secret that I adore Raven probably more than life itself. So when she was noticeably absent here, I was disappointed. I got even more angry when Tara showed her miserable face (definitely not a fan of her, even less of a fan of her romance with Gar). But, as the story progressed, the plot became about (view spoiler)[Gar moving on from her and realizing that was wrong to defend her (hide spoiler)], and OH MAN, was I here for that!! I've been waiting to read Gar speak the way he did at the end for a loooong time now. Also I'm now freaking in love with Dove, holy shit. I have a crush and it's not even subtle. She is absolutely badass and mysterious, and I felt for her so much through the course of this story. Also for poor Donna, heaven help that woman, jeez. When she (view spoiler)[crushed her baby's skull (hide spoiler)] I was both impressed that it was written (even if the deed was showed off panel), and absolutely shocked at how strong she could be. I need to learn not that Amazon.
Overall, the Bats-family and Titans epic storyline absolutely make up for the Supes one and it definitely adds to my whole understanding of the Blackest Night. Worth reading....more
The last volume I had to read in the Blackest Night Event. I'll admit I've put it off because this has become my favourite Event in DC Comics thus farThe last volume I had to read in the Blackest Night Event. I'll admit I've put it off because this has become my favourite Event in DC Comics thus far. I'm glad it ended on a high note.
My favourite parts were easily the middle. Look, I love the relationship between Kyle and Guy, so those issues where Guy went Red Lantern was basically Nico-specific fan-service and I loved it all. That hug though - we all want hugs like that (specifically from Guy in my case, the man's an enormous angry and sarcastic loudmouth teddy bear softie in disguise). His relationship with Kyle makes him a better man and Lantern (and vice versa) and for all the shit they talk, we got to see how much they care about each other in pretty serious and heartbreaking detail. Good stuff.
The confronting old girlfriends got a bit tired by the time we got to Kyle and Alex at the end there, but otherwise I think it was pretty well done. Soranik was never my absolute favourite, but she was a strong-willed badass in this volume, and I appreciated that. I think my problem is I prefer seeing Kyle and Guy bantering and fighting things than dealing with serious relationship stuff (which was present in this a lot), but that's my preference and not a problem with the writing itself. That said, that's pretty much the reason why this lost a star in the end.
I liked the closure of the last issue [read: I liked watching Arisia punch a Guardian in the fucking face inside their most precious sanctum]. Between the bar, Salaak making it clear he won't play puppet, and the release of the rings it just felt like a decent wrap up. I was impressed that there wasn't really a "weak" issue, though the early "looking for my children" storyline wasn't my favourite, but it didn't take up too much time.
The art, as usual in the Blackest Night event, was fantastic with the blackness of space against the various coloured Lantern Corps. There were several full page spreads that were pretty damn awesome to behold.
Honestly I just love the Lantern Corps and I love Blackest Night, so this was made for me to enjoy. Peter Tomasi generally hasn't let me down, so that's one more in the win column for him in my "can count on" creators list. I'm sad I've finished this Event but it's definitely one I'll be enjoying multiple times over again....more
The art was definitely not my style, and I just couldn't bring myself to care about most of the stories. We certainly Yeah, wasn't a fan of this one.
The art was definitely not my style, and I just couldn't bring myself to care about most of the stories. We certainly jumped around enough, so you'd think I'd find something in here that would really catch my fancy either art-wise or story-wise, but not really. For the most part I was bored and just trying to push through to the end. The plots for the most parts were predictable and formulaic. I did enjoy Kilowog's story more than the others, because, duh, it's Kilowog, people, how could you not at least get a little into it? But even that had a very simple plot line. I will grant you that it's not like the author had much time and space to bring together anything too intricate, but they all just fell flat for me.
The Earth-Prime Superboy story could've been cool since I always enjoy the breaking of the fourth wall, but I guess I just don't know enough about what went on with him to really appreciate the story? We got a little bit of backstory at the beginning to help orient the reader, but honestly I was still lost and I didn't care enough to go digging on the internet to attempt to understand. What're ya gonna do?
I also didn't expect all that text with 'The Book of Black' being thrown in there between the comics. It took me a bit to adjust, but Johns, as always, has a way of getting all dark and creepy and more than a little disturbing. Personally, I live for shit like that, so that section was an obvious plus. The Black Hand is one messed-up dude, jeez.
Anyways, this is the first thing I've read from the Blackest Night event that I haven't been totally drooling over, so I'm not that upset. They can't all be 5 star reads. *shrugs*...more
All I can say after reading this is that I'm reeeaaaallllyyyy looking forward to diving into the Blackest Night event now... You knoActually 4.5 stars
All I can say after reading this is that I'm reeeaaaallllyyyy looking forward to diving into the Blackest Night event now... You know a comic's good when you're reading it in public and you're having to stop yourself from gasping out loud and swearing on a subway. I did miss seeing Guy and Kyle in this one though. Still, this event is going to be just colossal and I am absolutely here for it. Bring on the marathon....more
Wow. Okay, trying not to swear too much because my Mom has decided to make her presence known on Goodreads. Luckily, she doesn't much like comics and Wow. Okay, trying not to swear too much because my Mom has decided to make her presence known on Goodreads. Luckily, she doesn't much like comics and therefore I doubt she'll read this.
Holy. Shit. I am honestly exhausted. I experienced many overwhelming emotions and my brain stopped working several times.
I got these from the library today and read them back to back for like 2 and a half hours; dinner be dammed. By the end of this, I had so much adrenaline in my body I legitimately wanted to attempt to lift a car just to see if I could. I'm still trying to regain a normal heart rate, and it's been 20 minutes because every time it starts to go back to normal I start flipping through to read the best parts over and over and seriously IS GEOFF JONES TRYING TO MURDER HIS FAN BASE WITH HEART ATTACKS?!?
Alright, I'm trying to form a rational review. There was just so much emotion behind the whole thing, cover to cover. It's actually kind of ironic, considering. Anyways, the plot was fantastic and relentless in it's pace. The art was fantastic - I don't think I've been so repulsed by the images of the aftermath of a fight since Batman and Robin, Vol. 1: Born to Kill. The kill count was ridiculous by the way, although I'm coming to understand this is typical in the world of Green Lantern. Coming from a serious Batman binge (like that's unusual for me), this was certainly quite a shock, let me tell you.
I'm still not sure how I feel about (view spoiler)[how they're allowed to kill (hide spoiler)] but I think I'm just going to have to see how they handle it in the future before I make any snap judgments.
I'm not quite sure what else to say other than READ. THIS. NOW. Well, actually read the one before this, and THEN come read this one, but I think that was clear... *ahem*...more
DAMMIT WHERE'S THE SEQUEL I GOT THEM BOTH FROM THE LIBRARY AND NOW I CAN'T FIND IT ARG *PANIC ENSUES*DAMMIT WHERE'S THE SEQUEL I GOT THEM BOTH FROM THE LIBRARY AND NOW I CAN'T FIND IT ARG *PANIC ENSUES*...more
I REALIZE THAT I DON'T HAVE A PROPER REVIEW FOR THIS YET BUT HOLY CRAPBALLS, DID I EVER LOVE IT AND I FELT LIKE THAT MUCH SHOULD BE CLEAR.
(I'm going tI REALIZE THAT I DON'T HAVE A PROPER REVIEW FOR THIS YET BUT HOLY CRAPBALLS, DID I EVER LOVE IT AND I FELT LIKE THAT MUCH SHOULD BE CLEAR.
(I'm going to read all the other assorted Blackest Night companions that I've stockpiled for the Christmas holiday and fill in all the gaps and then revisit this for a full review. Until then, please enjoy these gifs, which I believe accurately displays my current emotions toward this piece of god damned beauty: [image]
Yeahhhhh, so this probably wasn't the greatest one to read as my first Green Lantern graphic novel, but hey, let's jump right into the action why don'Yeahhhhh, so this probably wasn't the greatest one to read as my first Green Lantern graphic novel, but hey, let's jump right into the action why don't we? :) The Green Lantern Wiki was my friend. It was great fun once I figured out what was going on, although I hate how Batman behaves. He's right to be suspicious, but I think he's unnecessarily rough with Hal and John (really all of the Lanterns) but hey, this is my first take so what do I know? I already love the friendship between Oliver and Hal by the way.
OKAY. ONE THING I DON'T UNDERSTAND. In the back of this, right before all the authors' bios, there a section that answers some questions (ex. Where is Hal Jordan's body?) and THEN, there's a few pages that outlines five issues ---> "Rebuilding Ha's life, rebuilding Coast City, rebuilding the Corps, rebuilding out Hero. Our theme for the monthly book." Then it goes to the Issue Breakdowns (Issue #1, Issue #2 etc etc.) and on Issue Five, it sounds AMAZING (Batman/Robin are more prominent, and that's my sweet spot. Especially since (I THINK it might be a spoiler?) (view spoiler)[ Batman is infected with Parallax and shoots Robin (hide spoiler)]. I love me some Bruce/Robin(s) angst :) SO. IF ANYONE KNOWS WHAT THE HELL I'M TALKING ABOUT... Good for you, and how the HELL could you follow that?!? You must be magic. ALSO, please tell me where I can find these issues on goodreads; I shall be much obliged and give you virtual cookies :D...more
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