There’s a lot to cover on Wednesdays. We should know, as collectively, we read an insane amount of comics. Even with a large review staff, it’s hard to get to everything. With that in mind, we’re back with Wrapping Wednesday, where we look at some of the books we missed in what was another great week of comics.
Let’s get this party started.
Batman: The Detective #6
Written by Tom Taylor
Illustrated by Andy Kubert
Colored by Brad Anderson
Lettered by Clem Robbins
Reviewed by Ryan Fitzmartin
Batman in Europe is a pretty unique premise for a comic. There are probably more comics about Batman in space than there are about Batman taking a Eurotrip. So off the bat, “Batman: The Detective” #6 has a good baseline. Batman and an assortment of European allies take on a villain known as Equilibrium in a violent showdown in the finale to this six issue miniseries. There’s moral dilemmas about whether the Bat should kill, and the rules of being a hero. A big showdown at the end results in a tough choice for Batman. It’s decently executed, but pretty standard fare for a Batman finale. Writer Tom Taylor found a fascinating setting, but doesn’t produce much of a new spin on a classic hero. So yes, Batman is going through the motions, but he’s at least doing it somewhere different and that’s interesting enough.
The pencils by Andy Kubert are strong, and his splash panels are the highlight of “Batman: The Detective” #6. There’s a wealth of them, all featuring gorgeous and striking compositions. Every few pages Kubert simply goes to town with these classic massive panel action shots and it’s spectacular to look at. Andy Kubert shows why the Kubert name is legendary in comics. Sandra Hope provides excellent detailed inking, and Brad Anderson’s coloring is vibrant and powerful. Anderson takes full advantage of Kubert’s splash panels to grace the reader with a good variety of hues. Hope and Anderson do particularly a great job with shadows in this issue, which is vital to any Batman story.
Final Verdict: 7.1 – Pretty art and a competent story make for a routine but solid Batman Finale.
Justice League Incarnate #1
Written by Joshua Williamson and Dennis Culver
Illustrated by Brandon Peterson, Andrei Bressan, and Tom Derenick
Colored by Hi-Fi
Lettered by Tom Napolitano
Reviewed by Quinn Tassin
“Justice League Incarnate” #1, like prior installments in Joshua Williamson’s sprawling DC comics story, feels like the publisher trying to release its essence in one comic. There’s Darkseid and the multiverse, a Superman and Batman. Barry Allen is at the center of it all but also nowhere to be found. In a lot of ways, this project, in which writer Dennis Culver has joined Williamson, really works. There’s an immediate sense of weight to everything that we’re seeing not just because of the action that hits almost as soon as the issue does but because of the breakneck pace. This is the second proper chapter in the story that came spinning out of “Dark Knights: Death Metal” and it doesn’t really preoccupy itself with treating itself like the beginning of something. We’re in the middle of a multiversal crisis (lowercase c) and it feels like it.
That urgency that the story adopts because it’s really the start of the second chapter in a large story and not the beginning of a quirky miniseries does hurt the issue, though. We start in a place that’s likely easy to jump into but there’s clearly context that would enrich the experience quite a bit. While stories built on what came before them are the foundation of comics, first issues are still harder to latch onto when there’s something that you’re missing if you haven’t read something else. And even for those of us that have read “Infinite Frontier,” it’s been long enough since that series ended that there needs to be a little more grounding for “Justice League Incarnate #1” to work.
The issue also suffers for its visual inconsistency. Perhaps if it had been kept to two pencilers on this issue, one for Earth 8, one for Earth 0 and Justice League Incarnate HQ, things would’ve been alright. Brandon Peterson and Andrei Bressan do excellent work illustrating those, respectively. Peterson is tasked with illustrating this Marvel-analog universe and he gets the style just right. The character design and the environment he renders feel just like Marvel. Bressan captures visuals that feel like they’re coming straight from more classic Fourth World comics, especially that final page showing off Darkseid’s army. Each has an admirable sense of scale and captures the mood of their moments. Then there’s Tom Derenick, who does serviceable work taking over on not-Avengers duty from Peterson but simply isn’t as strong. We pivot suddenly from strong pencils to more cluttered pages and some moments that are clearly rushed. And this happens just as Darkseid arrives for a fight with not-Thanos. It should be awesome but it doesn’t measure up. Hi-Fi is a versatile colorist. It’s great at keeping some consistency in the visuals of the issue but at the same time, as the pencils get worse, so do the colors.
Continued belowNow, that’s a lot of grumbling for what’s actually a very good comic. There are stakes but nothing that’ll overwhelm the rest of the DC line. There’s a cool cast of characters including the new and intriguing Doctor Multiverse. Most importantly, Williamson and Culver maintain a sense of fun throughout the “Justice League Incarnate” #1. This is a wacky story that includes a Superman variant that’s a giant rabbit and people traveling between universes with superspeed. The issue takes itself seriously enough for us to care but never forgets that at its core, it’s just supposed to be a good time.
Final Verdict: 7.8- “Justice League Incarnate” #1 is a very fun, if flawed, first issue in a fascinating, epic story
King of Spies #1
Written by Mark Millar
Illustrated by Matteo Scalera
Colored by Giovanna Niro
Lettered by Clem Robins
Reviewed by Alexander Manzo
Mark Millar delivers an fast-paced action story that feels like 007 meets Shoot ‘Em Up. The book opens up with a chase and fight sequence that feels a little confusing. Although it is entertaining because the reader is put right in the middle of the situation because there is no context on who this person is and whether they’re a good or bad guy, it’s difficult to latch on. After it’s over, the reader finally gets a chance to digest the situation as we follow Roland as an older man now and no longer young and spry. Millar makes the protagonist more human by making him slightly overweight and aching for the old days by looking at the wrinkles in the mirror as he shaves. The twist in the story is that he is dying and now feels like he has to use his skills to make amends for all of the misdeeds he’s done in his younger days.
Matteo Scalera’s illustrations pair well with Millard’s often fast-paced story-telling. While it’s challenging to find the context in the opening chase scene, it isn’t hard to follow Roland throughout it. There’s even a comedic sequence of a woman giving birth in an ambulance when he busts through, and the baby gets launched out the womb, and the reader can see the wrinkles in the umbilical cord. Scalera’s different points of view help give it this old-school 90’s action feel with his close-ups of a bad guy thinking he’s getting away with something and followed by bullets flying into the henchmen. Scalera isn’t shy about his background work either, with the detailed view of Roland’s medals during a casual panel to the intricacies in the carpet when looking from up above.
Giovanna Niro’s color choices help put the icing on the cake for this story as well. His warm color palette of reds and oranges are often preludes to action sequences that keep the reader engaged. Niro’s use of yellows and blues has a more calming feel to the story for the moments that give it real sustenance for the more profound, more heartfelt moments of this story.
Final Verdict7.8 There’s enough meat on the bone of this story to make you see what’s coming next, but Millar’s need for action-first story-telling may not be for everyone.
Magic: Master of Metal #1
Written by Mairghread Scott
Illustrated by French Carlomagno, Jorge Coelho, & Jaques Salomon
Colored by French Carlomagno & Francesco Segala
Lettered by Ed Dukeshire
Reviewed by Henry Finn
“Magic: Master of Metal ” #1 is a wonderful quad-shot, single-bound issue that provides insights into one of Magic’s more fascinating villains. In this case, we are talking about Tezzeret, the Planeswalker recently featured in the ongoing Magic: The Gathering series. Tezzeret is fleshed out by writer Mairghread Scott in a way that is thoughtful. This is apparent in the way that the four, interconnected one-shots highlight different times and places for Tezzeret to display his devious genius. This is leads to a payoff twist at the end which seems like a send-off
As for the art, the book splits duties through three artists but manages to work in one coherent story through the work of Illustrator and Colorist French Carlomagno (with assists from Francesco Segala). As an illustrator, Carlomagno smartly takes the filler positions in the book, with fellow illustrators Jorge Coelho and Jaques Salomon taking on two of the stories within a story.
Continued belowCoelho renders his work in more traditional fantasy illustration techniques. His lines on “Right Hand of God” are scratchy and relies on a lot of cross-hatching to create contrast, as is apparent from the very first panel of his story.
On “That Which is Mine” Salomon provides a more modern-noir look with deep black shadows that are apparent in the way he cloaks characters in solid black such as when Tezzeret shows up out of nowhere.
Carlomagno begins and closes out the stories within a story, but what really stands out is his coloring, which is what unites everything. Regardless of the style of art, Carlomagno provides a consistent palette of purples, blues, and greens. This creates a unified experience that makes you feel like you’re truly following Tezzeret’s narrative as opposed to four unrelated stories jammed together.
Final Verdict 7.0 A good rendition of a popular character but
Robin Annual #1
Written by Joshua Williamson
Penciled by Roger Cruz
Inked by Victor Olazaba
Colored by Luis Guerrero
Lettered by ALW’s Troy Peteri
Reviewed by Alexander Jones
DC’s current “Robin” title has expanded Damian Wayne’s cast of supporting characters with lots of new faces. Author Joshua Williamson has added lots of intrigue to the “Robin” title with artist Gleb Melnikov. In “Robin Annual” #1 Williamson is joined by artist Roger Cruz to expand on the mysterious origins for new and returning characters. Readers finally get the origin story for Williamson’s breakout “Robin” hero Flatline! “Robin Annual” #1 is an exciting issue packed with content that fleshes out key plot points from the main title without feeling redundant.
Artist Roger Cruz expands on the foundation laid out by Melnikov smoothly here. This recap sequence features a great sepia-tinge in the background that gives the issue an important feel right from the jump. Cruz draws incredibly nimble figures on the page that carry a huge amount of expression. When Cruz recaps the various superhero origin stories, he treats these moments as montage sequences. The pages with these sequences are packed with figures bleeding through the panel to transition into the next sequence. Cruz is great at experimenting in the medium of comics with Williamson and I hope they continue to collaborate on this level. Cruz is also great at shifting tones at a moment’s notice. Williamson’s script switches timelines and characters incredibly quickly without feeling out of place!
Williamson walks a complicated tight-rope of expanding on the “Robin” story with more information without making the issue essential for readers. Williamson and Cruz craft a plot point seldom explored in Robin within the opening pages. The creative team delves into Damian’s Gotham-based roots. Williamson expands on the backstory of most of your favorite heroes in the League of Lazarus tournament. Flatline’s origin story is particularly interesting but others like the mysterious Connor Hawke get much-needed insight here. Williamson also ensures this issue going to be essential to readers by including a little tease of the future of the overall Robin series. “Robin Annual” #1 is a great package with intriguing writing and slick artwork.
Final Verdict: 8.0 – “Robin Annual” #1 is a great retrospective on the intriguing supporting cast established for the new series!
