#believe it or not that panel of dick telling Ollie to step down from the pedestal is dick projecting

[thequiver]

I think the thing that people miss when they say that Ollie, like many other heroes in the JL, puts himself above the people he serves is that he just….. doesn’t…… the man has an ego for sure, but he’s not interested in being above the people he serves by any means.

Ollie stands trial for things he does as Green Arrow as Oliver Queen. He doesn’t prioritize a secret identity because as evidenced in JL comics from the 60s, Ollie isn’t a hero for the aggrandizement, he’s a hero because he believes in people and he pushes down the desire for fame and self import because people believe in him. For him being a hero is just as much about being held accountable as it is about serving others- because he doesn’t think that there’s anything heroic in causing more damage to people’s lives, so he lets a justice system he views as corrupt pass judgement on his extra-judicial actions because it’s a symbol to the people that he works for them rather than for himself, that he’s willing to take criticism and to subject himself to punishment when he does wrong.

Ollie’s entire schtick with the JL is that he’s constantly telling them to remember who they work for, that they don’t work for the team they work for the people. He doesn’t like their HQ being physically above the world because it can lead to them “looking” down on people. He funds the league but doesn’t try to run it because he’s not interested in being in charge, he’s just interested in helping. He doesn’t trust the league but he understands why it needs to exist which is why when he has money he funds it. He wonders who watches the JL, who is supposed to keep them in check? He’s the one asking and pushing for ways to make sure that the League keeps sight of their true purpose. He’s viewed as the least corruptible member of the league, the most moral, the least likely to turn.

Yes Ollie was raised rich and he comes from a privileged background and you can absolutely see that in the way he carries himself and in the literature that clearly defined his sense of self (I’m working on a meta about this)- but more than that Ollie is also a man who’s had nothing, a man who needed saving, and a man who saw what little sympathy was given to a rich and powerful man who had experienced great trauma and stopped to think about how little must be given to those without his wealth and power and set out to do something about it.

If you want to point fingers at JL members looking for power or placing themselves above others there are other heroes to look at with significantly more evidence to that point.

[totesmccoats]

  Batman: The Dark Prince Charming – Book One

Italian comics artist Enrico Marini dives into the Superhero genre in a big way with his take on the most popular hero of them all, and so far, he hasn’t changed much. His Batman and Catwoman are also in a solid relationship, much like the main series. So don’t go into this expecting a wild reimagining of the character.

The story concerns Joker kidnapping a young girl after the news reports that her mother is suing Bruce Wayne for child support, claiming that she is his daughter. Joker, having seemingly already put together that Bruce Wayne is Batman, targets her to get to his real objective. Batman wants to rescue her, and after running a DNA scan on one of the girl’s dolls, this case becomes personal.

Despite being fresh to superheroes, and coming from a comics culture where they aren’t as ubiquitous as they are here, Marini absolutely nails the heart of Batman’s cast – most impressively the Joker. Marini’s Joker is obviously influenced by Heath Ledger’s performance, borring the presumably fake child-abuse backstory, and a habit of killing henchmen mid-robbery; but also distills so many other versions of the character, maintaining the best parts. Marini’s Joker threatens the kidnapped girl with a knife, only to reveal it’s to cut into a pizza he ordered for the two of them. Of course, he also killed the delivery boy. He’s a Joker who throws Harley a big birthday party, but kills all but one of his other henchpeople when she doesn’t like her present. Actually, unlike most Jokers, Marini’s seemingly isn’t abusive towards Harley, which is a pleasant break from that sorta thing. This Joker is unpredictable and cruel, but he’s also very fun about it; exactly how Joker should be.

Unfortunately, the women in this story aren’t treated as well. While Harley isn’t abused, she’s depicted as way more cheesecake than usual, and Catwoman’s every other pose may as well be on a stripper pole. It’s not like these are huge departures or anything, but it seems like some of the messier parts of the characters taken a little further than usual, is all.

Also, the book is absolutely gorgeous. I don’t want to say it’s the sort of quality of art that’s rare in American superhero books because I’d feel like I’m insulting artists like Ferreyra, Alex Ross, Sean Gordon Murphy, Jeff Lemiere, Francis Manapul, and many other fantastic artists I currently greatly enjoy and admire; but Marini’s handpainted, realistic yet heavily stylized work is far from the house styles of the big two. There are panels I legit want to blow up and hang on my wall. And Marini’s lightly tweaked character designs, plus his new Batmobile, are simply sweet as hell, and I wish they would be used in more things. And his Gotham is brimming with gothic personality, and an insane verticality that dwarfs Batman in the best way.

So far, this story isn’t really anything new or novel, but it’s a damn excellent Batman story in its own right, and one worth picking up if you enjoy comic art.

  Batman: White Knight #2

Jack Napier gives an impassioned testimony at his trial, declaring his innocence and putting the blame on Gotham’s police. He maintains that the authorities experimented on him, turning him into the Joker, so that they would have an excuse to demand bigger budgets from the taxpayers to fight a new breed of super-criminals. He says that the rich and powerful of Gotham have invested in crime to do what they’ve always done, make a profit off the suffering of the poor. And though Napier’s populist message has caught on with the poor and middle classes in Gotham, this isn’t a campaign he can lead alone, so he looks for allies.

His first stop, Harley Quinn. He goes to see her, only to find out that she has no love for Jack Napier, only loving the Joker. He then finds out that she’s not the original Harley. The first Harley – in the actual Harlequin outfit as opposed to the Suicide Squad inspired outfit of the new one – steps back in to accept Jack’s proposal, while explaining that she left after feeling neglected by the Joker in his obsession with Batman; and that in his maina, he never even realized she found a replacement. It’s actually a really smart take to explain how Harley has has such a drastic change in character recently.

Meanwhile, Bruce and Mr. Freeze test out their new cure for Nora. They first test it on some lab rats, but then Mr. Freeze tries it on himself. And while it successfully reverses his condition, it also rapidly ages him to make up for all the time he spent frozen.

Bruce later goes to some sort of rich people party/auction, where he’s horrified to learn that his friends have been profiting from Batman’s war on crime. He knocks out his friend and storms off. Now, this I really like. Murphy hasn’t just switched Batman and Joker’s roles as hero and villain; Bruce legitimately seems ignorant of the inequality that Batman’s worked in service of, and he hates it. I’m expecting we may even see Bruce approach Jack to assist address the problems that Batman and the police have caused through Gotham – but that still makes me question how Batman ended up in Arkham from the cold open of issue #1.

I really like how much effort Murphy has put into this story to make it much more than just a simple “what if?” tale. Just as last issue brought up the popular fan-thought experiment regarding whether Batman is to blame for his villains, this one weaves in the fan-discourse about how the collateral of Batman’s work really does seem to disproportionately land with the poor. Napier’s speech isn’t just a an exercise in populist rhetoric, but an actual well reasoned argument against Batman’s existence vis-a-vie his effect on inequality. And it’s one that fits as much for canon-Batman stories as this alternate-universe that Murphy has lovingly crafted for this story. If you’re not already reading this one, get on it.

  Batman #34

Batman and Catwoman have their first post-engagement spat. Batman said that he’d “seen more” after Catwoman commented on there being “a lot” of something, and Catwoman took it as an insult, and Batman’s trying to explain he was just saying…oh and by the way they’re talking about the number of swordsmen surrounding them preparing to attack. Because that’s just how they do. King’s juxtaposition of the action with sitcom-esque dialogue isn’t the most original, but it’s really effective here in establishing that, for Batman and Catwoman, this is fairly typical. It continues through the issue, with the two also discussing whether Talia could be considered Bruce’s “Ex,” and lots of Bruce calling Catwoman pretty to deflect from accidentally saying something she’d consider rude.

Meanwhile, Damian and Dick track their father to the same entrance that he and Catwomen fought their way through last issue, but are stopped from following by Superman. Damian threatens to kill Clark with magic, but Clark reminds him that then Jon probably wouldn’t want to be friends anymore. Then Supes goes flying off to handle and alien invasion in Central City; and Dick and Damian decide to sit on the stoop and wait for Bruce to come out. It’s one of those scenes that works because it reminds you that Damian’s just a kid. A kid who can make a believable threat against Superman, but one you can’t take all that seriously because he’s just saying it because he’s steamed over his parents doing something in secret. So when Damian can’t get his way, he just pouts and sits down; and Dick, being the best big brother ever, waits with him.

The lighter tone of the issue changes almost instantly when Talia finally shows up at sundown. The palette of the issue switches from a yellow-orange to a red as the sun sets, ending with an early night-blue sky as Talia challenges Selina to a duel over Batman’s wounded body. The change is dramatic, but not sudden. Even once Talia is in-frame, she approaches slowly, taking about two pages before she starts fighting Batman, giving the sun time to fully set.

Jones’ inky style is still a perfect fit for this adventure, continuing to capture the feeling of the sun beating down on the characters by putting everything in high-contrast black against Bellaire’s yellows and reds.

We also find out in this last act of the issue that this isn’t some weird newlywed hazing ritual; but that Batman and Catwoman are actually looking for Holly Robinson, who killed the 237 people that a young Selina took the blame for, and they tracked her here. So, one question answered, at least one duel to the death to go before getting more.

  Green Arrow #34

Oliver has some trouble adjusting to his mother having been alive, and being a prominent member of the Ninth Circle, the evil bank that he’s been trying to bring down for the past year. Moira tries to convince Ollie of the virtues of capitalism – that when the Queens do well, all of Seattle benefits, but Oliver won’t have it.

Instead, he helps Black Canary take down the Clock King, who has hacked into Star City’s smart infrastructure, and is causing every self-driving vehicle in the city to go crazy. Dinah stops a speeding train on it’s tracks by screaming at it hella loud, while Oliver finds and stops Clock King.

Meanwhile, Diggle helps Merlyn make a full recovery, and then tells him that his debt for Merlyn having saved his life some time ago has been paid. Merlyn feels differently.

And at the end of the issue, Oliver agrees to help Moira raid the sunken vaults of the Inferno, believing that even if everything she says is just some Ayn Rand bullshit, a little money would help him out with his murder trial, and also gather evidence more against the Ninth Circle to rescue his city.

This issue is a bit of a mess. The Clock King and Diggle stories both feel like filler to make the issue reach it’s page limit, and to distract that, during them, Oliver completely flip-flopped on helping out his mother.

Also, I’m not a fan of Stephen Byrne’s work on this book. It looks too…flash animation-y, characters look as though they were coated in confectioner’s glaze. It actually reminds me of some bad webcomics, which ain’t good. Also, Moira looks more like Felicia Hardy than a woman who should at least be in middle age. What happened to Ferreyra? Or Campbell?

  Superman #34

As his worshippers beg him to lead their forces to take back Apokolips, Lex does the least Luthor thing ever and abdicates his godhood to the person their prophecy actually foretold – Superman. Did I miss something really big with Lex, or am I just supposed to believe that, after deciding to become a hero, he also just no longer has his character defining flaw? I don’t want to be one of those people who says comics should never change, but unless I missed something, this is a huge change of character. Even if he really is a hero now, that shouldn’t exclude him from being arrogant and striving for praise and adulation.

Meanwhile, Lois and Jon are also on Apokolips; and while Jon can just fly away from the people and hounds hunting them, Lois can’t, and finds herself taken by Granny Goodness’ Furies. But when their convoy is attacked by a giant, fire-breathing dredge worm, Lois picks up one of the fallen Furies’ guns and proves to Granny than she’s more than just another captured vermin.

While I continue to appreciate this book’s focus on Lois, it also puts her in a situation that doesn’t suit her strengths as a character. Lois is a reporter, she’s not Wonder Woman. I like that she’s able to defend herself, and that she’s not being damsel’d, but becoming a Fury feels just as out of character as Lex declining a throne.

  Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #6

J. Jonah Jameson cooks up a nice-looking lasagna to warm up his latest interview subject – Spider-Man! Of course, Spidey is only there for information that can help out his sister, but in exchange, he agrees to a no-holds-barred exclusive interview with the man who used to slander him for profit.

The interview doesn’t start off well, and quickly becomes a heated argument between the two on why Spider-Man wears a mask, and why Jameson hates him for it. The two trade verbal attacks about the other’s role in the creation of super-villains, destruction of property, and death, before just straight up calling each-other cowards and bullies.

If last issue suffered because it was too plot heavy to give room for characters to breathe, than this issue is an incredible course correction. Anything relevant to the plot of the arc is sidelined for the raw catharsis of Spider-Man and Jameson finally just letting everything out. And the issue ends up becoming a complete disrobing of Jameson as Spidey slowly digs into why he’s hung onto this grudge through becoming mayor, the death of everyone close to him, and getting fired from the Bugle. Like Zdarsky’s best issues, there’s more than a twinge of meloncholy through the issue, as he reveals how broken this character has been. That sorta thing has become his specialty, it seems – making jokey characters kinda depressing.

Walsh is the perfect artist for this issue. His style, much like Doc Shaner or Darwyn Cooke’s, evokes an older time in comics, with thick charcoal-y hatching and shading, and uneven outlines. Plus, no spaghetti webs! This is matched by Herring’s muted and watercolor-textured colors. The aged affect of the art is epitomized by a single flashback panel made to resemble Ditko’s original Spider-Man work; and it’s amazing how solid a throughline you can make from his style to Walsh’s.

It’s also scary impressive how much emotion he can draw out of Spider-Man’s mask, like…there’s seething anger in one panel that comes across through the mask despite any and all reason.

  Black Bolt #7

Finally free from the prison, Black Bolt makes his way back to Earth, but not before a pit-stop to return Monsteroso to his home planet. He’s reckoning with the loss of his voice and the PTSD from his time in the prison. Also on board is Blinky, who has her own nightmares, only hers can manifest physically, and require Black Bolt to destroy before they could actually harm her.

Very much a breather issue after the conclusion of the last arc, Ahmed writes an issue with almost no threat or urgency that isn’t just in one of the characters heads, excepting for a short space-dogfight at the end. The tone is complimented by guest artist Frazer Irving’s soft, dreamlike art. Irving’s style is almost the complete opposite of Ward’s hyperactive neon trips, almost resembling a children’s picture book; but is equally gorgeous to the work Ward has done on the series, and fits just as nicely into Ahmed’s story. This is easily the most beautiful single I picked up this week, and proves that Black Bolt is one Marvel book you should be reading even on “off” months.

  Crosswind #5

Juniper’s guys follow Cruz to Mika’s house, where he’s just finished beating her up. Then he kills two of the three guys Case sent to kill him, and promises to kill Cason as well. Then he gets a visit from the mysterious old man who swapped Cason and Juniper, who explains the situation and why he did it. So now, Cruz is out to kill June and her family as well.

Cason overhears the old man’s voice over the phone as he threatens to kill him, and knows enough of Cruz to prepare for him to make the trip to Seattle. Juniper catches up with Mika and tells her everything that’s been going on, and they both decide to try and cut Cruz off in Seattle.

Meanwhile, thanks to Cason’s advice, Kelly’s finally making friends at school. And he comes home to his step-mom finally giving his dad what he deserves.

While I didn’t really think the body-swap needed an explanation, I’m very glad that it happened essentially out of pettiness. The man who did it did so because they both refused to sell him their plane tickets so that he could see his wife before she died. It’s like something out of a myth, a god ruining your life because you were rude to them in disguise. It really may as well have been random.

Staggs continues to do wonders just with the main characters’ postures, like how June still holds her towel up to her chest as though to cover breasts, or how Case sits with a wide stance even in a dress.

  Paper Girls #17

Charlotte finally fills the girls in on the time-travel war that they’ve found themselves caught in the middle of: The teens who’ve been helping the girls are time travellers from at least 70,000AD who go back in time to right wrongs; and are are fighting against the “old-timers”, the first generation born after the invention of time-travel, who try to prevent anyone from interfering with the timestream. She was told this by a friend of the same time travellers who rescued Erin’s life; and even though she seems legit, if not a little eccentric; Mac doesn’t trust her completely. And when Mac tries to tell this to KJ, and also calls Charlotte a lesbian, KJ comes out to Mac, who is shocked once she realizes what KJ just told her.

Meanwhile, Tiff escapes from the overturned police car amid the giant robot battle happening around her, and manages to make it to her parents house, where she finds a mysterious goth sitting in her living room, and claiming to be married to her!

It only took seventeen issues, but we finally have an idea of what’s going on in Paper Girls! Yay! Not that I minded much, obviously; I was enjoying it either way, but it is cool to have some more context. And that moment between Mac and KJ is *mwah* perfect. Their faces! So good! Besides that though, this is mainly an exposition issue; with Tiff’s scenes being almost completely wordless. I still love how the teen’s mech is just an EVA though – that’s fantastic.

  Uber: Invasion #9

The unique Battleship Churchill – Leah – and a thirteen year old battleship candidate named Tamara rendezvous with Patton’s forces as he crosses the alps. The Germans have him walled off with a small squad of Ubers, expertly positioned to prevent his further movement despite his superior forces. Luckily, Churchill’s arrival provides him with inspiration for an attack the Germans could never see coming.

I won’t say how, because it’s one of the most amazing action sequences in recent comics memory, but needless to say, the issue ends with the Allies winning big, and possibly turning the tide of the war.

Leah is the star of this issue, and oh boy does she earn it. She’s a gentle giant, possibly the strongest single character in the franchise, and someone you do not want to be on the wrong side of. Gete draws her to make her basically a Totoro on one page, and then the Hulk on another. Generally there’s a distance between Uber’s characters and the reader because of the book’s narration taking the form of an objective post-war narration, but you really end up rooting for Leah, and not just because she’s ripping Nazis to pieces.

Comic Reviews 11/1/17 Batman: The Dark Prince Charming - Book One Italian comics artist Enrico Marini dives into the Superhero genre in a big way with his take on the most popular hero of them all, and so far, he hasn’t changed much.