what

[dceasesd]

me after watching the new episode

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

Batman: Universe - issues #1-3

By Bendis, Derington, and Stewart

Beware, spoilers :)

 Story arc starts with Batman chasing down the Riddler, who uses stuntmen he deceived to be part of a new ‘comedy’ show. Well, the people who believed this nonsense definitely deserve to be punched in the face by Batsy.

Apparently, Riddler stole a Faberge egg from the Gotham museum and Batman loses him and the egg when a mysterious vehicle comes from nowhere and electrifies Batman to the point of unconsciousness.

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The funny part of this panel is there are still people you can manipulate into touching Batman’s cowl. That is a death wish.

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Jonah Hex! I love seeing Jonah Hex all the time and now thanks to the Young Justice, I love seeing his great-granddaughter Jinny Hex. I don’t remember any story with Jonah Hex and a Faberge egg together. I wonder how are they going to tie a 19th-century cowboy and a jeweled egg that is made in Russia; but it is sure to be interesting.

So, then Batman tracks the Riddler to Amsterdam, probably to pull him from his ears back to Gotham, only to face a different challenge rather than dear old Edward. Deathstroke, like he doesn’t have anything better to do, protects Edward Nygma from Batman; as if he ever stands a chance against Batman. (Yes, I am a Batman fangirl.)

I love seeing cameos from different heroes and villains outside of their own comics. Artists always put another look to the characters and seeing Bendis’ Deathstore and Green Arrow would be a joy to see, because its Bendis! I love everything he writes.

I love Oliver and his banters more than I can explain. I know the Green Arrow was created as a bad copy of Batman, but they created a different legend for him along the way. They still have a lot in common, but I love seeing Ollie none the less. Thanks to the Arrow, they beat Deathstroke and ‘capture’ Riddler for like a second.

When did Batman buy a sense of humor? It’s like Batman is trying to excuse Riddler like a teacher would with a student in front of the principal. It is so much fun to watch Bruce making small jokes rather than be a drama queen all the time like in King’s works.

I missed reading a story with Batman’s detective skills and strong conversation. It always leaves me wanting more of this comic. The only negative part of this work is that it is a monthly comic. I want more issues!

First of all, everyone loves Batman’s rogues gallery. Riddler gets away; obviously, the chase is not finished just yet, even though Batman figures that there is someone else behind all of Riddler’s plans.

Come on Bats, we don’t use names on the field, even if our teammate turns into a murderous human being. Jokes aside, I was just going to say this hero team-up did not have the fight, you know, heroes meet, they fight because of a misunderstanding, they makeup and save the day. Luckily Riddler had it covered; he hid a neurotoxin inside the box that should have contained the Faberge egg.

While they fight each other, the unexpected happens; the Riddler gets away.

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Only this panel is better than the whole Bat-Cat garboil. (I really hate Catwoman, please don’t be mad at me)

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Finally, we discover who is behind all this and it is – drumrolls please – Vandal Savage. Apparently, he wants whatever is inside of the egg. However, one problem: Who drove Savage? He looks awful, and I can’t really explain it, but I really didn’t like this version of him. Still, let’s move on.

Thanks to the tracker on Riddler, Batman follows him to the Gorilla City. I always like the big apes with telepathic abilities, calling humans primates.

Thankfully Batman manages to get in Gorilla City and talk with the king without causing a diplomatic problem. He finds Riddler sleeping with the egg. I have no idea how he managed to escape from Savage with the egg none the less, but Batman finds a note signed with a K, and it is supposed to be from Kal-El, but I guess it is not a good enough forgery to fool Batman.

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P.S: I love how he answers with ‘I’m Batman’ and how I just accept it as a probable cause.

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It seems that the egg, or whatever inside of it, can transport you to another side of the universe, acting like a Motherbox. What would Batman do if he ever gets stranded on a different planet? Apparently, he gives his references.

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Good to know that Batman’s name exceeds our world.

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Man, panels in this comic crack me up. Batman definitely deserves some teasing.

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Good thing the Hawks had an extra pair of wings for Batman and they are black! If I were Batman, I would never give them back. Then a villain (I guess) attacks on Thanagar, but before we can figure out who he is or what he wants, Batman gets ‘slingshot’ back to earth, his words not mine, only to see Gorilla City is in ruins.

While Batman learned how to fly, Savage came and took the Faberge egg. It seems the trip and back from Thanagar was more than Batman could handle. Thankfully, his buddies from Justice League helped him out. Obviously Green Arrow wasn’t the last of the cameos.

I enjoy seeing how Cyborg acts around Batman, like he is always horrified.

We learn that this slingshotting business, lack of a better word, happened to Hal as well. It is surprising to see a conversation about how Batman works alone, but I am loving it. A Batman/Green Lantern team-up is always fun to read.

They track the egg and Savage to the dinosaur island, which is always interesting to see. They find Savage which is okay but they do something they shouldn’t have: They got close to the egg. The egg slingshot them to the 1800s only to meet Jonah Hex! Finally, the man waiting for makes an appearance. And he is as cool as ever. I love cowboys.

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

The Flash - Year One

By Williamson and Porter

Spoilers; I’m warning you.

I have always been a big fan of year one stories. And Flash definitely needed one around this time.

I should start by stating that I really do not like the artist’s style. IT is hard to keep track of what is happening and the art is just eye tiring. However, the story is captivating and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

Our villain for the week is the Turtle. Once a bad guy who plans everything slowly, now has the ability to slow down the action around him. Turtle is one of my favorite Flash villains. Williamson was able to show a likable bad guy; which is the signature moves of the Rouges, even though Turtle is not a rouge. 

Seeing older versions of heroes always been interesting. Seeing a dystopian future with a villain in charge is not very original. Apparently, Turtle took over the future; we learn this by accidental time travel. The origin of Flash has to have an accidental time traveling to feel right. 

Barry from the future is a badass. Still, he rushes present Barry to return to his own time. He doesn’t mention about remembering this meeting, which is supposed to be the first clue for them to understand past, present and future can change. Old man Flash (which would be a great arc to read) asks different people in his life to figure out which point Barry is in. 

Thanks, Future Barry, even you tell yourself to run with a passion. 

I love how Batman once said ‘Barry Allen is the kind of man that I would’ve hoped to become if my parents hadn’t been murdered.’ The circumstances don’t matter, Barry Allen is a hero. He saw the dystopian future, he saw that future him failing to stop the Turtle, and he still took a stand. I know, it is very cliche, the hero beats the villain no matter the chances. Yet it makes me happy to see Barry. 

I love how horrible Barry is at trash talk. Also, I love to place little parts of the comic in my posts. 

So obviously Barry beats the Turtle, puts him the jail and becomes the hero of Central City!

Future Turtle comes back in time with the Old Man Flash who tells Barry to do nothing, Barry takes no shit, beats both Turtles, saves Future Flash, and changes the future along in the way. 

I want to congratulate Williamson for using Turtle as the first real villain for Flash. I always thought he should be the first Flash villain. I would rather if his main characteristic was slow, deliberate planning, rather than the power of slowing things around him. 

I always loved the Flash day. It is definitely something we would have if superheroes were real. 

Wally and Wallace! I am so happy to see Wally West before all the Heroes in Crises arc (a really bad one by the way - but it could be worth it if Flash Forward turns out to be better that I hope). I don’t know why DC chooses Barry Allen to shine in the spotlight while they have Wally, a great character. I would choose to see Wally and Dick Grayson interaction rather Barry and Batman. 

Hopefully, with Flash Forward, we can see Wally West more. Still, it’s not like him to be all down in the dumps.

So, in the end, we see Barry with a new character: Steadfast. I have to say, I was starting to believe comic book writers were losing their touch in naming new characters, especially after Gotham and Gotham Girl, but Steadfast is a great name. I loved it. 

Apparently, Year One story arc was just Barry remembering his first year. I would say this is an overused technique, but considering Dr. Manhattan wiped almost ten years and who knows how many people from heroes lives, it was a good usage of this tradition. Now Barry remembers part of his own history.

As someone who did not like reading Flash since 2016, this was a good storyline with not that bad art. I was only reading Flash because I wanted to follow the Dc comics. After this story, I really am excited to see what Williamson has in store for us. 

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

Comic book producers do not tend to create new female characters that would be identified by their individual characteristics. Most of the time, writers just add ‘woman, she, lady, and miss’ supplements to already existing male characters’ names like She-Hulk, Miss Martian, and Supergirl or make a character woman like Lady Thor and Miss, later Captain, Marvel. 

Female characters existence is defined not by their own person, they mostly identified by their relationship with the main male hero, like while Batman’s male sidekicks have their own personalized names like Robin, Nightwing, and Red Hood; female sidekicks have to be described by their relationship to Batman, like Batwoman and Batgirl. Female characters are defined by their gender, not by their personality or individuality.

Or at least this was the main issue. Now there are a few new female superheroes that go against this deep-seated understanding. That is a subject for another day.

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

Female Characters in Comic Books

American comic books treat women the same way American men treat women.

Minor female characters did not matter in comic books. Alexandra DeWitt, Green Lantern, Kyle Rayner’s girlfriend, whom we only known for 10-15 issues, was brutally murdered and stuffed in a refrigerator by a common villain. Her only role was to die and drive a vengeance storyline for the real hero. This usage of women was so common in American comic books; the term Women in Refrigerators syndrome (WiR) was invented and used frequently in order to explain women who were killed in a brutal and unnecessary way. 

It is hard to connect Roland Barthes’ Camera Lucida to comic books, considering Camera Lucida is all about photographs. Barthes, argues that when a detail in a photograph is staged by a photographer, it does not ‘prick’ him (Barthes, 1981, pp. 47). In comic books, every detail must be planned and this might lessen the effect on the audience but the striking effect of a violent incident can be seen as punctum, even though punctum is a personal perception, some events may have similar reactions to people. This may be the reason for using this many violent plots in comic books, in order to prick people. 

Some feminists refer to Women in Refrigerators syndrome as ‘you touched my stuff’ syndrome. Male characters are seeing women as objects to be protected and get vengeance if something happens. This objectification leads to see women like different kinds of human, capable of feeling but not thinking, at least not as well as men.

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

JLA: A League of One

A Tower of Babil story for Wonder Woman by Christopher and Moeller

Spoilers ahead, duh.

After hearing a prophecy from an oracle about how her fellow JLA members would die if they fight against this particular evil, Wonder Woman decides to be the one that sacrifices herself and takes down the league easy as pie. 

I loved the added mythology with Althea, a wood nymph from Themyscira, and Zoe, the youngest daughter of the old man of the sea, Nereus. Seeing Diana interacting with the forces of nature, in a peaceful way for a change, is captivating. 

I always loved the little hacks to beat the league; so let’s see how Diana did it. 

After the League separates into teams to handle different missions and leave the Watchtower, Diana starts with Martian Manhunter. By forcing him to his true form, she hoped to gain just a few seconds, which was more than enough for her to knock him out and teleport him to a sea of fire, to the almost center of the planet earth, successfully blocking his telepathic powers. Fire is the biggest weakness of Martians and as Batman likes to say, all he needs is a penny for a book of matches. J’onn is unable to warn his fellow leaguers or let alone to think in the inferno. 

Next, Kyle Rayner. I wasn’t aware Diana had Batman’s sleight of hand, but she manages to swoop his ring and headbutt him to the next week, probably using his impeccable trust for her.

How do you beat the king of Atlantis in the sea? Of course, you drop him to a whirlpool; the meanest one in the Greek mythology. Thanks, Zoe, great to have you. 

And in a similar ruse, many thanks to Althea, Flash is incapacitated as well. However, Batman is not that easy to deceive, he lurks around the shadows and figures out what Diana is up to, by threating a wood nymph with agent orange. Not cool Bruce.  

Then we see in a fight between Batman and Wonder Woman, Diana triumphs. Surprise surprise.

I have to say, noticing Clark’s biggest weakness is not kryptonite, but the fact that he cares is more brilliant than all of Diana’s plan. She inactivates three of the most powerful people who can stop her, and sends Superman away. 

Greatness in this story is how Diana manages to beat the entire league and a dragon as well and makes it look easy. She does not burn in the flames, she is not afraid of a mighty dragon, but she shed tears because how guilty she felt of betraying her friends, family as she put it. 

Also, this story includes a smiling Batman and therefore it is the best. 

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

City of BANE

Batman vol. 3, issues 78 - 79 by King, Mann, and Morey

Spoilers ahead. 

I should start with saying I am not a fan of Catwoman. Actually, that would be a lie, I hate Catwoman. That’s better. 

I believe her whole character is a big old middle finger to everything Bruce stands for. I can see the attraction between them, but that’s all there is. I am not buying the big love story Tom King is trying to write. Apparently, Selina left the Bruce altar because, in order to be Batman, he had to be alone. It is a bullshit reason not because to be Batman he has to be alone, the fact that he is not alone. The Batfamily is the biggest comics family ever. Trying to show Batman as this loner, emo boy should already be passed. He has a family and his family one of his biggest strengths. I don’t want to see a doomed love story, I want Bruce to make actual connections with his kids, not just beat them.

Okay enough of my hatred of Catwoman, let’s move to my indecision on Tom King. 

I am not going to lie, I loved what he did with Gotham and Gotham Girl, Kiteman, and the City of Bane, even though not every single part of their arcs was readable. Whenever I think King is a bad writer he creates an intrigue that pulls me to an opposite side. I have been mad because while Gotham is burning (literally) Bruce was sunbathing. Sending Damian in (if alone - don’t know yet) is just stupid. 

At least we know Alfred is okay. Silver lining. 

I should say, I love the idea of disguise is a cap, sunglasses and a mustache. 

I am waiting for the next issue with no excitement whatsoever. We live in a golden age of comic books, but it’s only for the cinema and tv. Marvel hasn’t been very good for the past 5 years, and even DC had some gripping arcs, it is nowhere near what I hoped. 

P.s. I know we are in the Modern era, not the Golden era. 

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

Voltron: Legendary Defender

There may be spoilers ahead so beware. I am in season 3. 

I have been watching Voltron for the last week. I can’t seem to give a break of it. I would be lying if I said I watched Voltron when I was little. I was born in 1999. I wasn’t there for the old mighty Voltron. 

Many people I know watch Voltron because it gives them a sense of nostalgia. I can definitely see the appeal. 

However, underestimating Voltron: Legendary Defender would be a mistake. I should say I am fond of animations and I would watch it even if it was bad. I want to make sure I explain it correctly. It does not hit me on the nostalgia but it hits me on the awesomeness level. 

My favorite character is obviously Pidge. I searched online and as far I understand Pidge was a guy in the old series. I am just glad there is a female paladin and she is the smartest cinnamon bun in the bunch. Creators could give her more original drive than ‘I am looking for my lost brother/wife/father/etc.’ Still, I really liked her character much more than any others. Only problem, I cannot choose who to ship her with! And I love shipping!

I am only in season 3, so I do not know what happened to Shiro, but I loved him and losing him hurt me as much as it hurt the other paladins. I hope we see some more character evolution for Keith who took Shiro’s place as the paladin of the black lion and as a leader, but I do not see him as a capable leader. He is a hothead and a loner; who always choose the way that includes the more fight. Voltron is more than a fighter, it is supposed to reunite the universe. Keith just does not seem like someone who could be diplomatic. 

I am happy to see Allura a lot more in the action. She proved to be a very good paladin. Also, the red lion is more fitted to Lance then the blue lion. Allura taking the blue lion must be one of the best decisions they have made. 

What I want to say is Voltron definitely deserves the time I am going to put in to finish 8 seasons. If you want a tv animation that has action and appeal, this is it. 

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

Who is Leviathan?

Isn’t that the question?

Hehe, I made a pun :)

Okay; issue 4 of Event Leviathan, by Bendis and Maleev.

So, Leviathan is not Jason Todd or Steve Trevor. Leviathan just trying to stall the detectives, keep them busy while ‘he(?)’ moves on with his agenda. Batgirl did not manage to say who actually is the Leviathan or even confirm that he is a he. Possibly this is just a misguidance because I do think that Leviathan is a male. 

 6 issues comics and I still have no idea who Leviathan is. However, surprisingly, this arc moves smoothly, even though Bendis is squeezing the mystery to its final pulps. Bendis recently mentioned this mystery would make Lois Lane unhappy; so Leviathan should be someone near her or Superman or her father. I do not think Sam Lane is Leviathan, but I would not be surprised if he is involved; he is a master spy DC uses frequently. 

I had to include this panel because Damian calling nanny to Alfred is impossibly funny to me.

There is so much I want to say about the Other Detectives. Lady Question, Elongated Man and Harvey Bullock, I understand. Zatanna and Constantine what are you doing here? We always see them in magical settings, so in a story about detectives and mystery, I do not think they fit in very well. However, seeing them in a completely different setting could also be refreshing. It is all up to Bendis now. Still, Detective Chimp would be more efficient.

Let’s say I accept Zatanna and Constantine; when did Deathstroke become a detective? He is an assassin, a really good one, and I assume he would improve some detective traits in the job but I never really saw him as an antihero. He is most certainly one of the most capable villains in DC and I do not really understand why he would take a stand with the heroes. Also, Bullock can’t even deal with Batman and he doesn’t even kill (most of the time). I would love to read their interactions. 

Lastly, I am just so happy they brought in Elongated Man a.k.a. Ralph Dibny. He is way more of a detective than Plastic Man. In Flash TV series they show him as a formerly police officer - a detective; however in comics, when he was first created, he was not a detective. He became an amazing detective without being formally trained on it. The point here; Ralph is a better detective and I wondered why they used Plastic Man rather than him; seems like I have my answer now. 

By the way, I love Alex Maleev’s works. He draws beautifully and what I expect from comics. It is customary so to speak, but he brings characteristic elements to his drawings and I appreciate his work so much. I missed looking over the art, spending time on it and appreciate how great it is. Reading Flash these past few years have been a nightmare; I really did not like their artwork. 

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

Titans

I should say; I am a DC lover. I agree, they could have made better movies but in comic books; they are the best.

Not here to talk about that. Let’s talk Titans. 

I loved the old Teen Titans animation, and I assumed the tv show would follow its lead. Cannot say it does tho. Fewer jokes more drama. 

I loved the Teen Titans because it gave the sense of a slice of life. I was serious as Robin; silly as Beast Boy and a closed box as Raven. I loved what they did with Raven, the character was cold not just because a cold character is needed in buddy-shows. All the team showed great character evaluation but Raven was my favorite; all the time.

Rachel, on the other hand, is more dependent and clingy to her team members than the Raven I remember. The animated show and the tv show is very different; it was my fault to expect something similar. Even though it is not what I hoped or wanted; I really like the Titans. I love how they integrated Jason Todd, I hope we see a version of Death in the Family and Under the Red Hood arcs. Also, I believe Patches of Best Worst Weekend Ever, Curran Walters makes a great Jason. As a Tim Drake fan, I just hope Jason would ‘die’ so we can see the interaction between Tim and Kon-El, rather than Dick and Kon-El. Not that I am against the idea, it is just there was enough of this two in Young Justice. 

One negative part for me is how they defeated Trigon, or rather how quickly they beat him. With Titans, there are 3-4 villains that deserve screen time and they wasted one rather quickly. There is Slade Wilson a.k.a Deathstroke, Brother Blood and Hive; and weekly villains from various comics. They brought in Doctor Light in the last episode which would make a really good storyline but I cannot help but wish them to follow Identity Crisis arc. I will write about Identity Crises in a different time, it deserves more than just a mention with Titans. The point is, Dr. Light, is a character to create good storylines however he was never a very good (very evil?) villain for the Titans. 

I guess now all I can do is wait for the new episode.

One last salute to Doom Patrol, an awesome show with some of my favorite actors, keep being awesome. Also going to write about them.

[whatthefrickfracktickitytictac]

Yesterday I got a business opportunities class and when the tutor asked my passion I said ‘comics’. He asked if I was working in any way regarding comics and I said no. But I am starting. Now. I don’t draw or write so my only choice is .... dramatic pause.... criticism. I don’t really think I am very good at that either so hence, no one is paying me. Let's go.