Review: Siege: Avengers – the Initiative

 

Description:

Months of story threads finally weave together as Norman Osborn offers Taskmaster a seat at the Cabal's table...the Avengers Resistance uncovers a horrifying secret...and members of the Initiative are called up for an assault on an enemy of incalculable power!

Collects: Avengers: The Initiative #31-35 and Avengers: The Initiative Special
Authors: Christos Gage
Artists: Rafa Sandoval, Mahmud Asrar, more
Published By: Marvel
Published When: Dec 15 2010
Parental Rating: Teen

Review:

The explosive conclusion to the entire Avengers: The Initiative series! Norman Osborn makes his boldest, most audacious power play yet, gathering his forces for an assault on Asgard.

The final five issues of the series are told through the bone-encircled eyes of Taskmaster. His unusual super-power of photographic reflexes - the ability to perfectly reproduce any physical movements after observing them a single time - came to the fore a couple times during the arc, and it's fascinating to see Steve Rogers, knowing Taskmaster has figured out all his moves, leaves him for someone else to battle. But we learned much more about what drives him, how he has managed to survive throughout his villainous career.

With Osborn's heavy-hitters targeting Thor, the assault on Asgard is phenomenally successful. But Osborn, Taskmaster and their trained B-team ultimately cannot hold their advantage. Osborn overplays his hand and finds his power crumbling beneath him.

This well-told, well-paced narrative blends some romance, betrayal and revenge into the mix. The main story and the Special both have tragic love stories at their core, adding emotional depth to Christos Gage's fine story-telling.

On the artistic side, unfortunately, things are less consistent and effective. Maybe with the end of the entire series in sight, Marvel was shuffling assignments internally, or having a harder time getting artists interested. The result leaves the three-year run of the Avengers: The Initiative series ending with a whimper, visually.

Rafa Sandoval and Roger Bonet tackle the duties in the opening chapter, issue #31. Their work is uninspired, the layouts hold little variation or surprise, and the renderings of the skull-headed Taskmaster is almost comical with his popping eyes and jaw line that varies from panel to panel. Kudos to their work on Diamondback, however, as she looks her best in their hands.

Mahmud Asrar and Rebecca Buchman take the second chapter. Diamondback gets a haircut, Taskmaster's appearance becomes more intense and frightening, less humorous, befitting his central role in the narration, and the layouts become more dynamic.

The final three chapters, from issues #33-35, are all penciled by Jorge Molina, with a shifting team of inkers and colorists. Diamondback gets another haircut - over the course of a single battle, spanning multiple issues, she goes from cascading waves down her back, to a shoulder-length bob, to a trim that barely passes her ears. But that is the only complaint I can raise with Molina's work, his section is otherwise stunning, drawing the reader into the battles and the personal dramas with stunning work, creative angles, and powerful visualizations.

This is a solid story, sending Avengers: The Initiative out with a bang, and bringing a fitting conclusion to the multi-year fallout of the Civil War arc across so many Marvel titles. My quibbles with the shifting artistic styles and quality aside, this deserves 4 Capes.

ISBN-10: 0785148183
ISBN-13: 978-0785148180
Language: English
Pages: 160 pages

Review: Batman Beyond Vol. 1: Brave New Worlds

 Description:

Spinning out of the epic event FUTURES END and the world of the classic animated series, BATMAN BEYOND is reimagined within the DC Universe continuity!

Tim Drake has been a lot of things—teen genius, teen hero, Teen Titan. As Red Robin, he carried on Batman’s legacy, but he never thought he’d be the one to assume the cowl and become Batman himself. Of course, Tim never thought he’d find himself flung decades into the future—into a world where the evil A.I. Brother Eye has all but exterminated life on Earth. Now only Neo-Gotham remains, and the city needs its defender. Gotham needs Batman!

Now, Tim must save Batman’s allies, including Barbara Gordon, before Brother Eye can crack their minds and discover Neo-Gotham’s hidden location. But with the world’s greatest heroes transformed into Brother Eye’s sinister agents, will Batman be Gotham’s salvation—or will Tim Drake find out he doesn’t have what it takes to wear the mantle of the Bat?

Collects: BATMAN BEYOND Sneak Peek and issues #1-6
Authors: Dan Jurgens
Artists: Bernard Chang
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: March 15 2016
Parental Rating: Teen

Review:

Batman Beyond went from being a reasonably popular animated series, set in the not too distant future, to eventual integration into the mainstream DC Universe continuity. It has spawned six separate limited or ongoing series of comics, between 1999 and today, with more in the works

Terry McGuinness is the titular cowl-wearing hero in most of those series, with one exception: the 5th incarnation of the Batman Beyond series saw Tim Drake, cast into the future by the events of Futures End, take over the suit and cowl. This TPB collects the first 6 issues of Tim Drake in Batman Beyond.

The extent of the confusion on Drake of the time displacement is a running theme throughout this volume. By the end, it had become wearisome – we get it, he has trouble adjusting to a new world with its different tech and much-altered sociopolitical situation. Anyone who has moved to a new city or country experiences something similar. But we will cut him a little slack, as in his case many lives, including his own, hang on how well and how quickly he can adjust.

Drake arrives in Neo-Gotham, one of the last bastions of freedom and safety on Earth, with Brother Eye's near complete takeover. He finds and rescues Barbara Gordon, now Commissioner of Neo-Gotham, but Brother Eye infiltrates a virus into his high-tech suit and uses Drake to find and attack Neo-Gotham, with cyborg versions of Superman, Wonder Woman and Green Lantern.

Drake sheds the snazzy suit and its corrupted AI named A.L.F.R.E.D., in favor of an older-tech armored suit, reminiscent of some of the Marvel Universe's Iron Man and his more intense and heavyweight armor. Thus prepared, he teams with the fascinating and complex character Inque to take on and defeat Brother Eye in his moon base.

The story by Dan Jurgens clips along briskly, the frequent angst and disorientation shoved aside by constant attacks and struggles to learn the tech and survive a little longer. As the confrontation with Brother Eye escalates, and cyber-versions of Superman and other Justice Leaguers descent on Neo-Gotham, their survival hangs by the most tenuous of threads.

Bernard Chang's art explodes off the page, and keeps the reader's attention with the dynamic and fluid action sequences. The pops of red, befitting Batman Beyond's red logo and under-wings, is jarring at first. It comes only on occasion, usually to isolate a specific panel in a larger fight or sequence. The choice will make more sense by the end of volume two, but in isolation in this collection it comes across as more jarring than enhancing, and can occasionally detract from the larger story.

Overall this is an enjoyable read. As someone relatively new to the Batman Beyond universe, I shared Drake's sense of disorientation for a time, but the art and storytelling kept me along for a pleasant ride. 3.5 capes out of 5.

ISBN-10: 1401261914
ISBN-13: 978-1401261917
Language: English
Pages: 152 pages

Review: Girl Genius Volume 2: Agatha Heterodyne & The Airship City

 

Description:

In a time when the Industrial Revolution has become an all-out war, Mad Science rules the World...with mixed success. At Transylvania Polygnostic University, Agatha Clay was a student with trouble concentrating and rotten luck. Dedicated to her studies but unable to build anything that actually worked, she seemed destined for a lackluster career as a minor lab assistant. But then the University was overthrown and Agatha was taken aboard the giant airship Castle Wulfenbach ― where it begins to look like she might carry a spark of Mad Science after all.
Collects: NA
Authors: Kaja Foglio and Phil Foglio
Artists: Phil Foglio and Mark McNabb
Published By: Studio Foglio; Illustrated edition
Published When: Dec 3 2013
Parental Rating: PG for comic-book violence and a dismemberment

Review:

Color comes to Girl Genius, and the story slows down and gets even more strange.

The art of volume one was done in an almost sepia-toned black and white. For volume two, they have upgraded to color pages, and the results are wow! The colors are bold and eye-popping, with vivid reds and blues, glossy blacks and sickly greens. And of course soft pinks, since Agatha spends a significant portion of the story in her underwear.

(see the review of volume one here)

Mark McNabb joins the Foglios on this book and handles the colors, and demonstrates wisdom and mastery in their application. He bends the colors to the service of the whole story, and even reintroduces the sepia tones of volume one, this time in a richer and more saturated application, when the narrative switches to historical or flashback passages.

As suggested in the title, the action in this book all takes place within the limited confines of a giant airship, a floating blimp so large it's a fortress city unto itself – Castle Wulfenbach. Within that surprisingly spacious area, the story's pace slows a little at times, and contains lots of exposition. But the absurdity and wildly imaginative setting and characters keeps it from dragging.

The action is limited to avoiding guards, or to the flashbacks, except for one wild sequence in an airplane, plummeting to earth while two geniuses debate what's wrong with its designs. As in Volume 1, Agatha continues to show signs of being a budding new Spark, while seeming reluctant to believe it herself or embrace what it means.

We also meet a larger number and wider variety of the Jagermonsters, and especially notable is von Pinn, a fanged, leather-clad, terrifying beauty over whom many lesser Jagermonsters swoon. Her fierceness even earns her custom-shaped word balloons, one of the many clever details that make this book and this whole series such a pleasure to read.

And I have not even mentioned the powerful, heroic captive Othar Tryggvassen, Gentleman Adventurer, who is thrown into the mix with little development. Surely a teaser, a new plot thread to be woven into the tale in future volumes.

This is a beautiful, fun, imaginative book with a rich, layered society and nuanced back-stories to all the characters. Even more of a delight than the first one! 5 capes.

ISBN-10: 1890856304
ISBN-13: 978-1890856304
Language: English
Pages: 112 pages

Review: Superman: Mon-El - Man of Valor

Description:

Writer James Robinson (STARMAN, JSA: THE GOLDEN AGE) and a bevy of up-and-coming artists including Fernando Dagnino, Bernard Chang, Javier Pina and Matt Camp continue the adventures of Superman's adopted cousin Mon-El, the new guardian of Metropolis! With The Man of Steel away on New Krypton, it's up to Mon-El to face off against Bizarro and General Lane - Lois Lane's father! Mon-El also debuts his new Superman-inspired costume in this collection guest-starring Superboy, the Legion of Super-Heroes and many others! And when Superman returns to Earth, will Mon-El freely give up his duty as protector of a city he's grown to love?

Collects: Superman Secret Files #1, Superman Annual #14, Superman #692-697 and Adventure Comics #11
Authors: James A. Robinson
Artists: Javier Pina, Bernard Chang, more
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: Oct. 18 2011
Parental Rating: Teen

Review:

What a boring, uinspired and scattered graphic novel this is.

Sure, it has most of the requisite elements of the superhero genre. We have Mon-El, a young man of immense physical strength and superhuman power. It has alien invaders. There is a home-grown power-hungry and manipulative military mind, in General Sam Lane, who even has a close family connection to a significant minor character. There are guest appearances by well-beloved heroes in the Legion of Super-Heroes and Superboy. Even Krypto the wonder dog.

And yet it falls flat. Nothing in the narrative, plot twists, or art draws me to the main character. Someone who is already steeped in the history and mythology of Mon-El might find this compelling reading filled with exciting developments. For me, as a reader with no prior experience with Mon-El, I never encountered a reason to care about him or his challenges.

The problems begin from the very first page, a story titled "The History Lesson." James Robinson's story-telling is scattered and text-heavy, jumping planets and epochs with only tenuous connections between them. The art by Javier Pina may contain some clever nods for those in the know, but for us newcomers the visuals only compound the confusion caused by the narration.

Subsequent chapters, drawn by an ever-changing roster of artists, move us through a Bizarro attack with his famously inverted broken English, General Lane's machinations, romantic encounters.

The pinnacle of the collection is the multi-part "Man of Valor" story line and its gauntlet of challenges thrown at Mon-El. They were the best chapters of the collection, but could do little to salvage this set.

Like a bad action movie, this book is filled with lots of noise and destruction, but leaves the reader with little memory of the forgettable plot or of any lasting visuals.

I give it just a single cape out of five.

ISBN-10: 1401229387
ISBN-13: 978-1401229382
Language: English
Pages: 224 pages

Review: Batman: Arkham Unhinged Vol. 1

 

Description:

You’ve played the bestselling game…now dig deeper into Batman: Arkham City‘s gritty streets of Gotham

The mysterious Dr. Hugo Strange has turned an entire Gotham City neighborhood into the new Arkham Asylum, with the worst of the city’s scum and psychopaths are trapped inside. Only two criminals remain at large — Catwoman and Two-Face — and Strange will stop at nothing to bring them in.

To discover the truth of this new villain’s rise to power, the Dark Knight has no choice but to go inside the walls of Arkham City. But will he unravel this deadly mystery before a gang war between Penguin and the Joker destroys Gotham? Or in time to save Catwoman…from herself?

BATMAN: ARKHAM UNHINGED stars Batman’s entire rogues gallery with a supporting cast from the hit game Batman: Arkham City, including Nightwing and Robin, Bane, Harley Quinn, Killer Croc and many more. Writer Derek Fridolfs (JUSTICE LEAGUE BEYOND) is joined by some of the hottest collaborators in comics, including Pete Woods (LEGION LOST), Brian Ching (Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic), Simon Coleby (2000AD) and Paul Dini (Batman: The Animated Series)!

Collects: Batman: Arkham Unhinged chapters 1-13 and Batman: Arkham City Digital Chapters 6-7
Authors: Derek Fridolfs, Paul Dini
Artists: Various
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: Aug. 13 2013
Parental Rating: Teen

Review:

A video game series based on the Batman comics has now produced comics based on the Batman video game series. Inspired by the scenario, characters and game play of Batman: Arkham City video games, this TPB collects several digitally published multi-part stories set in that universe.

All stories are written by Derek Fridolfs, with different artists in each mini-story, including Pete Woods, Brian Ching, Simon Colevy and Mike Miller among many others.

In the opening set, "Inside Job" we see Dr. Hugo Strange and his minions tracking down Two-Face and Catwoman, to add them to the Arkham City mayhem. Mike S. Miller's rendition of Catwoman is stunning, a sharp contrast to the gruesome disfiguration of Two-Face. There are some facile plot twists to drive our protagonists together, but the narrative is fast-paced and draws you in.

None of the rest of the mini-stories rise to its level of interest, although "Observations" comes closest. With art by Brian Ching, it bring Oracle, Nightwing and Robin into the mix, and we see through a slow-paced plot how Batman is neither outnumbered nor outgunned, nor out-schemed in this battle.

Penguin, Joker, Harley and more make central appearances. Penguin in particular is rather repulsive, drawn as a large, lumbering gangster with clipped speech. Each subsequent story seems an effort to outdo its predecessors in gruesome action intensity. Overall this set is a dark, violent, menacing thrill. I score it 2.5 capes

ISBN-10: 9781401240189
ISBN-13: 978-1401240189
Language: English
Pages: 160 pages

Review: A-Force Vol. 0: Warzones!

Description:

An all-new book featuring Marvel's Mightiest Women! In a secluded corner of the Battleworld, an island nation is fiercely protected by a team of Avengers the likes of which has only ever been glimpsed before. Fighting to protect the small sliver of their world that's left, the Amazing A-FORCE stands shoulder to shoulder, ready to take on the horde!

Collects: A-Force 1-5 (Secret Wars)
Authors: G. Willow Wilson, Marguerite Bennett
Artists: Jorge Molina
Published By: Marvel
Published When: Dec 1 2015
Parental Rating: PG

Review:

What a wonderful surprise! This book was a charming and delightful read.

A-Force Volume Zero is a Secret Wars Warzones! tie-in. The bar of my expectations for such a book is very low. In mega-event crossovers, you can anticipate a thin plot and little character or relationship development, with the story serving as little more than a platform for a series of confrontations between the protagonists and their opponents.

This TPB collection, on the other hand, introduced a compelling new character in the form of Singularity, the universe-as-girl; it was filled with examples of leadership and deep relationships; and it worked in some thematic implications of patriarchal oppression. Writers Marguerite Bennett and G. Willow Wilson hooked me from the very first page, and reeled me in.

The story sees a band of super-powered women protecting a little slice of Utopia, in the form of the island of Arcadia in the midst of the Battleworld chaos. They patrol the skies and perimeter, keeping their citizens safe.

But when a bout of youthful excessive enthusiasm leads to the banishment of America, one of the younger members of the group, the drama, tensions, challenges of and to She-Hulk’s leadership bubble to the surface.

And as evidence mounts of a traitor in their midst, the women of A-Force wrestle with how to care for and support one another, while defending their principles and their island's citizens, from outsiders and from the women Thors who enforce the laws of Battleworld.

The story revolves around a core group, led by She-Hulk and with her closest confidants being Dazzler and Captain Marvel. Yet there are cameos by many other prominent women and heroines in the Marvel universe.

Penciller Jorge Molina's images are evocative and show the strength of character, resolve and leadership of these women. And he only seldom slips into any of the objectifying angles and renderings more common in the world of superhero comics.

Relationship drama abounds in this short collection, perhaps most intensely with the Nico character. Don't miss her intense confrontation with Loki her mentor, beautifully written and drawn!

And that patriarchy? Ask yourself "where are the men and what are they doing?" as you read this book. In Arcadia, the men are pushing strollers and sleeping in as their wives and partners head off to work, protecting the island. Men outside this Utopia, however, such as Dr Strange, are the inflexible outside powers, enforcing harmful rules not designed with the well-being of these women in mind. And the most powerful males and costumed heroes only appear as attacking zombie hordes. It makes a statement about the oppressive tendencies of the male of the species, and the intrusion it brings into the strong leadership, aspirations and self-determination of the women leading this Utopic land.

The book is officially rated "T+" but I think that is excessive, I consider it PG for its level of comic-book violence and themes.

Score: 4 capes out of 5

ISBN-10: 078519861X
ISBN-13: 978-0785198611
Language: English
Pages: 112 pages

Review: Archie Meets Batman '66

 

Description:

Gotham City meets Riverdale in this crossover graphic novel that brings together some of the most iconic characters in comics and television!

Two iconic comic book characters meet up for the FIRST TIME in this historic crossover mini-series! A battle in Gotham City extends its reach into Riverdale--with Mr. Lodge becoming enemy #1 of the dynamic duo! Now it's up to Veronica to recruit some help and place a call... to the Batcave!

Collects: Archie Meets Batman '66 #1-6
Authors: Jeff Parker, Michael Moreci
Artists: Dan Parent
Published By: Archie Comics; Illustrated edition
Published When: April 16 2019
Parental Rating: Teen

Review:

In one of Comicdom's stranger crossovers, the campy 1960s-era Batman meets Archie and friends to try and stop Joker, Riddler, Penguin, Catwoman and other classic Batman rogues in their nefarious plot.

For strangeness, this is up there with the DC-Hanna Barbera books, or the Supergirl and Scooby-Doo cross-over. However, if Archie and the Riverdale gang are going to meet any incarnation of Batman, the Adam West TV version seem the most appropriate.

The result is a bit uneven, in both story and art, but like both Archie Comics and the Batman 1960s TV series, such flaws are easily overlooked due to the sheer fun.

The graphics are drawn largely in the Archie Comics style, with large features on the characters, a set suite of body postures and shapes, and clean and simple inks and colors. TPB collections often add value to the collection with some extras at the end, and this one provides a positively delightful gallery of alternate covers, whose different artists throw the unusual combination of characters into some enjoyable covers, many of which should really be turned into posters.

Despite the cartoony limitations of the Archie Comics style, the art team, led by longtime Archie artist Dan Parent, does a great job of portraying the human faces of the actors who played in the TV show. Almost too good a job - the drawings of the little moustache Cesar Romero wore under his Joker makeup in the show looks every bit as repulsive on the page as it did on the screen.

Of course, Batman cannot save the day alone, not even with Robin and Batgirl infiltrating the teen-scene of Riverdale. He needs Archie and friends to don their own super-suits, chase off the villains and thwart their best-laid plans.

This is a blast from the past, sixties-Batman and forever-fifties Riverdale teaming up to save the day. For the joy, pleasure and nostalgia it oozes and brings, give it 4 capes.

ISBN-10: 1682558479
ISBN-13: 978-1682558478
Language: English
Pages: 144 pages

Review: Girl Genius Volume 1: Agatha Heterodyne & The Beetleburg Clank

Description:

In a time when the Industrial Revolution has become an all-out war, Mad Science rules the World... with mixed success. At Transylvania Polygnostic University, Agatha Clay is a student with trouble concentrating and rotten luck. Dedicated to her studies but unable to build anything that actually works, she seems destined for a lackluster career as a minor lab assistant. But when the University is overthrown, a strange "clank" stalks the streets and it begins to look like Agatha might carry a spark of Mad Science after all.

Collects: NA - this is an original graphic novel
Authors: Phil Foglio, Kaja Foglio
Artists: Phil Foglio, Brian Snoddy
Published By: Studio Foglio
Published When: Aug. 12 2002
Parental Rating: PG

Review:

Girl Genius is a wonderful, imaginative and funny tale. This first graphic novel in the series, titled 'Agatha Heterodyne and the Beelteburg Clank' gives us a life vest, before tossing us into the deep end of a world filled with a wild mixture of social structures and steampunk-inspired mad science. The introductory letter from the professors Foglio of Transylvania Polygnostic University, and a brief three-paragraph mise-en-scene, barely prepares us for the onslaught we meet from the very first page.

Autonomous robots, steam power, airships, medieval peasantry, Napoleonic social structures and military dress, genetically mutant Jagermonsters and more all blend into a stunningly original universe. It is a world where a small handful of Sparks, people of preternatural intelligence, and a tendency toward advanced and even Mad science, have shaped the world sometimes for good and sometimes for evil gain.

But no new Sparks have been born in almost a generation. Until Agatha awakens. The day before, she had been a half-incompetent student of decidedly non-Spark instructors at the University. Then to her own surprise, the Spark in her emerges and she immediately sets to building a giant searcher robot.

Through a series of mishaps and arrogant wrong assumptions, she is captured by the evil-Spark Baron Wulfenbach and his son Gilgamesh. Father and son do not always get along, as the son tires of his father's constant testing – the father’s doubts run deep that his heir will be able to live up to the Baron's own level of brilliance, and their banter is at times sharp and always witty.

Agatha's capture, however, is based on the assumption that she is the girlfriend of the true new Spark, so she is brought along almost as an afterthought, to help motivate or otherwise manipulate him. The story continues in volume 2.

As rich, humorous and enjoyable as this offbeat story is, the art matches it gear for gear. Human shapes, facial expressions, autonomous robots, monstrous genetic mutations, a rich variety of costumes, and textured backgrounds – there are many demands on the pencilling skills of Phil Foglio, and he handles the range beautifully. Brian Snoddy's inks have been done in "black and white" although the black tends more toward sepia tones, lending a uniqueness to the visuals, one that feels period-appropriate for the larger story.

So what is a Beetleburg Clank, from the story's title? It is no spoiler to say it refers to a new robot (Clank) coming from Dr Beetle’s university campus. Beyond that, you will have to immerse yourself in the story and figure out other elements like the Hive Engine and more.

In all, this is a thrilling tale, cover to cover, and leaves us eagerly anticipating volume 2. I score it 4.5 capes out of 5.

ISBN-10: 1890856193
ISBN-13: 978-1890856199
Language: English
Pages: 96 pages

 

Review: Black Canary and Zatanna - Bloodspell Graphic Novel

Description:

Black Canary. Zatanna Zatara. Two of the DC Universe's brightest stars join forces to combat a deadly new threat-a chilling supernatural foe that preys on their weaknesses and unleashes their awesome powers against each other.

A year ago, Black Canary infiltrated a gang of female criminals set to pull a dangerous heist at a Las Vegas casino. Its leader was skilled in hand-to-hand combat and with more than a passing interest in the occult, specifically black magic, one nasty customer. Rather than be taken by Canary or the law, she went to her death, vowing she would get revenge on Canary and her own former gang members. Now, a year to the day later, death stalks those gang members, and Canary must turn to her friend Zatanna to help investigate. 

Collects: -
Authors: Paul Dini
Artists: Joe Quinones
Published By: DC Comics
Published When: May 27 2014
Parental Rating: Teen

Review:

My interest was completely captured by this book, like a fish caught in a fishnet.

This fascinating original story is a true graphic novel, using the medium to tell an engaging near-full-length story. It brings together two Justice League women, Black Canary and Zatanna, and its pages are filled with their teamwork, conflict, and history.

Paul Dini's narrative begins high amid the snowy peaks of the Himalayas, with a chance encounter of a young girl Zatanna, completing a challenging magic-based rite-of-passage, encountering Dinah Lance on a solo mountaineering adventure. They connect, establishing the first bud of a bond of friendship, then go their separate ways to deal with their own personal challenges.

Flashback moments in time of their deepening relationship are inserted at key moments throughout the mainline narrative. As Canary seeks to uncover what is killing the women of a theft ring she had infiltrated, and enlists Zatanna's help with the magical threads and threats she encounters, we are given glimpses of their shared past such as Canary first showing a star-struck Zatanna around the Justice League's satellite, or together battling the Female Furies.

The magic-powered force killing the women eventually possesses each of Black Canary and Zatanna in turn, pitting them against each other in an amazing back-and-forth battle with each other, and in a race against time to save one of the women being threatened.

This is a fun romp through the past and a compelling present adventure, drawing on their bonds of trust and friendship.

I admit that the art by Joe Quinones takes some getting used to. Since Black Canary and Zatanna are two heroines famous in part for their fishnet stockings, Quinones does a great job of including these signature elements but largely de-sexualizing their representations. And he excels at showing the playfulness and depth of their relationship. A knowing smirk here, a sly glance there, are well delivered. Yet the proportions of his characters take some getting used to, visually. Especially the noses, which frequently feel excessively, distractingly large and blocky.

The bonus features at the end of the graphic novel are an amazing gift. Beyond the typical alternate version covers or brief sketches, this section is entitled "Back Stage" and includes extensive character sketches and the entire story in both script and pencil breakdowns, a rare and thrilling glimpse into the craft of building a graphical narrative.

Overall this is a 3.5 capes effort, an enjoyable story of female friendship and dedication to the cause of Good.

ISBN-10: 1401210546
ISBN-13: 978-1401210540
Language: English
Pages: 144 pages