Week 3 Roundup

Comics 7/13/11

Such a fantastic week to read comics. So many great stories by so many great producers. And I didn't have one bad issue this week! Exciting. I had a hard time choosing my pick for the week as well, because they were all so great.

Teen Titans #97 - Written by J.T. Krul and penciled by Nichola Scott. This issue closed the arc that brought us this fantastic new hero, Solstice, an Indian girl with mysterious light powers. This issue was probably chosen as my pick if the week because I got to actually meet J.T. Krul and got this issue signed. It was a cool day. 10/10

Green Lantern #67 - Written by Geoff Johns and penciled by Doug Mahnke. This was easily my runner up for pick of the week, simply because it was just so epic. Geoff Johns has really been redefining Green Lantern these past few years and this was him doing it again. It was the last issue of this volume, and we'll have to wait until September for the reboot to come and follow up. This is the one issue I don't want to give any spoiler alerts to. It's just too epic. Check it out, it's so good. Overall: 10/10

Superman #713 - Written by J. Michael Straczynski and Chris Roberson and penciled by... 6 different artists. Come on. That's ridiculous. At least I couldn't really notice. Anyway, Superman needs a lesson on why the world actually needs a Superman, and it was kind of a cute little tale of him being told different reasons why he NEEDS to exist by random citizens. 6/10.

Amazing Spider-Man #665 - Written by Dan Slott and penciled by Ryan Stegman. The full page spread of Spidey's webs is amazing! This issue was beautiful. Not just the art but the gravity and the maturity of the tale that was told. This issue was a reminder to Peter that he has great responsibilities, not only as Spider-Man but also as a friend and the importance of putting others needs before yourself. Fantastic. This is a 10/10. Well done.

The Red Wing #1 of 4 - Written by Jonathan Hickman and penciled by Nick Pitarra. The idea that the development of time travel to fix problems isn't new. But the idea that time travel would negatively be used for warfare is. Very clever. Story is a bit slow, but if you're into SciFi, it's drenched in it. Really cool idea AND no advertisements. Winning. The cover sold me btw. It's beautiful. Overall: 7/10

Detective Comics #879 - Written by Scott Snyder and penciled by Francesco Francavilla. Batman wasn't in this issue at all, but it was certainly a mystery waiting to be solved. I didn't mind the art, although I'm not a huge fan of all that overexposure in color. In fact though, it worked out well. Fantastic story by Snyder. The Joker is such a creep sometimes. Lemme tell ya. Overall: 7/10

X-Men: Schism #1 - Written by Jason Aaron and penciled by Carlos Pacheco. This issue showed the entire world turn on the X-Men and ready their Sentinels for all out war. Awesome. Was wondering when the Sentinels would be showing back up. This'll be a series to keep on the lookout for! Overall 9/10

The Incredible Hulks #632 - Written by Greg Pak and penciled by Paul Pelletier. "Heart of the Monster: Part 3". First truly "incredible" Hulk story I've read in a very long time. He fights to save his loved ones, but alas, at what cost?

Green Lantern Corps #61 - Writtwn by Tony Bedard and penciled by Daniel HDR. This issue follows the aftermath of the War of the Green Lanterns arc, and how many that were gifted with power rings during that time returned them, except for one. She, Qurina Vint of Calados, sets out to make her place in the Corps known and asks for the help of Green Lantern John Stewart, who is also an outcast, as he recently killed Mogo. It seems as though this comic was a lesson for kids or something, but nonetheless, I always enjoy a good story. 7/10.


- A Dakota Lopez blog.

Another Shot at the New Justice League

So here's another shot at what we're to expect from the Justice League. I'm assuming these seven will be the main league members, and the few in the background will jump in and out unannounced as they please. This was taken from Toon Tumblers Facebook page, and is intended to be used as a drinkable glass cup for SDCC.

Aquaman looks about the same, except for this fins on the back of his calves which look kinda cool. Makes him more hydrodynamic. Green Lantern Hal Jordan looks the same, and it makes sense. @GeoffJohns0 is doing a great job keeping him a top seller. Wonder Woman looks completely different, so I don't even want to talk about her. Superman looks... platey, like he pieced his costume together. nd his belt is now red, instead of his tights. His shoes are... metal. Sure. I'm positive @jimlee00 know what he's doing. And the 'S' shield is actually cool, now that I've gotten a chance to look it over properly. Oh, oh, and the popped-collar. Superman knows what's in! Batman also looks the same, but his costume is also platey and looks like he pieced it together. His boots are also metal. The Flash looks the same, besides the metal boots. Cyborg... grew crab claws and a big metal underbite. I think he might have too much going on.

On the left we have Deadman (JLA status? yeah okay), Ray Palmer's Atom, Element Woman, Firestorm, and on the right we have Green Arrow, Hawkman, Black Canary (some speculate this may be Power Girl, because we haven't seen anything of her new look yet), and Mera.

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Edit: Nevermind what I said about Aquaman's leg flipper thing. It's always been there.

Books to Look Forward To

Alright, so we all know DC is ruining all that they've spent 75 years to make in the coming months, BUT that's okay! Well... I'm okay with it. Well... No I'm not. But it's cool. Just because there are going to be rolling restarts on all of DC's servers, that doesn't mean the new patch will be disappointing. So, of the 52 titles that DC is launching August/September, what titles will you read?

Here are the few titles I'm looking forward to:

Justice League #1
Aquaman #1
Wonder Woman #1
The Flash #1
Green Arrow #1
Green Lantern #1
Green Lantern Corps. #1
Green Lantern: New Guardians #1
Batman #1
Detective Comics #1
Teen Titans #1
Action Comics #1
Batman #1
Supergirl #1

The titles that I may look into:
The Savage Hawkman #1
The Fury of Firestorm #1
Batman and Robin #1
Swamp Thing #1

To be frank, I'm actually very excited to see what becomes of DC and I wish them the best on their next venture. To see a full list of what's to come, check out DC's blogs:
Justice League Titles
Green Lantern Titles
Batman Titles
The Dark Titles
Young Justice Titles
The Edge Titles
Superman Titles

Happy Reading!

Alas, Superman Loses the Tights

When someone tries to describe the cliché superhero, they may use the nouns 'super-powers,' 'capes,' and 'tights.' Why is that? Well, I'll tell you why. Superman. As the first superhero, he fits all the clichés and, by definition, he started them. So, by removing the tights, you remove something as symbolic as his S shield. And this is what's going on in the world of DC currently.

Along with the other restarts, Action Comics, the series that brought you this worlds first superhero, the first American comic series to reach it's 900th issue, will be getting it's first reboot. In it Superman tries to save a world that isn't too fond of it's first hero. This is a good premise for a first issue, and as long as the origin story doesn't take too much of a spin, it should turn out well. It's interesting that the costume he's wearing on the cover isn't full suit. Maybe there's gonna be some explanation as to why he's so tight-less. His lifting an object at that angle is homage to the original first issue, which I was expecting. It's a solid pic, but he's a little too buff for my tastes. I prefer the muscular yet slim supe.

(edit) Notice also they've kept Clark Kent's classic curl. It's those little tidbits that make my day...

Next we have the reboot of the 'Superman' title. Whoever made the cover art... Not a fan bro. Sorry. He looks like an alternate earth Superman that's really mean. And with the loss of his red tights, it just looks downright off-putting. Also, he still has the outline of his tights, just shaded blue... and the shading on his crotchal region makes him look very... brolic. And what are those, kneepads!? Notice though, that the 'S' is back to normal.

Here's a reboot I can stand behind: Supergirl #1. Her new look looks really really cool. I'm totally sold on the trimming of the cape, and how it folds together in the front. Her shield has been stylized very appropriately for that whole 'I'm a teenager from another planet' look, and the boots work really well. The artist also did a great job, so let's hope the story holds true.

And finally we come to Superboy. This is really confusing me. I'm not sure if this is going to be Conner Kent as Superboy, a new Superboy, or what. He is still a clone of Kryptonian/Human DNA, but this is a very strange look. Maybe this is just his uhh... factory look? And when he gets his skin he becomes the Superboy of the Teen Titans series? Dude. I dunno. I like how the S pops out at you like a 3D movie, but I can't see him wearing the Tron outfit to school like that... Superhero school that is. Or maybe they consider it camp?..

Let's Try This Again...

So, let's try this again. I started this blog with a plan to keep active, but that's the opposite of what I've done. In fact, I only did make that first post...

Again, this blog is about anything geek/movie/comic/news/blah blah blah. I feel that this has to be discussed because of it's impact on comic book history. Come this August, this will be your new Justice League team.

At first glance, this seems perfectly normal, besides the sore thumb that is Cyborg: as he's rarely considered in the same line of thought as the JLA. But look closer and you'll see it's a little more weird than that. Although Cyborg is immediately identifiable to anyone who's seen the Teen Titans cartoon or walked into a comic book store recently, there are noticeable differences between the one we know and the one that's shown. He looks slightly more stylized, he has some weird little wings on his shoulders, and his chin is noticeably more macho.

The rest of the team looks different, albeit only slightly, except of course for Wonder Woman. Her costume is the most drastic modernization. No longer having her star-spangled banner look, she only shares a remnant of her former costume. The one thing that it seems all the heroes share now is that they all seem at least 10 years younger.

But wait a minute, who's that hiding in the back? Could it be Superman? Of course it is, but the more you look at him the more you realize something's different. Something's wrong. Ah, no wonder he was hiding in the shadows, or rather, no wonder Jim Lee drew him as such. He's saving the full impact of the heroes changes for later. But we can see what's up from here. He's A) noticeably darker, B) his S shield is less curved and sharper, C) he's popped his collar a little more like the Green Lantern and D) ...he lost the tights! (or at least the red ones). The outline is there, but painted in blue...

Now, what's this all about again? Well, DC has decided it's time to bring new life into their comics AND their heroes. They've chosen it's time for 52 of their titles to be rebooted and brought back to issues #1, including a reported 50 new costume changes. This is something even M. Night Shyamalan would call a "twist". So why the changes?! And what will the repercussions be for the comic book community?

Well, DC's been second in market share to MARVEL ever since 2002 (the year Spider-Man came to theaters near you). So naturally, they want to boost their profits. Start anew. BUT unfortunately, comic sales have been going down as comic prices have been going up, up and too much. Sooo, they feel that before the company goes under they'll try something new. By going back to issue #1 with EVERYTHING and ruining a few good costumes they believe they'll usher in a new age of readers.

Repercussions: THEY MESSED WITH SUPERMAN'S COSTUME! The one hero who's never had a costume change in 73 years of existence. The first superhero. THE superhero. But, I digress. I've had a few days to settle into this whole "thing." What do I think?

Geoff Johns/Jim Lee/ and the rest of the DC team are being very brave. However sacrilegious their actions may be, who knows if this will be the only way Superman will live to see another 73 years? And I'm purely singling out Superman here because lets face it, of all the superheroes throughout the years, there has never been one as symbolic and iconic as he, and a thousand years from now kids will certainly know who's S that belongs to... I'm scared for the future of DC. But I want to see what they'll do with it. Many longtime readers are upset and threaten that this is where DC will lose them as readers. Surely this is a risk that the writers at DC knew they were taking, but they could seriously bring comics out of the shadows again and into the hands of a new crowd. Many feel that this is DC saying "Thanks for your money, but we want new readers." And maybe, for some, this is the case, but only if the reader allows themselves to think that way.

Oh and about the costume. Personally, I don't mind the collar bit. But change the S back. It's not any cooler. And about the tights. Yes, we know, almost every other hero has already lost the tights, but once again, Superman started the trend. And there was a reason to him wearing the red tights: it broke up the blue on his costume. Blue all the way down wouldn't have looked nearly as iconic. We'll see what they have in store for us though... Stay tuned.

It's Time to Catch Up

So, what I plan on accomplishing with this blog is the chance to explain and review comic books to the best of my ability. You see, I Dakota Lopez, a young guy at the age of 19, have pretty much been collecting comic books on and off my entire life.

I remember, I was about 7 or so and my dad had brought me this really crappy free Batman comic book, and although I would view it as a crappy one nowadays, it really uhh... opened my eyes to the medium. I don't have that particular issue still, but it began my urge to collect them. I grew up in Miami, so it wasn't the easiest place to find comic books, especially at the age I was (probably about 8 or 9 now). There was this new mall that opened up, though, called Sunset mall, but I called it Sunset Place for some odd reason, and right next to the mall was this really cool, really geeky store. For the life of me (and this kills me) I can't remember the name of it. Well, they sold really cool action figures and ugly geek shirts and posters, and, in the back, a whole room dedicated to comic books... This was my first real encounter with a comic book store.

This place eventually closed down, or moved to a different location (I'm actually not quite sure), but I ended up being unable to find comics within a reasonable driving distance, so my collection grew a bit of dust. Oh, by the way, even at that age I had all my comics bagged and boarded, and I pride myself on that knowledge.

Anyway, I moved to Redondo, California when I was about 13 and I found this awesome store in Manhattan Beach called the Comic Bug. It rekindled the fire within me, and it was the first official comic book store that I went to regularly. Throughout high school I went through periods of time where, I'd be in and out of comics. In fact, I joined the Comic Book Club (Comic Book Union at the time) at Redondo Union High School in my freshman year, and I met some of the best group of friends I could meet. The Comic Bug ended up moving two times during 2007-8 but it was still in the general area it is today. This is one of the best comic book stores I've been to in my life, very cosy, very roomy and if you're ever in the area, do visit it.

I actually went to a lesser comic convention out there in California, Wizard World '07, and I brought a bunch of comics from my collection to be signed by my favorite cover artist, Michael Turner. I got him to sign 15 to 16 of them, and those are my pride and joy. He was going through chemotherapy at the time, as the picture below shows :( But hey, look at that smile on his face.

Anyway, I moved to Scarsdale, New York at about the age of 16, and have been here since. I found the nearest store, Phoenix, and that's a nice place, with great owners. But, as sometimes happens, I've lost interest in the hobby. So, for the past 2 to 3 years, a lot has happened in the comic book world. DC, Marvel, and other. My favorite cover artist, Michael Turner lost his battle to cancer. I didn't know this until about a month ago... You see, I was planning on selling each and every one of my comic book collection on Ebay, but it wasn't until I actually looked at them again that nostalgia hit me. Hard. I sat on the floor that night, next to my long boxes and just read comic books all night. A friend of mine told me he started a booth at the New York Comic Con, and he gave me and a few friends free passes.

Well, that was the key to the unlocking for my hobby of collecting and reading comic books. A lot has happened. Blackest Night, Brightest Day (someone explain this to me...), in the Marvel universe there's a vampire resurgence and an attack on all mutants, and Spider-Man is no longer unmasked. Follow my blog as I recount how I've been getting back into comics, review them, and discuss them.