Category Alternating Current

Cross-talks on individual issues.

May 17 2012

Nightwing 9

Today, Peter and Patrick are discussing Nightwing 9, originally released May 16th, 2012. This issue is part of the Night of the Owls crossover event. Click here for complete NotO coverage.

Peter: Excepting the main Batman title, Nightwing has been involved in the Night of the Owls more than any other book. Dick Grayson plays a huge role in the story, which has been incredibly compelling and just down right cool. Dick’s large role gives a deeper understanding and widens to scope of this event. Which is why it’s safe to say I love this book, and so should you.
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May 15 2012

Deathstroke 9

Today, Peter and Shelby are discussing Deathstroke 9, originally released May 9th, 2012.

Peter: With the release of issue 9, Deathstroke gets both a new writer and artist, who turns out, is the same person. Rob Liefeld takes the reins of the Terminator and sends him on a new adventure. However, I feel that DC should have gone ahead and called this issue #1, since, well, that’s pretty much exactly what it is.

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May 14 2012

Batman and Robin 9


Today, Patrick and Peter are discussing Batman and Robin 9 originally released May 9th, 2012. This issue is part of the Night of the Owls crossover event. Click here for complete NotO coverage. Not caught up on Batman and Robin? No problem! Get up to speed with our video Cram Session.

Patrick: I’m spending this weekend with my family in Fort Benning, Georgia. My older sister and her family live on post here, and my folks flew in for my little sister’s graduation from the Army’s officer training program. The ceremony is about what you’d expect: a lot of pomp and circumstance, Army pageantry and pride. The rest of the weekend has been spent playing with my niece and nephew. This month’s Batman and Robin is focused so tightly on both children and the military that I feel extra fortunate to have experienced it here, far from my Hollywood world.  Continue reading →

May 11 2012

Batgirl 9

Today, Drew and Shelby are discussing Batgirl 9, originally released May 9th, 2012. This issue is part of the Night of the Owls crossover event. Click here for complete NotO coverage. Not caught up on Batgirl? No problem! Get up to speed with our video Cram Session.

Drew: As a crossover event, the Night of the Owls is pretty rigid in what it requires of its participating titles. Namely that the hero(es) 1) receive Alfred’s APB, 2) rush to protect one of the target on the hit-list, and 3) battle at least one Talon in order to protect said target. Those strict guidelines run the risk of getting old rather quickly, as they are repeated in about a dozen titles in a single month. It’s credit to writer Gail Simone that she managed to wrangle and subvert those guidelines into a compelling narrative, though doing so left little room for that signature Babs wit we’ve come to love from Simone’s writing. Continue reading →

May 10 2012

Green Lantern 9

Today, Shelby and Patrick are discussing Green Lantern 9, originally released May 9th, 2012.

Shelby: If you had a terrible personality flaw that you could change with a flip of a switch, and essentially become someone else, would you do it? What if you had done terrible things, but you could just snap your fingers and become a better person, would you make that change? How about if someone else had that control, and made that choice for you? You’re a better person for it, but does that make it ok? These are the questions running through my head, not as I’m on a trip of contemplation and personal discovery, but as I read this month’s Green Lantern.

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May 10 2012

Batman 9

Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing Batman 9 originally released May 9th, 2012. This issue is part of the Night of the Owls crossover event. Click here for complete NotO coverage. Not caught up on Batman? No problem! Get up to speed with our video Cram Session.

Patrick: In the margins of this whole kerfuffle with the Court of Owls, there have been literal manifestations of the battle between Bats and Owls. And the bats have been getting this asses handed to them. The symbolic defeat has always been the more devastating side of the equation for Bruce — yeah it sucked that he took a knife through the back, but that’s a back that’s been bent over Bane’s knee. Last month saw Bruce stepping up to defend his home, an empowering scene, for sure, but this issue saw him standing up for his legacy. And that’s a different animal all together. Continue reading →

May 9 2012

The New 52 1 (FCBD issue)

Today, Patrick, Drew, Peter and Shelby are discussing The New 52 1, originally released on Free Comic Book Day, May 5th, 2012.

Patrick: Now that the dust has settled and we’re all able to calm down after a thrilling Free Comic Book Day, it’s time to get down to brass tacks. The issue that DC released was anything but an easy entry-point, packing in more characters and mythology than we’ve seen in any single issue since the relaunch. This book makes a lot of intriguing promises for long-time fans, but I doubt new readers were all that excited to spend 11 pages following a character they’ve never heard of.

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May 8 2012

Swamp Thing 9

Today, Shelby and Patrick are discussing Swamp Thing 9, originally released May 2nd, 2012.

Shelby: I love non-traditional stories. While there is definitely comfort to be found in stories that go exactly as you imagine, it’s those twists that can turn a story on its ass that make things really interesting. And when those twists give the finger to time-honored and traditional story-telling tropes, that’s when I sit up and take notice. Swamp Thing is an awesome embodiment of the non-traditional. Our hero is a monster (unless you compare him to the villain), and in this issue after he rescues the damsel, she turns right around and rescues him back.

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May 8 2012

Worlds’ Finest 1

Today, Drew and Peter are discussing Worlds’ Finest 1, originally released May 2nd, 2012.

Drew: Superhero comics are well-known for their entertainment value. We turn to them for wild plotting or impossible feats or insane action. When handled well, they can also be home to themes that resonate even with their non-powered readers. Our favorite titles home in on the themes that resonate most with their characters, offering pointed, deliberate examinations of the human condition. With World’s Finest 1,  writer Paul Levitz offers a compelling case for counting it among those titles, as it explores how two very different characters cope with moving on from the loss of their very way of life. Continue reading →

May 7 2012

Detective Comics 9

Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing Detective Comics 9, originally released May 2nd, 2012. This issue is part of the Night of the Owls crossover event. Click here for complete NotO coverage. Not caught up on Detective Comics? No problem! Get up to speed with our video Cram Session.


Patrick: If I had to put my finger on the one thing that made me like Detective Comics less than the rest of the Batman series, I’d say it’s the pointless darkness. In other titles, dark themes and images reflect the twisted nature of Bruce’s obsession with justice or the strained relationship between Bruce and Damian. But every time DetCon reaches for that same darkness, it comes off like precocious child that has borrowed his dad’s power tools. It has all the pieces of something I love – including unlimited access to Batman’s rogues gallery – but cobbles them together into a largely incompetent whole. You almost get the sense that with a little guidance from someone who knows better, Tony Daniel would be able to wield these tools more effectively. With the guiding light of Scott Snyder’s Night of the Owls cross-over, this sense is proven only marginally true.   
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