Category Mike Logsdon

Jan 10 2014

Detective Comics 27

detective comics 27

Today, Mikyzptlk and Drew are discussing Detective Comics 27, originally released January 8th, 2014.

Mikyzptlk: Detective Comics 27 is an anniversary issue not only because it’s the second “Detective Comics 27” in DC’s publishing history, but also because it’s Batman’s 75th anniversary (or close to it, anyway). With that, DC has brought on an impressive array of writers and artists (Brad Meltzer! Neal Adams!) in order to celebrate the Bat’s 75th birthday. The result is as intriguing as it is entertaining and heartwarming.  Continue reading →

Jan 7 2014

Red Lanterns 26

Alternating Currents: Red Lanterns 26, Drew and MikyzptlkToday, Drew and Mikyzptlk are discussing Red Lanterns 26, originally released December 31st, 2013.

Drew: I’m a pretty logical person, which means I tend to be suspicious of emotional reactions — especially in high-stakes situations. That is, until I learned about an array of studies that suggests that our “gut” — our emotional responses to options laid before us — may be more reliable than conscious, logic-based decisions. Turns out, our emotions might be useful, after all. Nowhere is this more apparent than with the various Lantern Corps, which draw their powers from their own emotions. I’ve always thought it was strange that those characters were defined by one emotion — is Hal Jordan even allowed to feel love, rage, or compassion? — which goes double for the Red Lanterns. How can you constantly be feeling rage? With Red Lanterns 26, Charles Soule sets out to examine exactly what happens when you take the rage out of a Red Lantern. Continue reading →

Jan 3 2014

Superman Unchained 5

superman unchained 5

Today, Mikyzptlk and Spencer are discussing Superman Unchained 5, originally released January 1st, 2014.

Mikyzptlk: Since the beginning, Kal El has been a man caught between two lives: Clark Kent and Superman. Sometimes, these two lives are shown in conflict, while other times they are shown in harmony with one another. No matter what though, these lives are a part of the Man of Steel. In Superman Unchained 5, the other superman, known as Wraith, attempts to use Kal El’s dichotomy to get Superman to see things his way. Continue reading →

Dec 19 2013

Harley Quinn 1

harley quinn 1

Today, Mikyzptlk and Shelby are discussing Harley Quinn 1, originally released December 18th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: Sometimes, what we need in life is a fresh start. That means cutting ties with what came before, moving on, and moving out. Sometimes, that also means traveling into some unknown territory and taking a leap of faith that things will work out. Harley Quinn has had a…troubled past to say the least, so if anyone in the DCU could use a fresh start it’s her. Harley Quinn 1 gives us the beginning of Harley’s fresh start. Will she make it out alive?  Continue reading →

Dec 17 2013

Batgirl 26

batgirl 26Today, Spencer and Mikyzptlk are discussing Batgirl 26, originally released December 11th, 2013.

Spencer: “Blood is thicker than water.” This expression is usually used to describe how family has a special connection, how family has an obligation to stick together no matter what. It would be wonderful if that was always the case, wouldn’t it? Unfortunately, families can be dysfunctional or abusive, or just go through hard times, and when this happens it hurts all the more because it comes from family; when the people who are supposed to protect us and love us unconditionally hurt us, it’s a special kind of pain. Batgirl’s been dealing with a lot lately, horrific events that would get anyone down, but they’re even more painful because family is involved. Fortunately, at least some hope is on the horizon. Continue reading →

Dec 13 2013

Superman/Wonder Woman 3

Today, Taylor and Mikyzptlk are discussing Superman/Wonder Woman 3, originally released December 11th, 2013.

Taylor: The holidays are a strenuous time. For all of the good that comes with them (family, friends, food, secret trips to the store for booze) there’s a lot of hard work that comes with them too. Travel is difficult, parents ask awkward questions, and for a lot of people choosing gifts for those they care about is especially difficult. How will you know they’ll like it? Are you spending too much (or  too little)? Does this gift sum up our relationship? You would think that for superheroes like Superman and Wonder Woman these daily worries of the common man would be of no concern. However, in the third issue of the series this proves untrue, as Wonder Woman and Superman continue to develop their relationship in a way that’s recognizably human. Oh, and they have to deal with a crossover from the Phantom Zone who possesses the power to kill Superman and enslave Earth. Just your average holiday gathering.

Continue reading →

Dec 10 2013

Green Lantern 26

Alternating Currents: Green Lantern 26, Drew and Mikyzptlk

Today, Drew and Mikyzptlk are discussing Green Lantern 26, originally released December 4th, 2013.

Drew: Any 8th-grade social studies student can tell you that colonialism is a sticky subject. Many decry the loss of indigenous cultures, but how do you weigh that against the boon of western medicine? Are we morally obligated to preserve human culture at the cost of human life, or vice versa? That question only gets stickier when you take those other cultures into account — perhaps they value these things differently than their would-be colonizers. These are questions that have tormented philosophers for centuries — exactly the kind of thing Hal Jordan might blunder into unwittingly. Green Lantern 26 finds Hal struggling to impose his rule on Dekann and while he succeeds, his victory suggests a disturbing new status quo within the Green Lantern universe. Continue reading →

Dec 6 2013

Action Comics 26

action comics 26Today, Mikyzptlk and Scott are discussing Action Comics 26, originally released December 4th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: I don’t know about you, but when I was a teenager, I didn’t exactly have a lot of self confidence. High school was especially rough, as it seemed that everything I did was strange or off-kilter in some way. In other words, I felt like a freak. This feeling got worse before it got better, but damn it, it did get better. Eventually, I came to realize that not only was I strange and off-kilter, but everyone else was too. When I realized that I was on the same playing field as everyone else, things got a whole lot easier. Greg Pak’s Action Comics features a Superman struggling with his own “freakishness,” but he may have just found someone to find consolation in.  Continue reading →

Dec 4 2013

Mind MGMT 17

mind mgmt 17

Today, Mikyzptlk and Drew are discussing Mind MGMT 17, originally released November 27th, 2013.

Mikyzptlk: I’m normally not the type to start a series with anything other than issue 1, but being an editor for Retcon Punch requires you to step out of your comfort zone every once in a while. I started this series with issue 16, and since it was a one-shot, it felt like an interesting experiment. Analyzing issue 17 feels like an experiment too, but of a different sort. Today, I’ll be trying to figure out what’s going on underneath the surface of issue 17 of Mind MGMT while trying to piece together the events of the previous issues. Hoo-boy.  Continue reading →

Dec 2 2013

The Flash 25

flash 25

Today, Scott and Mikyzptlk are discussing The Flash 25, originally released November 27, 2013.

Scott: Have you ever said goodbye to someone outside a restaurant and then proceeded to walk down the street in the same direction as them? It’s weird. That’s what I was expecting out of The Flash 25, since writer/artists Francis Manapul and Brian Buccellato are back one last time after penning what felt an awful lot like their farewell issue a month ago. But rather than an awkwardly silent side-by-side walk to adjacently parked cars, this issue feels like a wake-up call. Manapul and Buccellato illustrate (I mean, literally illustrate) the reasons why I’m going to miss them. The issue is merely a tie-in with little significance to Flash as a series, but when these guys are doing the art (as they are for only a portion of this issue), they don’t need much story to turn out something great.
Continue reading →