Category Contributors

Mar 16 2012

Batman and Robin 7

Today, Peter and Drew are discussing Batman and Robin 7, originally released March 14th 2012.

Peter: This is it. I have been waiting several months for this story to come to fruition, and it is finally upon us. Batman vs. Nobody. Bruce Wayne vs. Morgan Ducard. This is a Bruce unlike any we have EVER seen before; not once in his entire history has Bruce been faced with losing is own flesh and blood. Sure Dick, Jason, Tim and Cassandra are his children; he adopted them, but never before has he had a biological son to lose. Based on the cover alone, I can guess that this is going to be a wild ride. I mean, when was the last time you saw and image of Batman that was so menacing, or so scary? I mean he is about to rip into Morgan with not one, but 14 knives sticking out of his back. Is this Batman going bat-shit crazy? Continue reading →

Mar 15 2012

Batwoman 7

Today, Drew and Patrick are discussing Batwoman 7, originally released March 14th 2012.

Drew: Last month, Batwoman kicked off its “To Drown the World” arc,  separating the action into six  separate times and perspectives: Batwoman’s, Jacob’s, Kate’s, Maro’s, Maggie’s, and Chase’s. It’s an interesting gambit, but one that makes assessing individual issues quite difficult. Each mini-story only has a few pages devoted to it each issue, which means they don’t have time for more than one or two story beats. I’m not entirely certain why the story is being told this way, but I have faith that writers J.H. Williams and W. Handen Blackman will more than justify breaking the story up in this way. Until that happens, though, these issues are a little frustrating in terms of how little each story moves. Continue reading →

Mar 15 2012

Batgirl 7

Today, Shelby and Patrick are discussing Batgirl 7, originally released March 14th 2012.

Shelby: I am the only ladywriter here at Retcon Punch. I’m certainly not trying to minimize the “ladyness” of some of the other writers; I think Patrick and Drew may be bigger feminists than I am. Feminists or not, I think being the ladywriter gives me a certain empathetic view point when it comes to reading about our lady heroes. Or, it would if I thought I could at all relate to these metahuman women, running around with their tights and boob windows. Enter: Barbara Gordon. She has the same sort of inner monologue that I have; she doubts herself, she’s unsure, she’s conflicted. Of course, she’s got much bigger inner fears and issues than I do, but I can understand her. And that is why I love reading about her.

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Mar 13 2012

Detective Comics 7


Today, Peter and Patrick are discussing Detective Comics 7, originally released March 7th 2012.

Peter: Tony Daniel has a great history with DC Comics. He has written and/or drawn some great books. In fact, he drew one of my favorite books, The Flash: Fastest Man Alive #13. His art couples with a great story, and unfortunately, results with the death of Bart Allen. In his new run of Detective Comics, Daniel does a great job with the art, hands down, giving it that noir, shadow-y feel that I would expect in a detective story. However, Daniel is still leaving something to be desired from a story point of view. I have enjoyed some of his previous writing, such as Battle for the Cowl, or even Detective Comics #1, but as his story progresses and comes to a close in the second story arc, I’m still dazed and confused as to what is going on and why should I care.

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Mar 12 2012

Swamp Thing 7

Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing Swamp Thing 7, originally released March 7th, 2012.

Patrick: Alec Holland dies after taking a chainsaw through the torso.  Spoiler, I guess. No, I didn’t just ruin a twist or anything – in fact, Alec suffers this wound at the end of the previous issue. As is so frequently the case for characters in superhero comics, the drama continues to play out past the point of death, into the cerebral nether-space between living and dying. It allows Alec to decide that he needs to embrace his destiny and become the Swamp Thing. It’s a regular stop for heroes nearing the end of the Heroes’ Journey (capital H, capital J), but Scott Snyder manages something subtly different, emotionally unique to this very specifically reluctant hero.  Continue reading →

Mar 9 2012

Animal Man 7

Today, Shelby and Drew are discussing Animal Man 7, originally released March 7th, 2012.

Shelby: I am pretty new to Animal Man. After listening to Patrick and Drew rave about it, I knew I had to pick it up. I just got caught up over the weekend, and I’m so glad I did. No exaggeration: reading the first 6 issues of this in one sitting gave me nightmares. I am a grown-ass woman, and I can’t sleep because of a comic book? That, my friends, is awesome.  Continue reading →

Mar 8 2012

Batwing 7

Today, Drew and Patrick are discussing Batwing 7, originally released March 7th, 2012.

Drew: At the end of issue 6, I had mixed feelings about this title. I liked the stylized art, particularly Brian Reber’s atmospheric, almost dusty colors, and I appreciated the idea of distilling the idea of Batman down to it’s essence and seeing how it plays in different cultures. At the same time, I wasn’t sure I actually liked the approach writer Judd Winick had applied to the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I complained that the title was exploitative, but it really isn’t guilty of doing anything any frank (or, more importantly, action-focused) depiction of subsaharan Africa wouldn’t do. I’m still not convinced that this title isn’t exploitative, but this month’s issue comes a long way in making me more comfortable with the world David Zavimbe inhabits. Continue reading →

Mar 7 2012

Chat Cave: The Five Year Rule

When DC re-launched its entire line in September, they allowed individual writers and artists creative control over just how hard they wanted to throw the reset switch. With one exception: DC management decreed that in the “present” of all the books, no superhero had been active for more than five years. This holy edict seems to have served some characters better than others, and it also upsets some fans more than others. The Retcon Punchers weigh in on this universal change. Welcome to the Chat Cave.

Shelby: You know, I really don’t think about this all that much. Honestly, my first reaction to Patrick’s posing the question was, “Wait, what?” I kind of forgot; it just doesn’t enter into my brain while I’m reading. Continue reading →

Mar 6 2012

Birds of Prey 1-6

Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing Birds of Prey 1-6, originally released September 21st, October 19th, November 16th, December 21st, 2011, January 18th, and February 15th, 2012.

Patrick: You know how the common perception of Aquaman is that he’s lame and talks to fish and is generally useless in a peer group that includes the likes of Superman and Batman? That is exactly how I’ve always seen the Black Canary. Too frequently in the old continuity she was made to function solely as the Green Arrow’s wife or ex-wife or ex-wife-that-still-fucks-him-from-time-to-time. After being marginalized by a hero as boring as Green Arrow, the very mention of the character’s name signaled petty, tedious bullshit. This largely-domestic history, coupled with a super-sonic scream super-power, paints the image of the ultimate shrew. I never imagined that I’d be reading a book that features the character so prominently. And I certainly never thought I’d be enjoying it this much. Continue reading →

Mar 5 2012

Deathstroke 1-6

Today, Shelby and Peter are discussing Deathstroke 1-6, originally released September 14th, October 12th, November 9th, December 14th, 2011, and January 11th and February 8th, 2012.

Shelby: I picked up Deathstroke at the recommendation of my local comic shop. I was looking to broaden our pull list with something the guys weren’t reading. Plus, Deathstroke is a virtually unknown character to me; I first encountered him when I read Identity Crisis last year, and I what I learned from that book was the limit of my knowledge of Slade Wilson. He’s classified as a meta-human, with enhanced strength, speed, tactical abilities, and a regenerative ability allowing him to heal faster than your average blogger from nearly all wounds. I have, in previous posts, compared titles to action movies, but I have been forced to take it all back. Deathstroke is the ultimate killing machine; he does so with precision, accuracy, and impunity. It’s almost kind of refreshing; so many superheroes make a point of not killing their enemies, enough so that on the rare occasion when they do, it’s shocking (Wonder Woman, I’m looking at you). There is something really appealing about a character who exists solely to kill others. Moreover, if this character isn’t a villain, isn’t someone I despise, then I think we’re onto something interesting.

Continue reading →