Category DC

Sep 15 2016

DC Round-Up: Comics Released 9/14/16

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How many Batman books is too many Batman books? Depending on who you ask there ain’t no such thing! We try to stay up on what’s going on at DC, but we can’t always dig deep into every issue. The solution? Our weekly round-up of titles coming out of DC Comics. Today, we’re discussing Action Comics 963, All-Star Batman 2, Detective Comics 940, The Flash 6, New Super-Man 3 and Wonder Woman 6. Also, we’ll be discussing Gotham Academy Second Semester 1 on Friday and Superwoman 2 on Monday, so come back for those! As always, this article containers SPOILERS.

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Sep 12 2016

Batman 6

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Today, Michael and Spencer are discussing Batman 6, originally released September 7th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Michael: Comic book fans are extremely protective over their favorite superheroes, a fact that has probably been exacerbated by the internet. We debate on Batman’s actions as if he were a living, breathing person because he’s important to us. It’s the same way of asking the question “What’s the best Batman story of all time?” Art is subjective and comic books are no different. We may agree on many of the same things, but my Batman is different from your Batman. It’s why stories continue to roll out 75+ years after his creation. Continue reading →

Sep 9 2016

DC Round-Up: Comics Released 9/7/16

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How many Batman books is too many Batman books? Depending on who you ask there ain’t no such thing! We try to stay up on what’s going on at DC, but we can’t always dig deep into every issue. The solution? Our weekly round-up of titles coming out of DC Comics. Today, we’re discussing Green Arrow 6, Nightwing 4, and Superman 6. Also, we discussed Supergirl 1 yesterday and we’ll be talking about Batman 6 on Monday, so come back for that! As always, this article containers SPOILERS.

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Sep 8 2016

Supergirl 1

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Today, Patrick and Mark are discussing Supergirl 1 originally released September 7, 2016. As always, this article containers SPOILERS.

“It’s like you feel homesick for a place that doesn’t even exist. Maybe it’s like this rite of passage, you know. You won’t ever have this feeling again until you create a new idea of home for yourself, you know, for your kids, for the family you start, it’s like a cycle or something. I don’t know, but I miss the idea of it, you know. Maybe that’s all family really is. A group of people that miss the same imaginary place.”

Garden State

Patrick: I know, I know, I know – Garden State is a flick that’s ultimately too twee for it’s own good. But underneath all the cloying “you have to listen to The Shins!” moments and hackneyed beats of artificial quirk, there is a compelling universal truth. Concepts like “home” and “family” are so easy for the young to grasp, but they are nearly impossible for adults to hold on to. That’s because they’re both inextricably linked to our own personal origin stories, and you only get one of those in a life time. A superhero — especially one with as oft a rebooted history as Supergirl — runs the risk of trivializing the potency of that transition from origin to adult life, but ace writer Steve Orlando trots out countless examples of a better life on Krypton to genuinely sell Kara’s newfound loneliness and frustration. Couple that with Brian Ching’s Marvel-esque design work, and you’ve got one of the most sympathetic new series in DC’s stable. Continue reading →

Sep 6 2016

Gotham Academy Annual 1

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Today, Spencer and Mark are discussing Gotham Academy Annual 1, originally released August 31st, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Spencer: The first few arcs of Gotham Academy were very clearly telling a story about Olive Silverlocke. That’s not to say that the rest of the cast (especially Maps) didn’t have personality or important roles, just that they were very much supporting characters to Olive’s story. That’s what made the transition to the “Yearbook” storyline so jarring to me; without warning, what had been one long story focused on Olive suddenly shifted to a series of short stories starring an ensemble cast. I love Gotham Academy‘s cast and enjoyed quite a few of “Yearbook’s” tales, but for my money, Gotham Academy Annual 1 is the first time the supporting characters have felt like they could support a story on their own. Brenden Fletcher and returning co-writer/creator Becky Cloonan achieve this by first highlighting how the Detective Club falls apart without Olive’s leadership, and then by bringing them together to achieve victory on their own. Continue reading →

Aug 30 2016

Deathstroke 1

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Today, Michael and Patrick are discussing Deathstroke 1, originally released August 24th, 2016. As always, this article contains SPOILERS.

Michael: There’ve been numerous attempts at a Deathstroke solo series since the dawn of The New 52 – none of which I have read, but also none of which have been received very well. Overall I’d say that I’m enjoying the maiden voyage of Christopher Priest and Carlo Pagulayan’s Deathstroke, probably because it’s broaching the questions of “who is Slade Wilson?” and consequently “why do we find him so fascinating?” Continue reading →

Aug 26 2016

DC Round-Up Comics Released 8/24/16

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We here at Retcon Punch are a naturally curious bunch, and there are few things more curious than DC’s Rebirth publishing initiative. In this Round-Up, we’re discussing Batgirl 2, Blue Beetle Rebirth 1, Detective Comics 939, The Flash 5, Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps 3, Hellblazer 1, and Wonder Woman 5 — and come back on Tuesday for our discussion of Deathstroke 1. As always, SPOILERS after the cut.

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Aug 23 2016

Supergirl Rebirth 1

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Today, Spencer and Mark are discussing Supergirl Rebirth 1, originally released August 17th, 2016. 

Spencer: Ever since the character was reintroduced after Crisis on Infinite Earths, DC has had a hard time figuring out just what, exactly, to do with Supergirl. Remember the time she was an angel, or a blob of protoplasm, or a Red Lantern, or Darkseid’s minion, or simply an obnoxious brat in a belly shirt? Supergirl Rebirth 1 finds Steve Orlando and Emanuela Lupacchino soft-rebooting Supergirl once again, and while they take some obvious inspiration from her current television series, they thankfully seem to be cherry-picking the show’s best qualities, particularly Supergirl’s ability to empathize with and inspire others. Unlike some of the other directions I mentioned, this take on Supergirl doesn’t feel like a gimmick or a phase, but a genuine attempt to give her a place in the DC Universe all her own, while still honoring the Superman mythos. Only time will tell if this is the take that sticks, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see Orlando’s Supergirl catch on fast. Continue reading →

Aug 19 2016

DC Round-Up Comics Released 8/17/16

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How many Batman books is too many Batman books? Depending on who you ask there ain’t no such thing! We try to stay up on what’s going on at DC, but we can’t always dig deep into every issue. The solution? Our weekly round-up of titles coming out of DC Comics. Today, we’re discussing Batman 5, Green Arrow 5, Nightwing 3, and Superman 5. Also, we will be discussing Supergirl: Rebirth 1 on Tuesday, so come back for that!

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Aug 17 2016

All-Star Batman 1

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Today, Patrick and Michael are discussing All-Star Batman 1, originally released August 3rd, 2016.

Patrick: It’s hard to think of a creator at DC comics that has had a more lasting, meaningful, and marketable impression on a character in the last five years than writer Scott Snyder. His run with Greg Capullo on Batman (coupled with his role running the rooms for both Batman Eternal and Batman and Robin Eternal) makes Snyder the mental and emotional authority on Gotham’s Dark Knight. Bruce Wayne may be the “Batman” in the title, but Snyder himself is the “All-Star.” The first issue moves with such breathless confidence, willfully tossing out repulsive imagery, C-tier villains, and disorienting chronology with such abandon, it’s like the blockbuster creative team is daring us to stay away. But for every “22 minutes earlier,” for every appearance of Firefly, for every horrifying account of people subtly slashed to death, All-Star Batman 1 is an amazingly good time. It’s a remarkable change from Batman, which while obviously excellent, often wasn’t “a good time.” But it’s like Batman reiterates a couple times in this issue: “I’m trying something new.” Continue reading →