Sep 22 2012

Before Watchmen – Nite Owl 3

Today, Patrick and Drew are discussing Nite Owl 3, originally released September 19th, 2012. Nite Owl is part of DC’s Before Watchmen prequel series. Click here for complete Before Watchmen coverage (including release dates).

Patrick: Look, not everyone’s a superhero. Right? That’s the point of Watchmen — it takes a special psychology to don a cape and cowl and fight crime by night. With each character-revelation, Alan Moore seems to say “look how fucked up these people are.” Moore employs some pretty blunt tactics to deliver this message, going so far as to devote an entire issue to Walter Kovacs’ therapy sessions.  J. Michael Straczynski attempts to explore Dan Dreiberg’s mind with a similar blunt force, but ends up losing Nite Owl and Twilight Lady in the process.

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Sep 21 2012

Captain Atom 0

Alternating Currents: Captain Atom 0, Peter and DrewToday, Peter and Drew are discussing Captain Atom 0, originally released September 19, 2012. Captain Atom 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Peter: The New 52 has made Captain Atom into a tragic hero; he cannot have real contact with anyone around him, but his powerset is astronomical. Originally I was worried that it would be too Dr. Manahttan. Now it has evolved into something completely different. It has become something best described as an amalgamation of Dr. Manhattan and Top Gun. Nathaniel is a man who must adjust to severe detachment from the world, and the potential loss of humanity. Unfortunately, this first/last issue has some pitfalls, but helps bring the previous twelve issues full circle.

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Sep 20 2012

Nightwing 0

Alternating Currents: Nightwing 0, Drew and ShelbyToday, Drew and Shelby are discussing Nightwing 0, originally released September 19, 2012. Nightwing 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Drew: The past is complicated. Or rather, our relationship with the past is complicated. Time has a way of changing our opinions of events, placing even our emotional attachment to our own memories in flux. That shifting relationship to the past is made exponentially more complicated in the comics world, where the actual events of the past are open to revisions, reboots, and retellings every few years or so. While those changes are often jarring for the characters, they’re particularly difficult for the audience, who may be attached to previous iterations of the story (not to mention the fact that they may be particularly anal about continuity). Like I said; shit’s complicated. It’s impressive, then, that Nightwing 0 isn’t just a successful retelling of Dick’s origin, but a compelling essay on the value of such retellings. Continue reading →

Sep 20 2012

Justice League 0

Today, Shelby and Patrick are discussing Justice League 0, originally released September 19, 2012. Justice League 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Shelby: What makes a superhero so heroic? I’m not talking about the enhanced DNA/gadgets/magic powers, it’s easy to see where that comes from. It might not make a ton of sense (really, a different color sun?), but it’s easy to see the source. No, I want to know what makes a hero, what are the inherent traits that would make someone suddenly imbued with immense power decide to fight the good fight and try to save the world? The same question can be asked of the super villains our heroes fight. Are our heroes filled with a sense of responsibility to do what’s right? Do our villains feel they deserve more than they’ve got? Is it as simple as heroes are good people, and villains are bad? Well, what if you try to be good, but are also a smartass 15-year-old who thinks you know best and is kind of a dick? Where does that put you on the hero/villain scale?

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Sep 19 2012

Legion Lost 0

Today, Peter and (special guest writer) Nikki Royce are discussing Legion Lost 0, originally released September 12, 2012. Legion Lost 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Peter: The Legion of Superheroes is something I never really got into. The concept is there, but it was so far removed from the DC characters that know and grew up with that it never jived. The closest I ever got was if any of those characters made appearances in the present time, such as the JLA/JSA crossover The Lightning Saga. I was confused even then. I think it probably boils down to there simply being too many heroes, or too few major members, and too many minor characters. Regardless, The New 52 provided me with a chance to try again on the Legion, and yet, here we are again, lost in the limbo of not really caring too much about them.

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Sep 19 2012

Suicide Squad 0

Alternating Currents: Suicide Squad 0, Drew and PatrickToday, Drew and Patrick are discussing Suicide Squad 0, originally released September 12, 2012. Suicide Squad 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Drew: Patrick and I like to pitch terrible television shows to each other. Imagining episodes of “Jewish Sopranos” or “Time Cheers” is hilarious (though I maintain that “Time Cheers” would be a great sitcom), but the funniest thing to me about the game is that it’s actually how shows are often pitched to networks. Being able to convey the ideas as quickly and concisely as possible is necessary when you’re competing for attention, but it also addresses the realities of people watching random episodes — the easier the concept is to introduce, the easier you can get new viewers up to speed. Comics operate in largely the same way, relying on snappy synopses of the origin story to orient new readers. Returning to that origin can be tricky, running equal risks of overcomplicating the story with new twists or boringly rehashing the same information. Unfortunately, Suicide Squad 0 falls firmly in the latter category.

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Sep 19 2012

Deathstroke 0

Today, Shelby and (special guest writer) Kevin Elliott are discussing Deathstroke 0, originally released September 12, 2012. Deathstroke 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Shelby: My first exposure to the man, the myth, the legend that is Rob Liefeld was when he took over Deathstroke from Kyle Higgins at issue 9. Liefeld is the most polarizing writer/artist I have ever encountered. Most of the comic fanbase despises his work, for a number of very valid reasons. He seemingly has no idea what the human body looks like, especially the female body. He cannot draw feet, to the point that his panels are often cropped so that the feet aren’t even pictured. He has no consistency; it is not unusual to see multiple haircuts on a character in one issue, hell, on one page. His writing is sophomoric at best. And yet, the fans of his work are just as rabid in their adoration as the rest of us are in our abhorrence. I have a personal beef with Liefeld, because I was really enjoying this title before he took over and sucked the good out of it. I’m going to try to maintain a professional, objective voice so we can just get through this, but I make no promises.

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Sep 18 2012

Batgirl 0

Alternating Currents: Batgirl 0, Drew and HesperToday, Drew and (special guest writer) Hesper Juhnke are discussing Batgirl 0, originally released September 12, 2012. Batgirl 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Drew: Batgirl is pretty unique among the New 52. Where most titles opted to return to an earlier time the the characters’ history or just plow ahead like the reboot never happened, Batgirl 1 found Babs in a very different position than when we last saw her, throwing a big question mark over her past in the DCnU. It quickly became clear that at least some of what we know is true, but writer Gail Simone cleverly left just enough out to make her past a tantalizing mystery she could tease out as the series progressed. The thought of a zero issue was bittersweet, then, as my desire to know more about Barbara’s past came into direct conflict with my desire to see these answers slowly revealed in the series proper. Simone cleverly side-steps this issue by avoiding those question marks altogether, effectively broadening the mystery by introducing new unknowns.

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Sep 18 2012

Green Lantern Corps 0

Today, Peter and Shelby are discussing Green Lantern Corps 0, originally released September 12, 2012. Green Lantern Corps 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Peter: What I’ve appreciated thus far from the zero issues is they’ve avoided retelling the same old origin stories you’ve heard a dozen times before.  There’s no point seeing Batman’s parents getting shot again, Superman arriving on Earth in a rocket again, the Flash cooking in lightning and chemicals again, or Green Lantern coming upon a dying alien with a ring…again.  If anyone’s origins are ripe for revisiting, it would be those of the “other” Green Lanterns in the DCU; I mean, they all began their careers playing second fiddle to Hal Jordon. Tomasi takes a fresh look at Guy and his family life, and it really turns out quite well.

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Sep 18 2012

Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. 0

Today, Patrick and (guest writer) Mike Logsdon are discussing Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. 0, originally released September 12, 2012. Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. 0 is part of the line-wide Zero Month.

Patrick: It’s 2012. Hell, it’s the end of 2012. Comic books — and superhero comics — have been around almost a century at this point. And this is a medium that loves its own history, so it’s basically impossible to pick up an issue and read it devoid of context. Zero Month, and our experiment with guest writers (Hi Mike!), tests just how well these issues hold up without the appropriate context. I’m reading a lot of comics, but I’ve never read Frankenstein before — clarification: I’ve never read this series before. I have read Mary Shelly’s Frankenstein. So, I feel like I have enough context to evaluate what I’m reading… I just fear that it’s the wrong context.

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