Comics Reviews: Flash 321, Wonder Woman 303, Green Lantern 164, Jonah Hex 72

Flash 321 coverFlash #321 – “Hell in the Fast Lane” – Cary Bates/Carmine Infantino

This one starts with Barry Allen having a weird nightmare. He figures it was prompted by guilt over being in love with Fiona Webb. Part of him still wonders if he’s betraying the memory of his dead wife, Iris, but he can’t help the way he feels. He calls Fiona and asks her out for the weekend. At a prison upstate, an alarm goes out about an escaped prisoner … a very special prisoner. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 321, Wonder Woman 303, Green Lantern 164, Jonah Hex 72”

Comics Reviews: JLA 214, Legion of Super-Heroes 299, New Teen Titans 31, All-Star Squadron 21

JLA 214 coverJustice League of America #214 – “The Siren Sisterhood” – Gerry Conway/Don Heck/Romeo Tanghal

Last issue, Ray (Atom) Palmer had a slight freak-out and took off into the microcosmos, a vast realm that exists at a sub-atomic level. Some of Atom’s JLA teammates (Batman, Green Arrow, Red Tornado, Black Canary, and Hawkman) followed him into the microcosmos and ran into a friendly native who calls herself the Wanderer. The Wanderer filled them in on a despot named Goltha who’s been keeping this world (L’arra Sha) under his thumb for three generations using some kind of secret weapon. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: JLA 214, Legion of Super-Heroes 299, New Teen Titans 31, All-Star Squadron 21”

Comics Reviews: Superman 383, Action 543, DC Comics Presents 57, Warlord 69

Superman 383 coverSuperman #383 – “Your World or Your Life, Superman—One Must Die” – Cary Bates/Curt Swan/Dave Hunt

This one starts with Superman out in space, coming across a weird energy phenomenon. He checks it out (by flying right through it) and determines it’s no threat to any nearby systems, so he heads back to Earth. On Earth, Lois Lane is on a plane heading for her new assignment in the Middle East. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Superman 383, Action 543, DC Comics Presents 57, Warlord 69”

Comics Reviews: Batman 359, Detective 526, Brave & the Bold 198, Firestorm 12

Batman 359 coverBatman #359 – “Hunt” – Gerry Conway/Dan Jurgens/Dick Giordano

This one starts with Batman sneaking into the home of Filbert Hughes III, a fat cat who’s a big wheel in the Tobacconists’ Club. Batman knows the Club is full of rich men who profit from the criminal acts of others while keeping their own hands clean. Batman scares the hell out of Hughes. Asking him about Gotham’s newest mob boss … Killer Croc. Speaking of Croc, he’s holding a convocation of mobsters at the Reptile House of the Gotham Zoo. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 359, Detective 526, Brave & the Bold 198, Firestorm 12”

Comics Reviews: Flash 320, Wonder Woman 302, Green Lantern 163, Jonah Hex 71

Flash 320 coverFlash #320 – “The Final Purge” – Cary Bates/Carmine Infantino/Rodin Rodriguez

Last issue, the deadly vigilante known as Eradicator was revealed to be Senator Creed Phillips, who kidnapped his girlfriend Fiona Webb and is holding her outside town while Flash and the cops frantically search for her. We see Flash sneaking down an alley and breaking into a mirror store. Later, Mirror Master and a couple of henchmen return after a successful robbery to find Flash caught in one of Mirror Master’s traps. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 320, Wonder Woman 302, Green Lantern 163, Jonah Hex 71”

Comics Reviews: JLA 213, Legion of Super-Heroes 298, New Teen Titans 30, All-Star Squadron 20

JLA 213 coverJustice League of America #213 – “Into the Microcosmos” – Gerry Conway/Don Heck/Romeo Tanghal

This one starts with a very dramatic scene of Ray (Atom) Palmer trying to keep his sanity as he tumbles down into the sub-atomic universe. The scene shifts to Katar (Hawkman) Hol on the JLA Satellite telling his teammates that something bad has happened to Atom. That’s right, it’s flashback time! Hawkman recounts how he wanted to share the good news of Shayera (Hawkgirl) Thal’s return with his old friend Ray, but when he called, Ray’s wife Jean was freaking out. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: JLA 213, Legion of Super-Heroes 298, New Teen Titans 30, All-Star Squadron 20”

Comics Reviews: Superman 382, Action 542, DC Comics Presents 56, Warlord 68

Superman 382 coverSuperman #382 – “Where Trouble Goes—Euphor Follows” – Cary Bates/Curt Swan/Dave Hunt

Last issue, the supposed altruist Euphor (who can drain negative emotions from people) turned out to be a scumbag. He used some of the energy he drained to give powers to three people with a grudge against Superman. When that didn’t work, he gave powers to Lois Lane, drawing on her resentment at the aloof way Superman’s been acting toward her lately. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Superman 382, Action 542, DC Comics Presents 56, Warlord 68”

Comics Reviews: Batman 358, Detective 525, Brave & the Bold 197, Firestorm 11

Batman 358 coverBatman #358 – “Don’t Mess With Killer Croc” – Gerry Conway/Curt Swan/Rodin Rodriguez

This one starts with Killer Croc busting in on a meeting of the Tobacconists Club. Croc knows it’s a front for the crooked businessmen and politicians who pull the strings in Gotham and mentions the recent fall of Boss Thorne and gangster Tony Falco. Croc says he’s stepping into the power vacuum left at the top and they can either support him or get wiped out. (He makes quite the impression when he takes off his coat and hat, revealing his freakish reptilian appearance.) Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 358, Detective 525, Brave & the Bold 197, Firestorm 11”

Comics Reviews: Flash 319, Wonder Woman 301, Green Lantern 162, Jonah Hex 70

Flash 319 coverFlash #319 – “A Slight Touch of Death” – Cary Bates/Carmine Infantino/Dennis Jensen

Last issue, Eradicator was revealed as a sort of “alternate personality” of Senator Creed Phillips and he took Phillips’s girlfriend (Fiona Webb) hostage. Flash almost got blown up checking Phillips’s apartment and when Captain Invincible (police Captain Frye) came to help, they both ended up plunging through the wall toward the street. Frye slaps the shit out of Flash on the way down, finally waking him up with less than a second to spare. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 319, Wonder Woman 301, Green Lantern 162, Jonah Hex 70”

Comics Reviews: JLA 212, Legion of Super-Heroes 297, New Teen Titans 29, All-Star Squadron 19

JLA 212 coverJustice League of America #212 – “(No Title)” – Gerry Conway/Rich Buckler, Paris Cullins/Romeo Tanghal

Last issue, a bunch of aliens called the Treasurers offered to help Earth with a problem that could threaten all life. A fundamental element called X-element, which binds all matter together, has been decaying, which affects weather patterns and natural phenomena all over the world. The Treasurers promised to fix the X-element in exchange for a few innocent items from Earth … and a certain human named George Stuart. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: JLA 212, Legion of Super-Heroes 297, New Teen Titans 29, All-Star Squadron 19”