Category: Comics Reviews

Superman 395, Action 555, DC Comics Presents 69, All-Star Squadron 33, Infinity Inc 2

Superman 395 coverSuperman #395 – “The Power and the People” – Elliot S! Maggin/Curt Swan/Dave Hunt

Last issue, a guy named Bucky Berns started writing a column for the Daily Planet and by some weird quirk of fate, everything Bucky wrote about actually happened. Bucky is now running for President (with Superman’s endorsement) and advanced polls show he has a good chance of winning. Unfortunately, Bucky’s popularity (and predictive powers) are due to some Russians who have been bombarding him with “actualization” rays from a satellite that made whatever Bucky wrote about come true. Continue reading “Superman 395, Action 555, DC Comics Presents 69, All-Star Squadron 33, Infinity Inc 2”

Comics Reviews: Batman 371, Detective 538, Batman & the Outsiders 10, Firestorm 23, Vigilante 6

Batman 371 coverBatman #371 – “Nine Cradles of Death” – Doug Moench/Don Newton/Alfredo Alcala

This one starts with Thomas Blake (aka Cat-Man) in prison in some kind of trance-like state, a condition he’s been in for weeks. The prison doctor diagnoses cataphoria or catatonia (Doug Moench really goes overboard with the cat stuff in this issue) and tells Blake’s cell mate (Collins) not to worry about it. Collins is a little freaked, but goes about his daily life and ends up talking in his sleep about some loot from a big robbery that he stashed in some catacombs. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 371, Detective 538, Batman & the Outsiders 10, Firestorm 23, Vigilante 6”

Comics Reviews: Flash 332, Wonder Woman 314, Green Lantern 175, Jonah Hex 83

Flash 332 coverFlash #332 – “Defend the Flash … and Die?” – Cary Bates/Carmine Infantino/Frank McLaughlin

Last issue, Flash was in Florida talking to his lawyer (Peter Farley) on the phone when a bomb went off in Farley’s office. Flash zooms back to Central City at top speed, hoping he can get there in time to save Farley from an explosion he’s already heard happen. Even though it sounds physically impossible, Flash does get back in time to save Farley from being killed, although he’s in critical condition. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 332, Wonder Woman 314, Green Lantern 175, Jonah Hex 83”

Comics Reviews: JLA 225, Legion of Super-Heroes 310, New Teen Titans 41, Warlord 80

JLA 225 coverJustice League of America #225 – “Let There Be Light” – Joey Cavalieri/Chuck Patton/Pablo Marcos

This one starts with Ray (Atom) Palmer returning to Ivy College after his recent adventures in South America (in the Sword of the Atom mini-series). Ray is startled to find a bunch of guys in his lab stealing something called Luciferase. The thieves are kinda weird, speaking in hesitant monotones like robots. Ray goads them into knocking him out the window so he can change to Atom and attack them. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: JLA 225, Legion of Super-Heroes 310, New Teen Titans 41, Warlord 80”

Comics Reviews: Superman 394, Action 554, DC Comics Presents 68, All-Star Squadron 32

Superman 394 coverSuperman #394 – “The Man Who Would Be President” – Eliott S! Maggin/Curt Swan/Dave Hunt

This one starts with some guy giving a lecture to a group of people about how great Superman, then ending by calling for his destruction. In Metropolis, Superman saves a woman from a burning building and a bystander named Bucky Berns watches with concern. Apparently, Bucky is a newspaper columnist and just wrote a column about how old tenements should be burned down. Bucky concludes this fire is just a coincidence and goes to meet his friend Perry white for lunch. Perry offers Bucky the chance to write his column for the Daily Planet. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Superman 394, Action 554, DC Comics Presents 68, All-Star Squadron 32”

Comics Reviews: Batman 370, Detective 537, Batman & the Outsiders 9, Firestorm 22, Vigilante 5

Batman 370Batman #370 – “Up Above the Sin so High” – Doug Moench/Don Newton/Alfredo Alcala

As we saw last issue, Batman is in Montreal helping Alfred and Julia, so Jason (Robin) Todd is on his own back in Gotham. He gets tired of studying, so he heads out on patrol and finds a couple of thugs busting up an arcade. The thugs work for Gotham’s newest crime lord, Dr. Fang, and they’re trashing the arcade because the owner bought his machines from someone other than Dr. Fang. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 370, Detective 537, Batman & the Outsiders 9, Firestorm 22, Vigilante 5”

Comics Reviews: Flash 331, Wonder Woman 313, Green Lantern 174, Jonah Hex 82

Flash 331 coverFlash #331 – “Dead Heat” – Cary Bates, Joey Cavalieri/Carmine Infantino/Frank McLaughlin

Last issue, Flash was lured into a strange netherworld by Angelo, the street kid he’d been searching for. But Angelo is under the mental domination of Gorilla Grodd, who has managed to sap Flash of his super-speed by using Angelo as a conduit. After Flash collapses, Grodd picks him up and spins him around as a precursor to finishing him off. Grodd admits that Flash still has his speed, he’s just been brainwashed to forget that fact, so spinning him will divest him of the speed force in his body. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Flash 331, Wonder Woman 313, Green Lantern 174, Jonah Hex 82”

Comics Reviews: JLA 224, Legion of Super-Heroes 309, New Teen Titans 40, Warlord 79

JLA 224 coverJLA #224 – “The Supremacy Factor” – Kurt Busiek/Chuck Patton/Dick Giordano

This one starts with Hal (Green Lantern) Jordan, Clark (Superman) Kent, and Oliver (Green Arrow) Queen meeting for lunch at a restaurant in Star City. The waitress thinks she’s ht the jackpot having three studs like them at her table, but Oliver is more concerned with Black Canary, who’s late for lunch. We see Black Canary on her way to the restaurant (having stopped a bank robbery) getting delayed by an altercation in an alley. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: JLA 224, Legion of Super-Heroes 309, New Teen Titans 40, Warlord 79”

Comics Reviews: Superman 393, Action 553, DC Comics Presents 67, All-Star Squadron 31, Infinity Inc 1

Superman 393 coverSuperman #393 – “The Day They Nuked Superman” – Bob Rozakis, Joey Cavalieri/Irv Novick/Dick Giordano

This one starts with Clark Kent and Lana Lang doing their nightly newscast (and we learn that former sportscaster Steve Lombard is now a used-car salesman, which seems perfect for him). One of the people watching the news is Carl Draper (Master Jailer) and he’s still hung up on Lana, wondering why she’s going out with a loser like Clark. Master Jailer has been planning revenge on Superman (who he doesn’t know is actually Clark) for a while, studying up on Krypton and even recording the light from Krypton’s explosion when it finally reached Earth. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Superman 393, Action 553, DC Comics Presents 67, All-Star Squadron 31, Infinity Inc 1”

Comics Reviews: Batman 369, Detective 536, Batman & the Outsiders 8, Firestorm 21, Vigilante 4

Batman 369 coverBatman #369 – “Target Practice” – Doug Moench/Don Newton/Alfredo Alcala

This one starts with Julia and Alfred in Montreal. Julia is telling Alfred how her adoptive father, Jacques Remarque, died of a supposed heart attack, falling off a bridge into the river. His body was never recovered and Jacques left a letter telling Julia that Alfred was her biological father. Julia suspects Jacques may have been murdered and it seems she may be right, as a sign above her and Alfred is shot and falls toward them. Continue reading “Comics Reviews: Batman 369, Detective 536, Batman & the Outsiders 8, Firestorm 21, Vigilante 4”