It's once again time to celebrate the latest round of excellent action scenes! This week, we're featuring two battles from DC Comics and one from Marvel. First up, we'll watch two very popular heroes have a ridiculously rough sparring match. After that, we'll check out one big dose of craziness involving several mutants from different timelines. And, last but not least, we'll witness a clash between two incredibly powerful characters.
"Hey, why isn't a battle I love being highlighted and/or listed in the honorable mentions? What gives?!" It's possible we didn't read that issue (A LOT come out each week, after all), or we didn't dig it as much. So, be sure to make suggestions in the official Best Battles Discussion Thread from now on to put this stuff on our radar. We review that before writing this weekly feature and do our best to get our hands on the issues suggested.
NIGHTWING #30
In the unlikely event you haven't finished Forever Evil yet and don't want a spoiler from its finale, I strongly recommend skipping over this highlight. Seriously, go to the next fight and then come back when you've finally caught-up.
DC's latest big event dealt Dick Grayson a really harsh hand. The world now knows who he really is and the Crime Syndicate tortured him and turned him into a weapon. To prevent the weapon from going off, Lex Luthor had to kill Dick Grayson... right in front of Batman, too. Luckily for him, Luthor was thinking ahead (when isn't he?) and was able to revive Grayson shortly afterwards. Now, not many know Dick Grayson is still alive, so Batman thinks they should use this to their advantage. Yes, this is the issue that shows the first Robin's transition to becoming a spy and Batman presents the idea during a sparring match. Naturally, Grayson's not a fan of the plan and melee gets very brutal very quickly
Believe it or not, Bruce elbowing Grayson in the jaw is nothing compared to what follows. This fight gets ridiculously out of hand right away. Grayson's smashed into the case displaying the Robin costume and then Dick uses the cape from said outfit to flip Bruce. As if things couldn't get any crazier, the two then begin to throw random items at one another and end up duking it out on the T-Rex's head. The duo proceed to pummel each other even more and show no concern whatsoever to all of the expensive and high tech goodies that are located throughout the cave.
This is quite possibly the most over the top street level fight in this week's new comics. Sure, the two are having an understandably heated chat and it's a way to get Grayson to vent, but man, they absolutely demolish the place. You saw him chop a bike in half with a kick, right?! The "well that escalated quickly" line from Anchorman is a very fitting response to this fight. What's especially crazy is the brawl isn't even close to over! As if all of those smashes and strikes weren't enough, the two then take a huge fall right and crash right onto a Batmobile.
Even though they're both covered in cuts and soaked in blood, the fight continues and several more vicious hits are landed. We all know the path Dick Grayson is about to take in his new series, but is he able to win this violent sparring match with his mentor in this issue? We may be left with very mixed opinions on the narrative and dialogue, but that was an absurdly savage fight.
UNCANNY AVENGERS #20
Rick Remender and Daniel Acuna's latest issue of UNCANNY AVENGERS is packed with so much madness. Characters from different timelines are on Planet X and they're about to engage in a whole lot of battles. First up, it's Psylocke vs. Psylocke! Remember the version of her we saw back in UNCANNY X-FORCE? You know, Magistrate Braddock? Of course you remember, that run was excellent, after all. She's about to learn firsthand why another version of herself is far more awesome than she is.
Elsewhere, other groups begin to bump into one another. As you can imagine, an unplanned and unfriendly encounter between such powerful individuals is going to result in even more chaos. This is good news for us, the readers, and really, really bad news for quite a few of these fictional beings. Cable is one of the people that'll receive not so good news when he encounters Stryfe. Meanwhile, Beast attempts to take on Magneto's forces all by his lonesome. Hank McCoy puts his agility to good use, but sadly, the odds aren't in his favor.
As some major drama goes down between other characters (we'd prefer not to spoil the big developments in this feature), Remender chimes in on Thor, Eimin, Daken, and May Parker. Yeah, he's packed a lot of characters into this storyline, but he's a talented writer and juggles them well. The Son of Odin makes quick work and Eimin and the alternate wall-crawler humiliates Daken, but the clawed villain just doesn't know how to stay down. It's not long before Daken gets back up and attempts to dispose of Kang, but Daken's father, Wolverine, cuts right in (sorry, the terrible pun was intentional).
Is Wolverine forced into killing his son a second time? James Howlett has had a life full of terrible events, but experiencing that all over again would certainly leave a mark on his psyche. So, does Remender put Logan through the horrific act of dispatching his child once more? Will we spoil it here for you? Of course not! Keep in mind, this recap is barely scratching the surface of what's going on in this issue!
AQUAMAN #31
The oceans have been filled with algae, and Arthur Curry aka Aquaman thinks only one being could be behind this: Alec Holland aka Swamp Thing. Along with Ya'wara, Curry uses the Globe of Teleportation to travel to the Terrebonne Parish in Louisiana. It turns out he's not the only one looking for the Avatar of the Green, though. Two men attempting to prove the existence of the "Swamp Ape" are on the hunt as well. They definitely got what they were looking for because Holland approaches them and tells them to leave. Aquaman sees this and believes Swamp Thing is going to attack the two humans, so he leaps into action. Misunderstandings always lead to good people fighting one another, don't they? Anyway, it's time for the King of Atlantis vs. the Avatar of the Green!
Despite Aquaman's great strength (seriously, he has some crazy strength feats in this series), Swamp Thing is able to swiftly restrain him. As the Justice Leaguer struggles to break free from the plants constricting him, Holland bluntly points out just how outclassed Aquaman truly is in this struggle. Yes, the hero may be mighty and have command of sea aquatic life, but when you're facing the Avatar of Plant Life in a marshland, it's a fight you're just not going to win. But Ya'wara didn't get that memo and she leaps into action with her blades. It's a valiant effort, but totally futile.
They've established they can't do meaningful damage to Holland through stabbing, slashing, and sheer strength. Both are now restrained, so what options do they have left? Sure, they could just talk it out at this point, but that would be too pragmatic and, well, not nearly as exciting as them continuing to battle. So instead of chatting it out, Aqauman communicates with the local wildlife and commands them to enjoy a big ol' organic snack.
If you know even the basics about Swamp Thing's abilities, then you know something like this won't keep the powerful creature down for the count. The fight is nearing its end, but it's not over just yet! If you want to see how it all concludes, you should get your hands on Jeff Parker's issue.
Honorable Mentions
- LARFLEEZE #11
- ALL-NEW INVADERS #5
- DEADLY CLASS #5
- GODZILLA: RULERS OF THE EARTH #12
- C.O.W.L. #1
- DEAD BODY ROAD #6
- BATMAN ETERNAL #8
- HARBINGER #23
- DEADPOOL #29
- ALL-STAR WESTERN #31
- INJUSTICE: YEAR TWO #10
- GHOSTBUSTERS #16
What are your top three fights from this latest round of new comics? Also, don't forget to make nominations every week in the official thread or tell us via Twitter. See you next Friday and have a good weekend!
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