To say comic book fans are "passionate" would be a ginormous understatement. Surely you saw the reaction to Ben Affleck being cast as Batman, right? A somewhat similar response happens every now and then when we all read through our piles of new comics. Sometimes we'll have an overwhelming amount of praise and sometimes something will make us take a step back and say, "Wait... what?!" Here's just a few of those from this week. Assuming there's a positive response, you can expect to see this feature pop up from time to time. Also, don't forget to chime in with your own selection of rants & raves from this week's new comics!
Rave: FOREVER EVIL rocks
Sure, it's kind of disappointing Trinity War was pretty much reduced to serve as a preface for Forever Evil, but after reading issue #1 of the latest big event, it's easily overlooked! Many of us do indeed suffer from big event fatigue, but this issue was well worth the $3.99 cover price and has a thoroughly effective hook. This feels like the start of something huge, making it more than worthy of the "big event" label. Its scope is grand, there's some epic stakes on the table, and it's truly impressive how many characters writer Geoff Johns was able to balance in just the first issue. Yeah, it would have been nice to see a tad more from the Crime Syndicate, but things are just kicking off and it was great to see how the world of villains was reacting to this turn of events... especially the story's "hero," Lex Luthor (who was awesomely written, by the way). Oh, and it's totally new reader friendly, too. If you've been considering dipping your toes in the DC pool, this is a great place to start.
Rant: Shocker isn't Shocker... again.
Look, Herman Schultz isn't the most popular or respected villain around. His name is silly, he looks even sillier at times and he's never really aspired to much more than "GIMME THAT MONEY, HONEY!" Him being a coward in THE SUPERIOR FOES OF SPIDER-MAN is totally overlookable because that book's a much needed dose of levity. But, can we at least get the basic power he uses correct? Just because his name is "Shocker" doesn't mean his attacks are electric and this is at least the second time I've seen this misconception. His vibro gauntlets produce blasts of powerful vibrations -- so powerful that he claims it could potentially turn someone's bones to jelly. Yet in the latest issue of DAREDEVIL: DARK NIGHTS, he shocks Daredevil and is using electricity. Due to the general opinion, it's understandable he's treated like a jobber and his vibrational shield is ignored (that's what protects him from Spider-Man's superhuman punches, after all), but can we please just get this one basic thing about him correct?
Rave: Deadshot's origin
If you haven't read Deadshot's pre-52 origin story and consider yourself somewhat interested in him, you should do yourself a favor and go read it. Now, writer Matt Kindt was tasked with creating a new tale for Floyd Lawyton, and immediately we're hit with some big changes. Deadshot has a sister instead of a brother -- a brother who played a significant role in his story? He's poor instead of rich? IMMEDIATELY DON'T LIKE THIS BECAUSE CHANGE IS BAD. Without a brother and what happens with him, we're basically being treated to a whole new direction and, let's face it, matching up to the old one is no easy feat (purposely vague here because there's no need to ruin the classic story). But, the book said, "Shut up, you narrow-minded fool, and keep reading!" So, the issue was read, and surprisingly enough, it was fantastic. Yes, it's a massive change and it brings into question if he still has the same relationship with Batman (if so, that needs elaboration), but dammit, it was shockingly emotional and unexpectedly dark towards the end. Despite large alterations, it still does a more than thorough job turning Floyd into the man we've come to know and that's an impressive accomplishment. Bravo, Kindt.
Rant: Nightwing brought Zsasz all the way from Chicago?
FOREVER EVIL #1 was certainly good, but what was going on with Nightwing and Zsasz? Grayson seriously brought Zsasz all the way to Gotham just to personally drop him off at Arkham Asylum? Are authorities in the Windy City so ineffective that they couldn't be trusted with transporting this guy or even holding them on their own? If so, how's Nightwing solving problems with bad guys in Chicago if they can't be locally incarcerated? Chicago to Gotham seems like quite a trip just for Zsasz. Yeah, he's dangerous compared to regular humans, but compared to other villains? There's no strong reason why he'd deserve this special treatment. We know Nightwing needed to be in the city for this issue, but the reasoning just doesn't seem practical to me.
Bonus Rave: Glorious GREEN ARROW
Month after month, Andrea Sorrentino and Marcelo Maiolo turn the pages of GREEN ARROW into a masterpiece. Instead of rambling on and on about why their work is so stunning, here's two pages from their latest issue with writer Jeff Lemire. Enjoy.
This article of course represents the opinions of Gregg Katzman and not the entire staff.