A Tale of Two Relaunches

I came into the month of June with very high hopes for a couple of reboots of two of my all-time favorite DC heroes: Flash and Wonder Woman. I even thought about reviewing Wonder Woman #1 with my introductory article last week, but I thought it would be fun to tackle both at the same time. I'm glad I waited.

Both books receive the Hollywood treatment in terms of writing teams. Allan Heinberg (writer of Young Avengers and television shows such as The O.C. and Sex and the City) helms Wonder Woman and Danny Bilson and Paul De Meo (You might recognize them as the creators of The Flash. It's become fairly common practice in the past few years to bring in scriptwriters from Hollywood to work on comics, especially for events. Some people hate this; some people love it. Personally, I don't care as long as the stories are good. These two books are especially good as illustrations of the strengths and weaknesses of this practice.


I just realized I haven't even mentioned the art yet. The team of Terry and Rachel Dodson draw the best Wonder Woman I've ever seen. Want proof? How's this for some proof? That's a clean image of the first cover. Want to know something amazing? The interiors are just as brilliant. Not only do the Dodsons draw and ink beautifully, their art is dynamic and every single panel aids the writing in telling the story. I can't find one negative thing to say about the art of Wonder Woman #1. The same goes for the writing. The plot is tight and innovative. The reader is introduced to Wonder Woman en media res as a cadre of her rogue's gallery have taken Steve Trevor hostage. That should sound familiar to longtime readers or anyone that watched the Lynda Carter show. It's as old a trick as Lois Lane being held hostage by Lex Luthor or Braniac while Superman comes to the rescue. Speaking of villains, Heinberg understands that most new readers will only have a limited knowledge of Wonder Woman's rogues, so he takes full advantage of this to set up a reinvigorating, fresh take on three of her most prominent foes: Cheetah, Giganta, and Dr. Psycho. I have a strong feeling that the next issue or two will be doing the same for some other Wonder Woman baddies and if Heinberg and the Dodsons do as nice a job reimagining them as they do these three, readers will have nothing to fear. I have one more issue to tackle when it comes to the new series, but I'm going to put it at the bottom of the article along with some tidbits about The Flash that might be too spoilery for some.


Speaking of the scarlet speedster, two short weeks after the brilliant debut of the new Wonder Woman series we get our first read of his new series. As I mentioned earlier, Paul De Meo and Danny Bilson take scripting duties while being joined by relative newcomer, Ken Lashley, on art. Lashley has a great deal of potential. His action scenes are kinetic and vibrant. The cover is indicative of many of the action scenes in the issue. Unfortunately, Mr. Lashley doesn't seem to draw people out of costume very well. The art is passable, but the poses are unnatural and many of the scenes towards the end of the book feel rushed and poorly finished. The first three pages of the book show Jay Garrick, the original Flash, in beautiful detail. The last four pages in comparison are just plain confusing. There are some panels where I'm not quite sure what is occurring. For instance, a character introduced in this issue as one of the supporting cast (I think. More on that in a bit.) is named Griffin. I assume that's his first name. We don't have much to go on with him although he seems to be a major player in the series. In the final scenes of the issue, he's involved in an accident with chemicals. I think he's also struck by lightning while in the chemicals harkening back to both Barry Allen's (Flash II) and Wally West's (Flash III) origin. I've read the book five times and I have no idea if it's lightning or just fancy explosions. Lashley has great potential and I hope he realizes it.

Here Be Spoilers!

Back to the writing, the action scenes are fairly well-written and the exposition is fine, yet this entire issue is set-up. At the end of the issue, we don't know who the new Flash is. I have a feeling we won't know for an issue or two plus DC's editor-in-chief, Dan Didio, has indicated we shouldn't get too used to the first person we see being The Flash. That might (and probably does) mean Jay Garrick. The entire build-up seems to be leading towards Bart Allen, Barry's grandson, donning the scarlet tights, but that might just be a false lead. I'm not even sure I recognize Bart. Formerly, he was Impulse and later Kid Flash, but his personality seems so changed from that point, he might as well be a new character. He's in a very real sense the precise opposite of how he used to be. Now he's unsure and hesitant.

But we don't know why.

And there doesn't seem to be a reason it's being kept from the readers. This is silly and inexcusable. Get on with the damned story and quit trying to build up a false mystery by withholding information that the characters know. A prime offense in this regard is Bart's new best friend, Griffin. What do we know about him? He's a jerk. He's rude. He's shallow. He has blond hair. He gets bathed in chemicals and (possibly) struck by lightning. What don't we know? Why is Bart best friends with this emotionally-challenged idiot that treats people like something smelly he stepped in. . . unless they're a woman and then (for reasons unknown) they fawn on him as if he's the lead singer in a boy band. I'm not left with many questions about this issue because frankly I'm too annoyed by wasting three bucks on thirtysomething pages of meandering set-up and uneven art.

Contrast this with the writing on Wonder Woman. By page three (really page two since it's a splash) we know that Donna Troy is the new Wonder Woman. By page six, we know the entire recent history of Diana, the previous Wonder Woman, and why Donna now has the bulletproof bracelets. Heinberg gets on with the story. I recommend the writers of The Flash read this book and take some fairly lengthy notes. I realize this sounds as if I'm condemning The Flash. I'm not. It's frustrating that the book is on the cusp of being excellent and then the bottom falls out. I hope this is just first issue jitters and the writing and art team settles in quickly.

I'm in a bad mood now. I'm going to end this post by cheering myself up with another picture of the Dodson's Wonder Woman. Well, technically this is a picture of Diana Prince: Secret Agent, but it's a beautiful picture.


The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive and Wonder Woman are published by DC Comics.

Loveless: A Kin of Homecoming

So I thought I would kick things off with a review that's a bit tough for me. I should love this book. I find Azzarello to be an engaging storyteller, but I must admit that I have a hard time immersing myself into his books. But first some basics on the story.

Loveless is a Western comic set shortly after the American Civil War written by Brian Azzarello and illustrated by Marcelo Frusin. Wes Cutter is coming home to Blackwater, Missouri. He's fought for the South in the War and survived a Union prison camp. Now he wants his wife and his home, but there's layers of mystery and death every step of the way. The violence is stark and brutal and the sex is urgent and realistic, which frankly I find refreshing. I don't mind violence. I don't mind sex. Hell, I enjoy that last one! But I don't feel that the violence-without-consequence that inhabits most comics of the superheroic variety suits Azzarello at all. If you would like a good example, take a read through his run on Superman. His entire arc is confusing and meandering. I felt as if he never understood quite what to do with The Man of Steel. Cold-blooded, vengeful killers are something Azzarello understands quite well, though.

Hmm. . . remind me never to run into him in a dark alley.

Before anyone asks I don't hate any kind of comic book, nor do I hold a grudge against superhero or non-superhero comics. I just don't feel that a writer is always a good fit. As far as Loveless goes, Azzarello's pacing is superb and his plot is intricate. My only issue is that the flashbacks don't always make as much sense as I like, especially since he interweaves them with the action that is taking place in the "now" of the book. For some readers, finding a character to sympathize with will be a problem. No one in the story is without secrets. No one is unstained.

Artistically, this is a match made in. . . well. . . Heaven is quite the right word for this book. The story is bleak, but it isn't reflected in the art. The pencils are clean as are the inks utilizing a simple-but-effective style with reds and browns and blacks. Those colors ground the reader in the earthiness of the plot and dialogue. I wish that more editors would take the care to try and match up writers and artists that suit each other's styles.

All in all, if you enjoy movies such as Unforgiven or High Plains Drifter you will find something in Loveless: A Kin of Homecoming that you might feel has been missing from comics for a while: Westerns with grit.

I give this 4/5 and look forward to reading the next installment. The only cause for a drop in the rating is the confusing nature of some of the flashbacks.

Edit: A very kind person pointed out that I should have posted a link to the publisher (DC Comics) with the review. I am amending that now with thanks.

Loveless: A Kin of Homecoming is published by DC Comics and the direct url for the book itself is here.