Reviews and Celebrations

Egad, but that was a tiny tiny week for books. Still, it wasn't too bad, all things considering.

First off, was Birds of Prey. I have to say that the art was actually rather moody and atmospheric in this issue,which is not something that I normally associate with Ed Benes, so kudos to him. We still don't know who the White Canary is, but boy howdy, does she have a beef with Dinah! And the Blackmailer just went ahead and outed her, just as was threatened. And that's not all.

Oh Creote and Savant. *sniff*

Dagnabit. If you haven't read it yet, this is a spoiler. Savant and Creote bite the big one...and I'm sad. And yet, at least in THIS story, their deaths actually serve a purpose, or at least it doesn't feel so gratuitous. Gail has never played us false, and I tend to grant her some slack that I don't necessarily lend to other writers. But the Birds have been set up, and big time, they are on the run from the law, and are apparently aiding and abetting the Penguin of all people. This of course, just makes Oracle mad. And when Babs gets mad, it is always interesting.

Brightest Day #4 has Hawkman and Hawkgirl viewing the rather singular sight of a glowing portal made from their former skeletons. THAT'S just not something that you see every day. Carter of course, is all hot to trot to just jump through and see what's on the other side. Shayera, actually having a brain, voices a few doubts, which are rather brusquely brushed aside. I'll bet that Carter never stops to ask directions either.

Meanwhile, Deadman pops up in Georgetown of all places after his uncermonious departure from Qward. A beautiful white-haired young lady is sleeping, and for one startled moment, I thought it was Ice, but it is actually Dove. I think that she and Boston are equally startled. He apologizes for waking her up, and they start talking, but naturally, Hawk comes busting in and starts beating Boston up, because that's what Hawk does.

In New Mexico, a pair of attractive young lovers are at a lake. She's about to jump in, but he pulls her back,which turns out to have been a good thing, since all the water has mysteriously disappeared. While in the Bermuda Triangle, all kinds of peculiar things are happening, while a very cranky looking lady, who somewhat resembles Mera bursts out of the water, with mayhem on her mind.

Raymond is having bad dreams while at school, haunted by Gemma, while Jason also dreams. Interesting.

And now that they know Boston Brand still has his white ring, Hawk decides to put it to good use, by having him resurrect his brother Don. We'll see how THAT works out. Seriously, let's go over to the Dibny's graves and see if it works there too!

I'm enjoying the heck out of this book so far.

The story of Snow White and Rose Red continues in Fables #96. Willingham may be something of a jackass when it comes to dealing with people at conventions, but curse it, he's a damned good writer. He successfully, at least in my opinion manages to meld the two versions of Snow's origin together, and to explain what and how she ended up where she did, and how she was separated from Rose. I can hardly wait to read next month's issue!
Good good stuff.

Joker's Asylum II: Harley Quinn. I don't usually pick these up, but I enjoyed the one with the Riddler so much that I felt it worth a try. And it's also quite enjoyable. Harley busts out of jail, even though she is due for payroll in a couple of weeks, because it is Valentine's Day, and she simply HAS to have a nice date with her Puddin'. The ins and outs and various vagaries of her day, are a lot of fun, as is the denoument. Oh, and the Joker has a cute little puppy.
\
DC Universe Legacies #2 also continues to entertain me. We have such lovely artwork, and two excellent stories of days past, the first one continues the story of Paulie, the boy from the last issue who has decided to give up his life of petty crime. The Kubert art is just gorgeous, and it's a fun story, that leads up to the disappearance of the Justice Society.

The second story is with the Seven Soldiers of Victory, illustrated by J.H. Williams, and it's beautiful too, and a heck of a lot of fun. They've captured the spirit of the Golden Age, without making mock of it.

And finally...



...because it's my birthday today, I couldn't think of a better way to celebrate than with a superhero birthday party. And GREEN LANTERNS! So, so perfect.

I hope you all enjoyed YOUR books!