Note: Both reviews contain some mild spoilers. If you don't want to know anything about either issues before reading them, skip to the last paragraphs.
So far, DC's relaunching their titles seems to be a good idea. I've only read Justice League #1, Detective Comics #1, Batgirl #1, and Action Comics #1 before reading the following two issues, so I can't give an opinion on the quality for all the new issues in general. However, based on the above and below titles, it seems to me that DC Comics made a solid decision in relaunching all of their titles at #1. For this week's round of comics, I'll be reviewing Green Lantern #1 and Batman And Robin #1.
Green Lantern #1 begins with Sinestro back as a Green Lantern and reciting the GL Corps oath. It turns out he was given Hal Jordan's ring after Hal was stripped of it sometime before. On earth, Hal's struggling with getting back into the normal world. He's arrested for accidentally attacking a movie star, but is then given bail by Carol Ferris. During an unsuccessful date, Hal's just miserable. Meanwhile, Sinestro sees that the Yellow Corps are in turmoil after his sudden 'betrayal', and meets with Hal asking if he wants his Green Lantern ring back. Whether or not Hal regains it will be decided in the next issue or two.
First off, the art is excellent. While not quite as fantastic as
Detective Comics or
Justice League, it still offers some great art that does a fine job at bringing the characters to life. The overall character designs are good as well, and they don't differ very much from previous comic incarnations at all.
The way the characters were depicted in this issue is a little hit-and-miss. Hal's not being successful at things in life is nothing we haven't heard before (just watch the first 20 minutes or so of the
Green Lantern movie to see what I mean), although the part where he accidentally beats up a movie actor was rather humorous. Also, the issue apparently doesn't act as a complete reboot at all (like it's been expected), with Sinestro being a Yellow Lantern in the past and Hal having his Green Lantern ring. I haven't read any of the final DC issues before the relaunch (such as
Flashpoint), so I can't say if this is continuing off of a particular storyline or not. However, that's certainly implied.
Despite seemingly picking up after a certain storyline,
Green Lantern #1 still has a good storyline, and the ending definitely makes me want to read the next issue as soon as it comes out. The brief battle between Sinestro and a Yellow Lantern is awesome as well, but it would've been nice to see it go on for a little longer.
In the end,
Green Lantern #1 is far from perfect, but it's keeping me VERY interested in seeing what happens in the next few issues, as it appears that Hal and Sinestro's relationship will reach a new level.
While not perfect, Green Lantern #1 boasts great art and believable characters to make its next issue anticipated.
Next up is
Batman And Robin #1, with a story written by Peter J. Tomasi and art by Patrick Gleason/Mick Gray. With the exception for
Action Comics #1, I've rated the previous issues I've read for DC's New 52 rather highly. So obviously, I had pretty high expectations for the first
Batman And Robin issue. So did I like it? I can't really say so.
Batman And Robin #1 depicts Damien Wayne, the whiny son of the Batman, becoming Robin all over again and kicking criminal tail. As Batman and Robin try to adjust to their new partnership, a figure emerges from Bruce Wayne's past: His name is NoBody, and he's not happy that Batman Incorporated is shining a light on his own shadowy war against evil.
The biggest flaw with this issue is probably the depiction of Damien Wayne. I don't know if this is the way he's been portrayed in previous issues (I haven't read a Batman comic with Wayne as Robin), but in this comic he was shown as whiny and reluctant in taking on the role of Robin. The relationship between him and Bruce Wayne shows that the two have quite a bit of friction as well.
Speaking of family talk, another big flaw is the fact that some of the characters aren't fleshed out enough, especially Damien. He's shown here as Batman's son, right? So where's his mother if he even has one? Does Batman adopt him or what? We fanboys know that Talia al Ghul is Damien's mother, but that isn't addressed at all in this issue. I think something like that is vital to be addressed at some point, especially for those new comers in comic reading who don't know about Damien at all. Also, this 'NoBody' character isn't fleshed out enough either.
Yet another flaw with
Batman And Robin #1 still has to do with Damien (you can tell I hate the character, right?). His being brought up as Robin seems to be all too quickly, and it barely addresses his being trained to fight crime. Perhaps the idea of having Damien as Robin in this issue was just a bad idea, they should've stuck with someone like Tim Drake as
the Robin.
With many things wrong, does this issue have any redeeming qualities? Well,
Batman And Robin #1 still has some solid art. While not near as excellent as prior issues in the new 52, it's still pretty good. Also, it's fun seeing Batman and Robin fighting crime, even if it isn't accomplished as well as it could.
Despite this,
Batman And Robin #1 is a very forgettable issue. I'll give the next issue a try, but if it's just as mediocre as the first issue, I may just drop the series completely. Check out
Detective Comics #1 or even
Batgirl #1 if you want your Batman fix.
Batman And Robin #1 suffers from a whiny Damien Wayne, a lack of developed characters, and a rather too swift pace in its delivery.
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