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Graphic Breakdown: Eastman Goes Kamandi, Batman and The Shadow Reach The End, Mr. Oz Revealed & More!

Welcome back to Graphic Breakdown!

It’s fall and the leaves are falling. Here are some comics to end the month out with.

 

Batman/The Shadow #6
Written by Scott Snyder and Steve Orlando
Illustrated by Riley Rossmo

This has been a great crossover. I wasn’t expecting to like it as much as I did. Now that I have read them all I can honestly say that this was awesome from start to finish. I’m really sad it’s over.

The Stag and the Joker are trying to end the world!

The world is going to fall into complete darkness. It’s up to the Shadow and Batman to stop them.

But can they?

And will Batman accept the destiny the Shadow has told him about?

The writing is superb. Snyder and Orlando make for a hell of a collaborative team. And the art from Rossmo is a career best for him. This is going to have a sequel. It won’t be as good though, since this creative team won’t all be returning.

I’m glad this came out however. Great stuff.

RATING: A

 

Batman: The Murder Machine #1
Written by Frank Tieri
Illustrated by Ricardo Federici

Damn, I’m enjoying these Metal tie-ins. This issue deals with the Batman who is indeed a murder machine! Tieri is the perfect comic book writer for this tale and his work shines here.

This “Murder Machine Batman” decides it’s time to do something truly ballsy: he’s going to invade the Justice League Watchtower.

This issue focuses primarily of him doing that. It leads to a lot of beat downs and hell to pay.

Tieri keeps the entire event fast and fun. The art is fantastic. I haven’t heard of Federici before, but he does a great job here.

Pick this up. Metal is damn awesome and this continues on that trend.

RATING: A-

 

The American Way: Those Above and Below #3
Written by John Ridley
Illustrated by Georges Jeanty

We are three issues into this sequel and I’m happy to report this is an excellent follow up. Sometimes when a sequel comes out it isn’t as good, but I can safely say this is a worthy follow up to the original.

Things are getting crazy for the remaining heroes of the Civil Defense Corps.

Jason’s actions against Black Power groups have gotten him noticed by the wrong parts of the government. While this is going on, Amber Waves is having problems of her own making.

John Ridley writes a wonderful tale that is also very topical. The art by Jeanty is great as well. I can’t wait to read all of this together.

It’s really good. Pick it up.

Now.

And don’t wait.

RATING: A

 

Kamandi Challenge #9
Written by Tom King
Illustrated by Kevin Eastman

Yay! This is the issue I have been waiting for! Kevin Eastman makes his DC Comics artistic debut in this issue. It’s definitely been worth the wait. He has an obvious love for Kamandi and it’s truly wonderful to see his joy transcend onto the page.

This issue picks up with Kamandi lost at sea! It’s a tale of suspense and intrigue as we see Kamandi fighting for his life alongside a menagerie. He’s trapped. Can he escape these conditions he has been forced into?

King writes a fantastic story. He and Eastman work magically together. (Also a note Freddie Williams III helps out with art assisting Eastman making this great)

This is a classic issue and I wish they would work on Kamandi for more than one issue.

Still, I’ll take what I can get.

RATING: A

 

The Flash #31
Written by Joshua Williamson
Illustrated by Neil Googe

The Flash has been damn entertaining lately.

Barry has been turned into the Negative Flash and it has been just an insane time. He can’t get a handle on either his powers or his attitude.

The Flash battles against Bloodwork in this issue and it’s an pretty damn wild.

Bloodwork has some of the craziest powers I’ve seen in some time. As he fights against this villain, Barry is consistently reminded how this whole thing is indeed his fault.

Williamson writes a great story here. He’s on a real roll lately. The art is not the best but not the worst either.

Pick this up. It’s been a great run so far on this Negative Flash storyline.

RATING: B+

 

Suicide Squad #26
Written by Rob Williams
Illustrated by Stjepan Sejic

Man, putting on Stjepan Sejic on a title for art duties really makes a difference.

First, he goes on Aquaman and makes a decent comic great. Then, he comes onto this title and makes it look shiny and new and exciting.

This is a Metal tie in issue! Villains have taken over Gotham City! They take over sections of the town and are making their play for dominance! Who can stop them?

The Suicide Squad! We hope!

The story is fun and the art works well with it. It’s just a guilty pleasure good time. Pick it up as this works better than it has in past issues (with other artists) Sejic adds a crazy energy. It makes everything seems fresh again.

RATING: B+

 

Mother Panic #11
Written by Jody Houser
Illustrated by Shawn Crystal

Mother Panic has been a rollicking weird time thus far.

Jody Houser is a hell of a writer and she’s doing some truly unique storylines.

This issue features a threat from Mother Panic’s past.

It’s a suspense tale that Houser writes well and keeps you guessing. I couldn’t tell where this issue was going. That’s part of the fun though.

The art leaves me cold. I don’t know where Shawn Crystal came from but I’m not loving it. He seems like a rejected Image artist from the 1990s.

The story is involving enough to keep you reading. With a better artist this could be a much stronger book.

RATING: B

 

Detective Comics #965
Written by James Tynion IV 
Illustrated by Eddy Barrows

This is an issue that focuses on Tim Drake.

Or rather the mystery of where the hell Tim Drake might actually be. We have seen him locked up by Mr. Oz. Can he escape his prison?

I liked this a lot. The whole issue feels like a Stalag 17 good old fashioned prison break.

The story by Tynion is very good and he writes Tim Drake to a tee. I’ve always liked Red Robin and it’s good to see him back in the spotlight for the Rebirth boos.

What can I say about Eddy Barrows? Well, I’m super happy he finally makes his way back to the book. He and Tynion work well together and always make a solid team. Pick this up. It’s a good start to a good new storyline and it’s a nice semi tie-in to the Action Comics storyline currently going on!

RATING: B+

 

Batman Beyond #12
Written by Steve Orlando and Vita Ayala
Illustrated by Siya Oum

This comic features a guest creative team! But they do so well they should think about staying on.

It focuses on the Batmen being out of town(Bruce and Terry) and nobody left to protect Gotham. Nobody that is, except the futuristic Batgirl.

Nissan is the 15 year old Batgirl of the future!

Commissioner Barbara Gordon is led to a siege in which she can’t get out of. Nissa is the only one who can save her. Can she prove her mettle? Or will Commissioner Gordon die?

The story is exciting and nicely written. The art is something special too. Oum is someone who I haven’t seen before in comics but I just loved the artwork.

Pick this up. It’s a fairly awesome issue.

RATING: A-

 

Bombshells United #2
Written by Marguerite Bennett
Illustrated by Marguerite Sauvage

The All Marguerite party continues on in this fine issue. It’s been a nice two first issues for this title both in writing and art. I hope this team stays on for a while on this title as they work superbly together.

This tale has Wonder Woman protecting some of Donna Troy’s and Cassie Sandsmarks’ friends by taking them to a forest. These ingrates however want to leave and start to complain.

Then, it appears a spy may have infiltrated the camp! What’s a Wonder Woman to do?

This story had a lot of drama and some dark humor in it. It’s handled very well. The art is wonderful and does the story justice.

Pick this up. It’s a good comic book reading experience.

RATING: B+

 

Action Comics #988
Written by Dan Jurgens
Illustrated by Ryan Sook

The first page of this issue is just the coolest page ever. As drawn by Ryan Sook (underrated), it has one word on it. And it’s Superman’s reaction to finding out who Mr. Oz actually is. It’s wonderful.

The rest of the issue gives us the story of how Mr. Oz came to be on this Earth.

Dan Jurgens writes a decent enough tale that doesn’t exactly surprise. I’m not the biggest fan of this “revelation.”

But at least they are doing something that hasn’t really been done before. That’s to be commended.

The art is the best part for me. Sook is such a damn fine artist. I wish he would do more Superman as he’s got a great handle on him. Worth a look.

RATING: B+

 

 

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