Tag Tom King

Batman – One Bad Day: The Riddler #1 Micro-Review – King’s Riddle

Rob Siebert 1 Comment

***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

Batman One Bad Day Riddler 1, cover, 2022, Mitch GeradsTITLE: Batman – One Bad Day: The Riddler #1
AUTHOR: Tom King
ARTISTS: Mitch Gerads, Clayton Cowles (Letterer)
RELEASED: August 16, 2022

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

Tom King has written some great Batman stories, and a few pretty bad ones. Thankfully, this is a good one.

I’ve read a bunch of Riddler origin stories. This is about as good as any of them. It might be the most complex. Which considering the lead character, isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

And of course, Mitch Gerads delivers. He and King almost always do.

Incidentally, Riddler has a teacher in this book that looks a lot like a West Wing-age Bradley Whitford with a mustache.

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Epic Covers: Batman – One Bad Day: The Riddler #1

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By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

Embrace the hat. That’s my unsolicited advice for artists developing their take on the Riddler.

Of course it’s dated. But somehow, he’s just not the Riddler without his trademark bowler hat. (That gives you some insight into what I thought of “S&M Riddler” from The Batman.) Plus, when you embrace it, it can really work for you.

Such is the case with Mitch Gerads’ cover for this week’s Batman – One Bad Day: Riddler #1. The blood red question mark, not to mention the splatter in the background, give it the ominous horror-ish vibe it’s going for. But the hat, as well as the pinstripe suit and glove, give it a touch of that flamboyant vintage supervillain vibe that’s part of the Riddler’s charm. The contrast really works, and creates some nice intrigue for whatever Gerads and King have planned for us…

Batman One Bad Day Riddler 1, cover, 2022, Mitch Gerads

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A Dark Crisis: Worlds Without a Justice League – Superman #1 Micro-Review – Growing Up Superboy

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***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

Dark Crisis Worlds Without a Justice League Superman 1, cover, 2022, Chris BurnhamTITLE: Dark Crisis: Worlds Without a Justice League – Superman #1
AUTHORS: Tom King, Brandon Thomas
ARTISTS: Chris Burnham, Fico Ossio, Adriano Lucas (Colorist), Sebastian Cheng (Colorist), Troy Peteri (Letterer)

RELEASED: July 12, 2022

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

The whole Batman and Robin aesthetic aside, which yet again proves DC has virtually no idea how to write non-Batman characters, this is a pretty cool story. It imagines a world where Clark and Lois are there for Jon Kent’s teen years, with Clark taking on a very George Reeves fatherly type role.

I don’t see Chris Burnham’s work nearly as much as I’d like to. So having him on this issue is a treat. His art has a really nice texture to it, and I’ve always enjoyed his figure rendering.

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A Batman #116 Micro-Review – More Batgirls, Please

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***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

Batman 116, cover, 2021, Jorge JimenezTITLE: Batman #116
AUTHORS: James Tynion IV, Becky Cloonan, Michael W. Conrad
ARTISTS: Jorge Jimenez, Jorge Corona, Tomeu Morey (Colorist), Sarah Stern (Colorist), Clayton Cowles (Letterer), Becca Carey (Letterer)
RELEASED: November 2, 2021

As was the case last issue, the Batgirls back-up is the highlight here. They might really have something when the ongoing series starts next month.

This extended “Fear State” story Tynion is working on hasn’t become as unwelcome as “City of Bane” became. But if it went on much longer, it would be. Thankfully, next issue is the conclusion. “City of Bane” largely soured me on Tom King’s Batman run as a whole. I’m glad to say that’s not the case with Tynion.

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Weekly Comic 100s: Rorschach #7

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***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Rorschach #7
AUTHOR: Tom King
ARTISTS: Jorge Fornes, Dave Stewart (Colorist), Clayton Cowles (Letterer)
RELEASED: April 13, 2021

If you’d asked me what real-world figures I had expected to see pop up in a Rorschach series, Frank Miller would not have been on the list. And yet, here he is. Or at least an allegorical Frank Miller who wrote The Dark Fife Returns.

Seven issues in, though it may be politically incorrect, I’ve enjoyed the majority of this book so far. Out of all DC’s attempts to cash in on Watchmen in the last decade, Rorschach feels the most faithful to the original. That’s a pretty high compliment, in my book.

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Weekly Comic 100s: Batman/Catwoman #4

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***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Batman/Catwoman #4
AUTHOR: Tom King
ARTISTS: Clay Mann, Tomeu Morey (Colorist) Clayton Cowles (Letterer)
RELEASED: March 30, 2021

There’s a gorgeous two-page spread of Catwoman in this issue, with Batman in the background. Beautiful work by Mann and Morey.

Less beautiful? The full page shot of one of Selina’s cats standing over a dead penguin (the bird, not the villain) with its throat bitten out. Seriously.

Selina is acting weird in this story, maintaining some kind of loyalty to the Joker while still in a relationship with Bruce. It doesn’t cast her in a favorable light at all, and I’m not a fan. This same dynamic with a lesser villain? Maybe. But the Joker? No.

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Weekly Comic 100s: Rorschach #6

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***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Rorschach #6
AUTHOR: Tom King
ARTISTS: Jorge Fornes, Dave Stewart (Colorist), Clayton Cowles (Letterer)
RELEASED: March 9, 2021

This is my favorite issue of Rorschach thus far. Through letters back and forth, we get a very personal look into the hearts and minds of Laura and Wil before they execute the Rorschach-themed plan we saw back in issue #1. It feels masterfully intimate.

Jorge Fornes and Dave Stewart are turning equally masterful art. I don’t get the sense they’re trying to imitate Dave Gibbons’ work on Watchmen. But they’ve conjured up enough of his vibe to make this feel like it’s taking place in the authentic Watchmen universe.

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Weekly Comic 100s: Batman/Catwoman #3

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***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Batman/Catwoman #3
AUTHOR: Tom King
ARTISTS: Clay Mann, Tomeu Morey (Colorist), Clayton Cowles (Letterer)
RELEASED: February 16, 2021

It’s Christmas time in this issue. I can only assume the pandemic delayed it, and it was supposed to come out in December.

I saw someone on Twitter describe the secret camaraderie that Catwoman and the Joker have as an “affair.” Joker makes an allusion along those lines in this issue. But it’s, y’know, a joke. Because he’s the Joker.  You could call the dynamic a lot of things. But not an affair. The word affair obviously implies sex. The Joker and Catwoman are not sleeping together.

At least they’d better not be…

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Weekly Comic 100s: Rorschach #5

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***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Rorschach #5
AUTHOR: Tom King
ARTISTS: Jorge Fornes, Dave Stewart (Colorist), Clayton Cowles (Letterer)
RELEASED: February 9, 2021

I think Rorschach is, thus far, a good book. It’s packed with slow-burning intrigue and excellent artwork.

But here’s my question: Is this what people wanted from a Rorschach book? I’m not sure. I always pictured a series like this filled with scenes featuring a brooding Rorschach walking the city streets. Much like what we saw in Watchmen. That’s not what we’re getting here. But personally, I’m alright with that.

There’s a really cool Comedian-related sequence in this issue. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen a smiley face that big…

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Weekly Comic 100s: Batman/Catwoman #2

Rob Siebert Leave a comment

***This is where we keep it nice and simple. Comic book reviews in 100 words or less. Straight, concise, and to the point.***

By Rob Siebert
Fanboy Wonder

TITLE: Batman/Catwoman #2
AUTHOR: Tom King
ARTISTS: Clay Mann, Tomeu Morey (Colorist), Clayton Cowles (Letterer)
RELEASED: January 19, 2021

For yours truly, there’s still a stain on Clay Mann’s name because of Heroes in Crisis (Tom King as well, obviously). But the guy is an objectively awesome artist, and he draws a pretty awesome Phantasm, as we see here in an early splash page.

This issue touches on the trust that exists, or maybe doesn’t exist, between Bruce and Selina. It’s a path that makes sense, as Selina was a thief. I’m just not sure I’ve regained enough confidence in King to believe it’ll be told well. Not necessarily a fan of all the time jumps we’re seeing.

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