Broken Frontier

Booster Gold #10

By Lee Newman

The penultimate issue of Johns and Katz’s run sees a plethora of threads tied tightly with a big old bow. Booster is reminded of his father’s nature and learns the consequences of his time changing actions.

This is how comics should be. This issue felt like a trade paperback there was so much going on in it. Unfortunately, this meant that the jokes didn’t come as fast and furious as they normally do, but when you have so much happening, does it really matter? Johns and Katz are determined to show you that everything in the series thus far has had specific purpose and that this book more than any other DC project right now is firmly tied to the continuity of the DC universe. It is a unique achievement that we are unlikely to see again. The ability for the narrative to be as easy to follow when there is so much going on shows why this book has been a treat since it began.

Next issue promises to be a doozy as we go to Booster Gold #1000000 to learn the fate of Booster and Ted. One wonders how much we will learn about Rip and Supernova. I am sure that it will be an entertaining rollercoaster, just like the previous eleven issues.

Geoff Johns & Jeff Katz (W), Dan Jurgens (P), Norm Rapmund (I), DC Comics, $2.99

Chuck #1

By Lee Newman

Events mean that Chuck needs to make a visit to the facility where they hold every baddie he has ever captured. Chaos ensues.

Fans of the television show will be well served by this comic. However, it may take the reader a minute. Opening the first issue of a comic with a dream sequence is kind of an odd choice, especially given that what was going on was not entirely out of the realm of the normal hi-jinks on the show. In fact, the whole package gets the feel of the show – guess that is what happens when you hire a co-producer and a co-writer of the show to handle the comic. The art has that WildStorm gleam, if not quite a photo-referenced look of the cast. For some reason Haun does nail Casey though.

If you are a fan of the show then check this book out. If you aren’t this might be a good way to gauge whether or not you should shell out for the DVDs. Oh and did I mention that there is a mock Atlas ad in the back with art by Phil Noto?

Peter Johnson & Zev Borow(W), Jeremy Haun & Phil Noto (A), Wildstorm/DC Comics, $2.99

Green Lantern Corps #25

By Steve Kanaras

The Green Lanterns communicate with the Black Mercy plant and prepare for the final conflict with Mongul.

As befits the penultimate chapter of a storyline, Green Lantern Corps #25 delivers quick paced action and a classic villain monologue. The issue is heroic science-fiction melodrama at its finest. The Corps combats the "Mother Mercy" plant on its host planet in a grueling, gory battle while the plant manipulates gravity and attempts to consume the ring wielding sentinels. After a lull in the action, the villain is given a chance to explain itself. The exposition was reminiscent of an episode of the original Star Trek, where the crew gathers around the alien and its origin is revealed.

The art team lushly illustrated the alien world, and it is nicely colored with generous greens and reds. Patrick Gleason cuts loose with several splash pages replete with alien tentacles and the contorted bodies of the Green Lanterns. This is my first exposure to Gleason's work, and I am very impressed with his and inker drew Geraci's work.

The action-packed issue left little room for character development, and my unfamiliarity with many of the Lanterns left me scratching my head a little bit, but this is chapter four of a story, and not meant as a jumping on point for new readers, so I can't complain too much. Overall, a fine science-fiction/superhero comic and a nice setup of the resolution of the story in the next issue.

Peter J. Tomasi (W), Patrick Gleason (P), Drew Geraci (I), DC Comics, $2.99

Titans #3

By Lee Newman

What is making the Titans act on their most base impulses and how does Trigon figure in it all?

This series has been and still is an enigma wrapped in a puzzle topped with bacon. Really, as a comic series it has been wildly uneven with a debut issue that implored me to beg people not to buy it to a second issue that seemed to be played for laughs. Then comes this issue with, oh my gosh, actual plot and character development! Color me shocked, the book I was reading as some form of guilty pleasure actually peruses into the realm of decent story telling with a story that actually makes all the scattershot elements from issue 2 make sense. Still don’t know what issue #1 was all about, but this issue was entertaining and informative. The downfall of the book thus far is Benitez’s inexplicable pencils which border on the absurd. The art has actually fueled my theory that this book was a joke thus far. While the art still seems to be some kind of parody, the story has grown out of its silliness, time for the art to do the same.

I still can’t recommend this book to you over three quarters of a gallon of gas, but there is a glimmer of light here that leads this reader to hope that some of his favorite characters getting back together might serve a purpose.

Judd Winick (W), Joe Benitez (P), Victor Lamas, Sandra Hope, et. al. (I), DC Comics, $2.99

The Voyages of SheBuccaneer: Voyage One Book 1 of 3

By Andy Oliver

When her lover Calico Jack Rackham falls prey to the hangman’s noose, the SheBuccaneer and her pirate crew begin a quest for seven mystical gems that will open the doors to the afterlife and free his soul from the clutches of the Devil!

And so starts the first offering from Bill and Heidi Hughes’ new Great Big Comics - the bimonthly bad girl pirate adventures of The Voyages of SheBuccaneer. Heidi Hughes writes a raucous, rollicking yarn of an opening issue that quickly establishes the tone and direction of this swashbuckling series. On the visuals, Bill Hughes’ art is lively and quirky throughout, providing an animated style that pulls the reader into the action sequences. Perhaps the only complaint I have about this opening issue is that so much happens that the characterization feels a little squeezed out. But with so little downtime for the crew maybe that’s not surprising....

Outside of the main feature the book reaches out to its readership in a way which was once common but is seldom seen in these Internet-intensive days. There’s a concerted effort to build a relationship with the audience through the inclusion of question and answer pages, a retailer focus and the opportunity for readers to join the SheBuccaneer’s crew on the printed page. For those of us old enough to remember the feeling of inclusivity that Stan’s Bullpen Bulletins engendered (in Marvel Comics of the 1970s for this fan) this is a lovely touch.

A fast-paced foray into skulduggery and high adventure, The Voyages of SheBuccaneer is unashamedly old school comics fun! Diverting, and refreshingly undemanding, it’s the perfect Summer alternative to the complex angst and doom of the more established comic book universes.

Heidi Hughes (W), Bill Hughes (A), Great Big Comics, $3.99