Captain America #37 and #38: Two more excellent entries in the “Death of Captain America” Saga from Ed Brubaker, Steve Epting and Frank D’Armata (with Mike Perkins providing some of the inks in #38). I missed #37 when it hit the stands last week, and my friendly neighborhood comic book shopkeeper managed to dig up a copy for me.
It turns out that the Steve Rogers that Sharon Carter found in suspended animation was the 1950’s Cap, not Steve Rogers will all assume will reappear eventually. Since the reveal is a month old, I feel no shame for spoiling the surprise. This was one of the first Cap storylines I encountered when I started reading comics in the early 1970s, and I think I’m going to enjoy what Brubaker does with it.
The understated, realistic art from Epting and D’Armata only ads to the somber mood of this title.
Brubaker deftly handles a rather large cast of recurring characters, both heroes and villains. The plotting and pacing is perfect.
Justice Society of America #15: I’m a fan of Geoff Johns, normally. But he doesn’t seem to be handling the huge cast of characters very well. He’s been given a thankless task in this book though: Making sure every character in the classic mini-series “Kingdom Come” has an Earth 1 counterpart. This month’s issue is essentially a continuation of the fight scene that started in the middle of last month’s issue. Next month, they fight the “real” Gog. Joy.
Justice League of America #21: And here we go. This issue is almost entirely a prequel one of the upcoming multi-mini-series, mega-crossover “Final Crisis” event. We see “Libra,” a villain from the 1970s who I had almost forgotten, establish the (I dunno, 12th?) version of the Injustice League/Secret Society of Super Villains/Legion of Doom. Ooooo … but this time, they mean business. I am so not impressed. The only one of these event’s I’m looking forward to is the one with the Legion of Superheroes.
Catwoman #79: Selina’s back from her stint on the Hell Planet from the late and unlamented “Salvation Run” mini-series. Maybe, maybe, we can have a few issues in a row in which this delightful character isn’t crow-bared into the latest multiple-miniseries, mega-crossover, the-universe-changes-forever event.
The Brave and the Bold #13: This is the weakest offering of this series so far. But that’s still praise, considering how strong the other issues have been. What I like about this title is something that appealed to be about the first run. No one seems to care all that much what’s going on in other titles. In this issue, Batman and the Golden Age Flash team up to foil the Penguin and Professor T.O. Morrow, who are using android samurai to take over a company owned by Bruce Wayne. The opening page struck me as something the late, great Jim Aparo would have penciled and inked. The Batman in this book wasn’t the dark brooding Batman, but the Batman who worked and played well with others, and who actually engaged in lighthearted banter with another character.
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