Rebirth Wednesday-Week 1

Okay, now this starts for real. We're starting easy here, just four comics, all of them Rebirth issues. What's that? What's a "Rebirth issue"? Well, in order to establish each book's direction, mood, and catch up anyone who skipped everything New 52, most (though not all) books in the Rebirth line start with a Rebirth issue that sets everything up.

This look into what the Caped Crusader will be doing, written by Scott Snyder and Tom King while being drawn by Mikel Janin and colored by June Chung, is not a great start. Batman Rebirth #1 has a pretty typical and barely sketched out story as the main plot: Calendar Man something something spores something something seasons changing every day something something everyone will die.

Little effort actually goes into that storyline, both in terms of the villain himself and his plan, and it seems like it's more of a table setting. What more effort is put into is the Dark Knight himself, with several characters, though mostly newer character Duke Thomas, trying to figure out why Bruce does what he does.

I hope you liked me telling you Duke Thomas's name there, because the comic never does. It also never tells you his backstory, how he knows Bruce's identity, what his skillset is, anything. This wouldn't be an issue (heh) if every other Rebirth issue didn't go out of it's way to bring readers like me, who mostly skipped out of the last five years of continuity, up to speed. I had to Google who this kid is, and even then I'm still pretty hazy. Would it have been so hard to put more effort into introducing him to new readers?

This issue also reinvents Calendar Man, basically making him Time Lord regenerate by way of molting every spring, and rapidly aging throughout the year. This guy is like a E-list Batman villain, and while reinventions like this can work, not enough time is spent with him to actually get a good sense of his personality or anything that actually makes him interesting aside from his "powers".

The main theme behind the issue is how Bruce is similar to his father, in that both will go to any extreme to help those, despite the risks to themselves. It's not a bad story by any means, but as a way of catching the reader up and peeking their interesting in Batman's ongoing series it doesn't really do much. It's a rote story about how awesome Batman is. Yawn.

Batman Rebirth #1: C-

As much as I enjoy Arrow, the place it's always stumbled the most is with Oliver Queen. Don't get me wrong, he's a good character in his own right, but as an adaptation of the Battling Bowman himself, he leaves a lot to be desired. Green Arrow Rebirth #1, written by Benjamin Percy with art by Otto Schmidt, is more like it.

For those who aren't uber-comic geeks, Green Arrow is the superhero identity of Oliver Queen, child of a billionaire family who went from spoiled rotten douche to superhero after crashing a yacht on an uninhabited island for several years, forcing him to learn survival skills and archery to survive while also giving him perspective on his own life. Now he lives in Seattle, trying to use his money to help the helpless and his bow to cow the criminals.

Now, all of that is also true with the television show, but there's another important facet of the Emerald Archer: he is the ultimate Liberal superhero, and you can take that any way you want. Not only does Oliver Queen use his money to fight crime, he also uses it to try and help women, racial minorities, the LGBT community, the poor, and the disabled. What's great is not only does the comic bring this element back to the forefront after the New 52 basically forgot about it, it also has the viewpoint challenged and defended. I won't go into detail right now, but very few other characters actually agree with Ollie's views, and that's not a secret.

The issue also brings back his relationship with Black Canary, which has always been great when handled well and aggravating when written poorly. As hinted at in DC Universe Rebirth #1, some element of their previous relationship has drawn them back together again, as they learn more about each other.

Tie all that together with a great prologue to a longer arc about the Underground Men and their mysterious benefactors, as well as some of the best art I've seen in a comic in a long time, and you have a fun comic that's hard to put down. My only negative is that it doesn't really introduce Oliver's younger sister, an integral part of this ongoing, but that's forgivable when they spent so much of the issue setting up Oliver's character for the reader. Highly recommended.

Green Lantern Rebirth #1: A-

One of the bigger decisions as part of the DC Rebirth was how to handle the Green Lanterns. For those unawares, those guys with the glowing green rings? They're space cops. And superheroes. Actually walking the line between those two roles is something that is rarely done well. I lot of early GL stuff was more superheroey, while for quite a while now the books rarely stay on Earth, instead focusing more on the space cop angle.

In order to appease fans of both genres, split the line into two different series: Green Lanterns and Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps. The former is what I'm talking about today, and is about two rookie Green Lanterns working together on Earth, and aiming for a more normal superhero book combined with the buddy cop genre. The latter I'll get to later, and is about the Green Lantern Corps trying to stave off their own extinction.

This Rebirth issue that sets the stage is written by Geoff Johns and Sam Humphries, with art by Ethan Van Sciver, Ed Benes, and Jason Wright. Simon Baz was recruited into the Corps months ago in-universe, while he was imprisoned wrongfully in Guantanamo Bay. Jessica Cruz is a woman with deep anxiety issues who locked herself inside her apartment for years on end before becoming a villain against her will, and then a hero. Also against her will.

The two don't get along, mostly because Simon enjoys dismissing her opinions and taunting her over the fact that she's a rookie and has yet to manifest a physical construct with her ring. Both are trying to connect with family, and the Red Lantern Corps is on their way.

Let me say, right off the bat, that I really like the idea here: buddy space cop superheroes who need to learn to get along better. It's cheesy and silly, but it does have potential for great stories. The issue also clearly sets up room for both to grow as people, heroes, and Green Lanterns, as well as giving us good teases for future plot points. Jessica is also very likable, coming off as intelligent and uncertain about her future going forward, but doing her best regardless, with a forced smile.

Where the issue falls apart a little bit is with Simon Baz. Honestly, the idea of a Muslim Green Lantern is a good one, and he offers a unique perspective that doesn't get enough of a voice in superhero comics. I actually kind of like the scene where he's scrubbing graffiti off his sister's house, and gets hassled by the government despite the fact they've admitted their charges were bogus.

That's all fine. The problem is the Simon comes off as antagonistic, hot-headed, and completely dickish in his scene with Jessica. From the outset he treats her as an inferior and a fake, and even when Hal Jordan stands up for her Simon still clearly doesn't take what he hears to heart. Yes, I know it's something he'll almost certainly grow out of later on, but it's difficult to like a character very much when they're such an asshole starting out.

With decent art, mostly good writing, and one likeable protagonist, the book isn't a chore to read through. There are rough edges to it though, and could have put a better foot forward for the reader. Still, it's worth picking up.

Green Lanterns Rebirth #1: B

Okay, of the four Rebirth issues I'm covering today, this one is by far the most complicated. Here it goes: remember last week when I mentioned how the New 52 completely rebooted the continuity that had lasted since 1985? Well, not everything was lost. That version of the universe's Clark Kent, his wife Lois and their young son Jonathan all survived into the New 52 universe, and were hiding in a normal life for several years. Every once and a while Clark would help his other self quietly, without anyone noticing.

But soon before the Rebirth event began, an epic fight broke out in which pre-New 52 Superman was forced to join the fray, and in that fight the newer, younger Superman died. This issue, written by Peter Tomasi and Patrick Gleason (who doesn't get a front page credit for some reason) and drawn by Doug Mahnke, Jaime Mendoze, and Wil Quitana, the story is about pre-New 52 Superman (who I will now refer to as Clark to make things simpler) goes to New 52 Superman's (I'll call him Kent) grave to see if he can bring him back to life the same way Clark was brought back after dying against Doomsday, but he finds Lana Lang, Kent's childhood friend, is their already with a mission of her own.

The story here is tight, focused, and simple. Clark wants to help Kent if he can, but he still doesn't want anyone, even Lana, knowing too much about him. He's worried about his family's safety, and until the end of the issue that is his paramount concern. Meanwhile, Lana doesn't know what to do with this older, bearded counterpart of her best friend, and can't tell if he can be trusted. There's little in the way of genuine conflict or physical fighting here, but there's tension nonetheless.

Honestly, as the first of these Rebirth issues to focus on human drama and character dynamics entirely, I really dig this story. It's not great or anything, but it's a solid story that keys you into the fact that this Superman is just as real as the one who died, and sets up several story beats for him. Honestly, I love the fact that OG Superman is the one headlining both Superman and Action Comics. He's the Superman I know and love, and the same can be said for many, many others. (As long as Michael J. Straczynski isn't making him walk across Ameria.) As a fan of the Man of Tomorrow, I definitely recommend this book.

Superman Rebirth: B+

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