dc comics – PopCult Reviews

Comic Book Review – Starman Omnibus Volume Two

Starman Omnibus Volume Two (2022)
Reprints All-Star Comics 80-Page Giant #1, Batman/Hellboy/Starman #1-2, JSA: All-Stars #4, Starman #44-81, Starman #1,000,000, Starman: The Mist #1, Starman/Congorilla #1, Stars and STRIPE #0, and The Shade #1-12
Written by James Robinson with David Goyer & Geoff Johns
Art by Tony Harris, Peter Snejbjerg, Mike Mayhew, Dave Ross, Mike Mignola, Mike Mckone, John Lucas, Brett Booth, Lee Moder, Cully Hamner

The second half of James Robinson’s Starman is mainly comprised of two storylines: Stars My Destination and Grand Guignol. Intermixed within are Times Past stories, filling in gaps in the backstories of the Golden Age Starman and Scalphunter. There’s a brief interlude for the DC One Million crossover that Robinson still uses to build on the legacy themes so prominent in this work. It should also be noted how popular Starman was at this point. It was enough to warrant a crossover with Batman and Hellboy. That’s amazing for a character who took his bow in the last issue of his series and hasn’t been seen since. Very few comic book superheroes get this sort of finality to their story. Yet, DC has never brought Jack Knight back.

Comic Book Review – Starman: The Cosmic Omnibus Volume One

Starman: The Cosmic Omnibus (2020)
Reprints Starman #0-42, Starman Annual #1, The Shade #1-4, Starman Secret Files #1, and The Power of Shazam #35-36
Written by James Robinson (with Jerry Ordway)
Art by Tony Harris, Teddy Kristiansen, Kim Hagen, Bjarne Hansen, Christian Højgaard, Guy Davis, J.H. Williams III, Gary Erskine, Steve Yeowell, Craig Hamilton, Dusty Abell, Jerry Ordway, Ray Snyder, Matthew Smith

James Robinson walked so Geoff Johns could run. In 1995, to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Crisis on Infinite Earths, DC Comics rolled out Zero Hour: A Crisis in Time. By the end of the mini-series, things were more or less the same with a few tweaks. Part of the changes was the rollout of a handful of new titles: Extreme Justice and REBELS continued storylines started in the pages of Justice League America and LEGION, respectively. Manhunter and Fate introduced new characters using legacy names. Primal Force was a magic title, while Xenobrood was about human-alien hybrids, seeming like a play on some of Image’s popular books. None of these last very long. There would only be one book post-Zero Hour that would go the distance and run for 81 issues, Starman.

Comic Book Review – The Flintstones Deluxe Edition

The Flintstones Deluxe Edition (2022)
Reprints The Flintstones #1-12 and Booster Gold/Flintstones Special
Written by Mark Russell
Art by Steve Pugh and Rick Leonardi

You might see a Flintstones comic book and think it’s some kiddie fare not worth your time. I thought that too in 2016 when I saw DC Comics was publishing it as part of a line of Hanna Barbera books. I was utterly wrong. In my opinion, this is one of the best comic book runs DC has published in over a decade. Writer Steve Pugh delivers a stunning satirical analysis of life in the United States using the Flintstone family and the world of Bedrock. This book left me wondering why The Flintstones has yet to be rebooted as an animated series in this style. That would be stunning.

Comic Book Review – Dark Knights of Steel

Dark Knights of Steel (2023)
Reprints Dark Knights of Steel #1-12
Written by Tom Taylor
Art by Yasmine Putri, Bengal, and Nathan Gooden

DC Comics has always loved a “What If?” story. The Silver Age, from the late 1950s to the end of the 1960s, was rife with covers that teased variations on your iconic superheroes. That trend revived itself in the Elseworlds imprint in the 1990s. The Silver Age stories often gave us alternate histories, while Elseworlds placed the heroes in new situations from space and time. Red Son saw Superman’s rocket landing in the USSR instead of Kansas. In Darkest Knight, Bruce Wayne receives the Power Ring instead of Hal Jordan. Batman: Red Rain showcased a world where Batman and many of his allies & enemies became vampires. With the big push for the new Multiverse, DC has recently rolled out more of these Elseworlds-type stories. There is DC vs. Vampires, which I previously reviewed, Jurassic League with humanoid dinosaurs, and this medieval set mini-series.

Comic Book Review – Formerly Known As/I Can’t Believe It’s Not The Justice League

Formerly Known as the Justice League (2003)
Reprints Formerly Known as the Justice League #1-6
Written by Keith Giffen & J.M. DeMatteis
Art by Kevin Maguire

I Can’t Believe It’s Not the Justice League (2005)
Reprints JLA Classified #4-9
Written by Keith Giffen & J.M. DeMatteis
Art by Kevin Maguire

On October 9th, 2023, Keith Giffen passed away from complications following a stroke. I can’t say with complete certainty, but I believe my first Giffen comic was Justice League America #42, so I always think of this run with J.M. DeMatteis when I see the writer’s name. Since then, I’ve read more of his work. I enjoyed his time on the Five Years Later reboot of the Legion of the Superheroes, but nothing can eclipse his Justice League. I’ve re-read and reviewed all of that here on the blog, so it was time to look at the two sequels that came about in the 2000s.

Comic Book Review – Stargirl and The Lost Children

Stargirl and The Lost Children (2023)
Reprints Stargirl Spring Break Special & Stargirl and The Lost Children #1-6
Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Todd Nauck

Geoff Johns is in his third act, and it’s not going great. Act one was his rise to prominence as one of DC Comics’ best writers in the 2000s. This was followed by a transition into DC’s films division, where he oversaw what I consider some of the worst superhero films of all time. He would still dabble in comics occasionally, but once he stepped down from his role in the movies, his output increased. The word that comes to mind when discussing this second shot at comics writing for Mr. Johns is “delays.” Not just a month, but multiple months on books that are already limited series. Why DC doesn’t require X number of issues in the bank before beginning publishing remains a mystery to me. It is an excellent strategy to ensure distribution goes smoothly and your readership stays happy.

Comic Book Review – Batman by Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale Omnibus

Batman by Jeph Loeb & Tim Sale Omnibus (2018)
Reprints Batman- Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special, Batman- Madness–A Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special, Batman- Ghosts–A Legends of the Dark Knight Halloween Special, Batman- The Long Halloween #1-13, Batman- Dark Victory #0-13, Catwoman- When in Rome #1-6 and a short story from Superman/Batman Secret Files & Origins 2003
Written by Jeph Loeb
Art by Tim Sale

There is no dearth of Batman comics at DC these days. Since his debut in Detective Comics #27, followed by a media push with his 1966 TV series and the cultural phenomenon of Batman 1989, the character has only seen his presence grow. It makes sense that DC Comics would publish so many Batman-related books because they ultimately sell. However, with such an increase in quantity comes a lack of quality. The incredible Bat-books are not typical, so when you find them, they shine brighter than the rest. Writer Jeph Loeb & artist Tim Sale not only created one of the best Batman stories of all time (The Long Halloween), but they followed up with two more fantastic mini-series (Dark Victory and Catwoman: When in Rome). This omnibus collection combines those three plus the one-shot Halloween specials that started it all, making for one of the best value oversized collections you could pick up.

Comic Book Review – DC vs. Vampires

DC vs. Vampires Volume One (2022)
Reprints DC vs. Vampires #1-6
Written by James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg
Art by Otto Schmidt, Simone Di Meo, and Daniele Di Meo

DC vs. Vampires Volume Two (2023)
Reprints DC vs. Vampires #7-12
Written by James Tynion IV and Matthew Rosenberg
Art by Otto Schmidt, Francesco Mortarino, and Daniele Di Nuculo

Try as I might, I have never really enjoyed vampires as a horror concept. I’ve watched many vampire films of varying quality; some I have liked, but the vampire aspect isn’t scary. Bram Stoker’s Dracula is a wonderfully made film, and Dracula is certainly creepy at moments, but I never felt scared of him. Vampires typically seemed to be used to explore ideas of titillating sexuality, which is fine if you’re into that. I don’t really think most of the classic monsters are all that scary, to be honest. Overexposure has demystified them to the point where they are cartoon characters. So when I picked up this Elseworlds comic series, my expectations were relatively low despite the creative talent behind it.

Comic Book Review – The Saga of the Swamp Thing Volume Six

The Saga of the Swamp Thing Volume Six (2014)
Reprints Swamp Thing #57-64
Written by Alan Moore and Stephen Bissette
Art by Rick Veitch, John Totleben, and Alfredo Alcala

As Alan Moore’s Watchmen maxi-series was making waves in comics, he was also writing the final issues of Swamp Thing. The writer was interested in connecting the elemental hero with the space/cosmic elements in the DC Universe. While the delve into the occult was successful because Swamp Thing’s character lent itself to that genre, this foray into science fiction is a more mixed bag. Moore is clearly being more experimental, and that causes the series to lose some of the humanity that made it so compelling in the early collections. These aren’t poorly written stories, but I could see them turning off some readers because of how Abby gets sidelined for a big chunk.

Comic Book Review – The Saga of the Swamp Thing Volume Five

The Saga of the Swamp Thing Volume Five (2011)
Reprints Swamp Thing #51-56
Written by Alan Moore
Art by Rick Veitch, John Totleben, and Alfredo Alcala

Coming off an incredible piece of horror writing, Moore keeps things chugging along at full steam in the pages of Swamp Thing. Our hero has faced the ultimate evil and has been the only one to stop it. However, there was lots of trouble bubbling over in the land of the living that directly affected the Swamp Thing. While the Crisis on Infinite Earths seems to have little consequence in these pages, we begin to see our main character connect with traditional superheroes outside of Houma, Louisiana, with this particular volume including a clash in Gotham City with Batman.