Justice League #5 demonstrated the power of great scripting and art.
Geoff Johns unites all the heroes who will become the Justice League just in time for Darkseid to blow them apart. Jim Lee draws two attacks by Darkseid that make you feel the heroes pain. You know a bad guy is bad ass when nothing needs to be said.
Johns gives Batman, Green Lantern and Flash the spotlight in this issue. Barry’s uses his speed for more than just outrunning the enemy. A brash Hal Jordan gets brutally humbled then checked by Bruce Wayne. Batman motivates Green Lantern to mobilize while he goes to hell…almost literally.
You don’t want to miss DC’s ultimate evil makes his New 52 debut.
The Dark Knight Rises Teaser Poster from thedarkknightrises.com. Courtesy: Warner Brothers Entertainment
The Dark Knight Rises brings Bane back on the big screen for Christopher Nolan’s final Batman film. Fans speculate that Bane will break the Bat like he did in the famous Knightfall storyline.
Star Christian Bale apparently used another famous Batman story to prepare for his final film in the cape and cowl. Bale tells the New York Daily News that Batman: Year One by Frank Miller was crucial to understanding the role.
“Suddenly, I found Batman has so many issues, he’s not a healthy individual, this is somebody that is doing good, but he’s right on the verge of doing bad,” Bale told the Daily News. “He’s got that killer within him that he’s desperately not trying to let off his leash. And that’s what I always return to.”
The Dark Knight Rises Teaser Poster from thedarkknightrises.com. Courtesy: Warner Brothers Entertainment
Is a big mystery of Christopher Nolan’s final Batman film almost cracked? Liam Neeson tells ShowBizSpy he was on set for The Dark Knight Rises but that’s all he can say.
“I can tell you nothing about Dark Knight Rises, seriously,” says Neeson.
“I was on set for maybe an hour-and-a-half and the director didn’t tell me anything of what it’s about.
“So, I’m being very honest when I say I have no idea what’s going to happen.”
Batman will face Bane and Catwoman in the final film but fans have speculated that Ra’s Al Ghul aka Henri Ducard would reappear too. Liam Neeson played Bruce Wayne’s mentor turned enemy in Batman Begins. Neeson is credited in the cast and actor Josh Pence is credited a young Ra’s Al Ghul in The Dark Knight Rises.
Tales of the Demon cover courtesy Amazon
Let me be geeky here:
It’s assumed the roles would be flashbacks but as Batman comic books fans know- Ra’s can resurrect himself in his Lazarus pits. I still think that Marion Cotillard is really playing Ra’s daughter Talia and she’s the puppetmaster behind Bane.
The Dark Knight is the talons of the Council of Owls in Batman. Now Bruce’s hometown has another enemy with sharp teeth to face. Vampires are taking their war to Gotham City. DC Comics revealed on The Source that Andrew Bennett and the Queen of Blood are coming to Batman’s town in I, Vampire.
“Up until now, we’ve been telling a story that’s very insular, and the vampires have struck and run. Well, in issue 5 that ends. Now they come face to face with the Batman, and it’s not going to end well for anyone. Plus, doesn’t Batman have those friends who call themselves the Justice League Dark?” teased writer Joshua Hale Fialkov.
The I, Vampire, Justice League Dark crossover begins in March.
Calling Batman #5 the latest chapter is not giving Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo the credit they deserve. Batman #5 is a work of macabre art and a bold experiment in storytelling that will take its place in graphic novel history.
Batman is caught in the ultimate trap set by the Court of Owls. As our hero tries to stay focused in their elaborate labyrinth the comic book you’re reading actually twists and turns taking you inside the mindwarping maze right up the slaughter.
You may actually may feel discomfort and tension just like Batman as your watch him lose his sanity and struggle to maneuver inside the trap. Snyder and Capullo have created an experience.
This is the work of two dark creative forces literally breaking a hero’s psyche and taking the reader into his journey into madness. The Court of Owls may still remain a mystery but clearly Snyder and Capullo are master manipulators like the villains with a grip on Gotham City and making Batman lose his grip on reality.
Nightwing is about to feel the claws of Batman’s new enemies in Nightwing #8. Can Dick Grayson protect the Mayor of Gotham City from the Council of Owls and the Talon?
This issue leads into the Batman event Night of the Owls. The Source says the issue will have a back up story on the Talon who is hunting Batman. For more of today’s previews click here.
The Court of Owls mystery helps make Scott Snyder’s Batman my favorite DC New 52 title. DC Comics recruited fan favorite Gary Frank for this variant cover to Batman #6 showing Batman battling the Talon, The Court of Owls enforcer.
Batman #5 is out tomorrow. DC’s The Source has this first look at Gary Frank’s variant cover to #6.
Deep under Gotham City is the Council of Owls’ ultimate trap and Batman fell right into it. Batman versus the Talon in a deadly labyrinth.
Steed and Mrs. Peel #1
The Avengers (not Earth’s Mightiest Heroes but England’s most stylish spies) are back in a new story by comic book superstar Grant Morrison. John Steed and Emma Peel reunite when Tara King is kidnapped by a mystery organization. The dashing duo and their mashup of sci-fi, spy and crime stories made The Avengers one of the most iconic shows in television history.
Avengers #21
X-Woman Storm is now an Avenger. The team needs every hero it can get against the combined forces of H.A.M.M.E.R. Hydra, The Hand and AIM under the leadership of Norman Osborn.
Avengers #21 courtesy Marvel Comics
Prophet #21
Image Comics throws some indy cred into the fuel to make a 90’s sci-fi concept blast off again. In the far future mankind has devolved into primitives and become prey for alien invaders. John Prophet awakens from cryosleep to wake up and restart the human race. Brandon Graham and Simon Roy take their European sci-fi style on the 90’s Rob Liefeld creation. The Zanadu Comic Book Round Table chose this as the first book to discuss at the next gathering on February 8th – the geek counterpart to O’s book club!
Generation Hope #15
Mindwiped Sebastian Shaw’s rescue and return to Utopia triggers new splits and fires up old grudges among the X-Men. Emma Frost has some serious explaining to do. Can this old enemy really become a hero now that he’s a blank slate?
