Fire and Ice: When Hell Freezes Over #4 – Joanne Starer, Writer; Stephen Byrne, Artist
Ray – 8.5/10
Ray: This is a chaotic issue, with the residents of Smallville struggling to adjust to their new bodies – and Gorilla Grodd crashing into town to reclaim his sister Linka, who is not in the right body at this moment either. Superman shows up to save the day, and has to pretend not to know his mother in the process, but the best part of this issue is definitely the segments in Hell. Fire is confronted with the consequences of her own actions that got a character killed in the previous volume, and is advised by an Ice who doesn’t seem quite…right. Ice, meanwhile, finds her way into a dungeon where her mother is being held – seemingly as punishment for giving birth to a magical child. There, Ice is met with a sadistic choice for how she can free her mother. This issue has some brilliant art, but it also has some surprisingly dark storytelling as the underworld starts to wear our heroines down.
Gotham City Sirens: Unfit for Orbit #2 – Leah Williams, Writer; Haining, Artist; Alex Guimaraes, Colorist
Ray – 8/10
Ray: These weekly minis tend to be high-intensity action stories, and this second issue doesn’t disappoint on that front. At the end of last issue, the Sirens discovered the Conduit located within a strange space-themed nightclub – and it was a small alien child, not a weapon. They try to free him – but it’s not long before they encounter the mastermind, Despero. This fin-headed alien rogue was an old-school Justice League villain, but fell out of prominence in recent years, so it’s good to see him again. Unfortunately, this issue is almost entirely action, as the Sirens try to fend off Despero and his alien soldiers. But they’re no match for him, not even Ivy, and the issue ends with them in dire straits as he enslaves them and prepares to blast the entire facility into deep space. It’s a fun read, but as a weekly series, there are bound to be issues that don’t quite work as their own thing.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
