Secret Six #5 – Nicole Maines, Writer; Roger Cruz, Artist; Rain Beredo, Colorist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: It’s the countdown to the end of this gripping series, as our motley crew of heroes and antiheroes battle for the fate of Amanda Waller. Jon Kent and Deadshot are off on their own mission, so this issue focuses on the motley crew of Jay Nakamura, Deadshot, Black Alice, and Dreamer – as Dreamer and Jay battle over what the best way to seek justice is. There are some great callbacks to the original run, as Jeanette plays a key antagonistic role and Black Alice’s short time on the original team is revisited, but the meat of this issue is in what’s happened to Waller. Can you really seek justice on someone who isn’t what they were when they committed their crimes? It’s an intriguing puzzle, and one Jay may not have the patience to unravel. A lot of this has been set up for way over a year, and with only one issue to go, it’s not clear how much can be resolved, but this remains a compelling spotlight for some of DC’s messiest young heroes.
Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong #2 – Brian Buccellato, Writer; Christian Duce, Artist; Luis Guerrero, Colorist
Ray – 8.5/10
Ray: This series made the bold choice with its first run to be distinctly out of continuity, and that’s paying dividends – it adds real stakes to a story that would otherwise just be generic monster fights. Now, we see main villain Amanda Waller dead on the floor, and the Suicide Squad under the new command of Monsterverse antagonist Colonel Shaw – who wastes no time deploying new giant-sized villains into the field. This means, as the League heads into Hollow Earth to parlay with Kong, they find him engaged in battle with a mega-sized Killer Croc. There are some great visuals in this issue, as well as some high stakes and entertaining interactions, as Supergirl tries to win Kong’s respect and Superman chases down Lex Luthor. The ending is interesting, because it brings in very current plot threads from Godzilla vs. Kong: The New Empire, I think. Fun, exciting crossover stuff as always.
Batman ‘89: Echoes #6 – Sam Hamm, Writer; Joe Quinones, Artist; Leonardo Ito, Colorist
Ray – 8/10
Ray: It’s rare for a schedule issue to really screw up a comic’s momentum, but this one might be an exception. The sequel to the excellent Batman ‘89, which gave us the Burtonverse version of Two-Face at long last, has been delayed massively and now tries to wrap up a host of plots in only one more issue. How many plots? This comic tried to cram Scarecrow, Harley Quinn, Ra’s Al Ghul, and the return of Catwoman into one comic, as well as introduce Batman’s new Robin Drake Winston in action at last, and have Commissioner Barbara Gordon step into a hero role. Despite this chaos, it does manage to tell an entertaining story and it has fantastic art, although it definitely seems rushed. Harley winds up standing out as the key villain, while this version of Ra’s sort of falls flat. But overall, this story has a lot going for it but winds up being somewhat undone by its own massive ambition.
Teen Titans Go! #5 – Amanda Deibert, Writer; Dario Brizuela, Artist; Franco Riesco, Colorist
Ray – 7.5/10
Ray: This issue really leans into the anarchic comedy of Teen Titans Go, which may or may not be to everyone’s tastes. After mishearing the words of the State-Spangled Banner, Starfire decides she wants to embrace being an American, and the Titans make a list of the most patriotic things to do for the 4th of July. Of course, this goes haywire – mostly due to Starfire’s ability to misunderstand everything. The character’s naivete in the original cartoon has been dialed up to eleven here, including her odd speech patterns. Still, the issue does contain some hilarious set pieces, such as the chaos the Titans cause at a baseball game and a monster truck rally, and the issue does have a surprisingly great message about how everything is an American activity if it’s an American bringing their immigrant roots to the culture. We need it right now – even if the Chibi Titans might not be the best messenger.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
