Movie Review: The Flash - Great Set-Up, Bad Punchline

 

Did you know this movie was set for a 2018 release when it was first announced? Well, after years of delays due to development hell, a global pandemic, studio politics, and a lot of criminal behavior from the lead actor, The Flash movie has finally arrived. It's fitting though that it would come out June 2023. It's been ten years since the release of "Man of Steel" and the beginning of the DC Extended Universe (as well as my blog). And the film is also meant to serve as the bridge between universes as the DCEU ends and a new one begins, resetting things much like "Flashpoint" did for the comics. So with such a long wait and its significance to the future of DC in live action, does "The Flash" live up to the hype? Well, there's a lot to like and be excited about for the film, but calling it the beginning of the new DCU may be an exaggeration (especially when you realize Aquaman 2 is technically the last DCEU film).

The best way to describe the film is a more scaled back "Flashpoint", focused more on Barry's story than everything that changed around him. Although compared to the animated adaptation, I feel it has a more emotional payoff. Director Andy Muschietti does a great job on a lot of fronts. The depiction of Barry's powers is unique compared to Grant Gustin's version and when we last saw Ezra's, making concepts like Flash-time and time travel exciting to see. He is also able to homage and respect the past DC works of directors like Tim Burton and Zack Snyder. On the latter, the film seems to make clear references to Snyder's version of Justice League (particularly Flash's big moment from the climax), although there are a few moments that felt Whedon-esque. In any case, Muschietti proved himself here and I look forward to his officially announced Batman film for the new DCU.

Despite what's gone on in real life, it doesn't detract from Ezra Miller's performance (though there are admittedly some parts of the film that haven't aged well with all things considered). While there's still elements of Wally there, the Barry we see here is a little more disciplined compared to "Justice League" and there's more time to get emotionally invested in his character. Miller also does good as the altered timeline's other Barry (insert your own "Archer" reference here), showcasing a version that's had a much easier life, not really taking things seriously until it's too late.

Of course, we all know the biggest reason people are excited for this movie: Michael Keaton's return as Batman. Watching the original modern movie Batman back in action and hearing Danny Elfman's theme was such a rush of nostalgia. Even out of costume, Keaton hasn't missed a beat and it's easy to see this as a continuation from when we last saw him in "Batman Returns". A nice touch is that he's using Bat-tech that has a few improvements from his last movie but still a little outdated by today's standards, which makes sense considering we learn he's been retired for a number of years. There's definitely a "Dark Knight Returns" influence there, as you can tell he's glad to be back in action and ready to give his all, making it as great a send-off as Maguire and Garfield in "No Way Home".
Another Batman riding off into the sunset is Ben Affleck (though why the hell he doesn't get listed in the credits is beyond me). While he doesn't get as much screentime as Keaton, "Batfleck" is able to give us one more high-octane action scene reminiscent of his Batmobile chase and warehouse fight from "Batman v Superman." I wish things could have been different and we could have gotten his solo film, but a big point this film makes is not to obsess about the past or what could have been. I'm still thankful for the time Affleck gave us as the Dark Knight.
And while her time was brief, I thought Sasha Calle was a breakout star as Kara/Supergirl. She made it very believable that under different circumstances, she could have filled Superman's role as a symbol of hope and become a defender of Earth.

For the most part, the film is enjoyable. But then you get to the final moments before the credits roll. I won't go into spoilers, but it feels like everything we watched lead up to a bad joke. It's as confusing as Vulture showing up in "Morbius" or the end of Burton's "Planet of the Apes" with Thade somehow taking over Earth. The implication is that Barry creates the new DCU, but who we see can't possibly play a major role going forward, can he? Even the post-credits scene doesn't help explain or, much like the ones we got with "Fury of the Gods", add anything to the narrative.

If anything, Keaton killing it, a story with an emotional core, and some impressive special effects make "The Flash" worth a watch. Just be prepared for a real mind-freak of an ending.

Comics Review: "DCeased: War of the Undead Gods"

 

When we last left the DCeased universe, things had taken a turn for the positive. A cure for the corrupted Anti-Life Equation had been found and started being dispersed among the infected habitants of the ravaged Earth. But while Earth was on the mend, let's not forget that an Anti-Living Darkseid had touched down on the New Gods world of New Genesis. This leads us into Tom Taylor and Trevor Hairsine's final chapter of the DCeased trilogy, the eight issue "War of the Undead Gods". Let's dig in and see if the conclusion gives a satisfying payoff.

Like the previous two series, we have narration from a character reflecting on events of the story after the fact; this time, our narrator is Alfred Pennyworth.
Issue one begins with a scene DC apparently thinks we haven't seen enough times: Krypton about to explode. We see Kara Zor-El, not yet Supergirl, being rocketed off the planet by her parents. In this universe though, her father sent her to New Genesis so with the yellow sunlight, she could live among gods compared to the "primitives" on the planet her cousin was sent to. Much like her mainstream counterpart though, the timing of her landing doesn't do her any favors as when she's searching for inhabitants, she's approached by Anti-Living New Gods, lead by the High Father. Kara tries to evade them, even attempting to use her newly acquired flight and heat vision. But she is quickly surrounded and infected, the scene being juxtaposed to Zor-El's recorded message about how "This future is the greatest gift we could give you." So I guess Zor-El usurps Booster Gold as the worst gift giver of the DC universe.
We cut to the present where after a brief recap of what the virus took and what the cure gave back, there's one more Earth hero to cure: Superman, who has been in the sun absorbing its energy since the end of the first DCeased book. A team of Jon Kent/Superman, Cyborg, Cassie Sandsmark/Wonder Woman, Mary Marvel, Dinah Lance/Green Lantern, and Cassandra Cain/Batgirl with Shazam powers (and I will still refer to her as Batzam when given the chance) float outside the sun preparing for the task. Jon flies into the sun to catch his blighted father's attention and get him out of the sun so the others can administer the cure. Problem is that the Man of Steel is supercharged after five continuous years of absorbing solar energy, so it's a lot harder for our heavy hitters than they thought.
We cut to Earth-2 where we see President Lois Lane conversing with Green Lanterns John Stewart and Guy Gardner when a Boom Tube opens. Coming through are Jon, Cyborg, Damian Wayne/Batman, Big Barda, and Scott Free/Mr. Miracle, as well as a cured Superman (back in his classic suit and sporting a robot arm) and Pa Kent, which leads to a heartfelt family reunion with Lois and Martha. Scott and Barda plan their own reunion with their son, Jacob, as they bid the heroes farewell. Damian then goes to see Alfred and Leslie Thompkins to fill them in on what transpired on the League's trip back to Earth. Despite the good news of a cure, Alfred's guilt over having to kill Bruce, Dick and Tim during the initial outbreak is made only worse by the fact they could have been saved. Damian tries to console him saying nobody could have known at the time, but Alfred doesn't feel he deserves absolution:  "I pulled the trigger three times. I killed my sons." Hairsine does a good job at capturing the emotion of the scene, even with something as simple as showing Alfred with tears in his eyes.
The next day, Earth-2 is approached by Brainiac probe drones that are quickly dealt with by the father/son Superman team before they even break the atmosphere. Knowing the villain won't be far behind, the Supermen, Green Lanterns, and Cyborg stand by as Brainiac's ship arrives hours later. Cyborg notes the ship looks damaged while Guy thinks it's a trap. Clark notes that Brainiac isn't one to use deceit as he prepares to enter the ship. Jon comes with, not willing to let his just-returned father go into danger alone. The two go through the ship with Alfred's narration stating that Clark was just as protective as Jon. Issue one ends as Clark and Jon find Brainiac, hanging from wires and missing his legs and right arm, as he delivers an ominous warning: "We have to stop them. The gods are dead. But still they come, Kal-El. They will poison the universe. The dead gods will end everything."

Issue one's not a bad start. Aside from the ominous beginning and ending of what was to come, it delivers some levity and probably the most optimistic issue of the entire DCeased series. The emotional moments are also done well between the Kents' reunion and Alfred's moment of mourning and guilt.

Issue two begins with Scott and Barda travelling through a Boom Tube to New Genesis. Barda worries how their son will react to seeing them again after five years, with Scott half-jokingly reassuring her that Jacob will be more mad at his father given she has the excuse of being dead that whole time. The two step out to find their capitol city in ruins, with the only clue to investigate being a black and red version of a Boom Tube. Barda heads to the portal without hesitation, thinking it could lead them to Jacob. Barda sticks her hand in before she is pulled away by the Black Racer, the New God of Death, revealing the portal ate her hand down to the bone. Black Racer explains to the two of the Anti-Living Darkseid's actions on New Genesis, creating an army of undead gods and the Anti-Life Equation infecting Mother Boxes, changing Boom Tubes into Doom Tubes that only the dead and unliving can pass through.
We then cut to the planet of Korugar where Darkseid and the New Gods wreak havoc despite the planet's advanced defense forces. A distress signal is sent out where it's picked up by the Warworld space station, manned by the Sinestro Corps. With his home world in peril, Sinestro plots a course to save it.
Back on Brainiac's ship, Guy is hesitant about trusting Brainiac. As a gesture of good faith though, Brainiac gives Clark a shrunken Kandor, the last surviving city of Krypton. Brainiac also explains that his desire to collect knowledge will be all for not if the Anti-Life Equation consumes the entire universe. Clark takes the threat seriously and in true Superman fashion is determined to save the day, brushing off Brainiac's attempt to tell him the odds of their succeeding.
As Warworld arrives above Korugar, Sinestro leads his Corps in a combined energy blast with the station's own weapons to fire down at the planet. It's blocked though by an energy shield created by Green Lanterns Kyle Rayner and Soranik (Sinestro's daughter). The two had also received Korugar's distress signal, arriving and believing Sinestro to be attacking his own planet. Any misunderstandings are soon thrown out the window as the Anti-Living Supergirl flies at high speed, punching out Kyle as she reaches her true target of Warworld. Attaching a corrupted Mother Box on the outside of the station, Warworld soon becomes part of the Anti-Life Equation and begins firing on Korugar and members of the Sinestro Corps. Darkseid then arrives and fires his Omega Beams at Sinestro and Soranik, who block it with their own beams from their Lantern rings. The struggle is short-lived though as Supergirl knocks the father/daughter team off balance. Darkseid then grabs Sinestro by his head and swiftly decapitates him as Kyle and Soranik retreat to get reinforcements. Sinestro's power ring leaves his body to find a successor, as all Lantern rings do upon their wearer's death. The ring chooses the Anti-Living Darkseid, who then speaks as the issues closes out. "Yes...everything fears the end of life."
Issue two really kicks things into high gear after taking things slow with issue one, with moments like Sinestro's death delivering the shock and tension this universe is known for. And an Anti-Living Darkseid getting a power boost as a Yellow Lantern is terrifying and so fitting; it was as if he became the avatar of the Anti-Life Equation.

Issue three is a more of a set-up issue with three main scenes displayed.
The first scene set on the planet Rann shows Adam Strange being forcibly transported to Earth via a Zeta Beam, which was a staple of the character. As it would turn out, he was transported to Earth a month before the events of "Dead Planet" and he ends up being infected by the Anti-Living Wonder Woman. When he is eventually transported back to Rann, he spreads the infection to his own people and the invading Thanagarians the planet was at war with. In addition to showing it's not just a single individual like Darkseid spreading the virus to other areas, which makes sense given past real world events, what I do like about this part is that it turns what would have been a happy reunion between Adam and his wife and daughter into something out of a horror film.
We cut to present day somewhere in the Rylex System where a Thanagarian Warship arrives and Anti-Living Thanagarians attack some random bar where intergalactic bounty hunter Lobo was tying one on. After one of them kills his bartender, an angered Lobo grabs the Thanagarian who did so and receives a scratch across his chest. As it turns out, Lobo's Czarnian biology seems immune to the Anti-Life Equation, and being sentient, it expresses its surprise through the Thanagarian: "You do not turn." Lobo responds with "Oh, I can TURN." as he twists the Thanagarian's head around and around until it pops off. Lobo then takes the wings of his victim and uses them to fly up to the warship and blow the whole thing up. What can I say? Badass.
Back on Earth, a Viking funeral is held for Wonder Woman on Themyscira. Hippolyta, Dinah, Nubia, and Cassie take part in the eulogy with Artemis and Green Arrow shooting their flaming arrows to a boat carrying Diana's tiara. Ares crashes the event and is immediately surrounded. He then transports the forementioned characters to the Hall of the Gods, where he warns them that a "final war" is coming that will see every race in the universe die, citing that this has happened before in another universe. Dinah's Lantern ring then receives a priority message from Ganthet about what happened on Korugar and orders all Lanterns and allies to return to Oa. Oliver doesn't seem worried now that they have a cure, but Ares explains that what they face is more than just an equation as the issue ends: "This is older than numbers. Older than gods. This universe will die. Erebos is here."
So rereading this, I think this issue is where the cracks start to show with this particular entry in the "DCeased" series. In order to show the Anti-Life Equation universe-wide, we're shown scenes where the Anti-Living army is growing, but it doesn't exactly advance the story. It stretches things out to where I can't go into much detail about what happens compared to the previous two series or we'd be here all day. Even the fun dialogue moments from Tom Taylor's writing are coming off superfluous because of it. The other problem is the explanation that the Anti-Life Equation has a supernatural origin as well with something called Erebos being our final boss of the whole series. I liked it better when it was just a sentient virus trying to spread as much death as possible, and a Yellow Lantern Anti-Living Darkseid acting as its avatar would have been sufficient enough. And even with a cure developed, there would still be tension and a race against the clock as our heroes would try to hold back the Anti-Living while producing enough of the cure to put an end to the threat once and for all.

Issue four begins with what's seemingly a flashback to the day Alfred had to shoot Bruce, Dick, and Tim. It's revealed to be a nightmare though as their bodies get back up and ask him why he had to kill them. Alfred is then awakened by Leslie, the scene revealing the two have been dating; I like this idea given the two had been Bruce's surrogate father and mother after what happened to his own parents. Leslie comforts him, telling him it wasn't his fault and that he needs to let go of his anger. She then poses the idea that Alfred may have raised Bruce with the same anger he had over Thomas and Martha's deaths, and that Batman's crusade was just as much his. It's an interesting theory; the Waynes meant as much to Alfred as Bruce, so despite the times he's tried to steer Bruce away from his life as Batman, he may have subconsciously encouraged it and sought vengeance vicariously through his adopted son.
Before the conversation can continue, they're visited by Damian, who pieces together quickly the two are a couple and is happy for them. Damian informs them that he's going to Oa to plan for the battle against the Anti-Living. Alfred pleads with him not to go, not wanting to lose another son. Despite the odds, Damian says he has to try. "There's too much of your father in you.", Alfred tells him. Jon shows up telling Damian they have to go as Alfred offers to join them in whatever way he can than just sit on the sidelines. Damian admires Alfred's bravery, saying there's too much of Bruce in him too. As the heroes leave for Oa, Jon figures out about Alfred and Leslie too and shares in Damian's joy. It's a nice moment that despite how big the threat they're facing has become that's there's still moments of love happening. And this is one of the main things I've always enjoyed about the DCeased books; despite all the death and gore that are abound, there's still a sense of hope and life persevering.
Later on Oa, Ganthet briefs the Lanterns and the League that with twelve planets and a hundred billion lives lost and many more in danger that lethal force is sanctioned with the infected worlds to be wiped away. Clark brings up that there is a cure now but Ganthet sees the threat is too great to engage directly. Brainiac agrees with the Guardian, which makes Guy point out that maybe they should rethink things. Clark and other members of the League are willing to put up a fight with the Guardians and Lanterns over it as Ganthet decides that the Man of Steel will be detained on Oa. Cassie then points out the obvious: "You want to imprison SUPERMAN while committing GENOCIDE?" If there weren't an obvious bigger enemy in this story, I'd very much would have included the "Are we the baddies?" meme here.
Clark then punches Ganthet straight in the face, homaging the "One punch!" scene between Batman and Guy from the old Justice League International comics, and all hell breaks loose. In the middle of the melee, Damian becomes aware something is wrong: "Pulse elevated. Judgment clouded. Emotional response heightened. We are NOT in control of the situation." Damian then spots Ares, telling him to stop this. I guess you could say Ares wanted to have a little fun before the end of the universe, but the last issue implied he was wanting to prevent it, so why with the chaos?
Issue four ends with the arrival of probably the last character you would have expected in this series: Mr. Mxyzptlk. "You should listen to the little Batman, Ares...I won't let you hurt Superman."

Issue five shows the two cosmic powerhouses standing off with one another, with everyone hesitant to get between them except for the two Supermen. Clark then makes it clear to the Guardians that they will take the cure to the infected planets even if the Green Lantern Corps tries to stop them. Cassie and Dinah bring up what Ares said that what's happening is really being caused by "Erebos", the name giving Ganthet pause. Realizing things are different than they believed, Ganthet orders all Lanterns to stay on Oa to protect the central power battery. Ganthet brings up a map of worlds infected being infected by the virus, with Darkseid's forces currently attacking Bolovax Vik, the home planet of Green Lantern Kilowag. Kilowag immediately flies off as Ganthet orders all the other Lanterns to stay until he decides on the next course action with the Quintessence, the council of gods who oversee the DC Universe. Mxyzptlk volunteers himself and Clark to handle Darkseid. Jon wants to come too, but Clark tells his son that he needs to stay behind to protect their two Earths and work on a plan to save the other infected words. Jon relents, telling his father he'll bring him back from the dead a second time if he has to.
Kilowag, Mxyzptlk, and Clark arrive above the atmosphere of Bolovax Vik when they're soon joined by a number of Lanterns, including John and Guy, who disobeyed the Guardians to help their fellow soldier. Everyone goes into action when Clark is soon attacked by the Anti-Living Kara, confused by her attire. Alfred offers some poetic narration as Clark watches her use heat vision on innocent bystanders: "Wherever he went, his symbol stood as a shield against darkness. Everything that symbol stood for was perverted that day."
Before Clark has time to process this, he's hit in the back by Darkseid's yellow energy beams. Mxyzptlk gets between the two, and if it weren't for his cockiness and time he was taking to decide what to turn Darkseid into, the story might have ended here. Instead, Darkseid pulls out a corrupted Mother Box and exposes Mxyzptlk to the Anti-Life Equation, making him one of the Anti-Living. And if you thought an Anti-Living Darkseid was bad, now there's a fifth dimensional imp with reality warping powers among their ranks. The threat is quickly displayed when Mxyzptlk goes full kaiju. The Lanterns' assault on the giant imp proves futile, with Kilowag and John being crushed to death in the palm of his hand.
Mxyzptlk quickly destroys Bolovax Vik and carries remains of the planet with him as he flies through space back to Oa to smash them into the planet and destroy the central power battery. This cuts off the Lanterns from their powers, leaving some suffocating in the vacuum of space. Thankfully they're saved when the battery is restored by the Spectre, who broke away from the meeting with the Quintessence to step in. The virus, or rather we learn it's been Erebos speaking through the infected, seems to recognize Spectre and speaks through Mxyzptlk, referring to him as "Vengeance." The issue ends as Spectre, with the power battery in one hand and a sword manifested in the other, prepares to engage. "Yes, agent of entropy, I am the spirit of vengeance...and I am very, very @#%& off."

Issue six sees Clark's perspective of Bolovax Vik's destruction, and how while it seemed instantaneous to a normal person, his perception and super senses made him experience it in slow motion and feel the loss of sixteen billion souls; "For the second time in his life, the man from Krypton was powerless as a world died." Clark then finds Kyle in the floating ruins looking over them, taking in the loss of Kilowag, John, and the whole planet; "We lost. Clark. We lost." With his super vision, Clark is able to see the Anti-Living Darkseid from some distance, the two locking eyes. As angry as he was, Clark is able to set his rage aside to comfort Kyle; "We haven't lost yet, Kyle. We're still here." It's honestly just a moment I love that shows how idealistic Superman is; he just experienced a horrific catastrophe, but he stays to comfort a friend rather than give in to feelings that could be his undoing.
While Darkseid is the main threat, the bigger danger at the moment was the battle between Spectre and Mxyzptlk. Alfred's narration tells how the blows of their battle were tearing the fabric of reality, with black holes being created and sucking planets and stars into them. While some Green Lanterns try to give Spectre assistance, they end up meeting the same fate as John and Kilowag. When the infected imp seems to have the upper hand, Clark flies in to deliver a punch, giving Spectre the opening to land the killing blow with his sword. Before succumbing to his mortal wound, Mxyzptlk uses his last moments sever the Spectre from his human host, Jim Corrigan. As the spirit becomes untethered and fades from sight, Clark comforts Jim as he dies in the vacuum of space; "This universe is a miracle. Don't let it fall, Superman."
Back on Earth-2, Jon and the rest of the League have returned from Oa (along with Scott and Barda from New Genesis) with the plan to get back to Earth-1 to produce the cure on a universal scale. While they plan to use a Boom Tube to head there, Scott's Mother Box begins pinging and spewing blood. Brainiac realizes that since the boxes are linked, it's already infected with the Anti-Life Equation. Soon enough, Doom Tubes begin opening on Earth-2 and Anti-Living from across the universe begin their assault. As the League go into battle, Lois and Damian begin the process of evacuating the planet and loading people into the arcs that brought them there five years earlier. In the chaos though, Leslie is slashed by the Anti-Living Adam Strange and soon succumbs to the virus. Damian pulls a distraught Alfred away from Leslie as he continues the evacuation with Green Arrow. As the Anti-Living High-Father lands in the crowd, Damian attempts to keep him busy while others get to safety. While Damian does his best, he's just no match for a New God, let alone an Anti-Living one. Alfred gets between the two and lets out a scream fueled by anger and loss for those he's lost in his life. A scream that attracts another full of anger, and in that moment, Alfred Pennyworth has become the new host of the Spectre. Issue six ends with the newly powered Alfred punching High-Father straight through the head, declaring "You will NOT take another son from me!" I really loved this moment. Not only does it add another power set change for a character like Black Canary becoming a Green Lantern or Batgirl getting Shazam powers, but this is so fitting for Alfred. As the surrogate father of Batman, him taking on an identity associated with vengeance has him fit right in with the family this version has all but lost, and it ties in with Leslie's thoughts of Alfred supporting Bruce's crusade on a deeper level than he may have realized.

The battle rages on in issue seven while Oliver and Lois fight through the infected to get civilians to the arks. Alfred's narration describes the battle as violent and chaotic, becoming even more so when Lobo joined in as his first action is ripping the New God Lightray's head off with his chain hook.
The Spectre Alfred checks on Damian, only to see the young man has been infected, though the art doesn't make it clear where; he's scratched on the side of his face with his mask torn, but he's holding his arm like that's the source. Damian uses his own mental strength to fight back the Anti-Life Equation when Cassie arrives to comfort him. In his final coherent moments, Damian tells Alfred not to give into the rage he's feeling at the moment, that his new power can be used to save instead of destroy. After that, Alfred realized that Erebos was targeting Earth-2, knowing its heroes were the last bastion of hope for the universe. This is made even more clear with the arrival of Darkseid, Supergirl, and the Warworld, which begins firing on the planet. Alfred flies off to "somewhere else" he needs to be as Jon begins to fight Darkseid. Brainiac attempts to aid the son of his enemy, but there's a strange transition between pages. The end of one page sees Brainiac wrapping up Darkseid with his tendrils from behind, but then the next page begins with Darkseid holding Brainiac in his grasp and shoving a corrupted Mother Box in the side of his head, infecting him with the Anti-Life Equation.
The now Anti-Living Brainiac then flies off to his own ship to destroy the bottled shrunken cities in his collection, adhering to the mission of spreading as much death as possible. Having followed, Cyborg arrives to stop Brainiac and a battle ensues. Brainiac attempts to hack and infect Cyborg, but it appears ineffective as this allows Cyborg to hack back. And in another moment of artwork not making clear what's happening, I think Cyborg incorporates Brainiac's mechanical parts into himself, giving him control of his ship and technology. At the very least, Alfred's narration points out it's a good moment of redemption: "Victor Stone. The man who held himself responsible for the spread of the virus, who blamed himself for so much pain and death, saved hundreds of civilizations from genocide."
Back on Earth-2, Oliver and Lois' path to the arks is blocked by some Anti-Living Thanagarians but are saved by the upgraded Cyborg, who asks where Kandor is. Elsewhere, Jon breaks away from the fight with Darkseid when he realizes Warworld is charging a very powerful energy blast. As it fires, Jon pushes through the beam, deflecting it all the way back to its source, taking out the literal biggest gun of the Anti-Living. The act takes a lot out of Jon though as he falls back to Earth-2, being caught by his father before hitting the ground.
During this time, Cyborg was able to use Brainiac's technology to unshrink the inhabitants of Kandor, giving their forces an army of superpowered Kryptonians, led by Kara's parents, implied to turn the tide. And before we have time to really process this, Spectre Alfred arrives with a lot of shipping containers carrying the cure. I think a lot of time goes by after that because it then cuts to a cured Damian awakened by Alfred, Cassie, and an also cured Leslie.
The final scene of the issue begins with Darkseid fighting Clark, Mary Marvel, and Batzam as they try to inject the cure into him. Lobo shows up and offers another way to administer it: he shoves it down Darkseid's throat and loses his hand in the process (don't worry, he can regenerate). His reaction is priceless: "You bastich! I use that hand for some of my favorite things!" A cured Darkseid regains his senses and becomes enraged upon learning he was used as a pawn by Erebos. And despite some objections from others, our heroes "gained an unlikely and terrifying ally".
Despite some good moments like Cyborg's redemption, Jon's near sacrifice, and Lobo being Lobo, a lot happens for one issue and it's as rushed as it sounds (probably leading to some of the art problems I mentioned). I think the most egregious part was the army of Kryptonians. It's not just the fact that all these people immediately became skilled in their newly acquired abilities upon being under a yellow sun, but you're throwing a whole bunch of Kryptonians into a battle where they can potentially become infected with the Anti-Life Equation, and we've seen how much damage a single one can cause between Clark and Kara. And then there's Alfred's deus ex machina of bringing the cure to Earth-2 and everyone apparently getting it off panel. As stretched out as this series was earlier on, with one issue left after this, it really felt like Tom Taylor realized he had a lot he wanted to do but was running out of time to do it.

The eighth and final issue shows the aftermath of the battle of Earth-2. There are reunions aplenty including Scott and Barda with their son Jacob as well as the Els and Kents meeting after so long apart. Those unable to saved were laid to rest, with gods and mortals standing beside each other to mourn their lost. It's during this time when Damian approaches the Black Racer, catching the death god off guard, something he admits surprises him. Damian wants to take the fight to Erebos since he's the source of Anti-Life and has an idea, wanting to know from Racer if it could work. Soon after, Damian goes to talk to Cyborg about his plan and that the answer to defeating Erebos is inside him. And soon after that, the heroes call a meeting to discuss said plan. Devising a workaround with the Warworld to use a Doom Tube to get to Erebos' dimension, a group of heroes will enter Erebos and activate a weapon that will destroy him.
As the heroes discuss who will be part of the mission, Damian asks Cassie to stay behind, believing her to be the best person to protect the universe in case the plan fails. Cassie begrudgingly agrees and walks away, angry with Damian about not telling her the details of the plan; "You've come a long way...but there's still too much of your father in you." Interesting that this is used as a criticism compared to a compliment from Alfred back in issue four. Jon then arrives to give Damian a present, forgetting it was his own birthday: an all white Batsuit; "I thought the personification of darkness could come up against the light knight." Damian says it feels right and thanks his friend. It's definitely fitting when you consider Damian did just return from the dead and when you realize what the plan to defeat Erebos is.

The next day, a team made up of both Supermen, Damian (in his new suit), Cyborg, Mary Marvel, Green Arrow, Dinah Lance, Darkseid, Ares, Lobo, Black Racer, and Spectre Alfred are gathered in Warworld to prepare for the jump to Erebos' dimension. They basically pull a "Flatliners", killing themselves to allow their passage through the Doom Tube, with a timer set to revive them on the other side. They're soon face to face with the primordial deity. 

Well, he's big, I'll give him that. And I know Erebos is likely beyond trying to impress anyone, but it's a very mid design to me.
Anyway, Black Racer and Ares exit Warworld to distract Erebos while the rest of the team gets to work. Oliver uses the bow and quiver of Apollo he got from the Hall of the Gods back in issue three to fire an arrow that pierces Erebos. The wound is then attacked full on from the Supermen's heat vision, Mary's magic lightning, Dinah's Lantern ring, and Darkseid's Omega Beams, making it big enough for Lobo's chain hook to carve a passage for the Warworld to enter. Inside the station, Cyborg plans to activate the weapon when he realizes he doesn't know what it is and that his and Damian's previous conversation had been deleted. Using his father's system that had previously hacked Cyborg, Damian removed the Life Equation they discovered to make the cure from Cyborg's mind, with Damian now being the only one with that knowledge. With Life and Anti-Life Equations colliding, Damian begins to glow as a chain reaction begins, giving the team three minutes to escape back to their universe. Damian also programmed a flight plan into Cyborg to leave him behind and get the others out before it's too late. Opening a Boom Tube home, Cyborg informs everyone what's happening as they struggle with having to leave Damian behind.
Erebos soon senses something happening inside him, killing Ares for his trouble. He soon speaks to Damian, telepathically I assume, saying he's willing to bargain. Damian isn't having it; "You took my father. You took my brothers. You hurt my friends. You took so much from our world, from our universe. [...] You pissed me off. There will be no bargain. There will just be your end." Badass.
As our heroes escape back to their universe, Jon doesn't want to leave his friend to die alone. Alfred offers to take Jon to him, promising Clark to get his son out in time. Despite protests from Damian, his best friend and surrogate father wanted to be there with him in his final moments. "I was right", Jon tells him. "You were a great Batman." Damian smiles and thanks his friend one last time as the Life Equation erupts from his body. Alfred and Jon escape as Erebos is destroyed from within, a new universe being born in the process.
In a similarly rushed ending like "Dead Planet", Jon consoles Cassie while Clark assures his wife that it's over; "It's done, Lois. We're safe now." Spectre Alfred travels through the universe made from Damian's sacrifice, reflecting on what it meant to be a father figure and how his sons were his own universe. The final page of the story and trilogy as a whole shows Alfred looking over the blossoming cosmos, including what I assume is a galaxy in the shape of a bat.

While "War of the Undead Gods" has a lot of what people love about the DCeased series, these last two issues keep it from giving us a satisfying conclusion. Despite the good moments, they certainly felt rushed and the story we got could have benefitted from having another two issues; the way it was made had Darkseid's defeat look easy and cheapens the moment of Damian's infection when he dies again the very next issue. But I feel the glaring problem with the series is the Erebos element. It felt unnecessary and takes away from the chaotic nature of the virus established in the first series. And again, we had a perfectly good final boss in the Yellow Lantern Anti-Living Darkseid. Have the heroes hold him off as the cure is spread and then everyone gathers to wipe out the last of the Anti-Life Equation in spectacular fashion.
Still, "War of the Undead Gods" doesn't take anything away from its predecessors. I think the first series is the best of the three as a stand-alone story while "Dead Planet" is a worthy follow-up. For the most part, the DCeased trilogy was a good off shoot of the DC Universe, with plenty of great character moments and intriguing takes that make it unique among the multiverse.

TV Review: Titans Season Four - Full Circle

 

"Titans" has always been a hit and miss kind of show. Character depictions, costumes, and story arcs have ranged from well done to questionable since the beginning. Then there's the gritty tone where it either works to the show's advantage or come off as trying too hard. Personally, season two remains the high point of the series where they got it mostly right, especially after a rough first outing. As we reach the fourth and final season of the show, it seems "Titans" has come full circle.

In many ways, season four is a return to form from the first, for better (another Doom Patrol guest appearance now with Joivan Wade's Cyborg) and for worse (an uptake in f-bombs that seem to be there for the sake of edginess). The biggest callback to season one though is that we once again deal with a supernatural threat and a horror tone throughout. Unfortunately, this leads to an overuse of the horror trope of blood coming from places or items it shouldn't, whether the character's hallucinating or it's magically appearing. It was used so much that I was pretty much desensitized to any blood being shown for the rest of the season, even during fights or character deaths. And don't get me started on all the terrible CGI snakes from the first half of the season.
For a final season with supernatural tones, it seemed fitting that the return of Trigon would be the big threat. And he does return in the finale in glorious fashion...only to get killed and have his power stolen by this series' incel version of Brother Blood (played by Joseph Morgan). Brother Blood started out as someone you could sympathize with but he just became insufferable by the finale with his "the world treated me badly so I'm gonna destroy it" mentality. And despite the fact that he was shown genuine kindness in his life, it pretty much boiled down to him brushing that aside so he can keep playing the victim until he had the means to lash out. The moment we lost Trigon for his whiny demon spawn was when I pretty much checked out for the rest of a lackluster finale (much like season one's).

I have to say that the best of episode of the season was "Dude, Where's My Gar?" It's a nice little break from the main action with a focus episode on Ryan Potter's Beast Boy. Tying into the supernatural theme of the season, there is some New 52 influence brought in as we learn of Gar's connection to "The Red" (similar to "The Green" from Swamp Thing but with animals) and his importance to the multiverse. We also get to see his full potential as he finally switches between different animals during a single fight; it only happens the one time so enjoy it while you can.

There were three stand-out performances to me this season:

* Lisa Ambalavanar as Jinx was a fun character. An old frenemy of Dick's, I got the sense of her being the Catwoman to his Batman. She also seemed to be on the same wavelength as Gar, both being able to find some levity in the serious situations and share in a laugh. It was just a shame she wasn't in it as long as she was.
* Joshua Orpin is able to bring a new side to Superboy after the character goes through some traumatic experiences in the beginning of the season and decides to take some drastic measures. To this end, Conner starts to embrace the Lex Luthor side of him, right down to shaving his head. It's about as edge lord as you'd expect and it felt kind of rushed to me, but it was definitely entertaining. His performance reminded me of a mix Jesse Eisenberg's and Michael Rosenbaum's depictions of Lex Luthor; play AFI's "Prelude 12/21" when he walks out fully shaved for the first time and it wouldn't have been out of place.
* A big part of the season is the journey of Jay Lycurgo's Tim Drake in his training to become the new Robin. I think we get a satisfying payoff as the character is able to hold his own in the field by the finale and sporting probably the best live action Robin suit and most comic accurate since Burt Ward's. In addition, I really enjoyed the chemistry between him and Bernard (played by James Scully) and how their relationship develops.

With all the similarities to season one, season four does get bonus points for more comic accurate costumes, which I know was a big problem a lot of people had in the beginning. We certainly came a long way since then. And at the very least, we do close out the series with a happy ending for our characters. My only wish is that we could have seen Dawn and Donna, given they were part of all the previous seasons; the show didn't go into this knowing it would be the last season, but still.
When it comes to "Titans" as a whole, I think there's a lot to enjoy through some of the muck, but I know it's not for everyone. Still, I'll take this over the original animated series' finale and "Go!" as a whole.

Movie Review: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 - Swan Song

 

Since their first movie in 2014, the Guardians of the Galaxy went from C-list Marvel heroes to household names as the characters would continue to entertain movie audiences with their subsequent sequel and team-ups with the Avengers. Outside the MCU, an animated series that would last three seasons and two video games would come about and resemble the films' style; and with the music being a prominent part of the franchise, I have a playlist of nearly a hundred songs that were used across the different mediums mentioned. But all good things come to an end as we see the release of "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3", James Gunn's conclusion to the trilogy and his final Marvel project before taking over DC's film universe. For the last adventure with our favorite space outlaws, they certainly pulled out all the stops to deliver a film on par with "Endgame" and "No Way Home" for a proper send-off.

Gunn brings everything we've come to love with this franchise and then some. Characters with heart, hilarious comedy, amazing visuals, and entertaining action; on the action front, a real stand out was when they went full Daredevil with a one-shot hallway fight that gives each Guardian a shining moment. And of course there's the music; Gunn packed more songs in here than the previous two films and yet he still finds a way to make them fit well into the story and worthy of an Awesome Mix. I'm going to be emotional for awhile listening to the soundtrack after watching this movie.
Where things differ from the previous films is that Vol. 3 is the darkest of the trilogy, with the opening scene's somber tone giving you an idea of what was to come. There were several moments that had me tearing up. Admittedly, there are some tonal whiplashes where after those emotional moments that the next scene starts off with a pretty good joke; it makes it a little conflicting where I'm laughing while still processing something heart-wrenching. This film also has some of the most graphic imagery I've seen from a Guardians or MCU film while still keeping it PG-13. It's similar to Gunn's work on "The Suicide Squad", not to mention we get the MCU's first f-bomb. I get the feeling that since Gunn was on his way out anyway that he wouldn't have to worry about much pushback from Marvel; not like they can fire him again at this point.

What's great about these characters is that even after all this time, we're still seeing new sides to them. It makes them feel like genuine people, learning from their pasts, growing, and taking left turns in their lives. Quill and Rocket stand out for their character arcs, reaching pivotal parts in their lives as our main protagonists through these films. There's also great dynamics such as the comedy between Drax and Mantis and how the personalities of Nebula and Gamora have kind of switched around compared to the first film.

Chukwudi Iwuji is great as the High Evolutionary, the film's main antagonist. He really sells it as a megalomaniac with a god complex. Crazy as this sounds, it kind of makes me wish either the High Evolutionary was our new saga spanning big bad or that Iwuji was playing Kang; he was that good. The only fault I can find is that after Ego and Thanos, this is the third villain the Guardians have fought who has this vision for the universe they're determined to make a reality. Still, I feel we got the second most satisfying villain defeat of 2023 after Belos on "The Owl House".

The character of Adam Warlock has been somewhat teased since the first movie with the real set-up coming in a Vol. 2 mid-credits scene. Vol. 3 brings our golden boy to the big screen with Will Poulter in the role and he's...there. Okay, Poulter delivers a good performance, goes through a character arc and has some pretty cool moments from the minute he literally explodes into the film. The problem though is that with everything else going on in the film, he feels kind of like an afterthought and gets lost in the story; there were some moments where after not seeing him for awhile, I thought to myself "Oh yeah, he's here."

Overall, "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3" is a near-perfect sign off from James Gunn and everyone who had a hand in crafting this journey. The ending does leave things open to explore interesting new directions for the characters should the MCU decide to look in on them again. In the meantime (wink, wink), see the film and bid farewell as soon as you can. And check in on your fellow Guardians fans; we're definitely not okay at the moment.

Movie Review: "Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham" - Batman vs. Cthulhu

 

For those who've followed my blog, you may have noticed the decline of posts for the DC Universe animated movie line since "Apokolips War." Well, to put it bluntly, the current era of films since then just haven't captured my attention compared to how the line used to. "Long Halloween" is one exception, and I may have another "Tomorrowverse" (not a fan of that name) related post coming in the future. Today though, we have the latest DC animated film, "Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham".
Based on the Elseworlds miniseries from Hellboy creator Mike Mignola, a 1920's version of Batman works to save Gotham from a Lovecraftian apocalypse. Since this story doesn't get talked about as much as other Elseworlds tales like "Gotham by Gaslight" or "Superman: Red Son", I went into this mostly blind. Regardless, I had a hell of a good time watching this film, so much so that I watched it twice in one day, with the horror mystery aspect making it fun to find the foreshadowing the second time around.

Much like "Gotham by Gaslight", it was fun to see Batman and elements of his lore transported to a different era, with how notable characters are adapted and catching the hidden references; one character that stood out to me was Kai Li, who I felt was an amalgamation of Carrie Kelly and Cassandra Cain. With "Doom", I particularly liked the Lovecraftian twists to the rogue's gallery. Some stories have played into the idea that something about Gotham creates the very madness it endures from the villains and Batman himself; "Doom" takes this further by having a more supernatural origin to the idea and it really works for this kind of story.
Giving life to these characters are a star-studded voice cast. You have reprisals such as William Salyers as Penguin and Brian George as Alfred, veteran voice actors like John DiMaggio and Jason Marsden as James Gordon and Dick Grayson respectively, and stand-out performances from David Dastmalchian as Mr. Freeze and Jeffrey Combs as Kirk Langstrom. Not to keep comparing the film to "Gaslight", but I found David Giuntoli's performance as Bruce Wayne similar to Bruce Greenwood's, which is a good thing. The two versions have similar looks and methods to their crusade, though I'd say Giuntoli's is more similar to the mainstream version, maybe due to being in more proximity to the character's debut year. What I love most though is that despite being in a different era and facing a different kind of evil, we still see the core of what makes Batman such a great character: someone who's willing to give it all for the city he calls home.

The animation makes this a real winner in my book, particularly with the lighting on Batman when he's on screen, making him pop out more in the darker scenes. It feels like a callback to how the DC animated films would be consistently great in that aspect. Apologies to fans of the "Tomorrowverse" films and despite the enjoyable aspects of them, but the animation just looks so cheap compared to its predecessors. "Doom" just hammers in that point, showing they're still capable of churning out good looking films. This might all be a moot though since the future of the line may be up in the air with James Gunn's plans to streamline the new DC Universe across films, live action and animated series, and video games, but time will tell. But back to "Doom", my only complaint is that the horror visuals could have gone a little further if it weren't for the PG-13 rating.

To sum it up, "Batman: The Doom That Came to Gotham" is definitely worth a watch. Couple it up with "Gotham by Gaslight", and you have quite a double feature for fans of Batman and the horror genre.

Movie Review: "Shazam: Fury of the Gods" - Gods 'zam It (SPOILERS)

2023 will see the end of the DC Extended Universe as we know it. Under James Gunn and the newly minted DC Studios, the DCEU will be softly rebooted into simply the DC Universe, with some elements and actors carrying over from the previous universe while others such as Superman and Batman confirmed to be recast. Gunn's plans don't kick off until 2025 with a new Superman film, so we still have four DCEU films this year to wrap things up. The first is "Shazam: Fury of the Gods".
Much like "Deadpool" and its sequel, a lot of the magic that made the first "Shazam!" special is still there, but some of it becomes lost in the usual superhero tropes.

Many of the returning actors from the first film continue to do a good job as their characters, and I feel there's a good balance to give the Shazam kids enough time between their normal and superhero forms. That is except for Billy, though this is by intent. Much like the first film, Billy uses Shazam as an escape to ignore the real-life issues he's facing. This time around, now that Billy has found a family and home that accepts him, he worries about everyone growing up and drifting apart, yet his attempts to keep them together shows signs of pushing them away. It leads to him learning they're family even when they're apart; it's a lesson that's been seen in other stories, but it's still somewhat effective.
Going off the "growing up" part, they do make it clear that some time has passed since the first film, but this does cause an issue when it feels like some plot points were written to follow up directly after the first film. I feel like they should have realized that some things that seemed fine during the script writing process needed to be reworked once filming began.

The Daughters of Atlas are well done as the film's villains and the relationships with each other and where they go serve as a good parallel to Billy's family issues. Each one comes off unique in terms of motivation and demeanor; Helen Mirren is the levelheaded leader and seeks a sense of justice for their father as Hespera, Lucy Liu is more bloodthirsty and vengeful as Kalypso, and Rachel Zegler seeks a peaceful solution that can be seen as a sense of naivety as Anthea (and I also enjoy her relationship with Freddy, giving me shades of Aladdin/Jasmine).
Elements at the disposal of the daughters were entertaining to me as well. Their dragon Ladon reminded me of a few different versions of Godzilla, with the fire breath being reminiscent of the Legendary version's atomic breath while the sharp texture of its skin I found similar to Shin Godzilla's. And the Tree of Life they plant made me think of a mix of the Tree of Might from Dragon Ball Z and the black goo from the two Alien prequels with a Greek mythology twist. The latter element plays well with director David F. Sandberg's horror roots, similar to James Wan's use of the Trench in "Aquaman."

If I could pinpoint the big problem with the film, it's the ending, and yes, I will be going into spoilers. So after Billy sacrifices his life to defeat Kalypso and Ladon to save the world, the wizard says they could bring him back if his staff hadn't been drained of godly magic. And that's when Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman (a daughter of Zeus for those who've forgotten) shows up, charges up the staff, which is then used to revive Billy and grant all the kids their powers back.
The first problem with this is that WB chose to spoil Wonder Woman's appearance in the film in commercials less than a week before release. As nice as it was to see Gal again, especially since her future as the character is up in the air at this point, I would have been geeking out as hard as when Henry Cavill's Superman appeared in the mid-credits scene of "Black Adam" if they kept it a surprise. It also takes away some of the impact of Billy's sacrifice when we know he's going to interact with her as Shazam pretty soon. At least when they spoiled Mystique's death in "Dark Phoenix", it still left an emotional impact because of the characters' reactions to it. I don't know if it's WB not caring about the rest of the DCEU slate this year or if they think showing Wonder Woman would boost the box office, but this was a bad move.
The in-story problem though is it's a literal deus ex machina. Diana just comes out of nowhere after not appearing anywhere prior with the only mentions of her having to do with Billy's crush on her. If they were going to do this, she should have had a bigger part in the story. Maybe not necessarily a team-up film, but at least more involvement. I'm going to chalk this up to the lack of a cohesive vision the DCEU films have faced since "Josstice League" and they couldn't use Wonder Woman in a big way without Patty Jenkins' say. Hopefully this won't be much of a problem under Gunn's direction.
And going off of that, the two post-credits scenes seem kind of a waste since we don't even know if they'll be followed up on.

Aside from the ending, "Shazam: Fury of the Gods" still delivers a fun film for the most part, even if it doesn't leave the same impact its predecessor did.

Retro Review: "Batman: The Imposter" - Extra Vengeance

 

Happy one year anniversary to "The Batman"! Since its release, the film would go on to be one of the best movies of 2022 and a sequel is set for release for October 2025. To celebrate, I wanted to take a look at a comic considered as a recommendation for fans of the film: "Batman: The Imposter".
Written by Mattson Tomlin with art by Andrea Sorrentino, "The Imposter" was a three-part miniseries focused on a young Batman hunting down a killer copycat while trying to evade capture himself. The book was released through DC's Black Label imprint, another one of which I reviewed back in 2019 with "Batman: Damned." Besides "Damned" and "The Imposter", the only other Black Label Batman series I've read include "Last Knight on Earth" by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo and "Three Jokers" by Geoff Johns and Jason Fabok. Between the four books, I've noticed a pattern: each have a good premise with amazing artwork but by the end leave me disappointed in some respect. So going back to "The Imposter" a year after first reading it, have those feelings changed towards this story in particular? Eh, not really, but they have softened a bit.

Those who loved the gritty tone of "The Batman" may be interested to know that Mattson Tomlin had an uncredited writing contribution to the script and is signed on to write the sequel with Matt Reeves in an official capacity. That said, Tomlin brings that same feel to "The Imposter", but with an even more grounded approach. The Bruce Wayne and Batman we see in this story is very close to Robert Pattinson's portrayal with his obsessiveness, with Tomlin doing an even deeper psych profile on the character and shows how very close Bruce could have been to being a serial killer (make your own Patrick Bateman comparisons here). The costume is a dead ringer for the film's version aside from a more traditional bat-symbol on the chest. Where it differs though is the lack of highly stylized gadgets. There's no Batmobile or grapnel imbedded in the gauntlet and closest thing to a batarang are double-edged throwing blades. It makes for a Batman that comes across as someone who you would believe is some street fighter and in turn makes him as fallible as the "Earth One" version of the character. Whereas "Earth One" could be compared to Brian Michael Bendis' more optimistic approach to Marvel's Ultimate Universe, "The Imposter" would be similar to the dark Mark Millar stories.
Going off that comparison, the Gotham on display is one of the more cynical and somewhat realistic versions I've seen. In this universe, Batman never became fully accepted by the city; his very partnerships with mainstay characters like Jim Gordon and Harvey Dent lead to their careers being ruined after an attempt to bring down corrupt judges resulted in no charges against them due to Batman's involvement and multiple criminals being released after having their cases overturned. And yeah, let's be honest, vigilantes just don't fly with the law by real world standards. And aside from Leslie Thompkins in a more reluctant capacity, Bruce has no allies to call upon at this point in his career. Yes, even Alfred isn't present with this version having abandoned Bruce at a young age after being unable to deal with the boy's needs following his parents' murder. While this is a less traditional Batman story outside the mainstream comics continuity, it's really hard to swallow Alfred Pennyworth of all people leaving Bruce behind, especially as a child.
While not the main focus, "The Imposter" does give us a glimpse at some of Batman's rogues gallery in this universe. Given the grounded approach, we don't see anyone too fantastic or colorful. We have brief shots of Penguin, Black Mask, and Zsasz as well as non-supervillain depictions of Ventriloquist and Ratcatcher, both of whom have pivotal roles in the story. There also seems to be a Joker tease in the final moments of the book, but it's kind of hard to tell; if it's similar to what we've seen of Barry Keoghan's brief moments as the character in Reeves' film, then it's quite possible the Joker could fit here with this world as well.

Andrea Sorrentino was a great choice of artist for a book like this. His dark, gritty, and sometimes realistic style is perfect for Batman, especially one of this nature. One of the highlights of his artwork in "The Imposter" is how detailed the action scenes are; Sorrentino makes sure to pinpoint the damage being inflicted on or by Batman, from bullet wounds to broken bones and even shards of glass being stuck in the cowl. However, there are times where choices in panel structure or coloring can make it hard to follow what's happening in some scenes. This kind of hurt the identity reveal of the imposter Batman in the book's climax during my first read through, but I will admit I picked up more details and clues leading up to it the next time around.

Something I feel the need to talk about is how there seemed to be some miscommunication with the marketing department concerning the book. In the solicitations for the first issue and description on the back of the trade collection I have, it says Batman has been active for less than a year and that the imposter is a plan by Gotham's power brokers to discredit Batman and have the GCPD bring him down. In the actual story though, Bruce has been Batman for over three years. And while the one percent doing something about Batman is a theory in the first issue, it doesn't really go any further from there and could be considered a red herring. Now to be fair, while I think how the book was described would have been a good story in itself, the way the story actually goes still works as it's treated as a mystery we're trying to solve along with Batman. I guess it's not false advertising, but I think it would affect one's expectations.

Overall, "The Imposter" is a unique Batman comic in its approach and art style, for better and worse, and I certainly wouldn't mind a follow-up story in the future. I wouldn't recommend this as someone's first Batman comic (especially not for kids), but if you have basic knowledge of the character or indeed want something similar to "The Batman", give it a go.