Comic Book Reviews: 05/14/2014

All-New X-Men #27
Brian Michael Bendis | Stuart Immonen

The art team for this series has truly come together and are able to create a streamlined, multi-panel and vibrant issue. The action is always framed well and even when there are psychic shenanigans at play, the reader can understand who is in control of the situation. The multiple characters, from different time periods are distinctly different from their counterparts, but obviously look like a younger/older vision of themselves. The characterization lays the groundwork for the villains to be sympathetic, which I don’t agree with as they are rampaging through the school, but others might. This book falters through an over complicated usage of flashbacks (or forwards, depending on how you look at it), which reveal an alternate future. I didn’t pick up a What If… or Elseworld book, so please don’t introduce bizzaro futures and realities into this issue that mean nothing to the narrative. I don’t want to spoil anything but there are some serious WTF moments have severe implications for characters and raise a lot of questions. When did He hook up with Her? Based upon the turvy timeline, their child is currently a baby and could be found by the present day teams. Will anyone explore this? Also, when did every mutant offspring have the exact same powers as their parents? It just strikes as lazy. This issue ultimately doesn’t move the story forward, due to wasting time on unnecessary back story of villains to pad out this arc.

Score: 5.5 /10

A couple issues in (I skipped two, and slow on the uptake), the format for this series dawns on me; this weekly book is about the Bat-family. Batman is a side character that swoops in to save the day, offer advice and provide marching orders. This isn’t his story, but he is the connective tissue that binds them. This series is a Batgirl, Red Robin, Catwoman and Batwing monthly book that happen to share the same title. McCarthy does a good job on art. The creepy scenes are necessarily disturbing, Batman is powerful and details of Wayne Manor are visible within panels. This issue introduces BatwIng to Jim Coorigan, The Spectre, as they set off to uncover a mystical threat underneath Arkham. Besides a throwaway line where Batman says that the timing of this feels too convenient, this new plot thread has nothing to do with the previous gang war events. It is possible that all of the loose threads will come together to create a beautiful tapestry, but going through them one at a time feels more like a stream of consciousness story than a masterpiece. Everything within this issue remains top level and doesn’t alter much for Batman. Readers are provided a thorough explanation of Coorigan but Fox is quickly glossed over as just another Bat soldier. Guess we’ll see where this story goes a month from now when we land back on the next Batwing issue of Eternal.

Score: 5.0 /10

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