[Master Higgins]

JLI's been weird...it doesn't feel like the same tone most of the new books have (haven't read #7 yet). I'm sticking with it cause I love the team, but yeah...

[kenzo]

Higgins, you've gotta read #7, it's insane. Shit literally hits the fan.

[CrossXhunteR]

Just read #7, and I am going to need you to explain your feelings over it. It was pretty good, but it did not seem to have the level of insanity described.

[LiQuid]

I dunno how anybody in their right mind can keep reading JLI after that first arc.

[kenzo]

Just read #7, and I am going to need you to explain your feelings over it. It was pretty good, but it did not seem to have the level of insanity described.

Spoiler: show

I dunno, I thought it was pretty intense. Again, I'm new to this so maybe my barometer on these things aren't what the average comic fan would think? When half the team is now crippled or dead, that's pretty intense to me.

[TopHaZZard]

Kinda bummed out that Static Shock didn't turn out so well.

I was kinda interested in checking out a few issues since I was a fan of the Saturday morning cartoon.

[SerpentineZERO]

http://www.dccomics.com/blog/2012/04/09 ... ut-in-july

NATIONAL COMICS, a new print comic series, will debut this July and feature a series of stand-alone stories built around some of DC Comics most intriguing characters. The first four key characters that comprise NATIONAL COMICS include ETERNITY, MADAME X, ROSE AND THORN, and LOOKER. Each character will have a stand-alone issue.

ETERNITY, written by Eisner Award nominee Jeff Lemire with artwork by Cully Hamner, tells the story of police coroner Christopher Freeman. Given a second chance at life, Freeman discovers the ability to resurrect the dead. Now this clumsy wannabe detective partners with the recently deceased to find their murderers—and find them closure before they once again shuffle off this mortal coil.

MADAME X, written by Rob Williams with artist Trevor Hairsine and a cover by Fiona Staples, starts off with a clear vision of who did it — but the real challenge is trying to prove it. As an upstart law firm’s psychic consultant, MADAME X uses tarot cards to divine the truth behind cases, helping skeptical lawyers gather evidence that will hold up in court.

ROSE AND THORN, written by Tom Taylor with artwork by Neil Googe and a cover by Ryan Sook, is a Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde story about Rose Canton, a good girl with a very bad side: Thorn, an ass-kicking femme fatale out for revenge.

LOOKER, written by Ian Edington with art by Mike S. Miller and a cover by Guillem March, tells the story of Emily Briggs, a model who loved looking at herself in the mirror—until the day she couldn’t. Turned into a vampire, LOOKER prowls the dark underbelly of NYC’s elite modeling world, hunting all predators, including the creature that spawned her.

I'm interested

[LiQuid]

Some pages from Nicola Scott's Earf-2

[Master Higgins]

Nicola Scott is a beast.

[dabeast0976]

Nicola Scott is a beast.

Not from the pictures i've seen of her. trust me, I'm an expert.

[Killinginist]

I like these, can't wait for it to drop. Like the look of the characters, especially WW. Got to try out the new 5, but I have high expectations for Earth 2!

[LiQuid]

I personally don't even give a shit about main universe DC shit much less alternate universe DC shit. So I don't really even care about this book but dat art!!

[dabeast0976]

I personally don't even give a shit about main universe DC shit much less alternate universe DC shit. So I don't really even care about this book but dat art!!

I don't know. Some DC Elseworlds books were the shit. Just to name a few:
Batman: In Darkest Knight
Batman: Brotherhood of the Bat
The Golden Age
JLA: the Nail
Superman: Red Son

And then in 93 or 94 all of their annuals were Elseworlds tales. I remember i used to get them from a classmate who was interning at DC/Milestone.

[LiQuid]

It could be great but that wouldn't make me care about it.

[Roadie Brock]

It could be great but that wouldn't make me care about it.

Sounds like someone I know.

[LiQuid]

It could be great but that wouldn't make me care about it.

Sounds like someone I know.

You mean yourself? Cause I don't agree. You don't simply "not care" about things, you have to get on a nerd soapbox and trash talk it incessantly and anybody who likes it.

[kenzo]

Teen Titans & Power Girl all over my faaaaceeeeee ~ I can't wait to read 'em tomorrow.

[Roadie Brock]

It could be great but that wouldn't make me care about it.

Sounds like someone I know.

You mean yourself? Cause I don't agree. You don't simply "not care" about things, you have to get on a nerd soapbox and trash talk it incessantly and anybody who likes it.

Of course you wouldn't agree. Denial is the first sign that something is true. We all have our soapbox, and we all trash talk.

[LiQuid]

Dial H looked great but man China Meiville pisses me off. I've been in the middle of his Perdido Street Station for over a month now and I can't bring myself to finish it because I hate his prose so much. He's one of those writers that's way too in love with his thesaurus. The second I saw the second hero in Dial H, Captain Lachrymose, I just sat there shaking my head and being pissed off for like five full minutes. Though you know, this book is almost tailor made for China Meiville, since his writing no doubt entails clicking a thesaurus randomizer and then trying to form a thought around whatever dumb, obscure word he finds. Now he can do that with superheroes.

[kenzo]

Ummm, did they just kill Artemis?

[kenzo]

Action Comics #9 might be my favorite comic of all time. So much lulz and awesome in one book. This must have been what it was like to read Superboy Prime stomp about back when he was doing his thing.

[DukeTogo]

Action Comics #9 might be my favorite comic of all time. So much lulz and awesome in one book. This must have been what it was like to read Superboy Prime stomp about back when he was doing his thing.

This was it for me. Granted, I liked the issue better than the previous few, but the book just isn't doing anything for me. I couldn't be more disappointed, especially considering this is from the guy who wrote All Star Superman.

I think I'm going to replace Action Comics with Wonder Woman and/or Earth 2.

Still, i'm pretty happy with The New 52 overall, especially considering I wasn't reading ANY DC books other than Tec beforehand.

[kenzo]

I don't get the hate Action Comics is getting from people around these parts. I really like it - it's the best Super-book there is (besides Superboy, but that's more of a Teen Titans book). And I cannot fathom why you'd ditch Action Comics for a book about another parallel dimension that's way more boring and dumb. I mean, I liked Earth 2 and all, but the way they off the heroes in that book was just beyond retarded.

[DukeTogo]

I don't get the hate Action Comics is getting from people around these parts. I really like it - it's the best Super-book there is (besides Superboy, but that's more of a Teen Titans book). And I cannot fathom why you'd ditch Action Comics for a book about another parallel dimension that's way more boring and dumb. I mean, I liked Earth 2 and all, but the way they off the heroes in that book was just beyond retarded.

It might be the best Super-book that's out there at the moment, but it's just not doing anything for me at this point. I thought the first couple issues were great, but was really thrown off by that weird Legion issue and never truly recoved.

I'm confused about your Earth 2 comments. You start off by saying the book is "boring and dumb," but then say that you liked it even though the events in the first issue were "beyond retarded." Personally, I dig a lot of James Robinson's work and have room in my pull list, so I figured I'd give it a shot.

[kenzo]

The art is really nice, and I like the concept of Earth 2. But I think the execution and writing in this issue was pretty bad (I mean seriously - Superman rages out and blows himself up? Lulz. What a maroon). I can enjoy something and acknowledge its flaws at the same time. And I can say "well, that was stupid" but still acknowledge the potential for it to be pretty rad down the line.

[SerpentineZERO]

Some pages from Batwoman #9


Looks pretty good! Not quite JHW level, but better than the last three issues!

[SerpentineZERO]

So a new Phantom Lady series is coming this summer. It doesn't say, but i think it's a mini (I really doubt they'd give Phantom Lady her own ongoing). It's by Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti, with art by Cat Staggs and Rich Perotta.

They also released this cover by Amanda Conner (someone get Killing in here)



Sounds interesting. I enjoyed The Ray, so i'll check this out.

[kenzo]

I never really liked the New 52 Batman as much as everyone else does. When this part of the internet was losing their shit for him having a freaky acid-trip in the sewers, sure it was great illustrations, but the story was kinda dumb. And now with issue #9, it's gone full-retard.

Spoilers if you haven't read it yet, but I've got three big issues with the way this entire Court of the Owls thing is going down (not including the dumb crossovers into comics like Detective). Pretend I'm saying this in a Mr. Plinkett voice:

1.) Batman is not Batman: I say this more about the fundamental core of his being. Batman never kills people, right? Even some of the most inhuman monsters, he spares their lives because of his code if they have the barest amount of sentience. But here he's fuckin' stabbing and shredding and burning and fucking the shit out of these owl-guys to the point where he's basically killing them. "But they're already dead!" Kind of? But they're still sentient, and with time and rehabilitation, they could be made sane just like any other dude Batman fights.

2.) Once again, Batman being integrated into the larger DC Universe by contrast makes this book retarded: A few issues ago, I just read how Batman took on Apokolips/Darkseid, some kind of world-ending super-robots, and a host of other "meta-humans" way stronger than some zombie-super-ninjas. That he's having any trouble with this kind of stuff makes him look silly. What's even more retarded is that, being a part of the Justice League, can't he just send out a quick call and within a few seconds, guys like Superman or The Flash will be there to wipe the floor with these assholes? Real people are dying, and he's pussy-footing about Gotham letting half of them croak. At the very least, send a call out to the JLA, even if you only get an answering machine.

3.) The implications that the Court of Owls killed Bruce Wayne's parents: This is by far the dumbest thing I've read in comics in a while. I think Higgins said it best when he described Bruce Wayne's parents death as meaningful to his character because it was just a random nameless thug - that the city/crime in general killed him, and that inspiration/source for revenge will never go away. But isn't that entire concept cheapened by this stupid court of Owls that was "always there" but somehow evaded the detection of The Greatest Detective on Earth for all these years???

[DukeTogo]

Finally got around to reading Earth 2. While I can understand the complaints about Robinson's dialogue being too melodramatic, I thought it was pretty perfect given the gravity of the situation. I'm also really intrigued by the idea of the JSA characters following in the Trinity's footsteps rather than being the old guard. The Greek pantheon thing seems like a pretty cool choice to me as well. Great, great start.

I also wish the Earth 2 Superman look was the official New 52 design. I think it's a touch more classic than what we've got now.

Also read the latest Justice League. It felt like a big step down from the stellar Green Arrow-centric issue. I'm hoping Johns is just taking his time to build up one of his patented compelling villains. As for the Shazam backup, I'm not feeling it at all.

[SerpentineZERO]

So the issue 0 thing is official

Also, four new titles around then.

TALON - Writer Scott Snyder with co-writer James Tynion IV. Artist: Guillem March.
Meet Calvin Rose, the only Talon to ever escape the grasp of the Court of Owls. This former assassin of the Court is trying to live a normal life ... but that’s impossible when he’s being hunted by his former masters!

SWORD OF SORCERY – Writer: Christy Marx. Artist: Aaron Lopresti.
Featuring the return of Amethyst, Amy Winston leads a strange life on the road with her mother and resents it. She’s about to learn it’s all been necessary when she discovers she’s the lost princess of Gemworld—and she’s being hunted by her murderous aunt. With a back-up story written by Tony Bedard with art by Jesus Saiz, set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, the monstrous warrior Beowulf is charged with finding and defeating the evil Grendel.

THE PHANTOM STRANGER - Writer: Dan DiDio. Artist: Brent Anderson.
Spinning out of his recent appearances in JUSTICE LEAGUE and DC’s Free Comic Book Day story, learn more about the true origin of The Phantom Stranger and his connection to the mysterious Pandora.

TEAM SEVEN - Writer: Justin Jordan. Artist: Jesus Merino.
Set in the early days of DC COMICS-THE NEW 52, threads of the entire DC Universe collide. As Superman emerges, so does the world’s counter measures against him and his kind. Team 7 is comprised of Dinah Lance, Amanda Waller, Steve Trevor, John Lynch, Alex Fairchild, Cole Cash and Slade Wilson — and their story will change everything you know about DC COMICS-THE NEW 52.

Team Seven sounds interesting. Justin Jordan wrote the Strange Talent of Luther Strode, which i heard was pretty good. Guillem March is a good artist so it's cool to see him doing this Talon book, which i'll definitely be picking up.