We are back with another week of a ton of comic books released this past New Comic Book Day. There were a lot of major releases this week to talk about. With that in mind this week we’ll be covering Absolute Batman #19, Batwoman #2, G.I. JOE #21, Imperial Guardians #2, Invincible Universe: Battle Beast #8, New Titans #34, Nightwing #137, Storm: Earth’s Mighitest Mutant, Ultimate Wolverine #16, and X-Men United #2. Find out how these comic books turned out with the latest comic book reviews round-up below.
ABSOLUTE BATMAN #19
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Nick Dragotta
Colorist: Frank Martin
Letterer: Tom Napolitano
Absolute Batman #19 nails the sense of unpredictability as you turn every page of this comic book. That unpredictability is immediately established by the impactful debut of Absolute Scarecrow. From there we once again see how Gotham City challenges towards Bruce Wayne grow even more intense. It all leads to major developments that are a reminder of the wealth of opportunities the Absolute Universe opens up to twist classic DCU concepts in new, intriguing ways. Click here to read the full review.
Overall Rating: 9.5 Night Girls out of 10
BATWOMAN #2
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Greg Rucka
Artist: DaNi
Colorist: Matt Hollingsworth
Letterer: Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou
Batwoman #2 is a great example of going with the flow of the story. The first issue already did a lot of leg work in setting up the foundation. This second issue is all about showcasing why action led by Batwoman has a different feel. She goes about things so differently from other hand-to-hand fighters. It helps with the investment of how she approaches stopping the bad guy. Which helps the greater plot develop at a natural pace.
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10
G.I. JOE #21
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Tom Reilly
Colorist: Lee Loughridge
Letterer: Rus Wooton
G.I. JOE #21 accomplishes multiple things. It brings back Scarlett, Storm Shadow, Jinx, and the Arashikage in a major way. This is done as we see why Tom Reilly is one of the best artist in the industry as this is largely a silent issue. Joshua Williamson just does some light writing for context. Outside of that this is Reilly’s show and it is spectacular. Scarlett, Storm Shadow, Jinx, and the Arashikage are all immediately reintegrated into the story that creates a lot of interest in the roles they will play moving forward.
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
IMPERIAL GUARDIANS #2
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Dan Abnett
Artist: Marcelo Ferreira
Inker: Jay Leisten
Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg
Letterer: Ariana Maher
Dan Abnett knows how to pace out a team book to make sure the page count is maximized to showcase the team’s strengths. Imperial Guardians #2 is a great example of this as we see the continued growth of the team’s chemistry through big action sequences and character focused scenes. While certain scenes can be heavily reliant on dialogue Marcelo Ferreira’s artwork still finds a way to shine with how he captures the cosmic fun of the story.
Overall Rating: 7.5 Night Girls out of 10
INVINCIBLE UNIVERSE: BATTLE BEAST #8
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Ryan Ottley
Colorist: Analisa Leoni
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Invincible Universe: Battle Beast #8 continues to build the anticipation for the upcoming battle against Conquest. Robert Kirkman and Ryan Ottley do that by continuing to keep it brutally simply. The key word is brutal as we get to see Battle Beast in his element. The action is fast-paced that is a great showcase for Battle Beast fighting style.
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10
NEW TITANS #34
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Tate Brombal
Artist: Sami Basri
Colorist: Andriano Lucas
Letterer: Tom Napolitano
Once New Titans #34 gets away from the usual superhero vs superhero misunderstanding the strengths of Tate Brombal and Sami Basri’s story shines. The plot being centered around Cyborg dealing with ramifications of what he went through during DC K.O. is a strong hook. Though this issue does show that the cast may be a little too large. Hopefully the strengths will shine brighter to give this opening story arc a strong end.
Overall Rating: 6.5 Night Girls out of 10
NIGHTWING #137
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Dan Watters
Artist: Denys Cowan
Inker: Norm Rapmund
Colorist: Francesco Segala
Letterer: Wes Abbott
The impact of his recent decisions continue to weigh heavily on Dick Grayson. Nightwing #137 shows this best as he is no longer internalizing the current state of Bludhaven. The arrival of Batman to help him causes him to release some of his anger and frustrations. Even as he and Batman ultimately discover and stop the sniper on the Bludhaven bridge there are much deeper things going on with Nightwing. This creates even greater investment in what Dan Watters continues to develop with the character and Bludhaven.
Overall Rating: Night Girls out of 10
STORM: EARTH’S MIGHTIEST MUTANT #3
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Murewa Ayodele
Artist: Federica Mancin
Colorist: Java Tartaglia
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Storm: Earth’s Mightiest Mutant #3 certainly dives deep into the fantastical nature of Storm being at the center of some of the strongest forces in the universe. As dynamic as Federica Mancin makes it all look it is the reaction by Storm that stands out. The more chaotic things are the more we see Storm left wondering if this is all worth whatever the stakes are. Storm’s actions, through her words or use of powers, help draw the reader more into the cyclone surrounding everything.
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10
ULTIMATE WOLVERINE #16
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Chris Condon
Artist: Alessandro Cappuccio
Colorist: Bryan Valenza
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Ultimate Wolverine #16 is a disappointing ending for the series. For all the build up of Ultimate Wolverine, Jean Grey, and Magik’s characters we got an ending that felt completely rushed. That is best exemplified by the lackluster final confrontation between Ultimate Wolverine and Magik. When all is said and done this Ultimate Wolverine series lands as one that will be easy to forget because of this disappointing end. Click here to read the full review.
Overall Rating: 4.5 Night Girls out of 10
X-MEN UNITED #2
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Eve L. Ewing
Artist: Tiago Palma
Colorist: Brian Reber
Letterer: Joe Sabino
X-Men United #2 is at its best when it simply focuses on the vision of Graymatter Lane as a new mutant academy. The dynamic between all of the X-Men that Emma Frost recruited to help her out does a lot to show their current state after all the recent events. Where this series falls apart is when it goes away from its concept to do the usual X-Men superhero team thing and push too hard on Cyclops as an antagonist. More of a focus on the mentoring side of things, especially spotlighting more of the young mutants, will be beneficial for X-Men United’s long-term success.
Overall Rating: 6 Night Girls out of 10
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