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 #20, Barbara Gordon: Breakout #1, Blood & Thunder #13, Hello Darkness #21, Iron Man #5, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #18, Transformers #32, Ultimate Endgame #4, and Uncanny X-Men #28. Find out how these comic books turned out with the latest comic book reviews round-up below.
ABSOLUTE BATMAN #20
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Scott Snyder
Artist: Nick Dragotta
Colorist: Frank Martin
Letterer: Tom Napolitano
Absolute Batman #20 does an excellent job of showing just how far Absolute Joker’s influence extends across the Absolute Universe. The revelations Bruce Wayne uncovers about his own origins are especially compelling and add meaningful weight to the developing narrative. The issue also gives the Absolute Robins added depth, using familiar character elements to position them to offer a fresh perspective for what has and will happen. Altogether, these developments continue to make Absolute Batman one of the most engaging series being published right now.
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
BARBARA GORDON: BREAKOUT #1
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Mariko Tamaki
Artist: Amancay Nahuelpan
Colorist: Tamra Bonvillain
Letterer: Ariana Maher
Barbara Gordon: Breakout #1 is a strong debut for the latest DC Next Level series. Answering a lot of questions about the set-up to the series goes a long way to getting the reader bought into Barbara Gordon’s new status quo. It all comes together to make this series one of the most important comic books in the current Batman Family publishing line. Click here to read the full review.
Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
BLOOD & THUNDER #13
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Benito Cereno
Artist: E.J. Su
Colorist: Msassyk
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Recent issues of Blood & Thunder have felt like they were missing a spark, but Blood & Thunder #13 quickly restores that energy by placing Blood in prison. The setting gives her a sharper focus and raises the stakes by trapping her in a situation framed as nearly impossible to escape. Not having Thunder by her side adds another compelling layer, making the prison-break scenario even more interesting. If future issues can maintain the momentum established in this opening chapter, this has the potential to be the strongest story arc of the series.
Overall Rating: 8 Night Girls out of 10
HELLO DARKNESS #21
CREATIVE TEAM
Writers: Ed Brisson, Robert Hack, Joshua Spiller, Duane Swierczynski, and Eric Harburn
Artists: Damian Courceiro, Robert Hack, Andrea Mutti, Ryan Carr, and Goran Sudzuka
Colorists: Dee Cunniffee, Robert Hack, and Ive Svorcina
Letterers: Pat Brosseau and Robert Hack
Hello Darkness #21 changes things up a bit by giving each short story a crime-focused angle. The creative teams do an impressive job delivering tense crime thrillers within their given page count. Each story works well on its own, with strong pacing and effective execution, but the repeated reliance on similarly dark twist endings starts to lessen the impact after the first few entries. With more variety in how the stories concluded, this anthology would have been a more satisfying package.
Overall Rating: 7 Night Girls out of 10
IRON MAN #5
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artists: Carmen Carnero and Jan Bazaldua
Colorist: Nolan Woodard
Letterer: Joe Caramagna
Iron Man #5 completes the much-needed reset for Tony Stark by embracing the character’s history. Joshua Williamson uses the conflict with Madam Masque and A.I.M., centered on the search for the next Tony Stark, to open the door for what is next for Tony. That direction shows us a Tony who is finally trying to move forward instead of falling back on his usual habits. At the same time, also Williamson and the team are able to further establish the long-term threat that will continue to shape this Iron Man narrative.
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #18
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Gene Luen Yang
Artists: Freddie E. Williams III and Fero Pe
Colorists: Andrew Dalhouse and Luis Antonio Delgado
Letterer: Shawn Lee
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #32 lives up to its promise of being an epic conclusion to the Ujigami Saga. Gene Luen Yang, Freddie E. Williams III, and Fero Pe create a story that has such a controlled chaos tone to its direction that you just can’t help but want to see the ride that it takes you on. The ending creates a lot of questions around what direction this TMNT series will go as we have major game changing developments occur. Where all this lead to will certainly be fun to see. Click here to read the full review.
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10
TRANSFORMERS #32
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Artist: Jason Howard
Colorist: Mike Spicer
Letterer: Rus Wooton
Transformers #32 does an excellent comic book to firmly establish who the Autobots are under Elita-Prime’s leadership. The focus being on the current state of Cybertron gave a completely different feel to what we’ve gotten for most of this series so far. The change in setting helped emphasize what Elita-Prime is looking to do as the Autobots new leader. That leads to creating yet more things to be excited about seeing play out in this series. Click here to read the full review.
Overall Rating: 8.5 Night Girls out of 10
ULTIMATE ENDGAME #4
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Deniz Camp
Artists: Terry & Rachel Dodson and Jonas Scharf
Colorists: Terry Dodson and Edgar Delgado
Letterer: Cory Petit
Ultimate Endgame #4 is yet another massive disappointment for an event. Rather than tapping into feeling like this was worth the investment in this Ultimate Universe we get a rush to get things resolved. In rushing the story to its upcoming conclusion there are many missing things to make moments like major deaths or last-minute character appearance have an emotional impact. Click here to read the full review.
Overall Rating: 3 Night Girls out of 10
UNCANNY X-MEN #28
CREATIVE TEAM
Writer: Gail Simone
Artist: Luciano Vecchio
Colorist: Matthew Wilson
Letterer: Clayton Cowles
Gail Simone and Luciano Vecchio continue to show impressive command over a story packed with intersecting plotlines and a large ensemble cast. In Uncanny X-Men #28, they balance multiple things going on involving the Uncanny X-Men, the Outliers, the New Mutants, and the Graymalkin Prison cast of characters without ever letting the narrative feel overwhelming. The pacing remains consistent, helping the story sustain the tension while keeping the larger mystery compelling. It helps every part of the plot and character feel equally important.
Overall Rating: 9 Night Girls out of 10
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