Fantastic Universes

"The Witching War" - Part Four Writer: James Tynion IV Artist: Javi Fernandez Color Artist: John Kalisz Letterer: Rob Leigh Review by Steve J. Ray Justice League Dark  #17 is here, and things are looking grim for everyone’s favorite team of supernatural superheroes. Wonder Woman’s soul is still trapped in the moon’s astral plain, while Circe has possessed her body and is masquerading as Diana on Earth. In this guise the witch not only has all of Diana’s powers and resources, but also the latent magic abilities placed within her by Hecate, when Diana  was a child . One of the themes I’ve often found most terrifying in the horror genre is possession. The very idea that someone can inhabit your body and commit unspeakable acts, whilst bearing your face and your likeness, has always scared the living daylights out of me. When you’re a being with powers bordering on god-like, a superhuman and a warrior, having your body stolen from you must be the greatest nightmare ev...

"In Cold Blood" Writer: Peter J. Tomasi Artists: Doug Mahnke, Tyler Kirkham, Christian Alamy, Keith Champagne and Mark Irwin Color Artist: David Baron Letterer: Rob Leigh Review by Steve J. Ray Detective Comics  #1016 Turns up the heat on Mrs Freeze, as her husband teams up with Batman. Yes, dear reader, you read that correctly; this issue gives us the brand-new Dynamic Duo of Batman and Mr Freeze. Hell may well indeed have finally frozen over. I must say that I’ve loved virtually everything I’ve ever read by Peter J. Tomasi; his New 52 run on  Batman & Robin  and his Rebirth  Superman  runs in particular. 23 issues into his  Detective Comics  (yes, it’s been that many already) has already put his tenure on this legendary title right up there amongst his very best, in my estimation. What’s even more impressive is that this is two years worth of output, and we’ve had it all in less than 12 months. Seeing Freeze and Batman teaming up is aw...

"First Flight" - Part Two Writer: Dan Jurgens Artists: Sean Chen and Sean Parsons Color Artist: Chris Sotomayor Letterer: Travis Lanham Review by Adam Ray We’ve lost no momentum in  Batman Beyond  #38. Picking up from the  last instalment , we get everything summed up: Terry’s still missing, and the team in the cave know he’s lost his memory. Terry’s on the hunt for answers, and this time he has company. The Bat woman  has been spotted, and we hear her this issue, and her intense sarcasm. We have much to ponder, and this issue never ceases to keep us on our toes. From her introduction, Batwoman has been painted out to be an enigmatic character. This adds to the readability of the issue. We follow along with Bruce and Matt as they try to guess Batwoman’s identity, and prove themselves wrong. With no clear answers as to who the new bat in Gotham is, we’re all invited to play along. As a result, we get a unique connection with the story. We get to follow alo...

"Burning Rage" Writer: Dan Jurgens Artists: Scot Eaton and Wayne Faucher Color Artist: Hi-Fi Letterer: Tom Napolitano Review by Steve J. Ray Titans – Burning Rage  #4 starts in the shadows and traverses through raging fire and the ocean’s depths. Dan Jurgens, Scot Eaton, Wayne Faucher, Hi-Fi and Tom Napolitano are giving us in one issue what entire series sometimes don’t manage to deliver. This title isn’t paced like a 12 issue maxi-series, but more like a fully plotted ongoing. Rather than have the one villain from start to finish it feels like we’re being given a wealth of Titans history instead. The clever part is that there’s still this presence in the shadows that seems to be pulling everyone’s strings. As always Jurgens delivers dead on accurate teen talk, complicated family dynamics and raw action like only a true comics veteran can. Tim Drake’s tech-savvy, Garfield’s fun-loving innocence and Starfire’s passion for justice all shine through beautifully. I...

"Von Freeze" Writer: Sean Murphy Artist: Klaus Janson Color Artist: Matt Hollingsworth Letterer: AndWorld Design Review by Steve J. Ray Batman: White Knight Presents – Von Freeze  is a 100% bona-fide knock out of a comic. Here we get an alternate history that’s rich, moving and riveting. Sean Gordon Murphy is creating an alternate universe Batman that truly deserves the accolades and praise that have been heaped upon it. Not since Frank Miller’s  Dark Knight  or Doug Moench and Kelley Jones’  Red Rain  have we had a parallel history Bat-verse worth revisiting, and this one could actually be the best of them all… it’s certainly been the most consistent, in terms of quality. What we get in these pages is a look back at a previously unseen history; not just of this world’s Mr. Freeze, but one that also casts a new light on his wife Nora and Batman’s parents, Thomas and Martha Wayne. Doctor Victor Fries has had a comic-book renaissance of late; I’ve alrea...