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Comic Round Up
The Week of Mar. 17

Mini-reviews on the good, the bad, and the fugly in new comics.

SUPERMAN/BATMAN #9 (DC)

Artist extraordinaire Michael Turner joins writer Jeph Loeb for the latest story arc of the world's most famous comic book heroes. I've always felt that the Neil Adam's penciled Batman was definitive, but once I got a look of Turner's Dark Knight I think I might have to change my opinion. This is a Batman who doesn't have a problem with- to quote Bruce Wayne's famous line- "striking fear into the hearts of evildoers". "The Supergirl From Krypton" opens with Bats investigating a mysterious (aren't they all?) crashed vessel at the bottom of Gotham Harbor. It's occupant is none other than... well, just just take a look at the title of the arc. It also doesn't take Brainiac to deduce that this Supergirl is going to be a bad seed. I predict Superman will be blinded by the love for his Kryptonian cousin, and will be unable to see her for what she is thus leading to a dookeroo between him and Batman. Yet even if the storyline plays out as predictable as it seems, the artwork will take up the slack.

THOR: SON OF ASGARD #1 (MARVEL)

The creators of Thor: Son of Asgard have got my fanboy jigglie wigglies a' goin'. They've taken a classic fantasy motif- heroes must seek out a series of far flung treasures each residing in its own unique locale- and employed it to tell a Wonder Years style tale of everyone's favorite God of Thunder. Young Thor is hardly the mighty warrior he'll one day grow up to be (he is not yet worthy to pick up his hammer Mjolnir), and has serious doubts he'll live up to expectations. Odin commands Thor and his pals Sif and Balder to find the four mystic elements needed to forge a new enchanted weapon. Along with the monsters, trolls, and dark elves they're sure to encounter, Thor's half-brother Loki is lurking in the shadows plotting their downfall (Christ, was this guy ever happy?). Hopefully in the next five issues, we'll run into more younger versions of the Asgardian characters we all know and love. Son of Asgard promises to be high adventure at its best.

NEW MUTANTS #10 (MARVEL)

Coming in under the hot comic book radar, the "new" New Mutants has steadily become one of the best X-Reads on the market. Danielle Moonstar (Mirage) and Shan Coy Manh (Karma) have returned to Xavier's as counselors for a whole new generation of confused mutant teens. The writing is smart and captures much of the spirit of the original classic series, but still maintains a modern sharpness allowing for New Mutants to be more than a nostalgia piece. Most fun is seeing Rahne Sinclair (Wolfsbane) return to the school as a cycle riding bad ass so far removed from the naive, bible fearing whelp she was in the first series. Rahne has lost her werewolf powers and in issue #10, her way of going about getting them back has deadly consequences. This is a consistently good title, and it's only going to get better when the full original team reunite in issue #13. Highly recommended.

AQUAMAN #16 (DC)

Here we have the latest attempt to show that Aquaman is more than just the pussy who always rode shotgun in Wonder Woman's invisible plane. In the previous issue, San Diego fell into the Pacific Ocean, a victim of a cataclysmic tidal wave. Despite Aquaman's best efforts, millions were felt lost. Wrong. Survivors are alive and living under water! When they try to swim to the surface, they find that the air they once breathed only brings death. The plot is a little kooky and the subtle allusions to Sep. 11 could have lead to uncomfortable waters, but "American Tidal" works. Quite chillingly, too. Writer Will Pfeifer has fashioned an Aquaman with balls, and as strange as that image might be for a fish guy, the series has been one of the few times where I really dug this classic character. Check out the scene where he almost clocks the Martian Manhunter over the JLA's decision to base their headquarters on the moon.