Corbin Nelson Comic Reviews

Maybe this series will improve. Batman's fighting Snake Eyes next issue, so that's cool I guess " if you watched G.I. Joe in the 80s, before I and the vast majority of the people actually playing Fortnite were born. Who is this for, though? I do not see the appeal of this for either Batman or Fortnite fans. Just having Batman in things isn't enough to make Batcomic fans like or buy it. Maybe the dopamine hit of seeing your favorite Fortnite characters will be enough for some of the Fortnite crowd? This could have actually been a neat cross-promotion, but so far it's looking like a hollow advert.

Even with all my jeers and nitpicks, I can tell that this isn't a poorly executed comic. My heart goes out to the writer and the artists. My old foe, the evil (probably), Donald Mustard has entrapped them with a fundamentally broken concept. They're doing their best. But I don't think you should buy this comic unless you absolutely have to have those sweet sweet Batman skins.

Overall, this issue is the standard Hero v Hero until they put aside their differences and work together against the real villain. Too bad the real villain isn't something either can defeat: sloppy storytelling and big exploitative company tie-ins. Maybe that's why Batman tried to punch his way out of this comic. If I were him, I'd probably give it a try too.

Issue #4 of Batman/Fortnite: Zero Point mostly just washed over me. 'Twas but a series of dull panels. Filled with art that has taken a tumble. With a story that struts and flails about. Featuring a Batman, badly written. Trying to solve a mystery, badly executed. Alas, I will carry on with my grim duty. I mustn't let my yellow colored foe defeat me. Do not pity me. Pity those who have to buy this nonsense for the skins.

I loathe this series in a dull throbbing kind of way, but I'm not going to quit it, because that would let Donald Mustard " my enemy " win. Although, I suppose since this series is bound to make at least some profit, he already has. But his victory is not over me. And my overall feelings on this issue had little to do with the issue itself. Its bad drama-less tension-free story and inconsistent art couldn't kill the spark of hope in my heart. The hope that grows from a certainty that there's only one issue left, and the fact that my torment will soon end.

What about this world did we get to know? Where was the fun? But that's not the real rub, the real rub is that Batman/Fortnite as a series " especially this issue " is anti-consumer. They want you to buy Fortnite skins, they want you to buy Batman comics, and they don't seem to care about much else. Goodbye Donald, may we never meet again.

If I were rating White Knight Presents: Harley Quinn in the context of all four current issues, it'd have a higher score. But alone, even if it does have the potential for an enjoyable mystery, issue #1 is mostly a by the book setup with enough heart and great art to elevate it. Regardless, if this were a police procedural streaming series, I'd watch the crap out of it. I'm intrigued to see where the mystery goes, and how clever of a caper/whodunnit it develops into.

The last few pages really salvage this issue, but I can't help but feel that it's spinning its gears a bit too much with unnecessary flashbacks and not focusing enough on the mystery " which, at least to me, should be the real hook of the miniseries.

Seeing the Gray Ghost engage a villain in fisticuffs was a joy, and it's becoming a staple of the series to have at least one or two pages of really good art " but mostly White Knight Presents: Harley Quinn #3 left me with a lot of questions. Mostly: why? Why all these unnecessary flashbacks? Why reveal the antagonists so soon? Why introduce multiple red herrings and snuff them out in the same issue? Why should I care about Starlet's identity? Why should I care about this series at all?

Overall, White Knight Presents: Harley Quinn #4 doesn't feel as bloated or crammed with unnecessary/immediately-resolved plot beats as #3. Though the flashbacks still fail to pack the same emotional wallop as they did when the series began. The villain is" exactly who it was telegraphed to be. Harley is less sad. The Joker had yet another origin, but at least the art was good. Duke exists. Sigh. This series better start blowing things up.

Issue #5 of White Knight Presents: Harley Quinn isn't as frustrating or tedious as the past couple of issues in the series. And the art has started to mix things up a bit " even if it doesn't reach the beautimous heights of the first issues. The Starlet is still a wet plop of a villain, but at least this time around she catalyzes some melodramatic action. Still, unless there's some brilliant twist I'm not foreseeing, the series has squandered its intriguing mystery/whodunnit potential. And, sadly, there isn't much left to enjoy now that the intrigue is gone.

I wouldn't call it ending with a labored gurgle, or even a whimper, but White Knight Presents: Harley Quinn hardly ended with a bang either. The series overall definitely suffered from having a bloated midsection that became a slog to get through, trotting out its whodunnit reveal way too early, and many flashbacks that felt more obligatory than necessary or impactful " but some bona fide stakes set up in issue #5 and (mostly) paid off this issue made White Knight Presents: Harley Quinn #6 one of the better issues in the series. Maybe in a few years when my memory of the series is good and fuzzy, I'll go back and read the collected series. Who knows, I might even like it.

I wasn't interested in Nubia taking on the Wonder Woman mantle. For those of you not familiar, the character began its life as a Silver Age gimmick (Wonder Woman's "black sister") that has aged poorly, only to be erased in a crisis, revived around the early Aughts (in a less gimmicky/cringey fashion), and quickly dropped back into obscurity. In other words, the character had a really rocky start and no one has an idea what to do with her. While this could be an ideal formula for some clever clarence of a writer to make something really cool, I just don't trust current DC to do that.;

I am beyond relieved that Justice League Infinity #1 is off to a marvelous start. Writers JM Dematteis and James Tucker both worked on Justice League Unlimited " and it shows. The story in Justice League Infinity #1 feels like it crawled right out of an early-aughts plasma television.

All in all, Justice League Infinity #2 manages to keep up the momentum from issue #1. It breezily lays out everything that's going on, gives us Overman's backstory, has a bit of action, sets up some pretty big stakes for the issues to come, and even sneaks in a tid-bit of social commentary. Just don't come into it expecting to spend much time with your favorite leaguers and it should be a fun time.

Despite its flaws (eg: an excessive amount of narration, putting plot before character and/or not giving these characters enough time or space to emote or interact) starting to show, Justice League Infinity is still an enjoyable read. Especially the art, which continues to be a joy to gander at.

As those of you who read my Infinite Frontier #0 review might have gleaned, I was excited about this premise. I was prepared to love Teen Titans Academy #1, but the lack of wonder, awkward and forced generational conflict, so-so pencils, and contrived mystery setup really took the hype out of my sails. That doesn't mean that the series is doomed" just off to a rocky start. Here's hoping they get their act together.

I really want to like this series, ya'll, but it isn't giving me anything to work with. Tim Sheridan is reaching into the story bag and pulling out twists, reveals, and stingers " but I can't bring myself to care, because I'm not even a teensy bit invested in literally any of the characters. You have to build the Legos up before you can start playing with them, Mr. Sheridan. At least there are no cringy Millenial v Gen-Z jokes this time around...

What is this series even for? Fans of the comics aren't getting anything to work with. Neither are fans of the cartoon. These poor characters are being completely glossed over in order to forward the plot. And the plot is terrible. You figure publishers would have learned their lesson with gimmicks and crossovers by now, but apparently not " and if Teen Titans Academy is anything to go on, they're becoming even more invasive"

As I said earlier, Teen Titans #4 reads like filler. Like a not-great backup story that somehow devoured its A-plot. I started out " four long issues and many moons ago " bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, raring to love this series. Presently, I find myself jaded and world-weary, dreading each new Teen Titans Academy, longing for the gimmick-ridden disappointment to end. Teen Titans #4 only further buried my soul in ennui. Darque existential ennui. Or, ya know, whatever. Ugh.

Teen Titans Academy #5 still has some cringe dialogue and relies on a flashback instead of focusing on the kids within the context of the school, which is " I assume " what everyone is here for. That said, with improved art/colors from Lieber and Stewart and some desperately needed characterization from Sheridan, overall this is definitely a step up from most of the previous issues of Teen Titans Academy.

The art (especially the colors) in Teen Titans Academy #6 is a treat to look at, and hey, at least we've moved away from the gimmicks, for now. Even so, the series' seeming stubborn refusal to develop its characters, cringe humor, and tone-deaf dialogue continue to hold Teen Titans Academy back from being anything more than mediocre. I don't want it to be. In fact, I would love nothing more than this series to blow me away. Maybe, hopefully, we'll get to see a delightful supervillain mop the floor with these kids next month.

If I were to describe the overall writing in the Teen Titans Academy series so far " be it humor, metacommentary, or grimgrit " I would call it tone deaf. Teen Titans Academy 2021 Yearbook is no exception.

I can tell Joker #1 is reaching for something, and I applaud it for that. Problem is " as Gordon's bog-standard noir monologue/plot and yet another lazy Joker portrayal make glaringly apparent " it looks incredibly unlikely the story will be able to grasp at anything enjoyable or meaningful.

Overall, I didn't hate Joker #2. I went in dreading it a bit and came out pleasantly surprised. It's still chock full of cliches, but the decision to continue to focus on Jim Gordon is a smart one, and the introduction of all these new rival factions makes me a bit more hopeful for the story overall.

The sheer onslaught of exposition plastered all over every panel really sunk this issue for me until the end nearly turned it around. A decent ending might not have saved the entire issue, but it at least gave me hope that the next ones can be enjoyable. The Punchline backup is still worth skipping. I'm not going to average the two scores because that'd tank the Joker main feature, so instead I'll just knock a half point off the score.

A bit of fun action, some trippy colorful art, and a few twists and turns make this by far the best issue of The Joker yet. It's absolutely the first issue to make me truly hopeful that this story might turn out to be pretty good. That said, The Joker #4's stubborn insistence on continuing to plaster boilerplate monologue over nearly every panel of its first half still kept the issue from being more than above average.

This flashback filler-episode-esque issue contributes nothing to the overall story of The Joker other than highlighting the already-beaten-into-our-heads fact that Gordo can't stop thinking about the Joker. Normally, I would recommend checking out The Joker #5 on Francavilla's art alone, but even he drops the ball this go around.

Joker #7 caps off with a tired conversation between Madame Halloween and the Ex-Commish.