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Talk about the mother load! Last week I had almost nothing to speak of for books, hence why there was no Week in Review, but there was a look at The Zombie Survival Guide: Recorded Attacks so it was not like I was slacking off.

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

Batman #692

If you like your comics busy as a bee, then this was the read of the week for you. Not only is Batman trying to track down the Black Mask, but he also has to deal with Catwoman, trying to figure out what has driven a one time ally (Mario Falcone) to the other side of the fence, and what brought this man back to Gotham. If that is not enough, then there is all the shenanigans going on with the Black Mask’s crew, as they have been up to all kinds of evil by brainwashing random people off the street and turning them into criminals. Add in that they are thawing out Dr. Death so that he can join in on their crazy tea party, and well, Batman just might have to find a bigger utility belt if he is going to have to kick that much arse. The only good news seems to be that Two-Face has tucked his tail between his legs and gotten out of Gotham. Either way, Gotham is still as dangerous as ever, and Batman has his work cut out for him.

This is rather a solid little story with a nice pace and some decent action. It was also nice to see Catwoman worked into the plot, as it will be interesting to see how she interacts with Dick now that he is Batman. While Bruce had a, shall we say, special relationship with her that could be used to his advantage at times, Dick is finding out the hard way that it is going to take cold hard cash to make this kitty purr.

Blackest Night #4

I keep waiting for DC to break my heart and for Blackest Night to hit some sort of hick-up and disappoint me by not living up to the last issue. We hit the halfway mark of what has to be shaping up to be one of the best cross-over stories ever, and there has yet to be even the slightest hint that things are going to slow down or take a turn for the worse.

The Flash is banging the war drums and calling all heroes who can to stand tall and hold the fort until Hal and the Green Lanterns can find the power source for the Black Lanterns and blow it the “f” up. The clock is running out though as the Black Lantern power level keeps getting closer to the 100% mark with every heart ripped from a chest, and before the end of book four things go from bad to worse. With the death of Grant Pratt at the hands of Jean, the Black Lantern power levels reach 100% and we finally find out two things: where the power source is, and we get a possible look at who is behind all of this.

It turns out that everyone has been looking in the wrong place, as the Black Lantern’s power source rises from the earth below Coast City (after transporting itself from the planet Ryut), and Nekron makes his first appearance. Double frick on a stick, this is just getting better and better, and if Nekron is not creepy looking enough for you, then you need therapy.

Blackest Night: Titans #2 & #3

Yes that’s right, two for the price of one! I got my copy of #2 in the mail the same day I picked up #3, so here we go! At the end of issue #1, Black Lantern Tara had her hands on Beast Boy and was ready to rip his heart out. Issue #2 picks up at that point as Cyborg and Starfire arrive to thwart her plans, or at least delay them. With their hands full dealing with Black Lantern Omen, the momentary upper hand they gained when Starfire turned Tara into a deep fried crispy re-dead Titan. She is shot to heck as Omen manipulates Cyborg and Firestar, feeding images into their mind of their deepest desires (for Cyborg, it is being completely human again, and for Firestar it is a marriage to a certain Bat that never happened), and taking them out of the fight. Beast Boy is out numbered again as Tara gets back on her feet and makes with trying to yank his heart out again.

While these three are having all kinds of trouble, the other three Titans are not having a field day either, as Wonder Girl and Bart respond to Donna’s screams to find that her dead husband and son have appeared out of the blue and attacked Donna. They’re not sure what is going on and before they can get Donna to safety, something brings Titans Tower down around them. They are lucky to make it out alive, only Donna is not doing well at all, as she is having a strange reaction to the wound given to her when her dead son sank his teeth into her, leaving her feeling the pull of the Black Lanterns.

While all this is going on, Dove is tangling with not only the original Hawk (now a Black Lantern), but now she has to deal with her dead sister who has risen to join him as a Black Lantern. Knowing that she is out gunned, she flees for help with the two Hawks on her tail. As if things could not get any worse for the Titans, Tara and Omen are soon joined by other Black Lanterns who also just happen to be dead former members of the Teen Titans!

Issue #3

Still out for mommy dearest and playing all kinds of mind games, baby Black Lantern and Daddy Black Lantern are out to rip Donna’s heart out and make finger paintings to hang on the fridge. That’s all great except that Donna is fighting mad, done with the head games, and ready to hand out whoopings of her own as she smashes her dead husband to bits and crushes her dead child’s head (I guess the time out method was not going to work).

Down but never out, the Titans fight back with all they have, and an interesting discovery is made upon the arrival of Dove. At one point there had been mention of White Lanterns, beings that could single-handedly take on the Black Lanterns and hand them their arses in a hat. When it seems that nothing is going to stop this group of Black Lanterns from taking down the Titans, we get a look at one possible White Lantern as something deep down inside Dove starts to fight back. As her sister tries to punch Dove’s “join the dead” ticket, something deep inside of Dove reaches out and severs the connection between Hawk and her Black Lantern power ring, resulting in Hawk vanishing in a cloud of smoke. The other Black Lanterns quickly turn on her, only to have the same thing happen to them, except for the three that turn tail and run. Still feeling the effects of the bite from baby Black Lantern, Donna orders Dove to stay close to her both for Dove’s protection, and so that if Donna turns and becomes a Black Lantern, Dove can kill her before she turns on her friends. Furthering the possibility that Dove is possibly a White Lantern is the last page, so judge for yourself!

Green Lantern #47

The cover says it all as Abin Sur has returned as a member of the Black Lanterns, and is out for not only Hal’s head, but is more than happy to take Sinestro’s as well! With the help of his also newly resurrected sister, Abin Sur tries his best to take them down, only to have his return short changed as Hal and co. disconnect them from their Black Lantern rings.

Meanwhile the Black Lanterns find out the hard way that taking on the Red Lanterns is not going to be easy, as ripping the hearts out of them doesn’t slow them down at all (the Red Lantern rings have replaced the hearts, just a little fyi). Plus, Agent Orange is finding out that his greedy nature is soon to be his possible downfall as the Black Lanterns are out for him as well; and if things could not get any worse for him, a certain Red Lantern wants his power battery!

Adding to the mystery, is just what the heck is Green Lantern John Stewart doing on his own on Xanshi, and who is that stalking him?! Man oh man, this just keeps getting better and better!

Jason Fenix
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