DC Solicitation Sneaks: January 2022
Above-the-Board Recommendation:
The Nice House on the Lake vol. 1
I picked the first issue of this maxi-series for this slot a while back and now I’m giving its first volume the same treatment despite the fact that I haven’t read any of it yet. What gives? Well, in a slate of solicitations that runs the gamut from omnibi which collect runs that started strong but finished weak, new projects from creators whose recent track records are a little shaky, and More Batman, I decided to go with the title that I still don’t know a whole lot about. I mean, the solicitations tell me that it’s about a group of friends meeting up at their one weird buddy’s very nice lake house, but I really don’t know much more about it than that. I think there’s supposed to be some supernatural aspect to it, maybe?
It’s that unknown quality that this series has which is a big reason I’m giving it this space. It’ll be nice to go into this first volume if I continue to remain as in the dark as I am now when it comes out. Now, this series is being written by James Tynion IV, with art from Alvaro Lopez, and you all know that he doesn’t have the most consistent track record with me. Except that’s part of the appeal too. Am I going to get something competent yet predictable like “Something is Killing the Children” or as thrilling and unsettling as “The Department of Truth?” I don’t know what the answer is and that’s a reason to be excited for this volume.
Batman: The Knight #1 (of 10): While we’re all familiar with Batman’s origin, I think a lot of us would be hard-pressed to talk about what happened to him after his parents were shot and when he returned to Gotham for “Year One” or “Zero Year,” depending on what continuity you favor. This period, when Bruce Wayne put in all that training to become the world’s greatest detective (and a pretty darned good fighter, too) is what writer Chip Zdarsky and artist Carmine Di Giandomenico are looking to explore with this maxiseries. Props to them for trying to flesh this period out in greater detail. I’m still not sold on Zdarsky as a writer to say that this is going to be a must-read for me when it’s collected, however.
Detective Comics #150: You’d think that the main attraction here would be the latest (concluding?) installment of “The Tower” by regular writer Mariko Tamaki and artist Ivan Reis. Except that they’re being overshadowed by another creative team contributing to this issue. That would be Mark Waid, making his return to DC after a very long time (and after making sure Dan Didio was gone for good…) and artist Dan Mora. While nothing official has been announced yet, the way the solicitation text for their contribution is being phrased makes it sound like they’re going to be working on a new “World’s Finest” team-up series for Batman and Superman. It sounds like a great pairing of creative team to subject matter and I really hope that this turns out to be true.
Justice League vs. The Legion of Super-Heroes #1 (of 6): Near the end of his run on “Legion,” Bendis was hinting at the threat of a “great darkness” approaching that era. After his run ended, it looked like those hints were going to go nowhere. Then this miniseries shows up and we find out that the “great darkness” is hitting both the 31st and 21st centuries. Which sounds like a great reason for a cross-millennial team-up. Bendis’ collaborator on “Young Justice” illustrates this event, and if you’ve been wondering why I keep putting “great darkness” in quotes, it’s because the nature of this threat is a direct callback to what is likely the best-known “Legion of Super-Heroes” story, “The Great Darkness Saga.” My guess is that Bendis is going to put his own spin on it here, which is probably for the best. The story in question hasn’t aged well because it hinges upon you not knowing who its big villain is for most of its run. I doubt Bendis is going to try and repeat that part of the story here, but at least he won’t have to worry about me judging his take on it against the old version.
Peacemaker: Disturbing the Peace #1: In which Garth Ennis writes a story about the breakout character from this summer’s “Suicide Squad” movie. The solicitation text has the title character being analyzed by a psychiatrist who’s more than a little eager to find out just how he became the man who loves peace so much that he’ll kill for it. Much as I like Ennis, it’s still strange to see him return to DC to write superheroes again. Given the utter contempt he’s displayed for the genre and many of its heroes over the years, it makes me wonder why he’d come back — unless it’s for a boost to his profile so he can go back to doing creator-owned work, or if it’s just for the money. Garry Brown provides the art for this one-shot, and it’s his presence that makes me think that this may not be the kind of story where we’re meant to laugh at the title character, or superheroes in general. Brown is a fine artist, but his style doesn’t strike me as one that’s suited for a comedy story. I’m also going to guess that this one-shot is also meant to test the waters to see if an Ennis-written ongoing “Peacekeeper” series is palatable to the general audience, as well as for the writer himself. We shall see about that.
Batman: The Detective & The Imposter HC’s: When I mentioned “More Batman” above, I was referring to these two volumes. “The Detective” collects the miniseries by Tom Taylor and Andy Kubert that sees Batman trying to figure out who was behind a horrific tragedy in England. “The Imposter,” on the other hand, is set during the character’s early days as he has to deal with a Batman impersonator who’s threatening to upend his war on crime. That’s from “The Batman” screenwriter Mattson Tomlin and artist Andrea Sorrentino. Both sound quite solid, and I can see myself picking up both collections eventually. “The Detective” first since Taylor has a proven track record as a writer with me,.