Another double dose of Young Justice, old Suicide Squad, new Fables, the latest Wonder Woman, and Action Philosophers!
Employee’s Pick
[DC] Young Justice #15-19
Writer: Peter David
Penciler: Todd Nauck
Here’s a story you don’t see often in comics: a superhero quits, and it sticks. After Arrowette’s school counseler is gunned down by a jilted lover, she tracks the killer down in the woods and very nearly kills him, only stopped by Superboy conveniently snagging her arrow midflight. This leads her to reevaluate her life, and she finds that heroism isn’t an integral part of it. She remains retired to this day, having found other pursuits in life. That’s the most exceptional thing about it, that a superhero quits and it turns into a good thing.
Click to enlarge.
While all this is going on, Secret’s being held captive by the All-Purpose Enforcement Squad (APES) and Young Justice’s freedom to operate is under attack from the government. A group calling themselves Old Justice, made up of forgotten golden age heroes like Merry the Gimmick Girl and Doiby Dickles, have orchestrated a campaign to bring down Young Justice, supposedly for their own good. Busting Secret out doesn’t help their public image, as they manage to wreck part of Mount Rushmore doing it. Don’t you hate when that happens?
Just when they’re about to defend themselves from an attack on one front, they come under physical assault by a new group, the Point Men. Then another new character shows up! The mysterious Empress lends YJ a hand before vanishing into the night. The kids are still trying to deal with their media troubles, moving into a new headquarters, when Old Justice attacks, leading to the mini-event Sins of Youth.
New-Type Books
[DC] Wonder Woman Vol. 3 #22
Writer: Gail Simone
Penciler: Aaron Lopresti
The Warriors Four, Stalker, Beowulf, Claw the Unconquered, and Wonder Woman, head off to face the demon D’Grth. Upon confronting him, three companions true learn that the fourth of their number has betrayed them. Who could it be? Noble but hotblooded Beowulf, who seeks the death of Grendel above all else? Soulless Stalker? The ever belligerent Claw? Or Diana herself, who dreams of a reality where she rules unquestioned, who is slowly losing herself to the combined taint of Stalker’s black horizon and Claw’s… claw. Back home, Nemesis attacks Diana’s monkey buddies, mistaking them for her enemies. ‘Cause, y’know, usually when you drop by someone’s house and it’s full of talking apes? Not a good thing. Nemmy wrecks the place good and proper before another of Wonder Woman’s friends shows up to sort things out. Next issue: the conclusion to this four-part story. Will Wonder Woman turn evil? Where does the line for Love Slave of the Empress start? How many fantastic costumes can Diana wear in one story?
[DC] Fables #73
Writer: Bill Willingham
Penciler: Mark Buckingham
The War against the Empire is underway. The fables are greatly outnumbered, but they brought technology to fight the Empire’s magic. Turns out guns work quite well against dragons. This issue is mostly set-up. Entertaining, but low on conflict, which is promised next issue by the cliffhanger ending. Our heroes have set about bombing the many magical gateways between worlds, hoping to cut the Empire off from the bulk of their forces and prevent the planned invasion of Earth. Everything’s going smoothly, which is always a sign that things are due to take a turn for the worse.
Back Issues
[DC] Young Justice: Sins of Youth #1-2
Writer: Peter David
Penciler: Todd Nauck
Young Justice and Old Justice fight until a newscrew arrives, invited by Young Justice to tell their side of the story. Wonder Girl delivers a compelling speech, bringing Old Justice around and convincing many of the world’s heroes, young and old, to attend a rally in Washington, D.C. to discuss the issue further. That never happens, though, as the rally is interrupted by Klarion… bum, bum, bum… the Witch Boy! One "It’s magic, we don’t have to explain it" later, the ages of the heroes are swapped. Young Justice grow up, the JLA become teens, and the JSA are kids for the first time since, what, the nineteen-oughts?
For such a widespread event, it did little to interrupt storylines in other books. There were eight tie-in one-shots, a Secret Files issue, and the main two-issue mini-series. Other than that, only one title, Superboy, crossed over with Young Justice, and that was partly due to the subplot with Superboy’s clone, Match, having replaced him for the past few months. Would that more events were structured this way. The tie-ins aren’t essential, either; you can follow the story well enough without them, though there are some minor gaps.
[DC] Suicide Squad Vol. 1 #2
Writer: John Ostrander
Penciler: Luke McDonnell
The Squad wrap up their first mission, taking down the terrorist group Jihad. One member dies (the most obvious one) and another betrays (this one not so obvious), while two more members join the team, having started the mission undercover as part of the Jihad. It’s another solid issue, full of tough choices and less than upstanding characters.
Trade
[Evil Twin] Action Philosophers! Giant-Size Thing Vol. 1
Writer: Fred Van Lente
Penciler: Ryan Dunlavey
This trade collects the first three issues of Action Philosophers!, spotlighting nine famous thinkers. Each Action Philosopher is assigned a number, which makes me want to see them all fight in a massive tournament. Plato vs. Jung! Bodhidharma, Rand, and Nietzsche in a winner-take-all cage match! Whose philosophy will triumph?!
That’s not the focus of Action Philosophers!, though. There’s a good balance of entertainment and education, but at their core these are biographical accounts of each philosopher’s life. Still, I think it could work.
There are loads of little tidbits in here I never knew. That Plato was a wrestler, Bodhidharma invented Kung Fu, and Friedrich Nietzsche opposed equality. Thomas Jefferson supported equality, but did not believe blacks were equal, and although he tried to abolish slavery, he never freed his own slaves. St. Augustine left Christianity for a while to follow the prototype for Scientology, Manichaeism, which had one of the more cracktastic creation myths. Ayn Rand, like Nietzsche, believed people should take what they can, the strong and smart rising to the top, leaving the weak and stupid behind. That is, until her philosophy backfired. After her extramarital lover cheated on her, Rand flipped out and annihilated him, taking his business, his dignity – virtually everything – from him. Truly impressive, in the way Dr. Doom’s schemes to destroy the Fantastic Four are impressive. Sigmund Freud believed we shouldn’t be ashamed of sexuality, but he had very… particular views on what proper sexuality was. His student, Carl Jung, disagreed with him on many points and in time they grew apart. Sad story, that. Stories are what Joseph Campbell was all about; he argued that tales of heroic journeys – such as Star Wars, which his writings helped inspire, and The Bible – were basically the same, and all meant to inspire normal people to undertake their own heroic journey.
If you’re well-versed in Philosophy already, there’s still plenty of interest here. Dunlavey’s energetic art morphs to fit the subject matter, adding and aiding many a joke. He gives each Action Philosopher a unique, recognizable appearance, so that anyone with an inkling of knowledge can pick them out from the cover image alone. Almost makes me want a Bodhidharma action figure (with piercing stare!).
Truncation
Young Justice – One of the best teen team books around.
Wonder Woman – Not the most impressive part of the four-parter, its strength is as a part of the whole.
Fables – Good start to a new story, but it could stand to pick up.
Young Justice: Sins of Youth – A relatively unobtrusive event, along the lines of Sinestro Corps and Annihilation, though not nearly as dark.
Suicide Squad – Strong finish to the opening story.
Action Philosophers! Giant-Size Thing – A great introduction to philosophy, though not entirely kid-friendly. Also not recommended to the closeminded, as with anything good.
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