Last Two Comics I read for 2022

Here are the last two comic books I read for 2022.  Why Comics for this blog? Because sometimes Pastors also need a break from heavy theological reading.

Doug Moench, Byron Preiss, etc.  Elseworlds: Batman Volume One. Burbank, CA: DC Comics, April 26th 2016. 523 pp.

4 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

If you are a Batman fan, you might be interested in reading Batman in different time period both the historical past and far future.  And if this describes you then this volume would be something you might want to get since it collects various stories from DC Comic’s Elseworlds which presents various stories that takes place in alternative worlds.  I really think this is such a cool idea and allows writers and illustrators to exercise more creativity artistically and with story-telling.

There were a total of eight stories that were collected, and I group Robin 3000 as one even though the book list part one and part two, since Robin 3000 is longer.  The first story is Batman Holy Terror and it has a V for Vendetta feel to it with the story of evil people using religion to tyrannize the masses while the leaders are depraved, hypocritical and power hungry.  Next is a Batman story that takes place during the American Civil War called “Batman: The Blue, the Grey and the Bat.”  I read this previously and I enjoyed it immensely, its one of the top stories in this volume.  I didn’t really care for Robin 3000 as much and it was more of a future sci-fi space story, although the story wasn’t bad.  After that is a Batman/Dark Joker story that goes back in time followed by a late 1800 and early 1900s era story where Batman teams up with Houndini in a story that was too dark for me.  Then there’s a castle era story, a story called “Batman: In Darkest Knight” that feature Batman as a Green Lantern kind of character and a final story called “Batman: Dark Allegiances” which gives an alternative history of Batman fighting the Nazis during the period of World War Two and feature historical characters like FDR, Hitler, etc.  I did like the last story.

I started being a fan of Batman comics relatively late compared to most fans (in my late 20s) and have recently been interested with older stories like these from the 1980s, largely because I think there was more time spent on storytelling in each issue which made them enjoyable (sometimes newer Batman seems to have issues that were more fillers and a simple story can take forever covering many issues such as Batman marrying Catwoman).  It was also great to read these comics from a previous generation.  Overall I recommend this though I don’t think every story was equally good; and some were not so great.

Justice, Inc.

Michael E. Uslan.  Justice, Inc.  Runnemede, NJ: Dynamite Entertainment, June 16, 2015.  168 pp.

4 out of 5

Purchase: Amazon

Are you a fan of comics with pulp era superheroes during the decade of the 1930s?  This trade paperback might be for you.  Here it is a story of the team up of three heroes: The Shadow, Doc Savage, and The Avenger.  Published by Dynamite Entertainment I thought this work lived up to other great works of pulp heroes that the publishers have produced for pulp comic fans!

This is a story of time travel back to time from modern times to the 1930s.  I love how there’s historical figures in the story with Albert Einstein, H.G. Wells, Franklin Roosevelt and others.  That’s so neat to see as someone who loves history; it gives the story an alternative history feel to the bent of the angle of the story telling.  The story feature scientist Doc Savage going back to time and as the story progress they are mysterious villains at work.  I love how the story brought together the world of three pulp heroes and their friends (for example the Shadow with Margo Lane, Doc Savage with his assistants).  The one hero that I didn’t know as much about was the Avenger.  The Avenger’s real identity is Richard Henry Benson and the plot gives us an origin story of how he became someone who could change his appearances to look like others.  Like other super heroes this story has a tragedy involving villains’ henchmen hurting his his wife and daughter that led him to pursue the villains and trying to stop their plot of taking over the world using the ability to travel through time.

If you are a fan of any of the heroes it would be a treat to read this work.  I do admit it was harder for me to track the villains who are new to me and in some sense they were similar: Voodoo Master and UQM, Sunlight and Mocquino.  Overall a good story!