Dynamite Comics – June 2013

Reviews, commentary, general reactions, and random notes on the Dynamite Entertainment comics that were released during April (mostly) that I received near the beginning of May. Caution: Spoilers ahead! [Link to previous month.]

Cover D by Sean Chen

Masks #6 of 8

Frankly, not a whole lot happens here except that the Master gloats over his plan. I still think he's the former District Attorney who was once the masked crime fighter known as the Clock, and that ultimately there will be a confrontation between him and the more recent D.A. Tony Quinn, the Black Bat.

I have two friends also buying this series. Unfortunately, I'm pretty much the only one enjoying it, I think. And the truth is that there's not much here. Were I not such a fan of the original source material and characters – even some that this series pretty much introduced me to, such as Miss Fury and the Black Bat, I can easily see myself agreeing with them.

Reviews

Quick Hits

Since for one reason or another, I've been negligent in blogging some of my various readings of late, here's a quick catch-up post, in no particular order.

The Power of Shazam (DC, 1994-1999)

I actually mentioned this a while back, that I took back up reading my two library-bound volumes of this great 1990s series starring the original Captain Marvel (and the entire Marvel Family, plus various other Fawcett characters and cross-overs with contemporary DC characters) about halfway through the first volume back when I was down for a week with what I'm calling The Flu. It's wonderful. While I could quibble with certain decisions that were made in the updating (e.g., “CM3,” Mary Marvel as another “Captain Marvel,” her white costume rather than red, the concept of the Power being divided between however many of the three that have invoked it, to name the most important “quibbles”), as far as I'm concerned this is the best-ever “modernization” of the characters that DC has ever managed to accomplish, largely due to the efforts of Jerry Ordway. It certainly puts the current abomination appearing in Justice League to shame. It captures rather than turns-on-its-head the simple charm of the original, albeit in a way that easily satisfies the modern comics reader.