Wednesday, September 25, 2019

Batman/Superman #2 Review


Poor Kelex!

Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: David Marquez, Alejandro Sanchez, and John J. Hill
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: September 25, 2019

I wasn't as fond of the first issue of this series than most it seemed, but that is not saying that I hope I like it a lot more this month.  While I am still debating on whether I want all this Dark Multiverse stuff to go away for a while, more and more books are coming out and the Infected story is becoming a big one at DC.  So, did I like this second issue better than the series start?  Let's find out...



Things kick off with a tiny bit of Jim Gordon.  He is getting some help finding some of Gotham's most colorful arsenal and I am still not sure if Williamson is aware that most readers in the know already are well aware that Gordon is one of the infected.  

We then get to the main attraction!  A fight so big, even the characters in the book reference how big it is for fans.  Of course, I am talking about the Superman vs Shazam mega-fight going down.  I am so glad that Williamson gave us this as I was wondering if Shazam was going to pull a Lenny Dykstra on us all and yes, I totally made Superman into Bagel Boss guy in this scenario!



The fight looks cool thanks to David Marquez and team, but all is not well in the octagon that is Gotham.  Williamson has the infected Shazam talk a heaping helping of trash, but he's just not good at it...Williamson or Shazam.  Plus, while it all looks really good on the page, there are some transition problems that make the fight a bit convoluted and harder to follow than it should be.

Now, if you are a Shazam fan and have read or watched him over the years, you know the goto move of turning back into Billy to play the sympathy card when the going gets tough and we get it twice here.  After Supes gets fooled by it, he acts all Luke Skywalker with talk of good still inside and helping him out, but Batman isn't having any of that yet.  In fact, Shazam sends Bruce on a one-way ticket to the pearly gates, but luckily Superman is there to snatch him out at the last second.  That leads to some major robot helper abuse and a bit of a staredown between the World's Finest. 



The issue continues and ends with Batman and Superman looking at some big clues and coming up with a plan.  A plan so crazy it just might...actually this plan is just insane and I really think it will blow up in their faces!  

This issue was a fast read and while I wanted to see infected Shazam take on Batman and Superman, there really was nothing to it.  The big moments happen in the last couple of pages and that's disappointing for a series just kicking off.  I loved the art, but I need more meat on the bone here before I start getting really excited about this whole Infected story. 

Bits and Pieces:

A by-the-numbers fight that went on too long for what little we got out of it.  I am still somewhat intrigued to see what's up with this Infected story but after these first two issues and DC's ridiculous decision to announce the Infected Six before issue one even came out, my excitement level is dangerously low.  I hope things pick up soon because right now, I can't recommend this book.

6.5/10

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