Fantastic Universes

Article by James Stone I would like to take you on a weird and wonderful journey, just like The Umbrella Academy has for me over the last 12 years. To begin this story, we need go all the way back to 2006, when I was a 22-year-old emo who became obsessed with the album "The Black Parade" by My Chemical Romance. It was at this time my father was diagnosed with lung cancer and the album became my escape from the world. Being 22 I wasn’t a kid, but, having never been personally affected by something like this before, I felt like a child, lost without a clue of what to do. I would listen to the album on repeat, memorising every word to the Dark, Heavy and emotional melodies and relating to the stories being told. I remember going to see MCR live at Wembley Arena and again at the Download festival in 2007, seeing the emotion on thousands of fans faces and realizing that I wasn’t alone. Somewhere in the midst of all this I read an interview with the lead singer, ...

Writer:  Adam Glass Artists:  Bernard Chang and Cam Smith Color Artist:  Marcelo Maiolo Letterer:  Rob Leigh Review by Steve J. Ray  Summary “Let It All Out.” In the previous issue, Damian received a beating at the hands of his former mentor Jason Todd; A.K.A. The Red Hood . Now the boy wonder must come to terms with the fact that he’s no closer to discovering the secret of The Other, and that he’s failed in his mission. We also see D’Jinn coming clean about her past and Emiko trying to help Crush with her rage. Roundhouse and Kid-Flash aren’t left out either, as Wallace visits the Wu residence for a family meal that will stick in readers’ memories for a long time to come. Positives Adam Glass has written some really great character pieces in this issue, and I love them all. He’s also been very clever in revealing enough about D’Jinn to gain the reader’s sympathy, but without taking away any of the character’s mystery. I’ve been suspicious ...

Writers:  Scott Lobdell and Zack Kaplan Artist:  Travis Moore Color Artist:  Tamra Bonvillain Letterer:  Andworld Design Review by Steve J. Ray Summary “Heroes Without A Home.” In the  last issue  Ric Grayson finally felt compelled to help the new team of Nightwings; a group of law enforcers who had adopted his old costumes. Together they took down the Scarecrow, who had adapted his fear gas to remove all fear from the citizens of Bludhaven. This issue deals with the repercussions of this decision, and introduces an all-new scriptwriter to the series. Positives With the threat of Scarecrow behind him, one could be forgiven for thinking that Ric Grayson’s troubles were over. This comic balances the difficult line of dealing with the aftermath of the last arc, while simultaneously setting a new story in motion. We get some insightful character moments, development of the budding romance between Ric and Beatrice Bennett, and changes withi...

“Mythology: Hell And Back” Writer: Peter J. Tomasi Artists: Doug Mahkne, Jaime Mendoza and Mark Irwin Color Artist: David Baron Letterer: Rob Leigh Review by Steve J. Ray This series is on fire! The road to  Detective Comics  #1000 is raging with a heat powerful enough to rival perdition’s flames… quite literally. On his quest to save his mentors, the people who helped make him the man he is, Batman encounters the Demon Etrigan. Hot stuff! After another encounter with the morphing monster that can assume the shape of all the Dark Knights enemies, and his closest allies, Batman tracked down Hugo Strange at the end of issue  #997 . I must admit that after reading the “Night Of The Monster Men” stories, Strange was high on my list of suspects too. Peter J. Tomasi’s love for Batman, and clear knowledge of his backstory, is a joy to read. It’s so logical that Batman would seek tutelage in the mystic arts, both for defence and to help instil fear in his enemies. ...