This started?
What issues are you guys on?
5:53pm 7/20/2020
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@AliDCNotLetMeLogin here is this weekās
and last weekās
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I have finished reading this weekās books. I think Azrael was my favorite book but Detective featured Huntress. I am sort of torn on what my favorite book was. I liked the story told in Azrael and felt it was a great introduction to the character. Very quickly, I was able to see his personality and his inner battles. Meanwhile, Huntressā adventure with the guy in the subway was well written and showed her own inner battle. I sort of grew tired of the Batman in the water storyline. That seemed to last forever and over multiple issues.
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But think of all the burnable stuff inside the building! All the desks, and chairs, and couches, and wood flooring, and carpet, andā¦ yeah, whatever else you find in buildings.
I just finished the reading for this week - loved it! I think I liked the Azrael issue the most.
Also, Bullock - you canāt just rip a pole like that out of your arm! I feel like thereās so many health risks with thatā¦ and how did you not get any tendon damage? Iām pretty sure thereās tendons there that, once damaged, wouldāve compromised your hands ability to act like a handā¦ But I am no medical professional.
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Okay, there is a problem with this weekās reading. Batman: Blackgate: Isle of Man #1 (1998) is not on the service. It would go between Robin and Shadow of the Bat.
Here are this weekās links!
Catwoman 56 DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
Robin 52 DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
Batman: Shadow of the Bat 74 DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
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My notes on this weekās readings:
Catwoman:
This is a great story but I this is why I canāt read Catwoman. What motivates her?! Pick a side!
Finished! Great story but she still confuses me. I think I know what she wants but I canāt figure out how on earth she hasnāt figured out what she wants.
I like how she sees Gotham as a friend.
Robin Notes:
Is it normally spelled Woo San?
I looked it up. It changed at some point. Now it is Wu-San.
We definitely missed something.
Who is āDavaā and why does she look like Carrie Kellyās cooler older sister?
āYoung Elā Is that Superboyās old code-name?
Waitā¦ Shiva died in Batgirl tooā¦ I need a list of how many times these people die.
High pitched ākeening soundā what is a keening sound? How can I make one? What am I going to have for lunch? Life is full of unanswered questions when you pick up half-way through.
I would have argued against including that in Cataclysmā¦ it wasnāt very relevant.
Shadow of the Bat Notes:
This first part, the āHe knows solving crimes not earthquake disaster relief.ā is one of my top five reasons I love NML. (Yes I have a list).
ā¦ Does Batman have beer in his belt? I actually want to know.
The art swings wildly from breathtakingly amazing to wildly missing.
For tomorrow may rain so Iāll follow the sun!
Oh sorry, is this still on? I love that song and it just started playing while Iām reading.
āSly Arnold is the Verninatorā hmā¦ sounds familiarā¦ Hmā¦ Iāll be back to ponder that later. For now, hasta la vista baby references!
Ah, Quakemaster. I wish there was some remake of him.
Finished, I liked that they made that ārandomā lady relevant again.
Thatās all for this week! So I bid you adieu, fare well and say
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Looks like I have 4 books to read this week! I am reading via the collection from Comixology and Batman: Blackgate is included!!!
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Catwoman,
Enjoyable issue, like the fact at the end she did the right thing, when faced with the totality of the disaster.
Robin,
Seems like an issue to end Timās journey, and then to crush his reconciliation with seeing the City. Not sure about having the drug save Shiva and then the resultant fight scene with her hyped up, I mean itās not like she needs the help.
Shadow of the Bat
Loved the utility belt beer line, and Bats reaction to the quake.but the scene with Penguin seemed a bit rushed.
The announcement of the Villain at the end was a bit disappointing to me, as I would have preferred it to just be a natural disaster.
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hehehehehā¦ Donāt cast your bets yet mon amie.
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One thing that I have to ask myself, why is it whenever there is a crossover they have to show the opening act in EVERY title that is included? Catwoman starts with Gotham before the quake and the during/after the quake. I guess it was cool to see where she was when the quake happened but that trope is getting tired. Seeing Catwoman in action was a lot of fun though.
I found this to be interesting. I am reading the story via the Cataclysm collection from Comixology and Robin 52 only had 4 pages, the part where he is on the plane. I went back and read the comic on DCU and honestly, I didnāt need it. I am here for the BIG EVENT and I am not a huge fan of the Batman universe. The story wasnāt bad but I will say that the Cataclysm event felt like an afterthought. Sort of like, oh yeah, we need to do this. Cut this Lady Shiva story short and figure out a way to get Tim Drake into Gotham.
Batman: Blackgate, Isle of Men is another chance to use that trope that I complained about earlier. This time we see what happens in a prison during the earthquake. There is also a continuity problem. Last time we saw Batman he just got out of the water. The first time we see Batman he is in the water and on his way to Blackgate. However, this was all not bad. There are some scenes inside the prison that make this worth tracking down. Mainly, we get to see how the inmates react to their newfound freedom and it isnāt pretty.
The best book this week was Batman: Shadow of the Bat 74. Finally, we got to see what was happening in Gotham during the aftermath of the earthquake. There are some unusual team-ups but it makes sense in a time of tragedy. The big bad guy reveal at the end was okay but I am not sure if I actually care about him. I was more interested in seeing the fallout of everything and how the people of Gotham were getting by.
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A few people seem to be noting both this and the randomness of it all. Knowing what comes next, I feel I should explain.
Bare in mind that everyone was in the middle of their own lives (and comic runs). This was published the time of year they normally swap writers and artist so some were already planning an end. Some were not though so it got messy. In upcoming comics (minor NML spoiler)Batman kicks a bunch of the bat-fam out of Gotham. At first this seems like a cruel thing Batman did but it was probably done so the writers could finish their runs and then get to Gotham when it was suitable. Iām reading Nightwing right now and thatās what happens with him. He drops everything to randomly go help for two issues and then returns to his life, wraps up his case, and goes back to help as soon as the case is over.
As for what the people of Gotham are doing, there is a whole lot of that later so right now they just want to explain where everyone is and whatās happening. If they just skipped to people fighting over food, we would all be confused (or more confused than we already are). About two-thirds of NML is the people of Gotham. There are several issues that barely feature any Superheroes but instead focus on the people. Two issues spring to mind that donāt have any Superheroes in them at all.
This is really a really big undertaking. Itās not the most massive crossover ever but a crossover that lasts over a year? Thatās new. They hit a few bumps in getting it to work.
Since I know that was long,
Summary If you didnāt want to read all that.
DC gave writers a call and said, āHey weāre doing a crossover next month! Tie your character in or youāre fired.ā (paraphrased)
There is more focus on the people of Gotham later. Right now is just set up.
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That makes sense. I am in it for the long haul. I just wish the road was a little smoother or perhaps donāt include certain books/characters right away. For example, the Robin book this week echoed Batman: Shadow of the Bat 73 in that this felt like an afterthought. I understand there are hurdles, both editorial and artistic, but I also know they had to have had this planned out to some degree before starting this.
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I have wondered if they actually did plan this part. It seems like they were looking forward to NML and Cataclysm was just an afterthought they realized they needed to get there. Cataclysm is kind of a disappointment as a NML fan. I can see where itās going like a glorious light at the end of a long, dark tunnel.
Also on a completely different topic, I am slowly remembering reading this before so apparently I did read it.
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Also, because I donāt want to seem too negative about this weekās books I did really enjoy the art. I think Catwoman and Shadow of the Bat were neck and neck for best artwork this week. Once I got over the weird poses of Catwoman, and they are there, the art was great.
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Sorry this is a little late, Iām going to put the reading order into the topic because I foresee my work schedule changing so Mondays might be a hard day to post.
This week!
The Batman Chronicals #12 DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
Nightwing #20 DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
Batman #554 DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
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Just got through reading the 3 for this week, all pretty much the same theme. Rescuing folks in Gotham. BC was interesting as it mainly dealt with criminals helping others. Night wing had a great Barbara moment ruined by Tim Of course. BM showed the reunion of the bat family and showed off BM incredible amount of useful knowledge, wish he was on my trivia team.
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My notes,
Batman Chronicles notes:
The title āContractā always makes me think that Deathstroke is going to be the villain.
I like the kid who thinks Batman is coming.
āMikeyā (one of the thugs) makes several more appearances throughout NML. He actually plays an important role at one point.
Okay, that may not be the same Mikey. I couldnāt tell who he was talking to before. (He becomes a False Facer though soā¦ they are a little hard to identify.)
Let this be a lesson to us all.
ALWAYS READ THE CONTRACT!
Tat also appears in NML
Nice getting out of bed analogy. How do writers come up with this stuff?
Nice ending.
Or not,
Just going to throw out that whenever you think āthis guys got a pointā he calls himself āThe Demonā for a reason.
hmmā¦ Interesting. I wondered where Raās was for NML. There is a hint of him at one point but this clears a lot up.
part four, How does Penguin expect to find these people again? Thatās definitely the kind of thing he would do but the practical side of thingsā¦
Wow. part five wasā¦ Okay. That was good I guess.
Two-face has a defining story coming up soon. Nice to see him.
Leslie. I see this is really just establishing all the characters.
Nightwing notes:
Like I said in the topic, this is the start of the romance.
I like the ābatmanā reveal. You know what I find really ironic about it? In Year One he canāt see without his glasses,
In this he is concerned because he doesnāt recognize āDetective Hawkeā (nice name). And heās not wearing glasses. Just a random thought but hey, youāre reading.
ā¦Am I reading the wrong issue?
Tim sees his dad!
Dick gets it, the Bat-cave is gone, Wayne Manor is gone, the city is āgoneā
Harold! Oh yeah. And Alfred. Meh.
Quakemaster. So as not to spoil I will say only this, I like his appearances in Cataclysm and ā¦ umā¦ Cataclysmā¦ and umā¦ I think that may be the whole list. (unless he uses another nameā¦hehehh)
Batman notes:
Quaky looks a bit like Mutant Leader.
WayneCorp, WE, I am always interested by the different names of the company.
See this is Batman. The crooks donāt know he hitched a ride. How crazy would that be? Logical conclusion? He knew they were going to the roof and got up there to wait on them. Then he takes them out in seconds without getting hit once.
High tech cutting edge equipment! Harold got the VCR working!
How does he know all this random trivia? I forget half of this morningās news. (and wish I could ignore the other half)
Finished! A thing to remember, not many people are seeing Batman.
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Announcerās voice:
This week on NML(&C) RA!
Batman: Huntress & Spoiler #1 (1998) DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
Detective Comics #721 DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
Catwoman Vol. 2 #57 DC UNIVERSE INFINITE: Explore the Multiverse
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Huntress/ Spoiler notes:
I know who Dean is but how about you tell me so I can make sure you know who Dean is.
Heās a jerk. Not a particularly bright one too. (Funny how that always seems to be the case)
Ratcatcher! I always liked that guy (until his New 52 appearances).
What are the odds?
Firefly is lose too.
When Spoiler was young she used to say live and let live (You know she did, you know she did, you know she did) But in the ever changing Gotham in which we live in Huntress says Live and Let Die
Now I feel the urge to point out why I like Earth-2ās Huntress more than this one.
Is Monsoon actually Irish?
The story is okay. I am skeptical of H and S confessing all their secrets right and left but they never where the brightest two members of the Bat-Fam. (Unless we count Earth-2ās Huntress)
Why did she take her mask off to fight the rats? Iāve never personally been attacked by 20+ rats so maybe there is a logical explanation. Iāll give her the benefit of the doubtā¦
Really a meh story. I would have liked it better if Huntress wasnāt in it or wasnāt a jerk. And how did Batman get into the title anyways?
'Tective notes:
This was the first cover I remember ānoticing.ā I donāt know why it sticks out in my mind but when I think of comic covers this one is one of the first ones in my head.
Quaky is back!
Obviously the reading order is wrong. Sorry about that.
Harold is in the background! (People forget poor Harold)
Can you spot the āodd word choiceā he is using? Itās a major clue to his identity!
āThe city was in debt before it was in ruinsā important later
Final notes, Can you guess who Quakemaster is? there is one big clue to his identity in his wording but you have to know something pretty obscure to pick up on it.
I donāt even remember reading that before. But that coverā¦ something about itā¦ I donāt even like it that much, I just remember it.
Catwoman notes,
How does she do that with her whip? I know now professional āwhippersā (long story involving ren fairs) and they have trouble getting it to break the sound barrier. For it to grab a bottle out of the air? Look out Harrison Ford.
Poison Ivy does her nails. Huh. She didnāt strike me as the type.
Finished. This weekās werenāt that good. Sorry folks.
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H&S. Both characters seemed to be caricature of their normal portrayals, H a bit over the top as a vigilante, and Spoiler and Huntress immediately bonding and confessing their secrets, seems a bit much.
Dect. The story was full of Easter eggs for later in the series, if you read it carefully. I missed most of those when I read it when the comic originally came out, so I either was oblivious or not looking for clues to later books, probably the later.
CW. Always love Posion Ivy and Catwoman fights as they seem to go together like cats and dogs or fire and ice. Not the best one , Iāve read, but both portrayals were consistent with the characters at the time.
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