Batman - Streets of Gotham #13 - DC

This is the second part of the story about Duffy, the Carpenter. Remember, she's the one that fixed up the new lair for Catwoman over in Gotham City Sirens. Well now she's been hired by the Director to build the perfect death-trap. He plans on making a film of Batman's demise. The problem is, one the film is finished, he doesn't really have any need of Duffy anymore. So she's found that plans on how he's planning on killing her, when this whole thing is over. So anyways, in order to evade suspicion she has to continue building the set, while at the same time putting in some surprises of her own . . should she need them to evade his wrath. And of course that's what happens once he puts his plan in motion to lure the Batman onto his set. Anyways, one thing leads to another . . she sends a hint out there for Batman to find. Now all she has to do is stay alive long enough for him to put the pieces together and, unwittingly, come to her rescue. Obviously Dick isn't happy with her, and orders her to leave town. She's on her way back to Keystone City when she gets the call that Mr Freeze is looking for some help turning a skating rink into his center of operations. Even with Batman's warning, who is she to turn down a job. I enjoyed Duffy's character. I think she's interesting. She's not a criminal . . per se, but . .she's also not picky about who she works for. I think she's got a lot of potential, and some interesting stories ahead of her. This one is brought to us by Paul Dini, Dustin Nguyen and Derek Fridolfs. In the ManHunter backup, Kate finally finds Ramsey. It turns out that he made it back to the apartment while she and Iron Munro were out scouring the city looking for him. The problem is . . Plain Jane was also there . . disguised as his mother. I've enjoyed this part of the book by Marc Andreyko and Szymon Kudranski. And it looks like this won't be the last we'll be seeing of her. First she's a fixed part of Gotham now. Now that she's the DA. Plus, at the end of this story, it looks like she and Dick are going to be coming to some kind of arrangement. The future definitely looks bright.

Batman - Streets of Gotham #12 - DC

I actually liked the approach that Paul Dini took to the story this issue. This time we see Gotham, and life in it's underworld from Jenna Duffy's point of view . . the Carpenter. She's the one that helped the girls refurbish their lair over in Gotham City Sirens. We get a little bit of her history. It turns out that she's always been a bit of a hustler, but . . she's also had a penchant for woodworking, and fixing things. So with all the traffic in Gotham, as far as the comings and goings of it's criminal underworld, there's always a need for new 'hide-outs'. Which is how the Broker found his niche. Neither one of them are criminals, per se, but . . they also don't question where the money comes from when they get paid. They're both, actually, pretty shrewd business-people. They found a gap, and they filled it. This appears to be the first time they've worked together though. The Broker has recently sold the old Monarch Theatre to the Director . . we've seen him before. And he's offered a large amount of money to fix it up. You know . . aesthetically, and 'death-trap' wise. However, being a criminal, he's not planning on following through with Duffy upon completion. In fact he sees her more of as a loose end. One that he has to eliminate. Which is how the story ends. We also see this issue that Damian has come to check on Colin. He appreciates him saving his life, although he'll never admit that, and in return has given him a form of transportation and a garage to work out of. 'It doesn't hurt having the loyalty . . and fists . . of someone like Abuse. Nice to have that option in case things ever get to the point where I need him in my corner. Someone other than Grayson.' No matter what his intentions or motivations look like . . Damian's always got an agenda. Like I said, I thought it was a good story. And as always, Dustin Nguyen's art was terrific. In the ManHunter story back-up, Kate is still trying to find her son. He's been running around Gotham . . lost. But at least he's got Thor, his robot dog with him. And, Iron Munro has finally told Kate that Ramsey has started to develop powers. It doesn't help her feel any better about the situation, but at least she knows. At the end of the story, Ramsey finally finds his way home. But the 'mom' who answers the door isn't his. It's actually Jane Doe dressing in a 'skin-suit'. I hate to see what Kate's going to do to her when she finds out about this. As always, Marc Andreyko does the story. But this issue we get some amazing art by Szyman Kudranski. Which serves to cap off a very good issue.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #9 - DC

Mike Benson writes this little detective story in which Batman is trying to figure out who's killing these 'Johns' around town. After a few of them had happened, last issue, Batman starts to make the connection to this club in town. From there he narrows it down to one girl . . Sophia. She's a girl who works there and is using the influential clients that she's got available to her advantage. It's kind of a multi-layered story, but . . also kind of obvious right from the beginning. Dick sets himself up as one of Sophia's 'Johns' to see if the killer will make his move. And he does. It's a guy named Sal. But it turns out he's not the killer. He follows Sophia home, and maybe other girls too . . I don't know . . but he acts like he's just robbing people in a precarious position. He slaps Sophia around a bit, and then gets the guys personal info out of his wallet. That's when the real payoff comes because he starts to black-mail them. Sophia is in on it, but . . they didn't kill anyone. Then there's Sophia's ex-boyfriend. He's a roid-head and very jealous over Sophia's job and the men she takes homes. He's made a few threats, but . .he hasn't killed anyone either. It turns out it's Sophia's door-man. Anthony feels some kind of connection to this girl that he sees every day, and in his mind he's probably trying to protect her. Or, stop these guys from defiling this woman whom he sees as a nice girl. Like I said, it was kind of obvious, but . . it was a decent story. It revolved around Batman, but I think the important thing to take away from this was Commissioner Gordon's way of handling these various characters. In fact at the end he buys Sophia a train ticket out of town so that she can start a new life. It was ok. I enjoyed Dustin Nguyen's pencils. It just wasn't all that thrilling. In the back-up, Kate is getting ready to start her case against Two-Face, for the murder of the former DA. But she's finding out that Harvey has pretty much everyone in his pocket. So, she's out on the streets as ManHunter trying to get some information on him. The Huntress shows up and offers her assistance also. But she's definitely got an uphill battle here. This story is brought to us by Marc Andreyko and Jeremy Haun. Overall, I enjoyed the book. But honestly, this one was a bit of a let-down for me after previous issues. Especially considering how 'dark' and twisted his stories were on Moon Knight. Hopefully things will get back on track next time. We'll see.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #8 - DC

For some reason, our story about Zsasz and the child-abductions have been interrupted. At the end of last issue, it looked like Zsasz had some type of child 'fight-club' going on, but . . apparently we're switching channels this issue . . and next. This one appears to be a pretty straight-forward story. There's been a string of criminals getting killed lately across Gotham . . 6, so far. They all seem to be killed the same way, but . . there's no real connection between victims. Other than occupation. At first they consider a vigilante who's just taking things to far. But then the MO is broken. A plastic surgeon is killed. That's when Batman notices a connection between their women. It seems that they all frequent a club in Gotham that caters to it's elite, and privileged. Dick goes undercover to see what's going on inside, and requests the company of the woman he sees in a picture with the doctor. However, as they go back to her apartment, we have 2 suspects here. First they're confronted by an ex-boyfriend as they leave the club. Apparently he hasn't taken their break-up very well. Then, as she's entering her building, we see the door-man take an unusual interest in her. Plus, both men are about the right size . . the same size. Anyways, Dick goes up to her room with her. He figures this is someone who's trying to protect her. So . . now he just has to wait for them to make thier move. It was an interesting story by Mike Benson and Dustin Nguyen. I'm just wondering when we're going to get back to Zsasz' story. In the back-up, Kate Spencer is trying to take out Two-Face . . both as ManHunter and as the Gotham DA. But in order to do so, she's going to have to make a deal with Jane Doe. However, since they're in the same prison . . Harvey may be striking a deal of his own. I like this character. And I like the twist of putting her in the Gotham horizon. I think she makes a nice addition to the cast of vigilantes here. This story is brought to us by Marc Andreyko and Jeremy Haun. Overall I thought it was a good issue.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #7 - DC

I like this book. It fills us in on the other characters in Gotham, and how they end up helping or hindering Batman's efforts. That's kind of how the Manhunter story goes, as the back-up. Kate tried to leave everybody behind that she knew in California. I think she enjoys the Manhunter gig, but she also realizes that it's almost impossible to do your job when you have so many 'friends' and family to worry about. However, Dylan, who got approached by the Joker, realized that that gig was going to lead to the death of him, so . . he also got out of Cali, but . . then he ended up working for Two-face. Anyways, Kate stopped him last issue as Manhunter, and the police ended up capturing Dylan. So now she wants some answers, and . . to protect him. She knows that when you work for people like Two-face, they don't like any loose ends lying around. So she's pretty nearby when Two-face does make his move. And as Manhunter she proceeds to beat the crap out of him. That is until Batman and Robin show up. I guess next issue we'll see how she handles them. I thought this was a great chapter by Marc Andreyko and Cliff Richards. I've been enjoying the Kate Spencer part of this book. I think she makes a great addition to the Gotham skyline. Anyways, in the man story, Batman and Robin are after Humpty because he seems to be abducting children. However, all of the children that he's taken to his shelter are . . well, dead. When he says he found them, he means . . he literally found them . . washed up on the shore of the Gotham River. The children that have been abducted by been done so by Zsasz. It seems that he's running an underground fight club where he's pitting children against children in a fight to the finish. And then . . whomever wins, has to fight him. By the bodies washing up on the river, we can see how that's turning out. Anyways, it appears that Batman and Robin have someone else on their side . . someone who's also looking into the missing children. We assume that it's some mysterious guy, but . . it appears to be one of the children in the orphanage with some type of special gift. I'm sure we'll see more about him in the future. Anyways, it was a good story by Paul Dini and Dustin Nguyen. Dustin's art is really amazing. He can draw really moody, and I think his style fits a Batman book very nicely. I feel like this book is still experimenting with the format a bit . . trying to find a rhythm. But I also think it has a ton of potential. I guess we'll see what happens in the future.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #6 - DC

We find out this issue that the Man-Bat hasn't actually gone over the edge. While the Huntress was tailing him, and trying to stop his supposed rampage . . Man-Bat was actually hunting another. It seems that Black Mask has bought some experimental weaponry . . body armor that makes the wearer invisible. He gave that armor to some lunatic with some specific people to get rid of. But, after that? 'You can kill with impunity. You are the only one. Go forth. And once you have killed the sinners we spoke of . . . then punish anyone you see fit?' Which is how we ended up in the church that Man-Bat and Huntress crashed into at the end of last issue. The priest heard the 'voice of god', and it told him to kill the 'beast' and the 'harlot'. Anyways, it turns out that this 'voice' is actually the guy in the invisible body-armor. When the Huntress figures all of this out, it also dawns on her that Man-Bat was after him because he's the only one that could see him . . you know, bat-radar and all. Anyways, long story short, Batman shows up hoping to rescue Huntress, but it ends up that the real hero of this story is the priest. He was playing along to try to get a bead on the guy. He may have gone through a lot in his time in Gotham, but . . he hasn't gone over the edge . . yet. 'This is Gotham, sweetheart. Having faith isn't enough. In Gotham, you have to fight to keep it.' I thought it was a great story by Chris Yost and Dustin Nguyen. In the ManHunter story, Kate finally finds out that Dylan has been recruited by Two-Face. She comes across a burglary at the museum in which Two-Face is out to steal some masks. Unknowing to her, Dylan tries to save her when the others start to fire upon her. She knocks his mask off and realizes that it's Dylan . . just as Gotham's finest show up. This story was by Marc Andreyko and Jeremy Haun. I really like this book. It gives us a feel for what's going on in the rest of Gotham . . not just Batman's little corner. Plus it gives us a space to show-case all of Batman's supporting cast. And there's a lot of interesting characters here. This book has a ton of potential. I just hope they keep the stories and the art strong.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #5 - DC

We have a couple of mysteries that are starting to brew through this story. Most of the issue we see Huntress running all over Gotham pursuing, and fighting Man-Bat. She's thinking that the recent report of his recovery, and improvement in his condition have been greatly exaggerated. Through the course of this book she sees nothing of the man, only the beast inside. Anyways, about half way through she realizes that he's after something. He's probably only attacking her because she pretty much instigated it, but . . he does seem to have a purpose, a mission. She doesn't know what that is yet, but . . he seems to calm and become focused when he sees a woman. But, he's going after her with the same fervor that he's fighting the Huntress, so . . Helena has to do something to stop him. On the final page of the issue they both come crashing through the ceiling of a church, landing unconscious on the floor. Meanwhile, in the background we get the story of this minister, Father Mark, and his journey and trials in Gotham. He came here several years ago, and his predecessor gave him a piece of advice . .'Your faith brought you here? Then hold on to it tight. This is Gotham. It's not a city . . it's a Leviathan. Your faith won't be tested here. Here, the beast himself will come out and rip it from you. It's not enough to have faith . . you have to fight to keep it in Gotham.' And, on his very first night in town he's stabbed by a vagrant in the alley of the church. From there it just seems to go downhill . . the Clench Virus, the earthquake, No Man's Land and the alien invasion during Crisis. Through all of this he's kept his faith, but he feels he may be at the breaking point. Of course he's in the same church, praying for a sign, when Huntress and Man-Bat come crashing down on him. Unfortunately, someone or something capitalizes on the situation. They speak to Father Mark and he believes he's hearing the voice of God. 'I am here, my child. Believe in me. As I believe in you. Your faith has been rewarded. Look upon them, my child. This beast . . this harlot. Kill them. Prove your devotion to me. Your God commands you. Kill them both.' Nice cliff-hanger ending. Huh? This was a great issue by Chris Yost and Dustin Nguyen. I also enjoyed the back-up story about Kate Spencer . . Gotham's newest DA. She's trying to take a vacation in LA with her son, but . . of course the trials of Gotham pull her back in. It appears that Dylan, the guy who's helped her out with her gear a few times, has fallen back in with the criminal element. Specifically, Two-Face. Although I think he's using Harvey as much as Harvey's using him. Personally, I think he's using Harvey for protection . . against the Joker. And now Kate's going to have to clean up the mess. I really like Kate in this role and what they're doing with her character now. But why is Two-Face on her case so much? Just because she's the DA? Or, does he see a little of himself in her? This one should be interesting. It's brought to us by Marc Andreyko and Jeremy Haun. This is turning out to be a pretty cool book.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #4 - DC

This was an interesting book. I thought it was going to be about Zsasz. And it was. Kind of. Actually it was about a legitimate business man . . who makes his money from unscrupulous clients. He's called the Broker. He the guy who goes around and finds all the properties for the wackos who want a site that makes a statement. You know . . and amusement park for the Joker, a hat factory for the Mad Hatter, an animal shelter for Catwoman and an abattoir for Mr Zsasz. Most of the time he can deal with the eccentricities of these clients. He knows not to trust them, and he always has someone watching his back. But Zsasz is a different animal entirely. Zsasz is a person who makes your skin crawl. And after the sale, when Zsasz's associates start wheeling in the 'livestock' . . cages filled with little boys . . the site is more than the Broker can bear. Later when Batman pays him one of his regular visits. They go through one of their usual negotiations . . Batman threatens, the Broker denies, Batman encourages compliance, and the Broker gets beat up before agreeing to Batman's terms so that he can save face with his clients. He can't look like he just rolled over now . . can he? Anyways, I like this different look at Gotham. Batman is usually involved at some point or another, but the story is actually about this huge supporting cast. There can be only 1 star in Gotham. Everyone else is playing a 'part'. I thought it was an interesting story by Paul Dini and Dustin Nguyen. In the back-up, Kate has finally captured Jane Doe. Of course it wasn't without a little pain. But who she really wants is Two-Face. And when she calls a press-conference to talk about Jane, she ends up calling out Two-Face. We see that Two-Face doesn't like Kate's tone of voice, and even the Black Mask knows that this may not have been one of Kate's best ideas. 'This'll be fun to watch.' I'm glad that the Manhunter, Kate, is back. I think she's an interesting character. Marc Andreyko and Jeremy Haun did a great job. Overall I liked this book. I enjoy the looks into Gotham and all of it's nefarious characters.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #3 - DC

I think Paul Dini and Dustin Nguyen have really got a hold of the essence of Gotham City here. The focus of the story right now seems to be Thomas Elliot. He's broken out of the cage that Dick and Alfred were keeping him in and has decided to play up his role as Bruce Wayne. To that end, he's vowed to personally commit himself and his vast resources to the rebuilding of his city. In that role, he's already drained and put incredible weight on the Wayne foundation. But Dick and Alfred aren't without their own resources. While pouring money into Gotham, Thomas has also siphoned off a bit for himself. With it, he has bought the diminished Elliot estate. "Even this I lost when Catwoman and her friends ransacked my holdings. Right now, this house provides me with what I crave most . . privacy." But that's short lived as he opens his front door to find Dick and Alfred, with a few of their closest friends, waiting for him. He threatens to expose their 'family secrets', when Zatanna reveals that it's really a plethora of League and Outsider team-mates. " . . each one is a trusted ally sworn to preserving my father's legacy. There's no place you can run that we can't find you! So our advice to you is this . . play your part like a good little puppet! You move when we say, and not before. No more looting the family piggy bank. And for your own sake, remember . . no secrets pass a severed throat." Dick also tells him that the Foundation's board will be keeping a close eye on him. He's never to appear in public with out one of them nearby, and from now on all transactions will go through them and the spending committee. He may be free, but they've got him on a pretty short leash. As does the Black Mask with the Penguin. With the Black Mask consolidating the underworld of Gotham, he is now the 'King' in residence. Which means that everyone, including the Penguin, works for him, and tithes him. Although I'm sure it's much more than 10%. And this issue the Black Mask makes good on his promise to reward Zsasz for saving his life. He gives Victor a briefcase full of money, a new image, and a license to carry out his every sick twisted hope and dream. I'm not sure what this unbridled psychopath can gain the Black Mask that he doesn't already have, but . . I think we're about to see a Gotham held in the grip of terror. And in the back-up story . . Kate Spencer, having come face to face with Jane Doe, proceeds to kick the crap out of her. Although, in the end, she does get some help from the Huntress. It seems that even though they've split up, Oracle still keeps tabs on her favorite team-mates . . through GPS, and other means, I'm sure. This part of Gotham's landscape is brought to us by Marc Andreyko and Georges Jeanty. I was skeptical at first, but I'm liking this little side story about Gotham's newest DA.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #2 - DC

While we already have the Batman and Detective books, this one seems to focus more on his supporting cast. Which is actually quite large when you thing about it. This issue, Hush decides to take advantage of the recent human combustion throughout the city. He leads Alfred to think that he is also a victim, igniting himself in his cell. He then escapes, but tells Alfred "You're the last person I want to hurt, Alf. From this point on, we're going to be best of friends. I have a little work to do, but I'll be back. I promise." We also see that Batman has some new help with the crime in town. We don't really see his face, or know his name, but he kind of looks like the Thing, or Blockbuster in a trench-coat and fedora. And, when the Firefly makes an attempt on Black Mask we see that Zsasz comes to his rescue. "Take it easy mask. I've been watching, waiting. I knew one of the others would turn on you. You took a chance letting me out. That goes a long way with me." He escapes, but Dick takes down Firefly. The issue ends when Bruce / Hush reappears . . right in front of Wayne tower. He goes through a long speech, ingratiating himself back into Gotham society. Everyone's watching . . the JLA, Ra's al Ghul, and Alfred, Dick and Damian come out to join in the spectacle. But the big news comes at the end of the speech . ."With our nation's economy in recession, Gotham's only source of salvation lies in the private sector, with individuals willing to open thier wallets as well as their hearts. . . Only the first in a series of payments to spark Gotham's resurgence. One Billion dollars . . with a Billion more coming each month until the crisis is past." It appears that Thomas Elliot has decided to introduce his own 'stimulus' package . . one that will put Bruce back in the spotlight, but also, most assuredly, bankrupt Wayne Foundation. That was an interesting turn of events. This story was brought to us by Paul Dini and Dustin Nguyen. I thought the back-up ManHunter story was also interesting. Kate has also become a part of the Gotham City skyline. In fact she's now the District Attorney. Currently she's looking for Jane Doe, a villain who assumes the identities of others, but is coming up with zero leads. Her search brings Arkham Asylum and Dr Arkham back into the story. But in the end, Jane Doe finds her. Be careful what you wish for. Marc Andreyko writes this story, as he did the series. But what makes it better for me is Georges Jeanty's pencils. With the 5 pages of previews from the Doom Patrol series we get 35 pages of art this issue. Which helps alleviate the $3.99 price tag, but . . I remember when 80 pagers were a $1.

Batman: Streets of Gotham #1 - DC

First of all . . you gotta love that Dustin Nguyen cover. That's frikkin' fantastic. He does the interior art also. Dustin's art is kind of quirky, and doesn't really seem like it would fit a Batman book, but . . after reading this issue, plus the work he did in Detective, the quirkiness and moodiness of his work really brings out the best in these stories. Paul Dini is the writer. I really like his work also. He's very familiar with this character, and I think he does a great job, especially in this issue, giving us quiet moments with each of the Batman's vast supporting cast. I really liked the interactions between Damian and Thomas Elliott, who is still in Batman's custody in the Wayne building. I wonder how long that'll last. Firefly is the main protagonist of this issue. He's figured out a way to cause ordinary citizens to combust. Just what Gotham needed . . . more chaos. Dick seems to be fitting in quite nicely with his new role. I'm sure the Commissioner knows the difference, but . . he's not saying anything, if so. The story ends with Firefly filling the streets with flames. From the rooftops . . it looks like the Bat-symbol. "The dancers are filling the streets. The city is alive with fire. It's time to invite the final player . . in a manner I'm sure he'll appreciate." In the back-up story, it appears that Manhunter will be taking up residency in Gotham as well. Marc Andreyko is back as the writer. And Georges Jeanty is back as the penciller. Thank god! I just really didn't like Michael Gaydos' art in the final issues of that series. Anyways, Kate Spencer, Manhunter's alias, has been selected to take over the position of District Attorney in Gotham. It looks like both of her persona's will make their presence known here. And, she's already on the trail of DA Hampton's killer. Her only lead right now is . . "Jane Doe." I think this book is off to a great start. We'll just have to see if it can keep up the momentum.

Manhunter #38 - DC

I really had a hard time getting in to this issue. Last issue, and this, take us about 10 to 15 years into Kate and Ramsey's future. Basically it shows us that even then . . they're basically doing what they're doing now . . living life . . having the occasional super-hero outing . . . dealing with all the usual drama. I guess it's kind of a 'life goes on' type story. I guess in a way it's a positive thing because even that far ahead in time . . Kate's still trying to make the world a better place, and she hasn't been killed yet. Ramsey's learned about his powers and is embracing them . . even if Kate isn't. But, by the end of the issue they come to an understanding. I think Kate would rather not stand in his way if it means affecting their relationship as a family. As least that's the way I see it. But it's just kind of a 'what if?' type story. It doesn't really mean anything, and I really think it's only purpose is to extend the series for 2 more issues. I really don't know what else it could be. It kind of reminds me of that thing that Image Comics did that one year. Remember? No matter what issue a series was on, they had them do an issue #25. It was supposed to show the future of the team, or certain character. Then they went back to the normal issue number, and when they did finally reach #25, that book was supposed to fit in as if it had been there all along. The difference here though is . . this is the end of the series. So we'll never really know if this is the future intended for them or not. Marc Andreyko wrote it. I just wasn't really that impressed and I failed to see the point of it all. We had a couple different artists on this issue . . Michael Gaydos, Dennis Calero and Fernando Blanco. But again . . I don't really see the point. It's the final issue. Books can go out with a bang . . or a whimper. I guess this one decided on the whimper. To bad!

Manhunter #37 - DC

Ok, I understand that this story takes place about 12 years in the future. But . . I'm not sure why. Ramsey is all grown up, and Kate is still in the super-hero biz. Gray hair and all. Kate has gotten remarried . . to Matt. Dylan and Mark are still around. And Todd and Jen are around . . . apparently Jen came back from the dead . . . and are training Ramsey in the art of the cape and cowl. He wants to be a super-hero. Why not? He has the power . . from his grandfather . . and he's been watching his mom for his whole life. Plus, I'm not sure what his power is, but it appears that Ramsey's boyfriend is also 'gifted'. Maybe they can all get together and restart Infinity Inc.? But I don't think that's what this story is all about. The issue starts off with Kate chasing Nellie Lovett. She's Sweeney Todd's lover. She's got his blade and is apparently trying to find a host for his return. She gets away from Kate, but Kate does get her razor. Which she takes to Bones. But it appears that the blade actually is possessed and now he does have a new host . . . Bones. I don't know, maybe I'm crazy, but . . I just think this is an odd way to end the series. Next issue is the last, and we're going to spend that wrapping up this 'What if?' story? Or . . maybe it's a dream. Either way, obviously, Kate's going to be around for a while . . whether it's with the Birds or the League . . so she's got a lot of stories in front of her. I'm just trying to figure out why they're ending the series this way. Anyways, Marc Andreyko is the writer, but the art was split up a bit between Michael Gaydos, Carlos Magno and Dennis Calero. It doesn't really matter who did what because it all pretty much looks the same. I like this character. I wasn't overly thrilled with these last 7 issues, but . . Kate has a lot of potential. She's been with the Birds occasionally, but I really think that she has League potential. I'm hoping that somebody does something with her in the near future. Overall it was an ok issue. It just seems weird to me that this is the way they've decided to go out.

Manhunter #36 - DC

I like this series, it's just really got me bothered that it's going to be cancelled again. If that was the case, why did they even bother bringing it back? Why didn't they just do a Manhunter maxi-series . . 8 or 10 issues . . and use it to alliterate this final story-arc? I don't know . . it just kind of has me peeved. I'm enjoying Marc Andreyko's story here. It's very intricate and involved . . it's almost like a big spider web. Things in his stories always seem to be going in a lot of different directions. There's a main story-line, but there's always lots of little sub-plots going on here and there. However, everything is all connected. We may not see it right away, but . . we will eventually. This issue Kate, with some help from the Birds, kind of wrap up the whole Vesetech scandal. The problem is, Kate was originally brought in to this because of all the women being abducted . . especially south of the border, but I don't think Vesetech's 'outing' has done anything to stop any of that. Also, even though the Goliath has been stopped in it's tracks, it's far from dead and Kate's work is really only just beginning. But what's coming at here now can't be fought in her union-suit. These battles are going to be fought in the courtroom or along political lines. Vesetech had a lot of ties, and it seems that all of that is going to begin coming to bear on her head. But, like I said, that's the main story. There's also the problem with Cam and Dylan. He's hiding out from the Joker, and she's carrying his baby. The only person that knows is Mark, and I think he's got his own romantic feelings about her . . baby or not. Plus there's the whole thing about Vesetech's ties to . . well, everything. This could have some serious long-term consequences. Some people may be praising Kate, but others . . such as Bones or Waller . . will be cursing her name for a while to come. As I said, the abductions haven't stopped. And there's the story of this family at the end of this issue . . I don't seem to remember them . . Ted, a doctor, and his kids and wife. They're in their Brentwood house having what appears to be a normal day . . considering there's protesters outside of his house calling him a baby-killer . . when all of the sudden he's shot in the head through the window. Oh, and don't forget about all of Kate's personal issues that she has to deal with . . Iron Munro being Ramsey's grandfather . . Thor, the robot dog he gave him . . or the appearance of 'powers' that Ramsey's displayed but Kate doesn't know about yet. Like I said, a very intricate and complex story. But overall, I like it. I'm still not thrilled about Michael Gaydos' art. It's ok, but . . I don't know . . I just don't like it for this book. Anyways, enjoy the last couple of issue while you can.

Manhunter #35 - DC

This is a case of . . I like the character more than I like the book. But aren't they one and the same? Not necessarily. I got into this character during the first 30 issues of this book. You know . . before they had the hiatus. Then, in-between, she appeared in several Birds of Prey story-lines. Some she participated a lot . . and some she was just a supporting character. But, that's the nature of the Birds of Prey book. But of the last 3 or 4 incarnations of this character . . I think that Kate is the most interesting. Plus I like the idea that she wears a Darkstar suit. I always liked the Darkstars. Anyways, when the book came back, with issue #31, I was excited and really wanted to get in to it. However, as is the case with a lot of books . . especially of late . . the creative team changed. Marc Andreyko became the writer. His stories are . . ok. They're focusing not just on Kate but on her supporting cast. Which is good. But the story that Kate's involved in, with this Vesetech company in Mexico, is so involved that it doesn't leave a lot of room for other story-lines. Yes they're still there, but they're progressing very slowly. We also got a new artist, Michael Gaydos. Obviously the guy has talent. The flow of his panels is actually pretty good. However, I just don't know if he's the right artist for this book. But, then again, I may have just been spoiled by Javier Pina's art. I'm not discounting Michael's talent, but there's a world of difference between the two styles. Anyways, it may all be moot because it looks like the series is going to end again. It appears that issue #38 will be the final issue this time. But I have a feeling that these 8 issues were put together to set up Kate . . also, maybe Ramsey . . for something else. Something that she'll become involved with after this ends. I don't know what, but . . this is to good of a character to leave gathering dust on the shelf. This particular story-arc wraps up next issue, and then they'll be one more in issues #37 & #38. But, it doesn't look as if there's going to be a clean ending. I think this story is going to have to travel to another venue. However, only time will tell what that's going to be. In the meantime . . enjoy what we have left.

Manhunter #34 - DC

Marc Andreyko really has a lot going on in this issue. Almost to much. Kate has gone to the Vesetech facility to find out what's been happening to these girls. But . . as we found out last issue . . the Suicide Squad is already there. And this time they're on the Crime Doctor's payroll. There's also the issue of Ramsey to deal with. Last issue he tried to chase after his dog, Thor, and he stopped a garbage truck with his body. Kind of reminiscent of the scene in Smallville . . you know, where Clark stops the bus. Anyways, now Iron Munro has to explain to his great-grandson what's going on. So we get a little history of he and Phantom Lady during WWII. He talks about Grandpa Walt and Damage, but we find out that he and Sandy had another baby boy that Baron Blitzkrieg swiped. Although it's never really explained what all of this has to do with everything. However, we do find out that Thor is actually a robot. We also see a little bit of the relationship with Damon and Todd. We see Dylan Battles getting beat up for some reason. And Mark Shaw is back in the picture as he arrives at Dylan's house after the skirmish. I like all the stuff that Marc is trying to cover, but, like I said, it's almost to much. At the end, Kate is off on her own again as she heads in to Mexico to try to figure out where the Crime Doctor is holding these girls. It turns out that the Suicide Squad was actually working undercover covering the Vesetech angle for the US Government. It's really a twisted convoluted storyline that's supposed to wrap up next issue. We'll see. This issue really didn't do much for me because I'm not to thrilled with Michael Baydos' art either. It's ok. It shows promise. But I just don't like it much. I know we're trying to get this character back into the mainstream of the DC Universe . . I'm just not thrilled with the product here. I really, really hope it gets better.

Manhunter #33 - DC

Marc Andreyko has an interesting story going on here . . . the first story-arc of the relaunch of this book . . it's about Vesetech, a pharmaceutical company, and Kate's attempt at figuring out what it and the murders of these immigrant women have in common. She's not making a lot of progress, but . . she does seem to have gotten the attention of somebody. Also she's asking herself some important questions . . . why does this building have secret underground floors? . . . what's with the cutting edge security? . . . why would they feel it's necessary to have super-human security guards? All things a company of this size and reputation shouldn't have. She's also being helped by Oracle, and by association . . Huntress and Zindy. There's also the whole thing with Iron Munro, Kate's actual father, and the revelation that her son, Ramsey . . . he may be following in his grand-father's footsteps. One thing I am wondering about though . . and I'm asking myself why it hasn't been addressed yet . . what's with Kate's costume? If it's a Darkstar costume, it should be capable of more than just covering her vivacious body. Correct? So what's the deal? The issue ends with Kate about to take a whupping from the 2 super-powered guards, so she cuts through the floor. Underneath she finds what looks like a cloning lab, and it's being protected by . . . . "We used to be called Suicide Squad, but now, we're free agents. Looks to be quite the pickle you're in, don't it?" I thought the issue was ok. The Liam Sharp cover looks good. However, I'm not overly thrilled with Michael Gaydos' interior art. The guy has some talent, and potential, but right now . . . I don't really like it. There's some panels that look decent, but overall . . . I don't think it's good enough. I want this book to work out for it's creators. I got into it a little late . . . issue #18 or #19, I think . . . but right now I don't thing were at the same quality as before the hiatus. Kate's been showing up a lot in the Birds of Prey book, so I'm thinking that this book is riding on the coat-tails of that one. Unfortunately, if it doesn't improve . . it probably won't be there for long. Sorry! I'm just trying to be honest.

Manhunter #32 - DC

I liked this issue, but . . not a lot was accomplished as far as the women in Ciudad, Juarez. Kate did meet up with Jamie Reyes though. Apparently, her costume is an old Darkstar costume, so the Scarab on Jamie's back really hates it. Even more that it does the Green Lanterns. I wonder what that's all about. But, we probably won't address that issue in this book. Kate does need to find out about her costume though. During the fight with Blue Beetle, her staff takes her in the air as if she's flying. The best weapon she has, she hasn't even utilized yet because she didn't know it's potential. That's food for future thought. She also met, through Jamie, La Dama. She seems sympathetic towards her plight, but . . she doesn't want to get involved. "I know my place in the food chain. I leave Juarez alone. They leave my operations alone." And Bones, the head of the DEO, all but orders her to stay away from it. But there's something going on there, because after a rather heated conversation, he gets right on the phone with Amanda Waller. She also learns that somehow this local company, Vesetech, is involved. An anonymous source tells her . . "You're on to something. Vesetech has blood on it's hands. Lots of it. But not in the way you're thinking. It's worse . . what happens here. Suffice it to say, stuff happens here . . stuff that's not very nice."And, we find out this issue, it appears that the Joker and the Crime Doctor are involved. I thought it was a pretty decent story by Marc Andreyko. Michael Gaydos' art is pretty decent. It shows a lot of promise. And we're still getting some great Liam Sharp covers. All in all . . I thought it was a pretty decent book.

Manhunter #31 - DC

After a 14 month hiatus, this book is finally back on the shelves. The good news is Marc Adreyko is back as the writer. The bad new is, instead of Javier Pina, we have Michael Gaydos as the new resident artist. Michael's stuff isn't really bad, he actually show a lot of potential, it's just not the crisp clean work of Javier's. However, we did get a very nice Liam Sharp cover. That's always a plus. This book, kind of, picks up right where it left off. During it's hiatus, Kate's been involved with the Justice League a little, and the Birds of Prey a lot. So it's safe to say that she's not entirely the same person now as she was when the series ended. She's got a lot more experience now. This issue we also see Iron Munroe, Kate's grand-father. He wants to try to be a part of her life, but Kate really seems to be having a hard time with it. I guess it's because her father tried to kill her. So she's not very trusting of the men in her family. But her son, Ramsey, is a lot more forgiving. Also the Joker makes contact with Dylan . . sort of. And while looking in to a case in Juarez Mexico, Kate comes in to contact with Jamie Reyes . . the Blue Beetle. I guess this is all to show how grounded this character actually is in the DC Universe. The book is back because it has a great cast of characters and a huge potential. I just hope the readers see what this book has to offer and gives it a better shot this time. We'll just have to wait and see.

Manhunter #30 - DC

The only thing I'm really sorry for, with this book, is that I didn't get on board sooner. When it first came out, I just thought, "Yay. Another ManHunter." I felt kind of let down by the last 2 incarnations, so I really didn't know if I should stick my neck out for another. But, I gotta tell you, I really enjoyed the last 6 or 7 issues. I got sucked in with the Blue Beetle storyline. And I liked it so much, and the developing Wonder Woman storyline, that I went back and picked up the 3 or 4 issues before that, that were still on the shelves. And like I said, overall I've been pretty pleased with it. There's a great group of characters here. Of course Kate and her son Ramsey, but then there's Cameron, her sister Terry and her boyfriend Dylan, and of course Mark Shaw whom the Order of St Dumas is desperately trying to bring back in to their fold. Oh, I almost forgot Trapp, the resident bad guy whom always seems to be lurking over on of their shoulders. Anyways, fantastic cast of characters. Also this issue we find out that the Grand Jury has decided not to indict Wonder Woman for the death of Max Lord. This is a huge relief for everyone involved. And on top of all that, there really is a good creative team on this book also. Marc Andreyko is the writer. He has a great grasp of all these characters, and does an excellent job with his story flow. I also like Javier Pina, the penciller. I wasn't sure at first, but he's gotten better with every issue I've read. And his feel for this book and the story is near perfect. Finally, the last bit of good news, since this was the last issue . . . . "To be Continued! Really! We have a next issue!". Awesome! The next issue blurb says that Kate will return later this summer. Fantastic! I didn't really care, a couple of months ago, but now . . . I can't wait for the story to pick back up.