Shazam! (2011) Vol. 1
As a new Shazam fan, I was both looking forward to and dreading this book. Geoff Johns has consistently won me over and I heard this book was great, but I was unsure about some of the decisions made... mostly regarding Billy.
And yeah, Billy's a little snot in this book (to put it nicely.) I expected it and I'm still not totally happy with it, since the first version of Captain Marvel/Shazam I really knew and loved was the Young Justice version which portrayed him as an enthusiastic, naive, but well-meaning little dork. Changing him to be a selfish, mean-spirited punk is thus entirely the opposite of why I started to like the character in the first place.
With all that said, this was a great book. The New 52 never actually had a Shazam ongoing - this book collects the backup stories from some early Justice League books. I can't imagine following this story any other way than this collected form though, it feels more like a graphic novel than any kind of split-issue story.
The writing is great. While I didn't like Billy's new personality, it's believably written and you do feel bad for the kid. Plus, it's obvious he's set up at the beginning to be unlikable so he can grow through the story. At the very least I can say it's a fresh take on the character (as far as I know), and it leaves a lot of room for interesting character development... if Johns ever gets around to doing a proper Shazam series, since he's forbidding anyone else to do one while he's busy (from what I've heard.)
The story is kind of a standard origin-story, I don't know what elements were changed from the original setup, but I think it all flows together really well here. And while he's portrayed as a pure-villain for most of the plot, Black Adam veers close back to the pragmatic-but-still-detestable type I know him as in other media.
Art was OK for me. Faces were expressive and battles were nice and punchy, but I'm not personally a fan of sketchy penciling and shading.
Overall, a great reintroduction of Shazam that left me wanting more... mostly to see Billy grow into a better person. I guess we'll probably get that through the Justice League now, but Shazam deserves an ongoing more than half the rest of the stuff DC is publishing.
4 / 5
Justice League (2011) #30-34 "Injustice League"
Lex Luthor has joined the Justice League! Geoff Johns handles this event (and everything leading up to it) with a steady, sure hand. He knows what he's doing, and he knows wherever this is going to lead, and he knows we'll trust him. He has confidence, but it's not arrogance.
The first job the Luthor League takes on is battling Power Ring, one of the three Crime Syndicate flunkies left alive after Forever Evil. Well, "alive" being relative - the ring has an entirely new host. Basically, it's like a sentient Yellow Lantern ring. Also on the case are The New 52 Doom Patrol, and man, I really liked how Johns sets them up. They're kind of a detestable bunch, but mostly because of their leader. The way the Power Ring battle is resolved and how Power Ring ends up is another interesting twist - basically, Power Ring joins the Justice League. On top of Lex and possibly Captain Cold (Lex's new bodyguard), that makes three new "villains" on the league. Johns' idea of playing with antiheros joining the League is a fantastic one that opens up many rich story possibilities.
While the battle with Power Ring is the major focus of the book, I like a lot of the smaller details too. Such as Shazam exploring his powers after some prodding by Cyborg and basically magic-ing up a Ping Pong table. I love stuff like that, and Johns nails the voices of every character. My favorite moment was a short (two page?) scene with Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman alone discussing Luthor's entrance into the League. I really love it when they show these three characters interacting and making decisions and not just arguing or fighting. The "DC Trinity" as I call it are most interesting to me when they're talking like normal humans about big decisions like this.
Also, I smiled a bit when Luthor brings up the JL's declining approval rates and his own skyrocketing ones as reason to let him join, and Aquaman angrily replies that they don't care about approval rates. I think back to how the Avengers/Ultimates have acted sometimes and wonder if they could learn a thing or two from that exchange.
4 / 5
Joker (2008)
I've heard a lot of great things about this graphic novel over the years. Strangely, the only negative reaction I know of was one I read last week. This was on sale during DC's recent holiday sale, so I finally picked it up.
Something that's almost immediately apparent is that the "Joker" in this book isn't really the Joker. He's got the makeup and sometimes does something "unexpected," but even when he does so it's that trademark "mafia-style" unexpected where it's just killing a guy he was being nice to. Basically, he's a mob boss in Joker makeup.
It's clear The Dark Knight was a significant, if not sole influence on this work (to the point where the Joker's entire look is lifted almost wholesale from that movie), but I have to say that the Joker here has even less in common with the comic book Joker than Heath Ledger's did. Actually, far less. There's traces of every Joker in Ledger's, and while it's put through the Nolan realism filter, it's all still there and definitely "Joker." The Joker in this book doesn't even really laugh (at least, not on-panel.) He doesn't tell jokes (and in fact, discourages others from telling jokes.) He doesn't do anything zany (like dressing up in nurse outfit), nor does he have any real larger plan. He's just a thug in clown makeup, and Harley's a mute stripper (how edgy!)
I know I'm harping a lot on the Joker not being "the Joker," but this book was kind of billed as the "definitive" Joker story and interpretation and I'm just left scratching my head.
The book itself has some good writing, even if things are a bit predictable and the plot strangely doesn't go anywhere or lead up to anything. It was a good idea, focusing on one of Joker's goons following him around after he gets out of Arkham. It just never does anything interesting with it. I feel like this book was overrated in the wake up The Dark Knight's release (as it came out the same year.)
2 / 5
