Red Hood and the Outlaws #5

I've been a large proponent of this book since the first issue where half the comic world went crazy because she slept with Roy on a whim. It's been a great action book with fantastic art and a compelling story. I find all three characters very likable, and there have been some great moments that have surprised us all. Sadly, issue #5 doesn't quite live up to the quality of the first four issues, and leaves the reader with a somewhat anticlimactic conclusion to the fight scenes introduced in issue #4.

Issue #4 set up this great dichotomy between Jason's fight against the "Untitled" and Starfire's battle against the vengeful monster "Crux." Crux had depowered Starfire, and Jason was in a fight against a seemingly immortal creature where he dual-wielded swords. That was cool, which is an adjective underused when thinking about Jason as the "Red Hood," frankly, he's just cool.

Batman #5

The idea of a legend has always intrigued me. When does someone become a legend? How do we distinguish a legend from something very impressive? Who decides what's a legend and what's not? I used to believe that legends are always made after-the-fact. That you can never determine what is and isn't legendary until you've told their story thousands of times. The time frame after-the-fact can shift, sometimes it's the next game, sometimes it's years down the line (for instance, the day after Kobe Bryant scored 81 points in one game, I knew it was a legend, but I didn't realize until years down the line the true legend of Michael Jordan. Sure, we all knew he was great, but it wasn't until after he was gone and we realized no one could measure up, and as each year passes and Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant, Dwyane Wade, and LeBron James fail to measure up, MJ's legend grows.

Scott Snyder has challenged that notion for me. After reading Batman #5, I'm certain, we're living through one oft he greatest Batman stories, ever, a legendary one that'll be part of Batman canon forever. Scott Snyder is that good, while I don't enjoy this story as much as I did his previous one, "The Black Mirror," I certainly realize that this current story is a step above, and if it ends as strong as it starts, will be on every legitimate list of top five Batman stories ever.

Nightwing #5

Nightwing #5 is an interesting issue. The characterization and art are spot on, but the script is weird, and it's probably thus far the best example of Kyle Higgins' first five issues. Right now, Kyle Higgins seems interested in doing mostly one-off stories, which end with slight advancement of an ongoing plot. And that's fine, but there is something off about it, and after a lot of thought, I think I've put my finger on it.

The thing is, the main stories are rarely tying back into the larger story arc. If the adventure in issue five had much of anything to do with Saiko and the circus as a whole, that would be great. This story centers around a random circus clown with a vengeful ex that has somehow conjured a monster to come after him. The fight was cool, and Nightwing's actions int he story were spot on, but this begs the question "why the hell are you telling this story?" How does this matter, what's the point in telling this story?

Batgirl #5

The first four-issue story featuring the villain "Mirror" was a pretty decent start to the new Batgirl series. While maybe a little obvious, it was thematically relevant as Barbara's main issues are the ones she sees when she looks in the mirror, metaphorically that is. So far, the most difficult challenges for Babs have been insular, dealing with her recovery from paralysis, conflicted feelings about Dick Grayson/Nightwing, and now -- Mommy issues!

Although Gordon family history is somewhat convoluted (Babs is the niece/adopted daughter/possible biological daughter of Jim Gordon), what one needs to know is that the Barbara Gordon who has shown up mysteriously is Jim Gordon's ex-wife, the former adopted mother of Babs. Make sense? Good. Now I can actually talk about the story.

Batman and Robin #5

Time to get back on the snide and getting these out on time....ish. Batman and Robin 5 previews the possible fall of Damian Wayne. While the four previous issues have shown concern for Damian's mental state (frustrations with Bruce, abuse to animals, needless violence, etc.) issue five proves to be the tipping point as he teams up with Morgan Ducard (our villain Nobody) to "fight crime" in Gotham. Ducard's trying to turn Damian (why? we're not sure yet, other than the general undermining of Bruce's Batman INC).

This issue also features a little backstory for Bruce's past with the Ducards, and the brief nut needed personal history of Morgan and his father Henri. Basically, Henri Ducard was a mercenary agent for various governments who had nowhere else to turn, who fell in love with and married a terrorist agent hired to kill him. They had a child, the terrorists threatened to kill the son if she didn't kill Henri. She agrees, the son Morgan overhears, and kills his mom, convincing his father that he was the only one who truly cared about him, at which point Henri began to train Morgan.