Retroactive: Batman - 1970s, S.H.I.E.L.D. #1, Nonplayer #1

Retroactive: Batman - 1970s

Len Wein

Tom Mandrake

Wes Hartman

Dezi Sienty

Chynna Clugston Flores

Jim Chadwick

A small disclaimer: DC Comics has decided to create one shot issues of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, and the JLA from the 1970s-90s. Each issue features a twenty six page new story, aesthetically tailored for the particular era, as well as a twenty page story from the period. This week The Flash, Wonder Woman, and Batman issues focusing on the 1970s were released, but for this review the focus will be on the new content (as one could or has presumably read the old story) of the Batman issue.

The art is really where this comic shines. Mandrake & Hartman both did a fantastic job understanding and replicating the 1970s aesthetic well. The character design and color palette are particularly well handled. Even so, the new story presented in Retroactive: Batman - 1970s is really nothing to write home about. It is poorly written, cliché, and overall boring, to put it bluntly. However I believe the point of these one shots is aesthetics, instead of the quality of the new or old stories. The new story works well because the writing itself is stilted and relies on tropes to progress the narrative, thus making the story seem as though it could be from the 1970s. Unfortunately, such a banal plot could hardly hold anyone's attention in 2011 and it is therefore the biggest failure of this comic (and, I'm assuming, the rest of the Retroactive series). The whole Retroactive project seems to be of novelty value only, which has its charms, but ultimately is a not too clever ploy by DC to get die hard fans to shell out cash for inferior products.

S.H.I.E.L.D. #1 The Beginning of the End

Jonathan Hickman

Dustin Weaver

Sonia Oback

Todd Klein

Geral Parel

Christina Strain

Irene Y. Lee

Daniel Ketchum

Nick Lowe

Axel Alonso

Joe Quesada

Dan Buckley

Alan Fine

Marvel's new S.H.I.E.L.D. #1 The Begging of the End is truly deceptive. Although I have not read the other S.H.I.E.L.D. (2010) comics that lead up to this issue, I know they have taken the concept in a direction completely oblivious to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s nearly fifty year history. Needless to say, this comic is not about espionage, covert military actions, or anything of the sort. Instead, it focuses on the apparent occult origins of S.H.I.E.L.D. that includes but is not necessarily limited to: magic, technology, time/space/dimensional travel, and famous historical figures. Because of this (and the somewhat lackluster writing), the entire comic is very confusing and coupled with art that is less than inspiring, I can only say that this comic may be worth it to those who have been following the new S.H.I.E.L.D. series. For everyone else, either go back to the very beginning or don't bother at all.

Nonplayer #1

Nate Simpson

Brandon Graham

Ben Templesmith

Justin Norman

Eagle Gosselin

Another small disclaimer: Although Image Comics' Nonplayer originally came out in May of this year, they recently did a second printing and thus this review is not for a comic that was actually released this week, but should still be available at your local comic book store.

Nonplayer is the brainchild of Nate Simpson who allegedly spent a year making this first issue (of a planned six). I must say, it was a year well spent. The narrative is in a similar vein to the .hack series, in which the protagonist, Dana, has both a real life and a life inside a virtual reality game. The writing is quite nice and captures the spirit of both MMORPG chat and everyday conversation. Furthermore the art is gorgeous, seamlessly weaving the fantasy aesthetic of Dana's online life with her futuristic reality. The first issue's plot sets up a lot of potential for interesting drama in the future issues, so there is a lot to look forward to. Overall, Nonplayer is extremely engaging and thought provoking and its certainly nice to see a comic book that evades the tired clichés and tropes of the comic book medium. I don't wish to spoil anymore of the story because, if you have the chance, you should pick this comic up as soon as possible.