This year's annual holiday special from DC Comics is rather unusual. For one thing, they embraced the classic parodying of Jingle Bells with a cover and title that confirms that the Dark Knight indeed has odor issues.
Other than the cover, and a couple of cameos by millionaire Bruce Wayne, Batman doesn't star in any of the octet of Christmas stories in this book. But even odder is the complete absence of Harley Quinn. Is she no longer the darling of DC? And if you're looking for Poison Ivy who appears on the cover, you're out of luck. And the egg laying Damien Wayne only appears in a couple of panels at the beginning of one story.
The rundown of the holiday heroics are as follows:
- John Stewart teams with a substitute Santa when the Toyman steals the famed bag of toys from St. Nick's sleigh.
- John Constantine must save a woman targeted by death at midnight. However, it's magic that will save her but a kiss under the mistletoe by the Hellblazer.
- An old flame reappears in Vixen's life. With a reunion date set for Christmas, she has 12 days to find her old flame the perfect gift.
- Deadman comes across a Pennsylvanian mining town in need of a Christmas miracle after the local mine experiences a cave-in.
- The Secret Six introduces Bane to the concept of Secret Santa.
- The Joker gets a chance to see what Gotham City would be like if he was never born, with the Jason Todd Robin playing the role of the angel Clarence.
- Doctor Mid-Nite tries to help a down on their luck family during the holidays. But it might be his day job as a noted physician that saves the day.
- After an encounter with a different Toyman, Superman finds his entire body glowing like Rudolph on steroids. Watch as the Man of Steel runs through his gambit of foes to discover the source behind his illuminating predicament.
I liked that some of the lesser rans such as Doctor Mid-Nite and the Secret Six got a chance to shine. John Stewart's tale was adorable and I got a great kick out of the Joker's Christmas Carol. DC really wants Vixen to jump up to A-list status. This is like her 3rd appearance in a Christmas special in I think 4 years.
Major kudos to the Superman story which took inspiration from one of my personal favs, Superman: The Animated Series.
Every story was well written. But the art varied and most of it was not good. This was probably the least preachy holiday special issued by DC in decades. This was also the most Christmasy of the Christmas specials done in this modern format by the publisher EVER! Neither Hanukkah, Diwali, Kwanzaa or Ramadan is celebrated in any of these tales. Only Christmas! It really makes me wonder if DC is trying to stay under the radar of the incoming administration or is this the calm before the storm? Will next year's holiday special aim to skewer our returning President or is DC going to try and re-patch severed relationships with it's older readers, since they're the ones with the most expendable income?
These holiday specials are usually touchstones for the direction that the House That Superman Built is heading in the coming year. But I'm kinda flummoxed considering how uncontroversial this 80-page giant was. Not complaining. Just not sure what to expect next from DC...
Worth Consuming!
Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.
No comments:
Post a Comment