Super Powers #2

After seeing success in the previous issue, Lex Luthor and the Penguin both get greedy in exerting their new powers over their foes in the Justice League and wind up failing miserably. (They've both now been marooned to a neither dimension, awaiting their fate based on their defeats.) Brainiac hasn't yet gotten to Earth yet, so the jury is still out on his performance with powers on loan from Darkseid.

The Joker is the only villain earning the praises of Darkseid's quartet of warriors. Having banished Batman, Robin and Hawkman to limbo, where they are being tortured, the fractured brain of the Clown Prince of Crime seems ideal for the many torments he's subjected his arch enemies to. But he might have gone too far in adding Superman and Lois Lane to the mix!

Of the 8 heroic members of the original Super Powers line-up, once again, Wonder Woman is noticeably absent from the action. Brainiac plans to use her as the generalissimo of an Amazonian army that will take over the world in order to ready our planet for Darkseid's arrival. Brainiac is present on maybe 2 pages of this book. 3 tops. But he's a passive player at the moment. Princess Diana appears in maybe 1 panel of those pages. Of a 24 page book! 

I know that Wonder Woman is going to feature heavily in the next issue. But is her absence from the first half of this miniseries been due to saving up for her big scene? Or was Jack Kirby, Joey Cavalieri OR BOTH, just not a big fan of Wonder Woman? 

So far, things have been really uneven in this, the first Super Powers miniseries. The key to the success of predecessor comic Justice League of America was equally splitting the team up into equitable sequences of action. We're 50% through this story and so far only 75% of the villains and 87.5% of the heroes have done enough to earn a participation trophy in terms of progressing the plot. I remember not being a fan of this series as a kid, considering how great the toy line and the mini comics were. I'm at a loss as to why things don't seem to be pandering out so well, especially since this is a Kirby production.

Maybe it gets better in the third act.

Rating: 5 out of 10 stars.

Elvira's Haunted Holidays #1

In the 1980s, DC Comics attempted to revitalize The House of Secrets. Instead of host Cain, DC opted with Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. As the horror hostess with the Valley Girl accent was the dominant personality of the decade in schlock horror, it made sense to tie her in with the reboot. For some reason, it just never worked. But before DC evicted Elvira from the premises, they managed to eek out this 1987 holiday special.

Elvira stars in the main story which is a parody of A Christmas Carol. As with the Dickens classic, 3 spirits visit Elvira in hopes of bringing back her holiday spirit. Then a small time crook gets the idea to play Grinch on Christmas Eve. But before he can make off with the family's goods, the con runs into a blind girl who can actually see things quite well. Lastly, on a not too far off Christmas Eve, extraterrestrials make first contact with Earth. Only it appears that thanks to a nuclear war, it appears this first contact was too late!

This was a very good one-shot in the vein of The House of Mystery's signature twist endings. But I thought that the Elvira story could have been better. Instead of giving back her Christmas spirit, writer Joey Cavalieri (Spider-Man 2099) should have made it where it was the Halloween Spirit that Elvira needed to regain.

Now I know that this is a Christmas special. But I think if you made it where the scenes from the past were of Victorian England and kept the future scene where Scrooge sees his grave (only now with Elvira as a substitute), then a Halloween themed story would have worked! And it would be more fitting with the character of Elvira.

A festive way to say good-bye to the House of Secrets!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Showcase Presents: Blue Beetle, Volume 1

Collecting the complete Blue Beetle series from 1986-1988. Written by Joey Cavalieri and Len Wein, this version of the Ted Kord Beetle starts off as a more serious, less angry version of Batman. By day, Kord runs Kord Industries, a technological think tank. But at night, he's Blue Beetle, Chicago's newest protector. 

It's a much different Ted Kord than I am used to. My first encounters with this character are from his roles in various Justice League incarnations. That Blue Beetle is less serious, much more of a slacker, and a lot less healthier. If I'm not mistaken, the Giffen/DeMatteis Blue Beetle was the first superhero to have a beer gut. 

The Beetle comprised in this Showcase Presents collection is the complete opposite of everything that I feel in love with the character. Plus, there's no Booster Gold in which to be a comedic spring-board off of. That doesn't mean that I didn't like this edition. It was filled with some really good stories, some amazing art, and one of the best covers of all-time. 

For anyone that is a fan of the Charlton Comics Blue Beetle, this is going to be treat for you. Fans of Ditko's version of the hero will also delight in that the original scarab, Dan Garrett, makes a return in an epic blast from the past!

Featuring artwork from DC legends such as Gil Kane, Ross Andru, and Don Heck, this late 80s series was about as close to the original vision of Blue Beetle than anything crafted afterwords. Though these stories were published when I was a kid, this is my dad's Beetle. These aren't terrible but there it a little too much of an element of soap opera for my liking. Plus, this is just not what you'd expect when the Ted Kord you are used to is the class clown of the Justice League.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.