Tug's Pick of the Week
Batman:
Harley & Ivy
#1
This week I’ve decided to focus the entire "Tug’s Pick of the Week" section on one publisher — DC Comics! While there certainly isn’t anything wrong with the books the rest of the companies are putting out this week, DC simply has a lot of really great stuff happening this Wednesday, and I think they deserve a little recognition for it.
Don’t worry, Marvel folks, I’m sure that there’ll be a Marvel-focused pick someday. (Hmm, don’t they have that "X-Men Reload" thing coming up soon?) But, as they say in Highlander, “There can be only one.”
Pick of the Week, that is. And this week, it’s Batman: Harley and Ivy # 1
I’ve always been a big fan of Paul Dini and Bruce Timm and the Batman: The Animated Series cartoon. I don’t think there has ever been a truer vision of Gotham City and its protectors and villains than in that show. I even think the current Batman Adventures comic (based on the “animated” Batman world) is the best Batman book coming out right now. This new three-issue mini-series written by Dini and pencilled by Timm (plotted by both) reunites them with the two villainous ladies whom they made into their own dynamic duo — of sorts.
The basic story of any Harley and Ivy romp is this: Harley
messes something up, Ivy gets mad, they make up, and it starts over again. You
really would think that it would be old by now, but it’s not. Dini and Timm are
both master storytellers, and you won’t find a more well-executed book on the
shelves. Also, in inker Shane Glines, they have really found the perfect guy to
lay ink over Timm’s pencils. (Psst. I like that Glines guy. Check out this
cool picture that he drew for me of Ten, a character he designed from the Batman Beyond animated series.)
In the world of comedy, there has always been the straight man/funny man duo, and with this series, Abbott and Costello, Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau, and Penn and Teller can count Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy among their number.
Flash # 209 — Geoff Johns continues his amazing run on this
book. In this issue, you get the Justice League and a Flash/Superman race! This
isn’t the typical “Hello, old chum, let’s see who’s faster” race. Believe me, this issue will absolutely break your heart. Not to mention the fact
that Howard Porter gets to draw the JLA again — and this time, he really does it
right.
Green Lantern # 176 — Ron Marz returns to Green Lantern! Kyle
comes back from his misguided trip to space to find that his homecoming isn’t
quite as glorious as he had
hoped. (Heck, it isn't even the slightest bit pleasant!) I’m also looking forward to seeing more of
Luke Ross’s artwork,
because it looks terrific and is a really great fit for this book.
Batman # 626 — Judd Winick begins his run on
Batman with penciller Dustin Nguyen in this issue, and I have to admit, at first it looks
like Winick is going to follow form from his Green Arrow run and make Batman
fight demons. Thankfully, that doesn’t turn out to be the case. After all, who
needs demons when you’ve got a rogues gallery like Batman’s?
Superman # 204 — Oh, yeah, and I almost forgot to mention this
little ditty by some writer named Brian Azzarello and artist Jim Lee
(whoever that is). I’m sure it’s something that none of you will be
interested in ... . Ah, I’m just kidding! Seriously, DC didn’t send us a preview copy of this issue,
and I’m certain that had I read it, it would have been my "Pick of the Week." But
hey, I probably don’t have to tell you that it’s going to be good. After all,
you’re smart enough to read this column.
See ya Wednesday!