Outlaws

In “Red Hood and the Outlaws” #1, Scott Lobdell and Dexter Soy continue the exploration of Jason Todd’s history with Batman that they kicked off in the “Rebirth” issue, only this time with a flashback that has a more direct connection to present day events. The elements that made the “Rebirth” issue so impressive are also well-utilized in this formidable collaboration, with Lobdell crafting solid characterization for Jason and Soy composing strong layouts. Cover artist Giuseppe Camuncoli also returns with another eye-grabbing cover image, which finds Red Hood flanked by Bizarro and Artemis; the shadowy figure of Batman also looms behind Jason, which is symbolically appropriate of Jason’s attitude on his current mission. The issue still belongs almost solely to Jason, though, which works well for the story Lobdell looks to tell; rather than cobble together this so-called “Dark Trinity” by quick and easy convenience or through some contrived situation, Lobdell takes his time, emphasizi

Though Giuseppe Camuncoli’s standard-edition cover puts Bizarro and Artemis dead in Red Hood’s sights, two of these so-called Outlaws don’t appear in Scott Lobdell and Dexter Soy’s “Red Hood and the Outlaws: Rebirth” #1. Instead, Lobdell provides a fun and accessible refresher on Jason Todd’s present as well as his pre-Red Hood days, spanning from his very first meeting with Batman to his current relationship with his former mentor. This “Rebirth” issue is a wise and welcome prelude to the upcoming series and establishes the reasons behind Jason’s present actions, even as it recounts his origin, death and rebirth. Existing fans know that Jason’s resurrection is rooted in a far-reaching and cosmically convoluted key moment from a couple of continuities ago. Lobdell is smart enough to recognize that newer readers don’t need to know anything about Superboy-Prime’s reality-bending super-punch, which originally played a part in Jason’s rebirth. That might not even be the case any longer i

“Red Hood and the Outlaws” #30 is a hideously convenient comic book from start to finish. Everything that happens in Wil Pfeifer’s story feels like a deus ex machina, from Arsenal’s escape to the absence of any true agents of S.H.A.D.E. when Red Hood and Starfire invade the Ant Farm and find themselves in conflict with Frankenstein. While this comic book has repeatedly disappointed me, I was once more lured in by the promise of Frankenstein, one of the most consistently interesting characters since 2011’s reboot of the DC Universe. However, Frankenstein functions more as a speedbump or plot device than a true participant in the story — Pfeifer admits as much, having Frankenstein discuss his non-membership with S.H.A.D.E. as he fights for the organization in S.H.A.D.E.’s mobile headquarters. Pfeifer makes Frankenstein more flippant and vicious than the character has ever been, which fits the story, but not the history. Other matters of convenience are the time-delayed button on Arsena

Following Villains Month, “Red Hood and the Outlaws” #24 unloads a whole lot of fighting and plot setup courtesy of writer James Tynion IV and artist Julius Gopez. The issue opens with Jason Todd engaged in combat with the ethereal Drakar in ‘Eth Alth’Eban — the city of the League of Assassins. With members of the League at his side, the one-time Robin learns a great deal about his new allies. The cover of this issue gave me massive flashbacks to the Amalgam experiment that followed the “DC Vs. Marvel.” All of the characters have that late 1990s flair to them, but the peaked collar and trim on the cloak Red Hood is wearing seems like something straight out of the “Doctor Strangefate” comic book. The interiors are mostly filled with characters floating, falling or leaping through nebulously detailed pseudo-settings. Gopez drops lots of shadow into his work — however, his inkers choose different paths with the work provided. Walden Wong’s inks are slicker and more polished, rounding o

One of the early, successful comic book Kickstarter projects was Paul Jenkins and Humberto Ramos’s “Fairy Quest,” which funded an original 48-page hardcover graphic novel. While they’ve been selling copies on their website since then, it’s only now that “Fairy Quest: Outlaws” has offered the story as single issues. So with that in mind, how well does “Fairy Quest: Outlaws” #1 work in presenting the first half of the graphic novel? All in all, pretty well. The story itself is pleasant, showing the world of Fablewood where Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf have a distinctly different friendship than seen in the fairy tales. But before you start to worry about any potential similarities, a quick note that “Fairy Quest: Outlaws” #1 takes a distinctly different take than “Fables” on the idea of these characters being real. “Fairy Quest: Outlaws” #1 is a construct where Grimm is an actual person who tries to lock all of the different characters into their assigned roles regardles

As the saying goes, there are two sides to every story and in “Red Hood and the Outlaws” #0, it’s Jason Todd’s origin from two points of view. As someone who dialed up the number to liberate Batman from the burden of Jason Todd, I’ve never really found any appeal in the character, either as a Robin or even as the Red Hood, but with Zero Month upon us, I thought I’d see if there was any redemption to be found for Todd or “Red Hood and the Outlaws.” The answer is a resounding “no.” While the issue boasts a creative team of Scott Lobdell writing and artists Pasqual Ferry, Ig Guara and Brett Booth, there’s a whole lot of nothing here. Ferry’s artwork looks woefully incomplete and not at all equivalent to what I saw of the man in “Adam Strange: Planet Heist.” Cars are little more than wheeled boxes and people are distorted and exaggerated in a manner that even defies comic book art. The worst part about all of that is that the most of characters drawn by Ferry in “Red Hood and the Outlaw

“Red Hood and the Outlaws” #3 is a more interesting comic conceptually than it is in execution. When I think about the issue, I find myself liking it; when I flip back through it, that enjoyment disappears. Conceptually, it’s a straight up action book with a flashback for each of the main characters that helps shed some light on their personalities and adds depth to each of them; in execution, it’s a fluffy comic with unlikable characters that spout off flip remarks that carry little weight and go through the motions in a quest that’s presented as trivial. The flashbacks don’t add nearly as much depth as they’re supposed to, either. That disconnect between the idea and the reality ultimately makes this an interesting comic in a unique way, but not terribly good. With the All Caste — a group of monks in the Himalayas — slaughtered, the Red Hood, Arsenal, and Starfire follow the culprit, the Untitled, to the Chamber of All where they must surrender their most cherished memory to gain a

After all of the kerfluffle over the first issue of “Red Hood and the Outlaws,” I suspect all eyes are on the second issue. Those looking to be offended, though, are going to be slightly disappointed. “Red Hood and the Outlaws” #2 is a solid, middle-of-the-road comic. It’s got some highs and lows, but nothing that makes it jump up and get you for being too strong or weak. Instead, Scott Lobdell and Kenneth Rocafort tell a story about the three main characters travelling to the Himalayas to avenge a figure from Jason Todd’s past, plus an opening flashback to said past. There are some definite high points of the comic. The opening scene is easily the best part of the comic; Lobdell takes Jason down several pegs in an entertaining sequence where his arrogance leads him into disaster. While the ancient woman, Ducka, is a bit of a stereotype, she puts such a nice smackdown onto Jason that it’s easy to forgive. Rocafort’s art here also looks great, full of detail from the numerous (and eac

I could tell you that DC has pulled together a team of characters to serve as their version of the “A-Team” on this comic. I could tell you that the characters in this book are compelling and interesting. I could tell you that I cannot wait to read more. I could also tell you that of all the new DC titles, this one is far and away my favorite. If I told you any one of the above, I’d be lying like a rug. This book opens with the largest needless display of violence I’ve seen yet – and this new relaunched DCU has had its share of violence – as Red Hood and Roy Harper take out an entire blended forces war prison. The forces appear to be both Allied and Quraci, but the end result is the same: wholesale slaughter of every character whose first name doesn’t start with “R” and have only three characters (oh, and both of the survivors/escapees last names start with “H,” but that’s not important right now). Their escape gets a little messy, and that’s when Starfire shows up to melt down some