Doomsday Clock #5 Review: The Legionnaire & The Detective

It’s been two months since the last issue of Doomsday Clock. Much like Frank Miller’s third Dark Knight Returns series, Geoff Johns’ new Watchmen spin-off will now be releasing once every two months instead of monthly. This is not an ideal way to take in the story as it requires a lot on the reader’s part. Doomsday Clock story is complex and sprawling. So, keeping track of all the different plot lines and characters can be different between issues. While normally it’d be best to wait for a collected edition, Doomsday Clock is just too good to wait for.

This issue picks up soon after Adrian Veidt’s attack on Lex Luthor. Despite his hospitalization, the events of the issue set him on a collision course with Batman, who has been reading Rorschach’s journal. That interaction is as thrilling as you’d expect, but somehow it isn’t the most compelling meeting to be found here.

Also read: Zack Snyder’s ‘Watchmen’ Gets A ‘Blade Runner 2049’ Styled Trailer

The new Rorschach has joined forces with Saturn Girl, who you may remember belongs to the Legion of Superheroes. This plotline has been building ever since last year’s Batman and The Flash crossover, The Button. Without spoiling anything, it’s definitely worth the wait. The stark contrast Johns manages to draw between the characters is captivating, but he still manages to keep their relationship believably friendly and cooperative.

The Joker does make an appearance in this issue, as advertised. However, this is a brief moment meant to set up the next issue. Hopefully, you weren’t expecting a Joker-centric plot. This issue also brings in Superman in a more meaningful way, but the character is still kind of on the sidelines for Doomsday Clock.

Also read: HBO’s ‘Watchmen’ Series Rounds Out Its Cast With Regina King, Don Johnson

Aside from the central plot progressing, it’s in this issue that readers will fully be able to understand exactly what is at stake. If you’ve had any reservations about Watchman crossing over with the DC heroes, that will certainly melt away here. The rising global tensions in the DCU perfectly parallel the dystopian Watchman universe. This thematically resonant conflict is every bit as scathing a commentary on modern superhero comics as Watchman was.

Then, of course, there’s that cliffhanger. Once, again Gray Frank’s art works in perfect tandem with Johns’ writing to crescendo into some amazing revelations and a devastating finale. The final moments of this issue will have you begging for more. Once again, this is exactly the problem that Doomsday Clock is currently facing.

It’s hard to believe that we aren’t even at the half-way mark of this series yet. The 12 issue series, which is set one year after the current DC Comics continuity, was intended to catch up with the other series in the DC lineup this November. However, these delays mean that clearly will not happen. In fact, the next issue is taking an even longer break, releasing in August. Surely it will be a long Summer, especially after this ending. Of course, the series is still excellent, but it’s hard to deny that these delays have lessened the reading experience.

Final Score: 8/10

10 Ways Batman Could Join The Arrowverse

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The team of Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim have done something that many thought wasn’t possible: make a TV universe better and more powerful than a film universe from the same company. While it isn’t perfect, there are many ways to improve it and the fans are clamoring for one name in particular.

Batman has been one of the most used comic book characters in almost every medium and with good reason. He’s the most popular character in DC Comics and probably the best depending on who you ask. But would placing Batman in the same universe as Arrow, The Flash and Supergirl work? Should The CW do it? These are the reasons why I think it would and should work.

Here are 10 ways Batman could join the Arrowverse. Hit Next to get started!

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The Man of Steel #1 Review: Bendis Struggles With Superman Debut

After a brief glimpse of what’s to come in Action Comics #1000 and months of teasing, Brian Michael Bendis’ first full issue writing for DC Comics is here. It only makes sense for one of the biggest names in comics to tackle the most famous superhero of all time. Bendis is kicking things off with The Man of Steel, a weekly event series meant to introduce both new and long-time fans to Bendis’ take on Superman. This first issue does little to get you excited for The Man of Steel, but it does plenty to endear fans to a fresh new take on Superman.

Also read: New BTS ‘Justice League’ Image Features Superman & The Flash Racing For The Post-Credits Scene

We start with an introduction to the story’s central villain, Rogol Zaar. It’s difficult to explain how without sounding cynical, but the new foe is unspectacular in every way. It feels like over the last five years both DC and Marvel have been spoon-feeding us these cookie-cutter villains: giant, overly muscular aliens that all look the same and all share the same misguided sense of morality. Zaar is just another of these villains. The design, by artist Ivan Reis, is unspectacular in every way. Honestly, Zaar just looks like Doomsday with hair and an ax. He’s also got a vendetta against Krypton and may have been responsible for its destruction, which are both groan-worthy cliches.

Meanwhile back on Earth, Bendis offers up a complex Superman with a light-hearted personality. Here, Bendis does what he does best: explore character dynamics through breezy and heightened dialogue. It may not be what everyone wants from a Superman book, but it makes for a very fun read. Frankly, a series of short slice-of-life Superman stories sounds much more appealing than another showdown with a bland villain.

Bendis shines during dialogue-heavy scenes, which, as any Bendis fan will tell you, comprise most of everything he writes. However, Reis’ work stands out when Superman takes flight. During an early encounter with two C-list villains, Reis’s artwork brings just as much lighthearted wonder to Superman as Bendis’ dialogue. One can only hope that the two manage two find a balance as the series continues.

Also read: Gal Gadot’s Fake Mustache Video Prompts More ‘Justice League’ Jokes

There’s a lot of potential here, but The Man of Steel #1 is a lackluster debut from Bendis. You cannot deny the immense talent that went into this book, but it still doesn’t make for an engaging story. Instead, you’ll find yourself clinging exclusively to the characters. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with that if Bendis intends to bring those character-heavy moments to the center of the plot, but the uninspired villain will make that all the more difficult. It would be great to be proven wrong in the next issue, but there are plenty of better comics running right now and this issue makes it hard to justify adding this series to your pull list.

Final Score: 6/10

The 10 Strongest Members Of Superman’s Family, Ranked

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Superman is the first and most powerful superhero in the DC Universe. Due to all of his heroic actions, Superman has earned an inspirational role in the DCU and serves as a beacon of hope for many new heroes. In addition to inspiring heroes in the present, his deeds inspired heroes thousands of years later to develop the Legion of Superheroes.

Superman can’t be everywhere all the time, so he’s lucky enough to have a Superfamily behind him to help. Even with his super strength, there’s no way he can stop every criminal simultaneously, so these other heroes all stepped up to help defend innocent people. Whether they are on the battlefield or saving innocent lives, all of these people are proud members of the Superfamily who will do whatever they have to to accomplish their goals.

Hit Next to discover the 10 strongest members of Superman’s family! 

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‘Deadpool 2’ Review: Bigger Isn’t Always Better

Two years after the first Deadpool film stormed into theaters to become the highest-grossing R-rated film of all time, Ryan Reynolds is back as the Merc with a Mouth with a sequel packed with bigger action and a bigger cast. The cast includes Josh Brolin, who makes his debut as the villainous time-traveling mutant Cable in Fox’s (shared?) X-Men universe.

Deadpool 2 is consistently funny, riddled with jokes that continuously hit bigger and better than the last but the sequel gets off to a bit of a rocky start that feels like it’s wading in what made the first film successful before it introduces anything fresh into the mix like new characters and cameos (don’t blink). Morena Baccarin returns as Wade Wilson’s love-interest Vanessa; Karan Soni is back as Dopinder, the innocent and lovable taxi driver; T.J. Miller returns as… well, who cares what his name is, it’s T.J. Miller playing himself, again. The problem with the returning characters — and yes, that includes Dopinder — is that they don’t feel necessary to the plot once it kicks in, which takes a while. This trio of supporting characters from the first film feel shoehorned and stuffed back in for the sequel as if the studio was afraid not to include all of the ingredients that made the first film such a massive success.

Leslie Uggams, Stefan Kapicic, and Brianna Hildebrand are also back as Blind Al, Colossus and Negasonic Teenage Warhead, respectively. While Blind Al continues to be as hilarious as she was before, and the dynamic between Deadpool and Colossus is actually improved upon and even funnier this time around, Negasonic Teenage Warhead feels completely wasted, relegated to callbacks from the first film as her girlfriend Yukio (Shioli Kutsuna) comes to the forefront with a one-note joke that’s recycled in every scene she appears in but still somehow manages to work every time.

Fox tries to make a bold move early on in this sequel with an all-too-predictable twist that can be seen from a mile away. The idea is to motivate Wade to get into a different mindset and while it works within the context of the film, it ultimately feels like a stretch and a completely unnecessary move. But once the movie gets past this and the staples of the first film and finally introduces Brolin’s Cable along with a mutant child named Russell played by Hunt for the Wilder People star Julian Dennison, things finally start to come together, although the first half of the second act also drags with a prison sequence that makes the film feel like it’s going nowhere. Cable has come back from the past at this point and Brolin, who looks incredible, turns in another strong performance like you’d expect.

Also read: ‘Deadpool’ Star Ryan Reynolds Gives Update On ‘X-Force’ Rating

But this movie has a major issue with Cable in that his motivations for wanting to kill Russell aren’t made clear until it’s way too late in the game. However, Deadpool 2 successfully manages to distract you from this by keeping you focused on the humor and action, as well as the introduction of the X-Force members, who are terribly underused. Zeitgeist (Bill Skarsgård) and Shatterstar (Lewis Tan) may as well have been faceless, nameless characters, while Terry Crews’ comedic talents go completely unused. Rob Delaney’s Peter is a highlight but does little more than what was seen in the film’s marketing. But the X-Force has a diamond in the rough, as the standout of the team and the entire movie is Zazie Beetz as the lucky mercenary Domino. After a sloppy first scene that feels like it should have been left on the cutting room floor, Beetz quickly becomes the center of attention, drawing your eyes in every scene she’s in as she holds her own against both Reynolds and Brolin.

The midpoint of the film features an incredible action sequence in which the X-Force attempts to rescue Russell from a convoy transporting mutant prisoners. Beetz crushes the action here and gets featured in what is no doubt the single greatest piece of cinematography in the entire film in which the camera pans around her character as cars crash and trucks flip over to avoid her, although the shot itself is a bit marred by some rough CGI.

Also read: Ryan Reynolds Says Future ‘Deadpool’ Sequels Could Happen ‘Down The Road’

Cable’s motivations eventually get explained and without going too far into spoiler territory, his backstory is a bit derivative of Rian Johnson’s Looper. However, Deadpool 2 manages to make Cable more interesting by making him more than just an antagonist, allowing for a more complex story to emerge as the film breaks into act three. By then, it feels like Deadpool 2 is finally firing on all cylinders and not just relying on references and its raunchy, fourth-wall-breaking humor to carry it. The plot, characters, humor and action escalate into a hilarious, exciting and engaging finale. However, the resolution and one of the film’s final gags ends up sagging and it had me yearning for a Return of the King joke, but the scene itself also featured the film’s most brilliant Easter egg, which served as a callback to a more recent X-Men film (hint: you can hear it but you can’t see it.) The film also includes a long post-credits sequence that I won’t spoil for you because the final scene in this bit has the biggest laugh in the entire film.

Deadpool 2 ultimately lacks the charm that made the first film such a treat. The sequel doesn’t have the advantage that the shock value of the first film’s humor had and struggles to be more than just Deadpool redux before finding its own voice in the beginning. Gone is Tim Miller who directed the first film and exited the follow-up due to creative differences with Reynolds over the direction. Replacing him is David Leitch, who is best known for his directorial efforts on the first John Wick and last year’s Atomic Blonde, but Leitch seems to have left his stylistic sensibilities at the door, foregoing the noirish tones and visuals of his previous films and opting for what feels like a serviceable follow-up to the original. Leitch’s first stab at a superhero film ultimately feels safe, which makes it even less surprising that he’s being scooped for more big-budget blockbusters all over town.

Score: 7.5/10

20 Marvel Movies That Could Be Made After Disney’s Fox Acquisition

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So the impossible has happened: Fox and Disney have recently agreed to a major deal, one which means that — aside from a few limitations with the Hulk and Spider-Man, who have their rights wrapped up with Universal Pictures and Sony Pictures — every major Marvel property will soon be able to appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While the plans for the remainder of Phase 3 likely won’t change that much, barring possible post-credits scenes showing major cameos being added on short notice, this development certainly gives Marvel an embarrassment of riches to work with for future film adaptations.

Since Marvel Studios had previously claimed that they have an outline for the next 20 movies they’ll make without the X-Men, the Fantastic Four, or any of their associated characters, I thought it would be best to similarly go all-out and suggest 20 more for the heck of it.

Here are, in no particular order, 20 movies that Marvel should think about making with a complete MCU at their fingertips. Click Next to get started!

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Deathstroke #31 Review: Batman’s War Is Growing

Heading into the second installment of Deathstroke’s Batman-centric arc, the series had a lot to prove as the last issue became bogged down with set-up. Now the first shots have been fired and it looks like an all-out war is brewing between The Dark Knight and The Terminator. Deathstroke #31 does manage to escalate the conflict between the two but still suffers from a few the previous issue’s flaws.

Christopher Priest has added a particularly interesting wrinkle to the story with the inclusion of Alfred and Wintergreen’s friendship. The pair is cleverly woven into the central conflict. They react same way parents would their children were fighting. Hopefully, we will get to see the relationship between them deepen. However, the other relationships featured in this book aren’t quite so realized.

Also read: Zack Snyder’s ‘Justice League’ Photos Being Deleted Scenes Is Coincidental

The last issue introduced some short, three-panel interviews with Deathstroke and Batman’s respective sidekicks. Robin’s interview in this issue is particularly poignant, but the purpose and context of these interviews have yet to be revealed. It’s an interesting device to use in this medium, one that normally wouldn’t fit. Honestly, it’s still isn’t clear if it fits. Going forward, we need to know who is behind the camera and why the characters are being interviewed. Perhaps this will be used in a custody battle we’ll see further down the road.

Still, the Robin being interviewed isn’t the one at the center of this war. Damian Wayne is still nowhere to be seen. Damian is a very mature young hero and leaving him out of the conversation isn’t doing the character justice. Luckily, we finally get to see some of that classic Batman rage from Bruce. A shattered picture of Damian beautifully illustrates the damage that this revelation has caused. Batman put a lot of work in rehabilitating Damian. So, this doesn’t just hurt him as a father, but also as a mentor and a hero.

Also read: DC Comics Delays Doomsday Clock #5 & #6 Release By A Month

Batman’s first retaliation to Deathstroke’s indifference is perfectly calculated. Not only does it escalate the tensions between the two, but it also shows the reach of Batman’s influence. He perfectly manages to use Deathstroke’s own moral code against him, just as Deathstroke has done to him in the past. This act alone corrects all issues with Priest’s characterization of Batman in the last issue. Batman’s not just angry, he is clearly shaken to his very core and is fighting this war with his emotions as well as his brains.

The final panels of this issue make for a very enticing cliffhanger. You will be begging to see how Deathstroke retaliates. As this arc approaches its midpoint, attacks like these will need to escalate. The fight must become more personal. If it does, we could very well be reading the definitive tale of these two characters.

Final Score: 9/10

10 Actors Who Should Play Red Hood In The DC Extended Universe

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Not much is known about The Batman, but one thing is clear: the Red Hood would make an incredible villain. While there have been a few iterations of the Red Hood over the years, I’m specifically referring to when Jason Todd, one of Batman’s former sidekicks, takes up the mantle. After being brutally murdered by the Joker, Jason Todd was buried and believed dead by the world. As a result of the universe-altering event Infinite Crisis, his death was retconned and he spent years developing a grudge to his former mentor for leaving him alone.

Over time, Jason Todd dons the villainous Red Hood mantle and decides to wage a one-man war on crime. Unlike Batman, he doesn’t have limits though. Red Hood is a proud killer, and instead of wiping crime from the city, he aims to take over the drug trade himself to ensure no one sells to kids. He’s an extremely complex, interesting character, so he obviously needs a talented performer to bring him to life on the big screen.

Here are ten actors who should play Red Hood in the DC Extended Universe. Click Next to get started!

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