Batman comes to visit Superman on the farm, and nothing good ever comes of that. Plus, the reunion between Green Arrow and Arsenal gives us more of their history within the new DC Comics universe.
Superman 20
Written by Peter J. Tomasi and Patrick Gleason
Art by Patrick Gleason and Mick Gray
It’s the first issue of Superman since the events of last month’s 4-issue REBORN crossover, and the Kent family is starting to deal with the fallout. Namely, their neighbors in Hamilton County now know them as the Kents and everything seems to be going back to the pre-Flashpoint normal for them – just in more youthful New 52 bodies. Can we figure out a continuity reboot for our Earth to give us all a redo?
Everything seems to be going great for Clark, Lois and Jon… and then Batman shows up to ruin everyone’s fun. Clark catches the Dark Knight and his son skulking around the barn and instead of yelling at each other outside, like they would in Gotham City or Metropolis, Lois and Clark bring Batman and Robin inside for some coffee and pie. Batman tells Clark and Lois that because their son is a Krypto-Human hybrid, he should be even stronger than Superman – which seems to be a reversal from decades of continuity, but whatever – but Batman believes that something in the area of the farm is weakening him.
Of course, Batman follows his gut and it doesn’t go well for him. At all. This is a recurring theme for the Rebirth Batman – come visit Superman in Hamilton County and he ends up being captured or disabled by some manner of villain. Look at what happened in the first arc of Trinity. I don’t want to give away what happens to Batman here, because you should really see it for yourself, but it involves a cow’s milk and black goo.
Even with the embarrassing moments that Batman is put through, the best part of this issue is the way Superman is represented. He’s smiling. He’s HAPPY and Tomasi and Gleason show that the people look up to him. It’s the way Superman should be written. I hope this continues to be the standard.
Green Arrow 20
Written by Benjamin Percy
Art by Mirka Andolfo, Eleonora Carlini and Arif Prianto
The REUNION arc has given writer Benjamin Percy an opportunity to re-establish the history of Green Arrow for the current era, at least when it comes to his relationship with Roy Harper. Now that the main heroes have been de-aged, while their former sidekicks have been left to grow older, there’s definitely a need to rewrite some history so things fit in the current continuity.
At this point, Oliver Queen and Roy Harper can’t be more than a few years apart, and we were given a glimpse at how their relationship was forged over video games, tech and being vigilantes. Here, in the story’s finale, Percy gets to play with an iconic moment in the history of the Green Arrow-Arsenal relationship.
Oliver gets to be judgmental about Roy’s heroin use, which eventually drives Roy to being used by Count Vertigo. The flashbacks to the dissolution of the Queen-Harper relationship is a backdrop to the fight they’re having with the Wild Dogs, who are trying to scare protestors away from the pipeline Queen Industries is building.
Once Ollie and Roy get on the same page, with Black Canary on their side, the team gets the better of the Wild Dogs, but there are clearly bigger fights on the horizon and Roy, grudgingly, offers his help.
I’m enjoying Percy’s take on the character, and bringing Green Arrow back to his roots – and apparently back to Star City with the next issue – has established the book as a must-read for me.