A Sunday Review

This week's movie was Justice League: The Flashpoint Paradox 2013. Barry Allen wakes up to a completely different world after a run-in with the Reverse Flash. I knew what was going to happen from the start, but I still enjoyed it. The differences from the comic book version were enough to keep the story fresh, but the lack of backstory hurt in some ways. For instance, Aquaman is clearly courting Wonder Woman when Mera confronts her in the movie, but Aquaman says that WW killed his wife... what? In the comic the confrontation came after the breakup of Diana and Arthur was engineered. There wasn't enough time to develop that backstory in the movie, so Mera's death is the cause of the war. Apparently. Although maybe Aquaman wasn't courting, just flirting? Anyway... lots of little differences from the comic and a few neat twists. The art style was very anime, and I liked the inclusion of both Aqualads and Tula. It reflected the Young Justice series to some extent in the artwork, which was brought home by a few characters including the Aqua-family. I had mixed feelings about the voices, but overall it worked. Honestly, the opening sequence, a standard Justice League story focused on the Flash, was just the best way to start the tale. The rest was great, but that opening just felt right.

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Here are reviews of the DCBS comic books that I've gotten around to reading and reviewing, sorted by the original shipping date:

• Aug 7th
• Green Lantern #23 - Somebody made a big mistake putting Hal in charge.
• Earth 2 #15 - And everything goes weird again. Well... I'm not sure what to think of this book. Especially since more than one person is definitely a "bad guy" which makes it hard to figure out where the threat is coming from.
• Steam Engines of Oz #2 - In this issue we get the backstory of how Oz got to where it's at. And it's not completely far off from the books, although it definitely contradicts the story of how Nick Chopper found his lost love (and what happened to her). Still, I'm really enjoying this version and hope to see a lot more.
• The Legend of Oz: The Wicked West #10 - Holy cow. This version actually works really well, and the more I see of it, the more I like it. Knowing the original story I keep waiting for certain things to happen, then being surprised at the way they do.
• Emerald City of Oz #2 - I like Em and Henry's reactions, particularly the desire to work. I've always considered the Wogglebug's pills to be slightly sinister, if very appealing (learn Latin with just three pills a day!). I remember Miss Cuttenclip, but had forgotten the Shaggy Man's actions. As for Guph, got to admire his nerve.

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This week's comic book related review is Brody's Ghost Volume 4 by Mark Crilley. As much as Brody learns, he continues to make stupid mistakes. The stalking thing is probably the worst. If he hadn't been outside the boyfriend's house, the next incident would not have meant as much. But, no, he had to keep pushing. And then there's confronting his ghost about her death. Sheesh. Not the smartest move on his part. Overall, an intense volume. When's the next one coming out?

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My book this week was Life's a Witch by Brittany Geragotelis. Hadley is having nightmares about her ancestor, the first witch to die in the Salem witch trials... but worse is to come. We received a review copy of this at the newspaper and I was assigned to read it. The book was ok, a bit overwrought at times. The highlight of the book as far as I was concerned was the prologue, and that's not a good sign. Still, it wasn't bad... it just was a little too young adult for me. Normally I wouldn't say that, as I read YA books like I eat chocolate, but I could not identify with the main character even a little. I think certain teens would love it, but I didn't. Again, not a bad book, just not my cuppa.

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Past Sunday Reviews -- Comics at Amazon.com -- Previews -- My Wishlist -- My Kindle Wishlist