Comics this week

Earth 2 #13- When DC announced that there will be an Earth 2 Batman, I was worried about it. I thought a Batman was not necessary for the title and so far, I am right. Writer James Robinson is currently splitting his story between 2 teams; the World Government and the magic-users (Doctor Fate, Flash etc). There’s not enough pages as it is between the two, so having and adding new characters to the mix with their own agendas dilute the focus even more. With Robinson suddenly announcing he is leaving DC, I can’t help but wonder if the introduction of the new Batman is another case of editorial inference at the company. That will make some sense because story-wise, this character is not needed.

Astro City #1- Oh, oh, oh! Astro City is back in an ongoing series from DC/Vertigo. Of course, this is Astro City so "ongoing" is a relative term but I am glad it is back and this issue showed why. After such a long absence, it’s nice to see that writer Kurt Busiek has not lost the inherent weirdness of Astro City. Breaking the fourth wall, a heroine called American Chibi, or even using a character from years ago that most people would have forgotten by now; it’s all here in one issue. Welcome (back) to Astro City!

Green Lantern #21- With writer Geoff Johns leaving Green Lantern after a 9 year run, there’s a lot of interest on how writer Robert Venditti would do as the GL writer. If this issue is any indication, the GL title seems to be in good hands. Venditti has Hal Jordon’s character down and showed humor when moving his pieces around. It wasn't perfect, Carol’s mini-breakup with Hal was too forced, but in the grand scheme of things, this issue wasn’t the total reboot everyone feared.