#Not to be confused with The Thinker from DC Comics

[cadhla182]

"Riddle me this, Batman!" *Brains him with The Thinker*

[longitudinalwaveme]

Some thoughts:

Killer Frost is not a Flash villain. She's a Firestorm villain. Not that she couldn't fight the Flash, but she wouldn't logically be part of a Sinister Six for him. That would be like having Lex Luthor be part of Batman's Sinister Six. I blame the Flash TV show for this one.

Is this Mirror Master Sam or Evan? Which one it is could drastically change the team dynamics; Evan is a lot less reliable in a group setting than Sam, but Sam has more of an ego.

I suspect that the person who made the video has not read any stories about Golden Glider that were written prior to Geoff Johns' run. Pegging Golden Glider as being the nice one or the most likely to help the Flash only makes sense if you don't know anything about her Bronze Age history. Although I certainly don't blame the video maker for getting confused about this, given the way that DC has been writing Lisa lately. It's a frustrating sign of the way in which her character has been misunderstood since...well...basically since Messner-Loebs' third or fourth issue with her.

Captain Boomerang always gets the short end of the stick. He's way more dangerous than most people assume he is.

With the exception of Killer Frost, who shouldn't even be here since she's not a Flash villain, none of these guys would need a reason to come together, seeing as all of them are already part of the Rogues. You don't need an excuse for characters to team up when they're already allies.

I'm kind of surprised DC hasn't attempted to do an all-Speedster team-up already. It's exactly the sort of thing that you'd expect them to dream up.

If anyone on the Speedster team switches sides, my money would be on Zoom (Hunter Zolomon) or Godspeed. They were both friends with the Flash at one point and seem like they might get uncomfortable with Savitar and Eobard's more pointless acts of violence. Johnny Quick in the comics is usually a pretty nasty son of a gun, so I doubt he'd help the Flash.

Team #3 is interesting. Though I can't see it lasting very long unless Grodd is using some sort of mental control over the others to keep them in line, since none of the others like him. A power struggle between him and Thinker would also be interesting, although Roscoe would also assuredly be vying for control over the group.

Hurrah, he didn't laugh at the Top! Usually everyone makes fun of him, so it's nice to see that not happen here. And he even knew that spinning increases Roscoe's brainpower!

Pied Piper would absolutely be the one to switch sides here (unless we were dealing with pre-2000s Al, in which case he would also be a candidate).

I'm not sure that this team-up would work logistically. Even if they all agreed to work together, it would be very difficult to find a time when all of these guys were around---and evil--simultaneously. The only time it could have happened was very early in Barry's career, since Al reformed in 1964 and stayed reformed, more or less, until around 2001. This would also mean that the story would feature a Barry who hadn't married Iris, a very young Wally, and a group of comparatively inexperienced villains...and if the story was during Barry's term as the Flash, the villain who would be most likely to switch sides would be Al, not Hartley. From 1964 to 1988 (or, in-universe, during the remainder of Barry's initial career as the Flash), Albert was reformed, and, while it is possible that his evil personalities might have emerged at some point to facilitate this team-up, it does seem a bit on the unlikely side. After Wally becomes the Flash, Hartley reforms, and then he can't be part of the group. The Top being intermittently dead only makes things even more difficult to handle logistically---especially since his telekinetic powers first manifested right before he died. Even saying that this Dr. Alchemy is Alvin doesn't help a whole lot, since Alvin didn't debut until after Roscoe's first death (and only a few years before Hartley reformed).

Dr. Alchemy is far more powerful than this video would imply. I can't blame the person who made the video for not knowing a whole lot about him, given how comparatively obscure he is, but it is nevertheless true that Dr. Alchemy can do far more than create chemicals. He can, quite literally, turn anything into anything else, without even needing technology to do it. He's powerful enough to give Grodd a run for his money.

I find it hard to picture Albert joining any group. Alvin would, but Albert generally works alone, and has become downright anti-social since Geoff Johns got ahold of him. They'd have to offer something pretty impressive to get him to join them instead of just wandering off to go read. He's so powerful that they couldn't force him into it against his will. And from the picture being used and the fact that it seems unlikely that most people who aren't super-huge Rogue nerds know about Alvin anyway, I think it's a fair bet to assume we're talking about Albert here.

The last team is also the one that seems most unlikely to me---unless, again, Grodd is using his mental powers in some capacity to control people. Captain Cold, Mirror Master, and Weather Wizard would be very, very wary of being anywhere near Grodd and would almost assuredly not agree to any plan he masterminded, and they outright hate Eobard. Also, Turbine would probably be reluctant to work with any of them unless manipulation was involved. And then there's the minor detail that Grodd and Eobard probably couldn't be in the same room with each other for a minute before their competing egos caused the group to collapse.

If you have one spinning, green-uniform-wearing villain named Roscoe on your Sinister Six team for the Flash, it should probably be the Top, not Turbine. Dillon's been around for over sixty years at this point and is still haunting the edges of the DC Universe. Hynes lasted less than 10 years. I feel kind of bad for not liking Turbine, since he has some interesting character ideas behind him, but I hold a slightly irrational grudge against him for being created to be a replacement for the Top, a character I am inexplicably but very fond of (and not as a legacy character in the vein of Axel or Evan). Also, Top is frankly scarier than Turbine.

Heat Wave is absent because the video maker inexplicably doesn't like Mick (as he stated in another video where he ranked a lot of DC villains). I have no idea why. Mick is great.

Obviously, this is not intended in a mean-spirited light. This video is more impressive than any video I could make, and people are allowed to have opinions that are different from mine.

[stranger-who-writes-fiction]

Back at it again with my self-indulgent comic posts. This time! It’s Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow #3, perhaps the most tonally-distinct entry yet, with shades of The Twilight Zone. 

Spoilers!

So, as mentioned, this issue is the most deliberate in terms of both its pacing and its tone, IMO.

What is that tone, you ask?

To quote Alex Danvers, from “Midvale”: Hello, darkness.

THE STORY:

Kara and Ruthye are still looking for Krem Clues in the alien town of Maypole.

(Which is actually just Small Town, USA, complete with vintage 50s aesthetics.)

But the locals are clearly hiding something! So Kara and Ruthye continue to investigate, and they eventually discover what it was that the residents of Maypole were so keen to keep hidden. 

Genocide, basically. 

As I said, this issue struck me as very Twilight Zone; a genre story involving the build-up to a dark twist, all set against the backdrop of an idyllic small town. (Think, like, “The Monsters are Due on Maple Street” but instead of focusing on the Red Scare, it’s classism and racism.)

The wealthier blue aliens kicked all of the purple aliens out of town, and when space pirates showed up to pillage and plunder, the blue aliens made a deal with them: the lives of the purple aliens in exchange for their safety.  

Which is where the episodic story connects to the larger mission; it was Krem who suggested the trade, and then joined up with the Brigands (space pirates) when he was freed by the blue aliens.

The issue ends with no tidy resolution to the terrible things Kara and Ruthye discovered, but they do have a lead on where to find Krem, now, as well as Barbond’s Brigands.

KARA-CTERIZATION:

Ironically, it’s here, in the darkest chapter yet, that we get the closest to what might be considered ‘classic’ Kara. 

Which I think comes down to that aforementioned deliberate pace--this issue is a little slower, a little quieter. It gives the characters some room to breathe.

That’s not to say Crusty Kara is gone. Oh no. She is still very much Crusty. XD 

But anyways. A list! Of Kara moments I loved!

I mentioned a few of these in a prior post when the preview pages came out: I like the moment where Kara blows down the guy’s house of cards, and I like that the action is echoed later in the issue when she grabs the mayor’s desk and tosses it aside. A nice visual representation of the escalation of Kara being, like. Done with these creeps. (Creeps is an understatement but you get the idea.)

Another one from the preview pages: Kara explains to Ruthye that her super hearing won’t necessarily help her detect a lie, especially if she’s dealing with an alien species she’s not familiar with.

It not only reveals her level of competence and understanding of her super powers, it also shows that, you know. She’s a thinker. She’s smart. 

Amazing! Showing, rather than telling us, that Kara is smart! Without mentioning the science guild at all wow hey wow.

(Sorry, pointed criticism of the SG show fandom.)

Anyways.

I dig the PJs! 

And Kara catching the bullet! Not only are the poses and character acting great, it’s also a neat bit of panel composition:

We start with Ruthye’s POV, and then move to the wide shot of the room. The panel where Kara actually catches the bullet is down and to the side of the wide shot panel--we move our eyes the way her body/arm would have to move to intercept the bullet. Physicality in static, 2D images!

Also, like. It’s a very tense moment, life-or-death, but. Ruthye’s wide-eyed surprise at the bullet in Kara’s hand? Kind of adorable. 

I was pretty much prepared for the page of Kara shielding Ruthye from the gunfire to be the highlight--it was one of the first pages King shared and I was like, ‘yeah, YEAH.’ But, shockingly? The TRUE highlight of the issue?

Where do I BEGIN?!?!

EVERYTHING. About this moment. Is lovely.

From Kara holding Ruthye above the bench to explaining the concept of a piggyback ride, to telling her:

“I’m going to hold my hands here, and these hands can turn coal into diamonds, so they’re not going to let go. I’m going to keep you safe.”

HNNNNNNNNNNNG.

Ruthye’s narration--about how Kara had avoided flying as she was concerned it would freak Ruthye out--just adds a whole additional layer of YES, GOOD, YES, and her line on that splash page is great: “You see, all that time, she was worried about me.”

HNNNNNNNNNNNG. AGAIN.

To say nothing of the STELLAR ARTWORK.

And SPEAKING of that stellar artwork, Evely and Lopes continue to knock it out of the park. Each issue is distinct and beautifully crafted, a true joy to look at.

Before I jump into more of the art, a few final notes of character stuff in general.

Ruthye is the one most affected by the experience in Maypole, as she can’t comprehend how a society of people that look so nice and gentle and peaceful could have been party to such a horrible act.

One of the big criticisms of the book thus far is that Supergirl is not the main character, and I guess I can agree with that observation. Typically, in Western media, the main character is the one who goes through the most change in the story. 

And, yeah. That’s Ruthye.

As I was reading the end, where Ruthye sits on the curb and Kara hugs her, I was imagining how the scene would’ve played, had King stuck with the original idea for the series: Kara as the one learning to be tough/experiencing all of this for the first time, and while I think that could certainly work...

I continue to appreciate that King literally flipped the script; that Kara, especially in this issue, is like, ‘I’ve seen this, I know this,’ as opposed to being the one going through a loss of innocence.

*Marge Simpson voice* I just think it’s neat!

Because Kara’s been a teen in DC comics for so long--ever since she was reintroduced to the main DCU continuity, actually--so this is all brand new territory, here. Having an older Kara who’s SEEN SOME STUFF.

(Alsoooooo, since Bendis made the destruction of Krypton not just inaction and climate disaster, but rather, genocide, and the subtext of a Kryptonian diaspora text, the waitress’ derogatory comment regarding the the destruction of Kryton, as well as Kara picking up the bad vibes the entire time, suggests not just a broad commentary on discrimination in all its forms, but specifically allegorical anti-Semitism. The purple aliens being forced out of their homes and into substandard living conditions, then the blue aliens--their neighbors and once-fellow residents--essentially allowing the space pirates to kill them, making them literal scapegoats, Kara discovering the remains of the purple aliens, and Ruthye’s horror at the ‘banality of evil’...yes. A case could be made, I think.) 

(Which would probably require a post unto itself and a lot more in-depth discussion, nuance, and cited sources.)

(Should mention that King has brought up that both he and Orlando--the other Supergirl writer he talked to--are Jewish, and for him personally, that shaped his views on Kara’s origin story.)

I guess my point is that this issue is perhaps not as out-of-left-field as some might think, and just because there isn’t as obvious an arc for Kara, doesn’t mean there isn’t some sharp character work at play. 

(I could be WAY OFF, of course, and I’m not suggesting it’s a clear 1:1 comparison. I’d actually really love to hear King talk about this issue in particular.)

Anyways.

Here’s the final page, which I think works, because as I mentioned before, there is no easy answer/quick wrap-up to the story of Maypole:

THE ART:

I mean. How many times can I just shout ‘ART! AAAARRRRRRRRRRRTTTT!’ before it gets old?

I dunno, but I guess we’re gonna FIND OUT.

There are some panels in this issue that I just. Like ‘em! From a purely artistic standpoint! Because they’re so good!

Like, I just really love the way Kara is drawn in that top panel. Her troubled, confused expression, the colors of the fading light, the HAIR. 

Evely draws the best hair. I know I’ve said this before. I don’t care. I will continue to say it, because it continues to be true.

The issue I find myself running up against when I make these posts is that I really don’t want to post whole pages, as that’s generally frowned upon (re: pirating etc.) but with something like this, you just can’t appreciate it in panel-by-panel snippets.

(Guided View on digital reading platforms is a BANE and a POX I say!)

Anyways.

LOVE the implied movement of the cape settling as Kara speeds in and stops. 

And, obviously, Kara flicking the bullet away is just. A+. 

And the EYES, man. LOPES’ COLORS ON THE EYES???!?! BEAUTIFUL.

Also, should note the lettering! The more rounded letters for the ‘WOOSH’ of Kara’s speed (and, earlier, the super breath) work nicely, and contrast with the angular, violent BLAMS of the gunshots. 

And, I gotta say, the editor is doing a really great job of not cluttering up the artwork with all the caption boxes. Which is no small task.

(I assume the editor is placing them, as editors usually handle word balloon/caption box placement, but I suppose it could be Evely? Sometimes the artist handles it. Either way, whoever’s taking care of all the text, EXCELLENT WORK! BRAVO!)

Okay I think that’s everything.

Ah, nope, wait.

MISC.

Just a funny observation, more than anything else: Superman: Red and Blue dropped this week, and King had a story in there, “The Special” (which was very good, btw.) Both Lois and the waitress swear a lot so I’m beginning to think that this is just how King writes dialogue for any adult character who isn’t Clark. XD

This is absolutely a personal preference but when Kara was like, “And my name IS Supergirl,” I was like nooooo. I know King is trying to simplify all of the conflicting origin stories and lore but I LIKE KARA DANVERS, SIR. XD

It’s almost assuredly a cash-grab/an attempt for DC to get all the money it can out of a book they don’t have much confidence in, but I like the cardstock covers! Very classy, much Strange Adventures.

(OH my gosh, can you imagine that issue 1 cover with spot gloss???? Basically the only way you could possibly improve on it.) 

Okay NOW I’m done. For real. XD NEXT TIME: Kara and Ruthye go after Krem and the Brigands!

[northoftheroad]

I was reading Nightwing #119 and i am so confused and angry at the same time,why Jason is wearing Nightwing's costume? Where does that come from? And why he is ruining his brother reputation? Maybe this is a stupid question but i'm just very confused

Well, congratulations on finding the "Jason as a murdering Nightwing and also gets transformed into a tentacled monster-storyline"! Now you just have to try to unsee it... Dick isn't very in character either, in my opinion. The only decent part is Jason's telegram in the end. (For a character that I profess to love as much as Dick Grayson, there really are a lot of sucky comics with him around, I'm sorry to say...)

Nightwing vol 2 # 122

Anyway. I'm not sure what the deal is. Jason was first seen as Nightwing in a comic called World War III # 1.

You get the impression that Jason is pissed that Batman & Co left ordinary people unprotected and decided to start superheroing, in a very violent way, himself. However, I've yet to see an explanation for why he chose to steal Dick's identity. Perhaps he's just that un-original a thinker...? He has picked up Robin, Red Robin and Nightwing from Dick, and Red Hood from the Joker... Wingman was a Golden age character, training with Batman while Dick was incapacitated. This is one of the early times when Dick thought he was being replaced. But I digress, as @bigskydreaming is fond of saying... 

Batman # 65

I'm not sure how familiar you are with what preceded Dick moving to New York in Nightwing # 118. The last Nightwing issue before that was (kind of) tied to the big event of 2005-2006, Infinite Crisis, where DC originally planned to let Dick die (because that would have a huge impact). Luckily, they changed their minds and Dick was only almost-deadly wounded. After that, Bruce took Dick and Tim on a long voyage to rediscover Batman. Superman and Wonder Woman also, temporarily, retired their superhero identities.

Infinite Crisis # 7 That's why the arc you're currently in is called 1 year after - it's supposedly been a year since Infinite Crisis, when Blüdhaven was destroyed, etc. There's very little comics about that voyage, as far as I know. We see a little bit in Robin # 175 and 52 week 30, but Dick eventually left Bruce and Tim to get back to work. The 52 title was about what happened during that year when the big three were retired. This was when Kate Kane appeared as the new Batwoman, for instance. (In current continuity, she's actually related by marriage to the original Batwoman, Kathy Kane. More about that in this post, in case you're curious.) World War III ties into that, somehow, but I haven't really read either of the titles myself.

Of course, since Dick was slated for death in Infinite Crisis, perhaps someone at DC had planned to let Jason pick up as Nightwing? And that ended up with this story – when he takes the name and kills criminals until Dick came back to the hero business in the USA.

[westallen-world]

8 'The Flash' Theories for Its January 16 Return

The Nazi’s from Earth-X have been defeated, Barry and Iris have finally gotten married, and now all Team Flash has to do is defeat a guy with a super-brain. Oh, and Barry’s in jail for the murder of Clifford DeVoe.

After a dour and somewhat derivative Season 3, The Flash Season 4 has brought with it an attempt at a more lighthearted tone. But as Clifford DeVoe, aka The Thinker, emerged as the season’s real Big Bad, things took a serious and much more interesting turn.

The mid-season finale “Don’t Run” revealed that The Thinker’s plan was to transfer his super-brain into the body of the new telepathic meta-human. The DeVoes were then able to use Clifford’s old body as a trap to frame Barry for his murder.

With Barry on trial for murdering a man that had a restraining order against him to begin with, things are looking pretty dire. So where will the show go from here?

Here are 8 theories about what we might be able to expect from the rest of Season 4 when it returns in January:

1. Citizen Cold Makes One Last Appearance

Actor Wentworth Miller, who’s played both versions of Leonard Snart, recently returned to the Arrowverse as “Leo” Snart, aka Citizen Cold, from Earth-X. He briefly joined the Legends of Tomorrow for their mid-season finale, and at German Comic Con earlier this December, revealed that he’ll be filming one final episode of The Flash before his contract is up.

We don’t know when this particular episode might air, but there should be 14 episodes left in Season 4.

2. Wally West Migrates Over to the Legends of Tomorrow

The Flash has a Kid Flash problem, which is that sadly Keiynan Lonsdale’s Wally West has been sidelined for much of Season 4. Rumors say that it has a lot to do with budgetary concerns — rendering two speedsters zipping around is — I don’t know — twice as expensive as one?

Pretty much everybody on the internet has already written their think piece about why Wally should join the Legends, but there’s really never been a better time. Recently, Professor Martin Stein died, which in turn eliminated Firestorm and ultimately led to Jefferson Jackson leaving the Waverider. The Legends of Tomorrow are two men down and could use another meta-human in their ranks.

What’s more? Kid Flash helped out on the season premiere of Legends of Tomorrow in a cool scene that makes this feel oh-so-possible.

3. Reverse-Flash Might Return at Some Point

One big surprised offered by the “Crisis on Earth-X” event was that the original Reverse-Flash lived somehow. The whole thing was barely explained and for some reason, he appeared with Harrison Wells’ face like he did back in Season 1, and he was also working with the Nazi doppelgängers from Earth-X. In the truly insane final battle between all the heroes and villains, Barry contemplated killing him but let him go.

Barry told him to “get out of here,” to which he replied, “I wonder what face I’ll be wearing next time we meet.” The Reverse-Flash might not be back this season, but his return might be just the spectacle we need from the Season 4 finale.

4. Iris Gets Pregnant by the End of the Season

More than three seasons later, we finally have the long-prophesized “Iris West-Allen” with the wedding of Barry and Iris. Once they get this whole Thinker business sorted out, what’s next for the West-Allen household?

Well, in the comics, after their wedding Barry and Iris have twins: Don and Dawn Allen. They each inherit Barry’s speedster powers in a time when meta-humans are kind of persecuted. They run around in little tornadoes to confuse people and pick up the name “The Tornado Twins.”

What’s more is that when Barry came out of the Speed Force in the Season 4 premiere all discombobulated, he said, “We’re going to need more diapers.” Now, this sounds exactly like something a father might say if he found out he was having twins, doubly so if they wind up being born around the same time as Cecille and Joe’s baby.

Whether or not this actually happens this season, it’s bound to happen at some point, especially because ���

5. The Wedding Waitress Is Probably Iris and Barry’s Daughter

“Crisis on Earth-X” left us all with one glaring, dangling plot thread: Who the hell was that waitress that had a weird encounter with Barry moments before the wedding started?

The waitress walked up and offered Barry some water and made awkward small talk about getting married before saying, “I’m really excited to be here … I mean — at a wedding!” She also said, “I feel like this will be one for the ages. I’m really happy I got to see it.” This spurs Barry to ask, “Have we met?” She assures him that she’s a “total stranger” and grabs his arm to wish him luck before disappearing.

Everything about this exchange just screams time traveler meeting their parent, especially her unnatural sentimentality regarding the whole thing. Since when do waitresses pop up in churches to pass out water? And why else would she know to show up before the Nazis crashed the party? We’d bet money that she’s a time traveler that knows Barry or his descendants in the future. Futhermore, she’s probably Dawn Allen.

6. “The Trial of the Flash” Will Force Barry to Reveal His Identity

The trailer for the next episode of The Flash shows Barry on trial for the murder of Clifford DeVoe. As his defense attorney, Cecile Horton advises Barry, “This is the only way: Tell everyone that you’re The Flash.” Barry seems to strongly consider it before saying, “If everyone knew my secret we would never be able to stop running.”

The Flash seems to genuinely be leading to Barry’s secret identify being outed to the masses. Over on Arrow they’ve been running through a similar plot thread with Oliver being outed as the Green Arrow as the team jumped through various hoops to try proving otherwise.

7. Team Flash Will Build a “Neural Inhibitor”

Honestly, Barry is kind of dumb to have forgotten this one. In the Season 3 finale, Savitar-Barry strolled through S.T.A.R. Labs and mentioned remembering how they built the “neural inhibitor to use against DeVoe.” This was the second namedrop of “DeVoe” with the first coming from Abra Kadabra earlier in Season 3 on a list of Barry’s greatest enemies.

Well, on Supergirl’s Earth-38 in Supergirl Season 1, they used a “neural inhibitor”against the powerful psychic alien Jemm. Maybe they’ll adapt that technology to use against DeVoe?

8. Barry and Iris Retreat to the Future

Now this one’s a bit out-there, but there’s a precedent in it from the comics.

In DC Comics, the Reverse-Flash — who also goes by “Professor Zoom,” by the way — killed Iris. Years later, he also tried to kill Barry’s new fiancée, Fiona Webb. Barry seemingly snapped Thawne’s neck and The Flash was tried for the murder. After a lot of comic book hoopla, he fled to the future and faced Abra Kadabra — but he also encountered a reincarnated Iris West. The two marry and have children in the 30th century, and this is when the Tornado Twins are born.

What if, for one reason or another, Barry and Iris flee to the future as the big finale to Season 4? And that’s where they have their children?

[tessatechaitea]

Black Canary #2

Black Canary and Deathstroke shop at the same footwear store.

I don't have any more issues of Black Canary after this so maybe I should discuss how confusing her history was in the DC Universe. Or maybe I'm just not that type of writer. You know, one who researches things and acts as a facts middleman. The things I know, I simply assume other people know. I begin with the assumption that anybody reading a review of a Black Canary comic book comes to it with the knowledge of her confusing Earth One and Earth Two background which forced DC to create a mother/daughter situation that only makes sense if you squint just right after slamming your head in a car door four times. The Non-Certified Spouse says I'm too willing to give people the benefit of the doubt. But no matter how cynical I might seem, I truly believe everybody I meet is my equal until they prove that they're not. Obviously I never assume anybody is more than equal to me! That would be crazy! But I don't meet people and begin with suspicion and doubt. The problem with that is that I generally find I don't have as much to write about. A good portion of intellectual reviewing of art comes down to people quoting more important thinkers and philosophers. But who needs that? I don't want a lesson on some art critic I didn't choose to read or some critic's mathematical proof (using quotes from other critics and philosophers instead of theorems) on how they came to their opinion of some piece of art. I want to hear each individual person's response to the piece. I want to hear something new and unique. Also, it's hard to remember all the literary theorist's names and what each one's philosophy and arguments were! At 48, I don't have time to re-remember all that crap! Plus at 48, I don't have the 20-or-30-something need to prove my intelligence to everybody who comes along. If you think fart and dick and exploding vagina jokes can't be smart and satirical, what do I care?! I've been away from reading comic books for the last week or so because my brain chemistry might be fucked up. I only say this because one time in my life, I was beyond despair and found myself kneeling in front of a beaded curtain with the image of Ganesha on it, crying and asking for the obstacles in my life to be removed. The next day, my Xbox broke down. If I were into religion, I'd definitely be Hindu. But I'm more into playing Xbox games so instead I just thought, "Ha ha! Good one, Ganesha!" Then I decided I didn't mind feeling like lying in a mud puddle until I drowned if the cure was not playing Halo. What I'm saying is that I'm not spending any time researching the details of the Black Canary mother/daughter relationship because it might cut into my Apex play time and hating myself.

Remember when stopping villains from robbing banks and enacting strange world domination schemes was fun? But holy gee whiz doody farts, it sure sucks now that they sometimes cut people's heads off and fuck the neck holes.

Previously in this comic book (you know, in issue one!), we learned that a politician was paying people to get homeless people drunk so that they wouldn't put up much of a fuss when they were forced to the polls to vote for the politician. Unfortunately, some of the homeless people died from tainted alcohol which might have simply been formaldehyde. Black Canary remembered how this same scheme was pulled when she was young which caused her to go fight crime for the first time in her mother's costume. I don't think I commented on it in my last review because I didn't know how old she was supposed to be and whether I should say she looked fuckable. One of the people paid to get homeless people drunk was a punk named Sally. The guy she gave alcohol to died so now she's scared and on the run. Black Canary has decided to help her because who else is going to help her? Green Arrow?! Don't make me laugh until I puke out of my nose and consequently shit myself. I don't know if I used the word "consequently" correctly there but based on past experience, those things totally go together.

I guess a nuclear bomb just went off because Seattle never gets this much sun.

That girl with the mohawk and the hangover is Sally. She disappears after this but Black Canary is on her trail! She's working with the police but since she's not a police, she can do illegal things like break into a crime scene and remove evidence. The police chief just says things like, "Knock that off!" and "Stop giving me all this illegal evidence!" and "You're not real police or else you'd know that you're not doing anything we don't do all the time anyway, young lady!" Black Canary goes undercover as a prostitute by simply going out in the day in her Black Canary outfit. I bet Nightwing could manage the same thing with those dick huggers he wears. If I didn't think that, I'd have to write a few paragraphs on sexism and how I'm totally against it. Unless the sexism is really feminism and women posing naked for me to jerk off to is empowering. Oops, that was a typo. I meant "for men to jerk off to." The story flips back and forth between the present and the first time Dinah put on the Black Canary outfit. I think. It's hard to follow the story since it's two similar stories intertwined and I really don't remember the names of the bad guys from the first book. I think Black Canary stops the bad guys in the past and this issue ends with her confronting the politician's muscle as he's about to kill Sally. It ends with a "To Be Concluded" tag but I guess I didn't care enough about the story to go one more issue back in 1993. Even though I liked the mini-series and I enjoyed the first issue! But this issue was just a bit too convoluted so I can see why I either gave Issue #3 a pass or simply forgot I was collecting it. That sometimes used to happen if a story didn't grip me so that it stuck around in my head for a week or two after reading it. A month would pass and I'd simply forget to look for the next issue of a comic I was reading because it just didn't do anything for me. I think that's what happened here. Black Canary #2 Rating: C. And that was it for my foray into being a Black Canary reader. I think six comics might be more of a chance than I've ever given to Green Arrow so I'd call it a bit of a success on Sarah Byam's part.

[aion-rsa]

Dynamic Duos: The Most Titanic Twosomes in Comics

Comic book duos are a staple of the comic book industry. Of course, part of what makes comics so much fun is getting to see different characters interacting with each other, often as a cohesive team of partners. Sometimes these duos are permanent partners whose stories become inextricably tied together. At others, the characters only occasionally work together, but they team up so well that their stories always stand out. Oftentimes, these friendships start off antagonistically, because when two comic book characters meet for the first time, they almost always end up fighting each other. That’s just comics.

RELATED: The 20 Best Comic Book Couples

Of course, it’s increasingly becoming a standard outside of comics, as Hollywood continues to expand its comic book properties and shared universes. “Thor: Ragnarok,” for example, is being billed as a buddy movie with Thor and Hulk, while Captain America and Falcon have shown great camaraderie onscreen. Then there was last year’s “Batman V Superman,” which ultimately saw the two heroes team up. If Hollywood wants to keep expanding on this concept, here are 16 comic book duos they could look to for inspiration.

NOVA AND STAR-LORD

During the events of 2006’s “Annihilation,” by Keith Giffen and Andrea Di Vito, the hero known as Nova had to pull together a ragtag group of heroes to fend off the forces of Annihilus from consuming the universe. Among his ranks was Star-Lord, a mostly forgotten Marvel character. The two successfully led the charge against Annihilus and saved the universe. After the war, they remained friends and helped save reality several times. After defeating Ultron and the Phalanx together, Nova helped Star-Lord form the Guardians of the Galaxy and set up their base of operations on Knowhere.

The two spent some time apart, but they eventually reunited when Thanos returned from the grave and the Cancerverse threatened to destroy reality. Using a cosmic cube, they sacrificed their lives to trap Thanos in the Cancerverse, which was set to collapse in on itself. It was later revealed that Nova was able to send Star-Lord back to his home at the cost of his own life, a sacrifice that has weighed heavily on Star-Lord’s conscience. Fortunately, Nova was recently resurrected, so hopefully these two will hook up again soon.

CLOAK AND DAGGER

Two runaway teenagers living on the streets of New York City, Tyrone Johnson and Tandy Bowen accepted an offer of shelter from the wrong people. They ended up getting kidnapped by a madman, who was testing out a new type of heroin. When it was injected into the two teens, it surprisingly gave them superpowers. Ty found himself turned into a void of darkness while Tandy was able to create light daggers. They dubbed themselves Cloak and Dagger and have basically been inseparable since.

Based on their experiences beginning in “Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man” #64 by Bill Mantlo and Ed Hannigan, they began taking down drug dealers and manufacturers. The two went on to encounter several Marvel heroes, most notably Spider-Man. They played a big part in “Maximum Carnage,” where Dagger was seemingly killed off. In reality, she had been seriously injured and retreated into Cloak’s mysterious material to heal. She returned just in time to help defeat Carnage and save the city. Recently, it was announced that the duo is set to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the stars of their own TV show.

RICK AND CARL GRIMES

Not all comic book duos have to be heroes; sometimes, they can just be family members trying to survive in a world full of monsters. Rick and his young son Carl are all that’s left of the Grimes family. They were separated at the start of the apocalypse, but were reunited in “The Walking Dead” #2 (2003) by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore. Carl went from being his father’s son to his partner pretty early on, when Rick’s old partner Shane tried to kill Rick. In one of the series’ many shocking turns, Carl shot Shane, saving his dad but losing his innocence.

Throughout “The Walking Dead,” Carl is the person who gives Rick his purpose and his drive. He can’t just give up the fight, but he also can’t give up his humanity, or else Carl will lose it too. Carl, meanwhile, has actually taken a darker path than Rick. He’s usually willing to make difficult decisions, or attack an enemy like Negan head on. The two provide a balance for each other that goes far beyond the typical father/son relationship, making them one of the medium’s most compelling duos.

POWER MAN AND IRON FIST

During the late ’70s, Marvel decided to take two struggling titles and combine them, hoping to boost sales. This move would create a partnership that would ultimately become a major aspect of Marvel Studios’ upcoming Netflix series, “The Defenders.” While serving a bogus prison sentence, Luke Cage gained powers in an experiment gone wrong. He would go on to become Power Man, Hero for Hire. Danny Rand, on the other hand, had spent his life training in the mystical city of K’un L’un, and after defeating a dragon, gained the magical martial arts powers of Iron Fist.

Starting in “Power Man” #48 (1977) by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, the two began working together. After helping Cage clear his name, Iron Fist decided to join up with him and become the “Heroes for Hire.” Their partnership was both personally and financially fruitful. Throughout the years, they’ve had their ups and downs, but they always end up teaming again. After stints on the Avengers, they recently got back together for “Power Man and Iron Fist” #1 (2016) by David F. Walker and Sanford Greene.

ROCKET AND GROOT

Although Rocket Raccoon may look cute, he’s anything but. Originally from a planet where animals were genetically engineered and given enhanced intelligence, Rocket typically has a surly attitude and an itchy trigger finger. The two were first seen together in 2008’s “Annihilation: Conquest” by Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Tom Raney and Wellington Alves. Groot, an alien from a species of talking trees (and originally portrayed as a confused monster), can only say the phrase “I am Groot.” Luckily, Rocket is one of the few creatures that seems to be able to understand him… or is just good at making things up.

After Groot was heavily injured and all that was left of him was a few twigs, Rocket helped plant him so he could regrow his body. They then both joined the new Guardians of the Galaxy together. Luckily, when the team disbanded after several members disappeared, Rocket and Groot decided to stay together. While it sometimes seems like Rocket simply just uses Groot as his muscle, he is fiercely loyal to his friend. When the Guardians were reformed, Rocket and Groot rejoined and have continued to cause mischief around the galaxy.

WOLVERINE AND JUBILEE

Wolverine has taken on a fatherly/older brother role to several of the younger X-Men throughout his career, but the most famous would arguably be his relationship with Jubilee. This is because of their friendship being a big part of the ’90s “X-Men” cartoon. On the show, Jubilee was the youngest member of the team, and Wolverine (the oldest) often took her under his wing. It was an odd pairing, considering that she was a mall rat and he was a gruff former special ops warrior, but because of that, its Odd Couple sweetness worked.

Their connection in the comics was actually much darker. Jubilee was a runaway, and ended up hiding out in the X-Men’s base while they were stationed in the Australian Outback. In “Uncanny X-Men” #251 (1989) by Chris Claremont and Marc Silvestri, she rescues Wolverine, who had been beaten and crucified by the Reavers. She helps protect him while he heals, and then the two escape. They would travel together for awhile, having adventures across the globe before she would eventually join the X-Men. Even as an official X-Man, though, Wolverine remained very protective of her.

GREEN ARROW AND GREEN LANTERN

Back in 1970, DC Comics hoped to revive sinking “Green Lantern” sales by adding Green Arrow as the book’s costar. The book thus became “Green Lantern co-starring Green Arrow” starting with issue #76 by Dennis O’Neil and Neal Adams. Hal Jordan, a member of the intergalactic Green Lantern Corps, was at the time a strict believer in the system and rules. Oliver Queen, on the other hand, was a more radical thinker and opposed authoritarianism. This dynamic was used to tell stories that focused on social issues in America at the time, as opposed to typical superhero adventures.

One of the most notable stories was “Green Lantern” #85, still by O’Neil and Adams, which dealt with Arrow’s sidekick, Speedy, getting addicted to heroin. After the series ended, both characters eventually died, were resurrected, had their histories retconned, and survived multiple reality-altering crises. Throughout it all, though, they always remained friends. Even when Hal Jordan was dead and roaming the Earth as the Spectre, he and Queen would still meet up for the occasional chat.

WONDER MAN AND BEAST

For a long time, there wasn’t that much crossover between the rosters of the X-Men and the Avengers. Aside from Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, most mutants tended to stick with each other. One of the most notable exceptions to this was Hank McCoy, also known as the Beast. He joined the Avengers in 1975’s “Avengers” #137 by Steve Englehart and George Tuska, and he’s bounced back and forth between teams ever since. One thing that keeps Beast coming back to the Avengers is the fact that he’s best friends with Wonder Man.

Simon Williams was a failed businessman who gained ionic powers after being experimented on by Baron Zemo. They both first appeared together in “Avengers” #151 (1976) by Gerry Conway, Steve Engelhard, and John Buscema. Simon helped show Beast a different side of being a hero. Where the X-Men were feared for being different, the Avengers were celebrities of the Marvel Universe. The two became so close that when Simon seemingly died, and then returned to life, Beast leapt into Avengers mansion and tackled Simon, planting a kiss right on his mouth! Now that’s friendship!

HAWK AND DOVE

During the late ’60s, the country was divided by those who seemingly favored war and avowed pacifists. The two sides were labeled war hawks and doves, which provided the inspiration for Hawk and Dove, who first appeared in “Showcase” #75 (1968) by Steve Skeates and Steve Ditko. The original Hawk and Dove were teenage brothers, Hank and Don, who received their powers from a mysterious source, cosmic beings known as Lord Chaos and Lord Order. Hank was more militant and aggressive, while Don was more thoughtful and consumed with bringing peace, but perhaps less confident. Don, who took on the Dove persona, was killed during “Crisis on Infinite Earths,” written by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, seemingly ending the team.

Fortunately, Chaos and Order continued to need avatars, and appointed a new Dove, Dawn Granger, first appearing in “Hawk and Dove” #1 (1988) by Barbara and Karl Kessel and Rob Liefeld. While still less militant than Hank, Dawn was more confident than Don. The duo’s popularity comes from their obvious political undertones and dissimilarities — yet another “Odd Couple.” It often provided a balanced look at both sides of the argument between conservatives and liberals; something that might be useful today.

HARLEY AND POISON IVY

The friendship between these two Batman villains has a pretty complicated history. While Poison Ivy has been a mainstay in Batman comics, Harley first appeared in “Batman: The Animated Series,” but didn’t appear in the comics until several years later. So, Harley and Poison Ivy were first paired up in the animated series 1993 episode “Harley and Ivy,” where the two meet while robbing the same place. They team up and realize that they have a pretty good thing going. The rest, as they say, is history!

While Ivy is a villain, she was actually one of the best influences for Harley, who was in an abusive relationship with the Joker at the time. Ivy tried to boost Harley’s confidence, because she actually cared for her. When Harley was finally introduced in the comics in “Batman: Harley Quinn” (1999) by Paul Dini, Yvel Guichet and Aaron Sowd, her friendship with Ivy was quickly introduced as well. They appeared with Catwoman in “Gotham City Sirens” (2009) by Paul Dini and Guillem March, and Harley and Ivy would later become intimate with each other. They weren’t in a traditional relationship, but they both clearly care for each other very much, which is the most you could ever ask in an effective duo.

SPIDER-MAN AND THE HUMAN TORCH

Most of the entries on the list are examples of opposites attracting, but that’s not the case with these two. When they first met, back in “Amazing Spider-Man” #1 (1963), by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, Spider-Man and the Human Torch developed an antagonistic relationship. Over the years, however, the two would form a strong friendship, although they never stopped teasing each other — in the end, they are just too much alike.

One of the most memorable moments from their history was when Spider-Man realized that his new black costume was actually an alien symbiote feeding off his life energy. He went to the Fantastic Four to get it removed, which they did. Unfortunately, this left Spider-man without a costume. Knowing that Spider-man was desperate, Johnny Storm gave him an old Fantastic Four costume and paper bag with eye holes cut out. Ever the picture of maturity, he then stuck a “kick me” sign on Spidey’s back. They’ve had plenty of adventures together, but this one prank sums up their friendship pretty perfectly.

CABLE AND DEADPOOL

One is a mutant soldier from the future who traveled to the past in order to build a better tomorrow. The other is an insane mercenary with a healing factor who believes himself (quite rightly) to be a comic book character. Cable and Deadpool shouldn’t get along, but they ended up becoming Marvel’s modern day “Odd Couple.” While the two had met several times, usually as enemies, their… friendship seems like a strong word, but we’ll go with that… their friendship didn’t really begin until they both got involved with the “The One World Church” in “Cable and Deadpool” #1 (2004) by Fabian Nicieza and Mark Brooks.

Both Cable and Deadpool ended up getting infected with a genetic virus, and in order to cure them, Cable briefly absorbs Deadpool (utilizing his healing factor to ward off the virus). This causes Cable’s teleporting device to malfunction, so that whenever he “bodyslides,” Deadpool comes with him. At first, Cable manipulated Deadpool into performing tasks for him, often without Deadpool realizing what was going on. After a while, however, Cable’s message of peace began to have an effect on Deadpool, who started trying to be a better person, albeit with sometimes less than successful results. 

BOOSTER GOLD AND BLUE BEETLE

The friendship between Blue Beetle and Booster Gold is one of the most entertaining superhero duos in the history of comics. Ted Kord replaced the original Blue Beetle, Dan Garrett, but was unable to unlock any superpowers from the Blue Beetle Scarab, so he instead turned to martial arts and technology to fight crime. Michael Jon Carter was a disgraced athlete from the 25th century who traveled back in time to fight crime, but also mostly to build fame and fortune for himself.

The two characters met when Booster joined the Justice League in “Justice League” #3 (1987) by Keith Giffen and J.M. Dematteis. They have been bickering best friends ever since. Due to the nature of both characters, they’re usually used for light-hearted, even downright comedic stories — in fact, they’re very well known for it. Because of that, they may not be seen as A-list heroes, even though Booster desperately wants to be. They might not be the most effective heroes, and they may not strike fear into the hearts of criminals, but it’s always fun to see what happens when these two knucleheads team up. Good times almost always ensue.

FLASH AND KID FLASH

Like Batman and Robin, there have been several different versions of the Flash and Kid Flash. However, the combination of Barry Allen as the Flash and Wally West as Kid Flash is by far the most iconic and the most popular. West was the nephew of Allen’s girlfriend, Iris and a huge fan of Flash. Coincidentally, the same accident that gave Allen his Flash powers repeated itself, giving Wally speed powers of his own, as depicted in “The Flash” #110 (1960) by John Broome and Carmine Infantino. Not one to miss out on a good opportunity, Wally West became the Kid Flash and started helping Barry fight crime.

This lasted until 1985’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” #8 by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, where Barry was killed off. Wally took up the mantle of the Flash until Barry returned from the dead in Grant Morrison and JG Jones’ “Final Crisis” #2 (2008). Then Wally disappeared when the “New 52” reboot occurred in 2011, much to fans’ dismay. As it turns out, however, Wally was just stuck in the speed force, and was ultimately pulled to safety by his friend, Barry in “DC Rebirth” #1 (2016) by Geoff Johns, Ethan Van Sciver, and Gary Frank.

CAP AND BUCKY

James Barnes was an orphan living on the same army base where Steve Rogers was stationed. One day, Barnes discovered that Rogers was really Captain America, whose identity was a secret at the time. Having essentially spent his life training, he joined Rogers as his sidekick in “Captain America Comics” #1 (1941) by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, choosing to go by the name Bucky in his adventures in crime-fighting fisticuffs. The two fought side by side during World War II, until tragedy struck. As revealed in “Avengers” #4 (1963) by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, Bucky was seemingly killed in a fight with Baron Zemo that also left Cap frozen in the ocean. It was later revealed in Ed Brubaker’s run on “Captain America” Vol 5 (2005) that his body was actually recovered by a Russian submarine, and he was transformed into the Winter Soldier. Both Rogers and Bucky would survive into the 21st century, due to varying bouts of suspended animation and super soldier serums. Rogers would eventually free Bucky of his brainwashing with the use of a cosmic cube, reuniting one of Marvel’s best friendships.

BATMAN AND ROBIN

When it comes to comic book duos, Batman and Robin are the first names anyone thinks of; they are called “The Dynamic Duo,” after all, and the team has been around since 1940. It was then that Robin first appeared as the Dark Knight’s sidekick, in “Detective Comics” #38 by Bill Finger and Bob Kane. While Batman is still clearly in charge, Robin has grown into so much more than a simple sidekick. The original Dynamic Duo is such an important part to the Batman mythos that over the decades, several different people have come and gone as Robin (and Batman, for that matter).

The first and most famous Robin was Dick Grayson, who would eventually move on as Nightwing. Bruce replaced him with Jason Todd, a street kid who Batman caught trying to steal the tires off the Bat-mobile. Todd was eventually murdered by the Joker, so up next was Tim Drake, a natural detective who impressed Batman by figuring out his identity. Then came Drake’s girlfriend, Stephanie Brown and then Bruce’s son, Damian, who has served both under his father and in the short period where Dick became Batman. Regardless of its members, this timeless duo will continue to fight crime long after we’re all gone. Who are your favorite two-person partnerships in comics? Let us know in the comments!

The post Dynamic Duos: The Most Titanic Twosomes in Comics appeared first on CBR.com.

http://ift.tt/2jfH2Hs

[thecapelesscrusaders]

Flash Season 4 Review: Despair and Hope

If you have followed the Crusaders for any length of time, you have probably heard us say that “This is a great time to be a comic fan!” We have the MCU, DCEU (which I am just as a big a fan of despite the general despair from the fan base), the Marvel Netflix shows and the CW DC show, along with many others. While Marvel has done an unparalleled job of creating a wonderfully connected universe on the big screen, DC/CW has created a well-connected universe for the smaller screen.

While I love all comics from DC, Marvel, Image and others, I am firstly a DC fan. So I have done my best to keep up with the “Arrow-verse” as it is commonly called. This year I cut back but still followed Arrow, Supergirl and The Flash. Out of these three series’ The Flash has been the best. While the crossover was fun, cinematic, and amazing, The Flash consistently had the strongest season. I say this as a fan who was beginning to get tired of The Flash taking on speedsters three seasons in a row.

The formula of: “Hey I’m the fastest man alive” to “oh crap this dude is faster and he beat me” to “how do I get fast enough to beat this new baddie” was getting stale. That is why this season when they introduced the Thinker as the big baddie had me excited! While The Flash still had to be faster than ever before to beat him, or so he thought, it wasn’t always about punching in super-speed. This season brought more heart to the show than ever before, and heart is what really makes comics great.

I’m sure my fellow Crusaders will laugh at the fact that it is me, the Son of Mander, that is talking about heart, as I am often teased for my lack of emotional awareness (being partly Vulcan). However, as a husband and a father, I appreciated what this season brought. The status quo was broken. Characters took on different roles, Iris West for instance, being the team leader, while Barry still remained the heart of the team. Heart, however, would not necessarily win the day.

Across the three series’ that I kept up with, this was the darkest by far, and the darkest season for The Flash yet. Normally, The Flash gives us glimmers of hope throughout the season. This season had very little hope, as The Thinker bested Team Flash at almost every turn. Every time it appeared that the good guys achieved a small win, The Thinker showed that it was all part of his plan. We see this drive the Flash farther into despair than any previous season.

The shining light in all this darkness? Iris West-Allen! Iris kept Barry from drowning in the depths of despair. No matter how many times defeat felt imminent, heart kept the team going. Ultimately, it was heart, or the emotional equation, that kept The Thinker confused the most. As his power grew, his connection to his human side, the emotion that defines humanity, diminished. His calculations grew further and further from emotion and more and more based in logic. Honestly, the Thinker should have taken a page from Spock’s book, think logically but plan for emotionality.  

Despite all these set-backs the final episode begins with the culmination of The Thinker’s plans. How do you defeat such a logical being? Strike at his heart! Find the good still inside of him. I won’t spoil too much, but this quest leads them in a different direction than the team expects. The final defeat doesn’t come from The Flash alone, it comes from the team. Team Flash leverages the knowledge of the city to locate The Thinker and fight him on their own terms. The city together restores hope to Barry and Team Flash. The final blow is delivered by The Flash, and a mystery speedster, streaking pink lightning behind them. This final blow ends the threat and sees our hero being cheered by the city he has vowed to protect and bring hope to, which he has continued to do. 

Switching gears, and to wrap up, there was one odd element through out the entire season. A character that seemed to sporadically show up, make herself noticeable, but only enough to draw minor suspicion. In the next few episodes you wouldn’t think anything of it, until she showed up again. This character drew attention to herself because she has way too much energy, and talked way to fast. In the final scene of the finale, she once again shows up, by this point we’ve pieced together who she probably is, and she announced “I’m your daughter Nora from the future, and I think I made a big, big mistake.” BOOM! Right? Ok, not really, I saw it coming from mid-season. However, I love that the seeds for season 5 where spread throughout the season, and that final victory in season 4 was delivered by a family, even if Barry didn’t know it at the time.

I can’t wait for season 5 of The Flash! Let us know what your favorite moments of season 4 were and any theories, hopes or dreads you may have for season 5.

The Flash: Despair and Hope

 If you have followed the Crusaders for any length of time, you have probably heard us say that “This is a great time to be a comic fan!” We have the MCU, DCEU (which I am just as a big a fan of despite the general despair from the fan base), the Marvel Netflix shows and the CW DC show, along with many others. While Marvel has done an unparalleled job of creating a wonderfully connected universe on the big screen, DC/CW has created a well-connected universe for the smaller screen.

While I love all comics from DC, Marvel, Image and others, I am firstly a DC fan. So I have done my best to keep up with the “Arrow-verse” as it is commonly called. This year I cut back but still followed Arrow, Supergirl and The Flash. Out of these three series’ The Flash has been the best. While the crossover was fun, cinematic, and amazing, The Flash consistently had the strongest season. I say this as a fan who was beginning to get tired of The Flash taking on speedsters three seasons in a row.

The formula of: “Hey I’m the fastest man alive” to “oh crap this dude is faster and he beat me” to “how do I get fast enough to beat this new baddie” was getting stale. That is why this season when they introduced the Thinker as the big baddie had me excited! While The Flash still had to be faster than ever before to beat him, or so he thought, it wasn’t always about punching in super-speed. This season brought more heart to the show than ever before, and heart is what really makes comics great.

I’m sure my fellow Crusaders will laugh at the fact that it is me, the Son of Mander, that is talking about heart, as I am often teased for my lack of emotional awareness (being partly Vulcan). However, as a husband and a father, I appreciated what this season brought. The status quo was broken. Characters took on different roles, Iris West for instance, being the team leader, while Barry still remained the heart of the team. Heart, however, would not necessarily win the day.

Across the three series’ that I kept up with, this was the darkest by far, and the darkest season for The Flash yet. Normally, The Flash gives us glimmers of hope throughout the season. This season had very little hope, as The Thinker bested Team Flash at almost every turn. Every time it appeared that the good guys achieved a small win, The Thinker showed that it was all part of his plan. We see this drive the Flash farther into despair than any previous season.

The shining light in all this darkness? Iris West-Allen! Iris kept Barry from drowning in the depths of despair. No matter how many times defeat felt imminent, heart kept the team going. Ultimately, it was heart, or the emotional equation, that kept The Thinker confused the most. As his power grew, his connection to his human side, the emotion that defines humanity, diminished. His calculations grew further and further from emotion and more and more based in logic. Honestly, the Thinker should have taken a page from Spock’s book, think logically but plan for emotionality.  

Despite all these set-backs the final episode begins with the culmination of The Thinker’s plans. How do you defeat such a logical being? Strike at his heart! Find the good still inside of him. I won’t spoil too much, but this quest leads them in a different direction than the team expects. The final defeat doesn’t come from The Flash alone, it comes from the team. Team Flash leverages the knowledge of the city to locate The Thinker and fight him on their own terms. The city together restores hope to Barry and Team Flash. The final blow is delivered by The Flash, and a mystery speedster, streaking pink lightning behind them. This final blow ends the threat and sees our hero being cheered by the city he has vowed to protect and bring hope to, which he has continued to do. 

Switching gears, and to wrap up, there was one odd element through out the entire season. A character that seemed to sporadically show up, make herself noticeable, but only enough to draw minor suspicion. In the next few episodes you wouldn’t think anything of it, until she showed up again. This character drew attention to herself because she has way too much energy, and talked way to fast. In the final scene of the finale, she once again shows up, by this point we’ve pieced together who she probably is, and she announced “I’m your daughter Nora from the future, and I think I made a big, big mistake.” BOOM! Right? Ok, not really, I saw it coming from mid-season. However, I love that the seeds for season 5 where spread throughout the season, and that final victory in season 4 was delivered by a family, even if Barry didn’t know it at the time.

I can’t wait for season 5 of The Flash! Let us know what your favorite moments of season 4 were and any theories, hopes or dreads you may have for season 5.

-Manderson, the Son of Mander

[peakwealth]

Masters of Disaster

Getting a grip on globalization and unemployment

Is Western civilization finished, again? (University of Sevilla, Spain; plaster casts)

1. The political earthquakes of the last year have produced a matching tsunami of analysis as thinkers everywhere have tried to figure out how things could go so wrong and voters could turn so nasty. Each make-or-break election in Europe brings another wave of anxiety and public head scratching. Aside from the irresistible fun being poked at the bewildering TV celebrity who mistakenly found his way into the White House, the analysis generally does not make for uplifting reading. (By comparison, Brexit, a dark country revolt against smart-ass London and its evil cousin, Brussels, evidently lacked comic potential from the beginning.)

Even after Dutch and French voters failed to deliver political disaster scenarios this spring, many of the analysts are convinced that more trouble is on the way and that Western civilization is on its last legs, or just about.

2. It doesn't take much imagination to see how the arrival of an idiot-king in Washington DC would create an ideal opportunity for lesser kings to ditch the last appearance of democratic process and to start pushing their own agendas. Think Russia, think the Philippines, think Turkey, think Poland and other proponents of "illiberal" regimes. As for China, which doesn't have to worry about populist revolts or fickle electorates, it is rolling out a master plan of economic expansion that covers half the planet.

The trillion dollar One Belt One Road project (OBOR) is meant to create a far reaching web of Chinese business interests across most of Asia and beyond, right into Europe. It favours the same sledgehammer approach to economic development that has made China what it is today. Its scale is such that while it may well consolidate China's position as the superpower of the 21st century, it also looks like the final blow to the planet's environment. Over time, China's urban/industrial sprawl could easily prove to be the kiss of death for planet Earth or at least its human inhabitants.

OBOR also signals China's continuing faith in globalization, or at least in its own global might. It stands in sharp contrast to Western retrenchment and loss of confidence - not altogether surprising since China has been the main beneficiary of the world's economic rebalancing of the last forty years.

If we turn away from globalization, China will pick up the slack. (Xian,PRC,2016)

3. It has taken remarkably little time for globalization to become established as a bad thing. It is widely confused or conflated with free trade, global mobility, deregulation, migration, the internet or just borderless neo-liberal economics. Take the example of France where the concept of mondialisation is demonized as the cause of countless ills: unemployment due to the offshoring of manufacturing, the loss of the good old days, the influx of undesirables of one kind or another and the erosion of the pouvoir d'achat - the peculiar concern the French profess for their sacred spending power.  

In earlier days the pouvoir d'achat came under attack from inflation and economic stagnation but now the erosion is more serious: anonymous big business has not only killed off the merchant middle class in towns and villages, it threatens the French way of life itself. Whereas other parts of Europe like Germany of Holland have coped better with the changing face of global capitalism and have broadly benefited from it, in France people just got frustrated and upset. Add the chaotic influx of migrants and refugees, however few, and periodic attacks by terrorists shouting Allahuakbar, and neo-parochialist panic fills the air.

In a pan-European survey published in The Economist last year, French respondents showed both the highest level of anxiety and the greatest opposition to globalization. A country notorious for its addiction to anxiolytic drugs (calmants), sleeping pills and antidepressants, France was clearly vulnerable to a Trump scenario. In the end it didn't happen. Marine Le Pen proved to be too boorish and backward to become the president of a nation not quite headed for a nervous breakdown after all. But it could happen elsewhere.

4. The rustbelts across Europe and America still bear witness to the old industrialists who were asleep at the wheel when their ancient mills ground to a halt and nimbler competitors in Asia took over their business. This was no accident. The businesses and the jobs that went with them were not stolen by foreigners (in Trumpspeak), but were surrendered knowingly and willingly - except in the former East bloc countries - with the wide-awake consent of the world's great investors and global retailers, the Walmarts, Tescos, Aldis, Casinos and Carrefours. It also made perfect business sense to mega-corporations like Apple, which has offshored most of its production.

Moreover we, in the increasingly green West, were only too happy to see the dirty chemical plants and the chimneys move to India; the fidgety, tiresome assembly jobs to southern China or Mexico. While French unions dug in to defend sunset industries like tyre manufacturing, household appliances or steel mills, the smarter countries (Japan, Germany, Switzerland, etc.) moved up the value chain, turning their old brick factories into designer condos or modern art museums while rebuilding a viable industrial base in tune with the 21st century. Even second or third tier countries like Slovakia have managed this turnaround. Others have transited to service industries, innovation, finance and tourism. America came up with the iPhone, Tesla, Netflix, Amazon, Starbucks, Google and Facebook.

Even French industry itself is far more efficient and up-to-date than its foreign detractors often imagine. France beats almost any Western country in terms of labour productivity.

5. Seen from the opposite side of the globalization street, the sell-out of manufacturing by the West has given South-East Asia a historic opportunity to catch up. It's an old story by now but industrial production has cascaded down from Germany, the UK or the USA, first to Japan, then to South-Korea and Taiwan, then on to Malaysia, to China and further down the line to Sri Lanka, Vietnam and Cambodia. Africa is now waiting in the wings after China invested heavily in African infrastructure. Although the development model is clearly flawed (it implies a race to the bottom in search of lower wages), the countries have nonetheless benefited and have changed beyond recognition in a matter of twenty or thirty years.

What's more, countries like Taiwan and South Korea have emancipated themselves from much of the drudgery of the industrial production itself. They have moved on to develop the technology and expertise that now drives the modern world: computer processors, smartphones, display technology, etc.

6. The West has taken full advantage of its own deindustrialization and of the global re-ordering of manufacturing. This has happened primarily through artificially low consumer prices and prolonged low inflation. Today's three-dollar T-shirts, 59-dollar IKEA furniture, 199-dollar smartphones are all part of the pay-off from globalization. Other consequences may be less obvious. Near zero interest rates have triggered prolonged real estate booms. Cheap airline travel is in part due to the hyper-efficient manufacturing of airliners, each Boeing and Airbus or even Embraer and Bombardier being the result of complex international supply chains that cut costs but also spread employment across many countries.

But the cheap goodies are just a consolation prize. The real prize has gone to the investors, fund managers, transnational companies and their shareholders who have made silly amounts of money and have thus stoked the wrath of the "99 per cent" left out in the cold. They are the engineers of the  skewed new world order that has taken root in the last thirty years or so.

It is this disorderly 'order' that is now under attack or, at the very least, encountering political headwind. What started a few years ago as the Occupy movement on the left, has turned into something much more bloodyminded as the populist uprising on the right. Many Westerners couldn't care less about the global redistribution of wealth or the progress made in Mexico or Vietnam. Having been squeezed out of the good life at home, they just want to know: "What about us?"

7. Capitalism and free trade seek productivity and cheap labour. As Warren Buffett keeps reminding everyone, they eventually lead to higher output per capita, meaning fewer jobs. And if this higher productivity can be achieved in sweatshops in Bangladesh or mega-plants in Shenzen, rather than in industrial estates in the US, Japan or Italy, this is what is likely to happen. Capitalism is predatory by nature. At issue then is not globalization, but global stockmarket capitalism, which is opportunistic and seeks short term reward; and deregulation, which was the great mantra of the Reagan-Thatcher era. The former is the outcome of the latter, enabled by mobility and technology.

Even if it were true that the popular revolt against globalization, most powerfully exemplified by the isolationism of Donald Trump and the recklessness of Brexit, is a sign that the Reagan-Thatcher era has run its course, then there is every reason to think that China will take up the slack.

8. Beyond the jigsaw puzzle of globalization, bigger challenges are approaching fast: the palpable reality of climate change and the very limits of economic growth, a concept anxiously ignored since it was first articulated by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and publicized by the so-called Club of Rome in 1972. Back then the world's population was only 3,8 billion, half of what it is today. As for the collective output of the world's economy, it was only around 20 trillion USD, about four times less than it is today (as calculated by the World Bank in constant dollars). In other words, the economy has grown twice as fast as the number of people, and it is still accelerating.

More people have started to acknowledge that the story of growth and of capitalism is not going to end well. Over time it is not sustainable and, in fine, not conducive to the general wellbeing of the broader population. It should thus be obvious that further aggregate growth is detrimental to the planet and those who dwell on it.

The obvious problem is that steady economic expansion is the very fuel that drives not only today's capitalism, especially in a world running on unlimited credit, but also defines that most delicate of political topics: job creation or, more usually, the lack thereof. It doesn't take long before the unemployed get restless and start demanding the basics: bread, a roof-over-our-heads, dignity, jobs.

Employment and remuneration remain at the core of social hierarchy and political stability. Even today the ethics of honest hard work permeate traditional thinking. Work is central to 'family values', self-esteem and social control. To be jobless is to be a pariah, to find oneself outside the boundaries of common respectability. To be jobless is to eat junk food and vote for Donald Trump (*).

Yet it is finally dawning on politicians that employment is being destroyed faster than they or anyone else can create it: every little step of automation, every advance in machine learning and AI, every new bit of wireless technology, every scanner, power tool, bar code, robot or productivity enhancing invention has ended up eliminating employment opportunities, even the simplest ones. Self-driving taxis and buses are around the corner. Robots perform precision surgery. Corporate restructuring and efficiencies usually end up with people being pushed out the door or not being replaced when they retire.

It is this creeping erosion of employment and income that has contributed to the emergence of an angry underclass who feel increasingly excluded from the good life and the security they used to know and still feel entitled to.

9. During the US subprime mortgage crisis, which started ten years ago, poor credit risks were often referred to as NINJAs: no income, no job, no assets. Yet banks and other lenders sold them mortgages they knew would never be repaid. When the lenders then went on to 'repackage' this worthless debt as AAA investments, they nearly brought down the house of cards that was and is global finance. It has since become clearer that the future may be NINJA-like for many more people, even in nominally rich but polarized societies where only those with a superior education and the right kind of background are likely to do well.

10. The sobering fact is that full employment was never a good or fundamentally workable idea. Finding a well paid job for anyone who wanted to work was always going to require unmanageable economic expansion. But we just didn't see it that way in the days when the going was good and sustainability was not yet an issue. Even now, it is hard to accept the idea that full employment is not in the interest of society and the environment. The very notion strikes fear in the hearts of politicians, especially those hoping to be re-elected. Hence all the fevered talk about a guaranteed minimum income for all, work or no work. It is a discreet signal that the days of 'full employment' and decent living wages are coming to an end.

Donald Trump will not bring back the jobs in the American coal mines any more than the manufacturing jobs that have migrated to Asia or elsewhere. He is delusional, as are the other demagogues who rant about globalization and pretend to shield their economies from the world as it is. No matter how backward or dumbed down or off-the-scale they pretend to be, it is impossible to de-invent modernity, or commercial airliners, or the internet, or wireless communications, or tourism, or container shipping or cosmopolitanism. The world is not going to revert to a golden age where the British will, once again, drive around in Austins, the Americans in Chrysler LeBarons or the Russians in Volgas. It isn't going to happen.

DV

(Amended June 8, 2017)

(*) The correlation between bad eating/drinking/living habits (and the resulting morbidity) and voter preference for Donald Trump was statistically established in the 2016 US presidential election.