Comic Book Review: The Brave and the Bold #1: Batman and Green Lantern - DC Comics (2007)

"The Lords of Luck Roulette"
Chapter One

Written by Mark Waid and George Perez
Pencils by George Perez
Inks by Bob Wiacek
Colors by Tom Smith

Batman and Green Lantern have a mystery to solve.  Multiple bodies have been found throughout the world and also in space.  The odd part is, it's the exact same body in all of these locations.

I like "The Brave and the Bold" concept of teaming up two DC superheroes.  The first issue in the 2007 iteration has two fan-favorites; Batman and Green Lantern.  I like how these two heroes work together despite a stark clash in style.  The world's greatest detective teaming up with the man with a ring that create just about anything he can think of.

Mark Waid and George Perez have the beginning of a very mysterious story and it goes from outer space, to Gotham, to Las Vegas and before the story ends Green Lantern is headed back to space to head to another planet.  We are also introduced by inter-planetary villains along with another villain we are a bit more familiar with in Roulette.  I received this comic book in the TeeBlox subscription service and you can check out past reviews of that service at HelloSubscription. I may need to head to my local comic shop to see if I can find the rest of this series in the bargain bin.  My library may have the collected graphic novel as well.

George Perez is one of my all time favorite artists and, as soon as I saw his work on the cover, I immediately opened the book to start reading.  Perez has drawn just about everyone in the worlds of DC and Marvel Comics and I was excited by what I saw inside.  Everything from the heroes to the backgrounds look wonderful.  It was an absolute pleasure to not just read, but look at the incredible artwork in "The Brave and the Bold" #1.

What are your thoughts on "The Brave and the Bold" concept?  What other comic books would you like Maskerpiece Theatre to review?  Please let us know in the comment section below or through social media.

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Comic Book Review: Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #5 - DC Comics

"Sinestro's Law Part 5: Joining Forces"

Written by Robert Venditti
Art by Ethan Van Sciver
Colors by Jason Wright

Hal Jordan has been healed by Soarnik, Guy Gardner is captured and being tortured and John Stewart and the rest of the Green Lantern Corps are on the search for the Yellow Lanterns on War World.

This book is so much fun as there are multiple story lines that all connect.  Every page is full of interest as all of it is compelling.  Hal Jordan talking with Soranik and explaining the origin of his new ring made by himself through Hal's own will is fantastic.  Guy Gardner not giving in to torture shows he is one of the toughest(or is he really that hard headed?) individuals in the DC Universe.  John Stewart and Kilowog travelling with the rest of the Green Lanterns in an effort to take on the Yellow Lanterns is enough to leave you breathless by the end.  Robert Venditti is amazing at crafting stories and the "Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps" series proves that point.

Ethan Van Sciver is such an incredible artist and I'm glad he is working on this title.  I also like that DC is keeping a steady artist on the title so I get the same look to each book.  The details in the faces are wonderful, especially with Sinestro.  This, coupled with the colors from Jason Wright, make for one of the best looking comic series going.  The colors coming off the rings look absolutely remarkable.

What are your thoughts on Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps?  What other comic books would you like Maskerpiece Theatre to review?

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Act 189: Tres Amigos

Masked Blogster, Handsome J, Mandy, Frank and Jessie talk about the trailers for Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, The Mummy and Transformers (who cares what they're calling it). The crew also chat about who should play the Green Lantern and also come up with a new cast for the Three Amigos.

To listen, click here. To download, right click and "Save As..."

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Comic Book Review: Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps #4 - DC Comics (2016)

"Sinestro's Law Part 4: The Fear Engine"

Written by Robert Venditti
Art by Ethan Van Sciver
Colors by Jason Wright

Sinestro contines to fuel his Fear Engine as he awaits the arrival of Sinestro Corps' latest prisoner: Hal Jordan.  Sinestro is in for a surprise as there is a captured Green Lantern but not who he thinks.  Hal Jordan was redirected and taken by someone else while on planet Moga, John Stewart must make a decision as to what he should do next.

I am extremely glad I started reading this series.  Robert Venditti is crafting an other-worldly story happening across the universe with some of the most incredible heroes and villains in the DC Universe.  Hal Jordan bringing the Green Lantern Corps together and Sinestro coming back into power and looking to bring his version of order to the universe.  We are only 4 issues in(5 including the Rebirth Issue) and it feels like the best is yet to come.  This is also a comic book to read.  I Enjoy that there are lengthy conversations being had.  I feel like dialogue within comic books is a fading art.

Ethan Van Sciver is an extraordinary artist.  This series is worth picking up for the art alone.  Luckily the story is excellent as well.  The colors look amazing as well.  The use of light and the fact that it looks like it glows is a remarkable feat by colorist Jason Wright.

What are your thoughts on Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps?  Are you enjoying any of the other DC Rebirth titles?  What other comic books would you like Maskerpiece Theatre to review?  Please contact any of the blogsters or the social media pages and let us know.

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Green Lanterns Rebirth - Review

Having been a fan of Hal Jordons many many years ago I decided to get back with the Green Lantern series now that DC has revamped things, as it were. I didn't know the new Lanterns and was pleasantly surprised at the back story that was given in this issue. There's plenty of dialogue in this issue which I'm very much a fan of, assuming it's quality conversation & not wasteful jibberish. This issue also sets up a glimpse into how the series could play out. 

I enjoyed the brief battle sequence and the reveals had me shaking my head in agreement and saying "yessssss" as I read this issue. I'm looking forward to seeing how the story plays out. There's a few possibilities and they all seem entertaining. Plus there's a little mystery as well that peaked my interest but you'll have to pick this issue up to read about it. From the very beginning to the very end we aren't sure what will happen but we know things are going to happen and those things should be very exciting!

Comic Book Review: Justice League #47 - DC Comics (2016)

Darkseid War Part 7

Written by Geoff Johns
Art by Jason Fabok

Heroes collide in the next chapter in the Darkseid War.  A deranged Superman fights Wonder Woman; Green Lantern tries to talk Batman off the Chair of Knowledge; Cyborg, Power Ring, Big Barda and Mister Miracle attempt to break the Crime Syndicate out of prison to find out more information to possibly beat the Anti-Monitor.

Things have gone haywire in the DC Universe.  With Darkseid gone, there is great power dispersed to different heroes from the Justice League and they're having a hard time dealing with it not only mentally, but now it seems physically.

The Darkseid War has been a great read so far.  Lots of action and story lines all over the place yet they all converge as well.  Each month I look forward to what is going to happen next.  Wonder Woman is the one hero whose head seems to be the most level as the other Justice League members have their own issues.  Mister Miracle is a fun character and I like seeing this Jack Kirby created character become heavily involved in this story.

Justice League has been one of my favorite of the DC series upon the arrival of the New 52.  Each issue has a lot of great action and includes many of the most familiar of faces in the DC Universe.  This is a great series for those of you into superhero team ups and that seems to be the case with a lot of folks based on the direction the films are going.

What are your thoughts on Justice League?  Are there other comic books you would like to see reviewed by Maskerpiece Theatre?  Let us know in the comments below.

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Comic Book Review: Justice League International - Volume 1 - DC Comics (2011)

Written by Dan Jurgens
Art by Aaron Lopresti & Marco Castiello

A group superheroes representing different countries are put together by Andre Briggs, Head of United Nations Intelligence.  The thought is, this group would be able to answer to an authority, something the Justice League does not do.  The new team, led by Booster Gold, are tasked with their first challenge which is much larger than they originally thought.  This review is about the first volume trade paperback which collects the first five issues.

This series was much better than I was originally willing to give it credit for.  Dan Jurgens writes a fun series, as one could imagine, with Booster Gold leading a team who are tasked to go out as a team having never met each other previously.  The task, being much more than they had imagined, turns into five issues of action, humor and seeing a team come together.

The team has familiar faces and, for those not as familiar with DC Comics, some not so familiar faces.  As stated earlier, Booster Gold is the leader and the other members include Ice, Vixen, Fire, Rocket Red, August General In Iron, Guy Gardner, and Godiva.  If that doesn't tickle your fancy, DC puts Batman with the group to help keep things going and give everyone an open mind to give this team a chance.

Admittedly, I do not know as much about DC as many others so I really enjoy the books that have some of the lesser known characters.  The interactions in this volume are done really well.  The heroes, being from different parts of the globe have different feelings on how to deal with threats.  There are other philosophical differences which also lead to butting of heads.  Guy Gardner alone adds the dimension of confrontation, especially when Booster Gold, who isn't known to be the most serious individual, is made leader.

Batman ties this all together well.  His belief in Booster Gold and his mentoring helps move this book along.  I was hesitant to believe Batman would be the right short-term addition to this book.
I really thought the Caped Crusader was on the cover to help the book get sold.  He may have been, but inside the pages, it works.

Aaron Loprestri, Marco Castiello, Matt Ryan, Vincenzo Acunzo, and Hi-Fi are the art team of this first volume.  They do a fantastic jobwith eye popping visuals.  I like when heroes are jumping out of panels and all of the action with all of these super-powered individuals are displayed extraordinarily.  The colors from Hi-Fi are great as pages seem to glow with the explosions, Guy Gardner's Green Lantern powers, and the interplanetary foes.

If you are looking for a fun book with a ton of action, then check out Justice League International.  It's a short lived series and you can pick up the trade paperbacks.  You can probably find the original comic books at a decent price if that's your preference.

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Drawn Out: It's Not Easy Being Green Lantern

Before you check out Green Lantern, take a look at the new logo!  The next "Drawn Out" blog will be about what went into making it.  There are other versions of it and I'd appreciate feedback on what you like best.










I was warming up to get ready to draw a comic I wrote but I decided to do more than just the digital pencils.  Green Lantern is a fun character and with his inter-galactic travels, the colors can be fun.

Admittedly, I am not very familiar with doing colors but I've been having fun with them.  Everything shown here are really just sketches and experimenting.  I've been working with blending and adding glow and having a ton of fun with it.  Hopefully one day when I have a project that actually calls for some of these effects, I can be ready for them.

All of these sketches were pencilled, inked and colored digitally using a Wacom tablet and using Manga Studio 5 as the software.

The first art "Drawn Out" post included a black and white sketch of a guy with a Mohawk enjoying himself as he listens to punk rock band Rancid.  I have since added some color to it.  I think I like the black and white better.

You can read more of my blogs here on Maskerpiece Theatre and also on http://cinemaheadcheese.blogspot.com/

Please let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

Comic Book Review - Green Lantern: Lights Out - DC Comics (2013)

Written by: Robert Venditti, Justin Jordan, Van Jensen & Charles Soule

Art by: Sean Chen, Brad Walker, Rags Morales, Billy Tan, Bernard Chang, Alessandro Vitti, Jon Sibal, Walden Wong, Drew Hennessy, Cam Smith, Rob Hunter, Marc Deering and Ryan Winn

This review is a little different from the other comic book reviews as this is actually a collection of books that i read in trade paperback form.  Green Lantern: Lights Out is a story arc that took place in the following issues:

 - Green Lantern #23.1: Relic
 - Green Lantern: New Guardians #23-24
 - Green Lantern # 24
 - Green Lantern Corps #24
 - Red Lanterns #24
 - Green Lantern Annual #2

This story is about Relic who by all accounts is the antagonist here, but overall does not feel what he is doing is wrong.  He comes from a previous universe that was destroyed by the previous beings that controlled the light.  The light, meaning what is controlled by the Lanterns.  Relic knows that the Lantern Light is not everlasting.  He attempts to tell those in his previous universe but it's destroyed with only Relic lasting.  Fast forward to now, and Relic sees Lanterns using the light, which he knows is depleting.  Instead of using verbal reasoning and proving with science the light doesn't last forever, he decides to use force.

Relic makes a great antagonist for this story because you can't use brute force to beat him.  No matter what you throw at him, the Lantern Light doesn't effect him.  In fact, he can redirect it back at the Lantern that uses it.  The Lantern Corps must figure out a way to combat Relic as he is destroying the main batteries of each Light Color.

All of the iterations of the Green Lanterns from Earth are in this story and the universe needs them.  Hal Jordan, John Stewart, Kyle Raynor and even Guy Gardner along with every Lantern left will need to put their heads together to make this work.

I feel like I have given enough spoilers for this story line so I'd recommend picking up this TPB.  It's available for $16.99 and great for Green Lantern fans everywhere.

If the rumors I hear are true and DC is making a Green Lantern Corps type of movie, this story line would look amazing on the silver screen.

Please let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

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