[Editor’s note: This review may contain spoilers.]
Writer: Scott Lobdell
Artist: Dexter Soy
Inker: Veronica Gandini
Summary
In this issue, the Outlaws spend some time apart. Jason gets lost in his head with memories of Robin and the Joker. It is not pretty. Artemis is reunited with her beloved and her Amazonian sisters. That may not turn out to be as pretty as it looks on the surface. Bizarro freezes a helicopter mid-flight and destroys a mountain. That is pretty funny. Welcome to Qurac, where horrible things keep happening.
Positives
Once again, Scott Lobdell brings the humanity to three inhuman characters.
Bizarro’s entire part in this book is brief but it is full of tenderness. Sure, he destroys something in seconds that mother nature spent eons creating and he kills some randos who work for the Quraci dictator, but he does it because he just wants to help. He may be a destructive Kryptonian clone, but he is full of love and understanding.
Artemis finds herself in a crossroads. Her whole mission has been to find the Bow of Ra, and now, she is there, just steps away from it and yet, she can not bring herself to act because the person for whom she cares most in the universe is alive and standing in front of her. Obsession only goes so far when one is faced with reality. We have all been there.
Jason Todd becomes the Red Hood because he is angry that Bruce did not kill the Joker and avenge him. The thing he never really considers is that as Robin, he was a hot headed jerk. He ran off on his own to face the craziest of the crazy. Did he really think Batman wouldn’t have Robin’s back? Really? Come on, that is absurd. The realization Jason has is profound. He says to the version of himself that lives in his mind, “You died like you lived — alone.”
Damn.
A little love for the cover. Well done Nicola Scott and Romulo Fajadro Jr. That was a trip down memory lane.
Negatives
I miss the team being together. I know it has only been 10 issues, and it took them a while to be a team, but I like the way they interact. I would have liked more Bizarro as he is growing on me, just like he has on the Reds. This feels like a bridge issue, and it is a bridge issue. The plot is not moved on until the final panel. That is fine. I understand the story telling. I just keep thinking that if this were a 2 times a month book, the bridges would be much shorter.
Verdict
The art is spot on (as always). The characters are layered (as always). This book has been so good, that it only can be judged against itself. When this comes out in TBP, this story will fit quite nicely. However, as a stand alone issue, it is a bit light.
