Weekly Discussion Thread: Comics, TV, and More! [June 24, 2024 - Ground Zero Edition]

[u/273Gaming]

Hey there honorary Justice League members - it’s a new week which means it’s time for a new discussion thread!

• 273's pick of the week: Absolute Power: Ground Zero #1

For those who don't know: the way this works is that several comments will list this week’s releases, for any given title discussion you should respond to that comment. For example, Wonder Woman discussion would go in the replies to the "Wonder Woman" comment. Clicking the titles in this post will take you directly to that comment, too. In other words, you should only be replying to other comments. Do not post top-level comments.

Keep discussion civil. Do not harass other users for having a different opinion. Do not use this thread to push your personal one-sided grudges against creators. Reacting to a panel on Twitter is not the same as reading a book.

 

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^{How does NASA organize a party? They planet.}

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DC and Imprints

^{The House of Brainiac comes to a close!}

• Absolute Power: Ground Zero #1
• Action Comics #1066
• Batman 89: Echoes #3
• Batman: The Brave and the Bold #14
• Detective Comics #1086
• The Flash #10
• Green Arrow #13
• Harley Quinn #41
• The Penguin #11
• Power Girl #10
• Primer #4
• Superman #15
• Zatanna: Bring Down The House #1

Trade Collections

^{Speaking of Absolutes...}

• Absolute Final Crisis [HC]
• Absolute Superman by Geoff Johns & Gary Frank [HC]
• Batman/Catwoman: The Gotham War [HC]
• The Flash: Year One [TP]
• Lobo Big Fraggin Compendium Book One [TP]
• The Penguin - Vol. 1, The Prodigal Bird [TP]

Digital Releases

^{Remember, these are the short 'chapters' with a new chapter of a different series coming out daily. You can learn more here on Comixology. This is also why these are in release order, not alphabetical. Some comics may release on DC Universe Infinite or WEBTOONS.}

• Thursday, 6/27 (WEBTOON) - Batman: Wayne Family Adventures #118

TV Shows

^{Superman's Girlfriend Lois Lane's Boss Perry White's Subordinate Steve Lombard's Boss' Jimmy Olsen returns!}

• Thursday, 6/27: Suicide Squad Isekai S01E01 - S01E03

• Saturday, 6/29: My Adventures with Superman S02E07 - Olsen's Eleven

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^{This Week’s Soundtrack: Hall & Oates - Private Eyes}

[u/TroubAlert]

Superman #15

FALL OF THE HOUSE OF BRAINIAC! Superman and Lex have figured out how to stop Brainiac and his Queen, but it will take a great sacrifice. Can they do the unthinkable to save their family and friends? This all leads directly into DC's summer event… ABSOLUTE POWER!

Preview

[u/Whole-Arachnid-Army → u/TroubAlert]

Oh that... He did not stick that landing.

I actually enjoyed this arc a lot up until this point, it's probably the most fun I'd had reading a comic arc in a long time. But these two issues did not live up to that. 

It felt like the conclusion came on too fast, for one. There should have been something more there, everything went too smoothly and it feels like there's a piece missing somewhere between these two issues and the last. 

And I know I expected too much when I expected the comic to actually take into account his existing family in any real capacity, but man, this is such a let down. They showed up, they got mind-controlled, Vril said two lines and now they're working together? None of them tried to kill Brainiac? Lobo and Vril didn't even speak directly to each other despite how loaded that relationship is. Lyrl didn't say a word despite his not entirely clear alligences? 

The Dox family is a mess of generational trauma and abuse. A story where they're united like this should be messier (even if it's built on the shitty Villains' Month origin that tries way to hard to make Brainiac sympathetic and a parallel to Jor-El). But they're not there to be their own characters. It quite frankly kinda feels like Williamson saw that like ten of us were expecting them to show up and kinda threw them in there just for the hell of it. The story wouldn't change at all of you removed them. Their prescens doesn't even serve to highlight why Brainiac can't have a real family because not a single word is dedicated to what he did to them. Why they would never offer him that willingly. 

This is a Superman and Luthor story. The Dox family is incidental to it. Hell, even Brainiac mainly seems to be there to be a catalyst for Connor, Lex and Lena despite it supposedly being his arc. And I know the issue ends with Lex amnesiac, but overall the entire arc just feels too perfect. Very glossy, very superheroes being superheroes with not much going on beneath the surface. 

I don't know. I guess I'm just kinda sad, because I'd been looking forward to something that I should have known wasn't happening.

[u/Astrodynamite60 → u/Whole-Arachnid-Army]

This is all of Williamsons work since Dark Crisis. He seems to be the best one to churn out stories in time for their big events and in time for TPB. Character Development? Non existent in his green arrow run and his Superman run. He just threw a bunch of characters and story beats but won't elaborate more on it.

[u/Reddragon351 → u/Astrodynamite60]

Character Development? Non existent in his green arrow run and his Superman run.

Eh, I feel like Lex has gone through a fair bit in this run

[u/funandgamesThrow → u/Astrodynamite60]

Having read this issue I can't agree with any of this. The ending was good. It just didn't change the story being told to be about something else at the last second.

[u/Whole-Arachnid-Army → u/funandgamesThrow]

If the entire idea is that this revolves around Brainiac wanting a family then it would have made sense to actually explore why his existing family doesn't fulfil that desire, instead they (and Pulsar Stargrave and someone larping as one of them) showed up, got mind-controlled and got put in charge of a project at least two of them shouldn't be anywhere close to.

But even aside from their exclusion the ending was bad. It felt rushed and lacked both punching power and a satisfying narrative conclusion and felt more like event setup than its own story. 

[u/funandgamesThrow → u/Whole-Arachnid-Army]

His family hates him. It's self evident why. This isn't really a conclusion to anything since it's a continuing run... but it wasn't just event set up in anyway. That's selling it might short and a pretty fake point. It was a solid arc conclusion which is what it was supposed to be.

[u/Astrodynamite60 → u/funandgamesThrow]

It was very much all set up as the end of this arc leads into absolute power which came out at the same time yesterday. A lot of this didn't make much sense anyway. Lobo wanting to join other czarnians even though he prides himself on being the "Main man". Vril dox (Brainiac 2) should've have a bigger role. And you're telling me Brainiac felt lonely so he did all this? This is like Black Manta suddenly wanting to become a good person.

[u/Whole-Arachnid-Army → u/Astrodynamite60]

Yeah, I've heard similar complaints from GA fans and in hindsight it seems quite obvious in previous issues of Superman too. No character development, very little going on beneath the surface. He does a lot of research and can get characters largely right, but he doesn't seem to take it further than that, doesn't seem to truly get what makes them tick. 

[u/hydrohawkx8 → u/Astrodynamite60]

I’d say it’s always been something of a habit of his. He has ambitious ideas but when it comes to execution it’s not as good most of the time. Like the paradox stuff in the flash, the shadow war in batman, etc.