The Order of DC Comics; 22nd February 2017

By Paul Fiander

Picking out my top reads from DC Comics for the week of the 22nd of February 2017

1) Detective Comics #951

With close to a thousand issues jumping into Detective Comics can feel rather intimidating. Thankfully though the series is broken up into sizable arcs which are easily accessible to new readers. This issue is one of those starting points and it ties the League of Shadows into the story, which is always a reason to pay attention.from the cover is ready to see that Shiva is our main focus and the opening pages (see attached) do a great job in showing the ruthless enemy that has come to Gotham. Despite the rather graphic opening the issue then turns into a well paced tension builder, with the fear of what is to come always just beyond our immediate grasp, until the final stanza that is.

The artistic turn by Christian Dice moulds seamlessly between the action sequences, talking heads and rather graphic scenes that are littered throughout the issue. His work is top draw, the colouring by Alex Sinclair helps to make the whole package a perfect read. Writer James Tynion IV has taken Detective Comics by three horns and is proving to be a great driving force behind this most hallowed of series.

2) Batgirl #8

Balancing all the strands of everyday life can be a difficult challenge at the best of times. Family, work, school and friends are just some of the pulls we have. Barbara Gordon however has a time drain that most of us do not for she is Batgirl. Throughout the Rebirth run she has been tested on all fronts but her ability to endure and overcome are forefront and make her a wonderful character to interact with.

This issue sees Barbara entering into a relationship with a rather unexpected person in the shape of a Cobblepot. Thankfully it's not the aquatic arch villain but rather his son Ethan. The issue focuses on Ethan's past and present in Burnside, opening a window to Barbara that helps her to understand him in a fresh and revealing way.

There is another side to Hope Larson’s writing in the issue and that is of course Batgirl. Her ability to look at what could be a bland crime and making it compelling is fascinating to say the least. Throughout the issue you can see the bigger picture unfolding but never at the expense of the now. Together with the artistic team of Chris Wildgoose (pencils), Jon Lam (inks) and Mat Lopes (colours) this issue helps to build the Batgirl brand that it's one of the shining lights of DC at the moment.

3) Wonder Woman #17

The nice part of comic creators presence on social media is getting an insight into their feelings about their work. Last week Liam Sharp tweeted out that issue #17 was the proudest he had been of his art in a single issue. Obviously this demands attention and so I dived into and can thankfully say this is a great issue that truly shows off Sharp’s talents. I'm not enough of a Sharp scholar to say it's his best work but the range of details he adds to his characters is enough to cover the price of the issue itself. His Ferdinand is a pleasure to behold throughout but the metamorphic serpent has to be the highlight.

The issue sees Diana struggling with own identity in a way that breaks the character down, hopefully with the ultimate aim of bringing her back to greatness. There is also an action side to the issue that sees Diana's friends attempting to help her in desperate times. Then there is the Joker in the pack who could make or break the whole story. Greg Rucka does a masterful job in keeping the pace of the story throughout each strand and together with his dual creative teams his take on the Amazonian princess will go down as one of the best ever if the creative teams continue to give us this level of content.