I know I've written it before, but I'll write it again. Art is a bigger part of the equation than the writing when it comes to comics (writing matters), but when the art is utter shit, it totally subtracts from the comic experience.

 

I think the writing is most important. But the art has to be at least a certain level. There has to be either at least a certain level of technical proficiency, or the art has to be stylized in such a way that the lack of proficiency doesn't matter (and the stylized art has to fit the material). But the Female Furies artist has neither. It's neither stylized nor proficient. It's just dogshit.

Of course the best case is when both art and story are excellent. But an excellent story with middle of the road art beats fantastic art with a mediocre story almost every time for me. When you think about the best Marvel or DC comic you've ever read, what do you remember? Why was it your favorite issue or arc? What's the first thing you think of, the thing that made you choose it? Do you remember the way a certain panel was drawn? Or do you remember what happened in the comic?

Like I read the Dark Phoenix Saga probably a hundred times when I was 12 or 13. But visually (and despite the fact that Byrne was my favorite artist back when I was 13), I can really remember maybe only 2 or 3 panels out of the entire storyline from issues #131-137: One when Wolverine turns around in the sewer swearing revenge at the end of one issue, and the other when Jean shoots herself in the last issue. That's about it. I mean I have a vague memory of other panels, and I always loved the art as I was reading it, but those two are probably the only ones I could accurately reconstruct with pencil and paper. So even though I loved the art, the real reason I kept rereading it and what I do remember clearly to this day are what happened to the characters. What they went through and how they were changed. The story.

It's also the reason that artist-driven books never work. For example, of all the Image founders, Marc Silvestri was by far my favorite artist, and I bought every issue he drew. But I could not tell you one, single thing that happens in his entire run of Cyber-Force. Not one. I couldn't even name all the characters. On the other hand, I could talk all day about what happened in every issue of Silvestri's run on Wolverine from years earlier, written by the great Larry Hama. Silvestri definitely elevated the material, and I will take a Hama issue that Silvestri drew over a lot of the lesser artists or fill-ins. But the flipside is that there have been some great artists on Wolverine in the years since with a terrible writer, and they've produced only terrible and forgettable comics.

That's my take, anyway.

 

Lex Luthor's New Origin Story Is Tied to a Major DC Hero

Take this as you will.

 

It's a good issue, and I honestly don't mind the retcon here. I'm just happy the Martian Manhunter is back to his old self, and linking him with Luthor in this way could lead to some interesting situations in future.

 

As if dealing with the mother of the Monitor and Anti-Moniter and the complete and total destruction of The Source Wall wasn’t a situation enough. XP

 

Tom Taylor Teases A Major DC Death with #DCEASED Hashtag

So it seems that in whatever story he’s writing,

Spoiler

looks like Darkseid

is going to perish.

 

Isn't he currently a baby or teenager or something?

 

But

Spoiler

he only returned just a few years ago after killing Greek gods...and appearing in Justice League Odyssey.

If it's true, it feels a bit too soon.

Then again, it's a comic book death, so it won't be permanent.

 

Nope he’s full grown now. And he’s about to declare war on reality, with his own version of the Warworld as his base of operations. This is in the pages of Justice League Odyssey.

Apparently Superman’s going to punch him so hard his jaw breaks.  

 

Again?
*yawn*
It'll stick. Sure.

 

...This reminds me of when Superman snapped General Zod's neck in Man of Steel, in the sense that it'll likely look cool, but feel out of character, for someone that is against using extreme force and is all about control.

Analysing Batman's Knightmares - The Cat's Tentacles (Batman #66 Preview)



More teases of Knightmares.

 

Probably because Marvel just killed Thanos.

 

Well, Guardians of the Galaxy issue #2 will technically bring him back.  

 

SCOTT SNYDER Explains LEX LUTHOR & J'ONN J'ONZZ's Secret JUSTICE LEAGUE History

Interesting explanation:

Newsarama: Scott, you’ve added a whole new story into the continuity of J’onn J’onzz and Lex Luthor in Justice League. According to this story, the two characters met when they were children. Where did the idea come from to add this meeting, and why?

Scott Snyder: It was something we talked about when we first planned Justice League. I wanted it to be this deep and intensive battle between two competing ideologies.

For me, Martian Manhunter represents, at his core, this idea of community, this idea of home and shared experience. His whole power set is that he’s telepathic and can link people. And that’s why we made him leader of the Justice League. He unites us to each other, but also to our greatest ideals.

Lex Luthor, on the other hand, is almost heroic, but he’s so deeply driven by ego that he can’t let himself be self-sacrificing in any way. It always has to be in service of Lex. Lex always has to get credit.

That sense of ego and sense of self is completely at odds to what Martian Manhunter is about. So we made Lex the leader of the Legion of Doom.

And the Legion of Doom is all about, not just evil, but selfishness. It’s a sense that life is short, so get yours; be somebody who wins at all costs, and make yourself important. It’s the opposite of what the Justice League is all about self-sacrifice and committing yourself to things that are larger than you.

So they’re almost like opposite energies.

We had this idea that not only would they be opposed as leaders, but they would have a shared history where they each saw the other in a very different light. It had to be this shared experience that nobody else knew about.

So it was planned from the start. There’s even hints of it when Martian Manhunter receives a kind of telepathic message from Vandal Savage as he’s dying.

 

Here’s the first look at Taylor’s project.

#DCEASED: Injustice Writer Reveals a First Look at His Newest DC Apocalypse

 

Art looks good.

I just realised it might be an alternate reality tale (like Injustice or Batman: White Knight), in which case, he’s free to do whatever he wants to for Superman.

Speaking of alternative realities, what happened to the Black Label? It feels like forever since a new title has come from that imprint...

Also, in The Flash #64, an important question is brought up:

Spoiler

Was Gotham Girl ever sent to the sanctuary?

No reply from Batman.

Also, Barry doesn’t know that Bruce’s marriage fell through, and Claire is using Venom to revive her brother and is also making clones, as well as planing to target the Central City PD.

 

Tom Taylor is a masterclass comics writer, so I'll check out any new DC book he does.

 

I'm surprised that you'd say that. Can you give me a few titles that he has written? I only know him from his run on that Earth 2 book from a few years ago, and I wasn't exactly... thrilled by his run.

 

Oh, writing definitely matters - I said as much. I just think art on a comic is ever so slightly more important. All art and no substance is just as bad as a well written story that looks like it was drawn by a left handed artist using their right hand. Although, the comic with pretty art is, minimum, fun to look at.

 

His Injustice and Injustice 2 runs were amazing. And he concluded his X-Men Red run a few months ago.