Mild Mannered Reviews - Specials
Trinity #40
Scheduled to arrive in stores: March 4, 2009Cover date: March 4, 2009
Main Story: "Returned"
Main Writers: Kurt Busiek
Main Pencillers: Mark Bagley
Main Inker: Art Thibert
Main Colorist: Pete Pantazis
Cover Art: Shane Davis and John Dell
Back-Up Story: "Patience, Mighty Krona"
Back-Up Story Writer: Kurt Busiek and Fabian Nicieza
Back-Up Story Penciller: Scott McDaniel
Back-Up Story Inker: Andy Owens
Back-Up Story Colorist: Allen Passalaqua
Reviewed by: Barry Freiman with Neal Bailey and Jeffrey Bridges
Krona sits alone in space.
The GL Corps face off against the Crime Syndicate and Despero.
On Earth, the dark trinity face the returned Trinity. Big fight ensues. The Trinity seem to return things to normal. Except for themselves - they are still shiny god like creatures. The shiny Trinity consider revenging themselves against the evil trinity to show them what it means to steal their world and seize their people.
To be continued...
Back-Up Story: "Patience, Mighty Krona"
Krona is a cosmic entity who believes he is master of all until he realizes there is a Multiverse out there. He reaches out to his counterparts and comes face to face with his future self. The future Krona appears to kill or at least exile the present Krona.
Krona reaches out to his Void Hound - which possessed John Stewart. The Void Hound broke free of his lab.
To be continued...
Barry's Review:
Main Story - 1: The story is called "Returned" for good reason. I want to return it - and these three so-called members of the Trinity. I've met Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. You are no Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman. You are unbridled power, the exact opposite of each of the three of them. I'm going to the return counter and asking for either my money back or my heroes back.
Main Art - 2: Boring. And I don't mean Wayne Boring. Just boring.
Back-Up Story - 1: Huh?
Back-Up Art - 2: The first page of the back-up shows promise. But turn the page and the comic reverts to standard assembly-line art.
Cover Art - 4: A Man of Steel etched into reality by the burning of 100 suns - at least that's what I called for in last issue's cover review. Since I got what I asked for, the least I can do is give it a good review.
Neal's Review:
Main Story - 1: Fifteen to twenty issues in this storyline about Superman/Batman/Wonder Woman being missing, and it turns out the solution is a snap of the fingers and "Hey! We will ourselves to have as much power as you do!"
And, for flavor, more of Krona in space posturing, and the Earth-3 villains fighting the Green Lanterns in some random, out of context way.
There's also that "Yeah!" "All right!" "H'ray!" "Woo!" as denouement. Sigh.
Main Art - 3: The opening splash with the big three and the evil three is nice and detailed, but much of the rest of the book is that strange, odd computer generated background mix. Much of the detail is rough, and a lot of the work seems (while compelling in what's there) unfinished.
Back-Up Story - 1: Okay, so, I actually READ JLA/Avengers, and the JLA run where Busiek furthered on this noise, and ALL of Trinity, and yet I have no clue as to how or why Krona is talking to his past self. Out of context, out of the narrative, this entry serves no purpose save to be mastubatory for folks who are obsessed with/understand Krona.
But even beyond that, the whole story is essentially one long villain monologue... to himself. An extrapolation AND exposition of all that we're supposed to learn through story but instead learn through a boring formerly blue mustachioed Silver Age smurf nut that is in no way compelling, at least to me.
Back-Up Art - 5: The art is actually quite well done, and has a lot of interesting use of perspective and color. And this is, hilariously enough, one of the first times where a character in a DC comic references all of his or her counterparts in the multiverse with many of them pictured that actually has UNDER fifty-two representations. That alone is worth its weight in comedy gold to me.
Cover Art - 2: The design is kind of interesting in that the colors work well together, but as a reimagining it's kind of clichéd, and it's so out of context to rely on the triple cover thing it's ineffective. It IS, however, Superman under an S cover, which is a miracle in and of itself with this book.
Jeffrey's Review:
Main Story - 1: Look! The evil Trinity is shooting some energy at the good Trinity! And now the good Trinity is shooting some energy back! And now everything is back to normal!
...it took forty issues to get to THAT?
You have go to be kidding me. This book is all one big practical joke, isn't it?
Main Art - 3: Look at all that energy being... energetic.
Back-Up Story - 1: Krona, a being of seemingly limitless power, sits around and talks to himself. And then kills himself in the past.
So, technically he shouldn't exist anymore, which means I didn't just read 10 pages of some pseudo-flaming guy with a goatee, a belt and god-powers sitting around in space whining, which means I am not angry, upset, or disappointed in the least.
Thank goodness.
Back-Up Art - 4: Despite the complete uselessness of this backup, I really enjoyed the rendering of outer space here. Nicely done.
Cover Art - 2: ...seriously?
I mean... SERIOUSLY?
Mild Mannered Reviews
2009
Note: Month dates are from the issue covers, not the actual date when the comic went on sale.January 2009
- Action Comics #871
- Superman #682
- Adventure Comics Special Featuring The Guardian #1
- Supergirl #35
- Superman/Batman #54
- Superman/Supergirl: Maelstrom #1
- Superman/Supergirl: Maelstrom #2
- Trinity #23
- Trinity #24
- Trinity #25
- Trinity #26
- Superman & Batman vs. Vampires & Werewolves #3
- Superman & Batman vs. Vampires & Werewolves #4
- Justice League of America #27
- Justice Society of America Kingdom Come Special: Superman #1
- Justice Society of America Kingdom Come Special: Magog #1
- Justice Society of America Kingdom Come Special: The Kingdom #1
- Justice Society of America #21
- Tangent: Superman's Reign #9
- Legion of Super-Heroes in the 31st Century #20
- Super Friends #9
- Action Comics #872
- Superman #683
- Supergirl #36
- Superman/Supergirl: Maelstrom #3
- Superman/Supergirl: Maelstrom #4
- Trinity #27
- Trinity #28
- Trinity #29
- Trinity #30
- Trinity #31
- Final Crisis #5
- Final Crisis: Secret Files #1
- Superman & Batman vs. Vampires & Werewolves #5
- Superman & Batman vs. Vampires & Werewolves #6
- Justice League of America #28
- Justice Society of America #22
- Tangent: Superman's Reign #10
- Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade #1
- Super Friends #10
- Action Comics #873
- Superman #684
- Superman/Batman Annual #3
- Supergirl #37
- Superman/Supergirl: Maelstrom #5
- Trinity #32
- Trinity #33
- Trinity #34
- Trinity #35
- Final Crisis: Superman Beyond #2
- Final Crisis #6
- Final Crisis #7
- Justice League of America #29
- Tangent: Superman's Reign #11
- Black Lightning: Year One #1
- Black Lightning: Year One #2
- Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade #2
- Super Friends #11
- Action Comics #874
- Superman #685
- Supergirl #38
- Superman/Batman #55
- Adventure Comics #0
- Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds #3
- Trinity #36
- Trinity #37
- Trinity #38
- Trinity #39
- Justice League of America #30
- Tangent: Superman's Reign #12
- Black Lightning: Year One #3
- Black Lightning: Year One #4
- Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade #3
- Super Friends #12
- Superman: World of New Krypton #1
- Action Comics #875
- Superman #686
- Supergirl #39
- Superman/Batman #56
- Superman/Batman #57
- Trinity #40
- Trinity #41
- Trinity #42
- Trinity #43
- Justice League of America #31
- Black Lightning: Year One #5
- Black Lightning: Year One #6
- Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade #4
- Super Friends #13
- Superman: World of New Krypton #2
- Action Comics #876
- Superman #687
- Supergirl #40
- Superman/Batman #58
- Superman/Batman #59
- Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds #4
- Trinity #44
- Trinity #45
- Trinity #46
- Trinity #47
- Trinity #48
- Justice League of America #32
- Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade #5
- Super Friends #14
- Superman: World of New Krypton #3
- Action Comics #877
- Superman #688
- Supergirl #41
- Superman/Batman #60
- Trinity #49
- Trinity #50
- Trinity #51
- Trinity #52
- Justice League of America #33
- Supergirl: Cosmic Adventures in the Eighth Grade #6
- Super Friends #15
- Superman: World of New Krypton #4
- Action Comics #878
- Action Comics Annual #12
- Superman #689
- Supergirl #42
- Superman/Batman #61
- Justice League of America #34
- Super Friends #16
- Superman: World of New Krypton #5
- Action Comics #879
- Superman #690
- Supergirl #43
- Superman/Batman #62
- Wednesday Comics #1
- Wednesday Comics #2
- Wednesday Comics #3
- Wednesday Comics #4
- Final Crisis: Legion of Three Worlds #5
- Justice League of America #35
- Justice League: Cry For Justice #1
- Super Friends #17
- Superman: World of New Krypton #6
- Action Comics #880
- Superman #691
- Adventure Comics #1
- Superman: Secret Files 2009 #1
- Superman Annual #14
- Supergirl #44
- Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen #2
- Superman/Batman #63
- Blackest Night: Superman #1
- Wednesday Comics #5
- Wednesday Comics #6
- Wednesday Comics #7
- Wednesday Comics #8
- Justice League of America #36
- Justice League: Cry For Justice #2
- Super Friends #18
- Superman: Secret Origin #1
- Superman: World of New Krypton #7
- Action Comics #881
- Superman #692
- Supergirl Annual #1
- Supergirl #45
- Adventure Comics #2
- Superman/Batman #64
- Blackest Night: Superman #2
- Wednesday Comics #9
- Wednesday Comics #10
- Wednesday Comics #11
- Wednesday Comics #12
- Justice League of America #37
- Justice League: Cry For Justice #3
- Super Friends #19
- Superman: Secret Origin #2
- Superman: World of New Krypton #8
- Action Comics #882
- Superman #693
- Supergirl #46
- Adventure Comics #3
- Superman/Batman #65
- World's Finest #1
- Blackest Night: Superman #3
- Justice League of America #38
- Justice League: Cry For Justice #4
- Super Friends #20
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Check out the Comic Index Lists for the complete list of Superman-related comics published in 2009.