Adventures Of Superman: DCF #1 - Tony Wilson
I’ll put the pun about this title being off to a flying start for a moment. As we all know Superman is DCs
flagship title, so whoever decides to write its DCF equivalent is a brave man indeed. Fortunately it seems as
though it may be safe in Tony Wilson’s hands. Though this first issue suffers from having to set up a story, it
creates an aura that is true to the comic book itself. Superman returns to Metropolis in a flash of blue and
red, and by the end of the first issue he’s already saved the day. The Metropolis of the future is not too
different to a modern day city, though the Superman museum is a nice touch. Superheroes aside, where this
story excels is in the set up of new character Keats and his bar bound chums. There is something very human
in their portrayal, and they carry a nice line of banter. If only this had been test read before uploading, as
there are a few a few a few repetitions through it. Now can I say it? Okay, this title is off to a flying start.
[4/5]
Adventures Of Superman: DCF #2 - Tony Wilson.
Wilson follows his great first issue with an even better encore, still following the people and events
surrounding Superman than the Man Of Steel himself. The writing is simple but sharp lending a comic-like
edge to the story - and what a story! As with the characters, the main thrust of the plot is ironically
secondary to the background, with a jewel heist and the storming of Lexcorps playing second fiddle to the
media investigation of whether this really is Superman or not. We are occasionally given insights into what
Superman is thinking, and the relationship between him and the mysterious Henry Blake is well handled. The
ending is a stormer too. Watch this title closely, whether you’re a Superfan or not, and you’ll be glad that
you did. [4.5/5]
Legends Of Gotham #1
DCF creator Eric Burnham edits a collection of three short tales from the home of the Batman:
[4.5/5]
--- The Mercy Seat - Jason R Tippitt
The Mercy Seat is an attempt to put the Detective back into The Dark Detective, and is rather boring
because of it. After an initial confrontation between Bats’ alter-ego Tim Drake and a disgruntled employer,
the employer goes missing and the Batman follows a sickening trail of murder to a final showdown. The
writing is simplistic and unengaging - and so is villain Jonathan Weiss. The story has a number of nonsense
plot twists as the rather important addition of Weiss’s brother seems to have been mislaid; certainly he isn’t
mentioned until long after the Batman goes looking for him. The investigation itself is uninteresting, and the
Bat becomes, more or less, a down at heel gumshoe. And for a superhero, he sure gets beaten up easily.
[2.5/5]
--- Yesterday’s Crimes - Jessie “Stormangel” Davis
Yesterday’s Crimes is one of those character’s thoughts stories, and actually acts as a prologue to the DCF
title “Nightwing” (I think). In it, Commissioner Mark Grayson, the son of the original Nightwing (and
surviving thanks to the DCF age resistance drug ambrosia) contemplates the indirect death of his father at
the hands of the original Batman. The story is nicely framed as a kind of self-help journal - something that
Grayson strongly disbelieves in - and Grayson’s gruff tone is reminiscent of Commissioner Gordon, but as
the story goes on it degenerates into a poor telling of the events concerning the death. Though we are given
some info on what happened to the original Batman characters, and there is certain air of the hero passing
into myth, when the personal aspects of the story cease, so does the interest in the story. [3.5/5]
--- Harmonic Insanity - V-Man
I believe that this, another ‘thoughts’ fanfic, is a supplement to an issue of the Batman: DCF comic, in which
one of the title’s villains is killed off. The killer, Detective Paul Chandler is detached from the events and
characters in a way that ties in well with the chilling twist ending, but the story is too short to be really
engaging. A nice twist, though. [3.5/5]
The Flash: DCF #1-3 What A Rush! - Joey W Guerra
This ‘origins of’ story arc is extremely disappointing. The opening teaser, which - despite its tense switching -
is rather entertaining and left me looking forward to the rest of the story, is followed by a lot of dreary,
juvenile antics which fail to set any pace for the rest of the title. Set against a background where superspeed is
the norm, hero Jason Ramos is given mystical powers by a ring (no, really) and finds he can move at incredible
speeds that not even the speedy mechanised local police can match. Before the end of the story he has become
a wanted murderer and he has told his secret to his best friend. The story relies on the speed of its telling, with
exclamation marks and gimmicky swearing throughout the piece, but the concepts it tries to pull are badly
handled. Oh goody, the mayor is corrupt. Oh goody, so’s the chief of police. Oh goody, Ramos has a score to
settle. And just how much faster than the police *is* the Flash? If the police can cross the city to reach a crime
in seconds, (which they do) can the Flash cross the country in seconds? If so, why does it seem that they move
at approximately the same speed? “What A Rush!” also comes across badly in ‘comic’ form, with only a
couple of scenes played out in each issue. Overall, this story presents an intreaguing but badly handled
opening to what could be a good title. If the author sat down and worked everything out; maybe sounded
things off some of the other DCF authors, or his friends, it could *be* a rather good title. As it is, it is -
ironically - too rushed. [2.5/5]
Aquaman:DCF -Return Of The King - Tony Wilson
In the opening paragraph of this story we are told that it is *not* a bright and happy fairy tale. Which it isn’t.
But what follows is the type of mishmash of half-baked revolutionary tales that you’d expect from a folk
tale. It’s the type of history that historians make large amounts of money from by looking at carefully,
raising a cautious hand and saying “Um, hang on; haven’t we got this all wrong?” Here’s the plot: in the
early twenty first century Arthur the Aquaman, King of Atlantis (or Poseidonis) is killed. He is placed in a
tomb by his father (Merlin, by any other name). In 2112, the citizens of Poseidonis are getting ready to rebel
against the UN enforced presidency, when Arthur comes back to life, leads a band of revolutionaries into
battle, saves the day, and establishes a new round table. So far, so cliched. The Arthurian overtones of the
whole plot are occasionally layered on a bit thick, but do not restrict the plot. The writing is competent,
although there are a couple howlers (my favourite “Everyone's eyes then fell on Ozan.” Poor lad!). The
pacing is pretty bad; the first third of the story is taken up with Arthurian back story, while a good part of
the second third is taken up introducing a bewildering array of characters, most of whom only utter a line or
two before the end of the story. Where the story *really* falls apart, though, is in its portrayal of the
thinking behind the revolution. Where we should have been given utter oppression, we are instead presented
with a working class dislike of yuppies, and an old couple being prodded by a guard and being told “You eat
too much”. In fact, when the storming of the upper levels comes, it almost seems like the revolutionaries are
ready to kill, (and they do kill) just because they don’t like the decor. Another down point is King Arthur,
who seems rather like Queen Elizabeth from Blackadder: he expects everyone to worship him, and when
questioned by a Justice League representative at the end, he responds with a variation on “Who’s King?” A
disappointing story, that should have been thought through before it was written. [2.5/5]
Nightwing: DCF - Hero Time - Tony Wilson
Nightwing is DCF’s foray into the dark side of superheroing, and isn’t bad. We follow the story of young
Marc Chandler, who is accidentally thrust into the world of vigilantism. At first his job is little more than a
pastime, until one of his rescuees is killed, and he goes in search of revenge. As with sister title Superman:
DCF, the story is made from a cast of colourful and interesting characters. There is Marc’s brother Jon, a
detective in an increasingly corrupt police force; reporter Tom Weiss, who sees in Nightwing a ray of hope
for Kingston; Marc’s grizzled trainer Frank; Marc’s smart, sensible girlfriend Jessica; his hyperactive best
friend Jefferson; and Angelo Moretti, a mobster who has to worry about Nightwing being a thorn in his side.
This first story arc is an ‘origins of’ story, and Tony Wilson does a good job of introducing everything, in
particular, the introduction of Nightwing himself - there’s none of this “I shall hunt down villainy under the
guise of the Mighty Nightwing!” crap, it’s just a name pulled from the past - Marc isn’t trying to fill
anyone’s shoes. The writing is competent, though if it is to turn Kingston into the dark, crime addled city it
is meant to be, it’ll probably have to get a little deeper. It’ll be interesting to see how it progresses from
being a crime story to a superhero title. [3.5/5]
Wonder Woman: DCF - Return To Innocence - Jessie Davis and Carey Davis
Wonder Woman: DCF is a return to the gosh darnit superheroics of yesteryear, and is quite fun. Jessie
writes in a kind of “We don’t care ‘cause we’re having a laugh” style, that , while perfectly suited to four
colour comic books, doesn’t translate well to text. Having said that, Aurora Trevor, the new Wonder
Woman, is an endearingly ditzy heroine, who knows absolutely nothing, and seems intent on turning the
responsibility bestowed on her by her hitherto untapped powers into an extra long girls night out. She seems
to spend most of the story giggling and trying on clothes with her best friend, and mooning over dreamy
JLer Block Buster. But, as we all know, being fun isn’t enough. I don’t know whether the fact that Jessie co
conceived this project with his wife meant that he didn’t dare edit the story, or whether he just didn’t feel
like editing it (see the editor of the first issue) but it appears that this fanfic was not read through before it
was sent to the presses. This means that the writer has to trawl through terrible grammar and repeated
phrases repeated phrases, and so loses a lot of enjoyment. The best part of the story is the news broadcast at
the end of issue 2, which goes from right on girl power to a chilling premonition of Wonder Woman clashing
with the Justice League. A light and frothy read, then, but please Mr and Mrs Davis, read through the issues
before posting them! [2.5/5]
Batman: DCF - Heritage - Erik Burnham
After the death of his father, Timothy Drake, grandson of Tim Drake/Robin discovers his heritage and
becomes the Batman, just in time to rescue Gotham City’s Police Commissioner Grason. The Batman of
DCF is an odd character, more of a man in a suit than a hero, and his first day on the job goes
embarrassingly badly, but apart from that, this is a pretty straightforward start to one of DCFs most popular
titles. The details of Drake’s investigation into his grandfather’s history are quickly glossed over (he’s
supposed to put together a number of clues in a journal, but we don’t see this), and the rest of the story,
although competently written, is pretty dull. The best point of the story is the universally acclaimed AI
Alfred, the mysteriously sentient owner of Wayne manor, who is also quite mad. Apart from him, there is
little of interest here. Ho hum. [2.5/5]
Peacemaker: DCF, The Movie - Ed Burke
This fanfic is subtitled ‘The Movie’, and never has that phrase been more appropriate when applied to
something that isn’t actually a film. We we’ve got here, is bangs, crashes, explosions, honest to God
patriotism - and not much in the way of a plot. The story opens with a Die Hard-esque sequence in which
Jack Everitt -codenamed ‘Peacemaker’ - boards an aeroplane and offs a number of troublesome
Middle-Eastern types. After that, there is some back story (revealed in the form of flashbacks), we are given
a wholly unnecessary introduction to Jack’s band of heroes (most of whom don’t appear at all), and then
Jack boards a helicopter and offs a number of troublesome Middle-Eastern types. The story finishes with a
James Bond-esque sequence in which Jack boards an aircraft carrier and offs a number of troublesome
Middle-Eastern types. So far, so early 1990s. The story is told with very little dialogue, lending it the feel of
late Aeon Flux, or early Rogue Trooper, and this really helps. We don’t need a load of character interaction,
so we don’t get it. Instead, we get Jack doing what Jack does best, namely using electromagnetic gizmos
and, um, offing troublesome Middle-Eastern types. When the plot decides to make an appearance, it is
revealed to be a rather dubious affair about Americans not wanting bits of the Statue of Liberty to be stolen.
In some ways, this makes the story almost parodic of the American action movie - I don’t know if this was
the authors’ intention, the rest of the story is pretty humourless. If this was the lead in to a satirical
action-comedy series about patriotism, and if it had a few gags in it, then I would probably like it. As it is,
the dourness of the story dampens the innovative style. You just can’t be serious when dealing with themes
like this. [3/5]
Suicide Squad: DCF - Dreams Deferred - Jason Tippit
This is more like it. After reading the DCF titles reviewed above, I was beginning to think that the intricate
setting of DCF was nothing but a gimmick to lure in the punters. Most of the stories could easily have taken
place in the modern DCU setting, and only the odd hovercar makes any difference. In the first Suicide
Squad: DCF TPB though, we’ve got a title which not only taps deeply the one world government idea, but
also is a rollicking good story to boot. Captain Atom, the man indirectly responsible for the state of the
world today, is returned to Earth a century after his disappearance, and is quickly recruited into the Suicide
Squad, a team of renegade metahumans who are fighting to restore good ol’ American values. As with Tony
Wilson’s Superman and Nightwing, we are presented with a large cast of interesting characters, but in this
case most of them are a part of the Squad. This leads to the inclusion of some X-Men-esque soap operatics
in the second part of the story, which emphasises what we are dealing with here - namely, a bunch of people
who don’t have a clue what they are doing, but are damned if they don’t try their best to do it. Another plus
point is our view of the enemy, namely Velocity and Hourman. Instead of the usual
corrupt-government-nasty-people our villains are people, just like our heroes. In fact, the story starts with
Velocity and Hourman having fun in a street carnival - is this the type of thing you’d expect from a couple of
evil villains? Along the way we are also given plenty of clues as to what Jason Tippit might have in store for
us in the future, like the Swamp Thing, Mercury’s dubious relationship with Albatross and Chalice, the
tension between Hourman and Justice, and, of course, Velocity’s broken lifeline. The writing is pretty good,
too, though perhaps it relies a little too much on the speed of a comic, and not enough on being a piece of
written fiction- after all is said and done, it *is* a piece of prose, and not a comic book. So, it ain’t perfect,
but it *is* a great start to what is one of DCFs most popular titles. [4/5]
Adventures Of Superman: DCF #3 - Tony Wilson
Tony Wilson’s classy revival of Superman continues with another great issue full of secrets, lies and
conspiracies. The first thing to be noted, is that now the DCF is pulling together its characters in an attempt
to form a cohesive comic book universe. These means that cross title stories are increasingly rampant, and
while this is only the third issue of Superman: DCF, it is not the third outing for the Man of Steel. This is a
blatant attempt to copy the many DCU crossovers, and has both a good side an a bad side. I doubt if many
of us fan fiction readers will have the time to download every DCF title each week, which means that
somewhere along the line we might miss out on some vital plot information. On the up side, we don’t have
to pay upwards of £1.50 for each issue, meaning that we can get download extra issue for free, as and when
we want to. But enough of that: what’s the latest issue of Supes like? Well, pretty good. Tony has wisely
moved away from the action side of things, concentrating on more human (or Kryptonion) issues. In fact,
Superman is almost completely absent, this issue being more about Batman’s alter-ego Tim Drake entering
into a corporate war with Alexi Luthor. There are some more of Tony’s trademark plot twists, but now it
seems he has worked out how to fully integrate them into the story, and it works. Though the prospect of
Tim Drake becoming the star of Superman: DCF is an unpleasant one, and our friends the barflies are
absent, this is still a good read. [4/5]
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