The Brave and the Bold

The Brave and the Bold #27

Finally bought the 3 JMS Bold & The Brave issues after nothing but absolute wonderful reviews. This ish was a good debut for JMS (does anyone even count those Red Circle books no one bought?), allowing him to showcase his prowess on a little 1-and-done. The premise is silly, certainly golden age, but as we all know, that's the point of these odd team-ups. What you get here--along with classical art--are stories you won't receive in the continuity-driven mainstream titles of today. Like "World's Finest" it's simple stories with a moral, moments of action, humor and suspense. While the issues that follow this particular "debut" improve greatly, Dial H For Hero is the perfect starting point for fans of JMS and/or those of "team-ups". Just good luck finding it.

3.5/5 Bags&Boards - Get it, if you can

The Brave and the Bold #28

It's great how thes books are selling out. You know where to find them? Oddball places like book stores (such as Borders) that have the ol' spinner rack that we all cherished as a kid. Of course paying full price for a comic these days--and in assuming most of you get them discounted from either online or your LCS--isn't the sweetest option.

Luckily, JMS is on his way in building up one of the sweetest runs in team-up book history. Oftentimes comics like these get overlooked for crossover event crisis wars like those of Dark Reign and Blackest Night. And justifiably so, with all the craziness going on currently in Marvel and DC. What's missing are intimate stories we can pick up and read in one shot and not have to worry about about solicits, spoilers, background info or future expenses. The Brave and the Bold is $2.99, and it's once a month. And what this Barry Allen "run to the past" shot is a scintillating story that anyone with a decent mind can enjoy and won't get lost in.

If you're primarily into Jason Aaron or Garth Ennis (meaning: violence), or a continuist freak (such as myself), this may not be a cup of tea. But if you're just a plain out fan of story, I'd jump on.

4/5 Bags&Boards - Excellent

The Brave and the Bold #29

I saw the 9.5 from IGN, the 5 stars on comicsbulletin and the wide abundance of solid fan reviews. So call me a fan. I've always loved JMS work, as through his brilliant run on Spider-Man to his epically-great take on the Mighthy Thor, the man simply knows how to nail his characters. The only thing: did I wanna add yet ANOTHER book to my punch list? Aren't we in a recession? Isn't Brave & the Bold a silly Batman cartoon?

Well, this book is worth going broke. Maybe not, but in fairness to say, it's as good as any book is getting right now. So, naysayers may claim that some of this is overly preachy, moralistic, vintage. As stated in some of my earlier TB&TB reviews, this book is for fans of classic comics, more discreetly, one-and-dones. So those wide-screen, shoot 'em up, gorefest, ultimate, blackest night, event crossover tie-in fans won't care for this style of storytelling.

I couldn't help but feel warmth and sadness at some of the actions of the secondary protaganist here; especially those from an even overly contemplative Bruce Wayne. I'm sure one of these Brave & the Bold stories aren't going to end up with the ending fans have been getting accustomed to with these books. JMS is too smart for that.

And, lastly, Checkmate artist Jesus Saiz is doing his finest work. His montages are excellent, the emotions of the characters spot on with the dialogue, and the environments properly constructed to give these small stories a nice cinematic feel. The colorist should be just as credited as so, with proper hues throughtout the book reflecting the symbolic burning building's sharp reds, hazing yellows, and pale oranges. This use of color signifies the emotional standpoint of Brother Power and the effects of believing in what you think is right without all the hostility.

4.5/5 Brother Power action figures - Near Classic

TB&TB #30

Is no one buying this series? From what I hear these books are selling out, though that may've been the earlier JMS Batman issues. This meeting betweeen GL and Dr. Fate is, well, a meeting. Not much happens but a discussion of fate and free-will. For philosophy lovers out there, this is the break you're looking for from all things Blackest Night. What the other TB&TB books from JMS had, however, were stories that pushed the pace; pushed characters into involving themselves into situations; and pushed a morale conclusion in result of the odd mixture of heroes' actions. That's storytelling. This is more of a debate.

Perhaps my ignorance when it comes to the background of Dr. Fate sealed this one up for me. But what truly "sales" me into still enjoying the issue is Jesus Saiz. Amazing. DC fanboys, we now have a star on our hands. How he could make what's normally a pretty stale premise as exciting as it could be is worth the price. I credit JMS for steering away from the typical storytelling and trying something a little more sentimental--especially around this time of the year--thought I've always followed the mantra, "if it ain't broke..."

3.5/5 - Read it again. Worth the art.

TB&TB #31

Again, I'm stunned that, seeing how JMS is one of comic fans all-time favs, there isn't much reaction to this run on this forum. In this particular issue, "teaming" the Atom and the Joker, there's a lot of controversy involved.

First, no matter how you write it, when it comes to trying to shed some light on the origin of the Joker, things get rather stingy. Why? Because Alan Moore practically owns the solified origin of the Joker with The Killing Joke, despite other authors like Ed Brubaker, among others, doing a fair job as well. This isn't quite the origin per se, but flashbacks depicted during Atom's entrance into Joker's brain--and there's a scary thought--show some of his worst deeds, and a brief homage to the movie The Dark Knight. Although sharply written, I'm sure JMS has those two things going against him.

The other shot against JMS with this book is the fact The Atom is shown during Blackest Night as the most compassionate hero around. Hence why he's now healming an Indigo ring. Of course, these Brave & The Bold stories can take place during any timeline and the fact it's the Joker we're speaking of here can be held in defense of JMS' characterization of Atom. Still, it's all slightly strange to see The Atom as sarcastic and facetious about this impending Joker death as he is. A little more reasoning would've come in handy.

So what do we get with this story? Perhaps one, while not terribly original, and not exactly having the quality of art of Jesus Saiz in the past few issues, still worth checking out. There's no doubt mashing these two completely different characters sure took courage, and having been invested in this run so far, it's a nice little edition.

3/5 Bags&Boards - Solid book, again, just not up to bar with the previous Batman and Flash takes from JMS.

#31 was great. I should keep an eye on this book from now on.

Damn!

TBATB #32

I'm surprised this title has been garnering little to no attention on this forum. Jesus Saiz's artwork for the duration of this run has been nothing short of phenomenal. I was supposed to review this Aquaman-spotlighted issue for comicsbulletin.com this week but I got too caught up with Siege, bad GRE scores, NCAA bracket busters, Amazon Glitchgate 2010, girlfriend crap, among other things.

As for this particular issue, its acclaim this week has certainly been high. Comicbookresources.com gave this a 4.5 (they usually only give out 3's); Ign.com scored it a whopping 8.5; comicsbulletin.com gave it a, oh wait, that never happened. So, going into reading issue #32, I had pretty high expectations. The issue begins with a fisherman recently washed upon sea caught "desecrating" his late friend's graves. Or at least that's what the police envision. The narration goes onto explain the man's reason for digging up this grave--surprisingly read at a brisk 10-minutes; far shorter than JMS's recent work--leading to Lovecraftian-inspired underwater horror. While pretty unreasonable, both the story and especially the artwork thankfully do enough to forget this miscue.

Let's face it: Aquaman gets a bad rep. And after reading this issue, while ever-so-stoic in his presence, I can't say this issue erases that. It's not that Aquaman looks cheesy or comes off that way, as he looks ever so regal in his skimpy orange thermal. I'm clowning, obviously; but the hero comes off a little more bad-ass than hap-lass, so it's nice to see his oft-forgotten persona spotlighted. It's just unfortuante JMS's script doesn't allow futher character depth for big Aq's. Too much of The Demon Eterigan's panel-stealing rhymes, ecclectic grimace, and fire-breathing apparatus in turn equalded less showcasing for a man who calls on Sharks, Eels and countless schools of fish to watch his back.

Admittingly, after the current crashing waves of about six of these moral-driven tales, it's Saiz's artwork that's now keeping this title afloat. His splash panels alone are worth 4-stars. Thing is, The Brave & The Bold is in dire need of someone doing something fairly messed up...that sticks. Even as one holding JMS's run on the title in high-regard, here's to hoping we get something a little more than one-in-done. By the look of the solicits, it should be interesting to see how those wishes indeed come into fruition.

3.5/5 Bags&Boards - The Waterworld Jesus Saiz creates is truly a sight to behold.

JMS doing Brave and the Bold in this style where it's sort of in continuity but telling stories of past adventures is amazing. I love the fact that he's really taking this team-ups and giving us something we would normally never see. Aquaman and Etrigan the Demon? Really? Well, JMS makes it work. There is a good reason for them to be teaming up and the story is compelling and cool. I love the art on this book and it's just all kinds of awesome. The biggest sell for me is the one and done stories. This book is just awesome.

jaydee74 wrote:JMS doing Brave and the Bold in this style where it's sort of in continuity but telling stories of past adventures is amazing. I love the fact that he's really taking this team-ups and giving us something we would normally never see. Aquaman and Etrigan the Demon? Really? Well, JMS makes it work. There is a good reason for them to be teaming up and the story is compelling and cool. I love the art on this book and it's just all kinds of awesome. The biggest sell for me is the one and done stories. This book is just awesome.

I truly believe it issue #32 was the first or second of JMS's run I'd be more astonished by it. The problem is, while all of these one-and-done's are excellent, it's essentially the same story told many times over with little tweaks here and there. I heard some critics ponder this early on; and while I ignored those sentiments earlier, after 6-issues, that notion might becoming true.

Regardless, this run has been a joy to follow.

Hmm. I see what your saying. The overall theme has been kind of similar. I guess I have been a fan of the little nuances in the stories. Especially the Green Lantern/Doctor Fate story. Even the Atom/Joker story was intriguing to me. I also love the art on this book.

Much like Marvels Project, this series has been one of the best sleepers in comics...and I don't mean boring

Agreed.

Wow. This latest issue with Batgirl, Zatanna and Wonder Woman was awesome and so cool. I don't want to say anymore until more people have read it but I think this could be JMS' best work on the series so far.

Right on!

#33 broke my heart in nine places

G_Zatara wrote:#33 broke my heart in nine places

So agreed. This book had me tearing up a bit. Oh wow.

I haven't been reading this, but I'm definitely picking up the Inferior Five/Legion of Subs team-up that's coming up!

I'm telling you now, pick up the current issue. It's so amazingly beautiful. It's amazing and you'll be happy that you did.

My review before it's posted on today's column. Thought I would share. Pardon the HTML, that's just how we roll.

Let me just start off by saying, I was mislead by the cover. I was hoping for some romp and stomp with three of DC's most notable heroines. Maybe a fight with the Riddler, Kadabra, and Dr. Psycho. Or perhaps team together to take on one notorious threat. It was fun for a while, but I just found myself almost heartbroken.

Since it's relauch, <b>The Brave and the Bold</b> has found itself to be one of the most consistent titles I've recommended to people who want to start reading DC books, but feel intimidated by continuity. It's for the reader out there who thinks that current books aren't for them and want to sit back and enjoy a fun adventure. While this issue had it's fun and cutesy moments, in typical JMS style, things take an emotional turn and punch you where it hurts, though true comic fans will see what's coming when the Oracle of Delphi is dropped into a conversation.

Cliff Chiang handles the art in his usual cartoonish style, yet still holds a level of energy with the girls and them having their fun. His use of facial expressions is spectacular that nothing feels wasted and even the most minor background character looks as if they have a story to tell. I loved how he handled Babs here and her level of inebriation without making her look dumb or, dare I say, slutty. As a fashion enthusiast, I also enjoyed how each of the girls outfits for the night reflected who they are (even shy little Barbara). In the end, how Chiang handled the "big reveal" is clever and all that much more terrifying. Trish Mulvihill does an excellent job of coloring over Chiang's work and compliments his simplistic style by not over-saturating the pages.

While I did have fun with the issue, I thought somethings felt a bit off. Mainly how JMS handled Diana. Her range of emotions are too extreme and seem almost out of place for a character who is the idea of perfection and grace in DC lore. Now while some readers might construe the ending as malicious, I thought of it as more in the vein as "what will be, will be". Barbara's legacy is so much more than just Batgirl, since I think she serves more of a purpose as Oracle and how she came out of her tragedy stronger than before.

<b>Brave and the Bold #33</b> isn't perfect by any means, but I'm always ready to read something that showcases three of my favorite characters, even if it did almost make a grown man teary.

Its an emotional punch to the balls. but in a good way

TB&TB #33

3.5/5 Sparsely Drawn Super Broads - I enjoyed it, despite being overly obvious, a tad too ambitious, and not feeling to keen about the art.

Can I ask why you're not *too* keen on Chiang's style?

lol..."too"....it's been a long 10 days...um...I don't know...it tries to be sorta Tim Sale-meets-Darwyn Cooke but I don't know, I was bored with it...and some of the girls didn't appear as pretty as the reactions they got in the clubs..

So Chiang = Two great other artists and it's still boring? haha, alright. To each their own I guess.

well, he's trying to chase that style but it just didn't do it for me...there's a lot of people who either emulate Art Ross (Olivetti) or Romita Jr. (tons of people), that doesn't necessarily make it good..

and like I said, I felt like I was the only one who didn't like the art in this book (basing it on the ton of reviews/blogs I read this week)