Why don't the X-Men have a rogues gallery?

Every good super hero or team has a good rogues gallery. Batman has in my opinion the most interesting of all with Joker, Ra's Al Ghul, Clayface, etc. The Justice League has a wide and powerful rogues gallery that is composed mostly of other-worldly beings like Darkseid. Although I am not an expert I can say that from my fairly brief experience with the X-Men that they have little to no rogues gallery.
There is always some conflict in the X-Men, and that's what keeps them interesting. Mostly the conflict is that mutants aren't accepted by humanity. This dilemma is quite compelling: society isn't willing to accept that others are more powerful and therefore hate and hunt them. This also gives us Sentinels which I guess could count as rogues but are too numerous and all the same.
The X-Men can also never get along. The team is very diverse and very good at holding grudges. They aren't exactly leaping to each others aid either. They all like to talk about what just happened and blame others for it. I think that is interesting because the X-Men usually have a decent writer so the arguments and discussions are sharp and good points are made.
People rag on Cyclops a lot but his is the same situation that Jack Shepherd was in on Lost. He is a natural born leader who is a little too stuck up for his own good. That does provide some conflict though. Cyclops is a good character in the time between battles, making amends and keeping people calm.
The merry mutants don't need a rogues gallery as long as they keep bickering. The stories are interesting and suspenseful even with just themselves as bad guys.

Marvel and DC Crossovers

If there is one thing that comic publishers like to do it is hold mega-crossovers. Why? Money. People buy lots of comics to get the whole story. This can cost almost $100. Why are we spending this much? Is it worth it? No.

DC Crossovers. The half-stories.
Let me explain that subtitle to you. DC advertises that all of these books tie into Death of the Family, yet when one reads them they only get 2 or 3 pages of story about Joker. DC sucks us into a trap of thinking that we need to read these, don't let them! One thing that is especially hard for me is dropping subscriptions. Shortening my Pull-List isn't easy because every time I read a lousy issue I just think "Maybe next issue will be better." Spoiler alert. It isn't. No matter what title, if the first tie-in is bad the second will be complete crap too. This takes $2.5 dollars out of future comic buying endeavors. We should no longer submit to this torment, here is my advice. Stick to 2 or 3 tie-ins that you think will be great. If they don't meet your expectations, drop it. Now I just have to try that...

Marvel Crossovers. The core driven events.
Marvel has one thing that DC will never catch onto, core-issues. In AvX the were the Avenger Vs. X-Men issues, in Civil War there were Civil War issues, now in Age of Ultron there are Age of Ultron issues. Why does Marvel do this? For readers who weren't planning on reading the storyline to go "Hey I might wanna just read the core-issues and no tie-ins." Now the reader is sucked in. Enter ads for tie-ins. Now the reader wants to know everything about the storyline because the core-issues are just so good. The reader is now caught in a web different from DC's but equally as deadly.

I hope you have learned a little about the buying habits of us comic readers when faced with a succulent looking crossover. I hope I have inspired you to be less willing to purchase a whole event, be it Marvel or DC. I also hope that I can practice what I preach and not buy everything that has the words "Age of Ultron" on it...But they just look so good.

2/13/13

Today provided a marvelous Batman story, a sub-par Batgirl story, a pleasantly unusual story of my favorite, Damian Wayne and an utterly nonsensical and confusing Comedian comic. Once again, here are this weeks reviews.

• Batman #17

What have we come to expect from comic finales? Drama, tension, resolution, and most importantly a change. We don't want to have spent hours of our lives reading a comic that will never mean anything than the initial thrill it provided us. Snyder and Capullo's stunning ending gave me all four of those things.
There was definitely drama. Hell, when isn't there drama when it's a story about the Joker? From an interesting trap to the psychotic jokes and tricks we have come to expect from the Clown Prince of Crime. There was also drama to the point of me feeling like I was there, I credit that mostly to Greg Capullo whom I will always think of when I think of the Joker.
Tension is a hard thin to bring to a comic. In a movie scary music, slow-motion and quick dialogue will do the trick, but in a comic the tension is purely the excitement and the vividness of the drawings. I was scared, worried and excited all at the same time. One of the key factors in this chapter of Death of the Family was the actual family. The family is a hard group to bring together and keep the suspense high. Snyder managed that by having the family face a different form of Joker evil than Batman.
The story pulled into the finale with many loose ends and questions left unanswered, I felt at peace with the end result. One of my favorite parts of the whole comic was the end where Joker leaves one last non-lethal gag that I will forever remember.
Did it change the entire universe? No, not really. However, this will always be remembered as one of the greatest Joker stories ever told. People refer to a great comic storyline as a party, you can be late to the party, or not come at all. I think I overstayed my welcome and read the invitation too many times. By that I mean that I probably shouldn't have bought all of the tie-ins and I shouldn't have read all of the pre-event articles. But it was a party I am glad I attended.

• Batgirl #17

This issue tells the story of the fallout of Death of the Family and describes the difficult relationship between James Jr. and the rest of the Gordons. It was kind of good, and kind of random, I really don't see what DC sees in these Joker-inspired gangs but they seem to really be trying to suck all of the material possible out of them. My main problem with this comic, however, was that it was a change of creative teams. Gail Simone was doing a great job on the book and it seems like a stupid idea to take her off the book. The new artist is quite good but the writer has yet to impress me.

• Batman and Robin #17

This was the single most pointlessly weird issue thus far in the New 52. The vast majority of the book is dedicated to showing Bruce, Alfred and Damian's dreams. They are all brutal and somewhat psychotic, but very entertaining. The art, especially the extraordinary inking, adds to the eeriness of this comic.
I have come to realize that they do this kind of thing in the Batman and Robin book just to show what a queer relationship they have.

• Before Watchmen: Comedian #5 of 6

Of all of the mediocre Before Watchmen titles two books have really stood out. 

1. Silk Spectre was awesome
2. Comedian is terrible

Comedian has just been incomprehensible. They are trying to tell this elaborate story of the Vietnam war by flashing back and then switching back to the present, again and again and again. It really drives me nuts when I see the Comedian playing games with some Vietcong kids and then immediately turn the page to find a violent jungle battle. There is literally no transition between scenes, I mean at all. It is also way over-brutalized and the language is filthy for no reason. I understand that the Vietnam war was gory and the Comedian is a brutal character, but did they show that kind of stuff in the original Watchmen? I am not excited for the sequel, and I don't think it will include any of the traits of a good sequel from the Batman review.

Court of the Owls vs. Death of the Family

My favorite series thus far in the New 52 is Batman. I think that Scott Snyder is a very creative, dark and clever author who really makes Batman who he is today. The Dark Knight looks best when he seems to be engulfed in shadow, Greg Capullo does him justice by making him the most noir Batman to date. This all-star team is now on their second storyline together; Death of the Family. The only reason I picked up Batman #13 is because I loved the Court of the Owls storyline, and really who didn't? It was intense, a good look at Gotham's history and a fantastic look at the Wayne Family (Read my full review in the Collected Editions Page, only posted Thursdays and Fridays). Anyways, I picked up Batman #13 I was expecting a decent Joker story. That was the first day I was ever scared by a comic. My hands were trembling after reading it and immediately wanted the rest of the series. Not only did I subscribe to Batman, but every single tie-in (I'm a sucker for tie-ins). I was anxiously awaiting Batman #14 the following month. I raced through the book again and again taking in all of the wonderful panels. The same thing the following month with #15. As Bruce ascends the steps and enters Arkham Asylum in the final pages of #15 I was breathless. I had no idea that #16 was going to be the intense, scary demented comic it was. Batman #16 is my favorite single issue ever and I cant wait for the sequel next week. I have to say I am a bit disappointed. They managed to keep Court of the Owls going for 11 issues and Death of the Family only 5. They knew people would buy Death of the family regardless of the content so why did they cut it so short. These are two of my favorite series ever and will share them with all of my friends, but I am conflicted. I don't know which one to say was the better run. Please leave a comment with your opinion.

1/16/13

My favorite week of the month, Batman, Batgirl, and Batman and Robin! Best $7.00 ever spent!

• Batman #16: 

Death of the Family has been great all around. Notice I said great and not phenomenal, it has been very good but not as good as Court of the Owls. This issue turned that completely around. This single 40-paged comic has everything a good comic should; good pace, great plot, snappy writing and amazing art. This issue was so intense that I had to intermittently pause and take in what had just happened. The Joker rigs Arkham with traps that are both creative (in a sick way) and freaky. Joker's talking seems naturally insane (if that makes any sense) and is not forced like so many terrible authors make happen. The ending was crazy and awesome. I hope the finale is spectacular.

• Batman and Robin #16:

First of all I would like to say that this series has been the best Death of the Family tie-in thus far and #16 didn't disappoint. In #15 Damian is forced to eat bugs at the zoo in this issue he is forced to fight his own father, really what could be better? The art is beautiful as usual and the Joker that Peter Tomasi has created is wonderfully maniacal. There is a near escape that is thrilling and creepy. I don't think I can say much more about this book without spoiling all of it.

• Batgirl #16:

Wouldn't it be cool if Joker and Batgirl got married? Well they do in this very good comic. Their wedding is proceeded by an already creepy issue and has the story all set up for a chaotic issue. This issue is chaotic but very well thought through. An uninvited guest comes and crashes the wedding literally. The Joker is also very psychotic in this tie-in which serves the story well.

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1/9/13

This week there was only one book waiting for me at my comic store, I was very excited because this was a precious Death of the Family tie-in. I was sorely disappointed. Detective Comics #16

• Detective Comics #16:

The Joker is a very interesting character, one of the best of Batman's rouges gallery, I was sad when this book that promised to be about the Clown Prince of Crime turned out to be about Joker inspired gangs. I do not pick up comics to read about a team of characters that won't ever make an appearance again. This weak story was slow and in the end not very satisfying. The only redeeming factor was the art which was good but not exceptional.

(Don't let the cover art fool you, Joker is not in the comic at all.)

1/2/13

I had three books pulled today. The best being Batman Incorporated #6 and the worst being Teen Titans #15. The other book was Talon #3.

• Batman Incorporated #6:

I love Grant Morrison, let me just get that across. His entire run on Batman was phenomenal and I enjoyed the original Batman Incorporated immensely. Of the New 52 Batman Incorporated this one is definitely the best. The Al Ghul's are awesome and this portrays Talia very well. She is smart and gives Batman a mental and physical challenge that makes a very interesting story. Leviathan takes center stage again as Batman recovers from the battle in issue 4 while trying to find where Talia's elusive voice is coming from. An extremely interesting interaction happens where Dick, Jason and Damian get a little more familiar with each other. The ending left me speechless. I am very excited for next month!

• Teen Titans #15:

This is one of the worse Death of the Family tie-ins. Scott Lobdell is a hack, and this book shows exactly that. The book guest stars Batgirl but doesn't go anywhere with it. All of the Titans respond in exactly the same way by being snotty and disrespectful to someone who is clearly superior and has much more experience dealing with the Joker. That being said the confrontation between Tim Drake and the Joker is very interesting. The Joker wears Tim's wings and flys around the rafters. He also has a very creepy way of guessing exactly what Tim is thinking that I thought was clever but not exceptional writing. The art is okay, but of course all of the women are grossly over-sexuallized and the Joker is not nearly as well drawn as Greg Capullo's version of the Joker.

• Talon #3:

Court of the Owls was one of the best Batman stories ever written. Period. When I saw that a former Talon was going to get their own book I was super excited, and just when I thought it couldn't get any better I found out that Scott Snyder was writing it. After four books I am still not delighted with how they are directing this book. In almost every book Calvin (the protagonist) kills a Talon or two in some uninteresting way. This issue was no different. However, this issue did feature an interesting run-in with a rogue group of anti-heroes and an interesting robbery. The writing was quite entertaining and the art was decent. I really hope they find their groove with this book, because if they do Calvin will become a very interesting character.