Can Scott Snyder retell the origin of Batman all the while respecting the past? Has Black Beetle put together the pieces of Labyrinto’s dangerous puzzle? What is the fate of The Glacier Stone?

We just barely answer any of these questions in this week’s Triple Shot! Light week!

BATMAN #21
WRITER: Scott Snyder
PENCILS: Greg Capullo
INKS: Danny Miki
Publication Date: June 13, 2013
Price: $3.99
Publisher: DC Comics
UPC: 6194130640702111
Buy it HERE

Sure, it is Superman week with Man of Steel opening in theaters, and also this Snyder (Scott) writing the new Superman title, Superman: Unchained.

There’s no reason for us not to go back to Wayne Manor for the origin of The Batman in Batman #21. This embossed cover comic is the first in the ‘Zero Year’ storyline—one meant to replace Batman: Year One in The New 52 parlance.

Fans of the Batman Begins will recognize a beat or two, from Bruce Wayne being away from Alfred for a period of time, but this story is all new, all different.

We’re introduced to Bruce’s Uncle Philip (Martha’s Brother) who is running Wayne Enterprises. Also, we get an origin of the giant penny, shining in copper glory in front of Wayne Tower. We get introduced to the Batcave, Riddler, and The Red Hood Gang as well.

Intriguing story here so far but something is missing. I love seeing tales of Bruce Wayne training to become Batman, and let there be a million of them, please! Denny O’Neil and Edward Hannigan’s Shaman delivers an awesome origin of the Batcave from Legends of the Dark Knight, set just before Miller’s Year One.

We’ll see how this susses out, Snyder sneaks in tropes of the Batman lore in interesting ways, but he only has one shot at telling the origin of Batman in The New 52. Trying to top the 26 year oldYear One could be daunting, Batman fans have held on to that story very tightly. Snyder’s modernizations and imaginings of the Lucius Fox tech are already super cool here in issue #21.

THE BLACK BEETLE: NO WAY OUT #4 (of 4)
WRITER / ARTIST: Francesco Francavilla
Publication Date: June 13, 2013
Price: $3.99
Publisher: Dark Horse Comics
UPC:
76156822686700411
Buy it HERE

The first miniseries of Francesco Francavilla’s The Black Beetle, which sold out of initial copies, concludes this week. The slick pulp detective superhero book will be collected in hardcover in the fall for a beautiful collected edition.

Francavilla’s Eisner Award winning art coupled with his love for the noir pulp drama gives us a book based on a character that’s both familiar and unique. You might assume this is a reboot or an old hero, but The Black Beetle who serves Colt City is an entirely original creation.

In this fourth issue, we discover the secret of his nemesis Labyrinto and the mysterious mob murders. A deep seeded revenge tale leads the cool looking Labyrinto to unspeakable deeds against friends and family, but The Black Beetle is hot on his trail, and has been for a while.

The Black Beetle will return, also in the fall for the start of a new arc, Necrologue. Francavilla is on to a hit with this Dark Horse series, we will be returning for more.

ARTIFACTS #28
WRITER: Ron Marz
ART: Marco Turini
COLOR: Bill Farmer
Publication Date: June 13, 2013
Price: $3.99
Publisher: Image Comics
UPC: 70985300779102811
Buy it HERE

The 13 Artifacts of the Witchblade / The Darkness universe are being sought in the latest Ron Marz comic.

Defrocked priest and wielder of the Rapture Tom Judge along with The Magdalena and thief Michael Finnegan descend upon a mansion Norway, each hoping to get their hands on The Glacier Stone. A terrifying demon has been summoned to protect the stone and the three team up to scare the powerful demon into the woods after a drawn out fight scene in the mansion.

The speechless demon baits Magdalena onto some ice, where she ends up single-handedly slaying the demon with her Spear of Destiny. The Glacier Stone is lost to the depths of the ice to be found, presumably after the the spring season hits.

As a comic book fan, I couldn’t have been less prepared for picking up a Witchblade title randomly from the shelf! My unfamiliarity with the book, and clean slate with the characters gave me a good perspective. Ron Marz can write an action packed comic and Turini is great at drawing the two major fight scenes as well. I enjoyed the supernatural elements that reminded me ofHellblazer, and thought the character design of the demon was quite spooky.

This was a solid comic that I didn’t feel I needed a tutorial on Witchblade mythos to enjoy. Next month’s arc starts off the brand new ‘Geometry of Hell’ storyline.

[READ MORE at FORCES OF GEEK]