Legion World Forums LEGION COMPANION Dr. Gym'll's Cultural Rarities Zatanna

There was such a long delay between the announcement of the series and its appearance that high expectations are understandable.

I'm still enjoying the book, but I agree with you that Zee and her interactions are the high point.

I'm way behind on this but I just read # 3 (the others are waiting in my pull).

I'm enjoying it! Zatanna's pretty badass. I *LOVED* that the first storyline was resolved in 3 issues, not 6.

I thought #4 and #5 have been a big improvement over the first three issues. The Vegas storyline is letting Zatanna show-off her heroic skills and personal life equally which is a nice touch.

I really hope, however, her enemies don't consist of run of the mill demons and devils every storyline. I can't help but feel the (insert name), Lord of Hell, is more of the same.

Vegas is a good setting for Zee. I'd like to see her return to Vegas every so often for a story.

Just read Z 6-8!

6 wraps up the Vegas storyline nicely and features a fun guest-appearance by Kid Zatara.

7 was almost silver-agey; the empty costume thing was kinda cheesy but kinda fun too. This ish also introduces the magic museum, which looks to be cool and isn't a throwaway concept as it appears in the next issue too. A nice enough done-in-one tale that matters, as it intros a new concept.

8: my favorite of the 3 issues I read. You better believe I'll be getting 9. Turning to the last page, I actually let out an audible gasp. THAT was kuh-REEPY!!!!

If you haven't bought ZATANNA and have wondered where to start, I say either 7 for the done-in-one as a sample taste but DEFINITELY # 8. That last page really got me. >shudder<

And 8 is illustrated by Cliff Chiang, who space-rocks.

hmm, I dropped it with 6. I'll have to look through 8 at the store.

thought I would like this way more ... but ... found myself just craving Madame Xanadu.

Wasn't Madame Xanadu one of those snooty high-falutin' hoity-toity scone-eating hot-tea-sipping with-pinkie-raised VERTIGO books?

You won't be getting that in Z. 7 or 8, so don't be expecting that.

I Liked Zatanna .... the art and stories were ok ... (imo) ... i just love Zatanna the character (and her last miniseries) so my expectations were really high. that's why I waited until the end of the story arc to drop it. i just didn't find it great.

People have mentioned that giving Zatanna a fear of puppets, a phobia, is a bit more realistic and makes her more human and understandable, instead of a perfect superheroine who is insufferable. Being afraid of puppets is an understandable fear, let's face it, some of them can be pretty creepy.

Although I love that she puked on Groucho on Sesame Street.

I also caught up on Zatanna #7 and #8 yesterday (Stamford was whacked by snow so I had an actual snow day!), and the comic continues to be a really fun title. It’s not the best out there but it does its job entertaining me.

#7 was a fill-in issue that ended up being an really fun Silver Age-esque story by Adam Beechen. The Magic Costume was a fun idea (right out of the Silver Age JLA), and I also liked how it was based on many of the great magic characters in DC lore, particularly Sargon the Sorcerer, who sometimes was a little whacky.

That issue also introduced the Magic Museum in LA, which I liked, and even more so, Antonia Steffanacia, who MUST be the ancestor of the dude from the 31st Century in the GDS and Magic Wars. That was the first thing I thought of and it fits really well.

#8 had Paul Dini returning for another very good story which introduces a new enemy for Zatanna’s rogues gallery (which is sorely needed). The puppetphobia is totally understandable and makes Zee relatable to the readers (and builds off Dini’s prior Batman / Zee story in Detective). The origin was well-done and I’m looking forward to the conclusion.

The Cliff Chang artwork was really terrific as well, and took Dini’s story to a whole other level. This is one of those occasions where I think the art exceeds the story.

The mystical therapist “Dr. Bodie” is an awesome concept. Love the Detective Chimp scene, which ties the whole sequence together and shows how brilliant it is.

I also found the mindwipe irony with Zatarra in the flashback to be very well done.

BTW, I no longer bother to read Zatanna’s spells anymore—I don’t have the patience.

I'm loving this book.

A year or so ago I picked up the TPB of Zatanna's search for her father, the original stuff reprinted, and I loved it. I hated the costume that George gave her. (I love George's art, but his costume redesigns over the years such as hers and nightwings disco look have left a lot to be desired) But I love this return to the classic that DC has followed the last decade and a half.

She does need more of a supporting cast. Its got a very episodic feel with her as the only regular character. I love the episodic feel, but she needs a regular crew a bit more to bounce off of.

# 12 was a nice done-in-one which featured a new spin on Z's powers. This book will never win any awards or anything but it is a fine read and a good view.

what's the new spin?

I agree completely. It took a few issues to find it's voice, but Zatanna has turned into a real solid read month-in and month-out and I've enjoyed it quite a bit.

When compared to the majority of DC's output, its certainly in the top tier of their offerings quality wise.

She faces a foe who can turn her reverse-sayings forward, so she has to get REAL creative with what she says...

Like we have ... reading backwards all these years!

I imagine her just giving up and resorting to a good roundhouse kick.

ty Lash.

I just read a small handful of comics.

NEW MUTANTS, a new direction that seems intersting but an issue itself full of too much filler.

JSA, wrapping up a leftover plotline and starting a new one... okay, but nothing great.

JLA, absolute crap that I didn't bother to finish reading and will no longer be purchasing until the relaunch.

YOUNG AVENGERS, always a fine read...

and ZATANNA # 13: fun dialogue, a fortune-telling cat, a horrible villain, the Spectre being awesome instead of lame like in JLA by Robinson, and a spooky revelation about a castmember.

I enjoyed ZATANNA 13 the most out of this short stack... make of that what you will.

I for one will miss it come September.

Ditto here. I've really liked this book and felt the character was a great throwback to the shorter story arcs but without being shorted in character and excitement.

I think this was a good series but IMO it started off very weak and only picked up speed midway through year one. I think that may have hurt the comic in the long run.

Regardless, I'll miss it!

# 15: another great done-in-one; I was actually afraid for Zee... but she showed why she's JLA material.

Right behind Secret Six and JSA, I'll be missing my monthly ZATANNA. 1 issue to go.

Preview of the final issue of Z :

http://www.comicbookresources.com/?page=preview&id=9500&disp=table

and a cover by Adam Hughes! The insides are looking pretty great too! I like this guy, Ibanez's work, it's clear and communicative.

I am a bit ... disappointed ... <span class="spoiler_containter"><span class="spoiler_wording">Click Here For A Spoiler</span><span class="spoiler_text">the guest is not Klarion but some one else ... . Is Klarion's schedule too busy for an issue of Zatanna?</span></span>

And with 16, it's over... DC has lost one of their best products. I have a recurring dream about a giant home with neverending rooms, and therefore enjoyed the scenes in Zatanna's house very much! A fun done-in-1 with a marvelous ending, those ticketholders are about to be retconned out anyway so I hope Zee slept a solid 10 hours!

If you didn't read Zatanna's entire series, I pity you for all the back-to-basics fun and excitement you totally missed out on... *choke* *dabs tear of pity for you away*

I will miss my monthly solo Zee adventure(s). *sigh*

Zatanna is a favourite character of mine but my wallet could only afford so many titles while hers has been running - and she didn't make the cut unfortunately.

Now that I'm dropping all my DC ongoings though (YAY DCnU!), which is 99% of all my comics purchases, I can afford to go back and collect all those comics I missed out on the first time - starting with this one!

YAY!!!!

DON'T EXPECT:

Overblown storylines, padded storytelling, 2-page splashes, wanton death and destruction

DO EXPECT:

Satisfying stories, nice artwork, suspense, an actual fright or two, rediscovering the joys of done-in-1 stories.

This was a nice issue, Ibanez is an artist worth keeping track of, I loved his work from his facial expressions to the action scenes to his detailed back grounds.

The story was a nice day in the life story, of Z being over worked and stretched too thin ... which most people can reate to .. but they got some action and adventure in there with the problem child Uriah.

Z polishes him off just in time ...

I did think for a moment that Z was actually <span class="spoiler_containter"><span class="spoiler_wording">Click Here For A Spoiler</span><span class="spoiler_text">going to start a magic school and that's how we'd see her retired </span></span>

I did like this subtle ode to her life and character. Overall it's just a nice compact story that lets us hang out with Z one more time without anything 'penultimate' and did the job of ending the series.

It's up there with Secret Six's ending.

Zatana Sure is SPECIAL