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

THANK YOU. What is the appeal to this guy's art?

idk, i remember he won the fan contest in the 90s (not sure on date) to be a penciller of a Marvel comic book. he ran on the New Warriors ... issue 1 to whatever. i used to read it for a while but just couldn't hang with the art .... and the stories went downhill around issue 10 i think. (IMO)


he draws feet like flippers. >)

and everybody has a crooked grin on their faces.

Great review, Lash.

Chief, Brett Booth is replacing Bagley.

I'll stick up for Bags if no one else will. I was never a fan of his until Ultimate Spidey. I feel like he absolutely nailed that book so much that he's been irreplaceable. He also preceded that run with a terrific run on the Thunderbolts.

Previously, I had never cared for his run on Amazing Spidey and was underwhelmed by what little I'd seen of his New Warriors stuff.

His JLA work wasn't atrocious, but I think it exposed his limitations in that big, epic storytelling is not his thing. Smaller stories are his wheelhouse. Didn't help that he was producing 30 pages each issue with an average of three different inkers per.

Again, though, I loved practically every page he did for Ultimate Spidey. At DC, a Blue Beetle or Robin (could you imagine him with Chuck Dixon on a Tim Drake book?!?! ) title would've suited his talents better and possibly rocked our asses off!

Ah, yes. Odd that Booth is suddenly popping back up again outta nowhere (here and the recent Larfleeze Special). I remember him being a part of the early Wildstorm stable and could swear he hasn't done anything in about a decade. I

Didn't he work on the Anita Blake comics?

I love Bagley. The only reason I didn't stick up for him before is because I stuck up for him earlier in this thread.

Me, I've adored everything he's done going way back to New Warriors, even when the writing hasn't been up to snuff. I'm glad he's leaving JLA, so I don't have to waste my time Byrne-stealing it anymore.

Cobie has said in the past that Bagley would be good on Flash, and I agree with him. Since Flash already has Manapul, I'd love to see Bagley do an "All-Star Flash" type project.

Haven't been here in this thread since my post, but I love Bags as well. He just has a style that I like. He was perfect on Ultimate Spider-Man as Chief said. I did like his work on the New Warriors as well.

His style may not be for everyone, but that's okay...I don't like a lot of stuff that some people do.

You guys are obviously seeing something I'm not in terms of this guy's art.

But I still stand on my Robinson Veto, which sucks because he wrote three issues of Generation X.

For the record, I think his art is good. What I object to is, as I stated, the 1 page of panels spread over 2 pages style of bloated storytelling, which is, IMO, equally the fault of DC directives to raise the prices of titles $1 for additional pages but the writers and artists not doing the additional work for those pages.

I'm a huge fan of Bagley's artwork. I think his layouts are dynamic and full of energy, and his artwork can enhance an overly wording or boring writer in a big way.

I know when Bendis first brought his indie writing style to USM, his talking heads approach could have really hurt the title, but Bags artwork alleviated that problem by adding in dynamic poses and explosive layouts. (Bendis has since changed his writing style dramatically and even credits Bagley with helping him adapt to superheroes).

Bagley's artwork also conveys a sense of fun to it that is well-fit for superhero comics. His characters have power behind their movements but not overly filled with excess violence.

Like FL said, I think he'd be great on Flash since his energetic style would lend itself well to the premiere speed-based superhero in comics. I also think he drew a terrific Wonder Woman and his style could really take WW in a different direction one day. Another character I think he'd be excellent for would be Firestorm.

So in Starman/Congorilla...

<span class="spoiler_containter"><span class="spoiler_wording">Click Here For A Spoiler</span><span class="spoiler_text">Robinson attempts to undo one of his screw-ups from Cry for Justice by revealing that Tasmanian Devil wasn't really dead, he was only skinned and kept alive by Prometheus for experimentation. But he's okat now.</span></span>

dosn't sound like something you can recover easily from ....

Robinson retconned it by saying Tas had been flayed alive and kept in a tank.

More on the STARMAN/CONGORILLA One-shot: OK, I really liked this. From the surprisingly frank conversation between comics' newest buddies to the back-from-the-dead suprise at issue's end, I thought this a fun read.

Like Superboy this month, it's told in a 'then/now' narrative alteration that somewhat muddles reading, but does build a certain momentum that partially justifies its usage.

Guest stars Rex the Wonder Dog (has he ever teamed with Diana?), Animal Man and Malaver (a genius from Gorilla City) and the subject of the previously-mentioned resurrection are well-used. As is the central plot device/setting, one which almost exclusively appears in the Batverse. I find it refreshing to read it used out of the shadow of Batman's cape.

The resurectee? <span class="spoiler_containter"><span class="spoiler_wording">Click Here For A Spoiler</span><span class="spoiler_text"> Tasmanian Devil. Who shares a bit of a flirtation with Starman. And is the subject of more dialogue between Mik and Congorilla once Tas teleports away </span></span>

Never one of my favorites, but I'm glad to see him back, nonetheless.

A pleasant surprise, for me.

**I LOVED** Starman/Congorilla!!!

It has actually restored my faith in Robinson's writing and I would much rather read him write a Starman/Congorilla series (with Tas, Rex and Animal Man) than the current JLoA.

Make these guys a team, add Vixen and thee we are.

Art was fantastic too.

It would have to be better than recent JLA issues. Couldn't get much worse in my eyes. I just haven't been enjoying this incarnation of the JLA. Things have seemed off since the start, and havent' really seemed to gel at all.

Buddy's in this? I may have to get it then.

Not a huge role but yes, he is part of the ensemble cast Robinson assembles!

Thanks, I'll check ir out then and decide in the store.

I like Buddy, still waiting on the final issue of the last days of animal man mini by Gerry. My LCS missed it.

But it may not be enough to interest me. I still miss Will Peyton as starman.

Rick, was the mini good overall...so far as you know without reading the last issue?

JLA 53: Reading Donna's 'thought blocks' (the fact that hers has a black background can't be good, can it?) makes me wonder why she wasn't the 'darkened' character instead of Supergirl? If either of them need to be darkened. Donna Troy, Supergirl, Mary Marvel-- perhaps comics' three most wholesome 'girl next door' characters. So, of course, DC has to 'darken' them. Ugh. They really don't know when they've got gold in their pockets, do they?

With the Crime Syndicate on hand, was it really necessary to introduce this ridiculous looking waste-of-a-good-name 'Omega Man'? I would much rather have read more of that twisted central love-triangle-gone-wrong (Ultraman, Owlman, Superwoman) than anything to do with yet another reality warping supervillain. Or, better yet, read more about some of the Earth-whatever counterparts to Aquaman, Black Canary, etc.

Though, to contradict myself, I'm glad we *didn't* meet direct counterparts to the current JLA members. The indirect parallels were close enough for *this* story.

Super-glad that Blue Jay and the Tangent GL (not to mention her world) survive to appear again in 2020 or so. Whish they'd gotten more room to shine, here. I would've welcomed BJ (heh!) as a JLA member. The current group would've been a good fit for him. Ah, well.

So, did Blue Jay follow GL to Tangent Earth? Or to some random restored world? It'd be nice to get follow-up. Maybe wherever he lands will be in such a mess that he has to reconnect with the regular DC heroes for help- followed by a homecoming. (I know, not his original home...). His motivation for leaving's pretty weak, I thought.

It'll be nice to have Congorilla and Starman back for the next storyline. Their absence did serve to point how well- or poorly- Robinson grasps the other charcters. We know he's got the golden gorilla and Starman down- just read their special for evidence. I'm not following the BatDick stuff in other books, so I can't compare current portrayals there, but to me this Batman is a character who's neither Dick Grayson nor Batman. There are moments when I think Dick comes through (hee-hee!), but I'm just not sold on him. I'd vastly prefer to see Nightwing leading this JLA, but that's something I'm just not going to get.

Donna's thought blocks indicate that Robinson has plans for dealing with her personality issues, so that's to the good.

Supergirl's mired in this 'dark' version of herself. So, until that's over, Robinson gets a pass.

Jesse Quick might as well be in JSA, for all the attention she's getting.

Jade. Does Jade read as at all familiar to anyone else? She doesn't to me. She used to have a sense of humor. And was somewhat self-absorbed at times. I'd like to see her ambitions to be an actress resurface. I hope she'll be able to fully reconnect with her family after the Eclipso storyline. Or perhaps when Brightest Day is over? I guess being cut off from them could account for tamping down her sense of humor.

The colors were pretty this issue.

Unfortunately, the story and its final page don't quite earn the glory and acclaim and approbation that DC's gathered heroes are shown expressing.

#54: Eclipso's back. I was sad to see Bruce Gordon caught up in Eclisping drama again. There's a good bit of Eclipso-history in the book, which is a good thing since it's been awhile since the character's been used- outside of the strange Jean Loring episodes.

After the history lesson, it's the gathering of The Eclipsed. Starting with The Shade. It's great, of course, to read Robinson writing this character again, since his work with the not-quite-bad guy in STARMAN is well-remembered and widely admired. I get the feeling that The Shade's not quite as eclipsed as he appears, but I could well be wrong.

Next up, another favorite- Nightshade. We don't really get a sense of her. It was news to me that she was marrying Jim Rook, Nightmaster- if you can trust Eclipso's narration. He takes out the Myrran hero and eclipses Eve Eden.

Acrata? I don't recall her at all. I love it when characters even more obscure than those that are usually my favorites appear. I didn't find anything about her all that compelling, but I get a kick some reader somewhere might become so curious about her that she becomes a favorite. Like Black Orchid, for me. Or Animal Lad. Or Gas Girl.

Then Shadow Thief. Of course.

Bete-Noire. Vaguely familiar.

Dark Crow. This is a new character, surely. A Royal Canadian Mounted Shadow warrior whose dark power manifests in a shadow raven? I want to know more...

The accumulated group visits or views Syththunu, a dark-powered elder god who sleeps and whom Eclipso wants to wake for untold purpose.

One more name is on Eclipso's 'to do' list. One more DC character to get the purply half-moon face. Look at those gathered. One name comes pretty quickly to mind, doesn't it? Considering that this is a Justice League title? What other shadow-powered hero could Eclipso be after.

Obsidian your guess?

Wrong.

It's Jade that's next on Eclipso's list.

Due to future revelations in DC's solicits, we know Obsidian's coming, though.

I still haven't gotten rid of the bad taste in my mouth from Eclipso's murder of Infinity Inc's Dr. Midnight and Wildcat, but this was an okay-enough setup issue for the storyline.

Love the art, this is, I believe, the guy who did the art or the WONDERFUL Starman/Congorilla 1-shot that I loved.