DC: The New Frontier #5 #6.95

I was pissed when I found out this was going bi-monthly. I don't know the reasons why, and honestly, don't care. It's the best superhero book being published, and, dammit, I want it as often as possible! Yeah, it's selfish, but if you don't think the same, then you're probably not reading it. For those not reading it I don't really have anything to compare it to....you could call it MARVELS, the DC version, but that's not entirely accurate, and it's a damn site batter than MARVELS (which I did like). What Cooke is doing is reintroducing and reimagining (somewhat) unfamiliar (or hell, even familiar) readers to DC's Silver Age, and to say he's successful would be the understatement of the century.

I've found myself not only liking, but caring about characters I've never liked in my comic book reading lifetime. Sure, everyone has their favorite Superman or Batman stories, and I've always like Batman, but I've never really cared about either of them. As for Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, or the Flash, forget it. Outsideof brief origin descriptions and recognizing their characters, I know jack about them, and really never cared to learn more, or read their books, at least on a regular basis.

This book, though, changes all of that. Suddenly I find myself loving Wonder Woman, admiring Superman, thinking the Flash and GL are cool (yeah, it sounds childish, but thats what this book brings out), not to mention Lois Lane, who isn't even a super powered character. Cooke breathes the most life into her, in my opinion. She's someone that has always felt stale to me, yet here she is, putting her neck on the line to get the story. She's her own woman, and very three dimensional, and that's something you don't see enough of.

This issue is probably Cooke's best so far, you can feel him building up to the final issue, and by the end, everything is so tense I was literally on the edge of my seat reading it. Words honestly won't do it justice. There's so many great things here it's just breath taking.

Personal favorite moment? Martian Manhunter telling Supes how much he loved his animated adventures.

This is as classic as they come folks, and you're missing one of the best reads you'll ever see in the superhero world (and in the comics medium) if you're not picking it up.

-L