You can kill people but not ideals

"People, you can kill. But ideals? Spirit? Sorry, they have a life of their own ..." - Doctor Fate

 The newest Doctor Fate is caught in a mind-bending, magical battle against the powerful demon Negal! During the trade collection you see the latest Doctor Fate transform from a lowly bum (yes ... he's an actual street bum) into one of the most powerful superheroes in the DC universe. While this is a Countdown tie-in it only really has 4 or 5 pages which tie-into the storyline. While it's not a must-have collection I found the new take on the Doctor very refreshing as it made him more human and actually made him quite similar to Doctor Strange where he says the spells' names as he casts them.

What Fate says about ideals and spirit being more difficult to destroy is interesting as there have been people who sacrificed their lives in the name of a cause. While there are those who've sacrificed their lives for the betterment of mankind there have also been those who've been misguided. However, I do believe that it's important to contribute to a lasting cause or ideal which will outlast our short human lives whether it's our families, our careers, or our beliefs because I think what drives many successful people is their desire to leave behind a legacy.


References: Taken from Dr. Fate: Countdown to Mystery (ISBN: 978-1-4012-1840-9) by Steve Gerber (writer) and Justiniano (artist).
Published by DC Comics.

,,, having the strength to make a hard decision.

"Sometimes being a king is about having the strength to make a hard decision. And sometimes, it's about having the strength not to." - Crystal of the Inhumans

Black Bolt has just finished a hectic battle with Vulcan when Crystal warps in with Lockjaw to save the day! In light of Black Bolt being in a position where he had to make some tough decisions she reminds him that sometimes it's equally tough to step back and not make a decision about something. I think we often struggle or avoid making the tough decisions which usually hurts us in the long run. Those with the strength to make the tough decisions, however, run into the opposite problem where they keep making those tough calls even when we have the support of others to help us so that we don't have to feel like we're carrying the weight of the world on our own.

I found this trade collection an excellent read and haven't been disappointed by writers Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning for years! Paul Pelletier's art is clean and extremely detailed! He has great variety in his scenes and switches seamlessly from space battles, to intimate personal moments, to brawls between teams of super-powers! I highly recommend this collection of the War of Kings series!



References:  Taken from War of Kings TPB (ISBN: 978-0-7851-3542-5) by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning (writers) and Paul Pelletier (artist).
Published by Marvel Comics.

It's only there to cover up my terror.

"It's only there to cover up my terror". -Robin (Tim Drake)

The clench virus has been unleashed in Gotham and Ra's Al Ghul is the mastermind behind it all! The entire Bat family is involved as they're on the hunt for the villain in a race against time for a cure to the virus! While this trade is 12 years old (and hard to find at a decent price I might add) it's well worth adding to your collection if you're a Batman fan!

Robin is living up to his name as he serves as the light during times of darkness. He always has a witty comment and generally has a positive viewpoint compared to Batman (and in this case, Nightwing) who usually has a more realistic view. He also reminds us that during our darkest times there's nothing like a bit of humor to lighten up a situation and help us deal with our troubles.


References: Taken from Batman: Legacy TPB (ISBN: 1-56389-337-1) by Chuck Dixon, Doug Moench, and Alan Grant (writers) along with Graham Nolan, Jim Aparo, Staz Johnson, Dave Taylor, Jim Balent, and Mike Wieringo (artists).
Published by DC Comics.

I just went along 'cause everybody else was doing it ...

"I just went along 'cause everybody else was doing it and I wanted to be popular." -Slapstick

After getting captured by the Hulk and his Warbound the initiates need some rescuing which comes in the form of some of the more mature members of the Initiative. I bought Avengers: The Initiative while it was on sale and admit that I would have paid full price for it had I know it was this good! I highly recommend the first volume and found it one of the better comics to come out of the Civil War storyline.

While Slapstick is just trying to be funny with his retort you have to remember that this is a group of teenagers who are still exploring their abilities and the concept of teamwork. Very often, though, we follow our peers against our better judgement and end up in trouble with the rest of them instead of standing up for our beliefs at the cost of being unpopular.



References: Taken from Avengers: The Initiative TPB (ISBN: 978-0-7851-2516-7) by Dan Slott (writer) and Stefano Caselli (artist).
Published by Marvel Comics.