There was a time when anything Geoff Johns wrote was gold especially if it had Green Lantern in the title. This was the man that gave us an amazing 100 issue run on JSA, redeemed and redefined Hal Jordan as a character in Green Lantern: Rebirth, and was one of the architects of the brilliant weekly series 52.

Somewhere around the time of Blackest Night, Geoff Johns became stale for me. Whereas once his plots were epic and revolutionary, now the plots are stale, and do little but set up his next event. Green Lantern #2 does little to change my opinion.

Hal Jordan is no longer Green Lantern following the events of the War of the Green Lanterns. Sinestro has been granted Hal’s ring, and he shows up on Hal’s doorstep offering to give it back to him. Like any deal with the devil, there is price.

Most of the issue is a simple conversation between Hal and Sinestro. Sinestro plays the role of over-bearing arrogant mother by spending the issue insulting Hal by saying he never really changed the Earth, he just used the ring to show-off. Hal spends most of the issue filling his role as petty brat constantly yelling at Sinestro, and saying, “Gimmie my ring back!”

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Warner Interactive and DC Comics announced today that as of November 1st, gamers will be able to download Nightwing as a playable character in Batman: Arkham City. The downloadable content pack will run for 560 Microsoft Points ($6.99 in the PSN Store), and include two new challenge maps – Wayne Manor and the ‘Main Hall’. Nightwing, much like the downloadable Robin character, will come with his own unique weapons and gadgets to put to use against the thugs in Arkham City.

In keeping with the ‘bonus skins’ available, the Nightwing DLC will also contain an alternate Animated Series character model. It was also announced recently that the pre-order Robin bonus (granted to those who reserve the game at Best Buy) will be available to the masses on November 22nd for the same price.

Aside from a robust amount of downloadable goodies, it has also come to light in the past few weeks that the cast of Arkham City will be much larger than some may have expected. While villains like The Penguin, Two-Face, Mr. Freeze and The Riddler have all received their own trailers, many of Batman’s foes within the game have yet to step fully into the spotlight.  It has been confirmed that, in addition to all of the above, the following members of the Rogues Gallery will appear in-game: Calendar Man, Poison Ivy, Solomon Grundy, Bane, the Mad Hatter, DeadShot, Talia Al’Ghul, Black Mask, and of course, Prof. Hugo Strange.

Check out the gallery after the jump for the images and videos released so far for the new heroes and villains of Batman: Arkham City – available October 18th, 2011.

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Stormwatch has the potential to be the best book of the DC Comics New 52 Relaunch. It combines the old school superheroes of the DC Universe with the crazy, forward thinking concepts of the Wildstorm Universe into one book. Members of Stormwatch have powers like the ability to talk to and control cities, and the ability to mold and control all media. Its brilliant ideas like that mixed with Martian Manhunter that makes this book rock. It is also its greatest weakness.

Stormwatch #2 picks up right where the last issue left off. Midnighter is trying to recruit Apollo to join him, and not Stormwatch. The Swordsman fights the moon, who wants to attack the Earth.

Yes, you heard me right; the moon is the enemy in this book. We learn that team leader Adam One was born at the beginning of time at old age, and has been aging backwards. While Martian Manhunter proves himself a badass in what I will name his greatest character moment in his entire history.

It’s all these moments and more that make Stormwatch so much fun to read. So many concepts explode in these pages that it boggles the mind. It’s almost too much. Paul Cornell, the writer, is a veteran of Doctor Who, a television show that confuses and delights in one hour more than most shows do in an entire season. So you can see where his writing style comes from. Sadly, what works well in an hour television show, doesn’t work as well in twenty pages of sequential storytelling.

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If one year ago you told me that DC Comics would take Superman back to his roots in the 1930′s and it would turn out to be the most modern and relevant take on the character, I would have called you crazy. But that is exactly what Grant Morrison has done to the character of Superman, and this comic is refreshing, exciting, and meaningful.

Action Comics #2 begins shortly after the end of last issue. The government has captured the being known as Superman, and under a task force led by Lex Luthor, they are experimenting and testing his powers. This is a Superman that can bleed; he is not the all-powerful god that he will become later. Superman breaks free, holds Luthor in a choke hold, and gets to meet Lois Lane for the first time.

Each and every beat of this book has a joy and energy that a Superman story hasn’t had in a long time. The issue ends with the readers discovering the true being that Luthor is working for. (Hint: It’s a classic Superman villain that has teamed with Luthor before.)

Part of the reason that this book works is the pure essence of motion instilled into every panel by Rags Morales. Last issue, his art came off as rushed. Well, Mr. Morales must have had a chance to catch up, because the art on this issue is fantastic. His Superman is always moving, has a smile on his face, and shows power in every shot.

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Warner Home Video seems to be an unstoppable juggernaut of quality animated content over the past few years. From getting their start with Justice League Unlimited to continuing in the trend with several major DVD and Blu-Ray releases a year featuring some of our favorite DC characters, there doesn’t seem to be a stop to how good these animated adaptations can get.

And the hits keep coming this month, as they release an adaptation of Frank Miller’s Batman: Year One comic in a feature-length film. You can expect this one to get pretty gritty, considering the source material, as well as some of the huge names they have for the cast.

Batman: Year One is based on the landmark 1987 DC Comics titles from 12-time Eisner Award winner Frank Miller and illustrator David Mazzucchelli. The film depicts young Bruce Wayne’s return to Gotham City in his first attempts to fight injustice as a costumed vigilante. The playboy billionaire chooses the guise of a giant bat to combat crime, creates an early bond with a young Lieutenant James Gordon (who is already battling corruption from inside the police department), inadvertently plays a role in the birth of Catwoman, and helps to bring down a crooked political system that infests Gotham.

Primetime television stars Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Ben McKenzie (Southland, The O.C.), Eliza Dushku (Dollhouse, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica) provide the core voices for Batman: Year One.

Check out the exclusive clip, as well as how to get your hand on the film early after the jump.

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There’s an old adage that says, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” If there was any character in the DC Universe that didn’t need a reboot, it was Batman. Batman had been strong before the reboot.

He fought Darkseid, traveled through time, discovered his lost son, Damian, and founded Batman Inc., an international corporation devoted to stopping crime funded by his alter ego, Bruce Wayne. The stories and characters of the Batman mythos did not need a reboot.

So how is Batman in the New 52 DC Universe?

I’m pleased to report that he is still awesome. In fact, Batman hasn’t changed much at all post-reboot. His costume is different, but every detail of his story is exactly the same as it was before the relaunch.

Batman #1 is truly meant for old comic fans, and people who have never read a comic before but know who Batman is. Although, the writer could have spent a little more time explaining who the various Robins were; the book does use a clever exposition device that gives you their name, their current code name, and their relation to Batman.

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I’m not sure anyone was clamoring for this but Fox is going ahead anyway. The deal in question is the networks’s commitment today in going forward with an adaptation of the DC comic The Spectre. The new show will be written by Brandon Camp, who will also exec. produce.

In case you’re not familiar, The Spectre is a DC superhero character who made his first appearance in 1940. He’s a former cop serving time in afterlife limbo. He hunts criminals on earth on behalf of the dead, and those soon to be dead, and makes sure justice is served.

With the recent string of comic book to small screen adaptation failures including The Cape and Wonder Woman, I don’t put much hope is this working out. Networks just don’t seem to get it. After all, Fox already had a really fun show based on a comic that they axed after two seasons, just when it was getting interesting. I’m talking about, of course, Human Target.

Not only that, Fox doesn’t have the greatest track second with genre series in general. They just don’t seem to want to give things a chance to find an audience. Still, it’s nice that they seem to keep trying. At least that’s something.

Yesterday, we brought you our first batch review of DC’s newest line of rebooted books, and today, we’re finishing up on the massive 15 books that were released.

Hawk and Dove #1

Written by Sterling Gates | Art by Rob Liefeld

Hawk and Dove #1 is the worst book of the DC ‘New 52″ week one. The plot is a mess as it mentions and references things specific to old DCU continuity. The art is only good if you like to see characters constantly grit their teeth in every panel.

Seriously, how is Rob Liefeld still getting work? Unless you have read Brightest Day, this story will not make any sense. Do not buy this book.

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The first week of DC Comics New 52 has past. Following the release of Justice League #1, last Wednesday DC released its first week of full comic releases of the new relaunch. Excitement has never been higher for DC Comics, and one single question has been asked by comic fans, new and old, everywhere.

Are the books any good?

That’s what the DC Comics ‘New 52′ report card is here to answer! Each and every week, I will read and review each and every book of the ‘New 52.’ Letting you, the reader, know exactly which ones to buy, which ones you should avoid, and which ones you should give to your friend that has never read comics before.

So let’s get started. This week’s books are Action Comics, Animal Man, Batgirl, Batwing, Detective Comics, Green Arrow. All books will be graded on a scale of A to F. Check in tomorrow morning for our second half of last week’s comics. Withoutt further adieu, let’s get started with our first book: Action Comics #1.

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You will believe that man can fly, no wait, run really fast.

More so than any of the other DC Comics #1′s, including Justice League #1, Action Comics #1 is the flagship book of DC. Superheroes were created in the original Action Comics #1 way back in June of 1939.

The editors of DC Comics must have realized this as well so they gave the job of reinventing their original book and superhero to Grant Morrison, superstar comic writer and creator of one of  the best Superman stories of all time known as All Star Superman. So how is Action Comics #1? Well, it can be summed up in one simple sentence.

Welcome back, Superman.

Action Comics #1 is a refreshing, brand new take on the character of Superman. By going back to the roots of Superman, in his humble beginnings in 1939, Grant Morrison has created a Superman that is more modern and relevant than ever.

The issue begins with a young Superman. He can’t fly, but he can run real fast and leap buildings in a single bound. His costume is nothing but a t-shirt, a cape, and a pair of jeans. Superman grabs a CEO of a company that mistreated his workers, bribed city officials, and used illegal cheap labor.

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This is it. This is the issue that everyone has been waiting for since DC Comics announced that it was relaunching its entire line with all number one issues. History is made as DC has swept most of its history under the rug. The characters are fresh, shiny, and inviting for the general public. As a first issue and introduction to the new DC Universe, how is it? Minor spoilers below.

Five Years Ago…

The issue begins with that tagline as we see the police chasing Batman who is chasing a cloaked figure across rooftops. The police fire on Batman and the cloaked figure. Thankfully, Green Lantern shows up to knock the cloaked figure off the roof, and save the Batman. Most of the book is spent with Batman and Green Lantern talking, and getting to know each other. GL quizzes Batman about what superpowers he possesses. While Batman proves himself by stealing Green Lantern’s ring right off of his hand, a brilliant character moment.

They Say He’s An Alien…

Batman and Green Lantern are able to track the cloaked figure. Who plants an alien bomb, but not before revealing who his master is. (Hint, think about a very tall Superman villain that was created by Jack Kirby, and whose name rhymes with rawhide.) The two survive, and decide to talk to an alien that lives in Metropolis and no longer wears his underwear on the outside.

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When DC Universe Online launched earlier this year, it was possible to recreate almost any character, classic or modern, that fans of comics have loved for decades. There was one group of heroes and villains though that was noticeably left out in terms of power sets though. The Lanterns. Green, Red, Yellow, Blue and all the others had no presence in DC Universe Online from the player community. Sure they could fight alongside Hal Jordan but without a power ring of their own where is the fun in that?

Coming at the end of summer, the Fight for the Light expansion comes to DC Universe Online allowing ring based power sets to create a new array of combat options. Boxing gloves, freight trains, fighter jets, machine guns and more all produced by little green rings will up the ante in DCUO.

At Comic-Con, Mark Anderson from Sony Online Entertainment spoke with The Flickcast about what we would see in this expansion. In addition to seeing sights like Coast City or the Science Cells on Oa, the expansion will also help wrap up the story with Brainiac and the anomalies of the power rings. Players will be given the role as Corps Reserve members to help explain why so many lanterns are running around in a single sector.

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