Dustin Nguyen Books

When Jim Lee and Brandon Choi started WildC.A.T.s 10 or so years ago, I don't think this is the direction they would have planned. However, since Joe Casey has gotten ahold of this book, he has turned it ino one of the most complex, underhanded, and compelling comics on the shelves today.

Jack Marlowe runs the Halo corporation. He has hundreds of thousands of employess around the world, not the least of which are Grifter, aka Cole Cash, Jack's one time teammate and former mercenary, and Agent Wax, a man who has remarkable powers of hypnotism and is member of an organization that investigates superhero crimes. Together, they set out to wage "a benevolent war for the future," as Jack calls it, buying out the competition and culling corrupt businesses for the market. Halo's number one invention - a battery that lasts forever - has taken the market by storm, rendering other batteries obsolete.

However, not everyone is playing alone to Jack's tune: C.C. Redozzo is having troubles with the F.B.I., and she'll use Grifter, Wax, and Jack Marlowe to accomplish her end. What happens when she manipulates Grifter into fighting a man that can't be killed? How will it affect Jack's plans?

Mixing corporate intrigue, skewed morality, and complicated characters, Wildcats 3.0 is a comic that asks the question, "What does a superhero do when there's no one to punch?". This first trade paperback introduces you to the characters and their situations, and is the perfect jumping on point for anyone interested in intelligent, mature comics.

I remember buying my first Wildc.a.t.s comic book back when I was a kid. Never did I think that this story would grow up just as I did. I had ordered it from my local comic book store and waited over a month for its arrival, but if I had bought it off of Amazon, it probably would have reached me sooner. I was even able to get volume 2 but refused to read it until I got this into my possession.
Wow, did this story surpass my expectations of what it was going to be. You don't have to be familiar with all that has happened in this epic to be familiar with the story but if you are...good. This story is a beautifully written and drawn story that takes you into the objective of the hero, a former costumed super hero in his mission to bring the world together by building a brand. No way is this story hard to understand, I believe you don't have to be a business major to understand the true depth of this story. It is brilliant and by far one of the small jewels I have come to appreciate in my quest for fine graphic novel literature. If you're thinking about getting this book, get it. It is an idea so groundbreaking it is no surprise that it was overlooked by those who rate the validity of a comic books by there reinterpretation of modifying the cliché. This story is in no way a kid's game.

Since its inception, the Superman/Batman series has had it's up's and down's, and in this installment, writer Alan Burnett gets his turn on the title. This time around, Superman and Batman are headed to Apokolips to take on Darkseid and his minions, with ramifications that lead into the Death of the New Gods mini-series, Countdown, and of course, Final Crisis. Yes, it's a long road to these mega-events indeed, and while Burnett manages to provide a thorough and sometimes entertaining narrative, the story as a whole just comes off as more of a lead-in to the aforementioned events than anything else. That being said, Torment is a lot better than the past few installments to come before it, so fans are lible to get more enjoyment out of this too. Dustin Nguyen provides some nice pencil work to boot; all of which adds up to Torment being worth a look if you're a fan of either character or are following the road to Final Crisis.

It is currently quite in vogue to bash this comic just for its' very existence. "Do we really need a Superman/Batman teamup book?" is the litany voiced ad nauseum on internet messageboards. The chorus of complaints has reached an even higher pitch with the recent announcement of the new weekly series Trinity. Fortunately not all fans dance to the beat of the same drummer, as some of us prefer to judge stories on their own individual merits and not just by their premise. On this particular trade we welcome the writing talents of Alan Burnett, well known for his work on the DC animated universe. His intriguing tale takes our intrepid heroes on a perilous journey to Apokolips to battle Darkseid and Desaad, whose conclusion will set the stage and have severe ramifications for the DCU in the upcoming months. The story encompasses much of the New Gods lore, including the recent loss of Darkseid's Omega powers and the relationship that the Source Wall and Highfather's staff have to that. Along the way Batman is introduced and unintentionally seduced by Orion's beautiful wife Bekka, who is literally a sex goddess with some very powerful pheremones. This subtext is explored further as he reflects on his life and the sacrifices of love and passion that he has made for the sake of his full time mission as Batman. We also see the long overdue pairing of Desaad with the Scarecrow, a match truly made in Hell, although the Scarecrow is once again reduced to being someone's punching bag. Will DC please finally remove the kick me sign from behind his back. The trade ends on a tantalizing cliffhanger which directly leads into the Death of the New Gods storyline that is currently concluding. On the artistic side Burnett is ably assisted by the increasingly growing in stature presence of Dustin Nguyen. In a previous review of his work, I compared his illustrations to Jack Kirby's, so it is fitting irony that he would be involved in a story featuring many of Jack's greatest creations. Paul Dini has successfully made the transition from the animated DCU to the comics medium. After reading this solid effort, here's hoping that Alan Burnett does the same and has a lengthy and stellar run himself.

Something mysterious and deadly is happening to Gotham City wiseguys, all in the employ of the Penguin. Is this an outside attack on his operations, or is he possibly behind the dirty deeds himself? And how is the Scarecrow, who is begrudgingly also in the current employ of the Penguin, involved with this and to the recent appearance of the monstrous creature Scarebeast? These are some of the questions that Batman must resolve in this graphic novel. Judd Winick's debut on Batman contains some witty dialogue plus an enjoyably gritty characterization of that tough old bird Penguin himself, although his portrayal of Scarecrow as once again a weak punching bag for someone to use and abuse is getting a bit tiresome. A drugged out hallucinatory sequence involving Batman and a few phantom rogues, most notably the Joker and Jason Todd, is the highlight here and, in regards to Todd, a teaser of things to come. On the artistic side, Dustin Nguyen's work is somewhat painful to the senses upon first viewing, with it being slightly reminiscent of Jack Kirby on steroids, although it does become more palatable upon further readings. Everybody's face tends to look as if it was etched from stone, while his action scenes make it difficult to discern at times what is actually going on. Winick delivered two solid stories during his tenure on Batman. While his brief run on this title and his work in general has its' critics, I am not among them, and had wished that his stay on the book would have been longer.

Standard Batman fare with a pretty cool Scarecrow-derived beastie, though. The monster that is created to fight the Bat family in this arc is cool in the Where The Wild Things Are sense, as well, which is hopefully what the artist was trying to get at. Even though it is supposed to be crazy and nasty, it is something like a kid might come up with.

In As The Crow Flies, Batman must discover who has unleashed a vicious, man-eating monster called the Scarebeast on Gotham City. All the while, the Penguin has started making moves with crime families to take over Gotham City.

The storyline, while decent, doesn't grab my attention like Hush or Under The Hood Vol. 1 and 2, did. Judd Winick is a great writer but here it doesn't feel the same as it did in his later work. The story tries to grab your attention, but just can't seem to hold it (for a long amount of time, that is).

I liked it but I took off one star for the story, becuase it was average, and one star for the artwork, which was unfortunately, average.

The Penguin is interesting, but it seemed to be a story that was more centered around him than Scarecrow or Batman, despite the title of the book.

Now there are some really good scenes in here, particularly, when Batman is dosed with the Scarebeast's fear gas and begins to hillucinate about the Joker, Two-Face, and Jason Todd. That's where the spectacular dialgue is, other than that, the rest of the dialogue is blah, except for a line that made me laugh when Tim Drake is dressed like a girl to go get tissue samples from the dead body of one of the mobsters. That dialogue made me laugh.

Summing it up, the story's okay, not too fantastic, but not so dull you'll fall asleep while reading. This is mainly for fans of Judd Winick and Penguin.

Even though the title is "As the Crow Flies," and Scarecrow is on the cover of the book, the Penguin is the real puller of strings here. If you were in hopes of an intriguing Scarecrow vs. Batman storyline, this book will partially disappoint you.

Batman confronts two maddened thugs who become superhumanly strong after coming in contact with fear toxin. Soon after, a scarecrow monster of Goliath proportions begins threatening organized crime. All the while, Penguin is sitting back, sharpening his beak.

What is the mysterious new "Scarebeast?" That is the new mystery Batman must solve. The answer to the mystery is a bit surprising. To earn that answer, Batman must subdue a seemingly unstoppable monster.

This is a fairly good storyline. However, I offer the warning that this is not, in the main, a Scarecrow story. It is a plot that highlights the Penguin as shooting for a criminal takeover of Gotham after "No Mans Land."

Current Batman scribe Judd Winick's first storyline for the regular Batman title comes off as average at best. Taking place after the events of the massive hit "Hush" storyline from Jeph Loeb and Jim Lee, and the disappointing "Broken City" storyline from 100 Bullets creators Brian Azzarello and Eduardo Risso, Batman finds himself haunted by the memory of the late Jason Todd-Robin. Soon enough, he learns that various underbosses of the Penguin are being killed, and the mystery involves a partnership between the Penguin and the Scarecrow, and the emergence of a deadly new foe. Winick tells a good story, but it's not as interesting as it thinks it is. Dustin Nguyen's pencils are solid, giving the book a great look, which saves As the Crow Flies from being comic fodder. All in all, As the Crow Flies is worth a look for Batman fans, but if you're looking for a truly great Batman story, look elsewhere.

The music is absolutely bizarre - and much too loud. It drowns out the dialogue at times. Apparently a new soundtrack was added when the series was released on DVD.

The video quality is not very good either, but all in all, it's a fun blast from the past.