Niles Caulder and Red Tornado

There are some characters who have always seemed like natural shoe-ins for DP membership in my book. For whatever reason though, it just isn't possible for many of these characters to make the leap.

We've already touched on some of the times Aquaman interacted with the DP. Fans of any incarnation - especially Arcudi's and Byrne's versions - understand how logical a fit Metamorpho would be. Power Girl seemed to stop by quite a bit. One character who really seems like a natural fit to me is Red Tornado.

Here's the most recent connection from the current Justice League of America series, specifically issue #22. After his body was compromised, Red Tornado is stored in the JLA computer systems. Issue #22 features an all-star cast of characters brought together in an attempt to place Red Tornado in a new body. In his own words,

Today, several of the smartest men in the world will attempt to move the set of programs and data that constitute my sense of self into a new artificial body.

The first one Reddy mentions is Niles Caulder, the DP's beloved (ahem) Chief. Caulder shows up again a time or two in JLA, but never really says much. The fact that he's called upon - not to mention the current base of operations for the DP on Oolong Island (remember T. O. Morrow was there in 52) and there you have a connection drawn between Red Tornado and the Doom Patrol.

Remember a few months back when we did the Crisis on Earth-Blog? In another attempt to generate some interest across the internet, the Irredeemable Shag has organized another crossover. What is this fabulous new crossover you ask? Well, this post is a major hint. Check back Tuesday, just be sure to do so before the internet cracks in half.

Bonus post

So I was just killing some time, skimming the message boards over at DC and this post from giffen1 (aka Keith Giffen) hits me:

Okay, gang, it's out. Rant, rave shriek, holler, whatever. Believe it or not,
your input means alot to us. Pull no punches. We can take it. We welcome it.
Without your support we are D..E..A..D.. dead. Just one request, no mind
reading, okay? Assumptions accomplish nothing. Oh and, yes, we all care that
much. You have no idea how dedicated we are to making this work. As a teaser...
What has one body, dozens of personalities and looks good in a maxi-dress? If
you last until issue seven, you'll know. K-

Especially this part.

As a teaser... What has one body, dozens of personalities and looks good in a
maxi-dress? If you last until issue seven, you'll know.

Even if you weren't a fan of Morrison's version of the DP, you knew of Crazy Jane, and maybe even liked the character. I'm looking forward to seeing what our DP masterminds Giffen and Clark can pull together for this young lady. . .

Elasti-WOMAN Friday 15

Deliquency, thy name is Doug.

Sorry friends, it's been a crazy busy couple of weeks since the last post. My extracurricular project (aka second book) imploded, I took a vacation, and also had to adjust my work the week before and after to accommodate my vacation.

Since then, I've been busy trying to get some stuff happening for this little ol' site here. Stuff like an exclusive interview with a certain penciler of this certain series we all are fond of. Yes. That Clark guy. More on that next week.

For now, I'm thinking this might be the final Elasti-Girl Friday, as Giffen and crew are making a push to change Rita's moniker to Elasti-Woman. As "Joe" pointed out in the comments a few weeks ago, Rita has been called "Elasti-Woman" before, but that was in reference from the press, who also dubbed Cliff as "Automaton". With that change, in addition to the series actually being published now, I want to change things up a bit and make things a little more regular.



Will I be publishing every day? Oh heck no. My life doesn't have that much flex time.

I will, however, make a more concerted effort to have at least one post per week. My goal is no less than three, but for now, let's focus on one at a time.

On to the matter at hand. Here's some panels from the first issue of the current volume of Doom Patrol featuring our gal, Rita. I was going to scan the pages from her bungalow, but or the ones where she's dining with Rocky, but decided this sequence was a good place to start.

This is the scene where the team is trying to escape from Buena Suerte. Negative Man has disabled most of the opposing helicopters, but left one for Rita to handle. The first image below is a scan from Matt Clark's pencils. I thought it would be a nice contrast to the finished page that follows.

Here's what happens when a mad Elasti-Woman meets a helicopter. I gotta say, when I read this, I laughed out loud at Larry's reaction. Larry's cynicsim knows no bounds.
There you have it. The first official Elasti-Woman Friday (just doesn't ring as well as Elasti-Girl Friday) featuring published art from the first issue of Doom Patrol.

I managed to snag a copy of the variant cover this week. I adore that Kong-inspired cover. I'm looking forward to what other covers the crew comes up with.

Spoiler-free DP #1 Review

As promised, I reviewed Doom Patrol #1 for Comic Book Resources. Here's the link to my review, wherein I express the following thoughts and, oh, so much more.

Giffen quickly establishes that this team is a strike force of sorts, not a bunch of pals chumming around. They operate from Oolong Island under the auspices of Niles Caulder, who has manipulated them in the past and most likely won't hesitate to do so again. This Doom Patrol seems to have a purpose, at least moreso than some of the teams that ran under the "Doom Patrol" brand in the past. I look forward to what Giffen's going to put these characters through and how Clark renders it. The world Giffen is building isn't going to forget where the Doom Patrol came from, nor is it going to lose what makes the DC Universe special, and that gives me great hope for what is to come.

Doom Patrol #1

The big day is here! Doom Patrol #1 hits the stands and makes quite an impact doing so.

I'm not going to spoil anything, save to say someone doesn't make it home.

I'll share a little more later. I'm going to use this issue as fodder for the next week or so of posts.

Until then, here's THE panel from the book for me.

This issue also contained a sneak peek into Magog, as well as the Metal Men backup (or second feature as DC prefers to label it with political correctness only a standards auditor can appreciate). I truly enjoyed Metal Men, even if it was thematically 180º away from Doom Patrol. Seriously, how can any COMIC fan not find something to enjoy from a tale by Giffen, DeMatteis and Maguire? Even though it was just a preview, Magog is starting to lose me as the gore quotient seems like it is going to be pretty high. We'll see.

More later, after my Doom Patrol review is posted on CBR. Spoilers for the review: I gave the issue 3.5 stars out of 5. It needs to stretch a little more for that perfect 5.

Doom's Day!

It has certainly been a long time coming, but it is finally here. I've got to do the 9-5 thing today, but I will be buying (and reviewing) Doom Patrol #1 today (maybe even two copies!). My review will be published over at Comic Book Resources and I will be linking it here once I get a chance.

Look for updates soon!

Until then, here's the last panel (well, the full page containing that last panel) featuring the Doom Patrol from 52 Aftermath: Four Horsemen #6. Why should you care? It was written by Keith Giffen and (to the best of my knowledge) is the most recent appearance of the DP.
If anyone can correct me on that, please do.

Negative Monday 15

I'm just going to share a quick Negative Man related image from the recent Batman: Brave & Bold comic by J. Torres and J. Bone.

I also reviewed this one over at CBR. Later this week I will offer up a more in depth look at the book.