It’s
a showdown, between Red Hood and Bizarro. And Black Mask and Red Hood. And
Artemis and Bizarro. Who will win? Well, the odds of choosing a winner are
about 1/8. But (not-so-spoiler alert) the winner won’t be announced this issue.
Besides, think about the title and draw your own conclusions. And given the
minor tease at the end, it appears the genuine conclusion will come next issue.
As Black Mask,
Red Hood, Artemis and Bizarro trade dance partners in a never-ending rondelé of
combat, Black Mask is the typical boastful villain, monologing and posturing as
only comic book villains can. If he believes his nonsense, well, that
ridiculous, so take whatever he says with a grain of salt, dear reader.
I’m eager to
see how Lobdell concludes the first arc in this latest Red Hood series, and
perhaps a glimpse of the adventures that follow. Not that I’m bored. I’m just
anxious to see how this new team of Outlaws functions; to see if it’s one of
the more original ideas to come out of DC in a while, or if it’s simply more of
the same, only the names have been changed to protect the innocent.
Dexter Soy’s
artwork remains pleasantly consistent. Too often, artists will weary of a
project too quickly, but I don’t see any of that here. I’m optimistic he will
remain on the title logn enough to establish the standard for those who follow
him. He certainly seems on the right track.