COMIC: DC Brings Back Smallville for Season 11 (News)

Comic books are quickly becoming the afterlife for geek TV shows that end their run but have a following still wanting more about those characters.

In the footsteps of shows like BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER and ANGEL, that found new life in comic book form for Dark Horse & IDW respectively, now the former CW mainstay show, SMALLVILLE, is making a transition to ink and paper.

Officially called SMALLVILLE SEASON 11, the comic book will pick up where the show ended in last May's finale with Clark being Superman and Lex Luthor back in the mix. Writing this next chapter of SMALLVILLE will be Bryan Q. Miller, former writer of BATGIRL who has experience with the Smallville universe having written several episodes over the last few years. Drawing the interiors is another BATGIRL alum, Pere Perez.

The other unique aspect to this new book is the method of release. It will be a digital first series starting on April 13, 2012, nearly one year after the show's two hour finale as smaller than a regular book digital chapters. These chapters will be released weekly with a print collection of the chapters being released starting on May 16.

The print cover artist will be Gary Frank (SUPERMAN: SECRET ORIGIN) and on the digital Cat Staggs. Here is a look at the first cover by Cat:

COMIC: Top of the Stack - Brightest Day #24 (Review)

Written by Geoff Johns & Peter J. Tomasi
Art by Ivan Reis, Patrick Gleason, Ardian Syaf, Scott Clark & Joe Prado
Cover by Gary Frank & Rod Reis

Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $4.99

For the last week of April once again my stack of comic books waiting to be read was well over 15 titles. And it was a very good week with several titles contending for Top of the Stack recognition. Those just falling short were Marvel's MIGHTY THOR #1 and SPIDER-GIRL #6, both worthy of being at the top on any other week but there was an emotional beat in another comic that made it impossible not to be the one at the top of my stack.

I'm talking about BRIGHTEST DAY #24, the final issue of the series and for the second straight week a title makes it to the top for consecutive issues. The writing team of Geoff Johns and Peter Tomasi have masterfully maneuvered readers for a whole year with this story about twelve heroes and villains being resurrected by a white light, leading to an ending no one could have expected when the series started.

In this extra-sized finale issue, the previously reborn heroes that had been turned into elements now combined with the skeletal remains of Alec Holland and one more dead hero to bring about the return of the true Swamp Thing to defend the planet against the corrupted version of Swamp Thing. But the emotional fallout from the events that needed to happen for the light to succeed is what truly puts this book on a whole other level.

Finally seeing the dreaded moment readers had been teased about for most of the length of the series - Captain Boomerang throwing at Dove - happened but not with the result feared yet one just as painful. Deadman stepped in the way and took the hit, dying for Dove and being the final piece for the white light's plan. The moments between a dying Deadman and Dove tug at your heartstrings and again after the battle when back into his Deadman ghost form, Dove is still able to hear him and they declare their love for each other.

That and the return of the elemental heroes: Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, Firestorm and Hawkman, with the latter two not having the happiest of returns. I do not think you can read this book and not be affected by the story.

And the army of artists that have worked diligently on the series the entire time, again knocked it out of the park with quality that matched the high level of writing. Some might feel it is a bit awkward now that all of these artists are working on the same parts now that the character they had been doing separately for the whole series but they are all so talented that for such a huge concept story it worked perfectly.

BRIGHTEST DAY ranks right up there with 52 and SUNDAY COMICS as brilliant concepts that also turned into great executed series that readers miss once they are done. Anyone that was hesitant to commit to such a paced out story or were discouraged by the slow start of the story in the early issues should definitely look to pick up this series when it gets collected because it continued to get better with every subsequent issue and makes you care about some of the less promoted characters of the DCU. It made me care about Deadman and Dove, two characters I only had faint interest in prior to BRIGHTEST DAY. Read it, you will not regret it!

COMIC: Top of the Stack - Brightest Day #23 (Review)

Written by Geoff Johns & Peter J. Tomasi
Art by Ivan Reis, Patrick Gleason, Ardian Syaf, Scott Clark & Joe Prado
Cover by Gary Frank

Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $2.99

Heading straight ahead toward its story climax, BRIGHTEST DAY #23 ran away from the competition to open up the first week of comic book releases for April. Even the first issue of Marvel's big company event, FEAR ITSELF, was no match for the penultimate issue of DC's post-event series.

The cover teased appearances of recently fallen heroes from the pages of BRIGHTEST DAY to reappear in new forms, and the story by series writers Geoff Johns and Peter Tomasi did not disappoint. The issue picks up with Boston Brand aka Deadman continuing to try and hold back the power of the white lantern and ring from doing to Firestorm and Hawk and Dove what it did to the likes of Hawkman and Hawkgirl.

But as has been the story with Deadman, he is only a pawn for the white energy and with the dark avatar arising, the need for Earth's defenders becoming necessary. With Air, Water, Fire and Earth, BRIGHTEST DAY was only one heart away from bringing forth Captain Planet.

Instead however came representations of the 4 elements to try and hold off the approaching darkness: Hawkman and Hawkgirl representing Air; Firestorm for Fire; Martian Manhunter for Earth; and Aquaman for Water. While they battled the darkness at the edge of Star City Forest, it was left to Deadman, Hawk and Dove to defend the tree with a last page reveal that had to surprise everyone reading.

There laid Earth's ultimate savior, Alec Holland aka the Swamp Thing.

The art continues to be a collaboration between several artists yet the book flows smoothly without any of the jarring transitions seen sometimes in books with multiple artists. The high level of quality talent on the book is a sure contributor, with even the cover being drawn by Gary Frank who created a stunning piece with the 4 elementals that debut in the issue.

With only one issue left before the end, BRIGHTEST DAY has been a surprisingly consistent title over the last year - something I did not entirely expect from such a long story. Like the art side of the book, having top writing talent was definitely a factor of the quality and while BRIGHTEST DAY is coming to an end I will definitely be reading the next big books Johns and Tomasi put their focus on.

If you have not been able to keep up with the series, a BRIGHTEST DAY collection is certainly something to keep an eye out for when trade paperbacks for the series are released. An entertaining must read for comic book fans.

COMIC: Top of the Stack - Green Lantern #61 (Review)

Written by Geoff Johns
Pencils by Doug Mahnke
Cover by Gary Frank

Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $2.99

Sometimes the best is saved for last and for the final week of 2010, Geoff Johns made it seem that way. Following last week's Top of the Stack winner, Green Lantern: Larfleeze Christmas Special #1, another GL book - the flagship title: Green Lantern, also penned by Johns - came out and ran away from the competition that included the premiere issue of David Finch's Batman: The Dark Knight and another issue of a previous Stack winner, Detective Comics.

The issue continues the hunt for the power entities, except that the focus of the story shifts specifically around Atrocitus and where his search for the rage entity, Butcher, leads him. Where the fun happens centers around the execution of a criminal and the full of rage victim's father that attracted the rage entity to him. In the entity's way is The Spectre who objects to having the entity on Earth. Atrocitus arrives on the scene and the three face off.

Art interiors are drawn by Doug Mahnke, the series regular artist since the Blackest Night Green Lantern event in 2009. His Atrocitus is great, the Spectre was fantastic, but I think the best designed character in the book was the Butcher once he found his human host. Gary Frank's style on the cover was such a great complement to the book that I had not even realized it was a different artist from the interior until writing this review. I definitely think he is an artist that I would like to see draw an arc filled with Green Lantern characters.

I had been tiring of the Green Lantern universe of late, but the last two issues have moved the focus to non-GL corps characters and helped improve my view of those characters. The universe has expanded over the Geoff Johns revitalization, and if this is any sign that Johns knows it is time to round out all of these new characters it might be just what the Green Lantern book needs to keep going strong.

Check out Geek Plate's Tumblr for today's Green Lantern themed picspam.