Comics

The Flash Promo Shows New Female Speedster ‘Trajectory’

The Flash is on hiatus, but they released a promo for the next episode to tide us over — and we get our first glance at Trajectory.

In the comics, Trajectory enjoyed a brief three-issue run as a superhero granted powers by Lex Luthor. She dreamed of joining the Teen Titans as the next Kid Flash. But when she proved difficult for Luthor to control, he stripped her of her powers in the middle of a battle with the supervillain Blockbuster, and she was killed.

Trajectory
Trajectory

The television version of Trajectory appears to be quite different — a petty thief who engages in high-speed mischief that gets attributed to the Flash. It will be interesting to see where her powers come from and just how “bad” she really is. Are we looking at the Flash’s version of Catwoman? Or is she part of a more sinister conspiracy?

In either case, another speedster is sure to catch the eye of this season’s “big bad” Zoom — which could put this Trajectory on the same tragic path as her comic-book predecessor.

The Flash episode “Trajectory” airs on the CW, Tuesday, March 22.

New Daredevil Teaser Shows Elektra in Action

Netflix keeps revealing little snippets here and there of the upcoming Daredevil season 2 to keep our interest piqued. It’s a strategy that worked spectacularly well for Jessica Jones, and it is succeeding here as well. We’ve already met Frank Castle, a.k.a. “The Punisher.” Now we get our first glimpse of assassin and love interest Elektra Natchios, played by Elodie Yung, in action.

From the video description:

Just when Matt thinks he is bringing order back to the city, new forces are rising in Hell’s Kitchen. Now the Man Without Fear must take on a new adversary in Frank Castle and face an old flame – Elektra Natchios.

Daredevil season 2 premieres on Netflix on March 18th in the US and UK.

First Look: Vixen Makes Her Debut on This Week’s ‘Arrow’

This week’s episode of Arrow, “Taken,” finally sees the debut of Megalyn Echikunwoke as a live-action Mari McCabe, a.k.a. the animal-powered superheroine known as Vixen.

The CW let us know Vixen was coming quite some time ago, leaking a promo image and releasing a series of animated web shorts on the CW Seed which also featured Echikunwoke. The animated series has recently been renewed for a second season, and now we get to meet Vixen in the flesh.

Here’s hoping that — like The Flash before her — this is a back-door pilot for a stand-alone live-action Vixen television show. Another superhero show that not only features a woman but a woman of color?

I didn’t think I would ever live to see the day.

Here’s the official CW synopsis of this week’s episode.

VIXEN JOINS TEAM ARROW

Oliver (Stephen Amell) realizes he needs help battling Darhk (guest star Neal McDonough) so he calls in an old friend – Vixen (guest star Megalyn E.K.). Using her magical ability to summon animal powers, Vixen gets a lock on Darhk’s location and the team goes to war. Meanwhile, Thea (Willa Holland) has a heart-to-heart talk with Malcolm (John Barrowman).

Arrow is shown on Wednesdays at 8 / 7c on the CW.

Ms. Marvel Wins Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity in Comics

The excellent Ms. Marvel won the second annual “Dwayne McDuffie Award for Diversity in Comics” at the Long Beach Comic Expo this past weekend. On top of honoring the best in diversity in comics, the event also was an opportunity for friends and associates of the highly regarded McDuffie, a veteran comic-book and cartoon writer, to share stories about their late friend and celebrate his accomplishments.

Appearing via video, Ms. Marvel writer G. Willow Wilson told a story about a disagreement she had with McDuffie over DC comics Vixen, who they were both writing on separate books at the time.

Ms. Marvel covers the exploits of Kamala Khan, a teenage, Muslim, Pakistani-American superhero defending her hometown of Jersey City.

The other nominees were Moon Girl and the Devil Dinosaur, by Amy Reeder, Brandon Montclare, and Natacha Bustos; Andre The Giant Closer to Heaven, by Brandon Easton and Denis Medri; Zana, by Jean Barker and Joey Granger; and Fresh Romance, edited by Janelle Asselin.

via Comics Alliance

In The Bag: February 17, 2016

One of the hardest things about reading comics is knowing where to start. Your LCS carries hundreds of titles and gets dozens of issues in every week on new comic-book day. On top of that, many comics have complex mythologies and backstories that make it hard to just pick up any random issue and have a clue what is going on.

That’s why Heroic Girls recommends comics every week that are excellent “jumping on” points for new readers. Without further ado, here are our picks for the week of February 17, 2016.

Astro City #32

Astro City #32 - Cover by Alex Ross
Astro City #32 – Cover by Alex Ross

Kurt Busiek’s Astro City is one of the best ongoing titles in comics today. Together with longtime collaborators Brent Anderson (pencils) and Alex Ross (covers and designs), Busiek creates a world the  is both brand new and strangely familiar — playing with the idea that a word filled with superheroes is a setting rather than a genre.

While the capes and tights set do battle intergalactic threats and super powered villains, the focus in Astro City is usually on the people standing nearby. A woman who works as a secretary for a super-powered family, an older hero looking to raise a family, and in this installment: a former supervillain who is trying to be the hero of his run down neighborhood.

This issue begins a new storyline, and marks the return of Steeljack, a villain/hero that Busiek introduced us to once before. You don’t need much backstory to understand what is happening in this issue though. Steeljack has retired from villainy and is trying to make it a private investigator, when suddenly a woman from his past shows up and causes trouble.

It’s classic hard-boiled detective tropes seen through the prism of a world with superpowers, and as usual, it works phenomenally well.

Mighty Thor #4

Mighty Thor #4 - cover by Michael Cho
Mighty Thor #4 – cover by Michael Cho

I never do this, but I am judging a book by its cover. Just look at the gorgeous art Michael Cho is giving us this week on this variant cover for Thor #4. It is simply phenomenal. The story inside that cover is pretty darn good as well.

The new female Thor continues to fight for what is right as all of the nine realms are in danger of falling to war and strife. Malkeith the Accursed, leader of the dark elves of Nifelheim, has created a dark alliance of villains that Thor has virtually no chance of beating. Frost giants, elves, the Enchantress and an evil oil company (aren’t they all, though) have all allied against our neophyte heroine.

To make thing worse, Odin the Allfather, king of the gods is back after an extended absence, and as he re-establishes a despotic patriarchy he threatens to embroil all of Asgard in a civil war!

Power Man and Iron Fist #1

Power Man and Iron Fist #1 - cover by Chris Visions
Power Man and Iron Fist #1 – cover by Chris Visions

After spending a few decades apart, Marvel’s original power couple are getting back together. I have to admit, this is  a bit of a blind buy for me, but I have always loved these two heroes who were born from ’70s exploitation films (blacksploitation and chop-socky kung fu, respectively.)

Luke Cage (Power Man) and Danny Rand (Iron Fist) have gotten back together to clean up the mean streets of New York City. The art looks great and I am really digging Luke with a beard, button-down shirt and a vest.

Both of these characters are getting the Netflix treatment as series in the next few years, so expect more than a few mentions of Cage’s wife, Jessica Jones. I’m rolling the dice on this one, but I have a good feeling.

Secret Six #11

Secret Six #11 - cover by Dale Eaglesham
Secret Six #11 – cover by Dale Eaglesham

Gail Simone’s Secret Six is proving to be every bit as engaging in its second iteration as it was the first time around. Told from the point of view of a team of down on their luck supervillains, Secret Six achieves the amazing goal of making you want the bad guys to win, no matter what the consequences, as long as they treat each other with honor — which they do.

In the last story, arc the team fought hero and villain alike as they almost brought about the end the entire world in a desperate attempt to save one of their own. But there is no rest for the wicked, as this issue kicks off a new story line. A terrifying new enemy has targeted one of the team, and as a bonus: Catman squares off against Batgirl.

Tomb Raider #1

Tomb Raider #1 - cover by Agustin Alessio
Tomb Raider #1 – cover by Agustin Alessio

Lara Croft’s adventures continue in this sequel to the award-winning video game “Rise of the Tomb Raider.” As a character, Croft was most famously known for her chest size rather than her characterization or gameplay. But as videogame technology has matured, so have the people making them.

The latest take on Croft emphasises her competence, intelligence and tenacity — rather than her physical attributes. With Eisner Award winning writer Mariko Tamaki (This One Summer) handling story duties, Croft may finally be the successor to Indiana Jones that we were hoping for.