Comic Books

Red Hood and The Outlaws #12 Review

What DC has done with the character since his new Rebirth debut is wonderful.

July 12, 2017

[amazon_link asins=’B071F47YWQ’ template=’AiPTProductAd’ store=’aiptcomics-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’f6d7f057-66b5-11e7-bbe7-cd5ee9e29e20′]

Red Hood and The Outlaws #12, “The Life of Bizarro,” begins with Bizarro on his deathbed, barely alive but still kicking. After the battle for the Bow of Ra, Bizarro had fallen down and appeared dead. Red Hood and Artemis must handle a mission on their own and leave Bizarro to rest and try to hopefully recover.

Listen to the latest episode of our weekly comics podcast!

First of all, that cover is gorgeous. I don’t know how it was never done before but that title and cover with the nod to “The Dead of Superman” is such a perfect choice and it instantly hooks you in. There are a lot covers out there, and plenty of them look great, but so few actually command your attention like this one does. It’s nice to see that the team behind this story takes the characters very seriously. This issue doesn’t feel like your weekly comic book story and just looking at the cover alone with no idea of what it’s about is an attention grabber. This issue in my opinion has the best title and cover of the year by far.

Bizarro has somewhat become the glue that holds this team together and really brings out the best characteristics of both Red Hood and Artemis. You can tell right away the difference in the attitudes of Red Hood and Artemis because of the effect Bizarro has had on them. What DC has done with the character since his new Rebirth debut is wonderful and can no longer be looked at as the “evil Superman clone”; he can now be described as “hero”. He never gives up and is always ready to head into battle with no questions asked because this version of Bizarro knows and understands the difference between right and wrong.

Red Hood and The Outlaws #12 Review

Solomon Grundy was a really great character to see and I hope we get to see much more of. His role as the main antagonist of this issue was a great choice and had a ton of comedic moments. The art is beautifully well crafted by Dexter Soy.

[amazon_link asins=’B071F47YWQ’ template=’BottomAdAIPT’ store=’aiptcomics-20′ marketplace=’US’ link_id=’8fa92fe8-66b6-11e7-b27f-4ff8c9446bd8′]

Scott Lobdell has done a great job on each characters’ stories and personalities. These characters are misfits and outsiders and don’t seem to care about anyone but themselves, and if they do care they hide it to avoid getting too close to those people. Red Hood has rarely shown emotion towards anyone but the way he looks at and talks about Bizarro is amazing. You can really feel for the characters when they’re sitting with Bizarro watching to see if be recovers.

This issue is not one that you want to miss out on. Every character gets more than enough dialogue and page time, and there’s plenty of action, suspense, comedy, and emotional heart wrenching moments that do not disappoint. It’s the start of something new that will reel you in and keep you anxiously waiting to read what’s next. Red Hood and The Outlaws has been one of the few comics that is consistently pouring out great comic book material.