Faster than a DC Bullet: Birds of Prey, Part XII: Metropolis or Dust

Comic trade paperback, 126 pages
Published 2008 (contents: 2008)
Borrowed from the library
Read March 2013

Birds of Prey: Metropolis or Dust

Writer: Sean McKeever
Penciller: Nicola Scott
Inker: Doug Hazlewood
Letterers: Swands, John J. Hill, Nick J. Napolitano

There's a new writer on Birds of Prey again, and this time it's Sean McKeever, known to you and me as the writer of Spider-Man Loves Mary Jane. Nicola Scott and Doug Hazlewood are still there on art, in their fourth volume, which makes this the most consistent Birds of Prey art team to date. Bravo! Also they still rock.

Metropolis or Dust never quite clicked for me-- it certainly doesn't rise to the heights of Mary Jane, though of course McKeever's doing nothing like that book here. There are two main plots: Oracle, Misfit, and Black Alice investigating a magical weapons ring, while Lady Blackhawk and the Huntress look into someone from Lady Blackhawk's past.

The former of these is... not great, with an out-of-character Superman, not to mention the constant bickering between Misfit and Black Alice, which is not at all interesting. I've seen a decent amount of fan venom addressed toward Misfit on-line, but I like here... except in this book. Which is odd, because McKeever is actually really good at writing teen characters normally. The vague conspiracy and villains didn't really light the imagination much.

The other one has a lot of good moments-- Lady Blackhawk attacking a volcano is great, and the underwater scenes are gorgeous and spooky-- but overall it's kinda meh. Are we still doing this Unwilling Bride of Evil thing in the 21st century?