Red Hood and the Outlaws 3 (January 2012)

Unbelievable. Lobdell has this all knowing kid god look into the histories of the cast because they’re so “curious.” Nothing like the writer creating characters who tell the reader the lame characters are really, really interesting.

Also interesting is a detail about Starfire’s memory. I thought Lobdell had given interviews she and Jason are just messing with Roy about her being an anterograde amnesiac (or whatever) and she’s not really a brainless nymphomaniac. This issue directly contradicts that explanation. She really is a brainless nymphomaniac.

And how can Green Arrow have a sidekick in his twenties if he’s in his twenties now? The logic editing of the new DC Universe is just dreadful.

Rocafort’s scenery drawing skills come in handy, but he’s bad at giant monsters and humanoid figures.

Lobdell unexpectedly finishes on a sappy note. It’s lame, desperate, and nearly sincere.

Sincere or not, Red Hood is still awful.

CREDITS

Cherish is the Word I Use — to Destroy You!; writer, Scott Lobdell; artist, Kenneth Rocafort; colorist, Blond; letterer, Pat Brosseau; editors, Katie Kubert and Bobbie Chase; publisher, DC Comics.

Red Hood and the Outlaws 2 (December 2011)

Now, I know Lobdell explained the whole “Starfire is a nymphomaniac” thing as something subversively feminist or whatever, but why are all the other female characters in Red Hood nymphomaniacs too? Maybe even more so than Starfire, who Lobdell here portrays as a dumber, more insipid version of Paris Hilton.

He also seems to really dislike Jason Todd as a character, mocking the resurrection of the character, but also his famous death. Why Jason Todd dying is still part of DC continuity is perplexing. Why not fix things with the new DC Universe instead of perpetuate the silliness?

As for Roy Harper, Lobdell seems to like him even less. He portrays Roy as a constantly unfunny moron (whereas Jason Todd is a rock star).

Rocafort proves he can draw scenery really well. There’s this magical city out of Immortal Iron Fist and Rocafort nails it.

Shame everything else is mediocre.

CREDITS

Shot Through the Heart — and Who’s to Blame?; writer, Scott Lobdell; artist, Kenneth Rocafort; colorist, Blond; letterer, Carlos M. Mangual; editors, Katie Kubert and Bobbie Chase; publisher, DC Comics.

Red Hood and the Outlaws 1 (November 2011)

With Red Hood and the Outlaws, I feel like DC is drawing a line in the sand. Female readers need not apply. While Lobdell is an awful writer on every level possible, he also gets to be the one to reveal Starfire is a mentally impaired nymphomaniac. She’s genetically incapable of forming long term memories about humans (all Tamaraneans are) and so she has sex with everyone she can. I’m not sure, but there’s a question of whether she’s able to give consent.

It doesn’t stop Lobdell and artist Kenneth Rocafort from objectifying her, in fact it seems to encourage them.

Lobdell isn’t able to distinguish between his male characters (Jason Todd and Roy Harper) so Rocafort has the job of making them look different enough.

Jokes about Lobdell’s terrible writing aside, there’s something seriously wrong with DC thinking this comic is all right in the way it portrays women.

CREDITS

I Fought the Law and Kicked its Butt!; writer, Scott Lobdell; artist, Kenneth Rocafort; colorist, Blond; letterer, Carlos M. Mangual; editors, Katie Kubert and Bobbie Chase; publisher, DC Comics.