REVIEW: Red Hood/Arsenal #5

WRITER:Â Scott Lobdell
ARTIST(s):Â Denis Medri
LETTERER:Â Dave Sharpe
COLORIST:Â Blond
COVER ARTIST(s):Â Howard Porter, Hi-Fi
PUBLISHER:Â DC Comics
RELEASE DATE: 10/14/2015

The amount of BatFamily interactions we’ve gotten in the past month or so is great. Maybe it’s because it’s the 75th anniversary of Robin, maybe it’s to provide some background forÂ Batman & Robin Eternal and beforeÂ Robin War starts. Point is, though, that it’s great. DC needs to continue this for sure. It’s always a good time when two or more BatFamily characters interact. Whether it beÂ GraysonÂ #12,Â Batman & Robin EternalÂ #1, or just the events ofÂ Endgame, the Family shines when they’re together.Â Red Hood/ArsenalÂ #5 also exemplifies that, with Jason seeing Bruce for the first time since he ‘died’ and sharing a pretty touching moment with his former mentor.

Lobdell and Medri deliver a pretty typical issue for this series so far. Medri excels in light-hearted action scenes, but doesn’t perform well in the more character-driven scenes. Lobdell, the opposite. Lobdell’s greatest foe, as per usual, is his incessant use of inner monologues as well as a sense of humor that is every bit as cringeworthy as it is boring. There’s not much to say here other than the fact that i’m interested to see how this group of villains that keep getting shoved down our throat will turn out. Also, despite being an interesting enough villain to occupy both the Bat and our lovable outlaws, the character of Underbelly will most definitely not be missed.

And speaking of people who have not been missed,Â really DC? Joker’s Daughter? Are you trying to kill any sort of pleasure I take in this series? Who the hell thought thatÂ that’d be a good idea??

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Cedbill

Cedbill is a Las Vegas-based writer who is the founder and head editor at Coast Comics. He currently writes Phantom Squad, Mars Leighton, and Freedom Rave.