Brightest Day #16

Ah, I guess I got enough Martian Manhunter last issue. This issue keeps up the streak of improvement in the Brightest Day title. Aquaman gives Aqualad some background on his origins and ties to Mera's people, but there still isn't a lot to the new character. I don't know a lot about Mera, so maybe this fits in perfectly and Aqualad II will be a nice addition, but right now, what I like is how much he just wants to go back to his old life. I also notice that Aquaman is still calling dead creatures to help him; those electric eels didn't look so good.

The rest of the issue deals with Firestorm attempting to ratchet back his powers so he won't destroy the world. The JLA and JSA are trying to help, but Ronnie Raymond and Jason Rusch are a volatile combo, so things aren't looking good for a reconciliation. Meanwhile, Deathstorm is torturing Martin Stein and Jason's Dad, promising that he's going to kill off Firestorm in the most agonizing ways possible. Deathstorm is pretty easy to hate, but he's not quite as funny as he was during Blackest Night. I feel like Geoff Johns had his best dialogue for him in that title.

The art is pretty strong in this issue, with lots of goodness from Ivan Reis in the Aquaman pages. At this point, I do have to wonder if a slew of mini's about the different characters might have been easier to read. This jumping around is getting tedious. I'm also dreading a Hawkman issue in two weeks.

Fair