The Brave and the Bold # 1

The Brave and the Bold # 1: Roulette (The Lords of Luck Chapter 1)

Mark Waid/George Perez/Bob Wiacek/Tom Smith/Rob Leigh/Joey Cavalieri
Cover: George Perez/Tom Smith
April, 2007 (released February 21, 2007)
DC
$2.99

Plot Highlights: Green Lantern and Batman stumble into an intriguing murder mystery and join forces to find out more, which they eventually do.

I have looked from afar with a certain longing at comics drawn by George Perez over the years. He mostly draws projects for DC. Projects that are deeply ensconced in the history and details of their super-hero universe sometimes using scores of characters per issue. Projects that a more casual DC reader, like myself, might not necessarily find all that entertaining. I have not read much by Mark Waid, but lately I am interested in his current Supergirl and the Legion of Super-Heroes issues. As far as dedicated hero team-up books go, generally, I have not read much of those either. Of the most recent 25 issue run of Marvel Team-Up I only recall buying two issues. Team-ups are fairly common in solo hero titles though, so I have read plenty.

Summing all those factors, this new title feels very promising. With Green Lantern as a favorite of mine, Batman, and creators with good reputations in the first issue my expectations are high. With just a pair of headliners, I can be more sure of the kind of character interaction I will get. Green Lantern and Batman could conceivably go several issues in a comic with a larger cast, like JLA, without talking to each other or getting to show their skills either individually or in combination.

The two covers for this issue are similar enough that I am unsure as to why they bothered to produce more than one. Aside from the one I have (see above), you may view the other version here. I suppose the good part about it is that even if one is unavailable for purchase, there aren't serious differences. Both show the hero characters in a classic pose or action moment with Green Lantern's ring shining. The cover design itself is interesting as logos of the two lead heroes in the issue are essentially given slightly greater prominence, through size and coloring, than the title of the book itself, surely in an effort to draw in those with specific interest in those characters. I wonder if this will continue on future covers, especially if there are more than a couple of featured characters at a time.

Since Batman and Superman already have a monthly book together, replacing at least one of them here seems like an obvious decision to give the book something unique. Given beginning with a murder mystery, keeping Batman's detective skills available for story purposes makes leaving out Superman easy enough. Enter Green Lantern for any brute force and quick flights needed. The perfect addition for me, because I was in the mood for an extra Green Lantern story. Looking ahead, it seems Supergirl and Blue Beetle will show up in the first few issues to help out Green Lantern and Batman.

The story so far though is with Batman and Green Lantern, who are challenged with a mystery investigation and fierce enemy attacks in varied and unexpected locales. Aside from a few less than perfectly clear sequences, this is a solid, if not quite sensational effort, and I look forward to more. It is nice to finally have a chance to collect some issues with Perez art.

As an old Sandman reader I am intrigued to see that an item from that series appears as a principal artifact of interest in the story. With a theme of money and gambling running through the issue, the knowledge granted by this object could allow someone to wager perfectly on future outcomes.