It's hard to believe that we're already six months into DC Comics ' bold and controversial relaunch, now widely known as their New 52. It gave the comic book industry a buzz that it hadn't received in quite some time, and reinvigorated the fans (both positively and negatively).

Action+Comics

B

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/114/114414.html'>All-Star+Western</a>

C+

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110831.html'>Animal+Man</a>

A

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/105/105458.html'>Aquaman</a>

B

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110663.html'>Batgirl</a>

B-

Batman

A

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110617.html'>Batman+and+Robin</a>

B-

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110600.html'>Batman:+The+Dark+Knight</a>+

D-

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110597.html'>Batwing</a>+

B-

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/070/070345.html'>Batwoman</a>

A-

+Birds+of+Prey+

C

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/114/114432.html'>Blackhawks</a>

D+

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/113/113973.html'>Blue+Beetle</a>

C

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110459.html'>Captain+Atom</a>

C

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110665.html'>Catwoman</a>

D-

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110439.html'>DC+Universe+Presents</a>

C

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/113/113121.html'>Deathstroke</a>

C

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110834.html'>Demon+Knights</a>

B-

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110636.html'>Detective+Comics</a>

C-

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110352.html'>The+Flash</a>

B

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110836.html'>Frankenstein,+Agent+of+S.H.A.D.E</a>.

B-

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110354.html'>The+Fury+of+Firestorm</a>

D+

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110433.html'>Green+Arrow</a>

F

<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110452.html'>Green+Lantern</a>

B-

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110488.html'>Green+Lantern+Corps</a>

C+

+<a+class='autolink'+href='https://comics.ign.com/objects/110/110490.html'>Green+Lantern:+The+New+Guardians</a>

C-

But having just passed the issue #6 mark for the original New 52, a lot has changed. Books have been cancelled , creative teams have shuffled , and creative directions have changed. That's why we've created the New 52 Progress Report, a quick, summarized status update of DC's original relaunch books, along with our future outlook for the series and an average letter gradeIf you've been holding out for the last few months to gauge what books to add/drop, consider this our definitive take on the current status of DC's New 52. Action Comic s is rebuilding the Superman mythos from the ground floor, making it a completely accessible book for new readers. Grant Morrison clearly has a long-form story to tell that has been getting progressively more epic.The long form story approach has been this series' double-edged sword. While we love Morrison for how he plans out his stories far into the future, in the case of Action Comics, it's made the book feel slow during its first six months.We foresee Action Comics only getting better as Morrison gets deeper into his contemporary retelling of the origin of the Man of Steel and beyond.One of the best aspects of All-Star Western is the diversity it offers to the initial New 52 lineup. We don't see many western books these days, so having All-Star Western in our stable is an added bonus. On top of that, this series is proving that Jonah Hex can sustain a series built upon actual story arcs instead of just done-in-ones.The biggest thing holding All-Star Western back is the book's art. Sometimes it delivers in spades, while other times it looks muddled and rushed, hurting the overall product in the process.With All-Star Western soon tying into the upcoming Night of the Owls Batman crossover, we think this series is on the up and up. We've been loving All-Star Western's winks and nods to what Gotham eventually becomes, and Night of the Owls should offer plenty more where that came from.Pretty much everything. The story by Jeff Lemire is both terrifying and humbling, following the Baker family through their ups, downs and encounters with the Rot. And with artist Travel Foreman, the grotesque visuals of Animal Man have matched Lemire's haunting script stride for stride. There really isn't anything worth complaining about thus far when it comes to Animal Man.The only thing letting us down about Animal Man is that we have to wait a month between issues. It's absolutely killing us.With Lemire's Animal Man and Scott Snyder's Swamp Thing soon coming together for an epic, unofficial crossover, we can't see Animal Man dipping in quality any time soon. With that said, we are nervous about artist Steve Pugh stepping in to fill the artistic void left when Travel Foreman leaves the series. However, our fears are slightly calmed by the fact that Pugh drew a good portion of the '90s Animal Man series.Geoff Johns has made Aquaman cool. That in and of itself is worth a lot of praise. But Johns isn't alone; artist Ivan Reis is a large reason why this book is so great. Reis' pencils are larger than life and absolutely stunning. He's proven himself one hell of an Aquaman artist.The only time that Aquaman has really disappointed us is when Joe Prado stepped in to pencil issue #6 over Reis' layouts. It was an inconsistent mess that really distracted from the story in the end. Otherwise, Aquaman has been a solid book.It's apparent that Johns has a massive story to tell with the former king of Atlantis, and we've only seen the tip of the iceberg thus far.Seeing Babs back in action as Batgirl is certainly a treat, and Gail Simone has fallen right back into the swing of things with the character after leaving Birds of Prey behind in the old DCU. Her villains have been twisted and interesting, and the supporting cast is growing steadily.Admittedly, the miracle of having Barbara walk again is a bit ham-fisted, despite Simone making a valiant effort to have the tragedy of The Killing Joke remain as a focal point to the character. In addition, the art has hit some rough patches.Simone is building towards big things with a larger integration with the Bat-family as a whole. If the art can gain consistency and the villains stay interesting, Batgirl should have no problem being another worthwhile Bat-book.What isn't there to enjoy about this series thus far? Scott Snyder's writing has been incredibly sharp, and Greg Capullo's art has been wondrously expressive. So far, this has been one awesome Batman story, challenging every aspect of the character's personality.We have absolutely no complaints here. Everything about Batman has been great. We hope the consistent quality of this series remains intact for a long time.The future looks good for Batman, as a series. As far as Batman the character goes, things are only going to get darker as we head into the Night of the Owls crossover. We're excited.We get a behind-the-scenes look at the strained relationship between father Bruce and son Damian. In addition, Patrick Gleason's moody art is a perfect fit for this series as it conveys the dark, brooding nature of our titular characters.If there's one thing to complain about with Batman and Robin, it's that the book relies too heavily on exposition-filled flashbacks. These moments, while important, kill the pacing of the series and read more like an encyclopedia than a superhero comic.Once this series gets itself removed from the past, we think things will turn around for the better. The writing is solid and the art is great, we just need a story that's a little bit stronger.Most of the appeal of this series is the artwork of David Finch, who (mostly) delivers on the gruff, moody artwork that we've come to expect from him. It's also a treat to see regular guest appearances by notable Batman villains that are absent elsewhere.This book is lowest common denominator. It relies on its name value to sell, certainly not its quality. It's full of cliches, terrible dialog, absurd character choices, poor plot and character development, and action for action's sake. If you like depth, intelligence, and forward progression in your comics, this one isn't for you.Writer of the acclaimed Penguin: Pain and Prejudice mini-series, Gregg Hurwitz, is coming on board with issue #10, so we're actually somewhat optimistic about the future of this series. If Hurwitz can bring the same skills he brought to Penguin, The Dark Knight will hopefully see a rise in quality that makes its best-selling status justified.Judd Winick's take on the "Batman of Africa" has been politically savvy without sacrificing character or the larger context of the universe in which it exists. Ben Oliver's art has also been solid, offering a painterly quality to the sometimes extremely violent landscape of Africa.The biggest problem of the book is its pacing. While it started strong with a foreword progression, as its worn on there was a little too much focus on exposition-riddled backstory. The last issue seemed to rectify that, so hopefully it's full steam ahead from here on out.Winick seems to have a definite plan in mind when it comes to Batwing, and though the pacing has been sporadic, it's looking like this book is heading further and further into the seedy city of Tinasha.The first thing that stands out about Batwoman is the book's jaw-dropping art. J.H. Williams III is absolutely killing it on this series. In addition, Williams and Haden Blackman have concocted a really interesting story centered around Kate Kane and her supporting cast.Is it selfish of us to want our cake and eat it too? By that we mean that we want J.H. Williams drawing every panel of this book (which he's taking a break from right now). We don't mean to slight Amy Reeder -- her work has been solid, too -- but we can't get enough Williams art in our life.After the cliffhanger in issue #5, it looks like the world of Batwoman is about to get larger and a lot more intense. This series has been solid thus far, so we see no reason why it won't continue down that path.First and foremost, Duane Swierczynski's new creation of Starling is a welcome addition to the DCU, and by far the book's most promising aspect. In addition, Birds of Prey has slowly increased the cast and upped the ante of the plot while exploring a new take on the beloved team.The book suffers from an awkward pace, introducing characters frequently and jump-cutting to flashbacks/flashforwards with reckless abandon. It's not a deal breaker, but containing the focus would be appreciated. Plus, none of the characters themselves have been fully explored yet, despite the charm of Starling and the rest of the cast.While Animal Man is losing Travel Foreman, Birds of Prey is gaining him. It's for this reason, combined with the anticipation of the reveal of Starling's origins, that the outlook for Birds of Prey is looking mighty pretty.The best thing that we can say about Blackhawks is that it meshes the DCU with the flair of G.I. Joe. There's also a sprinkle of Metal Gear Solid thrown in for good measure.One of the biggest problems with Blackhawks is that it doesn't know what it wants to be. Like we mentioned, Blackhawks takes a lot of inspiration from franchises like G.I. Joe and Metal Gear, but it never finds its own identity amidst those inspirations to distinguish itself from those more popular franchises. Also, the art is too inconsistent for our tastes.Not good at all. In fact, Blackhawks will not make it past its eighth issue in April. The series has been cancelled to make way for DC's "second wave" of New 52 titles.The art by Ig Guara does a solid job blending the bombastic nature of super heroics with the down-to-earth tone of high school drama. Additionally, where a lot of the New 52 have seen multiple artists, Blue Beetle has remained consistent with Guara behind the drawing board.Unfortunately, Blue Beetle has been a little slow coming out of the gates. Writer Tony Bedard is still trying to find his footing with the series, which has led to some problematic pacing issues and awkwardly grating "spanglish" dialogue for our Hispanic lead characters.Things are looking up for Blue Beetle. With how issue #6 ended, Bedard may have finally found a solid jumping point for Jaime Reyes in the New 52 DCU.J.T. Krul managed to successfully distance Captain Atom from Doctor Manhattan (despite the latter being based on the former), but retained the same sense of tragedy and sci-fi insanity that made the Watchmen character great. We're loving Krul's wide scope and apparent big plans that he's got cooking.The art of Freddie Williams II is often muddied, though when he goes big on the sci-fi scope this problem disappears. There have also been missteps in plot, leaving a few issues to feel completely irrelevant to the overall story.We hope that Captain Atom is able to find an audience and stay afloat, because it's clear that Krul has a pretty large canvas that he plans on filling, but the pacing and structure of the book is going to need the space for the story to be told.Judd Winick has brought back the heist-y sense of fun that Catwoman has been lacking since the Brubaker days. Unfortunately, that's about all we can say about the pros.Where to start? Even with the absurd sexual content that the book launched with aside, Catwoman is full of bland characterization for its supporting cast and an overabundance of gratuitous cheesecake artwork that is more concerned with pretty pin-ups than telling a story. What could (and should) be one of the premier female-led titles is hardly anything more than a farce.It doesn't look like there's going to be any significant changes in the months to come. With Winick and March firmly in place, the book will likely continue to teeter between decent installments and completely terrible ones. We don't like what we see when we look into the future of Catwoman.We love the idea of an anthology series that spotlights DCU characters unlikely to get their own ongoing book. It also serves as a potential forum for new creators to get a shot in the DCU, though that hasn't quite happened yet. Plus, the implied interconnected nature of the different arcs could make for a truly remarkable large-scale story when all is said and done.The most recent arc that just kicked off was severely underwhelming. The con of an anthology-style book is that if one arc features a story, character, or creator not to your liking, the book falls off your pull list for the next few months.We don't know yet what's coming beyond the current Challengers of the Unknown arc, but if DC continues to focus on B and C-list characters in different narratives that are strung together in some way, we're game. Hopefully the arc can up the ante in the months to come. And please, keep Ryan Sook on covers forever.Kyle Higgins managed to humanize Deathstroke in a way that was realistic without getting sappy and also managed to avoid cliches. The book is dumb fun, but dumb fun rendered with some heart and consistent artwork.Deathstroke got off to a bit of a rough start and took a few issues to gain traction. Additionally, the plot is predictable, despite the quality of the actual characterization and pacing. There have been some small instances of going off on narrative (and artistic) tangents, but nothing that has been too detrimental to the overall quality of the book.Not good at all. With Higgins being removed in favor of Rob Liefeld (on both writing and art duties), this book is going to plummet fast. We continue to have our brains boggled as to why Liefeld is handed work. Wasn't the point of the New 52 to reinvigorate comics, not devolve them? Deathstroke is a prime example of DC going back on those words, taking a fresh new talent off a book and replacing him with a dull old one.It's a team book that focuses on a unique quadrant of the grander DCU. Furthermore, Paul Cornell is clearly having a blast writing these characters, while artist Diogenes Neves continues to blow us away with his expressive art depicting dinosaurs wielding swords and shields.If we have to complain about something, it's that the book has been rather slow paced. We're still reading about how our team of misfits is holding the line to defend a small town after six issues.What we've read thus far we've enjoyed immensely. Honestly, we can't see this series taking a sharp dive into suckage anytime soon. We're hoping great things are to come once this first story finally wraps.If you're looking for a gritty Batman story, Detective is your ticket. Tony Daniel has also upped his game when it comes to the book's art. Oh, and we saw Joker's face get cut off.After a solid four issues, Tony Daniel seems to have lost focus with his story. We're jumping all over the place with too many characters being spotlighted. Daniel needs to reel things back in if he wants our full attention again. Also, no more "Occupy Joker" rallies. That was a really dumb idea.The future of Detective is very cloudy, indeed. If Daniel can tone down the overly dramatic Batman narration speak (cue David Caruso), as well as find a focal point for his stories, then Detective could get back on track. But if we continue down this road, nothing good will come of it.Firstly, The Flash is one of the prettiest books coming out of DC thanks to artist Francis Manapul and colorist Brian Buccellato. Furthermore, Manapul and Buccellato are pulling double duty as writers of this new series, which is a refreshing take on Barry Allen's Flash adventures.There are a few suspect things about this new take on the Flash that we have a hard time wrapping our heads around. For starters, Barry and Iris aren't a couple, and that breaks our hearts. Additionally, Manapul and Buccellato's take on Captain Cold has us feeling, ahem, cold thus far.With how Manapul and Buccellato are building the Flash's power set, we feel this book is going to get more intense as the months continue to pass. There have been epic things teased, and we fully expect Manapul and Buccellato to deliver the goods. The Flash hasn't been this fun in a long time, so we're happy to stick around.This is one of the New 52's quirkiest titles thanks to the high-concept ideas Lemire slings around like it's no one's business. We love the entire cast of this book, and artist Alberto Ponticelli's pencils make for a perfectly grotesque fit for a book of this nature.While we love the art of this book, there are times when it's hard to decipher due to there being so much going on in any given panel. But it's a small price to pay for an otherwise solid series.The future of Frankenstein is in flux. Jeff Lemire is stepping down from the series to take over Justice League Dark , leaving Matt Kindt to step in and fill his shoes. Kindt has collaborated with Lemire before on not only Sweet Tooth at Vertigo but also the final issue of Men at War, which drops in April. With that in mind, the transition from Lemire to Kindt could very well be a smooth one. We remain cautiously optimistic.The revamped "mythos" surrounding the Firestorm Protocols is a great idea with tons of potential, despite most of it not having been met thus far. Additionally, the book's recent renewed focus on politics and science began to move it in an interesting new direction.The characterization is almost non-existent, and what little there is is extremely hackneyed. The book relies on stereotypes of race and high school cliques, leaving little to identify with beyond two-dimensional cutouts of the worst coming-of-age flicks. The art is inconsistent and cluttered as well.Gail Simone has left this book behind, leaving Ethan Van Sciver and new co-writer Joe Harris to try and salvage the remains of Firestorm. While we're not confident in this book gaining traction anytime soon, we'd love nothing more than having a must-read Firestorm book each and every month. It just doesn't look like this creative team is going to make it happen.The art team of Dan Jurgens and George Perez was commendable, akin to an education on superhero storytelling.Green Arrow suffers from an identity crisis, unsure of its direction, characterization of its lead hero, and even its thematic content. The book shifted direction somewhat with the exit of J.T. Krul after only a few issues, but never stuck to its guns. Green Arrow offered nothing endearing about any of its characters and the plot is tired.Despite the book's very rough start, we're actually optimistic. With Ann Nocenti and Harvey Tolibao taking over as of issue #7, we're hoping that the latest adventures of Oliver Queen can be salvaged. Nocenti's beloved run on Daredevil from the late 80s-early 90s is hopefully a strong indicator of what's to come from Green Arrow.After all the epicness of the Sinestro Corps War and Blackest Night, it's nice to have a Green Lantern book that's fun again instead of constantly trying to one-up itself with events. Also, having Sinestro in the starring role just feels right considering he's been the crux of Geoff Johns' entire Green Lantern saga to date.We honestly don't know where this series is headed at this juncture. Is it a book starring Sinestro, or one that's just treading water until Hal Jordan makes his triumphant return back to being Earth's main protector? In addition, the art by Doug Mahnke has been a little too sporadic for our tastes, ranging from absolutely stunning to seemingly half-assed.The future for Green Lantern is looking good. Geoff Johns and Doug Mahnke have no intentions of leaving the series anytime soon, and we imagine once Hal has his ring back we'll be heading right towards the next big thing for the Green Lantern mythos.As one might expect from Guy Gardner, this book is full of spectacular action sequences that are rendered with punch by artist Fernando Pasarin. Writer Peter Tomasi continues to give Gardner the center of attention he enjoyed in Emerald Warriors, with plenty of one-liners to boot.Because there is so much action in this book, plot progression and characterization takes somewhat of a back seat. Tomasi's choices for certain characters are also questionable at times, most notably when it comes to can't-catch-a-break Lantern John Stewart.Tomasi continues to explore the depths of the Green Lantern Corps like he's been doing for years. We have no reason to expect that the series will deviate in quality much in the near future, but hopefully the writer can return to the character-centric approach he's known for.New Guardians further explores the fallout of Blackest Night by focusing on the various Lantern Corps created in its wake. Having a Kyle Rayner-led GL book is a treat for fans, and Tony Bedard's engaging characterization is present throughout. Plus: Larfleeze.The artwork is relatively sporadic here, much more than it was in Tyler Kirkham's previous efforts on a GL series. The pacing is also crawling along at a snail's pace, only just recently establishing the "team" in their final form as they move toward a common goal.The Green Lantern mythos is continuing to expand ferociously; as long as New Guardians can stay relevant to that and keep up with the times, we see no reason that this book won't continue to fill the multi-colored Lantern void. While it's definitely the most arbitrary of the GL books, it's looking like it will remain enjoyable nonetheless.