Alternates Become Mundane In The Multiversity Deluxe Edition!

The Good: Decent artwork, Moments of plot and character
The Bad: Fourth Wall issue, Characters that are hard to empathize with or care about, Generic villains, Predictible plot progression
The Basics: The Multiversity Deluxe Edition compiles a story that asks readers to re-invest with each chapter and fails to captivate.


When it comes to book reviews, I understand there there is value to be had by thoroughness. I respect thoroughness and I try to deliver it in every review I write. Every now and then, though, there is a concept that fails so spectacularly that it does not warrant a particularly deep exploration of the work. The Multiversity Deluxe Edition is one such concept in graphic novel form. And while it may seem like reducing a 448 page graphic novel into a X paragraph review might seem not particularly fair or useful, The Multiversity hits such a low note with me that it is hard to muster up the effort to write even that much.

The Multiversity in its Deluxe Edition form is a nine-chapter volume that tells a story set in the DC Comics Multiverse and the idea was one that instantly fascinated me and made me excited to read the book. But, the execution of the idea fell so dramatically shy of my hopes and expectations that it became one of the worst literary chores for me to muster myself to get through. The thing is, unlike most works, I know exactly where The Multiversity started to lose me. The Multiversity includes in its narration a series of breaks in the Fourth Wall where the adversaries in the book address the readers directly and use the comic book as a means of propagating itself through the multiverse. As a result, the deluxe edition of The Multiversity effectively reduces the DC Comic Book Universe to a Comic Book Universe even within its own narrative and that entirely guts the reality of the book and all of the threats within it. In other words, The Multiversity forces the reader to accept that they are only reading about comic book characters who have no reality outside the page and as such are not vital individuals in actual mortal peril.

Within The Multiversity Deluxe Edition, the story is familiar and not overly complex, which is somewhat surprising given how most of the chapters occur within entirely different universes from the chapter that preceded and follows it. On one of the many Earths throughout the DC Multiverse, the final Monitor, Nix Uotan is captured by The Gentry, a legion of multiverse terrorizing monsters. While Uotan is captured, a team of great heroes from across the Multiverse assembles and forms the superteam Justice Incarnate to save Nix Uotan and the multiverse itself from the monsters of The Gentry.

The Multiversity Deluxe Edition features such novelties as the Superman Of Earth-23, who is President and a whole chibi Justice League. Several of the chapters are simply stories set on their respective Earth and are used to illustrate how that distinct universe is formed and is dealing with the threats it faces . . . while it is attacked within the story by an insidious comic book that tells of impending threats to the multiverse.

But the whole concept does not allow the reader to invest or care about the characters, as almost every chapter has an entirely different cast of characters and setting. The chapters are essentially glimpses into a different universe before that universe is put behind the reader and they are thrown into an entirely different universe. Then, the reader is given a story that menaces the entire Multiverse . . . without any of the familiar DC Universe characters fighting the war. So, the reader is asked to believe that The Gentry is such an incredible, massive enemy that can destroy the multiverse . . . but that none of the familiar heroes we know and love are up to the task of even being a part of the attempt to save it.

The artwork in The Multiversity Deluxe Edition is excellent. Each chapter for the different universes is rendered in a different style and coloring to make each one distinct. But even the decent artwork is not enough to make the reader care about the characters, the obvious plot, nor make me want to spend more time thinking about the work that failed to engage me.

For other works by Grant Morrison, be sure to check out my reviews of:
52 - Volume 1
JLA: Earth 2
JLA: New World Order
Batman R.I.P.

2/10

For other book reviews, check out my Graphic Novel Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2016 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Resolution With (Largely) Underwhelming Results: 52: Volume 4 Concludes The DC Universe Event!

The Good: Commentary pages, Most of the artwork, Moments of character
The Bad: The final resolution is entirely anticlimactic,
The Basics: Resolving all the disparate elements of the many plotlines to the event, 52 – Volume 4 is fair, not exceptional.


All good things come to an end and with the DC Universe crossover event 52, the end comes over the many chapters of 52 – Volume 4. Because it is the end of the yearlong saga, 52 – Volume 4 is virtually worthless without having read the prior volumes in the series, especially 52 – Volume 3 (reviewed here!). In fact, if one does not read the extensive set-ups in the three prior volumes, it is virtually impossible to care about 52 – Volume 4. After all, despite the reappearance of the Big Three of the DC Universe (albeit in muted, secondary roles), 52 – Volume 4 is very tightly focused on the secondary characters in the DC Universe.

For those unfamiliar with it, Infinite Crisis (reviewed here!) led to a schism in the ranks of the major superheroes. The Big Three (Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman) opted to take a year off and other major heroes had abandoned Earth or were lost (Green Lantern and the Flash) during or after the Crisis. So, the year the big players were out of commission led to minor characters in the DC Universe having their chance to shine and that was a great concept. Unfortunately, the DC Universe is a pretty broad place with a shit-ton of secondary characters to service. Starting with the seeds sewn in 52 – Volume 1 (reviewed here!), 52 – Volume 2 (reviewed here!) grew the story and fully convoluted the multiple directions that the universe was going in before 52 – Volume 3 started to provide answers and make clear some of the foreshadowing in earlier volumes. 52 – Volume 4 brings it all to a close while setting up the next crossover event fairly well.

52 – Volume 4 is a whole boatload of resolutions and it is impossible to discuss the book without spoiling a little bit of Volume 3. In fact, the cover of 52 – Volume 4 spoils a significant aspect of Volume 3 simply by putting a formerly (apparently) dead character on the cover! Unfortunately for those looking for firm resolutions to some of the biggest events in 52, they are not forthcoming, solely because the next big event in the DC Universe needed to focus on one of the primary villains of 52. As well, some of the seeds of Final Crisis are sown in 52 – Volume 4. In other words, while there is a great deal of resolution, there is still a bit of foreshadowing for what comes next, so there is the sense that this Saga falls into a larger continuum of DC Universe history.

With one of the least inspired stories, Rene Montoya (The Question, new) wrestles with the death of Charlie (The Question, original) and rekindles her relationship with Kane (Batwoman, Rene’s ex-lover). Her quest to stop Intergang puts her at odds with Crime Bible fundamentalists and takes her back to Khandaq to meet with Black Adam, who once sentenced her to death. Now, she accepts the mantle of the Question, which seemed like the most obvious possible direction for her character to go.

On Ooolong Island, the crime syndicate manages to actually do something impressive when they use their combined intelligence and resources to capture Black Adam following his destruction of the Four Horsemen. Tortured for weeks, Black Adam is used as a tool by Chung Tzu until the whole villain’s island experiment falls horribly apart.

In deep space, the trio of heroes who is trying to get home finally parts ways with Pope Lobo. And who really cares?

In Metropolis, Natasha has uncovered Lex Luthor’s quest to become a Meta himself and with the help of her uncle, John Henry Irons, she manages to stop the superhuman version of Luthor. However, when his hearing comes up, it is only Clark Kent who is able to stop Lex Luthor and bring him to justice in an entirely mundane resolution to that entire plotline.

What is much more exciting is the way Skeets is finally revealed and stopped. Despite making some temporal abnormalities in the 52 storyline, the villainous Skeets becomes embroiled in a temporal game of cat and mouse with Rip Hunter and Booster Gold. Traveling through time, we discover the villain pulling the strings of Skeets and the resolution to that plot is marginally satisfying. Having had very limited experience with such obscure villains as the one using Skeets as an incubator, I was impressed more by the imagination than the execution of the resolution to that plotline.

Osiris is evicted from the Teen Titans and soon meets a most unfortunate end at the hands of an unlikely enemy in Khandaq. That abrupt turn of events helps push Black Adam over the edge and while there is some resolution to the Black Adam plot, the once sympathetic villain’s killing spree ends up making him virtually impossible to empathize with. He is a godlike man filled with loss and in 52 – Volume 4, he is actually set up to be one of the truly biggest villains in the DC Universe.

The heart and soul of 52 – Volume 4 is in the Ralph Dibny plot. Having searched far and wide for a way to resurrect his murdered wife Sue, Ralph reveals himself to be a much more cunning detective than anyone might have guessed. Here, he not only reveals the villains exploiting him in his quest for resolution to his wife’s untimely death, he reveals just how far ahead of them he was all along and is given an easy-to-empathize with arc resolution. Ralph Dibny becomes an unlikely hero and the way he stops further harm from coming to those who would be his adversary’s victims is downright heroic.

The artwork in 52 – Volume 4 is better than in the prior volumes and that makes the story easy to follow and easy to become engaged in. That makes the book a good resolution to all the prior storylines, if not an exceptional standalone trade paperback anthology.

For other major DC Universe crossover events, be sure to check out my reviews of:
Crisis On Infinite Earths
Idenity Crisis
The OMAC Project
Final Crisis
Blackest Night: Green Lantern
Brightest Day, Volume 1
Flashpoint

6.5/10

For other book reviews, check out my Graphic Novel Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Gosh I Hope This Is Going Somewhere Good . . . 52 – Volume Three . . .

The Good: Commentary pages, Moments of engaging plot
The Bad: The story is way too broad, so each character group gets neglected, Inconsistent artwork
The Basics: While it has its moments, 52 – Volume 3 is too jumbled of a story to make it worth recommending . . . at least on its own.


I think it says a lot that the last of the volumes I read in 52 was back in December. I love reading and I love a good story, but following 52 – Volume 2 (reviewed here!), I think I felt my patience in the saga of the missing year in the DC Universe was a bit taxed. It took until, literally, a few minutes ago (appropriately, as today is the annual Free Comic Book Day!) to pick up and finish reading 52 – Volume 3. And now that it is done . . . I’ll admit, I am pre-depressed about Volume 4. Here’s why: this 2007 graphic novel series was followed by a few other DC Universe-altering events, some of which were quite good. All of that went away two years ago with the reboot from DC known as “The New 52.” The reason I am pre-depressed about how the 52 Saga might end is that the characters I care most about based upon the events of 52 either do not get stories of their own in the wake of the event or their stories are undoubtedly cut off as part of the New 52 reboot. So, no matter how much I might enjoy parts of 52 – Volume 3, my ultimate feeling is “I know I shouldn’t get invested in any of these characters!”

For those unfamiliar with it, Infinite Crisis (reviewed here!) led to a schism in the ranks of the major superheroes. The Big Three (Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman) opted to take a year off and other major heroes had abandoned Earth or were lost (Green Lantern and the Flash) during or after the Crisis. So, the year the big players were out of commission led to minor characters in the DC Universe having their chance to shine and that was a great concept. Unfortunately, the DC Universe is a pretty broad place with a shit-ton of secondary characters to service. Starting with the seeds sewn in 52 – Volume 1 (reviewed here!), 52 – Volume 2 grew the story and fully convoluted the multiple directions that the universe was going in. In 52 – Volume 3, some answers are finally given, but the bulk of the book seems to be setting up a cataclysmic event that does not yet come.

52 – Volume 3 is essentially two quiet, intimate character journeys – those of Rene Montoya (The Question) and Ralph Dibny (formerly the Elongated Man) hidden between giant plot-driven stories that literally span the DC Universe. In Volume 3 of 52 the Black Adam plot that dominated much of Volume 2 is underplayed in order to bring to the forefront some of the other threads, namely the LexCorp Everyman Program and the space battle that is seeing the trio of Animal Man, Adam Strange, and Starfire trying to get home and running into the forces of Lady Styx. As with the prior volume, 52 – Volume 3 has so much going on that none of the plots are very thoroughly developed and the characters are (largely) glossed over for plot exposition. At least we get answers, including the identity of Supernova and what is going on on Oolong Island.

As Ralph Dibny searches for ways to resurrect his dead wife, Sue, he goes to The Spectre and the result is pretty horrific. He encounters Jean Loring, his wife’s murderer, possessed and floating in space. There, he is given the opportunity to exact vengeance upon her in exchange for Sue’s life back. Unable to cruelly punish even Loring, Dibny’s search continues, bringing him to a reconciliation with Cassie Sandsmark and to the bottom of the ocean in search of mystical pieces that will help him resurrect Sue.

Simultaneously, Rene Montoya (The Question, new) cuts her time with Charlie (The Question, original) short to return to Gotham City to rescue Kane (Batwoman, Rene’s ex-lover) from the forces of Intergang. In defiance of prophecy, Montoya is able to save Kane’s life, but the price seems to be Charlie’s life as he is dying of invasive lung cancer. In a desperate bid to save his life, Montoya journeys early in the new year to Nanda Parbat to try to keep him alive.

On Ooolong Island, the crime syndicate that has been assembled finally reveals its plans. After Veronica Cale gets Will Magnus off his meds, Magnus begins construction of a new Metal Man, Plutonium Man. This invention is set to be included in the machinations of Chung Tzu (the villain in Wonder Woman known indelicately as Egg Foo Young). The plans become evident when four super-powered machine-creatures are created and are primed to be dispatched against Black Adam.

In deep space, the trio of heroes who is trying to get home, now with the aid of Pope Lobo, encounters the world-destroying forces of Lady Styx. Lady Styx is creating a zombie empire that is destroying worlds and the Oan Guardians of the galaxy are fearful of her advancing empire. In attempting to stop them, Lobo must return to violence and one of the members of the team from Earth may pay the ultimate price. As more of an evaluation than plot synopsis (because the book is so plot-driven, it takes so much space in a review to simply relay what is going on in 52 – Volume 3!), it is worth noting that this plot line is severely truncated, much to the detriment of the story. In one chapter, the Lady Styx is the universe’s ultimate evil and appears unstoppable. Then, after a pretty quick goading, she is stopped within two pages. Moreover, what exactly is happening when Lobo takes the eye from the flying skull thing and what is going on with the Green Lantern trapped in its eye socket is not well-relayed on the page. In other words, the plotline feels rushed and incomplete, missing panels of information and exposition that make the dramatic twists in it seem choppy and erratic, as opposed to well-conceived or clever.

In Metropolis, Natasha and Infinity, Inc. have become celebrities and are the chosen of Lex Luthor himself. With his Everyman Program growing dramatically, the Justice Society Of America decides it is time to retire. With their collapse – which happens publicly with Alan Scott and Obsidian getting into a fight with a young woman calling herself Jade on Thanksgiving – the heroes of the Everyman Program rise to a stature that makes their collapse when Lex Luthor turns off their abilities on New Years tragic and horrifying. In investigating, Natasha Irons is put in serious danger and is exposed to an even greater evil than Lex Luthor!

At the same time, Skeets continues his hunt for Rip Hunter and the identity of Supernova is exposed.

Osiris, in a comparatively minor plot, gains the ability to join the Teen Titans when Black Adam exposes the mundane forms of himself, Isis, and Osiris to the world, an event which puts them at the mercy of the Suicide Squad. But the Suicide Squad’s mission is not truly to kill the Black Adam family, but rather start a public relations war that will once again discredit the Prince Of Khandaq.

There is also a pointless Nightwing/Batwoman subplot thrown in for a few pages and a digression that has Nightwing and Robin finding Batman . . . for no particular purpose that seems to have anything to do with this story.

Outside the Dibny and Montoya plots, 52 – Volume 3 is a very plot-based book. The character elements are underplayed in favor of a lot of plot exposition and sequences that (I kid not) use the word “BOOM!” in big letters.

The artwork in 52 – Volume 3 is unfortunately erratic. Splashes like the revelation of three of the four Horsemen are exceptionally detailed and beautiful to the eye. More often than not, though, the panels are underdetailed or there is a choppy progression between the panels that makes it less clear than it ought to be what exactly is going on in the book. This is an unfortunate contradiction of form and content and it seriously undermines 52 – Volume 3.

As the end nears, I am unfortunately uninvested in the outcome. That’s a terrible place to be, especially at the end of Volume 3. That, however, is how it is.

For other major DC Universe crossover events, be sure to check out my reviews of:
Crisis On Infinite Earths
Idenity Crisis
The OMAC Project
Final Crisis
Blackest Night: Green Lantern
Brightest Day, Volume 1
Flashpoint

4/10

For other book reviews, check out my Graphic Novel Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2013 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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Telling Too Much Of A Story To Keep The Reader Caring, 52 – Volume 2 Fails To Grab.

The Good: Consistently decent artwork, Commentary pages, Moments of engaging plot
The Bad: The story is way too broad, so each character group gets neglected
The Basics: So thoroughly plot-based, to lead to the neglect of actual character growth, 52 – Volume 2 continues the events of the lost year in the DC Universe.


I have a lot of patience for complicated stories. I honestly do. But, I want my complicated stories to make sense and make me care, well before the end. In the DC Universe, the last story that was like that where I found myself invested early and glad with the payoff was Justice League: Generation Lost (volume 1 is reviewed here!). Unfortunately, as I go back now, I am finding myself much less wowed by the massive DC Universe crossover event 52. With 52 – Volume 2, the saga begins to truly reveal its cracks and the fundamental issue with the concept of the story.

For those unfamiliar with it, Infinite Crisis (reviewed here!) led to a schism in the ranks of the major superheroes. The Big Three (Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman) opted to take a year off and other major heroes had abandoned Earth or were lost (Green Lantern and the Flash) during or after the Crisis. So, the year the big players were out of commission led to minor characters in the DC Universe having their chance to shine and that was a great concept. Unfortunately, the DC Universe is a pretty broad place with a shitton of secondary characters to service. Coming off the many threads begun in 52 – Volume 1 (reviewed here!), 52 – Volume 2 goes off in a slew of directions. The fundamental problem with this is that few of the plotlines are actually serviced well. In 52 – Volume 2, the only plot that is genuinely developed completely within the volume is the Black Adam/The Question plotline that involves the rising menace in Kahndaq.

52 – Volume 2 is intriguing because it takes a villain from out of the mainstream and uses love to reform them. Black Adam has plagued the Marvel Family for years and in 52 – Volume 2, his love for the new Isis leads him to a new sensibility. Over the fifteen weeks encapsulated in 52 – Volume 2, the most solid plotline focuses on Renee Montoya, Charlie (The Question), Black Adam, and Isis. Renee Montoya and Charlie arrive in Kahndaq, under Black Adam’s rule, following a trail of evidence that suggests that the weapons from Intergang found in Gotham City came from Kahndaq. In Kahndaq, Renee and The Question find the evidence they need, but not before they are captured as traitors. After breaking out, they arrive at the wedding of Adam and Isis where Renee is forced to save lives by shooting a suicide bomber, who happens to be a child. This puts Renee in a dark place, but saves her and Charlie’s lives and puts Black Adam and his growing Black Marvel family on the side of the heroes who would stop Intergang. While Renee wrestles with having killed a child, their team liberates Isis’s brother, Amon, who is empowered with a portion of Black Adam’s power to become the new Osiris. In tracking down Intergang, Black Adam’s team discovers a possible link to another thread in the story.

Unfortunately, all of the other threads are spread quite thin in 52 – Volume 2. Booster Gold is almost entirely discredited at the outset of this volume, so in his despair, he does one final heroic act which results in his heroic death in Metropolis. This sends Skeets on a mission that has the robot realizing what Booster Gold did not live long enough to learn. Professor Magnus is stymied when Dr. Morrow goes missing and he is soon abducted away to an island where all the mad scientists have ended up working for an unknown purpose. The group of heroes trapped in outer space are facing death in the middle of an asteroid field when they are rescued by Lobo, who has become an archbishop and runs his own religion now.

Back on Earth, Lex Luthor’s metagene therapy project continues to grow, though more people outside John Henry Irons seem to realize that Luthor has an agenda surrounding it that he has not told anyone. Irons, still desperate to get his niece out of the program, realizes that Luthor has the ability to turn the gene back off, which allows him to control the participants (and leads to one death). Ralph Dibny’s plotline is neglected most of the book. He pops up in the company of a slew of magicusers, apparently on a quest to find the next Dr. Fate. As something of an afterthought, Supernova continues to do heroic works in Metropolis . . . occasionally.

52 – Volume 2 illustrates what a wide net authors Greg Rucka, Grant Morrison, Geoff Johns, and Mark Waid were forced to cast in writing an epic about the DC Universe. Unfortunately, 52 – Volume 2 serves mostly to illustrate that their reach exceeded their grasp. Wondergirl, who was integral to Volume 1, has about four panels in this entire book and Ralph Dibny’s character arc seems mostly done as well. While killing off Booster Gold early frees up space for other characters’ stories, the survivors of the Justice Society (like the gigantic Hawkwoman seen in Volume 1) do not make even a token appearance in 52 – Volume 2.

Despite all of its problems – and, for a change, Lobo appearing in the book is not a huge detraction! - 52 – Volume 2 does a good job with the one main storyline. Gotham City is shown going to hell without Renee there, but the search for the origins of Intergang and its weapons is well-executed. As someone who had absolutely no emotional investment in Black Adam, that this story could get me invested in the murderous despot is a sign of pretty strong writing. Adam’s temper is tempered by Isis and they make an intriguing pair. Having not read the rest of 52 yet, I can only theorize on the impending tragedy that must make Black Adam back into a villain, but I am enjoying this unlikely storyline so far.

As well, the artwork in 52 – Volume 2 is homogenously good. With vivid coloring and a decent sense of movement, 52 – Volume 2 is presented in a visually interesting way. There are, however, a few places where there are abrupt transitions between panels, but the characters rendered in this book are good enough to be recognizable whenever they come up.

Ultimately, though, as a single volume, 52 – Volume 2 tries to take on too much and given that only one sliver of it tells an engaging-enough story to recommend, it becomes impossible to eagerly endorse this book.

For other major DC Universe crossover events, be sure to check out my reviews of:
Crisis On Infinite Earths
Idenity Crisis
The OMAC Project
Final Crisis
Blackest Night: Green Lantern
Brightest Day, Volume 1
Flashpoint

3.5/10

For other book reviews, check out my Graphic Novel Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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A Jumbled Phenomenon Begins With 52 - Volume 1!

The Good: Consistently good artwork, Refreshingly complicated plots
The Bad: Not at all the whole story, No real character development, Far too many characters/plots to keep the initial format.
The Basics: When the DC Universe was deeply affected, consequences reigned and exploring those consequences began in 52 - Volume 1.


I have a bit of an appreciation for the second string heroes in the DC Universe. In addition to villains that are created with a sophisticated depth to them, the DC graphic novels I seem to enjoy the most have to do with the background characters getting their chance to shine after the first-string heroes are otherwise incapacitated. So it is actually pretty surprising that it has taken me so long to start picking up the volumes of 52 as it has. However, that all changes with my getting in 52 - Volume 1.

For those unfamiliar with the concept, 52 - Volume 1 follows on the heels of Infinite Crisis (reviewed here!), which left the main triumvirate in the DC Universe shaken and unwilling to continue their roles as superheroes. While Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman take a year off from crime fighting and being superheroes. 52 is a week by week account of the missing year and Volume 1 are the first thirteen weeks of that missing year.

And the volume works, for the most part, though the initial format – that has day by day accounts, bouncing between any one of the many main characters – is quickly sacrificed in order to tell stories that have actual depth to them. This is a plot-heavy book and it is a chapter within a larger conceptual story – the Crisis Series – that defined and redefined the DC Multiverse.

Opening in the rubble of the prior Crisis, Booster Gold quickly and publicly takes point for fighting crime when Mammoth descends on Metropolis. As Ralph Dibny wrestles with the loss of his wife, the superhero community comes together for a memorial service for their fallen, most notably Superboy. But events at the memorial service do not turn out like Booster Gold knows they should and as he works to get Skeets repaired, Ralph Dibny begins a quest of his own, a journey that begins with the desecration of his wife’s grave. As Booster continually miscalculates his heroic attempts, Renee Montoya tries to figure out who she is.

As Power Girl tracks down one of the remnants of Luthor’s Secret Society, she encounters Black Adam, who has taken to protecting the African state of Kahndaq and Steel finds managing his niece – the Teen Titan Steel – is becoming increasingly complicated. There is a ramp up in action as Lex Luthor, thought dead when his corpse is discovered, declares that all the wrongs done by him in the past year were the actions of the dead alternate universe Lex, a declaration that pales compared to Black Adam tearing apart a minor supervillain publicly when the Kahndaq embassy opens in New York.

At the end of the first month, Montoya’s stakeout reveals alien weapons and astronauts manage to communicate with the heroes who left Earth to deal with the Rann-Thanagar War. Ralph Dibny tries to have a vision of his wife, thanks to a Kryptonian cult and the next month kicks off with Alan Scott explaining the JSA’s freakish end in space as the survivors are cared for at a metahuman hospital. Lex Luthor, revealing a metahuman gene therapy, tries to exploit the absence of the heroes. Also exploiting the absence of the main heroes is Booster Gold, who is staging events with actors portraying villains to get lucrative endorsement deals.

As the Green Lanterns – Hal Jordan and John Stewart – run into jurisdiction problems in Chinese airspace, Booster Gold makes it to Rip Hunter’s time lab and discovers he may be the cause of the fabric of reality tearing itself apart! On the distant planet, Starfire, Animal Man, and Adam Strange work to repair a ship to get home, while on Earth Booster’s staged events come to light, thanks in part to a deeply hurt Ralph Dibny.

The fall of Booster Gold comes in tandem with the rise of Lex Luthor’s experiments and Natasha Irons becoming frustrated enough to push her uncle away to become a part of the program. In deep space, Adam Strange and Animal Man find Starfire . . . by walking into a trap. Facing being fired, Clark Kent snags an interview with Metropolis’s new superhero, Supernova. And a growing conflict between Black Adam’s anti-meta-human xenophobes and Lex Luthor’s new wave of metahumans becomes evident.

52 - Volume 1 is clearly building toward something and it takes a lot of faith for the reader to believe that all the many, many plots are going to somewhere satisfying. Plots like the space team that is lost in some distant corner feel far more like they are tying up loose ends, as opposed to telling a new and engaging story. Moreover, because there are at least five main plots and heavy characters in 52 - Volume 1, none of them manage to go as far as is satisfying. In other words, 52 - Volume 1 would have been much more engaging had it followed two or three main characters with much clearer plots, in a way that develops the characters.

52 - Volume 1 is largely devoid of actual character development. Black Adam is given a passing amount of character conflict to grow through as he falls for a woman given to him as a gift. Beyond that, the heavy lifting for the consequences of Infinite Crisis comes from Ralph Dibny. Dibny is broken by the loss of his wife and when the Cult Of Connor wants to use magic to resurrect Sue, he is deeply torn. Dibny adds an element of realism to the book and Cassie Sandsmark’s supporting role makes sense for her youthful passion for Connor Kent.

Having read DC volumes that followed long after 52, one of the best statements I can make on Volume 1 is this: the book managed to surprise me several times and it left me wanting to read the next one, even if it was not at all great literature.

For other major DC Universe crossover events, be sure to check out my reviews of:
Crisis On Infinite Earths
Idenity Crisis
The OMAC Project
Final Crisis
Blackest Night: Green Lantern
Brightest Day, Volume 1
Flashpoint

5/10

For other book reviews, check out my Graphic Novel Review Index Page for an organized listing!

© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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DC Does A “Mirror, Mirror” Exploration With JLA: Earth 2 And The Result Is Hardly Fresh.

The Good: Moments of concept
The Bad: Most of the artwork, Odd characterizations, No real development, Poor use of the full team.
The Basics: JLA: Earth 2 is a mildly intriguing concept for a graphic novel, but is exceptionally poorly executed.


Back in the day, there was a little science fiction television show called Star Trek. One of the most popular episodes of Star Trek was “Mirror, Mirror” (reviewed here!) and it was a pretty clever concept that put four members of the Enterprise crew in an alternate universe. Popularizing the concept of mirror universes, Star Trek set a trend that most subsequent science fiction works have followed, which is to create alternate universes in their own mythos. For the DC Universe, there were many multiple universes, until the publishing company tried to consolidate them all with Crisis On Infinite Earths (reviewed here!). As a step to moving back toward the multiverse concept, DC had Grant Morrison write JLA: Earth 2.

JLA: Earth 2 is a limited arc that has Alexander Luthor from the antimatter universe (it is entirely unclear if this is the same antimatter universe where Sinestro was imprisoned and began building his fear-based ring corps on Qward or not) contacting the Justice League Of America to try to save his entire galaxy. In this incarnation of the Justice League, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the Martian Manhunter are joined by Kyle Rayner’s Green Lantern, Wally West’s Flash and Aquaman, who is currently in his one-armed scruffy-looking phase.

In the Mirror Universe, Ultraman realizes that Alexander Luthor has escaped and he, the sadistic Superwoman, and the cruel Owlman use his absence to rain chaos down upon the Earth there (which our people dub Earth 2). Alexander Luthor, in the meantime, has made the leap to our universe. While the Justice League of America tries to piece together what happened with a plane that fell apart in the sky and carried humans whose hearts were on the right sides of the bodies, they realize that all is not right with the plane. Luthor reveals himself to the Justice League and makes an impassioned appeal to them to get them to come into his universe to overthrow the Crime Syndicate of America.

After a limited debate, all but Aquaman and the J’onn Jonnz accompany Luthor to Earth 2. There, they work to confine the villains to their moon-based observatory and free the citizens of the planet from the despotic control of the Crime Syndicate. But even as Ultraman and his forces resist, it becomes apparent that they are not calling all the shots and soon both Earths are held in the balance by a malevolent entity that is seeking an evolution that might kill every human in two universes!

Grant Morrison gives the whole alternate universe thing a pretty fair shake with JLA: Earth 2, but the execution of the book is hardly exciting or worthwhile. The initial novelty of Ultraman and Owlman, who is obsessed with exacting vengeance upon Thomas Wayne, wears out very quickly. Moreover, Lois Lane is Superwoman, who is an S&M dominatrix who torments Jimmy Olsen and jerks Owlman around. That reads as universally unpleasant in JLA: Earth 2. While the speedster Johnny Quick in JLA: Earth 2 is given a drug habit for character, Power Ring does not even have that. Morrison did not even make a pass at establishing doppelgangers for Aquaman or J’onn.

What JLA: Earth 2 lacks that “Mirror, Mirror” had is a real sense of impact upon the characters we know and love. While Owlman comes to the conclusion that our Earth would be untenable for him to live in, outside Bruce Wayne’s obsession with Earth 2’s Gotham City, none of the characters have any real depth exposed from the experience. Morrison, who continues to be unable to write Wonder Woman, has her witlessly wondering if intervening in the lives of humans is actually worthwhile. Aquaman, similarly, sits this adventure out for the most part arguably because Morrison has no clue what he wants to do with him.

The novelty of JLA: Earth 2, however, wears off exceptionally quickly. Ultraman is possessive, Superwoman is cruel and Owlman is the enforcer for the corrupt Gordon in Gotham City. Morrison is not given enough time to actually do anything with that in JLA: Earth 2, so it seems more like an academic exercise than an actually compelling storyline. It is so unimpressive, it actually surprised me that an action figure set was made of the alternate universe characters from JLA: Earth 2.

In addition to a disappointing lack of compelling commentary, JLA: Earth 2 is poorly rendered on the page. The artwork looks rushed, with many of the characters looking far less refined than they usually do. So, for example, Princess Diana’s face is often drawn as round and cherubic as opposed to angular and imposing. More often than not, Owlman looks like Nite Owl from Watchmen (and a poor representation of him, too). The alternate universe storyline in JLA: Earth 2 just seems sloppy as a result. In fact, even the panel I liked the most – Aquaman launching his harpoon arm at Power Ring – is rendered in a way that is somewhat confusing; the lines of force are colored to look like Wonder Woman’s Lasso of Truth! I suspect that at the point JLA: Earth 2 was written, Grant Morrison either was being allowed to write whatever he wanted or that DC gave him assignments without providing him with the first-rate artists to make his stories truly come alive on the page.

In the end, JLA: Earth 2 is a lackluster commentary on the DC multiverse without enough zest or character to the story to make it worth bothering with.

For other works by Grant Morrison, be sure to check out my reviews of:
The Flash: Emergency Stop
The Flash: The Human Race
JLA: New World Order
Batman R.I.P.
Final Crisis

2/10

For other book reviews, be sure to check out my Book Review Index Page for an organized listing of all the books I have reviewed!

© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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A Somewhat Blasé Invasion Story, JLA: New World Order Chronicles A Fallow Point In The Justice League’s History.

The Good: Decent overall idea, Good use of the team
The Bad: Fails to capitalize on the strengths of various Justice League members, Crowded character field, Inconsistent artwork.
The Basics: When a new team of heroes arrives on Earth and begins to expose the Justice League of America as ineffectual, the members of the League suspect something more is going on in JLA: New World Order.


The more graphic novels I read, the fewer gaps there are in my understanding of the broader history of the DC Universe. Despite having seen the image of Aquaman with only one arm (and a hook), it was not until I read JLA: New World Order that I realized that I had not read any of the books that actually had the shaggy, wounded aquatic super hero in them. With JLA: New World Order, I seem to have found that somewhat awkward period in the history of the DC Universe and Aquaman is certainly not the highlight of this book. Ironically, I read the follow-up (which comes many years later) to JLA: New World Order some time ago and, truth be told, neither book is better for having read JLA: New World Order.

JLA: New World Order starts as the story of how the Justice League Of America is usurped by a new team of heroes and while this might seem like an initially engaging premise, it does not take long at all before it is revealed to be a stiflingly weak idea. I am all for stories that have the Justice League Of America getting some form of comeuppance; indeed, my favorite graphic novel of all time, Justice (reviewed here!) does that exceptionally well. But JLA: New World Order is no Justice. From the artwork to the unfortunately uncomplicated storyline, JLA: New World Order simply does not measure up.

The United States is thrown into chaos when a giant egg appears over Washington, DC. Before Superman can fully respond, eight beings emerge from the egg. Led by Protex, the disparate group that calls itself the Hyperclan arrives with the stated goal of saving the world. Shortly thereafter, though, the new Green Lantern Kyle Rayner, Diana and Metamorpho are attacked on the Justice League satellite, which is destroyed by an unknown group of hostiles. Then, the Hyperclan raises the heretofore unknown tower city of Z’onn Z’orr.

With the exposure of Z’onn Z’orr, the Hyperclan’s promise to watch over humanit quickly turns into a battle royale where they take out the Flash, Green Lantern, the Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and destroy Batman’s Batwing. Knocking Superman out with kryptonite, it looks like the end is near for the Justice League. When the heroes are placed in an alien torture device, it falls to the least powerful among them to save the heroes and the world!

JLA: New World Order uses a somewhat awkward mix of heroes for its rendition of the Justice League Of America. Traditionally, Superman, Wonder Woman, Batman and the Martian Manhunter have been Justice League members. JLA: New World Order was written by Grant Morrison shortly after the establishment of Kyle Rayner as the Green Lantern and he struggles to incorporate Rayner, Wally West’s the Flash and Aquaman into the new team. In fact, Aquaman, especially, seems both underutilized and like an afterthought. Morrison has no clear direction or purpose for the character, which is probably why his one chance to shine is undone by a painfully clunky line that the book breaks the fourth wall to address.

More than that, JLA: New World Order is surprisingly unsmart in the revelation. In fact, I felt pretty stupid by not getting the identities of the Hyperclan the moment they exposed Z’onn Z’orr. The name alone pretty much telegraphs who is behind the entire plot and that is disappointing, to say the least.

Even worse than the villains, the heroes seem surprisingly fractured and oddly underpowered. Kyle Rayner’s Green Lantern clearly has not had much interaction with the heroes at the time JLA: New World Order occurred. This makes little sense, though, as Hal Jordan had pretty much decimated the Justice League on his way out and Rayner and Superman, for example, had already fought Mongul together. Even without knowledge of such inconsistencies, the fact that all of the members of the Justice League are pretty much taken out by the Hyperclan shows a real lack of understanding of the character base. The reason the Justice League comes together is because the heroes have different skill sets and, most importantly, different vulnerabilities. All JLA: New World Order does is expose this incarnation of the Justice League as exceptionally weak against telepathic attacks.

Grant Morrison seems more concerned with wit and one-liners in JLA: New World Order than he is with telling a sensible story. The easy incapacitation of Wonder Woman, the fact that readers have to make the leap that the Flash’s entire adventure is solely telepathic manipulation, as opposed to an actual race with an adversary and the distracting amount of self-referential comments (largely from Kyle Rayner) make JLA: New World Order more chaotic than clever.

The artwork in JLA: New World Order is inconsistent at best. Penciller Howard Porter manages to make Wonder Woman look unnaturally butch in many scenes and Superman too often is given a vacuous expression. Aquaman and Kyle Rayner frequently appear as sketched versions of themselves and from the artwork, there is little made clear as to what the powers and limitations of each of the members of the Hyperclan are. The coloring is fair and while the pages are glossy, there is no real depth and shading to this book.

Ultimately, JLA: New World Order is a pretty anemic invasion story and one has to wonder how the author expected the readers to suspend their disbelief long enough to finish it.

For other Justice League books, please be sure to visit my reviews of:
Justice
Identity Crisis
Justice League: Secret Origins
I Can’t Believe It’s Not The Justice League!
New Maps Of Hell
The Tornado's Path
The Lightning Saga
Justice League Of America: The Injustice League
Sanctuary
Second Coming
Justice League Of America: Dark Things
JLA: Terror Incognita
Justice League: Generation Lost – Volume 1
Justice League: Generation Lost – Volume 2
Volume 1: Origins (The New 52)

3.5/10

For other book reviews, please check out my Book Review Index Page for an organized listing of all the books I have reviewed!

© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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The Flash: The Human Race Is A Mixed Bag Of The Flash Comics That Presents Villains Esoteric And Cool!

The Good: Second half of the book, Sense of imagination, Character, Some of the artwork
The Bad: Some lack of plot sense, Some of the artwork
The Basics: The Flash: The Human Race is half an imaginative concept with a somewhat ridiculous premise and half a terrifying and dangerous villain that is worth reading about.


As my Flash Year progresses, I have a sudden influx of new (to me) The Flash books and the latest that has come in for me is The Flash: The Human Race. Rather coolly for me is that The Flash: The Human Race introduces one of the villains I have only had peripheral knowledge of until now: the Black Flash. As a trade paperback anthology, The Flash: The Human Race is split between the Human Race story and the Black Flash story.

Grant Morrison, the author of The Flash: The Human Race, has a story that is a conceptually cool one that is hardly as effective as the second story by Mark Millar. “The Human Race” is an imaginative story that has a surprisingly easy resolution that is reminiscent of “The Gamesters Of Triskelion” from the original Star Trek (reviewed here!). On the other half of the book, “The Black Flash” is presented as a real threat to the Flash and that tale is engaging and has Wally West in a more compelling race for his life than in the first half of the book.

“The Human Race” half of the book starts as a very direct story. Wally West is preparing to propose to Linda Park when an impressive alien race arrives at Earth. Hovering over the Earth, giants reveal themselves and demand that Earth put up a champion for an interstellar race. The blue incarnation of Superman agrees with Wally that he is the man to race for humanity. Things take a turn for the weird, though, when Wally confronts the entity he is racing against: Krakkl, an imaginary friend of Wally’s when he was a kid. Now, both are racing for the survival of their planets and species and with the fate of Earth and humanity in the balance, Wally West makes a wager that could cost him everything.

The story continues with the “Black Flash” arc that has Max Mercury disturbed after taking a photograph of the living speedsters on Earth. He notices a black smudge behind Wally in the photograph and concludes that Wally’s days are numbered. It does not take long before Max’s fears are realized when the Black Flash – the killer of all Speedsters – appears. Determined to take a life, the Black Flash actually misses Wally and he instead takes Linda Park. Utterly distraught, Wally West goes on the defensive with Bart Allen, Max Mercury and Jesse Quick doing all they can to protect West from the Black Flash.

The Flash: The Human Race is a pair of very basic stories that are fairly disconnected from one another. The “Human Race” story is only marginally connected to the “Black Flash” story. On the character front, the writers do make a link, but it is a pretty weak one and the book is essentially fractured between the two very different stories. The Flash: The Human Race is interesting enough, though the gambling aliens who put Wally West in the race for his life are pretty monolithic and generic and pretty much have a Villain of the Week feel to them.

The “Black Flash” portion of The Flash: The Human Race has the Speedster confronting a pretty intriguing villain. Not to be confused with the Black Lantern Reverse Flash from the Blackest Night Saga, the Black Flash is a pretty monolithic villain as well. Racing through all time behind the Flash, he is a determined villain who is given no lines, no compelling aspects. He is simply a fast, vicious ghoul whose whole purpose is to put the Flash in the ground. The Black Flash would be a little more compelling if there were greater evidence of the Black Flash eliminating the other speedsters in the DC Universe.

On the character front, The Flash: The Human Race is the important turning point in the relationship between Wally West and Linda Park. In The Flash: The Human Race, Wally West finally gets around to getting a ring and moving their relationship forward. Despite something of a jerk around for fans with the moment that the Black Flash kills Linda, the story with Wally West needing to be protected from the Black Flash is actually going somewhere and it is interesting to see how West’s love of Linda continues to motivate him.

The artwork in The Flash: The Human Race is split. Krakkl and the Black Flash are intriguingly rendered and the detailing of them is pretty cool. Unfortunately, The Flash: The Human Race is not at all consistent. Wally West, for example, appears much more blockish than he does in other volumes. There is not a single iconic look for Wally West and in The Flash: The Human Race he looks unlike he does in other books (he’s been both blonde and redheaded and in this book, he is a redhead who looks more like the second Captain Boomerang than Wally West). The Flash: The Human Race also comes in an odd time in DC Universe history with the Blue Superman who did not last very long at all. Outside that, The Flash: The Human Race does not have a terrible sense of movement to it and the book is more consistent in that than it is with character design.

Ultimately, The Flash: The Human Race is a pretty average graphic novel. I like the resolution to the first storyline, despite how cheesy it might appear. But the execution of both stories is more problematic than attentive readers are likely to enjoy. The rescue of Linda Park is intriguing, but the whole running around the universe makes Wally West virtually invincible and there is no clear reigning in of the character after that. The Flash: The Human Race is a basically average graphic novel that is worth reading, if not picking up.

For other Flash graphic novels, please be sure to visit my reviews of:
Born To Run
The Return Of Barry Allen
Terminal Velocity
Dead Heat
Race Against Time
Emergency Stop
Blitz
The Secret Of Barry Allen
Flash: Rebirth

6/10

For other graphic novel reviews, be sure to visit my Graphic Novel Review Index Page for an organized listing.

© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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A Good Story Paired With Less Thrilling Ones, The Flash: Emergency Stop Is An Uneven Anthology!

The Good: Decent primary story, Interesting-enough villain, Cool solution/artwork
The Bad: Last two chapters are wildly erratic, Does not include the full story.
The Basics: The Flash: Emergency Stop has a decent story paired with two vignettes that are alternately not about Wally West and incomplete.


As my Flash Year continues, I am excited that I continue to manage to get in new Flash books to read in time to enjoy them and keep them more or less in the proper order that they were written. It looks like I am coming out of the Mark Waid period of The Flash and entering the Grant Morrison era. Grant Morrison, unfortunately, is not my favorite graphic novel writer. His Batman R.I.P. (reviewed here!) was a disappointing cop-out that did not live up to the book’s title and despite how everyone else claims that Final Crisis (reviewed here!) is a masterpiece, if you actually read the graphic novel by Morrison, it is missing huge chunks of the story, making it virtually unreadable.

So, when I got in The Flash: Emergency Stop and saw that it was written by Grant Morrison, I did not exactly jump up and down for joy. Instead, I waited until I should read a Flash graphic novel in my review rotation, then sat down to read and consider the book at hand. Sadly, Morrison does not exactly get a pass with me on The Flash: Emergency Stop. The main story, the multi-chapter “Emergency Stop” storyline, is good and it works pretty well. But, alas, the trade paperback anthology The Flash: Emergency Stop is not just that one story. Instead, it is “Emergency Stop” and two other stories. As I do not care at all about the Jay Garrick version of the Flash and I had not read the two other parts to the crossover event “Death At The Top Of The World,” the latter parts of The Flash: Emergency Stop were a wash for me.

When Wally West's dead body is found in Keystone City with a note declaring that the murder will occur in an hour, Max Mercury, Jay Garrick and Bart Allen are alarmed. Wally is pulled out of a date with Linda Park and returns to Keystone City to deal with the situation. As the deadline looms, an old villain resurfaces. The Suit is quickly determined to be the villain responsible for Wally’s death and in attempting to stop him, Wally purposely creates the time loop needed to put his apparently dead body back in time. The Suit, as it turns out, has absorbed the abilities of a villain with limited time travel capabilities.

When the Suit advances upon the Keystone prison, Wally West in unable to intervene as his legs have been entirely shattered by the villain. As Jay, Max, and Impulse try to thwart the Suit, by keeping him off balance (mentally), Wally works desperately to speed up his healing. Instead, Wally taps directly into the Speed Force and makes a physical embodiment of it as his new suit. When Max is absorbed by the Suit, Wally must try to thwart the adversary while saving his old friend’s life!

While Wally remains laid up following his encounter with the Suit, Jay Garrick takes over as the Flash in Keystone City. In the process, he finds himself trying to save the life of an old supervillain called the Thinker. While he celebrates his fiftieth anniversary with his wife, Joan, Jay tries to find a way to stop a giant tumor from killing his former adversary and now friend. This puts Jay in contact with many of his old superhero associates while searching for the Thinker’s helmet and gives Jay a new perspective on life and death.

Finally, there is third act of story that was a crossover with Green Lantern and Green Arrow. Apparently, Wally, Kyle Rayner and the Green Arrow all went on a cruise up to the north pole. There, the villains Heatwave, Sonar, and Hatchet resurrected their leader, Polaris and sank the cruise ship. Forty-two people died and the villains were put on trial, with the testimony from the heroes and the verdict being presented in the chapter that is contained in The Flash: Emergency Stop. This is roughly like watching The Matrix: Revolutions (reviewed here!) without any of the other movies in the series; it is hard to tell what is going on and even harder to care.

The Flash: Emergency Stop is good, but erratic. The last two stories in the book bring the rating down significantly. Unfortunately, as a trade paperback anthology, The Flash: Emergency Stop makes way for stories that are incomplete or of less interest to fans of Wally West. With that being my main criticism of the entire volume, the rest of the review will just focus on the “Emergency Stop” section of the book.

I’m discovering I am a fan of Wally West, even if none of the artists seem to be able to agree upon what he looks like outside his costume. The Flash: Emergency Stop has him making a character leap after he is crippled. Forced to endure a wheelchair, Wally West essentially turns into a Green Lantern (not literally) when he uses his force of will to tap directly into the Speed Force. His new costume for a portion of the book (why doesn’t it stay that way?!) is bright and gold and allows him to move superfast, despite the fact that his legs are still shattered. That is pretty cool and it does beg the question at what point do the Green Lanterns get bumped because someone else has greater willpower than themselves?

The Flash: Emergency Stop is a pretty straightforward “thwart the villain” type story. I enjoyed the fact that there is some debate over whether the Suit is organic, technological or supernatural. When the answer is given, it is satisfying enough and the resolution to the Suit conflict is a decent one. Beyond the new villain, though, The Flash: Emergency Stop is very typical and once more, Wally West is part of a team effort, as opposed to standing on his own as a hero in his own right.

The artwork in The Flash: Emergency Stop is universally good, so the book holds up well, despite the coloring being a little more monotonal than current standards. In the end, The Flash: Emergency Stop is worth reading, but a tough sell for purchasing.

For other Flash graphic novels, please be sure to visit my reviews of:
Born To Run
The Return Of Barry Allen
Terminal Velocity
Dead Heat
Blitz
The Secret Of Barry Allen
Flash: Rebirth

5/10

For other book reviews, please be sure to visit my Book Review Index Page for an organized listing of all the book reviews I have written!

© 2012 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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WORST. CRISIS. YET. Final Crisis Is A Nightmarish Execution Of A Questionable Idea.

The Good: Some decent artwork.
The Bad: Storyline is so fractured as to be nonsensical.
The Basics: A fairly lame sequel, Final Crisis restores the DC Multiverse while gutting some truly great stories.


There are enough times that I stand alone with an opinion that I no longer look at it as a bad thing to stand up and raise my voice contrary to the popular opinion. When it comes to graphic novels and the like, my progression through my “Wonder Woman” Year was distracted from occasionally by side trips where Wonder Woman is only a peripheral character. Arguably the most extensive distraction was the Crisis Saga. Back in the 1980s, the first huge crossover event occurred with Crisis On Infinite Earths (click here for the review!). Despite how I felt about that, given the way Infinite Crisis (click here for the review!) ended, I felt compelled to continue on to Final Crisis. Now I wish I had not.

Billed as the final part of a trilogy, the point of Final Crisis seems to be to re-establish the DC Multiverse and I have no problem with that. My problem is that writer Grant Morrison seems to either have no idea what story he wants to tell or he wasn't given nearly enough issues to tell it in. I'm a smart person, but following the story panel to panel and page to page makes little to no sense at times and Final Crisis is an absolute flop. Moreover, those who finished Infinite Crisis and enjoyed the sense of menace in the final panels of that storyline will be utterly disappointed by the fact that the potential of that storyline is not followed up on in Final Crisis. Instead, Final Crisis is a collection of ten chapters from the Final Crisis storyline and it goes off in an entirely different direction.

In the realm of the Multiverse Monitors, a Monitor is sentenced to oblivion and his partner reacts badly to it. Back with characters we actually care about, a god is killed on Earth which brings the Green Lantern Corps and the supposedly infallible Alpha Lanterns in to investigate. After detaining Hal Jordan, a new villain, Libra, emerges. She approaches the supervillain community and while she initially offers them everything they might want – including the apparent murder of the Martian Manhunter – she soon begins to enslave the villains just as she is having them enslave the populace. The Anti-Life Equation is spreading and making humanity into mindless drones who have come to work . . .

. . .for Darkseid. As Darkseid makes manifest, Earth falls to his forces and it looks like all of the multiverse will be destroyed. Superman, in the meantime, has been recruited to save the multiverse, a mission he takes on to save the life of Lois Lane. As he and several alternate-universe Supermen go through a trippy journey to Limbo and discover the machine needed to save the universe, heroes like Green Arrow, Wonder Woman and Black Lightning fall to the forces of Darkseid. And, oh, Barry Allen – the Flash killed in the prequel to Crisis On Infinite Earths comes back.

I interject the last part into my usual straightforward plot summary because there's no point going through the entire plot. Over the course of the ten chapters, Final Crisis ricochets (not “evolves”) through several different storylines and none of them are developed quite enough to thrill this reader. The reason for that is simple: Final Crisis appears to be full of essentially good ideas, but the execution of those ideas is erratic, underdeveloped or just plain pointless. So, for example, I can respect Grant Morrison for trying to expand the DC universe by exploring a group of Japanese superhero youth (or wannabees, it's not entirely clear in the writing, though they do seem to be able to drive fast) and give them a part in the Crisis. But as I look at the work as a whole, the time spent on them could have been spent better developing any of about twenty other plotlines throughout the book.

Which brings me to my usual graphic novel muse: Wonder Woman. Fans of Wonder Woman will go from being angry to baffled by her part in Final Crisis, just as fans of Green Arrow, Batman and the Martian Manhunter are likely to be pretty cheesed off by this volume. Wonder Woman does her usual thing of trying to stop evil. As a reward for her attempt, she is infected with a virus and she starts leading the legion of Libra's braindead forces whilst wearing a half-mask of a dog. Then, she disappears for most of the book. It is only in the last chapter that Morrison seems to remember Wonder Woman and I've honestly no idea what happens with her. Seriously. On one panel, Superman sees her infected, laments with something to the effect of “Oh, no, Diana!” and on the next panel, the mask is off, and she's grinding it under heel. There is no causality there. Unless, Superman being depressed about his friends turning evil makes them good again.

Despite an opening strong in Green Lantern material, Final Crisis very quickly degenerates into yet another Superman story. Sure, the Flashes have something to do and the reappearance of Barry Allen is pretty neat, but for the most part, Final Crisis turns away from its dark, world-destroying tone to present a bunch of alternate universe Supermen – like one version whose rocket landed in Nazi Germany, so he is basically a Nazi Superman (which is arguably the best joke in the story) – doing what they can to save the multiverse. Guess how it ends?

Frankly, I'm sick of only Superman being able to save all existence and Final Crisis basically makes a deep pit of mood where everything looks entirely bleak and solves the crisis in a particularly banal way. I think. After reading and rereading certain sections, the plots between the heroes, villains, gods and the like are so convoluted that the final chapter seems like a desperate, easy cop-out as opposed to a real solution to the rise of Darkseid.

As for the artwork, none of it truly leaped out at me. Instead, I was pretty shocked to read while doing additional research for the review that one of the Supermen was Barack Obama. I'm not surprised that one of the presidents in an alternate universe was Superman – that was pretty obvious. That the man depicted was supposed to be Obama was utterly unclear. Thus, at best, the artwork is hit or miss. Because the story is so fractured, I would want for the artwork to contain a great sense of movement, but it did not. As a result, the most of the superhero characters are recognizable, but not much more.

Ultimately, this is a book for people who like comic books and frankly, those who love a great story will want something more, something better. I know I did.

For other DC Universe graphic novels, please check out my reviews of:
Blackest Night - Black Lantern Corps Volume 2
Identity Crisis
Wonder Woman: Contagion

3/10

For other graphic novel reviews, please check out my index page!

© 2011, 2010 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.




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If You're Going To Kill A Superhero, Do It! Otherwise, Don't Waste Our Time: Batman R.I.P.

The Good: It seemed like there was a casualty, Artwork
The Bad: Fractured visual storytelling, Distractions, Lack of character, Obvious plot/reversals, Expensive
The Basics: A disappointing anthology, the Batman R.I.P. story leads to the death of Batman. . . or not. Problematic in story and art, this teases the audience, but does not deliver.


When I started out on my exploration of graphic novels and trade paperback anthologies, I was not a reader of comic books. Believe it or not - considering that of late my reviews of books have almost entirely been limited to trade paperback anthologies (graphic novels) - I have little interest in the genre, save that so many movies of late have been made based on works in this medium. Still, as I peruse the latest titles in the graphic novel section of Barnes & Noble for the latest movie tie-in, I occasionally find one that surprises me enough to sit and read. Last year, I found myself at a Barnes & Noble in Rochester as part of a disastrous reading/signing of small press authors (basically, friends of the authors came, bought from their respective author and left, no foot traffic) with plenty of time to sit and read. So, I picked up one of those graphic novels that actually intrigued me. It was Batman R.I.P.

Batman R.I.P. was billed as the storyline that would kill off Batman and while The Death Of Superman back when I was in high school got all sort of mainstream attention, Batman R.I.P. did not. Still, of all of the superheroes, Batman intrigues me most because he's just an ordinary rich guy with his own demons and a vengeance. Batman has no superpowers, just wealth, will and intelligence. He lives by hit wits and inventions alone and that is pretty compelling. So, the idea of killing him off made me intrigued; which villain finally buries him? How does he go out? I was legitimately curious and when my signing went poorly, I was actually happy to salvage it by reading this. Unfortunately, it was not the story I - or others might hope and if you want to read a review that does not explore the most critical problem of the book, now is where you absolutely must stop reading this.

I'm not big on spoilers and I shall maintain all of the most important surprises of Batman R.I.P. Still, it is impossible to adequately criticize this work without acknowledging its basic fault. Whatever the word for "cocktease" is when referring to literature, this is it. Batman R.I.P. fails to do what the back and title promise. The reason this was not a huge mainstream draw was that once again the writers, in this case author Grant Morrison and his art team, fail to deliver on the promise of a story that will bury Bruce Wayne and the Batman. The insult to the injury here is that for the nine-comic anthology, one must pay extra. This edition is a hardcover collection that beautifully collects the nine-chapters of Batman R.I.P. and allows the reader/collector to display it all in one place. But it's all mystery, murk and when it comes time for the big bang, the book fizzles.

Suddenly obsessed with the Black Glove, Batman begins investigating the mysterious new crime syndicate that has popped up in Gotham City. As Batman becomes convinced that the key to saving Gotham City forever rests in uncovering who is involved in the Black Glove and what their agenda is, Bruce Wayne finds himself more and more in love with Jezebel Jet. Eager to keep her safe, Batman tries to encourage Jezebel to abandon him until he can figure out how to thwart the Black Glove. As Batman cleans up Gotham from new, lamer criminals operating in a power vacuum (all of the main big bads are locked up in Arkham Asylum at this point), he becomes intrigued with the lack of clues connected to the Black Glove.

But then, Jezebel is invited to the Black Glove's Danse Macabre where the leader of the Black Glove promises a true and final duel between good and evil, including the destruction of Batman. As the pair plans to spring the trap the Black Glove has set for them, Jezebel inadvertently sets Batman off by reading a trigger phrase implanted into Bruce Wayne decades prior by Doctor Hurt. Psychologically fractured, Batman flees as the Batman Of Zur-en-arrh while Jezebel is captured, the Batcave is burned down and all of Batman's allies put in jeopardy.

First, Batman R.I.P. is clearly intended to be a volume for the fans of the Batman series and saga and it is written with a strong sense that readers know the complete backstory of Batman. As a result, Jezebel Jet appears early in the book as if she has always been a part of the series. Similarly, the Thogal incident is referred to casually (no clue what that is, sorry!), Batman's illegitimate son Damian is referenced (with many questions as to who he is and what is relationship to Robin truly is), and the well-known backstory of Batman's origin (the death of his parents, etc.) is mentioned without being spelled out explicitly. While this might be great for fans of the franchise who have kept up with the comics that immediately precede this storyline, those looking to this book for anything remotely like a satisfying reading experience will be completely lost.

As well, the main narrative is annoyingly fractured in two ways. First, Batman suffers a psychological break that becomes an annoyingly presented story that is nothing short of trippy and second, the supporting characters - Robin, Nightwing, Gordon and Alfred - have long sections where their stories diverge from the Batman plot. The first problem is a serious issue that presents a narrative problem on an order unseen since the parallel storylines in opposite panels of Watchmen (click here for my review of that!). Just as the mix of Watchmen and "Tales Of The Black Freighter" is annoying in that the narrative of both stories is disrupted by the way the stories are told, in Batman R.I.P. when Batman has his psychological break, the story becomes almost unintelligible. There are parts of this which work; Wayne wandering around with the homeless man Honor Jackson and the Batman Of Zur-en-arrh accompanied by an obvious figment of his imagination who wisecracks and warns him of dangers, but the bulk of it is linked through bridges that make no sense. Has Bruce Wayne been captured by Doctor Hurt, doped up and set loose in Gotham City? Where does the Batman Of Zur-en-arrh get his costume? If just a crazed Bruce Wayne enters Arkham - is he already there in a straightjacket?! - doesn't pretty much everyone know who he is now?

Before we go into the other problem, the question of Bruce Wayne already being in Arkham is the lone problem with the artwork in Batman R.I.P. Doctor Hurt and Bruce Wayne bear a striking resemblance to one another and this is a problem for figuring out what is going on. This is the death knell of a book that is trading on reality-bending situations and the story becomes visually confusing and convoluted in the middle of the book because of this.

As for the second problem, there is no problem with exploring how the Black Glove tries to take out Batman's allies. The problem is that characters seem to be defeated and then turn up later with no explanation. Similarly, the amount of time spent on the other characters distracts from what Batman is going through and where the Batman of Zur-en-arrh is at any given time.

For the most part, Tony S. Daniel does an amazing job with the artwork. Some of the early panels of Wayne and Jezebel are beautifully drawn and are actually sensual. As the book goes on, though, there are moments when the sense of movement is off. There is a car chase in the beginning where dialogue indicates potential actions which are then not shown. As a result, the use of the medium is not as good as it ought to be. If a book's strength is in describing events so the imagination may create them, a comic book is supposed to illustrate the bridges between the dialogue so the common experience is shared. That does not happen enough in Batman R.I.P.

In its hardcover form, the story ends with an art gallery and it is fair, though a pretty common bonus feature for hardcover books like this. Still, it is not enough to justify the expense of buying this book with all its predictable twists and turns (the true villains are unsurprising) and the eventual resolution to the book is anything but satisfying. Or sensible.

For other Batman anthologies, please check out my reviews of:
Knightfall Volume One: Broken Bat
Knightfall Volume Two: Who Rules The Night
Knightfall Volume Three: Kightsend

3/10

For other graphic novel reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!

© 2010, 2009 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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