Pick of the Week
What did the
iFanboy
community think?
Pulls
Size: pages
Price:
Story by Geoff Johns, Greg Rucka, & Judd Winick
Letters by Nick J. Napolitano
Chapter 1:
Art by Rags Morales
Inks by Michale Bair
Colors by Moose Baumann
Chapter 2:
Art by Ed Benes
Colors by HiFi
Chapter 3:
Art by Jesus Saiz
Inks by Jimmy Palmiotti
Colors by Paul Mounts
Chapter 4:
Art by Ivan Reis
Inks by Marc Campos
Colors by Guy Major
Chapter 5:
Art by Phil Jimenez
Inks by Andy Lanning
Colors by Steve Firchow
Published by DC Comics | $1.00
It can be tough picking just one book each week to highlight. Often I’m tempted to avoid the obvious choice, going for something obscure that might impress you with my taste in comics. But other times, the obvious pick is just sitting there, staring at you asking “How CAN’T you pick me? What are you going to pick that godawful Secret War #4? Come on! Do it! Do it!” So this week, I listened.
80 Pages. 18 people (writers, artists, etc). 1 Dollar. How can you go wrong? This is the big lead in for the hyped DC event of this summer that will make Identity Crisis seem like small potatoes. I don’t think I’ve talked/thought about a single issue like I did after reading this for a long while. Like it or not, there’s no way to avoid this juggernaut. It’s happening and if you’re a fan of comics, then this is a must read.
For a title meant to start something bigger than Identity Crisis, it sure seems to borrow a lot from it: plot twists, hero narration, large gatherings of DC heroes and a whole lot of suspense. I’m not big on spoiling the story for anyone, so it kinda hamstrings me from being ale to talk freely about the plot, but I can break it down like this: Someone is trying to do bad things to heroes. Again. That basically sums it up.
But this is more than just a story of a villain attacking a hero. This very well may be the line in the sand in terms of the DC Universe and the kind of stories told. Identity Crisis may have just been the first skirmish, but I feel like by this fall DC Comics will be very much affected by the events set in motion in these pages.
Now being a Marvel guy who grew up with mutants, understanding and being able to enjoy DC Comics has been an adventure for me. I’ve found surprisingly great characters and good stories, where I thought it was boring and typical. Unfortunately, for some heroes I may have arrived a bit too late. Which is too bad, but at least there are trade paperbacks of past stories I can go find.
I just don’t see any reason how you can not read this. Its just a dollar! Besides, at 80 pages, it’ll take you a better part of a day to finish it. The art is superb with top talent and the writers obviously are putting everything they have into this.
Needless to say, this is going to be one crazy summer.
Did you read Countdown to Infinite Crisis? Add a comment and tell everyone what you think about this week’s comics!
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Ron and I had a semi long discussion about this book over IM today that stemmed largely from Randy Lander’s mostly stick-in-the-mud review.
I really liked this issue a lot, even if the main character in this book was treated by the other hereoes in a very out-of-character way (probably the only thing Randy and I agree on). It would have made a lot more sense if the main character had been switched with his best friend; that would have made the other heroes’ reactions understandable.
But other than that I think that this issue sets up a very interesting story that might actually rock the DCU to its core just as advertised.
Two PSes.
1. The dangers of comics falling behind schedule – Hal Jordan is a fully reintroduced character in the DCU in COUNTDOWN, yet his own reintroductory mini-series isn’t over yet.
2. As for the rest of the comics this week – I really did NOT like the big reveal in BATMAN. Just awful.
Yes, it’s troubling to think that’s the best they could come up with for Batman. X-Men: Phoenix Endsong is way better than I anticipated at all. Not quite as good as astonishing, but way better than any of the other X-Books out there.
As far as Countdown…I enjoyed it, but found it to be a little scattered. For $1, I think it could’ve been way more accessible to new readers. And yes, apparently Hal Jordan is Earth’s GL again. I have generally mixed emotions about it…Need to give it a 2nd read.
Me too. I liked it a lot, I just think that the characterization was way off in that one specific area.
Man Countdown was the bomb wasn’t it? It is only going to get better from what i hear too. There are some HUGE surprises in store when the spin off books start coming out. And Conor…from what i hear… the Batman reveal is just the begining of big and twisted ride.
Jason, you are a horrible, horrible tease.