Honestly this book leaves me torn. The lead feature staring the Doom Patrol is a perfectly serviceable, if darker than average (or not this being a DC book after all), super-hero comic. Unfortunately I don't think perfectly serviceable is really going to cut it in this market for this team and looking at the last to attempts at giving the Patrol an ongoing (Arcudi's excellent and overlooked gem ran for 22 issues while the dreadfully unlamented Bryne run somehow managed to eek out 18 issues) only backs this feeling up. I lack any confidence in the staying power of these characters or their ability to draw a sustainable audience. Aside from what is done to the couple of hold outs from Bryne's run (that kind of feels like an unnecessary and distracting shot across his brow by the way. I mean yes his run was bad and all but sill...) there is nothing memorable about the story. All in all I'd give the lead a 3 for writing and a 4 for art.

The back up on the other hand staring the Metal Men is a thing of beauty that once again unites the Justice League International creative team of Giffen, Dematis, and Maguire for another go around of superhero zaniness. In many ways this creative team has found a perfect set of characters to match their style. They have only limited pages to work with but in those there are so many wonderful things like the new metal "man" introduced (what was her name again? That was a joke that you would have to read the issue to get by the way) to Mercury now being on medication (the mind boggles at exactly what kind of medication a robot made of an unstable metal with a electronic heart takes) the dialogue and plot sparkles. And of course Kevin Maguire's art has few equals in the market. To say this book is an improvement over the recent mini-series is to understate at a Grand Canyon level. Overall this back up on its own would be a resounding 5 for writing and 5 for art.

And this leads us to my central dilemma: this back up is not on it own. Indeed it is paired with a lead feature that tonally could not be more different from itself. In theory I understand the thought process that went behind the teaming of two such quirky (and generally unmarketable) teams together in one book but in practice they don't mesh well at all. Which is especially odd since the same man helped to write both of them. Maybe that is a strength and not a weakness but personally I found it off putting. Still between the two features there is enough available that I find it hard to believe that most comic readers would not be able to enjoy at least part of tis book. So I think I will split the difference score wise and give the book a hearty:
Highly Recommended.