Full review posted to comixtreme.com.
Story: 4/5
Art: 4.5/5
Overall: 4/5
Filed under: Blackest Night (Event), cxPulp.com, DC, DC Universe, Green Lantern | Tagged: Adam Schlagman, black lantern, Black Lanterns, Blackest Night, Carol Ferris, Christian Alamy, Comic Reviews, cxPulp.com, DC, DC Comics, Doug Mahnke, Eddie Berganza, Geoff Johns, Green Lantern, Randy Mayor, Rob Leigh, Sinestro, Sinestro Corps, Star Sapphire, Star Sapphires, Tom Nguyen | Leave a comment »
Fade to Black
Story & Words: Peter J. Tomasi
Penciller: Patrick Gleason
Inkers: Rebecca Buchman & Tom Nguyen
Colorists: Randy Mayor
Letterer: Steve Wands
Editor: Adam Schlagman
Cover: Gleason, Christian Alamy & Mayor (variant by Joe Jusko)
Publisher: DC Comics
This has been a great–and large–week for comics. Including the second issue of the core mini-series, there are three issues of Blackest Night this week–one of which is this issue.
While the story so far has largely centered on Earth and the Earth-based characters, this issue brings the rest of the GL Corps into the story–specifically main characters like Guy Gardner, Kyle Rayner, and the other usuals for this title. While the Daxamites continue to mop up from their battle with the Sinestro Corps, no one’s particularly aware of Mongul’s new proclamation off-planet. Not aware of what’s happened on Earth nor the most recent post-Sciencell Riot events on Oa, the GLs seek answers. Before they can arive at Oa, they encounter a wave of Black Rings, and though they’re able to warn fellow Lanterns, no one is able to stop the rings from making their way into the GL crypt and raising all the dead Green Lanterns…converting them to Black Lanterns. As the heroes begin to realize what they’re up against, Guy and Kyle’s conversation regarding women in Kyle’s life comes back to haunt him.
As usual, the visual style isn’t quite my thing…of the three Blackest Night books this week, this one’s my least-favorite visually. Also as usual, that’s not to say the art is bad–it’s not–it’s just a stylistic thing that I don’t like…it comes across as somewhat cartooney. However, perhaps it’s sheer enjoyment of the story, but while the art’s noticeable, it doesn’t “bother” me the way it has in other recent issues. On the whole, a good visual presentation.
The story stays tight with the overall Blackest Night event unfolding the last couple months. Tomasi knows these characters, and Blackest Night, and that shines in how he steers his characters into the mix. Staying true to what I recall being a conceptual point of this series–that it focuses on the GL Corps on a far wider view than the main GL book–here we see the Green Lantern Corps on a broader scale encountering and facing the rising of the Black Lanterns.
All in all, a very good issue and with the above-mentioned reservations on the art, this is not an issue to be missed if you’re following the larger event.
Story: 8/10
Art: 7/10
Whole: 8/10
Filed under: Blackest Night (Event), Comic Reviews 2009, DC, DC Universe, Green Lantern Corps | Tagged: Adam Schlagman, Blackest Night, Christian Alamy, Comic Reviews, DC, DC Comics, GL, GL Corps, GLC, Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps, Patrick Gleason, Peter J. Tomasi, Randy Mayor, Rebecca Buchman, Steve Wands, Tom Nguyen | Leave a comment »
Emerald Eclipse part five
Story & Words: Peter J. Tomasi
Penciller: Patrick Gleason
Inkers: Rebecca Buchman & Tom Nguyen
Colorists: Randy Mayor & Gabe Eltaeb
Letterer: Steve Wands
Editor: Adam Schlagman
Cover: Gleason, Buchman & Mayor
Publisher: DC Comics
Sodam Yat uses his Ion powers to transform Daxam’s sun into a yellow sun, thus granting all the Daxamites super-powers so that they can fight back against their oppressors. Meanwhile on Oa, the Lanterns continue battling the excaped sciencell prisoners, with some fairly unlikely alliances forged in the midst of battle. Finally, Scar throws off pretense and sets into motion what she’s been building toward for awhile now.
All in all, a decent issue story-wise. It’s cool to see what the GLs are doing all over the place and not just one or two specific GLs on a single planet. We get to see Yat continue to do spectacular things worthy of the tremendous power he harbors..and the fact of his doing it fits perfectly with a cosmic-level book such as this. Seeing things deteriorate on Oa adds a bit of desperation to things–again giving cause to wonder how the GLs are going to fare against the Black Lanterns soon to rise if they’re having this much trouble now without the Black Lanterns invading/attacking.
As usual–such that I feel completely repetetive even talking of it–the art is not at all to my tastes, and is a serious detraction to the book. I’m sure the style has its place, but for this reader at least, its place is not this book.
Given the story elements, I do recommend this issue for those already following the book and/or following everything related to Blackest Night. It’s not a great jumping-on point in and of itself, though if one wants to jump in amidst the ongoing action, this isn’t a horrible point to do so, either. Still…let’s just get to the “main event,” now, can we? I’m almost ready to just dive on in, and let a “flashback story” fill the gap later.
Story: 7.5/10
Art: 6/10
Whole: 6.5/10
Filed under: Comic Reviews 2009, DC, DC Universe, Green Lantern Corps | Tagged: Adam Schlagman, Blackest Night, Comic Reviews, DC, DC Comics, Emerald Eclipse, GL, GL Corps, GLC, Green Lantern, Green Lantern Corps, Patrick Gleason, Peter J. Tomasi, Prelude to Blackest Night, Randy Mayor, Rebecca Buchman, Steve Wands, Tom Nguyen | Leave a comment »
New Heaven, New Earth
Script: Grant Morrison
Pencils: Doug Mahnke
Inks: Tom Nguyen, Drew Geraci, Christian Alamy, Norm Rapmund, Rodney Ramos, Doug Mahnke & Walden Wong
Colors: Alex Sinclair w/Tony Avina & Pete Pantazis
Lettering: Travis Lanham
Associate Editor: Adam Schlagman
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Cover: JG Jones (sliver cover by Marco Rudy & Sinclair)
Publisher: DC Comics
So, this is it. This is the issue it’s all been building toward–the final chapter of this “final crisis” the characters are facing, this “event” capping off years of story…
Much like Marvel’s Secret Invasion final issue, this issue jumps ahead, and instead of us experiencing the story as it progresses, with the characters–instead we’re treated to a look-back from the present to a conclusion that’s already happened. We see characters rise against their Fifth-World gods and the intrusion of Mandrakk, and a multiverse’s army of Supermen, and…stuff happens.
The art in the issue isn’t all that bad. In fact, in and of itself it’s actually pretty good. Though there’s a whole bunch of inkers, the final result is a decent presentation. I went in with very low expectations, and what I got managed to stay a bit above my expectations–though I also found myself not really focusing terribly much on the art (didn’t expect to be impressed, so didn’t care to look for something to be impressed BY).
The story fits with the rest of the series in tone and feeling like it’s trying to come from somewhere above my reading level, and successfully makes me feel lost, whatever else it accomplishes there. While elements of this core series could be found in the tie-ins, on the whole, the entirety of the Final Crisis was told in 7 issues, this one mini-series. While that made it easier on the wallet, I feel like it did a large injustice to the scope of the story. Had it crossed into a large number of the DC books as Infinite Crisis did, this would have felt like a bigger deal. As it is, it felt like some apocalyptic (no pun intended) story with these characters with no real basis in ongoing continuity. That books are to make the “jump” to reflect what happened in Final Crisis later doesn’t really do much for me (but at least the story will be acknowledged).
I’m sure there’s “deep” stuff going on here with loads of potential for future exploration…but the feel just wasn’t there for me. I did not enjoy this issue, and the series as a whole has been bittersweet–I can’t see having skipped on it, but nor have I particularly enjoyed any of the issues. (The tie-in minis’ issues are another story).
Story: 5/10
Art: 7/10
Whole: 6/10
Filed under: Comic Reviews 2009, DC, DC Universe, Final Crisis, Final Crisis (Event) | Tagged: Adam Schlagman, Alex Sinclair, Batman, Christian Alamy, Comic Reviews 2008, DC, DC Comics, Doug Mahnke, Drew Geraci, Eddie Berganza, Final Crisis, Grant Morrison, J.G. Jones, Marco Rudy, Norm Rapmund, Pete Pantazis, Rodney Ramos, Superman, Tom Nguyen, Tony Avina, Travis Lanham, Walden Wong | Leave a comment »
Writer: Grant Morrison
Pencils: Doug Mahnke
Inks: Christian Alamy w/Tom Nguyen, Drew Geraci & Derek Fridolfs
Color: David Baron
Letters: Ken Lopez
3-D by: Ray Zone
Assoc. Editor: Adam Schlagman
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Cover: Mahnke, Alamy & Baron (sliver by JH Williams)
Publisher: DC Comics
I’ll say it from the start: this issue was an expensive, confusing mess. I think it was supposed to be something with metatextual elements/commentary to the readers–a bit of “breaking the fourth wall” or whatever–but I’m not entirely sure. Despite being a long-time comics reader and following Superman for the entire time, I felt rather lost here.
This issue basically has various Supermen from different Earths in the multiverse fighting something/someone for whatever reason. For most of the issue, I wasn’t even sure which of the Supermen was supposed to be “my” Superman from the current/official DCU, as even that character seemed “off” somehow.
The art for the issue is–in itself–quite good. It is tainted, though, by the stupid 3-D stuff. The 3-D seems to be just some arbitrary gimmick…and if “3-D-ifying” parts of the issue is what caused the four or five months or whatever it’s been since the first issue, that is entirely inexcusable to me,and leaves me regret at having supported this by buying it. If it’s this “late” due to timing of plot elements, I do wish that had been made more apparent up-front.
If you’re enjoying and “getting” what’s going on in the main Final Crisis book, this issue’ll probably make sense to you. Otherwise, it doesn’t seem like you’d be missing anything much by skipping this issue. The only reason to get this issue would be if it proves to in and of itself be totally essential to Final Crisis itself.
Story: 3/10
Art: 7/10
Whole: 4.5/10
Filed under: Comic Reviews 2009, DC, DC Universe, Final Crisis (Event), Final Crisis: Superman Beyond 3-D | Tagged: Adam Schlagman, Christian Alamy, Comic Reviews 2008, David Baron, DC, DC Comics, Derek Fridolfs, Doug Mahnke, Drew Geraci, Eddie Berganza, Final Crisis, Final Crisis: Superman Beyond, Grant Morrison, JH Williams, Ken Lopez, Ray Zone, Superman, Superman Beyond, Tom Nguyen | Leave a comment »
Comic Reviews by Walt 