Dr.Finger
04-22-2007, 08:41 AM
Evil Avatar's Weekly Comic Book Reviews - Year 3 - Week 17
Another theme week as this time we take an in-depth look at DC's World War III event
Fifty-Two #50
Reviewed By: Michael Chauvet (Doctor Finger)
Publisher: DC Comics
Writers: Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka and Mark Waid
Breakdowns: Keith Giffen
Penciller: Justiniano
Inker: Walden Wong
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Letterer: Ken Lopez
Editor: Michael Siglain
$2.50
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/52%20-%2050.jpg
World War III
So we come to World War 3, the end of one of the major storylines of this yearlong epic. Did it live up to the hype?
Hells yeah.
Black Adam, enraged over the murder of his wife and brother-in-law, had gone on a rampage of biblical proportions. The combined might of the entire Marvel family could not stop him. Team after team of superheroes had fallen before Adam's fury. Finally Adam had reached his destination - China. The Chinese government had set up the Oolong Island facility that killed Isis and Osiris and later tortured Adam himself. They knew he was coming, they knew he was anger incarnate, and they still thought they could stop him. They were wrong. China's superteam, the Great Ten, barely even slow Adam down. A veritable army of foreign superheroes, led by the Justice Society, sits just outside the Chinese border, but the Politburo won't grant them entry. Finally after most of the Ten are down and communications with Beijing are cut the Ten's leader reluctantly lets the heroes in. Adam is confronted by one of the greatest assemblages of power ever, and he won't go down. The fight is brutal and rendered wonderfully by Justiniano, who does the creepy and strange as well as anyone today. Finally Captain Marvel, after failing to convince the Egyptian deities that empower Adam to withdraw their gifts, comes up with a plan. If he cannot bring the lightning to Adam, then he'll bring Adam to the lightning. While Cap is grounded by the other mystics Martian Manhunter and several others drag Adam into the sky. Cap calls down the lightning, grabs it, and hurls it at Adam, whose now-human form is thrown clear from a massive explosion. A giant hand, belonging to Adam's only friend Atom Smasher, catches the mortal Adam and carries him away. Captain Marvel reveals that he couldn't take Adam's power away, so he did the next best thing - he changed the magic word. When we next see Adam he has been spirited to a Middle Easter city where he wanders the street trying to figure out his magic word. Finally we see T.O. Morrow, who escaped from Oolong Island, retreating to his base in the Rocky Mountains with the head of the Red Tornado, which is still repeating '52' over and over. Morrow taps into the android's memory and sees something shocking just as Booster Gold and Rip Hunter arrive to ask for his help.
Bottom Line:
The 52 team had a lot to do to justify the World War 3 moniker, and they came through with flying colors.
Rating: A must have (5 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/ex.jpg
World War III #2 (of 5)
Reviewed By: Sam Sorensen (Sazime)
Publisher: DC Comics
Writer: Keith Champagne
Artist: Andy Smith
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Editors: Peter Tomasi and Michael Siglain
$2.50
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/WW3%20pt%202%20-%20The%20Valiant.jpg
WWIII Part 2: The Valiant
After the rollicking first issue, if you can call trying to drive someone insane with your own painful memories "rollicking", issue 2 of World War III steps up with a lot of missing information from the "One Year Later" books.
It bears mentioning that after seeing millions die in the matter of seconds, the Martian Manhunter needs some time alone. After some brief contact with one of the many daughters of Krypton (Supergirl) on her way back from the 31st century, J'onn let's his mind wander over the world, looking for a reason to care again.
And what do we see? Well, dear reader, we see Harvey Dent fighting crime in Gotham, Deathstroke convincing Batgirl to throw down the mantle, Black Adam fight the Doom Patrol, Donna Troy feeling powerless and, in what ends up being the bulk of the issue, we finally get to see what happened to Orin. Aquaman is now a Deep One. Lovecraft would be proud.
From early on in this issue you really get a sense of where the storyline is being directed. J'onn J'onnz needs to convince himself that the world is worth saving and that his adopted home is as important to him as his original one. This is definitely one of those "this is what makes heroes, heroes" books that we see from time to time, with a lot of needed OYL gap-filler thrown in. Although I could have done without seeing Adam punch off yet another head.
Is there a lesson here? Yes, of course there is. It's a parable: No matter what the odds, and not matter if you have powers or not, people will push beyond what they should be capable of to help someone in a crisis. The Titans go off to fight someone they should not, the Marvel family continues to fight beyond their capabilities, Orin gives up his life to save a city and a member of the Doom Patrol loses his head. (I seriously think it is a running gag at DC to have Black Adam knock at least one block completely off every year).
I liked this issue, but I think they should have shown more of it through the Manhunter's perspective. The other three issues do a great job of showing how he reacts to the events going on during the War, but we spend a good chunk of time away from him here. That's a shame, because I think this was a great Martian Manhunter mini, as well as a good fill in for the events we did not hear about in 52. All in all, I enjoyed the 4 issue exposition on issue 50, and look forward to getting into the other world wide event that will cap this year long storyline.
Bottom Line for the issue:
We finally get to see what happened with a number of characters during this lost year, but it left me wanting more.
Rating: Good, but not great. (3.5 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e3_5.jpg
Bottom Line for the Series:
Awesome view of World War III from the perspective of one of my favorite DC Characters.
Rating: Worth the money and time. (4 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e4.jpg
World War III #3 - Hell is For Heroes
Reviewed By: Spigot
Publisher: DC Comics
Writer: John Ostrander
Penciller: Tom Derenick
Inker: Norm Rapmund
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letterer: Pat Brousseau
Editors: Peter Tomasi & Michael Siglain
$2.50
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/WW3%20pt%203%20-%20Hell%20is%20for%20Heroes.jpg
World War 3 #3 - Hell Is For Heroes
A more apt title couldn't be made for this installment in the World War 3 mini.
What's that?
That's the sound of Terra getting an involuntary heart massage by Black Adam as the Teen Titans attempt to slow his rampage across The Himalayas. This, and the disarming of Young Frankenstein (literally) sets the tone for the penultimate act in the World War 3 saga that ties in with 52 #50. Black Adam has been rampaging across the globe, having killed millions in what boils down to a superpowered temper tantrum.
Martian Manhunter spends much of the book touring the disaster zones left in Black Adam's wake. A lot of time is spent looking at how humans are capable of such depravity and suffering yet also able to sacrifice themselves for the good of their compatriots and the innocents around them. What struck me about the entire WW3 tie-in was how powerful Martian Manhunter is and made me ask, "Why don't they use this character more?" It was also interesting to see J'onn struggling with the carnage around him and coming to a decision to abandon his former aliases and start anew.
In between the fights with Black Adam, the plot also touches on the machinations of Checkmate and other organizations and individuals trying to find a way to stop him without pissing off an incredibly isolationist China (whose heroes, by the way, has the WORST set of superhero names of all time).
I will admit that I am a Marvel Zombie. What's a fan of DC's competition doing reviewing this book? Showing that 52 (and these tie-ins) are THAT good. It has impressed me from the beginning of 52 that DC is willing to let its villians and heroes actually get their hands bloody. Where Marvel has their Civil War that resulted in one or two 'on-screen' deaths, DC has let the carnage flow and shown the sheer damage that a superpowered being can wreak when all restraint has failed. While this could have been an over-the-top ballad of violence and gore, it is balanced by the more philosophical musings of J'onn and the political wranglings of the other players behind the scenes.
Oh, and it was a hoot seeing Booster Gold popping in and out of each issue as he tried to find the right part of the timeline. Blink, and you'll miss them, but suffice it to say, I can't wait to see what he'll be up to in the final issues of 52.
Bottom Line:
A 5 out of 5, if you have been reading 52, but a 3 out of 5 if you haven't.
Rating: A must have! (5 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e5.jpg
World War III #'s 1 & 4
Reviewed By: Michael Chauvet (Doctor Finger)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/WW3%20pt%201%20-%20A%20call%20to%20arms.jpghttp://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/WW3%20pt4%20-%20United%20we%20Stand.jpg
While all of the WW3 books were good, these two were definitely the weaker sisters of the group. Martian Manhunter was a great choice to be the lead character of these books. He's not only insanely powerful in his own right; his unique perspective on humanity lends some weight to the horror he witnesses. Both Ostrander and Champagne do a great job making you feel the Manhunter's pain over the whole situations, and the scenes with J'onn are very good. The rest of the books, dealing with some of the unexplained changes that occurred during the one-year gap don't read as well. In fact they seem at best really shoe-horned into this event, and at worst nonsensical. This isn't really Ostrander and Champagne's fault, they're just playing the cards they were dealt, but most of the non-war scenes feel really tacked on.
Bottom Line:
The war itself feels both brutal and epic. The other parts of the event feel out of place.
Rating: Worth the money and time. (4 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e4.jpg
Another theme week as this time we take an in-depth look at DC's World War III event
Fifty-Two #50
Reviewed By: Michael Chauvet (Doctor Finger)
Publisher: DC Comics
Writers: Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka and Mark Waid
Breakdowns: Keith Giffen
Penciller: Justiniano
Inker: Walden Wong
Colorist: Alex Sinclair
Letterer: Ken Lopez
Editor: Michael Siglain
$2.50
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/52%20-%2050.jpg
World War III
So we come to World War 3, the end of one of the major storylines of this yearlong epic. Did it live up to the hype?
Hells yeah.
Black Adam, enraged over the murder of his wife and brother-in-law, had gone on a rampage of biblical proportions. The combined might of the entire Marvel family could not stop him. Team after team of superheroes had fallen before Adam's fury. Finally Adam had reached his destination - China. The Chinese government had set up the Oolong Island facility that killed Isis and Osiris and later tortured Adam himself. They knew he was coming, they knew he was anger incarnate, and they still thought they could stop him. They were wrong. China's superteam, the Great Ten, barely even slow Adam down. A veritable army of foreign superheroes, led by the Justice Society, sits just outside the Chinese border, but the Politburo won't grant them entry. Finally after most of the Ten are down and communications with Beijing are cut the Ten's leader reluctantly lets the heroes in. Adam is confronted by one of the greatest assemblages of power ever, and he won't go down. The fight is brutal and rendered wonderfully by Justiniano, who does the creepy and strange as well as anyone today. Finally Captain Marvel, after failing to convince the Egyptian deities that empower Adam to withdraw their gifts, comes up with a plan. If he cannot bring the lightning to Adam, then he'll bring Adam to the lightning. While Cap is grounded by the other mystics Martian Manhunter and several others drag Adam into the sky. Cap calls down the lightning, grabs it, and hurls it at Adam, whose now-human form is thrown clear from a massive explosion. A giant hand, belonging to Adam's only friend Atom Smasher, catches the mortal Adam and carries him away. Captain Marvel reveals that he couldn't take Adam's power away, so he did the next best thing - he changed the magic word. When we next see Adam he has been spirited to a Middle Easter city where he wanders the street trying to figure out his magic word. Finally we see T.O. Morrow, who escaped from Oolong Island, retreating to his base in the Rocky Mountains with the head of the Red Tornado, which is still repeating '52' over and over. Morrow taps into the android's memory and sees something shocking just as Booster Gold and Rip Hunter arrive to ask for his help.
Bottom Line:
The 52 team had a lot to do to justify the World War 3 moniker, and they came through with flying colors.
Rating: A must have (5 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/ex.jpg
World War III #2 (of 5)
Reviewed By: Sam Sorensen (Sazime)
Publisher: DC Comics
Writer: Keith Champagne
Artist: Andy Smith
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letterer: Travis Lanham
Editors: Peter Tomasi and Michael Siglain
$2.50
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/WW3%20pt%202%20-%20The%20Valiant.jpg
WWIII Part 2: The Valiant
After the rollicking first issue, if you can call trying to drive someone insane with your own painful memories "rollicking", issue 2 of World War III steps up with a lot of missing information from the "One Year Later" books.
It bears mentioning that after seeing millions die in the matter of seconds, the Martian Manhunter needs some time alone. After some brief contact with one of the many daughters of Krypton (Supergirl) on her way back from the 31st century, J'onn let's his mind wander over the world, looking for a reason to care again.
And what do we see? Well, dear reader, we see Harvey Dent fighting crime in Gotham, Deathstroke convincing Batgirl to throw down the mantle, Black Adam fight the Doom Patrol, Donna Troy feeling powerless and, in what ends up being the bulk of the issue, we finally get to see what happened to Orin. Aquaman is now a Deep One. Lovecraft would be proud.
From early on in this issue you really get a sense of where the storyline is being directed. J'onn J'onnz needs to convince himself that the world is worth saving and that his adopted home is as important to him as his original one. This is definitely one of those "this is what makes heroes, heroes" books that we see from time to time, with a lot of needed OYL gap-filler thrown in. Although I could have done without seeing Adam punch off yet another head.
Is there a lesson here? Yes, of course there is. It's a parable: No matter what the odds, and not matter if you have powers or not, people will push beyond what they should be capable of to help someone in a crisis. The Titans go off to fight someone they should not, the Marvel family continues to fight beyond their capabilities, Orin gives up his life to save a city and a member of the Doom Patrol loses his head. (I seriously think it is a running gag at DC to have Black Adam knock at least one block completely off every year).
I liked this issue, but I think they should have shown more of it through the Manhunter's perspective. The other three issues do a great job of showing how he reacts to the events going on during the War, but we spend a good chunk of time away from him here. That's a shame, because I think this was a great Martian Manhunter mini, as well as a good fill in for the events we did not hear about in 52. All in all, I enjoyed the 4 issue exposition on issue 50, and look forward to getting into the other world wide event that will cap this year long storyline.
Bottom Line for the issue:
We finally get to see what happened with a number of characters during this lost year, but it left me wanting more.
Rating: Good, but not great. (3.5 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e3_5.jpg
Bottom Line for the Series:
Awesome view of World War III from the perspective of one of my favorite DC Characters.
Rating: Worth the money and time. (4 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e4.jpg
World War III #3 - Hell is For Heroes
Reviewed By: Spigot
Publisher: DC Comics
Writer: John Ostrander
Penciller: Tom Derenick
Inker: Norm Rapmund
Colorist: Hi-Fi
Letterer: Pat Brousseau
Editors: Peter Tomasi & Michael Siglain
$2.50
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/WW3%20pt%203%20-%20Hell%20is%20for%20Heroes.jpg
World War 3 #3 - Hell Is For Heroes
A more apt title couldn't be made for this installment in the World War 3 mini.
What's that?
That's the sound of Terra getting an involuntary heart massage by Black Adam as the Teen Titans attempt to slow his rampage across The Himalayas. This, and the disarming of Young Frankenstein (literally) sets the tone for the penultimate act in the World War 3 saga that ties in with 52 #50. Black Adam has been rampaging across the globe, having killed millions in what boils down to a superpowered temper tantrum.
Martian Manhunter spends much of the book touring the disaster zones left in Black Adam's wake. A lot of time is spent looking at how humans are capable of such depravity and suffering yet also able to sacrifice themselves for the good of their compatriots and the innocents around them. What struck me about the entire WW3 tie-in was how powerful Martian Manhunter is and made me ask, "Why don't they use this character more?" It was also interesting to see J'onn struggling with the carnage around him and coming to a decision to abandon his former aliases and start anew.
In between the fights with Black Adam, the plot also touches on the machinations of Checkmate and other organizations and individuals trying to find a way to stop him without pissing off an incredibly isolationist China (whose heroes, by the way, has the WORST set of superhero names of all time).
I will admit that I am a Marvel Zombie. What's a fan of DC's competition doing reviewing this book? Showing that 52 (and these tie-ins) are THAT good. It has impressed me from the beginning of 52 that DC is willing to let its villians and heroes actually get their hands bloody. Where Marvel has their Civil War that resulted in one or two 'on-screen' deaths, DC has let the carnage flow and shown the sheer damage that a superpowered being can wreak when all restraint has failed. While this could have been an over-the-top ballad of violence and gore, it is balanced by the more philosophical musings of J'onn and the political wranglings of the other players behind the scenes.
Oh, and it was a hoot seeing Booster Gold popping in and out of each issue as he tried to find the right part of the timeline. Blink, and you'll miss them, but suffice it to say, I can't wait to see what he'll be up to in the final issues of 52.
Bottom Line:
A 5 out of 5, if you have been reading 52, but a 3 out of 5 if you haven't.
Rating: A must have! (5 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e5.jpg
World War III #'s 1 & 4
Reviewed By: Michael Chauvet (Doctor Finger)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/WW3%20pt%201%20-%20A%20call%20to%20arms.jpghttp://www.evilavatar.com/images/thumbs/comics/WW3%20pt4%20-%20United%20we%20Stand.jpg
While all of the WW3 books were good, these two were definitely the weaker sisters of the group. Martian Manhunter was a great choice to be the lead character of these books. He's not only insanely powerful in his own right; his unique perspective on humanity lends some weight to the horror he witnesses. Both Ostrander and Champagne do a great job making you feel the Manhunter's pain over the whole situations, and the scenes with J'onn are very good. The rest of the books, dealing with some of the unexplained changes that occurred during the one-year gap don't read as well. In fact they seem at best really shoe-horned into this event, and at worst nonsensical. This isn't really Ostrander and Champagne's fault, they're just playing the cards they were dealt, but most of the non-war scenes feel really tacked on.
Bottom Line:
The war itself feels both brutal and epic. The other parts of the event feel out of place.
Rating: Worth the money and time. (4 out of 5 EvilEyes)
http://www.evilavatar.com/images/icons/e4.jpg