Cover art to BLACKEST NIGHT #1 by Ivan Reis and Oclair Albert
Geoff Johns follows up one of the best single issues of a monthly book that Chris Smits has read in a long time with the kick-off to the biggest event of the summer. And it is, as they say, “a doozy.”
As Americans pay their respects to the super-beings who have given their lives protecting the world, a cloud of black rings spreads through the universe like a swarm of flies. Superheroes and villains alike are tipping their hats and laying flowers on the graves of fallen comrades… but they aren’t quite so fallen anymore. You’ve seen the advertisements: you know what it’s about. I don’t need to give you any more set-up. This is what you’ve been waiting for.
First of all, it’s 40 for $3.99. In an age when more and more 22-page books are selling for 4 bucks and a few 30-pagers are going for the same rate, it’s nice to get an almost double-sized issue for only a dollar more.
There seem to be about a million stories going on here but it flows very nicely and never gets confusing. And it plays well on both sides of the fence – if you’re a Green Lantern fan, it’s an awesome Green Lantern event. And if you follow the DCU as a whole, this one’s gonna involve everybody. The same goes for its accessibility. Newcomers should have a fairly easy time just picking this issue up and understanding what’s going on and longtime fans will have a jawdroppingly good time with it.
And Ivan Reis’ pencils kick ass.
I don’t think I disliked anything.
Cover art to BLACKEST NIGHT #1 by Ivan Reis and Oclair Albert
It was as good of a first issue as I’ve read. Filled with lots of little tender moments between heroes (and even some villains), this issue offered a nice reflection on death from a comic book perspective. And it pieced together some storylines that have been simmering since Identity Crisis. I’m sure it wasn’t all planned out from way back then, but as usual Geoff Johns proves himself to be the King of the Quiet Retcon. The Sensei of the Soft Reboot, if you will. The man has taken the clay of the DCU and molded it into a masterpiece.
Books like this remind me why I read superhero comics and why crossovers and events can be a so much fun. I felt like a 7-year old kid again (though to be fair, part of that was the Black Lantern ring I got at the comic shop, which I’ve been wearing all day and using to reanimate dead squirrels in my backyard), which is what Johns really does best. Rather than get bogged down by continuity, he uses it as a cornerstone on which to build a great story – and even a universe.
It works so well because it doesn’t really feel like a crossover; it’s the natural progression of what has been going on in the Green Lantern books for the past few years. It works because it uses not only continuity but the community of heroes in the DCU as a cornerstone. You know and respect these people. They’ve saved your life and you’ve fought beside them. You get the full impact of just what’s going on here and it’s every bit as unsettling as it is awesome. It’s a damn good beginning to what will hopefully be the best story of the summer.
And it’s got creepy-ass intergalactic super-zombies, which is really freakin’ awesome. I give this issue an A and I’m dying for the next one.