Okay, so the word ought to be ought by this point that Justice League #50 will finally give a definitive answer as to who is the Joker. Because that's going to happen. So I dove back into Darkseid War. The original plan was to eventually read the whole thing in trade collection, because this is one of the biggest stories Geoff Johns has ever done (which is saying something), building on just about everything he's done in this series, including Forever Evil, and arguably telling a definitive New Gods tale in the process. With various members having taken over various New Gods facets in the wake of Darkseid's death, they come to the realization that the Crime Syndicate (as Lex Luthor realized immediately) will probably have to play a role in this, and by the end have actually decided to team up with their doppelgangers. (It's worth noting that the animated Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths is actually pretty good.) In the Special, Johns gets to write a Jessica Cruz (Power Ring) tale, more or less riffing on what he's already done in the series proper, but still fun for fans of his Green Lantern to see (it's also worth noting that his two creations, Cruz and Simon Baz, finally helm their first ongoing series, thanks to the upcoming Rebirth era, in Green Lanterns). But more importantly, and also slightly riffing on earlier material, Special also puts the spotlight on Grail, and as such is another essential issue for those who realized that Johns has been using Justice League as his first run with Wonder Woman. And may he have another...
Omega Men #3 (DC)
And thusly now do I have physical copies for all extant issues of this series. In this one, Tom King explores Princess Kalista's motivations, which at the time seemed all the more crucial because she had the most immediate relationship with Kyle Rayner, and this was the first time the series delved into a team member's back story, but certainly not the last. The William James quote? "The 'sentimental fallacy' is to shed tears over abstract justice and generosity, beauty, etc., and never to know these qualities when you meet them in the street, because the circumstances make them vulgar." Again, I love these quotes in the series. Clearly Kalista was used to win Kyle over, because she's a romantic figure, enough to make him begin to care, when the rampant chaos of the Vega System itself was never enough. I hope comics fans eventually come around and realize how significant King's work in this series really is...
Web-Warriors #5 (Marvel)
I had to read at least one issue of this series, right? It's a de facto continuation of Mike Costa's work from the Secret Wars Spider-verse mini-series, which is to say, more with all those Spider-Man variations running amok together. What strikes me, in reading this, is that Costa is completely at home in this chaos. I guess it took a while for me to reconcile this version of his writing with the more sober work I know best, but if it gets him more fans and maybe even regular work, then I can support that. Maybe not read it regularly myself, but clearly there are readers for this sort of thing, so I can't complain. Happy for the guy...
Superman: American Alien #2, 4, 5 (DC)
I read the first issue digitally, and I was impressed with this latest variation on Superman's origins. Every issue spotlights a different period of Clark Kent's formative development. The second issue, for instance, features Max Landis' take on the period featured in Smallville, the teenage Clark figuring out what to do with his powers. Each issue features a different artist. This one has Tommy Lee Edwards, in a style you'd not typically associate with Superman, more like Ed Brubaker's crime comics, say. The fourth issue features budding journalism, with Clark, and Lois, covering the media coverage of emerging moguls Oliver Queen (post-island), Lex Luthor, and the elusive Bruce Wayne (who was previously featured in the third issue). This is my favorite issue so far, and not just because of the typically lush Jae Lee art. Here's a quote from Luthor:
"There's a fatalism that's been going around, and I think it's toxic -- self-fulfilling. I think fatalism is hip and pragmatism has gotten boring. I think dark futures are paradoxically easier to see than bright ones. Everyone talks about the problems of tomorrow, the apocalypse of next week, but whatever happened to the man of tomorrow? Why are we so convinced there aren't those among us who could maybe solve these problems that seem so insurmountable to the pseudo-intellectuals who pose them? We scared to even talk about a hopeful future, because we're terrified it won't come to light."
Anyway, Landis has some big, brainy thoughts in mind, perfectly in-character, too, and his work speaks to the enduring strength of revisiting familiar stories, no matter how familiar we think they are, or how familiar we think we are with the players. Young Luthor is always as fascinating as Mature Luthor, and in the hands of someone like Landis, Young Clark is arguably more fascinating than his mature counterpart. His first encounter with Batman, in this version, inspires him to become Superman. And so the fifth issue is all about his first, unsure attempt at being a superhero, like the Landis version of Frank Miller's famous Batman: Year One. And it's fantastic. The whole Blur thing from Smallville always seemed half-considered to me, a placeholder. As depicted by Francis Manapul, in arguably his best work to date, the Landis version seems like it always existed. Well, now it always will...
Was another Superman origin story necessary? It seems like just about every Superman graphic novel is an origin story.
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