My first impression, of these books, and this story, is that it would be a world changing event that would be told through these four issues. Well . . . then I read 52 #50. And that is where the real World War III happened. Well . . . not so much happened, as was told there. So then I started to question, what are these books going to be for. Then I read them. What a fantastic way to tell a story. The overall effects and after-effects of Black Adam's rampage is told in the pages of 52 #50. But to get all the nuances, and the subtle changes to all the characters, you have to pick up these books. Remember in my 52 blogs, how I was complaining that we hadn't seen anything about the changes in the Aquaman character, or how the Teen Titans ended up where they did, or of all the changes that had happened to Firestorm but hadn't been explained yet? Well all that and more is shown and explained here in these books. And that is what the purpose of these books are. To fill in all the little cracks that couldn't be told, or there wasn't enough room for in the regular 52 title. And what a cool way to do it. I mean really. Think about what this whole creative staff has gone through for the last year or so. They've been putting out a weekly book, keeping things on track on a week to week, probably even day to day basis. All for our creative enjoyment. Honestly, what more could you ask for out of a creative assignment this big. But our guys did good. They kept the pace going. They kept the stories interesting. And they got attention to all the characters that they wanted to. 
But I think in the process, the story grew larger than they expected. So in order to tie this whole huge story in to the One Year Later stories, which they said in the beginning they were going to do, they had to come up with another way to tie up all the loose ends. Hence, this book was probably born. I mean we see all the characters that I've been asking questions about and more in the pages of these four issues. Let me list a couple of the things that start to get tied up, or at least tied in to the stories of the One Year Later line, that came out almost a year ago. First we find out what happened to Martian Manhunter and where he's been all this time. And really this whole story is told from his perspective. Next we find out what happened to Father Time and his associates. But, I don't think they're done. I just think that Father Time is going to be changed. Next we start to see what's brought Nightwing to New York and his renewed deliberation with the criminal element. We start to learn some moreabout the Firestorm mystery. What happened to Professor Stein, how did he get Jason and Cyborg apart,
and how did Jason and Firehawk get to be such teammate and tied together so tightly in the matrix. And that was all in the first issue. In book two, Supergirl returns from the future. Sub-Diego, at the bequest of Aquaman, because all of it's inhabitants are now drowning in the ocean, is risen again to it's air breathing status. But in doing so the gods have exacted a toll on Aquaman, turning him in to a creature not recognizable. We get a little glimpse of Harvey's fight to keep Gotham safe in Batman's absence. And how Deathstoke uses that same absence to turn Batgirl over to his side. During all this we see Booster Gold popping in and out of frames. He keeps saying, "This is not the right time. I'm too soon." We witness the reformation of the JSA, to help with the world plight. Black Adam kills Young Frankenstein and Terra of the Teen Titans. Amanda Waller is starting to put her Suicide Squad back together, under the tutelage of Rick Flag, who is still alive, and Ben Turner, the Bronze Tiger. Bones sets Kate and Damon up in their own law firm. And Jonn Jonzz decides to purge himself, and the world, of all the lies that he's told and woven over the course of his occupancy on earth. This is a realization that he comes to when he's watching everyone 
else go through their own trials and tribulations. We see a lot of friendships that are born, and a lot of new alliances that are created. And in this storyline we get more of the details on how Shazam was actually able to take Black Adam down. And the integral part of the whole operation that fell on Jonn's shoulders. And finally, at the end, we see the Monitor Satellite. They've been watching this whole skirmish go down. But their observations are just as chilling as what's just happened. "This chapter is closed. One man's war against the planet has ended. Some have lived. Some have died. Others have . . . . changed. They must evolve or they will not be prepared. Their darkest hour has not yet arrived." What an ominous note to end the series on. But, what a fantastic story it was. Again, think about it. With this storyline, these creators have put out 56 books in 52 weeks. That's just incredible. I know that there's going to be some people out there that aren't going to like whatever's been done to one of their favorite characters, but I say "So what!". These creators have built a storyline, that has evolved a great number of characters, and some might say the whole DC universe. Let's go with it. So some of the characters have changed. That's what happens sometimes. So we aren't going to like some of those changes. So what! I love what they've done, and I love that the status quo now is that there is no status quo. That's awesome. And it opens up the DC universe to a ton of possibilities. I say hat's off and congrats to all involved for bringing us such an incredible creation over the last year. And the best part is knowing that this is only the beginning. 
No comments:
Post a Comment