Rats
“Superman is dead. This is a job for Lex Luthor.”
W: Geoff Johns A: David Finch C: Richard Friend
Forever Evil is back for part two of the major DC crossover. Picking up right where the last issue left off, we follow the Teen Titans as they attempt to put a stop to the chaos the Crime Syndicate has caused. Will the Titans be able to put a stop to them and save Nightwing or will they fall just like the Justice Leagues!?
The Ups: Johns does a great job setting up a lot of plot points to make sure you come back for more. A slower pace than the last issue, this week puts in motion a lot of events that will effect this series and the tie-ins that are attached. I’m glad at least up to this point that there’s no lost plot set ups which what occurred during villain’s month. Johns is keeping everything consistent but in order to not be lost you have to had read last month’s villain issues. I was excited to see the inclusion of a certain character and the strong ending that might finally reveal what happened to the Justice League in the very near future. At first I wasn’t crazy about the art but Finch does an interesting job making all the characters have a realistic look which definitely grew on me. Friend greatly compliments Finch’s style with great shadowing and colors for this issue.
The Downs: Even though a lot of seeds were planted in this issue, there was definitely a whole lot going on that really didn’t need to be all in one issue. The Teen Titans’ involvement was very small and it kinda annoyed me that they all were taken out by Johnny Quick in a manner of two pages. I think the Titans are a little better than that. For such a small part, this was something I felt they could of just had in the beginning of the next Titans issue and leave more room for something more relevant to the main story. I think maybe some more info on what happened to the Leagues or some more story behind what Luthor has planned would of fit better. The other problem I have is with the amount of upcoming tie-ins being involved with this story. Granted most of the tie-ins seem interesting but its just making me wonder how many are actually going to move the story along. It’s awesome that a lot of different characters are getting more time now with the Justice Leagues missing. But it is something I wish was toned down a bit so it is easier as a reader to keep up with everything that is going on during this event without having to read so many different issues.
The Overall: A decent issue with a lot of interesting set ups for future issues and the tie-ins. I know Johns is capable of amazing stories with great pay offs, so lets just hope this is no different.
Grade 3 of 5
ComicsRefueled 