Super-sized.
Okay, people. The battle for Earth has started and the first
assault is a whopper.
Bruce is still out of the field right now, but that doesn’t
stop hell from raining down on the Superman army.
This is probably the first major advantage for the
resistance, so you can guess how it’s going to get savagely reversed in the
last three issues.
But for now, it’s enjoyable to see some great moments for
Batman’s team as Tom puts them through the paces.
As far as the artwork goes, I’m starting to miss Bruce
Redondo. Millar’s facial designs are all so similar, whether they be male or
female. It’s only when Bruce picks up the pencils that the ‘amazing’ feeling
returns.
SPOILERS FOLLOW…………….
It’s so ironic that Bruce Wayne/ Batman says that the signal
for their attack will be when the sky turns green, as currently, he’s infront
of an all green background.
In fact, given that most of the first part is either Barbara
Gordon aka Oracle’s place or the Corps battle, there is a lot of greenery going
around.
Anyway, Bruce and Barbara discuss the strategic positions of
each team – while Gordon’s group will lead the ground attack, Guy’s team will
take Superman in the skies.
And what a way they do it!
What do you think happens when a Green Lantern shoots a concentrated
beam of his willpower at your face? Well, what happens when that Green Lantern
is a planet?
The warning signs are there that Mogo will play a pivotal
part as we see him blanketing the sun to stop Superman powering up anymore.
John, Hal, Superman and Guy first try to make a discussion
happen but with both sides refusing to back down, tempers get frayed and of all
people, Superman throws the first insult (and if you know Guy like I do, that’s
as rare as seeing a pig fly).
And what follows show how far Clark is gone. As Guy attempts to hit him, he weaves back and snaps Guy’s arm. You
only need to see John’s reaction behind the action to gauge how frightening
this is.
By the way John, that moment would be a good time to know
that you’re backing the wrong side.
This leads into the epic cliffhanger of the first part as
the Green Lantern Corps dodge a full blast of Mogo’s willpower, which finds
Superman’s group in its path.
Superman though has other ideas, as he shields Sinestro and
Hal from the blast. And you see another ‘this isn’t Superman’ moment as he
cowardly decides to use the planet as a shield against Mogo.
The Justice League on Earth, currently at the Hall of
Justice, see the entire sky turn green as the resistance starts its attack
(Harley wearing the Joker’s suit! Classic!). Meanwhile in the cave, Black
Canary arms a kryptonite gun as Alfred watches.
Harley casually walks up the steps of the entrance to the
Hall and reveals she has strapped a bomb to her chest.
The ensuring blast throws one of the soldiers through the
roof of the Hall and Flash catches the person. Sadly for him, it’s actually
Catwoman who, under the influence of the super pill, manages to knock Barry out
with a sedative.
Harley, now naked, quickly takes her old costume (the one
from BTAS) from a showcase!
Robin though has other ideas as Damian attacks Catwoman,
leading to Selina beating him up. In this universe, Damian had seemed weaker
and more vulnerable (while in the main universe, once upon a time, he would had
endorsed different facets of Batman’s and Superman’s actions) and for me, this
greatly devalues his confrontation with Selina.
Still, it’s nice to see his comeuppance for Dick’s death
(notice the parallel with how he hit Grayson with his staff unawares while here
he fails and the staff is broken).
Cyborg manages to flee to the Watchtower while Luthor is
captured. But in a private conversation with Jim Gordon, he reveals that he was
the mole and that Cyborg has almost managed to locate his daughter Barbara’s location.
As they start to teleport to the Watchtower, Luthor assures
Jim that he cannot afford to be revealed if the resistance fails and Jim grimly
tells him he’s not coming back from this.
This had some great moments as callbacks to earlier in the
series were done, whether it was Canary saying that she couldn’t promise not to
kill Superman as their best shot was dead thanks to him or Harley wearing the
Joker suit from the first issue.
SPOILERS END……………
In the first strike, the resistance scored a win but sadly,
this battle’s far from over. Tom manages to include some good character moments
even within the action, and writes Guy almost as well as Peter Tomasi.
Problems though are that a major confrontation falls flat
and the artwork in the first half is less than appealing.
So, I give it 8.5 out of 10.
+Some great character moments
+Guy written brilliantly
+The cliffhanger to the first part was great
+Second half artwork is excellent
-First half artwork is passable
-A major confrontation falls flat
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