Convergence: Week 3
Covergence: Adventures of Superman #1
(Wolfman, Viacava, Owens, Sotocolor)
Let me be the first to say, MARV WOLFMAN!! This was interesting. The whole struggle of pre-Crisis Kara aka Supergirl was good. She knows she’s destined to die and Superman is under trail with Phantom Zone villains. And Gotham is under attack by gorilla forces; literally. Sets up a great delimma, but it wasn’t a good read. Sorry Marv. Not your best. The art work was good, but not great either.
Convergence: Batman and the Outsiders #1
(Andreyko, D’Anda, Eltaeb)
This was one of my favorite split offs from the JLA. It just made sense that Batman would get tired of the League’s crap sooner or later. Now, the cover to issue one was excellent! In fact, the whole of the artwork was excellent and the story was written well. The humanity of our heroes shows through. And with IMAC and his army of mutants attacking, it should be a great fight!
Convergence: Green Lantern Corp #1
(Gallaher, Ellis, Parks, Hi-Fi)
The cover wasn’t a favorite at all, but the artwork inside made up for it. We get to see Guy Gardner anguish the state of the pre-Crisis Green Lanterns. We get to see John Stewart and Hal Jordon. Hal and Guy fight over the battery once the power’s back on. But, with or without powers, I hope they finally realize that the hothead, anti-hero of the 80s has a place in the DC landscape. This is worth a second chance and will be picking up the second issue.
Convergence: Hawkman
(Parker, Truman, Alcatena, Kalisz)
A fair book at best. I’m not a big Hawkman fan, but I don’t think it would matter. Story and art both mediocre. Not much development. Just the fact that, and I’m glad, this world will not survive.
Convergence: Justice League of America #1
(Nicieza, Chriscross, Cortez)
Interesting with the Flash finale coming on the CW that we get the pre-Crisis JLA along with a top shelve Vibe. Nice cover. The first splash page is already infuriating the hard core fans online. That’s all I will tell you about that. Despite that and the initial shock, the rest was well put together. This is my least favorite version of the JLA, but Nicieza paced it well and reintroduced them amazingly. And the art work? In a couple of words, I LOVED it! This is my favorite of week three and I CAN’T WAIT for the finale!
Convergence: Superboy and the Legion of Super-Heroes #1
(Moore, Storms, Farmer, Rauch)
I miss the Legion. And getting a chance to give them a rebirth has me all giddy. The cover was enough. IN fact, the first comics I picked up as a child was the fifties Legion. The reintroductions were fresh and handled well. Superboys’s angst was real. “I miss my dog” lol. In my heart, the Atomic Knights can in NO WAY survive the Legion. Needless to say, I’m looking forward to the finale.
Convergence: Swamp Thing #1
(Wein, Jones, Madsen, Leigh)
If you’re going to bring something as big as Swamp Thing back, what better way than to put the man who created it at the helm. Len Wein is back to the Swamp Thing, so you can imagine the expectations. The story was slow and draggy, but interesting. Inserting the Red Rain hoard into this was perfect. Not my favorite, but a good read.
Convergence: The Flash #1
(Abnett, Dalocchio, Gandini)
Another great Barry Allen, this time the Pre-Crisis one. He’s separated from Iris but working with Gotham Police Dept. It was good seeing Barry anguish through the separation and the loss of power. It was a bit slow, but necessary. The showdown with Tangent Universe ‘Superman’ should be interesting so I’ll be back.
Convergence: The NEW Teen Titans #1
(Wolfman, Scott, Deering, Cox)
Oh, baby! I knew they could do this comic without including Marv Wolfman, the co-creator. I just wished they’d pulled in George Perez for it! But it was excellent seeing them all in action again. Although no Raven. Pitting them against the Tangent universe Doom Patrol was fitting. The story is prime Wolfman. He’s in his old element here. You can tell he hasn’t lost touch with the original characters. They live and breathe just like the 80s. And the story is not a cut and dry boring showdown story either. I give Marv credit for thinking about this story. I’m on board for part two.
Convergence: Wonder Woman #1
(Hama, Middleton)
The cover itself says a lot and has me hooked immediately. I just hope the cover Nazis don’t deem this too demeaning of women and cry to have it pulled. I know without opening it that it involved the Red Rain vampire world. But you’ll never guess who the main ‘Bat’ nemesis is….This is worth a look and I’m in for part 2. The art was a bit rough for me, but it did the story good. And poor Steve…
I think this week was a step back for all the tie ins, although it was great seeing Wolfman and Lein back in old stomping grounds. They were still mostly worth a look. But, I'm feeling that, if you're a newbie, you're lost and just waiting around for a jumping in point! And the numbers are proving me out too. According to DC, their sales are down around 40%.
CONVERGENCE is definitely NOT a great jumping on point. Maybe, once the smoke clears, it will be. But, for now, it's mainly for the old school fans and the 'initiated'.
