THE GOOD:

-The art is still fantastic, surprisingly enough. I love how Brad Walker draws Doctor Phosphorus.

-This issue fixes the pacing issue of the previous two issues. It's not rushed and thankfully it doesn't slow down so much that it becomes boring. Just the right pace.

-Damian is still the best here. Funny, badass, just everything.

-The Robinsignal was just really cool, especially how they executed it.

-The dialogue is great here. Tomasi knows how to write Batman and co.

THE BAD:

-So… we get the identity of Arkham Knight… and I dunno. It seems overhyped to say the least. If this were a completely different and new mystery villain, nobody would give a shit about their identity, and maybe then I wouldn't be so let down. It seems kind of random, and that last page was really rushed. more

this run continues to be very enjoyable and fun.
i cannot praise it enough.

i am really glad the Arkham Knight wasn’t who i thought it was.
(((SPOILER)))and no, i didn’t think that it was Jason Todd.(((END SPOILER)))

i really loved Damian’s response to learning who the Arkham Knight’s identity was,
as well as his taunts to the Arkham Knight’s zealots.

i really enjoy how Peter Tomasi write’s Batman dialog as he deduces and detects.
his dialog for Bruce & Damian continues to be pitch perfect. i really like how both characters are written to be very cerebral, logical, and of high intelligence. as they should be.
it was excellent to see Tomasi show how gifted and artist Damian Wayne is, as he had previously established in his New52 Batman&Robin run. this definitely feels like a nice continuation of that run. definitely points to Tomasi for keeping continuity and consistency from what he’s written before. i even enjoyed the casual nod to Damian's formal introduction in Grant Morrison's Batman run, to which Tomasi was the editor of.

another thing thing i’m also absolutely loving in this story-arc is the art.
it’s cartoonish, but has a nice rendering and high detail. it also continues to be very dynamic and action packed.

one thing i will say about the Arkham Knight and Zealots, is they are truly NUTS!
i appreciated the reveal to who the Knight's identity is.
((((MINOR SPOILER))))((((MINOR SPOILER))))((((MINOR SPOILER))))
((((MINOR SPOILER))))if you've read Grant Morrison's Arkham Asylum, you get the significance of the Arkham Knight's heritage.((((END MINOR SPOILER))))((((END MINOR SPOILER))))((((END MINOR SPOILER))))

if you haven’t checked out this run yet, you really should. more

Great first issue. The ending was fun& all characters were in character.


MAJOR SPOILER WARNING!!!

Even so Darkseid was killed in the first issue& that was, what made me skeptical from the beginning I could enjoy this issue. It’s an Elseworld after all.
Tom Taylor does a great job portraying Darkseid and Desaad. Their scenes together felt like good old Pre52 times, when their characters still were done justice. What of course leads to the question, why doesn’t DC always do that.
I think the explanation of the virus as one of Darkseid‘s and Desaads „inventions“ gone wrong make a lot of sense& Taylor got the Anti Life Equation& what it means right so far. The virus spreading through social media is also an interesting idea.
The ending with Batman and the Robins was just cool& I’m hyped for next issue, which probably will be painful as well.
Since Desaad was the only one immune to the disease I’m wondering or rather hoping, that he still is alive by escaping Apokolips, since an immunity is a chance to develop an antidote ( If that is even possible).

SPOILER ENDING


Definitely a must read this week.

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WOW!!! this comic drew me RIGHT in!!
the comic started really action packed and adrenaline fueled.
the art is incredibly dynamic, the panels are nicely paced, and the story INTENSE!!
most importantly i am enjoying the HELL out of this version of Batman!
if ever there were a crisis, THIS is the guy i'd want watching my back!

not a lot of info is given able the Arkham Knight,
but he made a great entrance and i am intrigued!

an absolutely WONDERFUL moment between Batman and Jim Gordon.
THIS is the relationship between these two that i want to see.

i absolutely LOVE Tomasi's version of Alfred!
his sarcastic wit is spot on!
loved his response to Commissioner Gordon through the Batmobile!

VERY happy to see Damian in action!
Tomasi writes one of the best versions of Damian Wayne, right next to Grant Morrison.
it's been far too long since we've seen Damian's dog Titus. very welcome indeed!

the cliffhanger has me on pins and needles for the next issue!
i have a feeling i know who the Arkham Knight is, but really i hope i'm wrong! more

I am proud to say that Tomasi has been on a streak since 2016 and I'm loving it!

I really hope that it's not Jason Todd under the mask.

Tom King doesn't know how to create.

he has no idea how to inspire.

all he knows how to do is to destroy.

Character Assasination 101.

The only reason I bought this crap is so I can say I have the issue that ended Tom King's career.

I don't care if he wrote "Mister Miracle". I don't care if he wrote "Omega Men" or "Vision". I have never been this mad about a comic since "Cry for Justice" came out.

It hurts me to say that I'm still going to buy the next issue.

Thanks for killing Rebirth King and DiDio! more

From Bat-Mite to the "Source-Raptor", my god I loved this issue.

This might sound strange as a comic reader, but I have absolutely no problem with info/exposition dumps; so Snyder and Tynion can unload as much as they want for all I care.

Though I prefer the Morrison origin of the Multiverse with the Overmonitor and Mandrakk, I have to say that I thoroughly enjoyed what Snyder presents in his own lore.

As stated by Darkseid24, I do wish that the New Gods could have been incorporated more (with their connection to the Source and all), but I don't think that the story suffered at all from their absence.

I do wonder how The Source factors in power against Perpetua and this new race of "Super-Celestials".

Overall, this was a nice comic IMO. more

Awful issue. Does King ever research the characters he is writing or does he just force his story on them? I’d say the latter.
The nightmares Bruce is having, turn out to be a fear gas illusion indeed as it was mentioned some issues ago. However two things are really wrong here: Normally Batman can only overcome the fear gas by either facing his fears or enduring them until the fear gas wears off. Sometimes he realizes it’s just an illusion& he can overcome his fears. In King‘s story it is stated, that Batman can overcome them, if he is just afraid enough, what actually contradicts every Scarecrow story ever written. The worst fear usually destroys people& that’s why Batman is so special, because he can deal with his fears. A fear gas illusion also doesn’t let its victim enjoy some beauty moments as it was shown in nightmares ( dreams would fit better), it induces Fear or forces its victim to revisit traumas. King must have never read one single Scarecrow story.
Secondly his worst fear is Catwoman or rather because she left him& I can only face palm. King continues to portray Bruce as an average guy, who is obsessed with his girlfriend. But that’s not what Bruce or Batman is about. Selina is one of his major love interests, but breaking up with her would never effect him so much. Apparently King doesn’t know, that they have an on off relationship. So this feels like bad fanfiction.
What really made me laugh was the way Bane is portrayed here. Training with Thomas sounded more like they did some sex games, since Bane was completely nude. Only makes his character look bad, but doesn’t have any purpose. Unless Bane& Thomas suddenly have a gay relationship.
King also gives zero explanation about why Thomas is even in this timeline. It makes zero sense& his team up with Bane makes even lesser sense. It’s like bad fanfiction again.
With the fear gas mentioned, I hope Scarecrow is spared from King’s terrible writing in the upcoming issue.
Batman 69 is a disaster in so many ways. A shame, that the art gets wasted for this train wreck of a story. Sad, I had hopes here...

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really enjoyed this issue.
great dialog, fast paced story, plenty of action, and an intriguing mystery.

Tomasi really gets Bruce. his voice, his mannerisms, his ethics, how he handles himself in situations.
the interactions between Bruce and Gordon were short but effective. you could feel the weight between these two as brothers at arms.
the interactions between Bruce and Alfred were strong as well. two people faced with a conflict, handling themselves the best they can under the given situation.

the Arkham knight had a very strong entrance.
not much yet revealed, but very compelled to see where this goes.

one thing i was thrilled at was the removal of the new52's handling of the Man-Bat family.
this feels more true to the characters as first introduced.

the art was a real delight as well.
very animated cartoonish style, with just the right amount of detail.

good start to the second arc. more

Meh. AC 1000 was better,

"We've beaten armies of evil ring slingers lookin' to enslave us, burned up batmen from alternate realities tryin' to torture us and spanked super-brats out to destroy us."

"It feels good to still learn."

"Wherever there is a human being, there is an opportunity for crisis."

And thus, Act Three of Doomsday Clock has gone off with a bang. Wonderful writing and wonderful art as usual.

Besides the delays, I do have some problems with this issue that bugged me:

1. Three pages wasted to showcase characters: Don't get me wrong, Frank's art is stellar. But with the delays and the fact that we have three issues left means that every page should be used to its full potential. Maybe some text-boxes of Manhattan narration could have sufficed.

2. Manhattan's dialogue: Some lines sounded good, but others did not resonate with the established character personality. For example, Manhattan comparing magic to computer code seemed off, as he was born in the analog science era before digital. A clock or watch analogy would have fit better. I loved the "still learn" line though.

3. Legion of Superheroes: At the beginning of the issue Manhattan describes the death of a Legionnaire, Ferro Lad, who sacrificed himself to stop a sun-eater in Adventure Comics #353. However, Manhattan mentions that when he prevented Alan Scott from becoming the first Green Lantern, the Legion of Superheroes ceased to exist. This bothers me due to the fact that I am fond of Superman being the inspiration for the Legion, while this issue attributes that to the JSA.

Besides these gripes, the issue was immensely compelling. The fact that the DC heroes so strongly believe that they can defeat a literal God is utterly fascinating, and examines the stark contrast between the idea of being a hero in the Watchmen and DC Universe.

Let's hope this next issue can come sooner than the last.

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After 14 years of waiting, we finally are able to read this issue, and damn it was worth the wait. Both Johns and Frank are at the top of their game, with so much happening. Things are still building, but it's happening, at last. And that one scene where all the heroes are attacking Dr Manhattan? Loved it. This is why I fell in love with comic books.

One of the best superhero comics I've read in the past years. Sampere's art works perfectly with Tynion and Snyder's writing, creating a satisfying product. I am very excited for how Snyder's run is going to play out with the aftermath of this issue.

Not a fan of Perpetua's design though.

"A whole universe. Even me. Like we were reborn. But how can you be reborn without...How does it matter without..."

The character assassination of Wally West continues! In this issue, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy enjoy a romantic encounter, while Gnarrk the caveman recites Yeats and Plato!

Just more filler garbage. I also find it very amusing that King needs to justify himself on Twitter every time this book comes out.

Wally West is turned into a pouting wimp, who instead of pursuing a relationship with the Linda Park that exists in this universe, decides to self deprecate. This issue destroys the heart of Rebirth, ruining the fresh start that got King his acclaim in the first place.

Congrats Tom King, you have failed as a writer, and as a fan of DC Comics. more

"There is not one among us in whom a devil does not dwell; at some time, on some point, that devil masters each of us...It is not having been in the dark house, but having left it, that counts."

A satisfying end to a greatly needed return to form for the Detective Comics line. Although the "it was all a simulation" trope is heavily overused, Tomasi is able to make it satisfying and rewarding for Batman fans all around.

Greatly looking forward to issue 1000. more

The problem with this book is that you can’t apply social and gender issues that plague humanity to literal gods of evil. The fact that Darkseid is reduced to a “rapist” and “misogynistic boss” makes him less interesting and ruins his character. Even if he rapes people (which he probably does), the others in his Elite would probably applaud him for it. They probably rape people too.
>
If any of the Female Furies were groped on Apokolips, they would kill the groomer in a second. The Furies are a group of psychopaths and sadists who murder people for fun. This book is a complete joke. more

..........what in the fucking fuck did i just read?.............
seriously, for the love of Jack Kirby what was that atrocity????????
I was expecting some female empowerment to happen in this book because its a good thing. But THIS? If i were a woman i would be furious! Every female character in this book is completely out of character! They act like theyre some kind of weakling creatures that cant stand for themselves! And dont even let me start on the men! If the writer hates men, you can TOTALLY see it in here! Every single men is written like the biggest, most disgusting sexist, rapist you have never seen! DARKSEID RAPES GRANNY GOODNESS! LMFAO! Thats ridiculous!!! Why on earth would DARKSEID care for sex, anyways???!!! Oh my GOD! And theres a fucking "miss universe" context! Seriously, what was this writer thinking when she wrote this book?? Does she hate women too? Because even Big fucking Barda is a "fragile girl" here! Oh my god.....
Adriana Melo's art is very good! The panels where Granny is fighting Darkseids mother are beautiful. Like an homage to King Kirby. Thats it. Thats the only good thing the book has. Everything else is a major failure.
I dont know how writing a despicable book is going to help her (Cecil Castellucci, the writer) feminist agenda. But.... who cares.
If the goal was to make the readers laugh and be bored at the same time, then mission accomplished! more

Filler. More filler from King. At this point the entire 62 issue run has more filler than actual relevant content, and I wish that was a joke.
And also, 2 more public domain stories were just used as substitutes for this issue's lack of any story - one about three little pigs, and the other being the myth of Pygmalion and Galatea. Just put the series out of its misery, because there's 38 issues to go, and I simply can't imagine it going on for so long without properly constructed narrative and identity.

Sometimes I feel like Tom King should return to his previous job, since quality of his recent comics made me realize that abolishing democratically elected governments, what CIA specializes in since 1950s, clearly has to be easier than writing a good story. more

THE GOOD:

-I'm loving Clay Mann's art, but I almost think Lee Weeks captured the emotion necessary for the story better, y'know?

-I thought the beginning with Tempest was a truly sad and also powerful moment that I really enjoyed, not to mention the best title credits we've gotten yet.

-I actually thought that Batgirl's therapy session was a very powerful callback to the Killing Joke.

-I think the Harley and Batgirl relationship is played out really nicely and well-done in this issue.

-"Bros before heroes." +1/2 point for Booster and Beetle bromance, one of my favorite things ever.

-Black Canary's therapy session wasn't so much powerful, but it was humorous and it had a great use of silence as an effect in the book.

-The Trinity's scene was pretty great. I don't agree with some of the decisions made about Lois and Clark's characters in this comic but it was still a funny scene that was well-written.

THE BAD:

-Lois doing what she did seems a bit forced. Also, I'm still pretty annoyed that this comic contradicts Bendis' Superman. Granted, I like this series a lot better than Bendis' Superman.

-I really wish this series would focus on the mystery it has more than it does. We're four issues in, and we've barely progressed past the Puddlers and what that even means. more

Sexualization of trauma, objectification of women's body in contrast with the treatment of male characters, decompression with literally empty, copy pasted panels and heroes worrying more about their egos rather than a slaughter in their own safe space.

I know that there is a fetish thing with the Killing Joke but Heroes in Crisis goes a step further with this idea. Good art is not enough. It needs a story too. And there is no story here. But most importantly...

When Moore wrote Promethea, when Amy wrote Poison Ivy, when Snyder wrote Batman, all three very smart and intellectual people, they used subtlety to make their points obvious yet discreet. This is the opposite. This is boasting. This is ego.

Pausing your story to show Batgirls boob job or doing a sexy Lois Lane exposition, boobs and butts and sensuality in a story about people getting brutally murdered while trying to find help for mental problems is bad and tasteless.

But even more tasteless is making Harley Quinn forget about mourning Poison Ivy in a second. It's about making heroes act in the most selfish way, caring only about their ego and nothing more instead of their dead friends. more

I normally give 2's to comics that generally offended me, and this issue really did.

And no, I could care less about the apparent "hypersexualization" of Lois Lane and Barbara in this issue.

It's Tom King's writing of every character in this book makes me want to stop reading comics.

The Trinity is literally incompetent in this series: Batman is a dope, and Superman is written as a naive and idiotic buffoon who apparently puts his job as a reporter first before the secrets and struggles of the entire superhuman community.

King continues to try to make Harley DC's Deadpool, with her literally being immune to any judgment or harm. And apparently Batgirl is seen by Bruce as a "pitiful and broken" and "just another product of his failure to capture the Joker"? Have you never read a comic before King! What a disgrace!

The one thing Tom King got right about this book is the title of the issue: "$%@# This", and $%@# you Tom King. more

Once again, the Tomasi/Mahnke dream-team hits it out of the park! After only two issues, it's safe to say that Bats is finally in good hands again.

The art and writing continue being solid.

Leslie succumbs to the Joker venom, and Alfred is stabbed by a man in a Zorro outfit. Fun callback to Year One with the chair and the bell.

Also enjoyed the reference to Damian's medical skills, as he apparently performed surgery on Bruce during the "Court of Owls" storyline.

The mastermind behind this plot seems to be going after Bruce's former mentors, and his next target (according to the solicits) is none other than Henri Ducard. If you remember back in Tomasi's Batman & Robin run from the New 52, Henri's son, Morgan, fought the dyanmic duo; ultimately being executed by Damian.

We also know that Tomasi will be writing a story in Detective #1000 about the "Arkham Knight" from the video game series; possibly some connections there.

The book ends with Batman going to Arkham in search of answers (though it's unlikely he will get any).

Main problem with this book is its shorter length, which makes it feel like there's less plot progression. more