This right here, this is it, chief.

Great arc that’s underway and each issue makes me want to read the one that follows. Art is masterful as well. That said, I had to dock points for the bs move that is Carol Danvers withstanding a penance stare and declaring herself “more than a mortal”. We get it, she has a movie out, she’s still far from being powerful enough to pull that off or hardly what in the scale they claim she is. Props for showing the ruthlessness of the Red Widow and actually making Dracula compelling.

Tl;dr: Having just read this issue, I will say it does function properly as an introduction to the expanded team and their new roster is presented well, clearly showing how Ms. Marvel has grown in her role. That said, some inconsistencies are clear in how some characters are portrayed and without additional reading some minor plotlines will seem as being presented without any build-up and certain characters will be completely unknown. So as a jumping off point this fails in its purpose. Further analysis: Of the characters, I feel (former) Nova was basically made into a punching bag to show how much angst others are feeling, seemingly what he’s going through is ignored because other characters are going through “more”. This is a waste because as an everyman he could be used to connect with readers more easily. I don’t quite see how Cloud 9, Power Man or Silk could be part of the Champions unless they expanded their roster to include adults because they have each been members of hero teams previously and received more training than most others in this book. If it’s meant as a “teen hero book” these three do not fit the bill. Miles’ personal story here just seems to be an off-brand OMD waiting to happen so I don’t see this is as a positive story development or the plotline to go into. He’s also far too brooding and sullen that people interested in his character are better off just reading his own title to avoid their perception of the character changing if the Spider-Verse movie is what piqued their interest to this. Viv having issues regarding her sexuality is just off, as a synthezoid there are more nuanced ways of handling it and when presented in the previous volume it was an equally senseless “twist”. The explorations into her humanity particularly after becoming an actual human were far better done and did not seem forced for the sake of having just another avenue for the plotline. There is little else to say for the rest of the cast, they were there and serviceable. Sparky is the best member of the team bar-none. Their way of managing the team is reminiscent of Hickman’s Avengers run, which I thoroughly enjoyed, and seems like a good way to build up their larger operations. While I cannot fully say I’d recommend it, I can also state reading this was not a waste of time and it has potential for future development.

Waste of an issue. Nothing happens, does nothing to further the plot, pure and utter pointlessness put to page. Don’t bother with this. Anyone rating this as “average” or higher really needs to reassess how they evaluate things.

Tl;dr same as last time, a non-issue. But this one has dialogue! Story advances a hint, just the minimal amount. You could definitely skip it and not miss a beat. I would not recommend it and tell people to instead wait for the end of this arc to return once the actual story is retaken. On to the the general contents of the issue: Apparently Batman has Constantine in his subconscious, interesting enough and poses various questions but I doubt it will ever be brought up again or Tom King will ever elaborate on it. So all we can do is say “cool cameo, bro” and ignore it because nothing came of it. Batman is presented in a scenario where the wedding happened actually happened, or as I’d state it one in where Tom King had guts/sense to allow this. Seeing him struggle to maintain the illusion despite the increasing knowledge of it all being a dream was compelling enough, as was how he was shown as legitimately happy. Eventually the “dream” turns into a “nightmare” and they give the only information that advances the story, Batman is being held in an undisclosed location and being pumped full of fear gas to keep him out of commission. The only thing of value this comic has in the grand scheme of things is the page where this is presented, the rest can be easily ignored. Constantine, who plays a big role in this particular issue, is portrayed well enough and is cleverly used as the nagging feeling everything is wrong, but this is nothing more than a small cameo and a missed opportunity if there ever was one. The dynamic between the Cat and the Bat is well presented and engaging as King did do a decent job of showcasing the relationship until the terribleness that was the ending of Batman #50. This issue also cements that Batman’s biggest weakness is apparently sniper bullets, because apparently a man prepared to fight even Darkseid cannot foresee people shooting at him and his allies with a rifle from afar. Cue facepalm. All in all a better read than last issue, due to the key inclusion of dialogue, but equally relevant in that it barely advances the story at all. Less of a waste, but a waste nonetheless. I might be being generous with the score.

Sudden storyline change was unexpected but it’s a welcome change as the “Knightmares” arc is a mess all around and the definition of “filler”. Overall a slightly above average story with the potential to improve in subsequent issues, the end reveal explains a character’s motivation in King’s overarching narrative and is not as Shyamalan-esque as others seen in other dc titles (every bendis superman issue). In-depth review to follow, spoilers ahead. Took me longer than I would have liked to update this. = = = To start off I must admit I was caught off-guard by the sudden change in storyline. But as I mentioned before I believe this change was ultimately beneficial to the title. While I must admit I would rather see the "Knightmares" storyline come to a close so the filler portion of King's story is over and done with, a well executed diversion could actually generate more interest and I believe the lack of actual progress and substance these past 3 issues made that wane for readers. The issue starts off with the Justice League engaging Amazo counterparts of themselves. The encounter itself is not particularly noteworthy but it does provide entertaining exchanges between the characters and is a serviceable opening to the story. Batman having flashbacks to what happened in Heroes in Crisis is a nice nod to the event and how it expands on the fallout from the Sanctuary massacre helps to add weight to this title. This was also in character as Batman is very reticent to show any weakness and emotion and finds it hard to express himself, so refusing to state what he's going through is very much in-character. A missed opportunity was showing how other members of the league (aside from Flash) dealt with this event, as the Trinity in the pages of HiC itself were shown to have been significantly impacted by what happened; as a Batman/Flash story it's understandable that they would be the focus, but even a nod to them showing their own way to process this would have gone a long way. Following the battle we get a spectacular image of the Flash museum. I dare say the artwork showing this was the best part of the issue, visually speaking. Flash showing up to assist after Batman's initial intervention reminding him that rather than stopping a villain, helping civilians is there focus was a good portrayal of Barry who has generally been portrayed as always focused outwardly and showcases how his approach to heroism is in stark contrast to Batman's. Their brief exchange where Flash asks Batman to step aside, indicating he'll take the lead and Batman is not able to carry out the work well due to his investment in HiC's event was well done. A nod to both the ongoing story of the title and the larger one in the DC universe. The rest of their interaction which ends in them choosing to work together to find out who attacked the Flash museum was pretty much par for the course and while good does truly "shine". The best part of the writing was in the flashback to a team-up of not only Batman and the Flash but of Kid Flash and Robin. Unfortunately this only serves to highlight how DC has treated so poorly two very beloved characters and how their current state, "ric" and "dead", was just a poor editorial decision and ultimately detrimental. The ending twist of this issue, for an arc that actually takes the focus away from the principal Batman storyline, ultimately delivers more information regarding it than the past 3 issues combined which amount to nothing. It presents the reason why Gotham Girl is working alongside Bane and generates sufficient intrigue to warrant interest in the following issue of this story contained in The Flash. Overall, this was better than Batman 61-63 and sets up what could be a very interesting arc but despite the highlights I've presented does not deliver anything particularly noteworthy aside from solid tie-ins to other stories and a flashback. I'd actually recommend reading this, and while I don't believe it will match The Button it should still be a solid crossover.

This issue is basically an outlet for Tom King to say “my version of Batman can’t be happy and still do his job, and that’s all you’ll be getting”. I mean, that’s great, also false. But since his version is the one ALL OF US get, it’s not great for anyone who disgrees. I liked how the issue is presented as a dialogue between The Question and Catwoman, although the issue is almost a rehash of #50 but not executed nearly as well. If this is still the Knightmares arc, it continues to a very poor storyline that should end quickly because it’s gone on for far too long.

This was a surprisingly entertaining issue. Still purely filler that adds nothing to the story or advances it in any way shape or form, but has more entertainment value than the past few issues. I guess devoid of Tom King’s overly verbose nonsense there is a good comic book there.

This was a fun issue, completely pointless and adds another month of nothing at all happening in this title, but fun. I would even go as far as to say it’s worth checking out. The last assertion is saying a lot because this arc has been some of the worst writing in the title so far. Unfortunately due to its numbering it amounts to nothing but filler. If this were to have taken place before issue #50 it would have been great and a lighthearted addition building up to the much-anticipated nuptials. Regrettably it was not the case. One of the best results that comes from this issue is that the next is #69. Nice. It’s also the end of this piss-poor arc so that’s even Nicer. Can’t wait for this arc to be over and actually see the story go somewhere, although I retain my apprehension about what King can deliver after it but hope it can improve.

Best thing about this issue. This abysmal, asinine, and utterly pointless arc is finally over. The next one should be better because the bar has been basically placed on the ground. This book states that Batman is incapable of emotion and that scares him, more so than anything else. Being incapable of love due his vow is his biggest fear; too bad we’ve seen him feel so strongly he eschews all reason in more than a few instances. such as Robin Rises and when he pursued the KGBeast after he shot Dick Grayson and ruined the Nightwing title. We’ve also seen him shaken to his core after he believed he lost Tim. Not to mention his pursuit of Talia Al-Ghul when he wanted to let her know he would be getting married. I mean, that is his own work he’s ignoring right there. Pure idiocy. A man incapable of love and emotions would not fight what is essentially a god to recover a body just for the chance to see if he can bring that person back. I also find it incredibly hard to believe Thomas Wayne would actively seek to damage or otherwise have his own son be taken off the board, just because of some odd belief he has to be Batman. It even runs contrary to how he was presented in Flashpoint and The Button, Convergence even. A man so irrevocably changed by his son’s death would not seek to harm that very son, no matter whatever notions he has in his head. Is this enough payoff for over half a year of nothing? Not in the least, there is no satisfying revelation to be had or anything to merit the waste that was the *Knightmares* arc.

Considerable improvement after months of pointless filler. That said, I do not find this was worth all those wasted issues even if it is much better than the entirety of the past arc. I believe the “gauntlet” Batman goes through while it does fill the issue with action it just seems like a compressed version of the lead-up to Knightfall, wherein Batman faces multiple villains non-stop in what was presented as one of the most taxing nights of his career. The biggest difference is that no encounter even fazes Batman. He faces Solomon Grundy and Amygdala seemingly only with his fists and leaves unscathed? I find that hard to believe. He’s scarcely even challenged in his exit. While the issue is full of cool moments, almost as if it wants to make up for a prolonged dearth of them, I did not feel particularly moved by this. One comment made by Batman to Scarecrow “I owe you for all the fun”, I actually found in poor taste because no enjoyment has even been present in this title for months. Nice to know at least in King’s mind Batman enjoyed the torturous nightmare he was stuck in and us readers were subjected to. I appreciate the change of pace and hope this title keeps moving forward, maybe then it would become a fully satisfying read. As it stands it’d be slightly above average at best.

I love Tony Daniel’s art and Damian’s greatly portrayed, that said, City of Bane is just “Knightfall 2.0”. A lesser “Knightfall” at that, doubt the “twist” will stick but for a climactic arc this is underwhelming so far.

This issue is solid, it’s actually touching despite Tom King.

Not gonna lie, whatever this was, good isn't it. Using the word "earlier" for every panel makes it feel incredibly messy, and as we're talking about a character from an entirely different Earth it muddles it even further. I'd say there would have to be a better way to indicate where and when things happened but simply "earlier" is not it. While I can't recall the Flashpoint story, I am fairly sure there are inconsistencies or retcons present here. How the story develops seems to be for the most part unconnected with Doomsday Clock as people believed, so that's another concept thrown out the window. It's disappointing that while it presents the motivations of Thomas Wayne it does so in a poor fashion and shows little else. This was not good.

Utterly forgettable issue, adds nothing of consequence to the overarching story or furthers Donna Troy's character. All it does is give is create "edgy" Donna that is somehow just a far less effective Troia, so it's not even original. I can't say the writer did much of anything, while the artwork is decidedly what carried the issue. Not worth a purchase, not really even worth reading to be honest.

So this "Crisis" is supposed to be an exploration of Superhero trauma and the way they cope with the toll the job can take, yet the one hero who's a recovering addict and has legitimately overcome significant trauma to be better than he was is killed off in issue 1. That's just a great call /facepalm. They establish Sanctuary as a hospital for SUPERHEROES, yet Harley's there. In what world does that make sense? I get using her to drive sales, but at least make her inclusion plausible and not so blatantly forced. Even if you consider her an anti-hero due to her membership in the Suicide Squad you have to recognize the entire point of that group is their appearance as a group of VILLAINS, as this is the cover the goverment exploits to have complete deniability in their involvement in whatever ops they send them on. Recognizing any member of the team as a hero goes against the very purpose it was made for. Booster Gold has taken hits from being like Doomsday and been able to stay standing, but now country diner silverware can puncture his forcefield. If there is one thing I found completely and utterly absurd in this book, it is that. Just about the dumbest thing in it. The notable deaths in this book are a slap in the face to fans. If the story does not seriously improve it will just be another of many poor decisions DC has made recently and one that will not lead to any positive outcomes. It's pretty clear there is more to the incident than just Harleym going berserk, who as pointed out had no business even being in the place, because many of the casualties there could easily take her down alone, not to mention as a group. At this point in time the main reason I'm waiting for issue 2 is that I hope the story improves to the point it actually proves to be worth the premise it sets up. If it remains as it is this will probably amount to an event in the likeness of Civil War 2, so bad it should never be talked about.

Submitting a late review to this, because while I probably thought it out at the moment I did not actually write it. Spoilers follow, clearly, as I go in depth into my take on this issue. This issue was noticeably better than issue 1, while I believed was a dumpster fire underserving of all hype and that failed to even compensate in the slightest for the casualties it caused. I an very pleased that the writers had Booster Gold explicitly state that his force field was failing, because failure to do so meant something that stood against many far more dangerous threats being broken by diner silverware was idiotic beyond belief. So thanks for that Tom King. Poison Ivy being counted amongst the casualties is about as senseless as Harley even being allowed anywhere near Sanctuary, but I guess convenience and hype is worth more than consistency in storytelling. The biggest problem presented in this issue is how we are expected to believe Harley Quinn is skilled enough to face off against The Trinity and come out on top, which begs a suspension of disbelief far larger than this book merits. I can accept someone who is markedly NOT a hero being present in HERO rehab (Nowhere is it stated villains are allowed admission into Sanctuary), but that feat is preposterous. Guess her popularity will make her DC's Squirrel Girl. Booster Gold being the perpetrator of the killings makes more sense, however, there are still heroes present who would be able to take him down so I cannot fully concede on this. Adding this past point if Booster Gold was able to defeat Wally West, he should be the clear victor in his fight against Barry Allen because Wally has proven THE BETTER FLASH. The Trinity investigating the occurrences and their reactions to the casualties did elicit some emotion, but I still believe this event fails to compensate for the deaths that kicked it off and is far from living up to the hype. Seeing the writing improve from issue 1 has left me with hope that it can shape up to a legitimately good event, but it will take some doing for it to be worthy of its "Crisis" moniker.

To me, this was the first change this book had to be "good" and reach a score the ratings here deemed green (7+). Safe to say I was too optimistic in my belief that the notable improvement that occurred from issues 1 to 2 would continue. While it did not drop in quality, the story did not improve. The following is more of a critique of the writing, rather than the art. Because if anything deserves a clear 10 it's the artwork of Clay Mann and Lee Weeks. The colorist and inker also do a superb job. Regarding the information presented in the final pages about the perpetrator of this crime, I find it puzzling they decided to backpedal on what they revealed in the last issue where they stated Booster Gold was the actual killer. Harley Quinn does not have the skill to kill a good number of the heroes present in Sanctuary in a one on one fight, much less would she be able to do so when they are in a group. Ambush or no, there are plenty of heroes there who would have stopped her without significant issue Wally West, Roy Harper, and Commander Steel being the more noteable ones. I will admit I liked the idea behind the workings of Sanctuary and seeing Booster Gold unable to think of anything else other than himself, and consequently fight his doppelganger, when given the opportunity to be able go and do anything he liked was humorous and in-line with his character. This moment was one of the better ones in the issue. Seeing Lagoon Boy's "therapy" sessions and how he was unable to move past losing teammates and nearly dying also presented and interesting image, and made his laughter at once again being near death all the more poignant. Exploring Wally and how he's coping with the loss of his family by interacting with constructs of them shows how much he's lost and his struggle to once again find his place. It makes sense for him to be in Sanctuary if he is at least able to recover part of his past life, even if in a simulacrum, as that would shake anyone to their core. A final note, showing more of the heroes present in Sanctuary was a nice note to end on as it also revealed the whereabouts of recognizable characters that have been missing from the pages for quite some time. While not much, the acknowledgement of their existance is a good nod to the fans who followed these individuals in other books. Overall, this I cannot say I believed this issue to be bad but it was also not something I would deem good. The faults it possess are very noticeable and despite subtleties that make for interesting ideas the book still is unable to compensate for the deaths of the many characters it caused. Only until it is able to truly give readers a valid reason and worthwhile motive for killing off all these characters, including some who have proven to be very compelling to readers, will it be able to actually be good and it must improve further ownwards to be considered on equal grounds with the other Crisis events. At this point while I try to avoid speculation I cannot but think that this entire thing will end up being Booster's experience in the room and finally being able to play the hero who resolves the mystery; If this were to actually happen while I would laugh to myself, I would by no means consider it good storytelling.

Tl;dr With this issue HiC fails to elevate itself above what has been a rather lackluster event so far. A few good moments that showcase character's personalities are present and acknowledge their histories are shown, but overall it does not end on the notable cliffhanger the writer and editors believed it is. It's a whimper rather than a bang. Just before the halfway point of the story and this event has not lived up to the hype, the casualties, and its moniker as a Crisis event. The varian covers showing notable events members of the Justice League have gone through were a great nod to past storylines and indicate how continuity is kept, I for one appreciate this. The one for this issue being Aquaman losing his hand. Seeing Garth trying to "drown" his sorrows after losing friends and reminiscing in his stupor is a realistic portrayal of how someone would deal with the outcomes of this. The spread page showing graffiti of the Teen Titans seen as Donna Troy retreives Garth highlights how close the members of the Teen Titans were and how long they have known each other. Wonder Woman's interrogation of Booster does little more than go in circles regarding the occurrences at Sanctuary, elaborating nothing further on it. Casting doubt on the Lasso of Truth diminishes the actual item and while it builds slightly on the poor mental state of Booster Gold in does little more than just make Wonder Woman less effective in this particular investigation. I really liked how Batgirl is drawn in this book and recognizing the events of The Killing Joke was welcome, when she engaged Harley deciding to help her in "clearing her name" seemed off as I do not see them as characters sharing a particularly strong bond. It seems more likely teammates of hers would need to vouch for Harley in order for something of nature to take place. Her description of how she was seen after being shot was also out-of-character as her becoming Oracle made her a key individual in the superhero community and a vital part of their operations becoming a much stronger character than she was even as Batgirl, so the statements made her actually weakens Barbara because it does not recognize the growth she had in this position. While brief Black Canary's appearance was to me humorous and properly characterized, so props there. Ted Kord's appearance is something that I find myself questioning, while the bromance he holds with Booster Gold is always great to see and their decision to go against "higher authorities" is well in-line with what they do, I have to ask "How is Ted Kord here?". I'm not sure if I missed how he was brought back, but considering his death is in continuity as the series acknowledges Wonder Woman's killing of Maxwell Lord as a previous event that took place, there must be a moment I missed where he's revived/resurrected. While I can appreciate how he jokes regarding this, something very tongue-in-cheek and well used, I still would like to see this clarified. The story for the Blue & Gold are what I look forward to the most of this issue. Now the biggest incongruences present in the story, Lois Lane and the way the Trinity interacts. I find it a bit hard to believe that Superman would really consider hiding the fact footage from Sanctuary is being leaked seeing as through it's very nature it requires utmost secrecy and as one of the individuals responsible for building it he would feel a need to address this more urgent than hiding it from his closest allies. Additionally, while he mentions needing to respect his source when something that could compromise public opinion of the superhero community at large presents itself I believe the nature of the threat outweighs that; Lois Lane being who he was "protecting" and being herself involved for years as part of the community it is odd she would publish such information knowing the repercussions it could have. The cliff-hanger of Sanctuaries disclosure to the public at large is not as impactful as Tom King and the editorial department would have you believe. In a way it humanizes heroes, which would make them more relatable to common people, but this also can have ill effects as it can make people doubt their capabilities as their nature of being "larger-than-life" beings and able to overcome normal challenges is part of what make people rely on them. That said, I still believe that people would be aware heroes experience very traumatic things on a day-to-day basis and having a place where they can obtain supports is something logical, so most of the impact is lost there. The murders themselves, which were not the focus of the article, are what could create the largest impact among regular folk but it's not present. There is still room to improve, but so far this particular event has not met expectations or proven itself to be worth the casualties it caused.

I initially wanted to to give this a 5, because as middling as it was it had a scant few decent moments, but the last page is idiocy like no other. I even believe a 4 is being generous. I will start off by saying I believed the Blue&Gold bros were well portrayed and I enjoyed their interactions, while their plan was decidedly dumb their acknowledgement of the same shows a small degree of self-awareness present. Batgirl’s actions shown here were just a disservice to the character, because having her let Harley coerce information from a 25th century robot by hitting it with a wooden mallet is about as dumb as it gets. She’s a considerably tech savvy individual and more than capable enough to actually scan skeets and obtain this information through her skills, her time as Oracle demonstrates this. But it seems that this title exists only to show how great Harley is. While I’m not familiar with the Protector he states he was basically made with the objective to combat drugs and his interview stating he ended up “doing all the drugs” might be a statement on how the war on drugs was/is a failed endeavor. This might a stretch on my part but it came off as more ridiculous than anything. Superman’s speech which logical I find holds no significant impact since the basic fact that superheroes experience trauma and need a place to obtain help and support is something that should be obvious. Due to the nature of their operations it’s clear they would need assistance to be able to remain level-headed as at the end of the day most of them are actually people. Considering this a shock downplays the various story arcs that actually dealt with issues of this nature previously, and better I may add. It’s illogical. The last page though is just about the dumbest thing there is, while Harley’s humor through the issue has just been various misses and it ends on another joke that fails to hit the mark, the fact she was a patient of Sanctuary is what I consider to be truly inane. They’ve stated Sanctuary was built to help heroes deal with their traumas, fears, addictions, etc. Well... Harley is not a hero. Decidedly so. It makes little to no sense for her to be there just like Poison Ivy who was briefly shown in issue 2. I can stretch my suspension of disbelief and buy she would be able to locate the place and wreak havoc there, but be admitted as a patient, now that’s asinine. The “twist” that time travel was involved with Wally also fully ignores the damage to the time stream caused in Flash Wars which meant to make time travel impossible for speedsters so King straight up pulled a bendis there. This issue has been the worst in the title since #1 and I do not believe it can correct it’s course to be good, much less earn its “Crisis” moniker, by the end. Do not buy this.

Pointless issue. Achieves nothing but adding more plot holes and names to the body count, it does not advance the story. I was bored reading it and I could not find anything in it that left me with any interest in reading issue 7. I would not recommend anyone purchase it, read if you must but you can ignore it and will not miss out on anything. Gnarrk is by far the best part of the issue as he questions how civilization has impacted him and weighs in the benefits of his simple life as a caveman and that of his new life in modern society. Interesting to be sure, but not of particular relevance to the story. Harley Quinn is present in Sanctuary unclear if she is a patient or snuck in to be with Poison Ivy. Either way as a classified HERO rehab center has no reason to be there; Ivy is more understandable but again, she should not be there, or Tattoo Man while we’re at it. It’s astounding how none of the Trinity realized HQ was there, but apparently it’s within her undefined skillset to do whatever she wants. Character monologues feel pointless as they don’t tie in to anything really. While attention is also given to Wally just showcasing how he apparently felt out of place and incomplete since his return, despite titles depicting the exact opposite. It was not until Flash War that he actually began to miss his family and a passing remark that “I knew even when I didn’t really know” is not nearly enough to change that. If they wanted to end the re-ignited “Hope” Rebirth was meant to provide then showing Wally as such a sad mess does more to that than his death. Can’t say I expect much of this title now, seeing as there are only 3 issues to go and it has hardly improved in regards to the writing. I will again assert my belief that the writer and editorial overestimated the ideas they had and have poorly executed this concept.

I’ll make this incredibly brief because this title does not deserve any thought put into it. This is garbage. Don’t buy it, don’t read it. My head hurts after reading it, this is so bad. There goes Wally and Batgirl, Ted Kord reduced to a bit part. Booster Gold reduced to a “living joke” and a Harley that’s more annoying than ever. This should just end. The real “Crisis” of Heroes in Crisis is the writing.

It’s confirmed the real “crisis” of Heroes in Crisis is Tom King’s writing. I expected a poor resolution to this story as by issue #5 barely any progress was noted in the story. I was unprepared to how absolutely abysmal this book and entire event would come to be. This is absolute crap, irredeemable garbage through and through. I do not recommend anyone read much less buy any issue from this title. Wally’s character is assassinated. Through his actions he is now a scumbag. Harley Quinn is confirmed as an actual patient as Sanctuary, a recovery/rehab center for HEROES, something she is decidedly NOT and thusly HAS NOT PLACE BEING THERE. It’s nice at least Flash War’s fallout is acknowledged in a small line when explaining the big reveal, but it does little to salvage anything. This has to be among the worst written issues I’ve read this year and this event is just a raging trash fire.

To the people who said “wait for the final issue, you can’t judge an incomplete title”. We did and to no one’s surprise it did nothing to change how it’s perceived. This title is garbage, plain and simple. The worst “crisis” since Identity and wholly underserving of that moniker. The real crisis was King’s writing. There is nothing this issue did to resolve the various egregious faults of the issues preceding it and instead added more with what were infuriating and nonsensical therapy panels that purely showcase what little grasp he has of some of DC’s characters. The best part about this issue is that ends this abysmal, asinine event. It’s not worth reading, do not even entertain the notion of buying it.

The points it gets are solely for the art and colors. bendis continues his usual methods of ignoring any and all continuity and characterization, showing it to its fullest extent here. Jor-El was for all accounts destroyed by presumably Dr. Manhattan in the Mr. Oz arc, yet here he shows up as if he had mended fended fences with his son when in their last encounter they were fully opposed. By the time of Jor-El THERE WAS NO INTERPLANETARY TRANSPORTATION IN KRYPTON, this is FACT. But since it does not let bendis tell the story he wants, continuity be damned. Also, Hal Jordan acting as a by-the-book GL? Has he ever read one of his books? Doesn’t seem like it. As far as the villain goes, other than a terrible design, it’s pretty half-hearted for something that irrevocably changes a key element in Superman’s backstory. The worst part of this book however is the undue praise it is receiving. Art and colors are the only good things about this book, the writing is atrocious.

Tl;dr The art, coloring and lettering were good and earned the only full points this issue merits. The story of this entire mini however, despite what others would have you believe, is absolutely abyssmal and filled with egregious affronts to continuity and characterization where characters will say/do whatever is required of them to advance the plot as bendis sees regardless of how out of character it may be or how unnatural it feels. The .5 is because mercifully this mini-series is finally over. A full breakdown of my key issues with the storyline follows. Firstly I want to address the fact that his original villain "generic poorly designed alien warlord" or Rogol Zaar, was presented as an experienced warrior who fought for the peace and safety of the galaxy who saw the Kryptions as a threat to its wellbeing. This presumes he has a code of honor and is not engaged in wanton violence, yet he suddenly decides to eliminate an entire planet and its population of billions just to eliminate what could be a handful of Kryptonians he was perfectly capable of besting in combat? That is nonsense and already shows a complete shift in character, mind-boggling seeing as he has only existed for 6 issues. An additional note on this character, fully showcasing how bendis is just keen on fully altering established canon, is he claims to know Jor-El. Like I stated in a previous review of this series, by the time of Jor-El the Kryptonians were no longer a spacefaring race. His development of a vessel able to cross the atmosphere was an incredible feat of science and engineering that no other individual in the planet had achieved in decades, despite this Rogol Zaar saw the Kryptonians as a threat to the cosmos at this point in time and for this destroyed their planet. That is poor form to say the least. Another aspect of the overarching plot is how bendis dealth with the Superman Family. Jor-El appearing within the Kent Household uninvited and being faced in a more defensive manner is shocking, not to say the least because the last time he faced his son he was trying to cause death and destruction on Earth to prove to his son the humans were not worth saving and make him go agains the values he holds dear. Suffice to say by the end of this encounter Jor-El and Kal-El were in a conflict, both physical and ideological, and were not able to come to a resolution before Jor-El was taken and eliminated by presumably Dr. Manhattan. Yet he appears in his sons home just startling them, his son not taking up arms when they were opponents when they last met and upon his stating he wishes to take his son with him on a journey. A man Clark does not trust, fought as an enemy in their last encounter, and has done nothing to prove he is deserving of being the mentor of his son. Jor-El having the gall to try and state how Superman should raise his son is something that far from just being an exchange of worlds would merit being struck, as these were individuals IN OPPOSITION TO EACH OTHER. I found this to be a plotline that is just not believable or sensical in any way. On to the most egregious offense this miniseries does, how it presents Superboy. Superboy who in the pages of Action Comics, Super Sons, and Superman was built up to be an optimistic youth who cares dearly for his family and looks up to the ideals they stand for. He clearly states he one wishes to be like father and be a defender of Justice and hero to the people like he does. Here, he completely disregards the feeling of his family in favor of going with Jor-El, due to knowing a potential future where a loss of control of his powers leads to destruction and his failure to join the Teen Titans. Tackling first his decision to go with Jor-El, while he does build a rapport with his paternal grandfather it is not so that he would immediately be trusting of the man to the point he contradicts his parents, as even when he broke the rules in the other books he constantly worried over disappointing his parents and strove to respect their established rules for him. Secondly, this takes the stories of Tomasi and Jurgens and completely trashes some of the development they built up just for the convenience of bendis' story. While Superboy was indeed disappointed after the Titans decided not to recruit him, he was still in a partnership with Robin who fully supported him and both had risen up to face great challenges and prove themselves to their parents. Superboy had grown as an individual and a hero since then and did not present this failing as something he held close. It goes without saying the Teen Titans themselves were shaken after the Super Sons of Tomorrow story and realized they needed to reevaluate themselves as seeing Tim Drake their former leader lose himself to a darker nature was distressing and the rift caused in the team between those who supported him and those who did not established they were not as close to each other as they believed, making the decision to take on another member who was as-of-then unproven be unwise. Finally, regarding the alternate future where Superboy due to his uncontrolled powers causes great devastation. Through interacting with Mr. X (Jor-El), Boyzarro, and through the Super Sons of Tomorrow arc he learns that there are different perspectives through which to see things and that despite similarities changes in upbringing and experiences can have significant effects on how an individual develops. He knows he is not predestined to wreak that havoc and as Superman himself states in this issue he needs to worry about the now and not the ifs and whens. That exchange was one of the few that holds true to the previous portrayals of the Superman family. However his decision to follow Jor-El is something that by all accounts should not have been taken and is what a see as a grave mistake on DC's editorial staff who allowed bendis to do so. While it brings up potential for future storytelling, it runs contrary to all portrayals of his character so far, it was not organic or well-built in any way and Lois choosing to allow this and follow them is as nonsensical as anything else. In fact this flashback arc only served one purpose and that was to explain why Superman is once again wearing his suit with the red trunks; if you tell me there were way better ways to handle this. Lastly, those who follow bendis or DC in social media know he is utilizing the Nuclear Man from the lacklust Superman IV: The Quest for Hope as a villain in his upcoming books, so having a child state "Superman" is causing the fires is in my opinion a foreshadowing of his introduction. That said, I don't believe anyone would really confuse a blonde man who uses a mostly gold and black outfit with a cape with Big Blue. That's just common sense. But as he oft does, bendis will make characters do anything that is required no matter how off-character it is or how ridiculous it might be all for the sake of being able to tell whatever story he wants. That is not a trait of a good writer and if this series is any indication the upcoming volumes of Superman and Action Comics will be considerably worse than the ones that just ended. This is barely "passable"storyline; just because bendis is writing something that is not complete and utter trash as he did for Marvel in recent times and that this being is first DC story does not mean as readers we should cut him slack and praise him, yet so many people are giving this 7+/10 reviews. This is poor writing and should be acknowledged as such.

All points given are primarily for the art in the sequences happening in the present, was not the biggest fan of the art style used during in the flashbacks. Colorist and Inker did amazing overall work. On to the writing... There has not been a worse issue involving Dick Grayson to be published since the travesty that was All-Star Batman and Robin. It’s a cheap gimmick meant to generate some interest in the short term but will inevitably alienate fans in the long run. Terrible storyline decision that will ideally be temporary.

I thought issue 50 was the worst DC could do to Nightwing, I was not looking to be proven wrong so soon and to such a degree. So now Dick Grayson is Ric, a knock-off Red Hood type without the story, personality, drive and gear to justify it. I doubt anyone asked for this. Might as well give him a mullet, 70’s stash, beer gut and have him believe he peaked in hgh school with an identity like this. Also, having “Generic Person” replace the man who was The Heart of the DC Universe? Well done, good job! The force a facepalm would have to cover the feeling this generates would be enough to kill a person. It’s Nite-Wing all over again. But I guess if a company is willing to kill off Wally West after he proved himself the better Flash over Barry “Golden Boy” Allen, there are no depths they won’t sink to. There is no art good enough to even begin to compensate the atrocity of the writing. Shame on DC.

The worst Nightwing story arc in recent history continues with another issue that fails to deliver anything of value. Speaking for myself, by the second page I was no longer invested in the issue. Seeing generic cop flash his badge while in costume is among the dumbest things I've seen in a comic this year; I am one of a very small number of people who complained about Harley Quinn being able to nearly kill Booster Gold, a hero who has taken hits from beings like Doomsday and survived, with a diner silverware considering this peak stupid. However, this story proved there were dumber things to be presented to readers, with "joe generic, standard cop" becoming Nightwing being one of them; If fate truly deemed this person should have that identity it was on one hell of a bender. There is not much to say about this issue other than the story is piss poor and insulting towards one of the most celebrated members of the Batman family. "ric grayson" continues to be nothing more than a third-rate (or lesser) Red Hood knock-off without any of the personality of actually valid reasons for acting the way he does. No curiousity regarding the skillset he possesses and complaining when he takes action, he becomes less likeable by the panel. I reiterate what I have stated since this arc began, if this was to be Dick Grayson's fate it would have been kinder to kill him off.

I saw a review stating this issue, and series, was a compelling and evocative journey of two men struggling to find themselves. I want to ask him, are we reading the same thing? This issue continues was has been a series of lackluster issues that showcase one thing only, how DC has no clue what to do with or any appreciation for one of the most beloved characters. The writing is subpar, but i feel for Scott Lobdell as when you are given garbage to work with no matter what you do the result will still be refuse. The art, colors, and inks are the only redeeming qualities because the story is among the worst in this decade. To sum up we see “Ric” Grayson, whose “name” alone makes me feel ill, still fail to present a modicum of personality by choosing to ignore and throw away the feelings of people who show genuine feelings for him while acting as the biggest jerkwad there is and refusing to even acknowledge who he was. Now encouraged in this by Scarecrow! what a development! Exclaimed no one. We also see “the generics” attempt to take on Nightwings role and fail, something that has been done before and better on more than one occasion. Lead generic states he’s glad to have help, two seem eager to act, one is afraid of this newfound position and nothing new is seen as they fumble about as well as anyone ill-suited for a role can be. Making Dick Grayson what is clearly a poor copy of the Schumacher Robin or a 3rd-rate Red Hood knock-off is insulting to the character because he seems far too willing to just be a jackass than actually try to understand those who reach out to him or do the bare minimum and try to learn about himself. Do us all a favor DC and make this ill-conceived arc end soon.

Nightwing remains subpar, to no one’s surprise. However, now the art itself is of a similar quality to the writing, so what little redeeming qualities this book had are gone. “ric” Grayson continues to be a character whose portrayal is only matched by bendis’ rogol zar in the way it can changes from panel to panel. The faster this changes end the better it will be. Scarecrow finally unleashes his big plan, no different than every single other “plan” he’s ever had. This one reads like a re-creation of his plotline in Nolan’s Batman Begins, but this time the movie did it better. The “nightwing” continue to just be generic people so far out of their depth the only interesting bit of this story is going to be seeing their fall when they actually realize this. I doubt next issue will be better, but I can’t imagine it being worse. Unfortunate for Lobdell who does seem like he’s doing all he can to make this a decent book, but there is no writer that could rectify how abysmal this title is at present without ending the change issue #50 set up.

Tl;dr title of the issue is akin to clickbait of the worst caliber, we’ve been stuck with this “ric” joke for an entire arc now, he unfortunately has not left so as to warrant a “return”. Issue itself just cements this atrocious new character as what Nightwing has become while the bland “generics” operate in his stead. Anyone with a right mind would have already dropped this book, this issue does nothing to change that. I believe this is hardly worth reading and much less buying. The “generics” take on scarecrow and show how far out of their depth they are, despite the villain monologuing instead of actually taking action. They show how they can’t separate being in uniform as law enforcement and in their position as vigilantes, which does little but show they are terrible in the role they chose to take up. There’s little else to say about them as one-note as they are. “ric” finally does something, all while saying to himself he does not want to do that and how the people “playing at being him” brought it on themselves. He remains amazed at what he can do, yet remains adamant in avoiding his past life. His statement he just wants to take “generic romantic interest” away and flee the city shows how far removed he is from Dick Grayson. However, I do agree with his assessment that the bullet he took was worse than he thought as his current character was an outcome worse than killing him off; didio must be relishing this. His characterization switches from someone who is selfish and wants nothing to do with “hero” work, someone who relunctantly engages in said actions due to an innate desire to do good, and someone who’s far too eager to beat up bad guys. The writer can’t keep consistency. Scarecrow is the only character presented properly. Despite not being a real fan of this character, not thinking he’s an A-list villain, I find myself thinking he should have been more prominent in this issue and was stopped far too easily. I absolute despise the current status quo of Nightwing and only hope “ric” does not last much longer. I have no expectations of the upcoming story arc because if it continues things as they are it will continue to be one of the worst books DC releases.

Tl;dr Still bad, little noticeable improvement. Would not recommend purchasing by all means, read only if you must but do not expect much from it. A general improvement over the past issues but still delivers a below average story with a protagonist who can’t to decide who he is and a writer who is unsure of what to do with him. He continually states he wants nothing to do with “hero work” and those who do are crazy, yet seems eager to jump into it while admonishing himself for that. This continuous contradiction is becoming irritating. The Nightwings, those who appear, still don’t present more personality than the one trait given to each, one being Nite-Wing redux in essence. New primary villain, somehow even less compelling than the last. Lastly, supporting characters also seem off and seem to just be changed to fit the story rather than portraying them in a more organic manner. Art is more consistent and better fitting. So this can be said to be the best thing in the book, as the writing is decidedly not it.

They can’t be serious with this. This is laughably bad, but close to just being sad. With that last rhyme I’ve written better material than what’s in this issue. Flushing the cost of this issue down the toilet is a better use of money than purchasing this issue, I would not recommend anyone even read this. Another issue of a protagonist that claims “I want nothing to do with hero work, I crave a normal life” to immediately follow that with “I’m a hero now, I need to help people”. How he contradicts himself by the panel has long been irksome, now it just shows how the writers/editors just have no clue what to do with the character. Here’s an idea, get rid of “ric” and bring Dick Grayson back. No one cares for the shitheel that is “ric”, no one asked for this already drawn out story, and it just continues to be grating. I mean being enthusiastic about getting rid of a person who has only shown kindness and support to him, good going “ric”. Seeing Barbara apologize to this jerk was awful, when he should be the one apologizing to her. The “nightwings” continue to be as one-note as ever, now just more confidently rushing into situations they are in over their heads for and with not even the idea of a plan set up. Seeing lead generic cop tell “ric” he doesn’t want him involved in their business, except when they need him (which is apparently always), was a facepalm worthy moment. Jason Todd back when he was murdering people masquerading as Nightwing in the storyline Blood Brothers was a more effective hero and he wasn’t even a hero then. Joker’s Daughter offers nothing here and could be susbstituted with just about any C to D-list villain from Gotham and the story would remain the same. This is absolutely atrocious writing and probably will continue to be a book to avoid until Dick Grayson is properly restored.

The best thing about this issue is without any shadow of a doubt, the variant cover for it. Without that don’t buy the book, it’s not worth it. I just read it and I can’t say anything memorable happens, another forgettable, throwaway issue. There finally some development with one of the “Generics”, not nearly enough to make him a real character but it’s welcome because it’s more than leaving them to be characterized by a single trait. Even ric, who is still a shitheel, has some growth in that he did not question his need to help others and finally stopped complaining that he needs/only wants a “normal life”. Despite being a minor change it’s a long time coming. There’s not much to say about anything else, it’s overall a mediocre issue. Does not generate any interest in what comes next but it does not make me dread the next one to come. The title finally has some semblance of a direction. If they stay on it there might be something good in the future, but I would not hold my breath for it until “ric” is terminated.

I can review this in 2 words: It Sucks. There is nothing of value present in this title and it is far from compelling enough to generate any interest in any upcoming issues. One-note characters remain one-note, but now they have code-names. Such compelling character development! /facepalm #1 nightwing “Prime” questions the involvement of ric while simultaneously stating he has the instinct, skills, and know-how to do what they are TRYING to do, better even, because he’s suspicious. I thought he was supposed to be a good detective? You’d think he would have been able to figure out at least some idea of who ric is supposed to be. /facepalm #2 His involvement in the encounter the issue starts on is negligible, he shows up and says words then is relegated to assisting the target while offering nothing of value. Still presumes he’s the one to make the big calls once it’s all done. /facepalm #3 Claims they need to “bring in the others” which nightwing “Red” claims is a bold move; might be me but adding two more people who are woefully in over their heads into a situation will hardly do anything to resolve it. In fact just reading the issue I am proven right on this point as they show up to ineffectually gather information and are swiftly taken out before managing to do a single thing. The title might improve once the “generics” become real characters, but as it stands there’s little to even see here and a long way to go before they reach this point. “ric” has improved in so far as he’s no longer whining about wanting a “normal life” while rushing headlong into the very “superhero crap” he spoke out against. But he still remains a figment of a shade of his former self. He’s moved from decisively unlikeable to completely forgettable and not even worth remembering. The story itself is pretty standard fare, nothing noteworthy at all to mention about it or recall. Does little to build interest in continuing to follow the title, which is more than what the first arc of “ric” did was cause generate dread that it was indeed continuing. The end suggests that somehow the mentor character will play a part in the fire monster’s attacks, be related to the same, or just be someone with a bone to pick with the police. None of these options would really provide a compelling story since the “characters” it is meant to flesh out don’t have much to work with.

Tl;dr predictable issue with serviceable enough action and fairly solid dialogue for a change. First issue of “ric” that I would not say one would not regret reading. Would not recommend a purchase unless you are a fan of this arc as it’s the finale to it. First issue in ric’s existence that is not completely terrible, only took 11 issues for decent writing to be present. That said, the twist regarding the identity of the antagonist is as predictable as it gets and there is still little to no growth on the Nightwings, except they showcase how much more gung-ho and willing to use deadly force the sole woman in the group is. ric for the first time is not an unbearable, irritating individual and finally seems to be an actual character, far removed from Dick Grayson but even I have to recognize that there was some level of development present even if it’s minute. However, I do not appreciate how he disregards his history as meaningless because his memory was lost, those memories are of a far better individual than he currently is.

I hope when “ric” ends this phase of Nightwing’s history is fully redacted or excised completely. The cosmic shitheel that is ric deserves nothing less than a talon’s blade to the brain, this needs to end already. Oh no irrelevant female character might die, I am truly concerned, cue facepalm. Please, everyone involved in this arc from her to the ineffectual “generics” should fade into obscurity. Next issue get a few points if Talon can deliver in cleaning up the board.

I would not recommend this title to anyone, it's mediocre at best and no fun at all since "ric" was made. DC needs to get rid of this guy because he's already existed for far too long. The best thing the creative team dead is include Talon in the mix. He's the only character that's not infinitely irritating and is actually god at what he does. The so-called "nightwings" continue to be as ineffective as they can be, with "nightwing blue"'s single distinguishing trait is he sucks so much more than the others he's continually left out of commission. Seeing his sister "gold" so readily want to drop the costume when she was the one enjoying being a Nightwing the most is shows how little car is put into these characters. Not that they'll have any long-term relevance. As nice as it is to see "prime" and "red" motivated to keep fighting the good fight, they have never stopped being in over their heads and if they see a grizzly end well... anybody could have seen it coming and it will have the impact of a fly on a window. This supporting cast is pointless, even bea who's meant to be the current love-interest is completely expendable. The way chaos is portrayed is also completely dumb, case in point the looter who seemed so eager to wreck the bar and hurt people who exclaims at Talon "you can't just go killing people like that!". Add to this the people who attempt to jump "ric" when they see he's wearing leather, that's just stupid. Here's hoping Talon shoves a blade into "ric's" brain and finally bring Dick Grayson back or knocks his skull so hard he shakes off this worthless identity out for good.

Jurgens accomplished something pretty significant with this issue and the annual, it makes “ric” make sense. This does not make it any more bearable or compensate for it in any way, but it’s a small step in the right direction. William Cobb continues to the best, and only, character present. “ric” himself is not unbearable in this issue, because he does and says nothing. The “wings” continue to be supremely irrelevant and bea is just used as a vehicle to allow Cobb to deliver exposition. I would not be shocked if none of them survive at the end of this. Talon is an improvement but Dick Grayson should have been brougjt back ages ago, until that happens the title won’t be anything but mediocre. At least this issue was passable, it’s completely forgettable but reading it is not a waste of time.

This is finally a step in the right direction but ultimately is just a very underwhelming issue. The ending which is left as vague as possible is its main weakness as right now any clear sign that “ric” is gone would be welcome. It feels as if “Talon” was just pulling his punches while the real Talon’s hesitance to intervene is not fully believable. This makes the “battle” seem to have very little stakes. The new character/organization introduced does not add much yet, but seems like something more fitting in a “larger-scale” title.

As an ending of an arc it fails to stick the landing, but no one arc of "ric" ever managed to really take off, so this just botching the end is already a vast improvement. As a single issue the fact it fails to commit to the single change most fans have been asking for since Batman #55 is its biggest drawback. A completely forgettable read and not worth spending money on. While this issue was a rushed conclusion to an arc that would have been better served being longer,the conclusion was a step in the right direction. That said, Grayson overcoming the calculated mental programming through the single act of taking off some goggles, that is simply dumb. Besting a Talon in combat with only muscle memory left, that's a significant stretch and I don't buy that. But my single biggest gripe here is that despite all this "ric" somehow still lives. Until they explicitly state that "ric" is gone for good and Dick Grayson is back this title will never be anything but a shadow of what it could be. Somehow it seems the "wings" and bea are going to continue to be in the title, despite them being nothing but expendable. Probably to be leveraged or eliminated once Joker comes into the picture. It's been far too long that Nightwing's been a mediocre title and it seems like it'll continue for at least a couple more months.

Non-issue, just people babbling on about random crap while “ric” lives. You can skip this and jump to next issue and nothing would change. Here’s hoping Joker’s upcoming involvement finally clears the board of the irrelevant characters here and ends “ric”.

The only redeeming factor present within this issue is the Art and Colors; that said having Patrick Gleason as the artist only makes him have a front row seat to see someone else dismantle the great work he did on this very book just one volume ago Art - 9/10 easily the best thing about this issue, the artist and colorist work together to deliver a book that is just a joy to look at. Writing - 2/10 I would go lower, but the words make sense and are properly written in complete sentences. The actual plotline is absolute garbage, not nearly as atrocious as that in the Superman book, but still completely and utterly lackluster. Each character acts in ways that do not fit how they have been portrayed, a clear example is the now “quippy” Superman who seems far removed from the Big Blue we all know. Additionally how he acts when facing the child who claimed Superman was causing fires was far more akin to how Batman would react, and the interactions among the Daily Planet staff were cringeworthy. Overall even the introduction of a new villain group does nothing to truly build up intrigue and allow interest in upcoming issues of this title. Such a miss just after a historic anniversary issue is just the next in what have a series of strikes brian michael bendis has delivered for DC. The only hope I have is his run on the Superman line will be short.

I have to admit, the story in this issue improved. It's gone from abhorrently bad to just dull and uninteresting. Progress was made! The plot-holes present in this story that remains lackluster have never been more jarring than with a Lois Lane who would leave her son without second thoughts with an individual, who I reiterate for what feels like the nth time, WAS AN ENEMY of theirs the last time they encountered him. Jor-El never had a moment of redemption or contrition as Mr. X or did anything to even remotely position him as anything other than an antagonist towards his son, so having both of Jon's parents accept him as his guardian is ridiculous. If the premise behind the only plot development an issue actually had is so dumb it makes said development unbelievable, is there any point to the issue? If you ask me, I'd say there is not. Rather than showing the reunion of Lois Lane and Superman as a momentous occassion it felt like an unremarkable event without any impact. A missed opportunity seeing as it did nothing with what was something fans demanded. In fact stating Lois needed to be away from her family does not even deliver what fans clamored, it's the exact opposite. The Superman Family as built up in the previous volume was great and allowed for growth on each of its members, this decision is a regression in every sense of the word. I'll end this by saying that just how Superman appeared to reminisce about the good old days looking at the framed article Lois wrote about "The Death of Superman", I also miss the days when the writing for such a storied character was not garbage. Even if that story is the moment when death lost all power in comics, it is markedly better than any of the crap bendis is crapping out for Superman. The art was good, only worthwhile thing in the issue. Not enough to merit buying this.

Boy, this one's a doozy! They introduced the Question in a manner that was not completely abhorrent, but the rest of the story fails in every sense of the word; maybe he should stick to street-level characters who don't have such a storied history that he continually assaults with his atrocious changes to continuity. Nice dig bendis throws at Marvel, but even One More Day had more substance and was better written than how this individual has managed the Superman family. Brings Lois back for a nonsensical reunion devoid of any emotional punch, has her state she will remain separate from her husband, and he's happy? Yep, that is what fans asked for, nice of him to reference the things he's obviously taking cues from that is reviled across the community. As far as the mobster storyline, if it was supposed to elicit any feelings or curiousity, it failed to do so. The second plotline, focusing on the new Deputy Fire Chief, while overly verbose, also lacked any meaningful punch. Speaking about lacking any impact the reveal of the clearly obvious identity of the "Red Cloud", was a failed moment to due it being painfuly obvious. As far as said individual gloating about surviving a run in with Superman, as far as I am concerned a single Super Breath would be enough to take care of this new "imposing" villain. One of the better issues of this run, markedly subpar nonetheless. bendis continues to prove himself ill-suited to handling Superman. How people are buying into this nonsense as "great writing" is beyond me.

Tl;dr First issue of Action Comics in 2019 and if this is anything to go by this won’t be a great year for the title. Forgettable issue lacking in real substance and a villain who only poses a threat through the poor writing. This issue starts with Clark Kent carrying out his journalistic duties in what is a rare occasion in the bendis Superman titles, a well written moment. Shame it’s the only part of the issue that was done well. We see red cloud’s civilian persona writing an article stating she was able to defeat Superman in the previous issue. I would not call that a win so much as Superman forfeiting due to bendis, but somehow unproven and unconfirmed reports are now accepted in the Daily Planet, so there goes their integrity. Seeing Perry White also state robinson goode can’t even spell words correctly while slightly humorous just reflects poorly on the character the organization that hired them, but as it does not leave any impact on the reader it has no relevance. Furthering my statement that red cloud poses about as big a threat against Superman, they face off again in a decidedly one-sided encounter where Superman’s breath is enough to keep her at bay. While he choose not to add the freezing properties to it, I would not know, but I gander to state that it was probably because if she is as easily dealt with as she realistically is this terrible story would end far too early and bendis needs to still write a lot more crap. In a decidedly uncharacteristic fashion Superman let’s the villain go with a hardly veiled threat that more “decided” heroes would not let her off easy. Cool, Superman threatens people now, awesome. When the individual he went to aid, who does not appear to be in dire need of medical assistance, questions why he let the villain go Superman basically shrugs off the questions and claims he did not. A villain that was not a challenge to him is able to leave because he stands around telling what amounts to “stop this, it bad” is poor form for Supes and a clear example of writing skewing logic in favor of a bad story. The final moments of the issue are red cloud meeting with the leader of Leviathan leveraging her “victories” over Superman to do so. The middle-man shows his amazement at this stating she just “walked away from a shark attack”, this would only be true if said shark was a whale shark who decided to just play with a diver, because she escaped unscathed and the “attacker” let her go after engaging. The leader of Leviathan introduced herself and states how their meta experts select individuals who have the best-suited abilities for their plans and how her “wins” change things for the organization. I would fire them and reasses things carefully because thinking a minor threat could take out Superman is a massive overestimation of red cloud’s abilities and will lead to a major loss for their criminal enterprise. The big cliff-hanger is Leviathan purchased the Daily Planet, which would hold more of an impact if it had not happened before with Morgan Edge and if their key individual was not shown to be as inept as she is. There are similarities between robinson goode and ironheart mainly their enormous ego and how they believe themselves far more capable than they are with a failure to deliver on this. Coupled with the validation they receive it is a strong mix for what amounts to paper-thin characters with no substance. I hold no hope this comic will improve, seeing as average and forgettable is as good as the bendis penned issues will ever get. It is beyond me how people buy into this shoddy writing to give it anything above a 6, more puzzling those who actually praise it.

It’s almost a joke how bad this is. The story does not flow organically and everything seems forced. Almost every character that appeared was “off” and yet another emotional scene devoid of impact occurred. = Spoilers Follow = I’ll start this off by saying Perry White is not J.Jonah Jameson, and making the former try to fit the mold of the latter is just dumb. This made Jimmy texts, which were meant to be “humorous” just be dumb. His reaction to Jimmy could be seen as Jonah berating Peter Parker and again was not necessary as they are notable enough characters to present as their own people. Regarding the “villains” seen in the issue, Kobra, I believe their presence in Gotham but to hold gatherings like the one shown in Metropolis of all places, I call bs. Superman’s hearing should have been able to pick up their chants and identify them with ease or at the least notice the explosion that took them out. Waller’s inclusion was to create a build-up to Leviathan being a mejor player and kick-off this upcoming “event”, but I find myself hardly invested in finding out what’s going. They’ve barely dealt with the Metropolis fires and now they just jump to the next thing without addressing the first although these things will now undoubtedly be connected. On to the meat of the issue, the meeting between Sam and Lois Lane. To summarize what happened I just need two words “contrived drama”. It’s understandable to see Lois want a closer relationship with her father and reach out, as she did so before, but I find it hard to believe she would truly reveal as big a secret as Superman’s identity to a person who has been nothing but antagonistic towards him and has the capacity to act against him with this information. He has not been shown as reluctant when it comes to dealing with Superman, regardless of the situation. Her statement that she’s seen paternal drama/conflict, clearly alluding to Jor-El and Superman, it makes their decision to let Jon join him all the more unreasonable. Adding that he’s doing “great” is also ridiculous since she left before the journey even really started. Not only does this make where these events fit in continuity questionable, it also makes their actions seem senseless. That is one of bendis’ flaws in clear display, lack of consistency and cohension. Overall this issue is just another poor title in what is remarkably lackluster run and I would not recommend anyone read, much less buy, this title.

If I could sum up this issue in one word it would be “dumb”. We see who appears to be the Leviathan operative taking out the organizations and individuals it deems as threats who unsurprisingly looks as generic as rogol zar. Great, generic alien warlord was so good a character now there’s another, cue facepalm. If anything it at least shows a villain who has the potentially to be a threat over the laughable “red cloud”. The interaction between Sam Lane and Amanda Waller is questionable as well as seeing him doubt his past actions from the reveal that his son-in-law is Superman is hardly believeable. He has shown to place duty over family consistently and despite the knowledge I do not imagine him now supporting Superman just due to that. Waller knowing who Superman is makes sense, given who she is, but just appearing where he is and shouting at him in his civilian guise “Superman, I need your help” is something I highly doubt she would do. Additionally while it fits in with her nature to do anything to protect herself, leaving Sam Lane to be apprehended/killed is nonsense when she wants to request Superman’s help and letting his wife’s father die could easily jeopardize that. I also doubt Superman would just comply with her demand for help immediately. Lois’ character is also not well portrayed as she avoids telling Superman she just compromised his identity in a way that could have massive repercussions and her re-joining the staff of the Daily Planet should not be a surprise as she has been back for a while now, but it sure was played up for it. Her interactions with Superman show a vastly different couple than that Tomasi, Gleason and Jurgens depicted, they do not seem nearly as close. Lastly, Jimmy is just used for comedy relief, if jokes that miss their mark can be considered comedy. It’s a poor issue, that I would not recommend anyone really read and much less buy. So much for the start of a “big event”, but given bendis’ track record with those seems just about right as the last one he penned was abysmal.

Still waiting on the supposedly good writing present in this title, I’ve yet to see it show up for close to a year now. The one thing of note in this issue is how Lois is finally not portrayed poorly or in a nonsensical manner. She makes for a good stand-in for the readers when she questions Waller’s actions and even doubts the course of action Superman took in bringing her to the Fortress. Only took give or take 5 issues to not get Lois totally wrong, minor props there. As far as the story goes, little is advanced and characters who will play a part will be introduced. The Question teaming up with the Wonder Twins, I can’t help but facepalm at this idea. However, Superman and Lois Lane being Spyral agents through some sort of kryptonite MacGuffin? This is just absurd. Little else to say other than the issue leaves me with little to no interest in the following issue, like the others before it. Would not recommend purchasing, read only if you must. Overall keep expectations low because bendis leading a “big event” should have people apprehensive towards how it could turn out.

Middle-of-the road issue, nothing really noteworthy happens or is worth mentioning from the pages. Does make me want to read what happens next and most of the dialogue is devoted to how Lois Lane likes undercover work. I would not buy it or recommend it, but if it’s your thing go for it I guess. As it’s just a forgettable issue it’s on the higher end of the quality scale of bendis’ writing. One thing that just struck was as odd is it names Kate Kane (Batwoman) as director of Spyral, just what? He got the wrong Batwoman here and I not surprised as the man cares not for continuity. Bones might have also been axed but that does little to change anything.

This issue makes par. Not unreadable, not great, middle-of-the road fare. For what is supposed to be the ending to the set-up of this summer’s “World Changing” event it is supremely underwhelming. It’s a forgettable issue, as there are no standout moments, but by the same token there are no egregious faults in characterization, logic, or story. I could argue Waller was ridiculous when she broke out of the Fortress of Solitude as SHE was the one who turned to Superman for help and now seems to be backing away from that choice. Similarly it’s odd one of the top agents of Spyral would so readily trust a journalist with “all of the information”, especially one who was pretending to be a member of his organisation (because a double agent would never do that). But in the grand scheme of things these actions can be made to fit the story and when this writer has railroaded entire plots just for a quip or some othet terrible payoff they seem minor in scale. To me, this fails to deliver in generating hype for “Event Leviathan” which seems more likely to end up like the various Marvel Events bendis led, with all of the impact of a match in a fully lit room.

If anything is learned from this issue it’s that editorial do not even give the most minute iota of a crap about this title. The bendis’ dialogue tends to be hit-or-miss, with an inordinately high chance of failing to find its target, but this was a whole new level of bad. Is he ok? Did he have a stroke? Someone should call someone. That’s all there is to it, bad title remains bad. The art is also very inconsistent and mostly just depicts the characters as off. Might be one of the worse issues of this run.

Pretty much just an exposition dump with nary a significant development until the end. More serviceable than most issues of Action Comics in this run, but by no means notable. Red Cloud as much as they want to build her up as a “legitimate threat” will hardly ever be more than a C-list villain. While amusing the Rose/Thorn panels did not do much and it’s hard to imagine Superman not intervening in her activities before or actually letting her continue to run rampant while actually being there. Can’t say this issues changes how underwhelming the title is and not being familiar with Naomi I can’t state if her inclusion will do anything to change that.

Nothing happens, 0 plot progression, but a separate storyline will be pursued now! “Stellar writing”.

This issue exists only to promote Naomi and draw people to that title. It’s hardly about Superman despite it being one of his main ongoings, as thusly I would not recommend it to anyone interested in him. Last issue was serviceable, this one is not. As a Superman book it fails to deliver, it showcases him losing to a C-list villain only to have Naomi show him up and save the day. The art doesn’t really work and the dialogue contains some lines which are facepalm-inducing; a stand-out among them being Batman stating “I’m Batman” to have Naomi’s mother reply with “Damn right you are”. Has this man ever engaged in actual conversation. The premise of the issue, red cloud being a threat, is laughable as she should hardly register within Superman’s radar. However, as he is wont to do bendis forces his creation’s to be the “best”.

This issue is surprising in that not only is the writing abysmal, but the art is too!

First 1/10 of 2020. Both writing and art leave much to be desired. More pages than necessary devoted to the background of a villain, that despite how much he wants to pretend is good will never be more than a C-lister. The “red cloud” is a joke. The end shows that even if bendis is working on “developing” a character he has no idea what to do with them. The team-up is nonsensical at best. Interactions with the Fire Chief were not poorly written, but it seems completely out of place among the rest of the issue.

Somehow tech built by the Manhunters, which were replaced by the Green Lanterns, is somehow a match for the Legion of Doom who have been empowered by cosmic forces? ...I don’t know even know what to say. Leviathan also went from a separate faction trying to establish its own mandate to a generic “supervillain” group. Great. Lex stating that the “event leviathan” impressed him made me cringe, because if that’s true that is a very low bar to impress the guy. Red cloud’s participation in the plan they make is laughable, because I doubt this villain will ever be anything of note and her part is something anyone else within that team could do (and far better). Nothing in this issue is worth even remembering. Skip it completely.

Hey, remember how Young Justice already had a first visit to the Hall of Justice before? Remember how Superboy Conner Kent and “The Duck” have already interacted and have history with Superman? bendis clearly does not. 1/10 this issue fails. It gets worse by the page. Some of the other failings are: The dialogue - Sinestro’s “I don’t read Earth, Luthor”, I mean honestly there is bad and there’s bendis. Leviathan - They claim he “almost took the World”, could have fooled me with the lackluster so-called “event”. Then there’s his turn into a generic villain and now his turn into someone against them too, I mean I doubt he poses a threat to Perpetua’s folk or even those of Laugh-Bats.

I thought I had seen the worst of brian "the blunder" bendis on Superman already, this issue proved me there are depths he can still reach if he really tries. It's beyond awful, this has no place being read by anyone. JRJr's art doesn't help the nonsensical story and developments; it's not always you see a villain deliver what's mean to be a snide remark after defeating a hero only for it to fail mostly due to the way in which it was written. Even setting aside how confusing current continuity is, the issue does not make sense, it only furthers how convoluted things are and no characterization in the book is even remotely "on point". Red Cloud "leader" of Metropolis' gangs? I don't buy that for a second. It's equally as unlikely that a c-list villain (at best) would be able to pin down Superman. Disable a good deal of the Legion of Doom in a heroic heel turn, no one is stupid enough to buy that. Laughable is what this is. Leviathan also seems to be a completely different character in his speech and manner than how they presented him in his "event", unsurprising as consistency is not something this writer can maintain. Do yourself a favor and just steer clear of this.

Great art. Nothing happened. Did I miss something? Has this event actually begun?

I expected what would happen in this issue. Part of the “bendis” method is to talk in circles around something without actually saying it so I was fully confident Leviathan’s identity would not be disclosed. I also called the end text of “Next: Leviathan Revealed”. This issue’s dialogue was a chore to get through, completely irksome and most of all devoid of substances. Something sort of happened so in that sense it’s far better the most of the other issues in this title. Only issue away from the finale and barely anything has happened and the plot continues to progress at a glacial pace. Abysmal writing with nonsensical team-ups and twists and turns. This is the second “event” title DC has released this year that essentially failed to deliver because just like Heroes in Crisis, I highly doubt 1 issue will be enough to compensate for 5 of nothingness.

This entire “event” if it could even be called that, is nothing short of a shitshow. Piss-poor writing that focuses more on making things more convoluted while going nowhere with certain “revelations” made here are just laughable. I thought this would be akin to Heroes in Crisis, but somehow it’s worse. Second event DC has had this year that turns out to be a complete dud.

Over a year of taking a veritable steaming dump on Superman and his mythos for this? We lost out on Super Sons for this? I’d take no Legion over this any day. This it bottom of the barrel writing and the art doesn’t exactly help make it any better.

I had to stop reading 3 pages in because the cringe was unbearable. Getting through the entire issue was a chore. At first I thought a new Legion book would be great, but if this is where it’s going I’d rather there was none. Quoting Rose Forrest, I’d like to tell the author “I don’t see the excuse for stupid, childish, €&@$ other than you just want to”. Because that’s what this is: stupid, childish, €&@$, and not even in a fun way. I fear for the future of the Super Sons.

All this great and colorful art somehow heightens how vapid the writing is, this doesn't work.

Usually when the backstory of a character is expanded on, it adds to them and showcases more of who they are. All this is issue does is elaborate on the “secret origins” of the 3 so-called “leaders” of the Legion. Thing is, this simple premise is botched completely. Somehow each of the leaders feel like less of a character and just a pointless addition to the roster than before. The actual information added from the multiple pages of this issue expanding on character story could be fit into a small blurb in a character introduction. This is lowest tier writing. I kinda question why I even read it, because it’s a waste of time and NOTHING HAPPENS.

By the second page I already feel the cringe. That should be enough of an indication to stop, but for some reason I kept reading only to encounter that much more cringe. For all the character the Legion is meant to have none of them have much of a personality and seem to only exist to deliver bits and quips and then vanish, just like the "invisible gentleman" introduced this issue. For the sake of readers everywhere, bendis should follow suit. The real reasoning of Jon Kent being in the Legion is also very much nonsense, because if they claimed to know their history they would realise how he is not suited for they purpose they selected him. If they do follow through with the rumoured 5G idea they also posit here, it'll go about as well as the last change he went through. Most of the dialogue seems so forced to make certain ideas play out that it makes the execution lackluster, the plot does not seem to organically develop. But apparently the "people of the future" are not the brightest despite everything looking it's chok-full of LED lights. While not unreadable, this issue is not something I would recommend. Actually I would hardly recommend the title because while the artwork is solid it's seems devoid of substance as far as the characters and story are concerned.

Nice to know the impromptu group that banded together in Justice League Odyssey are now official leaguers. Also it’s great that Hawkman, Shazam, and Cyborg were all able to reverse their current condition to be present in this momentous occasion. I mean even Harley, an anti-hero at best and someone who is in no way a member of any League also showed up, that’s really something. Honestly the only section about this title that made sense was Batman and Wonder Woman’s interaction. Even Lex’s “big reveal” seems underwhelming and something that will not have as much an impact as they teased it will.

Is this a joke? THIS is meant to be meaningful, like Joker’s 90+ voice mails to Luthor “HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA”. What a waste of paper, they said villains would be changing their ways with the reveal and what they delivered was... Toyman. I wonder how much longer they will run Superman into the ground.

This story of this book is undeserving of the art that goes with it. Unlike the writing which maintains a standard of terribleness, the art is actually great, the covers in particular are fantastic and serve to lure in the reader to an underwhelming experience. Story: Throughout the entirety of the issue Superman is portrayed as a blunt, no-nonsense taking jerk, far from the Big Blue we know. Rather than try to reassure people in what is a planet-wide crisis and maintain order, he just angrily shouts back at them as he attempts to control the situation. This however has nothing on the wordt attempt of a joke the issue starts out on, it missed the mark by miles. Once again bendis clearly shows his disregard for all consistency in characterization as his generic alien warlord villain, Rogol-Zaar, engages in conversation with Jax-Ur, a kryptopnian villain. As a being shown hell-bent on the eradication of kryptopnians, why would he even entertain this when he was perfectly content with eliminating a planet just to claim the lives of 3 members of said species? His choice to lead Jax-Ur and his fellow prisoners is equally as ludicrous for an individual first portrayed as some sort of galactic peacekeeper. The second “joke” in the issue, delivered by Adam Strange, when he travels back to Earth only to find the planet missing encapsulates the humor in this writing “ s’not funny.” Showing multiple of the greatest minds in the DC Universe freaking out and unable to properly respond to the current predicament they face, having faced much worse multiversal threats, also diminishes these characters. Due to this the ending leading up to an imminent battle of massive proportions just falls flat and fails to generate any anticipation for what’s to come. Art - The art is great, without a doubt does more to carry the story than actual writing. Effectively the one good quality of this book. bendis continues to deliver a half-assed product that seems more an affront to the Superman family than a worthwhile follow-up to the book’s past volume. Yet people continue to rate it 7/10 or higher, I find this bewildering. Such a score is easily double what the book actually deserves and change will not happen if so-called “critica” continue to be complacent and rate such poor work as highly as they do.

This is gonna be my shortest review yet. The first page of this comic can be used to describe this whole issue, nay, the whole volume, perfectly. The first statement in this comic describes the Phantom Zone as the Nightmare Dimension where Krypton sent its worst creatures, criminals, and GARBAGE. That last statement is exactly what this volume continues to be, the pile ever growing with each issue bendis churns out. And just like Superman says immediately after “and here comes that GARBAGE now!”. Too bad you’re already drowing in it Big Blue. Next writer to take on this book will have to do one hell of a dumpster dive to recover anything of value after bendis is done with his run, because so far it’s what amount a giant polished turd that somehow people keep getting up. No amount of poor humor, that keeps on missing its mark, and snarky remarks can compensate for one of the worst stories in Superman since the 90’s. Also, why does bendis keep crapping on Barry Allen? Could anyone tell me, because I’d like to know.

Once again this volume continues to deliver... ...great dissapointment. tl;dr: Writing is about as bad as it can get for a comic book. bendis continues to hurt Superman and his family. Do not buy this issue, stay as far from it as you can. The art is decent enough but any enjoyment it can provide is outweighed by asinine writing. Last issue's improvement to boring and uninteresting did not last, as this issue starts with a "vision" that does not actually function as anything other than a dream sequence. Bonus points to this scene for showing how the image teased as the reunion of the Superman family was a fake-out and showcases that this volume will always fail to deliver what fans ask for it. The humor continues to be a hit-or-miss with Stormtrooper like aim, as it presents Adam Strange as nothing more than a bumbling fool, while generic alien warlord (rogol zaar) is still switching his characterization as often as a playing card in the hands of a magician. He can go from engaging Superman in a life-or-death battle to engaging him in casual conversation; his sole drive being the elimination of all Kryptonians makes this be mind boggling to say the least as well as his statement that he also plans to eliminate all Kryptonian life in the phantom zone while presumably surrounded by his army made up of exactly that. However, this issue is marred even further as bendis commits his greatest fault against the entire Superman mythos within it. In this issue Superman decides he's had enough and that he will now KILL his enemies, stating he has the power to do so and no longer cares. That panel is an utter BETRAYAL of everything Superman stands for and simply put, the worst writing the character has had in modern times. Far from adding to the character it is diminishes him and is an offense to him and his history. Even in The Death of Superman, when he realizes he must break his vow it is as a last resort and exhausting every single option available to him. Doomsday has also defeated every single hero that has come across him and Superman acknowledges that he will die in stopping his foe, but is prepared to make that sacrifice and go against his beliefs as anything short of that will not be enough. Showing him suddenly act out of anger and stating he can eliminate his enemies as if he were a boot against an ant does not even come close to meeting the dire circumstances as those of his first fight with Doomsday and no appearance of the Kents could ever hope to dimish how absolutely senseless and half-baked that portrayal was. That alone is why this issue deserves a negative score. The sole point I am giving this issue is because for once we're seeing bendis write a character in a way that makes sense and actually seems fitting, Zod acted like Zod and I actually believe he would act as he does in the final pages of this book. But I would a damned fool if I were to have any expectation that the next issue would ever go above a 3/10 tops in what is easily the worse run of Action Comics in years.

Tl;dr this volume continues to be decidedly subpar. The big climactic encounter finally happens but is bogged down by meaningless dialogue it loses all steam. The hyped reunion does not happen, it’s a tease meant to make fans purchase the upcoming issue to actually see it. However, no one should ever buy this comic or Action Comics, as they have some of the worst writing in DC and the industry as a whole. Finally some action happens, too bad it’s dragged down by pointless monologuing. Who knew Superman was prone to waxing poetic when facing a foe who threatens the universe, but I guess 5 issues of mediocrity is not enough to allow the readers something to enjoy. Superman speaking about how time is distorted through super speed could have been interesting, if it were not happening while he’s engaged in the fight. That said, it’s something far more likely, and reasonable, for a speedster to go into. Entire comments could have been removed and nothing would have changed. His examination into Zod’s intervention and how he could allow him to kill generic alien warlord (character so bland he does not deserve a name) is also pointless as by just standing in the sidelines he is not assisting against a foe who has proven stronger than himself. Zod also was not depicted as having the upper hand, so this entire discourse could also be scrapped for the most part. Splash pages of the encounter with a few key comments/thoughts mentioned would have gone much further in making this a serviceable issue. Examining Zod’s perspective of said fight would have been a boon as well, seeing as he’s the only character bendis seems to have a grasp on. Seeing Superman choose not to return to the Phantom Zone to fight the bigger threat, with minimal convincing, while it makes sense is not fully in line with how the character would act. Earth has multiple hero teams who can assist with rescue and relief efforts. Generic alien warlord left alone poses a much bigger threat to the planet and universe at large, but of course when a crisis happens only Superman can assist the Earth since every other of the hundreds of heroes who can assist are “busy”. His choice being wrong is proven by Zod’s defeat, but that was such an obvious conclusion it surprises no one. As far as the much anticipated return of Jon Kent, it falls as flat as Lois’ in the pages of Action Comics. Might as well call him Superboy Prime already and expect his character to have been destroyed as I doubt bendis will ever deliver anything fans ask for.

Tl;dr I did not think it would be possible for bendis’ writing to get worse on this book, he proved me wrong. Please save yourself the physical pain it will cause on your eyes and do not read it, buying it would be far too much and contribute to one of the worst books out there. On to the actual contents now, so know spoilers will follow: Issue ends on another “big twist/reveal”, because apparently bendis cannot continue a story without one. This is itself a showcase of a his lackluster writing in this book. About the “reveal” itself it’s basically “Man who was a villain is stated to be bad”. I stare blankly into space because it’s the only way I can react at something so blatantly obvious from even Man of Steel. There was no reconciliation had between Superman and Jor-El or anything to indicate that after their last encounter he was not a villain. From what little we get to see from the journey the Superman Family took we now know Lois left her son in space with his “grandfather” after a single mission deciding she was not needed. Because I presume that ensuring Jon would not be influenced into following in the footsteps of Mr. Oz and continuing to instill in him the proper values and ethics of the person his parents want him to be is unnecessary in the face of just having superpowers. Great parenting shown here, thanks bendis. Going by that we’re meant to believe Jon is not an impressionable young man who needs no further guidance by his parents and is trusted to know what to do in case his grandfather, who was last seen as a villain, asks him to do something that goes against his values. But while I shudder to think of what Jon will reveal happened in the following “years” of his trip, as of now we are just left with a considerably older Superboy who was aged just to allow the writer to explore how parents would feel if they missed out on raising their child. He chose to sacrifice the development of a character for the chance to explore an idea; he will undoubtedly waste this opportunity and reverse before anyone else can actually work with it. It hurt to see Lobo make a short cameo, because he’s one more character to add to the list of those bendis has gotten wrong, but surprisingly what he says is the best advice Jon has gotten in this title. Seeing alien people worship Superman was ridiculous, because he actually strives to not be seen as someone who should be worshipped/relied on to that degree and while Superman has indeed assisted other planets in times of need the impact he’s had on the galaxy is far lesser than that of the GL Corps who has been outright shunned by the citizens of certain planets. The dialogue itself is poorly written, cringeworthy in more than one ocassion (Jon laughling at was is not even arguably a joke Jor-El makes comes to mind), and I can’t help but say he does not get a single character “right” in the entire issue. This is the worst issue in the run so far and it decidedly looks like it will not improve. Save yourself the hassle and avoid this title until a new creative team comes on board.

Everyone is apparently dumb as rocks in this issue, and this next Shyamalan-esque twist just allow the writer to crap on an entire other universe. I can’t but imagine Earth-3 will end up worse this time around that in its last appearance, in which it was destroyed. More detailed review to follow later today.

I sure made a good call to expect nothing from the appearance of the Crime Syndicate last issue, because that’s what was delivered! This issue was pointless, had little substance, as much filler as the “Knightmares” arc happening on Batman. Do not purchase this issue, in fact I daresay don’t even read it, it’s not worth the time: The best part of the issue is Superman’s dream/hallucination of a Kryptonian future. This occurs with no rhyme or reason, a “tease” of an upcoming storyline which fails to generate any interest due to the sheer senselessness of it all; Jon apparently takes quite some damage in this future losing an arm and an eye, that sure is a happy future. Cue first facepalm. Presumably the Legion of Superheroes attacks the Kryptonian gathering, which makes me fear for that team’s future at the hands of bendis. The interactions between the Superman Family are very off and not consistent with how they acted in previous issues, which proves even more irksome when couple with cringeworthy dialogue such as Superman now not having to sleep or having anger issues he takes out on things. Again, I am perplexed that people actually believe this writer can portray Superman well. I have yet to see that. The big fight with the Crime Syndicate teased last issue? It doesn’t happen, the team barely even appears. Ultraman is shown taking Superboy to a secluded volcano and keeping him prisoner there, using him as someone to vent to for some reason. Suffice to say, that is not what people expected and considerably underwhelming since they reduce what should be an evil Superman to, in Jon’s words, a “messed up and totes uncool ‘jersey’ version of dad”. It takes bad villain monologuing to another level. To note, Jor-El is thrown aside from the start so there goes anything involving him. Cool. Most people expected an answer for why the Crime Syndicate is even present, Earth-3 having been destroyed and the Syndicate being killed in the Prime Earth. Well, this is a pre-New 52 version somehow, doubtful we’ll get an answer for it, so I am disappointed as I expected something like this be the case. The lack of involvement of the rest of that team is a major missed opportunity. The ending where Superwoman confronts Jon, that will lead to nothing equal to my interest in the next issue. This title continues to be a severely lacking comic book.

Not the worst issue of the run so far, but that’s saying little considering it’s been decidedly subpar from the start. Does little to generate any interest in what follows and what it does answer is done in an unsatisfactory fashion. Couple that with general nonsense bendis has to add and it’s a mediocre issue. Unstable person is still unstable, now with added time travel woes. Jon was aged pointlessly we come to find out. So bendis finally explains how Earth-3 and the Crime Syndicate is still around, time travel. Easy way out, taken. This was expected, easily called by anyone reading this book. Also apparently Jor-El never fell through the black hole, guess somehow he was strong enough to avoid it’s pull when it seems a whole chunk of their ship was sent through it. He spent “years” trying to figure out where Jon was, or it seems like it, but still only 22 days or so have passed? I don’t understand how this whole thing worked since Jor-El was not stuck in another dimension, but I find it hard to say even the writer knows what’s happening most of the time. Jor-El claiming Jon ran away when he clearly saw him be dragged into a black hole is nonsense. About as much nonsense as generic alien (rogol zar) being able to escape the Phantom Zone. I mean, even Zod had to go to Ray Palmer and demand he activate the projector to enter it. But I guess now he’s tech savvy in addition to being of comparable strength and endurance to Superman. Ending on what seems like a big battle would generally draw up some interest in what happens next, but considering the last time this happened we had overdrawn and pointless monologue over every scene I find it hard to say I expect anything to come out of it.

This issue only works if can shut your brain down to read it. The overarching “story” continues to be asinine and senseless and certain events it depicts are so ridiculous it can’t be taken seriously. generic alien continues to be a third-rate villain with motivations that cannot be kept consistent, while the turn of events regarding the encounter shown in the issue are just pure idiocy. There is a moment early on in the fight where Superman mentions he wants to use it as a “training moment” for his son. It almost reads as if the aging was done purely to deliver such a line, pointless “development” for sake of “clever quips”. The art while the strongest factor present in this title since issue #1, has some panels which are simply terrible. So even this does not hold up for the entirety of the book. I would not recommend anyone read this issue, much less purchase it and want to emphasize that despite the solicits this issue is NOT important or significant. It’s just bad.

“Unity” an apt name for a story where the first thing they do is split up the only recently reunited Superman family. Having the premise behind this entire story center around how Krypton was destroyed due to it being a galactic threat, at a point in time where they lacked the capacity for interstellar travel; this very action also being illegal in Kryptonian law, makes the foundation as shaky as it can get. This issue is another in a run that leaves far too much to be desired and is turning out to be decidedly mediocre.

Krypton’s mythos continues to be run over by a steamroller and is now filled with ideas that make it absurd more of the planet did not survive. Cool. Nothing of note happens. Ending issues in big “reveals” or “twists” is grating by now. This run needs to end.

It’s rare to see a single issue this astoundingly dumb be published. It pretty much botched the introduction of a concept and entire team of people in spectacular fashion.

I expected the "grand finale" of the Unity Saga to be something unsatisfying and ultimately mediocre, but I had no idea it was going to be the single stupidest finale I've read recently. There are a lot of problems with it, not the least of which is the end of "Jor-El"'s arc. I mean, he's disposed of as easily as if there was no importance to him. I mean, after all he was only the catalyst for the entire story so far; there are no words that properly express how dumb this all was. "generic alien" (rogol-zaar) was confirmed to be nothing more than a discount doomsday, with a few extra taken off the top because it's damaged. Good riddance. Pointless villain that the writer could never even get right. As far as the "Unity Day" event, it is still preposterous than galactic civilizations far more advanced than Earth never thought up of such an organization. Dumber still that "representatives" from the future came to witness the event and expect nothing to change. I mean, Krona only wanted to witness the birth of creation and nothing happened from that right? Again, this is stupidity of the highest caliber, but I guess to the makes it was worth it for that Unity Day page. Zod and Superman's agreement to work together while cool and all, is very hard to believe, but I guess we're not considering any past actions or portrayals. bendis is known for wrecking continuity and here he just takes it up to 11. It's hard to believe Zod is discussing founding a New Krypton when he ALREADY DID THIS. This was a 1/10 story in its entirety. No one should bother reading something so bad.

Whoever decided to let “bendis” write the Super Sons made of the worst decisions I have seen in a title that nothing but. He cannot write Damian at all. The dialogue in this issue is far worse than that in Event Leviathan and that’s saying something. It hurt to read this. The change in artist did not do this title any favors.

Once again bendis delivers... utterly subpar writing. Save yourself the hassle and don’t read it. As a build-up for the “big” Truth arc it doesn’t deliver, because it adds nothing to Clark’s decision and it seems to come out of nowhere too. Clark is about to reveal his identity because “things are complicated”/he has unresolved emotionals due to recent events, great. Seems like he went the low-effort route with this and with his current track record I do not foresee this turning out well. Zod being shown as a buddy of Superman also does not sit right, the art of his expression when Supergirl says this makes it all the more cringey. It beggars belief that Superman would not hold his reservations about Zod essentially taking over a planet and using it’s people to start over. Not too long ago Superman actually fought Zod because of this. It happened the previous, and actually good, volume of Action Comics. S.T.A.R. Labs being “evil” just seems haphazard in the way that they also frequently collaborate with other heroes and the way they spoke about the Hall of Justice as if it were a competing enterprise was nonsense. The arbitrary connection to Young Justice doesn’t even fit in with the plot of that book. The scenes with Lois at the beginning where they brush over events also were hard to digest.

What a joke, I mean they already did this same thing before in a story also called 'Truth', so to treat this as new ground is ridiculous. Dialogue is more bearable than past issues but 'bendis-speak' continues to be as irksome as it has always been. Some moments played out well enough, others were borderline nonsensical; the entirety of the panels that occur in Thanagar are asinine. The humor is also, as always, off the mark. Lois is incredibly out of character, but she's already broken Superman's confidence by sharing his identity without his knowledge in Event Leviathan. In the previous 'Truth' storyline she was the one to share this news and it led to Superman becoming a fugitive; Lois is acting more like this when it was an entirely different one at the time. While it could be interesting to see what happens from here, keeping hopes and expectations low would go a LONG way.

Superman being smug that “Clark Kent” was such a good disguise, that’s new. Not a fan of it. Suddenly Mongul is a threat? Really? The guy Superman took out with a single punch a couple issues back because he just “needed to punch something” is now somehow able to not only threaten the fledgling United Planets but also defeat Superman. I don’t buy it, it’s either one or the other, not both. I cringed at a few moments of the scene in the Planet discussing Superman’s employment status and found the interaction with Trish Q to just feel inauthentic. Dialogue has improved a bit in that while not memorable in the least this time around it was a particular chore to read through. Can’t say it’s good. The art was the best thing about this issue, no questions asked.

This issue was bad, to the surprise of no one. What drags this issue down almost single-handedly is the conflict with Mongul. The reason for this is how in this same run he was a villain Superman was able to defeat in a single punch, without this foe even being able to finish his intro speech. Yet we are now expected to believe that Mongul is not just able to withstand Superman’s attacks, but in fact is able to toss him around; all of this with the United Planets’ forces attacking him at the same time. So which is it? Is Mongul an actual threat or is he a chump Superman can just blow through? Because this inconsistency is just bewildering, more so when it’s IN THE SAME RUN. There’s not even a hint of an explanation to state why this villain can now take a punch. The B-story on Earth, I get what they are going for but it’s piss-poor execution. I find it ridiculous that people would immediately jump into thinking Superman is an unfit representative for Earth when they’ve barely found out about the “united planets” and have no grasp of what they are, but I mean it’s a low effort way to shoe-horn a story. Also, Lana Lang already knew who Superman so the “dramatic moment” of her saying she would confront him has no real gravitas to it. In fact it actually is surprising she was not mentioned before because if anyone would support him it’s her.

So Mongul is able to go to a standstill against Superman, take out a number of the leaders of the "Space Model UN", and they still decide to stop fighting when he shows up? Yes, I believe this. Cue facepalm. The Lois Lane B-plot is pointless, as if people who have worked with Lois for so long would suddenly doubt her ability just because of "the truth", and Superman 'King of the Earth' that is just about the dumbest thing I've seen put to page; scratch that having bendis make Barry Allen respond "poo poo caca" to something is, and it happened in this same title.

This isn't even worth the paper it's printed on. Nothing in this issue worked, and the "meta" humour poking fun at what this run has done only highlight how absolutely abysmal it is and continues to be. All I can say is "No" to this, ALL of this.

No. To all of this. Just, no. Please stop.

Have not read this yet, going to make a guess and rate is as bad. Will return after reading to assess if the rating given is accurate. Update: Turns out my previous rating of 3/10 was generous. Somehow 5 pages in I was already lost, the dialogue is just some of the worst there is out there. I don’t know how a writer who can barely manage the team originally present in this title thinks increasing the roster of characters is a good idea. One example being how Superboy doesn’t seem so much as someone who’s in despair or sick of their situation and looking for support but a pathetic sad sack. Another would be Tim Drake, the “smart” Robin presumed to be a better detective than Batman deciding that just breaking into STAR labs is good plan. This is bad.

Between jokes that don't work, inconsistent art, and dialogue that's hardly different from character to character and at points downright cringeworthy, this book does not work. It's a mess, and now it's about to add the only thing missing from the trademark 'bendis blunders' an inane retcon that serves no purpose. Just like I believed, expanding the cast even further did nothing to improve this book. At this point it's hardly a story of its own and just a tool to promote the other Wonder Comics properties.

Ew, why?

Just like the event that preceded it babble was spouted, drivel was said, mindless dialogue filled the issue, and barely anything happened. I’ll wait for the final issue when something finally does take place to get the whole story because if this is any indication it’ll be a nothing burger like the “event” before it. As it stands this reads like bendis trying to ape The Maker and his “city of tomorrow arc” from Marvel’s craptastic “Ultimate” universe, but done far more poorly.