Eye on Comics
  • About/Submissions

Crisis of Faith

  • Reviews - DC

Final Crisis #1
“D.O.A.: The God of War!”
Writer: Grant Morrison
Artist/Cover artist: J.G. Jones
Colors: Alex Sinclair
Letters: Rob Leigh
Editor: Eddie Berganza
Publisher: DC Comics
Price: $3.99 US/CAN

After the awkward plotting of Infinite Crisis and inconsistent, patchwork storytelling of Countdown to Final Crisis, it’s safe to say that a lot of readers were leery of this latest DC Comics super-hero event title. Balancing that perspective is the fact that it’s penned by Grant Morrison, a unique and powerful creative voice who’s known the innovation and intelligence he brings to the super-hero genre. I honestly didn’t know what to expect from this book. While it feels as though he’s repeated himself a bit here, Morrison delivers a plot and script that’s challenging and engaging. Continuity fans might take issue with his script, as DC’s icons speak and react differently than what we’ve seen from them in the past. I rather appreciated it, though, as Morrison manages to mix two vastly different concepts. He approaches these characters as a larger part of a pantheon of gods, but the story also adopts a police-procedural tone that makes for a sharp contrast. Blending the disparate tones is intriguing, and I’m honestly interested in what’s coming next.

The New Gods are being murdered, and the latest to fall is one of the most powerful. Metropolis cop Dan Turpin stumbles upon Orion, son of Darkseid, in a dumpster as he investigates the disappearance of a number of poor gifted children, and that leads him to a private social club known only as “the Dark Side.” Meanwhile, Orion’s murder spurs the Green Lantern Corps and the Justice League into action. Meanwhile, the mysterious force known as Libra proves to the super-villains he’s collected together for a common purpose that he can deliver what he’s promised by murdering a super-hero right in front of them.

I was a big fan of the “original” Crisis crossover, Crisis on Infinite Earths, so I was a little disappointed that we don’t see as wide a variety of obscure characters here as I’ve come to expect from a big DC event. Still, Morrison has definitely established an immense, cosmic scope for the event while also including a few of down-to-earth moments to keep the story grounded. His script’s also clear and accessible; one needn’t be an expert on All Things DC in order to appreciate the story.

J.G. Jones delivered some fantastic covers for 52 in 2006 and 2007, and I remember his detailed, photorealistic work from Morrison’s Marvel Boy series with fondness. The strength of his artistry remains evident on this title as well. There were a couple of sequences in which his work reminded me of the dark, realistic style of artist Lee (Lex Luthor, Man of Steel) Bermejo, and others in which he brought the same sort of sophistication and magic to the visuals that J.H. Williams III did during his run on Alan Moore’s Promethea. He balances the wonder of super-heroes and myths with more refined, mature qualities perfectly. He also seems to be taking some cues from the art that was such an integral part of Morrison’s last big super-hero event, Seven Soldiers.

The simplicity of Chip Kidd’s cover designs for this series should help it stand out on the stands; a similar approach certainly worked for Marvel’s various Civil War-related comics. Part of me can’t help but long for the kind of detail and action that George Perez brought to the covers of Crisis on Infinite Earths and Infinite Crisis, the predecessors of this event book.

Morrison has adeptly instilled a charismatic and dramatic personality into his resurrected Libra character, and I’ve enjoyed each of his recent appearances thus far, though the promises he makes to the villains in this issue strike me as being a bit redundant at this point. After DC Universe #0 and last week’s issue of Justice League of America, this is the third time I’ve heard this same song and dance. While one can’t assume all have read the JLA story, the low cost and wide availability of DCU #0 no doubt mean most (if not all) Final Crisis readers will have learned about Libra already.

Morrison sets up some clear parallels between Kirby’s Fourth World gods and the super-hero icons of the DC Universe. Orion is described as “a soldier god,” and his death is followed by the death of a hero who has a connection to war as well. We also see the evil New Gods rising to prominence as the good New Gods die, and similarly, we see Libra promising with confidence that the heroes’ time of triumph has come to an end. Contrasting all of these mythic elements and synchronicity is the matter-of-fact, down-to-business quality of the Green Lantern activity and Justice League discussions. Morrison has also pulled out the familiarity these characters have had with Fourth World figures in the past. While it may bother some continuity buffs, I found it brought some mystery and urgency to the tone of the story.

Countdown, despite all its flaws, was something of a love letter to the late Jack Kirby, “the King of comics.” Several plotlines revolved around his DC creations: the Fourth World, Kamandi, OMAC. Obviously, that weekly series was a buildup to this limited series, and it seems to be Morrison’s effort to give his creations and stories an ending, not to mention an effort to connect his various ideas together as part of a larger, cohesive tapestry. Truth be told, I was never a huge fan of Kirby’s efforts for DC in the 1970s. However, I do appreciate Morrison’s modern work a great deal, and the way he’s molded and matured Kirby’s original concepts has my attention. 7/10

May 28, 2008 Don MacPherson

Post navigation

The King of My Concerns About Tokyopop → ← Spaced Out

12 thoughts on “Crisis of Faith”

  1. Tim Agen says:
    May 29, 2008 at 2:07 pm

    Don, I don’t know anything about the New Gods. My only exposure to them was in Morrison’s “7 Soldiers”, and I don’t think that really counts. Will I still understand what is going on in Final Crisis #1?

  2. Don MacPherson says:
    May 29, 2008 at 2:26 pm

    Tom wrote:
    Don, I don’t know anything about the New Gods. My only exposure to them was in Morrison’s “7 Soldiers”, and I don’t think that really counts. Will I still understand what is going on in Final Crisis #1?

    I think so. Morrison’s vision of the New Gods from Seven Soldiers: Mr. Miracle factors heavily into this story, so you should have no problem. Furthermore, the Justice League meeting provides some exposition on the New Gods for newcomers to the concept.

  3. Blair says:
    May 29, 2008 at 2:27 pm

    One things for sure – nothing will ever be the same again ! 😉

  4. Don MacPherson says:
    May 29, 2008 at 2:28 pm

    I wouldn’t count on that, Blair. A cornerstone of the super-hero genre (and the marketable intellectual property they represent) is the status quo.

  5. Nelly_in_SJ says:
    May 29, 2008 at 5:41 pm

    Just picked up and read Final Crisis #1. Coherent story, beautiful art, but no real “whoa..!” moments. Hoping for the best from the issues to come.

  6. Tim Agen says:
    May 30, 2008 at 8:51 am

    I picked it up and was indeed surprised to see the “7 Soldiers” Darkseid. My problem is that even though I didn’t read it, I know that Orion killed Darkseid in Death of the New Gods. So having “Dark Side” in the story and a dead Orion just kinda confuses me. I read Final Crisis and am bugged by the fact that more is going on here. I know.. i know one answer is, “go read the rest everything else to figure it all out!” but yeah.. that ain’t going to happen. So I guess I’m done with FC.

  7. B Smith says:
    May 30, 2008 at 2:14 pm

    Tim wrote:
    I picked it up and was indeed surprised to see the “7 Soldiers” Darkseid. My problem is that even though I didn’t read it, I know that Orion killed Darkseid in Death of the New Gods. So having “Dark Side” in the story and a dead Orion just kinda confuses me. I read Final Crisis and am bugged by the fact that more is going on here. I know.. i know one answer is, “go read the rest everything else to figure it all out!” but yeah.. that ain’t going to happen. So I guess I’m done with FC.

    After ONE ISSUE you want everything explained??

  8. Maurice says:
    May 30, 2008 at 2:38 pm

    I believe that people were expecting too much from this first issue. I am also positive that comparisons are being made with the first issue of Secret Invasion. Grant Morrison and company have to get “pieces arranged on the board” before serious moves can be made. Having to deal with a huge amount of continuity and Countdown is not an easy task. So please just relax and read Fables (or some other Vertigo title) before issue two hits the stands.

  9. ra's al ghul says:
    May 30, 2008 at 4:36 pm

    I missed the Death Racer (or whatever his name is) hovering over Orion when I read my copy yesterday. Weird. A couple things that bugged me: Orion is mostly dead, gives Turpin his ominous warning, then he’s completely dead; that weird little aside that Soloman did after Nix’s banishment, and I feel like I should have read DotNG before reading this, since the New Gods seem to factor in heavily.

    All small beer, though. I am intrigued by where it could go, I liked the art, and I think Morrison mixed the large scale and small scale stuff well. Can’t wait for #2. Batman #677 was good too, fwiw.

  10. Alan Coil says:
    May 31, 2008 at 10:14 am

    7/10 is a fair rating for this book. It’s not crap, and it’s not gold, and it’s only the opening chapter of Final Crisis.

    Do I care that DC has killed the New Gods? Yes, because I likes them the way they were. No, because they obviously didn’t sell the way they are, so why not try something different.

    Did Darkseid actually die in Death of the New Gods? I don’t remember. I have a memory problem sometimes. It’s called getting old.

  11. kanami says:
    June 1, 2008 at 4:46 pm

    As a big DC fanboy, I really recommend that you should NOT, ABSOLUTELY NOT read and/or be bothered by anything that happened in Countdown and Death of the New Gods. As far as I can understand, Morrison is making his own story and ignoring those comics completely.

  12. KG says:
    June 4, 2008 at 1:06 pm

    This was so not a user-friendly book. Completely inaccessible. I only skirt around the DC Universe, so this issue didn’t do much in the sense of wanting me to “buy in” to this Crisis gimmick or pick up any new titles. Honestly, most of this stuff completely went over my head.

    I was going to pick up this series, now I’m dropping it and hoping that it’ll read better in TPB.

    My nephew asked me whether he should pick up Secret Invasion or Final Crisis. I went to my LCS and bought him Secret Invasion #1 and #2 and told him to completely forget Final Crisis for now.

Comments are closed.

Recent posts

  • The End of the World As He Knows It
  • Burnt-out Ends of Smoky Days
  • They Do Need Those Stinkin’ Badges
  • Future Tense
  • Teed Off
  • Scar Issue
  • Of Gods and Monsters
  • Genre Splicing
  • A Mouthful of Dollars
  • Striking the Wrong Chord

Categories

Archives

Categories

  • Announcements
  • Editorials
  • Features
  • Original Comic Art
  • Reviews – Action Lab
  • Reviews – AfterShock
  • Reviews – AiT/PlanetLar
  • Reviews – Archie
  • Reviews – Black Mask
  • Reviews – Boom! Studios
  • Reviews – Dark Horse
  • Reviews – DC
  • Reviews – DC/Vertigo
  • Reviews – DC/Wildstorm
  • Reviews – Devil's Due
  • Reviews – Drawn & Quarterly
  • Reviews – Dynamite
  • Reviews – Fantagraphics
  • Reviews – IDW
  • Reviews – Image
  • Reviews – Indy/Small Press
  • Reviews – Legendary
  • Reviews – Lion Forge
  • Reviews – Marvel
  • Reviews – Miscellaneous
  • Reviews – NBM
  • Reviews – Oni Press
  • Reviews – Other Media
  • Reviews – Quick Critiques
  • Reviews – Radical
  • Reviews – Slave Labor
  • Reviews – Titan
  • Reviews – Tokyopop
  • Reviews – Valiant
  • Reviews – Zenescope
  • Reviews- Humanoids
  • The New 52 Review Project

Search

Recent Posts

  • The End of the World As He Knows It
  • Burnt-out Ends of Smoky Days
  • They Do Need Those Stinkin’ Badges
  • Future Tense
  • Teed Off

Recent Comments

  • Marcelo Soares on Coming Clean
  • Perry on Scoop
  • R Phillips on “Fixed… With Tape”
  • Leslie on Avengers… Disassemble Those Guys
  • Perry Beider on 2018 Glass Eye Awards – Creators
April 2021
S M T W T F S
« Mar    
 123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
252627282930  

Archives

  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • January 2021
  • November 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • April 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • March 2010
  • February 2010
  • January 2010
  • December 2009
  • November 2009
  • October 2009
  • September 2009
  • August 2009
  • July 2009
  • June 2009
  • May 2009
  • April 2009
  • March 2009
  • February 2009
  • January 2009
  • December 2008
  • November 2008
  • October 2008
  • September 2008
  • August 2008
  • July 2008
  • June 2008
  • May 2008
  • April 2008
  • March 2008
  • February 2008
  • January 2008
  • December 2007
  • November 2007
  • October 2007
  • September 2007
  • August 2007
  • July 2007
  • June 2007
  • May 2007
  • April 2007
  • March 2007
  • February 2007
  • January 2007
  • December 2006
  • November 2006
  • October 2006
  • September 2006
Powered by WordPress | theme cats456