review: 52 #1-4 (May 2006)

Publisher: DC Comics
Writers: Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid
Artists: Keith Giffen, Joe Bennett, Ruy Jose, Jack Jadson, Dan Jurgens, Art Thibert

Rating: 6/10

After the first month, I'd say this series is off to a decent start. Nothing terribly interesting has happened yet, mostly regrouping and picking up pieces, but unlike its predecessor, there's definitely a story here (several in fact). They're laying some good groundwork, with actual plot and character development, while keeping it lively, with a bit of action and intrigue here and there.

So far it's been quite readable, if not a "must read". It's probably what Infinite Crisis should have been, and in light of its ability to weave decent stories around that aftermath, while barely mentioning what actually happened there, it just makes Infinite Crisis seem that much more pointless. I think all the meaningful material from there (all three pages of it), could have easily been incorporated into the first issue here, with the bonus of making this series more exciting out of the gate. Oh, well. Just one more thing screwed up by IC.

Some people might consider it a downside that 52 is mostly centered around second-string characters. Actually, that might be overly generous. Martian Manhunter is probably second-string. What's that make Booster Gold and The Question? Third? Fourth? At any rate, I don't think that's a good reason to dismiss the story. Heck, sometimes a story is more interesting with these lesser characters. Seriously, after thousands of issues, is there really a Batman or Superman story we haven't seen before? With an unfamiliar face, and the different attitudes and motivations behind it, even a total retread can seem fresh. I'm not giving this story that much credit yet, but I'm hoping they make the most of it.

My main complaint about this series is the "History of the DC Universe" backup stories. Being a casual comic reader, I'm all for something to fill in the gaps for me. But the way this is done is thoroughly clunky and lame. Basically, they're trying to wrap a comic book story around a "scholarly" dissertation. I'm not against this in theory. I could see it working if, for instance, it were applied to actual academic information. Hey, kids, learn marine biology from Aquaman! But the information here is already "fun", and it's being presented to a willing audience; the spoonful of sugar is unnecessary and intrusive.

Rather than four or five page "stories" in each issue, I think this would have been much better as one or two page "encyclopedia entries", something more like the Official Handbook of the Marvel Universe format. As it is, this backup feature is essentially useless. The people who already know this history aren't getting anything entertaining out of it, and the people who don't know it aren't getting enough detail to really get up-to-speed. I don't know if this is intended to be a part of every issue, but I'm hoping it will wrap up soon.

On the art side, I found it rather mechanical. Not bad, but just not very inspired. I have to wonder if the weekly schedule is too aggressive for the artists to really do their best. Although, not knowing these artists all that well, I don't know how it compares their previous work. Maybe that's just their style.

Overall, OK introductory story, with OK art. If you just want action, or name-brand heroes, you might find this dull. I think it has potential, so I'll be sticking with it for a while.