By Miles Baker and Owen K. Craig
Each week we use random.org’s random integer generator to create two random numbers. They then count down on the release list until they find out their RANDOM COMIC OF THE WEEK! No matter what the publisher, what the issue, what the arc, we will be there reviewing things with little or no context.
Miles’ Book
Countdown Presents: Lord Havok and the Extremists #1
Written by Frank Tieri
Art by Liam Sharp
DC Comics, 2007
If I ever have a band, I’m going to name it Lord Havok and the Extremists. Fuck, yeah.
Oh, right, I’m supposed to be reviewing this book. It was okay. Super-violent. I’m not sure why DC doesn’t have some sort of rating system on the covers of their books, unless they’ve given up on the hope that children ever read their comics. And I don’t think they are wrong in that assumption. To understand this comic, I’m guessing you’d need 10 years of knowledge about the DC Universe. I sure as hell didn’t know what was going on — but there was enough to keep me interested.
I’m guessing this book is set in a different dimension than the majority of the DCU, because of the lack of Superman reacting when the president of the United States gets a bone claw stuck through his head. Seems like something that would strike a chord with ol’ Supes, something he might like to stop. Also, I don’t think a low-rent, adulterous version of Captain America is the new president in the DCU; and if he is, god help us all.
So, going on my assumption, this is somewhat of a fun ride. There’s lots of dismemberment and blood mixed with some offbeat humour. I enjoy the idea of a demon being summoned by his followers only to interrupt them because his cell phone rang. It doesn’t make sense, but, hey, why not.
I like stories that focus on villains, and well, this book only has those until the end. So, I guess I kinda liked this book.
Which is very hard for me to admit about a DC book.
Owen’s Book
Countdown to Final Crisis #22
Written by: Paul Dini with Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti
Art by: Scott Kolins
DC Comics, 2007
With issue 26, Countdown reaches its halfway point. Not only that, it also gets a title change. Seems like a perfect jumping on point for people willing to give it a second shot, right? You’d probably expect them to make this issue as dynamic and exciting as possible, right? Yeah… not so much. Instead we get a whole issue of the Monitors talking about the fact that bad things are happening.
I can understand the logic at play here. With new readers presumably coming to this title (or coming BACK to it after being bored off the title a while ago), it must be tempting to explain to them what is going on; but honestly, a whole issue of bland exposition seems like a misguided choice to me. Why not intercut? Why not do anything other than this?
After I scratched this series off my pull list about ten issues, ago I was hoping that some day I might come back and find out that there was lots to enjoy here. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to be the case. Ah well, maybe I will give it another shot in ten more issues.
