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Chronicles of Shazam: “Countdown” #38-27

By | July 24th, 2020
Posted in Columns | % Comments

Writing about “Countdown” is one of the hardest things I’ve had to do in a long time. The only thing harder? Reading “Countdown.”

Cover by Shane Davis
Written by Paul Dini, Jimmy Palmiotti, Justin Gray, Tony Bedard, Adam Beecham, and Sean McKeever
Penciled by Jesus Saiz, Jim Califore, Carlos Magno, David Lopez, Manuel Garcia, Mike Norton, Al Barrionuevo and Keith Giffen
Inked by Jimmy Palmiotti, Mark McKenna, Jay Leisten, D Art Thibert, Jack Purcell, Don Hillsman, and Rodney Ramos
Colored by Tom S. Chu, Rod Reis, Alex Bleyeart, Hi-Fi Design, and Pete Pantazis
Lettered by Travis Lanham, Jared K. Fletcher, and Ken Lopez

Mary Marvel and Zatanna encounter Slig of Deep Six while a global computer virus wreaks havoc across the US. Plus, Mr. Action tries out for the Teen Titans!

In addition to being bad, “Countdown” is fucking weird. There are some stories that, if they end on a cliffhanger at the end of issue x, pick right up there in issue y. Then, there are stories that seemingly jump hours or days at a time, with no real explanation. Also, because this is happening in real-time in continuity, things are happening in other books that inform the action here, but that is lost to time, unless you’re doing a week by week read of the DC Universe in 2007. And if you’re doing that, you must be future Vince Ostrowski.

The biggest note I have about “Countdown” halfway through is that the art is deteriorating like an old piece of fruit in the back of your refrigerator. While there weren’t a ton of A-listers on this book to start, the quality has fallen off a cliff, likely due to the deadlines and editorial shenanigans that have been long rumored to be part of this title. There are two different types of bad art in this book, and I’m going to single out one panel apiece to demonstrate.

The first type of bad art is the ‘artist is so rushed that he stops caring about proportions or how things are supposed to look.’ I’m not talking about people like my beloved Kelley Jones (again, hi Vince) who fuck with the way things look for dramatic effect. This panel seems like Carlos Magno had a deadline he was behind on, and so accidentally gave the Flash a tiny head.

The second type of art is just plain bad. This Jim Calafiore panel is astonishingly bad, even if it is a nutface.

I don’t blame either artist, really, especially as I’ve liked their work elsewhere, but the pace of this book, along with the juggling of the various stories, it must have been a chore. Plus, again, all that editorial interference.

So, onto the Mary Marvel parts of the book. I like the overarching idea that Mary is looking for a mentor to deal with her newfound powers. What I don’t like is every treating her like she didn’t have quite literally years of experience as a magic user before this. Zatanna talks to her like she wasn’t part of the Marvel family, and I get why Mary is a little annoyed by that. Granted, not annoyed enough to trash her house and go nuts, but I’m also not in the thrall of crazy power.

After Mary leaves Zatanna, she takes comfort in the presence of Eclipso possessed Jean Loring, aka the ex-wife of the Atom who killed Sue Dibny in “Identity Crisis.” This is the period of time when Loring was not yet ignored, but rather editorial kept trying to make that shitty comic matter, so they would find things like this for her to do. It’s bad, folks. Mary is embracing the evil quickly and without reservation which, again, I get that she’s not herself, but it’s not even close to the character we’ve seen for years and years up to this point.

I wish I had more to say about Mary’s story, but it’s basically been the same thing over and over again. I would be more okay with the story if it felt more like Mary, or if there was some consistency to the writing and art, or if interesting things were happening. But this is a whole lot of nothing at the moment and, if memory serves, it will likely remain that way.

Next week, I may just mainline the rest of the series to get this bandaid pulled off quickly. Pray for Mojo.


//TAGS | Chronicles of Shazam

Brian Salvatore

Brian Salvatore is an editor, podcaster, reviewer, writer at large, and general task master at Multiversity. When not writing, he can be found playing music, hanging out with his kids, or playing music with his kids. He also has a dog named Lola, a rowboat, and once met Jimmy Carter. Feel free to email him about good beer, the New York Mets, or the best way to make Chicken Parmagiana (add a thin slice of prosciutto under the cheese).

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