Greg Pak, Jae Lee, and Ben Oliver deliver a fun conclusion to this multi-dimensional “Secret Origin,” along with some (possibly unintentional) meta-commentary on the state of DC Comics.
Written by Greg Pak
Illustrated by Jae Lee and Ben OliverIt’s the conclusion of the first arc in this series as one world dies and another lives! Plus: We discover why Superman and Batman have no memory of this tragic first adventure.
If you’ve been following “Justice League” or “Earth 2” over the past couple of years, this issue has few surprises in store. The outcome of this confrontation was set before it began, and continuity necessitated a nice big reset button. However, that doesn’t keep Greg Pak and company from telling an engaging and worthwhile story. In fact, Pak goes a long way towards adding much needed heart and depth to the barebones “New 52” mythology.
Whether or not it was Pak’s intention, the writer touches on some pretty interesting ideas in “Batman/Superman” #4. In issue #3, he introduced to a deus ex machina rock that gives the wielder the power necessary to thwart the looming threat of Darkseid. If you’ve been following either “Justice League” or “Earth 2” over the past couple of years then you likely know which worlds live, which ones die, and that nothing will ever be the same again (not so much that last part). However, Pak uses the somewhat overly convenient WMD to comment on the current incarnation of the World’s Finest.
The first arc of “Batman/Superman” has provided a fantastic comparison between the younger, brasher Bruce and Clark of the main New 52 universe and their older, wiser Earth 2 counterparts. The Batman and Superman of Earth 2 feel refreshingly familiar to a long time DC fan, and representative of everything the New 52 incarnations lack. These characters are married, have a long standing history and well developed camaraderie, and, in general, feel heroic. Conversely, the New 52 characters are self-absorbed, edgy, and constantly muck everything up. But, in a case where art imitates life, it’s the New 52 characters that are found worthy.
As great as Pak is as a writer, I don’t know how this title could exist without Jae Lee’s impressive artistic vision. While his style isn’t always conducive to sequential storytelling, his striking visuals has kept this title from being lost in the ocean of mainstream super-heroics. Even Ben Oliver, a fantastic and respected artist in his own right, conforms to Lee’s distinct and unique vision.
However, as mentioned, as great as it is to look at, Lee’s artwork isn’t always the best for conveying a story. This is especially the case in a book that has two Batmen and two Supermen running around. Lee seems to have no use for backgrounds, placing his characters in an abstract void of color. There’s little sense of space or direction, and it becomes a bit of a chore to follow characters. Likewise, the book relies heavily on color/icon-coded caption boxes to key the reader in on who his speaking. Again, this is complicated by the fact that there are two versions of two characters. Readers will likely have to read over pages a number of times to make sure which Batman is getting pissed off at which Superman.
While it may sound like the issue is a bit of a mess, by some bizarre synergy, it manages to become something quite beautiful. Amazingly, having never written either character before, Pak manages to perfectly capture the voice of not just two different Batmen/Supermen, but their extended cast of characters as well. Pak packs (I’m so sorry) an incredible amount of emotion into this issue, which needs to be read to be experienced. This is a love story to this family of characters, one so endearing that even the New 52 characters leave a lasting impression on the reader. I sincerely hope Pak gets a chance to follow up on these foundational plot-threads, especially in light of where these characters are in present continuity.
Final Verdict: 8.8 – Buy. This a compelling and beautiful story that shouldn’t be missed.
