Written by Geoff Johns & Peter J. Tomasi
Illustrated by Scott Clark, Ivan Reis & Joe PradoAs the end of BRIGHTEST DAY approaches, our returned heroes and villains begin converging in one area as the ultimate protector reveals itself against the ultimate menace!
One word has continually come to mind as I have made my way through this maxi-series, and that word is “oy”. I’m still holding out hope that as it nears its conclusion, Brightest Day will begin to present itself as a somewhat worthwhile story, but after this issue, I’m wondering if that is just a pipe dream or not. Click below to survey the damage.
The bulk of this issue features, as the cover may suggest, the battle between Firestorm and the Anti-Monitor and after reading it I just can’t help but feel that Geoff Johns just HATES the guy. Ever since he brought him back to life/prominence in the aftermath of Infinite Crisis, Johns himself has been responsible for epic punking after epic punking of what was once the most fearsome entity in the DC Universe. Think about it this way: the Crisis on Infinite Earths, the single greatest catastrophe to befall this universe and set the standard for every monumentally bad event that followed? That was ALL the Anti-Monitor. And yet, here he is with his helmet turned into hydrogen, getting attacked with a giant match like oh so many loony toons before him.
It seems the term “how the mighty have fallen” doesn’t just apply to the writers of this book.
Frankly, that is the absolute worst part of this whole ordeal. I know for a fact that Johns and Tomasi can do better than this. Its almost like when Blackest Night ended they were both content to rest back on their laurels, leaving the dirty work to the new blood. Johns ALMOST has an excuse because of his role as the CCO of DC, but Tomasi? Come on now.
It’s hard to really comment on the art of this one, since honestly I’m not sure even Picasso could have made this story readable. Clark, Reis and Prado do their jobs adequately, but when the story they brought to the page was so forgettable, then I fail to see the point in really commenting on it.
Oh, and remember the mysterious return of the Black Lanterns? They were working for the Anti-Monitor and destroyed in one panel by the white lantern. Yawn.
Overall, I’ve made it this far, so I’ll stick around to see how this one plays out, but for the first time in a while I feel legitimately hoodwinked by a comic book.
Final Verdict: .01 – Burn After Reading
