Folks, you’ve heard about it whispered in the corners of DC fandom. You’ve been confused at the odd reference to it in those “modern comics” you devour week after week. What in the darned heck is “Zero Hour”? Why is it called that? Why is it numbered backward? Who is Extant and should I really care? Well, wonder no more, gentle readers. Not only will I be recapping all five issues of the titled event comic, but I will also be reviewing the whole damned thing. Yes, every official lead-up and questionably connected tie-in that DC Comics has chosen to fill up their hefty omnibus tome that haunts the corner of my writing desk. Come with me on this journey through time and more time and some space as we dive into the mess that is “Zero Hour: A Crisis In Time”.
Written by Doug Moench, Louise Simonson, Ron Marz, and Michael Jan Friedman
Illustrated by Mike Manley, Josef Rubenstein, Jon Bogdanove, Dennis Janke, Darryl Banks, Derec Aucoin, Craig Hamilton, Romeo Tanghal, Mike Collins, and Ken Branch
Colored by Adrienne Roy, Glenn Whitmore, and Steve Mattson
Lettered by Ken Bruzenak, Ken Lopez, Albe Deguzman, and Bob PinahaWith his power gone, how will Kyle survive his confrontation with the ruthless Major Force, the man who murdered his girlfriend? Plus, the new Green Lantern meets the first man to bear his mantle–Alan Scott! It all leads into ZERO HOUR: CRISIS IN TIME #4!
A reminder, first of all, that I’m scoring these comics based on their relationship to the core event, with my patented Zero Hour Score (Series relevance + individual merit)!
Last week we covered the direct lead up to “Zero Hour” and the first issue of the event itself, which was as momentous as expected! This week, we have a few tie-ins that all are quite unique in their approaches to the event, and show off the broad scope of the nineties DC universe.
Batman #511
Written by Doug Moench
Illustrated by Mike Manley and Joe Rubinstein
Colored by Adrienne Roy
Lettered by Ken Bruzenak
Though Doug Moench is a classic “Batman” writer, this issue is arguably the weakest of this week’s bunch. This story is branching off the Batman scene glimpsed at in “Zero Hour” #4, in which we see the Silver Age Batgirl make a reappearance. Moench goes for the obvious and has Batgirl enact a fanservicey moment in taking down the Joker, which feels a little ham-fisted but still passes as entertaining. With the return of this Silver Age Batgirl, however, Mike Manley and Joe Rubenstein deliver an art-style that feels very evocative of that era. I’m not sure whether this was intentional, but it works well thematically, with big, boisterous superhero characters in the foregrounds, brush-like inks, and less of a distinctly stylized approach like last week with Graham Nolan. The story continues with a reality where Commissioner Gordon was killed in “The Killing Joke” and Batgirl was not crippled, which is interesting in theory, especially with a Batgirl/man romance that could have inspired the more recent animated movie. However, the “Zero Hour” crossover with the regular universe makes this a tad bloated and confusing to follow all in one issue. Adrienne Roy also follows the classic approach and paints this issue with bold blues and yellows, with some rich purple backgrounds when Batman is questioning reality, giving a very Tim Burton Batman feel. Otherwise, it’s hinted here that Oracle (yes, the main universe Barbara not the aforementioned Batgirl) might know a thing or two about what’s going on in “Zero Hour”, which is interesting!
Zero Hour Score: 6.2 – Some relevant plot points and direct follow up from the main series, but the plot feels a little convoluted (I worry this might become a common theme but I remain optimistic!)
Superman: The Man Of Steel #37
Written by Louise Simonson
Illustrated by Jon Bogdanove and Dennis Janke
Colored by Glenn Whitmore
Lettered by Ken Lopez
Ooooh yeah, now THIS is more like it. This is what happens when a serious creative team decides to flex all over the tie-in assignment they were given. Following on from the last “Batman” issue, this tale is all about Batman travelling to Metropolis to ask Superman for help with the crisis at hand, but some time-space meddling means that a swathe of multiple different Batmen all appear at the same time looking for Supes! Simonson has all of these Batmen appear as different published versions of the Dark Knight, like the Bronze Age-Neal Adams version, the Frank Miller dystopian version, and even the classic Bob Kane Version. Jon Bogdanove and Dennis Janke bring a unique, beautifully jarring look to each version. Just take a look!
Continued below
Louise Simonson has a lot of fun differentiating each Batman’s voice here. The Bronze Age Batman spurns Superman’s mullet, asking if he’s going “hippie”, the Golden Age Batman speaks like an old-timey gangster and complains about nineties-metal music, and the Miller Batman is immediately skeptical of Superman and anti-authoritarian. The art stretches beyond just homaging the characters, however! Bogdanove and Janke homage the classic “The Dark Knight Returns” grid paneling for action scenes and they deftly use halftones to give a pulpy effect to Batman jumping from a rooftop or to shine a lightning bolt against a silhouette of our characters a la Frank Miller, honed to a glossy finish by colorist Glenn Whitmore. All the while, there’s an undercurrent narrative of Jimmy Olsen attending a metal concert that is being assaulted by some more Miller homages in mutant criminals. He also visits and woos the singer of the band who is a vampire, which is obviously great! By the end, the genuine Earth-Prime Batman shows up to ask Superman’s aid, unbeknownst of all that preceded him, before both are greeted by Metron! AND – Jor-El and Lara visit the Kents as a cliffhanger?!
Zero Hour Score: 9.0 – This is how you do an event tie-in. Packed with fanservice done in the best possible way and engaging from page one all the way to the end.
Green Lantern #55
Written by Ron Marz
Illustrated by Darryl Banks, Derec Aucoin, Craig Hamilton, and Romeo Tanghal
Colored by Steve Mattson
Lettered by Albe Deguzman
Woof, it’s another classic nineties run, and with a slick Darryl Banks cover to boot. I have it on good Multiversity Editorial authority that the Ron Marz/Darryl Banks run on Green Lantern is truly *chef’s kiss*, and this issue only cements that thinking. This issue follows directly from the infamous Fridging event (google Gail Simone Fridging if you don’t know about this!) and shows Kyle at his most desperate hour. And only in the fifth issue he’s ever appeared in, which is kind of hilarious! The villain here, Major Force, is very militaristic and aggressive, a very post-TDKR character, but Banks’ breakdown of the fight scene is weighty and suitably paced, with every punch feeling like an earthquake. Marz brings things to the darker side at the tail end of the fight, with Kyle putting Major Force into a lantern-constructed Electric Chair (yikes!). It’s a choice that definitely would not have gone down well today, though I do buy that since this is Kyle at his worst, he’s plumbing the depths of what he thinks possible, and isn’t fully formed into a hero yet.
The second half of the issue features Alan Scott (yay!) who acts as a kind of Ben Kenobi mentor figure to Kyle. I believe this section is drawn by Derec Aucoin, who does some fabulous things with Scott’s cape emerging from the inky shadows around him. Scott gives Kyle a rundown of how the ring got to him and what happened to the corps. This section is done in stunning stained-glass style double-page splashes by Craig Hamilton, giving the tale of Hal Jordan’s downfall an appropriately mythic tone. Steve Mattson’s colors lend to the biblical quality of this, using lots of rich and bright greens with subtle gradient shading to give it all an ethereal feel. Marz handles the aftermath with Kyle calming down with just enough real estate so that we don’t dwell on the unfortunate trope of the love interest’s death spurring on the hero too much.
Zero Hour Score: 8.5 – Tangentially connected to the ongoing Zero Hour narrative, but a great character and series exploration with stunning art and well-paced storytelling.
Darkstars #24
Written by Michael Jan Friedman
Illustrated by Mike Collins and Ken Branche
Colored by Steve Mattson
Lettered by Bob Pinaha
This series is a complete blank spot for me! I did a little research here since I didn’t recognize writer Michael Jan Friedman. As it turns out, he’s famous for penning a whole bunch of Star Trek novels, and he wrote all 39 issues of this series from start to finish. Impressive innings for a novelist! Reading with this in mind, I could clearly see a lot of Star Trek influence from the get-go. There’s a plucky, clean-cut crew fitted with matching uniforms, manning a complicated spaceship, and a whoooooole bunch of tongue-twisting alien names and jargon thrown out all at once. Mike Collins definitely fits this series though, drawing all these detailed costumes and complicated machinery like it ain’t no thing, and Ken Branche’s inks give it that super crisp, clean finish. There’s a bunch of pre-established plot points twirling around here that seem to deal with some nasty political machinations. The sub-plot with series lead Ferrin Colos was especially fun, with buoyant banter between his cohorts and art that evokes Bronze Age Jim Starlin in the best possible way.
The main chunk of the book also echoes Starlin’s Marvel cosmology, with the Darkstars running into a being who seems to be the personification of Entropy (further research showed that it’s actually Krona of the Green Lantern Corps, but that’s mostly irrelevant here). There’s some “Zero Hour” interference here, allegedly powered by Entropy, so we see Hal Jordan’s pre-cursor Abin Sur pop up, as well as *checks notes* acclaimed Darkstar member Vardan Radz. Friedman gives both of these characters a great Silver Age-style surliness, which juxtaposes well against the Darkstars’ more clinical practicality. The gang vanquishes Entropy, the time-displaced heroes disappear, and the issue is punctuated by my favorite moment, a giant Superman hologram diffused against the stars to look like some kind of cosmic god. Mattson’s bold blues and reds here work well to contrast against the psychedelic purples of superhero space, making Superman instantly stand out. The issue also ends on a three-page fade to white! It’s a great creative move for this time and I wasn’t expecting it to work as well as it did.
Zero Hour Score: 7.0 – A fun glimpse at a series I knew nothing about, with some classic DC cosmology tossed around to fit within the “Zero Hour” borders.
