DC All In Special #1 – Joshua Williamson/Scott Snyder, Writers; Daniel Sampere, Wes Craig, Dan Mora, Artists; Alejandro Sanchez, Mike Spicer, Tamra Bonvillain, Colorist
Ray – 9.5/10
Ray: DC has just gotten through one event, but they’re about to kick off another – and unlike the last one, this won’t just take place in one Universe. Not only is DC going “All In” with this special, but they’re launching a new side universe, Absolute Comics, that promises darker and remixed versions of their biggest icons. Shepherding the whole thing are two of DC’s longtime top writers, Josh Williamson and the returning Scott Snyder. To debut these two narratives, DC has chosen to do a flip-book – two full-length stories, each with their own narrative tying into each other and colliding in a big reveal in the middle. It’s an innovative technique to say the least – and it also turns into a great story.
The first story, drawn by Daniel Sampere, takes place in the main DCU and focuses on the revival of the Justice League as Justice League Unlimited, eschewing the tight roster for inviting every major hero to serve as a reserve member – including the JSA and Teen Titans, among others. The story is largely told from two perspectives – Superman and Booster Gold, as the former finally gives the latter a much-awaited invitation to the League and acknowledges his hard work in making good. This is a great story for Booster – and makes it all the more impactful when Darkseid attacks, somehow bonded with the Spectre and tearing a literal hole in the universe. This leads Booster to make a risky journey into unknown territory – becoming the first hero to discover the first hints of what Darkseid has unleashed.
Then we flip the story around, with the DC debut of indie sensation Wes Craig to draw a much darker story – one focused on Darkseid, as he licks his wounds after previous losses and commits to a new plan – one that requires one shocking sacrifice after another on his part. He tears his way through Apokalips, through the DCU and its cosmic entities, and ultimately through himself as he creates a new universe in his image – one where its heroes are twisted and given circumstances that could corrupt them – or simply give them a much harder journey to accomplish. We only see flickers of these alternate heroes here, but I’ve seen more than enough to be very intrigued.
And then there’s the splash-page, which brings back some missing DC icons – but not in a way anyone expected. It’s a fantastic issue that sets up so many dangling threads that I can’t wait to see play out.
To find reviews of all the DC issues, visit DC This Week.
GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
