Dark Crisis #1
New heroes have to step up for the Justice League as new threats wait in the wings in Dark Crisis #1, by writer Josh Williamson, artist Daniel Sampere, colorist Alejandro Sanchez, and letterer Tom Napolitano. This issue does a good job of setting up the stakes of DC’s first big event since Death Metal.
With the death of the Justice League, the villains of the world go into overdrive. Superman decides to put together a new Justice League, while Hal Jordan’s return spurs Wally West and the Flashes to look for Barry Allen. As Superman finds his new League, Titans Tower is attacked by the Deathstroke led Secret Society, and in Multiverse-2, Pariah prepares for his next attack on Earth-Zero.
If there’s any problem with Dark Crisis, it’s that some fans have already decided they hate it. For some reason, DC fans are rather precious about creators using old ideas from creators like Alan Moore and Grant Morrison, something Marvel fans don’t think twice about. A portion of DC’s fandom has already made up their mind about this story, which is unfair because this first issue is very good.
Williamson doesn’t write a world-changing comic but he still writes an extremely entertaining one. It doesn’t have the shock factor of the first issue of something like Infinite Crisis #1, although there are two big moments in the book that will get fans talking, especially if one isn’t a fakeout. It’s well structured and does a good job of putting readers into a world where the Justice League is dead and what that means. Putting Superman in the lead of replenishing the League is a good choice, as is putting Deathstroke in charge of the Secret Society. It shows that DC is ready to embrace Jon as an A-lister even outside his book and maybe finally ready to leave behind the milquetoast anti-hero Deathstroke. The issue is well-paced and has some great action on top of all that.
Sampere and Sanchez do a tremendous job on the art. The figure work is strong, the emotional acting sells the dialogue, and the detail never flags. There are two standout scenes in this issue: a beautiful two-page spread that gives readers the history of the DC Universe and the last page splash. The first page is really good, too, a nice little dark bit of storytelling. The art in this book is definitely a standout, and it will be great to see where the team takes it.
Dark Crisis #1 is an entertaining beginning to DC’s next big event. It already has some strikes against it for many fans, which is unfair because Williamson and company make this a very entertaining first issue. It’s not a comic that will change the world, but it’s still worth picking up.