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Final Crisis, DC Comics’ major event series of the year, continues along the same path set forth in the initial offering: rapid-fire storytelling, massive jumps across the DC Universe, and a continuing sense of something evil heading our way. Despite a somewhat weaker entry than last month’s introduction, Final Crisis 2 is still a well thought out and executed comic.
Writer Grant Morrison has never been accused of being one who follows the herd. Unlike every major crossover event that has preceded it, Final Crisis is not a beat-em-up action story revolving around legions of characters throwing fists in each other’s faces. Unraveling within the pages of this book is a mystery involving dead gods, time traveling weapons, and the long awaited return of one of the comic book industry’s most lamented dead heroes.
The first issue was not very accessible to new readers, and issue 2 is even less friendly. Did you familiarize yourself with the New Gods? Have you been reading Green Lantern for the last year? Have you kept tabs on Bludhaven? Did you at least try to read all of 52 and Countdown? If not, you will need Wikipedia at your side to help you slog through the story here, which is the biggest fault of Morrison’s epic. There are neat things happening here with long reaching and long lasting ramifications, but the average reader won’t really understand that. Someone who read the Superman, Batman, and Justice League books a few years ago and attempts to read this story will be left in the dust.
The other major problem with this issue is the funeral for the Martian Manhunter. DC Comics has tried very hard over the past 10 years to make J’onn J’onzz into a top tier character who could be seen as being on the same level as The Flash, The Green Lantern, or The Green Arrow. Even though they never quite seemed to be able to push him into that level, he still deserves more than the one page funeral he is given. Of course, most people assume that he will be back in a year or two anyway, thanks to the nature of comic books, but the funeral of The Elongated Man’s wife in Identity Crisis was given more weight than the supposed top-tier character.
Despite these squabbles, buried within the book is a great mystery surrounding the villain Libra and the New Gods. The two apparently separate storylines are guaranteed to mix at some point down the road, and the results should make for a satisfying story. Add to the mix the revelations that Libra actually works for a more powerful villain, his Mobius chair and Crime Bible are fakes, the now too human New Gods have infiltrated the Alpha Lanterns, Hal Jordan is wanted for murder, and Batman has been captured by the bad guys, and you have a remarkable story packed into 30 drawn pages. It’s just maddening that very few will ever get to decipher it.
J. G. Jones has been knocked around for being unable to keep up with the pace of this series, and needing Carlos Pacheco to hop on board in issue 4, and this issue of Final Crisis shows us why. Jones’ ability to lay out a page and construct a scene is as superb as ever, but the level of detail and character continuity is down. While it is by no means a poor effort on Jones’ part, it is still less than what he accomplished in the first issue.
Despite a few pit-falls and issues with the inaccessibility of the story, Final Crisis 2 still delivers an interesting mystery and epic storyline to those willing to work with it. Final Crisis 2 carries a cover price of $3.99 and is available now.