Comics

[Comic Review] “Convergence” #0 Fails To Excite

Published

9 years ago

April 1, 2015

DC Comics’ “Convergence” event begins now and I can’t for the life of me figure out why we needed this zero issue. If you want a weird over-expository justification for why Brainiac (cough-DC-cough) is doing whatever the hell he is doing this is the perfect book for you, but if you know the general gist of the event, then you’ll learn nothing new here.

WRITTEN BY: Jeff King, Dan Jurgens
ART BY: Ethan Van
PUBLISHER: DC Comics
PRICE: $4.99
RELEASE: April 1, 2015

The issue begins with Superman floating in space. He’s quickly greeted by Brainiac as we currently know him in the New 52 universe. The ultra smart AI tells Superman all about his master plan in coy and indirect terms. Superman acts like a melodramatic soap opera star. He keeps pining about his lost city of metropolis.

The most interesting plot point comes from Brainiac’s visual appearance. The villain keeps inexplicably morphing into his past selves as he shows Superman several contained universes. Each hero inside must prove himself or herself worthy in order to escape to the world of the New 52. Thus providing the impetus to rewrite DC continuity as they see fit.

Which was basically the same thing that we had going into the New 52. Just explain to me how Grant Morrison’s Batman Inc and Scott Synder’s Batman existed in the same time line. Please, try it. I dare you. It doesn’t make any sense.

In any event the zero issue is all set up. Really earning the title of a zero issue because next to nothing happens. In fact so little happens that you’d be better off reading the solicit to gain an idea of what’s going to happen next. Because for $4.99 this book doesn’t offer much in the way of value. It doesn’t spin the story in a new way, and it certainly doesn’t reveal some secrets about the event going forward.

I wish I could say Dan Jurgens and Jeff King’s script is a solid introduction to their event, but even that is haphazard. Superman speaks like a bewildered 1920’s debutant who’s been misplaced in time in space. I mean at one point he says “that explains your parlor tricks.”

The art is serviceable thanks to Ethan Van Sciver ability to bend time and space. It’s a solid reason to at least flip through the book. But even some of his panels are rough around the edges. They give the idea that he didn’t have a whole lot of time to finish the book once he got to the latter half and sadly it really shows.

So I guess I can only recommend this if you’re really hungry for Convergence and you really can’t wait until it actually starts next week. As with most other #0 issues not much of worth happens here. But if you want to see Superman deliver lines like “…my powers, wonky” then this is the book for you.

Related Topics:Convergence Dan Jurgens DC Comics Ethan Van Jeff King

Zac Thompson

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Comics

‘Witchblade’ is Getting Resurrected This Summer in New Comic Series from Top Cow and Image Comics

Published

6 days ago

April 18, 2024

Meagan Navarro

Witchblade, the popular comic series that initially ran from 1995 to 2015 and launched a TV series, is getting resurrected in a new comic series from Top Cow and Image Comics. It’s set to unleash heavy metal, black magic and blood this summer.

Look for the new Witchblade series to launch on July 17, 2024.

In Witchblade #1, “New York City Police Detective Sara Pezzini’s life was forever fractured by her father’s murder. Cold, cunning, and hellbent on revenge, Sara now stalks a vicious criminal cabal beneath the city, where an ancient power collides and transforms her into something wild, magnificent, and beyond her darkest imaginings. How will Sara use this ancient power, or will she be consumed by it?”

The series is penned by NYT Best-Selling writer Marguerite Bennett (Animosity, Batwoman, DC Bombshells) and visualized by artist Giuseppe Cafaro (Suicide Squad, Power Rangers, Red Sonja). The creative duo is working with original co-creator Marc Silvestri, who is the CEO of Top Cow Productions Inc. and one of the founders of Image Comics. They are set to reintroduce the series to Witchblade’s enduring fans with “a reimagined origin with contemporary takes on familiar characters and new story arcs that will hook new readers and rekindle the energy and excitement that fueled the 90’s Image Revolution that shaped generations of top creators.”

Bennett said in a statement, “The ability to tell a ferocious story full of monsters, sexuality, vision, and history was irresistible.” She adds, “Our saga is sleek, vicious, ferocious, and has a lot to say about power in the 21st century and will be the first time that we are stopping the roller coaster to let more people on. I’ve loved Witchblade since I was a child, and there is truly no other heroine like Sara with such an iconic legacy and such a rich, brutal relationship to her own body.”

“The Witchblade universe is being modernized to reflect how Marguerite beautifully explores the extreme sides of Sara through memories, her personal thoughts, like desire and hunger, in her solitude and when she is possessed by the Witchblade. So, I had to visually intersect a noir True Detective-like world with a supernatural, horror world that is a fantastic mix between Berserk and Zodiac,” Cafaro stated.

Marc Silvestri notes, “This is brand new mythology around Sara, and I can’t wait for you to fall in love with her and all the twists and turns. Discover Witchblade reimagined this summer, and join us as we bring all the fun of the 90s to the modern age and see how exciting comics can be. I can’t wait for you to read this new series.”

Witchblade#1 will be available at comic book shops on Wednesday, July 17th, for $4.99 for 48 pages. And it’ll come with multiple cover variants.