Comic Review: Doomsday Clock #2 (DC Comics)

Jeez, Louise!!!!!!! This book is gearing up to be one of the most exciting events in all of comicdom, if not, possibly one the most exciting superhero events in comic book HISTORY.

The clock is ticking as Ozymandias, Rorschach, and their little outfit search for Dr. Manhattan while the rest of the world is burning to the ground. But where is Dr. Manhattan? Meanwhile, things are getting intense with the home of the DC Universe as Batman is no longer seen as the symbol for Gotham, Wayne Enterprises and Lex Corp are at odds over information that has caused public outcry against the superhuman community. There are tons of things happening within this book that only the readers will discover as they read the comic and boy does Geoff Johns and company throw a whole lot of curveballs that will leave you surprised by the end of this book.

What’s great about Geoff Johns writing is that the world builds the stories providing context and character motivations that make sense and feels natural to the worlds that these characters reside in. It’s interesting to see Johns channeling Moore’s voice whenever he brings in characters from the world of Watchmen. And seeing the Watchmen characters inclusion to the overall fabric of the DC Universe is exciting with every page. Each page develops great tension making the story engaging, especially in the subtle, quieter moments where characters interact with one another. There scenes where Johns crafts some memorable moments that will go down as some of the best pages reveals and interactions in the history of comics. With that being said, it’s an overall solid job that Johns is doing and I only hope the payoff is as good as the journey that he is taking the readers on.

Gary Frank’s art is so perfect for this book that it’s amazing how detailed and cinematic this comic is. I can’t and could not see another artist drawing this book in a way that feels like a great visual descendent of Dave Gibbons visually narrative style. From cross-hatching to panel layout Frank delivers in every way. Each page is so well drawn that will leave readers revisiting every page to soak in all the key details and then some.

Overall the whole entire team on this book including the inkers, letterers, and colorists have done a phenomenal job in this issue. This event (while it’s only two issues in) is showing fantastic promise and I only hope that Johns and Company do so well that they can stick the landing.