“When men make Gods, there is no God!” – Eugene O’Neil.
Mass hysteria is sweeping the nation as Lex Luthor is hospitalized after a failed assassination attempt by Ozymandias, who is also hospitalized and held for questioning. Lois Lane decides to investigate and question Luthor about his involvement with the Superman Theory that has caused a stir with the public and the superhero communities. Meanwhile, the Marionette and Mime are on a killing spree looking for the man known as the Joker!
What will Lois Lane discover after her encounter with Luthor? How will Ozymandias escape his confinement? Where is The Comedian, Rorschach, Jane Doe, and Batman? And what is Superman making of the whole conspiracy that is tearing the DC Universe apart?
I feel after four issues, this issue really starts to kick things up with all of the players in the field within this 12 issue series. The first couple of issues provided introductions, some insights, backstory, and mystery, but this issue really delivers in delivery.
Johns provides a lot more interesting scenery and story where all things start to collide in ways that some may expect and in other areas do not.
It’s interesting seeing all of the moving parts that are happening in this issue and how well executed the build-up is that by the end of the issue, just when you begin to doubt this series, it gives you more to want to venture for the next couple of issues.
Readers get to see a little more of Superman and Lois Lane this time around in comparison to the previous chapters, and johns provide some great moments between characters in ways that readers should read for themselves. The writing in this issue is consistent as its been since issue 1, but five issues in, and we get to really see a lot of the characters in foreign, and vulnerable positions that provides another dimension to some of the characters within this story that we didn’t get to explore in the prior issues. There are little nuances between characters such as whenever Marionette and Mime are robbing someone of money, they are baffled that they see Benjamin Franklin’s face on the money instead of Nixon’s face, displaying how vastly different these characters are. Although this is only a 12 issue series, this issue really began to peak more interest because it feels much more than just a Watchmen cash grab, and could possibly be a worthy successor or standalone story depending on the execution when the mini-series concludes a year from now.
I’m not sure if Johns is trying to really make Doomsday Clock a solid follow up to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons original classic, or if he’s just trying to make a Watchmen story of his own for the modern day. There is some interesting commentary on the state of the world of the DC Universe that in some ways reflect the realities of our own. The Superman Theory and it’s possible allusions to the idea of modern militaristic industrialization, and utilizing superheroes as government-owned nuclear weapons in the same way that most super countries on earth are already doing (between the US, Russia, North Korea etc) makes it a worthy parallel as Watchmen did in its day and current. Heck, even with the idea of the Daily Planet making click-bait headlines in order to sell the papers rather than the sole truth is a nice touch and reflection of modern journalism that is apparent today on the street and on the internet. Whatever Johns is doing, he’s making solid progress and I only hope the story that Johns and co are weaving doesn’t become a dud by the time this series reaches its climax and conclusion.
Part of me wonders what Geoff Johns is up to given the shift in new titles and creative teams that are being assigned at DC Comics. Johns has me wonder whether or not any of the other writers of the various titles are building towards this book. But then again, if it’s anything, I’m sure Johns is keeping this 12 issue series as self-contained as need be to not confuse the readers nor get in the way of the other creative teams that are currently working on their own storylines that may or may not correlate with Doomsday Clock.
In regards to the artwork, Gary Frank is just crushing it with beautifully illustrated, heavily detailed, weighty pages that really feel full of life. He continues to provide solid work consistently with each issue, and this issue does not disappoint.
The rest of the inking, coloring, and lettering in all departments by the respective team working on this issue is nothing short of amazing. This issue is a great issue that really pushes the plot forward and invites more interest into where the series goes next and hopefully will make readers look forward to how the series will ultimately conclude. This is definitely a worthy read and a must-have on the pull list.
Newsdesk