New twists come with small but important advancements.
Creative Staff:
Story: Jeff Lemire
Art: Michael Walsh
Letterer: Nate Piekos of Blambot
What They Say:
DC Comics and Dark Horse Comics present the ultimate superhero crossover event of 2019! Dropped into the DC universe, the Black Hammer heroes find themselves captured by members of the Justice League who blame them for the cosmic switch—and on the Black Hammer Farm, the displaced DC heroes search for answers and a way out of their bucolic prison. But Colonel Weird and the Green Lantern discover that the solution to this riddle may not be so simple.
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The opening couple of issues of the series for this crossover has worked better than I expected since it didn’t devolve into the usual shenanigans of fighting between the same side approach. Jeff Lemire has swapped out our characters completely and they’re going through the experience of being someplace else and that’s definitely a fascinating challenge, though I think the DC characters are a bit underserved here. Michael Walsh has delighted me with what he’s done in the opening issues and that continues here as we get some good looking designs once again, smooth layouts, and an easy low in reading it so that the important story points and humor works as well as it does. The creative is definitely firing on all cylinders here.
The Earth-based side is definitely fun to watch as the remaining Leaguers do their best to question Abe and the group but they have little to offer up because they have no idea themselves. There’s definitely amusement in how things are similar but not, notably in talk about Martians, and I continue to love the whole Gail/Aquaman thing. While Abe and the group are on the same page about not causing trouble so they can try and understand what’s happening, Gail just wants out and a chance at leading some sort of life. That it separates her from them is a bit of a surprise but it works out well as it brings Zatanna in. Z has always been a fave and seeing her realize quickly that Gail isn’t what she seems and looks for a way to help her is spot-on beautiful. And what a change for Gail, who sees a real chance at not repeating out her days on the farm.
The Justice League side at the Farm is playing out in some fun ways, though it’s kept to just a couple of characters this time. Bruce is doing his work trying to figure out a device that will reach past where they are but Vic, who has finally come out of his room for a bit, points out the materials won’t handle it. Bruce has been keeping busy but the self-delusion is not holding up well for him and the frustration is growing. I do like that they find a disused Talky-Walky there, but that’s left for another time. Beyond that, we get to see John and Colonel Weird continuing to watch the past, which takes us to when the Justice League arrived on the Farm and tried to figure out what was going on. It goes in some bad ways when John tries to help, much like Black Hammer did originally, and it sets this trio on its own course while the Leaguers continue to putter around as time moves on -seemingly.
In Summary:
The buildup continue to go well and each storyline is moving at its own pace and needs. I do like the Black Hammer side more because it’s fun to see them out of the farm and their world completely while dealing with unexpected people in the form of the League. The League members on the farm get a decent but of time but it’s Stewart and Colonel Weird that are really moving things along and hopefully setting into position to really help. Lemire and Walsh deliver a strong book overall with some creative bits and some fun humor that definitely delights, especially when it comes to Gail. It’s an intriguing crossover event that avoids most of the usual cliches of them and gives us a good look at characters crossing worlds.
Grade: B+
Age Rating: 15+
Released By: Dark Horse Comics
Release Date: September 11th, 2019
MSRP: $3.99
