This week: Revisit one of DC’s most iconic event storylines Zero Hour 30th Anniversary Special.
NOTE: The following review contains spoilers. If you want a quick, spoiler-free purchase/recommendation of related comics, check the bottom of the article for our final verdict.
Zero Hour 30th Anniversary Special
script: Dan Jurgens and Ron Maz
Art: Darryl Banks; Kelly Jones; Tom Grumet & Norm Rapmond; Jerry Ordway; Paul Pelletier; Howard Porter;and Dan Jurgens and Brett Breeding Company
color: Alex Sinclair
letter: Troy Peter
poster: Dennis Cowan and Chris Sotomayor; Jon Bogdanov and Alex Sinclair; Tony Harris, Rick Leonardi and Matt Helms; Chris Sprouse, Carl Story and Guy Major;and Nicola Scott and Annette Guo
Cover artist: Dan Jurgens, Jerry Ordway and Alex Sinclair
Thirty years ago, timelines came and went, and the DC Universe was slightly revamped. five questions Zero Hour: Time Crisis! go through And Jürgens, Jerry Ordway, Gregory Wrightand Gaspar Saladino This is the DC sequel crisis on infinite earthstrying to fix some of the glitches that have occurred since the first multiverse erasure event, starting from scratch. It was a chance to revisit something that hadn’t been seen in a long time, introduce some new elements to the DCU, and provide a starting point for new readers, and it remains a fairly popular activity to this day. This week’s Zero Hour 30th Anniversary Special Presenting readers with a new story that celebrates the legacy of the event and remains true to the spirit and themes of the original work.
Trying to explain the 1994 Zero hour In one sentence it is…difficultbut here’s the thing: the event saw the DC timeline destroyed from both ends, with alternate timelines infiltrating the main DCU, the result of the machinations of former Green Lantern Hal Jordan, in his homeworld After being destroyed, he is now known as Parallax. crisis Redrawing the timeline in an attempt to “fix” what he believed was broken.
Thankfully, you don’t actually need to know anything in this week’s one-shot. Original series writer Jurgens joined the then-green lantern scribe Ron Maz The story follows Hal Jordan’s successor, Kyle Rayner, as he enters an alternate timeline with unexpected connections to the original events. The story follows familiar crossover beats, mirroring the events of the original series in significant ways, for better and for worse. The Kyle Rayner in this story is from the current DC Universe, but his confusion about the situation feels at odds with the character of a seasoned Green Lantern who has traveled across the multiverse and visited other worlds and dimensions many times before. The heroes of the alternate timeline also have a real “punch first, ask questions later” mentality towards Kyle, which leads to a lot of frustrating repetition whenever he meets someone new. Once free of these familiar tropes, however, Jurgens and Maz’s script becomes surprisingly solid, with plenty of unexpected twists and a powerful, emotionally resonant final act.
The art for this issue comes from a collection of seven different artists or teams, most of whom either worked on the original series or its many tie-ins. Most of these artists come from original event creators Jurgens and Jerry Ordway to the 1990s green lantern artist Darryl Banks and Paul Pelletier contemporary matching artist Tom Grumet and Howard Porterthe style is relatively straightforward, the ability to tell stories is also very strong, and the colors are consistent Alex Sinclair Bring a smooth reading experience. The outlier here is Kelly Joneshe did not participate in the original event, and his style clashed dramatically with that of the other assembled artists. That’s not to say that’s a problem per se, as Jones lays out in the book’s second chapter that Kyle Rayner finds himself in an alternate timeline, and from opening artist Daryl Bank The jarring transition from Sis to Jones also reflects the reader’s own disorientation in Kyle’s search for himself in an unfamiliar environment. However, when the book is viewed as a whole, Jones’ contribution feels somewhat out of place, and his dissections feel loose even by the standards of a typical Kelly Jones work. This is a minor quibble in a very visual book.
Other anniversary one-shots have chosen to revisit the time period of the original story, but Zero Hour 30th Anniversary Special A different tack was taken, adding a new, previously unseen layer to the event. It’s an interesting twist that deserves a fresh experience and harkens back to DC continuity in unexpected ways. It also echoes and reinforces themes of sacrifice and what it means to be a hero, which the original event explored so well in its finale. This is a refreshing change from other retro books, and cleverly puts new content on the board for others to learn from in future stories.
this Zero Hour 30th Anniversary Special This is a great read for fans familiar with the original events and those unfamiliar with the timeline-altering story. Jurgens, Maz and others weave a fun, accessible adventure that pays homage to what came before while still doing something new with it. This is easily DC’s best anniversary special to date.
Final verdict: purchase.
round up
- last few issues The Flash has begun to provide some answers as to what’s going on in Wally West’s world, this week’s The Flash #12 is no exception. Author’s tease of this storyline Say Spurrierartists also joined in Ramon Perez and Vasko Georgievhas always been tempting, but after this issue it feels like most of the key cards have been revealed, and all that’s left is high-speed superheroism. It’s been a wild ride and it’ll be interesting to see where this all goes.
- In other Flash-related news, Absolute Power: Task Force 7 #5 Barry Allen vs. Amanda Waller’s super speedster Amazo. Alex Packard He’s written a few Flash stories in the past, but this is probably his best, exploring the human element of what it means to travel faster than light. Pete WoodsThe visuals are spectacular, alternating between Central City, the interior of the Speed Force, and scenes from Barry’s past without missing a beat. The final pages introduce a new and exciting element to the whole absolute power The arc ties in nicely with Amanda Waller’s previous stories. Simply a well-made, entertaining comic.
- In terms of black label, Zatana: Troublemaking #3 continues the story of Zee’s early days in a delightful way. virtual tokyodialogue is sharp and natural, and Javier RodriguezThe art finally goes all out with wild page designs and some truly surprising, disturbing and hilarious imagery. I could have lived without the final page reveal and focused on Zee, but I’m also willing to see where this creative team takes me.
- second issue James Tynion IV and Alvaro Martinez Buenoof beautiful house by the sea Before the end of the first issue last month, familiar characters from the previous installment of The Lake series were shown what they’ve been up to since the end of the book. A slow burn of the best comics.
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