The Death of the New Gods #7 of 8

I guess with "Death" in the title one would come to expect a bit of carnage in the series and the penultimate issue of "The Death of the New Gods" takes out a few more New God favorites. I'm pretty numb to death in the DCU these days what with it being utilized at every turn as a major plot point. I started this series with relatively little knowledge of the New Gods except for what I picked up from the various appearances of Darkseid and Miracle Man. So, with the big revelation this issue I was pretty much thinking "who?" when it happened. I wasn't shocked or surprised...just baffled. I had no idea who this was and, therefore, it wasn't an "oh, wow" moment for me. Maybe if I was a big Jack Kirby Fourth World fan it would have been. Who knows? Writer Jim Starlin continues to whittle down the remaining Fourth World Gods and we are left basically with Darkseid all glowing and fiery ready to do battle with the universal yin/yang thing.

I'll hold judgement until the final issue. However, Starlin has done what DC editorial asked him to do. He's wiped out the New Gods, but the story along the way has been a frustrating read.

The Death of the New Gods #6 of 8

I know that the title of this book is "The Death of the New Gods" but I'm tired of death in the DCU. "Countdown to Final Crisis" has really numbed me to any deaths so much so that the big death in this issue didn't affect me that much. Writer Jim Starlin does a fine job of characterization on both Superman and Orion and I like his Metron a lot as well. The grief that Mister Miracle is dealing with is also handled well in this issue. Starlin really stepped up the art here having fun showing both Orion and Superman flexing and posing. However, the big reveal at the end had me scratching my head and shrugging. I think if the character presented as the bad guy had been developed a bit more during the series or if I had a PhD in the Fourth World I may have been shocked. As it was, I just didn't really care much.

I haven't been that big a fan of the Fourth World characters with exception of Mister Miracle during the Giffen "Justice League" days. This miniseries along with "Countdown to Final Crisis" comes across as DC cleaning house. You throw in "Salvation Run" and you have three miniseries dealing with whacking various DC characters. I hope "Final Crisis" isn't about that. I've had enough of death as a story device. It can be done well but across the board in DC it has gotten a bit gratuitous.

The Flash #237

Straight off his fun but editorially driven "Countdown Arena" writher Keith Champagne drops in for a one-shot guest job on "The Flash". This issue provides the setup for oncoming writer Tom Peyer's "Fast Money". I'm not sure what Champagne was going for with the kids scavenger hunt in Metropolis, but I did like his interpretation of Wally West. The teaming up with Superman was good. However, Superman should have been able to handle generic villian #1 that is utilized. As I said the whole issue just sets up the next arc with Wally either missing or doing poorly on job interviews. I didn't realize Wally was so forgetful, but I understand that dealing with kids will make you that way. I did like Koi Turnbull's art. His layouts were good and his facial expressions were excellent. I really liked the Flash sprinting through Africa as well.

Not a bad fill-in issue but not a must read.

The Death of the New Gods #5 of 8

I missed picking this issue up last week and realized it when I got home. Luckily, I got it this week. As of issue #4 I had figured that writer Jim Starlin would be keeping the killer a mystery, but it seems that was not to be. What was becoming a good detective story took a right turn this issue with big ramifications for Final Crisis. If all is at it seems, this is the one true Countdown tie-in that you should be reading. Even more than the weekly title, this issue looks to impact Final Crisis the most. Metron's conversation with the New God killer is the most interesting part of this issue with Superman's battle with Kalibak and dealings with Scott Free a close second. Starlin has put together a solid miniseries so far and I'm starting to get into it. Starlin's art is good except for his version of Superman. The New Gods look great but his Superman comes across very stiff and awkward looking.

Even if you missed the first four issues, it looks like you might want to pick up the later half of this series as a good primer for Final Crisis.

The Death of the New Gods #4 of 8

I think I got it in this issue. This is a detective story...a "who dunit" if you will. Superman is on hand to show that this is connected to the rest of the DCU and to act as our view into the New Gods' world. This was the best issue of the miniseries. The plot is moved forward at a good pace and the interludes to Metron, Darkseid, et al. provided good information on where this story is headed.

I've made it halfway through and will stick it out for the rest, but this might be best purchased as a TPB.

Countdown to Final Crisis #20

It all really doesn't seem to be going anywhere. The only story line here that truly advances it the Omac/Brother Eye bit at the beginning. Although, haven't we seen all of this before. I keep thinking of "Battlestar Galactica" that all that is happening, has happened before and will happen again. It is all a bit of a retread. All of the usual "Countdown" players are here with Jimmy Olsen, the Challengers, et. al. covered. A few pages are given to each and none of the story lines move much. Jimmy's still whining, Mary Marvel's still emo, the Challengers are still lost, Brother Eye is still bad, Karate Kid is still sick, and Piper is still attached to Trickster.

DC let's kick this in gear and move the story along.