Yeah, I didn't buy Final Crisis #6, sorry. I was hoping to get the new issue of that Super Friends book--the cover where everyone dresses up like Batman--but they were sold out. Drag.
I don't know if I would've hated Final Crisis #6 as much as Val over at Occasional Superheroine seemed to, but she did set up the link to the pages in question. Spoilers, spoilers, spoilers, so don't click over, or read further if you're waiting to read it.
Man, if Batman's going to make a "once in a lifetime exception," I thought he'd use a plain old Earth gun. Maybe a nice revolver, or the gun that killed his parents or something. I think the idea of Batman taking the role of Orion in the New Gods was one that Morrison had pitched for this thing, but editorial made him dial it back. Come to think of it, in Superman/Batman I'm pretty sure there were some issues where Bats joyrides around in Orion's harness and makes time with Orion's girl, maybe a test run at the job.
In the interests of accuracy, I was hoping to find my reprints of Kirby's New Gods so I could nail the dialog on the "right" panel, but instead I found the third issue of Johnny Dynamite. Oh, man, I had the other three of them out and had been wanting to read that again for ever. Anyway, even though Batman's bit here was kind of cool, it might have been cooler if it had happened in goddamn Batman: R.I.P. Even with the stuff that sounds interesting like motherlovin' Tawky Tawny fighting Kalibak to the death, there's eight or nine things that just make my brain numb, like the Metron Rubik's Cube or Planet OMAC or the Tattooed Man or Anthro...
So, not reading Final Crisis, but Batman channeling the fallen spirit of Orion and wearing his harness, while he battles Darkseid for the final fate of the Earth? That would have been cooler, and more like Batman, than shooting him, even with Darkseid's own bullet.
This is the DCUC Batman, and a DC Direct Darkseid from the box set with Orion. And that Orion lent Bats the harness. The old DCD Orion had a removable helmet, and interchangeable heads, and the DCUC version crushes him, we'll compare them sometime...
New "Timing" strip Thursday at noon!
My complaints with Final Crisis are many, but my big question in all of this is rather simple: Why? Why kill Batman off like this?
ReplyDeleteWas there really much call for it? Can they really tell more interesting stories without Bruce under the cowl? It just doesn't seem necessary.
Best guess, from what I've read? Darkseid's "Omega Sanction," which seems a lot more convoluted than that plain old Omega Effect eyebeam, forces the victim to live life after life after life, never reuniting with the Source. If you believe in an afterlife or plan to be reunited with your parents when you did, yeah, that would kind of suck. Not as much suck as the old Omega Effect that wiped you out of existence completely...
ReplyDeleteSo, Bruce will be back at some point, but man, I am not looking forward to the explanation for that one. This is gonna make that Spider-Clone "Revelations" thing seem streamlined. And while I think there could be some interesting stories with it, I don't think it was a great idea to have Morrison do Batgod (or whatever) while Dark Knight Returns is like the biggest thing ever.
Keep in mind, though, I'm still not buying this. And I loved Rock of Ages, man.
Nicely staged there.
ReplyDeleteI did read Valerie's commentary, and I'm still reeling. I must be about the only person who actually likes Final Crises. I also don't think that Bruce is gone permanently, but we'll have some fun with Nightwing and Tim and Jason in the meantime.