52: v. 1 - Softcover

Geoff Johns; Greg Rucka; Grant Morrison; Mark Waid

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1845765524 ISBN 13: 9781845765521

Publisher: Titan Books Ltd, 2007

Synopsis

Written by Geoff Johns, Grant Morrison, Greg Rucka, Mark Waid Breakdowns by Keith Giffen Art by various Backup features by Waid and various Covers by J.G. Jones The end is near! As the year races towards its close, we follow our heroes through their final steps in space - and time! From the mean streets of Gotham to the far reaches of deep space, the last weeks tick down to their shattering conclusion. World War III is just the beginning! Plus, more origins of the DC Universe, including the JLA with Ethan Van Sciver and Batman with Andy Kubert! 52: A year without Superman; a year without Batman; a year without Wonder Woman... but not a year without heroes.

About this title

From Publishers Weekly

When this first of four volumes was serialized, its selling point was that it was a weekly, soap-operatic series happening in real time, a sort of 24 with superheroes, written by four major comics names. As a single book, it's a compelling mess: a breakneck but occasionally jolting tour of a fictional world whose balance of power is rapidly shifting, and it's packed with Easter eggs for longtime comics readers. The cast of hundreds includes time travelers, space travelers, a down-on-her-luck ex-cop recruited by a faceless hero to replace him, a Chinese government-sponsored superhero team, and mad scientists mysteriously vanishing by the score; there's a grand, Lost-like conspiracy to which this volume offers plenty of clues but no solutions. Keith Giffen's layouts flow smoothly and give the book a measure of consistency; they're fleshed out by an assortment of cartoonists, mostly in solid examples of the generic superhero style of 2006. The writing team's knack for character comedy and crisp dialogue keeps the tone lively, but there are a few too many plot threads to juggle—the overall effect is of a handful of entertaining series with their pages shuffled together. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"An intriguing set of interlocking stories." "One of the most ambitious projects the comic industry has seen in a long time." "DC has yet to let readers catch their breath as they release one amazing story after another." "As addictive as any good TV series, any good mystery-novel series, any good comic-book series." "DC writers started the 52 series to do something different with a super-hero comic and they have succeeded." "An ambitious, even edgy story scripted by four of comic's best writers and starring the unsung heroes of the DC Universe." "Four of comics' brightest writers seamlessly combine their characterization and conceptualization strengths to construct the gripping real-time narrative. Grade: A-" "52 encompasses space opera, hard-boiled detective fiction, psychological suspense, light comedy, Grand Guignol violence, medical drama and straight-up good-guys-vs.-bad-guys action..."

Edition details

• Publisher: Titan Books Ltd
• Publication date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1845765524
• ISBN 13: 9781845765521
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304