- Title: Dark Crisis #1
- Comic Vine: link
- Writer: Joshua Williamson
- Artist: Daniel Sampere
After all the various set-up and lead-in issues, Dark Crisis begins here with a memorial to the ten fallen members of the Justice League of America who perished during their fight against the Great Darkness. The issue jumps around a bit with Superman’s son struggling to create a new Justice League from the heroes that are left, Hal Jordan returning to Earth far from satisfied with Black Adam‘s recounting of events on how the Justice League died, and Deathstroke leading a mass of villains against Titans Tower to kill those who might step-up to take the place of the fallen heroes.
Deathstroke’s plot thread gives the death of one of the founding members of the Titans (in an attempt to prove how “dark” and “serious” this Crisis event is). We also see a rise in various crime across the DCU following the apparent death of the League and several heroes passing on taking their place.
While there is certainly chaos left behind in the wake of the absence of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the others, Dark Crisis doesn’t feel like much of a Crisis event so far. As for Beast Boy, poor Gar deserved better than to get sacrificed to raise the stakes of an event that’s already killed off nearly a dozen heroes before it got started. In terms of the Darkness, we also do get some foreshadowing of Pariah’s mad plans which both the heroes and villains seem oblivious to. Oh, and who the hell is dressing up as Batman in Gotham City?
[DC, $5.99]