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Well, that ended about like I expected.
With Heroes in Crisis we see an attempt to tell a deep, meaningful story about psychology and post-traumatic stress, but instead we end up with the usual snarky superhero tropes.
So we have a terrible event that may (or may not) be alleviated by an 11th-hour bit of storytelling chicanery.
We have some character assassination, as a character beloved by many of us gets the "Hal Jordan / character dragged through the mud and made to behave in ways completely outside any reasonable parameters and oh yeah that character is now a murderer" treatment.
I stuck with this series even though the first issue made it clear that this story was not aimed at me - or anyone who values the history of the DC Universe. I was hoping they'd prove me wrong and create a story of redemption.
Nope. Just more tearing down of beloved characters (and outright killing off of others).
Can't recommend this one at all.
Grade: D
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And there it is.
Just working off the description of the Heroes in Crisis mini-series, I thought, "I'm probably not going to like this series."
And any series that starts with the death of numerous characters (especially when it includes some old favorites) is not one that I'm likely to enjoy - and it's even worse when their character is assassinated.
Through the run so far, we've just seen bits and pieces of the mystery behind who killed those characters - and why the supposedly secret counseling these characters received at the place known as Sanctuary has been released.
Until now! This issue lays it all out, in a mad stream of consciousness that doesn't really make any sense, as a certain hero does things that are completely out of character (and uses his or her powers in a completely new and unsupported way).
It's a character assassination on the scale of what they did to Hal (Green Lantern) Jordan when they made him (temporarily) a mass murderer, all in hopes of generating sales.
The point of this series - if there is one - seems to be: let's get rid of all trace of the original Teen Titans (except for Nightwing). In that, at least, they're succeeding.
Young adult readers may enjoy this - it's cutting edge, it takes no prisoners, it gets to the angst behind every hero (or so they might imagine).
But the series is also driving away longtime readers - like me - who won't take kindly to this vulgar, ugly, and offensive treatment of characters they've loved for decades.
Grade: D
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I understand the impulse to make superheroes more realistic - comic books obviously don't have to be just "kid stuff," after all.
But just giving something an "adult" edge doesn't automatically make it good, as the Heroes in Crisis clearly shows.
It starts with an interesting real world premise - that super-powered characters would struggle with the consequences (physical and mental) of the terrible events they've been part of.
It's certainly true for soldiers, policemen, firemen, emergency responders and so on - so why not heroes?
So Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman created The Sanctuary - an innocent-looking building where those with super-powers may safely discuss their inner secrets. (I'm not sure why anyone would think this was a safe place to discuss their darkest secrets, but that's just me.)
It's all thrown into confusion as several heroes are brutally killed at Sanctuary - so the search is on to find the killers. The two suspects are both acting strangely (even for them), and more sensible heroes seem to be enabling them, also for mysterious reasons.
When Sanctuary is revealed to the public, the heroes must step into the spotlight and we get the odd sequence of Superman struggling to explain why heroes might need psychiatric help. (Is that really such an ugly subject?)
So, basically, the story is kind of a car wreck of good intentions and murder, designed to show that comics can tackle serious topics - but doing it in a rather ham-handed, soap opera fashion.
I'm hanging onto this series by my fingertips - I just can't work up much interest. (Mostly because of the mass murder of perfectly good characters.) I sometimes get the impression that today's comics companies would prefer that I stop bothering them with my business.
Grade: C
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This is another series that seems to be speaking to me.
It's saying, "Chuck, it may be time to stop buying comic books."
I know that if super-heroes were real, suffering from on-the-job stress (or literal Crisis Event strain) would be actual problems.
But comic book characters aren't real, and trying to burden them with this degree of real-world angst is just... depressing.
Which is not what I read comics for.
Heroes in Crisis ups the ante by making the apparent goal of this series a brutal one: an attempt to wipe out the original Teen Titans.
So it starts with the former Aqualad (modern name Tempest) drowning his sorrows in a bar, and Donna Troy carrying him home when he can't walk. Keep in mind that the series has already depicted the apparent deaths of Wally (Flash) West and Speedy.
The investigation into the deaths of several young heroes continues, and Batgirl and Harley Quinn have an... odd... moment together.
I dread the storylines that will spring out of this series. Opiod addictions! Political disputes! Climate change debates!
It makes you long for the days of Kanjar Ro and T.O. Morrow...
Grade: C
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Writer Tom King seems to have a knack for getting my hackles up.
He did it with the first issue of Mr. Miracle, and he's done it again with Heroes in Crisis.
By the second issue of Mr. Miracle, my opinion started to turn around, and I now anxiously await the final issue of that series.
So far, this series still has me in the "riled up" category.
That's because it started off with my least-favorite technique for drumming up interest: with the death of key characters (including heroes and villains).
Then it adds an absurd premise: that a safe house exists where heroes and villains can go unburden themselves and discuss their darkest secrets. What hero would reveal his or her identity and discuss their darkest secrets in such a place?
And then we have the mystery of who committed these murders - is it Harley Quinn (here back in her original costume) or Booster Gold (who's acting wildly out of character).
So there's a lot to sort out, and confrontations to play out (also in very improbable fashion).
I do like the art by Clay Mann and Travis Moore, but the story just feels like it's held together by scotch tape.
There's still time for King to turn it around - but he's got a long way to go.
Grade: B-
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It's time for another Crisis to rock the DC Universe - but instead of a cosmic crisis, this is more of an internal event.
Like anyone who's dealt with violence or disturbing issues, DC's heroes occasionally need help - counseling, to be exact.
So - according to this Heroes in Crisis series - they've set up a retreat of some kind, to allow the heroes (and possibly some villains) to get help dealing with their all-too-human responses to the terrible things they've faced.
But now, something has gone wrong, and apparently quite a few of the heroes who were at the retreat - including some well-loved characters - are apparently dead.
Because, hey, you can't have an event without killing off a few second-tier (or third-tier) heroes, am I right?
So the series is setting up a murder mystery - who killed off (names redacted)? And why?
My reaction to this series so far is, I'm sorry to say, very cynical. It's difficult to transpose real-world issues on the fantasy realm of super-heroes, and while this issue is handled skillfully, I'm not sure it actually works.
Future issues may bring it into better focus, so we'll hope for more clarity as we sort out this death-filled series.
(By the way, is Harley Quinn a hero now or what?)
Grade: B
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