DC Rebirth Reviews: AQUAMAN: REBIRTH #1, THE FLASH: REBIRTH #1, WONDER WOMAN: REBIRTH #1
Week Two of DC Rebirth takes place June 8, 2016. With new comics debuting and a bi-weekly shipping schedule, there will be a lot of coverage each week. With that in mind, I’ll be grouping my reviews together and making this a regular column. At least that’s my hope.
We have three Rebirth #1’s — Aquaman: Rebirth #1, The Flash: Rebirth #1, and Wonder Woman: Rebirth #1.
AQUAMAN: REBIRTH #1
Writer: Dan Abnett
Pencillers: Scot Eaton & Oscar Jimenez
Inkers: Mark Morales & Oscar Jimenez
Colorist: Gabe Eltaeb
Letterer: Pat Brosseau
Cover: Brad Walker, Drew Hennessey & Gabe Eltaeb
Publisher: DC Comics
There are segments of Aquaman: Rebirth #1 that are filled with some gorgeous artwork. Since there’s no distinction between Scot Eaton and Oscar Jimenez, I’m going to guess on who’s work is where in the book. I believe it’s Oscar Jimenez who illustrates the first three pages and final two pages. Those are the most striking pages in the comic for me. I imagine drawing detailed underwater scenes is difficult, but Jimenez pulls it off in cinematic style.
Dan Abnett spends a good portion of the comic reminding readers what the outside world thinks of Aquaman. He’s the butt of jokes and isn’t taken seriously by the general public. These are themes that Geoff Johns introduced when he was the writer of Aquaman in the New 52.
Atlantis versus the surface world has been done to death. It’s always the revolving conflict in his books. For new readers this is new material. Veteran readers may be tired of this by now.
Supporting cast of Mera and Garth are shown. We also see that Aquaman has created an Atlantean dry land embassy to broker piece between his two worlds. This will probably play a role in the ongoing series once it launches.
I thought the twist of the narrator being Black Manta was cool. He has a legitimate grudge (in his mind) against Arthur Curry. Did Aquaman really kill Black Manta’s father? Did it happen in the New 52 and I didn’t know about it?
THE FLASH: REBIRTH #1
Writer: Joshua Williamson
Artist: Carmine Di Giandomenico
Colorist: Ivan Plascencia
Letterer: Steve Wands
Cover: Karl Kerschl
Publisher: DC Comics
*WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS*
The events of DC Universe: Rebirth #1 spill over into The Flash: Rebirth #1. This is understandable since Rebirth #1 marked the return of the original Wally West. Some of the same dialogue and scenes showing Barry Allen and Wally West’s reunion in Rebirth #1 are shown in The Flash #1: Rebirth #1. Except this time we see what happens after they hug it out.
I’m so so glad Carmine Di Giandomenico gets to showcase his talents on one of the more important Rebirth books. The Flash is the perfect comic for Giandomenico’s skill set. His pencils are flashy and full of energy — which matches the type of energy that crackles from Flash. Yellow lightning brightens each page from Ivan Plascencia.
More Rebirth #1 content carries over here as Barry and Batman start to investigate the larger mystery of what forces are behind their missing memories. At this point, the story mirrors the Fastest Man Alive by speeding through the meat of the issue. Narrator exposition fills gaps for us, instead of feeling like a natural progression of the story. It feels like once the reunion is out of the way, Joshua Williamson decides he must race to the ending of the book.
WONDER WOMAN: REBIRTH #1
Writer: Greg Rucka
Pencils: Matthew Clark & Liam Sharp
Inks: Sean Parsons
Colors: Jeremy Colwell & Laura Martin
Letters: Jodi Wynne
Cover: Liam Sharp & Laura Martin
Publisher: DC Comics
*WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS*
Something tells me Wonder Woman will be one of the highlights of Rebirth. Some juicy plots for Wonder Woman were setup in the finale of the Justice League: Darkseid War story. It has her questioning her life and if everything she believes is a lie.
This is one Rebirth title where the writing and art were A+ from start to finish. Matthew Clark, Sean Parson and Jeremy Colwell team to tell an engaging story. Starting with Diana’s origin as a baby, we see her leave the island and join the world of man. We then get to the present day as she fights along side the Justice League. Clark, Parson and Colwell make such a great team that I wouldn’t mind them being a part of the rotating art team going forward. Their Wonder Woman is strong and statuesque. A splash page shows Diana leaping towards the reader, bullets ricocheting off her wristbands. Another large panel has Wonder Woman breaking a mirror, with shards of glass recapping her New 52 life.
Rucka shows Diana questioning everything she knows. I love the thought process Diana goes through in her head. I even learned a thing or two. For example, I didn’t know staying on Themyscira kept the Amazons young. By deciding to leave the island, Diana sacrificed her eternal youth.
Another cool trick was Wonder Woman using her lasso of truth on herself. It compels those who are wrapped in it to tell the truth. The lasso reveals something to Wonder Woman that rocks her to her core. As she dumps her old battle guard to reveal her new look in Rebirth, the art transfers over to Liam Sharp and Laura Martin. Again, the quality of art doesn’t miss a beat.
Timdogg
#ComicBookChronicles @CBChron founder. Editor-in-Chief of @thekliqnation. Comic book reviewer, podcaster #RABBLERABBLE
