Comments on: Countdown #51 Review

By: T.

T. — Sun, 13 May 2007 03:08:04 +0000

You can say that for DC *and* Marvel. Itâ€™s why I only buy books on the fringes, these days, and only by creators I know I can trust.

No, DC's definitely been putting out more crossover-heavy stuff...they've pretty much been in a non-stop crossover-mode since Identity Crisis, and it's all been total dreck. Most of the recent surge in crossover activity at Marvel has been in direct response to DC's recent crossover stuff, and even then it really didn't start getting as awful as DC's product until Civil War. As for following creators rather than companies, it sounds good in theory but for some reason even creators I like start writing worse under Didio's editorial watch. Look at Dini for example.

By: Apodaca

Apodaca — Fri, 11 May 2007 22:10:02 +0000

I read the preview on Myspace, and DAMN was that dialogue painful.

Especially the awkward "parallel earth" line from Duela Dent. It read like fan-fiction.

By: Bill Reed

Bill Reed — Fri, 11 May 2007 21:12:37 +0000

Iâ€™m just shocked that this many people still by the DCU titles after all the times theyâ€™ve burned readers with bad stories, cheesy Didio interviews, weird editorial choices, excessive crossoversâ€¦

You can say that for DC *and* Marvel. It's why I only buy books on the fringes, these days, and only by creators I know I can trust.

By: T.

T. — Fri, 11 May 2007 19:41:41 +0000

See, I trust Dini. Dini getting instructions from Didio while trying to coordinate his ideas with Winick, Johns and the rest of the gang? No thanks.

By: Mullon

Mullon — Fri, 11 May 2007 18:10:06 +0000

I still like DC more than Marvel, but this is just getting gross. I'm just too tired, I cannot read another fifty-two thing.

And I'm not a fan of JD dying instead of JT dying.

By: D. Eric Carpenter

D. Eric Carpenter — Fri, 11 May 2007 15:07:15 +0000

Actually, this wasn't the first character to mention they were from a different Earth. I don't have the books in front of me, but one of the characters in the crowded Teen Titans scene in a later issue of 52 (one of the Robin-like characters) made a comment along the lines of, "We wouldn't handle it that way on my Earth."

By: I am MODOK

I am MODOK — Fri, 11 May 2007 14:46:47 +0000

That multiverse stuff really turned me off too. It is turning out to be way to easy to jump around from Earth to Earth. And having the Monitors show up as both the big bads and the heroes(?) just points out the problems when you have 52 versions of every character.

By: Rob Schamberger

Rob Schamberger — Fri, 11 May 2007 14:12:26 +0000

I thought it was fun.

By: David C

David C — Fri, 11 May 2007 14:05:11 +0000

I didn't think it was awful, just... peculiar. A weak start for a "big" series, but I *like* what DC's been up to lately, and trust Dini, and am curious to see where this is all going.... Why they didn't deliver at least a *hint* at the most compelling "teaser" ("Jimmy Olsen Must Die!") perplexes me, though.

By: Reggie

Reggie — Fri, 11 May 2007 13:36:43 +0000

It just struck me that DC is, with the "new" multiverse (based on the quote from Grant Morrison), trying to duplicate Marvel's different imprints i.e. Ultimate, Marvel Adventures, etc.
This really takes away from the whole thing for me.

By: T.

T. — Fri, 11 May 2007 12:54:05 +0000

I'm just shocked that this many people still by the DCU titles after all the times they've burned readers with bad stories, cheesy Didio interviews, weird editorial choices, excessive crossovers...I'm in stealthwise's camp, I do my best to avoid DC altogether.

By: Paperghost

Paperghost — Fri, 11 May 2007 07:07:45 +0000

"itâ€™s very likely her own deluded mind just used the â€œother Earthâ€ thing as an excuse that just happens to be true according to the latest Dan Didio interview."

oh wow, then that's even lamer.

and as for the hand spelling things out - worst hand drawing ever. a minor point, realy, but if you're going to have your big mystical wall say something at least make it look good.

By: Scott

Scott — Fri, 11 May 2007 05:29:34 +0000

I don't think DC saw this as a first issue. I think they saw it as halfway through an event that everyone's used to buying weekly, so they can raise the price and they can slide by a weak intro.

By: stealthwise

stealthwise — Fri, 11 May 2007 05:08:10 +0000

Countdown and the inevitable tie-ins, along with the crap that was Infinite Crisis, are good enough reason for me not to buy any of the DCU titles, and I haven't picked one up regularly in a while. I was considering getting Flash, but not if it's going to be bogged down by this kind of stuff, and Wonder Woman with Gail Simone writing is appealing, but I'll be jumping off the minute that I'm required to read any other title. It's BS; I paid my dues in the 90s with this kind of garbage.

By: Greg Hatcher

Greg Hatcher — Fri, 11 May 2007 04:46:30 +0000

I think I'm the only one here on the CSBG crew who enjoyed 52 all the way through, and *I* thought this was pretty crappy.

What bothered me most about it, though, was the editorial in the back, the part where Didio promised that all the other main DCU books are going to be spinning in and out of this thing over the coming year. So basically, if all goes according to plan, I will have to put up with an occasional incomprehensible-bullshit issue of the DC titles I DO enjoy reading erupting every so often for the next year.

More and more I see DC and Marvel moving towards this weird kind of tapestry model where they essentially have ONE title, "The Universe," and it comes out in installments of five or eight issues a week. The more we support this by buying the books, the more they'll do it.

By: Ditko Hands

Ditko Hands — Fri, 11 May 2007 03:55:46 +0000

Was that actually a line from the book? Dear lord...

What's up with the perspective on Hawkman's mace on the right side of the cover, btw? The head of that thing must be gigantic. Odd for a Kubert to draw Hawkman so weirdly, but there it is.

By: M Bloom

M Bloom — Fri, 11 May 2007 01:58:07 +0000

I was pretty underwhelmed, too. I really enjoyed 52, but I wasn't really sure what to expect here. Still, I expected something a bit more from it. I'll stick around for now, though. Not fair to judge it until we at least see all the writers.

Pity about Duela, she was... mildly interesting, I guess.

By: Linkara

Linkara — Fri, 11 May 2007 01:49:22 +0000

I'm just sad to see Duella Dent getting killed. And actually, Brian, considering Duella's insanity, it's very likely her own deluded mind just used the "other Earth" thing as an excuse that just happens to be true according to the latest Dan Didio interview.

By: Levantine

Levantine — Fri, 11 May 2007 00:20:46 +0000

You know, I read 52 and for the most part I enjoyed it. When I first heard about Countdown, though, I figured it would be crap. Just DC trying desperately to recapture the success they had with 52.

And my God, are they really counting down to another crisis already?! The mega-events at DC and Marvel need to take a break for a while.

By: nadir

nadir — Thu, 10 May 2007 23:49:23 +0000

I thought it was quite interesting that Darksied plays with heroclicks. And I am quite interested in the Rogues angle. but this was a let down.

The monitor business just makes me want to roll my eyes. And Jason Todd and Dulea Dent, well whooptie-fucking-doo.

I am quite interested to see what happens, but this was a poor issue.