Countdown to Final Crisis #1 (DC – Dini / Giffen / Kolins)
The Great Disaster has occurred, and all hell breaks loose as all the storylines in COUNTDOWN TO FINAL CRISIS come to a climax, threatening Darkseid and Jimmy Olsen and Mary Marvel and the future of their Earth!
Whew! It’s over! And the crowds roar! Okay, for the record the last half dozen issues or so have been fairly good… in fact they have been phenomenal compared to the rest of this series. This issue ties up the Countdown characters, or at the very least gives us a passing view of them. Nice bookend covers by Kubert and having Ray Palmer give the Monitors the “you are now on notice” speech was excellent… but even some the high points of Countdown does not cancel out all of the garbage the fanboys had to sit through. And let’s be honest if there was a “Best of Countdown moments” book, it would be like one super-sized issue, leaving behind 51 weeks of leftovers and filler. After enjoying 52 and sitting through Countdown, this is one fanboy who will be taking a break from weekly comics for a tad.
In my heart of hearts I hope Trinity is a whole lot better than this.
Issue Grade: B
Series Grade: C-
