Posted in: Comics, DC Comics | Tagged: Alan Moore, Batman, Dave Gibbons, doctor manhattan, Doomsday Clock, gary frank, geoff johns, justice league, lex luthor, marionette, mime, Ozymandias, rorschach, superheroes, superman, Watchmen

Doomsday Clock #2 Review: The Two World Meet

We are given the reason why Ozymandias chose the Mime and the Marionette for his hunt for Doctor Manhattan with a tale of a bank robbery. Then, the four use the Owlship to follow the trail left behind by Manhattan. They arrive in a similar world. However, this world has more superheroes than their own, and the population is revolting against their presence.

The pieces begin to fall into place with this issue of Doomsday Clock. Geoff Johns begins leak in the details of what happened and why this is significant to DC Universe: Rebirth.

Gary Frank's artwork continues to be incredible, even if the book doesn't give his art much room to breathe. Brad Anderson's color work is dynamic and fitting of the oppressive tone the story wishes to convey.

On the subject of the comic giving the artwork space, the layout of this comic is very unappealing. I understand that Watchmen did the same thing, but—well, no comic is perfect.

Doomsday Clock adheres to very strict nine panel layouts for almost every page in the comic. On the surface, it may seem to make sense for a sequential comic to have as many panels as possible with which to tell one's story, but it also makes each panel quite small, giving the art minimal space and making the story seem somewhat confined. It's not a deal-breaker, and it may seem like a nitpick. However, it's bothered greatly bothered me with both issues of Doomsday Clock, and it didn't occur to me that this was the problem until I read this one.

I have mixed feelings about the text dump at the end with the news article—yes, I know Watchmen did this one too. It adds some extra world-building in a cold, objective style which makes it a little unnerving. However, one has to wonder if it could have been introduced into the comic in a different way. The fact that the dump is just fleshing out a story instead of telling one means it can mostly be there for the especially devoted.

Also, Ozymandias knowing the two smartest men in the world from a short internet search is pretty ridiculous.

The lengthy opening with the bank robbery felt unnecessary. Especially since it was leading up to "Doctor Manhattan didn't kill her because baby."

I am intrigued by the potential Rebirth story being built-up here, even if I feel like I can call this ending from now. Of course, how we get to that ending is just as important.

Doomsday Clock #2 is an enjoyable read, even if it is pretty spotty. It is too caught up in being Watchmen to realize the nuance the original story had to begin with. Recreating it is antithetical to the concept of nuance. However, I can still recommend this comic—albeit tentatively.

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