Earth 2 #20

Intro

At the time I heard that the JSA characters were returning in an all new Earth 2 series set in the New 52, I was really hyped. Mainly because, I was really looking forward to how different they will be compared to the originals and what we might see still be the same. When James Robinson was in this series, he did a really good job on establishing who the characters were and how different they actually are. These characters had very much youth-ness and different ethnicities and backgrounds that I loved very much. It really felt like this was a more modernized version of our favorite DC characters. I also liked that some the personalities in these characters felt very much the same too but it still felt like a different universe. Even with the change of Alan Scott’s sexuality didn’t change much of anything of the character. He felt very much like the same Alan Scott I always knew, so I’m assuming the change I didn’t like (for other reasons, not homophobia) wasn’t really necessary and what’s just some publicity stunt need for DC. But this series has definitely grown to have many different interesting characters like the new Batman, Hawkgirl, Dr. Fate, etc. Even when Tom Taylor took over on this series, he still manages to keep interesting and giving different identities to the characters we know like Red Tornado as Lois Lane and Jimmy as an A.I. It really gives off that Ultimate Universe feeling of the DCU. Plus, he’s written one of the best Batman stories ever made that proved that this Batman is more different than Bruce Wayne. That issue alone is definitely worth picking up, so please get the Earth 2 Annual #2. It’s a great Batman story you will love to read. Even though this issue features pretty much a different artist, it still manages to pull a similar art that’s just as good as Nicola Scott’s. Nicola Scott is another reason alone why this series is worth a pick up because her art is such great solid detail and looks amazingly beautiful in every page. It even has great use of colors and the action as well. This time we are learning about Val, the soon to be new Superman which, seems to be very different and interesting. So, please pick this book if you can especially if you enjoy Miles Morales, Spider-Man. It feels very much that way, but still a different take on it.

Story

Mera helps the team to get away from the Parademons and they eventually meet Val-El and discover a way to get rid of his agoraphobia.

The Good

This issue continues to make the book interesting by learning different various versions of new and old characters alike and making them fun to read. It’s great to see how powerful this Mera can be and how different she looks and seems to be in this universe. What I found great the most in this issue, is the conversation between Lois Lane (Red Tornado) and Val-El about his agoraphobia. It really brings great encouragement and challenge of fear to the characters and deepens their relationships. It also shows how different of a Superman, Val might be.

The art continues to looking great even though it comes from a different artist. Billy Kitson still manages to make the art look very similar to Nicola Scott. It looks stunningly great and phenomenal especially the beautiful scenery with Mera using her water powers giving a nice watery effect. The only problem is that face expressions look a little stiff and weird.

The Bad

The confidence of Lois Lane about Superman being too good to be evil might be a bit bothersome for people. It can really come off as bad and something that might bite her in the end. I kind of wish we got learn more about Mera and I felt they brushed away from her too quickly. People might also still have a missing feeling that the JSA characters aren’t back and we still have no idea what’s wrong with Dr. Fate.

Verdict

I give this issue a 4/9 out of 5/10 stars. It’s an amazing issue that continues to deliver great characters and learning so much about them. Val’s agoraphobia really brings a great dynamic and takes him on such a different level than Clark’s. Mera seems to be interesting, but I’m hoping learning about her, Sato and Red Arrow (besides his secret identity) pretty soon. I can also see the future of the JSA characters returning very soon so don’t feel very much left out. So, if you’re looking for a book that will give you a different feel of the DCU, then I recommend picking this issue up. This is one great series worth looking into.