‘Alpha’

Written by Joshua Williamson & Scott Snyder

Art by Daniel Sampere

Centre spread art by Dan Mora

Colours by Alejandro Sánchez

Centre spread colours by Tara Bonvillain

Letters by Steve Wands

‘Omega’

Written by Scott Snyder & Joshua Williamson

Art by Wes Craig

Colours by Mike Spicer

Letters by Steve Wands

 

‘Alpha’ is the DC universe in ascendance. Daniel Sampre and Alejandro Sánchez ‘s bright, detailed artwork walks us through a world taking a breath after the countless disasters of recent years. The Justice League have won, and are aware of how close it was and are taking steps. Everyone’s on the roster now, and as the heroes react to their new status we see a world starting to rally behind them. This is the sort of thing Snyder and Willamson, hell the DC universe itself, excels at. The carefully constructed golden age of heroes earned through countless horrors is always a nice beat to hit and it’s hit here beautifully. Superhero comics always run the risk of the illusion of change being more important than actual progression. That isn’t the case at all here. In fact the idea of change and evolution being vital is embodied in the last character I’d ever expect; Booster Gold.

Booster is a character who’s been played as comic relief for decades and has often embodied, for me, some of the least interesting elements of the DCU. A time traveller with a sketchy past, he’s always felt a little like Han Solo minus the charm for me. Which isn’t to say there aren’t great Booster stories, there are. This may be one of them. Snyder and Williamson write him beautifully as a man who is earnest, determined, idealistic and all too aware of his past. Seeing him blossom here is inspired. Seeing his realisation that he may finally be in the golden age he’s dreamed of is honestly very poignant.

The arrival of Darkseid, and the fight that ensues also puts Booster centre stage. As ‘Alpha’ closes we learn that Darkseid has escaped sideways to another Earth. Booster volunteers to follow and we see the Absolute Earth for the first time. Horribly broken and twisted, made in Darkseid’s image. This is where the Absolute books will be set: on an Earth where evil is the norm. Which is a Hell of a set up.

‘Omega’ flips the perspective and shows us how Darkseid got to this point. It’s an interesting choice, the monolithic villain has always been at his best when he’s been flawed and this is one of the most interesting takes on Darkseid we’ve seen in a long time. Craig’s art gives it the feverish Kirbyan fever dream aesthetic it needs and Spicer’s colours douse the story in dark blacks, the vibrant red of fires and blood and the overwhelming sense of impending doom. What’s especially interesting here though is Darkseid, a sentence which has not always been the case. The existential ennui of being an unstoppable villain who is always stopped has finally got to him. He wants to win, not endure. Darkseid Is, the saying goes. Darkseid is Changing The Rules is what it should be from hereon out.

This is a really complex piece of fictional engineering that’s also, somehow, a compelling story. DC’s endless fondness for alternate versions of their characters folded into a single world and that world given over to the will of their most terrifying villain. That by itself is interesting. Combining it with the change in the three core heroes and you’ve got something remarkable. We see the Absolute Incarnations of Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, born in a world where evil has already won. We also see, through the arrival of Booster Gold, that the core DC universe knows of this Earth but has no idea that Darkseid has shaped it. The result is a story that feels meaningful as well as engineered, something in service to a larger plot that still stands alone.

Verdict: I was worried this would be another of the occasional pieces of heavy duty fictional engineering DC does. It is that, but it’s not just that. It’s a hell of an achievement, a hell of a start for both the plot and the three books spinning out of it and I’m honestly excited to see what happens next. 8/10

Alasdair Stuart