WRITER: GEOFF JOHNS | ARTIST: GARY FRANK | PUBLISHER: DC | FORMAT: SINGLE ISSUE | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW
Even by the standards of comic book crossovers, Superman versus Doctor Manhattan is kind of a big deal. The culmination of not only DC’s Doomsday Clock and Watchmen sequel, but also their ‘New’ 52 reversal Rebirth, this final issue has a lot of work to do. One doesn’t envy Geoff Johns his task of pitting The Man of Steel against the actual Doctor Manhattan. This whole thing can’t just come down to a big old fashioned slap-fest, can it?
Well yes, but it’s not Superman and the Doctor coming to blows here; while there are big, grand fight sequences, the book has the good sense to leave it between Supes and his more traditional enemies at DC. Doctor Manhattan, as ever, takes the more esoteric route. What follows is a celebration of Superman the icon, symbol of hope and inspiration. Where Alan Moore’s Watchmen was a deconstruction of its superheroes, Doomsday Clock ends as a reconstruction – with the aloof, godlike Manhattan finding his humanity in the story of Superman throughout the multiverse.
Other loose ends are tied and heroes from both properties revisited and given closure. There’s a note of poignancy as nu-Rorschach and Batman make amends, and Veidt gets a comeuppance of sorts. After two years and countless delays, it can be hard to keep track of who is supposed to be where and why, but this finale will fold well enough into the ultimate collected edition, and is an effective conclusion to the story.
It’s unfortunate, then, that it should be so beaten to the punch by HBO’s own Watchmen sequel. To compare the two entities would be unfair, but this is a very different kind of sequel, and one which doubles-down on certain elements Moore and HBO made a point of turning away from. Fans of one are likely to enjoy the other so much, and vice versa – and this book is unlikely to win over anyone who thought that Watchmen didn’t need a sequel, or that it was a bad idea to fold Moore’s characters into the larger DC Universe.
Regardless, Doomsday Clock sticks its landing, and this is a much better book than anyone could have hoped for – balancing the intelligence and maturity of Watchmen with the thrills and spills of regular ole DC comics. This final issue is the most gorgeous one yet, with Gary Frank and Brad Anderson pulling out all of the stops. Each panel is a joy to behold, and the visual storytelling on display here is the medium at its most inventive, detailed and versatile; mirroring that of Moore and Gibbons’ own iconic creation.
Doomsday Clock has been an uneven, often frustrating journey – and a not entirely necessary one, at that – but Johns, Frank and Anderson have approached this book with thoughtfulness, care and attention every step of the way. Issue 12 more than sticks the landing, even if it is a tad self-indulgent and self-involved. But for a belated Watchmen sequel and crossover with Batman, Superman and the larger DC Universe, this journey has been far better than anyone had any right to expect it to be.
