Comic Info
Comic Name: Earth 2
Publisher: DC Comics
Writer: James Robinson
Artist: Nicola Scott
# of Issues: 6
Release Date: 2013
Earth 2 #1 Variant
Reprints Earth 2 #1-6 (July 2012-January 2013). Earth-2 has fallen to Darkseid and Apokolips. In a valiant push to save the world, its heroes including Wonder Woman, Superman, and Batman sacrifice their lives to drive off Apokolips. Now the world is free but unprotected and new heroes are beginning to emerge. Jay Garrick finds the speed of Mercury when he encounters the god, and Alan Scott is given the gift of the Green Lantern after the death of his lover. When a new threat begins to overtake the world, these new heroes and others must gather to stop Solomon Grundy and the threat of the Grey.
Written by James Robinson and illustrated by Nicola Scott, Earth 2 Volume 1: The Gathering was part of the second round of New 52 titles. The series looks at the parallel Earth and also serves as a launch point for DC’s Worlds’ Finest comic and a wrap-up for the cancelled Mister Terrific series. Not collected here is the Earth 2 #0 (November 2012) stand-alone issue which is scheduled to be collected in the second volume despite falling in this run.
Earth-2 has always been a favorite of mine. I loved the JSA, and I always loved the crossovers between the two worlds. Much of that history has been rewritten by Robinson who is well versed in Earth-2 history, and this comic presents an all-new Earth-2 after DC’s big relaunch after Flashpoint.
Earth 2 #6
Rather than rehash the past, Robinson seemed to take Earth-2 in a different direction as a world that has been to brink and is barely surviving. The series already has introduced a rather totalitarian government that is willing to nuke cities rather than save them, and a “villain” in Terry Sloan who is much like Ozymandias in Watchmen who believes in the good over the people instead of individual life. The new Earth-2 is a dangerous place.
This switch up has pluses and minuses. Favorite characters are going through changes. The original Green Lantern who became Sentinel is back to being Green Lantern and made waves in the media when DC announced he’d be gay. Characters like Sloan who have always been good is now labeled as a bad guy and the Atom is just a government pawn. It reminds me a lot of Watchmen but more like Marvel’s Squadron Supreme series which had a similar set up.
With strong art by Nicola Scott and a good script Earth 2 is setting up to be one of DC’s better titles. The story opens world of possibilities for the characters and new directions which could be a lot of fun to explore. I have to admit that this first volume is rather heavy, and I hope that the series does find a bit of light at the end of the tunnel. I can stand a doomed Earth, but with such fun characters, I hope that the doom and gloom does have some hope. Earth 2 Volume 1: The Gathering is followed by Earth 2 Volume 2: The Tower of Fate.
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