Having no idea what to expect from this issue, I bought it based solely on the fact that I love playing the game and have already practically maxed out my character. I have seen a good portion of the in-game story and this comic can barely stand on it's own. It is not just a companion piece for gamers though, but the first couple pages are actually word for word reiterations from the game that are actually annoying since people playing the game want something new and not the same re-hashed scenes. Luckily after only two pages this comic takes time expanding on the events happening after the first cut-scene of the game. The art and story are not rave-worthy, but this series could turn out to be great given the right direction.The beginning of this issue is the same as the game's: Lex Luthor kills Superman. He enlisted the help of all the DC villains you can think of and successfully killed many great heroes including Batman. Unfortunately, his biggest ally (Brainiac) turns against him and begins annihilating the rest of the world that Lex had been promised. Now it's up to Lex Luthor to save the Earth with the help of the few remaining allies he's assembled – heroes and villains alike.The only thing directly from the game is the first few pages, so players worried of just seeing the same old scenes are mistaken – the story has a completely different purpose. In the game after all of the above has happened Lex goes back in time and releases exobytes all over the world that create thousands of heroes and villains to stop Brainiac's future invasion. I was actually hoping this would be followed in the comic, presenting an opportunity to introduce new characters fighting along side well known ones. Instead, this issue gives you the beginning of the back story of what takes place after Brainiac starts to invade and I have a feeling the series will end when Lex goes to the future therefore making you have to get the game in order to see the rest. Don't you just love how much money DC is sucking out of your pockets?I'd like to say I am content having spent $2.99 on this issue since I love the game, but this issue has it's ups and downs. For one, Marv Wolfman and Tony Bedard's story is similar to Infinite Crisis taking away it's originality. But this is a nice modern version of that. Hopefully if you pick up this issue you were not looking the main focus to be on major heroes. Instead Lex Luthor dominates this issue. He narrates and the story revolves completely around him not even taking the time for sorrow to set in that some of Earth's greatest heroes have died. This is both good and bad: if you like Lex you will be partly pleased with his character. He's an ass and a genius, two traits that embody his character and come out clearly. My only question is if he's such a genius, how could he be tricked by Brainiac so easily? But the comic managed to redeem itself with an underlying theme I found ingenious. Lex talks about how he feel like "the last son of a doomed planet." Who does this ironically remind us of? If interesting parallel moments like this happened more often this issue would be a lot better.Other than Lex, none of the other character's really spark any interest. They're mostly shallow and not fleshed out. Hopefully this ill be remedied in future issues. If you are not a big comic book fan you may not know who half of the people are and the comic does not take the time to explain it to you so you are out of luck there.As for the art by Howard Porter and Livesay it is mostly mediocre heading more towards the poorer side of the artistic scale. Sometimes there are too many lines on character's faces and eyes sometimes look crooked. The wrap-around cover is pretty good but that only makes me wonder why the artwork in the comic isn't a little better also. There are no panels with astounding artwork worth avidly praising but also nothing to tear apart. Both artists have truly reached mediocrity and it could go either way in future issues. I am leaning more toward lousy.
Overall, this issue is a hit or miss depending on your stance while buying it. If you have the video game like me and enjoy the story in the game pick this book up: it expands the story before the events in the game and works better as a companion piece than an actual comic. For the heavy and die-hard comic fan I also highly suggest it – there are so many cameos made from little known character’s in DC comics to the most well-known and this can make for great pair ups in the future. The people I would not suggest this for are casual reader’s or people interested in an original and in-depth story. The concept is simple and has been used before: I mainly look at this issue as a huge cross-over event and a great tie-in with the game, so if you don’t know half of the people or want a story rather than cameos look elsewhere. Mostly, I recommend this to owners of the DC Universe Online game. If your interested check out the preview here. I highly recommend the game (on PS3!). Just not so much the comic.Story: 5.0Plot: 7.0Characters: 6.0Art: 5.0Overall: 5.8
An all-around nerdette, I’m a comic book connoisseur, horror aficionado, video game addict, anime enthusiast and an aspiring novelist/comic book writer. I am the head of the comic book department and the editor-in-chief of Entertainment Fuse. I also write and edit articles for Comic Frontline. I am also an intern at Action Lab Entertainment, a comic book publisher at which I edit comic book scripts, help work on images in solicitations and help with other comic book related project. My own personal website is comicmaven.com.
The only thing directly from the game is the first few pages, so players worried of just seeing the same old scenes are mistaken – the story has a completely different purpose. In the game after all of the above has happened Lex goes back in time and releases exobytes all over the world that create thousands of heroes and villains to stop Brainiac's future invasion. I was actually hoping this would be followed in the comic, presenting an opportunity to introduce new characters fighting along side well known ones. Instead, this issue gives you the beginning of the back story of what takes place after Brainiac starts to invade and I have a feeling the series will end when Lex goes to the future therefore making you have to get the game in order to see the rest. Don't you just love how much money DC is sucking out of your pockets?
I'd like to say I am content having spent $2.99 on this issue since I love the game, but this issue has it's ups and downs. For one, Marv Wolfman and Tony Bedard's story is similar to Infinite Crisis taking away it's originality. But this is a nice modern version of that. Hopefully if you pick up this issue you were not looking the main focus to be on major heroes. Instead Lex Luthor dominates this issue. He narrates and the story revolves completely around him not even taking the time for sorrow to set in that some of Earth's greatest heroes have died. This is both good and bad: if you like Lex you will be partly pleased with his character. He's an ass and a genius, two traits that embody his character and come out clearly. My only question is if he's such a genius, how could he be tricked by Brainiac so easily? But the comic managed to redeem itself with an underlying theme I found ingenious. Lex talks about how he feel like "the last son of a doomed planet." Who does this ironically remind us of? If interesting parallel moments like this happened more often this issue would be a lot better.
Other than Lex, none of the other character's really spark any interest. They're mostly shallow and not fleshed out. Hopefully this ill be remedied in future issues. If you are not a big comic book fan you may not know who half of the people are and the comic does not take the time to explain it to you so you are out of luck there.
As for the art by Howard Porter and Livesay it is mostly mediocre heading more towards the poorer side of the artistic scale. Sometimes there are too many lines on character's faces and eyes sometimes look crooked. The wrap-around cover is pretty good but that only makes me wonder why the artwork in the comic isn't a little better also. There are no panels with astounding artwork worth avidly praising but also nothing to tear apart. Both artists have truly reached mediocrity and it could go either way in future issues. I am leaning more toward lousy.
Overall, this issue is a hit or miss depending on your stance while buying it. If you have the video game like me and enjoy the story in the game pick this book up: it expands the story before the events in the game and works better as a companion piece than an actual comic. For the heavy and die-hard comic fan I also highly suggest it – there are so many cameos made from little known character’s in DC comics to the most well-known and this can make for great pair ups in the future. The people I would not suggest this for are casual reader’s or people interested in an original and in-depth story. The concept is simple and has been used before: I mainly look at this issue as a huge cross-over event and a great tie-in with the game, so if you don’t know half of the people or want a story rather than cameos look elsewhere. Mostly, I recommend this to owners of the DC Universe Online game. If your interested check out the preview here. I highly recommend the game (on PS3!). Just not so much the comic.
Story: 5.0
Plot: 7.0
Characters: 6.0
Art: 5.0
Overall: 5.8 
