Earth 2 #19
Spoiler Alter: Contains Spoilers for Earth 2
Positives:
Earth 2 is one of the most consistently enjoyable titles DC is releasing right now. It’s very refreshing to read something that really does feel new and doesn’t just have a new coat of varnish on it.
Many readers were initially hesitant about James Robinson leaving, but since Tom Taylor has taken over, those concerns are all but gone. Taylor—which many readers know from the surprisingly good Injustice: Gods Among Us video game tie-in series—has taken the amazing foundation Robinson laid down and continues to expand upon it with new, interesting characters and twists that we could only see in a book like Earth 2. The revelation that Superman was not only alive, but is now a servant of Darkseid, then rounding that off by killing Steppenwolf was a brilliant bit of writing.
Taylor has set up an amazing third act to conclude the current arc. The heroes have their backs against the wall, and many of them hardly understand their powers, as they have to fight a seasoned Superman who doesn’t hold back. Along with an army of Parademons and the possibility of Darkseid showing up, this will be all out war and is one of the most exciting things happening in DC comics right now.
Batman essentially becoming Kambei to gather the rest of the Seven Samurai (see the amazing film by Akira Kurosawa) has been an amazing addition to the book. Seeing all these new and interesting characters while dropping hints at who is under the cowl this time has given the book a great sense of excitement and adventure amidst all the death and destruction.
Negatives:
Earth 2 is quickly becoming, “Earth 2 #XXX: Now With A New Character!” The big problem with this is tat most of the characters they introduce are really interesting, and with only 22 pages a month to be divided amongst nearly two dozen “main characters” and many other ancillary characters, the book gets incredibly muddled. Taylor has been able to balance it fairly well so far, but there are a lot of people getting left behind, it’s been months since we’ve seen or heard from Mr. Miracle and Big Barda. There are so many sub-plots that just get started in Earth 2, and at the current rate they’re going, it doesn’t feel like they’ll resolve half of them before 2015. Earth 2 needs a second book, there’s just no other way around it.
Verdicts:Â 
Despite the problems Earth 2 will have pretty soon with how bloated it’s getting, it still remains one of the best books DC is releasing right now. If you’re not reading it now, you should start immediately.
