Heroes in Crisis #1 (Review) Brutal and Emotional Read

Heroes In Crisis #1

Writer: Tom King

Artist: Clay Mann

Colorist: Tomeu Morey

Publisher: DC Comics

9/10

SPOILERS AHEAD

When you hear the word "Crisis" associated with a DC comic book, you know things will never be the same. Well this book is no different. It already reminds a little bit of "Identity Crisis", in that it seems like a more personal story as opposed to an earth shattering blockbuster of a comic. But that doesn't take away the fact that this story is set to change the DCU as we know it.

Going in to this book we knew little about Sanctuary accept that it was crated as place that heroes could go to deal with the everyday trauma that comes a long with being a superhero. It was a very unique and interesting idea that King came up with, because heroes are just like us, they too deal with emotional issues and need a place where they can deal with those problems.

I didn't know what to expect with this first issue, but I definitely wasn't disappointed. From the unbelievable script to the amazing art, Tom King and Clay Mann delivered an emotionally charged and brutal look into these characters lives as they deal with yet another catastrophe. A place that was meant to be a sanctuary gets turned into a bloodbath with multiple characters having been murdered.

The book starts with Booster and Harley talking at the diner, their conversation throughout the book was one of my favorite parts. You don't usually see these two interact with one another, so I'm still curious as to why they ended up together. It seems like this might be on of the mysteries to be revealed further down the line. Eventually to the two end up fighting and Harley tries to kill him after which he accuses of her committing a horrendous crime. I think it would be too obvious to have her be the killer, so I'm thinking maybe it's something else that we haven't seen yet.

The most emotional parts of this book had to be when Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman arrive at Sanctuary to find it littered with bodies and the confessionals of the heroes throughout the book. Watching the Trinity find these heroes most of who were C List was brought to life in such a beautifully horrifying way. The scene where Batman says, "Our hope for...redemption... is now just another HUNT for vengeance" gave me chills. Those words preceded the most heartbreaking deaths to me personally, Wally West and Roy Harper. Wally West has been my favorite character since I was 7 years old, so I'm still holding out hope that this isn't gonna stick. The most interesting thing we learned about Sanctuary is that it was built with Kryptonian technology and programmed by Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman themselves. So I wonder how much guilt these 3 are going to be dealing with following these events.

Overall this book is one of the best debuts in quite some time. The contrast of the warm and inviting surroundings in such a dark and bleak story was a stroke of brilliance on the artists part. This story while sad at times was executed perfectly and I can honestly say that I'm already emotionally invested in the outcome of this book.