THROUGH A LENS DARKLY
The monumental seven issue limited series 'Identity Crisis' is finally collected into one large hardcover volume and loaded with extras. This series, which sparked controversy among long time fans of the Justice League, casts the moralistic league in a new, and rather dark light. In many ways Identity Crisis serves to out do Marvel Comics at its own game of showing the frailty of superheroes, long their trademark. As the story unfolds, Sue Dibney, the wife of the Elongated Man has been murdered, and her body badly burned. The Didney's home was outfitted with the most advanced security systems available and yet the killer got in and left without a single clue. Even the combined abilities of Mister Miracle, The Atom, The Ray, The Metal Men, and Animal Man cannot find even the slightest trace of a clue. After the funeral, attended by most of the heroes of the DC universe, teams are formed to track down villains who use fire as a power and soon the Teen Titans, The Outsiders, The JSA, the old JLI, Booster Gold and Blue Beetle, and others are hot on the trail of the suspects. But another group meets in secret...a group including Green Arrow, Hawkman, Black Canary, Zatanna, Atom, and the Elongated Man. When The Flash sneaks in on the meeting he learns of a startling revelation. Years earlier, in the League's satellite headquarters, Sue Dibney was alone stargazing when she was attacked and sexually assaulted by Doctor Light. The maniacal Light then threatened the wives of the other members so this group, without the knowledge of Superman or Batman, had Zatanna perform a magical lobotomy on Doctor Light, but only after a divided vote among the members with The Flash (Barry Allen) providing the deciding vote. The Flash is outraged but reluctantly joins the group in their search for Light. Meanwhile Jean Loring, the ex-wife of Ray Palmer (The Atom) is attacked and hung but survives. Again no clues can be found. Now all of the heroes with family are on edge. Someone is targeting their loved ones. Is it Doctor Light, or another villain? Identity Crisis presents a divided league and one were not uses to seeing. Wally cannot believe that Barry Allen would have voted to mess with Light's mind. What's interesting is how the members are more afraid of Batman finding out about what they did than Superman. Some fans may look at this as tainting the reputation of the JLA but on the other hand this is not the 1960's anymore. It's a harsh world we live in and writer Brad Meltzer has reflected this among the JLA members. The art by Rags Morales and Michael Bair is just gorgeous. The battle with Deathstroke was among the most dynamic I've seen in years. Bair has been a favorite of mine since his days on the Young All-Stars. He's an extremely underrated talent. The book features an introduction by Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon and also features commentary by Meltzer and Morales on specific scenes such as why Batman was not in attendance at Sues funeral, the seating arrangement of the heroes at the funeral, and the science involved in the battle with Deathstroke. They also discuss the scene where Sue is sexually assaulted by Doctor Light and how the colors by Alex Sinclair show the cold tragedy of the scene. This commentary truly helps the reader understand the story in greater depth. Finally there's also a cover gallery of the various variant covers that were produced. Identity Crisis in many ways is an even more important series than the namesake Crisis on Infinite Earths from the 1980's. While that series ultimately generated little change to the DC universe outside of the Death of Barry Allen, Identity Crisis is a story that could have lingering effects for years to come. Reviewed by Tim Janson
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Overview
The most talked-about and successful miniseries of 2004 — the story that has created ripple effects throughout the DC Universe for many years to come — is now available in a stunning hardcover volume! New York Times best-selling author Brad Meltzer (GREEN ARROW) teams with artists Rags Morales & Michael Bair (WONDER WOMAN) and cover artist Michael Turner (SUPERMAN/BATMAN) to deliver an all-too-human look into the lives of super-heroes, and the terrible price they pay for doing good.When the spouse of a JLA member is brutally murdered, the entire super-hero community searches for the killer, fearing their own loved ones may be the next targets! But before the mystery is fully solved, ...