Upon Further Review--Countdown #51

Now that we're finally approaching the bitter end of Countdown to Yet Another Crisis, let's take a look back at the triple gatefold cover of the first issue of the maxi-series, #51:

Not exactly the most honest representation of what the series is going to be about, is it? Let's showcase a bunch of heroes who aren't even going to be in the series!!

While most of the characters depicted on the cover, the majority have them have come in teensy little cameos, and most of those were just retelling events that had already been shown elsewhere, in other DC mags. Supergirl, for example, appeared briefly at Black Canary's bachelorette party, and that's it. Most of the JSA members depicted showed up in retellings of portions of the Lightning Saga, which had already concluded weeks before Countdown got around to mentioning it.

Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman? Despite some substantial possibilities, they're not really in this series AT ALL, despite their presence front and center on the cover.

And the characters the series is really about? Jimmy Olsen's nowhere to be seen. Only Jason Todd makes the front cover. Donna Troy, Kyle Rayner, the Atom--shoved off onto the "hidden" third page of the cover. Mary Marvel? All the way off to the left on page 1. Piper and Trickster? Nope. Holly and Harley? Nope. Karate Kid and "Una?" Yeah, but you can't really tell who they are, and they're buried amidst the crowd on page 1.

So, Paul Dini, Dan DiDio and Andy Kubert et al? Liars, liars, pants on fire. I'm just sayin'.

Upon Further Review--Spider-Man

Give the tenor of things in One More Day, I thought I'd best crack open my near mint copy of Amazing Fantasy #15:

Not quite as I remembered it...I'd better flip a couple more pages:

Ahhh, that classic line. Now let's skip ahead a few years to Amazing Spider-Man #121:

Well, that settles it. Peter Parker's behavior in One More Day is completely consistent with how he has dealt with the death of a loved one in the past. Case closed.

Upon Further Review...Batman

After reading some of this week's DC books, I had to go back and look up something in Detective Comics #33:


Hmm, that's not how I remember it, but in light of this Ra's Al Ghul nonsense, I guess it makes sense. Let me check again:


Hmm, again not quite how I remember it...I must be getting old. Given Batman & the Outsiders #1, I'd better check again:

Obviously, my memory is playing tricks on me. I'd better concentrate and check one more time:

Ahhhh, there's the Goddamn Batman I know and love...