But the fine folks over at DC Comics have once again delivered an event that touches the very source of the DCU. The seven issue mini-series shakes the foundation and lives of some of comics greatest heroes and those heroes and those around them will never be the same again. A seven part murder mystery by Brad Meltzer and Rags Morales, with inks by Michael Bair, the series dips into both the past and the present and stirs the pot for future events in the DCU.
READER BEWARE: THERE ARE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW. But, if you’re a regular comic reader or DC Comic reader specifically, you probably already know some of this stuff.
The first issue begins slow enough, with vignettes of various members of the JLA sharing reminisces of family and friends they love and have lost. At the same time, third rate super villain Bolt is attempting to sell some superhero finery. And then it all hits, Bolt is gunned down by his buyers and Sue Dibney, wife of The Elongated Man, is struck down and then, just for good measure, finished off with a blast of fire.
Okay...you heard right: they bumped off The Elongated man’s wife who, throughout his comic career, has been almost as an integral part of his stories as he was. They WASTED Sue Dibney. And if that wasn’t enough, Sue had a surprise for her hubby. She was pregnant.
Ralph Dibney arrives to late to save his wife but not to make assumptions to who her killer was and therein lies the beginning of the mystery. Who killed Sue Dibney?
The first clue(or red herring depending on your murder mystery skills) points towards Doctor Light who assaulted(let’s be honest-it’s implied rape) Dibney in the past. Under threats of going after the spouses of other super heroes, the JLA(well...most of them) decides to lobotomize Light; a decision which didn’t sit well with members then and doesn’t sit well with some of the newer members either, especially when we learn that the removal of Dr. Light’s memories wasn’t just an isolated incident. It has happened on other occasions to both villains and heroes alike.
More spousal attacks and threatened attacks and clues point to all sorts of people, even the Suicide Squad. So other superheroes of the DCU step up the pace, calling in favors and reservists. Some are effective, others are not. And Firestorm gets to have a nuclear meltdown.
What is known is that Digger Harkness is the villian known as Boomerang and that he has a son, who he gets to finally bond with. And we know Jack Drake is a one time adventurer who also has a son; one he has recently discovered is The Boy Wonder. And we also discover that someone has paid the villian to go after Drake. What results when the two meet is the death of both fathers and the rising of one son to follow in his father’s footsteps.
And, if ALL of that isn’t enough to send shockwaves through most of the other DCU books the JSA’s Dr. Midnite finds evidence that weeds out almost all of the suspects. Whoever killed Sue Dibney did it microscopically.
When all is said and done, the final chapter reveals a twist so huge that you never see it coming. Of course I also found the murderer’s rationale to be totally contrived and hard to believe. But it IS unexpected and you won’t guess the murderer until it is right in your face.
So IDENTITY CRISIS IS a blockbuster which tears down the existing continuity and throws caution to the wind with it’s edgy style. It IS a mini-series which has set into motion storylines which will be reexamined and comic fans will debate for years to come. The writing is crisp, the artwork is fitting and the whole idea of a MAJOR event which actually DOES leave lasting scars upon characters is fresh and fun. This will force future writers to follow in their footsteps as they have created a certain size box with which they have to deal.
Congratulations to DC for truly giving us an epic for our times.