Originally published on Patreon
Out of all of the Lazarus Planet tie ins so far this one feels like it might be one of the better ones, because it feels like it's actually doing something. Some of the previous ones have introduced some new changes to some characters, others have ended up not really doing a huge amount, but this one comes away feeling like each of the four stories is actually setting up things to come.
The first story introduces readers to a new group of powered individuals called the Vigil. I can't say whether or not they're heroes at this point, as we know very little about them. What we do know is that they've got an interest in Lazarus Resin, and stopping it from getting onto the streets of Gotham, and that they're not afraid of killing to make that happen. That doesn't necessarily make them villains, however, as this story also featured Red Hood, who's doing the same job and who isn't opposed to the occasional murder.
It's nice that this story seems to have a slight connection with the Task Force Z series, as it feels like not a lot that has really lasted has come from that, but the connection is only slight if I'm being honest. The main focus of this story is making the Vigil look good. And it kind of succeeds. It's not clear what the group can do, and some of the artwork and panels did have me a little confused at times, but I'm sure that whatever the plans are for them in the future will flesh them out more. For now at least, we're aware that they're out there somewhere.
The second story is, I must admit, my favourite of the bunch. I fell in love with Flatline during Robin, and adore her and Damian's relationship, so having her back was always going to be a highlight. And speaking of their relationship, we now have confirmation from her that she and Damian are indeed a couple. The moments where she talks about the two of them are really sweet, the way she talks about how he treats her well and she makes him laugh are very touching. I really hope that this relationship is something that we get to see more of, as I think it makes Damian more interesting, and we'd also get more of Nikia then too.
The story is actually focused on her following the calls of a ghostly voice that she's been hearing since the Lazarus Rain started, which leads her to a hidden building inside a power station in Tokyo. There she finds Ubu and some members of the League of Assassins, who she fights, before she is able to get hold of an urn containing the ashes of Ra's al Ghul. It turns out her death powers have evolved thanks to the Rain, and she's able to completely resurrect Ra's. We all knew he'd be back eventually, and this explanation is pretty good. Plus, it further helps to bring Flatline into the al Ghul side of Damian's family. Out of the four stories here this is the one I'm most excited to see more of and how it effects future stories.
The third tale introduces us to Deadeye, a mercenary having a meeting with Amanda Waller in the astral plane; Waller is still on Earth-3 and and is essentially tele-commuting. We get some flashbacks to establish Deadeye's powers and abilities as he fights Everyman, and they're okay as far as fights go. His costume has a cool design, and he seems to be a decent fighter.
Where this story is most interesting though is with the involvement of Waller. We saw her at the end of Dark Crisis with a small group of people who appeared to be other world versions of heroes and villains, and she was working with a shady group. This story shows that she's still playing manipulation games from behind the scenes, and that whilst she's left the main universe she's not done fucking with it. It's also revealed that Deadeye is her nephew. Somehow Amanda Waller using her own family without any care or compassion doesn't feel surprising at all. I expect that whatever this is leading towards will also tie in to whatever she was doing in Dark Crisis.
The final story is, sadly, the one that did the least for me. It follows Red Canary, who appeared briefly in Dark Crisis as a new hero inspired by Black Canary. We learn a ton more about her here, including her real name, where she lives, some stuff about her family, and what her civilian life is like. When the Lazarus Rain comes down in Seattle it brings a load of the city's statues to life, and she heads out to try and stop them; calling in some help from Sideways, who she made friends with during Dark Crisis.
I never really fell in love with her character during Dark Crisis, as there wasn't really much to her, and this issue does give us more, but none of it really feels very interesting. There's nothing about her that seems to set her apart from any of dozens of other street-level vigilante heroes, and I don't really know why I'd be expected to be that interested in her. Hopefully this will change in the future, they might be able to actually giver her more of a character and explore some of the stuff introduced her in ways more than just vague background traits. I think Red Canary has promise, but right now she's kind of just a nothing character.
This issue really does feel like it's setting up a lot of things to come, more so than some of the other books. It's a pretty good foundation point for most of the characters here, and I think it's going to be fun to see where things end up.
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