Comic Review: Doomsday Clock #7

Doomsday Clock #7

DC Comics

Writer: Geoff Johns

Artist: Gary Frank

Doomsday Clock is easily one of the most ambitious and monumental comic books of all time.  Like it or not, the idea to bridge the DC Universe and the Watchmen Universe is a bold idea.  Think of the endless possibilities and character interactions Johns can do with these characters: Lex Luthor and Ozymandias, The Joker and the Comedian, Superman and Dr. Manhattan.  Ever since the tease in DC Rebirth #1, I’ve been hyped beyond belief for this book.  Yet somehow, I forgot it was coming out this week.

It blows my mind that so few people are talking about a book this important.  With Heroes in Crisis kicking off, and Justice League Odyssey making its debut, I think few people realize that Doomsday Clock #7 came out this week.  As much as I enjoy Doomsday Clock, the hype for this book is long gone.  The delays aren’t the only problem, the story so far has moved at a snail’s pace.  There is so much going on that the story rarely moves forward (a problem not present in Watchmen).  Although I’ll try not to compare Doomsday Clock to Watchmen too much because this is a very different story.  This book was originally teased as a story between Superman and Dr. Manhattan, but in six issues, we’ve only seen cameos of Superman and haven’t even seen a glimpse of Dr. Manhattan (in the present at least).

Now don’t get me wrong, I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve read so far, but the story really needs to start picking up the pace.  That’s why I feel this issue is exactly what we needed after six issues of buildup.

We finally get some answers about Dr. Manhattan and his role in the DC Universe.  It seems that Manhattan is responsible for altering several events in the DCU including the death of Alan Scott.  We also get some new developments from the other Watchmen characters.  Ozymandias reveals his true colors in this issue, and the new Rorschach undergoes some character development.  We also get a tease to the upcoming confrontation between Superman and Dr. Manhattan.  The first half of this series was build up, but this issue delivered everything I wanted from this series.

One thing I still can’t figure out is what the hell Carver Coleman has to do with the rest of this story.  Don’t get me wrong, I don’t dislike the subplot, but I can’t figure out why it’s included.  Maybe it’s similar to the Black Freighter stuff from Watchmen and it just reflects the main story instead of connecting to it.

If there’s been one upside to the delays, it’s Gary Frank taking his time on art.  Frank’s work here is phenomenal.  It unbelievable how much detail Frank can fit into a nine-panel grid.  Frank doesn’t need crazy splash pages to showcase how amazing his art is.  It doesn’t feel good now, but when I look back on it, I’ll be glad Gary Frank had the time to make his art as amazing as possible.

Doomsday Clock #7 finally picks up the pace.  This issue both answered plenty of questions on my mind while adding more mystery and intrigue.  I hope that Johns and Frank can deliver this level of quality for the entire back half of this series.