J.G. Jones

Strange Fruit # 1 is not a comic for everyone. It is true the artwork is beautiful, and Jones ensures each frame is well-colored and thought out. The writing, however, suffers from wanting to be everywhere at once and appears to focus on nowhere. The more difficult topics of race relations and struggles are better left for other comics. Strange Fruit # 1 may be lacking the level of sensitivity and critical thought needed for some readers on the subjects. Still the comic and story arc are in their infancy, and it would be generous to grant it more time.

On the surface, the title of Final Crisis feels like a misnomer. How can there even be a “final” crisis? There will always be a DC Universe, there will always be earth-shattering dangers, and there will always be heroes to ensure the end is never really the end. But the strength of Final Crisis lies in that it recognizes this, and uses this fact as the crux of the entire event: the promotional tagline was, after all, “Heroes die. Legends live forever.” The characters and stories of the DC Universe are timeless, never-ending, and very much alive in the way that language can be said to be alive. It’s from this angle that writer Grant Morrison attempts to comment on and interact with DC’s complex and often unwieldy history. While Final Crisis is not the final challenge these characters will ever face (because nothing ever will be until the day DC stops publishing — and at this point that’ll likely be the same day CNN puts it “Nearer, My God, to Thee” video to use), one walks away from it feeling like they’ve just experienced the ultimate in everything the DC Universe was, is, and will be.