Written by Cleveland Oakes, December 6th, 2017, at 1:33 p.m. Tweet to @Oakes945
It only took 30 years, but fans have finally been given a proper follow up to Alan Moore’s and Dave Gibbons classic comic book Watchmen. I will be the first to admit I have been very hesitant about DC’s efforts to return to the world of Watchmen without the assistance or the approval of Moore and Gibbons. Most readers would agree that DC’s 2012 Before Watchmen series was a gigantic misfire.
Therefore when we heard DC was going back to well and now crossing the classic Watchmen characters into the modern post Rebirth DC Universe, it was with a great deal of trepidation. Superman vs. Doctor Manhattan? For real? Is that something readers were even clamoring for? Well after years of build up Doomsday Clock #1 hit the stands, and it exceeded our expectations here at Slickster’s Nerd Department.
After some internal discussions and debates, we have picked our Top Ten expectations for this event.
10. The Three Jokers
In Justice League #42, during his time as the God of Knowledge Batman learned the true identity of the Joker from the Moebius Chair. However, readers found out later on that the answer wasn’t so clearcut. In Justice League #50, we found out there are actually 3 Jokers. Who are they? How do they fit in Dr. Manhattan’s plans for the DCU? What does it mean for Batman?
9.The Button
During the Event’s of Rebirth #1, Batman found the Comedian’s bloodstained button embedded in the walls of the Batcave. How did it get there? Was this a warning? A cry for help? A threat? We can only hope answers will be forthcoming!
8. The Reverse Flash
During the second part of The Button crossover event, the Pre Crisis Reverse Flash returned to seemingly die once more at that hands of some great unseen god. Who was this god? What did the Reverse Flash learn? And how did he continue to appear after his supposed death? Time will tell!
7. Jay Garrick
Speaking of Flashes, the original Flash Jay Garrick has seemingly been erased from history. Yet during the events of The Button, we caught of brief glimpse of him. Where has he been? Why did Dr. Manhattan remove him the playing field? What will his return mean?
6. The Justice Society
Speaking of Jay Garrick, where is the rest of the Justice Society? We caught a glimpse of aged Johnny Thunderbolt in Rebirth #1 as Wally West crisscrossed the DCU hoping to escape the Speed Force prison. Will we finally learn what happened to the JSA? Why does no one remember the original world’s greatest heroes?
5. Mr. Oz
We totally fell for the misdirect that Mr. Oz was actually Andran Veidt Ozymandias. In the pages of Superman’s The Oz Effect, we learned the truth that he indeed was Superman’s biological father Jor-El. Dr. Manhattan obviously has intentions for Superman. But why did he displace his father in space and time and bring from him Krypton’s past to Earth’s present?
4. Mr. Oz’s Prison
Speaking of Mr. Oz. Tim Drake was unceremoniously removed from the DCU in both present and the future and placed into Mr. Oz’s prison. Amongst some of those other lost souls were Mr. Mxyzptlk and Doomsday. Tim Drake escaped alongside his future self during the events of A Lonely Place of Living. But they left behind many of Oz’s other unwilling guests. Who are they? And how did Oz go from being a prisoner to a warden himself?
3. The Marionette and the Mime
Very rarely have new characters be introduced that become instant breakout stars.Based on the Charleston Comic Book Characters Punch and Jewlee, the Marionette and Mime will go do down as the “new hotness” for 2018. Mysterious and deadly, we are sure this pair will give the Joker and Harley Quinn a run for their money when they cross in the DCU proper.
2. Who is Rorschach?
Rorschach is possibly the most iconic of all the Watchmen characters. A mix of the Question and the Batman, Rorschach is a vigilante with no equals.But Rorschach clearly died at the hands of Dr. Manhattan. So who is this Rorschach who is not Rorschach? And why is even the great and mighty Ozymandias scared of him? We can’t wait until the World’s Greatest Detective meets the other the World’s Greatest Detective.
1. The Main Event
Dr. Manhattan vs. The Man of Steel. On the surface, it would appear that Superman is clearly outmatched by a man who can manipulate space and time. Nevertheless, Dr. Manhattan has gone to great pains to alter Superman’s life. It’s a pretty long laundry list. He kidnapped Jor El. Killed Ma and Pa Kent. Split Superman into two separate beings. Even rewrote much of Clark’s history. Dr. Manhattan has gone out of his way to profoundly change the life of the Man of Steel. However, we still don’t know why. And the even more important question is how can a man how can literally move planets ever defeat a man who can make them simply disappear with a blink of the eye?
The Doomsday Clock is a 12 issue maxiseries, presented by DC Comics. Run down to your local comic book store and grab your copy. This is the next classic.