Divulging Divergence: Week One Sneak Peeks: 1st Look At The Streamlined DC Comics With New Titles & Newer Directions!

Columns, Reviews, Top Story

Welcome to week 1 of a 4-part series, Divulging Divergence!

Divulging Divergence Week One banner

Not gonna lie, I had completely forgotten about these upcoming previews until I flipped past the last page of CONVERGENCE: the ATOM #2. Once I saw the ‘dessert’, I squealed in delight. Three books move on with enthralling status quos, one is re-named/re-worked, three get a ‘relaunch’, one is so brand spanking new that it is previously unheard of, one is a ‘spin-off’ of a recently folded title, and one just seems too oddball. Guess which are which ;-)

All these sneak peeks are available for free directly from DC Comics here.

In honour of DC’s modernized logo from 1976, I will rate these stories by bullets.

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DIVERGENCE: DETECTIVE COMICS [8 pages]
Francis Manapul & Brian Buccellato, Jared K. Fletcher

Det. Harvey Bullock asks a major favour of the new Batman. Fair warning, it’s his former superior but still current friend Jim Gordon!! Harvey wants Jim to take out his partner Nancy Yip, permanently!! Seems like the GCPD isn’t free of corruption, after all. I love how the trio of Bullock, Montoya, and Yip are driving what should be officially dubbed the Bat-Van. In the present, some mecha takes out the van as the new Dark Knight engages. Harvey and Renee take the opportunity to snuff Nancy once and for all. {9.5 bullets}

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DIVERGENCE: DOOMED [8 pages]
Scott Lobdell, Javi Fernandez, Kyle Ritter, Corey Breen

Reiser, a freshman at Metropolis U, is dealing with being infected by the Doomsday virus. He’s trying to process the new experience but barely breaths when Alpha Centurion attacks. The ancient Roman and former alien abductee doesn’t take too kindly to freakish-looking menaces. Matters are made worse since Reiser is in full monster mode, meaning he can make guttural sounds at best and can’t temper his own strength. The sight of his Aunt Belle and the object of his affection Jayne make him flee after he takes down the hero. After powering down, his best friend Roman is there to console him. {4 bullets}

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DIVERGENCE: GREEN ARROW [8 pages]
Benjamin Percy, Patrick Zircher, Gabe Eltaeb, Rob Leigh

I am floored by this all-new, all-different direction!! I’m not exaggerating! Things take a sharp left, or rather, an upward move (as in way north) for Mr. Oliver Queen who no longer dubs himself the Green Arrow. He has shed his former billionaire ID as well. When he arrives in Drown, Alaska, he ends up saving a waitress from a masked killer. Ollie’s true purpose there is to investigate the legend of the Drowned Man. My head has done a 360 over the fact that Ollie will now be dealing with the macabre. The cliffhanger shows his half-sister Emiko wanting her brother’s assistance. The constellation of the Archer is a fabulous touch. {9.5 bullets}

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DIVERGENCE: GREEN LANTERN [8 pages]
Robert Venditti, Billy Tan, Mark Irwin, Alex Sinclair, Dave Sharpe

Hal Jordan: Renegade. His name was known throughout the entire universe. Now, his notoriety has increased tenfold with his acquiring of Krona’s Gauntlet. Some schlep mistakenly wants to collect on a bounty. Hal bests him quite easily. His opponent mistakenly believes that Hal is going to ice him. Instead, Hal admires his willingness to do his duty and sacrifice his personal life. He releases the alien and tells him to carry on since the universe needs more hired guns. {8.5 bullets}

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DIVERGENCE: MIDNIGHTER [8 pages]
Steve Orlando, Aco, Romulo Fajardo Jr., Jared K. Fletcher

The always angry, insanely intense, maniacal member from Stormwatch gets another solo series! The call rings out. He lands in Boston in the middle of pandemonium [natch ;-)] — a weapon that turns people into minions from Hell. Midnighter quickly determines the truth. The ‘demons’ are alien body snatchers. He calls their bluff and saves a little girl from ‘possession’. His methods are extreme but he gets the job done. I chuckled at the bedroom scene when Lucas’ latest conquest ponders the vigilante’s ‘work clothes’. {6 bullets}

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DIVERGENCE: OMEGA MEN [8 pages]
Tom King, Barnaby Bagenda, José Marzan Jr., Romulo Fajardo Jr., Pat Brosseau

A white-clad hooded figure is marked for execution. The situation could not be grimmer. The imminent delivery is being broadcast. The man in question is none other than Kyle Rayner, former White Lantern!! His presence as a peace negotiator was seen as a threat to his captors. After two members converse with him, Kyle sends out a plea to Carol, his newfound love. A third jailer enters and appears to snap his neck. (Un)fortunately, the broadcast images become unclear until they completely fade-out. The controversial question is: did the Omega Men kill Kyle Rayner?!? Stay tuned… The 3×3 panels on every single page — brilliant!! {6 bullets}

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DIVERGENCE: PREZ [8 pages]
Mark Russell, Ben Caldwell, John Lucas, Jeremy Lawson, Sal Cipriano

Beth Ross is the first ever POTUS to be elected unanimously via Twitter! Sign of the times!! A flight over the South Pacific results in insurgents taking down Air Force One. As the Prez and her staff scramble for safety, they do not realize that the supposed U.S. Sentries dispatched to Fiji to rescue them are in reality derived from a ‘video game’ scenario played by two clueless teenage guys. Conspiracy!! The woman has just been elected and already some shadow man wants to eliminate her. And on Thanksgiving, no less!! Beth grabs the sat phone and rushes head first into the fray. She takes out the two bots. Bonus: Anonymous is acknowledged!! You can’t mention Twitter without a hashtag like the one a decorated general uses: #scaredclammy to voice his thoughts on the new Commander-in-Chief. {4 bullets}

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DIVERGENCE: RED HOOD/ARSENAL – “Together for the First Time: Again!” [8 pages]
Scott Lobdell, Denis Medri, The Hories, Dave Sharpe

The buddy comedy/bromance is not dead yet! Jason and Roy remain together to bond, break bones, and bother baddies! The bosom buddies have infiltrated Kobra. They find themselves inside a mecha-serpent. After being exposed, they rush out gun-ho in staunch determination. The art is just horrible. The banter between the two is awful. {1 bullet}

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DIVERGENCE: SECTION EIGHT – “Prologue: Remember Section Eight?” [8 pages]
Garth Ennis, John McCrea, John Kalisz, Pat Brosseau

From the pages of HITMAN, this league of losers reunite! Ish…The defunct team of Bueno Excellente, Defenestrator, Dogwelder, Flemgem, Friendly Fire, Jean de Baton-Baton, Shakes, and Sixpack have not been seen in a good long while. Three new aspiring heroes: Grapplah, Guts, and Powertool spot the supposedly-deceased Dogwelder blowtorching a fence. After asking some annoying inquiries, DW torches them all. Maybe this isn’t the resurrected hero after all. {7 bullets}

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DIVERGENCE: STARFIRE [8 pages]
Jimmy Palmiotti & Amanda Conner, Emanuela Lupacchino, Ray McCarthy, Hi-Fi, Tom Napolitano

Starfire, or rather Koriand’r, is ready for a much-needed change. For that to take effect, she’s looking for the most perfect, peaceful place to take up space. She consults heroes and villains alike. Unsatisfied with their suggestions, she summons the Man of Steel for input. Kori is still charmingly naïve, especially with how humans should embrace her skin colour. There is some levity here. Kori goes old school when she shows Kal an actual map. Her decision is made — destination: Key West, Florida. Hurricane season has just begun. P.S. I found the interaction between the two aliens quite endearing. Star hugging Supes was saccharinely sweet. They should hang out more often!
{8.5 bullets}

Comic book junkie, now blogger/reviewer. Trilinguist. Educator of many. Complex individual with simple insights.