Villains United # 6

Archive

Reviewer: Kevin S. Mahoney
Story Title: At The End of All Things

Written by: Gail Simone
Penciled by: Dale Eaglesham
Inked by: Wade von Grawbadger
Colored by: Sno-Cone
Lettered by: Pat Brosseau
Editor: Stephen Wacker
Publisher: DC Comics

There are all kinds of reviews on all kinds of finales from all the Crisis-teasing mini-series on this site. Tim Byrne wrote a nifty review of Rann-Thanagar War’s finale here, but he only rated it a 6.5 overall. Tim Stevens’ review of OMAC Project #6 would do any science fiction fan proud, but he rated it merely a 7 out of concerns for the art. Stevens’ review of Day of Vengeance #6 receives a 6, mainly for the muddled conclusion. If whoever reads this agrees that these series more or less ended without delivering satisfaction, this review should be passed by. This is going to be one of those glowing to the point of ultraviolet things; not that there’s anything wrong with that!

This series was a romp. It had more “name” guest stars than anything in recent memory, including characters not seen since the end of their series or miniseries (the Neron-enhanced Ragdoll, Humphry Dumpler), characters that are either figuratively or literally back from the dead (Catman, Solomon Grundy) and even new updated legacy villains (the scion Ragdoll, Virtuoso). So if new and fascinating characters are the thing you dig, you had to dig this thing. To say it had plot twists would be a major understatement; there was betrayal, death, conspiracies, and even sex under false pretenses! It was a thrill-a-minute, and the shocks just kept on coming this issue! There may be those continuity-obsessed fans who have issues with how certain rarely seen characters were portrayed or “used”, but unless the sustained historical illusion the mainstream comics universe(s) provide is the reader’s sole motivation, the moments created justify themselves. Some of the dialogue was either brilliantly clever or mind-blowingly hilarious! For example, when Parademon meets Giganta, “By Darkseid’s bile, That’s a large female! I could lose myself in her bosoms!” If you don’t laugh at that remark, check your pulse, you might be dead. If you hadn’t thought about the physical geometry involved, you either haven’t been a fan very long or haven’t hit puberty yet. Every member of the Secret Six gets a cool moment. Every cornerstone of The Society gets one too. There’s a huge battle, secrets are revealed, and lots and lots of people are hurt, maimed, or killed.

This would normally bring us to the spoilers section of the review. Most reviewers would spill the few choice plot points that the writer of the story had been teasing the readers with and finally revealed this issue. Gleefully, I’m not that sort of reviewer; I tend to be a bit of a jerk. So I’m not going to tell you who lives or who dies. I will instead promise that major cast member(s) of the arc do in fact buy the farm. I’m not going to reveal who Mockingbird is/was. I will tell you that it was someone the readers have seen in the DCU before, but not at all in this series until the final installment. I won’t say who betrayed their team. I will tell you that double-crosses occurred on both squads. And enough people survive for this conflict/social experiment gone wrong to continue in either another mini-series or full-blown regular series. It’s good times all around!

I can hear a few grumbling dissenters out there, mumbling about the things we don’t learn by the end of the story. We don’t know the Society’s real plan. We have no idea what Luthor is scheming. And we have no idea if the Secret Six will remain a team (in spite of the lack of a handler) or what side they’ll support if they do. Some of you think these questions damn the story as something incomplete and perhaps even half-assed. I disagree. Vehemently. I don’t care if those threads are supposed to lead readers by the nose into Infinite Crisis at all; the only thing that matters is that the cast may just reunite for a second bout against either the heroes or each other. And that’s storytelling gold, people!

The art really serves the story in a tale like this one. A huge cast, a few crazy settings, a triple amputee, and several memorable beatings make this some of the most specific and wildly various art in years. The inking, coloring, and lettering keep pace with the pencils. If there’s something wrong with it, there was enough good stuff on the page to wholly distract you from it. There’s nothing of substance to complain about.