Infinite Crisis #5 – summary and review

Back on pace now with my home PC repaired. Infinite Crisis #5 promises the big showdown between Kal-L and Kal-El, the Superman of the main earth.

The book starts off with some nice character work, something that Johns is good at, but didn’t have enough space for in much of this series. Mr. Terrific and Ragman are standing around outside a big mass for all of the superheroes. They talk about why they are not in there, and Ragman revels he isn’t inside because he is Jewish, and Mr. Terrific says he isn’t in there because he is an atheist. Ragman questions how anyone as intelligent as Mr. Terrific could be an atheist in a world with the Spectre, Deadman, the angel Zauriel (who is, incidentally leading the mass) and even Ragman’s own suit, composed of corrupted souls. Mr. Terrific’s answer is not satisfying to me, but it set up the following line:

Ragman: So you don’t believe in anything? You don’t have any faith?

Mr. Terrific: Of course I do, Ragman. Got faith in my team.

Ragman replies that he wishes he could say the same about his own team – seems like the Shadowpact are off to a rocky beginning.

We see Hal Jordan leave the mass early. It seems like something Zauriel said got him thinking. We also see the Blue Devil smoking and burning. Turns out whenever he sets foot in a church, he burns, but the Irish Catholic boy inside of him felt it was worth it.

Next, the scene is set on Earth-2. The members of the JSA (and Flamebird from the Titans I believe she is the daughter of Earth-2’s Batwoman) who were originally from there reappeared there, along with Kal-L and Lois, when it was created. Kal-L is so happy – Lois is saved, by bringing her back to the “right” earth.

Meanwhile, on Earth-1, Booster Gold and a blindfolded Jaime Reyes (the kid with the Blue Beetle Scarab) are trying to make their way through a cave. They are captured by snares, and Booster says that this is perfectly normal. Turns out, they were trying to get into the Batcave. Booster slaps Jaime and the Scarab springs to action, coating Jaime in a bug-like carapace to protect him. Booster tells Batman that he knows that Batman is going to try to take down Brother Eye. He even reveals that he knows who Batman was going to invite, and has already done so. He explains that the historical record from his time in the future shows who went, and that they failed, but that with the Beetle, they can succeed. He is the only one who can see Brother Eye in its current cloaked mode.

We then see Superboy getting healed in a vat by Lex Luthor, and getting ready to unleash Superboy on Superboy-Prime and Alex. He still calls Superboy “My son.” Lex actually may have some kind of emotional attachment to the kid.

Back to Earth-2. Lois likes the re-created Earth-2, but that doesn’t stop her from collapsing. Her ailment, it seems, had nothing to do with the Earth or with the “heaven” they were in – it was entirely natural. She dies in Kal-L’s arms, time being about the only opponent that this Superman cannot beat. Kal-L’s cry of anguish shatters even the sidewalk below his feet. The cry is so lout that Kal-El hears it on Earth-1, and flies off to investigate.

In Boston on Earth-1, Wonder Woman tries to intervene in some looting, but is confronted by the effects of her killing Maxwell Lord. The crowd turns on her, calling her a murderer and hypocrite. The Wonder Woman of Earth-2 appears to her, saying that the fate of the universe is at hand.

Kal-El arrives on Earth-2 to see what is going on, after hearing Kal-L’s scream of “Lois.” As is his nature, he offers to help. Kal-L is beyond hearing him. He is blaming him for having brought the “corruption” of Earth-1 to Earth-2, and causing Lois’s death. In a nice full page spread reminiscent of the cover of Superman’s first comic appearance, he attacks Kal-El with a car. There battle wages, a battle of the most powerful men on two earths.

At Alex’s tower, Alex observes this. Psycho-Pirate asks, “The Lois Lane of Earth-two has died?” Alex’s response: “She was never going to survive. A price for the future. I will miss her,” to which Psycho-Pirate says “I sense very little sorrow in you, Alex.” They continue to talk and Alex reveals that he is prepared to write off Superboy-Prime as well, as having “served his purpose. I have everything I need.”

Folks, take it from me, when the Psycho-Pirate is acting as the conscience of a group, there is an issue. Alex is well around the bend by this point.

Wonder Woman of Earth-1 and Wonder Woman of Earth-2 are talking. Diana Prince, Earth-2’s Wonder Woman explains that Superman needs WW’s help, regardless of whether or not he wants it. She also tells her to accept what might be her most challenging role of all, not ambassador, not warrior, not goddess, but human being. After the conversation, Wonder Woman ends up over Metropolis on Earth-2. She watches the battle between the Supermen, and eventually intervenes by lassoing Kal-L. He settles down enough to talk, and removes the lasso, explaining that it isn’t needed for him to tell the truth, “That’s what people from my earth do.”

They debate the flaws in the new earth, and Kal-L explains that they had to bring back the perfect earth, HIS earth. Kal-El cuts through that argument by pointing out that a perfect earth doesn’t need a Superman. Kal-L takes off.

Back at Alex’s tower, he discusses the different people he has captured and why. One of them is Breach, the Captain Atom of Earth-8 which would have also been home to Green Lantern Kyle Rainer, and the current Firestorm and Huntress. This explains why Breach’s origin struck me as being such a lame retread of Captain Atom’s – it was a retread of Captain Atom’s origin.

Batman’s crew to take down Brother Eye come together, and Alex begins to sift through the realities. Kal-L comes to a realization – Alex has been playing him. Alex reveals the reason he has kept up the disguise of what he is doing because he needed him alive. “Everything comes from Superman.” They show Kal-L in various incarnations of Superman, from Stan Lee’s Just Imagine, to Red Son, to the Arthurian Knight version and even his brief identity of “Nova” from back when he lost his powers and decided to fight crime anyway. All of the infinite earths are back.

Meanwhile, Nightwing tries to gather heroes at Titan’s Tower for an assault on Alex at his tower. While he does this, we see scenes of heroes all over on the verge of being overwhelmed and unable to answer his call. No one answers the call. Nightwing stands alone in Titan’s Tower, and looks, for a moment, defeated. Then, Superboy shows up. Nightwing and Superboy – just the two of them, are off to defeat the greatest threat to the universe.

Next, in Japan, Flash emerges from the speed force. But it is Barry Allen’s costume. He is a herald of bad news. They couldn’t hold him… Superboy-Prime is back, and wearing a costume in some ways reminiscent of the Anti-Monitor’s body armor. I have a feeling that last fight with the Titans, Doom Patrol and JSA was just the start… Now things are going to get UGLY.

Overall, this was a decent episode. The two Supermen realize they are on the same side, Alex reveals the depths of his lack of caring about human life, even those who are close to him, and Superboy-Prime returns, looking like he is ready to kick more ass and take names. The series really feels like it is heading towards its climax now.

I still think that the series could have benefited from more space to tell the more human sides of the story in more detail, but there is one thing for sure, it doesn’t have that decompressed feeling that some people complain about in today’s comics.

Something that is interesting here is that the theme of the corruption of the “Post-Crisis Earth” is just waved away here with a “well, your world isn’t perfect either.” I would have liked a little more examination of why things went the way they did. It might be Geoff Johns’ way of saying that we live in darker times now, and the things that faced the Golden Age heroes were just as serious then (some of these guys were fighting Nazis, after all) as questions of personal freedom, identity theft and such are now. The problems they are facing may have changed, but that is natural.

Anyhow, stay tuned for the recap of issue #6, coming up shortly.