DCnU - OMAC #1 from DC's New 52

Keith Giffen and Dan DiDio wrote OMAC, with Giffen also handling the pencils and Scott Koblish doing the inking duties.

This book is a respectful tribute to the early days of comics, with a focus on Jack "King" Kirby's style. Kirby was the original creator of the concept of OMAC, the One Man Army Corps. The art is clearly modeled after Kirby's right down to the "Kirby krackle."

This issue contains an introduction to the supporting cast, and a fair amount of action. The issue I had was that OMAC doesn't have a lot of personality, which made it hard to identify with the lead character. I'm hoping over time this resolves itself, as Giffen has always been a writer who does a great job with characterization.

Which is also where the tribute to Kirby was a little less well-executed. When I think Kirby and DC, I think of characters who deliver speeches mid-battle. With OMAC essentially being an automaton here, there just wasn't the ability to get that kind of character-driven stuff inserted into the fight.

Unfortunately, for me, this meant that the whole comic being a battle for OMAC was still not that compelling. It was good to see the role that Cadmus plays in the DCnU, and nice to see that Dubbliex is still around.

The bookend bits - Jody Robbins and Tony Jay at the front, and Kevin Kho at the end were both pretty entertaining, and once Giffen DiDio bring that same personality to the main character, or shift the focus more to the impact OMAC has on the lives of Kevin and those around him, this will be a solid book.

Until then, this book could slide off of my pull list.

And our mysterious cloack-and-hooded Lady in Red from Flashpoint in this book? Page 6 of the digital version, bottom left of the page, in the crowd scene.