STORMWATCH #0

[ STORMWATCH SALE ] 

Look out, here come some new history! What was once hidden is no longer a mystery. Well I don't think so anyway. Although Apollo shops at ebay. For a strange tale that appears quite blistery. Plus one created by none other than Writer: Peter Milligan; Artist: Will Conrad; plus Publisher: DC Comics in October 2012. Quick, bid before it's too late!!!

So what’s the STORY morning glory?

Try to imagine your parents waking you up in the middle of the night, and then telling you that they found you on their doorstep one morning with a dead dolphin tied to your leg.

Boy-oh-boy! That must be a very hard story for you to swallow, mustn't it? This strange tale. And in many ways reminds me of this issue of Stormwatch entitled 'Crash Course' -- a perverse tale of times past.  

• Picture the scene, your a 'century baby' called Jenny Quantum, and out of the blue a once dead member of your 'family' -- Adam One -- suddenly pops up to tell you about some 'communal history'.
• You see, many-many years ago Stormwatch was known by another name -- The Demon Knights -- and one of your predecessors -- called Janeen -- was part of this team too.
• In fact, for all the incarnations of this 'secluded task force' they've been a 'Jenny' and an 'Adam' in toe.
• Though let's hope that this still is the case when they plan to pit wits with the Justice League in the future, huh? Or else their will be a lot of trouble for one and all.    

To be continued...

What is the most memorable SENTENCE OR CONVERSATION spoken in this issue?

I thought it funny when Adam showed Jenny the vision of his younger / older self kissing one of her predecessors, prompting them to say...

ADAM: You see, brute force isn't the only way. Sometimes there is room for tenderness.

JENNY: Pass the vomit bowl.

ADAM: You'll understand when you're older. By then I'll be younger, and might not understand.

Ha! Funny yet revealing at the same time. The best type of exposition.

What was the BEST thing about this issue?

There was a lot to like about this tale. For example: (1) The Demon Knight was the precursor to Storwatch? Wow! That sure was a turn up for the books. (2) Reading the joint evolution of Jenny Quantum and Stormwatch through the ages was a nice touch in retrospect. (3) Is Adam One actually Merlin? Oh! Talk about a shock to the system. Though...

What was the WORST thing about this issue?

... in the same breath, I have to say that there wasn't no finality to if this was actually Adam or not. He just turned up. Told Jenny a tale. And p*ssed off before his presence could be expanded upon.

That was a shame I thought. And something that needs some more clarification next issue.

What was the most CREATIVE thing about this issue?

STORY: Unlike some of the other zero issues I've read so far, this one was both expansive and revealing, without it feeling too fleeting in content. I put this down to the way Peter broke up the overall narrative with a segway here or a pithy comment there, or otherwise the book would be one long montage sequence.

ART: I found that Will Conrad did a pretty bang up job on this book you know. Nothing too detailed. Agreed. But when you take into consideration how many different characters he drew and how many different styles he had to adhere to, I'd say that he really pulled one out of the bag with his art. Good one Will. Keep it up.  

If you had to CAST TWO CHARACTERS in this comic book, who would they be and why?

JENNY: If Rachel Castro can work with Kevin Smith and Ben Affleck on 'Jersey Girl', then I am sure that she could work with a bunch of surly covert mercenaries with no problem at all. 

ADAM ONE: OK, so if Adam is supposed to be Merlin, that would mean he would have to have an English accent, right? Jude Law has an English accent. Plus he has a beard too. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?

If this issue had a MOVIE TAG LINE, what would it be?

From Demon Knights To Stormwatch -- The New 52 Is Going Places Don't You Know.

If this issue were a MOVIE, an OBJECT, or a piece of MUSIC, what would that be and why? 

Without giving too much away, this issue reminded me of this zany YouTube video starring Christopher Walken. Apologies for the quality of the clip.

A bed-time story with a rather edgy twist to it.

FINAL thoughts...

There was a question in this story that I put off commenting on until I arrived at this section.  

Why are Stormwatch spying on the Justice League?

Well, from my own perspective, this new 52 hullabaloo is starting to look like a giant patchwork quilt with different scenarios appearing all over the place. Over time certain patches within this quilt will start to take shape (like the Demon Knights association for example), until the 'bigger picture' has some finality to it.

Also, do you remember way back in Flashpoint when that mysterious woman said to Barry that the DC Universe and the Wildstorm Universe were deliberately split so they would be powerless to defend themselves from an up and coming battle? Well, do you think that Stormwatch knows about this? And that is why they are sussing the Justice League out to ascertain why they need them in the future? Or maybe the opposite is true? And they don't know about this impending situation and presume that the League is another villain in their midst?

Hmmm? Time will tell I suppose. Time will tell.

MARKS out of 10? 9