Table of Contents Show
Jack Black once sang, “you can’t kill the metal.” As it turns out, Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo couldn’t agree more. Back for their epic encore to rock the DC universe, Dark Nights Death Metal #1 is here and it’s the culmination of years of joint storytelling over the course of several different series, most notably Batman books, but this time though, the focus has shifted to Wonder Woman.
Dark Nights Death Metal #1 is written by Scott “ Hallowed Be Thy Name” Snyder and drawn by Greg “Painkiller” Capullo, with inks by Jonathan “Motorbreath” Glapion, colors by FCO “Fixxxer” Plascencia, and letters by Tom “Mr. Nice Guy” Napolitano. The main cover is provided by Capullo, Glapion, and Plascencia. I immediately loved the credits and how much fun they’re having.
Welcome To The New DCU
How do you top yourself after the last tour involved a Joker dragon and a baby Darkseid? Laying the DC universe to waste and raising the stakes is a hell of a start. Everything is on fire, even the Swamp Thing! Leading us onto the battlefield is none other than…Sgt. Rock?
I’ll admit, that was less than expected, but he’s handled like a parody of himself, like a hype man for the event, but his dialogue is so clunky and strange that it doesn’t really work. To counterbalance the goofy Rock, we get Wonder Woman with a chainsaw! It’s this kind of idea that dances on the precipice of silliness, which also totally works, that best represents the potential of a book like this.
Dark Knights
Much like the first time around, the Batman Who Laughs is back in Dark Nights Death Metal #1. You either love him or you hate him, but he has now ascended and simply become Sauron. He’s a character that works best the goofier you keep him, closer to the Joker than Batman. His tone occasionally clashes with other elements in the book and leaves me confused about whether or not I should be having fun or scared. He’s brought some new dark knights with him this time around, who are so much fun.
There’s a robot T-rex with the consciousness of Bruce Wayne uploaded before he died, who is incapable of throwing batarangs. Batmage looks exactly how you think he would and just really jives with Batman Who Laughs’ Middle-Earth vibe. The Dark Knights are emblematic of Snyder and Capullo’s desire to have fun here, which is the heart of the book and what will make it sink or swim for me personally. Make them wacky. Make them crazy. Make them unforgettable.
The “Anti-Crisis”
What a silly name to call something that is still, very much, a crisis. It’s almost like a marriage between an Elseworlds story met with “actual continuity.” It’s hard to take this seriously with DC, as their continuity has only gotten harder to keep straight over the years. They reshuffle their own board so often, it’s nigh impossible to keep up with. Dark Nights Death Metal will undoubtedly result in another reshuffling as well.
My two least favorite things, conceptually, in Dark Nights Death Metal #1 are this, and the idea of crisis energy. It seems like a catch-all for the more negative forces in the DC universe, which feels ultimately pointless and more like another chance to toss in the word “crisis.” It’s as if things are incapable of having any weight in the DC universe if they don’t attach crisis in some way, shape, or form. They’re a slave to the rules that they themselves created. This is a chain that really needs to break when it comes to their event books in general.
The Wally Problem
Poor poor Wally West has just not been having a good time for the last…ten years. After being wiped from existence when the new 52 started in 2011, he didn’t return until Rebirth began in 2016. But he did not return to the world he once knew, and has suffered for it ever since. It finally culminates in his character’s assassination in Heroes In Crisis and subsequent turning into a hybrid of himself and Dr. Manhattan. His being dragged into Death Metal was inevitable, but hopefully it’s to finally rid him of the stigma that’s followed him for years now and just return him to being Wally West.
Even with something as problematic as Wally is now, it’s still only part of the bigger problem, which is DC introducing Watchmen to their continuity. Doomsday Clock was a mistake, and we won’t stop seeing consequences from it for years it seems. The final Bruce Wayne is teased at the end of Dark Nights Death Metal #1, and wouldn’t you know, he has Manhattan’s famous atomic structure of hydrogen on his forehead. Reader, I physically cringed at this development.
Hope For The Future
It’s my firm belief after reading the first issue, that this event is going to reset a lot of what has plagued DC readers for years now. I hope against all hope that Wally reverts when this is over, and that any mention of Watchmen is scrubbed clean entirely.
Snyder broke down the DC universe in the lead-up to Death Metal, so now he can scour whatever doesn’t work and keep the rest and build something new from the ashes. Even if Death Metal is ultimately not that great, it will still be essential for the DC universe of tomorrow. Plus, the one-shots along the way look awesome.
The Art Of Dark Nights Death Metal #1
Capullo is in top form here, to say the least. He annihilates every page and is the central force that really makes this book a metal affair. His aesthetics make this work in a way that nobody else could do, and you can see just how much time and effort is spent on every panel. Glapion has an unreal amount of work to do here with the dark vibe of the book, but still pulls it off brilliantly.
Plascencia’s colors are dynamite, and only elevate the work of Capullo and Glapion, making it one of the best looking DC books on the shelf. The art alone is worth the price of admission if you’re looking for something dark and brutal.
Should You Read Dark Nights Death Metal #1?
It looks like there’s not a ton to love about this book, but when I tell you my jaw absolutely dropped when Batman says “rise” with the black lantern ring on, I mean it. It’s that kind of small thing that taps into the lore of the DC universe and embraces it, unafraid, that will propel me through this series.
Little moments tossed in throughout the issue like that, as well as Batman Who Laughs’ new Justice League, serve as proof to me that Snyder has more tricks up his sleeve that readers will love. Event books should be fun, and I think it’s only going to be a lot more fun as we go because there are things that do work really well here. This is only the beginning.
