Review: Action Comics #889

With War of the Supermen just a few days away, we have basically reached the end of the 'Year Without Superman'. And that means we have reached the ending of the Nightwing and Flamebird storyline in Action Comics. What started as a seemingly simple action story - 2 heroes hunting down 6 fugitives - somehow mutated over the last 14 issues to an analysis of Kryptonian mythology and deities.

Action Comics #889 had the tough task of wrapping up this story in a short 22 pages. And there were 2 levels of this story to complete - the 'on the ground' story of heroes trying to stop the runaway Rao and the 'Kryptonian gods' story of Nightwing/Flamebird/Vohc. Both are big plots with big moments and, as such, I expected a big finale. Unfortunately, this arc ended with a bit of a whimper rather than a bang. I have seen understated endings in massive stories like this too many times to count ... the punched hole into a new reality in Akira, the school stage morality play in Neon Genesis:Evangelion, Supergirl's hug of the Carnivean in Supergirl #50 (vol 3), even the miracle machine ending of Final Crisis ... and I usually feel disappointed. And to be honest, I felt a little disappointed here too.


Back in the sands of the Middle East, combined heroes from the JSA and JLA as well as Flamebird just can't seem to get anywhere in their efforts against the Rao construct.

In fact, the 'godling' is so full of energy that he begins to form a gravity well, a sort of small big bang, which will destroy the world. As the heroes swarm around Rao, Flamebird and Vohc continue to spout venom at each other.


When things seem their worst, and some of the heroes are in danger, Chris shows up as Nightwing manifested and helps in the rescue efforts.

There are some interesting things here. While we have seen a lot of the Thara/Flamebird relationship, this is the first time we have really seen Chris/Nightwing. We read Nightwing's thoughts ... about how his 'hiding in the shadows' of the universe means he sees and knows all ... and how that sudden ascension in Chris is dismaying and difficult for the young Kryptonian. I like how the visual of Nightwing includes multiple shadows of himself lingering around.


Vohc continues to fume like a jealous school boy, how Flamebird spurning him will lead him to destroy the universe. While Wonder Woman and Dr. Fate try to beat the logorrhea out of him, Nightwing and Flamebird (the deities) are finally reunited. This reunion was a major part of the undercurrent of this title. Remember, in the past, their reunion has always led to either ruination or one of the two dying.

In the meantime, Rao final begins to manifest a 'black hole' like phenomenon around his body. The Kryptonian heroes fly into the swirling mass to get to Rao's 'twisted diseased heart', a dying collapsing star. Vohc is also in here and the three skirmish more.

Are those Rao's ribs? Are we literally in his body?


And so we come to the understated ending to this god-war.

While Nightwing hangs back for some reason, Flamebird dunks Vohc in the internal red sun, burning away the Vohc persona from Jax-Ur. Throughout the fight, Vohc continues to sound like a petulant kid with a crush. Even his dying words are that he just wanted something for himself, something that he could create that Flamebird would not destroy.

While I know that other 'gods' are often portrayed as overly emotional adolescents (the Greek Gods for instance), this tantrum seemed like a pretty silly reason to try to destroy the universe.


And then the second part of the understated ending. Chris/Nightwing simply absorbs the 'sun' threatening the Earth. So much for that threat. Seems like a little bit of a cop-out. But without it's heart, Rao simply falls.

Again, there is some interesting bits here. Nightwing casts the Vohc being and the sun into the new Phantom Zone. In fact, that explains the recreation of the Zone, as the Kryptonian 'builder god' goes back to building.

Nightwing also says that somehow he has changed, has become different. This might explain why the outcome of this reunion is somewhat different.


With the god-war over, Nightwing and Flamebird become Chris and Thara once more and share a kiss. Unlike the doomed lovers before, this Nightwing and Flamebird will be 'never apart'.

Since Kryptonians are still illegal on Earth, the JSA shoo them away.

The story ends somewhat ominously with Luthor somehow on scene grabbing samples of Rao.

So what can I say. Does this ending satisfy? I feel like this whole investigation into Kryptonian mythology was sort of a left-hand turn from where this arc started. And I don't know if the motivations of the gods translated well to this Rao-battle. And I don't know if some of the questions I was hoping to be answered ... Chris's age jumps, the new Phantom Zone ... have been answered.

On top of that, the understated ending with both threats sort of fading away seemed ... well ... underwhelming. And frankly, it wasn't the ending of Nightwing and Flamebird's story. They fly off happily; their story ends in War of the Supermen.

I looked back at my reviews of the first couple of issues of this run, the blood-soaked action-packed battles with Tor-An and Ursa. They were over-the-top giddy fun. These last issues just seem to have become a bit bogged down.

There was a surprise in the Captain Atom back-up feature when an ogre who had been fighting alongside the hero revealed himself to be Mordru. When Atom realizes that he has aided a villain, Mordru says that the morals of Earth are different than those of Sorcerer's World ... what is evil on Earth isn't necessarily evil here.

It does remove Mirabai from the War of the Supermen story. It seems a little off that she was ubiquitous in earlier issues of the New Krypton world only to be removed in the back-up feature.

I don't envy the writers here. Greg Rucka and Eric Trautmann brought the story up to the level of deities. Sometimes I wonder if writing about near omnipotent beings makes a tidy conclusion impossible. The art throughout the book ... from Alex Garner's spectacular cover, the Pere Perez' smooth lines, to Cafu's slick work ... was great.

I do hope we get to see some sort of conclusion to the Thara/Chris story in War of the Supermen. If they are only in the background and fade from the DCU, I'll be unhappy.

Overall grade: C

Review: Action Comics #888

Action Comics #888 is the penultimate chapter of this title's Year Without Superman. Are we speeding towards the end of the Flamebird/Nightwing story arc? Or like the ersatz Rao in the desert, are we plodding along.

I have been as big a proponent of this long storyline as anyone, mostly because I have come to like the complexity of the Thara/Flamebird character. But the truth is with the amazing action happening in Last Stand, this story feel disconnected right now. And as a result, my enthusiasm for it has waned a bit.

My fear is that the resolution of these characters' stories will fall flat and color how I ultimately perceive the whole arc.



With the fake Rao strolling through the desert and with Chris transported into the Phantom Zone, Jax-Ur/Vohc gloats over his presumed victory.

It seems like the Kryptonian gods have the same feel as the Greek gods of myth, motivated by mundane human issues rather than being above them. The motivation for this devastation? Vohc's jealousy and unrequited love.

I did like that the narrator here is Vohc the Breaker ... not Jax-Ur. We are hearing straight from the demigod himself.



Conventional weapons and Flamebird's attacks seem to feed Rao rather than hurt him. And with India and Pakistan poised to fire their nukes at him, Flamebird is thrilled to see the JSA arrive to help.

But even their combined attacks don't seem to produce any results. If anything Rao seems to get stronger.



In the meantime, Chris wonders through the Phantom Zone until he finally comes face to face with the Nightwing entity.

The Nightwing implies that he has not been active, has not manifested in Chris, because of his separation from Flamebird. Let's face the true Nightwing has been a non-entity in this story so far.

I sincerely hope that we get a little exposition about this Phantom Zone. Remember, the original Zone crumbled at the beginning of New Krypton. (That event has never been explained.) I hope the creation of this "new" Phantom Zone (or the re-establishment of the old Phantom Zone) is explained.



Finally, Rao takes some damage when Wonder Woman shows up and takes a few whacks at Rao's eye with her axe. Combine that with some Alan Scott power and Rao finally falls.

It is enough to shock Vohc, appearing in his natural form.



Chris is able to look on and realizes that he needs to get back and help Thara.

The connection between Chris and Nightwing has always been there it seems; Chris has always been 'more than Kryptonian'.

Now what does that mean? That Chris, conceived in the Zone, is different and therefore a suitable vessel for Nightwing? Or that Nightwing has always been part of Chris.

With Thara in trouble, Chris makes the decision to merge with Nightwing and truly become his avatar.



And it is a good thing. Rao gets back on his feet and India and Pakistan decide not to wait any longer. They fire their nuclear missiles at the false god, a move that would only fuel Rao more.

The warheads disarm before they can hit ... disarmed by the suddenly present and fully manifested Nightwing.

So where are we?

Well we are one issue away from a conclusion. And we have a lot to get through.

We need to see Jax-Ur and Rao defeated.
We need some explanation on Chris' condition.
We need some explanation about the Phantom Zone.

And we need the ultimate resolution of the Nightwing/Flamebird relationship ... both the gods and Thara/Chris. One of them is destined to die right?

It seems like a lot to get through in one issue. Frankly, I'm worried.

One thing I know already is that I have come to really appreciate Pere Perez' art. I feel his stuff has improved, become more polished over his time on Action. I hope he finds work somewhere else soon.



I know I have basically ignored reviewing the Captain Atom second feature in this book.

The short version is Captain Atom battles Mirabai and it looks like he has won. Cafu's art is stunning.

Overall grade: B/B-

Review: Adventure Comics #10

As an amateur comic historian, I have really loved how Adventure Comics has felt the last couple of months, how it has been rolled into the super-family of books. The last two issues have starred Superboy, the Legion, and Supergirl. The last several issues have had multiple stories.

And the original Adventure Comics? Well there were long and storied runs for Superboy, the Legion, and Supergirl. The original Adventure was often an anthology series with multiple stories in every issue. So the current make-up of the book is a nice (even if unintentional) homage.

The current book continues to flesh out the entertaining Last Stand of New Krypton storyline. As with the last two issues, this issue pushes the main storyline forward while adding some depth to the ancillary characters.

Top it off with another great cover by Joe Quinones and you have another satisfying issue.

Now I have been effusive in my praise of the Eric Trautmann/Pier Gallo Car-Vex story and this issue's chapter gives us a phenomenal conclusion. So much of this review will focus on that story, the strongest part of the book.



The first half of the book concentrates on the main storyline of Last Stand, the battle for Kandoe on Brainiac's ship. It is something of a creative hodge-podge ... written by James Robinson and Sterling Gates and drawn by Eduardo Pansica and Travis Moore. They all have been on the prior Last Stand issues of Adventure albeit on seperate story segments. But with all the plots converging onto Brainiac's ship, the creative teams have merged into one segment.
Remember, the last Last Stand chapter ended with two cliffhangers. One was Superman, powerless after a blast of red sun energy, plummeting to his presumed death. The other was the rebottling of Kandor and General Zod's enigmatic 'he's lost' comment about Brainiac.

The first cliffhanger is answered pretty quickly.

Superman is grabbed before he splatters by a flying Brainiac drone. Of course, it really isn't Brainiac. It's Quislet controlling the robot.

And in classic Quislet fashion, the device cannot tolerate his presence for too long. Rather than simply disintegrating the object as he did during the Levitz years, the drone explodes.

With the red sun effect ended, Superman races to re-enter the fight.


Meanwhile on Brainiac's ship. Superboy continues to fight with the Legion. During the fight however, Conner gets separated and ends up face to face with his nemesis Lex Luthor.

In a nice nod to continuity, I like how Conner angrily brings up the recent Smallville events as yet another reason to pound Luthor. What Lex did to Lena in this very title was unbelievably cruel. And he did it right in front of Conner. That memory should be fresh ... should evoke rage in Superboy.

Anger only gets you so far though. After a healthy slug of Green K, Superboy is struck by the weapon Lex is carrying.

When Conner awakens ...



He finds himself in Kandor. Nice perspective shot in this splash page. Life in that bottle must be terrifying. Imagine always seeing giant robot heads looming over you.

But giant Brainiac drones isn't the only thing Conner sees.

Unfortunately, he also sees Mon-El, trussed up and captured by Brainiac. We do get a peek into the fevered dreams of Mon-El who seems tormented by his xenophobic Daxamite heritage and his time in the Phantom Zone. Alas, we know he is probably headed back there.

Unsure of what to do next, Conner seeks out General Zod.

Zod initially brushes Conner off. This forces Conner to show the General that he has more in his arsenal than just his inherent Kryptonian powers (which are somehow negated in the bottle). Conner still has his tactile telekinesis which he uses to toss Zod around.

Zod then shows why he is the military leader he is. Now aware of Conner's abilities, he adapts his fighting style and makes short work of Superboy, besting him easily.

One thing I didn't like in this scene was Zod seizing military control of the city from Alura ... accomplished in one panel. This happened after such a big deal was made of Alura's standing up to Zod in the last issue, her maintaining control of the city.

And we finally learn why Zod seemed pleased when Brainiac bottled Kandor and took it on board. Turns out Zod has a handful of devices which can counteract the Brainiac shrinking technology. (Okay, it comes a bit out of left field but it has been said many times that Zod was obsessed with besting Brainiac. Developing this tech would be part of that obsession. So I was okay with it.)

When Brainiac brought the city on board, it was like bringing the Trojan Horse into the city. Now Zod and his hand-picked elite soldiers are enlarged and free on board. This 'Brainiac Revenge Squad' is ready to fight. Yet another nice turn of events, another enticing cliffhanger.

Now if only someone could explain to me my odd infatuation with Ursa.

But the winner of this book the last few issues has been the Trautmann/Gallo look at sleeper agent Car-Vex and the slow erosion of her morality.

We have seen how she went from overworked drug-addicted laborer to repentant accidental killer to soldier in Zod's army. I have talked about how she has traded one form of slavery for another when she began to blindly follow Zod's orders.

What is interesting for me is watching her lose her moral compass. Back in the zone, she truly grieved the loss of the children's lives in her care. And now she is willing to sacrifice her friend Quex-Ul to advance her mission.

But it is easy to see how Zod could bring her into the field. Her life on Krypton had no meaning. Her life in the zone was literally intangible. Here he asks her if she wants purpose ... if she wants to be something bigger. Her answer ... of course ... is yes.


For those who questioned how Car-Vex could sneak into Project 7734, how General Lane could let her get so close , the answer is easy. He knew she was Kryptonian! He did it on purpose. And now that she has led them to Quex-Ul, she is expendable. Lane turns the tables.

Pumped with the same power-sapping bacteria that Quex-Ul was, Car-Vex knows she has a short amount of time with powers left. Realizing this isn't going to end well, she decides to make it as messy as possible.

This is an absolutely brutal sequence of her wading through the Project's troops. It also shows what one Kryptonian, actively depowering, can do against the best Earth troops. If one Kryptonian like Car-Vex can slaughter this many men so quickly ... how the heck is Earth going to challenge them all in a war?

But some part of the old Car-Vex is still in her. Her internal monologue betrays her. She needs to continue to convince herself that she is an unfeeling stone, that she is not murdering. I think she protests too much.

Just a beautifully brutal scene.



As she descends deeper in to the Project, she discovers Nadira and Az-Rel captured, powerless, and tortured. It was Nadira who tipped off Lane on who 'Officer Romundi' really was.

The ultimate fate of Nadira and Az-Rel was something of a loose end for me so I was glad to see that wrapped up.

But in the end, it is over for Car-Vex. Completely depleted, she gets eliminated up close by Lane himself. Executed.

This story was so great ... tragic really. Congratulations to Trautmann for giving such depth to a minor character in such a short time. We have seen Car-Vex's journey from slave to zealot to war statistic.

Pier Gallo's art meshes so nicely with the story. His Phantom Zone scenes are so clean, with no shading or rough edges. Compare that to the grittier look of the Earth scenes, maybe channeling the grimy nature of war? Ironic that the wraith-like relam of the Phantom Zone has more concrete linework. Regardless of the whys, the slight difference in styles works wonderfully.

This story is one of the high points of 2010 so far.

And this was another entertaining issue in the Last Stand arc.

Overall grade: B+
Overall grade (Car-Vex three-parter): A+

Review: Adventure Comics #9

Adventure Comics #9 came out last week and represented the next chapter in the Last Stand of New Krypton.

This issue continues the three shorter stories started last month, touching on different aspects of the bigger story. With Adventure in flux, with no clear 'star' on this book with Superboy moving on, this is the perfect place for these stories. And Last Stand has enough moving parts that looking at the periphery can be as much fun as looking at the main story.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the fine Joe Quinones' cover which showcases Supergirl nicely. I like her expression as she sees the massive clawed hand reaching over her shoulder.


The first story is written by James Robinson and srawn by Travis Moore. This looks at the events of Last Stand from the 31st century viewpoint.

As seen last issue, the temporal anomalies of the 21st century are tearing apart the future. Brainiac 5 is doing his best to come up with some way to stop the carnage.

All along we have been told that the event the Legion is trying to stop is the destruction of Brainiac's ship and the captured bottle cities. Now it is revealed that the event is the death of Superman! That's very interesting.

There is a touch of 'Crisis' here as well ... heroes on a satellite rushing to save the universe as galaxies wink out of existence.


While the Legionnaires realize they need Brainiac 5 to figure out the answer, he continues to deal with his family lineage and how his ancestor is responsible for this catastrophe.

Robinson reviews the whole Brainiac family tree and I love his take on REBELS leader Vril Dox and the destructive nature of his guile, how much good was done by Brainiac 2 but devastation always followed in his wake. Robinson also talks about Lyrl and his future. It is rumored Brainiac 3 dies at the hands of one of the following: Lobo, Atrocitus, Ragman, Gorilla Grodd, or his father. That is great ... quite a wide array of power levels there.


Despite all his trepidation in faciing off against his evil ancestor, Brainy decides to face his fears, face his heritage, and so he uses the powers of the Legion to send himself back in time. He is send back just as space/time collapses on itself.

It is an interesting viewpoint. We don't always see the internal motivations of Brainy other than his insatiable thirst for knowledge and his need to always be proven right. So to read how the title Brainiac weighs on him is something fresh.

Moore's art is solid if unspectacular. He does a good job of making the multiple Legionnaires look like individuals.


The second story continues to current timeline's story with Superboy and the Legion fighting in the trenches of New Krypton.

Written by Sterling Gates and drawn by Eduardo Pansica, the story focuses on Supergirl and Superboy's efforts to get the guilds of New Krypton united to fight the common foe.

The story opens up with a nice 2 page splash showing the the ongoing destruction on the planet. I always chuckle to see Matter Eater Lad engaged in battle. Somehow tens of thousands of Kryptonians have been killed but the guy eating the robot (!) remains unscathed. Too funny.


But while the Legion are able to function as a team, the populace of New Krypton continues to fight in segregated clusters.

The matter comes to a head when the Labor Guild asks for help from the Science Guild and are rebuffed. The Scientists think that attacking Brainiac's ship is more important than saving their fellow citizens.

When Superboy tries to help the situation, advising some of the Science Guild to stay and aid the Laborers, he is chastised. It speaks volumes to the deeply rooted prejudice of the planet that 'lackguild' exists as a slur of some sort.


I don't know exactly how I feel about the Legion's response. Tellus decides he will try a mass mind-wipe or telepathic nudge to get the Kryptonians to put aside their prejudices and fight as one. And the best person ... the best mind ... to focus that through is Supergirl who was raised in that culture but has moved past its inequality.

It is a nice nod to Supergirl and how much she has grown as a character. Despite being raised in that culture, she sees it is wrong.

But isn't Tellus plan little more than brainwashing? I am a bit conflicted. More than this, the Kryptonians need a leader to rally everyone. I still say that person is Superman.


The plan works slightly, with the Kryptonians closest to Tellus seeing the errors in their ways and then fighting as a team.

Tellus thinks the telepathic race the Lanothians (the city Mon-El just saved) could use their combined mind powers to change the minds of the whole Kryptonian race. With the battle raging on, the Legion, Superboy and Supergirl take the fight to the satellite.

Hmmm ...

Chances that the Lanothians are the ancestors of Saturn Girl? 100%
Chances their city gets enlarged on the Saturn moon currently circling New Krypton? 100%
Chances that moon gets moved back to Saturn? 100%
Chances that happens because New Krypton explodes? 75% I still think the planet is doomed.

The story otherwise continues to let Supergirl shine in this big arc. Gates does a nice job showing how high Supergirl is regarded by the other members of the team.

Lastly, Pansica's are is very good. He is the artist on one of the War of the Supermen issues.


But much like last issue, for me the last story in the book, the in-depth look at Zod's sleeper agent Car-Vex, was the best.

Car-Vex has just wormed her way into General Lane's good graces by throwing Quex-Ul to the wolves. We hear Car-Vex's thoughts as a voice-over, how she is lamenting the fact that she needs to betray the one person who showed her kindness in the Phantom Zone.

Her class, being part of the Labor Guild, is such a big part of her story. She was less than nothing on the planet Krypton. But in the Phantom Zone, as Zod points out, Guilds are meaningless. After being little more than a slave ... a tool ... on New Krypton, of course Car-Vex is going to listen to Zod. As he says, he is offering her a purpose.


So at Zod's command, Car-Vex gives up Quex-Ul allowing the Human Defense Corps to hunt him down.

Here we see yet another way that Kryptonians are suddenly vulnerable. After being 'tagged', Quex-Ul is murdered by a bullet to the head.


Car-Vex has a hard time dealing with her emotions after the kill, conflicted about murdering her friend versus obeying orders.

Here is the line that resonated to me. She says 'I am a weapon in my General's arsenal'. Despite thinking that her place in Zod's army has given her a purpose, she really remains a tool. She equates herself to a device in the hands of Zod. She has traded one type of slavery for another. She is deluding herself. And you can see the weight on her soul.

Eric Trautmann does a great job in creating some depth in this bit character in a short time. The fact that I can sympathize with this character says a lot. Pier Gallo does a great job on art keeping the mood dark and murky. In some panels, his work reminded me of some early Howard Chaykin.

So overall this issue's stories all worked on their own. But they also bolstered the overall Last Stand storyline. I thought this worked. It looks like this three-story format continues next issue.

Overall grade: A

Review: Action Comics #886

With the War of the Supermen coming in May, the Nightwing/Flamebird story needs to reach it's conclusion. Action Comics #886 came out last week and provided some much needed back story for the Kryptonian demi-gods and eased the approach to the finish line. There were some nice revelations here and a decent cliffhanger.

The overall story has detoured a bit from the initial concept of 'Zod's sleepers' to this more religious storyline. Sure, Jax-Ur is here as a villain. But a couple of other sleepers haven't been mentioned as we have explored the Thara/Chris relationship more closely these last few issues. I wonder if Greg Rucka ran out of time because of some of cross-overs that intersected in this title like they have in Supergirl.

As I have said before, I have enjoyed Action Comics and the Thara/Chris story. So I am interested in seeing how this whole thing ends. I don't see them anywhere on the War of the Supermen covers. Do either Chris or Thara survive? If both die, I hope their passing is reflected in the other super-titles. Will Superman and Lois mourn as though they have lost a son? Will Kara mourn yet another loss in her personal life?


Much of this issue is exposition. Thara gives Chris a sort-of virtual reality Kryptonian bible. With it, Chris is able to literally enter the story of Rao, Flamebird, and Nightwing.

In a nice touch, Pere Perez does the art for the current storyline while Fernando Dagnino pencils the 'Book of Rao' pages.

Dagnino's art has a more visceral ... a more rough energetic feel to it which better suits the chaotic and fire-filled Rao pages than Perez' polished look.

The story unfolds as the Kryptonian creation story. In the beginning there was nothing and from that nothingness came Rao. He then creates the universe with Krypton as his 'jewel', his epicenter.

After creating the worlds and galaxies, Rao then gives out slivers of his power and creates a whole system of gods, demi-gods, titans, etc. As readers, we have only heard of Flamebird and Nightwing with any depth. It makes sense that there would be other gods in the Kryptonian pantheon but who knew there would be that many! 14 major deities and 211 demi-gods including Nightwing and Flamebird.

Flamebird is the goddess of rebirth. She is shown to raze the landscapes so that an even more glorious world can come to be.

And so, for the first time we read about Vohc The Builder. He is the creation god for Krypton, building the world and all in it. And each time he creates something for the world, Flamebird eventually destroys it. Her job is the purge the world. Vohc's job is to build an even better one.

I don't envy Vohc. His task sounds like Sisyphus. Nothing he made ever lasts. And yet, he seems pleased with his life and in love with Flamebird. Her actions spur him to even greater creations.


Vohc finds Nightwing on the periphery of creation and befriends him. Nightwing is described as a lonely presence, created by Rao to protect the world from evil. But in doing that task, constantly surrounded by the dark side of the world, Nightwing has become withdrawn and solitary.

Vohc extends his hand in friendship and eventually introduces Nightwing to Flamebird. The two fall in love, the darkness of Nightwing complementing the bright light of Flamebird. I love Chris' response here as he recognizes the primal nature of their love, the passion. I am sure he recognizes some of that within himself and his feelings towards Thara.

Of course, Vohc is taken aback by this. He has always loved Flamebird; it was unrequited, but it was love. In hopes of winning her, he creates a near perfect effigy of his love for her. When he shows it to her, she does what she does ... destroying it. With that act, Vohc turns to evil.


Vohc renames himself Vohc the Breaker and states this his purpose thereafter will be to destroy. And the first thing to destroy will be the love between Nightwing and Flamebird. Vohc creates a crystal rod which traps Nightwing in a 'phantom state' forever seperate from Flamebird.

And with that the story ends.

There are themes and elements within the Flamebird/Vohc/Nightwing story that echo with current events. This 'phantom prison' Vohc creates sounds like the Phantom Zone. And Chris was trapped within the Zone much like Nightwing is. In fact, Chris implies that he thinks the Nightwing entity is still trapped in the Phantom Zone (or some phantom state since the Zone has been destroyed). That may be why the Nightwing has never manifested within Chris. It is still imprisoned somewhere.

I can imagine that Chris finally manifesting the Nightwing spirit might be the climax to this story, happening in the last issue of this arc.


The passion we saw within the Book of Rao becomes evident on the physical plane. Thara and Chris finally consummate their love.

Remember, Jax-Ur recognized Thara as the Flamebird a few issues back and made a deal with her for Chris' life. Here Jax-Ur tells Flamebird (not Thara) that 'the bill's come due'. There is much here that I liked.

For one, it is now hinted at that Jax-Ur is the vessel for the manifestation of Vohc. It is the Flamebird that yells at him 'have you no love for me at all?'. Second, if that is true, how great is the love of Flamebird that she would deal with the devil like this? Has her passion blinded her? Has she missed the Nightwing so much that she would forsake the future for a few more moments in the present?


Jax-Ur tells the Flamebird to lead Chris and Thara to his lab in the desert.

Thara is clearly unaware of the actions of the Flamebird. In fact, she says the entity hasn't been talking to her much the last few days? Is that guilt on the part of the Flamebird? Can a demi-god even feel guilt?


Within the labs, Jax-Ur springs his trap. He incapacitates Chris by having sunstone crystals grow from his body. It seems his 'cure' of Chris also came with a side effect.

Crystals growing from a Kryptonian's body? For me, it brought back some bad memories of the 'crystal hell' Supergirl.



Jax-Ur then activates his device, bringing forth 'god' ... I presume Rao.

So there was a lot going on in this issue, even if the bulk of it was written in text as the Book of Rao. Certainly, the backstory of the two demi-gods helps flesh out the Thara/Chris relationship and the some of the events that have unfolded during this run.

I also think that this story will end with Jax-Ur/Vohc recreating the Phantom Zone. Could it be that it was the rescue of Chris, the removal of 'Nightwing' that led to the destruction of the Zone?

There are only 3 issues left to this story and I have enjoyed it more than I thought I would when it first started. So kudos to Greg Rucka and now Eric Trautmann for weaving a deeper story (religious manifestations, primal love) in the standard framework of good guys hunting bad guys.

I also want to say again how much I like Pere Perez' clean art style. He has really stabilized the art and feel for this title since becoming the regular artist.

Overall grade: B/B+