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Title: JLA: Rock of Ages (Book 3) by Grant Morrison, John Dell, Howard Porter ISBN: 1-56389-416-5 Publisher: DC Comics Pub. Date: 18 May, 1998 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.05 (20 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Perhaps the best pure superhero story in years.
Comment: I admit freely that I had some problems with the Rock of Ages storyline when it was coming out in monthly segments; there was too much happening way too fast, too fast to keep up with it all. But buy this paperback and read it all at once: it's breathtaking. Porter's art is at its peak in Rock of Ages, and Morrison's writing here might be the tightest in the genre. It exemplifies what superhero fiction is really capable of.
Unlike other superhero classics, such as _Watchmen_, _Legend of the Dark Knight_, or _Kingdom Come_, Rock of Ages does not attempt to deconstruct the superhero genre; indeed, the image presented by this book is that to do so is akin to objectifying mythology. Superheroes are the icons of our time, and icons do not falter.
While your reading, take note: Rock of Ages foreshadows a future JLA story which promises to be the greatest of all. Recall, "You are only the forerunners. Prepare for the fortification of earth."
Rating: 3
Summary: Not Morrison's best work
Comment: I tend to agree more with the "reader from NYC" down below than any other, so I thought I'd give an alternate to the glowing reviews. First off--this book, #3 in Morrison's run on JLA (issues 10-15), is pretty good, but not great. I agree with NYC that this was more like two stories that were being told on top of one another, and both halves suffered because of it. I understand that the sub-narrative was important to establish the urgency of the primary narrative, but it didn't really work all that smoothly. Morrison on a bad day is better than most average writers, but still, the characterization of the JLA'ers was not great, and at no time did I really feel invested in what was going on. Also: Howard Porter's pencils contributed little to the story--I think reading Morrison's script would have been much more enjoyable. To sum up: it's worth reading, and there are some great moments, but overall it could've been better. I say this with all due respect to Mr. Morrison's proven writing ability.
Rating: 4
Summary: GREAT JLA STORY BY GRANT MORRISON
Comment: The Rock of Ages storyline, which collects issues #10-15, kicks off with an audacious claim to be the ultimate JLA adventure. It very nearly succeeds in that respect. Grant Morrison tells an engaging if sometimes confusing split-level tale concerning time travel, the philosopher's stone and a glittering cast of enemies. With a little patience, it's a quite decent adventure.
The premise is a setup for a battle royale between a Wonder Woman-less JLA (she "died" prior to this adventure) and Lex Luthor's Injustice Gang. Luthor has his hands on the philosopher's stone, a gem of incredible power that he can bend to his will. He uses it to send hard-light constructs to the JLA Watchtower to distract the league. Then the Genesis Wave hits the Earth, and various and sundry spectacular confrontations between the bad guys and the good guys ensue. To spice things up a little, Luthor has surrounded the watchtower with 12 nuclear warheads set to go off.
Of course, Batman figures out the mastermind behind the attack and plots a strike against the Injustice Gang, which includes the Joker. Metron, or an evil version of him, makes an appearance and informs the league that they have to locate the philosopher's stone and destroy it before it fall into the hands of Darkseid.
After splitting up to tackle the enemy on different fronts and having some vague, loopy adventures through time that don't really add anything of significance to the plot, Aquaman, Green Later and the Flash regroup at a point in time 15 years removed from the start of their battle. Darkseid has succeeded in taking over the Earth and destroying many of its heroes.
The three manage to achieve a pyrrhic victory over Darkseid and travel once more through time to the present, albeit aged beyond their years, in order to get a message through to the league not to destroy the stone. The hero Aztek works frantically to disarm the nukes while Batman, Martian Manhunter and Superman attack the Injustice Gang's satellite tower. Plastic Man works from inside the Injustice Gang as a counterspy, though his simply being accepted into the gang stretches credibility just a bit.
The destruction of the stone is what's responsible for this mess and for Darkseid's taking over the Earth, though exactly how it ushered in such a monumental event is unclear.
The biggest problem is keeping all the plotlines straight. They come together, pull apart and run parallel for a bit, then come back together again, but without benefit of smooth transitions.
The dialogue is at times about as subtle as a stomach pump, and the action, while eyepoppingly drawn with a generous and loving hand, is hard to follow at times, though some major action sequences are very well done. The strong visual content is one of the book's strengths. The heroes have rarely looked more powerful and heroic and just plain fantastic. The colors are deep and rich, though the women don't look quite as good as the men.
The book's most serious weaknesses are its confused plot lines and actions that don't quite make sense, such as Luthor sending hard light constructs to wreak havoc when he could have used such a powerful stone to do even worse damage, or why the time traveling leaguers would encounter a future version of Wonder Woman when she was deceased in the present.
The JLA suffers greatly from the absence of Wonder Woman, but perhaps it's nice to know how integral a player she is for the league, which really is not the same without her. However, an Injustice Gang with Luthor and the Joker, and Darkseid on the side, is too juicy to pass up. This is good old-fashioned comic book fun and a fairly compelling read in spite of the holes in the plot. Highly recommended.
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Title: JLA: New World Order (Book 1) by Grant Morrison ISBN: 156389369X Publisher: DC Comics Pub. Date: 01 April, 1997 List Price(USD): $7.95 |
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Title: JLA: Justice For All (Book 5) by Grant Morrison ISBN: 1563895110 Publisher: DC Comics Pub. Date: 01 December, 1999 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: JLA: Divided We Fall (Book 8) by Mark Waid, Bryan Hitch, J. H., III Williams, Phil Jimenez, Paul Neary ISBN: 1563897938 Publisher: DC Comics Pub. Date: 01 February, 2002 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: JLA: World War III (Book 6) by Grant Morrison, J. M. Dematteis, Howard Porter, Mark Pajarillo ISBN: 1563896184 Publisher: DC Comics Pub. Date: 01 July, 2000 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: JLA: Tower of Babel (Book 7) by Mark Waid ISBN: 156389727X Publisher: DC Comics Pub. Date: 01 August, 2001 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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