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marklpotter's review
2.0
I guess I needed more back story to jump in to this GN. I read this as a recommendation and found it rather disjointed and hard to keep up with. I'm not a huge fan of DC, or Marvel for that matter, outside of a couple of titles so it's possible that the multiple perspectives presented here had something to do with my enjoyment.
Zero Year is also a perfect representation of one of the major problems I have with the big two in comic books: tie-ins. Far too many story arcs require you to purchase multiple books in order to get the whole story. While I understand this one a small and infrequent scale, it seems to have become the norm. It smacks of nothing more than a cheap way to get people to pick up other books and I feel it lessens the overall impact of single titles. Sure a world event every now and then is great but how many have there been lately? Way too many involving way too many titles. I am burned out on it and I know other comic book readers I speak to are as well.
Zero Year is also a perfect representation of one of the major problems I have with the big two in comic books: tie-ins. Far too many story arcs require you to purchase multiple books in order to get the whole story. While I understand this one a small and infrequent scale, it seems to have become the norm. It smacks of nothing more than a cheap way to get people to pick up other books and I feel it lessens the overall impact of single titles. Sure a world event every now and then is great but how many have there been lately? Way too many involving way too many titles. I am burned out on it and I know other comic book readers I speak to are as well.
iffer's review
3.0
Response to this collection is likely dependent on one's expectations and preconceived notions about the volume. For me, it's difficult to rate this book, because I knew little about it before reading it, and it's a collection of New 52 issues from several series. There are both gains and losses to compiling the stories in this format. On one hand, I enjoyed having the New 52 origin stories of many of DC's best known heroes all in one place, as well as a volume that establishes the way in which the characters relate to each other in the rebooted universe. On the other hand, while I enjoy variety as well as (or more, generally) than the next person, this "tasting menu"of DC heroes left me wanting more of certain stories, and slogging through others just to finish. Due to the fact that this is a collection of issues by many creative teams, the quality of storytelling and art were uneven, with some issues shining, while others' drabness was accentuated by proximity to much stronger issues. Although the stories are connected narratively and thematically (chaos and darkness bring out both the best and the worst of humanity, symbolism of Gotham City for the individual as well as government, greater society, etc) via the Gotham power outage and impending storm, the connection sometimes feels tenuous or contrived. It also frequently left me wanting a longer study arc rather than merely vignettes. This goes back to expectations and purpose for reading a collection like this one.
P.S. This definitely drummed up my interest in some New 52 characters that I hadn't been following.
P.S. This definitely drummed up my interest in some New 52 characters that I hadn't been following.
thatdruffguy's review
2.0
I'm sure each one of the issues contained in this collection was much better when read within it's own series I stead of taken out of context and presented the way this collection presented them. I think DC did these stories a disservice but putting them together in this collection.
earlapvaldez's review
3.0
There is a certain attractiveness that prequel stories have, as it brings us to the actualization of our what-ifs about our favorite characters.
However, it appears that there in the age of prelude, it seems that we are too saturated with it. I think this collection revealed us too much and too little with [b:DC Comics: The New 52|12478090|DC Comics The New 52|Dan DiDio|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1333580006s/12478090.jpg|17462516]. Some aspects of the narratives were too forced, although some came out naturally and fine (as with Batwing and Batwoman). Fine read overall, but don't expect too much.
However, it appears that there in the age of prelude, it seems that we are too saturated with it. I think this collection revealed us too much and too little with [b:DC Comics: The New 52|12478090|DC Comics The New 52|Dan DiDio|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1333580006s/12478090.jpg|17462516]. Some aspects of the narratives were too forced, although some came out naturally and fine (as with Batwing and Batwoman). Fine read overall, but don't expect too much.
pug_reader's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
relaxing
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
angelwolf45's review
4.0
I enjoyed this graphic novel.
This is tie-ins to the zero year.
I enjoyed the different heros that were in this and seeing all that they were doing during this time.
I really enjoyed being with these characters and seeing how they were going to deal with all that they were dealing with.
The different storys were great and fun to read.
Overall really had a good time reading this graphic novel.
This is tie-ins to the zero year.
I enjoyed the different heros that were in this and seeing all that they were doing during this time.
I really enjoyed being with these characters and seeing how they were going to deal with all that they were dealing with.
The different storys were great and fun to read.
Overall really had a good time reading this graphic novel.
vanessakm's review
I heard Scott Snyder on the Imaginary Worlds podcast discussing this series, and I came away thinking he sounded charming and the series sounded interesting.
Unfortunately, I could not hack my way through this omnibus edition. The art in places is so distracting. Why does Bruce Wayne look like he has a head injury in some panels? What happened to Barbara Gordon's lips? Why does she look like a blow-up doll who ate a fudgesicle? Seriously, she has gigantic brown lips.
Why was I getting so fixated on the art, I finally asked myself. Because the stories weren't holding my attention. It's supposed to be the New 52 take on [b:Batman: Year One|59980|Batman Year One|Frank Miller|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327940389s/59980.jpg|2501570]. It has crossovers with Batwoman, Batgirl, Black Canary, The Flash, and Superman, to name a few. It sounds awesome. But it was boring. Even when I liked the story (Barbara Gordon's for example), there were those giant, brown lips. Then other stories, like Superman's, didn't sound at all like Superman.
Some reads aren't meant to be.
Unfortunately, I could not hack my way through this omnibus edition. The art in places is so distracting. Why does Bruce Wayne look like he has a head injury in some panels? What happened to Barbara Gordon's lips? Why does she look like a blow-up doll who ate a fudgesicle? Seriously, she has gigantic brown lips.
Why was I getting so fixated on the art, I finally asked myself. Because the stories weren't holding my attention. It's supposed to be the New 52 take on [b:Batman: Year One|59980|Batman Year One|Frank Miller|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327940389s/59980.jpg|2501570]. It has crossovers with Batwoman, Batgirl, Black Canary, The Flash, and Superman, to name a few. It sounds awesome. But it was boring. Even when I liked the story (Barbara Gordon's for example), there were those giant, brown lips. Then other stories, like Superman's, didn't sound at all like Superman.
Some reads aren't meant to be.
lukeisthename34's review
3.0
I don't know about this. It had some really interesting stories but a lot of confusion as well. I suppose there is a broader picture I am missing with some of the bit characters that were here and there, but overall it seems like the timing doesn't match up and the reboot of the Batman Family seems really contradictory.