DC/Wildstorm: DreamWar

by Keith Giffen, Lee Garbett (Illustrator), Trevor Scott (Illustrator)

The Midnighter and Grifter. Zealot and Deathblow. Superman and Wonder Woman. Superman and Wonder Woman?

In this landmark miniseries by writer Keith Giffen (52) and Lee Garbett (MIDNIGHTER), the Earth is being torn apart. So when DC Universe heroes begin appearing in the WildStorm Universe, it seems at first they might be the answer to all the problems. Until it becomes clear that they might just be the reason for all the problems. And the Justice League of America doesn't know how they got here...or how to get back!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics

144 pages, Paperback

Published April 7, 2009

About the author

Keith Ian Giffen was an American comic book illustrator and writer. He is possibly best-known for his long runs illustrating, and later writing the Legion of Super-Heroes title in the 1980s and 1990s. He also created the alien mercenary character Lobo (with Roger Slifer), and the irreverent "want-to-be" hero, Ambush Bug. Giffen is known for having an unorthodox writing style, often using characters in ways not seen before. His dialogue is usually characterized by a biting wit that is seen as much less zany than dialogue provided by longtime collaborators DeMatteis and Robert Loren Fleming. That approach has brought him both criticism and admiration, as perhaps best illustrated by the mixed (although commercially successful) response to his work in DC Comics' Justice League International (1987-1992). He also plotted and was breakdown artist for an Aquaman limited series and one-shot special in 1989 with writer Robert Loren Fleming and artist Curt Swan for DC Comics.

Giffen's first published work was "The Sword and The Star", a black-and-white series featured in Marvel Preview, with writer Bill Mantlo. He has worked on titles (owned by several different companies) including Woodgod, All Star Comics, Doctor Fate, Drax the Destroyer, Heckler, Nick Fury's Howling Commandos, Reign of the Zodiac, Suicide Squad, Trencher (to be re-released in a collected edition by Boom! Studios)., T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents, and Vext. He was also responsible for the English adaptation of the Battle Royale and Ikki Tousen manga, as well as creating "I Luv Halloween" for Tokyopop. He also worked for Dark Horse from 1994-95 on their Comics Greatest World/Dark Horse Heroes line, as the writer of two short lived series, Division 13 and co-author, with Lovern Kindzierski, of Agents of Law. For Valiant Comics, Giffen wrote XO-Manowar, Magnus, Robot Fighter, Punx and the final issue of Solar, Man of the Atom.

He took a break from the comic industry for several years, working on storyboards for television and film, including shows such as The Real Ghostbusters and Ed, Edd 'n' Eddy.

He is also the lead writer for Marvel Comics's Annihilation event, having written the one-shot prologue, the lead-in stories in Thanos and Drax, the Silver Surfer as well as the main six issues mini-series. He also wrote the Star-Lord mini-series for the follow-up story Annihilation: Conquest. He currently writes Doom Patrol for DC, and is also completing an abandoned Grant Morrison plot in The Authority: the Lost Year for Wildstorm.

Reviews

[Ann DVine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel kind of mean, in that I'd probably love this comic a whole lot if I actually knew who any of the Wildstorm characters were. Oops.

It's an action-packed crossover filled with tons of shocking surprises and a reverence to its two universes that feels palpable and earned. It's just that it assumes that you know, intimately, who its cast of hundreds are already, and, while I certainly recognized the DC roster, the Wildstorm characters outside of Midnighter don't ring a bell in the least. I was under the impression that this was the volume that lead into the Wildstorm universe merging with the DC one, but that's not the case, so it doesn't even help as an introduction for DC fans.

So, this is less of a review and more of a caution: you are presumed to provide the context yourself. Probably die-hard Wildstorm and DC fans will better appreciate Giffen's sharp wit and the cracking hero vs hero art, with cameos upon cameos to spare.

[Sean Goh · Rating 2 out of 5]

Promising premise let down by a sprawling cast of characters (literally 3 parallel team matchups) and the super lame it was all a dream ending.

[Ming · Rating 2 out of 5]

Waaay too many characters involved, but it was actually a little more coherent than I thought it'd be.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Surprisingly compelling, lucid and coherent. Had the classic "concerned about these dangerous killer heroes" but didnt go far enough providing an ending outside "it was all a dream".

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

All I want or could expect out of these two worlds meeting. The only thing holding me back from 5 stars is it's such a niche interest that 5 may be misleading and skew the average too much.

[Lucas · Rating 1 out of 5]

Uma história muito fraca. Aparecem heróis do nada, morrem do nada, vilões aparecem do nada, morrem do nada. Foram a necessidade de conhecer todo o universo wildstorm e DC., torna muito ruim a leitura. Um vilão sem nenhuma motivação ou algo parecido. Não recomendo a ninguém, de fato os meus eu darei pra alguma pobre alma!

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

dc's "good heroes" team up w/wilstorm's antiheroes, after they beat each other up.

[John Yelverton · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bad doesn't begin to describe this atrocity that was brought about by a literal dream!