Written by Kurt Busiek & Fabian Nicieza.
Art by Mark Bagley; Scott McDaniel; Tom Derenick; Mike Norton; Art Thibert; Andy Owens; Wayne Faucher; Jerry Ordway; Mark Farmer; Karl Kesel; Pete Pantazis; Allen Passalaqua; Pat Brosseau; & Ken Lopez.
Cover Art by Shane Davis & Guy Major.
SUMMARY:
In 2009, DC Comics began releasing 2008’s weekly Trinity series in a trade paperback format. The 364-page Volume 1 compiles Issues # 1-17, as a strange cosmic nightmare first zeroes in on Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman.
Disturbed by variations of a dream each had the night before, DC’s ‘Trinity’ of Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman initially have little to go on beyond determining their common denominators. Yet, sinister machinations by the sorceress Morgaine Le Fey, the snarky Enigma, and Despero soon unleash an expanding scheme upon their three mutual foes.
Through the use of mystical branding discs, each of the ‘Trinity’ is destined to be marked with an archaic tarot symbol. Once all three heroes become ‘branded,’ mystic forces will warp their world’s reality in ways reminiscent of Flashpoint and The New 52: Future’s End.
As the Justice League (including many of their Titans/Outsiders reserves) investigates this bizarre mystery, more nefarious components come into play. Among them is the Crime Syndicate’s mass abduction scheme, which prompts the JLA to storm in retaliation the Syndicate’s own parallel earth.
During their missions, other Leaguers begin to notice subtle shifts in the personalities of Batman, Wonder Woman, and Superman, as if their established core ideals are now rotating among them. A seemingly climatic confrontation with the plot’s three major co-conspirators proves only the end of the beginning for the Trinity’s ordeal. Sporadic hints of a fractured new reality are the first signs towards plot developments in Volume 2.
Meanwhile, the tarot-reading Marguerita (a character reminiscent of Madame Xanadu) has unsettling visions of what darkness is still to come for DC’s three greatest champions.
Note: At present, this title hasn’t been released digitally.
REVIEW:
Considering 2008’s Trinity is another of DC’s yearlong titles (i.e. 52 and Countdown) from that era, one might have anticipated a reasonably good storyline. Unfortunately, this tiresome epic’s first third is really more of a glorified page count than a coherent, let alone vaguely interesting, read. No one, in that sense, brought their creative A-game to this unnecessary DC ‘crisis.’
While Kurt Busiek and Fabian Nicieza merely conjure up ways to prolong the trio’s predicament, the art squad’s lackluster visuals straddle various shades of mediocrity. Single panels (i.e. a facial close-up) occasionally look terrific, but it’s still a stretch to say that Volume 1 even delivers consistent B-grade artwork. Some good news, however, is that DC Comics may have learned a practical lesson from peddling this dreck.
By later simplifying the Superman-Wonder Woman-Batman premise to closely resemble the World’s Finest (or Superman/Batman) team-up formula, the artists gain much better odds of producing quality visuals. Hence, DC’s subsequent Trinity monthly titles have proven consistently superior in both episodic storytelling and appealing artwork.
That said, it’s entirely possible that this Trinity’s Volumes 2 and 3 are improvements, given the creative talent involved. Reading the underwhelming Volume 1, however, isn’t worth indulging the time.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
In the cover gallery, three covers at a time appear as two-page collage spreads. For Issues # 1-6, the cover artists are Carlos Pacheco, Jesus Merino, and Allen Passalaqua. Andy Kubert and Edgar Delgado are the cover artists for Issues # 7-12. For Issues # 13-18, the cover artists are Jim Lee, Scott Williams, and Alex Sinclair.
Artist Mark Bagley contributes a series of black-and-white sketches: a Trinity two-page collage; a Superman portrait; a Trinity portrait; an Interceptor portrait; a Graak portrait; and a Tarot character profile. Bagley, with added color from Art Thibert and Pete Pantazis, provides a completed version of his earlier Trinity portrait. Lastly, Shane Davis contributes the black-and-white sketch for this collection’s cover.
Note: Issue # 18’s cover is included to complete a collage, but the story itself appears in Volume 2.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 4 Stars
