52: Part 1

by Greg Cox

The epic follow-up to Infinite Crisis-starring the superheroes of the DC Comics universe.

Earth's greatest protectors-Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman-have vanished. The cities of Metropolis and Gotham are overrun with criminal activity both on the streets and behind the closed doors of powerful corporations as villains take advantage of the absence of superheroes.

In their place stand the veteran and rookie heroes they inspired. From popular media personality Booster Gold and the enigmatic Question to the mysterious vigilante Batwoman and the secretive Supernova, these heroes are the only ones who can turn the tide against a vast conspiracy of evil determined to take control of the planet.

This is the story of one year without the world's greatest superheroes. Twelve months. 365 days. 52 weeks.

Genres: Comics, Audiobook, Fiction, Superheroes, Dc Comics, Fantasy

6 pages, Audio CD

First published December 1, 2007

Reviews

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Never an easy adaptation in the first place -- it wasn't just a matter of adapting the 52 issues of 52, but also a couple of additional miniseries -- but this full cast adaptation tips over into the abyss, between the necessary abridgement (as in the novel), the often terrible voice casting, and the overbearing sound effects and music -- the mix often disintegrates into a sludgy mess, even on headphones and in lossless quality. The story has some high points -- Renee Montoya's arc is extremely affecting -- but some rather plunging lows as well, including the majority of the Black Adam story, which goes into the crapper in part 2 when Osiris decides he's cursed (plus, why has no-one yeeted Amanda Waller into the sun? She's so evil that Darkseid is stunned.) Having the Trinity out of the picture is good, mind you, even though Wonder Woman comes off a bit badly at times (she's moping over killing Max Lord.)

This is only half the battle, by the way. The audiobook is in two parts.

[Steven Shinder · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found the 52 comic series consistently middle of the road overall. So this novelization and Graphic Audio adaptation definitely elevates the series with its added context and performances. I especially loved hearing the drama of Perry firing Clark. And I did notice the mention of Cox as a reporter. I will admit though that I’m debating whether the description of Kate Kane feels too dated.

[Derek Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I personally found the graphic novel much better. The performance was fantastic though

[Cynik · Rating 3 out of 5]

Violence is toned down from infinite crisis. one main character is gay - I reference it only as a reminder for dealing with kids and this book if necessary.

[Kedrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loving the twist by Black Adam, it's getting intense to say the least. Awesome conclusion to a fantastic Superhero read.

[Kit · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is (yes, really) an audiobook of a graphic novel. I haven't seen the graphic novel itself, so I can't compare them (the Publishers Weekly review says that some of the storylines are left out). But I was very impressed with the full-cast audio and sound effects of GraphicAudio - it was like listening to an old-fashioned radio show (but with much better sound effects) instead of an audiobook.

Cons: the story is more than a bit cheesy, but for some reason the cheese is confined to some storylines more than others (poor Osiris, stuck with the cheese equivalent of a stuffed-crust pizza). Also, I was disturbed by the heavy stereotypical Middle-Eastern accents of Black Adam, Isis, and Osiris. It's a full-cast recording, so you can't tell me you need accents to distinguish the characters from each other. And most of the time we're listening to them they're probably actually speaking Arabic or the imaginary language of Kahndaq, their fictional country - so they would have no accents.

Pros: The Superman cameos. Clark Kent has lost his superpowers, and he turns out to be every bit as cool without them. (Yes, I love the Big Blue Boy Scout.) Also, the voice actor who does The Question is great, and that whole storyline, while a bit over-angsty, is very good.

I want to go back and read Infinite Crisis now!

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, the first part of this was not as engaging as Infinite Crisis, but it has an appeal all its own. It is much easier to keep up with all the characters, and there seems to be more drama than Infinite Crisis had, but not as much action. Normally that is good, but you really have to pay attention to this one or you might miss something other than just another fight sequence.

It isn't just no Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, though. Where is Green Lantern? Martian Manhunter? Aquaman? MIA. Nightwing? Teen Titans? Nope. I love The Question, don't get me wrong. Black Adam is a little much, but okay. Green Arrow? Nada. If you're not giving me Batman, throw me something, right?

The time travel angle is a good one, but there wasn't enough of it in part 1. It was good enough that I want to get to the next part and find out what happens, but not so great that I want to keep driving until I reach the end.

[Cory · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great experience. I am ready to try other graphic audio comic books. The writer did a great job at novelizing the comic book series and the voice actors really brought the characters to life. Sometimes the music would make the text hard to hear but it only bothered me a couple times.

This focusing on "C" characters was fun because I haven't read a story that focused on any of these characters yet. So it was all new territory.

I would recommend this book to everyone but I would suggest that you have a bit of an understanding of some of the perimeter characters. It gets pretty crowded towards the end and I can imagine it would be hard to follow if you have no idea who the suicide squad or the JSA were.

I gave it 5 stars because I had a lot of fun listening to it. It may not be the greatest book but I had a great experience.

[Mark Junk · Rating 3 out of 5]

This audio-book was surprisingly good for an audio-book, based on a novelization of a graphic novel of a series of comic books....well you get the idea. I enjoyed this a lot!