Mister Miracle

Mister Miracle (2017) #1-12

by Tom King, Mitch Gerads (Illustrator)

Élevé sur Apokolyps, planète-usine sous le règne de l'implacable Darkseid, Scott Free réussit l'impensable : échapper à ses geôliers pour rejoindre la Terre où il rencontra son mentor, un artiste de l'évasion officiant sous l'alias de Mr Miracle dont il reprendra l'identité. Depuis, aucun barreau, aucune entrave, aucune prison, ne put retenir prisonnier Mr Miracle, symbole d'une liberté retrouvée. Mais que se passe-t-il lorsque l'artiste de l'évasion ultime se trouve aux prises avec une nouvelle forme de captivité : la dépression ? Passé le traumatisme d'une tentative de suicide ratée, Scott va chercher à se redéfinir à travers ses rapports et son historique de super-héros au statut divin. Une seule certitude balisera sa quête d'identité, comme le rappel d'une liberté finalement toute relative : Darkseid est.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Superheroes, Fiction, Comic Book, Graphic Novels Comics

320 pages, Hardcover

First published November 14, 2018

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like most good writers, Tom King does that thing with this book that lets each reader decide what the story means, while at the same time kinda pointing you toward what it meant to him.



But.
This story is also just bat-shit crazy.
And it's not the kind of stuff I normally gravitate towards because of that. However, I've always had a really big soft spot for couples like Scott & Barda in comics. I love, absolutely love, to see solid relationships portrayed in any sort of media. Mister Miracle and Big Barda are one of the coolest (if underrated) couples in the DC universe.



Ok.
Spoiler Alert - but not really because it happens in the first few pages.
Still, if you'd rather not know anything, look away now.




Alright. So, Scott tries to kill himself in "an attempt to escape death". Or, at least, that's how they choose to spin it on the news. And the rest of the story is an attempt to figure out whether or not he did. Escape death, that is.



Do you ever really get a straight answer to that one?
Ehhhh.
Yeah. Ish. Maybe?
I don't know.



And even though I'm not a big fan of these sorts of existential-y comics that ponder our existence, this one had Big Barda to slap Scott upside the head when he got a little too far out there with his moping. <-- this made all the difference.



People like Scott need people like Barda. Because when the Scotts get too far inside of their heads (did I use my god-abilities to create an alternate universe where my suicide attempt failed?) the Bardas just roll their eyes and tell them to shut up and go to work. It doesn't really matter whether or not we exist. Or whether or not we're crazy. The trash still needs to be taken out and the cats still need to be fed.



Mister Miracle explores a lot of topics. Depression, suicide, fear of making the same mistakes your parents did with your own children, the ups and downs of a long-term relationship, the family you love even though they're kind of awful - this isn't a fun fest in case you were wondering.
But it also isn't a gloomy ride through the life of a C-list character.



It's good stuff with a lot more humor in it than I was expecting and quite a lot of relatable topics.
Definitely recommended. <--but maybe not for everybody?

[Sam Quixote · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I usually try to summarise a book before launching into the review but part of why Mister Miracle, Volume 1 didn’t fully click with me is because I don’t really know what’s going on?!

I can explain bits of it: in addition to being a superhero, Mister Miracle/Scott Free (I know, these names - it’s superhero comics, just go with it) is an escape artist and he’s planning the ultimate escape... from death itself!!

There’s a war on Apokolips/New Genesis (are they the same?) where Darkseid has the Anti-Life Equation (again) and the Highfather and he are fighting over it or something. Mister Miracle’s gotta get involved because he’s related to a bunch of these guys? And that’s the other main thing: family drama in this large, weird dynastic family of powerful god-like nutters.

The “escape from death” thing is only touched upon in the beginning and isn’t referenced again, which is a shame as it’s a cool idea. The Apokolips war sounds epic and dramatic but it’s surprisingly boring. The problem is that whatever obstacles Scott and his girlfriend Barda encounter, they overcome pretty damn easily, usually while talking about domestic banalities like their sitting room layout! On trial? Sentenced to death? Eh, whatevs - we’ll yawn our way out of trouble and oh hey look it worked out what should we have for dinner? War, trials, executions all sound exciting as concepts but reading them here it’s anything but.

The deadpan way Scott and Barda breeze through these massive events reminded me of Matt Fraction/David Aja’s Hawkeye run, where you saw the in-between moments of life for Clint Barton when he wasn’t getting mixed up with the Avengers. Scott is also always bandaged like Clint was. It’s an amusing tone to take in a superhero comic, like Tom King’s wryly cocking an eyebrow at this melodramatic, cosmic noise, which I appreciate for its subversiveness, but it also undermines the action. It’s an approach that giveth and taketh away.

So then there’s the family drama which was the best part for me because it goes a long way to explaining a character I have zero prior knowledge of. He was born on Earth but he’s related to Darkseid, the Biggest Bad of the DC Universe, he and Barda had shitty childhoods on Apokolips, and they can’t escape their connections to this horrible place where unpleasant relatives are forever fighting one another. The trial scene with his dickhead half-brother Orion stood out to me the most as you got a strong sense of Scott’s bubbling frustration buried deep at his core - it’s a very intense scene, done perfectly by King and artist Mitch Gerads.

Gerads’ art is fine. I’m not crazy about it but I don’t dislike it either. The classic nine-panel grid layout of the pages allow for more nuance within the story. I didn’t understand why the art sometimes went fuzzy, like an olden-style TV on the fritz.

Then again, I didn’t really understand most of what was happening! I’m not totally sure what the story is, where any of it is going, why “Darkseid Is” is repeated constantly throughout, who most of the extended cast were (though I suspect it doesn’t matter), what was going on or the meaning of anything. And the fuck of it is, I know Tom King can write perfectly coherent stories - his Batman series being the prime example - so he’s being deliberately obtuse here and it’s annoying!

I kinda like Scott though. Barda too. They’re a charming couple. Scott’s monologue on Descartes was compelling and offered up a possible explanation of the “Darkseid Is” chant. I like that Jack Kirby, Mister Miracle’s creator, made a cameo as “Oberon”, and a young Stan Lee appeared as Funky Flashman - you can see whose side King/Gerads take on Kirby/Lee’s troubled creative partnership with Funky’s fate.

I’d like it more if I felt like I had a better grasp of what King was going for - generic family drama except the family are gods? Alright, but a lot of crap could’ve been pruned away and streamlined for this to work better. As it is I spent most of the time floundering, semi-understanding and quasi-enjoying what I was seeing and remaining puzzled for the rest of it!

Mister Miracle, Volume 1 didn’t live up to the hype for me - it was too inconsistent and vague for my taste - but it’s not a bad book either and parts of it were fun. I’ll come back for the second half but with lowered expectations.

Merged review:

Scott Free is Mister Miracle: superhero, escape artist, New God, husband… and soon father-to-be! Together with his wife, Big Barda, they face parenthood alongside all-out war on Apokolips against the greatest enemy in the DC Universe: Darkseid!

I think Tom King is one of the best comics writers working today and certainly among the finest DC currently has – his Batman run is jaw-droppingly good! But outside of Batman… ehhhhh. I can take or leave his stuff. Mister Miracle’s not bad but, particularly given its overwhelming plaudits, it’s a disappointingly unimpressive 12-issue maxi-series.

Let’s be honest: this will be most people’s first Mister Miracle book – it certainly is mine – and, though you get a decent idea of his character, King doesn’t do a very good job in explaining his complicated world. Scott and Barda’s extended families are the main focus of this book but I never really understood the various relationships. I got that some nutter called Granny Goodness was a teacher/steward to them when they were little and that Scott’s dad is some kind of Force Ghost dude called Highfather, but beyond that… no clue. Scott’s got some brothers, Darkseid is his – dad as well, maybe granddad? Who is Barda to Scott besides his wife – the daughter of another high-ruling family?

What is the difference between Apokolips and New Genesis – or are they the same place, just named differently? Why is there a massive war breaking out now? Why doesn’t Darkseid use the Anti-Life Equation to win the war? What’s the difference between New Gods and Old Gods? Which characters are New Gods and which are Old – does it matter? What do the titles mean – what’s the hierarchy?

The story is largely unfocused too. The war is almost an afterthought or background dressing (ditto the escape artist stuff which always seemed incidental and irrelevant). I never had any idea which side was winning or the context of any battle we saw, what its stakes were, and it came off as oddly undramatic and dull. There’s zero tension – Scott and Barda are essentially invincible (we literally see them bathing in lava at one point!) – and the characters that do die are one-dimensional and unknown (to me anyway) so their deaths had no impact.

I guess the real story is about parenthood and Scott and Barda’s relationship (and she plays such a huge part in this book the series should’ve really been called Mister Miracle and Big Barda), which is well-written and convincing, buuuut… it wasn’t very interesting. I suppose it was amusing that they were talking about their condo’s layout and other banal domesticities whilst doing something daring and (supposedly) exciting like breaking into a palace to assassinate someone.

As well as not explaining Mister Miracle’s world very well, I generally had no idea what was happening. Why do the pictures suddenly go fuzzy like those old TVs where the signal would cause the image to blur? Why is “Darkseid Is” repeated throughout? They’re interesting aspects but a little too avant-garde for my tiny brain to comprehend. It’s hinted early on that Mister Miracle’s greatest escape will be to “escape death” but nothing really happens with that.

So what did I like about it? I like Scott and Barda. King writes Scott a lot like Matt Fraction’s Hawkeye, which is to say he’s kind of a ditz who’s always getting banged up but he’s charming and effortlessly likeable – there’s never a point you’re not rooting for him. Scott and Barda’s relationship is likewise believable and you get a strong sense of their deep love, so kudos to King for conveying that so powerfully. The True/False trial was gripping and King inserts a running gag, as is his wont in nearly all of his books now, this time of crudités, so characters munch on carrot sticks at random points – even Darkseid! – which made me smile.

Mitch Gerads’ art is interesting. He’s completely mastered the classic 9 panel layout structure used throughout. I like that the weird New Gods/Apokolips costumes mix a weirdly feudal/medieval style with camp futuristic sci-fi. The colours and the look reminded me of the original Tron movie and it’s quite eye-catching (the slave negotiating table!). I like that Oberon looked like Jack Kirby too, Mister Miracle’s creator, which was a cute, respectful nod. I didn’t think it’s the prettiest art but it works fine for the book.

The ending is a bit of a bugger’s muddle. Barda conveniently gets an uber-powerful super-weapon, Darkseid suddenly becomes extremely gullible and stupid and… yeah. Not great.

Mister Miracle is not a bad comic. I give it a lot of credit that it’s not doing what most superhero comics do which is: good heroes punch bad villains, saves the day, zzz… King and Gerads have produced an original book that takes chances and shoots for art above all else – wonderful, honestly. If only more creators attempted this!

Except I still had no real idea about the whole New Gods stuff in the DCU and the story, besides being confusing and unclear, really didn’t grab me – I found it very easy to put down and read anything else instead. Mister Miracle is for readers looking for something a little bit different from their superhero comics though don’t expect the masterpiece the hype would have you believe it is.

[Sean Gibson · Rating 5 out of 5]

While “Mister Miracle” sounds a little bit like a male enhancement product available only through a Canadian website (“Wait, wait...are you guys selling penis mightiers?”), he’s actually a New God who, as a baby, was turned over by his father—a good god (good god, man!)—to Darkseid (a decidedly bad god). Turns out being brought up in a nightmarish hellscape made ol’ Mister Miracle—who goes by the name Scott Free—pretty good at escaping, and so he makes a living as an escape artist (naturally). He’s also married to a warrior and former Apokolips denizen named Big Barda. Why is she called “Big Barda,” you ask? One suspects it has less to do with her immense height than breasts the size of dwarf planets.

(Side note: yes, I appreciate the irony of using something with “dwarf” in it to indicate immense size.)

On the surface, that sounds a little lame. In the incredibly capable hands of King and Gerads, however, it’s, well, miraculous. In chronicling Scott Free’s attempt to escape from life itself (was it a failed suicide, or did he escape death…or maybe he actually died; or is this all just a fever dream in the haze of a near-death experience?), they have crafted one of the most original superhero stories I’ve ever read (and I’ve read a LOT of superhero stories, considerably more than the American Society for Prevention of Intense Dorkery recommends, but screw those non-dorks; they only know how to, like, do cool stuff and socialize with people and have sex and stuff, so whatever).

King’s always an interesting storyteller, but he’s never been better than he is here, juxtaposing the absurdity of internecine warfare betwixt gods with the absurdity that is parenting on a daily basis. You’ll definitely appreciate this story more if you have or have recently had young kids; King nails what it’s like on the first go-round, when you’re trying to figure everything out and your life changes in ways you never thought about or anticipated.

Gerads’s art is incredibly cinematic—not wide-open, action-style cinema like Bryan Hitch in The Ultimates, but rather kinetic, moving, and sequential. He uses 9-panel pages in a similar way to how greats like Steve Ditko and Dave Gibbons did, moving characters very deliberately and particularly through moments in time.

This is the best superhero book I’ve read since Batman: White Knight. Well worth checking out, even for the cool sex-havers.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Big Barda and Mr. Miracle are my new favorite super hero couple!



Sure the ending or maybe the whole story in retrospect is nebulous and open for interpretation, but I don’t care.



Knee deep in New God innards and poopy diapers, the love these two had for one another is palpable; each raised and tortured on the horrible world of Apokolips, they’ve somehow transformed this shitty experience into something incandescent. Bravo, kids!



Add some amateur Descartes, mix it with some Dostoyevsky downer stuff, a dollop of humor, a hefty scoop of ultra-violence, a veggie platter, that Anti-Life Equation thing, a cup and a half of swell characterizations and top it off with cute baby stuff and you have a recommended read.



Bottom Line: I’ve liked the Tom King Batman stuff I’ve read, but this volume takes his writing to a different level. Mitch Gerads art is serviceable to the story.

[Dan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scott Free is found bleeding out on the bathroom floor by his wife, Big Barda, in an apparent suicide attempt. It seems there are things that even Mister Miracle, the world's greatest escape artist, can't escape...

On the heels of his run on The Vision, Tom King's Mister Miracle was a no-brainer for me. Since my previous Mister Miracle experience was the Fourth World entries in Who's Who, a handful of issues of Super Powers, and the Giffen era of Justice League International, I was going in fairly cold.

You can't escape yourself seems to be the message of the book. Tom King and Mitch Gerads take a deep dive into the lives of Mister Miracle and his wife, Big Barda, and the eternal conflict between New Genesis and Apokalips.

This could have easily been a 1990s Vertigo book. Scott and Barda discuss remodeling their LA condo while engaging in a bloody war against Darkseid's forces. And the veggie trays. So many veggie trays.

It's not hard to picture Scott as a Christ-like figure at times, especially with the full beard. Highfather and Darkseid exchanged sons to end the war between their worlds. Orion was raised on New Genesis in a loving environment and Scott went to the living hell of Apokalips. To my knowledge, this is the first time the impact of this on Scott's psyche was referenced.

Scott and Barda naming their son Jacob, a reference to Jack Kirby, was heartwarming to me. Scott and Barda's daily life was by far my favorite part of the book. When Scott was faced with the choice of making the same sacrifice Highfather did, the book took an interesting turn.

A lot of the book is left open to interpretation. Did Mister Miracle survive his suicide attempt? Which version, if any, of the DC continuity does this story happen in, if it happened at all? If nothing else, this book his sparked a desire in me to read more Tom King and more of Jack Kirby's Fourth World stuff.

Mister Miracle shows that any character can be a headliner if given the right creative team. Mister Miracle is. 4.5 out of 5 stars.

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fourth World Primer: Here's what's necessary to understand the relationships in this book. Apokolips and New Genesis were at war. To end the war, Darkseid and Highfather agreed to exchange sons. Scott went to Apokolips and Orion went to new Genesis as babies. This is why Orion is always such a dick, Darkseid is his true father and has a similar personality. Scott was raised in Granny Goodness's orphanage, eventually meeting Big Barda who was leader of the Female Furies. Scott and Barda escape Apokolips and head to New Genesis and Earth. At this point Scott and Orion become step-brothers of a sort. On Earth, Scott takes over the Mister Miracle moniker after something happens to the original. Jack Kirby created all the New Gods. That's why Oberon looks like Kirby (as a homage). OK, that's all that's really important, on with the review.

King crafts a family drama with a god war as backdrop. Darkseid has gotten a hold of the anti-life equation for the nth time sending Apokolips and New Genesis to war. Scott and Barda get drafted as generals, fighting campaign after campaign (mostly off camera) while in between trying to live a normal life in Los Angeles. King is secretly the best romance writer in comics. Between Batman and Catwoman over in Batman and Scott and Barda's relationship in this book, he quickly has you fully invested in the characters and rooting for their relationship to succeed. This is really where the book excels. The New Gods war is incidental in large portions of this book. All of the weirdness with the "Darkseid is" panels and the glitches on other panels is explained in the last two issues. I do guess it was a bit obtuse because from reading other reviews, not everyone got what really happened with the twist at the end. For those of you who want to know what happened, Scott was still battling the anti-life equation in his head, but was choosing not to fight it because he loved the life he and Barda were creating together, raising their family. At any time he could choose to escape, but he didn't want to. This is how DC gets out of killing half the New Gods over the course of this book..

Mitch Gerads has mastered the classic 9 panel layout with this book. He really makes it work, often only using slight movements between panels on a page.

Received a review copy from DC and Edelweiss. all thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.

[Dave Schaafsma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mister Miracle is a kind of superhero comic written by Tom King and illustrated by Mitch Gerards focused on a guy named Scott Free, who is—move over, Houdini--“the greatest escape artist who ever lived.” Mister Miracle, first seen in 1971, was the invention of Jack Kirby, and I read some of that to remind myself of his origins. I’m reading it because I think Tom King is one of the best contemporary comics writers, who also is doing a terrific Batman run, and did The Vision, The Sheriff of Babylon, and others.

When I say “a kind of superhero comic” I mean to compliment King; like Ed Brubaker, he is determined to focus on superheroes primarily as human beings. This comics run puts Free’s life of fighting and escaping from supervillains in the context of his domestic life with Big Barda. In the process of this story they have a child, and this alters their reasons for wanting to fight evil in the world.

In this volume it seems that Scott may have the Anti-Life Equation inside him, which makes him suicidal. Can Scott make the ultimate escape, of death? I don’t really know, but I think the psychic struggle with the Anti-Life Equation explains the sort of psychedelic art in places. The storytelling is fractured, the artwork sometimes fuzzy like a tv out of focus. There’s a disconnect between reality and some other space he occupies from time to time. The lack of philosophical clarity for Free is mirrored in this wonderfully bizarre art, which is also kind of confusing, because it is never really explained.

What’s also confusing, if this is your one and only Mister Miracle book, is that no one really bothers to let us know any background about the world: Darkseid, Apokolips,The New Genesis, the Highfather, Orion. I read the Kirby, so I know a certain amount about the world, but I’ll surprise you and say that I think the world-making—all that crazy comix stuff--is not actually central in this run! I think this Mister Miracle is about a man and woman’s struggle with what to do about fighting evil. To underscore this, King has Free think aloud about God and life and death. Being in love, having a baby, these things can make you wonder seriously about your place in the universe.

Throughout the book there is a bottom line King wants us to realize, that Free can’t get out of his head, a many-times-repeated dark panel that simply includes the foreboding reality: “Darkseid is.” First time readers will not know what the hell this means, but you guess it is not good.

One of the things that defines King is his sense of humor. In the very midst of fighting they have a discussion about redecorating their apartment. The birth, the being driven crazy by the crying newborn, all that is relatable for us and somewhat amusing as King/Gerads depict things. I like, too, what King and Gerads do with Granny Goodness, who raised (ands tortured) Scott in one of her "Terror Orphanages." She’s a great comic horror character.

I have only read this through once and it is creatively amazing, if not fully coherent (to me). But I think great stories are often complicated, needing to be read again and again, and I will. My rating had waivered between 4 and 5 stars but I think it is one of the most interesting visual and narrative accomplishments in the superhero vein that I have recently read. I say 4.5 for the confusion, but the overall conception is impressive.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

"I can always escape." -- repeated line of dialogue from Scott 'Mister Miracle' Free

This Mister Miracle mega-volume (300 pages!) was a likably bizarre yet very involving graphic novel - featuring a story by King and illustrations by Gerards that perfectly complement each other - which works even if you have only a passing knowledge of the escape artist / superhero character and/or DC Comics history. Although 'MM' and his wife / partner-in-action Big Barda (the giant lady attired in battle armor) have been around nearly fifty years now, I've pretty much paid zero attention to this duo. However, they were such a winning couple in this adventure - arguably her name should be right up there in the title, too - as they swing and smash through their way through the usual but occasionally harrowing super-heroics. But things are really taken to the next level here with the many long-running scenes with conversations depicting their decidedly earthbound and 'human' marriage. (I'm not sure of the last time I saw marital arguments, discussions on buying furniture, stress about work, lovemaking, AND childbirth moments all in the same book.) Yes, this is a comic book, but an intelligently written one that is meant for and best appreciated by an adult audience.

[James DeSantis · Rating 5 out of 5]

From my ratings of King's previous work you can probably tell I'm a pretty big fan of this guy. Taking on Mister Miracle I was a little worried. Always am from getting overhyped. When I began reading this title I was a tad bit confused why so many people loved it. I couldn't get into the first 3 issues really much at all, but the rest? Well...

Who is Mister Miracle? Well, if you're like me, you have no fucking clue. You might have seen him before but never as a main character. He's the ultimate escape artist. In this title he is at war with Darkseid and his army. But really, the core focus of this book is about Big Barda and Scott Free as they live their life together. Mid-way through the book, and this isn't a spoiler, they have a child, and it changes the dynamic and the reasoning why they are fighting and their choices for it. It's a big storyline, spanning 12 issues, but telling a story of love, of pride, of honor, and of loss.

Good: Loved the hell out of the middle issues. They might be my favorite issues in the series. Strong family dynamic and both funny and heartfelt moments throughout. I think King shined here in both pacing and dialogue. I also enjoyed the ambiguous ending as it left it up to the reader to decide and it was well done. Also, the art is fantastic. I loved how character reacted and the overall design to everything.

Bad: Wasn't a huge fan of the start. It's a lot to take in, it's weird as shit at points, and the tone feels all over the place.

Overall, this is a fantastic book once it starts going. King has done so many amazing stories so far. I truly mean it, this guy is one of the best storytellers around if you ask me. Mister Miracle is not my favorite work by him but it's very high up there. A 4.5 out of 5.

[Calista · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hmm. This is interesting and also not my favorite. I meet this character in Justice League New 52 run and I was excited about this story.

This is about a superhero living in the mundane world doing the normal stuff of life. There was some real PTSD in Scott Free's character and how could there not be growing up tortured under an evil tyrant.

Scott, or Mister Miracle, marries Big Barda and they escape from their hell world and find their way to Earth where they raise their children while being in the JLA. I love all the references that pop up.

The artwork is good. They do this thing where they show the same panel over and over again with few variations on a page. So there are 9 pictures on the page with dialogue with each. It was an interesting idea, but it got boring as a reader doing that over and over.

It moved around in time and story often and sometimes it was difficult to tell what was happening. There is also relationship stress from an old married couple.

It's different and they are trying something new. Good for them. It's was decent enough despite not being my favorite.

[Artemy · Rating 5 out of 5]

God, how do I even do this? How can I review one of the best comics I've ever read and describe everything it made me go through while I was reading it? I know this is a big statement to make about a book that has barely wrapped up, like, a month ago, but I feel like Mister Miracle will now forever be one of my favourite books of all time.

And no, I can't review it. Sorry. I tried several times. I just can't. This book is too personal, it hits too close to home, and I won't be able to do it justice with my lacking second language words.



I actually wrote one review for Mister Miracle already, back when it was supposed to come out in two volumes and I basically reviewed the first one after reading the first 6 issues, back then it didn't yet get the chance to wreck me entirely (you can find that review under this one, since Goodreads merged them together). A lot of what I said in that review still stands, but I'll also add that I caught up on the Fourth World mythology since then, re-read MM afterwards and had a much better comprehension of some of the story moments. If you want to do that as well, I will offer a helpful pro-tip: Tom King actually wrote a several-page introduction explaining all the things necessary for better understanding of the book, but it was only included in Mister Miracle #1 Director's Cut, and will also be included in the trade paperback when that goes on sale. It's not absolutely necessary to know all that stuff to enjoy the book and get what it's trying to say, but it helps a lot.

So I'll just ramble a bit here, because that's all I can really do here.

First of all, Scott and Barda are perfect. Their relationship is the emotional core of the entire book, and between them and Batman/Catwoman, Tom King is secretly our generation's best romance writer.



Among so many other things, Mister Miracle is a bittersweet love letter to Jack Kirby. Two characters here embody the spirit of Kirby, and that's Oberon and Jacob. Unlike Tom King, I never had this big emotional bond with the man even though I do fully recognise his greatness as a person and his importance as a creator. Either way, it was fascinating and touching to see such a tribute. What moved me even more is how the character of Funky Flashman is basically Stan Lee! I loved everything about Funky and Jacob's friendship. We lost Stan just two days before the final issue of MM hit the stands, and in a book so focused on existential dread, loss and overcoming the fear of death it all started to feel a bit too surreal for me. It was the sweetest tribute for both Stan and Jack, free of any cynicism or conflict, just two shining creative lights, making comics together.


(click the pic to enlarge)

The final issue teased a follow-up series soon to be announced. What could it be? Hmmm...

DC must release an absolute hardcover edition of this series. I never buy absolutes because of how ungodly expensive they are, but I will make an exception for Mister Miracle. This series is worth it, and not just because of how perfectly written and structured it is, but also because of Mitch Gerads' mind-blowingly fantastic art, colouring and graphic design. And Nick Derington's covers are icing on the cake, total eye-candy.

Okay, I'm done and completely spent. I couldn't end the year without writing at least something about this series, because, like I said, this is without a doubt the best comic of the year. Sorry I couldn't come up with anything more coherent.







Old review of what was supposed to be volume 1:


Come along for the most daring and dangerous adventure of your lifetime with Scott Free, the super escape artist known as MISTER MIRACLE! He can escape anything — but can he escape something that no man has escaped before, can he escape... DEATH? Can he escape HIMSELF? Has he ever seen the face of GOD?..



Okay, I'm not going to pretend I understand everything that's going on here. Jack Kirby's Fourth World is extremely difficult for me to wrap my head around (not in the least because, let's face it, those old 70's comics are borderline unreadable today). It also doesn't help that DC isn't doing anything to ease you into that whole world of crazy, not even an intro page to explain what's what. So yeah, even though I understood some things from the context, I'm pretty sure a good chunk of King's Mister Miracle went over my head — everything about the mother boxes and boom tubes, the complicated relationship between Orion and Miracle, the New Gods, Darkseid, Apokolips, New Genesis and everything else — I have no idea what the hell it all is and how it all relates to each other.

I loved the comic anyway.

I loved it because underneath this veil of cosmic deities, gods, mother boxes and boom tubes there is a very human story about pain, depression, love, hate, fear and hope. Every time I saw a "Darkseid is" panel I felt that crushing sense of dread. I felt Scott's fear and confusion when he was losing his grip on reality, I felt his love for Barda, his hatred of Granny Goodness, his philosophical ponderings about God and life and death, and what it all means. I felt it because I'm going through it all myself, day to day.

I loved it because it made me feel things. Complex, uncomfortable and important things.

And that's a weird thing to do for a superhero comic by a major publisher. And yet Tom King keeps doing this stuff, year after year — Omega Men, The Vision, Darkseid War: Green Lantern, even Batman. And now Mister Miracle. The themes in his writing are always pretty similar, but with every new comic he approachers it from a different angle, and he almost never fails to win me over (except for Sheriff of Babylon, but now that I think about it, maybe I should give that series a re-read to see if I like it more, too).

Mister Miracle is an outstanding series. Even if you're not a Jack Kirby scholar.

Darkseid isn't. I hope.

[Bookwraiths · Rating 2 out of 5]

Never having been a huge fan of Mister Miracle or the New Gods, I went into this one with no preconceived expectations, and I'm glad I did, because this is quite a different comic story. There are a lot of cool concepts thrown around. (Especially interesting is the creative team's twist on the old mystery of whether any of this is real or not.) The art is distinct and unique. And Scott Free's characterization is intriguing as he is a god pretending to be an ordinary person yet having to deal with extraordinary circumstances which complicate his whole life to the point of it not only being jarring for him but for a reader as well.

Overall, this was a very good read. There are some highs and some lows in here. Some cool twists, some dumb plots. It's all a nice setup, but not much else. And there better be a damn good payoff, because if not then all this weirdness was for nothing.

Merged review:

I know most people love this series and adore this writer. That is actually why I picked it up months ago, came back to finish it today. And I have to admit the first few issues of Mister Miracle lived up to its praises, were damn intriguing. Unfortunately, I can’t say the series as a whole maintained the high level of that beginning, because for me it didn’t. Sure, it was interesting, thought provoking even but just an okay story overall. Hope others enjoy it more.

[Ray · Rating 5 out of 5]

For the literary DC fan...

Mister Miracle does what a modern superhero deconstruction should do perfectly. It takes a classic 60s character--of the very out there Jack Kirby 'Fourth World' mythos no less--and puts them in a modern relatable context thereby gaining a fresh new perspective.

This version of Miracle is very much tied into the cosmic war between the planets of Orion (his sort of stepbrother) and evil father arch-villain DARKSEID. But in-between the space wars, Scott Free and his wife Big Barda also have a realistic marriage and new family. The bouncing back of the settings from their earthen home make this story feel all the more real. There are the couple fights, pregnancy, raising small children. Then there's the epic battles and treaty meetings with over-the-top aliens featuring veggie platters.

It's also kind of reminiscent of writer Tom King's Vision comic from Marvel, about androids in the suburbs. Yet I liked this one even more. (His other big DC work Heroes in Crisis seems to be much more divisive, though I can't say as I haven't read it yet.)

The nine-grid panel layout fits a lot of story into this 12 issue series. Mitch Gerads' art has a dark tone even during the comedic takes, and it works.

Very deserving of winning the Eisner Award for best writer and artist. I wouldn't mind reading even more. Of course, it is good for a story to have a proper ending and fit in one graphic novel. If they'd ever like to team up for a sequel or similar run on another character that would be fine by me!

[Frédéric · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, this was... different.

Tom King gets ballsy and delivers a very different book than  average. Does that make it good?

If you're like me-and I reckon we're a crowd out there- and started the book knowing zilch about Mr Miracle, Big Barda and the gang of New Gods or whatever, you'll end up with about the same level of knowledge as when you started. So most relationships, stakes, reasons for battles and stuff largely remain a mystery throughout. A bit annoying if you ask me.

The plot now... Well, is there really one? Mr Miracle, apparently related to some characters from both sides, fights unclear ennemies for unknown reasons. He seems casually out of place, out of sorts, out of himself. And... he's got a baby with Big Barda.
And that sums it up. Where does that leave him-and us btw? Hell if I know.

What piqued my interest-up to a point-is the narration. Tom King is clever, yessire he is. He uses cool and clever devices throughout, 9 panels grid, running gags, pauses and silences. It's  brainy, it's tongue-in-cheek fun, it's interesting.
But.
But here Tom King is too clever for his own good. He overstretches the use of his bag of tricks to the limit of boredom. Some are useful and innovative while some remain a mystery to me, such as the half blurred panels dotting the whole book. It sometimes looks like Tom King acts like a show off with delusions of being experimental or something. I was that close to calling it quits at 1/3rd of the book.

Artwise Mitch Gerads does his stuff. Quite well I think but his peculiar style being what it is it probably won't suit everybody.

That's Mr. Miracle for you. It's original and clever, it starts promisingly but ends confusingly, with lots of overused narrative tricks in between. A well meaning failed attempt at something else. Oh, well, better luck next time.
 

[Wing Kee · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is without a doubt one of the best books on the market at the moment.

World: The art is absolutely fantastic. Gerad's art sets the tone for the world and the story that grounds this little family and character tale like no other. The colors, the frames, the character expressions and personality that pop off the page, the art is perfect. The world building is basic, it's there for the story and it serves it well. We have Scott as a performer, and that part of his world. We have Scott the son of Highfather and that part of his world. We have Scott and Barda and their world. It's all simple and grounded, it's amazing.

Story: I can't get into this, I don't want to get into spoilers cause it ruins the experience for anyone who is going to read it. It's a character story, it's not a stabby stabby superhero romp (thought there is action in the story), it's a character story. It's beautiful and basic in it's simplicity but the character depth that wells out of the book really shows what's so special about this book. I have always loved Barda and Scott (they were always my favorites in the Forth World) and seeing them in this book and how their story plays out and the emotions, the art, the quiet moments, the big moments the dialog, this book is just sooo good. This is a perfect example of how this art form is different from prose and how art and prose meld together to tell a tale that is awe inspiring. Just read it if you want a good character story, you'll love these to characters I promise you.

Characters: Scott and Barda are perfect. They are real, they are deep and they are just beautifully written and realized. I've never felt the depth for these characters before and now I can't go back to the basic caricatures of normal superhero comics for them. What King has been doing at DC since Rebirth as been astounding. I don't see Bat Cat the same as before him, I don't see Swamp Thing they way I see him (I loved Moore's version the best still) and I not don't see Scott and Barda the same way. It's just sublime character work.

These first 6 issues is absolutely amazing, I can't recommend this book enough. If you are looking for something deeper, something different with complex and human emotions READ THIS!!!

Onward to the next book!

*read individual issues*

Merged review:

This series is stunningly good. Below is my review broken into two pieces 1-6 and 7-12:

1-6:
This is without a doubt one of the best books on the market at the moment.

World: The art is absolutely fantastic. Gerad's art sets the tone for the world and the story that grounds this little family and character tale like no other. The colors, the frames, the character expressions and personality that pop off the page, the art is perfect. The world building is basic, it's there for the story and it serves it well. We have Scott as a performer, and that part of his world. We have Scott the son of Highfather and that part of his world. We have Scott and Barda and their world. It's all simple and grounded, it's amazing.

Story: I can't get into this, I don't want to get into spoilers cause it ruins the experience for anyone who is going to read it. It's a character story, it's not a stabby stabby superhero romp (thought there is action in the story), it's a character story. It's beautiful and basic in it's simplicity but the character depth that wells out of the book really shows what's so special about this book. I have always loved Barda and Scott (they were always my favorites in the Forth World) and seeing them in this book and how their story plays out and the emotions, the art, the quiet moments, the big moments the dialog, this book is just sooo good. This is a perfect example of how this art form is different from prose and how art and prose meld together to tell a tale that is awe inspiring. Just read it if you want a good character story, you'll love these to characters I promise you.

Characters: Scott and Barda are perfect. They are real, they are deep and they are just beautifully written and realized. I've never felt the depth for these characters before and now I can't go back to the basic caricatures of normal superhero comics for them. What King has been doing at DC since Rebirth as been astounding. I don't see Bat Cat the same as before him, I don't see Swamp Thing they way I see him (I loved Moore's version the best still) and I not don't see Scott and Barda the same way. It's just sublime character work.

These first 6 issues is absolutely amazing, I can't recommend this book enough. If you are looking for something deeper, something different with complex and human emotions READ THIS!!!


7-12:

Where do we go from here?

World: The art is phenomenal, it’s so beautiful and sets the tone of the book so wonderfully that this book can’t be what it is without the art. The small quiet moments that are conveyed through the art, the small subtle emotions, the large emotions, the big bombastic and happy moments, the sad torn sad moments, amazing. The world building here is also wonderful, it’s subtle and there is no hand holding at all. There are no info dumps there are no character introductions, this is a book for DC readers and fans of the Forth World, but even if you don’t have any knowledge of this world the context given by this creative team is enough. Honestly the world is not the core of this story, it’s merely a stage for he amazing character story on display here. That being said, it’s still pretty fantastic if you know these characters.

Story: This second arc is amazing, with Scott and Barda dealing with being a parent and it’s pretty amazing what they did here. It’s not preachy it’s not “hey look how hard it is and how beautiful being a parent is” it’s not, it just is. The small emotions and the interactions between the characters brings this small intimate tale and the large world together in wonderful ways. With the war and the stakes and the emotions and the negotiations and the how it’s resolved, it’s absolutely stunning where this creative team went, where King went with the dialog and plot and where Gerads went with the art. I won’t say anything about the story, I won’t spoil the ending which was both human, melancholy, hopeful and also pretty amazing in it’s tie to the DCU. Just enjoy this book that deserves to be read by all comic book fans.

Characters: Wow the character work is amazing. Scott and Barda were already amazing in book one and this is even better. More depth, more humanity and their reaction to the simple and the backdrop of the war is amazing. Barda is fantastic, giving her more depth since we saw her in the Justice League and a much more human touch to her. The character that show up here and how it’s resolved, the interactions and the depth I won’t go into cause this is the heart of the book and it’s not my place to show you the heart when it should be experienced by readers themselves. This is the best.

An amazing achievement and once again showing King as a master storyteller. I have nothing else to say.

Onward to the next book!

*read individual issues*

[MrGlassWontBreak · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two warring planets, New Genesis, lead by Hi Father, and Apocalypse, lead by Darkside, agree to switch their leaders' children to maintain a treaty of peace. Darkside’s child, Orion, gets sent to New Genesis, where he is raised with love and care. In contrast, High Father’s child, Scott Free, gets sent to Apocalypse, where he is hardened, brutally trained, and tortured. After decades of repeatedly trying to escape and becoming extremely proficient at it, Scott finally does and moves to Earth. He makes some friends, becomes an escape artist/superhero named Mister Miracle, meets his real dad, High Father, and helps New Genesis in the fight against Apocalypse. He befriends and falls in love with Big Barra, his former adversary from Apocalypse who betrays Darkside to joins the good guys, and escapes to earth with Scott

Now happily married, things go well for Scott and Barda, but Scott can’t help but feel like something is terribly wrong. High Father is killed by Darkside, and it is revealed that Darkside has acquired the Anti-Life Equation, a weapon that allows one to reshape reality and the will of others. With Orion now in charge of New Genesis, Scott and Barda are drafted as generals into a never-ending war between their home worlds. They fight tirelessly for New Genesis, until Scott and Orion have a big crash out and Scott is sentenced to death by him. Attempting to sort things out, Scott and Barda storm the castle of New Genesis, only to find Orion Dead at the hands of Darkside, Right after Barda tells Scott she’s pregnant. Scott, being the true son of Highfather and brother of Orion, becomes the new leader(High Father) of New Genesis and has to Orchestrate his side of the war.

Barda give birth and they raise the child on earth, while continuing to lead New Genesis, as it slowly loses the war. That’s when both parties meet and decide on a truce, with the terms being Scott and Barda offering their child to Darkside in exchange for peace. Scott wrestles with the morality of the decision for a while before ultimately deciding to trick and kill Darkside with a false attempt, and he manages to do just that, by stabbing Darkside in the head with a special God-killing knife made out of Orion’s bones. That’s when Metron(New-God of knowledge) shows up and reveals to Scott that he is currently under the effects of the Anti-Life Equation, and that his current reality is essentially fake. In the end, Scott decides to abandon his life with all the other DC heroes to stay in this make-believe, perfect world. Or at least that’s what I think happened, not really sure honestly.

Damn!, Scott is such an emotionally messed-up character, and a very relatable one at that. He literally tried to kill himself like eight pages into the book. Tom King does an amazing job of mixing normal daily life with dark and philosophical superhero themes. Most of this book is just Scot and Barda building a family you’ll instantly fall for, while at the same time, fighting a brutal never-ending war to protect that family from their past trauma, Darckside. Very good Stuff, Definitely Recommend!

[Malum · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went into this volume without knowing anything about Mister Miracle or the New Gods. At first, I didn't think I would like it. It was very confusing, I didn't know who anyone was or what was happening.
Luckily, King does a pretty good job of filling you in on most of the backstory that you need to understand, and the weirdness begins to make sense in its own way.
Then, looking deeper, you begin to see some of the brilliant things that King is doing in this volume. He is humanizing super heroes. These characters are literally gods, and yet they have hang ups and doubts, make mistakes, and argue about things like how they are going to remodel their homes.
The artwork is absolutely fantastic and almost evokes a sense of mental illness, as if you can take a schizophrenic journey along with the characters.
As an aside: Tom King also wrote the awesome Vision book that Marvel put out not too long ago. Isn't it strange that Mr. Miracle and Vision look very similar? Maybe King has a thing for people in giant capes?

Merged review:

If Tom King keeps it up, his name will be spoken in the same breath as figures such as Grant Morrison and Alan Moore. Almost everything this guy has been putting out for the last few years has been instant-classics. Happily, Mister Miracle is no exception. This is the comic book risen to the level of true art.

[Shadowdenizen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Originally read as single issues.
One of todays top writers takes on one of Jack Kirbys most underrated creations, and hits it out of the park!

This is, hands down one of my favorite runs of the last few years! It takes a relatively minor character and brings him directly to the forefront of the DCU.

Tom King masterfully navigates this complex character, throwing in enough history to please long-time fans while still making it accessible to new/casual fans.

Highly recoommended (along with the Vision mini-series from Marvel.)

[Rod Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, Tom King has done the impossible: he made me like not only Jack Kirby's Fourth World -- a concept I have reviled since I first came across it decades ago -- but also a story that is basically an extended dream sequence, though I prefer to think of it as an "imaginary story." This may or may not fit in continuity somehow, but I prefer to think of it as "Mister Miracle: Whatever happened to the Super Escape Artist?" -- King's homage to Superman: Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?. As with that book, no matter what else happens with the character, this is how he ended. We can finally be done with the Fourth World; Tom King has finished it. Full stop. No more, please. Not needed.

And he throws in so much, from the horror of war to the horrors and joys of marriage and parenting. And there are multiple bittersweet tributes to Jack Kirby as well as Stan Lee. And while it is a super-DC-nerd fanfest with easter eggs galore, King also manages to toss in some philosophy and riff on the always popular theme of fathers and sons.

I am stunned and in awe.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m hopeful I can come up with a more thoughtful review soon but for now all I can say is I want Scott Free’s T-shirt collection.

4 NOV 2020 UPDATE: Nope, nothing else to say, but the tshirt thing is legit.

[Rory Wilding · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Darkseid is.”

This is a term that was introduced in the "Rock of Ages" storyline in Grant Morrison and Howard Porter's JLA run, in which the tyrannical ruler of the planet Apokolips has finally claimed the Anti-Life Equation and in the future has turned the Earth into an apocalyptic dystopia. Although Darkseid has often been depicted as a physical threat who could easily take on the Justice League, comics like JLA have depicted the character as a dark psychological concept that goes back to when Jack Kirby was creating the Fourth World in the 1970s.

This concept is very much explored in Tom King and Mitch Gerads’s twelve-issue masterpiece, which opens with the attempted suicide of the world’s greatest escape artist, Scott Free. As he and his wife Big Barda try to maintain a normal life in their Los Angeles condo, they are called back into the war between their homeworlds of New Genesis and Apokolips, due to Scott’s adoptive father Darkseid finally found the Anti-Life Equation. Trying to balance the domesticity and the apocalyptic, Scott is also grasping with the reality of his own life.

Opening with a prologue drawn by Mike Norton in the style of Kirby, it does provide the backstory of New Genesis and Apokolips, as well as Scott Free’s origin from being raised and tortured in the fiery depths of Apokolips to becoming Mister Miracle, all of which can be read in Jack Kirby’s eighteen-issue run of the character. From the start, this book is steeped into the New Gods mythos as both King and Gerads embraces the thematic and visual sensibilities that Kirby conceived, whilst creating something unique that feels in tune with what the two creators are aiming for.

King has explored the theme of war from the fact-based harshness of The Sheriff of Babylon to the space opera antics of The Omega Men. Amidst the larger-than-life surroundings of Apokolips, the way King depicts war as a long repetition as depicted in a number of issues, where Mister Miracle is constantly going from bloody battle to bloody battle. There is even a multi-day negotiation summit, in which the leaders of both worlds discuss ways of achieving peace, including a personal compromise. New Genesis and Apokolips are two opposite sides representing good and evil, but in times of war, morality is grey on all sides and it’s all about compromising.

However, what works best about Mister Miracle is less about war than it is about our hero trying to cope with everyday life, for all its best and worst occasions. Much like what he did with his twelve-issue series of The Vision in Marvel, King deconstructs the hero through his domesticity in how he tries to sustain a normal life in Los Angeles from his marriage to his job as an escape artist, whilst questioning his own reality following his suicide attempt after many years of escaping death. With a number of panels that simply say “Darkseid is”, suggesting that the tyrannical leader has been altering Scott’s life, he is not coping with how much the world around him is changing.

Amidst the darkness that lurks within, there is a lightness that shines and that is largely down in the marriage of Scott and Barda. Despite their outlandish background and costumes, the conversations between husband and wife are so downed-to-earth, such as a chat during the shower after been soaked in Parademon blood, and a discussion about household refurbishment during an infiltration. This relationship becomes even more significant halfway through the book with the arrival of their newborn son, showing how human and relatable these gods are. As much as you can see that King is influenced by Alan Moore, who is known for his dark deconstruction of superheroes, the writer wants to explore the happiness among these figures, even in a blackly comic fashion.

Speaking of Moore, who tends to use the traditional nine-panel grid in his work, this is another technique that King has used in his comics. As the writer reunites with his Sheriff of Babylon artist, Mitch Gerads draws nearly the entirety of the twelve issues with the nine-panel grid, brilliantly used to depict the mental claustrophobia that Scott struggles with. Gerads is indeed a different artist than Jack Kirby, but he manages to present an oddly realistic look to Kirby’s Fourth World creations, especially when you noticed how lived-in the marriage of Scott and Barda looks.

It may not give clear answers to its central dilemma, but Tom King and Mitch Gerads present something extraordinary in a multi-layered story that humanises the New Gods, mostly through its touching marriage of its eponymous escape artist and his tall but perfect wife.

[ScottIsANerd (GrilledCheeseSamurai) · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had to keep reminding myself as I read this that it was a superhero comic from one of the big 2 publishers. It certainly didn't feel like it.

If you are looking for a flashy fight book with big huge action scenes...this probably isn't the book for you. However, if you are on the hunt for a deep character study that asks some meaningful questions, this is certainly that book. And more.

I absolutely loved it. I loved the 9-panel pages...it brought us in so tight and close to the characters that you couldn't help but feel how personal this story was. There were times where I was laughing out loud...and times where I felt really sad. The book took a lot out of me. I saved up all 12 issues (I bought it in singles) and have waited to read the story until now. I'm really glad I did - I think it has more of an emotional impact reading it that way instead of month to month.

Easily one of my favorites of the year!

[Alexander Peterhans · Rating 5 out of 5]

First things first - I had absolutely no knowledge about Scott Free, Mister Miracle, Big Barda, Darkseid (who is, btw), literally anything (beyond Batman and Superman) that is mentioned in this book. Just to let you know where I'm coming from.

I love this book. I love the juxtaposition of all the godly superstuff (and it really is quite super) with the day to day life of Scott and Barda on Earth. I love how even gods are basically human, in some way. I love how it depicts how insane life can be, especially when you have others who depend on you. And I love how it depicts depression, how it invades a life, how it can twist a person away from that life.

And I love, besides all those themes and ideas, how incredibly funny this book is.

Can't recommend this enough, to anyone, really.

[Chad Anderson · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was really looking forward to this book from the moment that the first issue was announced. The art looked amazing and I was just coming off of Tom King's (excellent) 'Vision", "Sheriff of Babylon" and 'Omega Men."
I literally waited for over a year for this trade with baited breath.
What a disappointment…

This book was a depressing, pointless, slog to read. I had to force myself to finish. If it wasn't for Mitch Gerard's amazing art, I'm confident that I would have set it on the shelf never to return.

From the cutesy, achingly self aware, faux hipster, insincere and phony dialogue to the writer's insistence on maintaining a near constant aura of low grade depression, to his need to emasculate the hero at every turn, never mind the fact that nothing the characters did actually mattered … what a bummer.

We are well past the era of thinking of the deconstruction of the super hero as something new. It’s been going on 35 years or more. Alan Moore, Alex Ross ‘Astro City”, Neil Gaimen, etc, etc, etc, … Simply stripping a character of everything and anything that makes him heroic and placing lame, supposedly ‘slice of life” dialogue in his mouth isn’t enough. There needs to be some sort of fresh take on the well worn trope for it to be relevant. Btw, none of the aforementioned writers were / are boring. They were able to bring a reality to the world of heroes while still presenting the reader with interesting and exciting stories THAT MATTERED.

Tom King has been on this trajectory for awhile both with his (sometimes excellent, sometime passable and often embarrassing) work on Batman as well as his other projects but now it seems that he’s taken being a “critic’s darling” to heart and really doubled down on his worst instincts with this book. The entire “story” just seems self conscious and self impressed. I apologize for writing such a negative review (its my first) but I feel strongly that the content and execution of this collection is sub par and somehow weirdly agenda driven. I have to admit that I feel ripped off.

[Adam M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok, re-read time. I originally received an ARC via NetGalley and it was incomplete. If you read my incredibly whiny review of that one you saw that my biggest complaint was that since I didn't have the ending I had no idea what all of this had been working towards. It was impossible to feel invested in these characters. The complete edition is, in fact, everything I hoped for from other's reviews.

Mitch Gerads is the real hero of this book. His art has an amazing texture to it and his ability to convey so much emotion with so little movement was wonderful. King has writing a pretty cerebral book (shocking, right) and I don't know that this book wins Eisners without Gerads' deft and vibrant work.

There is a short primer on the New Gods in the introduction so that this isn't entirely from left field. I was certainly one of the uninitiated before this, but it didn't keep me from enjoying the story or learning who these weirdos were. An interesting read (if you're not turned off by King or the idea of this character which is apparently a thing looking around here) and one that I'm glad I re-read.

[Subham · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was quite a fascinating read.

I call it that because even after reading it I am not sure of the ending as its vague but loved the whole story till the end. It starts with Scott and Barda fighting Apokolips horde after being drafted onto the thing of New Genesis with Orion becoming Highfather and what all happens there after and well we see his daily life and struggles and what not and him becoming the next leader and battling Darkseif and what will it all entail? But actually its him battling the anti-life equation thats infected him maybe and can he escape from it and does he? Vague like i said.

Its a very good read and i love the romance between Barda and scott and them raising a family and also focusing on their home life and well them fighting and cameos by new gods is awesome and also references to the wider DCU and it makes you appreciate this book. King does a deep dive into the character and how he can escape this but chooses not to, his romance with Barda has made them one of my fav couples in DCU and its great plus the art by Gerads and the nine pannel layout is great and makes this story better.

Overall its a fascinating read and will go down as one of the best DC books ever.

[Anthony · Rating 5 out of 5]

There was so much hype behind this that I couldn't help but wonder if it would live up to it. Turns out it does. The work these guys have crested in these 12 issues is pretty fantastic. From the personal and humanised story of a New God, to committing to the 9 panel grid layout for nearly the whole series.

I don't really know much about The Fourth World and New Gods stuff outside of Darkseid and a few others that have popped up in other DC books I've read, so all this was kinda new to me. But I think it's done in a way that that doesn't really matter.

It's about a man dealing with some mental health issues, a war that could end a universe, and family.

It's just a great read. I read it in pretty much one sitting and couldn't put it down. Had it read it month to month in singles I'm not sure I'd have enjoyed it as much, I think it is read better as a graphic novel

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 - 3.5 stars

So I’m not sure if any of this book actually happened...in continuity I mean (I’m not crazy...like Scott Free might be). It’s a deep dive into the psyche of Mister Miracle aka Scott Free, son of Highfather of the New Gods and ‘adoptive son’ of Darkseid demonic lord of Apokalypse. It’s understandably not exactly a pretty place...given he was raised in DC’s version of hell when his father gave him up in the name of peace and political expediency. Suffice it to say Scott’s got a few issues to work through. Thus it is not completely surprising (though it still kinda is) that the book opens with him lying on his bathroom floor after having slit his wrists and things get rolling from there.

The relationship of Scott and his wife Big Barda is squarely at the centre of the story. Two people that found each other after suffering the horrors of abusive childhoods (to put it mildly), they are trying to balance living a ‘normal’ life on earth (as celebrities which is, like, totally normal) with being superheroes who have the added burden of being gods from another world. They come to find that in the midst of their otherworldly adventures (that centre on the renewed bloody war between New Genesis and Apokalypse) their greatest trial will prove to be the birth of their son Jacob and trying to adjust to the role of new parents.

In the midst of everything Scott seems to be losing his mind and I’m not sure if any (or all) of the events of the story actually took place or were merely the delusional ramblings of Scott’s broken mind. Or did he even survive his suicide attempt? Maybe he is living out some kind of twisted after-life. It’s all pretty confusing.

There are a lot of big themes in this book: dealing with childhood trauma; coming to grips with being a father when your model(s) of fatherhood are less than ideal; accepting a less than ideal past while trying to make a better future; deciding what is most important in your life; and possibly even dealing with mental illness. I was constantly surprised by not only the events of Scott’s life, but how he chose to deal with them...this ain’t your run-of-the-mill DC superhero funny book. Given the relative paucity of other non-Fourth World DC characters (with the amusing exception of a guest appearance by Scott’s old JL buddies Blue and Gold) and the way the final pages resolved I’m pretty sure my initial feeling at the beginning of the review is correct: none of this ‘really’ happened (except possibly in Scott’s head) which would be a bit of a shame because if that’s the case then my ultimate question would be: what was the point? So, hopefully I’m wrong.

This was definitely an interesting read, but if you aren’t familiar with DC’s Fourth World, and aren’t in the mood for some bizarre events and heavy themes it might not be the best place to dive into it.

[Skip · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted to like this graphic novel, especially with his 4.49 average rating from Goodreads, but I simply could not. Incredibly confusing, and Tom King just did not bring together the various plotlines or characters into any kind of coherent story, even after 300+ pages. I think the one redeeming feature was the strong and loving bond between Scott Free and Big Barda.

[Ondra Král · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just wow.