Infinite Frontier #2 Review

Writer: Joshua Williamson

Art: Paul Pelletier, Jesús Merino, Norm Rapmund, Romulo Fajardo Jr., Tom Napolitano, Xermanico, and Mitch Gerads

Publisher: DC Comics

Price:$4.99

Release Date: July 13th, 2021

What mysteries and modifications creep inside the recently intensified Omniverse? Let’s jump into INFINITE FRONTIER #2 by Joshua Williamson to see what the clever Director of the D.E.O. is up to as he constructs a squad to protect the new nations around the globe while keeping unique Omniversal enemies at bay. However, did Director Bones recruit agent Cameron Chase because he desires her assistance, or because he needs a scapegoat? Plus, Alan Scott is willing to take severe actions to locate his missing daughter. Someone or something has kidnapped Jade and the Green Lantern is going to discover why at any cost. And if that wasn’t already enough, Roy Harper appears to be given some surprising and unexpected new abilities. All this and more in this week’s all-new INFINITE FRONTIER!

If you’re interested in this comic, series, related trades, or any of the others mentioned, simply click on the title/link to snag a copy through Amazon.

DARKSEID IS… AGAIN

You had me DC COMICS… until the line “Darkseid is”. Really? Please tell me we aren’t going back to vague, nonsensical veggie trays. Please tell me we aren’t going back to open interruptions making the reader the personal decision-maker of this event. We don’t need a deep “eye of the beholder” story. We need concrete substance and purpose that everyone can make sense of. Heck, has anyone truly figured out what “Darkseid is” really means? Now, to Tom King’s credit, he wasn’t the first one to use that phrase. It was actually taken from Grant Morrison in ROCK OF AGES. Yet, even in Morrison’s context, it still left room for ambiguity.

My hesitation with this phrase is mainly in what it’s trying to convey. There is only one “I am” and that’s the Great I am. Exodus 3:14 states “God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’ And He said, ‘Say this to the people of Israel, I am has sent me to you.’” This implies His continual presence, power, and glory. Yahweh or (YHWH) is the one can’t only Holy One. It’s the name above all names. He’s never inconsistent. He’s never wrong. And, if the entire universe would cease to exist, the only being that would remain would be the Triune God, the Great I am, the only self-existing being who lives outside our very fabric of time and space.

Therefore, if I’m correct in the way both King and Morrison wished to communicate this phrase “Darkseid is”, they intended it as a parallel to the God of our Universe. And if that’s correct, they may have overstepped on top of the ambiguity surrounding the statement as well. Plus, they made the same Darkseid who the JUSTICE LEAGUE has defeated many times over someone on par with God. Thus, implying the very premise that the JUSTICE LEAGUE can stop God Himself. Something just doesn’t jive with this reviewer, which is why we need to retcon the heck out of that saying and kiss it goodbye forever.

THE DISPATCH

The most frustrating part of this entire issue is that the phrase “Darkseid is” really isn’t needed. INFINITE FRONTIER #2 alone is powerful, fascinating, and offers up some engaging dilemmas for our heroes moving forward. Readers will discover some missing heroes, old allies revived with new abilities, and reliable warriors from the past that may be different within the new Omniverse. The potential is literally oozing off each page without this silly nonsense. Williamson develops multiple different angles and directions for DC COMICS and their future. Plus, the story still feels fresh, new, and unique. Therefore, I can’t help but wonder why we need to go back and revisit this ridiculous and indefinite notion with Darkseid all over again.

ART

Not only was the Darkseid element a bit frustrating, but the art seemed uneven and inconsistent within the story itself as well as what we saw in INFINITE FRONTIER #1. The outlining of the characters was heavy, facial expressions and composition lacked the same detail it had in the last issue, and the word balloons cluttered many of the pages making the design feel more cramped and compacted than it needed to be.

Granted, the word balloons were only a direct correlation to Williamson’s vast dialogue that also weighed down INFINITE FRONTIER #2 more so than the prior installment. Furthermore, on some pages, similar character’s eyes had distinction and depth while later on they were just white and lack definition. It’s almost as if different illustrators did various pages adding to the inconsistencies in the art this week leaving the issue a bit lackluster.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Readers get intrigue, suspense, and a developing plotline that appears to have a familiar foe at the forefront. Williamson explores new captivating concepts with familiar faces while trying to reconnect the heart of the DC Universe in the process.

I simply wish that the debatable “Darkside is” phrase could just melt away and never be reexamined again. And, my hope is that the art parallels INFINITE FRONTIER #1 more so than issue two. I thought we were supposed to be moving forward in a direction that fixes mistakes of the past not rehashes them. Statements like “Darkseid is” are not only diminishing the character of God Himself but also curtails the story involving Perpetua before him. It makes Darkseid bigger than Perpetua. And, if he somehow is the “One Above All”, which is frankly absurd and silly, then DARK NIGHTS: DEATH METAL loses its weight and merit as well.

Sure, there will always need to be villains. However, the phrase “Darkseid is” implies that he is above all and has somehow survived what no one else could. He transcends even the creators of the Omniverse, which is just ludicrous. Why couldn’t he just come back like everyone else with a new purpose and new direction? Now, it appears he is even bigger than DARK NIGHTS: DEATH METAL itself. And readers, that’s just a hard pill to swallow. I’m still all in with high hopes for INFINITE FRONTIER to resemble the amazing nature of issue one more so than issue two. Let me know what you think, have a great week, and God bless!