World of Doom

Forty years ago, The Crisis on Infinite Earths launched the concept of the company wide comic crossover, and, in doing so, unleashed a beast that lives on to this day. Most crossovers these days as much as anything are a blatant attack on the wallets of vulnerable comic fans with varying degrees of OCD, and are rarely worth the effort to “collect ‘em all, kids”.

Except…

Once in a great while a crossover will rise above the swamp and produce something that not only makes the reading worthwhile, but necessary. Such was the case with the One World Under Doom arc. The metaphor laid out by writer Ryan North expertly exposes the origins and reality of how a fascist state comes into being and how it functions. It taps into the DNA of comic book’s past by creating a frightening and courageous cautionary tale. I feel pride as a lifetime comic book reader when my cousin medium steps up in this way.