Issue: Rann-Thanagar Holy War #8
Title: "Sacrifice And Loss"
Published Date: Feb 2009
Generation: Modern Carter
Retcon Status: In Continuity
Summary: On Rann, our heroes are fighting a desperate battle against Synnar's forces, including the giant Inquisitor robots and throngs of Thanagarian Wingmen. While the tide of the combat ebbs and flows, Synnar is preparing his ritual which will gain him his next step in achieving universal power.
During the firefight, Lady Styx's flagship is brought down, and the "goddess" bursts forth, seeking fresh worshippers, only to be shut down by Prince Gavyn. With her monsterous form on display for all to see, her loyal subjects (including Sardath) are shocked and repulsed. Strange then tells Sardath to begin the mass Zeta-beam evacuation of Rann, which Sardath agrees to. Meanwhile, The Weird is busy absorbing as much energy as he can, intending to overload himself to stop Synnar. With The Weird hitting critical mass, the heroes Zeta-beam out, and Weird throws himself at the Demiurge -- leaving the two beings twisted into one bizarre form, and then causing a cataclysmic explosion which destroys Rann's atmosphere!
Back on Throneworld, the citizens of Rann are in need of a new home, and Prince Gavyn in need of new people to lead. He dubs the planet "New Rann," but the heroes agree that if the Rannians presence was known, they would be targetted by the Thanagarians again, so their existance is kept secret. As the team goes their seperate ways, on the wasteland that is Rann, Synnar muses on how his form was going to be temporary, but now that he is stuck in the Weird's body, things are not as they should be.
Review: If the summary seems a little light, it's because this issue is pretty sparse on plot, with a lot more action than anything else. Strange and Hawkman's team each gets a little character moment during the big battle, but in the end the entire story is throttling towards the climax. It's a good way to end the series, and there is no doubt that this series did a lot to change the face of the Non-GL DC cosmic stuff. It's unfortunate that a lot of Starlin's plans seem to have been nipped in the bud before he could develop them all the way (I don't even need to link to the Hawkman Special again, do I?).
All in all, reading this series again has been enjoyable. I wish I could have done it in a more timely fashion but sometimes you can't avoid that. All in all I think this is a good, exciting yarn and I am glad I decided (after the fact) to pick it up.
Image: Rann-Thanagar Holy War #8, 2009, Jim Starlin.
2 comments:
Let's just forget the Special every happened and chalk it up to a comic power trying to mess with Hawkman's head.
But I liked the Special!
And to be fair, Starlin did explain it (somewhat) in Strange Adventures -- as powerful as he is, I don't think The Demiurge could overcome the powers of either Darkseid or Nekron, depending on when you think Hawkman's actuality was changed.
Post a Comment