Yeah, yeah, yeah... So far it's not as good as 52. It's still very interesting. I guess you can't beat human expectation, though :) We'll see where it goes from here...

No...just...no. Countdown supposedly follows up on the threads that were left off from Infinite Crisis and 52 as the product description will lead you to believe. Grant Morrison, the writer in charge of DC's current event that this series was counting down to, Final Crisis, had plotted Final Crisis out nearly two years ago. He had said he'd laid down the threads for Final Crisis in Seven Soldiers and in 52. He gave these plots out to Paul Dini and his cavalcade of D-list writers for Countdown. Within this first volume, we see nearly all the plot details Mr. Morrison had laid down realized by the writers of Countdown. But after that? These writers decided they would go off on their own tangents, because they had the obligation of filling twenty-four pages per week for a year straight, due to the nature of the book. The editors of the book failed to let Paul Dini know what Grant Morrison intended, and we ended up with Countdown. Had Grant Morrison been involved with this book, and had DC put a staff of A-list or B-list writers on this book, things certainly might have been different.

The good things I can say for this volume? Well, it's the first 13 issues of a weekly series, and it takes the threads Morrison had put down and begins to run with them, being the first few issues and all. It moves relatively slowly, and you think you'll have high hopes for the series, that it will end up being good at the end. But trust me when I say this, the quality only gets worse from here on out. By the end of the last issue, you will be kicking yourself for spending $80 on the collected version of this, and asking yourself "Did anything really change?". By the end of this book, nothing has changed.

If you intend on reading Final Crisis, ignore Countdown. Ignore Death of the New Gods. Ignore Salvation Run. Read 52 (52, Vol. 1, 52, Vol. 2, 52, Vol. 3, 52, Vol. 4), which Grant Morrison had a hand in, and is a much better weekly series (due to the fact that they had an A-list writing staff on the book), and read Morrison's "megaseries" Seven Soldiers ( Seven Soldiers of Victory, Vol. 1, Seven Soldiers of Victory, Vol. 2, Seven Soldiers of Victory, Vol. 3, Seven Soldiers of Victory, Vol. 4), which is one of the most adventurous writings in modern comics (seven four issue mini series' bookended by a zero issue, and issue one).

...and try DC's prior weekly series "52" by star writers Grant Morrison, Geoff Johns, Mark Waid and Greg Rucka. "52" follows one year in the lives of various third tier DC characters (Black Adam, The Question, Detective Renee Montoya, Doc Magus, The Elongated Man (yes, he IS cool), all of whom have fascinating arcs. Alas, COUNTDOWN, for whatever reason, is not very effective: loose, at times random plotting, thin characterization, why go on? There are some great writers involved, but the whole project failed to gell in slowmo train wreck fashion. Only scribes Jimmy Palmiotti and partner Mick Gray emerge with dignity intact.

I do not like bagging on books, but I really do wish to suggest skipping COUNTDOWN and trying "52" instead, but DC's latest (2008) weekly TRINITY, which will be collected in 2009.

After the surprise success of 52, DC decided to do another year long weekly series. The series would count down and lead into Grant Morrison's Final Crisis event, and basically promised to follow the same formula that made 52 so good. Sadly, Countdown to Final Crisis doesn't deliver, at all, in many of the departments that made 52 so enjoyable. Like 52 before it, Countdown follows a list of lower-tier DC characters like Karate Kid, Mary Marvel, and Jimmy Olsen. What made 52 work so well was the superstar team of writers behind it (Morrison, Geoff Johns, Mark Waid, and Greg Rucka) using characters we actually did care somewhat about (Steel, Elongated Man, Booster Gold, The Question, etc.). With Countdown, the script from Paul Dini just comes off as overly boring. Karate Kid and co. are not remotely interesting in the least, with Mary Marvel's possible descent into darkness being the only thing that makes this series worth reading, for now that is. Not to mention that unless you so happen to follow a few series' and mini-series' that were released alongside Countdown, you will find yourself clueless (seeing Black Adam re-powered and Bart Allen dead will confuse you if you haven't been keeping up). The varying artwork here looks overly rushed overall as well, which while 52 suffered from this from time to time, still managed to look halfway decent at the least. All in all, Countdown to Final Crisis is a major disappointment compared to 52, and skipping this on the way to Final Crisis won't hurt you much at all.

A weekly comic featuring B and C listers? Who would have predicted it to be a thrilling ride? I heard wonderful reviews for 52, Vol. 1 as it was making its one-year run. When it became available in trade paperback, I bought it immediately and loved it.

With "52" such a success, why not ride the lightning a second time? DC tried, but "Countdown" doesn't come close to being what "52" was. My biggest problem with "Countdown" is that the big action does not happen in the series. It happens in the tie-in books. When a main DCU character is killed, we see the funeral, not how the character died. In fact, how the character was killed is never explained in this book, although how the death affects two characters in the book is a big part of their storyline.

I was so disappointed with the first trade paperback in this series, I cancelled my pre-orders for volumes 2, 3 and 4. I didn't want to give up on "Countdown", but not having read the tie-in books, I felt like I was missing half the story.

On a positive note, I really like the Mary Marvel storyline in this first book and it's the only thing that made me think twice about cancelling my pre-orders for the other three books. Still, her story was not enough for me to spend the money for the rest of this trade paperback series.

Before reading any heavily discussed story like Countdown, and especially one marred by mostly negative reviews, an open mind is certainly advisable and probably a prerequisite. The positive approach to employ is that it can't possibly be that bad, can it? Upon completion, it did not quite warrant the bad baggage that it carries, but the cracks are certainly apparent. In this case, it has more to do with the original premise and format than the execution of it, although its' concluding loss of momentum is a concern. Having a half dozen concurrent storylines featuring many C-listers without any initial cohesiveness or connectivity can be troublesome, as is the constant switching back and forth between them. Of course this is a year long story, so patience is required. The use of lesser known characters, which was one of the more appealing aspects for many in 52, may float the boat for some, but they cannot carry a story by themselves without a compelling narrative to support them. One more possible miscalculation, especially after the passage of time, was the decision to crossover with major events from other comics, such as Amazons Attack and the death of Bart Allen. Yes, the story was promoted as being the spine of the DCU and this was probably unavoidable and inevitable, but they came across as forced diversions without naturally blending in, and also dated it as well. Even major sagas work best if they can always be read as timeless stand alones. For new readers not steeped in DC history, or even long term fans without extensive collections, this use of non-stars and references to crossovers and previous events may be confusing. Despite these criticisms and its' lackluster finish, for now enough intriguing seeds have been planted to hold my interest until the next installment. Whether or not the story further degenerates into the painful disappointment that many people have harped on remains to be seen.

Before reading any heavily discussed story like Countdown, and especially one which received mostly negative reviews, an open mind is certainly advisable and probably a prerequisite. The positive approach to employ is that it can't possibly be that bad, can it? As it turned out, it did not quite warrant, for now, the bad baggage that it carries, but the cracks are certainly apparent. In this case, it has more to do with the original premise and format than the execution of it. Having a half dozen concurrent storylines featuring many C-listers without any initial cohesiveness or connectivity can be troublesome, as is the constant switching back and forth between them. Of course this is a year long story, so patience is required. The use of lesser known characters, which was one of the more appealing aspects for many in 52, may float the boat for some, but they cannot carry a story by themselves through their sheer strength as characters without a compelling narrative to support them. One more possible miscalculation, especially after the passage of time, was the decision to crossover with major events from other comics, such as Amazons Attack and the death of Bart Allen. Yes, the story was promoted as being the spine of the DCU and this was probably unavoidable and inevitable, but they came across as forced diversions without naturally fitting in, and also dated it as well. Even major sagas work best if they can always be read as timeless stand alones. For new readers not steeped in DC history, or even long term fans without extensive collections, the use of non-stars and references to crossovers and previous events may be confusing. Despite these criticisms, for now enough intriguing seeds have been planted to hold my interest until the next installment. Whether or not the story degenerates into the painful disappointment that many people have harped on remains to be seen.