Rating:  -
Before getting into the story, I would like to say this book shows how collections should be done. It is a very nice volume that actually addresses some of the problems and concerns from the original work. The book collects all seven issues of Crisis (each issue seperated by both the Jim Lee and George Perez covers,) but it also contains corrections and changes designed to make the story read better. Several pages have been added to flesh out certain sequences, a confusing sound effect has been removed from late in the book (greatly improving the scene it was in,) and dialogue was added in other places to better explain what is going on (as well as to explain the condition of a certain character.) Several other pages were redone to take advantage of the extra time the art team now has as compared to the time they had while under deadline -- the double page spread at the end of the book showing the remaining heroes being a notable example.
The volume also contains an introduction and a long (approximately ten page) interview with the writer, artist, and editor primarily responsible for the work discussing each issue, the importance of the events, what worked, and what didn't.
Finally, the cover itself (not the dust jacket, but the actual hardcover of the book) shows a glossy, wrap around, enlarged version of the art from the dust jacket, minus the text. Normally I don't care about such things, but in this case, it is a nice looking cover that shows this is a high quality product. The art is beautiful, and the cover looks really sharp.
All of the above, to me, is how a collection should be done. It shows that DC read the reviews of the original work (which was very well recieved) and made note of the few complaints people had, then actually addressed them when collecting the work together. It shows that they actually cared enough to put out the best product they could. The inclusion of the interview and the nice cover art just adds to the overall prestige of the story. With collections coming out as often as they do now, most of the time they are just exact reprints of the issues with no improvements, introductions, afterwords, interviews or anything -- this volume sets a better standard.
Again, I really applaud DC for making changes/additions to the story in order to address reader confusion or complaints and to improve this collection. None of the issues they addressed had overly damaged the story when it came out originally, but the changes do improve/polish the story and make it read more smoothly. I'm glad DC took advantage of the chance to make the changes, and hope that policy becomes the standard for these sorts of collections
As to the story itself -- it's a good, exciting, emotional story. The art is beautifull throughout, and the coloring is fantastic (really elevating the already good art.) The art also tells the story very well. It's a good read that's even better collected up in one volume (the story flows better without the month long wait between issues.) Overall it is well worth reading, a good fun ride from start to finish with some very stong moments. There are parts of the story that aren't as self contained as they could have been (relying on back story from the preceding crisis mini-series,) and characters that are shown early on that are never seen again (they aren't central to the story, but it would have been nice to see how things turned out for them as well.) And while the action of the main story line is intense and exciting, some of the later fight scenes (like the battle with the villians in metropolis, or the fight between the two Supermen) are very rushed. The reason for all these complaints, of course, is the length.
The book is a pretty solid 246 pages of story, but it should have been longer. In the interview section, Geoff Johns (the writer) mentions about three seperate times that he would have liked the book to be longer, and both the artist and editor mention it as well. Johns once mentions wishing they'd had twelve issues (as opposed to seven) and once says they could have filled a thousand pages if they'd had the option. From the stuff I would have liked to have seen fleshed out more, I think twelve issues would have been perfect, and I'm not sure why DC insisted on a seven issue series instead. It's a sequal to a twelve issues series. In the past, these universe changing stories often were twelve issue series (although suddenly seven seems more common.) The story is currently 246 pages, another fifty pages would probably have allowed Johns to flesh out most of the background action and character scenes he had to cut short, another one hundred would probably have allowed him to do all of that and also make the book more completely self contained. As it is, it's still quite good, but the length (and the consequences there of) are what turn this from five stars to four for me.
Overall a very good and entertaining book. You don't have to know DC lore to follow it, but you'll certainly get more out of it if you do.
Rating: -
PROS: An excelent read, Gripping storylines and excelent hommage to the old universes. Hardcover makes for easy transport and lasts longer. Truely an Epic. my heart wept over the Earth-2 superman and really makes you question many of the morals and ethics Superhero's have.
CONS: a tad confuseing if you have not been keeping up to date in your DC universe or not read all of the backstories (OMAC, Villians United Etc.) if you remove the jacket, the hardcover is filled with pictures, so its kind of hard to store conspicuously (as i did with my Idenity Crisis Hardcover)
Bottom line: a must read for anybody who loves the DC universe.
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