Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #5674 in Books
• Published on: 1997-10-10
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 236 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
As comic books gained in respectability, the superhero comic has remained a much-maligned medium. Oh sure, Batman was given new levels of sophistication by the likes of Frank Miller and Alan Moore, and Watchmen added a dose of reality to the concept of superheroes, but the likes of Superman and Wonder Woman have for years watched their lesser-powered colleagues gain critical acceptance while they were left behind to keep the kids happy. Until, that is, Kingdom Come accorded DC's premier superheroes the respect they have long deserved.

In the near future, Superman has retired, plagued by an inability to accept a world where his generation's super-powered descendants run roughshod over the values he fought for. When tragic events force his return, he gathers his former team-mates and colleagues to once again lead the fight for justice and order. However, their return sparks a chain of events that could lead the world to Armageddon.

With its intelligent storyline and superb painted artwork, writer Mark Waid and artist Alex Ross have created a thoroughly believable world where superheroes could exist, paying particular attention to the social and political implications of such a world. Why bother with the Olympics when there are beings who can bench-press buildings and run faster than light? What's the point of normal humans making laws when they are powerless to enforce them against superhumans? Above all, where Kingdom Come succeeds is by adding new depths of humanity to some of DC's timeless characters--including icons like Superman, Wonder Woman and Batman--as well as offering interesting future glimpses of the lesser known (but no less interesting) likes of Orion, Blue Beetle and Aquaman. --Robert Burrow

Synopsis
Starring Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Captain Marvel, The Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman and Hawkman - but not necessarily as you know them! It's judgement day, and war is about to be waged between superheroes old and new, one that will determine the fate of the entire planet. Where before there was order, now there is chaos - perpetrated by a new breed of superhero for whom justice and honour are redundant concepts. This fully painted Elseworlds saga features one of the most astounding visions of the DC universe ever presented; a twilight future more unpredictable and incendiary then any depicted before.

Customer Reviews

Possibly the best
This is how to tell a story and tell it extrememly well.
This is how all comics should be like, a perfect marriage of art and story.
After you get passed the "Oohh, pretty pictures" stage you find a story that make you want to read. The possible future of the DC Universe reflected how comics were turning at the time. All the older and original characters being over looked for action and violence.
A Change had to happen.
And what a change.
Another title that brought people back to comics.
I can't think of another graphic novel that welcomes you in and gives you a story worth reading and one that you are more than happy to read again and again.
The story starts with a man seing vision of the end of the world and follows this seemingly insignifacant character as he is witness to what happens. You feel for each of the characters, no long two dimensional, you empithise with them and find yourself getting involved in the story, thanks in part to the narrator.
Alex Ross' art is as perfect as you can get, with each character looking different to the rest. Every face is unique, each is very human, instead of reproductions of the same face that sometimes happens in comics.
While Knowledge of the DC universe would be helpfull the way that somethings are explained as you go you feel like you don't really need to know as you learn as the narrator does.
I'm not sure if this review makes much sense but this is a must have for comic fans anywhere. .

Beautiful and cliched nonsense
This book gets great reviews from most, but I found it remarkably dull. Like Ross's "Earth X" the story employs an observer to narrate the future. Perhaps this is necessary in order to make sense of what's going on (what indeed?), but it acts as a handbrake on the action, creating a feeling of passivity and inevitability. In this respect the book is the exact opposite of Miller's Dark Knight Returns, which is an all out direct assault on a possible future for Batman and Superman, upon which Ross has drawn directly and unsuccessfully.

Kingdom Come sounds great on paper and looks great on paper but is ultimately hot air. Lots of polemics, no real reason why anything in the possible future has occurred. Unless I've missed something and this is a postmodern treatise on the nature of chaos, this book isn't worth your time - especially not if you're looking for a good old-fashioned superhero asskicking.

The Zenith of Graphic Novels
Simply put, this is by far and away the best graphic novel you will ever read!
And it earns the full five stars for the following reasons;
1/The plot is superb and is genuinely original.It is fast paced and has really good ideas that constantly challenge you.There is a real sense of the authors 'loving' the characters and knowing their inner-most thoughts, strengths and weaknesses and this really shines through.
2/ The artwork is the best you will ever see!When you see Alex Ross on form like this you are just blown away.It is fair to say that nearly all of the artwork could be on posters and t-shirts ; it is THAT good.
3/ It has all the best DC universe characters in it.Your favourites and some that you will maybe not have met before.The standouts are Superman,Batman and Wonderwoman.

This graphic novel stands head and shoulders above every other.It is superior in every way imaginable.My copy is bent and battered by the number of times i have read this !!I ended up buying the Absolute Edition (also available from Amazon) as a 'best' copy.


THIS IS MY DESERT ISLAND GRAPHIC NOVEL