By Harrison Stewart — Every so often, a work of art comes along that is so groundbreaking, so refreshingly original, that it must be ritualistically sacrificed upon the altar of profit. It must be retold, remixed, recycled, rebooted and resuscitated until it is unrecognizable, a tired husk of a once novel idea. This sacred rite of capitalistic creativity is nothing new and rarely offers many surprises. But for better or worse, Flashpoint Beyond #0 is markedly different from most revamps thanks to a curious insistence on saying the quiet part out loud: this world shouldn’t exist.

More than a decade after forever changing the status quo of DC Comics, Geoff Johns returns to the brilliantly apocalyptic world of Flashpoint with an interesting imperative. Whereas previous entries such as Brian Azarello and Eduardo Risso’s Batman: Knight of Vengeance serve as world-building prequel to the events of the limited series, Flashpoint Beyond is intent on being a proper sequel, moving the story past the original. This is a particularly tricky prospect when the world facilitating that story was literally wiped from existence by the end. But Johns doesn’t shy away from that fact, instead utilizing this reality’s precarious nature as the central narrative thrust. The results are mixed.

On the one hand, having Thomas Wayne’s Batman investigate why his timeline was not corrected when Barry undid his initial mistake is a clever twist. It provides a convincing reason to hunt the Clockwork Killer without completely ignoring the elephant in the room. And when mixed with a veritable cornucopia of hints, Easter eggs and clues, this book offers the tantalizing promise of answering some of the DC Universe’s long standing questions. But on the other hand, Batman’s self-cognizance lends itself to an uncomfortable level of meta awareness. No less than a quarter of his lines are some variation on “This won’t matter,” or “Nothing matters here” (direct quotes). It’s difficult to buy into a premise that is loudly and repeatedly derided by the main character as inconsequential. It’s even harder given the inescapable impression that the story is purely contrived to supply in-world reasons for editorial changes.

Fortunately, Eduardo Risso brings enough visual dazzle to dim some of the more glaring story elements. His heavy inks and use of negative space are perfectly suited to the sort of gritty noir the book exudes at its best. There are magnificent, shocking (forgive the pun) moments brought to mesmerizing life by the steady hand of a master artist. And the painted, detail-oriented colors perfectly compliment the dark shadows to create a Gotham even dirtier than the one we know. The pathos Risso establishes is irresistible, nailing the look and feel of the Flashpoint world with utmost grace. Little is left to be desired from the visual component.

While Flashpoint Beyond offers a bit to recommend, the effort is muddled by a confused vision and refusal to pick a major. Is it an event book to set up the next big thing? Is it a detective story to highlight Thomas’s deductive prowess? Is it one giant Trojan horse to sneak Silver Age C-Listers back into main continuity? If it is any of these things, none are accomplished to full effect. Nor do they offer a compelling enough reason to revisit a world that simply shouldn’t be.

Overall: Flashpoint Beyond #0 struggles to find its raison d'être, hampering inspired art with joyless retread. 5/10

REVIEW: Flashpoint Beyond #0

Flashpoint Beyond #0
Writer: Geoff Johns
Artist: Eduardo Risso
Colorist: Trish Mulvhill
Letterer: Rob Leigh
Publisher: DC Comics
The world of Flashpoint returns! After sacrificing everything to help the Flash put the universe back together and save Bruce Wayne's life, Thomas Wayne wakes up in a world he thought was no more. Forced to don the cowl once again, Batman prowls the streets of Gotham searching for answers to how this world still exists, but what he starts to uncover will send him hurtling around the globe. The hunt for the Clockwork Killer starts here! Legendary writer Geoff Johns comes back to the alternate world he created, partnering with prolific artist Eduardo Risso as he returns to the Flashpoint Batman!
Price: $5.99
Buy It: Digital

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Harrison manages a comic shop by day and writes comics by night. You can find more of his writing at @stewart_bros