So, I just read Final Crisis.

[wiegeabo]

I have the same problem with Final Crisis that I had with Morrison's Seven Soldiers. The build-up wrote a check that the conclusion couldn't cash. I was expecting a spectacular finish to the story, not a jumbled mess where the villain has to be defeated 10,000 ways simultaneously (Quickly, let's use the lasso of truth on him, shoot him, trick Death into running into him, and sing at him!)-- some of which I didn't understand that well because I didn't read any of the tie-ins. Apparently I had to read Superman Beyond to know why singing at Darkseid finished him off. Without that, it looked like something that came out of ****ing nowhere. Tie-ins are the #1 reason I refuse to read most events. I don't remember who told me Final Crisis was supposed to be readable as a stand-alone mini, but they lied to me.


And I remember Aristotle's crusade to insult the intelligence of anyone who disliked Final Crisis. I hadn't even read it yet when I said I wasn't a fan of deus ex machinas because they're often used as cheap ploys by the author because they've written themselves into a corner. To put it bluntly, he called me an idiot. I'm glad he's gone.

Final Crisis in 5 panels

 

[El Bastardo]

That reminds me: Thank god I'd read Seven Soldiers prior to that, or the Dark Side stuff would've been confusing as all hell. I'd also have no clue what's going on with Bruce Wayne right now. Morrison really does play the long game, doesn't he?

I haven't read Seven Soldiers at all. I keep meaning to pick it up. I just read the short version of it after Tim had mentioned it in a conversation. Or maybe it was an interview he'd given. I'm pretty sure it's not in the book about Morrison he wrote.

But the rest is mostly a publisher angle. I think Morrison wanted to just do everything Batman-oriented in Batman, but they wanted it in Final Crisis instead. That's why the tie-ins wound up as part of Batman, with the final fate in Final Crisis.

It's fine with me. I'd rather not have redundant issues.

 

[Manic]

I sorta liked Seven Soldiers. Only 4 of the Soldiers' stories interested me, and the ending was sorta forgettable to me because I was only invested in half of the characters. The Shilo Norman portion was a major trip, and it's the part that Morrison seems to like the most because he keeps going back to its story elements.


You know, I think I've always had a problem with Morrison's writing that prevents me from completely liking his work (or liking it at all, in some cases). Whenever he writes a story, it seems like stuff happens just because it's supposed to happen in order to bring about his intended conclusion. There's rarely any organic flow between the events in his stories. It's like he gets so caught up in trying to write in layers that he neglects the surface entirely. He sacrifices conventional logic and sometimes characters for heavy subtext. Sure, you can explore the metaphorical meanings of his comics, but you're still left with a nonsensical mess when you take things at face value.

It's like baking a really delicious cake with crappy frosting. That frosting is everywhere, and you find yourself trying desperately to eat around it while still enjoying the cake. Some people eat Morrison's cake and remember the taste of the cake itself, but others like me will never forget the nasty aftertaste that the frosting left in their mouths because we decided to eat the whole slice rather than pick at the best parts.

 

[wiegeabo]

There's rarely any organic flow between the events in his stories. [/B]It's like he gets so caught up in trying to write in layers that he neglects the surface entirely. He sacrifices conventional logic and sometimes characters for heavy subtext. Sure, you can explore the metaphorical meanings of his comics, but you're still left with a nonsensical mess when you take things at face value.

It's like baking a really delicious cake with crappy frosting. That frosting is everywhere, and you find yourself trying desperately to eat around it while still enjoying the cake. Some people eat Morrison's cake and remember the taste of the cake itself, but others like me will never forget the nasty aftertaste that the frosting left in their mouths because we decided to eat the whole slice rather than pick at the best parts.

Pretty much every time I read Morrison, it's guaranteed that at least a couple of times I'll feel like I flipped two pages at once. Hell, when reading The Filth for the comic book club, it felt like I had skipped a whole book!

 

[El Bastardo]

You know, I think I've always had a problem with Morrison's writing that prevents me from completely liking his work (or liking it at all, in some cases). Whenever he writes a story, it seems like stuff happens just because it's supposed to happen in order to bring about his intended conclusion. There's rarely any organic flow between the events in his stories. It's like he gets so caught up in trying to write in layers that he neglects the surface entirely. He sacrifices conventional logic and sometimes characters for heavy subtext. Sure, you can explore the metaphorical meanings of his comics, but you're still left with a nonsensical mess when you take things at face value.

I suppose that could be the case. I've never really put that much thought into it. Well, I don't know how true it is, really. I think it'd be awfully tough to make a hard rule encompass everything - or even a majority of what - Morrison has written.

It depends on what the intended fabulation of the story in question is. His New X-Men flowed fine - it wasn't jumping around just to get to an end point. The Magneto-Xorn parts toward the finale can look suspect, but given the screw-job that went over after he was gone, I wonder if any of it was editorial. His recent Batman run - and his current run on Batman & Robin - also flows fine, and both are typical narratives of plot and characterization.

Final Crisis, on the other hand, is entirely different. Seven Soldiers was, too.

 

[Anubis]

Soooooo when it comes down to it, if you didn't like it, it's because you're stupid......?

 

[hippie_hunter]

So... Superman was the only one who could save the day because Superman is so good and awesome? You're right. That is incredibly meta. Physical and fictional. By that logic, I apparently don't need to know why Superman knows the life equation or why he was specifically chosen to build and make the wish on the god machine, because Superman is the nectar of God's balls and the universe literally revolves around him.

From a straight forward perspective, that's a terrible ending. It pretty much only works as a giant metaphor for how the DC Universe works from the perspective of its readers and writers, not from the perspective of the characters within the universe itself. Because if Clark knew that the universe revolved around him in a metafictional sense (ie. actually viewing himself as God and the #1 protagonist of the whole of reality), he wouldn't be the character I know and love.

Superman should be the one to deliver the final blow to Darkseid. But singing the Life Equation was such a let down.

 

[El Bastardo]

Soooooo when it comes down to it, if you didn't like it, it's because you're stupid......?

No, because whether someone likes or does not like something is based on a subjective value, which does not ever reflect intelligence or stupidity, just as subjective value can not and does not affect the inherent worth of anything.

 

[taskmaster]

I didn't really mind Final Crisis. I read the hardcover and tie-in issues they included helped me to understand the story. I still had to read it twice to get everything but I don't mind doing that and I could see how people could be confused about Batman just showing up if they did read the Last Rites issues. It would have been better if they added those to the Final Crisis trade instead of the R.I.P hardcover.

 

[Anubis]

No, because whether someone likes or does not like something is based on a subjective value, which does not ever reflect intelligence or stupidity, just as subjective value can not and does not affect the inherent worth of anything.

Okay. So if say, somebody didn't understand your answer, then they would be stupid?

 

[Manic]

This is the Bastard, not Artistotle. He only condescends to you if you express senseless hatred toward things.

By the way, X-Force is still the most evil comic ever written.

 

[El Bastardo]

Manic, you know you want to suckle and nuzzle the collective bosom of Kyle and Yost.

 

[Manic]

With the teeth of a piranha, maybe. They killed Icarus, damnit! They killed a character whose powers allowed him to survive several stabs to the chest and getting his neck snapped!

 

[TheCorpulent1]

They did unspeakable things to Thor in their animated piles of poop movies, too. I'm not a fan of 'em either.

 

[Anubis]

Yeah, I don't care for those guys either. They're a pair of Meh Masters.

 

[Anubis]

DP

I wish it would hurry up and rain so these loud ass nozzles outside my window would go the f**k inside.

 

[TheCorpulent1]

It rained like a motherf***er for me last night. Ended up with a blackout that lasted several hours. The power grid in this city is clearly a piece of crap.

 

[El Bastardo]

That wasn't rain, Corp. That was Yost and Kyle spiting thee with their Thor powers!

 

[TheCorpulent1]

Lies!

 

[VictorETM]

The only part of Final Crisis that I enjoyed were tje Rogue's Revenge tie-ins. Worst part? Superman 3D = Poo

 

[Mystirious]

They did unspeakable things to Thor in their animated piles of poop movies, too. I'm not a fan of 'em either.

I like X-Force okay but I liked New X-Men better before they came along and slaughtered so many of the students

 

[KravenReborn]

Final Crisis makes no sense, I constantly felt like I was skipping pages or issues

 

[wiegeabo]

That's how you know Morrison wrote it.