Comic Book Review: Doomsday Clock #7

Purists have been decrying this story since it was announced, but I think they’re missing out if they opted not to read Doomsday Clock. Geoff Johns is crafting a solid, cohesive story and with Doomsday Clock #7 really shows that he understands who and what the players in this story are. The issue flows together very well despite its large cast and when you truly look at the book, a good majority of the people in it are actually created by Johns, albeit with inspiration from the original work by Alan Moore. Of those that Johns didn’t create, he clearly understands Ozymandias, and that understanding comes out very clearly in this issue. He writes Adrian Veidt perfectly, with his banter with Rorschach II (a Johns creation) in such a way that both of them come off as very easy to relate to, in a two fish out of water and dealing with some insane situations way.

The story for Doomsday Clock #7 is a little all over the place, but it doesn’t stop the reader from enjoying it. Saturn Girl’s explanation of who she is to Ozymandias made me smile, and we do get some insight about that cat that Ozzy is dragging around like a rich girl with a poodle. The Comedian felt somewhat out of place in all the goings on, and didn’t do a whole lot, but it didn’t bother me enough to make much difference. There are some big reveals this issue but after they came to pass part of me wondered why I didn’t figure them out before.

The art has been exceptional in this series, and continues to be that way, particularly when Gary Frank draws the Mime and the Marionette. As the Mime doesn’t speak, his actions and expressions are very important and Frank makes it so understanding him is not difficult at all. There’s a great scene where he is “mentioning” Batman that really sticks out in my mind where he has a look of contempt on his face and uses his fingers to do the ears of Batman’s cowl. You immediately know what’s going on and I truly think a lesser artist might not have captured it so well with nothing getting lost in translation.

Doomsday Clock #7 is another stellar issue from Johns and Frank. It leaves a lot of questions still left unanswered but we did get some answers this issue. I truly enjoyed Rorschach and Ozymandias in every scene they shared, as well as watching the Mime and Marionette show that they can be pretty terrifying when they want to be. I’d like to say more but you’ll want to see all the surprises this issue has for yourself. I do wonder if this will read better as a trade or in single issues, but I will keep reading it and if the sales are any indication, most fans feel the same.