3. Cosmic Odyssey
Of all the big, blockbuster style, out of space adventure events that DC has published over the years, Jim Starlin and Mike Mignolas Cosmic Odyssey remains among the very best. In fact, I can only think of a few DC events where the stakes were as high, or higher, than they were in this one...The first Crisis, Zero Hour, Kingdom Come, Blackest Night...Thats about it. Put simply, the entire galaxy, perhaps even reality itself, is put into jeopardy by the Anti-Life Equation. Given a quasi-sentient, Godlike form by Starlin, Jack Kirbys unique concept is taken to its logical conclusion here, becoming so powerful that even The New Gods cannot hope to defeat it. Instead, they join forces with Darkseid (their greatest and most powerful enemy) before enlisting the aid of a team of heroes from Earth. The story here is mythic in both scope and execution and rarely does anything happen that isnt, quite literally, of earth shattering importance. These are DCs Gods, monsters and heroes occupying the same imaginary territory as Homers heroes in this storys seminal namesake. The series really explores the DCU as if it were a real place as well, with events on Rann, Thanagar, Xanshi and Earth all intertwining and impacting one another. And then, of course, theres the planet scene... In an act of brazen arrogance, Green Lantern John Stewart fails to save the planet Xanshi from destruction, forming the basis for the sober, mature character that he is today. The story is taut, dynamic and engaging throughout, with huge, meaningful events (many of which are still echoing in the DCU even today), occurring on almost every page. Science fiction and magic coexist in a logical way (which they always should in comics) and one walks away with the breathless feeling that nothing is impossible in DC comics, which is exactly as it should be. The artwork, provided by a pre-Hellboy Mike Mignola is energetic, hard-edged and strongly Kirby-fied. Vivid echoes of Mignolas future style can be seen occasionally (witness the Apokaliptian monster stalking Batman in the sewers), but, if he hadnt yet reached his gothic prime, his exuberance and enthusiasm combined to create an intriguing display of highly-pitched cosmic battles, exotic, imaginary locations and moments of gut-wrenching despair (such as the emotionally raw scene where John Stewart is contemplating suicide and Jonn Jonzz convinces him otherwise via no less a super-feat than reverse psychology). Oh, and Batman punches a God at the end.