Convergence #4 Review: Role Reversal

Convergence continues to surprise, and I mean that in a good way. Like most fans, I had no idea that the Earth 2 heroes would be the stars of the main series, but they’ve proven to be entertaining enough to carry this story, and there’s a revelation in #4 that will delight longtime DC Comics fans.

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How all of the companies previous timelines and realities actually fit together might never be explained, and I don’t think that’s really the point here anyway. The Earth 2 Dick Grayson takes center stage for a big chunk of this issue, asking Telos a rather obvious question: why don’t you just ignore Brainiac’s orders and not have all the cities fight so that they can all live?

The answer, it seems, is in Skartaris, home of the Warlord and another shout out to readers who know their DC history. Jeff King does a nice job keeping you off-balance with plot developments, especially the idea that the Brainiac-Telos relationship might not be what it first appeared, but other parts are simply confusing.

Eventually, all the players are maneuvered into a place that’s perfect for the halfway point of the event. I still have a gripe about the tie-ins — they’re looking less and less important by the week except as exercises in nostalgia — but this series has been humming along. That goes for the pencils of Stephen Segovia too, whose style is similar enough to that of leadoff artist Carlo Pagulayan that there’s a pleasant feeling of continuity. There’s some weird stuff going on with shadows on some of the pages, but I suspect that has something to do with one of the seven (!) inkers who chipped in, a number that must be a record for a 28-page comic.

I’m not sure where this is headed, and I like that. Here’s hoping for a few more surprises in the second half of Convergence.

SPOILERS PAST THIS POINT!

The Earth 2 Dick Grayson has impressed Telos with his survival instinct. Despite having his spine shattered by a bullet from the Joker, Dick is hanging on, and Telos wants him to live so he can convince him to fight alongside all the other inhabitants of the captured cities.

Winners get the whole planet, or so it seems.

Dick’s friends have accompanied Deimos to Skartaris and seem convinced enough to help with his plan. He’s painted Warlord as the villain, and they don’t know any better, so … yeah. At least Green Lantern’s strength is returning.

As for Warlord, he and Tara are distracted with an attack by the Lizard Men, who think the transporting of Skartaris to another world is his doing. Man, everyone’s just blaming poor Travis Morgan.

Telos shows all the cities fighting each other and seems pleased that he’s sped up the process so the tournament will only take days. Dick tries to convince him that what he’s doing is wrong, and that he could simply save everyone, but the idea of multiversal Darwinism seems pretty ingrained in Telos.

Meanwhile, the Earth 2 heroes are having doubts about Deimos, and they send Yolanda to find him. Perhaps he’s gone to confront Shakira (not the singer though), who has all the folks with time-based powers imprisoned.

Grayson is still working over Telos, but the robot says he can’t disobey his programming. He senses the heroes underground, along with someone else. Sure enough Deimos is making his move, explaining to Yolanda that he now has designs on much more than Skartaris. Her attempt to stop him goes poorly, as does Shakira’s efforts to do the same.

The Earth 2 heroes arrive to find Deimos has stolen the time masters’ powers, though at least Yolanda and Shakira are still alive. With his new abilities, Deimos says that he can see all of the various timelines and that the Earth 2 gang is simply the original heroes reborn (YES!).

Warlord and Tara find a force field preventing them from joining the party, so they have to go through the dark tunnels, and you know what’s down there. Actually, I don’t.

Telos and Dick literally drop in from above, just in time for Deimos to reveal what he calls the truth behind the Convergence: Brainiac hasn’t left, he’s being held captive. The villain promises Deimos anything he wants if he frees Brainiac, and that can’t be good.

Favorite Moment: How can it be anything else but the mention that Jay Garrick was the first to encounter a breach in the multiverse in “another life” and the suggestion that Earth 2 is the spiritual successor to Earth-Two? It’s the next best thing to having the JSA back.

Final Thought: If Dick doesn’t end up becoming the new Earth 2 Batman when this is all finished, I’ll print out a hard copy of this review and eat it. Or at least I’ll say I did.

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