Publisher: DC Comics
Writer(s): Scott Snyder, James Tynion IV
Pencils: Jim Lee, Andy Kubert, John Romita Jr.
Inks: Scott Williams, Klaus Janson,Danny Miki
Colours: Alex Sinclair, Jeremiah Skipper
Release Date: 14th June 2017

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The Forge marks the beginning of DC’s next big “Summer Event”, which is normally code for something I’d likely want to avoid like the plague.  However, the creators  attached to this new event instantly had my interest piqued, not to mention the fact that the cover is an absolute doozy, so I decided to give it a go.  And thank the New Gods I did.

The recurring theme of The Forge is Metal. Whether in subtle or really not-so-subtle dialogue, it gets a fair old push. And metal this book is. With a tease a Vegas dancer would be proud of on almost every page, Snyder and Tynion had me hook, line and sinker. Without delving too much into spoiler territory, this one-shot issue follows Carter Hall through the ages, a perfectly snarky Green Lantern (teamed with Duke Thomas) and good old Bats, as they unravel, well, something. Batman’s arc ties nicely into “the button”, Carter Hall’s ties into the Nth Metal that gave him his power, and Green Lantern’s provides a [REDACTED MASSIVE SPOILER] which is heavily hinted to all be linked.

We also see the return of no less than three(?) fan favourite characters, who undeniably have been missed, one of which made my mouth twitch upwards!

On art duties are, arguably, three of the greatest artists of our time. Do I really need to tell you how just much messrs Kubert, Lee and Romita Jr. Knock it out of the park? Probably not, eh?

What is impressive though is how well their styles work together, integrating beautifully and complementing each other in a way you’d probably expect from these three. Personally, JrJr’s work is the stand out for me, with a couple of truly stellar panels, one of which features one of the simplest, most effective depiction of sarcastic Superman I’ve ever seen.

My only gripe about this release is that it’s a lead-in event book. If comics have taught me anything, it’s to fear event books as they frequently have little to no pay off, and ultimately lead to a big fat nothing. That’s not a gripe about The Forge itself, I know, but I desperately want to love this and it to lead to where I hope it does, but I’ve been burned before. There’s also a tiny bit too much sass in the dialogue at times, which seems out of placd for a few of the characters, but I’m pretty much clutching at straws here from what was a damn entertaining read.

Snyder and Tynion IV are both riding high on hot streaks these days, with practically everything they touch seemingly turning to gold, and this is no exception. Oh, and did I mention the art team?

Rating: 4.5/5.

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PREVIEW ARTWORK
[Click to Enlarge]

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The writer of this piece was: Chris Bennett
Article: And Now For Something Completely Different
You can also find Chris on Twitter.

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