Jimmy Attempts To Read All Of Convergence: Week Seven Part One

Step One in finishing write ups on all issues of Convergence: forgetting Convergence is over and that you already know how it ends.  Step Two in finishing write ups on all issues of Convergence: forgetting your are burned out on Convergence and more interested in the ramping up Secret Wars.  Step Three in finishing write ups on all issues of Convergence: actually reading the issues.

So I’ll soldier on.  I can’t even call it a labor of love, but I’ll get through it!

Be sure to catch up on all the Convergence happenings with coverage of:

Week One: Part One, Part Two
Week Two: Part One, Part Two
Week Three:Part One, Part Two
Week Four:Part One, Part Two
Week Five: Part One, Part Two
Week Six: Part One, Part Two

Read on for Week Seven spoilers after the break for Convergence #7, Convergence Wonder Woman #2, Convergence Swamp Thing #2, Convergence Hawkman #2, Convergence Adventures Of Superman #2, and Convergence Batman And The Outsiders #2.

Convergence #7

Like last issue we start in the New 52 universe, giving legitimacy to the whole event.  The Great Watcher rip-off  Oracle is on hand to witness the “birth” of Telos into the DCU, but he is confused that he cannot see the future as per usual.

While it’s nice to see the New 52 appearances the last couple of issues, it is easy to tell it is not their event.  The majority of their appearance here amounts to “there’s nothing you can do, go home and kiss your loved ones goodbye” to which the New 52 responds with an “Ok”.

On Telos, it’s all out war between the good and bad factions from the various cities.  I’m still not sure why Kingdom Come Superman is on the bad side of things, but it is what it is.  Pre-Crisis Superman and Supergirl are involved in the fight…which pretty much spoils how Adventures of Superman #2 plays out.  (Not that you would expect it to end any differently than it does.)

Thanks to Grayson’s pep talk last issue, Telos returns and battles Deimos, but appears to be no match for him.  As Deimos beats on Telos (and Parallax who cuts in to say he is tired of being trapped there), Yolanda tells Grayson of Deimos plan to kill everyone.  Somehow all the villains overhear this and stop fighting and turn on Deimos.

Telos manages to restrain Deimos and Parallax takes it upon himself to finish the battle, using his powers to kill Deimos.  But Deimos had absorbed the powers of the time travelers he had captured, and with his death those powers are released and the entire multiverse begins to break apart.

Convergence Wonder Woman #2

It’s Wonder Woman versus the Vampire Joker from the Red Rain universe.  With Tom Kelly favorite Steve Trevor playing the role of damsel in distress, Wonder Woman breaks the Joker’s neck and heads back to save Steve.

Steve is holding his own against the recently turned members of the congregation from last issue, but he is no match for Vampire Poison Ivy and Catwoman.  Wonder Woman arrives just in the nick of time, breaking backs and smashing faces.

But those are no ways to kill a vampire, so they all continue to rise.  Wonder Woman than makes a very stupid mistake (something to do with advancing the plot) and leaves Trevor alone while she battles the congregation.

As she tears her way through the new vampires, Poison Ivy and Catwoman bring Trevor to the Joker.  He’s not going to let a silly thing like a broken neck slow him down.  By the time Wonder Woman finishes off the other vampires and heads back, Steve has already been drained of blood.  He rises, reborn as a vampire, just in time for the requisite earthquake.

The earthquake begins to collapse the tunnels that the fight has been taking place in.  A huge crevasse opens between Wonder Woman and the vampires.  Joker orders WW’s former friend Etta to jump the expanse and attack, to which she complies.  He also orders Steve to do the same, which he appears to do as well.  But in actuality he tackles Etta and the two fall into the hole in the Earth, seemingly to their deaths.

Wonder Woman and Joker continue to fight as the tunnels and church above crumble.  She eventually uses a piece of debris as a stake and puts Joker down for good.  So Wonder Woman and Gotham survive, but Diana is crushed at everything she has lost.

Convergence Swamp Thing #2

I’ve recommended before that you should read the Kelly Jones/Doug Moench Red Rain issues featuring Batman vs Dracula, and subsequently what happens when Batman himself is turned.  We’ve seen the vampires from this world elsewhere, notably Wonder Woman #1-2, but this is the first appearance of the undead man himself, Vampire Batman.

There’s not a lot to get into this issue.  We saw in issue #1 that Swamp Thing and Abby were trapped in pre-Crisis Gotham for a year under the dome.  When the dome was lifted Swamp Thing and Abby were transported to the Red Rain Gotham.  As Swampy fights a horde of vampires he learns that Batman is his true opponent.

But Batman refuses to fight Swamp Thing, instead the two team up to continue Bats fight against the vampires and to hunt down the Queen Vampire.  Batman has decided to sacrifice himself and his vampire overrun Gotham so that the more worthy pre-Crisis version can survive.  But he wants to take out as many vampires as possible along the way to clear his conscience.

Cue many battles versus the endless vampire hordes until Batman finally kills their Queen.  But when he does, all the vampires begin to return to being human.  Except Batman, since he was not turned by the Queen, but by Dracula himself.  While the city returns to normal, Batman maintains that he is too much of a danger to them.  How long before he succumbs to the bloodlust and begins to kill?  As the “sun” rises on Telos Batman stands and watches and disintegrates.

With Batman’s loss in the competition, Swamp Thing and Abby are teleported back to their Gotham just in time for the earthquake.

Convergence Hawkman #2

After two consecutive issues dealing with the vampires from Red Rain, I figured I’d keep the trend rolling when I saw this cover.  But as it turns out, that’s not a vampire tangling with Hawkman, but one of the bat people from the land of Kamandi.

Hawkman and Hawkwoman take the fight to the New York City of Kamandi’s future universe, but they are quickly overwhelmed by the aforementioned bat people as well as their allies the rat people.

The Hawks are captured and strapped to a giant missile (the Kamandi folks seem to be fond of doing this as we’ll see in Adventures of Superman #2).  The rats and bats intend to fire the missile into pre-Crisis Gotham.  It is filled with a mutagen that will transform the bats and rats of that city from mere animals to their intelligent brethren.

The Hawks manage to escape but the missile is still fired.  The Hawks are without their wings and seemingly helpless to save Gotham, but the other Thanagarians arrive and shoot the missile down.  The Hawks retrieve their gear and with the help of the Thanagarians but a stop to the bat/rat uprising once and for all.

All that’s left is for the earthquake and for the Hawks to fly off lovingly into the sunset.

Convergence Adventures Of Superman #2

Superman and Supergirl are trapped in the Phantom Zone…but we already know from their appearances in Convergence #6-7 that they make it out of their ok.  Kind of takes the drama out of this issue…not that we ever expected the Supers not to make it back.

As for how they get back, Lucious Fox manages to open the portal to bring them home.  Superman pushes Supergirl through and stays behind to keep the Phantom Zone residents from also escaping through the portal.  Since the end of the portal is conveniently in the lab where Lucious makes all of Batman’s wonderful toys, Supergirl uses the Bat-grappling hook to fire through the portal and pull Superman back through.  She then uses her heat vision to destroy the machine that is creating the portal, trapping the villains of the Phantom Zone where they belong.

Meanwhile, General Symian and his apes have overrun Gotham.  But Superman, Supergirl and the last boy on Earth Kamandi team up to drive them back to Kamandi’s New York City.

The trio follow to NYC and in an attempt to find out the location of a secret weapon that they overhear Symian talking about, Superman allows himself to be captured.  The location and the nature of the weapon is then revealed as Superman is chained to a giant missile.  (I told you they liked to do that.)

But of course, Superman was just faking it.  He breaks free and throws the warhead into the atmosphere where it can detonate harmlessly.  Meanwhile, Supergirl takes out the ape leader Symian and the rest of his army run away.

After the earthquake hits Superman and Supergirl head off for their appearance in Convergence #6.

Convergence Batman And The Outsiders #2

It’s pre-Crisis Batman and The Outsiders versus Jack Kirby’s OMAC.  OMAC is wreaking havoc on pre-Crisis Gotham because he is now controled by Godmother and not Brother Eye.  (It’s funny how all these massive battles take place in the same cities yet they never cross over with each other…)

The issue is mostly an endless fight scene with battlegrounds in Gotham and in OMACs head as Buddy Blank tries to wrestle back control from Godmother.  With great teamwork, the Outsiders are eventually victorious.

Ever the mood killer, Batman speaks to his troops:

“But this isn’t over yet.  And I have a feeling it’s not gonig to end well.  Not for any of us.”

And if you’re wondering about the earthquake, it happens during the battle but is mostly inconsequential.

 

That’s it for this part.  We’re almost at the end…and my retirement from DC Comics…except for Batman…and maybe Justice League…