Blackest Night #1 Writer: Geoff Johns / Artist: Ivan Reis

Something scary happened to me today. When I got to my comic book shop, I saw no Blackest Night. No Blackest Night?!? Apparently something happened with the shop's shipment and no Blackest Nights were delivered. I thought I wouldn't be able to read it today. Determined, I drove across town to another comic shop in the hopes of finding it. Thankfully, the delivery mishap was just for that one shop, and this one had it. I'm glad I put in the extra effort because this comic book was well worth it.

First things first though. Geoff Johns utilizes an interesting strategy to start the issue. Instead of diving right in to the plot, he focuses on establishing a sense of loss in the DC Universe. Throughout the first 8 to 10 pages, we only get to see that a lot of superheroes have died and some people are sad about it. I suppose Johns does this to foreshadow a certain level of tension to the upcoming fights on behalf of new readers. Longtime fans probably knew this stuff already and were bothered by having to reread it and new readers, like myself, most likely found this part unnecessary and, quite frankly, a little boring.

Enough of the bad stuff though, because so much of this issue is amazing. The only reason I found the first part so unnecessary was because Johns creates a huge amount of tension and anxiety in the Black Ring delivery panels themselves. With every rise of a new Black Lantern the DC Universe grew more haunting. An army of fallen Green Lanterns marching toward Kyle Rayner, Martian Manhunter sneaking up on Hal Jordan, and Elongated Man murdering Hawkman to make a new member of the corps all gradually built suspense and intensity. I honestly have no idea how or if the heroes can win and that's exactly how to keep us excited for future issues.

Ivan Reis's art is equally as impressive. He creates a sense of doom and anxiety through masterful use of expressions, shadows, and imagery. His depiction of Black Hand licking the skull of Bruce Wayne is haunting in its own right, but also goes a long way toward showing how demented this undead corps really is. Kyle Rayner's sense of panic is perfectly depicted as he watches in shock as his formerly dead comrades approach him wearing rings he's never seen. And proving his mastery to capture the tone of Johns's script, Ivan Reis instills a sense of warmth between Hawkman and Hawkgirl while also creating an impending sense of danger.

Blackest Night #1 could be a symbol of my journey today. Just as I was upset upon seeing no comic book in my store, the first half of this issue was disappointing too. However, I remained determined, as did Johns. Thanks to my extra traveling I was able to read one of the most suspenseful and diabolical comic books I've ever opened.