52 #23 Review

Synopsis: Week 23, Day 1: We see the giant robot from the end of last issue arriving at the beautiful tropical Oolong Island. The robot drops off Dr. Magnus who is greeted by Professor Morrow drinking a fruity drink with an umbrella in it.

Evidently, all of the “mad” scientists who have been “kidnapped” have been brought to this tropical island and given unlimited resources and encouraged to let their imaginations run wild and create whatever they desire. Morrow says that Magnus has the chance to create tomorrow and he really doesn’t get a choice about whether he stays or not.

Week 23, Day 5: We are in Yemen at a secret Intergang facility. We see Whisper A’Daire giving a sermon on the Book of Crime to loyal Intergang followers. This facility is a re-education center for followers of Intergang. Here, Intergang takes people they have kidnapped and brainwash them into followers of Intergang. This is the same facility that produced the brainwashed girl who tried to suicide bomb Black Adam and Isis’ wedding.

We see Montoya and the Question hiding in the shadows watching Whisper’s sermon. Whisper commands that one of the prisoners who refuses to be converted to Intergang be brought forward. It is Amon Tomaz, Isis’ brother. Since Amon has tried to escape several times, Whisper commands that his legs be broken and destroyed so that he will never be able to walk again. The Intergang thugs start smashing his legs. The Question tells Montoya to wait since they are out numbered and that Adam and Isis are on their way.

Suddenly, an Intergang monster spies the Question and Montoya. And this leads to a big brawl. During the fight, the Questions manages to steal the Book of Crime. Black Adam and Isis finally arrive on the scene. They defeat the Intergang forces. Isis then attempts to heal Amon’s wounds. However, his wounds are too deep to fully heal. Isis heals Amon’s flesh, but Amon will never be able to walk again.

Black Adam then stands over Amon and commands him to say his name. Amon says “Black Adam” and a massive bolt of lightning transforms Amon into Osiris. Black Adam says that they are now family. Basically, Osiris is to Black Adam as Captain Marvel, Jr. is to Captain Marvel. The Question then starts saying “Shazam”, “Captain Marvel” and “Black Adam.” Montoya asks him what he is doing and the Question responds that he is “seeing if it is contagious.” (I love these two characters.)

Week 23, Day 8: Black Adam tells Isis that he simply shared his powers with Amon the way Captain Marvel did with Freddy Freeman. That up until now, Black Adam never had a family to share his gifts with. Isis tells Adam that she promised to help him change the world once they found Amon. Isis says they shall start in China. End of story.

We then get a two page back-up story about Wildcat. End of issue.
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Comments
The Good: 52 #23 was a good read. Of course, I’m a bit biased because I love Black Adam and his plotline. So, any issue that focuses on Black Adam and Isis is going to be a big hit with me. This issue was well paced. The dialogue was well done particularly the witty banter between Montoya and the Question, which is no surprise. The writers have been able to create an unbelievable chemistry between these two characters and their funny dialogue almost always steal the show in whatever scene they appear in. .

I thought the mad scientist heaven on Oolong Island was a great twist. It was funny and unexpected. I’m interested to see who the mysterious benefactor behind this massive endeavor is. Just what exactly is the purpose of gathering all of the world’s mad scientists on one island and letting them be as creative as possible? What kind of future are they trying to create? This surprising turn has made this plotline far more interesting than it was at first. Once again, the writers manage to answer a question with a new and even more interesting question. This is why 52 has been so much fun to read.

Of course, the big surprise in 52 #23 was Black Adam sharing his powers with Amon and creating Osiris. We finally have an answer to the Marvel Family: The Black Adam Family. I think this is a great move. This will create some compelling competition between the two families and should provide for some exciting storylines. Having Black Adam become the patriarch to his version of the Marvel Family makes his character even more developed and appealing.

The ending to this issue wasn’t as exciting as the ending to most of the issues of 52. However, we are teased with Isis revealing that she is now going to help Black Adam change the world and it all will begin in China. We now that One Year Later, China has developed their own metahuman team in the Great 10 based in part on Durlan technology. I hope that we are finally going to get some more background information on the Great 10. I really dig the Great 10 and have been patiently waiting for these cool characters to finally get some panel time.

Now that the writers have finished the first part of the Black Adam/Isis plotline by finding Amon and transforming him into Osiris and have gotten all the players in place, they can progress on to the second part of the Black Adam/Isis plotline. I’m interested to see what Isis has planned

The Bad: I have no complaints with the writing on this issue. Johnson’s artwork is average. It doesn’t add to the story, but it is solid enough to not get in the way. That has pretty much been the formula for 52 so far; art that is just good enough to not bring down the story. The focus of 52 has always been about the story and not the artwork.

Overall: 52 #23 was another good read. We got plenty of Black Adam goodness. We got a new character in Osiris and have officially been introduced to the genesis of the Black Adam family. 52 is always a dependable read and I’m certainly looking forward to the next issue.