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Old Aug 12th, 2008, 10:05 AM       
I found aspects of "Seven Soldiers" totally impenetrable and I know as much DC history as anybody.

I'm reasonably sure I'm picking up on the things ones meant to understand in "Crisls" so far, and that other things that are totally confusing are intended to be right now.

I think Proto is right that it's very ballsy of DC to allow this kind of writing in such a mass market book.

That said, there is a HUGE difference between confusing plotlines that require arcane knowledge which are lazy and arrogant (Skrull Invasion) and confusing plotlines that require arcane knowledge because a talented writer is following his muse and consequences be damned.

There's nothing unusual about that in literature, and there are books out there well worth reading that require (at least for me) multiple attempts before you get anywhere with them. Burroughs and Pynchon come to mind. I still haven't been able to crack "Gravity's Rainbow" but intend to before I die.

It is pretty unusual in comics, and it's unheard of in mainstream books. That's changing. Jonathan Lethem, a writer of immense talent with wide critical acclaim is working through "Omega", based on one of the original comic writers who didn't mind being impenetrable now and then, Steve Gerber.

This isn't what most readers are looking for in a Superhero book. The very best comics to date (Say Watchmen) are extremely well written, but they aren't difficult to read. For a writer in control of his voice, that's an artistic choice. On many levels it's more rewarding to read. But I think "Crisis" and "Seven Soldiers" before it are deliberately, carefully written and offer a very different set of rewards.
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