Review: Dark Nights- Death Metal: The Multiverse Who Laughs

Quick Summary

Pros: The majority of the book’s stories are fun and work as solid tie-ins to the larger event. The Signal and Superboy-Prime stories will be particularly entertaining for fans of those characters. The majority of the collection’s artwork suits the storytelling very well.

Cons: Some of the book’s stories are just average and feel forgettable. Some of the artwork is just alright. 

Overall: This collection is a solid accompaniment to other tales within the DC Universe. The majority of the book’s stories either provide worthwhile expansions of the main Death Metal event or provide great character-driven narratives. The only downside is that the storytelling and artwork dip a bit when it comes to a few of the shorter stories. Overall, readers who want to see more from this event or who are specifically interested in the Signal or Superboy-Prime should consider reading this volume.

Story

Dark Nights: Death Metal: The Multiverse Who Laughs isn’t the best Death Metal (Review) tie-in book out there but still has a lot going for it. Some of the stories within this book are great and serve as worthwhile tie-ins to the larger event. These stories give readers a chance to learn more about the creepy Robin King, witness the event’s larger impact on the Omniverse, and simply have some fun with Lobo. Other stories are more character driven and will be specifically interesting for fans of the Signal or Superboy-Prime. However, alongside all of this, a few of the stories are just average and feel pretty forgettable. Overall though, this collection trends positive and will likely be worthwhile for most fans of this event.

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A few stories in The Multiverse Who Laughs are solid tie-ins to the Death Metal event. The Robin King chapter is creepy, dark, and easily the best way to learn more about this character’s twisted mentality. Meanwhile, the Lobo story is a wild ride filled with ridiculously over-the-top action and the unique blend of humor that only Lobo can provide. I particularly enjoyed seeing the “Batman Who Frags” and witnessing Lobo dispatch him in a rather unique way.

Other stories in The Multiverse Who Laughs aren’t quite as good when it comes to relating back to the main event but are excellent when it comes to highlighting specific characters. The battle between the Signal and a dark version of himself works in putting the Signal’s positive traits in the spotlight. Then, the Superboy-Prime chapter delivers when it comes to emotion and finally gives Prime what may be the closest thing he’ll get to a happy ending.

In contrast to the good moments within this collection, The Multiverse Who Laughs also contains a few subpar moments. The short horror stories from The Multiverse Who Laughs chapter are interesting but aren’t as creative as some of the other short stories seen in this event. Meanwhile, the Green Lantern story ends up feeling like a point of transition rather than a worthwhile story on its own. In addition to this, the introductions to Rise of the New God and The Secret Origin are a bit monotonous. None of these moments are downright bad, they simply fail to rise above being just average.

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Art

The artwork in The Multiverse Who Laughs might not be as immediately impressive as the artwork in other collections from this event, but it excels in providing visuals that perfectly suit the tone of the stories being told. Riley Rossmo’s work on the Robin King story is bombastic, imaginative, and downright creepy. It works well on its own while also working as a spiritual successor to Rossmo’s work on The Batman Who Laughs issue from the original Dark Nights: Metal (Review) event. Then, Jesús Merino takes over for some impressive cosmic work on the Rise of the New God chapter, work that suits the chapter’s cosmically inclined narrative. From here, a trio of artists, Tyler Kirkham, Rags Morales, and Denys Cowan, provide gritty, weird, and wildly over-the-top that match Lobo’s approach to adventuring. Finally, in the book’s final chapter, a variety of artists produce a story that hits a wonderful blend between beauty and action.

The book’s biggest downside is that many of the shorter stories feature artwork that is just alright. There isn’t a point where any particular story looks downright bad but there are points where the quality of the art definitely dips a bit.

Continuity

Dark Nights: Death Metal: The Multiverse Who Laughs is a tie-in to the Dark Nights: Death Metal (Review) event.

This volume also references other comic books, detailed below:

• Smilex is a product previously seen in the 1989 Batman movie.
• Duke Thomas (Reading Order) mentions something that Ra’s al Ghul did. His encounters with Ra’s al Ghul are detailed across the Batman and the Outsiders series, starting with Batman and the Outsiders Vol. 1: Lesser Gods.
• Metron was killed at the conclusion of the Justice League: Darkseid War (Review) (Reading Order) event.
• The “The Weight of Leadership” story from Dark Nights: Death Metal Rise of the New God #1 takes place after the events of Dark Nights: Death Metal Multiverse’s End #1, collected in Dark Nights: Death Metal: The Darkest Knight.
• Dark Nights: Death Metal Infinite Hour Exxxtreme! #1 references a character’s escape during the events of Justice League #56, collected in Justice League: Death Metal.
• Dark Nights: Death Metal The Secret Origin #1 explains some of Superboy-Prime’s past. Specifically, it references the events of Crisis on Infinite Earths and Infinite Crisis.