Leviathan: Dawn #1 – DC Comics
Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Art by Alex Maleev
Letters by Joshua Reed
If you have been following the Leviathan story so far, we finally have some answers. We know who Leviathan is, who Leviathan isn’t and what their overall goal is. After the first Event, it’s time for a new strategy for our heroes and villains alike. That’s where Leviathan: Dawn #1 comes in.
This will likely contain some spoilers for previous Leviathan stories, because it would be impossible to talk about otherwise. Shaw was revealed to be Leviathan, or at least the puppet master. That means great news for Steve Trevor, but how things unfold at the start, make him a bit uneasy. Sure the heroes ultimately stopped the first Event, but now what? This issue is about trust, loyalty and who is best suited to help stop Leviathan or guide it depending on which side you look at. So we see a team of heroes being put together, and clearly no everyone is going to get along. On the Leviathan side, we see a weakness that we have yet to see in their ranks and how it’s dealt with. Dawn is an appropriate title, because this issue leaves you feeling like this is the beginning of the next phase in this battle.
Leviathan is always a tricky story to review for me. If you’ve been invested and into the story from the beginning, it’s easy to love it and follow it. If you haven’t fully immersed yourself, it’s hard to get that big deal feeling. Not only that, you’ll be a little lost. This Leviathan story is a thinker, with a lot of moving parts, like a high espionage story. You need to pay attention and appreciate the details. This issue isn’t really a good jumping in point, but it’s the closest thing you will probably get to one at this point. One thing that is easy to appreciate is Alex Maleev’s art. It’s sleek, smooth and really helps keep your attention on those details. His Green Arrow stuff is particularly great in this issue. To me, Leviathan is not something you can judge on a single issue, but this one does have some impactful moments and seems to gather things together better for readers than it has previously. That being said, this next Event better be a big one.
RATING: 3.5/5
(The hype surrounding Leviathan was always going to be hard to live up to. I’m not sure it has quite done that, but there is still plenty to like overall. I’m willing to see how it all ends.)