Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely get the band back together today for Multiversity: Pax Americana, the fourth issue in the ongoing anthology. Each issue of Multiversity tackles a different one of DC's 52 parallel Earths, usually telling a story you could never tell in the prime DC universe.
Pax Americana is set on Earth-4, where the old Charlton characters like Captain Atom, Blue Beetle and the Question still exist more or less the way older readers remember them. But from there, Morrison shoots things off in a wildly unexpected direction; in 48 pages, he riffs hard on Watchmen in a way so complex that Alan Moore himself would probably approve.
The allusions are not hard to discern: Captain Atom is blue all over and has the atomic symbol for Hydrogen on his forehead; the Question wears an old trenchcoat and fedora while his face-obscuring mask never comes off; Blue Beetle is rarely seen outside of his "Bug" flying vehicle, an egg-shaped flyer with two large eyes as windows. Nightshade is a younger heroine who takes after her elderly mother, who it's hinted at was once a hero too. There's even a shady guy smoking a cigar who goes around doing the government's dirty work.
You'll recognize a number of familiar story beats as well, but Morrison remixes the whole thing as only he can. Perfect example: the issue's opening pages are a wordless depiction of an extremely gruesome assassination — with the panels arranged in reverse. The entire story is told very out of sequence, jumping around in time, flashing backward and forward with no subtitles or cues as to what is happening when. Morrison leaves it up to you to figure out like an elaborate puzzle.
Frankly, if you typically find Morrison's heady plots confusing (as I do), you probably shouldn't bother. This one finds the writer going so far over that edge that you may never get your head around it. But if you're a follower of Morrison's madness, Pax Americana is a definite must.
Here's DC's official solicit:
Brace yourselves for the next exciting chapter of THE MULTIVERSITY as the acclaimed ALL-STAR SUPERMAN team of writer Grant Morrison and artist Frank Quitely investigate the conspiracy on Earth-4, home of Pax Americana! Told backwards through an experimental storytelling technique that reveals new mysteries with each turn of the page, PAX AMERICANA stars The Question, Blue Beetle, Captain Atom, Nightshade and Peacemaker like you've never seen them before! As the assassination of the U.S. president leads to political intrigue, interpersonal drama and astro-physical wonder, the truth behind the crime and those involved will blow your mind! What confidential conversation between the president and Captain Atom could reveal everything? How far will The Question take his hunt for the truth before he hurts his former friends - or himself? And who is the steel-handed bogeyman operating in the shadows?
Discover all this and more in this exciting stand-alone issue which also acts as chapter four of the MULTIVERSITY storyline. Join us, if your dare, for THE MULTIVERSITY!
Multiversity: Pax Americana is on sale in comic book shops as of today for $4.99.
