REVIEW: ‘DCeased: Dead Planet,’ Issue #2

Tom Taylor’s DCeased world got even bigger last month with DCeased: Dead Planet, published by DC Comics. With the original creative team returning with Taylor as writer, pencils by Trevor Hairsine, inks by Stefano Gaudiano, and Gigi Baldissini, colors by Rain Beredo, and letters by Saida Temofonte, the new mini-series time-jumped us into the future with Damien as the new Batman, Jon as the new Superman, and Cassie as the new Wonder Woman. Having escaped earth, the trio came back to the ravaged planet to answer a distress beacon coming from Cyborg with the help of Green Lantern Dinah and Green Arrow. Last issue opened with the team getting into trouble and losing one of their own, while Cyborg hinted at a cure. Now, in DCeased: Dead Planet #2, we get to see how those left on the dead planet have survived.

While the bulk of the last issues was spent setting the scene of the new Earth, it did open with everyone’s favorite arsehole, John Constantine, sitting at a bar, enjoying a drink with his many dead friends (which you can see in DCeased: A Good Day to Die). Now, in DCeased: Dead Planet #2 we get the chance to see the heroes, well, anti-heroes, responsible for saving survivors across the ravaged planet and helping safeguard Ivy’s Gotham garden. Made up of John Constantine, Zatanna, Blue Devil, Ragman, Detective Chimp, and Red Hood, the group has been ensuring Earth’s safety even as the other heroes fall.

What makes DCeased: Dead Planet #2 phenomenal is Taylor’s knowledge of Constantine, how he speaks, the choices he makes, and ultimately how he narrates the issue. In truth, John Constantine is one of my favorite comic characters from the DC canon and Taylor writes him extremely well. While the other narrators in the DCeased world are often serious and emotional in that seriousness, Constantine’s narration is hilarious. But in his profanity and sarcasm, the emotion still cuts through, especially when coupled with Guadiano and Baldissini’s art that shows the danger of of the world and the crushing death we see in the issue’s opening.

This issue also succeeds at world-building as well. We learn about how Ivy’s Gotham jungle, how it works, how its stayed protected, while also being teased with the anti-life equation cure. But its Swamp Thing’s inclusion that adds an element of surprise to the narrative and helps sheds light to the other parts of the world we haven’t seen yet.

Overall, DCeased: Dead Planet #2 is a great issue of a series that is proving to add to the DCeased series of books by presenting readers with great characters. While I’m sure that the mini-series will bounce back between the new Justice League and Constantine, I’m excited for the possibility with two teams with very different styles coming together in the future.

DCeased: Dead Planet #2 is available now wherever comic books are sold.