DCeased: War of the Undead Gods #1 is published by DC Comics and written by Tom Taylor. Pencils are by Trevor Hairsine, inks by Andy Lanning and colours by Rain Beredo. Letters are by Saida Temofonte. Main cover art is by Hairsine and Beredo.
War of the Undead Gods #1 is available now in print and on digital where all good comics are sold.
Synopsis
What began as a battle for Earth has become a war for the galaxy as the epic final chapter in the massive DCeased franchise is here! The emergence of a reborn, undead Darkseid in DCeased: Dead Planet sets the stage for the most devastating conflict yet for Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman! As the Anti-Life Equation spreads into the cosmos, the survivors of Earth prepare for the coming apocalypse and realize their only hope could lie in the most powerful surviving hero from the first DCeased series… The bestselling creative team of Tom Taylor and Trevor Hairsine return for their third and final installment in War of the Undead Gods!
Review
It’s hard to believe that it has only been three years since the first issue of DCeased. Tom Taylor’s zombie-infused take on the DC Universe arrived when zombie-fatigue was a term often used to describe the popular sub-genre. With The Walking Dead ambling towards its finale, the undead needed a superstar writer to reignite their once fearsome reputation.
DCeased not only sparked the imaginations of fans. It also captured zeitgeist and earned Taylor a Best Graphic Novel award at Australias Shadow Awards. After spawning a follow-up and digital-first series, DCeased returns one final time today with the first of eights issues in the War of the Undead Gods arc.
Taylor is back with regular collaborator Trevor Hairsine and both hit the ground running in this opening gambit. We start in very familiar territory with Kara Zor-El. But if you know Taylor, you know nothing is what it seems. The tense, emotional opening rollercoaster comes to a close with a reminder of exactly why we’re back for this victory lap: the undead New Gods.
Unless you missed previous series, Dead Planet, then you’ll know our heroes have discovered a cure. War of the Undead Gods picks up with the inhabitants of Earth-2 curing many of their friends and loved ones. In contrast to the opening moments, much of issue #1 leans in to the emotional aspects of the story. There’s highs and lows in equal measure as friends are reunited and heroes mourned.
But the reprieve is only brief. As soon as Taylor brings us to the pinnacle of this emotional high, he drops us back down to the ground. The arrival of Brainiac heralds the beginning of the titular Undead War and leaves us perfectly placed for what is to come.
It wouldn’t be DCeased without Trevor Hairsine. The artist has defined the style of the entire of Taylor’s interpretation of the DCU. Throughout all three series, plus its various spinoffs, Hairsine has been the baseline. His work perfectly encapsulates all of the drama in Taylor’s story. Teamed with Beredo’s colours an Lanning’s inks, DCeased is a bold in its visuals as it is in its storytelling.
Verdict
Taylor instantly reminds us why DCeased is a blockbuster franchise for DC. War of the Undead Gods hits the ground running with high stakes and huge scope.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
