I wasn't all that taken with the introduction to this series as provided in last week's DCU: Brave New World. It wasn't that the writer dropped us into the middle of the story; it's just that for a junkie and fugitive, the main character was far too likeable. To my pleasure, Mike is much less of a standup guy in this inaugural issue. Where this book goes awry is in execution. It's unlikely that anyone interested in this series would pass on its introduction in BNW for just a buck, so Jones covers a lot of unnecessary territory in this first issue. Furthermore, while I enjoy the realistic, soft lines artist Renato Guedes brings to the book, the figures come off as a bit stiff at times.
Mike Costner is about to have a terrible day. He needs to score his next fix, but his credit with his dealer isn't what it used to be. A quick theft solves that problem, but it also draws Mike into a Gotham City police raid of the dealer's base of operations. Bullets are about to fly, but that's not the deadliest thing that's about to happen. No, the final Omac sleeper unit is about to be activated, as a damaged Brother Eye sets out to repair itself and its network so it can rededicate itself to its goals of world domination and the eradication of superhumans.
The dominant color scheme in this book is a bit odd. Muted pastels seem to reign supreme, and they run contrary to the grittier feel that the circumstances called for in the first half of the book. But brighter, glowing colors are used to make the Brother Eye sensors come to life, and they are extremely effective at conveying the all-seeing, invasive qualities of that device. As I noted earlier, the everyday characters come off as rather stiff here, but when the Omac itself emerges, a greater sense of energy and action really takes hold. Guedes also nicely reinforces the inhuman nature of the Omac while making it plausible that an innocent human being could lie within.
Jones's biggest misstep here is that the first half of the issue is dedicated to the mystery of the identity of the last Omac. There's just one problem: we know it's Mike Costner from the start, thanks to last week's segment in Brave New World. That really has to be seen as Omac #0. Mind you, this approach certainly makes for an accessible first issue for those who missed out on BNW. The Omac concept is summed up nicely in the opening sequence as well. Of course, that sequence also brings up the question of why Earth's heroes -- and Batman himself -- didn't make damn sure Brother Eye was no more after the events of Infinite Crisis.
Mike Costner is the kind of guy we all ignore everyday... a young, able-bodied guy sitting on the sidewalk whom each one of us judges as being too lazy to get a job. Mike is his own worst enemy (or would be, if his circumstances were more ordinary) but Jones presents him as a regular human being, flaws and all. He's an addict, but he's also a regular guy, decent in his own way. We don't necessarily like Mike, but he's not to be hated either. But the reader does feel sympathetic for him and is left wondering if he has the strength to transform from being a victim in his own story to the hero. 6/10
