Broken Frontier

Coming off the stellar revelations in Brightest Day #7, Geoff Johns and Peter Tomasi ride the high tide into issue #8.  Although the writers cut back significantly on the cast presented in the last installment and focus their attention instead upon two central storylines, the overall progression of Brightest Day is much better for it.

Following a very short, two-page conversation between Hawk, Dove, and Boston Brand, Johns and Tomasi dive (again with the water metaphor) right into the first of the two major plots in Brightest Day #8.  After his arrival in Australia and rescue of M'Gann, J'onn utilizes telepathy to decipher the identity of her attacker.  What follows is largely a high octane battle between M'Gann and the mysterious Martian that leads J'onn to conclude that he is no longer the only green Martian survivor of his planet.  Of the two lead stories, the Martian Manhunter one is by far the weaker.  Due in large part to its book ending structure and format that introduces and concludes issue #8, the sequence really isn't given the necessary room to breathe in the wake of everything that occurred in #7.  Upon J'onn's realization of another Martian presence, the story abruptly ends with his departure and subsequent arrival in Star City.

The strongest story in Brightest Day #8, which should not come as any real surprise for seasoned fans and readers of Johns' work, is the longer sequence dealing with Hawkman and Hawkgirl.  Even for audiences who know very little of Carter and Shiera's history, Johns and Tomasi do an excellent job establishing a foundation for what could, and perhaps should be, a maxi-series title solely focusing on their adventures.  One of the major strengths Johns and Tomasi have brought with Brightest Day, despite its ups and downs through certain issues, is that the writers have, in a relatively short period of time, made these second or third-string characters matter.  Although some readers will definitely have a greater investment and connection with certain characters over others, no one can deny that Johns and Tomasi have been making a slow but steady progression since the series' inception to flesh the characters out more beyond mere caricatures or background figures.

Stronger not just in story, but also in art, the sequence with Hawkman and Hawkgirl finds Carter and Shiera learning significantly more about Hawkworld and its relationship to Earth and Thanagar.  With each installment, the mystery enveloping the Hawks grows deeper and as a result, Brightest Day #8 is a worthy successor to #7.  One of the most enjoyable aspects of this issue is that readers learn events alongside the Hawks themselves. 

Artistically, Brightest Day #8 is just as solid as ever.  Usually, the transition between different artists and artistic styles can be disjointing for readers and break the flow and experience of the story itself.  This is not the case with Brightest Day.  In fact, the artwork on the series has been the most consistent aspect of Brightest Day thus far.  Yet, with issue #7 and now #8, Johns and Tomasi appear to have settled into an approach that allows for the story to grow and avoids the trappings that plagued earlier narrative attempts.