Then it got weird.
Er…weirder. Because from the start all of the titles under the DC’s Young Animal banner were kind of weird. That was their charm. Tapping into the more idiosyncratic side to the DC Universe that fueled the sophisticated suspense series in the ’80s into the mature readers titles of early Vertigo. Tragic heroes manipulated by a mad scientist to rebellious teens escaping from the doldrums of their life with a touch of madness.
Then it all came together with the line’s only crossover, bringing in a few of DC’s familiar faces, running into one of the stranger line-ups of the Rebirth era Justice League, and the DCU’s premiere Trinity: Milkman Man, Father Bruce, and Wonder Wife.
“Some of the best people are weirdos.”
Though, when you think about it, to call Milk Wars weird is probably an understatement. It was a crossover of specials, written by the regular creative teams and Steve Orlando (who was writing the Justice League of America book at the time), with art from a whole slew of notable artists (please see below). The story featured the reality changing corporation Retconn trying to alter Prime Earth for sale and the combined forces of the Doom Patrol and the Young Animal misfits attempt to stop it. Calling them wacky hijinks kind of undersells it.
With milk. At that. The reality changing corporation was trying to change the world with milk. And it was working. Retconn and the Milkman Man spiralled out of the ongoing Doom Patrol narrative, and the main throughline of the crossover was of Doom Patrol’s doings, but it’s kind of a story that is so far out there that following the earlier narrative doesn’t overly matter. Even if Casey Brinke’s relationship is a key point here. When reality shifts, you’re often just as confused as everyone else. Which is part of the fun.
There are some hilarious moments, really leaning in to the ironic at times, like what happens to the Justice League, Father Bruce’s absurd origin, Wonder Wife’s mommy milkers (that just seems wrong, but it really fits the theme and the oddity of Shade dealing with emotion, what’s almost an antithesis to Wonder Woman’s feminist ideal, and the perfect inclusion of Mirka Andolfo’s art style), and more. The humour balancing out the real terror that underlies the attempt of Retconn to clear out Prime Earth’s reality.
“All right, you pressed-shirt punks. Your dairy show’s over!”
Much of the line art for the crossover is from people other than the regular artists on the previous ongoing books. Like the changed mainline DC heroes, it gives a somewhat different feel to the story. You get some adventurous layouts from ACO, a surreal throwback vibe from Langdon Foss and Nick Filardi, and a more traditional superhero look from Dale Eaglesham interspersed with a very interesting passion sequence. When paired with mostly the regular colourists and letterers, there’s a feeling of familiarity, but still somewhat out of step with even the normal offbeat rhythm. It’s a wonderful way to make this feel like something’s wrong. Only to change a bit in the epilogue when Nick Derington returns and things go back to “normal”.
Or at least as normal as DC’s Young Animal can be. Complete with a rather inventive way to work in Eternity Girl sidestepping into this reality from Magdalene Visaggio, Sonny Liew, and Todd Klein.
DC/Young Animal – Milk Wars is essential reading for Doom Patrol fans and sets up the second wave of DC’s Young Animal books, with some retooled characters and settings going forward and new launches of new characters. It’s also one trippy take on the Trinity in a surreal story.
Classic Comic Compendium: DC/YOUNG ANIMAL – MILK WARS
DC/Young Animal – Milk Wars
Writers: Steve Orlando, Gerard Way, Jody Houser, Cecil Castellucci, Jon Rivera, and Magdalene Visaggio
Artists: ACO, Hugo Petrus, Ty Templeton, Mirka Andolfo, Langdon Foss, Dale Eaglesham, Nick Derington, and Sonny Liew
Colourists: Tamra Bonvillain, Marissa Louise, Keiren Smith, and Nick Filardi
Letterers: Clem Robins, John Workman, Saida Temofonte, and Todd Klein
Publisher: DC Comics – DC’s Young Animal
Release Date: June 13, 2018
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