I've applauded Animal Man in the past for being able to take an over-arching story and make it entertaining for nearly a dozen issues. That continues this month as we're finally given a hint of it finally being "over," with a little bit of a cliffhanger to supposedly keep readers hooked.

And I guess I can congratulate Jeff Lemire for that. A lesser writer would've lost my interest a long while ago, and for what it's worth, this is one of the only New 52 series that I can actually become excited about.

But on the flip side, I'm getting really tired of the arc being extended by "almost" victories, only to whip out a new threat. It's kind of wearing down my ability to be shocked or invested in what's happening, because I know it's just going to be another roller coaster ride once it's over.

I guess that's more my personal problem than Lemire's writing: I like my stories to be no longer than they need to, with ample time for the reader to catch his/her breath in between. Lemire did that with the "film" issue of Animal Man, but the constant threat from the Rot without any time for exposition just makes me feel like it's problem after problem after problem.

I guess that'll be enough for some people, but I hope we can tie this up with issue twelve and see some sense of normalcy return for at least one issue.

That'd be nice.

Animal Man #11
DC Comics
$2.99

The Verdict: Three cheetahs out of five, but easily could be higher if this current storyline hasn't worn you out. Not for everyone, but some will like it.