'kingdom come'

"Kingdom Come," in my honest opinion, is one of the finest comic book works of the 1990s. I'd put it on par with Frank Miller's "The Dark Knight Returns" and Alan Moore's "Watchmen." If you've read "Kingdom Come," did you notice the subtle and not-so-subtle references to the other two series hidden in it?

There were a number of sly references to other comic book series, including "Golden Age," "Watchmen" and "Marvels." There's also a waitress who looks like Carrie Kelly (from "The Dark Knight Returns") who introduces herself to Bruce Wayne: "Hi. I'm Robin." The portrayal of Batman and Superman's relationship also had some similarities to "Dark Knight," in terms of mistrust.

(In the sequel "Kingdom," there is an issue set at Planet Krypton. The running gag of the issue is that no one ever sees the Batman waiter. One diner even remarks, "I'm not even sure he exists.")

"Kingdom Come" is a good comic. The aging superhero, when done well, can be absolutely extraordinary because of the way it explores the character and new and interesting ways. Unfortunately most of the aging superhero stories are on the level of "The Last Avengers Story" and not even half as good as "The Dark Knight Returns."