After seemingly endless years of waiting, The Multiversity is finally upon us. Issue #1 is exactly as mind-bending as you’ve been guessing, and the results are slightly mixed, but mostly fantastic. Those of us familiar with Grant Morrison's body of work at DC Comics are more than familiar with his take on the metaphysics of the DC Multiverse. In one way or another, Morrison has been taking us on an exploration of the substructure of the DCU since his work in Animal Man all the way back in the 1980’s. Of course, over the decades his views have evolved, but he’s done an incredible job of keeping his fans updated throughout his ever-expanding views of the fictional, non-fictional, and everything else in between. The Multiversity #1 picks up speed almost immediately, taking readers on a journey that longtime Morrison fans will be equipped and excited for. That said, readers new to Morrison’s antics be warned: Things will get trippy.

Issue #1 opens with Nix Uotan, the last remaining monitor that readers of Final Crisis will be familiar with. From there, readers are taken on a journey to new worlds featuring new, but strangely familiar faces. In the end, we learn that heroes must band together to save existence itself from extinction. This is a huge, action-packed superhero adventure on the scale that you would expect from Morrison. In the best possible way, this is all par for the course really, and while this part of the story is relatively straight forward, it’s all of the other elements of this book that will really start to get under your skin.This book literally speaks to you, pleads with you, and at times even commands you! Morrison has made us, and the very comic book in your hand, a part of his story, but to what end is still vastly unclear. As with all of Morrison’s work, things might feel a bit disorienting right now as he enjoys keeping things very close to the vest, but those willing to really dig into this thing should find plenty to keep them entertained.

The Multiversity #1 features a wide variety of characters throughout its 40 pages. President Superman and Captain Carrot are definitely the standouts here, though there are plenty of other surprise characters throughout this issue that make things infinitely fun. We get a great sense of who some of these folks are, and it’s extremely refreshing to get out of the New 52 pool for a bit in favor of some other multiversal flavors.Unfortunately, not all characters get a very good introduction here as there are more heroes featured in the “Cosmic Neighborhood Watch” than there is time to devote to them apparently. This is a situation where the complaint is essentially not getting enough of a thing that you are really enjoying, so this is a very minor criticism, but you may find yourself simply wanting more from these multiversal characters. Of course, there are more than just heroes here, and the villains are truly some of the most twisted and out-of-the-box characters that Morrison has ever created. There is so much creativity here that the experience of reading this book is almost electric.Penciler Ivan Reis and Inker Joe Prado deliver stunning work throughout this issue. Reis’ layouts are all appropriately epic and flow beautifully through all of Morrison’s high concepts. Prado really helps to reign all of Reis’ pencils in with his thick and steady lines. Finally, colorist Nei Ruffino helps bring to life all of the beautiful pencil work with her solid colors. With all of that said, there are a few instances where the characters begin talking about something that is seemingly in front of them, but the art doesn’t reflect it at all. It’s hard to say if it was designed to be this way, but you might find yourself squinting at a page or two wondering if you’re just missing something that’s right in front of you.