Heroes in Crisis #5 review: Meeting the press

Tom King’s latest masterpiece gets to the heart of the story in Heroes In Crisis #5 as he tackles issues of mental health and the stigma attached to getting help.

The superheroes are forced to address the media about Sanctuary while Harley and Booster conduct their own investigations in Heroes in Crisis #5.

Heroes In Crisis #5 delivers a powerful message about the purpose of Sanctuary and how, even in the face of tragedy, it was a necessary place of healing for the people who spend their lives protecting the world. Tom King delivers a powerful story as Superman addresses the press while several investigations take place in the background.

Can Superman win back the public’s trust? Who will be the first to find answers about what happened at Sanctuary? With only four issues to go in the Heroes In Crisis story, anything can happen.

This review contains spoilers for Heroes In Crisis #5.

The search for answers about the massacre at Sanctuary intensifies as three groups work to figure out what happened at Sanctuary while Superman addresses the media and tries to win back the public’s trust. Booster Gold and Blue Beetle are working together, as are Harley Quinn and Batgirl, and Batman is conducting his own investigation with help from the Flash. The Sanctuary sessions were supposed to be a secret but they’ve been recorded and leaked to the media, and that’s a problem.

What stands out in Heroes In Crisis #5, though, is Superman’s message to the media. As he prepares his remarks he tells Lois that he can hear the frightened thoughts of the people in the city. Heroes were butchered in a place that was meant for healing, but that’s not what really has people worried. People are worried that superheroes were at Sanctuary getting help. Superman must reassure people that heroes know what they’re getting into when they don the costumes and the capes, but even the best of them need a break every now and again. The fact that they are seeking help shouldn’t be a concern, rather it should be a source of relief.

When Tom King first announced details about this project at San Diego Comic Con 2018 he talked about how 9/11 served as inspiration for the story. In a matter of hours the safety and security the world had known was obliterated, and for many people losing that safety was enough to send them reeling. It was out of that sense of dread and the search for meaning that Heroes In Crisis was born, and in Superman’s message we can hear King’s voice talking about his experience, which happens to be one shared by so many people who lived through those dark days.

Setting aside the serious nature of the story, there are some little tidbits in Heroes In Crisis #5 that are worth pointing out. Seeing Booster and Blue Beetle on the couch watching TV and eating pizza is fun, but seeing that Booster is wearing regular athletic tube socks under his costume’s boots is one of those things you never knew you needed. It’s so…authentic.

This month’s variant cover by Sook is an absolute stunner. The cover depicts the moment when Joker kills Jason Todd. The Polaroid picture features Todd’s final moments as he looks on in terror as Joker raises the crowbar over his head, preparing to strike. This moment is one of many that keep with the theme of the intense suffering that our heroes have faced over the years, and while all of Sook’s covers to date have been amazing, this one is particularly jarring.

Writer: Tom King

Art: Clay Man

Colors: Tomeu Morey

Letters: Clayton Cowles

Heroes In Crisis #5 is available now at your local comic shop.