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Tuesday, 06 February 2007 15:07 |
| | David Forbes |
Brian Michael Bendis is not, it would seem, an extraordinarily optimistic man. A crime reporter turned comics writer (and artist), he broke into the field with expertly executed tales of humanityës dark side.
Once he turned his eye to superheroes, the result was a story set in a typical comic book world, with a twist. Bendis told his story from the viewpoint of some of the most cynical people around ÇƒÓ homicide detectives.
The result, "Powers," brilliantly brings together both crime fiction and superhero tales in some absolutely stunning ways.
Now
Bendis and his artistic partner, Michael Avon Oeming, have put out
"Powers: Volume 1" (Marvel, 456 pp. $29.99), containing three story
arcs ÇƒÓ "Who killed Retro Girl?" "Roleplay" and "Little Deaths," along
with basically everything but the kitchen sink (scripts, character
designs, interviews, etc.) at all related to their work.
Iëd read most of
this before, but free from the constraints imposed by the monthly
schedule they first operated under, Bendis and Oeming have reformatted
their tales closer to the way they originally envisioned. The changes
were improvements, albeit minor.
Really, itës
hard to improve on something this good. I hope this volume, which is a
great value (the individual graphic novels of these stories, in
paperback, would end up totaling about $45 at least), will bring more
readers in.
The story seems
simple at first. Christian Walker is a homicide detective. Basically a
good guy, though with an occasional temper, heës trying desperately to
do the right thing. Thereës one catch ÇƒÓ his job involves solving
homicides caused by superheroes and villains or, as theyëre labeled in
Bendisë world ÇƒÏ "Powers."
Paired with
ex-SWAT officer Deanna Pilgrim, the two are tasked with some
particularly difficult cases. After all, in a world with beings that
can fly or tear buildings apart with their bare hands, what good are
two normal detectives ÇƒÓ or even an entire police department ÇƒÓ going to
do?
These are questions so obvious I canët believe that it wasnët delved into more deeply before, but Bendis makes up for lost time.
For such dark
stories, Oemingës art is surprisingly cartoon-like, allowing some very
grisly murder scenes to sneak up on the reader. This is not a series
for the squeamish or faint of heart.
"Powers" has
some of the best dialogue in any medium, with Bendisë journalistic
background clearly coming in handy. Everyone in this book, from
detectives to killers to superheroes, talks like a real person. The
police operate like actual police, elements of incompetence, corruption
and occasional brutality (as well as heroism) included. Few writers can
claim such realism, especially these days and let alone working with
such larger-than-life elements.
The first story,
"Who Killed Retro Girl?" is the strongest of the lot, introducing the
characters as they desperately hunt the murderer of the most popular
superheroine in the world. It manages to weave a plot and mystery that
is multi-layered to say the least, but ties back in perfectly.
Bendis does some
interesting role reversal in this book as well. Solid, big and
determined, Walker fits the traditional brawny hero mold, but heës
actually the more diplomatic of the two. As for his partner, Pilgrim,
sheës a vicious force of nature, often underestimated because of her
size and gender. Sheës also one of the best-written and most complex
characters in this genre in a long time.
The combination
of spot-on dialogue and great characterization leads to some memorable
moments here and one-liners here, including Pilgrimës biting
interrogation of a pompous murderer ("You couldnët f--- her so you
killed her ÇƒÓ real original.")
Itës just the
first of many stereotypes Bendis breaks. The superheroes, whatever
world-saving they might do, come off mostly as jerks ÇƒÓ exactly how
people tend to act when they have vast amounts of power.
"Roleplay,"
about college kids playing at being superheroes, is the weakest plot in
the volume, but only by comparison to the other two. Itës a perfectly
solid crime story and sets up some very important subplots, but it
doesnët have as driving a story or as deep a theme as the other arcs.
"Little Deaths,"
which ends the volume, explores superheroic dirty laundry in detail, as
the characters investigate the seedy side of one superhero and the
desperate comeback attempts of another. It ends up being not just a
crime story, but a surprisingly humane meditation on fame and death.
Combined with
the multitude of extras, which shed a huge amount of light on the
creative process behind these stories, this book ends up a great value
filled with superb stories. A must for anyone who always thought that
Superman must be hiding something besides his secret identity.
ï
David Forbes, who writes book reviews and covers news for the Daily Planet, may be contacted at marauderAVL-at-hotmail.com.
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