One thing I always say is that independent superhero titles are difficult to do. That is to say that it’s difficult to present a new superhero world without it seeming like a rehash of something you’ve read before. I’m not one to have an issue with new stories in which the archetypes of other characters are being used as long as it offers something new and that’s exactly what Super! does. The world of Super! is like a combination of the Marvel and DC universe with a slight touch of Wildstorm (RIP). It’s a world that is filled with superheroes and villains and that’s where we meet our main character Blitz. My understanding is that she has super strength and can fly, but also produces electricity. She’s starts off by fighting Mr. Roboto and has it under control, but her teammate The Furious Fire-Ant steps in to help her anyways. She gets pissed about the time and smashes the crap out of Roboto and leaves Fire-Ant to clean up the mess… which he doesn’t since he has no idea what to do with a dead robot.
After that we follow Blitz back to her apartment and watch as she changes instantly in to her alter ego Paula. She changes just in time for her boyfriend to come home and we can presume that he knows nothing about her double life. After that we get a taste of Paula’s regular life as she works as a waitress at Miller’s Tavern. Her narration walks us through the city and gives the reader a taste of the world.
The story introduces us to Paula’s teammates as well. Fire-Ant is an Iron Man type of character while Blood Death is an awesome combination of Captain America, Judge Dredd, The Punisher and Rorschach. That’s kind of the deal with the world in that they’re all similar to other character’s you know, but in some cases they’re several characters combined. There’s a great segment in which the story makes fun of Wolverine with their version called Lone Wolf; its spot on and great.
Overall I liked the story. It wasn’t anything that original but that’s only because it’s taking themes and characters and compiling them together. It’s very successful in that regards as you’ll recognize characters and even story elements from other series, but you won’t care because they all work together in this new setting. What really stands out is the dialogue. The issue has its comedic moments and while you won’t be slapping your knee on every page, the jokes that are there, work. One of the best scenes is where Paula and her team are trying to come up with a team name and it becomes a high school group project. The stupidest names get thrown out, but everyone is very serious about their choices. Overall I really enjoyed the writing and would come back for another issue because of it.
The artwork is really good. The deal breaker on an indie superhero title for me is the artwork. It’s not that it needs to look like the rest of the genre, but usually it’s trying to and not reaching the bar. There’s aspects of the art that resemble what’s typically associate with the genre, but there is a sense of realism to the art that makes it stand out compare to a typical capes book. I like the details and the fact that world was packed full of superheroes. It reminded me of Top Ten it had so much going on within the pages.
I don’t read a lot of superhero books anymore so when I can find an indie one I like I tend to stick with it. I’ll be waiting for the second issue of the series to check out and as long as it can keep up the quality on the art and the style of the story this will definitely be one to look forward to. It’s available in print and digitally so check it out.
Score: 4/5
Creators: Zachary Dolan and Justin Piatt Writer/Artist: Zachary Dolan Publisher: Unlikely Heroes Studios Price: $2.99 Release Date: 9/25/13