Irredeemable

Freaking awesome!

Many clever nods to golden-age comics, but I'm undecided on whether I think this is wildly brave and new or just a natural extension of themes explored in [b:Marvels 16982 Marvels Kurt Busiek http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1300165177s/16982.jpg 265304] and other works that explore the humanity of superheroics. On to volume 2, where perhaps I'll have a better idea of my reactions.

People doing riffs on the Superman mythos has become something of a genre unto itself, and a lot of the time the stories that result are more interesting than what's actually being published in the Superman books themselves: books like Moore's Miracleman, McDuffie's Icon, and Mayer's Superfolks have all turned Superman on his head to explore the nature of heroism, and here Waid joins those ranks.

Waid's thesis in this series is that the people who become superheroes aren't necessarily emotionally equipped for the job - his Plutonian has fantastical abilities, but still is crippled by insecurity, anger, and hubris, and those feelings help turn him to evil. The plot of the book is split between watching the Plutonian wreak havoc, and an investigation into what events precipitated his fall from grace. It will be interesting to see where this story goes next.