Chuck Austen and Danijel Zezelj surprised the Hell out of me. I'm a big admirer of both of them, but I was never a big admirer of the modern Jimmy Olsen or the hi-tech version of Metropolis. Jimmy never really seemed to be anything more than the young kid at the planet and the tech in Metropolis always felt...just a little too sci-fi. But, damn, if this didn't turn all my expectations and preconceived notions inside out.
What's it about?
Jimmy Olsen and the citizens of Metropolis dealing with a living computer "virus" that has infiltrated the City of Tomorrow.
I love the classic Twilight Zones, probably one of my favorite television series of all time if not my favorite, and Chuck really captured the feel of classic science-fiction here with a modern day spin. The small nuances and details within the City -- from the strange connection through his watch to the amazing dealings with the "murdered" politician -- are perfectly executed both in words and pictures. It's creepy and for the first time in a long time -- Metropolis has character. And it's scary. Something's living inside everything...including some people...and although it's helped things progress technologically there looks like there may be a price to pay for all of the finer things in life.
And as much as I loved what Chuck and Danijel did with Metropolis, I loved their take on Jimmy Olsen even more. He's got balls -- incredible balls -- to be doing what he does. And his explanation of it all makes perfect sense. He feels real, gutsy, smart and -- shock of all shocks -- interesting. Yeah, Superman's appearances were cool but -- I wanted to see more with Jimmy.
There's a great scene with him and Superman confronting the "tech" inside Metropolis that focuses on Jimmy -- who he is, what he does, why. It's all fascinating stuff that comes out of the story rather than being forced into it.
And as complex as Metropolis has become, this is an incredibly accessible story. I suspect that all twelve issues will make an excellent trade that'll have a nice long shelf-life but I won't be waiting for it. I'll be waiting for issue 2.
