Publisher and writer Larry Young set out to do something unique and special in the comics industry when he set up shop as a publisher of original graphic novels. Among them was his dismissal of the super-hero genre as a source of material. But here we are, with a super-hero graphic novel from AiT/Planet Lar, written by Young himself. Young offers a biting and morbidly funny commentary on super-heroes here that spotlights some of the flaws of the genre while also celebrating it. Brandon McKinney's artwork mirrors some of the silliness to be found in the script as well as a harsher tone at play here as well. The pacing here is a bit awkward, but not so much that Young's points don't come through.
Adored by a loving public, a quartet of super-heroes -- Justice Hall, Kastra, Schaff and the supremely powerful hero known as the Grand -- responds to an imminent threat hovering just beyond Earth's orbit. An abandoned spaceship from Kastra's race has turned up, and before the heroes can investigate, it explodes. Surprisingly, the heroes don't have a scratch on them, but they soon discover the explosion did have an effect. The heroes are no longer on their own world, and their new locale operates under a different set of rules.
McKinney's artwork here puts one in mind immediately of the style of Darick (Wolverine) Robertson. The influence is undeniable. Fortunately, there's a maturity and harshness to the characters and the story here that's in keeping with the grittier quality in the art. McKinney's portrayal of Schaff really captures his innocence and goofy, simple personality. The one aspect of the art that didn't quite work for me was the far-too generic design for the Grand. I realize that he's supposed to be an archetypical Superman, but his look is far too bland.
There are a couple of clarity problems here. It takes a while for the script to clearly identify the characters. At first, I thought the Batman-like character was named the Raven, but soon, we read of "Justice Hall." For a time, I thought the Grand was the name of the super-hero team as well, and Schaff's name is never explained. Just how the heroes come to be drawn into space isn't clear either.
One has to give Young credit. Even though this is about satire, he still manages to include a couple of strong characters. Kastra is exotic, but her depiction never comes off as gratuitous, and Schaff is a real delight. His thoroughly limited vocabulary and child-like quality make this Hulk-like character instantly likeable.
Young approaches super-heroes from two different perspectives. One is the traditional depiction of super-heroes as being worshipped by a populace that's inexplicably unafraid of the madness they represent. And then Young plunks them down in the middle of the real world and shows how super-heroes just couldn't work here. The destruction they represent is unmanageable, and then there's the notion of absolute power corrupting absolutely. Young's descontruction of the super-hero is reminiscent of stuff we've seen in The Authority in the past few years.
