Between Powers, Astro City and any number of similar titles, we've seen a lot of different views on super-heroes with their guard down, as relatively normal people. Hickman's Common Grounds is reminiscent of books like these, in that it explores these characters not as the sum of their powers but how normal lives could be affected by it, and I found it very engaging, not just a funny book as I had previously suspected but one that has some interesting insights into the world of the super-hero. Fans of Powers and Astro City who are looking for something in the same vein but just a little bit different should definitely check this one out.
The lead story, a conversation between a journalist and a super speedster, has some familiar elements, notably to things that Mike Baron first picked up on in his Flash run, but Hickman takes the burden of super-powers to more of an extreme, and while the story almost veers into melodrama, in general I'd say that it's a really intelligent and affecting look at the downside of wish fulfillment super-powers. Hickman picks up on the notion that all super-powers have their flaws and shortcomings, and downplays the obvious joys of superspeed in favor of focusing on the many ways it would change someone's perception and life. The boredom of a super-speedster has been played up before, but never really taken apart at this level, as you see that every failure, every annoyance and every worry would be magnified a hundred fold because you have to suffer through it for a relatively much longer time. Again, it's not wholly new, as it's something Peter David touched on in his work with Quicksilver, but Hickman has some new things to say while working in the same general area.
In addition, the artwork by Dan Jurgens and Al Vey on this first story is fantastic. Jurgens is hit and miss for me on artwork, but when he's on, as he is in Common Grounds, he's really on. The tone of the first story reminds me in many ways of Astro City, and part of that is down to the resemblance that Jurgens and Vey have to the work of Brent Anderson in this first story. The same attention to detail and focus less on costumes and more on expressive, human faces brings the reader into this alien world of super-powers and lets us relate to the character.
The backup tale is a case of Hickman showing some flexibility and getting away from the more somber mood of the first story to have a little fun with it. There's something borderline hokey about a hero and a villain chatting away in a bathroom, the kind of thing that I'd expect to see more from Garth Ennis or Mark Millar trying to be edgy, but Hickman uses the venue as a way to have the characters become more vulnerable and honest, pretty much unable to put up social fronts or tough guy acts when they've got their pants around their ankles. The odd origin stories reminded me of the clever and funny origins in Sleeper, and I found the bonding between a pair of old foes to be genuine and funny, with some touching moments as both reveals that they have made mistakes, and neither is 100% hero or 100% villain, even if their leanings in either direction are pretty clear.
As with the first story, part of the tone seems to come from the artwork. The sort of regular guys in tights writing of "Head Games" fits right in with the type of stories told in Powers, which is fitting given that the art on the backup is by Powers artist Oeming. It's a completely different style from the Jurgens/Vey realism, but it's just as perfect a match for the story, and I love how Oeming captures the more outlandish aspects of the story (the flashback to Bloodwart singing "I'm a little teapot" was a particular high point) as well as the more human, thoughtful expressions of the characters as they talk to one another.
