One of my favorite series from years past was John Ostrander's Spectre, and Norm Breyfogle was for some time an artist whose work I would seek out. Unfortunately, the two of them can't do much with some terrible characters, including the lead of Hal Jordan as Spectre and the overused characters of Kirby's Fourth World. Given how impressed I was with Ostrander's take on Jim Corrigan's search for self when he was the Spectre, I was disappointed in the weak resolution to Spectre's encounter with the Source and Darkseid. But in fairness, it's in keeping with the pattern that the regular writer has set for the series. It was my hope that this creative team would overcome my dislike of the character and remind me of why I used to like the Spectre, but that was not to be, and they've succeeded instead in convincing me that Hal Jordan as the Spectre is indeed a pretty bad idea.
Where the issue does succeed is in terms of artwork, as Norm Breyfogle, Dennis Janke and Guy Major paint a dim portrait of the doomed world of Apokolips. Breyfogle's stylized approach to Anomalie makes her look almost anemic and sick, fitting given the circumstances she has been raised in, and the dusty choking skies on Apokolips are equally impressive and dark. Also, while the actions of the Spectre seem more flashy and super-heroic than the horror-toned style that he used with artists like Tom Mandrake and Ryan Sook, I think that works better for this particular Spectre.
That is about the only thing that works for me with this particular Spectre, however, because I've found that I just don't have much interest in him. I can connect with the need for vengeance, on a small or large level, as it seems a pretty easy thing to relate to, but turning the Spectre into a force for redemption doesn't really work. Partly this is because the redemption that Hal Jordan needs is so enormous that it seems an even more impossible task than wreaking vengeance, but it's also because redemption is a tough thing for an outside agent to have much of a hand in. In this particular issue, the story doesn't even seem to be that much about redemption, but rather about a generic cry for help that any super-hero could have answered.
The meat of the story, the really interesting potential, was in seeing the Spectre, an agent of God, confronting Darkseid, the epitome of evil and a New God. Unfortunately, the conflict boils down to a couple of exchanges of energy bursts and some unoriginal philosophical conclusions that to have good, evil must exist and a ridiculous triumph over Darkseid that falls back on the equally unoriginal "freedom is more difficult than servitude" ideal.
Basically, I came into this book not expecting a whole lot, and I was still let down. The story itself isn't all that strong, but it doesn't help that it is being told through a vehicle that is fundamentally flawed. After passing up Spectre month after month, I decided it was time to give the book another shot with this self-contained story. I don't think I'll be doing that again for a while.
