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POWERS: ROLEPLAY TP
Highly Recommended (9/10)
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Image Comics
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Michael Avon Oeming
Colors: Pat Garrahy
Copy Editor: KC McCrory
Price: $13.95 US |
Roleplay is the second trade paperback collecting Powers, which means that the gimmick ("cops and super-heroes") is officially now just a part of the book, and Bendis and Oeming have to survive on the merits of their storytelling. Fortunately, those merits are many and varied, including some unusual panel construction to show the passage of time and dialogue with great patterns, and they're aided by the phenomenal colors of Pat Garrahy. Though suffering from a bit of a rushed ending and the puzzling lack of inclusion of the strong (if unrelated) issue Powers #7, Powers: Roleplay
is a worthy addition to any comic fan's shelf.
Making the first body the same as Walker's
old costumed identity was also very nice, as it provided for kind of a creepy
moment, as well as establishing for the cops right away that they were dealing
with something besides just another Powers being murdered. Bendis also takes the
opportunity to explore the darker side of cops dealing with Powers with the
notion of someone exploiting Retro Girl's death for money. Essentially, while
reminding us of the previous storyline, these moments also establish that this
is something different.
These elements of the familiar in this new
arc were a beautiful touch. The variety of recognizable murder victims comes
from our experience with them in the first arc, and the problems that Johnny
Royale causes the detectives help to add complications and moral questions to
the proceedings. Politics and lawsuits influencing criminal police work is
nothing new, but like a good interrogation scene, it is important to the genre,
and this was a nice bit that made the book once again feel in touch with its cop
show roots. It also set up a fairly important bit of business for Deena Pilgrim,
with the method of Royale's murder leaving us to wonder if she didn't perhaps
have something to do with his sudden death.
I loved the normality that surrounded the
weirdness of this story. The students for the most part seem like regular people
with an odd fetish, and that was a better way to go than the stereotypical "all
role-players are geeks," which would have made the appearance of Mr. "Call to
Arms" much less dissonant and thus less effective. That normality also extends
to the first time we see the cops, sitting around the office reading or typing
slowly on the computer, and provides a cathartic and darkly funny sort of relief
when Deena is ecstatic to hear about a murder.
In a lot of cases, I'm not a fan of overly
talky comics, and it's strange how much Bendis's style resonates with me, since
it tends to very dialogue-heavy. But I love the dialogue-based scenes a lot,
whether it's the bickering between the two lawyers, the quiet opening with a
bunch of college students hanging around and just joking with each other or the
always-impressive interrogation scene. Bendis and Oeming could do the same
interrogation scene over and over again, and I'd love to read it, because they
have such a feel for the rhythm and style of "the box." Oeming's choices to
focus on darting eyes, barely moving hands or slightly moving mouths really puts
the focus on the nervous reactions of the subject being interrogated, and
Bendis's dialogue continues that impression, with the girl this issue both
telling everything she knows and at the same time seeming to stumble over her
words, like anyone would in the presence of authority figures.
Also, Bendis can really express characters'
emotions through dialogue. Pilgrim's frustration at her situation comes through
loud and clear, whether it's in her half-finished thoughts or her quiet surprise
or insistence that "it was an accident." The same is true of the determination
and presence that Walker has, using it to get information from a weapons
builder.
Oeming really is an incredible artist. He's
able to do a variety of moods, whether it's the darkened squad or interrogation
room or the neon-lit streets or a charcoal drawing by a police artist.
Everything has the same dark, shadowy feel and all of his characters are just
incredibly expressive, despite being in the simple, animated style that makes
them read so well. In addition, Oeming's storytelling is top-notch; the
repetitions of dead bodies, with repetition of the detectives finding them, is a
great way to move the whole thing along and tell just how many bodies are found
and how unusual it seems without taking up pages and pages. The same is true of
a very clever technique that shows two sequences going on at once without using
a splitscreen, showing Walker's interrogation while Deena interrogates with a
series around the borders. And, as always, Garrahy's colors are an integral part
of the book... I particularly loved the red light style of Royale's bar, which
helps to give off the aura of sin that surrounds the place.
In addition, the creators stretch their
boundaries a bit in the tail end of the book with a fast-paced action sequence.
The chase scene/fight scene between Walker and The Pulp is absolutely terrific,
with shots that feel like slow motion, shots that have the rapid shakiness of a
steadicam and shots that are great for establishing mood and setting. Cinematic
is a word often used to describe Bendis's work, and Oeming's work on this title
as well, and it definitely fits this sequence. There's a feeling of intensity
and pressure as Walker is right on the solution to his case, but seems within
inches of losing it. And the fight is just brutal and real, despite involving a
guy in a costume with a powerstaff.
Of course, the book isn't perfect. The "dimension jumper" from the Ojo Caliente ad stood out in serial form, and it stands out even more without the ad to back it up and give it context. And the motivations of the Pulp, beyond "he's just crazy" are left maddeningly unresolved, with the hints about a psychotic crusade against normals for the crimes perpetrated on Retro Girl remaining nothing more than fodder for speculation, rather than part of a solidly constructed ending. Fortunately, such minor flaws don't prevent the book from being read as an enjoyable follow-up to the excellent Powers: Who Killed Retro Girl? and a
glimpse at the continuing great work that Bendis and Oeming are doing every
month.
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