Sunday, February 28, 2010

A Can't Miss Twist on Super-heroics: Incorruptible #3


So, when the world's greatest hero goes bad, really, extremely, blowing-up-whole-cities bad, what are the bad guys supposed to do? I mean, it really takes the fun out of holding the hero's girlfriend hostage if he's just going to turn up and kill her himself. When the villainous Max Damage sees just how bad a hero gone wrong can be, he takes it upon himself to do something to make things right. If the hero has become Irredeemable, the villain has to become Incorruptible.

Irredeemable, from BOOM! Studios, is Mark Waid's first take on superheroic role-reversal. In that series, the Superman-like Plutonian gets fed up with people's ingratitude, complaints, and quibbles. He reaches a point where he truly snaps, and suddenly his god-like power is unleashed on the world. For no particular reason, he destroys whole cities and leaves a trail of destruction across the planet. For many citizens, the Plutonian's rampage seems to herald the end of the world.

Incorruptible is a sister series to Irredeemable, and gives readers another character whose world-view has totally shifted. When the Plutonian goes bad, Max Damage, the only bad guy ever able to stand up against the Plutonian, sees the true horror of what the world's greatest hero has done, he knows he has to change his ways. He has to do what's right and try to save the world. He has to become Incorruptible.

Max (who, by the way, has the greatest super-villain name EVER) turns in his henchmen, burns millions of dollars worth of ill-gotten gains, and even abandons his secret evil lair. He and his teenage side-kick, Jailbait, team up with police Lieutenant Louis Armadale to find a way to take on the Plutonian, or at least to defend themselves and others from his wrath. In Incorruptible #3, their search leads them to mad-scientist Dr. Origin, the man resposible for Max's powers. Their reunion in NOT a happy one...

Incorruptible is written by the always-excellent Mark Waid, with excellent art by Jean Diaz. If you have been reading Irredeemable, you cannot miss Incorruptible. If you haven't read Irredeemable, this book works just fine on its own. For a great twist on the traditional way things work in superhero comics, you can't do better than this. There are no moral absolutes, but there are many ambiguous gray areas to explore.

When you can't trust your heroes, who can you trust? You can trust Four Color Fantasies, of course! Try Incorruptible #3 this week, and you have our incorruptible money-back guarantee. Don't get Max Damage-d, read this book!

Monday, February 22, 2010

Unexpected storytelling, powerful art: Demo #1


Everybody dreams. Sometimes we dream about things we want. Sometimes we dream about things that scare us. Sometimes, we dream about weird stuff that doesn't seem like it should be lurking in our head. Whatever your dreams are like, I think we can agree that dreams are made of some powerful stuff. Sometimes, that power can be pretty terrifying.

In Demo #1, The Waking Life of Angels, young Joan has had a bad dream. In her dream, she sees someone falling from the top of a massive cathedral. There is a man there who may be helping, or who may have pushed the victim to her death. Joan sees this dream playing over and over again every time she closes her eyes. The dream itself doesn't get a chance to come back because Joan can't sleep anymore. Every time she tries, that dream starts playing in her mind, and she stays wide awake. After nine days without sleep, the dream is becoming a serious issue...
Vertigo's Demo #1 is actually the return of this critically acclaimed series written by Brian Wood and drawn by Becky Cloonan. This series is unique because each issue tells a stand-alone story, with no recurring characters or ongoing plotlines to follow. The central idea is about young people with unusual powers, but these are not teens who discover that "with great power comes great responsibility" and suit up to fight crime. These are short but powerful tales about how the gifts affect the lives of everyday people, proving that special abilities may not always be a good thing.

Wood's stories are intriguing and unexpected, and Cloonan's black and white art is gorgeous and powerful. Together these two creators are doing something very different from the standard superhero story. That's not something you want to miss out on, right?

It's not a dream (or a hoax, or an imaginary story) that you can try out Demo #1 all week at absolutely no risk to yourself or your wallet! This awesome comic is guaranteed all week long at Four Color Fantasies. Stop dreaming and start reading!