Shazam! #6 – Mark Waid, Writer; Dan Mora, Artist; Alejandro Sanchez, Colorist
Ray – 9/10
Ray: For the first arc of this title, Billy Batson and his family has been at war with the most powerful enemy yet—the Gods that give him his powers. The mercurial pantheon has been influencing Billy more directly, forcing him to act in out-of-character ways that have hurt his reputation. Combined with the rest of the family losing their powers and things have been very much in flux—leading to last issue’s shocking cliffhanger that saw Freddy apparently betray Billy and ask to become the new champion. This is, of course, a feint and one that plays out in a rather amusing way, so there isn’t much tension—at least, until Zeus finds out the ruse. All seems lost until the other members of the family show up with some new powers derived from magical artifacts that DC superfans will instantly recognize—along with a new ally in the form of the dinosaur lawyer who has been bugging them. I love this kind of nonsense.
Of course, a group of kids and a talking dinosaur—even with magic powers—can only do so much against an all-powerful and enraged God, so things are looking grim, but Billy has one last trick up his sleeve. He gets his powers from Gods—with one exception, as Solomon isn’t a God. He’s a wise man, and Billy tries to appeal to him in a different way, cutting a deal that allows him to reclaim his powers at a potential cost that calls back to the very first Shazam comics over half a century ago. We’ll see how this plays out, but the implications are intriguing—as is the deal Billy cuts with the Gods at the end of the issue, potentially leading them to take a larger role in the DCU going forward. So the main threat is over, but a lot is still unresolved and it looks like one of Billy’s most iconic enemies is returning to cause more trouble. Plus a dinosaur invasion. This book is Mark Waid at his most Silver-Age indulgent, and it’s perfect.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.
