Absolute Superman #16 – Jason Aaron, Writer; Juan Ferreyra, Artist
Ray – 10/10
Ray: The Absolute Universe is starting to open up, with its heroes facing bigger and bigger threats – and more people starting to take notice of them. Superman has settled into Smallville, and is running himself ragged trying to save people around the world. This is clearly wearing down his mental health, but it’s also attracting the attention of Hawkman – the super-cop who has been taking out potential threats to the world’s power structure. We see a flashback showing how he obtained the enchanted mace from a dig in Egypt in 1940, brutally dealing with a traitorous associate who tried to betray him for the Nazis, and now he’s seeking out Superman to make first contact and bring the younger hero over to his side. But Superman doesn’t seem particularly interested, and keeps interrupting their meeting to save the lives of random people. And that’s when Hawkman’s true colors start coming out.
This issue reminds me a lot of one of the most iconic episodes of Invincible, where Omni-Man uses Mark’s vulnerability and humanity against him. We’ve seen how Hawkman dealt brutally with Green Arrow, but that kind of brute force doesn’t work here. He has to go for Superman’s weak point and try to prove to him that he’ll never be able to save everyone. But he’s potentially underestimating just how determined Superman is and how little he cares about his own safety. The decision to make Hawkman a Lazarus loyalist makes the character all the more chilling – yeah, he’s a Nazi-killer, but he’s abandoned any real difference between them. And this plot is nicely contrasted with Luthor’s story, as Brainiac tries to convince the family man to join him using a black check – but when that fails, he’s more than willing to show other coercive techniques. The villains in the Absolute Universe are quickly proving themselves to be the real stars of these comics.
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GeekDad received this comic for review purposes
