Dan Watters writes the next installment of Absolute Power: Task Force VII about the seventh and final Amazo. This time, Waller deploys it to solo the international community of superheroes. Strangely enough, this results in a mostly action oriented issue. Let’s take a closer look!
The International Community
The DCU is no stranger to international heroes. In addition to the Justice League International and it’s various incarnations, there are several international teams of heroes. Geoff Johns and Gary Frank’s Doomsday Clock even has a pretty decent diagram of the various teams and their political allegiances. Among them, primarily members of Batman Incorporated and the classic Global Guardians feature in this story. Regrettably, over time the Guardians have split into various subgroups such as The New Global Guardians, Eurocorps and Intercorps. For the most part, each group is doing fine on their own, but with Waller encroaching overseas the groups must unite.f
It all comes together when Red Star puts out the call for the unity of the international community of heroes left on the board. This includes the U.N sanctioned Guardians led by magician, Belphegor. However, the government avowed heroes can’t team up with vigilantes they’ve sworn to catch. Consequently, their division is so severe, they begin immediately begin infighting. Although, surprisingly out of character, Ghost-Maker agrees with unification as one team despite his failures with Batman Inc. Before they know it, Waller sends her final patched Amazo to defeat them all by itself.
Fodder Patrol Delta
Very few of the heroes used in this issue are instantly recognizable. As such, several of the characters and relationships feel fresh or laughably random. Including the apparently combative, yet flirty relationship between Jack O’ Lantern and Belphegor. For readers meeting these characters for the first time, subtext and surface level interest will have to be enough. The coolest part of rediscovering each of these old characters is seeing the short-lived display of their amazing abilities. In particular, I found the look and skills of the hero “Jet” to be fascinating and eye catching. In contrast, other heroes like Little Mermaid or Owlwoman seem like undeniably lame fodder. Not to mention, Amazo directly names itself after the fodder team.
Speaking of looks, Fran Galan’s incredible digital colors style is an unmistakable highlight of the issue. Each drawing ditches dark strokes or outlines in favor of a more smooth, animated appearance. Furthermore, even the complex personality of robots like Amazo comes out in the rendering. The scratchy marker-like texture on the artwork sustains the illusion of exciting sketchbook doodles as if peering into somebody’s notebook. Although, the stylization is somewhat unflattering on established heroes like Robin or Wonder Woman, whom appear in the ongoing backup. Which, by the way, accomplishes nothing that doesn’t already happen in the main series.
Recommended If…
- Collecting Absolute Power, absolutely.
- You’re a fan of crate digging and reinventing characters.
- You’ve been counting on Ghost-Maker’s inevitable return (and maybe death).
Overall
The problem with using fodder to tell your story is that it is hard to retain investment. When the rest of the Amazos attack and absorb the personalities, powers, and values of iconic heroes, it invites a level of engagement. Sadly, fighting a bunch of nobodies doesn’t make for an interesting story. In spite of this, I found this issue to be a blast to read overall. The colorful artwork alone is worth looking at. On a negative note, the series as a whole is a waste of time. Steve Trevor’s backup is redundant and didn’t need to last over seven issues and tie into Green Lantern and Wonder Woman. The writers of this series seemingly took a sparse premise, and forcibly made readers sit through the lackluster Amazo uprising in real time.
Score: 6/10.
English (US) · 