Resurrection Man #1 Review
This series was the first one out of all of DC’s ‘New 52’ that interested me. I had never read the original 1990’s series of the same name and the thought of a man who could never truly die, and came back every time with a new superpower interested me greatly. This is the one comic at the moment that I am reading digitally through Comixology, simply because I wish to read it on the day of release and do not have a local comic book shop close to me.
Onto the review and I absolutely love the cover of this debut issue; I think it is really striking, the effect of the rain hammering down is good and having Mitch rising from his grave with a new power is awesome. The artists that created this cover did a really good job, and I look forward to seeing what they can create for subsequent issues.
The story itself is what pulled me into the book, and this issue did not disappoint. We have Mitch resurrecting right from the off and the way Mitch describes this evidently painful process is told very well. His first new power in this issue is Magnetism and he uses it effectively to gain money and to temporarily defeat the villain near the end of the book. As every new power he resurrects with is tied in some way to how he died, it begs the question in what way did he die in order for him to come back with that power? This issue sets up Mitch’s foes which seem to be both Heaven and Hell who want his unique soul; it will be interesting to see how having such big powers stacked against him will play out over the series. One feature that I think will be very interesting and has a lot of potential is the notion that upon resurrection Mitch always has a compulsion to do a certain something and a gut feeling that he can’t ignore. Within this issue this compulsion seems to be to board a plane that is heading for Portland, where he is ultimately attacked. Where these compulsions originate from and whether they will always lead to a conflict or be in any way useful remains to be seen.
The art within this issue is generally of a good standard, although I am aware that some other people have not liked it, I think that it fits the dark tone of the book quite well.
Overall I think that this was a highly successful debut issue; it introduced Mitch well and his enemies and set up an enthralling story that will hopefully run for a long time to come.
Issue Rating – 9/10
You’re right, this is a great cover. I particularly like Mitch’s tortured expression – it really captures something of the core of the character, and I guess that whole ‘tortured’ thing is what continues to intrigue me throughout the issue – as well as, of course, the mystery of his powers and the constant pull of ‘what will it be next?’
Loads of potential in this series. I just hope the overall story-arc makes the most of the possibilities inherent in the idea. It’ll also be interesting to see whether they do much with character development, or rely solely on the initial concept to carry them through the story (I really hope it’s the former). Looking forward to the next issue.
Yes, I hope that Mitch’s character development is very much at the forefront of the series and that it doesn’t become just a new power every month kinda thing.
Thanks for letting me know about your review. It’s a good read, and I agree with just about everything you have to say. One thing I neglected to mention in mine is the cover (I generally don’t, since they don’t have much bearing on the issue themselves), but it really is a striking cover and great introduction to the character.
Thanks for reading my review and for the positive comments. I agree, I thought the cover was brilliant.
[...] Some of the remarks in this review adapted from my comments here. [...]
Resurrection Man #1: Possibilities to never die « The Diaries of a Comic Book Novice said this on September 29, 2011 at 16:22 |