I signed up for the e-mail newsletter of a local comic shop when I bought Northlanders at the end of last month. In the first e-mail they sent me their graphic novel of the week was a title called Irredeemable by Mark Waid. I thought it was pretty odd that they were releasing a collection of only the first four issues. I got it anyway and then thought it was even weirder that they released this when the four issues don’t really resolve anything or end a story arc. I somewhat forgave them for doing this when I learned that the single issues included in this collection were very hard to find, and in most cases sold out.
Irredeemable is a story centered around a character called the Plutonian. He was once part of a group of super-heroes called the Paradigm, and he was the greatest superhero on Earth. But now, for unknown reasons, the Plutonian has turned evil, destroyed the city in which he once lived, and is now mercilessly hunting down and killing members of his former group and anyone else who gets in his way. The remaining members of the Paradigm are scrambling to find out anything they can about how to stop the Plutonian from killing them and destroying the rest of civilization.
YAY:
- This is truly a dark story, when the Plutonian turned evil he REALLY turned evil. He doesn’t care who he hurts or kills; from his former partner, to helpless children, and even millions of innocent people in a crowded city.
- Mark Waid does a great job of giving you a look inside the psyche of the Plutonian and giving you some clues as to why he might have turned. The Plutonian is one messed up super-villain and the writing shows it wonderfully.
- Some of the artwork is a big part of how the story is told. In one section a man is trying to gain the Plutonian’s favor, so the Plutonian asks him a question while listening to his heart rate. The man’s heart rate is shown on the page just below the frame containing his face. When he answers the question and his heart rate raises, you can visually see how the Plutonian feels about it, and have an idea about what he will do next.
NAY:
- While the theme is great and the writing is done very well for the most part, the first issue can be a little confusing to read. Later in the issue it goes forward in time from where the story is in the first few pages, but within that a character is seeing the past in a mental flashback. It’s a little confusing at first.
- This collection doesn’t end with anything really resolved or even a major cliffhanger. It does make you want to keep following the series though, so this is a light ‘nay’
Even though this is basically just a collection made for the purpose of catching people up on the story and making it available to people who weren’t able to get it when it first came out I’d still recommend it. As I said before, the hints the writer gives to why the Plutonian is the way his is now are great and will make you feel like you’re helping solve a mystery. He is also a brutal character that is fun to watch and you will find yourself wondering if he can ever be stopped. I’m excited to find out and I will definitely be following this series as it unfolds, I recommend you do too. Go check your local comic store and see if they have a copy of it, if not it’s available online from retailers as large as Barnes & Noble.
If you’re skeptical this trailer is a nice glimpse at some of the frames from the first issue.
