From the Spinner Rack today, Absolute Power#4.
I've seen various commentary online about the conclusion of DC's big crossover event.
Some hated but damn, haters gonna hate, right?
Some loved it. Writer Mark Waid and artist Dan Mora can do no wrong.
I tend to lean towards the latter camp but with one major caveat which I will get to but first...
Forces have aligned themselves to destroy Earth's super heroes.
The use of AI created misinformation has shattered their reputation and the public is turning against the heroes.
And the heroes can do nothing to counter this misinformation campaign as an army of Amazos are out and about stealing powers.
Disenfranchised and depowered, these heroes are targeted by the aligned forces for arrest and to be thrown into a super max prison.
Or if they don't come along quietly...
Kill them.
Led by Nightwing, Earth's heroes are prepared to strike back. Heroes who rely on weapons or training, others who have retained some of their powers, this is not a collective of heroes at their best but they are determined to prevail.
What Mark Waid does here is use DC's heroes in logical capacities based on their respective abilities and backgrounds to create a fighting force that is strong and precise. Hell, Waid even makes good use of D-lister Air Wave!
And Dan Mora makes this all look good. Not since the eras of Dick Dillin and George Perez have I seen an artist who can capture the essence of so wide and diverse a group of characters.
In the end, our heroes win and the powers stolen by the Amazos are returned but no without some hiccups. For example, instead of sonic powers, Black Canary now has heat vision? What gives?
And the part where it appeared Green Arrow was an ally of the bad guys? Nope! Oliver Queen comes through in the nick of time as part of an undercover operation worked out between him and J'onn J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter.
Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman are not happy with Ollie running his own little sting operation but as Green Arrow tells them, if they hadn't shut down the Justice League, maybe things would've worked out differently.
Speaking of which....
In the follow up to Absolute Power#4, All In Special#1 features a pair of stories that set up what happens next. One story is the foundation for a new and improved Justice League.
The other story is Darkseid up to sketchy shit and setting up DC's new line up of Absolute titles.
But back to Absolute Power, I mentioned earlier that I tend to lean towards loving this series but with one major caveat.
And that major caveat is the villain of the piece: Amanda Waller.
As I wrote once before, I used to admire Waller as a character, a unique fixture in the DC Universe, a tough woman making tough calls but fully aware of the price she paid for those calls.
Her descent into full on villainy is disturbing on so many levels. Having DC's only woman of color in a position of significant power and influence going mad with all the power and influence, it is not a good look.
I think Absolute Power would've worked better with a more traditional DC villain (such as Lex Luthor or Ra's A Ghul) in the antagonist role.
Next week, the Spinner Rack returns with Superman in Action.
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