Last week marked the launch of a totally retooled Hot Shot of the Week. Now, this long running feature is be accompanied by micro reviews and quotes, conversations or questions with the creators. Conscientious Sequentials columnist Russell Burlingame has taken over this feature and he's already making Saturday a destination stop for this great, weekly Comic Related feature!
Hot Shot of the Week
Tangent: Superman's Reign #1
While Matt Clark's artwork isn't evocative of the '90s feel that this book really demands, that complaint is easily subdued by the fact that the book looks damn good, and the writing absolutely drops you right back into the familiar-yet-unfamiliar universe that is Tangent Comics.
During the 1990s, DC Comics had too many fifth-week events to count--but only Tangent came back for a second shot, and if you read the recently-released Tangent Comics collections, it's clear why: The Tangent Universe is a compelling world where superheroes have affected society, technology and political policy--but where they haven't driven the world into the ground in the way that a story like Watchmen depicts (at least, not yet). Familiar character names are attached to vexing and unfamiliar characters, resulting in a feeling of comics vertigo (not Vertigo Comics, that's different).
Here, we get a rarity in comics--a story that jumps forward in time exactly as long as we've been away from it. The ten years between the last Tangent story and this one, though, haven't been as kind to the Tangent Universe--originally created as an Elseworlds universe and now installed into DC's Multiverse proper--as the world appears to have been taken over by Superman, a former New York City police officer who gained powers and became a superhero during one of the fifth-week stories of the '90s. Focusing on the intensely likable character of Tangent's Flash and the enigmatic-but-intriguing Tangent Green Lantern, the first issue sets the stage for what promises to be a very interesting first meeting between the DC Universe Justice League and their Tangent Universe namesakes.
Ten Questions With Dan Jurgens About Tangent: Superman's Reign #1
Click here to check out the Q&A tied to this issue!
Ten Questions About Tangent: Superman's Reign with Ron Marz
Click here to check out the Q&A tied to this issue!
Page last updated on March 22, 2008