The Mighty #1-3 Review

The Mighty #1-3

(issue 3 cover featured)

Written by: Peter J. Tomasi and Keith Champagne
Art by: Peter Snejbjerg
Letters by: Rob Leigh
Colors by: John Kalisz
Covers by: Dave Johnson

“The Light Brigade” was the first book I read written by Peter J. Tomasi. I’ve made an effort ever since to pick up anything else that he writes. While his work on “Green Lantern Corps” is fantastic, his “Nightwing” run fell flat for me. His newest title, a creator-owned book called “The Mighty,” remains steadfastly in the middle.

After three issues it still hasn’t developed a story, rather it keeps itself focused on character. Not the worst quality in a book, I only hope it doesn’t last forever. Issue one opens with a quick, succinct introduction to Alpha One, the world’s first superhero. On a side-note, it’s interesting that this is a DC book rather than a Vertigo imprint since it doesn’t take place in the DC world. Things continue to move with a great sequence featuring Alpha One rescuing an out-of-control train. It’s after that in which things slow down. The leader of Omega Section (the organization that works in tandem with Alpha One), Captain Shaw, is killed, but by issue two his killers are put to rest. I expected this to be an ongoing thread for a few more issues but instead it’s tied up rather quickly.

Issue three puts up Gabriel Cole, the book’s central character, as Shaw’s replacement. Several years earlier he was rescued by Alpha One so his connections to the hero extend back for most of his life intensifying his relationship with the hero. The book does a nice job answering some key questions, like who funds Alpha One’s operation and the extent of his powers. Noticeably, one thing it leaves out is Alpha One’s true identity. He may be a maskless hero but his true name is never given, at least not yet. Whether or not this will be a factor later on remains to be seen. Shaw’s murder case seems too neatly tied up, so again I’m hoping that it comes back into the limelight.

Tomasi and Champagne are taking their time carefully setting up the world, its characters along with slowly revealing bits of its past safeguarding what they intend to disclose later. I appreciate their approach but I worry that this direction could lose a lot of interested readers who picked up the first book or two. I’m always of the mindset that a book needs time to grow, but frankly I think this book’s time is running out. Future solicitations claim big things, but unless they step-up to such big talk I may remove it from my pull list. Especially with other more interesting genre bending characters like “Savior 28,” and “Irredeemable,” already proving to have more promise with less material.

Snejbjerg manages to remain a hidden gem in comics. His art reflects a slick retro style not seen much in comics where attention to detail is as important as retaining a personal quality with every page. Sometimes I find that I can’t tell one artist from another or they simply don’t do anything noteworthy with their pages. Snejbjerg is someone I don’t see often, but I still enjoyed what he brought to “The Light Brigade,” and he does the same thing here.

A nice bit of art lifts a thoughtful yet unremarkable story just enough for me to pick up a fourth issue, but admittedly unless it turns the tide and brings a truly climatic “to be continued,” I don’t think I will.
C+