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There are certain writers and artists that take over a comic with much fanfare.  Usually they have proven themselves in some capacity on their own books that have this award or that critical acclaim and they promise to completely revamp a comic and make it wonderful again.  Robert Kirkman proves that they cannot always keep up with this hype.  His first Marvel Zombies comic became a roaring success.  I do not think anyone imagined a comic so aimed at 14-year-old boys would do so well.  Then he took over Ultimate X-Men.  Anyone else notice when everyone stopped caring about Ultimate X-Men? How did Kirkman involve himself in these books?  Apparently, some of the editors at Marvel must have read his comic Invincible. 

Invincible follows the story of a boy, Mark, whose father reveals himself to be the most powerful super hero on the planet.  Mark soon starts developing his own powers and learning the ropes of being a hero.  In the process, he learns his father, actually an alien, originally intended to conquer and subjugate the planet and in an epic father/son clash, forces him to leave earth.  Mark ends up working closely with the pentagon’s Global Defense Agency and many of the Image Universe (Erik Larsen version) heroes.

Invincible #49 starts with Invincible and most of these other heroes defeated and captured by Dr. Seismic and his legions of the under-earth.  The GDA’s head, Cecil Stedman, sends in a squad of reanimated by technology corpses led by someone who apparently Mark had brought in as a murderer to free them and win the day.  Mark goes on a rampage seeing the murder, Darkwing (so many obvious duck jokes… must… resist…), and finds that none of the other heroes knows about Darkwing’s murders.  Mark begins to suspect that maybe he should not trust Stedman so easily and goes to confront him, setting the stage for the 50th issue. 

Kirkman’s writing style seemingly varies from comic to comic.  I really enjoy the pace and dialogue in Invincible.  The characters portray a grace and emotional spectrum that seems real.  It does not feel forced or silted like Ultimate X-Men. I suspect it has something to do with the characters being of his own imagination and Kirkman getting to mature them in the comic rather than having to jump into someone else’s shoes. I see this already in Kirkman’s newest book Wolfman.  While some of the elements are definitely born of a fan boy (Dr. Seismic and The Legion of the Under-Earth?  Try saying it aloud, it makes you snicker), I think he juggles the elements around enough to not feel fan-boy-wankish.  When pointing out to Invincible that Dr. Seismic just captured them and not killed by the monsters and that makes no sense, Invincible just replies, “It’s probably just not his style. He’s old school.”

Speaking of old school, that brings us to the art.  Ryan Ottley’s pencils and inks on the book are clean, even, detailed and very Jack Kirby reminiscent.  Actually, it feels more like Jack Kirby and Erik Larsen had a child, they taught him how to draw and he outgrew them both.  I really enjoy the art.  Bright colors, solid lines, lots of movement and distinct details and facial features.  I really hope to see more of his art on some more mainstream books as it does not disappoint.

I highly recommend Invincible if you are into superhero comics.  How can you turn down a book that proudly proclaims “Probably the best superhero comic book in the universe!” on the cover?  Seriously, though, Invincible is a fun read with well-developed characters and a compelling story and storytelling.  Even without a ‘previously’ page I never felt lost in this comic and I never felt like the explanations were forced or unnatural.  Between the storytelling and the art, Invincible really hits home the ‘fun’.

Invincible #49
Writer: Robert Kirkman
Penciler, Inker: Ryan Ottley
Colorist: Bill Crabtree
Letterer: Rus Wooton

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