This is the controversial issue that is the penultimate part of the limited series. “Alive” is by Tom King with art by Mitch Gerards and Travis Moore. We have been exploring the mystery of the killer who took out the recovering heroes at Sanctuary. If there are readers disturbed by the events in a fictional superhero story, they might need to go to a mental facility like Sanctuary. There are senstive issues here about mental health. The construct of the superhero is given a deep dive which is a maturation of comic books as an art form. Comic books stand as a fictional universe. You are not forced to accept the events in a comic book. Universes and characters are rebooted. It has been stated that the deaths that have occured in Heroes in Crisis are canon in the DC Universe. You can not collect the series or sell off your issues if you disagree with the story, but I’m here until the end. The storyline is compelling to me, a mystery, interweaving through the trauma in these super heroes’ lives. A good mystery, again personally, is honest in presenting characters and clues and here fooled me by having the killer there all along. I picked up the Ryan Sook variant cover for issue #8, it is Harley Quinn’s face emerging from the green chemical tank with just her eyes and top of her head revealed.
The Sook covers show snap shots of traumatic moments of comic book history. They are kept as Sanctuary files with the date and no year listed. I also like the regular cover by Trevor Hairsine of The Flash and his family looking at Sanctuary on a hill at sunset. It starts with the confession of Wally West, The Flash, who emerged in the Rebirth universe from the Speed Force. This was in DCU: Rebirth #1 (2016). This is unlike the other Sanctuary confession videos which had a six panel grid instead we get a closeup with three horizontal panels. The narrative shifts to moments of the Sanctuary residents; the caveman Gnarrk, Red Devil, who first appeared in DC Universe Presents #15 (2013) hugging Blue Devil, and finally Roy Harper, recovering drug addict, eying a needle. Quiet, powerful moments, strong artwork by Travis Moore. All the while is the narration of Wally’s confession explaining his three week time at Sanctuary. Then, we get the action scenes of the hero Gunfire blasting aliens, contrasted with a blast hitting Lagoon Boy, this was in Heroes in Crisis #3, and the tiny Blue Jay, alone at a corner of a massive bed. Wally is trying to understand his problem and dealing with self-reflection.
Then, there is Poison Ivy using her powers to pierce a crazed man with thorns, Commander Steel taking on criminals, and Solstice, sitting by herself and watching Indian women on television. The point is clear here, beyond the superhero action, there are people. Wally is struggling with the Sanctuary recovery. Next, is Hot Spot taking on the villain Dr. Light, a closeup of Tatooed Man sweating, and then Wally with his family; his wife Linda, and kids, Jai and Iris, it looks like a family photo. Wally’s narration is that he was seen the progress of other Sanctuary residents dealing with their traumas. This shifts to Travis Moore picked up the artwork with The Flash running in the Speed Force, streaks of white against blue and the sparks of lightning, we get Flash appearing, and then following him through his run. Brilliant work by Travis Moore. Wally is struggling with his thoughts dealing with this reality without his family. I think this is an important story because we have had so many superheroes crossing over to other dimensions and realities, but what is the cost? How do they adjust as people? I think this part of the point of Tom King’s writing to humanize these fictional super heroes. It is interesting that there are characters like Hot Spot and Lagoon Boy, who may not have flashy powers or dark, violent back stories, and show that even the most “side” character could be persons.
We get Wally struggling with Sanctuary’s policy of anonymity with every record of the resident scattered to keep them safe. It would take a billion years to put together the records, then we get an incredible splash page of The Flash running, and behind him are all of the Sanctuary confession videos! He of course is the Fastest Man Alive and in the next page, we get the horizontal panels of Wally’s confession and he explains that he assembled the records of every resident so he won’t feel alone. It broke him. Wally needs some air and leaves the Sanctuary house in a long shot. He takes a breather, in a medium shot, and explains that the other heroes are going out to check on him. Wally explains about the Speed Force, having to control it every second, how it could be dangerous. The crackle of Speed Force lightning appears around him, we are slowly getting into a closeup as we get the lightning blurring around his head with Wally clutching his head. We get the shocking two page reveal. I won’t spoil it and the rest of the comic book. I will leave it up to you to read it or not, you could read about what happened online, but reading it is different than going through the comic and experiencing it. Heroes in Crisis may not be for everyone. For me, I was caught up in the mystery and the storytelling. This is of course a detailed look at only part of the comic because the story and art are important. It is an important comic book story.
Five Pieces of Peach Pie out of Five!
#HeroesinCrisis, #Alive, #TomKing, #MitchGerards, #TravisMoore
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