In 1968, Roy Thomas and Sal Buscema introduced The Squadron Sinister, pitting them against Earth’s mightiest heroes in their Avengers run (they pop up at the end of #69). Three years and sixteen issues later, Thomas and Sal’s older brother John introduce us to The Squadron Supreme, who were like the last guys, but significantly less evil. Although they did have a few dust ups with The Avengers. But that’s just comics. Superheroes always have to punch each other a little before they find out they’re on the same side. Also they were later mind controlled by The Over-Mind and turned their Earth into a nightmare dystopia. That one ends up being a bit harder to overlook.
The Squadron Supreme has always been a bit of a blind spot for me. The most I’ve really read of them was J. Michael Straczynski and Gary Frank’s “Supreme Power,” which was nearly two decades ago now. But in maybe the past ten years or so, word of mouth has picked up about the 1985 miniseries. These discussions often drop comparisons to Watchmen, which would kick off the month after the twelfth and final issue dropped. The phrase “ahead of its time” was used constantly. So with our 2022 Summer Comics Binge, I decided it was finally time to give this series a look.
Also, as someone who grew up reading “Captain America” in the early 90’s, I will never say no to a Mark Gruenwald book.
Written by Mark GruenwaldCover by Bob Hall
Pencils by Bob Hall
Inks by John Beatty
Letters by Janice Chiang
Colors by Christie ScheeleAfter being enslaved by The Over-Mind, the Squadron Supreme must regain the trust of their Earth. They plan to do this by creating a utopia.
We open in medias res. Superman-analog Hyperion catches a burning satellite as it plummets towards Earth. Through dialog we learn this is the Squadron Supreme’s outer space headquarters. And that their homebase literally crashing and burning is more than a little emblematic of their current situation. In a sequence that introduces each member of the JLA-pastiche, we’re shown how dire the global economy is.
The Over-Mind’s regime was brutal. And by the time our heroes were able to break the villain’s mind control, the damage was already done. What remains is extreme poverty and civil arrest on an international scale. Nighthawk is the most affected by this, as he was recently elected US President. He took office with the full intention of delivering the country to a new era of prosperity, only to be tricked into damning the entire planet. He also finds himself less fond of his team’s proposed solution. Power Princess comes from a place called “Utopia Island” Her and Hyperion seem to believe the world would be a much happier place if only it was more like this suspiciously named island.
Nighthawk disagrees. Because to create this new Utopia, it would mean retaking over the world. He tries to stop this by crafting a bullet from not-Kryptonite, but can’t fire. Perhaps because Hyperion is still his friend. Perhaps because his best chance to shoot is the public press conference the team called to unmask and state their intentions. But all I know is I’m hooked and ready to declare all of you right after the first issue.
That’s not to say there aren’t flaws. It’s the first issue, so it does have a lot to set up. Particularly for folks like me who aren’t up on the one random “Defenders” issue they’re referencing. And a lot of this is done through pages of exposition monologues. But I kind of feel like getting upset about that is getting upset at 80s comics as a whole. It still manages to give us a compelling narrative. Particularly since the bulk of the exposition comes from Nighthawk, who I found immediately engaging. Part of it may be the art too. Bob Hall draws very 80s Marvel house-style, but his characters can act. Hall sells Nighthawk’s frustration, giving us a man clearly broken before we even read a word of dialog.
No disrespect to the writer though. Mark Gruenwald has a talent for balancing character work and relevant themes with superhero shenanigans. And he’s crafted a narrative here that immediately draws you in with the aftermath of a random issue of “The Defenders,” and sets up the problem that raises a good number of interesting questions. Both ethical and “What happens next?” Gruenwald is genuinely one of the most underrated comic writers in his medium. His “Cap” run should be spoken alongside Simonson’s “Thor” and Claremont’s “X-Men.” In some circles, it is. And in a single issue, he managed to get me on board with the team I knew next to nothing about going in, other than a few bits of talk here and there. That and one reboot from the mid-2000s.
I can see where the comparisons to “Watchmen” come from. Both tackle the same themes of comic book tropes and how they would shape global politics if place in that context. While Gruenwald does lack the structural flourishes of that book, he gives us solid character work that drives home the “What if Superheroes, but IRL” concept. I’m certainly excited to see what comes next.
