Reviews 

“Squadron Supreme” #12

By | August 25th, 2022
Posted in Reviews | % Comments

We’ve reached the last issue. And judging from the words “CIVIL WAR” emblazoned over the cover, things are about to go down. The foundations have been cracking since issue #1, but by now there’s major structural damage. The Squadron is deeply fractured, with its leader wielding almost limitless power as his insecurities eat him alive. A total of eight members of the team have either quit or died. Two of which have formed an uneasy alliance with straight up supervillains, purely out of a need to stop the Squadron. And that alliance has placed a couple sleeper agents within their enemy’s ranks.

And considering that one of the major fight scenes ended with the destruction of Mount Rushmore, and one of the combatants literally pounded into goo, it could get wild.

Cover by Paul Ryan
Written by Mark Gruenwald
Pencils by Paul Ryan
Inks by Sam De La Rosa
Colors by Christie Scheele
Letters by Janice Chiang

The Squadron relinquish their control as Nighthawk launches their attack.

A big chunk of this issue is spent building up the fight. We’re told it’s one year after the original Squadron takeover. Much to the surprise of the politicians, they surrender the control they seized. As far as they’re concerned, they’ve created their own Utopia. Crime is drastically reduced. Poverty is virtually non-existent. And illness? There’s a very good chance that the Squadron has cured actual death. And at this point, I start getting excited, because there hasn’t been a good riot for a few issues. A “Right to Die” coalition has formed. But nothing comes from this.

There are multiple points in the issue that feel like seeds planted for later issues or series. The Right to Die protests are interesting, something they can elaborate on. Same with the robot Tom Thumb Ape X was working on. Oh… and pretty much anything teased by Master Menace. The first few pages of the issue is Nighthawk and his alliance getting ready to launch their attack, mostly undoing the B-Modding of the members of The Institute. Although Firefox doesn’t have an immediate heel turn. She legitimately fell in love with Doctor Spectrum. Nighthawk and Archer are both wrecks. Especially since they’ve been backed into using their own form of the B-Mod. He still thought of Hyperion as a friend. He wonders if he should have killed him if he had the chance, and wonders if he has the nerve to do it this time.

The moments of character work they squeeze out are terrific and add to the upcoming climatic battle. Though the most upsetting is the bits they show with Ape X, who has been rendered “incompetent” by her B-Mod logic looping. And that’s before Moonglow used her powers to make it look like she could speak, solely to trick the childlike Shape into betraying the team. There’s also some exposition about how Nighthawk put his team together. It involves going to the mountains and finding a wizard.

But regardless, let’s talk about the climatic fight. I actually was expecting a little bit more. It’s a great superhero fight, full of creative uses of powers and cool character beats. Character arcs come to their logical conclusion. Doctor Spectrum uses his powers for violence again. Firefox uses his powers to atrophy Nighthawk’s heart, before succumbing to internal injuries. And Hyperion agrees to surrender as the former US President passes away. Also, remember how Arcanna was pregnant. She goes into labor right on the battlefield. It’s a great fight, but after the stakes are built up so high, and one of the major plot points involved destroying a major American landmark, I was expecting something a bit larger in scale. That’s not to say it was a bad fight by any stretch of the imagination. I think I was just spoiled by all the riots.

The issue ends with a tally taken of the dead. But with Arcanna giving birth to signify a better, more hopeful tomorrow.

So, here’s the big question: Is it as good as “Watchmen?”

That’s a dicey subject, because it feels like the last four decades of comics have been held up against it. Fairly or unfairly. I think it’s a worthy peer. The complicated structure and nuanced themes of government overreach are certainly there. And it handles the theme of “If superheroes were real, they’d suck” as well, if not better than “Watchmen.” And that’s an idea that gets real hit and miss real fast.

Continued below

But there’s a cynicism that’s missing from “Squadron Supreme.” All the characters presented, with the exception of the straight up on-the-tin supervillains, are treated as well-meaning. Even when they’re brainwashing inmates and trying to re-animate their friends. However, it is still very much 80s Marvel. It goes a little too heavy on the exposition, telling not showing more than it really needs to. But that does add to its charm. A tale of superheroism taken to its dangerous, fascist extremes with the same energy as the latest issue of “Captain America.” It gives roots to the idea of superheroism gone wrong more than the moody detachment of “Watchmen.” Although “Watchmen” was pulling from a different tradition. Multiple different traditions, considering it’s a fusion of British indie comix-with-an-x and golden age action men sensibilities.

Ultimately, it comes down to your personal preference. Some have argued that poor imitators and wild misinterpretations of “Watchmen” have taken some of the luster off it. I’m not necessarily one of those people. But I do think it’s refreshing to see a deconstructionist take that revels in superhero tropes, even as it examines how they can go wrong.

Them both having a cancer subplot is super weird though.


//TAGS | 2022 Summer Comics Binge

Chris Cole

Chris Cole lives in a tiny village built around a haunted prison. He is a writer, letterer, and occasional charity Dungeon Master. Follow his ramblings about comics and his TTRPG adventures on Twitter @CcoleWritings.

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