So… the first issue of Mark Guenwald and Bob Hall’s “Squadron Supreme” hooked me immediately in a way few first issues ever have. The comparisons to Watchmen instantly made sense, even if it was still very much 80s Marvel Comics. The phrase “ahead of its time” is one that gets thrown about so often that it pretty much loses all meaning. But issue #1 gives us a tale of superheroes conspiring to rebuild a world they themselves destroyed (albeit because mind control) into a literal Utopia, all while maneuvering through what remains of the world’s governments.
This is a plot that wouldn’t feel out of place in an Image or Vertigo title. But here it is, with characters who occasionally bump up against The Avengers, presented with all the tropes and trappings of late-Bronze Age Marvel. It’s hard to not feel as if the modern era of comics is trying to push its way through.
Issue #2 finds our heroes’ plans to rebuild interrupted by The Scarlet Centurion. Hold on, wait– Kang the Conqueror shows up?
Written by Mark GruenwaldCover by Bob Hall
Pencils by Bob Hall
Inks by John Beatty
Letters by Janice Chiang
Colors by Christie ScheeleAfter The Scarlet Centurion appears, Nuke enlists Tom Thumb to help discover a cure for cancer.
The main plot of this issue is about a nuclear powered superhero giving his loved ones cancer. That is an actual story beat in this issue, and the main thrust of this particular chapter. Last time around, I mentioned how this series is often compared to “Watchmen” for its more critical eye for superheroes, explored by placing them in a modern political context. All of this despite it wrapping up well before the first issue ever even hit newsstands. I don’t want to keep harping on that point. Two issues in, the series can more than stand on its own two feet, even if it predates the other book in question. But there’s still a subplot about a nuclear powered superhero giving his loved ones cancer. I can’t help it. It’s right there!
The hero in question is Nuke, who gave his own parents radiation poisoning after prolonged exposure to… well… just him. He naturally radiates… um… radiation… and anyone who’s around him for more than five hours a day risks illness. Bad news for the parents he lives with. He turns to fellow team member Tom Thumb for assistance in finding a cure for their cancer, who decides to make a desperate deal. Earlier in the issue The Scarlet Centurion appeared to the team, taunting Hyperion before being chased away. And if anyone could have a cure for cancer, there’s a very good chance it would be the guy who lives in the far future and exists in multiple timelines.
This is where we get into SPOILER territory. Not just SPOILER territory, but SUPER DEPRESSING SPOILER territory. Centurion has the cure. But his condition is that Thumb poison Hyperion. Not enough to kill him. Just weaken him. Up until this scene, we’re shown that Thumb is sort of an outcast in the team, often forgotten about by his friends and mocked by the folks he saved. But he’s not going to kill his teammate. So he doesn’t get the cure. He returns to get yelled at by Nuke. And to find out that he’s suffering from cancer now too. All the while, Nuke isn’t handling things very well, even lashing out at the civilians he’s trying to feed. The book opens with the team trying to distribute goods and food to the starving masses. But there’s only so much to go around. And when the crowds become agitated, Nuke responds with blasting. Doesn’t quite help considering much of the world’s populace doesn’t realize the Squadron was brainwashed recently.
Much of what I said about last issue still applies. It’s exposition heavy, like comics just were back then. The art is very 80s Marvel, but very expressive. Hall knows how to work body language. But this issue didn’t immediately grab me like the first. But I’m actually okay with that. Issue #1 was selling us a concept, setting the stage for the epic to follow. Issue #2 is when we’re already hooked, now we need to start setting things in motion. Things like Nuke gradually becoming angrier and more violent, its hard not to suspect seeds being planted. Plus the former president is still radio silent after talking himself down from super-murder last issue.
And it’s still hard for me to shake that this book has a subplot about a superhero giving his loved ones cancer. Like I said, I really don’t want to harp on the fact that this book is considered “Watchmen” before “Watchmen” in some circles. Judging it based on another, otherwise unrelated comic is unfair to the creators. Particularly when the other comic came out the following year. But come on!
