Mild Spoilers will follow. The Ludic Lounge would like to thank Commanders In Crisis co-creator and writer Steve Orlando for providing us with an advanced copy of the first issue for review.
When I was younger, my collection of single issue comics was very sparse. It was partly due to not having the most robust comic shop and my parents limiting how much I could buy. There was always one issue that I did get that always stuck with me, moreso after I got older and became dedicated to following writers and artists. That comic was JLA #24 by writer Grant Morrison (with penciller Howard Porter, and inker John Dell, Pat Garrahy and Heroic Age on colors and Ken Lopez as letterer.) Morrison's comics are defining for me as a comic reader. His work strives to push superhero comics beyond their corporate enforced boundaries. Morrison and Porter's JLA was, at the time, the pinnacle of BIG superhero comics. It was where the biggest heroes in DC went up against the biggest ideas. Corporate takeovers, sentient suns, and cosmic entities that seek to descend entire universes into war were everyday battles.
I bring up Morrison, and specifically JLA, in regard to Commanders In Crisis because creators Steve Orlando and David Tinto are playing in that same playground. Without the restrictions DC would have, they are arguably swinging for much bigger prizes. How else would you describe a story where the personification of an idea is assassinated to bring about the end of the Multiverse? Orlando and Tinto are wrestling with big ideas with Commanders in Crisis, something that only goes so far in mainstream superhero stories.
What struck me most about this first issue is how much it is setting up a discussion on how an idea defines our society and how seemingly irrevocable the idea's loss can be. For instance, the second scene of the issue revolves around the possibility that the United States has grown so beyond the idea of a unified group of states under a Constitution, the idea is proposed that the Union be dissolved and result in nation states. How monumental would that be? Change or die. That feels like the underlying message with the information given so far. It is also something our heroes will have to contend for themselves as well.
Speaking of our heroes, we're given a fairly disparate bunch of heroes. They are unified as a diverse group of former United States presidents gathered from across the multiverse. This is a detail I'm fairly certain echoes back to another Morrison idea, the Earth 23 Superman, Calvin Ellis, who is also President of his world. Working together as the Crisis Command, our five heroes, Originator, Sawbones, Prizefighter, Seer and Frontier, face all types of threats to the planet and beyond. Following the thread of wrestling with ideas, the powers that our heroes possess also seem to reflect that preoccupation, as their respective solo introduction pages come to show.
Originator's powers allow her to alter reality through the creation of new words, albeit for 24 hours. This leads her to be very controlled about her tone of voice and what she actually does say. Her powers and response to them reflect the risk that can come from our works or our ideas; when we express either, the potential for monumental change is ever present, for good or for ill. However, the intention behind the idea needs to be present. The work behind the creation, presentation, and engagement of an idea requires active work and is never completely finished.
Prizefighter's abilities are just as fascinating, as it reads that his strength and invulnerability are dependent on how much the crowds around him hope he is. Through Prizefighter, we're addressing the idea of hope and how communal that idea can be. Prizefighter is only as strong as the people around him find him to be in the moment they're all in. What I'm most curious about is how much of a need for that adulation exists in Prizefighter? Is he an addict for it? He is certainly cocky about his save of a number of firefighters, but whether that means more will have to be seen in later issues.
Seer and Sawbones are enigmas to me, compared to Prizefighter and Originator. Part of Seer's powers involve her dealing with "quantum moments", flashes of moments in time that have yet to occur. I imagine this is meant to be comparable to someone with a neurological disorder, like epilepsy, which makes Seer relatable to those with such conditions. Seer's abilities are certainly going to play a part of the mystery that our heroes need to solve, but it's too early to tell.
Sawbones, on the other hand, is someone I can't exactly figure out. He certainly feels intended to fill the Batman/Karnak of the Inhumans mold, but I'm not entirely sure why he's here. His presence, compared to the sheer scope of what his teammates can do, is smaller, as he is described as an "Action Surgeon." He's incredibly precise, always acting even when standing still. While his skills are exemplary, I'm just finding him cold and flat, as opposed to his teammates who are shown struggling with their powers or the text implies that there is more to come. Part of this may tie to something in his past that we just aren’t given yet. Only time and subsequent issues will tell us.
Frontier, our final team member and leader, is the tech hero, akin to an Iron Man. Interestingly, she keeps herself out of the field, leaving the fighting and the glory to the other heroes. What caught my attention about Frontier is how preoccupied she is. She's always on alert, waiting for the proverbial bomb to drop. It also goes to show how much she trusts in her colleagues' abilities that she doesn't go out and fight. Her attention and effort is better suited elsewhere. It's because of her constant vigilance, Frontier who discovers the murder that is the driving force of this story and puts it before the team.
We get none of these characters without a stellar art team. What strikes me most about artist Davide Tinto's work is the strong manga influence. You can see that influence best in his action sequences, particularly his use of speed lines and brush marks, and the background drop off in some of Originator's scenes. The character designs, especially their superhero garb, pulls from both manga/anime and traditional superhero design. For instance, Frontier's armor looks like it would be at home in a Battle Angel Alita volume or a Metroid design. Prizefighter feels very much in line with the circus strongman inspired superhero looks of the Golden Age, but could also work in something like One Punch Man.
Another plus that Tinto brings is his fantastic character acting. The best example of this comes in a few specific scenes, Originator helping a friend through writer's block through her powers, Frontier herself across her scenes, and two characters that look to be a part of the conspiracy to murder Ideas.
In Originator's scene, Tinto sells how measured and controlled Originator has to be, considering how dangerous it would be to let her powers run wild. Tinto captures how firm and precise someone with that much responsibility would be and how frustrated someone like that would be with others who look at her powers so flippantly. But Originator isn't cold and sterile, which is something that was certainly possible to occur. The smug satisfaction on Originator's face as her friend, Alejandra, realizes that Originator's powers aren't a quick fix, that the work has to be done, no matter what trick or loophole comes across the table.
For Frontier, she is very much a woman pushed to an edge of exhaustion. When we first meet her at the Think Tank, the Crisis Command headquarters, she's a woman who is "a thousand and one thoughts away." Frontier is someone is constantly pushing herself and Tinto shows it well, particularly during her solo scene prior to her discovery of the murder victim. There she runs a gamut of emotions, from exhaustion tinged relief, to surprise to quiet terror.
Regarding terror, there are two instances where Tinto's character acting heads into the sinister. Two men, one operating as a police officer investigating the murder scene and the other possibly posing as a morgue attendant. Both are presented with an air of menace filled with sinister smiles. While we only get brief moments with these two, it really helps build up tension that will likely come in the next few issues.
Rounding out the art time are the colors by Francesca Carotentuo and letters by Fabio Amelia. Carotentuo cycles through a few different tones throughout this issue. The opening murder scene has a strong noirish tinge to it, amplifying the mystery and the tension given by the suspicious police man. Frontier's scenes within the Think Tank are given a bluish tinge, almost as if Frontier is swimming in a cyberpunk dream. Those two atmospheres mix when Frontier investigates at the morgue, to strong effect. The big action scenes are colored like the big bombastic superhero action of old, making it clear and easy for the reader to follow. The conversation scenes that don't revolve around superhero business are colored more warmly, and help convey a sense of intimacy that is occurring between the characters. Ameila does great lettering here, adding in manga style sound effects where needed and really goes to enhance the manga quality of Tinto's art. I also really appreciate how Ameila letters Originator's powered words. The font chosen really helps amplify the power that is meant to be behind Originator's changes to reality.
Considering all of this, Commanders in Crisis #1 is a fantastically crafted debut issue that is looking to take the superhero genre up against ideas that your standard hero fare is barely allowed to walk up to. Full of creative writing, interesting characters and a compelling mystery, we here at the Ludic Lounge fully recommend this series and look forward to the next issue.
Commanders in Crisis is published by Image Comics and is written by Steve Orlando (Wonder Woman, Doom Patrol: Milk Wars, Martian Manhunter), drawn by Davide Tinto (Marvel Action: Spider-Man), colored by Francesca Carotenuto, and lettered by Fabio Amelia, with David G.G. Caci and Antonio Solinas on editorial duties.
If our Loyal Readers are so inclined to follow this series, then take this form below to your local comic book shop to preorder the first issue by the Final Order date of SEPTEMBER 21, 2020.
Commanders In Crisis #1 will be available in stores and digitally on OCTOBER 14, 2020.
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