DC Comics - Wildstorm
128 pages
$14.99 (2006) Trade Paperback
ISBN 9781401209896
Contributors: Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Neil Googe, Georges Jeanty, Scott Iwahashi, Carlos D'Anda, Richard Friend, Sandra Hope, Trevor Scott, Jonny Rench, Carrie Strachan, and Phil Balsman
Reprints: Majestic #8-12
Synopsis: Majestros is a Kherubim warlord who came to Earth millennia ago while fighting an interstellar war with another alien race called the Daemonites. Immensely powerful, he is the pinnacle of Kherubim physiology, mental prowess, and technology. In modern times Majestros has assumed the guise of a superhero and calls himself Mr. Majestic. The war with the Daemonites has ended, but Majestic remains on Earth to protect his adopted planet.
Majestic was shunted through the Bleed (an interdimensional passageway) to an alternate Earth where he briefly took the place of Superman when he disappeared from Metropolis. Eventually Majestic was able to return to his Earth with Superman's help, but he found the planet and humanity in great peril. He put things to rights and finally returns to an Earth in proper order, but he's been away for so long that things have changed.
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| Zealot shows up, but is she friend or foe? |
Pros: Good follow up stories by writers Abnett and Lanning, art is fairly decent throughout, Majestic teamed up with some old allies (Zealot and Desmond), very nice use of bad guys - especially Helspont's return, very interesting origin for the Kherubim race and the war with the Daemonites
Cons: Majestic's new costume design is simplified...and boring, several artists work on this storyline with slightly different art styles, Desmond's character is mistreated
Mike Tells It Straight: The second volume of Abnett and Lanning's Majestic series started off very slowly and I thought it was going to a disappointment after the two thrilling stories from the first volume. Needless to say it delivered an interesting story with a major cliffhanger ending. I liked their reintroduction of Desmond (although why he was still young was a mystery) and the revelations of the Kherubim species' origin was well done. The writers made Majestic a true step forward for the character with this series and didn't hold anything back.
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| Who or what is Biomass? |
DC purchased Wildstorm from Jim Lee (originally published with Image Comics in the 1990s when all the A-list artists at Marvel defected to start their own company). Lee stayed on as creative director for the publisher and DC allowed a bold crossover between Majestic/Superman in actual DC continuity (see Majestic: Strange New Visitor). This series spawned from the crossover which followed into a mini-series.
The art was very competent in this book, but several artists contributed and they had slightly differing styles. Neil Googe was the exclusive artists of the first book (he continued to improve), pencils the first issue in this volume and then is spelled by Georges Jeanty until returning for the final issues. Overall good art and no major complaints.
The final image of the book absolutely begs for the reader to continue to the next volume. I'll definitely bite and the third volume is the last of the series which seems like a shame. Majestic started out as a knock off of Superman and Abnett/Lanning make him a great alternative to the classic icon. More violent/mature, exciting, and with a less cumbersome history/supporting cast. Stay tuned for the final review to this series.
TO BUY and Recommendations: