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Creative Team:
Writer: Christopher Cantwell
Art: Alex Lins
Colors: Jacob Edgar and Marceloo Maiolo
Letters: Becca Carey
Cover by: Alex Lins and Marcelo Maiolo
Plastic Man No More! #1:
Patrick O’Brian started as a thief until his accident when he became the comedic hero known as Plastic Man! However, being a hero comes with sacrifices and what could be worse than losing your family and becoming the butt of Justice League jokes? Cellular Degradation as it turns out. It’s a race against time as Patrick is melting towards his untimely demise. Is this the punchline?
The Art:
One thing I love about reading the weirder side of comics and heroes with fun and quirky powers is the endless possibilities of what you can do as far as showcasing their abilities. The issue starts out thick-lined and straight, but the art and coloring take a chaotic turn as the action ramps up. We then are met with some wonderful panels by Edgar as we see Patrick’s world turned upside down and around. From there, Edgar and Maiolo do some fun, artistic sequences that culminate when they incorporate Patrick’s melting problem into defining the panels of a page grotesquely and cleverly.
Becca crafts a superior and classy way that captures the voices of our league members. This is artistically a visually pleasing book that takes every opportunity to lean into the weird abilities of the character.
The Writing:
Christopher does a great job taking us down a winding road of story as we reach the emotional highs of Patrick’s story and brings it crashing down as the cost of being a hero is sometimes at the price of your family. It’s emotional as he becomes faced with the fact he is dying, and his goal is now to save his son from meeting the same fate. Becca’s letters again come into play as she showcases the other side of the Justice League and shows them in a holier-than-thou light.
Overall:
Plastic Man No More #1 is a surprisingly emotional and grim take on the cost of being an outlier with quirky abilities. We see beyond the jokes and how they could truly hurt even those who make them. The coming issues set us up in a nuclear way that this will become a must follow.
9.5/10
Matt makes up one half the podcast, Hops GEEK News. The drop a podcast that discusses all things geek pop culture, while enjoying a craft beer of the week. They also interview many different people from the comic book world and beyond.
