The Mighty #12

Written by Peter Tomasi and Keith Champagne
Art by Chris Samnee

And, another under-promoted, quality comic bites the dust. At least DC allowed Tomasi and Champagne the opportunity to bring their story to a close in a way that felt natural and not too rushed. This has been a pretty good story about a Superman character (Alpha One was a dumb name though) who was not as altruistic as he seemed.

At the centre of the comic has been Cole, Alpha One's most trusted 'chum', who has discovered the truth, and gained powers along the way. His relationship with his wife is the driving force behind almost the entire series, and it was written really well.

Samnee's art was magnificent throughout his run on the title, picking up from the incomparable Peter Snejbjerg. This comic should read very well in trade, and I hope it finds itself more of an audience.

The Mighty #11

Written by Peter Tomasi and Keith Champagne
Art by Chris Samnee
There's only one issue remaining in this comic set in its own little world, and Tomasi and Champagne are pulling out all the stops. They push Cole's conflict with Alpha One to new levels, and dredged up any number of plot points and supporting characters from earlier in the book's run.

As usual, Samnee has contributed some very nice art, and Dave Johnson's cover is one of the best he's done for this title.

I can't imagine anyone will jump onto this book at this point, but I hope that DC will print the whole run in one trade, which will deserve some attention. The authors have done some nice work on this title.

The Mighty #10

Written by Peter J. Tomasi and Keith Champagne
Art by Chris Samnee
It would seem that there are only two issues of The Mighty left before the book is canceled. I'm not surprised to hear that - this type of book is a tough sell in today's market, and I am pleased to see that the writers will have enough space to bring the story to a proper close (at least I hope so).

The Mighty has been an interesting book from its inception. This issue finally gives us Alpha One's true history, and explains what he has been up to all along. It's not exactly what I expected.

As usual, the writing in this comic is very tight, and the art is excellent.

The Mighty #9

Written by PeterTomasi and Keith Champagne
Art by Chris Samnee

This is another good issue of this title. This book has been remarkably consistent, and I'm finding it difficult to say new things about it. At the same time, it's sales are abysmal, and, because I want to keep reading it, I feel like it's important to acknowledge on a monthly basis how good it is, in the hopes that someone starts buying it.

In this issue, Cole figures out a little more of what Alpha One is up to, and Alpha then confronts him. The cover gives a good hint of how that goes.

Excellent work all around by the creative team.

The Mighty #7

Written by Peter Tomasi and Keith Champagne
Art by Chris Samnee

This is easily one of the best superhero books that DC is publishing right now. I know we've seen this type of thing before - the anti-Superman who is not what he appears to the public to be. However, Tomasi and Champagne have really been handling this story well. They took their time to establish characters - especially Cole, and waited before revealing that Alpha One, their Superman analogue, is not what the world thinks he is.

Now, as Cole is on his trail, things ramp up once again. Alpha kidnaps a child, and procures some plutonium from some terrorists that he had hired himself. I don't know why he can't just steal some of his own, but it does make for an interesting twist in the story.

As much as I like Peter Snejbjerg's art, I think that Samnee was an excellent choice to take over the book, as things look fantastic here.

That last page really has me looking forward to the next issue....

The Mighty #5

Written by Peter Tomasi and Keith Champagne
Art by Chris Samnee
I haven't chosen to write about this book before now, because while I have been intrigued by the approach Tomasi and Champagne were taking, I was unsure as to whether or not this was a book I was going to stick with. Now I'm sure.

The first couple of issues focused on Gabriel Cole, who is promoted to Captain of Section Omega, an independent first response force, centred around Alpha One, the world's only superhero. Cole was rescued by Alpha One when he was a child, and he has spent his entire life with a severe case of hero worship. Since getting his promotion, Alpha and Cole hang out a lot, and become friends. It started as an interesting take on Superman-like characters, but became much more interesting at the end of the last issue, when it looked like Alpha One might not be a complete do-gooder, nor completely sane.

This issue has Cole starting to develop his own suspicions, and details the beginning of his investigation into his new friend's past, as he meets up with a couple of former Captains. The writers have been wise to keep this story on the slow burn. It allows us to share Cole's sense of dread and emotional confusion, as he is forced to question all he has ever believed in.

Chris Samnee has done a great job of taking over the art chores from Peter Snejbjerg. He's kept Snejbjerg's sense of design, giving the book a very European look.

I can't imagine that this is a book that is tearing up the sales charts, which is a shame, as it is a very well-crafted and accessible comic. It feels like it should be published by Wildstorm, and not DC, and I hope that it's only being held up against Wildstorm's metre stick when it comes to sales, until it hopefully builds an audience for itself, as I would like to see it stick around for a while.