Broken Frontier

A new adventure looms as a Linear Man orders Atom to help track down a fugitive. If Ryan helps, the fugitive dies, if he doesn’t help – the Atom dies.

Writer Gail Simone’s new take on the Atom continues to be a breath of fresh air... liberally laced with laughing gas. With this issue she embarks on a new story that looks as though it will incorporate some old, familiar favorites to Atom fans with some delightful new twists.

After saving Ivy Town and quite possibly the world, Ryan Choi deserves some downtime. The universe, however, does not seem to agree as Ryan and Panda’s beer and pizza night is interrupted by homicidal cowboys bent on stringing Ryan up! Ryan slips into superhero mode to face off against the rejects from Rawhide but they are the least of his worries as he meets the man behind the cowboys – an alien Linear Man who threatens to erase Ryan’s entire family tree from the timeline if Ryan does not help catch a "chronal terrorist" named Hyatt. The catch is Ryan doesn’t know who Hyatt is... yet. All things come with time....

Gail Simone merges the wacky with the horrific and can switch from one to the other with a speed that shocks the reader and this issue is a good example of that. There is comedy, black comedy, and the introduction of a major threat. The idea of a Linear Man as an adversary is inspired as the character can destroy Ryan but can and will also destroy the family he holds near and dear. Simone makes it clear that Ryan is willing to sacrifice himself heroically for others but is he willing to put his innocent family on the line?

Delightfully as well, Simone continues to make Ryan evolve as a fledgling and reluctant superhero. Readers are treated to signs that the Atom is learning more and more how to use his abilities but he is far from perfect... yet. This combined with a diverse and charming supporting cast really brings the character down to earth.

After going from the art of John Byrne to that of Eddy Barrrows, readers find that yet another artist – Mike Norton, provides the pencils for this issue. I am not sure if Norton is merely a fill-in artist for this issue or if he will he handling the entire arc but he does a good, solid job here. His style is very comic book friendly with a strong sense of energy. It is a style that works well with the bright, eye-popping colors of Alex Bleyaert. The true test of Norton’s skill, however, is the last page, which manages to be eerie, fascinating, and disgusting at the same time.

The All-New Atom is a wild ride comic in which Gail Simone has apparently decided to unleash all of her wild, weird, strange, and twisted ideas. The mix of superheroics and weird science goes together like peanut butter and jelly or the chocolate cookie and white filling of an Oreo. If you enjoy comedy, action, and adventure then this is definitely your title.