Something we perhaps discuss less frequently when we refer to the “language of comics” is how alternative forms of delivery can provide different storytelling tools. There are opportunities available in digital, for example, that could not be accomplished in print. But we perhaps don’t acknowledge quite so readily how a tactile format can also enrich the reading experience, from something as simple as the anticipation of a physical page turn, to cutaway holes in one illustration revealing elements of pages to come from a different vantage point, through to fold-out minicomics or multi-part, multiform presentations. Absolute Martian Manhunter is a rare review foray into super-heroes here at BF but, as you will see, is very much a fit for our coverage mission.
(A side note that a keyword search for “tactile” at Broken Frontier will bring up lots of fine examples of comics that lean into the advantages of their physical format).
Too often we perhaps describe work as experimenting with the form when what it is actually doing is embracing its fuller potential. Absolute Martian Manhunter is part of DC’s Absolute line, re-imagining its classic characters in a darker, more oppressive universe. It’s been very solid as a line to date but Deniz Camp and Javier Rodriguez’s new take on the Manhunter from Mars looks set to be its strongest entry so far.
“Beyond Mars…beyond physical form…beyond Human Understanding…all that’s left is the ultimate alien: the Absolute Martian Manhunter!” That’s the blurb that goes with this opener, courtesy of DC, and as seemingly portentous copy goes it’s actually not really all that hyperbolic. In this first chapter we meet FBI Agent John Jones of the Stochastic Terrorism Task Force as he deals with the effects of being caught in an explosion in a coffee shop, the result of an apparent terrorist attack. As Jones attempts to recover and investigate his ordeal he finds himself perceiving the world in a new way as he begins to form psychic bonds with those he encounters; a phenomenon that soon becomes overwhelming and hints at something alien now connected to him…
Rodriguez is undoubtedly one of the premier artists working in super-hero comics today and his work here is a tour-de-force achievement when it comes to that aforementioned language of comics. Colour, in particular, is a vital part of his toolkit, with smoky wisps of different hues appearing as an ongoing motif to symbolise Jones’s semi-telepathic readings of the people he meets. Subtle and nuanced at first it explodes into something more frenzied as the story progresses and Camp’s careful hints at the mystery surrounding the agent grow into something more pronounced. Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou’s lettering is also a key ingredient in emphasising the dramatic turns of the book and the otherworldly presence of one of its players.
There’s one key moment herein that uses the physicality of the page in a simple and yet incredibly clever manner to represent the duality of the protagonist. It’s one that is for the reader to discover themselves but hopefully it is a sign of what is to come in a comic that seems determined to push the boundaries beyond the usual super-hero fare. For the second time in the space of a month I find myself saying that a Deniz Camp-written book looks set to be one of the year’s key serial comics debuts.
Deniz Camp (W), Javier Rodriguez (A), Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou (L) DC Comics, $4.99
Review by Andy Oliver
