Nate's Reviews > Barbalien: Red Planet

Catching up on Black Hammer. I loved this series when it began, and stuck with it for a while. But after the first main series wrapped up and spin-offs lessened in quality, I stopped reading. A few years later, I'm compelled to pick up where I left off, because I do like the superhero homage universe Lemire has created, and my library has all the books I haven't read yet.

And I jumped back in with a dark one. It takes place in 1980s Spiral City during the AIDS crisis, with Barbalien (a Martian Manhunter analogue) conflicted about his identities amidst all the conflict. Tragic stuff happens, though the story is generally gripping and often soulful. It's grounded in real world history, too. The story is not written by Lemire, but Tate Brombal, who seems to be Lemire's protege of sorts, as he was involved in a previous Black Hammer project. His script is straightforward and unflashy, moving the story along at a good pace and hitting the right emotional notes. Hernandez Walta's hazy but expressive art suits the story.

The Martian side-plot did not interest me at all, and felt out of place. Aside from that, I found this to be a powerful read, reminding me of the recent Snagglepuss comic that explores similar themes.