LOCAL MAN ISSUE #1 REVIEW: Those at the top fall the hardest...
Continuing the ongoing trend of breaking down the veil of spotless superheroes, LOCAL MAN explores the aftermath of a superhero in disgrace.
Official synopsis:
Once the star recruit of the media sensation super-team THIRD GEN JACK XAVER had it all. But when controversy sends CROSSJACK crawling back to his mom and dad's basement in the Midwest Jack struggles to fit into a world he left far behind. And then the bodies start piling up. - Image Comics
Before we know Jack Xavier as Crossjack, we see a man in typical midwest hear skulking about his hometown. Everything about him exudes an air of being beaten down and dealing with a heavy load of depression. Anyone who has left home to achieve something big only to return to your hometown with nothing to show of that attempt can definitely relate. For most people, the return home is a slight embarrassment but with the support of family and friends, they can move on. For Jack, it’s coming home to mocked, vilified, and drowning in scorn. We are meeting Jack at the lowest of his low.
A glimpse of who he was his superhero persona, Crossjack, is seen with the sudden appearance of an old nemesis crashing the bar. In that glimpse, we see that Crossjack was confident and arrogant, and very quick to take the offensive. The fight is quickly defused and Crossjack fades away into just Jack.
What makes this more than a story of a journey of self-reflection and redemption is the hint of a possible frame-up of Jack. From the garbled words of his old nemesis, it appears that the nemesis was there to help not hurt the fallen hero. Garbled words that are quickly forgotten with the glaring arrival of the superhero squad bearing court papers. That in itself is pretty strange as they appeared so quickly after the bar fight. Were they watching Jack? Were they watching to keep punishing him or are they close by for other reasons?
As of the end of the first issue, we don’t know what massive horrible thing Crossjack has done to gain the ire of the whole planet. Even seeking refuge in his hometown, he is met by sharp derison from everyone including his parents. Without knowing why, the sympathy is strong for this character that is obviously dealing with the heavy weight of his actions. But that sentiment could change instantly once we know more of what he done. If it had anything to do with killing animals or children, I will join the rock throwing mob!
LOCAL MAN ISSUE #1 is available now at your local comic book store.
BONUS: Local adventure story time!
As a bonus addition to this review, there is a special story connected with LOCAL MAN. After reviewing the comic one night, the decision was made to stop by the local comic store, House of Secrets in Burbank, to start a pull list. A morning of work and the title of the comic slipped by mind once I walked through the door. No matter, a quick search through my email inside will help.
Upon a table right by the front door were stacks of LOCAL MAN! Oh good! I didn’t have to search. Then I looked up to the man behind the table and quickly found out that it was Tony Fleecs, co-writer of LOCAL MAN! A wonderful conversation later and I walked away with not only a signed variant issue of LOCAL MAN but also a signed STRAY DOGS graphic novel. Fleecs awesome pitch for STRAY DOGS was “Think Disney-like dogs with a horror story twist.” Absolutely sold.
What an amazing universe-aligning moment! I hope this encourages more people to walk in and support their local comic store. You never know who you’re going to meet!
