Animal Man Volume 1: The Hunt, paperback. Issues 1-6, by
Jeff Lemire and Travel Foreman.
With Spider-Man's marriage gone, and Superman rebooted as a young
and single, there are few true family stories in comics. Animal Man is one of
them, as Buddy Baker's main priority is the safety of his wife Ellen, son Cliff
and daughter Maxine. Throughout his careers as stunt man, superhero, and actor,
his family is the only thing that matters to him.
Buddy is able to tap into "The Red," the
mysterious life-force all around us that all animals are a part of. He is able
to manifest any animal-based power, such as a bird's ability to fly, a rhino's
tough hide, or a cheetah's speed. But something is very wrong in the life
force, and only Animal Man can fix it. Actually, only the four-year-old Maxine
can fix it. The first five issues tell the story of the Baker family's first
battle against "The Rot," the evil force trying to destroy the Red
and bring its destruction to the rest of the world. Issue #6 tells the story
of the movie that Buddy is promoting in issue #1, albeit with a clever framing
device that sets the story after issue #5.
This series of issues leaves a few questions unanswered, and
the family is heading out to find Alec Holland, aka Swamp Thing. I do not know
to what extent these books cross over, but I will continue to read this
storyline, whichever title it takes place in.
Travel Foreman brings a very refreshing style to this book. There
are very few pages that have a traditional bordered panel layout. Instead,
Foreman uses diagonals, small and large panel, and odd angles and shapes to create a book
that is visually disconcerting. The colorist and letterer add to this by giving
us very unusual visuals, as well.
These artistic choices complement the dark, nightmarish
nature of the story. This title was part of "The Dark" line of the
New 52, books with supernatural or mature themes. This one definitely fits that
criteria, especially the scene where young Maxine demonstrates her own animal-based
powers, by bringing back to life the skeletal remains of family pets buried in
the Baker's backyard. So even though this is a book about family, it is not a
book for the whole family.
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