Written by: Neil Gaiman
Art by: Mark Buckingham
Colors by: Jordie Bellaire
Letters by: Todd Klein
Cover art by: Mark Buckingham
Cover price: $4.99
Release date: October 19, 2022
Miracleman: The Silver Age #1 brings an eclectic group of super-powered heroes together to witness the tale of Young Miracleman’s awakening forty years after his death.
Is It Good?
Miracleman: The Silver Age #1 returns to the world of superheroes and aliens in the faraway year of 2003 to witness the awakening of Young Miracleman (YM) in his new body and not-o-accurate memories about his origins. When Miracleman does his level best to bring YM up to speed gradually, YM’s enthusiasm to experience the world of the future leads to shocking revelations that cause him to question his very existence. If you’re new to the Miracleman mythology, there’s a lot to take in, and you might find this issue #1 a challenging jumping-on point.
The plot is simple enough. YM dies during a nuclear explosion, but he’s resurrected years later through super science and alien tech to enjoy a new lease on life. New readers might be challenged by the sheer mega-volume of characters, flashbacks, experiences, references, and exploits to track – some of which turn out to be false.
Gaiman relies heavily on Buckingham’s art to keep you engaged with interesting architecture and character designs, but in truth, there’s almost no action to speak of in this oversized comic. All engagement relies on Buckingham’s ability to make conversations interesting. He partially succeeds by breaking up the serious conversations with quick flashbacks, and that’s it. Except for a bit of action in the prologue that last three pages, this entire issue is people talking, introducing, and explaining who they are and what they’ve experienced in the past.
In fairness, you could argue Miracleman is a slow-burn story, so there’s plenty of information to chew on that will inform future issues. For now, however, this issue is a history lesson instead of a superhero comic.
About The Reviewer: Gabriel Hernandez is the Publisher & EIC of ComicalOpinions.com, a comics review site dedicated to indie, small, and mid-sized publishers.
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Final Thoughts:
Miracleman: The Silver Age #1 gives fans of Miracleman plenty of information on the origins of Young Miracleman and the emotional impact of resurrection in the modern world. However, this issue is almost all exposition and setup, with people talking for most of the page space. You may find this issue valuable as a reference but short on excitement and engagement.
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