This book was a good read and entertaining from start to finish and one of the better deconstructions of classic superhero story lines I have read.
This is a work filled with Captain Ersatz heroes (sometimes with mix-and-mach power-sets, Like Ultragod, who is a mixture of Superman and Green Lantern) and villains duking it out in a superheroics-friendly universe, except shown from the point of view of a fledgling super villain who lucks into the powers of the Nightwalker (the universe's equivalent of Batman with a bit of Doctor Strange thrown in for good measure) and tries to bring a slightly more ethical supervillainy onto the table, with mixed results.
The story could be roughly divided into three acts.
The first act deals with introducing our protagonist, Gary, and the main cast, including his wife, his henchmen and his talking cloak. It also introduces a really impressive amount of characterizations, delving deep into Gary's reasons for wanting to become a super villain, his history, his loving relationship with his wife and so on.
The second act focuses on his first steps at becoming a super villain, such as securing a hideout, fighting a Nineties Anti-Hero squad and generally starting to come into his own.
And then the third arc happens, which takes place on the moon and is almost completely detached from the first two arcs in both tone and theme, instead featuring the local Justice League expys, old-testament kaijus, a villain-riot caused by the escape attempt of the local Lex Luthor expy and Gary's ex-girlfriend showing up to complicate things.
Overall the entire book is really good. Gary is characterized incredibly well, he has great interactions with the other characters, especially his magicalcloak, and it deals with a lot of "current" topics in a very non-intrusive way. For example, Gary's wife is openly bisexual, our Superman and Supergirl expys are black, we have gay and trans heroes running around, and no one cares a bit; but more importantly, since these attributes aren't defining these characters, it never feels heavy-handed or immersion-breaking either.
Take notes people; this is how you write diversity without ramming it down people's throats.
That said, there are some minor issues. As I mentioned, the third act comes a bit out of nowhere and throws off the pacing a little, and there might be just a smidgen too much romance-related drama in the story, but it is generally a well-written, entertaining read that lovers of superhero stories and their deconstructions would both like. (Not to mention, it is an excellent pick-me-up after Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice)
Literature A very solid read with minor pacing issues
This book was a good read and entertaining from start to finish and one of the better deconstructions of classic superhero story lines I have read.
This is a work filled with Captain Ersatz heroes (sometimes with mix-and-mach power-sets, Like Ultragod, who is a mixture of Superman and Green Lantern) and villains duking it out in a superheroics-friendly universe, except shown from the point of view of a fledgling super villain who lucks into the powers of the Nightwalker (the universe's equivalent of Batman with a bit of Doctor Strange thrown in for good measure) and tries to bring a slightly more ethical supervillainy onto the table, with mixed results.
The story could be roughly divided into three acts. The first act deals with introducing our protagonist, Gary, and the main cast, including his wife, his henchmen and his talking cloak. It also introduces a really impressive amount of characterizations, delving deep into Gary's reasons for wanting to become a super villain, his history, his loving relationship with his wife and so on.
The second act focuses on his first steps at becoming a super villain, such as securing a hideout, fighting a Nineties Anti-Hero squad and generally starting to come into his own.
And then the third arc happens, which takes place on the moon and is almost completely detached from the first two arcs in both tone and theme, instead featuring the local Justice League expys, old-testament kaijus, a villain-riot caused by the escape attempt of the local Lex Luthor expy and Gary's ex-girlfriend showing up to complicate things.
Overall the entire book is really good. Gary is characterized incredibly well, he has great interactions with the other characters, especially his magical cloak, and it deals with a lot of "current" topics in a very non-intrusive way. For example, Gary's wife is openly bisexual, our Superman and Supergirl expys are black, we have gay and trans heroes running around, and no one cares a bit; but more importantly, since these attributes aren't defining these characters, it never feels heavy-handed or immersion-breaking either. Take notes people; this is how you write diversity without ramming it down people's throats.
That said, there are some minor issues. As I mentioned, the third act comes a bit out of nowhere and throws off the pacing a little, and there might be just a smidgen too much romance-related drama in the story, but it is generally a well-written, entertaining read that lovers of superhero stories and their deconstructions would both like. (Not to mention, it is an excellent pick-me-up after Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice)