The Power Fantasy came out of the gate with a 10/10 in the first issue, introducing a different kind of superhero comic. It’s a comic where six people can save the world simply by not using their powers. If they do, we could all die. It’s a Cold War look at super-powered people who could end everything if they come at odds. In the first issue, one used their gift in a Trolly Problem situation, which has to mean repercussions, right?
The Power Fantasy #2 opens with a data page detailing the groupings of the six super-powered people. It also acts as recap and a segue into the first page featuring the assassination attempt on Ray Harris’ in 1969. This is the very same character who was successfully shot through, but lived in the last issue. It seems nothing changes and we’ve been here before.
This segues perfectly into a news broadcast of that assassination attempt just after the 1999 assassination attempt in the last issue. Enter Etienne, who uses the broadcast to let the people of the world know everything is going to be okay. He killed the United States president and a lot of other folks, but it was necessary. His words are said in a calm way, but it certainly suggests things will most likely boil over from there.
Kinda alarming how calm he is.
Credit: Image
So begins the issue, which then carries forward Etienne’s interview with a reporter and checks in with Morishita Masumi, aka Deconstructa, an artist whose power switches on whenever she’s isolated or depressed. When we see her, she’s finished a painting and has yet to find out Etienne killed all those people.
Driving the whole issue is Etienne’s calm yet certain attitude. He just killed a whole bunch of people but knows he’s right. Meanwhile, other characters doubt that and maybe even fear him. Whether he’s right or not, the fact that he’s not regretful or sick to his stomach when he killed anyone is a bit alarming. He’s highly intelligent and seems to want the best for the world, but he’s also sociopathic. It makes you analyze his behavior and hang on to his every word.
This issue accomplishes two big things. The first is getting the reporter out of Etienne’s safety and into Ray Harris, which will likely continue her ongoing interview series. The second reveals the boiling over of what Etienne did with the other super-powered people. Like with the Cold War, writer Kieron Gillen shows how nerves are up as the characters doubt Etienne’s actions and start thinking action needs to be taken.
Along the way, Gillen and artist Caspar Wijngaard further flesh out characters and locations. A one-page scene has three of the super-powered people converse about Etienne’s actions, and the reporter feels even more fleshed out by the end as well. Ray Harris’ home base of Haven is also explored a bit more and it’s clear a community lives there.
Wijngaard’s art leans into the sci-fi futuristic here and there, like Haven and The Pyramid. A key conversation between Etienne and Morishita visually shows Etienne’s darker path and how Morishita is at first bright, like the blue sky behind her, but darkness is falling on her. Meanwhile, Ray Harris is a bit battered and tired, like a prize fighter who may not have many fights left. The characters leap off the page.
As far as pace, Wijngaard masters tension and progression. A scene change to Morishita’s home starts with a power line, then a close-up of a bug on the same power line, and finally, we see Morishita in the distance. It’s a neat way for Morishita to connect with Etienne and create a sense of calm before the inevitable tricky conversation.
The Power Fantasy #2 continues to deal with super-powered people in a purposeful and thought-provoking way. These characters aren’t blasting holes through walls but talking, yet the tension is greater than most fight comics. The Power Fantasy manages to handle superpowers in an accessible, pulpy way, making you think while not detracting from the gravity of the material.
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