The term “power fantasy” refers to a story or piece of media where the protagonist is given extraordinary abilities or circumstances, allowing the audience to experience a sense of power vicariously. These stories are best represented in Shonen manga/anime like Akira Toriyama’s Dragon Ball, in which its protagonist, Goku, simply wants to be the strongest in the universe. While there is an element of power fantasy in superhero comics (I mean, who wouldn’t want to fly and be strong like Superman), there have been stories that explore the global fear of having superpowers, which is at the heart of Image’s The Power Fantasy.
Set in an alternate universe where there are six people on Earth known as the Superpowers, possessing abilities that could rival the destructive capacity of America’s nuclear arsenal. In 1999, when Ray “Heavy” Harris – one of the Superpowers, as well as the founder of the Atomic city-state Haven – is targeted by the U.S. government, fellow Superpower Etienne Lux retaliates on a global effect, causing the other powered people to respond.
In that case, they are about people with extraordinary abilities who are not so much co-existing with everyone else, but they see themselves as superior beings compared to those less gifted. The first issue opens with a conversation between Etienne and Santa Valentina in 1960s New York, where they discuss whether they should rule the world or try the balancing act in which they can be heroes.
Credit: Image Comics
A key influence on Gillen’s work has always been Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’s Watchmen, which explored an alternate world on the brink of nuclear war whilst deconstructing superheroes in terms of the implications of having power. It is worth noting that the characters in The Power Fantasy are not referred to as “superheroes”; they are the Superpowers who have made numerous impacts on the world since 1945 when the first atomic bomb dropped, leading to the birth of the first Atomics.
As the Watchmen influence looms large here, showcasing an alternate world that touches upon our real-life politics and their diversions due to the presence of the six Superpowers, the world-building is intricate across these five issues, with the occasional data page that no doubt Gillen took cues from the X-Men’s Krakoan Age.
That said, this can be quite a dense read, with characters going into deep existential conversations about where humanity is going and whether it should go down a self-destructive path. There are times when Gillen’s writing gets cryptic with these scenes, and even when this volume concludes, it is hard to tell what the endgame is, which could be exciting, but some readers may find it frustrating.
As Gillen reunites with his collaborator on Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt, artist Caspar Wijngaard may be drawing a comic that is heavier on dialogue than action but remains a visually striking read. Considering that the Superpowers have abilities that resemble Doctor Manhattan, Wijngaard’s bold coloring gets across the use of these powers, particularly the gory climax of the first issue that showcases how powerful and dangerous Etienne is. Some of the best work from both Gillen and Wijngaard is when we delve into the lives of each of the Superpowers, which allows the latter to visually convey their worldview, such as the final issue that focuses on Magus, looking like British punk rock art.
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