Spinning out of Timeless (2023), Luke Cage is back as his souped-up future self with all sorts of powers in Power Man: Timeless. It’s a version of the hero that was so epic it certainly deserved a follow-up series. Set in another timeline, Luke Cage is the last hero standing with the blood of Hulk, the powers of Iron Fist, and his unbreakable skin keeping him in one piece.
After taking out a Danny Rand empowered by Moon Knight, Power Man: Timeless #1 opens with Luke Cage floating through space, seemingly unconscious. Captions from an unknown narrator, likely a villain, establish Cage’s place in a universe that’s quite dark and helpless. Until that is, someone cries for help, and Cage rushes for their aid. A new cosmic villain soon meets him, and the conflict for the rest of the issue spins from there.
Personally, I found these opening captions a bit confusing, and it takes a while for their identity to be revealed. The twist of what this voice is and the implication of why Cage can hear it is admittedly exciting. That said, I was left unsure how to perceive them, let alone have the context in this story. A visual representation of the voice might have gone a long way to solidify itself in the story.
Luke Cage is truly super.
Credit: Marvel
Once revealed, Cage gets to fight this new villain with some impressive back-and-forth between them. The fact is, it’s a villain that seems to have the upper hand on Cage, which is hard to believe, given how many powers Cage has.
Bernard Chang draws a solid issue, capturing the weightlessness of space well and, on the reverse side, the incredible speed and strength of Cage. The design of the new villain, Aeon the Knife, is pretty damn cool, too, as he’s got a Tron evil knight look to him. When the villain literally slices Cage in half, Chang draws a hell of a splash of Cage coming back together as two halves of his head scream in agony in the background.
Fans of Marvel’s cosmic side aren’t going to want to miss this, as an organ from a hugely important race of aliens appears, which pops up in the last third of the issue. It’s at once bizarre and kind of creepy. Writers Jackson Lanzing and Collin Kelly aren’t skimping on big ideas.
At the end of the day, this issue doesn’t quite manage to explain the stakes at hand. With most heroes dead and Luke Cage mostly alone, I wasn’t sure why we should care about the conflict here. Cage is fighting to save one person, but so far it’s unclear why we should care about her either. Since the universe is so dark and bleak, we need more to care about.
While Power Man: Timeless #1 delivers thrilling cosmic action and impressive visuals, it struggles with narrative clarity and emotional stakes. With time, the series could offer a more compelling story, but this debut issue feels a little too detached from the bigger picture to fully hook readers.
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