If you’ve been online in the comics community, chances are you’ve heard jokes about Absolute Batman and how the Dark Knight’s foes have been reimagined as borderline Lovecraftian horrors. Absolute Superman #17 might have them all beat, thanks to its interpretation of the Parasite. Rather than a human man who’s mutated into a power-absorbing monster, this version of the Parasite is…well, a parasite. It’s also feeding on the Metropolis population, prompting Superman and Hawkman to set aside their differences to save countless lives.
Or rather, it would be if Hawkman wasn’t a callous jackass. Jason Aaron didn’t waste any time drawing a line between the more pragmatic views that Hawkman takes and the selfless approach Superman takes to saving the world, and a giant monster doesn’t change that. It does, however, give Kal-El a chance to come face to face with the winged warrior and deliver a hell of an ultimatum that feels like something Superman would say, but also scary when you realize how powerful he is.
Speaking of scary, Juan Ferrerya transforms the Parasite into pure monster fuel. It still retains the purple and white hue of its mainstream DC counterpart, but has multiple legs and a gaping maw lined with razor-sharp teeth. If that wasn’t terrifying enough, a close-up reveals that people are stuck in it like a spider’s web, with tendrils digging deep into their eyes and mouths, forcing them into a horrific rictus. Did I also mention the tentacles have teeth? All together, this looks less like the Parasite and more like the unholy fusion of The Thing and Shin Godzilla – and puts the Absolute versions of Poison Ivy and Joker to shame.
DC
Completing the nighmarish tableau is Becca Carey’s lettering, which takes the Parasite’s signature purple hue and gives it a sinister edge by placing it against a black background. Carey even makes the letters jagged, as if they’re knives jabbing into the reader’s brain. The impact of Superman and Hawkeye battling against the Parasite also has some disturbing sound effects. Flying through it causes a massive SPLORTCH that sends viscera flying everywhere, and punching it causes a massive WHAGLOOP that sends ripples down its flesh. Word of advice: don’t eat anything before or after reading this comic.
If there’s one criticism about Absolute Superman #17, it’s that the subplots pale in comparison to the main story. The Ra’s Al Ghul scene feels like it’s going back on what could have been a truly interesting character’s beat, and the moment between Lex Luthor and Brainiac feels like gore for the sake of gore. I hope Aaron takes Luthor in a direction we aren’t expecting, as that’s the fun of the Absolute Universe; a world where he makes Brainiac his archenemy instead of Superman would be a fun twist.
Absolute Superman #17 shifts from a superhero narrative to a horror-based one, and makes sure readers will never look at one of the Man of Steel’s foes in the same way again. Aaron and Ferrerya have thrown down the gauntlet to the rest of the Absolute Universe, because there’s no way that anything can be as horrifying as the Parasite.
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