Creating new comics isn't an easy job. It's a medium that's filled with iconic characters and easy to recognise series, especially when it comes to super heroes. You can go across the world to a place where people don't speak your language and show them the Superman S and they'll probably know what it means, who it represents. So trying to create a whole new hero amongst that kind of industry heavyweights is a really tough test of a writer; luckily Kyle Higgins seems to know just what to bring to the table to make something new and exciting in a world full of heroes.
It's pretty clear, just from the cover, that Higgins is bringing some of his experience o writing Mighty Morphin Power Rangers for Boom Studios to this new comic, and that the lead of Radiant Black is very much inspired by Tokusatsu characters like the Super Sentai heroes and Ultra-Man (another comic that Higgins is writing over at Marvel). As someone who really enjoys this kind of aestetic and those heroes, I'm honestly digging it.
Radiant Black follows the story of Nathan, a thirty something guy who's steeped in debt and is desperately working his way through two jobs whilst trying to make it as a writer. Sadly, he's forced to move back to his small home town and live with his parents in order to get back on his feet. He's the kind of person a lot of us can identify with, someone who's doing their best but just keeps getting knocked back by the world and feels like they can't win. I mean, isn't this what life is like for a lot of people around that age, going from one depressing event to another?
Fortunately for Nathan, he seems to discover something that could change his life forever. When out drinking with his friend Marshall when they see something strange floating in the middle of the railway tracks. A small, strange, miniature black hole like thing, that when touched seems to transform Nathan into a super powered hero.
Much of the issue isn't focused on the super heroing though, with very little of the page count even dealing with the new powers that Nathan has, instead it makes his journey the focus. Higgins doesn't seem to want to make a new super hero, he wants to make a relatable, real, character, and because of that the book works so much better. There are a lot of comics that want to make 'cool' heroes straight out the gate, that are so focused on style over substance that they jump straight into the action and the spectacle, letting the character development come later. Whilst this might look flash, it always leaves the comics feeling flat and dull, with little more than just surface value. By making this first issue about Nathan, by focusing on him rather than the suit or the powers, it's sending the message that this series is going to have something to say, and that it's going to have more to offer than just flashy fight scenes.
That being said, when the powers and the spectacle do happen it looks spectacular, thanks in large part to the wonderful art from Marcelo Costa, who manages to make every single panel a thing of beauty. The powers look stunning, outlined in this beautiful glowing blue that makes everything pop; but it's not just these moments that look great, with even the everyday moments looking something special. Art can really enhance a story, and this book is a prime example of it, where it enhances the quiet moments, and the spectacular ones too.
The first issue of Radiant Black sets up a lot of promise, without giving away too much of what's to come. The book leaves so many possibilities about what could happen next, and they're all incredibly exciting. With so many superhero books on the shelves it's wonderful to see a new entry that doesn't just hold up besides decades old mainstays like Spider-Man or Batman, but has me more excited to see what happens to them than those with the big publishers.
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