An old school DC hero gets a revamp in this title. Imagine if Superman were a soldier in the U.S. military, and you’ve got a very cursory view of this guy.
General Information
Title: Captain Atom #1
Author: J.T. Krul
Illustrator(s): Freddie Williams II (art) and Jose Villarubia (colours)
Cover Date: November 2011
Cover Price: $2.99
Buy the digital edition.
Premise
Nathaniel Adams is fighting the good fight, defending the innocent when his powers seem to malfunction. Before he and the scientists he works with can get a good handle on what’s going on, he’s forced to go out in the field again to deal with two impossibly rare dangers.
High Point
His attitude. The selflessness of a hero is one of the key elements that keeps me coming back to comics, and it’s hard to get more selfless than Captain Atom in this issue.
Low Point
The art seems to go directly from pencils to colours. If it’s inked, it’s certainly not inked with black. That’s a valid artistic choice, I know, but to this long-time reader it just feels unfinished, as if they missed a step.
The Scores
This doesn’t feel original. Yes, the nature of his powers seem to have changed, and not just because he no longer appears to need a containment suit, but because the core conflict here is the same core conflict I found in the last Captain Atom story they published, which also happens to be the only Captain Atom story I’ve read. The latter is not their fault, but the former definitely is. I give it 3 out of 6.
The artwork feels unfinished due to stylistic choices and a sketchy feel to the line work. I give it 3 out of 6.
The story is told well enough, even if it is something I’ve seen before. Another science quibble: the strong nuclear force cannot do what Captain Atom does. Although it doesn’t sound as impressive, he would have actually used the electromagnetic or weak nucler forces to do that. I give it 5 out of 6.
The characterization of the lead is very well done. We don’t know his origins, but we know his priorities and thought processes. I give it 6 out of 6.
The emotional response is weak. When you kick off a new series with this particular threat, it’s hard to convince the readers that there’s any true danger of the hero failing to persevere. I give it 3 out of 6.
The flow is smooth enough. We move from scene to scene as quickly as our “fast” title character. I give it 5 out of 6.
Overall, this is a decent title, but just doesn’t do enough to stand out in the relaunch as a title worth following. I give it 4 out of 6.
In total, Captain Atom #1 receives 29 out of 42.
The New 52
Here are handy links for the reviews of all 52 new #1 issues:
- Action Comics
- All-Star Western
- Animal Man
- Aquaman
- Batgirl
- Batman
- Batman and Robin
- Batman: The Dark Knight
- Batwing
- Batwoman
- Birds of Prey
- Blackhawks
- Blue Beetle
- Captain Atom
- Catwoman
- DC Universe Presents
- Deathstroke
- Demon Knights
- Detective Comics
- The Flash
- Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E.
- The Fury of Firestorm
- Green Arrow
- Green Lantern
- Green Lantern Corps
- Green Lantern: New Guardians
- Grifter
- Hawk and Dove
- I, Vampire
- Justice League
- Justice League Dark
- Justice League International
- Legion Lost
- Legion of Super-Heroes
- Men of War
- Mister Terrific
- Nightwing
- O.M.A.C.
- Red Hood and the Outlaws
- Red Lanterns
- Resurrection Man
- The Savage Hawkman
- Static Shock
- Stormwatch
- Suicide Squad
- Superboy
- Supergirl
- Superman
- Swamp Thing
- Teen Titans
- Voodoo
- Wonder Woman