Black Hammer: Secret Origins

First there were superhero comics, then there were meditations on superhero comics. The first and best of these was Allan Moore's Watchmen, but Jeff Lemire's Black Hammer is pretty good. I've just read the compilation of the first six issues, subtitled Secret Origins, and I'm hooked for more.

Like Watchmen, the premise is that superheros are real. A group of them defeated a monster called Anti-God and disappeared, presumed dead. But they are alive in a small farming town, unable to leave, trying to blend in.

The heroes here are a Captain America-like Abraham Slam; Glorious Gail, who says a magic phrase and turns into a superhero, the only catch being that she reverts to a nine-year-old-girl; Captain Weird, an astronaut who acts as if he just had the worst acid trip of all time; Madame Dragonfly, a witch of some sort; and Barbalien, a Warlord of Mars, who looks a bit like Groot but can transform himself into human appearance. Captain Weird also has a robot side-kick, Talky-Walky.

Black Hammer is the hero who died when the heroes found themselves zapped into the town. Who sent them there, and why? Slam tries to make the best of things, actually farming, and is dating a waitress, whose ex-husband is a cop, while Gail has the unfortunate condition of being a middle-aged woman trapped in a prepubescent girl's body. Barbalien is attracted to men, and has a crush on the local priest.

Each of the issues deals with one of the heroes, broadly sketching who they are, but there is no action to speak of, so those looking for a quick fix of comic book derring-do might be disappointed. Lemire does have fun with this, as one of the villains is called Sherlock Frankenstein, and in the back of the book, gives a history for each character, as if they were golden or silver age comic book fixtures.

As I have a weakness for witches, my favorite character is Madame Dragonfly, who had an affair with a swamp thing. She lives in a cabin with many doors, and it isn't a good idea to go inside.

The art-work is by Dean Ormston, and it seems realistic, until you look closer. Many of the faces seem incomplete, as if they were falling apart. Ormstein drew some of this after having a stroke that affected his hands.

I'm eager to see more.