“Secret Identities”
Writers: Marc Andreyko
Artists: Jesus Saiz(p), Jimmy Palmiotti(i), Steve Buccellato(c)
Publisher: DC
My, oh, my. Where do I begin? What is my favorite part of the latest issue of Manhunter? So much from which to choose.
Let's start with pages two and three. Here, Marc Andreyko directs Jesus Saiz and Palmiotti to choreograph the one true Batgirl kicking the living daylights out of the focus flunky. Yes, the scene is flashback. It's the only way DC will allow Batgirl to be shown, but what matters to me is that she's not rolling over the guy's toes. Smile on her face, Buccellato fire in her hair, Batgirl smacks a yellow boot to his jaw! Yow! I almost had to take a cold shower after that.
Then Andreyko, Saiz, Palmiotti and Buccellato portray Firestorm properly and displays his atomic restructuring powers accurately. Here's the thing. I never liked Firestorm as much as the Puffy-Sleeve Brigade, yet this scene still made me grin.
Next, we get the clean-shaven Aquaman in orange shirt, green gloves and green, finned tights. Telepathic command of all aquatic life. Check.
These three scenes fit a theme. They all represent a time when DC's history was granite-solid, a time when the heroes actually fought and won against crime and a time when it was fun to read comic books. With Manhunter happy times are here again.
While this may be faint praise, Manhunter also known as Kate Spencer stands between Wonder Woman and Rita Farr as the best of DC's existing female super-heroes. Let me assure you though if a multiverse still teemed with parallel earths, Kate would have still been a dangerous and respected member of the super-hero pantheon.
Ostensibly, the fourth issue shifts the spotlight to the villainous low-level rat at the end of Batgirl's boot--Yow!, but the book still revolves around Kate. Andreyko characterizes her as one tough mamma. While all too human as shown by her nicotine addiction, Kate still is physically and mentally strong. The way she manipulates this suburban rodent is a thing of beauty, and Andreyko doesn't instill sympathy for the weasel for one moment. The guy was a loser before he entered witness protection, and he's still a loser. This attitude is completely subversive. In Manhunter, heroes are heroes, and villains are villains. This book isn't about Kate's dark descent into madness. This is about Kate Spencer's rise to become Manhunter. Super-heroes are not looked down upon in Kate's world. They are to be celebrated and revered.
The reader's sympathy does not waver from Kate. The ruthless way in which she twists Dylan Battles around her finger makes perfect sense and provides dark comedy. The original Bat-Man would have been proud of her less than legal tactics, which mean to serve justice.
Andreyko though does not just give to Kate a one-note performance. He contrasts her vigilante streak with a compassionate side. Her striking, realistic reaction to the death of a former JLA member is ten times the worth of Identity Crisis. Faint praise again, but I think you get the gist of what I'm saying.
Manhunter is a witty, thankfully angst-free portrayal of a female super-hero, and in the world of Manhunter, being a super-hero isn't a curse, but something to which one aspires. Easy to do so when you have artists like Jesus Saiz, Jimmy Palmiotti and Steve Buccellato. Easy also when Marc Andreyko respects his characters and the reader's intelligence.
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