Silver Glory

Astro City Special: Silver Agent #2

Alan Craig is the Silver Agent, one of Astro City’s greatest heroes. He’s been framed for a crime he didn’t commit, and he’s fated, quite unavoidably, to be executed. But he’s been plucked from the timestream in an attempt to stop a time-spanning crisis, and as he travels more and more through time, he discovers more and more people who have been inspired by him, who have read his memoirs, and who he is able to push into greatness, including plenty of superheroes and his nephew Thomas, who has grown up to become a Senator. And the more Alan travels in time, the more energy and power he picks up. Can he say all the goodbyes he needs to? Can he complete his missions? And can he resist the temptation to use his extra powers to save himself from the electric chair?

Verdict: Thumbs up. Several thousand thumbs up. It’s amazing how good this story is, how powerful it is. As important as the Silver Agent is in the “Astro City” comics, he’s never been a particularly fully-fleshed character — he’s always been there as a background element, as an inspiration to other heroes. But this little two-part story has given him a solid background, personality, motivations, and emotions — as solid as any long-time character in the series. It’s a beautiful and touching story, and it’s something that people will be talking about long into the future. Go pick it up.

Secret Six #25

Bane and Jeannette have their own new Secret Six of mercenaries, including Lady Vic, King Shark, Dwarfstar, and Giganta, who are all busy on the standard murderous missions. And the government wants them on the payroll. Meanwhile, Deadshot is threatening a doctor to make sure he’ll tell Black Alice that she didn’t cause her father’s cancer, and Catman is trying to commit suicide by zoo lions. And the government wants them working for them, too. They’re all going to a land that time forgot, to fight their way through dinosaurs and giant griffins, to annex some new territory for the US of A…

Verdict: Thumbs up. Not sure where this is all going, but it looks plenty entertaining. Catman’s existential crisis has got him back living on the edge, and Bane’s new team is amusingly dysfunctional.

Today’s Cool Links:

Honestly, I’m in the mood to subject you guys to creepy, scary stuff, so here’s:

• No Through Road
• A dance routine starring the nurses from “Silent Hill”
• And something I’ve probably directed y’all to before — “Marble Hornets.” Start with the Introduction, then head up the list…