Manhunter #1-20
One of the things that I've always liked about the DC titles (and their now-assimilated 40's counterparts) is their general reliance on fictional cities. Marvel's reliance on the New York area had the effect of slightly alienating non-New Yorkers as well as overly raising a young kid's expectations for what New York would be like once I finally got there. Obviously, this isn't a problem with Metropolis, as Metropolis will always be just as I imagine it (and I don't feel resentment for Metropolis residents).
Additionally, the fictional city has the distinct advantage of giving a writer a whole lot of room to define their setting as much as they need. Obviously, Opal City is the benchmark here, but Vanity, Gotham, Metropolis, Hub, etc. all have their own characteristics that wouldn't be there if they were set in a real-life city. Of course, you end up running a bit of a risk of letting the city become largely flavorless and faceless (like Gateway City, Star City, Calvin City, etc.) or just flat recreations of existing cities. But, you don't end up distracting readers with mis-characterizations of cities readers are fully familiar with.
Which brings us to Manhunter. I lived in Los Angeles for about three years before moving to Portland, so I'm full of gripes as to how the city is portrayed. First off, do any native Angelenos go to Mel's Drive-In in a non-ironic fashion? Can assistants at the DA's office afford (or even get reservations) at Murakami? Are there a lot of vacant Chemosphere-knockoff houses that hallunicating ex-superheroes can easily squat in?
Setting all these questions aside, I really enjoyed Manhunter quite a bit, especially for a series that has the misfortune to launch in the midst of DC's cross-over mania. It integrates the required distractions (e.g., sudden appearances of OMAC's) into the plot nicely, without really feeling like everything has come to a dead stop to accomodate company-wide policy. My only real complaint (LA-based griping aside) comes from the shift of the focus of the series away from a courtroom drama-based superhero story into more of a story about a superhero who happens to be a DA.
I'm clearly a sucker for any series or story that deals with ramifications of superherodom in daily life. Gotham Central was really very good (once I got over the degree to which they were lifting from Homicide), so I was kind of excited to read a book that was going to do something similar for a legal drama. Later issues feature Kate's job as more of an annoyance - her boss is angry at her for not paying attention to her work - instead of as a fairly central part of the character.
All of which isn't to say I didn't like the series. I actually have a pretty good feel for the central characters. The dialogue is well-written (unlike a lot of what I'm encountering with my recent foray into reading every OYL title). Andreyko clearly enjoys having the whole DC universe at their disposal (quite literally - I can't recall another non-event title I've read that was so willing to kill off long-running characters). Maybe it's the rush on C-list villains from titles like this and Villains United that's driving people to Mike Barr characters...
Finally, I'm enjoying the re-appearance of Todd Rice. His storyline in JSA was pretty great, and his background rehabilition was handled well-enough over there that I'm very willing to buy his pretty major character realignment here (at some point, I'll get around to unearthing my Infinity, Inc. back issues to refresh my memory of what the character was like before Johns started messing with him).
Oh, and the highlight of the series, by far, is Damon's attempt to pick up Hawkman. I wonder if he gets that a lot. Wearing nothing but leather straps on your chest isn't really a look you see outside of moderate pride parades and WeHo nightclubs (again - WeHo? I've certainly seen it in print, but I've known a lot of people who lived in and near West Hollywood, and I don't think I've ever heard anyone say that out loud.)
Additionally, the fictional city has the distinct advantage of giving a writer a whole lot of room to define their setting as much as they need. Obviously, Opal City is the benchmark here, but Vanity, Gotham, Metropolis, Hub, etc. all have their own characteristics that wouldn't be there if they were set in a real-life city. Of course, you end up running a bit of a risk of letting the city become largely flavorless and faceless (like Gateway City, Star City, Calvin City, etc.) or just flat recreations of existing cities. But, you don't end up distracting readers with mis-characterizations of cities readers are fully familiar with.
Which brings us to Manhunter. I lived in Los Angeles for about three years before moving to Portland, so I'm full of gripes as to how the city is portrayed. First off, do any native Angelenos go to Mel's Drive-In in a non-ironic fashion? Can assistants at the DA's office afford (or even get reservations) at Murakami? Are there a lot of vacant Chemosphere-knockoff houses that hallunicating ex-superheroes can easily squat in?
Setting all these questions aside, I really enjoyed Manhunter quite a bit, especially for a series that has the misfortune to launch in the midst of DC's cross-over mania. It integrates the required distractions (e.g., sudden appearances of OMAC's) into the plot nicely, without really feeling like everything has come to a dead stop to accomodate company-wide policy. My only real complaint (LA-based griping aside) comes from the shift of the focus of the series away from a courtroom drama-based superhero story into more of a story about a superhero who happens to be a DA.
I'm clearly a sucker for any series or story that deals with ramifications of superherodom in daily life. Gotham Central was really very good (once I got over the degree to which they were lifting from Homicide), so I was kind of excited to read a book that was going to do something similar for a legal drama. Later issues feature Kate's job as more of an annoyance - her boss is angry at her for not paying attention to her work - instead of as a fairly central part of the character.
All of which isn't to say I didn't like the series. I actually have a pretty good feel for the central characters. The dialogue is well-written (unlike a lot of what I'm encountering with my recent foray into reading every OYL title). Andreyko clearly enjoys having the whole DC universe at their disposal (quite literally - I can't recall another non-event title I've read that was so willing to kill off long-running characters). Maybe it's the rush on C-list villains from titles like this and Villains United that's driving people to Mike Barr characters...
Finally, I'm enjoying the re-appearance of Todd Rice. His storyline in JSA was pretty great, and his background rehabilition was handled well-enough over there that I'm very willing to buy his pretty major character realignment here (at some point, I'll get around to unearthing my Infinity, Inc. back issues to refresh my memory of what the character was like before Johns started messing with him).
Oh, and the highlight of the series, by far, is Damon's attempt to pick up Hawkman. I wonder if he gets that a lot. Wearing nothing but leather straps on your chest isn't really a look you see outside of moderate pride parades and WeHo nightclubs (again - WeHo? I've certainly seen it in print, but I've known a lot of people who lived in and near West Hollywood, and I don't think I've ever heard anyone say that out loud.)
posted by padgett at
4:20 PM
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