Review: ‘SHAZAM’ #9 Is A Silly Little Distraction
by Tony Thornley
The Captain’s return to prominence has been one of the highlights of the Dawn of DC publishing initiative. In SHAZAM! #9, he brings a guest star with him to join in the fun.
Mark Waid, Emanuela Lupacchino, Trish Mulvhill and Troy Peteri give Billy Batson the Creeps.
The Creeper has come to Philly, looking for the Captain. Unfortunately for Billy Batson, he underestimates how smart Jack Ryder really is, and finds himself in a touch spot. Does the insane anti-hero have an ulterior motive, or is he seeking to use the Captain’s abilities for nefarious purposes?
I wanted to like this issue more than I actually did. It’s a perfect recipe for what I usually enjoy in a book. It’s a sharply written team-up adventure with an unexpected co-star and a long-forgotten antagonist- the Shadow Thief. Waid also continues his aptitude for writing Billy, by finding a clever way for Billy to find the Shadow Thief on a dark night.
Where this falls short is that this is now the third issue since the end of the first arc, and we’ve yet to see anything addressed from that arc. Issue #6 ended with Freddy having made a deal with SHAZAM’s patron gods, yet nothing’s been addressed there. Additionally, Billy and Black Adam wrecked the family’s home in the last two issues and that barely gets a mention. It’s a good issue, but frankly it’s a bit of a distraction when there’s more interesting plots sitting in front of us.
Lupacchino’s art is a huge reason to pick up this issue. Her characters are extremely expressive, which is exactly what’s needed for both the maniacal Creeper and multi-faceted personality of Billy Batson. Her depiction of the Shadow Thief was a serious highlight, balancing the frightening nature of his powers with a relatively realistic depiction on the page. Mulvhill’s colors lean towards the brighter side, despite the shadowy villain, and she mostly leans towards more flat colors, which helps Lupacchino’s lines pop more.
This issue is as dialogue heavy as it is action heavy, and Peteri rises to the challenge. He makes for a strong flow for the conversation between Jack and Billy, and doesn’t crowd the page with Billy’s side thoughts.
SHAZAM! #9 is available now from DC Comics.
Overview
Despite its faults, I did like this issue a lot. I just hope we don’t get another issue of treading water before the series big plots get picked back up.
