Goodness Is A Superpower!? — Reviewing ‘Absolute Power’ #3

When the phrase “absolute power corrupts absolutely” was coined, someone like an Amanda Waller was most definitely the intended target. How much power is truly enough power? Well, for people like that, there is no such end point.

That much is clear in Absolute Power #3 as Waller’s metahuman capturing coup goes global and the cracks in her control begin to show. It’s the penultimate chapter of the main miniseries courtesy of Mark Waid, Dan Mora, Alejandro Sánchez, and Ariana Maher.

On the one, very small, hand, seeing more of the heroes struggle and their successes might feel intriguing. On the other, bigger and far more appealing, hand, I love the pacing of this event. Not a bit of wasted space. Just a jam-packed rapid-paced situation, rocketing toward the end.

As a shorthand, we, the royal we, like to compare comic book events to blockbuster movies. While the mediums are vastly different, the concept comparison is solid. Both are meant to be packed with stars, with lots of money/attention put behind them, being monumentally large in comparison to other stories. Whether they achieve that or are worthy of that is subject for debate on an individual level.

Absolute Power is very much achieving and worthy of the event or blockbuster status.

Waid is a master of the DC Universe. No matter if it’s the biggest hitters (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, etc.) or the next biggest (Titans, JSA, etc.) or even those with barely a name to them, everyone feels tangible — no matter how much or little spotlight or moment they get. I can believe these heroes would work together, follow Nightwing’s orders, and end up triumphant (as we know they will).

Waller’s ambitions grow bigger by the moment, as her robotic minions come down with a case of “conscience” after absorbing hero powers (the “goodness is a %$#& superpower?” exclamation was golden) just works. It’s not over the top, or forced, or out of the question. More often than not it’s the vastness of their ambition and ego that tears such people down more so than any heroic measures.

If we’re talking blockbusters, Mora is surely an artist to have on speed dial. Everything the man creates, be it a simple emotional moment or a massive fight, feels epically grand. Full of depth, details, and power at every turn. Everything has legitimate weight on the page and we feel every single thing instantly.

A large portion of what makes it work is the framing and paneling choices. Slipping from wider open full shots to the tighter close-up styles in order to really sell moments. It allows us to feel accurately within the moments, not as passive observers but full on participants. We’re never the flies on the wall, but the flies flitting away for our lives.

Mora’s eye for action just hits so hard every time. They said you’ll believe a man can fly about the ’78 Superman film, well here I’ll believe a person can fly, super run, smash a fist through someone, and so much more. Kinetic energy ripples through every single image on the page.

We’re in the middle of a vastly dark (it is a power coup after all) but hopeful story. Sánchez hits those beats with the varying color palettes in play. One moment things are shadowy, dark, and cold before becoming bright, warm, and comforting. It fits the different spaces we visit here, from Waller’s sterile dark base to the shores of gorgeous Themyscira. Unique spaces with their own lighting, atmosphere, and tonal identities. Given life just by the simple way the colors ebb and flow to match.

They’re also quite slick and smooth, really merging with Mora’s work. It creates a dynamic heroic feeling at every turn.

Similar can always be said about what Maher brings to any book. She allows the lettering to really breathe and find it’s place. She is delivering the intended story beats but also creating unique powerful personality filled voices here. Giving robotic characters or others different fonts and bubbles (color and shape) is where it starts. To really achieve it means infusing those changes with the right emotions and energy, to sell us on what we’re reading.

There is a reason that Maher is on so many books, she does all that so simply. Taking lettering to that next logical level that really stands out and makes the whole story even more engaging.

Absolute Power #3 is now available from DC Comics.