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starwolf_oakley (starwolf_oakley) wrote in scans_daily,
@ 2009-09-10 14:55:00

Entry tags:

char: savior 28, creator: j.m. dematteis, creator: mike cavallaro, publisher: idw

LIFE AND TIMES OF SAVIOR 28: An ending
The final issue of J.M. DeMatteis and Mike Cavallaro's miniseries, THE LIFE AND TIMES OF SAVIOR 28. The series is told mostly out of order regarding the life of Savior 28, a Superman/Captain America pastiche who has decided the time has come to really change the world. It is narrated by Dennis McNulty, his former sidekick who later assassinated him.

Here is the CBR full preview.

Let's hope Savior 28 didn't say "hip time, daddy-o" too often.

An early reviewof this issue was on AICN.com by Matt Adler. Some excerpts from him and series artist Mike Cavallaro are below.

Savior 28 appears before the UN with Queen Shakti and Hadrach the Lemurian, two "bad guys" that have dreamed of a better world.

It's not saying he's going to destroy all the nuclear weapons in the world and everyone applauding, but what exactly was James Smith hoping for here?

Savior 28 is mixing up cause and effect regarding all the racism in America in World War II. From Adler's review:

The US tried pretty strenuously to stay out of WWII (some would say too strenuously, given the events in Europe). That is not to say that having the role of defender against an aggressor excuses all actions on the defender’s part, but it does make a difference in the moral equation, I think.

As for hating Germany and Japan and vowing to destroy them: to be sure, once the war started, jingoism was whipped up to fuel the war effort, and racism was a pretty integral part of that (see the internment camps). But I think it is also important to note that this was an EFFECT, not a cause, of the war.

McNulty is getting more and more bitter throughout the story, although he is careful to say that even thought James Smith had a lot of problems, he had a "good heart." And it's clear that Savior 28 wants to save lives. While his origin is very vague (even for a superhero), James Smith decency is why he got his powers in the first place.

Savior 28 went catatonic after liberating a concentration camp in issue #2 of the series.

Here's one more excerpt from the review:

Another point DeMatteis makes-- and it’s one I’ll have to ponder, since I’m not sure where I stand on it—is that heroes are seen more as leaders, rather than celebrities. He uses the public revelation of Savior’s mental breakdown to make that point that while people may be able to understand and empathize with loved ones who go through personal problems, or sympathize with celebrities going through very public personal struggles, they are not so tolerant of their leaders’ personal problems, saying “…if they so much as admit they’ve been to a therapist—we toss them right out the door” (perhaps alluding to George McGovern’s 1972 running mate). Are our heroes our leaders (or for that matter, vice versa)? I’m not sure.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, I don't like comic book stories that portray mental illness as some sort of moral failing, since it happens too much in real life. That doesn't seem to be the case here.

Even though he's been discredited as a crazy person, Savior 28 doesn't go away. Even with bullets made out of the "Master Stone" that gave Smith his powers and slowed McNulty's aging. We also find out exactly why McNulty was ordered to/decided to kill Savior 28: many government people were terrified of a superhuman (with a history of mental illness and alcohol abuse) on the verge of exploding in rage/pain/etc. and taking the country or the world down with him.

As with the Captain America story that DeMatteis originally planned which became this series 20+ years later, Savior 28's death results in Peace on Earth for exactly one minute.

There is a twist or two to the ending, as well as a mystery or two that remains unsolved. Still, this is a well written, well drawn series that deserves a look beyond getting tossed onto the "deconstruction of the superhero" pile.

Extra info:

While Dennis McNulty looks a lot like Jack Kirby, Mike Cavallaro himself has said he didn't intend McNulty to look like Kirby, instead more like James Cagney and Leo Gorcey.

From Mr. Cavallaro:

"So yes, Dennis does kinda look like Jack Kirby. But he also kinda looks like James Cagney with maybe a little Leo Gorcey, which is what I was really shooting for.

No attempt was made by either J.M. nor myself to draw any connection between Jack Kirby's beliefs and those of the character, Dennis McNulty."

"Point of view" and "perspective" is mentioned a lot in this story. Are Dennis' descriptions of Jimmy just what Dennis saw? Dennis is also big on saying "Jimmy saw me as his slobbering lapdog when I was his sidekick, and a base impostor when I stood in for him." Was this really what Jimmy thought, or how Dennis saw *himself*? Dennis would not be the first person to think "I was an idiot when I was 15."

I was wrong about another thing in this series. I thought the attacks on September 11 happened on September 12 for important reasons the story would reveal. No, they happened on September 11 in this story.

(Post a new comment)

	cmdr_zoom 2009-09-11 12:43 am UTC (link)
	The RL political commentary is not at all subtle. And I say that as a critic of the ones who appear to be the targets. (Reply to this)

ashtoreth
2009-09-11 12:50 am UTC (link)

It's common to portray heroes as gods with some sort of king-type relationship with a certain flock. Of course they're not all celebrities. The ones who deal in fear are nightmares, whose rules are made clear. Deal in crime, and you're prey. The innocent are protected.

Startlingly enough, this notion occurs often in descriptions of faerie-types. They're either vindictive toward evil or carelessly cruel. Both of which sound like superheroes and villains.

DeMatteis is a good writer, but I find that you always get more out of his stuff if you know the background he's working with.

(Reply to this)

	goblinthebamf 2009-09-12 01:57 am UTC (link)
	any idea if this'll be collected in a trade? (Reply to this) (Thread)

	starwolf_oakley 2009-09-12 04:38 pm UTC (link)
	Presumably, although it hasn't been solicited yet. (Reply to this) (Parent)

psychop_rex
2009-09-13 08:38 am UTC (link)

Hrrrm. I dunno - I think DeMatteis is perhaps being a tad sensationalist. Yes, if a major superhero spoke at the UN along with two major supervillains, it would doubtless cause a major uproar, and I have no doubt that there'd be a number of rightwing lunatics screaming for his blood, but I doubt that the entire COUNTRY would turn against him. If the man's been saving lives and fighting crime for sixty years or so, I would think that would win him a fair amount of followers that would stand behind him, especially if he was speaking for peace. I mean, during the Bush era, it's not like the majority of people were going 'AMERICA'S ENEMIES MUST DIE!!' - far from it. Just about everyone I know was saying 'Bush is an idiot, get us out of Iraq, we want peace'. If Savior 28 was saying something similar, I'm pretty certain he'd have followers, regardless of who he hung out with.

(Reply to this)

cylversaber
2009-09-18 04:22 am UTC (link)

Hey guys, glad you enjoyed the review. To address a couple of the points made here; I think "heroes" in this context doesn't refer just to any costumed vigilante; it refers to public figures we admire or look up to, which I think is what the celebrity vs. leader debate is all about.

As for the address at the UN; although I agree that some people would still support Savior (and I think DeMatteis reflected that), the main point is that there would be enough of an outcry that it would overwhelm the supporters (who would probably be less vocal) and it would lead to an overall ostracization. Look what happened to the Dixie Chicks; they got dropped from being played on several major radio networks and their careers never fully recovered after that. Bill Maher lost his show on ABC. Guys like Michael Moore and Sean Penn get painted as "left-wing loons" for their opppostion to the war. Ultimately, it's not a question of whether EVERYONE turns against you; if a large number of vocal and angry people do, it's enough to have a significant chilling effect.

(Reply to this) (Thread)

starwolf_oakley
2009-09-28 06:17 pm UTC (link)

Very good points all around.

An odd part of this series was certain things mentioned that presumably would have gone into more detail if there had been 6 issues (as originally planned) instead of 5.

Issue 2 has Dick Chaney talking to Dennis, worried that Savior 28 "knows" something after telling the heroes and villains that all the fighting is just a distraction and "every comforting lie." Issue #3 had Savior 28 talking to Samantha's daughter, and her saying "My father jumped out a window when I was six months old, leaving me with the BITCH FROM HELL." Things like that could have used some details, even if they are from Dennis' skewed perspective.

Finally, it is a little strange that the Powers That Be would decide to discredit Savior 28 (by mentioning his nervous breakdown back in the 40s) but somehow not realize he'd still stick around. Unless they figured "First disgrace him, then kill him."

Any thoughts?

(Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	starwolf_oakley 2009-09-28 09:00 pm UTC (link)
	JM DeMatteis himself answered these questions for me on his Blog. http://jmdematteis.blogspot.com (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

	cylversaber 2009-10-01 12:44 pm UTC (link)
	That's really disappointing that IDW would cut it like that. It'd be nice if they did an expanded version in the collected edition. (Reply to this) (Parent)