The major comic companies get enough reviews and press, it’s time for the creator-owned and indie series to get some love and judgment. Indie review takes up-and-coming indie and creator-owned series and puts them through the review process so you can confidently support the best of the small press and passion driven projects in the comic industry.

 

The Info Bit

Title: Idolized #0

Genre/s: Superhero

Writer: David Schwartz

Penciler: Micah Gunnell

Colorist: David Curiel

Letter: Josh Reed

Publisher: Aspen MLT

Page Count: 21

Price: $2.50

 

The Review Bit

 

Idolized is another comic that bridges reality TV with superheroes, and once again proves the combination is rather incredible. Following the television show, Superhero Idol, and its contestant, Leslie Linnell (Joule), Idolized is taking a unique twist as compared to America’s Got Powers or the third volume of The New Warriors. While the reality TV series definitely sets a background for the superhero tale, the story seems primarily about the young miss Linnell and her quest for vengeance. The zero issue sets the stage for the 6-issue long miniseries, and truly sells readers on the title.

The zero issue of Idolized can truthfully be broken down into three parts: the ad for Superhero Idol, the story of Leslie, and Super People magazine. The comic opens almost like turning on your television at the start of an advertisement for American Idol. Readers are given the basic idea of what the reality TV show will be about and all the rules and hype your would normally expect from a commercial promoting a new audience voting reality series. Amazingly, this tactic works great for a zero issue, as it builds up the kind of hype and interest that makes you want to read the comic and see what’s going to happen. If you’ve ever been sold on a show like America’s Got Talent or The Voice based on their preview ads, you’re going to read Idolized #0 and be hooked. From there, the comic seamlessly segues to the introduction of Idolized’s main character, Leslie Linnell. This is the moment she has first seen the advertisement for Superhero Idol and is the same position as us, she’s hooked! However, unlike most of us, she is hooked because she wants to be a contestant and we soon learn exactly why that is. Let’s just say Leslie is not trying to be a reality TV star and certainly has ulterior motives. This section of the comic is narrated by Leslie and gives us her background and a hint at the future of the show, seemingly narrated from a period after all the events soon to take place in this miniseries.

While the aforementioned is the entirety of the comic’s sequential art, this is an Aspen MLT zero issue. Most of Aspen’s zero issues contain some form of interview or behind the scenes style back matter in their comic to help further sell you on the series. Idolized takes a slightly different approach by giving you excerpts of a fictitious magazine, entitled Super People. The magazine provides an in continuity look at the world of Idolized, with an interview from the reality TV series’ host, Noah Rey, and “classified” documents that range from government emails to audition review forms from Superhero Idol. The content is all rather creative and fun, while truly bringing to life the Idolized universe, making it somehow slightly more tangible. In fact, this back matter even gives us a greater depth for character interaction involving characters we haven’t even been introduced to yet! While I’m not exactly certain who ACE or Anthony Michaels of the Power Protectors are yet, I’m now certain that their interactions will be an interesting one that will affect the series in some rather dramatic ways.

In these and many other ways, David Schwartz has put together a great preview issue to his upcoming miniseries. It accomplishes all you would want in a zero issue, selling readers on the miniseries before the miniseries even properly starts. His creative use of the three entirely different narratives is also rather exemplary, and a perfect example of the potential for story telling in comic books.

Meanwhile, Micah Gunnell and David Curiel put together some beautiful artwork for the comic. While Micah is no George Perez on the group shots, his characters have such great variation in facial expressions that it truly brings them to life. The various attitudes of superhero contestants, given off in their expressions and stances, in the early pages speak so much of characteristics given to characters that may never appear again, it’s somewhat like watching Star Wars and knowing that any one of these characters could now spin-off into their own title. It is also the little things that make Micah’s art so great, such as what looks to be an Action Comics #1 homage on page 10, where a man in a suit runs from some superpower chaos whilst holding his head tightly in fear. Yet it is the full-page splash showing off The Powered Protectors (Idolized’s equivalent of the Justice League or The Avengers) in their dynamic upward flight that just leaves my jaw on the floor in its intense beauty. Curiel’s coloring compliments the art greatly, with amazing color, but it does somewhat lack when compared to some of the other colors seen from Aspen (a company known for loaning out their colorists to the big two for big comics).Yet in every way, from art to words, this zero issue stands out as the start of something great.

 EDIT: This review was based off an advance PDF, which was of course lower quality than the actual comic and had inferior colors. However, in the print version of Idolized the colors, from David Curiel, are actually quite beautiful and on par with what is normally expected from Aspen.

 

The Rating Bit

Idolized #0 is perhaps the greatest zero issue I’ve read to date, accomplishing everything you’d want to sell fans on a new mini-series. The story is interesting, the art is good, and the price is quite affordable. Because of this, Idolized #0 earns a very powerful 9 out of 10 right from the start. You can pick up Idolized #0 in stores tomorrow, and follow the adventures of Leslie “Joule” Linnell each month from Aspen as the miniseries kicks off this August.