Powers - Volume 2: Roleplay [ハードカバー]

The strength of Powers lies in its almost flawless craftsmanship. The series balances heavy drama and sharp wit, larger-than-life heroes and fully realized characters. The razor-sharp writing is complimented by the stylized, cartoonish art and drab colors. These are creators in full control of their art form.

Storywise, "Roleplay" brings the concept of heroes down to the level of impressionable college students. Those without powers long to have them. Lacking an incident of cosmic chance, the best they can do is play dress-up. These innocent games draw the wrong sort of attention. Its a Powers comic, so people die. Homicide detectives Walker and Pilgrim are on the job.

This comic had interesting characters, good dialog and a great setting. The plot isn't anything new (tracking down a serial killer) but it is executed well in this setting.

The two main characters, Detectives Pilgrim and Walker, are normal humans who investigate crimes related to "Powers" (superhumans). The focus here is more on the crime and the characters than it is on powers and special effects. This is what makes the comic so good. Instead of 10 pages of laser beams and force fields, you get dialog, characterization and story. Sure, there are superhumans around, but they are more background than focus.

So, if you stopped reading comics because everything seemed the same, give this one a shot. (The first one in the series is not as strong, although still worth a read.)

Their new case is the slaying of a group of College students. All were found wearing Super-Hero costumes. They were part of a campus Role-Playing game that involved roaming the city dressed as Super-Powered individuals (which is illegal in itself, as non-licensed costume wearers are subject to jail time..), and were all "On Patrol" when murdered. All clues point to a long-vanished Mob Enforcer called "The Pulp"....But why come back after all these years....and why kill defenseless kids? This is the mystery at the core of Role Play, and the answer is a shocker.

Brian Michael Bendis' writing is, as usual, top-notch; I do wish someone would carefully proof-read his stuff, though...There are numerous spelling errors, and he can't seem to differentiate between "Yours" and Your's". Stuff like that makes a book look amateurish, no matter how good everything else might be.

Artist Mike Avon Oeming has a deceptive style; It looks cartoony at first glance, but soon draws you in with an amazing depth of facial expressions and true talent for making "Talking Head" sequences come alive.

Powers: Role Play is totally self-contained, and no prior knowledge of the series or characters is necessary. Fans of Superheroes and/or Crime fiction will have a blast.