As I've written before, the original series was an outstanding combination of a great concept (hero fighting for humanity in a seemingly utopian future), good writing and terrific art by Russ Manning.
The character has been revived a couple of times to somewhat mixed success, so it's with some trepidation that I approached this new series from Dynamite.
It starts with what may or may not be a dream sequence, with a man named Dr. Magnus teaching students in an idyllic mountain village - but an invasion by robots seems to shatter the dream, and Magnus finds himself lost in a futuristic civilization.
He finds he has steel-shattering strength and skills - but will they be enough against an entire city?
It's an interesting modern (or even futuristic) take on the concept, and while I'm still a bit on the fence, I'm interested enough to return for the next issue to see where it goes from here.
The art is by Cory Smith, and it's good, but in a more gritty style than the original clean Manning design. The futuristic setting is unique and believable, although I miss the original robot designs, too. Smith's are more realistic and practical, but not as much fun.
This is where I usually rant about the tendency of modern comics to only give us a grim and gritty, things-are-terrible future - which seems to be what we're getting here. But for now, I'll just wait and give the series a few more issues before passing final judgment.
Grade: B+
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