Wednesday Number Ones 7/6/12

Wednesday Number Ones is a weekly feature here at Top 5 Comics. We take the books that are premiering a first issue from that week and give a quick opinion on them. From time to time we may also include more than issue number ones in this feature. If a noteworthy one-shot or the first issue of a new story arc is released, we may talk about it in this feature as well.

This week, we will cover:  He-Man and the Masters of the Universe #1 and Hero Worship #1.

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe #1
Writer: James Robinson
Artist: Philip Tan
Company: DC Comics

Sometimes you really hope that people would embrace the cheesiness of a property and really just run with the notion and have some fun. While I do think James Robinson does a decent job with this first issue of He-Man, he certainly doesn't embrace the campy 80's cartoon vibe. Instead, he brings a more serious style of story to it, one that focuses much more on Prince Adam (though referenced only as Adam this time out) and only alludes to the Power that may lie in Greyskull. The pacing is a little slow, which is the issue's biggest flaw, but any He-Man fan will have fun picking out the nods to continuity that Robinson throws in. Philip Tan, who helped relaunch the Hawkman title for the New 52, handles the art. It's overall a solid affair, though the sketchiness of his lines in combination with the two inkers who worked on the book sometimes muddles the panels a bit. Other than that, Tan solidly captures the likenesses and gets to revel in some claw versus ax shenanigans. Worth checking out, especially if you loved the cartoon.

Hero Worship #1
Writer: Zak Penn
Artist: Michael DiPascale
Company: Avatar Press

Some interesting ideas in the mix, but there are a few things missing from this one. Zak Penn, the man behind many Hollywood comic book ventures, takes a stab at a world that has essentially been blessed with the emergence of their very own superhero. The idea of fans forming groups addicted to the hero's appearance, something that sort of happens in our own world, and the construction of a building dedicated to all things Zenith (the name of the hero) are interesting and sets a unique tone for the book overall. It's Penn's main character, Adam, a nobody who is addicted to Zenith in every way, shape, and form, that's a little bland. He's an every-man, but he doesn't instill any great desire to follow his footsteps. DiPascale's artwork is pretty looking, but takes photo-realism to the level where things look too static, which can be distracting when some big action stuff takes place. So yeah, Hero Worship is a very hit and miss outing. I also couldn't help but feel that some of the antics have a very Chronicle-esque vibe to them. Not that they were stolen from one another or anything, it's more that there's only so much you can do with teenagers and superpowers, and truthfully, Chronicle was a better example of it.