Image comics put out some really zany comics when they emerged on the scene in the 1990s. They were over-the-top and drawn in an, "Extreme," manner. Big guns, a lot of pouches, extremely sexy women, extremely muscular men, and the like. "Local Man," is a new comic by Tim Seely and Tony Fleecs that riffs on some of those ideas via a clever flip-comic format that focuses on a hero named Crossjack back when he was on a wild team a lot like Image's early days and follows him in a much more subdued modern day story that has a slice-of-life vibe as Jack (his real name) finds himself back in his hometown and kicked-off the hero team with a bunch of pending lawsuits. It's a cleverly meta idea to both pay tribute to the excesses of the 90s and make some fun of them while also telling a story about what a hero might do when their glory days are behind them.
It isn't quite clear what Jack did, but from reading between the lines it seems he maybe had an affair with someone on the superhero team who was with someone else and it turned into a huge scandal. I wouldn't be surprised if there is more to the story, however, as the end of the issue also introduces some kind of murder mystery that piques my interest too. Seely and Fleecs are both skilled writers and artists and watching them collaborate results in a fantastic debut issue. I really enjoyed the start of, "Local Man," and am curious about where things could go. If you like your superhero stories a little more off-kilter or have a mixture of pride and embarrassment about loving comics in the 90s this is worth picking up.
5 out of 5 stars.
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