Powers 9: Psychotic

Comic Info

Powers (2) #7

Reprints Powers (2) #7-12 (December 2004-July 2005).  Keeping up with both crime and enforcing the anti-Powers ban is catching up with Deena and Christian.  When Blackguard is shot down, Pilgrim and Walker find that Blackguard isn’t who everyone thinks it is.  A potentially dangerous weapon is loose on the streets, and Walker’s new protégé Calista might have to step in.  Deena deals with the revelation that she might now be a Power, and it could have deadly consequences.

Written by Brian Michael Bendis, Powers Volume 9:  Psychotic is Marvel Comics superhero comic book collection published under the Icon imprint.  Following Powers Volume 8:  Legends, the collection features art by Mike Avon Oeming.  Issues in the collection were also included as part of Powers—Book 4 and Powers:  Definitive Collection—Volume 4.

Powers really feels like it ended in Powers 7:  Forever and now, Bendis is trying to rebuild and develop the next big storyline with the series relaunch.  The development that Deena has gotten powers combines with her shady actions in her past…and this leaves a fan favorite character feeling slightly tarnished, but Powers does tarnished well.

The core story in this collection isn’t the most interesting, and it feels like other storylines have touched on it.  The power source of Blackguard has disappeared after being sold off by the original Blackguard (due to the Powers ban), and now the police must track it down.  It of course leads to one of the most obvious suspects though the motivation is a bit questionable.  It is a solid Powers story, but I think that it needs a different approach since the series is reestablishing itself.

Powers (2) #10

With this volume and the last volume, it feels like the comic’s story should be more focused on the problems of banning Powers and how to enforce that.  I like the trap set in the book for Blackguard, and I think more of capturing and the cat-and-mouse game between existing Powers maybe should have been the focus…are the heroes really villains or are they actually good?  The role of superheroes is a part of some of the bigger discussions in the collection as part of TV series debating Powers (which feel a bit like Spawn’s talking heads).

The lurking story is the story of Deena and her new powers.  Deena is my favorite character of the series, but I feel she needs a bit of a break.  She’s done some rather questionable things over the course of the series (which makes her interesting).  The temptation of power might be a good storyline, but I also don’t want the character ruined.  It is hard to go back from a “powers” storyline…and I don’t know if it is the right “bigger picture” plan for the comic.

Powers is a good series, and it continues to evolve.  Like life, you can’t always pick your direction, and I can’t pick the direction of Powers.  I wish this volume had been a bit more dynamic, but it is still one of the better reads in comic books.  Powers 9:  Psychotic is followed by Powers 10:  Cosmic.

Preceded By:

Powers 8:  Legends