Irredeemable – Proof that Mark Waid is a sick man

I picked up Mark Waid’s Irredeemable out of sheer curiosity. Mark Waid has always had a reputation as a staunch defender of the silver age – the champion of “gee-whiz” mentality and square-jawed heroics. This isn’t to say that his writing lacks complexity or is juvenile in any way, because I’ve always found his work to be excellent and full of emotional depth. His plots may not be wildly imaginative like Grant Morrison or Warren Ellis, and he may not condense and revise history the way Geoff Johns can, but he can make readers care about characters. After all, Waid is responsible for making Wally West a better Flash than Barry Allen.

The initial premise of Irredeemable wasn’t wholly original, but it wasn’t just another Waid book. Essentially, the book is about what Superman would be like if he were evil. Not much more needs to be known than that in order to get into the book and at first glance, it doesn’t seem particularly deep.

But give it time . . .

The Plutonian is the Superman analogue in Irredeemable. The first twelve issues of the series divide their focus between the last remaining heroes divising a plan to defeat the Plutonian and the back story on why he turned. While some saw the book as a bit of a slow burn at first, this is because Waid is doing what he does best; creating sympathetic characters. Anyone going into the comic expecting lots of wild action with super-powered behemoths launching each other into buildings is going to be sorely disappointed, but if that were the crux of the story, it wouldn’t be half as entertaining as Irredeemable‘s complex emotional roller coaster.

While lesser writers would craft a tale of how absolute power corrupts absolutely, Waid takes a more humanistic approach as he slowly uncovers the frustrations that built towards Plutonian’s fall. When a Lois Lane analogue exposes Plutonian’s secret identity, the revelation isn’t met with joy, but rather, frustration as Plutonian laments the loss of the only sense of privacy that he had.

While there are many other reasons for the Plutonian’s change, this one sticks out as the most human. To see the slow transformation of the hero is a much more believable idea than a single traumatic action and it makes the reader sympathize with the villain of the story more than any other character in recent memory.

In fact, at some point after issue 12, the reader begins to side with the Plutonian in thinking that maybe humanity isn’t worth saving. Maybe all of the frustrations endured by the former hero are all completely justified in making him who he is. This is the magic of Mark Waid . . . he has taken his ability to craft sympathetic characters and used it to create a rounded villain.

While the supporting cast isn’t quite as rich and complex as the Plutonian, they all have their moments to shine. Mr. Qubit is arguably the best of the supporting cast. Leader of Paradigm (the team that Plutonian previously lead), he is a master of technology, and can make any device with only a few component parts. His resolve to never kill cost Paradigm greatly as he had the chance to murder Plutonian, but chose to kill the demon battling him instead.

Perhaps the most polarizing character is Survivor. Once known as Charybis, he shared his powers with his twin brother, Scylla until the latter was murdered by the Plutonian. No longer half-powered, Survivor is powerful enough to take on the Plutonian by himself. So, while he is powerful enough to be the hero of the story, his need for glory and acceptance is a sin in and of itself. Of all the characters in the Irredeemable world, Survivor is the only one who seems to dress like a traditional superhero and he looks ridiculous in comparison to the other characters . . . which is exactly the point. This world is not meant for traditional heroes, and furthermore, Waid is making a statement about how tacky and garish a traditional hero would be in world of suffering. Survivor is self-righteous, and loathesome because he acts before he thinks. It’s a fascinating way to view the the typical superhero trope.

There is so much more to say about Irredeemable, but to go into it too much is to spoil the fun of the most twisted comic on the stands (the villain Modeus is proof that Mark Waid is an absolute master of writing, but I won’t spoil anything). I haven’t covered even a tenth of the amazing things that have occurred in the book because I want you to find out for yourself how amazing it is. Please remember one thing when reading it . . .