REVIEW: Limits by Rich Carrington

STORY

Limits takes the classic idea of a superhero and manages to do something rather fresh with it. This self contained one shot of a tale takes on a tech driven character in a Supermanesque framework. All the classic elements are in place, a very classically styled superhero with a maguffin that gives him incredible powers making him strong, invulnerable, able to fly and project energy. He has a relationship with a plucky reporter who supports him in the media and in private. Nothing we haven’t seen before. SO what’s new, what’s the catch? Dyna-Man as he is called, has limits. His powers are finite and will eventually run out.

Carrington does what McFarlane failed to do with Spawn. Remember those early years of Spawn and his countdown meter? I always knew that Todd was going to have a work around for this but I’d always secretly hoped he wouldn’t. The premise of only having so much power and that was it was incredibly interesting but in my heart I was never worried about Spawn, he was to popular to just die or lose or be consigned to Hell for eternity. With Dyna-Man there is no such safety net and Carrington tells a bold tale of a man doing his best and worst to be a hero when he knows that one day its all going to be over.

Its a movingly realistic tale and Dynamic-Man (Sam Carter) and his girlfriend/reporter Molly Mason feel incredibly genuine. The characters are so relatable in spite of the fantastic setting that you constantly root for them as both a couple and as heroes. Make no mistake because Molly is also a hero in her own right in this tale, showing strength, wisdom, courage and a whole lot of heart. This is their story and there is no need to focus on any other characters and the two of them are enough for this book.

For Sam this sets up a brilliant and tragic quandary which is sometimes expressed in Superman comics. Do you give all of you life, all of the time to being a hero? Despite all of their power both Superman and Dyna-Man are only one person and can’t be everywhere and add the extra layer of his depleting powers and you get a VERY human story, with all the ups and downs one might expect as Sam has to decide what he is going to do.

ART

Gaston’s art is crisp and clean and I must admit I’ve been a fan of his work some time on Deviant Art. Seeing him handle an entire comic for a change left no room for disappointment. He was clearly born for this. His character designs are always in the classic vein of the 60s-80s. Simple and uncluttered by the Uber realism introduced by the likes of the incredible Bryan Hitch. The people have expressive faces and no one person looks like a clone of another.

While he is not the detail monster that George Perez was Gaston doesn’t neglect backgrounds as some artists do. I always feel like his characters are living in a world and not on a panel. Speaking of panels his page layouts are fantastic, well designed and easy to follow the flow of the page is simple and precise. Best of all Gaston is a top notch story teller an aspect that comes first in his art over doing cool splash pages and pinup shots.

FINAL THOUGHTS

This comic is a delightful breath of fresh air. It takes the tropes of the classic superhero and gives us a take on it that isn’t a grim and gritty deconstruction but instead gives us an honest look into the heart of a hero who is also a man, with all the flaws and merits that come with being human without sullying the idea of what a hero is.

5 out of 5

STORY: Rich Carrington
ART: Lee Gaston