Review: Sideways Annual #1

Normally I wouldn’t be as excited over an annual, especially an annual in a series I have somewhat cooled on, however Sideways Annual #1 has a guest writer you may have heard of before. Grant Morrison, that’s right my friends this Wednesday we were treated to a double dose of Morrison as his insanely brilliant Green Lantern series also hit the racks.

Usually an annual will feature several short stories or an out of continuity adventure but, that is not the case here. This issue picks up the narrative from the last time we saw Derek aka Sideways having narrowly escaped the clutches of Perrus, the vampire ruler of a world of DC Heroes very unlike those of our world. This iteration of the DCU’s champions of justice is a twisted, mutated version. All seems lost, that is until Derek encounters the jeans and t-shirt cad, New 52 Action Comics version of Superman trapped in a subterranean cavern, webbed up as if Peter Parker was the last person he encountered. Not surprisingly a character from the mind of the Master, Grant Morrison. Thought to be obliterated when he was merged with the other New 52 Superman to create current iterations of Big Blue, however that doesn’t seem to be the case as apparently something of that Superman survived.

The dialog is so sharp between Sideways and Superman full of witty banter and well placed quips. Of course the exchange is taking place while the two recently teamed-up heroes are battling a gargantuan alien centipede, oh yeah and Superman-in-work-boots is also battling the residual effects of K-toxicity. Once our two young heroes have matters in hand they make their way topside only to encounter another product of the Master’s mind, Grant Morrison’s Seven Soldiers of Victory. If you haven’t read that fantastic tome, you need to make haste to get your hands on those issues and devour them. As you may have surmised, I am a huge fan of Grant Morrison’s work and have been since his tenure on the sublime Animal Man title way back in the halcyon days of the 1980’s, so I am very much accustomed to his non-linear approach to storytelling, in fact I love it. However, it can be somewhat daunting for the uninitiated, so if this is your first time reading his work you may want to read the issue several times to get the more nuanced elements of the narrative.

As is the case with the majority of his work, this story is firmly rooted in continuity and Morrison goes the extra mile to explain exactly how it all fits together. His work is organic in that it grows with each successive reading, deeper elements present themselves and the story begins to reveal subtle details we may have missed with a cursory reading. Having said that, this issue is also surprisingly new reader friendly. Morrison does a fine job, as always, of telling an engrossing, fast paced and fun comic book tale. He presents Sideways as a character that is endearing in a Peter Parker fashion, inexperienced yet eager to learn and most importantly he is immensely likable. Beyond that, it is a pure joy to see Morrison return to characters he has used to tell so many amazing stories in the past. The chemistry he creates between the tried and true heroes and the new guy is intoxicating. This issue is, to quote Matthew Sweet, 100% fun!

Visually, artists Will Conrad and Cliff Richards do a bang up job. The issue is very tight, the pages are full of action and the staging has an eye toward the cinematic. The otherworldly environment looks straight out of an Alien film which works so well considering the narrative.

The back up story featuring the intriguing Unseen as they are confronted by the Fuginaut is solid and ably written by Dan Didio. The Unseen are on the hunt for a new world to call home and start over. It’s a short, well writer back up story with some really strong artwork.

Overall the issue does a very convincing job of furthering Derek James’ journey to become, not only a part of the DCU, but a legitimate hero in his own right. Perhaps even more intriguing than Derek’s narrative is the possibilities that now exist for the New 52 Action Comics Superman. Likewise, The Unseen now have new narrative roads open to them and I for one cannot wait to see where they lead. For an annual, this one delivers and then some, the only small detail I would have liked to see changed is to have had Morrison write the entire issue, particularly since the two narratives flow together seamlessly. 5/5

[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

Writers- Grant Morrison, Dan Didio
Artists- Will Conrad, Cliff Richards