Starman #35

Mr. Pip and Mr. Black

James Robinson – Writer
Steve Yeowell pg. 1-17, Tony Harris pg. 18-22 – Pencils
Wade Von Grawbadger – Inks
Gregory Wright – Colors
Oakley/N.J.Q. – Letters
Chuck Kim – Assistant Editor
Archie Goodwin – Editor

Our first Genesis tie-in brings us to a hero Impulse has had nothing to do with so far. He is Jack Knight, who is following in his father's footsteps by taking up the mantle of Starman and wielding the Cosmic Rod. On the cover, we see him battling Dr. Pip. Fortuitously, this exact scene took place during Genesis #1. So now, we get to see the whole story of this encounter.

The first half of this issue seems to be wrapping up a previous storyline that involved Batman and ... Solomon Grundy? I'm not exactly sure, but it doesn't matter. All we care about is the Genesis stuff, which happens when Dr. Pip straps himself into a bomb suit and announces his plan to destroy himself along with a 14-story apartment building. Starman is there, along with the original Green Lantern, Alan Scott, who now calls himself Sentinel for whatever reason. But suddenly, both these heroes lose their powers. And we're treated to a quick homage, showing us they're not alone.

I am happy that Impulse was chosen to appear next to Superman and Captain Marvel — the biggest of the bigs — but this image really doesn't do a good job of showing these heroes in distress. Anyway, Dr. Pip's bomb keeps counting down, and everyone starts freaking out, when the former villain known as Shade arrives and rather gruesomely disposes of Dr. Pip. I'm not sure why Shade's powers were unaffected by the Genesis events, but then again, all power fluctuations have been extremely random.




So yeah, not a whole lot to say about this issue, since Impulse only made a fleeting cameo in one panel. But I am very impressed with how well this issue ties into Genesis, while also giving itself enough space to work with the ongoing story of its own series. I think all tie-in issues should use this issue as their model. I wasn't required to read this to fully understand Genesis, but it was fun all the while to see an extended look at what was just a few panels in the main series.

There is no letters page in this issue, and even if there were, I doubt any of them would have mentioned Impulse. But we do have a few new ads:

Powerless in the grip of evil! Genesis. A four-week event hitting the DC Universe.

They've landed! Catch them tonight and all month on ... Pay Per View. Mars Attacks! Starring Jack Nicholson, Glenn Close, Annette Bening, Pierce Brosnan and Danny DeVito (after he played the Penguin in Batman Returns). I remember being very confused and disturbed by this movie as a 10-year-old. I'm sure I'd enjoy it more as an adult now.

A new era in ethereal ambience. Projekt. Black tape for a blue girl.

TV's only weekly live music series. Hard Rock Live on VH1.

Journey to a lost world of adventure ... Elseworld's Finest. By John Francis Moore, Kieron Dwyer and Hilary Barta.

Batman: Secret Files and Origins. The Gotham night holds many secrets.

Pulp Heroes. Young romance. Supergirl Annual #2. Tales of the unexpected. Action Comics Annual #9. Strange Adventures. Green Lantern Annual #6.

These are definitely not the usual suspects. The Space Bar. A "what-done-it" mystery adventure CD-ROM by Steve Meretzky.

Next time, we'll see how Impulse is dealing with his fluctuating powers and how Manchester, Alabama, is dealing with the lingering cloud of depression in Impulse #30.