Powers, Vol. 10: Cosmic

Powers (2000) #10

by Brian Michael Bendis, Michael Avon Oeming (Illustrator)

Powers are dropping out of the sky, leaving bloody bodies in their wake. When one of the victims is revealed to be the cosmic guardian of our galaxy, homicide detectives Christian Walker and Deena Pilgrim find themselves knee deep in cosmic doo. And if things weren't bad enough, Internal Affairs would like to have a word with Detective Pilgrim. All that and it's a perfect jumping-on point for new readers From the writer of some of you favorite Marvel Comics, (New Avengers, House of M, Ultimate Spider-Man, Daredevil, Secret War) comes a brand-new chapter from the award-winning book Collects Powers #13-18.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Graphic Novels Comics, Superheroes, Crime, Mystery, Fiction

220 pages, Paperback

First published October 24, 2007

About the author

A comic book writer and erstwhile artist. He has won critical acclaim (including five Eisner Awards) and is one of the most successful writers working in mainstream comics. For over eight years Bendis’s books have consistently sat in the top five best sellers on the nationwide comic and graphic novel sales charts.

Though he started as a writer and artist of independent noir fiction series, he shot to stardom as a writer of Marvel Comics' superhero books, particularly Ultimate Spider-Man.

Bendis first entered the comic world with the "Jinx" line of crime comics in 1995. This line has spawned the graphic novels Goldfish, Fire, Jinx, Torso (with Marc Andreyko), and Total Sell Out. Bendis is writing the film version of Jinx for Universal Pictures with Oscar-winner Charlize Theron attached to star and produce.

Bendis’s other projects include the Harvey, Eisner, and Eagle Award-nominated Powers (with Michael Avon Oeming) originally from Image Comics, now published by Marvel's new creator-owned imprint Icon Comics, and the Hollywood tell-all Fortune and Glory from Oni Press, both of which received an "A" from Entertainment Weekly.

Bendis is one of the premiere architects of Marvel's "Ultimate" line: comics specifically created for the new generation of comic readers. He has written every issue of Ultimate Spider-Man since its best-selling launch, and has also written for Ultimate Fantastic Four and Ultimate X-Men, as well as every issue of Ultimate Marvel Team-Up, Ultimate Origin and Ultimate Six.

Brian is currently helming a renaissance for Marvel’s AVENGERS franchise by writing both New Avengers and Mighty Avengers along with the successful ‘event’ projects House Of M, Secret War, and this summer’s Secret Invasion.

He has also previously done work on Daredevil, Alias, and The Pulse.

Reviews

[Baba · Rating 4 out of 5]

One thing I really love about this series is that it never forgets what it really is - an ongoing story about about two detectives that investigate (super) Powers' cases. There's a most random murder execution in broad daylight that leads to an investigation involving random FBI agents, a sexy witness, an Internal Affairs case, and (in each comic book issue) some very cool stand-up comic routines!

(and re: the GIF, Bojack Horseman was a superb show)
But, forever and a day this comic series is about solving crime cases, and doing that alongside all these other story lines, and doing it so well so consistently, is pretty phenomenal! Comics, comedians? You might be thinking but the volume is called 'cosmic'? Well that's true, and probably one of the least interesting things about this volume is the 'cosmic' plot. The stand-up comics are great and surprisingly pertinent to the story line. The characterisation of Pilgrim whose professional and personal lives are on the brink both with words and visually, is superb. Also I should probably concede that some of the multi-dimensional and cosmic art and concepts are pretty innovative. 9 out of 12, Four Stars.

2012, 2019, 2017 and 2013 read

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

OMG! It's the GreenNova Corps!
Ok. Not really. But, yeah. Sorta.



Christian investigates the accidental killing of a seemingly ordinary man by an unknown Power.
And then the spoilery shit happens and...Christian gets powers! Some sort of Space Corp...can't remember the name.

I thought this was a fantastic addition to the title. Deena is an incredibly flawed character, which makes Christian's loyalty to her in this one even more touching.
Again, this is solid stuff and I think I'm really starting to get into the rhythm of this comic.
Sadly, I don't think my library goes much (if any?) further, and the price tag for these just doesn't seem worth it - sorry, Bendis!
If I can snag these for free, I'll continue. Otherwise?
$20 for the Kindle edition is a bit pricey to me.

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

The writing seems a lot tighter now that Bendis is moving away from some of the procedural stuff. I like the juxtaposition of Walker and Pilgrim as the true heart of a hero emerges with Walker while Pilgrim sinks further and further into the muck. There's also a couple of moments in this where Walker shows just how much of a friend he is that I absolutely loved. The only bad part of this was the open mic night framework of each issue where Bendis seems to be working through some unrelated personal issues. It's a total waste of time and drags and drags.

[Melania 🍒 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,2/5

[J.G. Keely · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bendis' storytelling remains strong, and with the addition of a new colorist, Oeming's art gains a subtlety along with its more simplistic representational style. The vaguely disconnected frame story of various Spoken Word performers comes too close to the truth. I have never attended such a performance and been impressed with either the wit or use of language, and usually end up annoyed by the self-centered, angry, ill-informed practitioners. Without a drink in your hand and a friend to suffer through it with you (and to make snide comments to), the whole experience simply feels like being talked down to; and while I may accept that from someone with the mind of Stewart Lee, Louis C.K., or Chris Rock, Bendis is of no such caliber.

His rail upon the cowardice of anonymous internet critics is particularly sad, and one cannot but think of Jay and Silent Bob beating up twelve-year-olds, door to door. It is not the worst of these interludes, either. It seems that anyone invested in this as either participant or fan must be too invested in the concepts of being 'hip and edgy' to actually achieve either.

There is beyond this the fact that Bendis begins to pull out all of the superhero cliches, one after another. It seems every character we meet is destined become a super sooner or later. Of course, it is necessary to confront these when making a more conscientious hero story, but Bendis seems to alternately nudge at the fourth wall and then fall into the same indulgence that he so recently satirized.

There is somewhat less emotional content as the series progresses, and much of it ends up coming out in narration, which is always the sign of a desperate or unpracticed hand. The earlier issues indicate it is not the latter, but why the former would come about, I cannot say. Perhaps Powers is beginning to lose some of its verve.

The word 'advertise' is also spelled incorrectly in this volume. Twice. Where are the editors? Can someone be paying me for this?

My Suggested Reading In Comics

[Koen Claeys · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couldn’t stop reading. One of the few titles that keeps getting better the further we get ...

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars with hope for better on the horizon.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 4 out of 5]

Throughout v2 of Powers, Bendis has been upping the importance of his subplots and decreasing the importance of his procedural, and that's particularly true in Cosmic. Oh, there's the story of a cosmic hero who's accidentally killed and finding out whodunnit, but it's a pretty minor part of the narrative.

The heart of the narrative is on Deena, and figuring out what she's becoming. Cosmic nicely links this all the way back to her apparent killing of Johnny Royale and asks what she's actually capable of.

And the other heart of the narrative is Walker and the question of who he really is in his heart of hearts. Though this subplot builds on what we learned in Powers, Vol. 7: Forever, it's just starting out, and will presumably grow in Powers, Vol. 11: Secret Identity.

I love the focus on the characters instead of the procedurals. Even though they seem to increasingly be heading out of control, I look forward to what's next.

[Mitchell Friedman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. Another great book. And quite a bit different than previous books. And again I didn't see it coming. Still too dark. I can't say that the comedy club schtick is my favorite thing but it worked better than I would have expected - it did help that it had a point to some degree. Calista had kind of a walk-on part in this one, but a good one. And again Deena was awesome - perhaps even more so when she was not being a cop.

[Jordan Lahn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Advances the story for Walker and Pilgrim quite a bit in this volume. It'll be interesting to see where some of these developments lead.

[Zhuranfu · Rating 4 out of 5]

m

[TJ Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought this was a brilliant arc.

[Vittorio Rainone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Uscite di casa per raccattare il cane un giorno qualsiasi della vostra vita, e venite tranciati in due da un "potere" che vi piomba addosso per poi fuggire (volando) via. Solo che non siete un uomo normale, siete l'ultimo millennio, l'ultimo difensore della terra dalle minacce aliene della galassia. Peccato non aveste i braccialetti del millennio al momento dell'impatto. Inizia così l'ultimo numero di Powers, dove: il detective Walker trova una nuova fidanzata (che sembra normale, peraltro) e riacquista i poteri (a qualcuno dovevano pure andare quei braccialetti), il detective Pilgrim continua a fare uso del suo potere in maniera compulsiva, precipitando in un tunnel che la porta a meditare il suicidio. Insomma, in un mondo nel quale i super eroi sono ormai schedati oppure criminali, le vite dei nostri due protagonisti continuano a rimescolarsi e a mutare. Ed è sempre un piacere leggere di loro. (Così come è sempre fonte di fastidio vedere i disegni di Oeming)

[Colin Rapp-Ellis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a fan of the Club Cinderella framing sections.

Love the rest. The writing feels as crisp as ever. The Powers team does a great job of keeping things fresh and exciting while maintaining the crime noir glue that holds it all together.

Deena's spiral continues and I enjoy every panel it. The tension continues to build without negatively affecting the arc narrative. The walls are closing in and we can feel it.

Walker gets his powers back in a fun, creative, and abstract chapter.

Re-read

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alright, this series is on fire now (literally in some areas). I love love love the relationship between Deena and Christian. It’s not professional, but it isn’t romantic either.

One of my favorite scenes in all of Powers is in this volume - when Christian tells Deena he is her best friend and he is waiting for her to realize it. #allthefeels

[Peter Evett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes the Millenium stuff is super trippy - but its pretty interesting (and I remember it goes to some unusual places). The ongoing Deena story is superb, the resolution of the central case is well done. Again, the guys keep coming up with new ways to take superhero-ness in new and interesting directions.

At this point -really hard to see how Deena can be saved. So dark.

[Timo · Rating 5 out of 5]

On the spine it says "Cosimic".
But good stuff. I remember when I read this the first time, I did not like the idea of Walker getting powers again. But now I did. Go figure. Good stuff.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/3.75 stars. The primary storyline was cool; probably rates 4 stars, but the frequent "open mic" interludes were distracting, dated, and annoying.

[Jacq · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Che dire? Bendis accelera, cambia registro e proietta i protagonisti verso strade sempre più incasinate... E Oeming disegna da Dio! Cosa volete di più? Voto: 9,5/10.

[Pedro · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5

[Mohan Vemulapalli · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Powers: Cosmic" is significantly less dark than the previous volume as the detectives fall into action in the face of a new threat from on high and deal with an old irritation from D.C. .

This volume features:

Open mic night.

Deena gets some unwelcome attention.

A visit from Retro Girl at an inopportune moment.

Walker gets a side hustle and makes a friend.

A gaggle of arrogant Feds and a cameo from Agent Lange .

Deena gets a collar over some objections.

[Fizzgig76 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reprints Powers (2) #13-18 (September 2005-April 2006). When a galactic superhero named Millennium dies, Christian Walker finds he’s at a crossroads that could change his life forever…and make himself a target. Meanwhile, Deena Pilgrim discovers her new superpowers and her use of them could be coming back to haunt her.

Written by Brian Michael Bendis, Powers Volume 10: Cosmic is a Marvel Comics collection released under the Icon imprint. Following Powers Volume 9: Psychotic, the collection features art by Michael Avon Oeming. The issues in the collection were also collected as part of Powers—Book 4 and Powers: Definitive Collection—Volume 4.

Powers was one of my favorite titles, but I only read it in trade paperback. By Powers 10: Cosmic, I was getting a bit tired of Powers, but Powers kept rolling on. Even though I had some Powers fatigue (partially due to Bendis and his expansion into the Marvel Universe), Powers 10: Cosmic shows why the series manages to endure.

The story is pretty much divided into Christian’s story of his new powers and Pilgrim’s crimes coming to surface. The Christian story is a lot of set-up for future adventures. Like a lot of Powers, it is a reflexive story with it creating parallels between the Millennium Guard and DC Comics’ Green Lantern. It is a chance to explore what Christian (as a true hero) would do with bigger and more world shaping powers.

The flipside to Christian’s storyline is Pilgrim who is suffering from her powers. She’s killed and she’s a danger…and people are starting to catch on. Pilgrim has always been a train wreck, and she didn’t have superhuman powers…now she has powers and is even more of a threat. Bendis manages to keep you caring about Pilgrim despite her always making the wrong choices.

The comic books have a unique framework which is also a trend in Powers. The issues in this volume use the standup routine to create a wrap-around between issues. While most of the dialogue works, sometimes it feels like Bendis is trying too hard to be edgy with the stand-ups.

Powers 10: Cosmic is a solid entry in a series which always changes up the format. It feels like Deena and Christian’s paths are separate but converging, and Powers is often a story of redemption and human heroes that make mistakes. I never know where Powers will go, but I always enjoy the ride. Powers 10: Cosmic is followed by Powers 11: Secret Identity.

[Jamie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The longer the Powers series continues, the less enamored of it I become. I think after the epic Forever story line, my interest began to wane, which also was right around when I stopped editing the book (in the interest of full disclosure). Michael Avon Oeming does some of his best work here, especially in the Moebius-inspired outer world scenes. It's the story that doesn't hold up for me. Everyone sounds more and more the same, and the whole "spoken word night" device went nowhere. I'll still keep reading, as some developments suggest there could be interesting turns in the narrative road, but it's also possible this one has peaked.

And I know much has been made of the big "Cosimic" typo on the spine, but how come no one caught that Walker's new girlfriend is a brunette when she's first pointed out to him as the "blonde witness"?

[Chadwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly hate the fact that I like Brian Michael Bendis so much. I throw him away for years at a time, and then I find myself picking him up and devouring him all over again. It's the dialog. Pitch perfect. Occasionally too cute, too hip and referential. But funny! I like him the way that some people like Letterman. And it doesn't help that Michael Avon Oeming draws it. And this volume? The best. Actually, if you have the same printing that I do, the text is all fucked up and pixelated. But still. Walker has his powers back. Deena's got powers, and is killing people. Jack Kirby. Whoosh. Witty dialog. I hate myself.

[Corey Pung · Rating 4 out of 5]

Powers: Cosmic is volume 10 of the Powers series. This is the first I’ve ever read the series, and picking it up late into the story didn’t greatly confuse me. I’m sure it’s better to start at the beginning, but I just happened to find this one at the library. The reason why I bring this up is to point out that it’s not a difficult series to get into. There’s some references that confused me, but that’s to be expected with any series.
Powers is definitely more mature than Bendis’ work for Marvel, and I mean that in 2 ways.

If you'd like to read my full review, please go to: http://paneldiscussions.wordpress.com...

[Geoff Sebesta · Rating 2 out of 5]

This unfunny commedian framing device has to go.

I'm glad Deena Pilgrim has graduated to unabashed villainy. I look forward to some sort of explanation of why she killed all those people in the bar.

Oeming's style for this is really remarkable. He's not spending very much time on any one page, and I can really tell that most of the work is done with a uniball pen and the paint bucket tool, but it's working. If you want to make a lot of comics very quickly, this is a good way to draw them.

[Scott Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic volume that further develops Deena's arc by introducing a real witch of an IA investigator. And in typical realworld Bendis/Oeming/Powers fashion the reader is clearly meant to dislike this character even while being forced to acknowledge that Deena darn well deserves this investigation. The volume also introduces the Powers world equivalent of DC's Green Lantern Corps or Marvel's Nova Corps and drafts a major character. Good Stuff.

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ho-Lee-Crap. This is astounding. I was starting to lose a little faith in Bendis with Powers going all weird on us with the last couple of books. I thought the whole Deena storyline was too heavy, or maybe just not what I was looking for in this book? But it doesn't matter because it's still important here and the book is still amazing. This changes the world of Powers. Again.

[Phil Bova · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another stellar volume of Powers by Bendis and Oeming! The story line has expanded even further into the world of Powers, and seeing all these rich characters interconnect is such a delight. Each of them carries a special persona and brings it to the collective world of this book. Cannot get enough of these books.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this volume, Walker becomes Green Lantern, or at least the Powers version of GL. Not much else happens, but Bendis keeps me interested. Looking forward to Walker's path and I'm still very excited about Deena's narrative. Love.