Superb: Life After The Fallout

Catalyst Prime Universe

by David F. Walker, Sheena C. Howard, Ray-Anthony Height (Illustrator)

After the Earth survived annihilation from an asteroid which was destroyed by a group of heroic astronauts, the resultant meteor shower turned Youngstown, Ohio, into a Level 5 impact zone. After a Columbine-like incident in which a superpowered teenager exploded and killed other youngsters, the Foresight Corporation took over Youngstown to find and regulate any other teenagers with emerging powers.

Kayla Tate has returned to Youngstown because her parents are scientists for Foresight. Kayla has reunited with her childhood friend, Jonah Watkins, a young man with Down syndrome. Kayla and Jonah are learning about each other again, as a mysterious new superhuman named Cosmosis has become the Internet sensation as the hero of Youngstown. Kayla discovers that Cosmosis . . . is Jonah! Based on his favorite comic book hero, Jonah is using the secret powers he gained from the meteor shower to help people and fight bad guys. To protect Jonah, and discover the sinister mysteries of her town, Kayla uses her own powers gained from a meteor fragment to fight alongside Jonah as the hero Amina.

When Amina and Cosmosis discover that young superpowered people are being kidnapped and trained to become Earth’s best line of defense against the possibility of an alien invasion, the two teenage heroes use their abilities to stop Foresight, all the while helping each other navigate through resentment, naivete, and the awkward steps of rekindling their friendship.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Young Adult, Superheroes, Science Fiction, Speculative Fiction, Action

152 pages, Paperback

First published January 2, 2018

About the author

David F. Walker is a writer, filmmaker, and award-winning journalist. He teaches Writing For Comics at Portland State University.

Reviews

[Shai · Rating 4 out of 5]

Superb Volume 1 is a tie up to the Noble Vol. 1 comic series by Brandon Thomas. The story of this graphic novel tells us about how the Foresight Corporation tries to find those who possessed extraordinary powers among the teenager residents of Youngstown, Ohio.

If you enjoy reading superhero stories, you may find this just like every comic series you've read in the past. Why I gave this a 4-star rating is because I like how the authors made a teenager with down-syndrome a superhero and the main character and that the pacing and storytelling is much better than its counterpart, the Noble comic series.

[Chad · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is kind of a mess. One of the main characters is supposed to have down syndrome, which actually sounds pretty groundbreaking. However, the art and storytelling were so poor, I had no idea until halfway through the book when his dad tells the police he has down syndrome. I was totally floored. I even flipped back and looked at the art and storytelling again. Nope, no other indication until I got to the end of the book and saw some concept art.

There is an attempt at world building, but it is so all over the place that it just left me confused. Foresight is established as an evil corporation that is taking into custody kids who have powers. But then they are supposedly trying to create a team of heroes out of these kids which we never see. It's also alluded to that Foresight is brainwashing kids. And then there are boxes full of dead bodies just lying around. The whole thing is just a hot mess.

[Kristin · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a freaking disappointment.

I love David F. Walker's writing on Power Man and Iron Fist *so much*, but this is boring and sloppy. The dialogue is wooden and chock full of exposition. None of the characters act like actual people. The closest this comes to witty banter is an extended argument about whether or not one character is a party pooper.

One of the selling points of this book is it features a superhero with Down syndrome, but if you weren't told, you'd have no idea, which completely undermines the representation. It's mentioned in one panel and he's only drawn as someone with Down in the concept art.

Speaking of art, the artists change from page to page, drastically ranging from amateur to downright awful.

THIS IS A PANEL FROM A PROFESSIONAL ARTIST IN A SUPER SERIOUS SCENE


THIS IS THE FAMILY THAT MOTIVATES THE VILLAIN TO DO TERRIBLE THINGS.


The only reason this is getting any stars is because of the issue of Catalyst Prime at the end.

[Trike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointingly clunky. Some of the most awkward dialogue I’ve encountered in a while. Why is a kid in 2017 quoting The Breakfast Club? (“Neo-maxi-zoom-dweebie.”) What 17-year-old calls another Captain Poopy-Pants?

The setup is a combination of the Bruce Willis flick Armageddon and the meteor freaks of Smallville by way of Rising Stars Compendium. Asteroid causes super powers. But there’s an evil corporation with distaff members trying to create a teen superhero team. Apparently. It’s not clear.

The three main characters are a black girl, an Asian girl, and a white boy with Down’s Syndrome. The Asian girl is the stereotypical smart techie and the revelation that the boy has Down’s was out of the blue. He’s not drawn that way or written that way and the info is dropped as a deus ex machina. Clunky instead of diverse and progressive.

[Theediscerning · Rating 2 out of 5]

And... this is the first stumble in the Catalyst Prime series. We're going to get several books in this comics universe, all regarding the superpowers of humans after a meteor strike on Earth was diverted, but only partially. This one is definitely a poorer cousin of the others I've sampled - the baddy is right out of the Basil Exposition school, and there are whole pages of him and the teenagers that just don't sound anything like regular human speech. We're told things over and over again in these four short chapters, too, which suggests to me this is a teen read as opposed to a proper adult book - but that would be derogatory to teens. (It certainly contrasts with the all-over-the-shop prequel, presented here as so often before.) We're supposed to like the comic more because the heroine is of colour, and we're informed (by the book, mind, not the story) that the hero has Down's - this is not evident in the story whatsoever. I did like it for its briskness, and its matter-of-fact approach to the baddies trying to jealously contain all the superpowered teens for their own military gain, but I didn't really find much that was new. The artwork is reasonable, but as I say it's the at-times shockingly bad exposition in the already poor writing that gave this book such a demerit. One and a half stars.

[Benton Laufeysdottir · Rating 1 out of 5]

I will preface this by saying I only read this because of the character with Down Syndrome (my sister has Down Syndrome and I was super pumped to see a superhero display some of the same characteristics). This character does NOT have Down Syndrome. As a reader, you would not know it at all if there wasn't one throw away line 2/3 of the way through - not from mannerisms, not from physicality, not from physical or mental abilities. Jonah has no visible or invisible disabilities.

Surprise, surprise, the author(s) have no experience with Down Syndrome. I went to a talk done by Howard and she fully admitted she didn't even KNOW anyone with Down Syndrome. But, like, even if they got Down Syndrome a little wrong, where was any exploration at all of a super hero with disability? I bemoan the lost possibilities. Show me the hero who has super strength, but poor fine motor skills, a superhero who has the cognitive reasoning of a 2nd grader and a first grade reading level, a superhero most people have trouble understanding when they speak and the media is frustrated with, a superhero who can't go save the world right now because it's 8pm and 8pm is bath time and there are no exceptions. Any and all of these would have been new, refreshing, insightful; they would have been INTERESTING. But nooooo, we got a dime-a-dozen superhero story about a boy who has Down Syndrome In Name Only, for what? Woke points? Fake representation?

Okay, but what if we remove Jonah's supposed Down Syndrome? Is it a decent comic. No. Not really. It's kind of a hot mess. I couldn't follow who and what Foresight was and what their goals were. The dialog is lacking (and forced) and none of the characters are fully fleshed out. Too much exposition. Artwork is fine, but not amazing (and clearly none of them had ever seen a person with Down Syndrome and didn't know how to use Google).

Walker, Howard, Height: Do your research. This comic is an embarasment.

[Manon the Malicious · Rating 4 out of 5]

*4.25 Stars*

I was provided an ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Superb told the story of superheroes, in a dystopian society.

I don’t wanna say too much about this because I really enjoyed throwing myself into this book before knowing anything about it.

I really loved the characters, they were complex and captivating.
The intrigue was all kind of great too, it kept me on my toes the entire time, I didn’t see anything coming...
Once I started this, I could not put it down. It was so good, I’m really looking forward to the next installment.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

SUPERB contains the mixed-and-matched ambitions of a new-hero story that doesn't hesitate to let its readers know, on every single page, yes, this is a new-hero story. The result is one-part overwhelm and one-part genuine acknowledgment that this could be something really cool. There are a few knickknacks along the way that make this book worth one's curiosity, but SUPERB is worth a shot if only to take a look at what all is possible in the world of cape comics.

If one is tired of superheroes crowding the coastal United States, then they can readily cheer for the emergence of people with unique abilities in Youngstown, Ohio. Thank goodness for the American midwest. Maybe.

As the school year deepens, Jonah Watkins and Kayla Tate are old friends getting reacquainted. Life isn't so carefree these days. Armed bodyguards patrol the school grounds, clandestine organizations are funding local security measures, and the public is openly hostile to anyone who displays powers or abilities (and with good reason, since some kid blew himself up a year ago. . .).

SUPERB is a densely written comic book. Disruptions at school. Disruptions at home. Local corporate interests go delightfully awry. Every problem rubs shoulders with every other problem, and before readers know it, they're 1.5 chapters into this thing and the antagonist is already angling for human experimentation. Fun!

Jonah hops around suburban Ohio under the alias Cosmosis. He wants to help people. He wants to take a stand against greed and corruption. The kid wants to be a superhero. So, naturally, he gets in over his head and finds himself on the receiving end of a tranq dart. His buddy Kayla, whom he may or may not have had a falling out with, wants nothing to do with superhero life. So, naturally, when Jonah brings trouble to her doorstep, she has to make a decision: rebuke the institution she fears and fight back, or get the hell out of town (again).

In terms of character diversity and the explorative commentary on archetypes versus representation, SUPERB pushes the intrigue from the get-go. Jonah has Down syndrome. Kayla is a black girl, and her parents are scientists. Abbie, the sidekick-who-isn't, is Asian. The antagonist is Latino. The story occurs in Ohio. This a different story with a different feel to it. Different is good.

The book falters but not on account of its standing-room-only diversity. Rather, it's because nothing else seems to catch up. The book's art is woefully inconsistent, and is sometimes downright messy, if uncomfortably so. Somber expressions meant to have a jutting chin and downcast eyes appear slightly, insultingly inhuman; panels exhibiting nuance are rife with exaggeration, crossed eyes, and poorly foreshortened limbs; and interstitial scenes, plugging the gaps throughout, sport dramatically different art styles and coloring techniques.

Some characters also have a penchant for over-explaining the story in that painfully annoying way that Golden Age comics once did.

SUPERB is a good book with growing pains. The compressed story shifts and pivots rapidly and doesn't bother establishing any functional pacing, but one might rationalize that it's a small price to pay for something different.

[Mutated Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Goodreads Synopsis:
After the Earth survived annihilation from an asteroid which was destroyed by a group of heroic astronauts, the resultant meteor shower turned Youngstown, Ohio, into a Level 5 impact zone. After a Columbine-like incident in which a superpowered teenager exploded and killed other youngsters, the Foresight Corporation took over Youngstown to find and regulate any other teenagers with emerging powers.

Kayla Tate has returned to Youngstown because her parents are scientists for Foresight. Kayla has reunited with her childhood friend, Jonah Watkins, a young man with Down syndrome. Kayla and Jonah are learning about each other again, as a mysterious new superhuman named Cosmosis has become the Internet sensation as the hero of Youngstown. Kayla discovers that Cosmosis . . . is Jonah! Based on his favorite comic book hero, Jonah is using the secret powers he gained from the meteor shower to help people and fight bad guys. To protect Jonah, and discover the sinister mysteries of her town, Kayla uses her own powers gained from a meteor fragment to fight alongside Jonah as the hero Amina.

When Amina and Cosmosis discover that young superpowered people are being kidnapped and trained to become Earth’s best line of defense against the possibility of an alien invasion, the two teenage heroes use their abilities to stop Foresight, all the while helping each other navigate through resentment, naivete, and the awkward steps of rekindling their friendship.

My Review:
I received a copy of this from Netgalley and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

I've been reading a lot of superhero comics lately. Superb tells the story of the illegal "enhanced" people, who are immediately taken away somewhere to be quarantined by armed guards when they're discovered. It follows a girl named Kayla, who is always helping out her friend Jonah with his bullies, while she goes to school. Their lives are very different, Kayla always alone at home because of her parents busy work schedule, and Jonah taking care of his dad. Enhanced people are really people with powers, and mutations, and sometimes they reach critically dangerous levels and lost control. That's why the people without the mutations don't want to risk it, although they deal with in an inhumane way. This forces enhanced people to hide themselves.

It also follows a masked superhero named Cosmosis, who can shoot a telekinetic beam from his eyes. This allows him to do pretty much whatever he wants, and although most of what he does is harmless, it still worries the authorities. Life after fallout has dramatically changed how the world works, and I'm interested in learning more about the world and its inhabitants.

Overall I really enjoyed reading this and definitely want to check out the next one.

Here's a link to the book on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.ca/dp/1941302408/r...

Thanks for reading! Check out this review and more at my blog.
(Radioactivebookreviews.wordpress.com)

[Sesana · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hate rating this book so low, because I really wanted to like it. Featuring a character with Down's Syndrome is a genuinely fresh idea in an industry that sometimes lacks those. I personally couldn't tell how accurate the representation is, but it seems that Walker worked with the National Down's Syndrome Society and that they're happy with how Jonah was written, which is good enough for me. Also, the main cast is rounded out with a black character and an Asian character, plus it's set in flipping Youngstown, Ohio. Youngstown! This is exciting for an Ohioan!

And yet. The writing is competent at best. There's a lot of flat dialog, and it's kind of disappointing to see Walker falling back on the school bullies crutch, especially when the bully promptly gets swept off the page, apparently never to be seen again. What's the point? Kayla has a podcast about the Catalyst event, but there's no explanation at all about why she does and what it means to her, especially because she later says she wants to fly under the radar and act normally. One character spends an uncomfortable amount of time calling another Captain Party Pooper. Both characters are over the age of nine.

Also, the art... It's really not good. Not a single one of the characters reliably look like actual people, much less like themselves from one panel to the next. Early in the book, one character starts crying, and what is probably supposed to be an emotional moment is ruined because it looks like she's installed a sprinkler in her face. It's bizarre. Better art would have helped this book, but so would better dialog.

[Dawn-Lorraine · Rating 3 out of 5]

In Superb, kids and teens begin to exhibit powers after an asteroid crashes near Youngstown, Ohio. Following an “incident” that resulted in fatalities, detectors are installed at schools to discover “enhanced” kids, who are taken away to a research facility.

Kayla is a seemingly typical teen whose parents work at the facility and her friend Jonah is a stereotypical nerd who happens to have Down syndrome. It turns out they’re both hiding things from each other and everyone else – Kayla is super strong, fast and has improved healing abilities, while Jonah has super strength, agility and telekinesis. He wants to rescue the kids and gets Kayla involved, but as often happens, things don’t exactly go as planned.

This is a fast-paced read that doesn’t necessarily go in the directions you’d expect from a typical hero comic. It’s interesting to note that the creators worked with the National Down Syndrome Society to ensure they crafted an accurate portrayal of an individual with Down syndrome. And even though the main characters are teens, this is not written specifically for a young audience. Not surprisingly, given David Walker’s involvement, the story has a bit of a Luke Cage feel to it (which is a good thing). No, it’s not highly original or a very deep plot, but it’s generally engaging, keeps you interested and flows well, plus there’s some really good art in the first few issues (I’m not a fan of the art from issue 4 onward – the different look affected the tone of the story).

[Wayne McCoy · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Superb Vol. 1' from Lion Forge Comics is a collection of two complete stories: one from the present, and one that goes back to the event which created the costumed folks in the first story.

The events in the second story tell of an asteroid that is going to hit the Earth and the astronauts who break it up. The problem is that these fragments do hit the planet and cause things to happen to people. One of those people is Jonah Watkins, who finds himself with strange powers. He likes to dress up as a hero named Cosmosis, but there is a government organization named Foresight that would like to stop him. His best friend Kayla Tate's parents are in Foresight, and Kayla may have secrets of her own to hide.

I wish the second story had been first, but really, it's a rehash of events from the Noble series. Based on the cover, I was hoping for better art than I saw inside the book. It's mostly pretty dismal with some increases in quality.

I like idea of a cosmic event creating powered individuals, but I feel like it's been done better elsewhere.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

[Veronica · Rating 3 out of 5]

ARC via Netgalley. I have mixed feelings about this comic. The art is not great, which is a statement I feel like I should qualify by adding that in comparison to your average Bronze Age comic, it's pretty par for the course; it's just that we have so many more options nowadays with cleaner lines, bolder colors, and overall a more attractive style. (As a side note: one particular failing of the art is its inconsistency in depicting the face of the protagonist, a young man with Down syndrome.) The storyline is a fairly prototypical X-Men knockoff about teens with superpowers who must hide from the shadowy agency hunting them down, and only really gets going toward the end. That said, it does get going toward the end! And the main cast of characters (Jonah, the aforementioned protagonist, Kayla, a black teen with a conspiracy theory podcast and evil scientist parents, and Abbie, a mysterious figure of indeterminate age and possibly Asian ancestry who figures as Jonah's erstwhile Q) is charming, with promising chemistry. Only time will tell if the story (and art) will continue to improve.

[Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb grabbed my attention quickly. Superpowers are fascinating to me, so I was excited to read another comic with that involved and this one didn't disappoint.

Jonah is a teenager with a big heart and it shows throughout everything he does. He is determined to get to the bottom of what is going on. Not to mention, he has Downs Syndrome. Jonah is out here doing amazing things and I think that is wonderful representation for those who do have Downs Syndrome.

Kayla is also a good friend and supporter. She never tells Jonah that he can't do something. If she does it's because she wants him to think it through first, not because she believes he can't go out there and do something amazing.

Overall, this story has many excellent points, strong women, a superhero with Downs Syndrome, and an intriguing plot. It has left me eagerly awaiting more issues to find out how the story and the characters continue to develop.

[Miss Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

mmm mixed feelings. the basic set up is pretty solid -- not exactly original but that's not uncommon with superhero comics and i think it establishes its characters and premise well enough to support further fleshing out. props for the rep, this is the first time i've seen a superhero lead with down syndrome and it sounds like the writer put in his homework. also appreciate not being subjected to the whitelandia fantasy that some superhero comics enjoy pushing

gotta be honest tho, i'm not feeling the art and when i say unoriginal i mean it -- i don't feel particularly intrigued or curious to see how this plays out. i might read the next volume if i find it at the library but honestly, i read WAY too many superhero comics to feel compelled to continue without a story or voice that really hooks me

3 stars

[Christian Zamora-Dahmen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Last night I read the first volume of Superb. I was so delighted.
I was a bit on the fence about the main character having Down Syndrome, because I thought it would be all about his condition, and I was so gladly surprised to find out that it wasn't like that. Jonah's condition was mentioned on issue 2 and that was it. It was seen as it was: a condition, not everything that was to tell about him.
From that on, it had an interesting plot and a nice approach by the main characters.
Kayla is also fun to read about. I love how she relates with Jonah and how much she cares about him.
It was a winning book for me, filled with action, care and understanding.

[Abby Johnson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fallout from a shattered meteor has hit the earth, causing some people in the town of Youngstown to develop super powers. The local lab is trying to identify all these people, most of them teens, and contain them "to help them learn to control their powers", but there are some who have slipped through the cracks. Starring a superhero with Down's Syndrome and a diverse cast of characters, this is a twisty turny superhero series that I can't stop reading.

[Aftin Combs · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just can't get into this. Something about reading this makes it feel less like an enjoyable superhero romp and more like a chore. Everything was a little bland. I was really hoping the diversity and representation of downs syndrome would be enough to pull this along, but sadly because of the character design he didn't even stand out. Over all it wasn't terrible, but I have no interest in visiting these characters again in Vol. 2.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a solid prologue to Lion Forge's new teenaged superhero drama. The protagonists' circumstance and personal history are nicely explained, and they're given a way to demonstrate their abilities that is interesting and exciting. There's nothing that really wowed me in the narrative so far, but this is almost like a textbook on how to properly introduce a new character and their environment.

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly atypically super hero story but I think definitely worth picking up if just to encourage more comics with characters with Down syndrome! The art style was a little inconsistent especially in terms of facial expressions. But I liked all the action sequences and I think they set a frame work for an interesting series - looking forward to vol 2 and seeing where they take it!

[Jason · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm mixed on the artwork in Superb V1, along with the plotting/pacing of the story. Also, I had an issue with Jonah's character design (a lead with Down Syndrome who you couldn't tell has Downs just by looking at him). (e-galley from NetGalley)

[Trevor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Proof that there is more to comics than DC and Marvel. Lion Forge makes some great comics. I really appreciate their dedication to diverse characters. When's the last time you read a comic with a superhero who happens to have down syndrome?

[Cande]

so much exposition, repetitive dialogue ("need to find out how many teenagers with powers are out there" is said too many times, WE GET IT), confusing world-building, and underdeveloped villains and characters. personally, I wasn't a fan of the art.

[Meg · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF.

It was a little confusing to read, because sometimes the panels would be formatted weird. As in, sometimes the panels would follow the traditional read-one-page-at-time format, and then there would randomly be a read-across-to-pages-like-one-page format.

[Liz (Quirky Cat) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review to follow.

[Natalie]

I DNFed this almost immediately. The art style was just not for me. When I’m reading comics/manga/graphic novels, if I don’t like the artwork I’m just not gonna get into it.

[nooker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely just chapter 1 of this story, but still good. Also, I have not read anything else in this universe and I was still able to get a whole and complete story from this.

[Krystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great set-up for the story! Ends on a great cliffhanger. The art is fun. I'm all the way in!

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Riot Read Harder Challenge 2020 Task #21: Book with a main character or protagonist with a disability (fiction or non)

[Adam Graham · Rating 4 out of 5]

Out of the pages of the Catalyst Prime universe, we get Superb which focuses on Jonah, a down syndrome boy who acquired powers and becomes a hero and Kayla who is a far more cynical and nervous. Both are drawn in as the Foresight Corporation is taking superpowered kids off the streets of Youngstown for their own purposes.

This one is actually pretty good. I love the main character and am drawn into the story. Annoying, do the 4-issue nature of these collections the story is just really getting interesting when the book ends, but I think I'll definitely be back for more.