Ordinary

by Rob Williams

Imagine a world where everyone has superpowers. That is, except you. You are the same old miserable, lonely loser you've always been - always ordinary. Welcome to the world of Michael Fisher. From the irradiated gamma-rayed genius of Rob Williams and D'Israeli comes the collection of one of the most critically acclaimed and interesting takes on the superhero genre in a long time!

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Science Fiction, Graphic Novels Comics, Superheroes, Fiction, Humor

Paperback

First published February 11, 2014

Reviews

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

Normally, if I saw this on the library shelf - a title I’d never heard of – scanned the pages, checked the less than stellar art – I’d have left it in the CD section for the librarian to put back. But I didn’t give in to my baser shallower self, I read the blurb on the back, found it interesting and checked it out.

It seems that the Earth is infected by some sort of airborne virus that gives everyone super powers – except one guy – Michael Fisher, a part-time plumber and reprobate husband and dad.



So it’s pretty much going to go downhill from here, as Michael searches for his son and the powers that want to make a vaccine from his blood in order to cure everyone and those that want to destroy him and keep their powers, race to find him.

A bear walks into a bar…



Bottom line: This book has several things going for it: a fairly interesting story, some heart, some quirky dialogue and a nice sense of humor. The art kind of grows on you.



Three and a half stars rounded down.

[Sam Quixote · Rating 2 out of 5]

A single dad wakes up to find everyone in the world has superpowers - except him.

The premise is kinda interesting but unfortunately the execution isn’t. The story becomes the Hollywood cliche of the father trying to find his son while the superpowers aren’t anything anyone who reads Marvel/DC regularly hasn’t seen before already. The ending is very rushed too with everything wrapped up too neatly given the “global chaos” that’d been unleashed just a handful of pages earlier.

D’Israeli’s art isn’t bad but I’ve never loved it. It’s a little simplistic and, well, ordinary compared to vastly more exciting artists out there like Tradd Moore, Frank Quitely, Mike Allred, or Russell Dauterman, to name just a few who produce memorable, unique work.

Even at three issues long Ordinary feels like it’s over-stretched at exploring such a simple concept. It’s a twist on the superhero comic but, going by this, it’s also not that complex or rich an idea either. Maybe seeing the President’s inner thoughts as solid external thought bubbles is amusing but I didn’t find anything in this one that funny or clever.

Ordinary might have been a good idea in concept but the book it turned out to be is aptly named.

[Damon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a brilliantly ordinary story: I like that it devolves into an unexpectedly ordinary ending after a series of quite unusably events. Great writer, some very funny scenes, and lovely artwork.

[Nazaret · Rating 2 out of 5]

No es una novela gráfica para mí.

Lo he visto sin chicha, sin final cerrado y sin mucho sentido en general. Me imaginaba algo anti-heroe guay, pero nada de eso.

[Leo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Michael Fischer is your run of the mille plumber, divorced and with a kid he doesn't see much. He's an ordinary guy.
Suddenly and without explanation, everyone stars acquiring superpowers and the world goes berserk. It's such a cliché, but with great power does come great responsibility and you can't expect people to keep their shit together. Not Michael, though. He appears to be the only one who doesn't have a superpower, which makes him a great asset for those who are looking for a solution and a target for those who want to get advantage of the situation.
This is a great premise and the art looks stunning, but unfortunately the writing wasn't good enough. Ordinary is just three issues long and it feels a bit rushed, I think they could have gotten more out of the story with at least a six-issue run.
Also, sometimes Michael is a bit of a wimp, I kept getting tired of seeing his "I'm-sitting-my-pants" face.

[Uxía · Rating 2 out of 5]

La historia pintaba interesante pero no me ha gustado la ejecución, sobre todo el final al terminar abruptamente ya que en las dos últimas páginas se soluciona todo. Además, ni da tiempo a empatizar o conocer a los personajes porque la mayoría que podrían tener peso aparecen en unas cinco páginas y da gracias.
Quizás si fuera más extenso tendría otra opinión.

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of fun fluff, though the execution is so rushed as to lose a lot of the story's potential. This should have been twice or three times as long.

[Stay Fetters · Rating 2 out of 5]

"Woah! Woah! Hold on now!! I hate to break it to you but... Yeah, Golly gee and aw shucks and... I'm an American! And if its a question of going with a bunch of tea drinking Harry Potter soccer boys or good old uncle sam then god bless the stars and...."
Michaels queen is Scarlett Johansson and life is fair.... and then he wakes up. Ugh nothing fancy and a pretty dull life. Exwife and a kid he doesn't see much. Until.... kablamo.... every person gets super powers except Michael. He gets nothing and has to put up with the worlds crap.
When they find out he has no powers, a Scottish doctor seeks him out to save the world.
It was extremely interesting and a real page turner, until he starts looking for his kid and then it drops like an anvil from the sky.
This could have been a turning point and it flopped. And then the end, it was swift... like nothing ever happened. Puh-lese. Save your time and read the first half.

[La Gran Biblioteca de David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael Fisher es un pringado de profesión fontanero. Si vida, de mal en peor, se va a pique definitivamente cuando, un día, hay una especie de explosión en un avión en el cielo. Toda la humanidad adquiere superpoderes. Todos, menos él. El caos se desata en su ciudad, estallan la guerra y los asesinatos y Michael tiene que hacer todo lo posible para buscar a su hijo, enfrentándose a numerosos peligros. Además, va a ser buscado por ser inmune a lo que esté ocurriendo. El gobierno de EE.UU. lo quiere muerto.

Michael es el protagonista y es un auténtico fracasado. Se divorció de su mujer por una infidelidad y no echa cuenta de su único hijo, al que lleva meses sin llamar. Además, es alcohólico y debe mucho dinero a mucha gente, gente peligrosa. Cuando todo el mundo adquiere superpoderes, él es el único que no. Aunque parezca insignificante, Michael será una pieza clave en todo este meollo. Junto a este conoceremos a su hijo, Josh, a sus amigos del barrio, a la doctora que busca una cura y a los generales del ejército americano que quieren acabar con él.

La historia tiene una mezcla entre ciencia ficción y comedia, más de esto último que de lo primero. También es una historia de superación de uno mismo, de la valentía que saca uno para defender a los que quiere, de mutaciones y de locuras. Es una historia bien hilada y contada, con un buen ritmo. Lo malo es que el final me ha parecido muy rápido, demasiado, pero al menos con un final decente y cerrado por completo. Lo que caracteriza a esta historia es su toque humorístico o cómico, una caricatura de la sociedad norteamericana.

En cuanto al aspecto artístico, el dibujo es limpio, con una gran variedad en viñetas y bien perfilado. Sí es un dibujo "duro", muestra sangres y vísceras, pero atractivo y claro. Además se hace muy dinámico en las continuas escenas de acción (muy buenas por otro lado). El artista ha sabido reflejar la gran multitud de superpoderes y de rostros. En definitiva, un buen cómic de acción, superpoderes, de valentía y cómico.

https://lagranbibliotecadedavid.blogs...

[Álvaro · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una pandemia confiere exóticos superpoderes a todos los habitantes del planeta...excepto a nuestro patético protagonista, quien, presa del pánico, emprende su viaje para rescatar a su hijo de lo que sea que esté pasando en el mundo.
A pesar de presentar una premisa bastante prometedora, lo cierto es que Ordinary me ha dejado con la miel en los labios, con ganas de que pasara algo más para que llegara a convertirse en un cómic "inolvidable". Si bien es cierto que contiene alguna crítica hacia el sistema y la sociedad en general que enriquece la trama, la historia se precipita en un final que, para mi gusto, podría haberse ejecutado mejor.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very unusual tale about a ordinary man trapped in a world of extraordinary beings.Comical and heartwarming this one has a little bit of everything in it.

[Mia Cervantes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m in the minority here but I really enjoyed this comic. An airborne virus affects human kind giving people all weird and random super powers. Of course we humans don’t know how to handle power and find ourselves one step away from self-destruction. Amongst all this craziness and confusion we have our main character Michael, a self hating plumber who glides through life tortured by his guilt for never being present in his son’s life. He is perhaps the only human being not affected by this virus, therefore the only ordinary man on earth. He is given a tough love kinda talk by his best friend, who is now a bear, to help him realize he needs to go find his son and make sure he’s safe. That is how Michael begins his journey in search of his son. We also have a scientist who is in search of a human not affected by the virus in order to cure humanity and save everyone. Against her we have the Vice President Of the US who wants to keep the super powers and use them as weapon to defend America and destroy our enemies. They both find out about Michael, one wants to request his help and the other wants to kill him. Meanwhile Michael finds his son and they are both heading on a new journey to find his ex and son’s mother. Things get a bit crazy and in the end the cure is developed and humanity is saved.

The art style is ok, nothing too special, however I believe it fits the story and style of the comic quite well. I really enjoyed the plot of a father overcoming his own self doubt and fears, and learning to put his child first. I wish a couple of things would have been better wrapped up at the end but overall I really enjoyed this comic.

[Sheridan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the first few episodes of this in the Judge Dredd Megazine but for some reason didn't continue reading (I think I misplaced one of the issues and didn't want to continue reading until I'd found it). Two or three years later I finally got to finish the story!

[David Lipely · Rating 4 out of 5]

A unique, sly, and marvelously odd comic about what life means when everything is larger than life!
I do feel they coulda done so much more with this tho and that said i wanna take away one star. But i do hope for more to come someday and show me that fifth star!

[Richard Burley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very fun and quite clever. It breaks with many the tired tropes of the superhero genre which is a relief. Oh, and I would be remiss to say that it is very funny! I love the talking dragon that references Skyrim. Hilarious!

[Stuart McNeil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truly brilliant!

[Alan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable, but needed an extra issue to wrap things up.

[Timo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very funny, very clever and brilliant art. Very good comic, everybody should read this one.

[Bouman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es un cómic gráficamente atractivo y muy entretenido que cuenta con una gran variedad de situaciones, Ordinary trata de poner personajes variopintos de poderes extraños sobre el papel y que, además, afectan al transcurso de la historia. Hay tiempo para la fantasía, la acción, el humor e incluso la ...more

[Simon Chadwick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Michael Fisher is an ordinary bloke, altogether rather unremarkable and, if truth be told, a bit of a loser. There’s nothing special about Michael. Then one morning, for no apparent reason, the population of the world suddenly start to display superpowers in a dizzying array of varieties and combinations - all, that is, except for Michael.

Following an initial, but somewhat short-lived, panic as people adjust to their new circumstances, Michael learns from the TV news of a fire on Manhattan near his son’s school. Fearing his ex-wife won’t be in a position to get there, and because the world appears to have taken leave of its senses, Michael decides to do the right thing and sets out to find Josh. Of course, now the people of the world have superpowers, they’re all getting to grips with where they are in the pecking order, settling grudges or generally bumbling around, so even a relatively short journey is going to be awkward for a man who is, well, ordinary.

British writer Rob Williams has concocted a brilliant take on the superhero genre that’s both darkly funny and gently touching. From newsreaders with super-shiny teeth to a hobo with the ability to turn people’s anger and guilt into visions that lead to their destruction, when everybody’s got powers those abilities are going to reach from the downright dangerous to the extremely absurd, and Williams wrings a lot of humour and pathos from it.

D’Israeli, one of my favourite comic artists, is not your typical superhero illustrator, so his take on the genre feels more realistic, more likely, should something as absurd as these events occur. His portrayal of Michael as a shambling, no-hoper, without a hint of chiselled good looks or a six-pack, makes him an instant everyman, and identifiable. I suppose what I’m trying to say is that it makes him more ordinary.

[Whitney · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Ordinary, the entire population of the world is suddenly gifted (or cursed) with superpowers... all except for one man. Michael is ordinary. He works a job as a plumber, is separated from his wife and barely even sees his son. He’s late to almost everything, is a complete slob, is in debt to loan sharks, and is just generally down on his luck. So what happens when everyone is gifted with amazing and terrifying superpowers? Poor Michael is left as the only 100% ordinary person left on the planet. At first some government agencies attempt to search for a cure, but the sheer chaos that erupted combined with people’s growing attachment to their own personal abilities makes things difficult. Michael is the only person left who may contain a cure, but only if he survives the chaos.

This was a great story that deals with humanity’s obsession over superheroes. However, in this case people had no say in how their powers manifested, and the vast majority of them were dangerous to others, and some to the entire galaxy, if left uncontrolled. This book clearly illustrates the old adage that “absolute power corrupts absolutely,” as people who were originally well-intentioned let their new abilities overrule their common sense. The book is a one-shot, and the pacing works perfectly so that readers will feel content with the ending, rather an annoyed that the story didn’t go on for another few volumes. The illustrations themselves are captivating, particularly with the larger panels that let you get a look at the various abilities that manifested, and the damage they are causing.

I’d highly recommend Ordinary to anyone who loves the idea of superheroes, but is also looking for a new take on the phenomenon.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

One day without warning, everyone on Earth gains superpowers. Not all of the powers are useful, and petty squabbles breaks out all over the planet. Many die either due to their new powers, or as a result of someone else's.

Actually, one guy doesn't get powers. Lifelong loser Michael, a plumber in New York, divorced with a kid he never sees, and owing money to a local loan shark, gains nothing. His partner turns into a bear, there's a kid with the Midas touch, giants nearly step on him, and he suddenly decides he needs to get across town, through all the chaos, to make sure his son is OK.

The story is quick and fun. The creators often use superpowers as a way of showing different character's personalities, like the super-religious Vice President who starts off with a bunch of tiny angels floating around him. As he gets more and more anxious to use America's new super powered soldiers against every enemy he can think of (and ignoring how he is constantly reminded the other side is not just as powerful), the angels are killed and replaced by tiny devils. Both funny and sincere, the book appears to be a complete story, and well worth the read.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ordinary is about a man with no powers in a world where everyone has powers. The blurb makes it sound like the people with powers have been around for a while, but it comes on rather suddenly.

There is a group working to find out if there is a way to reverse the process. Meanwhile, Michael Fisher sets out on a quest to find his son, who he hasn't seen in quite some time because his divorced wife has custody. Michael is a plumber and doesn't really have anything going for him. This is driven home from the very beginning.

Some of the "powers" that people acquire are amusing, albeit not very useful. The illustrations are great for displaying the different powers and what would happen if everyone could suddenly do something special.

I like the take the creators took on this story. They made an effort to keep the possibility of gaining powers fairly realistic. The story is also contained, which is nice to see within the superhero genre. I would have liked more development for some of the characters and the world in general. An extra 20 pages could have helped here.

[Alex Sarll]

Everyone in the world suddenly gets superpowers - except for one poor schlub. Who thus becomes the only chance of saving the world. The story feels a bit too on-rails, with some details stretching plausibility even within this deliberately loopy set-up, but it's saved by its visual inventiveness, each panel packed with incidental wonders.

[Jo Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quick review of Ordinary Interesting and quite well done. I have some problems with the world view but I think they're probably a function of the point of view character than the creators' values.

[Josh Freeman · Rating 4 out of 5]

feels just a little rushed towards the end, but it is just a mini series.. only problem is i really wish there was more..

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

different....I wish there was more.

[Rebecca Price · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some great ideas but the ending was not quite what I expected (though I am not sure exactly what I expected). I love the premise and the bear.

[Kam-Hung Soh · Rating 3 out of 5]

One day, everyone gets a super power. Except for one guy.

The novel doesn't develop the idea very far, focusing on our ordinary hero's journey to save his son.

[Jenna · Rating 2 out of 5]

Enjoyed the ideas behind the story, but it was just too short. Would've loved to have seen the storyline more developed and detailed.