DC Comics has slowly been teasing the reunion of the Power Company through multiple titles, including the short-lived but amazing Black Lightning miniseries by Brandon Thomas and Fico Ossio, and even titling its Black History Month special Rise of the Power Company. Now, The Power Company: Recharged #1 finally brings the new team together – in addition to Josiah Power, who gives the Power Company its name, there’s the Signal, Vixen, and Black Lightning.
But the biggest addition is Jace Fox, the Batman of New York. Jace gets involved when Signal asks him to look into the murder of a friend, which is revealed to have ties to the Sons of Liberty, an anti-metahuman militia that rose up in the fallout of Absolute Power and has tangled with Black Lightning. But despite being a vastly different Batman from Bruce Wayne, Jace is still a Batman…meaning that he tries to do things alone.
Jace’s inclusion is a bit of a double edged sword. On the one hand, Bryan Edward Hill writes his scenes perfectly; the moment where he’s attempting to recreate a crime scene in his head is well-crafted and feels very Batman-esque. But on the other hand, most of the focus is given to him and doesn’t touch on the interactions with the Power Company. It’s baffling, especially because this touches upon threads from past comics, is set up as a teamup, and has characters Hill’s written before with Signal and Black Lightning. If this comic was titled “Batman and the Power Company” it would be one thing, but I expected more focus on the ensemble.
DC
That being said, The Power Company: Recharged #1 looks absolutely gorgeous thanks to its collection of artists. Khary Randolph, Alitha Martniez, Norm Rampund, Ray Anthony Heigh and Studio Skye Tyger all turn in some amazing work, shifting depending on who’s in focus. Martinez handles the group shots, adding details like sweat beading up on someone’s brow or a body tensing up. Randolph does most of the Batman scenes, and once again it feels like a Batman comic, especially the page that has Jace confronting a new foe in the mind-controlling Geppetto.
The color work by Emilio Lopez and Alex Guimares makes each character visually distinct, especially when it comes to their powers. Signal’s ability to manipulate light is depicted as a bright glowing sunburst, while Vixen’s powers manifest in bright pink light. There’s also heavy use of shadows in the opening, selling the horror elements; if it weren’t for the cover, the amount of blood and the muscular maniac in the opening sequences would make me think I was in a horror movie.
The Power Company: Recharged #1 is more of a Batman story than an actual ensemble, strengthened by gorgeous artwork. The end of this one-shot teases a “beginning”, and if there’s a future for the Power Company, I hope they actually get to play a part in it and not second fiddle to another hero.
If there’s a future for the Power Company, I hope they actually get to play a part in it and not second fiddle to another hero. Read More