Who Wants To Be A Superhero? Featuring Feedback

By David Rasmussen
27th Aug 07

Oh, bah humbug. Sci-Fi Channel is dipping back into the comics again.
Or at least I think they’ve been doing it again. I haven’t been in the mainstream much so I have no idea if Sci-Fi Channel is even trying to do anything in comics since… since… well I haven’t seen anything I really had a lot to say about comic wise that had a presence on the Sci-Fi Channel since… oh I don’t know… the time FarScape got a brief 2 issue comic stint in the time prior to it’s cancellation from TV. Maybe Babylon 5 the comic (it was on Sci-Fi for a time if I remember right).

But now with the endless (and I do mean endless) glut of Reality TV competitions we would end up with a show like this sooner or later, and we did. So with the new season of Who Wants To Be A Superhero launching on the Sci-Fi Channel this Thursday (today as I turn this review in) let’s look at last season’s winner -- at least, I think he won. I mean if he didn’t why is there a comic about him and all that. Who knows, maybe there’ll be an entire glut of super heroic comics in the coming weeks… however, for now let’s pretend I got it right on the head and he won. Here’s his comic, Feedback (aka Matthew Atherton, a mild mannered 34 year old software engineer).

Written by Stan “The Man” Lee, with artwork from Will Conrad (colors by Michael S. Bartolo and cover art by Guilherme Balbi, Ig Barros and colored by Mich Kelleher) this comic is the tale of Superhero winner Atherton and how he came to become a superhero.

Before you dig into the comic check out the inside front cover, and his “stats”.
His power? The ability to absorb powers and abilities from video games that he plays, generating a feedback field that disrupts electronics within 15 feet. Oh, and he’s a “computer genius”.

Let’s mess him up! Get him a copy of that PC game that’s part sword/sorcery hack and slash and part adult hentai sex game and see if he gets aroused everytime he knocks someone out!

Sigh. What else is there to know about him.
He’s vulnerable to powerlines because they give him a headache (just like him, he gives me a headache). Microwaves give him nausea (shove his head into a microwave and turn it on).

Catch phrases? “Game on” (ugh)… oh, and he’s fighting for… justice and fair play and that totally hot nurse halfway into this issue. I mean how hot is she… better download some Japanese hentai dating sims ASAP, dude, you could stand to know the experience of Japanese’ greatest hentai gamers.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, this “comic” should be chuckles. And that’s not a compliment.
Quick. Don’t tell me if you’ve heard this one before. I know you have.
Computer Engineer slash “genius” is struck by lightning while being beaten up by thugs which compels a flashback into his comic book slash video game loving youth. Behold how young Mr. Atherton got beat up by video game playing roving punks because they beat one punk’s high score, only to get an eyeful of a majorly hot nurse (this calls for a Sex Ward moment folks)… eh, then he’s confronted by a weird commonly dressed man of mystery who turns out to be a T-800 “Ah’ll Be Bahck.” lookalike with a stupid name (Ironside) who tricks our would be hero into working on his high tech ride only to be backstabbed by his so-called “pal” aka super villain dude generic rip off man… I mean Eliminator.

The rest is lame… I mean history.
He gains amazing powers, and decides to become a SUPERHERO!! Then he gets to hunting down the T800 guy who got him earlier, and to do that he hunts down that hot nurse from earlier and gets her to make his costume… (which is a fine excuse for him to later hook up with her and totally be her boyfriend) because he has no imagination. After getting armed with a suit I’m sure is a rethread hand me down from the X-Men movies, off he goes to FIGHT CRIME! (get that guy and his goons who beat him up earlier). Oh, then he gets the girl and everyone who isn’t evil or the T800 lookalike dude manages to live happily never after. The end.

Then get a look at the covers of people who didn’t win the first season of Who Wants To Be A Superhero?(.) Sure. No shame, people! Just run the gambut and don’t mind my criticism!
We have such heroes as Fat Momma (funny, that name just brings up the only worldly thing George Clooney talked about while digging the deep burial mound tomb in the middle of the lands of WoW for burying the Batman franchise in Batman & Robin, mainly the need for more PC superhero names). Major Victory (Alan Moore called, he wants his costume back). Lemuria. Creature (the punk hero look is not in anymore, didn‘t anyone tell you that?). Ty’veculus (regrets not entering Frank Miller‘s Who Wants To Be A Persian Killing Spartan Warrior of 300). Monkey Woman (ah, the skimpy jungle look is in again, nice.). Iron Enforcer. Cell Phone Girl (now armed with the new Verizon Wireless Plan!). Nitro. And finally we have Levity (because people should have the power to laugh at themselves, like now!).

Sigh. If they made an entire graphic novel extolling at least the top winners of the year (and thus made the page count and stories at least worth my time reading) then maybe I could have cared.
But really, a story about this weiner who won year one and… what… what now? That’s it? Just one issue? And a not all great one at that? Sorry, no good. 40 pages extolling the virtues of this guy isn’t doing it for me. Not at all.

Now before the united alliance of MARVEL fandom rises up and cries out in anger, I do happen to remember that this was penned by Stan “The Man” Lee! I don’t hate the guy, and in fact I really like his work and his approach to the genre which really is to be admired. Now, that being said, WWTBASH featuring Feedback is just… average. Nothing to summon the Avengers over.

Not like Stan “The Man” Lee is going to take it out on me on national TV or anything for being truthful. This title is what it is, an average romp that could have been better.

If the comic didn’t feel like a large smathering of been there done that I could have liked it better.
If the comic wasn’t half soaked in average super heroics and an average story I could have liked it better.
If the comic rose above and beyond it’s average-ness (and maybe worked in the other heroes from the last season of the series to create a more well rounded universe) I could have liked it better.
Sure, sure, Feedback IS the winner but listening to his origin story in and of itself is a tall drink of ho-hum.
Still, the new season of Who Wants To Be A Superhero is here and if you want something to further prove what a total fan of the series you happen to be then, well, here you go.
If not (and you were never a fan to begin with) then you won’t miss anything by not buying this. This is basically a fanboy book for fans of the show and nothing more.

Pray and hope Heroes the Comic (if it ever comes to be if it hasn’t happened already) doesn’t sink this low to this level of averageness. Otherwise I’m scoring Stan “The Man” Lee’s Who Wants To Be A Superhero? (featuring Feedback) with 3 Awesome WWTBASH Missions to Rescue Stan “The Man” Lee out of 5.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to see if I can actually watch this show’s premiere without choking on my own spit when I see the new season of vic-- I mean super heroes premiere… OK. I saw it.
I liked Stan “The Man” Lee’s take charge powerful personality in the show… and that’s about it.
Maybe next week and the attack of the “killer bees” will make me change my mind. Maybe.
Is there any other comics based on the characters from this show? Who knows. I’ll look into it.

To Be Continued.

-- David Rasmussen 27th Aug 07