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Miracleman: Olympus (Marvel Comics, 1982; #11-16, Annual #1)

  • With Moore’s run on Miracleman coming to a close, all of the loose ends begin to come together.
  • Miracleman’s daughter, Johnny Bates’s battle with Kid Miracleman, the Miracleman Family’s alien origins, and the existence of Miracle Woman all drive the last arc of this run.
  • After stripping away Miracleman’s reality and humanity and painting him as something aloof and alien, Moore lets his final arc explore how pain, loss, love, fear, and emptiness exist outside of the recognizable, human experience—there’s an unexpected empathy to this story, which I think makes it much stronger than it would have been otherwise.
  • Totleben and Oliff’s pages range from sketchy and violent to painstakingly painted and beautifully detailed, matching the emotional arc that Miracleman takes throughout the story.

Moore’s Miracleman is a dense, often brutal read.  If a comic book that leans into epic tragedy is up your alley, then you should check it out.

Collected in

  • Miracleman, Book Three: Olympus (#11-16, Annual #1)

Credits

Writer: Alan Moore | Artist: John Totleben | Colorist: Steve Oliff | Letterer: Joe Caramagna | Art Restoration: Michael Kelleher & Kellustration

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