Infinite Horizon

Trying something a little different for today’s review.

Infinite Horizon 1-6

Regret buying: No.  Resetting the Odyssey in the not-so-distant future is tailor-made to catch my interest.  Phil Noto’s art is solid, but not as good as his work on Black Widow.  It’s kind of neat, seeing how Gerry Duggan translates bits of the classic story into a modern sensibility.  Why can’t our Odysseus (not given a name in the comic) just fly home? His military unit was abandoned in the Middle East by the army.  Why can’t he call home? The Chinese shot down all the relevant satellites. Even if limited to ocean transport, what delays him for ten years?  A badly broken leg and an involuntary dependence on mind-numbing drugs. (Along with a soldier in cyclopean armor and a radio station that lures unsuspecting refugees with the promise of a ship to better places.)  

What’s up with Penelope?  She owns the land that controls the water in New York.  (The government’s a little broken down in this world.) So all her surrounding neighbors are exerting pressure, trying to bully her around.  This Penelope is a lot more assertive and can clearly take care of herself. But I don’t buy that none of these men would have tried to take the property by force, no matter how adept she is with a gun.  

Would buy again: No.  It’s missing that spark of inspiration to make it truly sing.  Odysseus is mostly an blank slate. A most effective soldier, but wanting to get home to his family and a devotion to his men isn’t enough to define a personality.  The Odysseus of myth was a trickster with a sly sense of humor. This guy could just as easily have been Frank Castle. (Which actually would have made for a sweet Elseworlds story.)

Would read again: No.  I like the additions to Penelope’s side of the story, but it’s not enough to make this worth another read.

Rating: Fine.  I wasn’t bored, and it was fun to find the parallels.  But I don’t care enough about the hero to want to read about his adventures.  I’m very much on the fence about whether to cut this or not, which means I’m going to keep it.  Might as well hang on to it, I may be tempted to give it another go in the future.