Well over a year ago, I posted about the then-upcoming new series from Mark Waid titled Irredeemable.  The series started in April of 2009, but I didn’t get a chance to pick it up until this past weekend.  What happened this past weekend?  Free Comic Book Day happened.

While standing in line at Heroes here in Fresno, I started thinking to myself, “Hey, when we get in there, why not see if they have back issues of Irredeemable and pick up the first few issues?  After we pick up our free comics, of course.”  Well, as we stood in line and gazed upon the wall of free comics, examining the available titles, my eye reached none other than Irredeemable issue #1.  As soon as we got home, I dropped everything, emptied my pockets, jumped onto the couch, and started reading.

It was phenomenal.

I managed to get my hands on issues #2-12 and read through them all, and only became more and more enamored with the world Mark Waid has created for Irredeemable. I’ve read through these 12 issues three times, now, in the past six days, and I’ll probably read through it all again this weekend in anticipation of the release of the 13th issue this month.  The Plutonian’s transition from the world’s greatest hero to its greatest villain was phenomenal.  When the UN ambassador from Singapore had the audacity to lie to The Plutonian, he decided to create a fused layer of diamond in the middle of Singapore.  What’s that, you say?  Giving Singapore a giant diamond can’t be that evil?  No, I suppose you’re right.  Unless…well, unless you use that giant fused diamond as a way to spread your power in order to SINK SINGAPORE.  As in, push the landmass under sea level.

Check this series out.  I’m serious.

-[insert OH SHIT, SINGAPORE! here]

A couple of weeks ago, I came across a link to a new comic that Mark Waid was working on.  I loved his work on Kingdom Come and Secret Origins, and the lead-in mentioned Kingdom Come, so I clicked and took a look.  What I saw was “Irredeemable”, a new monthly series from Mark Waid.  I love the premise, and I think it’s just a fantastic story to tell.  The story tells of the world’s greatest superhero, and his transformation into the world’s greatest supervillain.  Yes, there have been superhero to supervillain turns in comics before.  I haven’t read Mark Waid’s work on Empire, but I’ve heard that there are some similarities.  However, I think the thing that I like most about the premise is…well, read the next bit first.

Mark Waid describes the comic in this way:

“In superhero comics, pretty much everyone who’s called upon to put on a cape is, at heart, emotionally equipped for the job.  I reject that premise.  Irredeemable is…a pulp adventure tale of horror exploring how the lessons we learn about right and wrong as children can become warped and twisted when challenged by the realities of the adult world.”

The hero isn’t under a magic spell, being brainwashed by a supervillain, or being coerced due to hostages, etc.  The hero has genuinely become twisted by, I assume, his responsibility, and the simple meaning of right and wrong.  This is the hero’s CHOICE to become a villain, in the truest sense of the word.

I can’t wait.

-Because I said so