Welcome to an all new edition of Parlay Points, the comic book review blog to the ODPH podcast.

For this entry, we’re taking a look at a brand new series from Image Comics with a very unique plot behind it. LOCAL MAN #1 by Tony Fleecs (STRAY DOGS), Tim Seeley (WILDCATS), Brad Simpson and Felipe Sobrerio mixes the world of superheroes up with a great mystery behind it. Who is JACK XAVER aka CROSSJACK and what has he done to go home super hero to “ordinary” Local Man? Let’s take a look at the debut issue and see where this journey takes us, shall we?

LOCAL MAN #1
Creative: Tony Fleecs, Tim Seeley, Brad Simpson and Felipe Sobrerio
Credit: Image Comics

*** POTENTIAL SPOILER WARNING ***

This story begins with a young man named JACK XAVER sitting on a bench waiting for a bus. The area is midday, set in the middle of nowhere, 10 miles outside of Farmington (located in the Midwest). A driver goes by and mentions that the bus hasn’t run by this area in years. During the conversation, the driver recognizes Jack as Crossjack. Once Jack says that’s him, the conversation shifts. The driver speeds off and leaves him with the parting words: “F*** CROSSJACK”….. and here we go.

By nightfall, Jack makes his way to his parents. They are less than thrilled to see him. Jack is trying to be upbeat and positive with them but they are not budging in their tones. Both are disappointed and angry at Jack. His father begins drilling him about how long he will be there and what is he going to do now. The only one happy to see him is Pepper, their dog. Even in saying grace before eating, Jack’s mother asks for forgiveness for Jack’s actions embarrassing the family. As much as Jack is trying to reconnect with his parents, the cord is cut. The only concern is how Jack can fix this mess. Old-school Image readers hear the mention of a few classic teams as Jack is encouraged to get his job back with the superhero team THIRD GEN, who appear to have a Youngblood vibe to them.

With the parents not welcoming him with open arms, Jack takes off for the Barnyard Saloon to try finding some normalcy. The patrons aren’t welcoming but someone has crashed the bar looking for Jack: a costumed figure known as Hodag. Hodag is trying to relay some message to him, but Jack is too busy reliving his hero glory days. However, they’re far from the hero world and the patrons throw Jack out and Hodag is arrested. All hope seems lost for Jack until he runs into an old friend: Inga

While the pair catches up at Igna’s baked shop, Third Gen shows up with paperwork stating Crossjack and all things related to the image are copyrighted by Third Gen Enterprises and he is in violation for fighting Hodag. Jack is stunned to see this and his former teammates are none too pleased to deal with him.

Just what did Jack do to cause this much outrage? What does life mean now for a hero who can’t be a hero? Readers watch as Jack adjusts to his new life but not without a few moments in the final act that draw out more questions to what is going on involving the former hero with a strong final homage panel to close on. The back-up story explaining Third Gen is a great additional piece to show readers the background of what Jack was involved with being apart of that team

BREAKDOWN: Seeley & Fleecs dive head first into establishing everyone hates Jack. From the opening moments, the hometown hero has failed his city in epic fashion. The conversation with his parents is telling as they keep mentioning how Jack needs to get his job back and he needs forgiveness in the worst possible way. Really enjoyed the team callbacks from Image’s beginnings. The anger being dealt to Jack comes off strong and harsh, building that a line was crossed that can’t be looked past. The conversation with Inga proves to be a well-needed break from the consistent anger towards the hometown hero. With at least one friend, Jack has someone to lean on but clearly it won’t be enough. Interesting close to the book as there is much intrigue to what has happened to Jack and what is following him home.

The artwork captures the disdain of the town extremely well. The initial encounter with the driver sets the pace for things to come with two simple words: F*** Crossjack.” The moments with his parents come off big as readers see the sheer disgust to Jack’s situation. During the fight with Hodag, the art switches for a quick panel to show Jack reliving what he was apart of with Third Gen. It’s a great intro to the back-story “flip book” with perfectly captures the 90’s feel of Image. The story involving Hodag will be one to watch as it’s only begun to scratch the surface of why he showed up in Farmington.

FINAL POINT: Local Man #1 brings forth the mystery of a hero’s fall from grace and is it possible to be redeemed? Fleecs, Seeley and the team deliver on excellent storytelling and artwork to gift readers a tale that is more than it seems. Don’t miss this book on New Comic Book Day.

Hit me up on ODPH social media and let me know what you thought of Local Man #1. Thanks for reading!

LOCAL MAN #1 (IMAGE COMICS)

Ken M