Customer Reviews

Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Freedom Fighters have had quite a history. These characters first saw the light of day during the golden age of comic books, though not as a team. Uncle Sam, Black Condor, the Ray, the Human Bomb, Dollman, and Phantom Lady were all solo heroes and featured in various books published by Quality Comics (along with the Red Bee, Firebrand, Miss America, and the Invisible Hood, who would also make appearances in this book and help fill the ranks of the team). DC acquired these characters and put the core six heroes together as the Freedom Fighters. They enjoyed a brief series in 70s, were brought back for the Crisis on Infinite Earths in the 80s, and some of the characters were given face-lifts in the 90s.

Now, these are not the Freedom Fighters of old, and (except for Uncle Sam) are new heroes using old identities. Apparently this latest incarnation got their start in another mini-series called the Battle for Bludhaven. I didn't read Bludhaven (which did not get great reviews), and that makes Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters a little hard to follow. A lot of baggage from BFB makes it into US&FF, making the latter confusing in some cases, and generally undermines its ability to stand on its own merits (which are few).

The dialog is bad; really bad. Themes like patriotism, civil rights, and political freedom are just ground into the dirt here; the over dramatic rambling and lack of real political insight here drains a lot of vitality out of the plot. Story-wise, this tale could have been told in fewer issues (which would have been nice, since I just barely scanned the last installment for the resolution).

The government conspiracy plot was just tired and the villains were unattainable, preventing enough empathy to really hate them, or at least understand what they are doing. Adding to the confusion was the gender transformation of one of the characters between issues (first it was a guy, and then not); I'm assuming this was not intentional. The politically themed heroes and villains that appeared in this book were too much, and when the major villain Gonzo was introduced, I was just done.

The ONLY reason this book didn't get two stars was the incredible artwork of Daniel Acuna. Despite the dreadful material filling the word balloons, the art is nothing short of stunning. Each character gets a visual overhaul, setting these young heroes apart from their Golden Age counterparts. The art is not enough to carry the book, though it does dull the pain of the story quite considerably.

...to check out this book.

"Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters" comes from an unforunate lineage. Previewed in the widely disliked "Battle for Bludhaven", these new characters didn't have the welcome they deserved. But they got the follow up they needed with this book.

"Uncle Sam" is a little ridiculous - which is only to be expected from a book based on the ideas and concepts of Grant Morrison. The plot revolves around a corrupt government organization and their attempt to take over America...for it's own safety, of course. Opposing them is a team calling themselves the Freedom Fighters, a group of their own agents gone rogue and fighting for freedom, led by the mysterious Uncle Sam. The group has been forced underground, falsely called terrorists. Everyone is against them. But that won't stop them from trying to save the world.

The weakest part of the book is easily the dialogue. While the characters have distinctive personalities and are (for the most part) interesting, the dialogue often feels aimless and lost, lacking the crisp quality found in better books.

The art, however, is phenominal. Daniel Acuna fires up his career as an interior artist with this stunning debut. Highly stylistic and not for everyone, Acuna's panels postively gleam with energy. The art is definitely a big draw for the book. If you're getting tired of more traditional comic art, Acuna might be a man to keep your eyes on.

So, the story is traditional, the characters are interesting, but suffer from occasional mediocre dialogue, and the art is amazing. What's to make you want to buy this book, out of all the other myriad choices out there?

One word: fun. It isn't as deep as Gaiman's "Sandman" or as brilliantly occult as Moore's "Promethea". Instead, it takes the post 9/11 aura of fear that surrounds much of America and transforms it into something we can and should fight to overcome, and it does so with a healthy dose of good ol' fashioned bad-assery that is, honestly, a pleasure to read.

The Freedom Fighters in the seventies were a quaint and colourful book - very much like the Doom Patrol. I liked this resurrection of the team very much. This reinvention works way better than anyone might imagine, and I'm not even tracking the Infinite Crisis storyline.

Credit goes to the artwork. Really crisp and nice big panels. Uncle Sam - surely one of the oddest characters to emerge - isn't overbearing and gels well in this modern setting - almost like a Charles Xavier and the X-men, but more hands on.

Worth checking out and I'm looking for more books!

Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters receives 4 stars for art and 2 stars for writing earning it a perfectly middle-ground 3 stars. The book is a revival of old comic characters from the 1940s who fought tyranny in all forms. In this story, Uncle Sam - the spirit of America - seeks to save the soul of the United States as well as the lives of the young heroes employed by America's clandestine super-hero weapons program. Not a bad idea overall.

The art by Daniel Acuna is beautiful. He immediately makes the whole thing look modern. Actually, more than modern, the book looks like the imminent future, as if this is the world just around the corner. He is excellent conveying body language and facial expressions, his layouts are interesting but, above all, he has a superlative command of digital coloring.

The story unfortunately is mediocre, perhaps the most heinous crime a comic can commit. You can be controversial or evocative but NEVER boring. The story starts out well enough but begins to crumble halfway through as more characters and ideas are added. Characters like Miss America and the Ray (2nd generation) are never fully explained. You need to have a modicum of comic knowledge to recognize how these characters are related to the Freedom Fighters, otherwise they're introduction seems random. Which is not to say their introductions are handled naturally. Still there are some nice character moments cemented by Acuna's presentation.

So...not a bad book. Merely adequate with some intriguing art.

"Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters" is an interesting attempt to take comics out of their post 9/11 malaise. While certainly dealing with dark themes, including a coup attempt which leads to a crack down on America's freedoms and an effort to hoodwink superheroes, the comic has a load of interesting characters and, best of all, is fun.

Some of these characters were first introduced in the truly lousy "Battle for Bludhaven." There are new versions of the Ray, Phantom Lady, Doll Man, the Red Bee, the Human Bomb and other heroes. At the center of the book is a new version of Uncle Sam, who is even more powerful than ever, and his herald, Firebrand. Firebrand was one of the better characters in "Battle for Bludhaven" and he reemerges here as a strong character.

The plot flows, the villains are truly nasty and the supporting cast helps the book. While the art is not memorable, this is a solid work that combines serious themes with entertainment.

At the beginning of the cataclysmic Infinite Crisis, Uncle Sam and his Freedom Fighters were decimated by Lex Luthor's Secret Society. Now, with the Crisis seemingly over and a new world and era born, the iconic American symbol makes a (not so) shocking return with a new band of Freedom Fighters. The Ray is back, as is new versions of Phantom Lady and the Human Bomb, as the Freedom Fighters take on a group calling themselves SHADE who claim to have the best interests of America and it's people at heart. Written by veteran inker Jimmy Palmiotti and his writing partner Justin Gray, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters throws any kind of real character development out the window and instead delivers plenty of action and excitement. However, the reader ends up feeling disappointed thanks to some atrocious, one dimensional dialogue and a twisty story that doesn't always make sense. Daniel Acuna's artwork isn't anything spectacular, but it does the job regardless. Considering this is from the guys who wrote the incredibly lame Battle For Bludhaven, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters isn't bad one bit, and is definitely worth checking out for DC readers new and old, but whether or not it is worth laying down the cash for is entirely up to you.