Review – Shazam! No. 14: The Trials of Freddy Freeman

#14 – Josie Campbell, writer; Emanuela Lupacchino, artist; Trish Mulvihill, colorist

Beam – 9/10

Beam: Josie Campbell has built on what Mark Waid created for this universe, incorporating elements from the Silver Age and giving them a modern – and often grimmer – twist. She's also explored the backstories of the Shazam children a little more, giving us painful flashbacks to who they were before they became members of the Vasquez family. Freddie, who is currently powerless but plays a key role in this storyline, is said to have had a mother – but she went to prison and her family wasn't interested in caring for a disabled child. This motivates him as he plays the role of mediator with King Kull of the Underground Dwellers, a ruthless band of flesh-eating monsters determined to reclaim what they see as their inheritance on the surface world. And as he tries to negotiate with them, he spins a web of lies rooted deep in his own painful past – a web that's crumbling around him.

Meanwhile, Mary teams up with an unlikely ally – Uncle Dudley, a homeless man Mary met during her adventures in her solo series. Motivated by her heroism, he becomes a supporter of the homeless and a vigilante in his own right – defending the subway with a crowbar and a lot of guts. It's a hilarious little twist on the classic character, but it's not enough against a horde of marauding monsters – especially with the Captain out of commission. Billy has become aware that his alter ego has been hiding things from him and feels he can no longer trust him, so he locks him away and embarks on a dangerous journey alone while the Captain makes plans to escape from prison. It's a whole new dynamic for the two of them, and it's not entirely clear who's in the right here – if anyone. This continues to be a great, but very different, status quo for the title.

Reviews of all DC issues can be found under “DC This Week”.

GeekDad received this comic for review purposes.

Related