The Absolute Universe is DC’s latest corner of the multiverse that reimagines superheroes with core elements of their characters changed. In Absolute Batman, Bruce has no money, his butler is an MI6 agent, and his mother is still alive. His usual rogues gallery are also his childhood best friends. In Absolute Superman, Kal-El comes to Earth as a young man who witnessed the corruption on Krypton and its collapse as well as memories of his parents. His cape is also a source of power fashioned from Kryptonian nano tech and an artificial intelligence. In Absolute Wonder Woman, Themyscira has been destroyed, Crice is Diana’s adopted mother, and she rides the skeleton of a pegasus.
Absolute Martian Manhunter written by Deniz Camp and illustrated by Javier Rodriguez will be no different when it comes to changing its titular character. Camp outlines the biggest changes to Martian Manhunter in a new interview for DC’s blog, putting a lot of emphasis on the split between John Jones and Martian Manhunter including the fact that the Martian Manhunter isn’t a Martian.
“My big concept was basically splitting the character into two. There’s a human character named John Jones and that character is being invaded by a creature that calls itself “the Martian.” Another big twist is that it’s not even really a Martian, it’s just a creature that’s so alien that it could only be understood in human terms as “Martian.” Martian is the stand-in because it’s the archetypal alien symbol for John. The creature looks through John’s mind and sees alien equals Martian and so it calls itself Martian, but it’s even more alien than that.”
Camp went on to detail the occupation of John Jones. John Jones’ character is given a very different job than he normally has in comics. He’s an FBI agent that investigates and studies a very particular kind of terrorism. He also details how the Martian Manhunter half of the character looks at all of this with empathy.
“John Jones is an FBI agent who studies stochastic terrorism, which are seemingly unpredictable acts of terror. The book is about why people do the things that they do, especially in relation to school shootings, suicide bombings and things like that. It’s really about, what does it mean to exist in a world that seems to be going out of control, where there seems to be so much anger, fear and rage?
“The Martian is here to tell you why that is and to try to help people understand why other people do the things that they do and deliver maximum empathy for them while also trying to make things better.”
Camp describes his story as “...the biggest change of any of the Absolute characters…” and from his descriptions of the story and character thus far, he sounds right. It’s par for the course for the Absolute Universe. Camp also went on to describe how artist Javier Rodriguez is not only integral to the art, but to the storytelling as well.
“He has such a strong idea of what comics can and should be. I knew he was perfect for it, but I didn’t realize how perfect he would be and how much I was going to learn working with him. He understands comics on such a deep level that he knows exactly what this book needs and exactly how to get to it.
“We’ve really created this symbiotic relationship where we talk all the time, exchange ideas and almost try to one-up each other. I write full scripts, but he takes them and transforms them and elevates them so much, and then when I get them back, I feel the need to also try to elevate and try to one-up what I did before. It’s been a dream collaboration. I think Javi’s one of the great artists of our time.”
You can take a look at some of the art for the series below.
The fan response to the Absolute Universe has been a bit mixed. Some find the changes to the characters interesting and an opportunity for new storytelling, while others think they’re just too much. The same has been said for the art of much of the universe as well. Yesterday, the creator of Bane even called the design for Absolute Bane an abomination.
Have you got your hands on Absolute Martian Manhunter? If so, what did you think? Let us know in the comments!