Soon I Will Be Invincible
Austin Grossman's debut Novel Explores the Psychology of Superpowers
In his debut novel, Soon I Will Be Invincible, Austin Grossman embraces his inner nerd so we can all embrace ours. But while part is an action/adventure story, part is an exploration of humanity and the nature of good and evil. Grossman has written a story that appeals to comic book fans, psychology fans and just anyone who enjoys great characters.
Heroes
Half of the novel is told through the eyes of a hero, Fatale, an amnesiac cyborg, and a villain, Dr. Impossible, would-be world conqueror. The secondary hero characters are more fleshed out than the secondary villain characters and all of them have major personality issues. One of the most interesting characters is thus because he's so wooden and mostly referred to in flashback. CoreFire is basically Superman, a nearly invulnerable clean-cut boy scout. Most of the names, like Damsel and Rainbow Triumph seem to be cheesy on purpose. They draw a sharp contrast between the mask and the person behind it.
Villains
The other half of the novel is told through the eyes of a villain, Dr. Impossible, would-be world conqueror. There are other villains, like the legendary yet retired Baron Ether, but Dr. Impossible's egotistic personality overshadows most of them. They are present mostly to create the feeling of a criminal underworld and to isolate Dr. Impossible from it. One of his consistent character traits is that he doesn't feel a comraderie with anyone.
Plot
The world's premier superteam, The Champions, are reforming for one purpose, to find their missing teammate CoreFire. They think Dr. Impossible has something to do with it, especially when he breaks out of prison. The plot snakes out from this point. The novel is basically a long chase scene, Dr. Impossible one step ahead of the superheroes and planning world domination. But Grossman does give ample space for origin stories. Most of the time these sections are interesting and illuminating but the pacing is a little odd, which often leads to stop-start action like the novel is a car stuck in rush hour traffic.
The Bottom Line
Character development and imagery are the strong suits of Soon I Will Be Invincible. Having different perspectives back to back helps. It reflects the ambiguity of real life. Grossman even added a handy character glossary/dossier in the back of the book. The plot pacing issues can be chalked up to the fact that this is Grossman's first novel. But you can feel his immense love for superhero comics emanating from the pages. Grossman also recognizes and addresses what superhero comics often lack. Psychology. These people may wear colorful, skintight costumes but in this novel they feel like real people. They get stressed out. They get hurt, physically and emotionally. They make multitudes of mistakes. They have insecurities. Their powers don't always work to their benefit. This is the greatest strength of the novel. The human element.
Soon I Will Be Invincible
|
What do you think about this article?
Comments
More in Reading & Literature
Latest Articles