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What does it mean to be superpowered? Comics have explored that question in countless ways over the last nine decades. In the latest series from The Wicked + The Divine co-creator Kieron Gillen and artist Caspar Wijngaard, however, it has a very specific and ominous meaning.
In The Power Fantasy there are precisely six super-powered beings on the planet and the future of humanity hinges on them all getting along perfectly because the consequences of them ever falling out would be global catastrophe. The comic is described by publisher Image as taking "an approach that sits between The Boys and Watchmen and a music video aesthetic."
Here's the ominous teaser art for the series which gives a tantalizing hint at the tone.
"The Power Fantasy emerged in a similar way to The Wicked + The Divine," Gillen told The Hollywood Reporter. "I was doing a book at Marvel, and became aware of exactly the sort of things I could do with the reins taken off. As The Wicked + the Divine was to Young Avengers, this is to Immortal X-Men. It's a comic informed by superheroes, but one where a fight is the absolute lose state, for everyone."
Gillen also went on to explain that the new book is set across a significant period of time. "It's set from 1945-1999, and so is a chance to really have fun with an alternate cultural history too. I think you can see it as an extension of my best work: WicDivian alternate-pop culture, a cold-war take on Uber's realpolitik, Die's social group drama hyper-charged by genre…"
"Once Kieron had pitched the basic outline for The Power Fantasy I knew this was the story I felt comfortable most telling," added Wijngaard. "We've been able to create some incredible characters, each with their own vibrant personalities and worlds in which they inhabit... I'm truly putting everything I've learned into this series, and The Power Fantasy is a large and beautiful canvas for me to operate on."
The Power Fantasy #1 is published by Image Comics in August, with the precise release date still to be confirmed.
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