Farmington is lost. What’s next for Jack Xaver, AKA Local Man? Your Major Spoilers review of Local Man #13 from Image Comics awaits!
LOCAL MAN #13
Writer: Tim Seeley and Tony Fleecs
Artist: Tony Fleecs and Tim Seeley
Colorist: Brad Simpson/Felipe Sobreiro
Letterer: Tim Seeley
Publisher: Image Comics
Cover Price: $3.99
Release Date: August 21, 2024
Previously in Local Man: Local Man has lost Farmington to the forces of the Faceless Horde. Now every townsperson is a devout, fanatical member of a sprawling terrorist organization bent on rebooting the world-including his own grieving mom. Now Jack is alone and outclassed. Thankfully, he has one thing that makes every Image superhero smile: Lots and lots of big ass guns!
MY ENEMY… MY MOM?
The Faceless Horde, led by The Price (who is indeed Shelly Price, the girlfriend of Youngblood leader Shaft as Faithful Spoilerite Evan theorized last time), has returned to the Xaver farm, preparing to build their altar to restore the universe as they believe it should be. As for Jack himself, the Local Man has to deal with what feels like half the Wisconsin police force on his way home, though he draws the line at murdering them. At the same time, his ex, Inga, has gathered a few survivors of Farmington just in time for Slick 2.0 to arrive with the mysterious package she received from Shadowhawk. Jack makes his way to his former home to find that The Price is ready to perform a sacrifice, killing his dog Pepper in order to undo the “Shattered Image” event of 1996. Worse still, his own mom is holding a gun to his head, and he can’t think of a good reason why she shouldn’t finish the job.
And that’s when we find out what’s in the box.
AN UNEXPECTED CLIMAX
The appearance of Auntie Inga and the rest of Farmington’s unconverted population, all bearing the powers of original Image heroes, is pretty amazing (and was foreshadowed by Shadowhawk’s remark about the box and some of his oldest friends), but even more amazing is that fact that her powers are tied to the very first issue of the SECOND Image title, setting up a cute metatextual battle of Youngblood vs. Spawn. And anyone who remembers early Spawn probably remembers the early gimmick of his power countdown, right? The battle ends up being the best anniversary celebration in recent memory, as Fleecs and Seeley pull out all the stops to bring this arc to a close. Multiple bits of lore from the first twelve issues return, Spawn #10 is once again important, and best of all, the art is amazing. (Big kudos to the splash page where Jack in his “Local Man” balaclava and jeans is suddenly drawn in full-on Liefeld style, befitting his return to real super-duper action for the first time since being fired from Third Gen.
BOTTOM LINE: A FINE COMIC
I keep saying this, but Local Man #13 is a comic that fans should be reading, be they fans of classic Image, LSH-style team drama, or just plain serialized storytelling, bringing together talented creators to tell a complex and engaging story that makes it feel like the shared-universe concept of early Image actually worked the way it was intended to, earning 4.5 out of 5 stars overall. The enthusiasm, creativity, and just plain joy in these pages are why I love comics and friends.
Seeley and Fleecs keep upping their game, and this issue tops them all, delivering closure, redemption, history, and just a touch of the old ultra-violence to deliver an love letter to classic Image and a really good comic book issue.Dear Spoilerite,
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LOCAL MAN #13
Once upon a time, there was a young nerd from the Midwest, who loved Matter-Eater Lad and the McKenzie Brothers... If pop culture were a maze, Matthew would be the Minotaur at its center. Were it a mall, he'd be the Food Court. Were it a parking lot, he’d be the distant Cart Corral where the weird kids gather to smoke, but that’s not important right now... Matthew enjoys body surfing (so long as the bodies are fresh), writing in the third person, and dark-eyed women. Amongst his weaponry are such diverse elements as: Fear! Surprise! Ruthless efficiency! An almost fanatical devotion to pop culture! And a nice red uniform.