Review: Irredeemable #34

After treating us with the origin stories of Max Damage and the Plutonian, Mark Waid dives right back into the action of Irredeemable. The Plutonian was saved, at the last minute, by Qubit and Damage from being cast into a prison at the end of time by his parents. Much like The Plutonian himself, Irredeemable is the natural evolution of the superhero comic – a powerful, engaging story about a man with serious issues and world that has to deal with them.


Qubit has come up with a grand plan to save the world, but he needs the Plutonian to cary it out. Tony is offered the opportunity to go back in time if he co-operates. There’s a great scene were Qubit is testing Tony’s powers, and it it’s reminiscent of the many super hero power tests you find in comics. Irredeemable is no ordinary Super hero comic, though. There’s something special about it, something unique and different. Part of it is the fact that it’s about Superman gone evil, but mostly it comes down to Mark Waid’s innate ability to write stories that actually matter.

The art duties are split between regular series artist Diego Barretto and Damian Couceiro. While their styles are distinct and different, I hardly noticed the change, which is want you want. Couciero’s work is slightly less stylised, but no less emotive. Waid has created a world filled with people – some are psychopaths, some are geniuses, some are just regular people. No one is good, no one is bad, and it’s those shades of grey that make Irredeemable worth reading every month.