DCU Comic Book Reviews

THE TRIALS OF SHAZAM! #7

Nurture vs. Nature

June 2007

Written by Judd Winick

Pencils by Howard Porter

Inks by Howard Porter

Cover by Howard Porter

Synopsis

Sabina, the chosen one from the council of Merlin, has managed to steal half of Hercules’ strength.  In retaliation, Hercules gives the other half of his strength to Freddy Freeman as part of his trial to become the new champion of Shazam.  Sabina and Freddy fight each other, with the winner getting all of Hercules’ power.  Freddy wins the fight, but Sabina is able to get away.  Hercules tells Freddy he can keep Hercules’ strength, but only half of it.  Elsewhere, Atlas lives beneath the surface, holding up the world.  Then Sabina finds him, telling Atlas he has something she needs.

Review by Binkley (e-mail)

SHAZAM = Solomon, Hercules, Atlas, Zeus, Achilles, Mercury

The core of this issue was the fight between Sabina and Freddy.  The rest of it was filler, a good example of decompression storytelling to stretch a fight that lasted only a couple of pages to make it fit an entire issue.  It is not that the non-fight material was bad so much as it was not necessary.  The history of Sabina and who she is really does not add much to the overall story.  All we need to know is that she wants what Freddy is attempting to earn and she’ll do anything to take.  Whether or not she had parents who were sorcerers or she killed pacifist demons or she is descendant to Merlin is extraneous material that does not add much to the narrative flow of the story. 

Conversely, the fight was handled well enough; Porter does a good job with the action.  Plus, Winick just doesn’t have the two trade jabs and quips; there is more to it than that.   Freddy’s monologue as he sorts out what is going on and what he needs to do added to the fight, showing him coming to terms with his own powers as well as figuring out hers.  I am not actually sure how Sabina survived the building falling on top of her, but I did like that Freddy collapsed it on purpose knowing that he would survive thanks to Achilles’ power he had been given.

 

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