Radiant Black - My new comic book obsession

 This story starts in March of 2021.

I'm watching Amazon's Invincible show. I completely fall in love with this show. Three episodes later, I decide to give the comics a shot. Compendium volume one is on sale. "Screw it", I dive in.

I fall deeper in love with these character. I get to "That scene" in the comic, the same scene the end season one with. And I am completely in, I NEED to know how this ends. I completely binge the entire series within the next 4 weeks. I'm done the whole series before season one of the show ends. 

Days go by, I start missing these characters, I start theorizing how long the show will go on for, and in which seasons do they start each major arc. But there is an emptiness there. I need something as unique as Invincible to fill that void. So, I try to read some of Robert Kirkman's other works. And while they are great, they don't fill that void. Kirkman doesn't like to retread old ground. And, I need my superhero fix. 

I regularly read Batman, and I like to keep up on other of my favorite DC characters, but Invincible had a straight cut story. Yes, it dragged slightly in the middle. But what happened to those characters mattered. And it impacted them, and they carried the weight of their actions until the final pages of that book. (This is why Tom King's Batman is fantastic).
So, while I love reading Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, etc. They are all meant to outlive the writer. Those characters are going to live on in new stories even after I'm dead. 

So, I started doing some research. What should someone who loved Invincible read next?
Of course, because season one of the show had just ended, I wasn't the only person asking this question. And the answer online was an obvious one. Radiant Black.

This series had only started in February and is written by Kyle Higgins, and if I remember correctly, only three issues were out at the time. So I dived into the first one and immediately felt the same feeling I felt with Invincible.  Even greater this time. Nathan was a character I could immediately relate too. A down-on-his-luck 30 year old adult with crippling debt. He moved away from home, tried to make it big as a writer, failed and is now moving back home and in with his parents. This is the millennium superhero I have been searching for. 

Nathan is then granted amazing cosmic powers. And then the question becomes. When life has beaten you down so far, and you feel like you're at an all time low. Do you use these god-like powers to take what you want in life? Rob banks or find other ways to use your gift for financial gain? or do you go about life the "Superman way". Help those in need, people who may be worse off than you, or simply need your help. The first few issues made me love Nathan. Great moral compass, with the wit that made Spiderman famous. 

As of writing this, there are ten issues out. I'm not caught up, currently on issue six. Already, I feel like i am in on the ground floor of a superhero series I think we will be talking about years from now as one of the highlights coming from Image Comics. Have I mentioned the artwork? Because it is absolutely gorgeous.  Considering I'm trying not to show any spoilers or action in the screenshots im sharing, you can only imagine how busy and colorful the art can be. Let's just say we aren't only dealing with a monochrome black and white colored suit. 

If you find yourself reading this, please pick up the first issue of Radiant Black. I cannot recommend this book enough.  If you liked Invincible, or even Power Rangers, this book is absolutely for you. Hell, even if you don't know either of those things. This is a great start to a brand new IP and it deserves to take off. 
I won't be satisfied until I can easily buy Radiant Black merch. Inject more into my veins now, please. 

I'm sure this won't be the last time I talk about Radiant Black.