Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Idolized #3

Everyone knows that reality TV is mostly phony, right?

The producers manipulate the images presented, what stories we hear, which characters seem likable, which ones are annoying - you get the idea. They do this to try to create compelling characters you'll either love or hate, and this (they hope) will keep you coming back for more episodes.

(They can even manipulate the votes. Notice we never see exact totals - they just name a winner.)

That seamy underbelly is a rarely-seen side of the business - and one that we see a bit of in this issue of Idolized, which is an attempt to combine reality TV and superheroes. Young heroes are auditioning for a spot on an Avengers-like super team as they compete in the "Superhero Idol" TV show.

The character we're following is Joule, a young woman with energy powers who has a number of secrets she's hiding - and one nearly gets her booted from the show. It's a solid story with a plot that twists and turns as she runs into unexpected problems.

The story doesn't quite make the leap to exceptional - this one is a bit too much of a repeat of last issue, right down to the contrived cliffhanger.

Still, it's a solid issue, and especially for reality show fans, worth checking out.

Grade: B+


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