I know very little about the character Black Lightning. The only comics I remember reading that he was in are the first year or so of Batman and the Outsiders. I'm not sure what the origins of the character are, other than he was created by Tony Isabella, who writes this series. With all the reboots in DC continuity, I'm not sure if Black Lightning even has a current origin story. And speaking of Mr. Isabella, I promise not to be prejudiced because Tony is one of my Facebook friends, an Ohio resident, and a guy I've talked to at many comic cons going back to when I was a teenager. I will admit I might be prejudiced by Tony being a super nice guy!
By the way, Black Lightning has electrical powers--which should be obvious--including being able to hurl lightning, having a force field, and manipulation of electromagnetic forces, which allows him to somewhat fly and levitate heavy things. He's also a teacher when he isn't in costume, which is a big part of his personality and I, of course, approve!
Anyway, the first issues centers on a group of thieves called the "Weathermen" who are using high-tech guns to rob places in Cleveland and cause all kinds of mischief. You read that right, by the way. Unlike most DC heroes who are based in fictional cities, BL isn't patrolling the streets of "Laketown, Midwest" or some such, but is in the real city of Cleveland. Anyway, over the course of the issue or hero, of course, does his job and stops the bad guy (I leave out details to encourage everyone to go buy the book!) but it isn't easy. First, because this is all part of a master plan by a big bad guy. And second, because the local law enforcement is split on whether they want BL to help, or BL to go to jail.
This latter plotline is what gives this story more depth than your typical super-hero affair. As the cover says: "A hero for today's headlines" ,and our hero has to deal with the attitudes of police and public towards BL and his actions. There's real tension and the question of if that tension is caused by anti-vigilantism feelings alone, or is there some racism thrown in there to boot? And it looks like things will only get more heated as the series continues.
Needless to say, I really enjoyed this book. One of my favorite comics I've read this year and a great example of how to write a good super-hero story! And the art by Clayton Henry is very nice! Slick and exciting and great storytelling!
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