By Alex Boney

Mainstream comic books are notorious for dancing all around—but never directly confronting—politically overt subjects in superhero books. This wasn’t always the case, of course. When Superman debuted in 1938, he was a liberal crusader on a reckless, one-man mission to reform social injustice. The “Man of Steel” was also the “Champion of the Helpless and Oppressed” (though in 1938—the same year Richard Wright finished Uncle Tom’s Children—Superman’s crusade didn’t include ethnic minorities). Superman’s mission quickly shifted as the Second World War began casting a shadow across the Atlantic Ocean. Superheroes began upholding—rather than challenging—the social and political status quo as the United States began to understand that it couldn’t avoid the war much longer. By December 1941, the men and women in capes and tights were working alongside the law rather than against it. Since WWII, few exceptions have emerged in mainstream superhero comics. Green Arrow has served as a countercultural voice since Denny O’Neil’s socially-conscious Green Lantern/Green Arrow run in the early 1970s, and Marvel’s Captain America was a catalyst for social commentary (if a bit tepid) during part of the 1980s. Generally, though, you don’t look to superhero comics to find engagement with the pertinent political issues of the day. Taking a stance means that the company runs the risk of alienating a large part of its readership, thus cutting off a large part of the consumers buying its monthly comics. Even Marvel’s current Civil War can’t decide exactly what it wants to say. But this year, DC debuted a monthly comic book that flies—at times, almost spits—in the face of conventional wisdom. If a carefully-considered, nuanced presentation of political dialogue is something you’re interested in, then Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters is not the book you’re looking for. But if you’re interested in a free-wheeling action story with superheroes unabashedly screaming political platitudes into metaphorical megaphones, then Uncle Sam is a hell of a lot of fun.

Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters is based on a superhero group that originated in Justice League of America #107 (1973). As with most of DC’s “multiple-Earth” mythology, the team’s oft-rewritten history is too convoluted to treat here comprehensively. Essentially, the original Freedom Fighters (including old Quality Comics characters Black Condor, Doll Man, Firebrand, The Human Bomb, The Ray, and Phantom Lady) were assembled by a man named Uncle Sam to combat Axis forces during WWII. The Freedom Fighters are a Golden Age team retrofitted into DC’s continuity, though Uncle Sam actually debuted as a comic book character in National Comics #1 (July 1940). The fictional Uncle Sam is essentially the spirit of America—an almost elemental force created shortly after the American Revolution, when America’s founding fathers created a magical talisman that would transform a patriotic citizen into a superhuman inspirational figure. The concept of Uncle Sam—much like the concept of the Freedom Fighters—invokes the strong, idealistic nationalism of the WWII period, and reading their adventures in the short Freedom Fighters series from the late 70s and the All-Star Squadron series from the early 80s is like stepping through a time portal into a simpler, bygone (perhaps even nonexistent) era.

Probably because they seemed outdated and far too quaint for the darker, modern period of superhero comics, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters have been used infrequently since the 1980s. In 1997, writer Steve Darnall and artist Alex Ross revived Uncle Sam for a two-issue Vertigo series simply called U.S. In this book, Uncle Sam is re-imagined as a homeless man who wanders from place to place in red, white, and blue rags searching for his identity and his place in contemporary America. This isn’t necessarily the Quality Comics Uncle Sam, but the specter of the original character is used to examine the seemingly broken spirit of America in the modern world. Uncle Sam was pulled back into DC’s continuity in the early 2000s, and the Freedom Fighters were re-introduced during last year’s Infinite Crisis event only to be massacred in a supervillain ambush in the first issue of the series. Following Infinite Crisis, Justin Gray and Jimmy Palmiotti co-scripted a six-issue miniseries called The Battle for Blüdhaven that introduced new characters bearing the mantles and titles of several of the murdered Freedom Fighters (Firebrand, Phantom Lady, Doll Man, and The Human Bomb). Although Daniel Acuña’s covers for Battle for Blüdhaven were beautiful and alluring, the actual series was largely a muddled, incoherent mess. When DC announced that Gray and Palmiotti would be writing a follow-up miniseries, I was not at all enthused. Despite my reservations, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters is proving to be a compelling, rewarding book.

The complicated history of its title characters notwithstanding, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters is much more tightly-written than Battle for Blüdhaven. Gray and Palmiotti provide a focus and clarity that matches their strong work on the current ongoing Jonah Hex series. The first issue introduces the characters beneath the superheroes’ masks and costumes, so we know who these people are and why they have chosen the alliances they’ve chosen. And their alliances serve as a useful, dramatic starting point for the series. Doll Man, Phantom Lady, The Human Bomb, and The Ray are working for a shadow organization that controls the inner workings of the newly-elected United States presidential administration. Firebrand, an outside malcontent, discovers the puppet masters behind the presidency (led by a man named Father Time) and unsuccessfully tries to expose them before he is imprisoned. Father Time sends Doll Man, Phantom Lady, The Human Bomb, and the Ray to find and capture a mysterious rabble-rouser named Uncle Sam, who reveals to them the dangers of their blind allegiance. Swayed by Uncle Sam, the group rescues Firebrand from captivity and, by the end of the second issue, the new Freedom Fighters are formed. Familiar (but revamped) characters such as Black Condor, Miss America, and Red Bee are introduced as the series progresses, but the core of the book is focused on the Freedom Fighters’ resistance to the American government.

Gray and Palmiotti don’t try to hide or couch their political perspectives in Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters. The book’s shadow organization seems to reflect the neo-conservative influence of the current U.S. administration, and the rhetoric of the puppet president sounds much like the speeches currently being delivered by George W. Bush. In fact, by the second issue, the president is murdered and replaced by a robot that performs exactly the functions ordered by Father Time (Dick Cheney? Karl Rove?). The ideological force against which the Freedom Fighters struggle looks much like the 2001 USA Patriot Act—legislation designed to combat terrorism that inadvertently (or intentionally, in this case) compromises the rights and freedoms of American citizens. The folksy (yet simplistically sage) speeches delivered by Uncle Sam defy Father Time’s dubious intentions, but they also appeal to the foundational concepts of American liberty and non-centralized government that seem to be under attack in the post-September 11th United States. Despite the real-life correlatives, though, Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters is not a realistic book. Part of what makes the book effective is that it doesn’t try to be. It’s not pretentious or overly ambitious. It is unapologetically didactic and politically charged, but the story is so over-the-top and grounded in the colorful, fantastic world of superheroes that it doesn’t risk slipping into Vertigo or Ultimates territory. There are moments when the symbolism (both visual and narrative) is painfully obvious, and some of the monologues and dialogues have all the subtlety of a sledgehammer to the head. But this, too, is fun, unique, and actually refreshing in a superhero comic book.

A large part of Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters’ potential success is its wide appeal. Readers relatively unversed in DC’s intricate mythology can pick it up at the beginning and “get it” without having to read everything that came before, but long-time readers who have known these characters for decades are given intelligent, appropriate revisions that make the Freedom Fighters relevant for modern times. And Daniel Acuña, who provides both cover and interior art for the series, is turning in stunning, captivating work in every issue. The book probably would not be as dynamic and consistent if he weren’t illustrating it. Uncle Sam and the Freedom Fighters is not the best book I’ve read this year. It’s probably not in my top ten. But between my low expectations and the enjoyment I get every time I read through an issue, the book is my surprise hit of the year.