Pax Britannia - The Gods Of Manhattan - by Al Ewing
Yes I'm still continuing with this series, in e-book form at least. If you recall, I wasn't that impressed with the last Ulysses Quicksilver volume I read back here, but this is the second in Al Ewing's "El Sombra" trilogy. I thoroughly enjoyed the first one and Mr Ewing hasn't let me down with any of his novel or comics writing, so this seemed like a pretty safe bet.
Half-naked and all-crazy sword-wielding Mexican vigilante El Sombra is back, this time stalking the streets of Manhattan in search of those further up the chain in the Ultimate Reich hierarchy (in this world Hitler is still alive - well his brain is, housed in a gigantic robot body). However the tale of El Sombra's vengeance takes a back seat to that of New York's very own hero - the near superhuman, Doc Thunder.
Thunder is obviously a parallel to the classic Doc Savage character that I wrote about just a few weeks ago, blended with the original less powerful version of the Man of Steel. Possessing extraordinary strength, able to heal from virtually any wound and leap tall buildings at a single bound, he is America's greatest hero. Involved in a scandalous three-way relationship with the immortal Maya, queen of the Leopard Men of Zor-Ek-Narr and his best friend the apelike Monk, Doc puts the world to rights and stands up for decent folk everywhere.
If Doc is the light, then the Blood Spider is the dark, The vicious alter-ego of rich socialite Parker Crane, he's a cross between Batman and The Shadow (double pistols included) with the violence and fractured personality turned up to eleven. Aided by a cadre of informants who are terrified of him and with a steely blonde as his driver, the Blood Spider guns down anyone who gets in his way.
The plot kick starts when Heinrich Donner, the former head of the Nazi-fronted "Untergang" is killed (for the second time) and Doc's lover Monk is violently attacked and hospitalised. As the different worlds of these three men clash in spectacular fashion, mysteries are unravelled and long held secrets revealed - and not everyone will emerge unscathed.
So this is possibly be one of the most enjoyable retro-steam-punky homage to the authors favourite characters novels I've read in a good few years. Heroes and villains ply their trade in a alternative United Socialist States of America where Joe McCarthy started a second Civil War. New York is a steam-powered city where psychedelia rubs shoulders with punk and mad science collides with superheroes.
Ewing displays his influences loud and proud (Doc's nemesis is called Lars Lomax after all), but rather than being a poor mans rip-off, we ends up with a rip-roaring adventure featuring the archetypes of pulp fiction and comics history. It's Philip Jose Farmer's 'Wold Newton' universe via Alan Moore's "Tom Strong" but with an awful lot more violence.
It proves once again that Ewing is capable of taking what might seem to be a well-trodden or dull old idea and breathing new life into it. This is a novel packed with imagination and brimming with confidence. The characters might be familiar but the world-building here is just excellent. To be honest you could remove the "Pax Britannia" strapline and let this world stand on it's own. I'd compare it to the best of the George R.R. Martin edited "Wild Card" novels, which for me is high praise indeed.
Jonathan Green might be happy extolling the moribund adventures of Britain's most cliched super-spy, but Al Ewing is forging ahead with the best kind of alternate-world novel - one that takes existing tropes but still tells an exciting original story. I can't wait for book three, "Pax Omega". Highly recommended !
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