Reviewer: Chris Delloiacono
Story Title: What Dreams May Come
Written by: Ty Templeton
Penciled by: Clement Suave Jr.
Inked by: Juan Vlasco
Colored by: Moose Baumann
Lettered by: Clem Robins
Editor: Dan Raspler & Valerie D’Orazio
Publisher: DC Comics
I recently looked at the sales for the second issue of HUMAN DEFENSE CORPS, and I was stunned by just how poorly it sold. Website ICV2.com reported the number as 12,459 copies. For those that care, that fits just behind the second to last issue of POWER COMPANY and just ahead of the second to last issue of DOOM PATROL. I wonder if this is one of those self-fulfilling prophecies, where comic shops didn’t order any, thus the reason this paltry amount was sold. The shame of it is, with numbers like that, the mini-series will never find any greater readership.
I made a valiant attempt to trumpet this book in my reviews of issue 1 and 2. Each was a standalone tale, which introduced us to a member of the Earth’s new line of defense, The Human Defense Corp. Through first person narration, we saw the characters of Kelly (from issue 1) and Taylor (from issue 2) as their time with the Corp was just starting. Kelly also made a brief appearance in the second issue, serving as a nice bridge between the two books. The key of the first two stories wasn’t the confrontations that occurred within, instead the stories served to characterize these two men, making them interesting heroes to follow along for the rest of the series.
The third issue sees the return of both Kelly and Taylor, who’re now buddies following last issues events. Writer Ty Templeton breaks from the previous structure, instead of first person narration, this issue follows rec hall recollections by the two increasingly bitter men. Two more characters, Pruett and Dobbs, also get in on the action. More characters are involved, and we get more gut-wrenching tales of what these men have endured. Templeton has succeeded brilliantly so far, by getting us into the heads of these soldiers, which far to easily could have been cardboard cutouts.
It’s nice to see that a larger story is unfolding within these pages. Templeton did a great job sneakily integrating the events of the first issue into the larger narrative. Strong plotting enables any of the issues so far to be enjoyed alone, or as a larger whole. Couple the fine writing with the appealing art, by the team of Clement Sauve Jr. and Juan Vlasco, and its pretty upsetting HUMAN DEFENSE CORPS has found such a small audience. Did enough people have a chance to pick this book up? It all goes back to the self-fulfilling prophecy I mentioned. Do these books not have an audience due to retailer apathy; or is it a case where the readers really don’t care?
