Faith

I'm not a huge fan of superheroes. Not because I dont like them, but because no matter their stories and background, they are all the same. It's like a kind of cliché the way superheroes must look and that got me tired. So, of course when I saw the cover of this book, I thought I was allucinating -no kidding, I really couldn't not believe my eyes!- so inmediately I read the description and it was enough. I had to read it.

And what a wise decision I made!

This is amazing in all the extension of the world. I loved Faith as Summer and Zephyr. Such a wonderful and complex character that made me admire her. She's confident and has her feet on the ground although she can fly.

The story was also interesting. I can't wait to figure out what is going to happen next, so I'm going to follow this series until the very end.

Even when I only have read the first 2 episodes, I'm quite sure the following story will be as great as the first two. In conclussion, I can only say that I have a new favorite superhero, and man, she rocks!

I recieved a copy through Netgalley but this fact didn't influence the review.

This originally appeared at The Irresponsible Reader.
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I knew practically nothing about Faith/Zephyr before picking this up. I knew that Valient had put out a comic starring a full-figured female super-hero – which seems as unlikely as Superman developing a tolerance for Kryptonite. So when I saw it this collection on the Library shelf, I had to grab it. I had a little bit of a learning curve about this hero/her powers/backstory – but Houser's script made it easy to catch up (or at least feel caught up).

The characterization – of Faith as well as her coworkers, allies and foes alike – worked well. I dug her secret identity – which is not the same as her real name, which apparently everyone knows (as well as her super-hero identity, Zephyr). Yeah, the fangirl nature of Summer Smith is a bit shallow, but I like the intent and in time, I can see Summer being the kind of character I can really get into. This collection focuses on Faith getting used to her new life in LA and establishing Zephyr as the city's hero. This brings her into contact with web journalism, a reality show, and SF TV show starring actual aliens (not that anyone knows that).

The only false note, for me, is that while Faith is a clearly overweight person, the book ignores it. As someone who shops for varieties of XL, I appreciate that – and her size makes no difference to her powers or ability to be a hero. But she lives in L.A., Faith is featured on a Pop Culture Listicle site, etc. I cannot believe that it doesn't get more mention. The idea that in image-conscious LA a large woman can go about her business boldly without having to deal with that commentary is harder for me to swallow than the idea that a large woman can fly using the power of her mind while taking on extraterrestrials and other baddies.

I dug the art – it served the story, was attractive, and was very dynamic. The dream/fantasy sequences by Sauvage were great, too. Both Portela and Sauvage captured the feel of the story and characters well.

All in all, this is a comic as charming as the protagonist – light, fun, and just what the doctor ordered.