Jenny Sparks #1: The Atomic Age

Jenny Sparks #1 is the newest DC Black Label series from writer Tom King and artist Jeff Spokes, with Clayton Cowles on letters. Following the success of the miniseries Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow and the ongoing Wonder Woman, King kicks off another series led by a badass woman within the DC universe, this time diving into the Wildstorm spinoff, The Authority, which took the world by storm when it introduced a group of antiheroes that aimed to save the world by any means necessary. This concept sparked a huge debate amongst the comic community, reigniting the age old questions, what if Batman just killed the Joker? How are superheroes effective if their villains are constantly just breaking out of prison and killing more people? Who should have “The Authority” to put these criminals down for good?

The character of Jenny Sparks is one that many people quickly summarize by saying, “she’s the spirit of the 20th Century,” expecting everyone to know what that means. In a quick, but much more concise summary, Jenny Sparks was born on the first day of the 20th Century and died on the last day of the 20th Century. She exists as a spirit of the century, embodying what it represents, and also just happens to have lightning powers. Her personality reflected the era she embodied, with a bleak view on life, leading her to eventually leading The Authority as a means to an end, with a willingness to destroy any threat to the world, regardless of the means in which she chooses to accomplish this goal. But now it is 2024, and somehow Jenny Sparks has returned.

Jenny Sparks #1 starts off with an introduction to five, seemingly separate characters, all living different, mundane lives. There is a judge, a talent manager, a therapist, an aspiring film professor, and a bartender. The issue constantly transitions between the narrative with Jenny and the antagonist, and these five, as everything all leads up to a final confrontation in a bar that has major implications for much more going on than there appears to be. Anyone familiar with King’s prior works knows that some mysteries take a while to reveal themselves, and this is definitely in that same vein.

This is where King’s prior interviews come in handy. In King’s initial promotional interview for this book, with Comic Pop, he revealed that this book has a lot to do with what “the spirit of the 20th Century” actually means. One of the reasons that Jenny is actually back to life is because the ideologies and spirit of the 20th Century never actually went away. There was a mindset going into the 21st Century that identified this new century as one without the fears of war and conflict, a turning point for humanity. This however was all just conjecture, with the events of 9/11 showing Americans that the world may never be conflict free, with a world that will always rear its ugly head. This event actually brings Jenny back, seeing as though the spirit of the 20th Century still exists as the world is still reenacting the same song and dance with world conflicts still everlasting.

This concept is one near to King as much of his life was defined by 9/11, leading to him joining the CIA, interacting with the conflict directly. This is also where the idea of the five mysteriously connected characters may come in, with all of them embodying different parts of “The American Dream.” This introductory issue shows a successful therapist who is dying of lung cancer, a bartender who makes ends meet every night just so he can go home and spend the day with his dog, a film professor who is doing what they want to do but is realizing that their fantasy and career goal is only being met by blank stares and boredom from students, etc. In many ways, these characters all represent the idea of the parts of The American Dream that no one talks about. These characters all have gotten where they are because of the supposed freedom within the United States, but are all miserable due to outside factors that are not often brought up in the cultural zeitgeist. It is a fascinating concept that may or may not be the direction King is going; however, this is the kind of series that opens that kind of discussion.

The big factor in this series that will draw most new readers in is the central conflict. Put simply, Captain Atom has gone insane, believing he is God, and is killing random people. Jenny Sparks is sought out by Batman since her new role in 2024 is the person who keeps the superheroes in check. This is where a lot of the action of the book comes into play, with artist Jeff Spokes doing a great job showing how creepy and weird Atom can be with his godlike powers, while also showing the carefree nature of Jenny and her lightning abilities. This is also where Atom’s story starts to reflect that of the five mundane characters, which requires another history lesson, this time for the backstory of who Captain Atom is and how he became a superhero.

Captain Atom was originally a Charleston Comics character and was the blueprint for Doctor Manhattan. He was a soldier in the Vietnam War that was accused of a crime that led him to volunteering for an experiment with the US Military. This experiment essentially involved an atom bomb being dropped on him, giving him godlike powers that manifested eighteen years later when his body finally reformed. Much like Captain America, he is a man out of time, but with a darker twist. He is often seen as the governmental arm of the Justice League, but in Jenny Sparks #1, he is shown having gone crazy, clearly due to the crazy, aforementioned circumstances. Much like the five mundane characters, Atom is someone whose circumstances show a failing of The American Dream, with the justice system failing him, then the US Military failing him, and then the world failing him by relying on him as a hero.

With this only being the first issue, there is clearly a lot up for discussion. Future issues promise to delve more into Jenny’s return, with this book clearly being a broader discussion of the state of the world today and how it has failed a lot of people. Jenny Sparks seems like the perfect character to spearhead this discussion with her history sparking that initial discussion about the effectiveness of superheroes. Regardless of what direction this book goes, it will be fascinating how King uses these characters to comment on the state of the world today, with everything already being super thought provoking.