A review by sparky_young_upstart
Alters Vol.1 by Paul Jenkins, Leila Leiz
2.0
I really wanted to like this comic. I'd never heard of it before, and I love finding little queer gems to sink my teeth into. But this one was just...painfully average.
In a world where it's basically the X-Men (I'm sorry, "Alters", but you could swap out almost every character with a Marvel Mutant and be in the same story), Charlie is Chalice - a trans woman who's discovered her own reality-warping powers and is trying to become a superhero. The problem is that another alter - Matter Man - has been terrorizing the world and demanding that all Alters either submit to him, or risk them and their families being murdered by him and his cronies.
The comic is poised to say interesting things about gender and identity and the masks one wears, but never seems to commit. It's weirdly paradoxical - it shines a huge light on the protagonist being trans, but never enough to make the character feel real. In fact, none of the characters felt that real and I completely failed to connect to them.
There are also a lot of weird and concerning creative choices. Matter Man is your standard queer-coded villain from soooo many other stories. I thought it was an interesting choice at first, but as I went on I felt like it wasn't meant to symbolize anything and was just sort of there. Also, Chalice's brother has Cerebral Palsy, and I do have to question how some of that stuff is handled. Terms like cr*p and sp*s are thrown around easily, and do the creators really have the authority to use them? Not to mention Chalice chooses not to come out yet because her parents are still dealing with Ted being "stricken" by it. Huh? I'm sure others ave pointed out that CP doesn't just happen; it's from birth. Not to mention we need to stop pitting disability issues and queer issues against each other. This review started as three stars, but reflecting on this (I'm sure accidental, but still) ablism brought it down to two.
I do respect the creators for what they're trying to do. Jenkins spends a lot of time ensuring us that he's not pulling the story out of no where; he has gone to other trans creators to ensure everything is presented respectfully. And I truly believe that he highlights these continuously not as any kind of posturing, but because he really wants to reassure trans readers that they are being represented. I don't have a squad of trans women to back me up in this review. I like to say that I know enough to know that I don't know much about these things; still, as a story I feel like it was so milquetoaste and boring that it's hard to see anyone being represented.
Ultimately I'd like to see Chalice's story continued. Maybe from another creator, maybe from Jenkins again - failings aside, I'm sure he means well and can learn. But this first outing was lacking the nuance and the simple entertainment value that I want to see from a comic. If you want good trans rep in comics, go to Kim & Kim or Lumberjanes. Chalice and Alters as a whole is still, in my opinion, a work in progress.
In a world where it's basically the X-Men (I'm sorry, "Alters", but you could swap out almost every character with a Marvel Mutant and be in the same story), Charlie is Chalice - a trans woman who's discovered her own reality-warping powers and is trying to become a superhero. The problem is that another alter - Matter Man - has been terrorizing the world and demanding that all Alters either submit to him, or risk them and their families being murdered by him and his cronies.
The comic is poised to say interesting things about gender and identity and the masks one wears, but never seems to commit. It's weirdly paradoxical - it shines a huge light on the protagonist being trans, but never enough to make the character feel real. In fact, none of the characters felt that real and I completely failed to connect to them.
There are also a lot of weird and concerning creative choices. Matter Man is your standard queer-coded villain from soooo many other stories. I thought it was an interesting choice at first, but as I went on I felt like it wasn't meant to symbolize anything and was just sort of there. Also, Chalice's brother has Cerebral Palsy, and I do have to question how some of that stuff is handled. Terms like cr*p and sp*s are thrown around easily, and do the creators really have the authority to use them? Not to mention Chalice chooses not to come out yet because her parents are still dealing with Ted being "stricken" by it. Huh? I'm sure others ave pointed out that CP doesn't just happen; it's from birth. Not to mention we need to stop pitting disability issues and queer issues against each other. This review started as three stars, but reflecting on this (I'm sure accidental, but still) ablism brought it down to two.
I do respect the creators for what they're trying to do. Jenkins spends a lot of time ensuring us that he's not pulling the story out of no where; he has gone to other trans creators to ensure everything is presented respectfully. And I truly believe that he highlights these continuously not as any kind of posturing, but because he really wants to reassure trans readers that they are being represented. I don't have a squad of trans women to back me up in this review. I like to say that I know enough to know that I don't know much about these things; still, as a story I feel like it was so milquetoaste and boring that it's hard to see anyone being represented.
Ultimately I'd like to see Chalice's story continued. Maybe from another creator, maybe from Jenkins again - failings aside, I'm sure he means well and can learn. But this first outing was lacking the nuance and the simple entertainment value that I want to see from a comic. If you want good trans rep in comics, go to Kim & Kim or Lumberjanes. Chalice and Alters as a whole is still, in my opinion, a work in progress.