Faces of Evil: Solomon Grundy # 1 - The Curse!

I ain't gonna lie to ya - you're too good for that - right up front, off the top of my head, I'm wondering if this isn't DC's response to World War Hulk. Or the success of last summer's The Incredible Hulk, and the enduring popularity of Lou Ferrigno. Let's face it, Grundy is DC's Hulk. At least that's how he was presented in The Defenders episodes of the Justice League animated series.

My interest in Grundy started in Starman 10. Up until that point, Grundy was just a character - with a southern accent - on the old Super Friends cartoon; or, the muscle in any one of the incarnations Secret Society of the Injustice Gang/League/Society.

James Robinson - and Alan Grant - really redefined Grundy. It was really cool to see that Grundy came back different every time. I really enjoyed seeing Alan Scott, Batman, The Floronic Man and Jack Knight delve into Grundy's pshyche.

Meltzer's version of Grundy was interesting.

Not really sure what Geoff Johns is going for here. It looks like Grundy is morphing into something more human or the people he's attacking. The art makes that a bit muddy and murky. I'm not really sure that there's so much more of a there there. His origin is pretty simple. Out in the middle of the southwestern desert, where the government is doing Gamma bomb testing, a scientist runs out to rescue a teenager from the blast - - no, that's the other guy. Cyrus Gold is murdered and dumped in the swamp outside Gotham City. With his dying breath he vows revenge. He returns in the form of Solomon Grundy. That's pretty much the there. Who cares about the details. The story is almost always in stopping Grundy. Capturing or containing Grundy.

According to The Phantom Stranger, Alan Scott and Grundy are bound to uncover and solve the mysterious curse. The question is do I really want to know?... Or do I want to stick with the Grundy I know from Starman? Decisions, decisions...Maybe we'll just wait for the inevitable trade paperback.