As long as there are superhero comics, there will be stories hoping to challenge the conventions of superhero comics. More often than not, I have found myself championing those kinds of stories, especially those that reframe our own understanding beyond the tights and fights that our popular culture takes for granted. The current volume of Outsiders has been delivering in that regard, and Outsiders #7 plunges an already fascinating series head-first into even weirder, and potentially even more meaningful, territory.
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Outsiders #7 pulls back the curtain on the series’ elusive Drummer, who was revealed in the previous issue to really be former Planetary member Jakita Wagner. As we learn what pulled Jakita into this current corner of the DC multiverse, her journey leads to some surprising discoveries that might challenge the way readers see superhero comics.
This run of Outsiders certainly isn’t the first, nor will it be the last, mainstream comic to take a metatextual approach to the conventions of superhero storytelling. As the past six issues of Outsiders have proven, the DC universe alone has an entire pantheon of ways to turn the reader, the protagonist, the canon around them, and even the literal page into some sort of myth or form of higher thinking. But, for both the reader and for the character, there’s a difference between knowing those structures can exist and actually believing in them. Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing’s script tackles that dilemma wholeheartedly, as Jakita wrestles with her massive personal losses in fluctuating degrees of hope and despair. The end result is a sort of comforting nihilism that feels fitting, both for a refugee of the Wildstorm universe and for a DC universe that seems torn between remembering everything and starting fresh once again. There are even moments where, depending on your interpretation, Jakita is either speaking to some omnipotent unseen character, or to the readership themself.
That sense of ambiguity has been prevalent throughout Outsiders thus far – something that has undoubtedly been met with a mixed-to-frustrated response, especially when the series is nearing its four-issue final act. But there is something admirable about that lack of clarity, especially when many of the storytelling steps along the way have been filled with such great heights. Even this issue’s approach to DC lore—Jakita’s colleagues in Planetary, as well as a handful of other cameos and larger connections—is approached from such an intriguing angle. It all gives me confidence that, once Outsiders builds to the bizarre finale it has been teasing thus far, all of those possibilities will culminate in something remarkable.
Robert Carey’s art, which has been a grungy but multifaceted delight throughout Outsiders, is really given a chance to shine in this issue. Double-page spreads dotted with a dozen heroes are treated with the same majesty and thoughtfulness as introspective moments solely involving Jakita, but even then, Carey’s intimate close-ups help us start to realize just how much we’re missing outside of the panel. Valentina Taddeo’s colors bounce between virtually every context and shade, but even those extremes with a sense of warm uniformity. Tom Napolitano’s lettering is unfussy, but helpful in conveying the wide array of emotions on display.
Outsiders has been subverting reader expectations from the second it launched – weaving from the threats Kate Kane and Luke Fox are investigating to the fact that they aren’t the sole focus of the series’ story. While that approach might not be for every reader, Outsiders #7 is a valiant and largely-successful example of how it can be made to work. Even if Outsiders doesn’t have a massive impact on the canon of the DC universe when all is said and done, I’m at least thankful that it is reframing how I look at those stories.
Published by DC Comics
On May 14, 2024
Written by Collin Kelly and Jackson Lanzing
Art by Robert Carey
Colors by Valentina Taddeo
Letters by Tom Napolitano
Cover by Roger Cruz with Adriano Lucas
