Midlife (Or How To Hero At Fifty!) Vol. 1

by Brian Buccellato, Stefano Simeone (artist)

RUBEN KWAN is a 50-year-old legacy firefighter who’s been afraid of fire his whole life. Instead of running into burning buildings, he pushes papers, living in the shadow of his father, who died a hero on the job. After 25 years in the LAFD, he’s firmly in the middle of an unremarkable life…until his new wife gets pregnant and a random act of courage reveals that Ruben is FIREPROOF! 
New York Times-bestselling writer BRIAN BUCCELLATO (The Flash, Chicken Devil, Justice League, Godzilla vs. Kong) teams up with star artist STEFANO SIMEONE (RADIANT BLACK, The Last Days of Black Hammer) to tell the totally relatable story of a middle-aged man who embarks on the greatest midlife crisis of becoming a superhero—and a DAD—at fifty!
Collects MIDLIFE (OR HOW TO HERO AT FIFTY!) #1-6

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels

Kindle Edition

Published June 12, 2024

Reviews

[Timothy Grubbs · Rating 5 out of 5]

A comic about a superhero firefighter, one of the more dangerous jobs someone might pursue when they turn 50…

Midlife (or How to Hero at Fifty!) Vol 1 by Brian Buccellato and Stefano Simeone collects the first six issues of the new comic…

The comic follows a veteran LAFD captain who learns he is fireproof. Interestingly, he isnt a traditional firefighter but a captain with management and office work, due to a fear of fire following the death of his father (a veteran firefighter) when he was a kid.

However when he learns he’s fireproof, it’s only natural to use those abilities to help others. So with help from his cop brother, some old firefighting equipment, and a radio scanner, he goes into action…

Of course, when there are those with powers, there are naturally those who investigate them…and one particular group has an interest in possible “firefolk” and what it could mean for California.

The comic peppers the story with 90s and 80s pop culture references, interesting Puerto Rican folklore, and other “fire folk” mythology.

Interested to see what more might be told with this world and its potential…and the costume is a decent design for the type of story it’s telling…

[Rahul Nadella · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a complete surprise. I picked it up because of the title and really enjoyed reading it. Midlife is a delightful new superhero comic grounded in generational angst that will resonate with a lot of people. Buccellato, Simeone and Otsmane-Elhaou mix in the familiarity of everyday life with the possibility of starting life over again. This was a cool series. I really liked the characters. It delivered an emotional, yet down to earth hero story.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

The concept is one that hasn't been fully explored by the superhero community, which intrigued me if it would hold up to snuff. The short answer is yes! it does. Even better is the dialogue, believability, and character development. If you're over 40 and a superhero fan, give this one read. Shout out to the publisher for the advance copy.

[Hayley · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Mee Too · Rating 3 out of 5]

Is he an actual hero or having a midlife crises? maybe both?

But seriously i'm not sure how this looks going forward, but it was a entertaining read.