Sovereign Seven

by Chris Claremont

Outcasts from the planet Meridian, seven young beings of incredible power suddenly become stranded on the planet Earth. Separated from everything they know, these refugees attempt to create a new life for themselves in a world that is completely unfamiliar to them. But as they look to simply blend in, the super-powered beings of Sovereign Seven soon find themselves defending their new home against threats of supernatural and alien origin. Led by the female Cascade, Finale, Indigo, Network, Rampart, Cruiser, and Reflex selflessly risk their lives opposing the malicious might of Darkseid, Maitresse, and the fatal Furies.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Dc Comics, Fiction

208 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 1995

About the author

Chris Claremont is a writer of American comic books, best known for his 16-year (1975-1991) stint on Uncanny X-Men, during which the series became one of the comic book industry's most successful properties.

Claremont has written many stories for other publishers including the Star Trek Debt of Honor graphic novel, his creator-owned Sovereign Seven for DC Comics and Aliens vs Predator for Dark Horse Comics. He also wrote a few issues of the series WildC.A.T.s (volume 1, issues #10-13) at Image Comics, which introduced his creator-owned character, Huntsman.

Outside of comics, Claremont co-wrote the Chronicles of the Shadow War trilogy, Shadow Moon (1995), Shadow Dawn (1996), and Shadow Star (1999), with George Lucas. This trilogy continues the story of Elora Danan from the movie Willow. In the 1980s, he also wrote a science fiction trilogy about female starship pilot Nicole Shea, consisting of First Flight (1987), Grounded! (1991), and Sundowner (1994). Claremont was also a contributor to the Wild Cards anthology series.

Reviews

[Tony Laplume · Rating 3 out of 5]

Back in the day I read all the issues of this series when they were originally released. I was a devoted reader and fan, and I never quite got why so few others of this ilk seemed to exist for a writer of Chris Claremont's pedigree, making his DC debut. Reading this collection more than twenty years later, I might. It has nothing to do with Claremont, but the art of Dwayne Turner.

Turner's work seems to have been inspired by the Image style, back when Image was still the newest and coolest kid on the block (and, incidentally, still known for superhero comics). DC launched Sovereign Seven at around the same time as its "zero month" launches following Zero Hour, which among other titles included Manhunter, a new version of a classic character with art that also aped the Image style. (That same "zero month" also included Starman, meanwhile, so clearly there was plenty of wiggle room.) Anyway, Turner's work is tough to appreciate now. It's the polar opposite of Jeff Johnson's. Johnson draws a "year one" origin story (from Sovereign Seven Annual #1), which is also Claremont's best script in the collection, his most focused and dynamic and fun. If the resulting series (Ron Lim eventually replaced Turner on art, and that was a definite improvement, anyway) had been like that, I would have no question at all why the fans rejected the comics (fans being fans, basically, which paradoxically means hating as much as loving the things they follow). But the fans, this time, were probably justified, if they bailed based on early results.

Again, it's not the concept or the characters, but the execution. Claremont dove into storytelling that, alongside Turner's art, stripped all the appeal away. He was too busy diving into the deep end to consider whether or not the material was serving the setup. Perhaps the biggest mistake was dropping the characters into Crossroads, a mystical tavern that had nothing to do with the origin story or adequately positioned the team as bona fide superheroes. If Claremont made his name writing the X-Men as constantly pressed up against expectations, he miscalculated when he inserted similar restrictions when they weren't the least warranted, justified, or necessary.

(Then again, maybe the mystery of Crossroads was one mystery too many, alongside the simmering secrets behind Finale, not the lead but positioned to be the most intriguing member of the team.)

Being creator-owned, Sovereign Seven won't happen again unless Claremont desires it. Maybe someday he will. Maybe he'll let another writer play in the sandbox, and reclaim the potential. With more consistently complementary art.

[Julian Perry · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm typically a big fan of Chris Claremont and his work with Wolverine and the X-men series but for Soverign Seven I found it very hard to follow with so many characters speaking at once and the dialog being super wordy. I felt 'reader whiplash' by how much dialog and different events unfolded at the same time, it did not make for an enjoyable comic book read. The artwork is beautiful if be cramped. I think the story would have been better if they allowed the characters to breathe and tell a more organic story or provide context with visual clues rather than rely so heavily on speech bubbles. By the end of the first couple of issues I felt that I didn't have a great understanding of who the main characters even were.

[cloud · Rating 4 out of 5]

nobody loves sovereign seven like i do

[Jordan Meuse · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting plot, poorly introduced characters, cluttered scenes

[Dony Grayman · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tomo unitario de 1996 que continúa el número #1 ("Era una noche oscura y tormentosa...") en revista publicado el año anterior.