Warning: Spoilers for Black Lightning #4!I think the DC Universe could either be getting it’s next big hero or it’s next big villain courtesy of Black Lightning. Black Lightning has been going through a revamp of sorts through his new series, becoming a problem-solver for the Justice League who helps train emerging heroes with new powers after the Absolute Power event.
Jefferson Pierce’s problems might be getting bigger than expected, especially following Black Lightning #4 by Brandon Thomas and Fico Ossio, as they revolve around Isaac Mitchell, a new metahuman who gained powers after Absolute Power. Isaac was training under Pierce, but he and his mother were captured by Volcana, Windfall, and Groundswell following a siege at Steelworks.
The super-villains give Isaac his first costume while twisting narratives in their favor, suggesting they are the only ones who can keep Isaac safe, not the Justice League. Depending on if their manipulation tactics work, I think DC could have either its next hero or its next villain in Isaac Mitchell.
Black Lightning Has Protected Isaac From the Start – Could Isaac Become DC’s Next Hero?
Black Lightning #4 by Brandon Thomas, Fico Ossio, Ulises Arreola, and Lucas Gattoni
From the moment that we meet Isaac Mitchell for the first time, he’s saved by Black Lightning. The hero’s new chapter begins earlier in the series with the title character and his daughter, Lightning, answering a distress call at the local high school in Southside Heights (formerly the Suicide Slum, because gentrification – I know, Black Lightning says it’s weird, too, in this issue). A young student has lost control of his powers: Isaac. Had Jefferson not intervened, Isaac’s fiery explosion would have killed him and everyone around him – if the interfering police didn’t kill him first.
Isaac Mitchell makes his on-panel debut in Black Lightning #1 by Brandon Thomas, Fico Ossio, Ulises Arreola, and Lucas Gattoni.
Black Lightning took the young man to the Watchtower, where Jefferson and his daughter Jennifer (who I think Isaac has a little crush on, it’s adorable) have been helping him take control of his newfound powers, both with training and with a control band. Not only that, but they’ve befriended him in the process. Jefferson has helped guide Isaac not just as a coach or a trainer, but as a mentor, and perhaps even a fatherly figure. He’s been patient and welcoming to Isaac, creating the perfect building blocks for a bond, perhaps leading to a sidekick situation.
Could Black Lightning’s New Pupil Become DC’s Next Villain?
Did Black Lightning Already Fail Isaac?
Frankly, I really do think that there’s potential for Isaac to become a staple of this growing Black Lightning family by becoming Black Lightning’s next sidekick. The only roadblock standing in their way is the Steelworks siege, during which Isaac and his mother were snatched by the Sons of Liberty, an anti-metahuman paramilitary group that once tried to overthrow the U.S. government – and an organization that Councilman Jay Harriman, a key player in this miniseries, used to be a part of. The key phrase here is “used to,” but I’ll save my typing space on that one, since that’s a discussion for another time.
The point is that Isaac wakes up not under the protection of Black Lightning or the Watchtower, but with a group of antagonists who opposed the Black Lightning family by, last issue, trying to steal from Steelworks. They release Isaac from his control band, encourage him to handle his powers without them, and claim to have found his mom, bringing her to their safehouse before the Sons. Furthermore, Volcana makes a point to emphasize that it was them who found Isaac and his mother and gave Isaac shelter when Black Lightning couldn’t.
Protecting his mom seems to be Isaac’s prime objective, and if she falls into harm’s way – or worse, dies – who is Isaac most likely to blame? Black Lightning.
Isaac doesn’t trust them, of course, but that could change in the future. After all, Black Lightning already feels as if he failed Isaac by letting him slip into dire hands after promising sanctuary. If the mind games work and Isaac starts buying what Volcana and her compatriots are selling, then it could get him to steer down a more villainous path. Things are especially messy with his mother in the mix. Protecting his mom seems to be Isaac’s prime objective, and if she falls into harm’s way – or worse, dies – who is Isaac most likely to blame? Black Lightning.
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I don’t know where this plot thread is going, but the possibilities are endless, and it makes me both intrigued and excited about future issues of this Black Lightning series. More than anything, it makes me excited about the prospect of DC’s All In era. The whole All In initiative comes after the Dawn of DC, which, to me, always read as a push for a new generation of heroes. While Dawn of DC was by far not a failure, there are a lot of heroes from those years – like Monkey Prince, Xanthe Zhou, and City Boy – who more or less disappeared after their solo series ended.
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While Dawn of DC took a more aggressive approach to building a new generation by giving new heroes their own series right off the bat, DC’s All In line-up is taking a softer approach by introducing new characters through series starring familiar characters, like Black Lightning. This approach might be much better, actually, as it allows readers like myself to slowly get invested in new heroes and villains as they grow alongside my favorites – again, like Black Lightning. It’s working, because I am wholly invested in seeing which side of the hero/villain alignment Isaac Mitchell ends up on while by Black Lightning’s side.
Black Lightning #4 is available now from DC Comics.
This story originally appeared on Screenrant
