Strange Adventures #10 Review

Husband, Father, Genocidal War Criminal, and Traitor

Written By: Tom King

Art By: Doc Shaner, Mitch Gerards

Letters By: Clayton Cowles

Cover Price: $3.99

Release Date: May 25, 2021

In Strange Adventures #10, Mr. Terrific narrates his private letter to Alanna Strange to convey the terrible secret Adam Strange has been keeping. Strange's actions and motivations become clear, but however worse his actions seemed in the prior issue, this issue will change your opinion of Adam Strange forever.

Was It Good?

"Good" doesn't apply in this issue. Tom King reveals the mystery of what motivates Adam Strange to become a genocidal war criminal. Once you see the truth (assuming it isn't yet another misdirect), you'll either accept what King has done to Strange or not.

One thing is clear. This series either must be taken out of continuity completely to have Adam Strange to be used in any meaningful way in the future, or Adam Strange is off the table for the foreseeable future. If the circumstances in this issue are legit and in continuity, there's no coming back from what Adam Strange has done.

The art is good enough. Shaner's art is stronger than Gerards, so it makes sense to have them separated into separate timelines to help make the distinction clearer.

What's It About?

[SPOILERS AHEAD]

To start, there's not much action in this issue. All focus is on Mr. Terrific's letter to Alanna Strange as he deconstructs Adam's actions and the inevitable conclusion of everything that's happened up to this point.

We see snapshot vignettes of more battles against the Pykkts and Adam's continuing murder of every Pykkt he has a chance to kill. Adam's killing is brutal in its callousness but it ultimately belies his cover. 

Terrific does what he does best as the third smartest human on Earth, he analyzes. He sees certain points that don't make sense for this entire saga in Adam Strange's war.

How were the Pyktts defeated on Raan with mistakes they've not made on any other world they've conquered?

When Adam Strange is captured by the Pykkts, why do they let him go?

When the Pykkts attacked Phoenix, how were they able to find a flaw in Batman's plan when Batman's plan was flawless?

When Mr. Terrific delves into each of those three points, it leads him to an inescapable conclusion.

[SUPER SPOILER WARNING AHEAD. TURN BACK NOW!]

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Adam Strange made a secret deal with the Pykkts to spare Raan. In exchange, Adam feeds the Pykkts Batman's plan so they can gain a foothold on Earth.

To make sure Adam holds up his side of the deal, the Pykkts hold his daughter hostage and grant him the right to massacre Pykkts to make it look like he's still an enemy of the Pykkts. In other words, his daughter is still alive, Adam faked his death to add credibility to his cover story, and Adam has chosen to betray Earth in exchange for saving Raan and his daughter.

What does this mean for Adam Strange going forward? Who knows. Will fans accept that Adam Strange has betrayed Earth to save Raan and his daughter? Who knows. What is the purpose of creating a story that will irrevocably destroy the reputation of this character going forward? Who knows.

Bits and Pieces:

Strange Adventures #10 reveals the plan. The plan doesn't make you feel good about Adam Strange. You understand him, you get why he did what he did, but ultimately you're left wondering if this was a story that needed to be told.  The score will be a reflection of the quality of the art and storytelling, not necessarily whether or not the reviewer liked the story.

6.5/10