One of the many fixtures of the DC Comics Universe comes in the form of it's most powerful wizard, the guardian of order Doctor Fate. For whoever should wear his helmet will be granted with magic powers beyond comprehension and defend the mortal world from ancient evils. Let's see if the most recent version of the good doctor can truly be the Earth's defender.
Writer: Paul Levitz
Artist: Sonny Liew
Created in 1940 in "More Fun Comics #55" by Gardner Fox and Howard Sherman, Doctor Fate was originally created in the form of Kent Nelson, an archeologist who discovered a talking helmet in a Egyptian pyramid. Donning the helmet, Kent was deemed by Nabu The Wise as Doctor Fate. As a magician of order, Doctor Fate and the spirit of Nabu remained one of the most powerful heroes in the DCU, joining both The Justice League and The Justice Society. After the 2011 reboot of DC Comics, Doctor Fate was only presented in an alternate universe called Earth 2, but recently a new Doctor Fate was established in the main universe.
Khalid Nassour is Egyptian-American medical student who lives with his American mother and his Egyptian father, he goes to college, he has a girlfriend, his life has purpose. When his city begins suffering from massive flooding, he finds his way to a museum where he discovers the Helmet of Fate. Upon wearing it, Khalid becomes Doctor Fate and battles Anubis, The Lord of Death. Guided by Nabu's spirit, Khalid uses his powers to stop disasters and save lives, while struggling to maintain his civilian life.
After five issue, Khalid has still been dealing with the flood Anubis created and has yet to defeat the God of Death. While I understand fighting a God is unbelievably difficult, I find the story to be a little too slow. The kind of issues Khalid deals with in his life are relatable, but they often repeat. The problem is that he continuously whines about not being the right choice to be Doctor Fate. Again, I can sympathize with this humanistic doubt, but as much as I appreciate the slow and steady approach to the book I don't think it is the right pace for a book about Doctor Fate. It has always been my belief that if you're going to try a new direction for character, the pacing and subject matter should relate to what the character's classic themes amount to. For example, while the All-New Ghost Rider/Robbie Reyes had to deal with the ghetto of LA, taking care of his brother, school and work, the character never went an issue without having a badass fight scene similar to how all the Ghost Riders before him dealt with. Though he was given real world problems, those problems never overshadowed or undershadowed (new word) the battles he fought. If you're going to redefine Superman, you should still have the character be humble and protect the property of others like he always does. That way you can do something new, but also keep what made the concept memorable. I don't mind if the new Doctor Fate has real-world issues, but for the character not to take full advantage of his magical powers-to just reverse or fly away from every threat-seems like a missed opportunity. Learning your powers can be a fun comic plot, but not when the character in question is the main source of magical adventures.
I still enjoy the book and I'll probably keep reading it, I just hope the plot picks up the pace. I don't like that the character's origin story is taking five issues with no significant change to main character. The art style is charming in a traditional-almost homemade-kind of way, and the characters in question are quite likable. I like that this new Doctor Fate is both American and Egyptian as the character has always had a blend of both cultures and I truly hope this character becomes a staple in the current DCU. As any DC Comics world feels incomplete without the presence of Fate.
Thanks for reading.
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