Hidden Gems – Human Target (2003)
With so many big names and big events plastered across the shelves of your LCS, sometimes great comics get left behind – buried in longboxes until someone comes along to find these Hidden Gems.
Written by Peter Milligan
Art by Javier Pulido and Cliff Chiang
The private investigator is one of the most enduring character types in all of fiction, and yet few have made a successful transition to the comics page. In 1972, DC comics introduced readers to Christopher Chance, a.k.a. “The Human Target”, a private detective with the uncanny ability to convincingly disguise himself as anyone. Chance remained a proficient but relatively obscure character in the DC Universe until writer Peter Milligan reinvented the character under the Vertigo imprint as a dark, violent, morally-challenged man who has impersonated so many people that his grasp on his own identity is shaky at best. After a mini-series and an original graphic novel
The series started out as just a series of three- or four-issue arcs, with Chance impersonating a series of clients whose lives are threatened. As the book progressed, however, an overarching plot began to develop. During one of his cases, Chance falls in love with the wife of one of the men he impersonated, and after that man is killed, he moves in with her, publicly impersonating her husband. This further intensifies the difficulty he has with reconciling his true self with the many other lives he takes on. It’s the standard crisis of identity that many comic book characters deal with, but this unique situation set Human Target apart from your usual run of the mill comic and provided a compelling human drama to what was also a thrilling detective series.
Human Target was one of the most critically-acclaimed mainstream comics on the stand during its 21-issue run, but sadly those accolades did not generate the big sales needed to keep it going. Still, Milligan did a great job of tying up any loose plot threads and giving the book a satisfying, albeit tragic, ending. The first two arcs have been collected in trade
This month, Fox will debut a new Human Target series starring Mark Valley as Christopher Chance. This will be the second time the character has graced the small screen. A TV movie was also aired in 1992 starring soap star / 80′s rock has-been Rick Springfield as Christopher Chance. While it’s doubtful that the show will delve into the darker aspects of the Vertigo series, the overall concept should translate well to a weekly TV show. If the show proves successful, it will hopefully persuade DC to print the rest of the series in trade form and give readers a chance to rediscover one of the most underrated comics of the past decade. The entire series gets 4.5 out of 5 Misplaced Name Tags.
Filed Under: Columns • Hidden Gems
I only read the first issue couple of years ago after finding it in a quarter bin. It was pretty good, considering I hated most of anything mainstream I read from Milligan (*cough*X-Men*cough*).
Ordered the trade of the original mini-series, which is coming out in two weeks.
I love me some Mark Valley and plan to watch the show; guess I should read the book first!
While I think Valley is underrated and could’ve been a huge star if luck was on his side, this show looks like a doomed fail to me.
Almost back-issued these a couple of times. Original concept.
TV series comes out soon.
The whole last paragraph is about the upcoming show, so yeah, I figure Ben knows about it.
I had no idea that there was a Human Target comic. I’ve been eagerly anticipating the show since I LOVE Mark Valley. Maybe I’ll check out the book.
The show looks good to me, but I don’t have high hopes. First of all it’s on Fox. Second it’s a mid season replacement and those don’t usually do that well. And finally, it just doesn’t seem to be the type of show that the general public will gravitate towards.
From the previews to the show it looks like Mark Valley can really handle action. This only furthers my desire to see him play Captain America.
Yes, there are comics outside the main DC and Marvel lines.
(Basically, Human Target was originally a DC character until this Vertigo revamp in the late ’90s.)
I know there are comics outside the main Marvel and DC lines, I just have very little interest in most of them.
Human Target is not a mid-season replacement. Fox has planned to release it in January all along much like they do with 24 and American Idol.
I had a chance to preview the show months ago and found it boring. It felt like a cheap 24 rip-off that offered little in the way of entertainment. The characters were flat and 2-dimensional and it had nothing to do with a “dark, violent, morally-challenged man who has impersonated so many people that his grasp on his own identity is shaky at best.”
Maybe Fox went back and retooled it, but from watching the commercials, it doesn’t seem like it. I wish the series best. I recommend going in with low expectations of seeing anything like what Ben described as the comic series.
I’m sure there’ll be a review of the show on the site when it premieres…stay tuned.
@ E-Rock: Even if they had planned all along to air it in January it is still premiering mid-season. Typically shows that do that do not last past a first season.
Not necessarily. Fox picked up Lie to Me for a full second season after a strong midseason premiere last year. And this is Fox. They NEVER let a show breathe before killing it.
@ Lee: True. There are shows that premiere mid season that end up doing well. Lie to Me is a good example, as is Castle. However, it seems (at least to me) that many of the shows that premiere (a series premiere not a season premiere) mid season have trouble finding their footing and are inevitably canceled. A strong lead in can lead to success. American Idol helped Lie to Me and Dancing with the Stars helped Castle. Is Human Target going to air before or after AI?
Fair point.