.
The Movement debuted last month as well as The Green Team, a pair of books many people believe were created to cash in on the current tension between the classes. These are also two of the only comics in DC’s current line-up that revolve around all new characters, so we can expect things to potentially take a little while to get going in these comics. With that said, the opening act of The Movement #1 in particular, as well as the rest of the issue were pretty fun. Coral City seems like it’ll be a fun, although stereotypical, city. I was pretty excited to pick up issue 2, let’s see how it went.
The Good:
It’s wonderful to see our ragtag group of heroes so conflicted on what exactly their moral code should be. We have some characters that want to kill prisoners, some that want to torture them, and others that just want to let them go.  It’s reminiscent of the Occupy movement. A lot of people latched onto the lack of one unified message from the protestors, but, as The Movement does a great job of showing us, it is very easy to have differing opinions on the means to solve a problem.
Welcome to Coral City
The group’s headquarters was another pleasant feature. The symbolism of using a former sweatshop as a homeless shelter is really cool. Obviously it isn’t the deepest metaphor, but it is effective. Holly, the leader of the group, and Burden are particularly interesting characters. Holly has a great leader vibe to her, but unlike traditional superhero leaders, it is because of her motherly nature. Burden is mysterious, and our only character with internal dialogue for the entire issue, which is an interesting choice. I enjoy the fact that he doesn’t consider his “powers” a gift, but as a curse (which it seems like they might literally be—possession doesn’t seem like fun)
The Bad:
The artwork was lacking in this issue. While not horrendous, it was nothing special or unique. Officer Whitt was just a mess. He is supposed to look like he’s been severely beaten, but the result looks like Sloth from The Goonies.
The character Mouse was a sub-par piece of writing. His “I’m a loveable crazy guy” was trite. His power is kind of cool, but his hat is annoying. Assuming it is a hat, that is—on page 15 it’s difficult to determine whether it’s a hat or merely his hair. The hair/hat confusion is forgivable, as it makes his face look particularly rodent-like which is a nice touch for the character.
My biggest gripe with this issue is potentially a bit of bait and switch, and I really hope it is, because it just seemed all too obvious. First of all, if you’re running a mole plotline, it’s better to let it burn for more than just the first two issues of a book. As a book with a cast of new characters, especially an ensemble cast of new characters, it just doesn’t work because it’s hard to care about the character after only two issues. If you feel like you must absolutely end your angle this early on, could you not go with the character who doesn’t mesh with the others and who is accusing others of being the mole? It comes across as lazy writing.
The Verdict:Â 
(3/5)
We’re only two issues in, so it will take some time for The Movement to get really good, but the series has a lot of potential. It was a decent enough read if you have a few bucks to blow. For that alone, it deserves 3 stars.
