Summary
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Freddy Freeman of the Shazam family is finally gaining new powers after a long journey without them. It’s about time!
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Between monster attacks in Philly, the kids go on a road trip to investigate, with Freddy’s new abilities coming into play.
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Freddy Freeman’s return as a superhero is long overdue, and despite potential drawbacks, he’s proven himself worthy of being a hero.
A member of the Shazam Family is about to gain power again and in my opinion, it is long overdue. Freddy Freeman has long been one of the biggest cheerleaders for the world’s mightiest mortal, even when he was stripped of his own powers. But now the hero once known as Captain Marvel Jr. is about to soar through the sky again.
There’s been a lot of chaos between Billy Batson’s foster family in recent months and they’re only about to get more complicated. In DC Comics’ pair of October solicitations, the publisher revealed key information about an upcoming issue of Shazam!.
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Shazam! #16 (2024) |
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Release date: |
October 2, 2024 |
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writer: |
Josie Campbell |
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Artist: |
Emmanuel Lupacchino |
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Cover artist: |
Gleb Melnikov |
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Variant covers: |
Felipe Massafera and Ejikure |
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Shazam family road trip! Or at least an escape from Philly, as the kids hit the road to investigate some twisted monster attacks. Freddy’s new powers should come together, except something is wrong with him. Will the price for his new abilities be more than he can pay? |
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Between the monster attacks in Philadelphia, spurred by a magic leak, the kids are heading from the city to investigate the source of the disaster. The requested information also reveals that Shazam’s foster brother Freddy Freeman is gaining new powers. However, the summary also hints that there is a price to pay for Freddy’s newfound abilities.
Shazam’s brother is about to be a superhero again
If you’re a Shazam fan, you know that Freddy Freeman has a long history with the big red cheese. Back in the day, Freddy went from Captain Marvel fanboy to true blue hero when he was endowed with magical powers, turning him into Captain Marvel, Jr. Flashpoint Set continuity. But while the shake-up de-powered him, Freddy eventually gained his magical powers, as did the rest of Shazam’s family. That is until the Infinite Frontier era, when most of the kids, including Freddy, lost their superpowers.
One thing I can appreciate about the current Shazam! The book is that the last arc has put Freddy in the spotlight and actually has him doing a little introspection about the loss of his powers. While I loved the extended Shazam family, the one member I was hoping would become a hero again was Freddy. He’s just as worthy as Billy or Mary and none of them buy into the superhero lifestyle like he does. Although it sounds like it’s a catch to Freddy’s new powers, I’m excited to see my favorite Shazam family member return.
Even with a catch, it’s time for Freddy to get his Shazam powers back
What I like about Freddie is that he often has more working against him than Mary or Billy. Between health problems and losing his powers, he could easily disgrace the hero’s life. But Freddie never stops trying and always does the right thing, even as a sensitive person. He has proven that he deserves to be a hero several times over. No matter how he gets them back, Freddy has earned the right to be a superhero. Although I have no idea how Freddy gets his abilities back, you can bet I’ll be reading Shazam! to find out.
Shazam! #16 is available on October 2nd from DC Comics.