Supercrooks 4: Not with a Bang

Supercrooks #4
"The Big Finale"
Writer: Mark Millar
Artist: Leinil Yu
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Aug 22, 2012

Did you know that Supercrooks was only a 4-issue mini? I guess I should have checked Marvel's solicitations for August more carefully, because I had no idea this miniseries was ending so soon. Well, it's here, it's 42-pages, and it costs 4.99 (yikes!).

I might have been caught off guard by this book's sudden finish, but I wasn't really all that surprised by what I found inside. Millar has been building up this Ocean's Eleven-with-supervillains premise since the first issue, and finally we get to set how it all plays out. And surprisingly, there were very few shocks or surprises to be had.

I don't want to suggest that Millar has gone soft, but despite a twist near the end of the issue where "everything you thought you knew was (sort-of) wrong," this was a very straightforward story.

Super Crooks just doesn't pack the same punch as other recent minis by Millar like Superior or Nemesis, and it's a far cry from Wanted. It's not a bad story, but it just wasn't all that memorable either. After the wait  between issues, the only characters I could still name were Jonny Bolt and The Bastard. I even forgot why the super cons were trying to rip off The Bastard in the first place.

Leinil Yu is becoming one of those "love him or hate him" artists, which I don't really get, because I think he is perfectly adequate. That makes him a perfect fit for this book, because it's not bad, but it's not really good either, it's just okay.

I like Mark Millar's comics, and agree with Courtney that (when it comes out) Hit-Girl is one of the best comics on the stands. Oversized or not, this isn't worth your 4.99.

Hit-Girl #2: It's True: "The Best Just Got Better"

Hit-Girl #2
Writer: Mark Millar
Artist: John Romita Jr.
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July 25, 2012

"Kick-Ass, this is Hit-Girl.  I just drugged Mom and Marcus and I'm heading for the Hit-Car now."

Cue the superhero music; Hit-Girl is back and she hasn't changed a bit!  Well, except (SPOILERS) she's getting bullied at school by "nasty ******* harp[ies]" so she's going undercover as a "normal" school girl with the help of Kick-Ass, in return for teaching him how to be a super-hero.  (end SPOILERS) 

What's great about the last two issues is that I care about both Hit-Girl, the super girl, and Mindy, the school girl.  I was honestly disappointed that I have to wait until next issue to find out how Mindy deals with the bitch squad at school.  I'm also looking forward to seeing more of Hit-Girl teaching Kick-Ass the ropes of being a superhero.  Doing so allows the reader into Mindy's background without flashing back and it keeps the story moving forward.  It's also hilarious when Kick-Ass flubs even the simplest of superhero tasks. 

The art has remained a constant throughout Kick-Ass and into Hit-Girl, which really gives the characters an iconic look.  I'm glad that they haven't decided to change the characters' looks now that there's been a movie; they're remaining faithful to the characters and the story they've created. It's particularly poignant because Hit-Girl looks even younger than she does in Kick-Ass, the film--the reader is both terrified of her and drawn to her. On one page, she's bowed over a book at school, while a student bullies her--a couple pages later, she's standing over the bodies of at least six men she's killed, with the tiniest of smirks on her face.  

I love the plot line so far; Mindy is both vulnerable and invulnerable, she can kill people but she doesn't know how to get along with them, she knows everything about weapons and politics and nothing about girl-speak or pop culture.  Hit-Girl is every girl who has ever been left out of the in-crowd because they didn't watch the latest movies or wear the latest clothes or follow all the hottest celebrities.  Instead, those were the girls who were working on something they really loved, whether it was dance, writing, or being a superhero.  We all take on different masks to cope with the parts of our lives we don't love--Hit-Girl has to learn to do it too. 

Coming this Wednesday - 7/25/2012

Coming this Wednesday, our Reviews of:

• National Comics: Eternity #1 (DC)
• Higher Earth #3 (BOOM!)
• Justice League Dark #11 (DC)
• Hit-Girl #2 

And depending on whether or not Canada Post can send us our package in time, our review of Locke & Key Vol.5: Clockworks! 

The Secret Service #3: "A compliment wrapped up in an insult."

The Secret Service #3
Writer: Mark Millar
Artist: Dave Gibbons
July 18, 2012
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I am a fan of Mark Millar's creator-owned work. Since the release of Wanted, I've made a habit of buying every book in his Millarworld line of creator-owned titles, usually without reading a synopsis of what the series is even about or who the creative team is. Such was the case with The Secret Service. It was a new series, co-created by Millar, legendary artist Dave Gibbons (Watchmen) and director Matthew Vaughn (Kick-Ass, X-Men First Class), and that was all I needed to know.

After reading the third issue in this series, I am going to rethink my policy of buying Millar's work sight unseen.

In Issue #3, Uncle Jack is in Beijing doing some James Bond stuff and Gary is trying to fit in at MI6's school for spies. Gary is still struggling with his lower class roots as he tries to fit into the role of a sophisticated spy, and Uncle Jack is trying to figure out who keeps kidnapping scientists from around the globe. Yes, it's kind of like My Fair Lady meets James Bond.

Dave Gibbons art is good here, but not great. The scenes of Uncle Jack's escape from Beijing was the most exciting and well scripted part of this issue, but the rest of the book, though it was well drawn, failed to excite me.

Millar and Gibbons are clearly trying to resurrect the class and sophistication of the British spy genre, while also writing a story that deals with contemporary issues of class in the UK. It's a clever premise, and one I can appreciate, but I just don't enjoy it. The need to maintain that level of refinement this book is going for means that The Secret Service lacks the same energy and punch of Millar's other creator-owned work. Nemesis, this is not. And that's perfectly fine, but this title just isn't for me.

The Secret Service #3 is not a bad issue. Gibbons' art is refined, the spy scenes are reminiscent of classic James Bond, and there are some funny and unnerving scenes throughout this issue, although nothing here will shock or disturb on the level of Kick-Ass 2. If you liked the previous issues in this series, then you will probably enjoy this one too.