Saturday, September 5, 2009

War of Kings: Ascension #1-4

So this was basically an oddly-titled Darkhawk limited series. As a fan of the early 90s series, I really enjoyed it. Chris Powell and his armored alter-ego got a significant power up from DnA in this, and I'm excited to see where the character goes. I believe Darkhawk is slated to become a supporting character in Nova. That's a great spot for the hero going forward.

The basic plot is that a fraternity of plotters and assassins called the Raptors is returning after centuries of exile to shape and guide the Shi'ar Empire. The first Raptor to return, Talon, seeks out his malfunctioning companion Razor. It seems that Razor's host has taken over the armored body they share. Razor, of course, is Darkhawk. After tricking Chris Powell into letting Razor take over, Powell uses his human-powered anger to retake control of his powered form. The middle chapters deal heavily with the metaphysical, other-dimensional stuff of Powell seizing his identity back. The most interesting parts hit in the closing chapter when Powell has to flee Gladiator and the Starjammers. While Razor was in control, he did a bad thing. He killed Empress Lilandra of the Shi'ar. So there are some powerful people mad at ol' Darkhawk these days. Darkhawk does get to take out the manipulative Talon, but the story ends with Darkhawk kind of on the run, the most wanted man in Marvel space. Powell swears to hunt down the other Raptor gems and destroy them, setting up a pretty strong ongoing story that could send Darkhawk all over the Marvel U. DnA's effort to turn Darkhawk into a lead character worked for me.

Wellinton Alves does a decent job on pencils. The Starjammers have such odd costumes; I'd love to see him draw the more classic takes on the characters. The central Raptor characters all look cool and unique, a difficult feat with such similar armors.

Good

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