Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Mystery Men #1


I consider this blog a chance for me to be a comics bully on a grand scale. That’s because I want folks to know about the great comics they might otherwise miss. Mystery Men is one of those great comics.

David Liss has proven himself over the past few months with his great run on Black Panther: The Man Without Fear. Liss has gone from an unknown (to me) to a must-buy comics author. I’m quite pleased I picked up this first issue.

Set in 1932, this is a Marvel comic, but one unconnected from everything that we know about Marvel comics. So it’s got that reassuring flavor that we trust, but it’s still got the bite of the unknown that normal books just can’t give you. That thrill of unpredictability is what makes books like Scalped, Unwritten, and Xombi so good, and that’s what makes this a fantastic comic.

I don’t want to slight artist Patrick Zircher’s work either. He brought his A-game here. The characters look like they stepped out of 1930’s films, just as they should. The character designs for the new pulp heroes are dynamic and realistic. The villain is horrific and graphic.

I'm being pretty vague on the story, because part of the reason I loved this was coming in so cold. I think everyone should experience the story that way.

I’ll say it one more time. Buy this comic!

Excellent

1 comment:

David Liss said...

Thanks for the fantastic review. I really appreciate your getting the word out. It's easy for a title like this to get lost with two big events going on.