Monday, January 23, 2012

Black Panther #528


What’ s awesome about David Liss’ epic battle between Kingpin and Black Panther is that it is different than the other Kingpin fights we’ve seen over the years. Daredevil rarely actually outsmarts Kingpin, relying on his stubborn pride and ability to take a beating to outlast the big man. Spider-Man has always been able to taunt and annoy Kingpin into making a mistake. But Black Panther just straight-up out-plots the guy. The Kingpin is a criminal mastermind that gets by with his brains first, brawn second. And Black Panther operates exactly the same way!

I find it a bit odd that T’Challa’s sister Shuri shows up and has such an important role in this issue. She hasn’t had a whiff of impact on the series so far, but here she is zooming in with an extremely plot-altering role. I didn’t read the last series where she was introduced, so I know nothing about her, so maybe I’m more confused than other BP fans.

I also hope there is a tad more for Luke Cage and Falcon to do next issue. Surely they can fight Lady Bullseye and Typhoid Mary while BP faces down Kingpin next month?

Michael Avon Oeming’s style is too unique for him to come in and wrap up the closing chapter of this story. David Liss’ book has had an extremely consistent look from the beginning; Oeming is good, he’s just too different. His use of shading works fine, but his simple lines don’t carry the same weight as the other artists on this run.

Good

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