February Marvel Previews |
Thunderbolts: Faith In Monsters
Premiere Edition HDC
Writers: Warren Ellis, Paul Jenkins, Marc Guggenheim
Artists: Mike Deodato jr., Steve Lieber, Marc Silvestri, Leinil Yu
cover: Marko Djurdjevic
Review by Brian Grindrod
I was never interested in Kurt Busiek’s premise of Thunderbolts where third string villains pose as heroes. It may have tickled the geek factor of veteran Marvel fans but knowing that Buseik’s stories cater exclusively to nostalgic old farts who have an almost frightening knowledge of the Marvel Universe, Thunderbolts signified that it was not going to be my cup of tea.
The series has undergone a dramatic change not only in the creative department but also in its cast of characters. Gone are the no-names such as Mach-1, Techno and Citizen V in which reliance upon the extensive facts of their background was a must to appreciate the series. They have been replaced by notable and more interesting villains who are delightfully nightmarish. Warren Ellis a writer whose style never insults the longings of old time Marvel fans yet is able to craft stories that are new reader friendly for today’s generation of super-hero comic book collectors. Joining Ellis is veteran artist Mike Deodato jr., who has certainly modified his styling since his stint on Wonder Woman during the late 1990s.
Faith In Monsters has its roots in the Civil War mega-event. Marvel Comics has been quite short-sighted in not releasing an over-sized hardcover for those who have no desire to hunt down the relating issues of this important saga. Ellis’ vision of Thunderbolts is quite similar to that of DC Comics’ Suicide Squad by John Ostrander, who, in turn, was surely inspired by the classic film The Dirty Dozen starring Lee Marvin, football legend Jim Brown and Charles Bronson. Ellis transforms the Thunderbolts series from a simpleton super-hero romp to a title about culture and politics where our society has elevated Charles Manson, David Berkowitz and Ted Bundy over Joe DiMaggio, John F. Kennedy or Albert Einstein as modern icons.
As the title suggests, the characters are absolute monsters in every sense. From Moonstone’s insatiable quench for gratuitous sex and lust for power to Norman Osborn’s insane obsession with Spider-Man, the group is made up of a serial killer (Bullseye), a remorseless murderer (Venom) and a sadomasochist (Penance). The dialogue is credible even if the characters are over-the-top, which is the reason Ellis remains one of my favorite scribers. The idea of a government sponsored operation that hunts down non-registered heroes will eventually run its course, but in the meantime there is nothing like a healthy dose of graphic violence, bloodshed and mayhem to spice the plot up. Those are the key ingredients to every solid super-hero script that goes against this modern super-hero writing trend of diarrheic dialogue blended with tortoise paced scripting.
Art wise, Mike Deodato jr. is flawless. The realistic styling conveys a cinematic quality that is worth every dollar that I spent on the book. The panel designs alongside the splash pages bring a blockbuster epic quality to the script and Ellis is an intelligent writer that does not hamper the artist’s renderings of action sequences by inserting needless speech balloons à la Chris Claremont. However, I must point out a pet peeve of mine that Deodato does throughout the book; He draws an actor (Tommy Lee Jones) in the role of Norman Osborn. I do enjoy actors portraying heroes and villains in film…. not in comic books.
As he did in Stormwatch, Warren Ellis reinvents The Thunderbolts. Instead of the old, tired and safe concepts of yesteryear, there is a book that is worth giving a damn about that is geared for readers who embrace a vibrant vision of the super-hero genre. As an added bonus, this edition contains reprints of Thunderbolts: Desperate Measures, Civil War: Choosing Sides and Civil War: The Initiative as well as the variant covers.
Rating: 9 stars out of 10
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