Doc Savage #1
Written by Chris Roberson
Art by Bilquis Evely
Colors by Daniela Miwa
Letters by Rob Steen
Covers by Alex Ross and John Cassaday
Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: December 11, 2013
Cover Price: $3.99
Straight from the good old 86th floor, the Man of Bronze has returned! This is a bold prediction from me, but Doc Savage is Dynamite Entertainment’s new Shadow. I see this title spanning multiple spin-offs and miniseries. Not because of any kind of over-saturation planning by Dynamite, but because it’s THAT good, and the character has THAT much potential.
I can’t imagine that writer Chris Roberson had it easy. Not only did he have to write a comic book, he had to write one that not only included mind-bending science, but 1930’s “slang” as well. Roll all of those up together and it had to be a pretty daunting task. But, thankfully, Roberson knows his way around writing comics. In Doc Savage #1, Roberson writes a very well crafted first issue, and, I can only assume, the first part of a storyline that is far from over. This is a great introduction to the world and characters of the Doc Savage universe, and, on its own, a very entertaining story.
Artist Bilquis Evely does a great job on the basics, but there’s a couple of BIG nit-picky problems that I have with him. Although, I’m hesitant to judge on this first issue, because I don’t think the comic series has reached its status quo yet. BUT, I’m going to mention them anyway. First and foremost is Doc Savage himself. Where is the man who makes Superman look like Gilligan? Evely’s Savage looks like a normal guy. An in-shape guy, sure, but a NORMAL guy nonetheless. And along that same line, there’s nothing that sets Savage aside from the other characters in the book. Looks wise, he’s pretty interchangeable with the other members of Doc’s gang. He’s not even bronzed!! Although that would be colorist Daniela Miwa‘s problem, not Evely’s. OK, all that being said, the art IS very good and suits the book to a T. I can’t WAIT to see what he does in upcoming issues.
Get out there and buy this book!!! Buy an extra copy and give it to anybody with eyes and a butt that can sit down and read. It’s not only the perfect gateway into Doc Savage, it’s a fantastic gateway into the world of COMICS!! Like I mentioned earlier, I have a feeling that this book hasn’t reached its status quo yet, and that there’s some major changes coming, but on its own, this is one great first issue. I can’t wait to see what the future holds.
The other reason the characters are interchangeable is that no one seems to have read the novels in any detail.
Even a caption says that Renny is supposed to have “hands as big as hams,” but he really doesn’t.
Johnny is supposed to be almost superhumanly thin. Long Tom is supposed to be a skinny little runt of a man with ears that stick out like sails. Not the Hollywood-good-looking guy we get here. Other artists have had these problems in the past (and so did the 60s movie). But sheesh.
Also on the cover, Pat Savage seems to be wearing… yoga pants?
If it wasn’t for my love of the character, I wouldn’t be recommending this one.
Comment by Gislef — December 13, 2013 @ 10:32 am