Dynamite Entertainment 2015
Written by Warren Ellis
Illustrated by Jason Masters
Coloured by Guy Major
Lettered by Simon Bowland
006 has been killed and there’s a new dangerous drug hitting the streets of London and it’s up to James to fix everything. First things first is to capture and eliminate 006’s murderer so it’s off to Berlin. So far i’m digging the story and how things are coming along and the emphasis on James and his personality and less on the drug front but just enough of that so we know it’s serious and we should pay attention.
Assuming the identity of one of 006’s James arrives in Berlin where he’s picked up by a driving service. This was fun for a whole lot of reasons chiefly because it is a prime example of thinking that James is part fae and all women want to have sex with him. In this case she goes by the name Dharma Reach. Alright so this isn’t an adaptation this is an original story by Warren and it’s bloody brilliant. It has all the elements that make up the James Bond we all know and yet it keeps all the classic stuff from days past and keeps it blended with the current movies sensibility so that it’s just the perfect fusion.
Jason and Guy have somehow managed to bring this modern day noir feel to the book at times making it incredibly interesting. Yes James looks a little Bruce Wayne but then he should if one is the role model on the other. The get the sense of movement down too and the way things happen in the beginning well it’s pretty freaking awesome to see that kind of motion going on.
So after arriving at the right destination, getting sidetracked is kind of in the job description right?, and meeting with the Berlin team and finally getting to retrieve his gun James is off again. Though I have to admit the star struck staff was kind of cute I mean there are so few 00 operatives that meeting in person is kind of a big deal. Then once he arrives at another scheduled stop things aren’t quite what they seem.
Slaven Kurjak calls him Mr. Bond instead of his cover name which he notices but alarm bells should be sounding like the monthly Tornado warning siren. Though his explanation is kinda whack but hey it does kind of go with what we heard from his Berlin people already but still how news travels that fast should be suspect in my humble opinion. Then again i’m a suspicious person and trust no one. That he knows where a cocaine lab is that fist his description well that’s all too convenient for my tastes and well the technology he’s wearing and developing yeah that looks familiar.
Yeah just a little nugget as he leaves to boot. C’mon this is James 007 Bond we’re talking about here and i’m sure he hasn’t missed a thing in this joint.
The end of the issue deals with the cocaine that’s been heavily tainted and the result of having taken it and too much of it. Very last panel wow that’s a spectacular image in the best grossest way possible and it could only get better if it turned him into a zombie.
Alright i’m way more intrigued than I thought i’d be. I mean granted it’s Warren and he’s yet to let me down but this is Bond and what we’re getting is just more than I bargained for. This is really the kind of story you never saw coming. Warren really has captured the best of the past and the present in this version.