Dynamite Entertainment 2015
Created by Kevin Eastman, Ian Parker & Mark Mastrandrea
Story by Ian Parker & Kevin Eastman
Written by Rik Hoskin
Illustrated by Renalto Rei
Coloured by Ross Campbell
Lettered by Marshall Dillon
Well the first thing I noticed about this was the interior artwork. After seeing it I knew I had to read it. Mind you i’m only peripherally familiar with wrestling, I do enjoy watching NCAA matches as the guys go at it, so for me tying this into something so much larger that happened in Vietnam and making it so much larger than I could have imagined is fantastic.
When we get to the present we have no real idea what the significance of what happened in Vietnam and i’m okay with that. It leaves a mystery behind that needs to be unraveled by our main character, Ryder. It’s Ryder’s birthday he’s now fourteen years old and he being brought up by his grandfather because his mother is MIA and his father in the service and he’s a troubled young man not having his parents around. It’s typical of a young man trying to discover himself and the writing and characterization here is spectacular.
I’m so enamoured by Renalto’s interiors here. Ryder looks like a kid thankfully and as a wrestler he’s got a nice physique but not superhero type. His grandfather is a hardened stern older gentleman and you get that feeling he’s hiding something but has Ryder’s best interest at heart.
Ryder’s the new kid in school and has a hard time making friends, though some of that is due to his personality. He also seems to have a quick temper and isn’t as active in making new friends he complains about not having. Though his History teacher tries to be the voice of reason here and wants him to succeed without the excuses. This is the kind of teacher we’ve all had the one who takes an interest and helps change a student’s life.
Something happens to Ryder at a wrestling match at school and he doesn’t know how to react to it. It all ties into what happened in Vietnam, what his grandfather doesn’t want to talk about and the strange disc he found in the attic. Of course his actions on the mat garner attention and a strange encounter only helps to deepen the mystery going on here. Plus there's this whole coming of age thing that seems to be on the verge of emerging that draws you into Ryder and makes you want to like him, root for him and hope that things go well.
As the issue comes towards the end things happen that transform Ryder’s life into something much more than he could have expected. There are forces in the world that need to be dealt with and thanks to that disc he’s going to be one of them. It all comes together to deliver this really unique story full of the unexpected it’s got great characterization and plenty of mystery. Including just what is truly going on. All I know is that i’m completely intrigued this is a great young man with unlimited potential and plenty of character traits to explore.
Looking for something entertaining, different and not what you’d expect then go find this book and see what I see in it.