John Aman Amazing Man #1
Gallant Comics 2014
Written & Coloured by Barry Gregory
Illustrated by Steven Butler
Amazing Man Created by Bill Everett
Horace Googer Created by Jack Kirby
How Sharper Than a Dragon's Tooth Part One of Six
John Aman and the mysterious Dr. Vampire are routing a nest of the undead when Sylvia Manners, operations chief for the X-Bureau --a shadowy government agency that monitors super-human activity, arrives with bad news. Zoe Henderson--investigative reporter and Aman's close friend--has gone missing. Zoe's last known whereabouts were at the controversial bio-weapons lab known as Googer Industries.
For someone who loves the older forgotten heroes I have to wonder how on Earth I missed this when it was first published? I mean come on this is literally right up my alley and the fact that Gallant is (or was) based out of Michigan means I should’ve seen them at Motor City Con so seriously how is the universe this cruel? Anywho I am in love with this already as the book has this great feel to it that harkens back to seventies and eighties era of comics.
The overall ebb & flow of the book is very nice to see and the way it’s structured is sensational. The opening is precisely what it should be as it garners interest, piques the curiosity and makes the reader think about what this is going to mean. The narration alongside what we see is a great way to engage the reader and introduce the world to a new series. As we get to the main story there is that sense of old school, see aforementioned era’s, married with today’s world. It’s extremely well done and I instantly felt recognition and sense of something new and amazing.
While you never expect to see an “origin” story happen in a first issue however I really am impressed with what Barry is doing here. I love this impromptu interview that Zoe Henderson is doing with Dr. Emmelman at Googer Industries. There is quite a bit of narration and dialogue which might look overwhelming it isn’t it really is beautifully done and with the imagery we see while we are “hearing” what is going on is stellar stuff. At one point in the walking, talking tour Zoe is receiving things take an unexpected turn, for her and Emmelman, and we learn more than we bargained for. It has that element of the capable female reporter being taken and used a lure which might be a comics trope or cliché but honestly it’s also one of the most effective way to get whom you want to come to you.
The interiors here are utterly sensational. The way that we see the attention to detail and that it has the most beautiful example of varying weights of linework and yet still makes me think of the Justice League of America or Perez’s New Teen Titans is beyond what I could’ve hoped for. While it’s reminiscent it’s still uniquely Steven and that is remarkable. I mean I really cannot get over just how good this linework is as it you can see a sure, steady and strong hand behind it. The creativity and imagination on display is amazing as well and being able to bring this life the way it is definitely a wow factor. The utilisation of page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels shows off a damn good eye for storytelling. The way we see backgrounds utilised and how the colours are so vibrant and the gradation and highlights that we see made me happy as a clam.
The introduction of the characters and how we see the situations arise and how they are dealt with is really something special. I also found the sheer amount of story that we get feels this is more like a giant double sized issue than a "regular" one so we really do get to see a lot of the characters and their personalities. The pacing here is marvellous and the writing is so strong with the story & plot development alongside that immense characterisation and flawless interiors make this something that should be an ongoing series that’s on everyone’s lips. This is quintessentially what comics are about and what they should be.
P.S. you get yours here in either digital or print formats-- http://www.indyplanet.us/gallant-comics
Gallant Comics 2014
Written & Coloured by Barry Gregory
Illustrated by Steven Butler
Amazing Man Created by Bill Everett
Horace Googer Created by Jack Kirby
How Sharper Than a Dragon's Tooth Part One of Six
John Aman and the mysterious Dr. Vampire are routing a nest of the undead when Sylvia Manners, operations chief for the X-Bureau --a shadowy government agency that monitors super-human activity, arrives with bad news. Zoe Henderson--investigative reporter and Aman's close friend--has gone missing. Zoe's last known whereabouts were at the controversial bio-weapons lab known as Googer Industries.
For someone who loves the older forgotten heroes I have to wonder how on Earth I missed this when it was first published? I mean come on this is literally right up my alley and the fact that Gallant is (or was) based out of Michigan means I should’ve seen them at Motor City Con so seriously how is the universe this cruel? Anywho I am in love with this already as the book has this great feel to it that harkens back to seventies and eighties era of comics.
The overall ebb & flow of the book is very nice to see and the way it’s structured is sensational. The opening is precisely what it should be as it garners interest, piques the curiosity and makes the reader think about what this is going to mean. The narration alongside what we see is a great way to engage the reader and introduce the world to a new series. As we get to the main story there is that sense of old school, see aforementioned era’s, married with today’s world. It’s extremely well done and I instantly felt recognition and sense of something new and amazing.
While you never expect to see an “origin” story happen in a first issue however I really am impressed with what Barry is doing here. I love this impromptu interview that Zoe Henderson is doing with Dr. Emmelman at Googer Industries. There is quite a bit of narration and dialogue which might look overwhelming it isn’t it really is beautifully done and with the imagery we see while we are “hearing” what is going on is stellar stuff. At one point in the walking, talking tour Zoe is receiving things take an unexpected turn, for her and Emmelman, and we learn more than we bargained for. It has that element of the capable female reporter being taken and used a lure which might be a comics trope or cliché but honestly it’s also one of the most effective way to get whom you want to come to you.
The interiors here are utterly sensational. The way that we see the attention to detail and that it has the most beautiful example of varying weights of linework and yet still makes me think of the Justice League of America or Perez’s New Teen Titans is beyond what I could’ve hoped for. While it’s reminiscent it’s still uniquely Steven and that is remarkable. I mean I really cannot get over just how good this linework is as it you can see a sure, steady and strong hand behind it. The creativity and imagination on display is amazing as well and being able to bring this life the way it is definitely a wow factor. The utilisation of page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels shows off a damn good eye for storytelling. The way we see backgrounds utilised and how the colours are so vibrant and the gradation and highlights that we see made me happy as a clam.
The introduction of the characters and how we see the situations arise and how they are dealt with is really something special. I also found the sheer amount of story that we get feels this is more like a giant double sized issue than a "regular" one so we really do get to see a lot of the characters and their personalities. The pacing here is marvellous and the writing is so strong with the story & plot development alongside that immense characterisation and flawless interiors make this something that should be an ongoing series that’s on everyone’s lips. This is quintessentially what comics are about and what they should be.
P.S. you get yours here in either digital or print formats-- http://www.indyplanet.us/gallant-comics
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