Marvel Comics 2021
Written by Matthew Rosenberg
Illustrated by Juan Ferreyra
Lettered by VC’s Joe Sabino
KINGPIN’S KILLERS VERSUS AN ARMY OF UNKILLABLE DRAGONS!
An army of evil space dragons have come to attack Earth and are starting with New York. MAYOR FISK has a plan for that. Assembling a group of killers, mercenaries, and just generally pretty horrible people like TASKMASTER, RHINO, STAR, MR. FEAR, and BATROC THE LEAPER, Mayor Fisk tasks them with saving the city or die trying…or die right then and there. The fate of the entire world may rest in the hands of the absolute worst people in the Marvel Universe. What could go wrong?
I thought with this being based at Ravencroft it would be the beginning of something that I could get behind. I still can because the concept is incredibly sound and the whole Ravencroft angle is something that I would love to see happen, not necessarily like the Suicide Squad but in that vein would be incredibly interesting to see. Wilson Fisk is no Amanda Waller though and his brusque nature and the way we see him here puts the kibosh on much of my enjoyment here. John Jameson and Misty Knight would actually be the perfect duo to rebuild and run Ravencroft while using the rehabilitation side to utilise a new Thunderbolts program. But this is all off the top of my head thinking because once we remove Fisk from the equation the books is pretty fun to read.
I am enjoying the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold is really well done. From the introduction of the characters to seeing them encounter what they do is fantastic! Also anytime we see The Rhino without Spider-Man I am a happy camper. The character development is fantastic, though I do have my reservations about how we see Fisk. With how we see the dialogue alongside the way they react to the situations and circumstances really make them feel like we know these characters. The pacing is superb and as it takes us through the pages revealing the twists & turns along the way we are treated to a great beginning to the story.
With how we see the book being structured and the layers within the story emerging and continuing from elsewhere it has all the earmarks of a franchise reboot in the works. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow is so delightful as well.
I do rather like the interiors here. While I disagree with their masks and such being gone it is what it is right now. The linework that we see is gorgeous and how the varying weights and techniques are being utilised to bring out such stunning detail work is fabulous! The outside with the buildings and such show off such a creepy and delightful eye for this story. I mean the detail work, the way we see the symbiote goo strands it’s creepy as all hell. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a remarkable eye for storytelling. The symbiote who took out Snakehead (whom i’ve never heard of) looks like Sauron from the Savage Land and I gotta say the creativity and imagination is off the charts! The colour work is divine. These reds with their hues and tones is so beautifully rendered. Considering what it looks like outdoors the muted tones that have various hues and tones themselves is really very well done.
Solid book with a few question marks but honestly when this King in Black mishegas is finished i’d like to see Ravencroft be home to a new version of the Thunderbolts.