The Defenders was a recent 10-issue series that is notable for two reasons: (i) it ties into the very same street-level heroes that have been recently popularized by the Netflix TV show of the same name, and (ii) it serves as a swan-song to writer Brian Michael Bendis, who co-created Jessica Jones, and was single-handedly responsible for reviving the fortunes of Daredevil and Luke Cage in the mid-naughties. It’s a fast-paced comic, with plenty of action and incident, although on the other hand it does feel a bit like a victory-lap for Bendis, as he casually drops in characters from his previous runs, just for the sheer fun of it, even if they don’t entirely fit the story. There’s some sloppy writing too; with a number of questions raised that then go unanswered, and the characterization of certain cameos may grind with established fans. On the other hand, the art by David Marquez is phenomenal, and the creative team pulled off some truly original storytelling, which is no mean feat after 50+ years of these characters.
The most recent Daredevil arc is well done (Mayor Fisk in #595 – #600), but is not really essential reading. Writer Charles Soule uses his own experience as a lawyer to lend some veracity to Matt Murdock’s misadventures, as he now finds himself on the side of the prosecution, working for the District Attorney’s office. For long-term (or returning) readers there’s a real sense of deja-vu, with Matt engaging in yet another high-stakes game of cat-and-mouse with the Kingpin, Wilson Fisk, so I can’t really recommend it above the previous runs by Miller, Noccenti, Bendis or Brubaker. Personally speaking, the character is at risk of getting a bit stale, and is due a re-invention that can spin him off in a new direction for a decade or so.
Doctor Strange is one that really took me by surprise. Rising star writer Donny Cates (God Country) jumped on board with issue #381 and kicked off with a 5-issue storyline that saw Stephen Strange lose the mantle of Sorceror Supreme to the God of Mischief himself, Loki. It’s a plotting trope that has become very popular of late in Marvel titles, with Doctor Octopus taking over from Peter Parker as Spider-Man, and even more recently Doctor Doom assuming the mantle of Iron-Man. But all is not as it appears here; and instead of a traditional good-versus-evil tale, or even a bad-learning-to-be-good tale, we have a story of flawed people making bad decisions for noble reasons. The plotting is playful, spectacular and unexpectedly poignant, and I think the final pages of #385 will have you clamouring for more.
Captain America has had a rough time of late; most recently enduring a protracted story arc in which he betrayed the American public and revealed himself to be a life-long supporter of terrorist organization Hydra. It was not massively popular, and by way of apology, Marvel brought back one of Cap’s previous all-star writers, Mark Waid, for a brief redemptive arc in #695-#700. Waid understands that Captain America comics work best when they lay the patriotic themes on thick, and so this arc sees Steve Rogers take on villains that would hijack the meaning of ‘American Nationalism’ and twist it to their own selfish purposes. Chris Samnee’s artwork is, as always, dynamic and timeless, and elevates Waid’s borderline hammy plotting into something really quite special.
Moon Knight is the Marvel comic that surprised me the most; you probably don’t know much about the character – neither did I when I started reading the arc ‘Crazy Runs In The Family’ from #188 – #193. Marc Spector has suffered a number of traumatic events in his life, and as a coping mechanism has developed multiple personality disorder, which he now uses to fight crime as Moon Knight. It seems like these hooks could be exploitative or tasteless, however writer Max Bemis presents Spector as a man who is not trapped by his condition, but who is aware and (largely) in control of it, and uses it to benefit the public in general. The plotting is intelligent, self-aware, witty and gloriously surreal. Issue #194 offers a secret-origin of sorts for Spector, which sees the tone take a hand-brake turn into the darkness, and is one of the best single-issue comics I’ve read in years. There’s talk of turning Moon Knight into a movie soon, which I think could be a cracker, although based on these off-beat tales, my ideal director would be early-80’s era John Landis.
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