Not only am I a comic book freak, I’m a big movie fan – and a not too insignificant auteur of movies by black directors, be they Spike Lee, Kasi Lemmons, Oscar Michaeux, Erzhan Palcy or the Hughes Brothers. Which is why I have been looking forward to the new retconn by BOOMERANG and HOUSE PARTY writer/director Reginald Hudlin. Too bad I won’t be able to get my comics until tomorrow. However, thanks to MileHighComics’ FIRST LOOK webpage, I can at least do a review of the frst four pages.
**The Good **
Some of the visuals seem familiar but they’re put to good effect here. The suprising death hidden in the high grass bit was done before in Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World with velociraptors and the one panel shot of spears raining down from the sky looks like it comes right out of the wuxia epic, Hero. I actually like the fact these two disparate elements were put to use here as it bodes well for action sequences in this series.
The pacing is pretty good, and the plot is refreshingly straightforward and it was nice to see that the writer didn’t feel compelled to fill EVERY panel with dialogue and let part of the story be told with pictures. John Romita, Jr. does his usual good work with layut and composition here, even if I have to question the authenticity of his vbisual sources here.
The Bad
Who are these Africans attacking the Wakandas? They’re not named, nor are their motivations clear. The look vaguely Masaai or zulu which would put them in East Africa and South africa respectively, and far, far away from the Hausa, Ife and Yoruba cultures cited in Priest’s*** Black Panther*** run of the previous seven years. The savannah scenes look equally east African as well and don’t match the Wakandsa topography unless they’re really in the outskirts.
The Ugly
…depending on the context and the story genre, I generally have a problem with period native peoples looking, talking and acting like 20th or 21st century Americans. Some of the dialogue here is blatantly contemporary: I can scarcely concieve of a 19th century warrior telling his continental war party to “be cool,” and “stay focused.” Nor do I buy for a minute that while he was able to identify the Wakanda spring-loaded death trap as if he’s seen it before, that they didn’t come take some simple precautions against it, like tapping the long spears on the ground ahead of them as the advanced. It still makes the Wakandans look like badasses, but it makes this war party seem stupid. And no Black Panther seen as yet… for me, rarely a good sign in a new series.
6/10… Not too great. Not too bad. i’m still mildly intrigued… let’s see how the rest goes.