If Robert Kirkman wasn't writing
enough as it was, he has written another mini-series with
Superpatriot: America's Fighting Force. First appearing in Savage
Dragon #2, created by Erik Larsen, he has frequently appeared in the
Image Universe mainly as a supporting character; now he is once again in
the spotlight.
The story starts with Superpatriot
saving his children from an abduction by some men with Nazi markings
on their uniforms. There is then a quick flashback before his android
days during WWII, fast forwarding to his more recent crime fighting days. The
volume is laced with more flashbacks whilst at the same time
Superpatriot is trying to make progress with his personal life.
Throughout the rest of the volume, in a very large nutshell, the Nazi men are trying to gather
forces bringing back certain ways of Hitler and declaring war.
Robert Kirkman, a man that has been
very active for the last almost decade, again impresses with his
simplistic yet entertaining style of writing. Kirkman blends the
testosterone-filled action with drama quite well, though it is just
like his work with Invincible. His writing does not feel that it has
evolved too much, yet what Kirkman does, he does well.
Across all four issues, Kirkman does
not struggle with the pacing. This is a skill that he has wielded for
a long time since the beginnings of Invincible, yet has still worked
on improving. Just how far he has really come is obvious in this
collection. The easiest example would be the use of the
flashbacks. A lot of writers struggle in this area in that they just
cannot seem to fit these in at the right times, which often makes a comic
feel jerky with the simultaneous timelines. Kirkman avoids this
pitfall with a long length of vine left over to leave that issue far
behind, (get the reference?).
Cory Walker has worked with
Kirkman previously on Invincible and Destroyer (part of Marvel's MAX
line). Walker is an artist with simple artwork. He does not go
over-the-top with detail, like what is seen with hyper-realism, but he
brings the raw basics loud and proud with the reader's eyes always
floating to the right spot of the action. Another thing worth
mentioning is that his quality stays true and does not drop off
further down the line.
Val Staples, Matt Tyree and Jason
Keith were in charge with the coloring of these comics. The colors
are of a basic palette but are bright like a Disney cartoon and
pleasing to the eye without the feeling of being attacked by
paintbrushes.
Honestly, to anybody who is a fan of
the character Superpatriot, or even somebody who wishes to be a
complete collector of Savage Dragon or the works of the people
behind this story should get in on this. I do recommend this series to
anyone who likes action laced with light-hearted humor. Worthy of
mention is that Robert Kirkman's Superpatriot feels true to the
character's beginnings. Oh, and one other thing: being Erik Larsen's
character and also being the editor he still had a hand on his creation.
Overall Score - 8.0/10