Azrael #1 review

by Fabian Nicieza (writer), Ramon Bachs (art), John Stanisci (Inks), JD Smith (colors)

The Story: A standard mugging leads new Gotham vigilante Azrael to a revenge plot involving conspiracy and abuse in the Catholic church.  Meanwhile, the G.C.P.D. discover just exactly who this mysterious new hero is and how he came to be.

What’s Good: The general consensus as to criticism of DC’s recently launched Red Robin series was that Ramon Bachs was all wrong for the art chores.  When it was announced he’d be moving over to Azrael, many, including me, breathed a sigh of relief and looked forward to what he’d offer on a subject matter that seemed to be more suited to his style.  Well, here we are and there’s good news and bad news.  The good news is that I enjoyed the art in this issue.  I was quite surprised to find a somewhat unconventional-looking book in my hands that really stood out amongst my weekly purchases.  The bad news is that I don’t think Bachs had anything to do with that.

Colorist JD Smith uses a palette that really gives this issue a unique look.  His colors are quite bold and, to be honest, border on being garish and muddy, but I found myself taking a liking to them.  Perhaps it was the fact that they weren’t perfectly balanced out, but I appreciated the weight they gave to the pages.  A lot of credit also goes to Inker Stanisci who seems to be a better fit for Bach’s pencils.  He brings a thicker, bolder line to the artwork that adds a nice feel to the overall presentation.  All in all, this art team seems to be a much better fit than Bach’s previous partner, digital inker and colorist Guy Major.

Writer Nicieza decides to tackle the hot-button issue of molestation by Catholic, but he never seems to exploit it.  The final confrontation between our hero and his quarry was unpredictable and refreshing, yet it made total sense considering the code of ethics Azrael himself follows.  Also, the cliffhanger was unexpected and did a good job of making me curious enough to at least consider giving the next issue a shot.

What’s Not So Good: Despite my appreciation of the artwork, I have to admit that it seems to be at odds with the material.  There’s a definite Indy vibe to it that might not sit too well with readers expecting a particular mood when they pick up a Bat-title.  Don’t get me wrong, that offbeat aspect of it is what I enjoyed, but it at times does seem contrary to the story it’s telling.  This issue has a wonderful cover by artist Jock, but once again, it’s in a completely different style than the interiors, which is misleading.

Bachs is also not very good at depicting exciting action sequences.  I didn’t feel any sort of movement come through as Azrael battles the bad guys; the panels just sit there on the page.  He also makes the title character look strangely short and squat here, which isn’t the biggest deal, but does serve to distract a bit.

While the artwork has it share of problems, the writing is just as flawed, as Nicieza bombards us with too many story-lines.  By page three we’re already following three to four different plot threads, most of them flashbacks. As a result, we’re never given the opportunity to become invested in any of them. The Azrael: Death’s Dark Knight miniseries released earlier this year and the story presented in this years Batman & Detective Comics Annuals (which serve as a sort of lead-in to this issue) all did a better job of introducing the character and making him interesting than this #1 issue did, which is disappointing.

Nitpicker alert! The script never gives the names of the detectives investigating the Azrael case, which is presented as one of the main narratives. Being a Bat-fan, and having read the aforementioned 2-part “prologue” in the annuals, I’m pretty sure that they’re intended to be Harvey Bullock and Josie Mac.  However, I shouldn’t have to guess at something like that considering this is a #1 issue that should be new reader-friendly.

Conclusion: With an atypical art style that both impresses and seems at odds with its material, and with a script that firmly plants itself in the “meh” category, Azrael #1 falls short of what an introductory issue should be.

Grade: D +

-Joe Lopez

Vigilante #1 – Review

By Marv Wolfman (writer), Rick Leonardi (artist), John Stanisci (inker), David Baron (colorist)

I wasn’t sure I would have the honor this year of reviewing a truly terrible comic, but then DC stepped up and delivered this steaming piece of crap like an awful, unwelcome Christmas present.  Hey, ’tis the season, right?

Vigilante, a character first updated in 1983 by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, is an anachronism that has spent the last twenty-five years living in the shadow of the Punisher’s glory days, and seems perfectly content to die there as well.  Not quite a hard-boiled detective, not really a superhero, and not nearly the ruthless vigilante Wolfman would have you believe him to be, the only things Vigilante seems to fully embrace is the degree to which he utterly sucks as a character, and his refusal to see how irrelevant he is in the DC universe.   How lame is it that a vigilante needs to call himself Vigilante and wear a helmet with a V-shaped visor?  I mean, is he so insecure that nobody will take him seriously as a crime-fighter that he needs to browbeat villains with the fact that, yes, he IS a vigilante!?

Wolfman is not a bad writer by any means, having helmed the enormously popular Teen Titans relaunch with Perez back in the 80s, but it’s obvious that he’s barely phoning this one in. The story provided is tiresome and simply uninteresting as it’s about a criminal power struggle between the Penguin and the Whale (seriously), the cops’ pursuit of Vigilante, and Vigilante’s pursuit of answers regarding the Mob’s connection to the Election Assassinations and a superhero gone rogue.  By the end of the issue, Vigilante proves what a hardcore vigilante he is by allowing himself to be arrested and sent to jail so that he can find his answers.  The Punisher’s done this five or six times by now, but hey who’s counting?

Rick Leonardi’s art, while traditionally reliable on superhero books, seems incredibly out of place on a story that wants to be crime fiction.  Leonardi tries to go for a dark, gritty, atmospheric look, but falls short. The one redeeming quality to this book is Walt Simonson’s dynamic cover.  If you can justify paying $3.00 for that cover, then I say go for it, otherwise please vote with your dollar, avoid this book like the plague, and let DC know you expect better than this.

Grade: F

-Tony Rakittke