T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #6 – Review

By: Too many to list—check out the review.

The Story: All storms must end sometime, and with them go the thunder.

The Review: After my review of last issue, reader Don asked me what titles I could recommend to satisfy his craving for Nick Spencer material, once this series wrapped up.  I had to admit I knew nothing that blended superheroics and political thriller so seamlessly and with such sophistication, wit, and craft.  It reminded me of how much I’ve enjoyed Spencer’s work here since it debuted, and how sorry I am to see it go.

If you like T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents as much as I do, then you’ll also be particularly dismayed to see how quietly this issue pulls the curtain on the series.  Spencer obviously has a lot of affection for all these characters, however brief their working lives are, and he attempts to give each of them as neat a resolution as possible under the circumstances.  Even so, you can clearly tell he had a much longer endgame in mind, and things were never intended to end this way.

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #5 – Review

By: Nick Spencer (writer), Cafu (penciller), Bit (inker), Santiago Arcas (colorist), Ryan Sook (guest artist)

The Story: She doesn’t know that he knows that they don’t know what he knows about that other guy knows about them—no, I’m not describing a Friends episode.

The Review: The first story arc of any new ongoing can be the most critical for the title’s livelihood.  Besides setting the tone and mission statement for the series, it also determines the loyalty of its first-generation readers.  A strong leading storyline can establish a fanbase that forgives possibly weaker arcs down the line; a poor or even mediocre lead wards readers away, so even with dramatic improvements, there’s no audience to help it survive.

This issue detonates a ticking time bomb that’s been lurking in the team’s midst, and the fallout is tremendous.  The revelation of Toby’s specific connection to Spider is definitely unexpected (using some complicated, but ingenious identity-transfer logistics).  But the twist at the end—the way his use of the Menthor helmet ultimately turns on him—really plays brilliantly.  It pays tribute to the original Menthor and elevates Toby from your typical smart-alec to mentally fractured dark horse—a big promotion for an already entertaining character.

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #4 – Review

By: Nick Spencer (writer), Cafu (main penciller), Bit (main inker), Santiago Arcas (main colorist), George Perez (penciller), Scott Koblish (inker), Blond (colorist)

The Story: Dynamo learns firsthand being a T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent isn’t all it’s cracked up to be—not that it was much to begin with.

The Review: “Less is more.”  This old bromide has been tossed around for Lord knows how long, but its practical implications are as relevant as ever—especially so for comics.  It is, after all, a medium that places equal weight on text and art.  When writers go even a little overboard with the words, the comic gets dragged down in a hurry.  In those cases, it’s frequently best to cut back on the narration and let the art and reader’s imagination do some of the storytelling.

Spencer could have gotten a lot more done by applying that lesson to this issue.  By now, we’ve all had it hammered to us over three issues that there’s a price to being a T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent and that price is death.  This point hasn’t only been told to us, it’s been illustrated with very effective, chilling detail.  It’s easy to understand the importance of emphasizing this major distinction between the Agents and the rest of the superhero teams out there.

But now it just feels like Spencer is preaching to the choir, and that’s a waste.  Consider this issue’s opening sequence—it’s executed well and offers a few useful pieces of info about the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. program and Dynamo’s powers.  But if you take a step back, you realize that’s five pages devoted to exposing information you mostly know already, which means five pages avoiding the action at large.  And there really hasn’t been much action to spare since this series began.  Even by issue’s end, you’re still left in the first—what?—fifteen minutes of the mission.

Even more problematic is a whole page devoted to Toby’s sales pitch.  Again, there’s nothing wrong with the way it’s written.  It just feels like we’ve heard this speech before, three issues ago, and the only real payoff from having it redone is Dynamo’s deadpan, “So what’s the money like?”  Like I said, the scene itself plays well and there’s a lot of humor and character work that follows it.  Still, that makes you foam even more at the mouth to get newer material instead of this old news.  You just really want to see Spencer give you more of the unexpected.

T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents #1 – Review

by Nick Spencer (writer), CAFU (pencils), BIT (inks), Santiago Arcas (colors), and Swands (letters)

The Story: We’re introduced to the world of the THUNDER Agents and their modus operandi.

What’s Good: I really wasn’t sure what to expect out of this book, but what I got was decidedly unique from anything offered by DC.  It’s very much a Nick Spencer book and feels sleek and modern much like a Marvel comic might, but still has that grain of DC kookiness.  It has the atmosphere of a spy-book and actually felt quite a bit like an answer from DC to Marvel’s Secret Warriors and, of course, the fact that I’m even making that comparison is a very good thing.  Honestly, as far as tone goes, I can’t remember reading a DC title quite like this.

There’s no mistaking that this issue is a high quality product on both the writing and art fronts.  As far as the writing goes, Spencer’s dialogue and plotting just feels smart.  It occasionally gets flowery in its dialogue, which is welcome, but it also carries the cold effiency and the crazy twists, turns, and back-and-forth conspiracies of a good spy yarn.  At times, the twists and the dialogue might strike some as a little too flashy or larger-than-life, but I loved every second of it.  It makes the book feel bold, exciting, and constantly intelligent, making for something far, far from your average, run-of-the-mill superhero comic.

CAFU also helps make the title stand out.  Despite this being a smaller property, CAFU gives the book a big comic feel.  His work is incredibly polished and slick and has a high-budget feel that looks distinct.  Combined with Arcas’ colors, the book also somewhat steers away from grittiness, opting instead for an inviting look with just the hint of a wacky, Doom Patrol feel.