The Activity #1 – Review

By: Nathan Edmondson (writer), Mitch Gerads (art & letters) & Kyle Latino (colors assists)

The Story: Edmondson & Gerads bring us a new series about a covert action team.

Three Things:

1. Tight espionage thrillers are needed. – It always amazes me that we don’t have more comics in the espionage genre.  I mean, even if comics are mostly sold to geeky guys who like superheroes, I think those geeky guys also like espionage.  So, this is probably a smart entry by Edmondson and Gerads.  It is very much in the vein of Mission Impossible: Small team assigned with difficult tasks that they accomplish as much via stealth and brains as by brute force and firepower.  Judging from his past writings, Edmondson should be very good at this type of subject matter.  For one thing, it isn’t that far afield from his very good Who is Jake Ellis? and for another, Edmondson seems the type of writer who does his homework to make sure he gets the technical stuff correct.

2. Nice intro/meet-the-team issue. – This issue didn’t try anything too complicated.  It just introduced us to the team through the eyes of its newest member.  That’s always a reliable and intimate way to view this type of action (the alternative being a story told in complete third person like GI Joe).  And the creators take us on a few simple little missions.  These aren’t action epics….just quickies that show what kinds of things the team can do.  They can shoot when they have to, but they’re just as happy to stay behind the scenes and use high tech gadgets.  I’d imagine that we’ll be getting multi-issue stories in the future, but this issue does a nice job of kicking things off the new readers.

3. Effective art, NICE coloring. – For a first issue, Gerads and Edmondson are working pretty nicely together.  A few of the action sequences go silent and Gerads is up to the task, nicely taking us through a series of panels where there is no doubt about what is happening.  It’s so nice to see a comic be able to do this without resorting to cumbersome word balloons like bodyguards yelling, “This way sir!  We’ll protect you.”  This type of silent art also has the appropriate effect of speeding the storytelling up during the action sequences.  A word should also be said about the coloring.  My first exposure to Gerads was as the colorist on the Boom! series, Starborn.  He did a great job there and is doing it again on this issue.  He makes wonderful use of blue and otherwise uses background color to establish a mood for the scenes.

Conclusion: A very nicely done first issue.  It introduces the characters and situation about as well as any #1 issue I’ve read in a long time.  Further, it doesn’t leave us with any messy baggage dragging into the second issue.  You should be able to tell whether you like this series by the first issue alone.

Jumping on Point?: They don’t get much better.  Even for a #1 issue, it is especially good at introductions.

Grade: B

-Dean Stell

Follow Dean on Twitter.

Follow WCBR on Twitter and Facebook.

WCBR’s Top Picks

Dean’s Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Severed #5 – This comic scores of a couple of fronts.  First, it’s well written and illustrated.  In my opinion, reviewers get sloppy when praising “writing” and use it to mean “having good ideas”.  Severed is well written.  The pages and dialog just have an elegant flow to them that some writers just cannot manage.  And, it looks GREAT and very much pulls you into this time period when people were sweaty and wearing rumpled clothes.  Stuff just looks dirty.  But the other area where Severed scores is that it is keeping me guessing better than any comic I’ve read in a long time.  It’s amazing how the writers have been able to maintain this tease of when the old cannibal would attack the little boy without anyone yelling, “get on with it.”

Most Anticipated: Wolverine and the X-Men #3 – What a jolt of energy this series has been to the X-franchise!  I love how Jason Aaron is approaching this series with a dry and black sense of humor because these mutant books can get overly serious really fast.  Oh yeah….and that Chris Bachalo/Tim Townsend team is providing the art.  Should be awesome!

Other Picks: Batman #4, The Activity #1, Last Battle One-Shot, Amazing Spider-Man #676, Daredevil #7, Lady Mechanika #3, Avengers #20

DS’ Top Picks

Best From The Past Week: Warlord of Mars #13 – Oh yeah, no surprise for me. Warlord of Mars is a great book with a solid creative team and about half a million words of best-selling material to draw upon. Issue #13 is the first issue in the most excellent “Gods of Mars” arc. If you haven’t picked it up, give your head a shake and get out there

Most Anticipated: Lady Mechanika #3 – Benitez’ art alone is worth the price of admission, but his art turned to steampunk exuberance is a real treat.

Other Picks: Thunderbolts #167, Daredevil #7, Uncanny X-Force #19, Avengers #20, Defenders Strange Heroes #1