Writer: Landry Q. Walker.
Art: Eric Jones.
Colours: Michael Drake.
Published by Image Comics.
Out Now.
From the prologue: Three Months ago. The universe was in deadly peril. The world’s greatest heroes were summoned into space to battle reality’s ultimate evil. Our mentors. Our guardians. Our parents. Our teachers. They left. And they didn’t come back.
To me this was a great idea for a story but stories live or fail on how well they’re told.
Writer Landry Q. Walker is more than able to tell this tale in what could be the most gripping and impressive opening issued I can remember. The pacing is fast, fluid and never misses the beats that make for a great read. Plot points are all marked well and not dwelled upon. The characters are introduced and defined with an economy which I can only envy. The characters work quickly as they are analogues of the “big two” comic company’s staple heroes or villains. What makes them more than simple riffs is that the universe is in a state of anarchy. Imagine the universe of Kingdom Come but with a big dollop of Lord of the Flies.
Eric Jones’ art is superb and with Michael Drake’s colouring makes for a gorgeous looking comic. The palette is vivid but with a masterful muted feel. Jones’ work is epic and exciting in scope. It is the perfect blend of slick and bloody grit. Eric Jones is going to be a big talent as is everyone on this book.
Danger Club starts off huge and Walker and Co. have only got started. Things are going to get even more intense from here on. And I can’t wait to see where this going. It may have been released during the massive Avengers versus X-Men event but I think Danger Club will be the comic I remember when I’m asked which was my fave of 2012. It’s that good .
Story: 4.5 out of 5.
Art: 5 out of 5.
Overall 9.5 out of 10.
Danger Club is as close to perfection as I can see. I’m even more excited to see if the next issues prove me wrong.
