Reviewed by Brady Steele. Valiant Entertainment’s Dead Drop #1 feels fast and frenetic like the best parts of the Bourne films, jumping from rooftop to rooftop or scene to scene. The inversion of using the characters involved and taking them out of their element is refreshingly effective. It’s a fun start to what feels will be a brisk paced miniseries.
WRITTEN BY: Ales Kot
ART BY: Adam Gorham
PUBLISHER: Valiant Entertainment
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: 6 May 2015
Dropping a solution bomb like X-O Manowar to stop a deadly global virus outbreak is a great way to leap right into the story. My brief exposure to this character gives me the impression of Conan the Barbarian meets Iron Man meets Captain America’s man-out-of-time aspects. Personally, that sounds like an amazing mash-up for a new hero and it is. Writer Ales Kot really makes this issue run as high-speed as the protagonist and antagonist through the streets of New York City. The clever parts are where this usually high-flying hero has to remain grounded to track down the terrorist running over cars and people and everything else that can possibly get in the way like misinformed police.
Artist Adam Gorham can portray scenes with fluidity effectively and creativity. The scenes of the “angry antibacterials” look nicely out-of-this-world and have impressive coloring by Michael Spicer to accompany it. The contrast between those pages and the chase through the streets really speaks to Gorham’s inventiveness to the story itself. His use of paneling throughout is especially eye-catching.
As over the top as a story can be with a caveman in alien space armor can be, this tale does a tremendous job of showcasing how X-O Manowarhas adapted well to his new world. He does not hack and slash his way to his adversary but uses his intellect and cunning to try to ensure victory. After only one issue, I’m already imagining this series as a four-part Netflix TV show that is instantly addictive. Get on board and see where this story swerves next.
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Mr. Steele enjoys all things comics and imagination-based. Using his lifetime of comic-fu-dom for good, he imparts his knowledge for the universe to enjoy and for you, dear readers, to pass it on.
Twitter: @mrbradysteele