Archive for the ‘crime stories’ Category
Warren Ellis (w), Declan Shalvey (a)
Marvel, 2014
So Ellis is back in superhero comics. I am an Ellis believer. Wherever his name pops up, I will follow. And in this newest incarnation of this interesting character, Ellis didn’t disappoint.
In number 1, Ellis established effectively and smoothly the reintroduction of Moon Knight mythology in just two pages, using a device that is quite clever: an online conversation between a blogger and her friend. The dialog is crisp, the tone of the story quickly painted. And lo! What? No big white cloak?
But that’s OK. This is Ellis after all. I will follow. So, this new story placed in his New York (you don’t need to hear that spoken out loud from a character’s mouth, but just see it yourself in the police car in the second page –that’s comic’s writing, baby!). Marc Spector a.k.a. Moon Knight arrived in a crime scene. The last time we saw him, he went completely insane. Here, in NY, every one know he is insane. But in the crime scene, he is welcome by detective Flint.
And so he becomes a rather Monk-esque guy, read the scene of the heinous crime by “Slasher”, unknown psychopath, thoroughly and elegantly. You know, Ellis always know his stuff when writing about crime solving stories. But I miss something here: where the promise of a ridiculously big scheme?
Ellis seems to treat this series with a small and localized approach, like his independent comics works such as Mek, Fell or Desolation Jones. But Ellis is always good in creating character-driven stories. You think you’ve had it all figure out with this Moon Knight guy? You just wait for what Ellis has to offer.
The first issue has many talking heads panels, but the dialogues (and this is one of Ellis’s gift) is somehow create an authentic feel of a genuine full blown action-type storytelling. The third act of this issue is somewhat badass in term of fighting scene, but with surprisingly minimal action. The dialogues, man, the dialogues!
The second issue is pure comics story telling. The opening act is an interesting strategy in juxtaposing panels to build up a brutal scene. Sure, so many dialogues. But the way Ellis tells them, the words are somehow not as important as the overall situation. But what is really fun in this issue is that the most part of the story is pure action with barely dialogues between the characters. And the cloak (and the old costume, for that matter) is back! Yaaay! And, the art by Declan Shalvey is more than able to carry the story. Again: pure.
So, yes, Warren Ellis is back. I am a happy believer. ***
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