Eyes

Writer Mike Costa and artist Paolo Villanelli try to make “G. I. Joe: Snake Eyes: Agent of Cobra” #1 a compelling read from the opening page. The creative team succeeds in imbuing this comic book with high-octane action suitable for the big screen or a summer drive-in theater but is almost certain to leave the readers wanting more of Snake Eyes. The issue is surprisingly Destro-centric, which works in this case since Costa needs a foil to keep readers out of Snake Eyes’ head, as the silent, deadly former Joe is best left with more than a bit of mystery about him. By choosing to merge the paths of Snake Eyes and Destro, Costa invites readers to judge actions and attitudes through Destro’s filter. After all, Snake Eyes can’t have totally turned bad, right? Here is the brilliance in Costa’s story, as Destro brings along his own set of Samsonite, overloaded and fit to burst. Part of that baggage is shared with readers as Costa opens the wayback machine and peeks into Destro’s childhood

Steve Niles’ continuing adventures of Cal McDonald expands to encompass the legend of Frankenstein in “Criminal Macabre: The Eyes of Frankenstein” #1. As the title indicates, this story reaches out and brings in the creation of Doctor Frankenstein. Niles even goes so far as to give the creation a conversational first name at the behest of McDonald. Niles writes a story filled with dark humor and chuckle-worthy moments that just seem so wrong to laugh at when explained out loud, like McDonald jerking the wheel in a car so hard that it sends his ghoul passenger smacking into the window. Little visual cues like that and the discussion of Mary Shelley’s novel between McDonald and the novel’s star illuminate Niles’ propensity to make light of the supernatural and eerie, not necessarily making them less scary, but making them more acceptable as an aspect of life. With a title like “Criminal Macabre,” one might not expect humor or character subtleties, but Niles delivers those in full. McD

When I think of comic books written by Chuck Dixon, I think of action/adventure comics with flying bullets and arrows, realistic threats, and intense situations. I also tend to think of quick reads, books that are done in ten minutes or less, leaving you feeling like you’ve just completed a quick dash after signing up for a 5K. That’s not necessarily always a bad thing, mind you. Sometimes those quick reads are just what a comic reader needs. So when I saw that Chuck Dixon would be writing the adventures of Snake Eyes – a character who doesn’t talk, which would therefore theoretically greatly reduce the written content of any comic with his appearance – I was ready for one of the fastest reads of my CBR reviewing vocation. Damn, was I ever wrong. This is a thick book, packed with ancillary characters, flashbacks, and action. Sure, with everyone else spewing forth dialog and all of the action in the book itself, Snake Eyes was threatened to take a back seat once or twice, but he n

It’s hard to know what to expect when an artist writes and draws a sequel or prequel to a comic he originally drew, especially when the writer of the original was Warren Ellis. Will the writing stand up to the original or will it come off as a lame vanity project? Thankfully, “Red: Eyes Only” manages to fit perfectly with the original series, showing that Hamner can not only capture the cynicism and nastiness of Ellis’ voice, but also the tender humanity that’s always there just below the surface. More than that, with colorist Val Staples, Hamner’s art has never looked better. He has written and drawn his best comic to date with “Eyes Only.” The plot concerns Paul Moses’ first attempt to leave his life as a government killer behind him after an encounter with his brother in England. But, of course, it’s never as easy as just walking away with requirements of ‘one last job’ and unseen consequences that the issue hinge upon. Hamner shows just how monstrous Moses is and how he was made