Brandon Yates
May 18, 2003, 10:34 pm
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/dominov2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/dominov2-1t.jpg" align=left alt="Domino (2nd series) #1"></a>Reviewer: Brandon Yates, byates@xfan.cjb.net
Quick Rating: Great!
Story Title: Perfect Weapon, Part 1 of 4
Domino opens up a can of head-wound on the goons who stand between her and the truth about her mother!
Written by: Joe Pruett
Art by: Brian Stelfreeze
Letters by: John Costanza
Assistant Editor: Lynne Yoshii
Editors: John Miesegaes, Andrew Lis & Lysa Hawkins
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
I've been writing reviews for Cable comics for what seems like as long as it takes to reach the timeline from which he was raised. Domino is arguably that character's staunchest ally and closest comrade, so I wanted to see what she was all about. What I found was an exciting, highly energetic, action-packed romp that, if filmed instead of drawn, would have proved the stuff of summer blockbusters.
One could easily ignore the cutesy comics-credits-as-film-credits intro (Screenplay: Pruett, Cinematography: Stelfreeze, etc.) if the book simply featured a normal comics storytelling routine but there is a cinematic quality to how Domino is produced, and the dialogue makes this hip narrative that much snazzier.
... but let me be clear about one thing: So far there is nothing at all original about "Perfect Weapon." The action is fantastic, but nothing we haven't seen before. The dialogue is fun and compelling but, ultimately, same ol' same ol'. I say this not to criticize but to commend Pruett and Stelfreeze for taking a mediocre action-movie formula (window smashing, freefalling, motorcycle racing, etc.) and unflinchingly throwing it all in your face so as to keep your eyes peeled and your mind off the familiarity.
The issue begins with Domino starting trouble in Hong Kong on a mission to retrieve a biological weapon. The opponents are basically set up to get shot down; the scene clearly being used to demonstrate Domino's abilities and skill. And it worked. Whether this is how the former X-Forcer was depicted as in the past is made irrelevant by this very likeable characterization of an X-Men character many think of as an afterbirth of the 1990's. She even makes a laugh-out-loud comment about that Dark Age, and personally I love people, real or imagined, who can laugh at themselves.
Oddly enough, Pruett moves the plot to a more personal level. "Odd" because I was expecting a straight-forward-yet-thrilling mini-series centered around gunplay and secrets-holding discs. Maybe if we actually were in the middle of a long running series, as this issue makes us feel like (mostly in a good sense) we can get to that point where we want to know every nook and cranny of the femme fatale's past. As it is, I don't think we're at that point. The premise may be of some interest to long-time followers of the character, but I don't know much about Domino to care about her, let alone her absent mother. And the appearance of robed men who say "My lord" and boast about the coming fruition of a long-developed plan, a la Darth Maul in Star Wars, makes me groan and wonder if my first impression of this title was too good to be true.
I doubt this book would have impressed me as much as it did if it were not for Stelfreeze's superior storytelling skills and ability to make me animate the renderings in my mind in scenes such as the incredible "Maneuver 36-C" moment that really deserved its own splash page. His style is more cartoony than I had expected, after seeing the painted cover, but like Scott McDaniel, formerly on Nightwing, and artists like Bruce Timm, its obvious that action-oriented visual storytelling is more dynamically executed when the characters look more... flexible. Oh yeah, and that Domino vs. Armed Helicopter "Stop!" climax looked pretty hot too.
I'm on uncertain ground with this mini-series so far. While this was the best debut issue one could ask for for what once was a forgettable character, the inclusion of a "Who's my Mom?" plot point and the appearance of mystical antagonists who certainly are not dressed for a Chow Yun Fat-style firefight make me nervous about the direction this story will go in. But who knows? Like the small blocks of the hero's namesake, everything might fall into place.
<b>ART:</b>
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domhalf.jpg
STORY:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domnone.jpg
Buy this issue online now from X-World Comics and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com)
Quick Rating: Great!
Story Title: Perfect Weapon, Part 1 of 4
Domino opens up a can of head-wound on the goons who stand between her and the truth about her mother!
Written by: Joe Pruett
Art by: Brian Stelfreeze
Letters by: John Costanza
Assistant Editor: Lynne Yoshii
Editors: John Miesegaes, Andrew Lis & Lysa Hawkins
Editor In Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
I've been writing reviews for Cable comics for what seems like as long as it takes to reach the timeline from which he was raised. Domino is arguably that character's staunchest ally and closest comrade, so I wanted to see what she was all about. What I found was an exciting, highly energetic, action-packed romp that, if filmed instead of drawn, would have proved the stuff of summer blockbusters.
One could easily ignore the cutesy comics-credits-as-film-credits intro (Screenplay: Pruett, Cinematography: Stelfreeze, etc.) if the book simply featured a normal comics storytelling routine but there is a cinematic quality to how Domino is produced, and the dialogue makes this hip narrative that much snazzier.
... but let me be clear about one thing: So far there is nothing at all original about "Perfect Weapon." The action is fantastic, but nothing we haven't seen before. The dialogue is fun and compelling but, ultimately, same ol' same ol'. I say this not to criticize but to commend Pruett and Stelfreeze for taking a mediocre action-movie formula (window smashing, freefalling, motorcycle racing, etc.) and unflinchingly throwing it all in your face so as to keep your eyes peeled and your mind off the familiarity.
The issue begins with Domino starting trouble in Hong Kong on a mission to retrieve a biological weapon. The opponents are basically set up to get shot down; the scene clearly being used to demonstrate Domino's abilities and skill. And it worked. Whether this is how the former X-Forcer was depicted as in the past is made irrelevant by this very likeable characterization of an X-Men character many think of as an afterbirth of the 1990's. She even makes a laugh-out-loud comment about that Dark Age, and personally I love people, real or imagined, who can laugh at themselves.
Oddly enough, Pruett moves the plot to a more personal level. "Odd" because I was expecting a straight-forward-yet-thrilling mini-series centered around gunplay and secrets-holding discs. Maybe if we actually were in the middle of a long running series, as this issue makes us feel like (mostly in a good sense) we can get to that point where we want to know every nook and cranny of the femme fatale's past. As it is, I don't think we're at that point. The premise may be of some interest to long-time followers of the character, but I don't know much about Domino to care about her, let alone her absent mother. And the appearance of robed men who say "My lord" and boast about the coming fruition of a long-developed plan, a la Darth Maul in Star Wars, makes me groan and wonder if my first impression of this title was too good to be true.
I doubt this book would have impressed me as much as it did if it were not for Stelfreeze's superior storytelling skills and ability to make me animate the renderings in my mind in scenes such as the incredible "Maneuver 36-C" moment that really deserved its own splash page. His style is more cartoony than I had expected, after seeing the painted cover, but like Scott McDaniel, formerly on Nightwing, and artists like Bruce Timm, its obvious that action-oriented visual storytelling is more dynamically executed when the characters look more... flexible. Oh yeah, and that Domino vs. Armed Helicopter "Stop!" climax looked pretty hot too.
I'm on uncertain ground with this mini-series so far. While this was the best debut issue one could ask for for what once was a forgettable character, the inclusion of a "Who's my Mom?" plot point and the appearance of mystical antagonists who certainly are not dressed for a Chow Yun Fat-style firefight make me nervous about the direction this story will go in. But who knows? Like the small blocks of the hero's namesake, everything might fall into place.
<b>ART:</b>
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domhalf.jpg
STORY:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/reviews/domnone.jpg
Buy this issue online now from X-World Comics and save! (http://x-worldcomics.com)