Brandon Yates
Mar 9, 2002, 04:27 pm
<a href="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/ncrwlrv2-1.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/covers/ncrwlrv2-1t.jpg" align=left alt="Nightcrawler (2nd series) #1"></a><b>Reviewer:</b> Brandon Yates, brandonyates@zentertainment.com
<b>Quick Rating:</b> Poor
<b>Story Title:</b> Crossing
Nightcrawler’s vacation away from the X-Men is interrupted when he stumbles across a slavery ring in New York City.
Written by: Chris Kipiniak
Cover by: Massimiliano Frezzatto
Penciled by: Matt Smith
Inked by: Mark Morales
Lettered by: Jon Babcock
Colored by: HiFi Design
Editor: Pete Franco
Editor-In-Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
I wouldn’t say that I’m a huge Nightcrawler fan, but, when done right, the character can be quite fascinating. Being a mutant, he is a product of science but, as a man of faith, he is a child of God. It’s an interesting paradox, to say the least, but when handled badly... well that brings us to this debut issue of the fuzzy elf’s solo mini-series.
Before I go into the negative aspects of the book I’ll start out positive. The barest elements of newcomer Chris Kipiniak’s plot have potential. I can appreciate the conundrum facing our hero: Refugees are being forced into slavery, but if they involve the police, they’ll all be deported. The task of saving them falls on a superhero who usually solves problems with fists and M’Kraan crystals. Sounds like the makings of a great story to me and, who knows, maybe things will take a turn for the better next issue but Part One fell flat for me on several levels.
All supporting characters involved struggle to be two-dimensional let alone sympathetic and believable. Nightcrawler’s sidekick is Father Whitney; a priest who seems worried and defeated much of the time (I hope that was Snapple he was drinking out of that flask). The main antagonist, at least for now, is Oleg, The Evil Russian Who Speaks In Broken English; you’ve seen the movies. He is determined to knock off the competition, and become an even bigger name in the slave trade.
The dialogue is clunky and stale, which is unfortunate since everyone speaks the same way. The lines range from corny (Restaurant scene: “Father! Has the good lord given us a sign as to what the specials are?”) to meaningless (Oleg at slave impound: “People are like milk—they spoil quickly”). Too many sentences read like bad one-liners.
Because certain characters wear their personality traits on their sleeves, it becomes easy to stereotype. I know Kurt is religious, but does every other line have to include a theological subtext? Never mind that every other character is a stereotype of some sort, I expect Nightcrawler, the book’s star, to have some conviction in his words instead of sounding like a newly christened choirboy.
Massimiliano Frezzato’s cover art is stunning, but it’s what’s inside that rubs me the wrong way. I find that artist Matt Smith’s style doesn’t quite fit the Nightcrawler character. Kurt is known for being more animated, more agile, while Smith’s art comes across as rather stiff and angular. That style works with books like 100 Bullets and Alias, but it’s all wrong here. The earliest scene with Nightcrawler has him leaping across rooftops (oddly teleporting at the same time) but there is no sense of motion; it was as if Kurt was posing for snapshots. The visual storytelling is a bit confusing as well (did Oleg karate chop that guy to death?).
It isn’t until the last few pages that Nightcrawler realizes the scope of what he’s up against, but by that time I just didn’t care. It’s my understanding that this is Chris Kipiniak’s first published comic book work. There are industry veterans putting out worse than this; it’s not a terrible issue. That said, I still couldn’t recommend Nightcrawler #1. Perhaps next month will see a surge in characterization and plot execution; maybe even some improved artwork. Hey, according to our hero, miracles <i>do</i> happen.
ART:
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STORY:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpg
Buy this issue online now from X-World Comics (http://www.x-worldcomics.com/x/bstore/newbooksmain.html) and save!
<b>Quick Rating:</b> Poor
<b>Story Title:</b> Crossing
Nightcrawler’s vacation away from the X-Men is interrupted when he stumbles across a slavery ring in New York City.
Written by: Chris Kipiniak
Cover by: Massimiliano Frezzatto
Penciled by: Matt Smith
Inked by: Mark Morales
Lettered by: Jon Babcock
Colored by: HiFi Design
Editor: Pete Franco
Editor-In-Chief: Joe Quesada
President: Bill Jemas
I wouldn’t say that I’m a huge Nightcrawler fan, but, when done right, the character can be quite fascinating. Being a mutant, he is a product of science but, as a man of faith, he is a child of God. It’s an interesting paradox, to say the least, but when handled badly... well that brings us to this debut issue of the fuzzy elf’s solo mini-series.
Before I go into the negative aspects of the book I’ll start out positive. The barest elements of newcomer Chris Kipiniak’s plot have potential. I can appreciate the conundrum facing our hero: Refugees are being forced into slavery, but if they involve the police, they’ll all be deported. The task of saving them falls on a superhero who usually solves problems with fists and M’Kraan crystals. Sounds like the makings of a great story to me and, who knows, maybe things will take a turn for the better next issue but Part One fell flat for me on several levels.
All supporting characters involved struggle to be two-dimensional let alone sympathetic and believable. Nightcrawler’s sidekick is Father Whitney; a priest who seems worried and defeated much of the time (I hope that was Snapple he was drinking out of that flask). The main antagonist, at least for now, is Oleg, The Evil Russian Who Speaks In Broken English; you’ve seen the movies. He is determined to knock off the competition, and become an even bigger name in the slave trade.
The dialogue is clunky and stale, which is unfortunate since everyone speaks the same way. The lines range from corny (Restaurant scene: “Father! Has the good lord given us a sign as to what the specials are?”) to meaningless (Oleg at slave impound: “People are like milk—they spoil quickly”). Too many sentences read like bad one-liners.
Because certain characters wear their personality traits on their sleeves, it becomes easy to stereotype. I know Kurt is religious, but does every other line have to include a theological subtext? Never mind that every other character is a stereotype of some sort, I expect Nightcrawler, the book’s star, to have some conviction in his words instead of sounding like a newly christened choirboy.
Massimiliano Frezzato’s cover art is stunning, but it’s what’s inside that rubs me the wrong way. I find that artist Matt Smith’s style doesn’t quite fit the Nightcrawler character. Kurt is known for being more animated, more agile, while Smith’s art comes across as rather stiff and angular. That style works with books like 100 Bullets and Alias, but it’s all wrong here. The earliest scene with Nightcrawler has him leaping across rooftops (oddly teleporting at the same time) but there is no sense of motion; it was as if Kurt was posing for snapshots. The visual storytelling is a bit confusing as well (did Oleg karate chop that guy to death?).
It isn’t until the last few pages that Nightcrawler realizes the scope of what he’s up against, but by that time I just didn’t care. It’s my understanding that this is Chris Kipiniak’s first published comic book work. There are industry veterans putting out worse than this; it’s not a terrible issue. That said, I still couldn’t recommend Nightcrawler #1. Perhaps next month will see a surge in characterization and plot execution; maybe even some improved artwork. Hey, according to our hero, miracles <i>do</i> happen.
ART:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpg
STORY:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpg
OVERALL:
http://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xfull.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xhalf.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpghttp://x-mencomics.com/xfan/images/xnone.jpg
Buy this issue online now from X-World Comics (http://www.x-worldcomics.com/x/bstore/newbooksmain.html) and save!