Comic Review: Justice Inc- The Avenger #1- You’re Awful, But I Like You

Writer: Mark Waid
Artist: Ronilson Freire
Publisher: Dynamite Comics
Released: 3rd June 2015


I shouldn’t like this comic book. It’s deliberately corny, very stupid and completely pointless, and the voice over narration that describes the unfolding action is straight out of that camp old Batman television show from the 1960’s.

Is it supposed to be a knowing, post-modern corny kitschy joke? Probably, but who is laughing?

Added to that corn factor is an ugly dollop of 2015 era social justice warrior political correctness. A woman who acts as a secretary isn’t a secretary at all. No, she’s a very rich and important woman because obviously having a young female secretary in the 1930’s (Is that when this book is set?) would be sexist, and we can’t have that, can we? I mean, women in the 1930’s never worked as secretaries did they? No, we can’t portray that in a comic book, because that is sexist, even though it is true.

Bugger reality, let’s all be politically correct and pretend that reality doesn’t exist.

<<<HUGE SIGH>>>

So what do we have here?

Yes, it’s just another comic book, desperate not to offend, very safe, and very depressing. The book should be chucked in the bin with all of the other inoffensive saying nothing junk that you’ll find in a comic book shop today, right?

Hang on, there’s a but.

There’s always a butt. Sorry, that’s a joke. Did it offend anybody? I hope so, anyway, the but is that something happens in this book that completely redeems it.

After an opening fight sequence that features the usual mix of cool quips and acrobatic women kicking men in the face, the narrative plods on and is uniformly awful, dull, laughable and pointless. But then, in one large panel, something is introduced, and yes it’s really, really stupid and meaningless as well, but (more butts) it somehow works.

I smiled, laughed even, and now I’m writing up this review not to say that the book is pointless and awful, but (I can’t escape the butts in this review) that it’s worthwhile after all.

I’m not even going to mention what this ‘thing’ is, because I don’t want to spoil it. I want it to be a nice surprise for everybody, so get the book, endure and wait for something that is genuinely cool, something that makes all of the awfulness worth enduring.

So, in summary, it’s an awful book, it says nothing, it doesn’t even try really, but you need to get yourself a copy of it immediately. Off you go, to the ebay, trust me, it’s not great, but it’s worth spending a couple of quid on.


Rating: 6.5/10 (Awful, but good)

Blitz review: Justice Inc #3- A good way to learn about 1930’s ‘Pulp’ history

Writer: Michael Uslan
Artist: Giovanni Timpano
Publisher: Dynamite Comics
Released: October 22nd 2014


If you can get over the fact that all of the heroes in Justice Inc are establishment authority figures, thus legitimising the statist/corporate status quo, and if you can also put up with the narrative being largely based in Tibet, that safe comic book home of faux-western spirituality, then there’s some enjoyment to be had in this series.

The characters themselves, although corporate authority figures, are interesting because they are being developed as if they were brand new. The book has little contemporary relevance, but as an enjoyable diversion, and as a way to discover comic book heroes that were big time stars before the current age of Batman, Spiderman and the Avengers, it’s definitely worth checking out.

Issue #3 develops all three main characters, and we even see the birth of one of them, and an explanation of his new powers. The writing has some thought behind it as well. It’s book-ended with one paragraph of context explanation of the narrative so far, and ends with a few pages where writer Michael Uslan explains some of the references made within the story. That’s very reader friendly, and I give him huge credit for that.

You’ll be particularly interested in this book if you want to learn more about the comic book heroes of the 1930’s days of pulp, and Orson Welles on the radio. For that reason alone it’s more interesting than the majority of irrelevant comic books that are on the market today.

The art is fine, not great, but okay, the story has been well researched, and the characters are interesting as well. It’s nothing spectacular, nothing revolutionary, or even that thought provoking, but it’s enjoyable, and as a ten-minute comic book that doesn’t insult my intelligence too much I’m giving it a thumbs up as a good short dose of silly, learn about the history of comic books fun.

Rating: 7/10

Comic book review: Justice Inc #1- The fascinating re-birth of The Avenger

Writer: Michael Uslan
Artist: Giovanni Timpano
Publisher: Dynamite Comics
Released: 20th August 2014

I had to re-read a couple of the pages in this book, going back over them a few times to fully understand what was going on, but it was a rewarding experience as the book was so enjoyable. What made it so enjoyable? Three things, the characters, the contemporary references and the fast moving tension filled script.

First off, the characters were fascinating to me. They are old pulp fiction comic book heroes from the 1930’s and 40’s, but there’s a wonderfully contemporary feel about them in this book. Writer Michael Uslan has been very clever here, using contemporary news stories to link the old heroes to the current times. I won’t spoil the plot, but it involves the Large Hadron Collider, a missing passenger plane and worm holes in time. These contemporary themes are mixed with old science fiction (H.G Wells) and Albert Einstein’s theories on the laws of physics and string theory. Add to the mix a very modern distrust of the government and a villain determined to use the powers of the occult to bring in a new age of mysticism and you have something that’s a little confusing, a little too packed, but something very interesting indeed.

I’m not going to get too carried away with the book at this stage as the art is not going to wow anybody, and the ending doesn’t really pack the punch that it should do, but there’s so much happening, and it’s such a joy to read. The research carried out for the production of this book must have been immense and the characters are so intriguing that I cannot help but be impressed by it all. There’s a lightness and air of fun about the script as well. It’s not lead weight and overly serious, it’s fun to read and the dialogue has moments of humour throughout (“It’s a dinosaur. A dinosaur I tell you.”).

After reading this comic book I went onto the Internet and did a bit of research about the character called ‘The Avenger.’ He sounds like a very interesting guy to me, so I’m absolutely thrilled that he’s back in contemporary comics, and I have my fingers crossed that he’ll be a huge fan favourite and stay around for a long, long time. I knew nothing about him before reading this book, but because of the way that writer Michael Uslan has re-introduced him, he’s become somebody that I’m very excited about. Please check out the link at the end of this review, and then read Justice Inc #1, and I’m sure you’ll agree with me on this point. I bought this book for The Shadow, but it’s the Avenger character that is going to keep me coming back.

I highly recommend this book, and even though the ending isn’t quite as strong as it should be, that’s not a big concern, as what has been established here is a template for what is to come next. It both fascinates and impresses me to see these old pulp heroes very cleverly brought into 2014, yet not seem dated at all. This is how to re-introduce old comic book characters and make them seem relevant to the world of 2014. I just hope that modern readers will take a chance with them. Justice Inc #1 is a clever book, an intriguing book and a book that’s just a heck of a lot of fun to read.

Rating: 8/10

For further information about 'The Avenger.' Please have a read of this fascinating info from our ever reliable friends at wikipedia-
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Avenger_(character)