America’s view of its own history tends towards the simplistic and blinkered. The founders, in particular, are really only started to be viewed as men, instead of political saints. Rebels: These Free And Independent States, with its sixth issue out today from Dark Horse, takes an approach to George Washington we don’t often see. Namely, it portrays him as a soldier who’s a arrogant, self-involved gloryhound who got a lot of people killed.
Washington as a human being is a lot more complicated than cherry trees and dollar bills, and that’s what Rebels is interested in exploring. Brian Wood’s script hits on a crucial event, namely that Washington helped touch off a war between two world powers mostly thanks to his own recklessness. The story sticks to the historical facts and lets us draw our own conclusions: That the facts are inconvenient for those who’d hold up Washington as a saint is none of the book’s concern.
The art team of Wilfredo Torres, Lauren Affe, and Matthew Taylor, do an excellent job, not least with the expressions and actions. Washington’s assault on French troops was diplomatically stupid, but it was also a thrilling, bold fight that made him a celebrity, and the book doesn’t shy away from that. The assault on the fort is a tense affair that’s kept realistic.
In the end, the goal here seems to be to get you to think critically about the Founders. And that’s worth doing as an American. It’s a fun comic that teaches a little history in the process as a bonus.
James Bond: Moneypenny, Dynamite
Moneypenny has been a fixture of the Bond series since the beginning, as the boss’ secretary, but only recently, with Naomie Harris taking over the role in Skyfall, has she really been more than comic relief. Dynamite’s comics have explored this, bringing out that Moneypenny’s real job is a mix of failsafe and bodyguard. She protects M, but if he’s about to be taken and she’s out of options, she’s going to blow his brains out. Jody Houser and Jacob Edgar get into just what it takes to be that person in this welcome one-shot.
Darkseid Special, DC Comics
DC’s tributes to Jack Kirby have been surprisingly lavish and extensive over the last few months, encouraging writers and artists to riff on his legacy in fascinating ways. Here Mark Evanier and Scott Kolins deliver a fascinating take on Darkseid who is, let’s face it, a pretty flat villain. How much dimension can you pack into an absolute tyrant who runs a planet called Apokolips with such charming locales as “Armagetto?” A lot, it turns out, in a story that leads to a surprising twist ending where we learn that Darkseid, for all his power, is weak in a way he can never fix.
Lady Killer 2 #5, Dark Horse
Joelle Jones wraps up her excellent story of a ’60s housewife hitwoman and her mother-in-law with a violent, funny issue that showcases Jones’ artistic skill while simultaneously giving the book a hard emotional punch. Jones is best known for her muscular, kinetic figures, but here she shows everything from a skill with architecture, with a gorgeous two-page spread showing an isometric cutaway of where the action take place, and a flowering of the wit she’s hidden in past issues. It’s a strong conclusion to a series that shows Jones as a talent to watch.
Generations: Hawkeye And Hawkeye, Marvel
The Generations one-shots have all been consistently good, but Kelly Thompson and Stefano Raffaele have the most fun out of them all, sending Kate back in time to meet Clint when he still wore the silly mask. Thompson has a gift with snappy dialogue and banter that she uses to full effect here, and Raffaele pays tribute to early Marvel’s hilariously bad costume design in a brisk caper of a book with a heartwarming ending.
Black Panther And The Crew #6, Marvel: That this book was canceled makes this superb end to its arc a bittersweet issue, but one worth reading nonetheless.
Crosswind #3, Image Comics: Gail Simone and Cat Staggs’ story of a hitman and a housewife switching bodies, and being surprisingly adept at solving each other’s problems, is getting better with each issue.
Faith And The Future Force #2, Valiant: Jody Houser and Clayton Henry simultaneously send-up company-wide crossovers, and write a fun and intriguing one into the bargain, as Faith travels across time and space to assemble… well, pretty much every character Valiant’s got.
Jimmy’s Bastards #3, Aftershock Comics: Garth Ennis can easily lose the plot when he goes over the top, but this parody of James Bond works in part because Ennis, Russell Braun, and Dave Johnson keep it just even enough to be funny instead of dumb. Even though Idi Amin’s missing testicles are a key plot point.
Black Magick #7, Image Comics: Greg Rucka and Nicola Scott’s supernatural noir takes an interesting turn in this slow burn of a book.
This Week’s Best Collections
Hook Jaw Archive, Titan Comics ($35, Hardcover): If Jaws had been an ongoing EC Comic, it would have been the ’70s British strip Hook Jaw. Pat Mills’ strip is absurd, but a hell of a lot of gory fun.
Hero Squared Omnibus, BOOM! Studios ($40, Softcover): Keith Giffen and J.M. DeMatteis send up both modern culture and superheroes in a story about a slacker, the superhero he is in an alternate reality, and how the choices we didn’t make can define us as much as those we did.
No Plan B: The Art of Michael Avon Oeming, Dark Horse ($35, Hardcover): Oeming is an interesting guy, beyond his superb artwork: The title refers to the fact that he decided early on to work as an artist, and didn’t have a back up.