Around the time of San Diego Comic Con, BOOM! Studios announced they had acquired the license to make comic books featuring the stars of the WWE. Given their track record, BOOM! Studios seems to be the perfect fit. This week, the first issue of the ongoing WWE series gets underway with a one shot full of story. “WWE: Then. Now. Forever.” #1 is an introduction to “WWE” which is scheduled to launch in January. Alice and Jess, two of the hosts of Wrestleversity, got an early look at this issue. Read on for their thoughts but be warned, there are some minor spoilers within these reviews.
Written by Dennis Hopeless, Ross Thibodeaux, Rob Schamberger, Derek Fridolfs
Illustrated by Dan Mora, Rob Schamberger, Rob Guillory, Daniel Bayliss, Derek Fridolfs
BOOM! Studios’ is proud to deliver authentic Sports Entertainment featuring WWE Superstars to comic readers!
This oversized issue contains the WWE San Diego Comic-Con 2016 one-page comics along with a wealth of new content, celebrating the versatility and diversity of WWE throughout its various eras.
Includes the 20-page story “The Breaking of the Shield” by Dennis Hopeless and Dan Mora, where Seth Rollins chose to betray his brothers Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns at the behest of Triple H and the Authority; a short story featuring The New Day by Ross Thibodeaux and Rob Guillory; a Sasha Banks story by Rob Schamberger; and a Tugboat short by Derek Fridolfs.
Jess
When this book was announced, despite my external excitement, a very big part of me was sure this wouldn’t be very good. Wrestling comics are historically bad. They’re good for a laugh for all the wrong reasons. Thankfully, “WWE: Then. Now. Forever.” #1 isn’t that. Interestingly enough, this is the first wrestling comic book that actually gets what wrestling is. The premise is really simple. Seth Rollins, the so called architect of The Shield, is getting ready to betray his partners Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns. What could veer into a very bad kind of campy territory, this issue actually has some heart behind it while still capturing the melodrama and absurdities within professional wrestling.
Dennis Hopeless wasn’t exactly the first person who came to mind when this was announced but I think he does good work here. The way this is framed makes this like the unseen footage of the Shield’s break up. We’re shown off television moments between Seth, Roman and Dean in between all the action that happens in the ring. What Hopeless is tasked with is making this feel as dramatic and in character. By making Seth the focal point, I think we get to see a side of him that TV doesn’t allow and it makes his eventual betrayal feel even more Machiavellian. Hopeless writes Seth’s narration like a promo and because of this, the narration can become just a tad bit wordy. Sometimes scaling back can do wonders when you have an artist who can do great work like Dan Mora. A good promo gets to the point and still captures intensity. His voices are fine for the most part. Roman Reigns does come off a bit cold and while that’s his TV persona through and through, comic books can allow him to get a little more interesting to a degree.
“WWE: Then. Now. Forever.” #1 also teases the current power hungry, mafia boss-esque Triple H. Hopeless and Mora don’t give us a ton of him but I’m already sold on him just from how Mora draws him. Triple H is the big boss. He’s standing in the shadows, pulling puppet strings and commanding the drama without needing to do very much on his own. Along with Triple H, The Wyatt Family also makes an appearance and Dean Ambrose steals a truck all in the pursuit of potato salad. It’s these little things that I think will ultimately determine the success of this series. What can Hopeless, as a writer, provide that television can’t. He can give us this ridiculous moments with Dean and a closer look at the suspicions rising in this friendship. He can give us a truly wild Wyatt family that chases people in their Jeep. But you can also do this with it still making some kind of sense unlike series that have come before that just do things for the sake of being over the top with over the top characters.
Continued belowDan Mora (not the series regular artist come January) does the right kind of work here. He exaggerates the wrestlers’ bodies without going too far. He avoids going photo realistic and takes a stylized approach without ignoring what these people actually look like but it’s not perfect. Some of the faces can look just a tiny bit off. Seth’s nose in particular is a bit bulbous. The action in the ring flows nicely with a lot of movement and Mora pays attention to what kinds of moves these guys should be doing. One of the funniest things is that everyone constantly wears their ring gear no matter where they go, because of course they do. The color work is striking when the characters are in the arena but falls a little flat when they leave.
This one shot is $3.99 but comes with a lot of extras. Included is a Sasha Banks short drawn and written by Rob Schamberger, who fans will know from the art print t-shirts the WWE sells. It’s all about how she became inspired by (my favorite wrestler of all time) Eddie Guererro and how she continues to inspire young girls. I’m glad he brought on board and it’s interesting to see him do sequential art. There’s some issues with static reaction shots but it’s ultimately not bad. The New Day short by Ross Thibadeoux and Rob Guillory looks amazing but the story might not work for everyone since it firmly sits in fantasy and not really in wrestling kayfabe. Also included is a delightful Tugboat short and all the one page comics that were sold at San Diego Comic Con, so at the very least, you get your money’s worth.
Like all licensed comics, this is not at all for someone who dislikes professional wrestling and that’s fine. For those who are into what the WWE does, I think there’s a lot to like here.
Final Verdict: 8.0 – It’s wild and exactly what professional wrestling is like but still has plenty of room to grow.
Alice
This comic is… wild. I really didn’t know what to expect from a WWE comic going into this issue and, afterwards, I have no idea what I just read. The very concept of wrestling comics is something I find almost farcical, especially ones related to the WWE brand. WWE presents itself as a reality TV show about a wrestling company where wrestlers are characters, everything is predetermined and magic and fantasy exist, somehow. It’s something that doesn’t make sense and is essentially a televised reality show about the kind of travelling wrestling show that Vince McMahon’s father would put on in the 70s that has only really been modernised in terms of technology and style.
WWE is a company that is holding on for dear life to concepts of wrestling kayfabe – the previously unwritten rule amongst professional wrestlers that they would hold true to the concept that the shows they were putting on were real – an illusion that has been shattered for decades. It’s so strange, then, to be reading a comic that wholeheartedly posits that not only is the show that WWE televises real, but the world that it is exists in is one where Bray Wyatt can drive a truck through a yacht party in an attempt to… kill the Shield, I think?
This issue is pretty much a prep course for BOOM! Studios upcoming slate of WWE comics and it runs the gamut of wrestling-related weirdness. Dennis Hopeless and Dan Mora’s first story is the flagship storyline, focusing on Seth Rollins betrayal of the Shield and while it’s a well told story, it’s one where the serious tone exposes how little sense the reality of wrestling makes. Hopeless and Mora present a very serious, emotionally charged take on a brother betraying his own to gain more power and position, but it’s… it’s wrestling. The story exists in a world where kayfabe is law and the characters of WWE are exactly that: characters who live to wrestle.
There’s a weird logic leap going into this story that presents kayfabe as reality when you live in a world where kayfabe is essentially a running joke and it doesn’t necessarily ruin Hopeless and Mora’s story, but it does make its seriousness feel much more silly than I think was intended. Still, this was just the prelude to the actual story and I’m genuinely interested as to where Hopeless and Mora go with this story because it is a fascinatingly strange take on wrestling storytelling.
Continued belowThe rest of the issue is essentially a filling out of the issue with more previews from Ross Thibadeoux and Rob Guillory as they take the New Day on a journey through time (which takes the weirdness of wrestling into some very fun places like the idea of Ric Flair wrestling in the Stone Age) and some short comics that pair some of the most famous WWE superstars and their most well known promos with visuals. It’s largely intended to get comic readers that are already fans of WWE to buy into BOOM! Studios’ take on the property and their translation of wrestling to comics. As a preview issue, I think this works more than it doesn’t, but there is a logic leap that must be employed to really buy into the storytelling in the main story.
Still, as long as the Ultimate Warrior doesn’t rape Santa Claus, BOOM! Studios are doing a hell of a lot better than most wrestling comics.
Final Verdict: 8.2 – It’s weird as hell and pretty goofy in places, but it’s probably the best possible translation of WWE to comics we could ask for.
