There’s always room from another comic about stage magic. This one’s from BOOM!, and a miniseries; and I wish it were a little better than it is.
Written by David Henrie, Caleb Monroe
Illustrated by Mariano NavarroWHY WE LOVE IT: Who doesn’t love a good magic trick? From HEXED, to HUNTER’S FORTUNE, to THE LAST BROADCAST, we’ve always had a few tricks up our sleeves, and CLOAKS continues the tradition with a Black Ops twist.
WHY YOU’LL LOVE IT: Caleb Monroe (STEED AND MRS. PEEL, Batman) and artist Mariano Navarro (PROTOCOL: ORPHANS) bring you the Robin Hood of Wall Street, combining street magicians with a spy-fi thriller.
WHAT IT’S ABOUT: In the Big Apple, a highly skilled street illusionist named Adam blows the minds of crowds with logic-defying acts, while surreptitiously using his artistry to steal from corrupt Wall Street investment bankers and re-distribute their ill-begotten wealth to those in need. He’s a modern-day Robin Hood, but his travails garner the attention of the local authorities. While evading their pursuit, Adam is confronted by three suits and quickly ascertains that freedom has a cost—in order to maintain his liberty, he must join this clandestine Black Ops organization simply known as CLOAKS.
Is there a male version of a Mary Sue? (Marty Stu. Right.) It pains me to say it, but Adam D’Aquino of “Cloaks” is one of the more flagrant Marty Stus I’ve encountered this year in comics. And while you could argue that Marty Stus, if they belong anywhere, surely deserve to share a choice of medium with Superman, I think we can all agree that the flawed versions of characters, superhuman or not, are much more fun to read about. If one thing interfered with my enjoyment of this issue, it was Adam forgetting to fail.
Our introduction to this issue takes a little unpacking, because it involves family ties and introduces a few characters at once. Matters are paid off on this front by the end of the issue, but it’s a disorienting way to say hello, if only because it comes and goes so quickly (in the space of one page). Still, colourist Gabriel Cassata makes a solid use sepia tones, and Navarro gets in some neat background details despite the limited space.
From then on, things flow a little more smoothly. We drop in on Adam in the midst of his day – being an effortlessly charming street magician and getting in some social commentary while he’s at it. The illusions themselves play second fiddle to Adam himself, whom Mariano portrays with all kinds of squeaky-clean charisma – a round-faced dude with Clark Kentish hair and a built-in smirk. Even the streets of New York look freshly-scrubbed. But as his performance goes on, it’s Adam himself who’s favoured in the compositions, rather than sleight of hand or behind-the-scenes machinery, and this makes a lengthy sidebar about the different kind of magic tricks feel out of place.
His interlocutor – a perky tourist – feels like a transparent device. Other than being bubbly in both mannerisms and dialogue, her only purpose seems to be as proxy for the reader. We have no doubt from the moment she encounters Adam that he’s the famed magician she hopes to run across in New York, and this makes the reveal that he is indeed the guy feel a bit heavy-handed.
In any case: Wall Streets types equal bad, guerrilla-style magic tricks equal good, and we’re not surprised to learn that Adam is profiting by his ventures and then donating to the needy. And really, I like my protagonists to hug nuns as much as the next guy, but it’s not the Robin Hood angle alone that makes Adam feel a little too perfect. (Although, when you think about it, nicking what he can from his audience members probably entails stealing from people of all income levels, not just the rich.) Rather, it’s what comes next in the form of his ostensible downfall that grinds this reviewer’s gears.
The solicit gives it away, so I’ll mention it here as well: when he’s caught red-handed in the middle of a heist, Adam is captured and recruited by a secret organization known as CLOAKS. And so, essentially, the only moment where we see Adam in danger dissolves into something more political.
Continued belowHe’s not so keen on joining them, it turns out, and his attempted escape entails showing off his parkour moves, all the while narrating how important a feel for movement is to the magician’s craft. Visually, at least, these happen to be the best pages of the issue. Navarro lays out Adam’s descent into an alleyway with smart simplicity, repeating his image across the side of a building as he makes the jump. Some high-angle camera views make his helicopter-aided pursuit come across with punch. But with a foundation of smarm to build on and not much else, Adam’s explanations here feel a bit too self-assured – like something you’d find on Reddit.
Capping it all off, the last page is, as I mentioned, exactly what you’d expect after reading the first. But Navarro’s character work on this new arrival – one part favourite high school teacher, one part handsome charlatan – magnifies the emotional impact, and brings us home confidently.
All told, “Cloaks” is an enjoyable if somewhat saccharine read – fun if you don’t feel like thinking too much. If anything, the final page signals a more ethically ambiguous line of work for Adam, and if we get to see his character dirtied up a little, it can only be to this series’ benefit. As things stand, though, this issue is a little too predictable to make an impression.
Final Verdict: 6.0 – Browse
