Written by David Liss
Illustrated by Shawn MartinbroughTHE PANTHER VS. THE KINGPIN…THE BATTLE BEGINS! With Daredevil out of Hell’s Kitchen, The Hand’s new leader makes his move for ultimate power. But why is Wilson Fisk targeting Wakandan citizens — and can T’Challa save the one woman who holds the key to unlocking the Kingpin’s plans from the deadly aim of Lady Bullseye and Typhoid Mary? Ever since T’Challa agreed to take over for DD, you knew this war was coming…here it is!
Now that T’Challa has escaped from under Daredevil’s moniker, he finally gets to fight some of his baddies. Now that you’ve seen our interview with writer David Liss (you ARE one of those cool kids, right?), we’ve got the explosive start to this run’s fourth arc to dig into, and dig we shall!
Pick up your shovels and click after the cut!
There is so, so much to love about this book that it makes it a complete shame that it does not get more buzz than it does. What this rotating cast of, for lack of a better term, “gritty”, artists guided by the strong literary voice of David Liss has accomplished in giving this book such a smooth, unique identity is rarely seen in comics today. In other words, in a sea of super hero books, crime books and super hero crime books, Black Panther has made a name for itself that is all its own (despite using someone else’s publication numbers, but thats neither here nor there), and nothing proves it more than this issue’s use of not one but three traditional Daredevil villains as foils for T’Challa.
When this book began out of the ashes of the post-Shadowland Daredevil status quo, I’m not sure many people thought it would amount to more than “Black Panther doing Daredevil stuff in Daredevil’s home with Daredevil’s cast”. Essentially a “same shit, different mask” situation. However in stark contrast, Liss has built a world that despite being set in Daredevil’s stomping grounds, is very much T’Challa’s. In a relatively short span of time, T’Challa’s new status quo has taken root so heavily and begun walking on its own so strongly that when Kingpin, Lady Bullseye and Typhoid Mary appeared it felt like they were encroaching on T’Challa’s book instead is simply appearing in “their” book (since anyone that feels a character’s rogues gallery shouldn’t assert partial ownership on a character’s universe is quite daft, in my opinion). And I think that says a lot about the way Liss has treated this book: despite three digit number on the cover, this was a fresh start for the Black Panther and it has so far hit all the right points to at least get ME to care more.
Which is why it warms the heart that reading this issue indicated a whole new level of comfort on behalf of Liss. When he began his run, it was only the third comic he had ever written and while the story itself took chances with dynamic action and subtle noir nuance, the dialogue itself was stocky and easy to telegraph. It did it’s job, but the book was certainly not carried by the immensely conventional dialogue. With this issue, it was clear that Liss was not only comfortable with his cast of characters, but was comfortable writing comics in general as well. When looking back on this run, I have a feeling this is the issue when people will say Liss turned a corner with his writing and made the shift from “neophyte” to “comic writer”.
This issue also was also Shawn Martinbrough’s debut on the book, entering the artist rotation alongside Francesco Francavilla and Jefte Palo and bringing a distinct new feel to the book. While Francavilla sticks more in line with the more classic 50s and 60s crime comic aesthetic and Palo exists more in the Chris Bachallo realm, Martinbrough sticks more to modern day crime comics ALA Sean Philips. His rigid, angular character designs are immensely emotive and convey movement in a very 90s action film (the good ones) kind of way. As someone that has followed Martinbrough for several years now, I can honestly say he is an artist that is very much ready to be given his due. His style has steadily progressed and given his work this issue, I would not be upset if he became a permanent figure on this book.
Overall, this book strikes the exact right back between high stakes political drama, street level crime and deeply personal quest and the more it finds its footing, the more it excels in all three of those categories. I can’t say this about very many books given how many I read on a monthly basis, but if you are not reading this one then you are sorely missing out.
Final Verdict: 9.0 – Buy
