You know, if I were to put money on it, I would never have guessed that 2014 would be the resurgent year for grindhouse kung-fu comics. But, here we are with the second issue of “Iron Fist: The Living Weapon” and that resurgance is in full swing. Hell, Marvel’s even rebooting “Deadly Hands Of Kung Fu”!
Written & Illustrated by Kaare Andrews
• K’UN LUN under attack!
• Danny Rand returns to the aid of his adopted home, but will he make it in time?
• More of the secret origin of Iron Fist!
The first issue of Kaare Andrews’ “Iron Fist: The Living Weapon” was a solid re-introduction to the character of Danny Rand to the All New Marvel Now! universe that, personally, I thought was better showcase of Andrews’ artwork than his writing. The issue felt heavily balanced towards style over substance as the writing only really served to set up yet another retelling of Danny Rand’s origins as well as tease the coming battle he will be involved in in the present while the artwork really seemed to revel into the grindhouse-infused throwback to classic kung-fu comics and movie. Thankfully, that seems to be alleviated here as Andrews begins to reveal more of who Danny Rand is facing as well as bringing him back to K’un Lun in order to set up the larger arc that follows. That is to say that, like with seemingly most of the All New Marvel NOW! titles, the second issue was a much more well put together issue thanks to being able to build upon the first issue and bring it bigger and better for a second round.
While Andrews’ writing feels much stronger here, with a clearer direction that the first issue sorely lacked, the artwork is really the pulling factor here. Kaare Andrews’ artwork is noticeably for being able to acclimate to any style he throws himself at and here he is creating the ultimate grindhouse comic style. From the artificially weathered pages to the blood red sky to the harsh pencils and elaborate panel layouts, Andrews has taken the visually unique idea of All New Marvel NOW! and run with it. This is the kind of where, thanks to Andrews taking both writer and artist roles, he is able to write to the best of artistic ability and it shows. Just as “Young Avengers” seemed to feature at least one artistically unique page and issue, Andrews seems to use a page in each issue to experiment with implementing visual sound effects. This issue features a page where a series of panels slowly morph in the visual sound effect of approaching choppers, mimicking the feeling of the sound slowly growing as they approach. It’s a great page that builds suspense for the reveal on the next page and shows Kaare Andrews weight as an artist.
Thankfully, this issue doesn’t feature as big as gap in the quality of artwork and writing as the first issue did. While the first issue felt like a combination refresher course for Danny Rand and teaser for the series itself, this issue really digs into the story Andrews is beginning to tell. That means we finally get a sense of the threat both Iron Fist and K’un Lun is facing at least in this first arc and it feels like a genuine threat. Between that, the sequence of the guardian of K’un Lun standing up to the approaching choppers (that’s just as badass as Iron Fist fighting a horde of undead ninja down the side of a building from the first issue) and the jaw-dropping final pages, Andrews has made sure that the great first impression is capitalised on with an even better written second issue.
However, if there is one issue with this issue, it’s Andrews’ writing of Danny Rand himself. It’s not bad, per se, it’s just that it really doesn’t feel like Danny Rand. The trouble with writing as part of an extended universe with countless writers contributing to the characters in that universe is juggling the balance between preserving the writing of the character with wanting to put your own spin on it. Here, Andrews’ writing takes a rather sharp left turn from the Danny Rand that’s been built up over the years that, while it doesn’t take away from how enjoyable the issue is, does feel like a very different character than the Danny Rand we’ve seen even as recently as “Mighty Avengers”.
Overall, this is a much better issue than the first issue largely thanks to Kaare Andrews’ writing beginning to build a greater story arc here. While the problems of Danny Rands sudden, veering turn in broodsville still lingers over the book, Andrews makes up for it by building an excellent story around that and telling that story with excellent art. It’s still early days so anything could happen as this series develops, but this is a very strong start to the series.
Final Verdict: 8.9
