SNL breakout star Taran Killam (with veteran Marc Andreyko) gets into the comics game with “The Illegitimates” #1 – a clever take on the James Bond archetype with fewer laughs than you’d probably expect, but better narrative structure than you’d expect, which somewhat makes up for it.
Written by Taran Killam & Marc Andreyko
Illustrated by Kevin Sharpe & Diana Greenhalgh
Colors by Peter PantazisJack Steele: World renowned agent of OLYMPUS, super-spy, debonair, lover of ladies, man-slut. While facing off with his arch-nemesis, Viktor Dannikor, Steele faces his biggest defeat, but who will take his place? Olympus scrambles to find not one, but FIVE newbie agents to fill the void and, unbeknownst to them, they share a common thread. Can these five strangers embrace their fates and come together to save the world? They are THE ILLEGITIMATES! And if you called them bastards…. you’d be absolutely right!
One of the things we learned from last year’s Skyfall was that despite the updated Bond that Daniel Craig’s starring turn resulted in, the franchise still had a ways to go as far as sexism is concerned. Of course, you could argue that sexism is an integral part of the character, but it’s difficult to argue that it’s something to celebrate. After, what, 50 years of Bond, you’d think they’d be further along in that regard than they are. However, if “The Illegitimates” is to be taken seriously (it’s not) – James Bond could be a whole lot worse.
Enter Jack Steele: he’s like James Bond multiplied by King Henry the VIII when it comes to getting his rocks off on literally any woman he comes across. Killam and Andreyko intend to play this completely straight. After all, you don’t need a punchline or a pause for effect when Steele punches one of his conquests and bloodies her face while racing down a winding, mountain road. At least I hope you don’t – I think it’s pretty clear that this is supposed to be one awful guy. It’s James Bond, but taken to his logical conclusion. James Bond, but if you kept the camera running, like, another 30 seconds too long on every scene where he’s with a member of the opposite sex. It’s a credit to Killam and Andreyko that they almost entirely resist winking at the readers in this issue. Any reader who’s paying attention should be able to tell the difference between the glorified spy lifestyle that is superficially presented here, and the just plain messed-up guy behind the suit. Again, at least I hope so.
Once Steele’s story ends, we essentially get a nicely presented dossier on each of the offspring that he’s accidentally left behind. A super-spy team carefully cultivated off of the DNA of a man who so carelessly spawned and abandoned them. Again, can you imagine how many kids Bond probably has floating around? (Well, maybe not Craig’s Bond. I’m pretty sure his junk doesn’t work right anymore.) There’s a lot of hand-waving that goes on during these scenes, as the motivations of just about everyone in this book are pretty unclear. If anything, this feels more like a #0 issue, where the major players are introduced and almost nothing in the way of a story is presented. It’s also surprisingly lacking in anything resembling actual “jokes”, but that’s not a bad thing if that’s not what “The Illegitimates” is setting out to accomplish. But it was a surprise, considering a certified comedian is co-writing it. Still, it’s a breezy, fun-enough ride for readers who are attentive enough to interpret the characters the right way.
Kevin Sharpe’s art is uneven, but hits a lot of the right notes at key points. In particular, the introductory scenes for each of the illegitimate offspring are solid works of art, each. They play as montages done in collage, in the vein of Drew Struzan compositions. They each contain the central offspring, with a variety of scenes playing out all around their central visage. Each gives us all we need to know at this point about these characters – and one of them even sticks a Taran Killam cameo of sorts into the proceedings. These pages are a little more artful than anything else in the book, a feat that is aided by the more muted, subtle color choices of Peter Pantazis.
Continued belowElsewhere, the book feels like Howard Chaykin-lite. That sort of swinging-seedy Chaykin tone pervades throughout, and while it’s not a Chaykin swipe, it doesn’t seem to quite establish a style of its own. The Chaykin comparison is meant as a compliment, but I don’t think it consistently applies to all of the art in the book, is all.
However, the art does most of the work in landing the gruesome punchline of the alluded “defeat” of Steele teased by the solicitation. I want to emphasize the word “punchline”, because the karmic awesomeness of what happens, and the degree to which Sharpe pushes it, is a magnificent payoff. A true stand-up-and-cheer moment.
“The Illegitimates” is a lot of fun without being jokey or goofy. It plays its spy story with “Zucker brothers” straightness and key moments that are really hammered home by the art and the tone set by the writers. The post-Bond premise is so masterful, however, that you end up wishing there was more here in its first issue. Issue #1 is mostly setup of that very premise, and while I must say that its promise is enough to bring you back next month, I’m not sure the issue itself was quite the banger that a 1st issue should be. This one is slower, subtler burn than the premise would have you believe.
Final Verdict: 6.7 – Browse
