Scarlet #1

It is hard to explain the excitement that filled me when I found out a few months ago that Scarlet, an original series by Brian Bendis and Alex Maleev was coming out. These two individuals are one of the best teams to ever enter comics, starting out with their run on Daredevil up till the most recent endeavor prior to Scarlet, Spider-Woman. So I knew before reading this issue, that there was a slim chance that this series could be a disappointing one, and boy was I right.

The majority of the issue focuses on introducing the reader to Scarlet as a character, breaking the forth wall and having herself explain her actions that took place at the very beginning of the issue, as well as explaining her life story in some very comical, over simplified panels that gave the reader a feel for the character in a short amount of time.

The story is a very violent one, consisting of not one, but two murders. It is illustrated beautifully by Alex Maleev, one of the best artists out there in comics today; he can not only bring a character to life like no other artist, but he also has some of the most amazing backgrounds and color pallets ever used. As for Brian Bendis, he is one of the best dialogue writers in the industry. He made the words that Scarlet was saying to the reader feel as though they were coming from a real person, filled with emotion.

This was a very powerful first issue, setting up the character and the premise for the story beautifully, without giving away any of the next issues storyline and leaving the reader completely open to figure out what is going to happen next. The only downside to the book is that it is going to be Bi-Monthly which in my opinion is never fun, especially for an up and coming book like Scarlet but, this should provide adequate time for Maleev to provide another beautiful issue to the readers. I am eagerly awaiting issue 2 in two months and applaud Benis and Maleev for another job well done.

10 out of 10

*Originally posted on the Chris' Comics Official Website

Cornbread's Favorite and Least Favorite Comics of the Week - 3/24

Favorite Comic: Nemesis #1

This should not be a surprising pick. Nemesis has been on my mind since Jared first started ranting and raving about it months ago. Also, what can beat a team made of Mark Millar and Steve McNiven? Anyways, lets get to the review.

The book reads fast, and many people may see this as a negative aspect, but with Nemesis it did not seem that way. I felt that when the book ended that I had learned a good amount of information about the story line and was content with how it ended, even though I wanted more.

Nemesis starts out by introducing Nemesis by exhibiting just how ruthless of a super villain he is. Regardless about what people are saying, I think the art is great. McNiven's pure pencil work on the book truely exhibits how great of an artist he really is. Also, with the dulled down colors give a certain feel to the story that enhances the dark violence that characterizes Nemesis.

The story is fulled with action, swears and gore which perfectly fits the dark theme I think Millar and McNiven are going for. The mysteriousness of the characters is also what makes the book so interesting. Millar revealed virtually nothing about Nemesis or the secondary main character Morrow which I think enhances the story and will make for a more interesting part of the remainder of the series.

Overall, this was a great story and it seems like it will be an awesome series. I would also like to add even though non-stop action, swearing and killing is awesome it will eventually get old, so by making this a 4 part mini the creators will be able to capitalize and keep this book popular till its end.