Savage Dragon is aided by some of Image’s most recognizable characters. But can they help him take out the uncontrollable Solar Man?
Savage Dragon #140
Story: Erik Larsen
Art: Erik Larsen
Cover: Erik Larsen
Summary: As you all know, this past summer Erik Larsen stepped down from his Image Comics Publisher duties to put his full concentration on his creative endeavors including the long-running Savage Dragon and the upcoming Image Comics Founders mega-event next summer, Image United.
This issue of Savage Dragon is where the two collide, as Image Partner characters Invincible, Spawn, Witchblade and Shadowhawk lend a hand against long-time Dragon villain, Solar Man.
It’s the first part of a two parter, so it’s the perfect place to jump on board. There’s going to be a very big announcement for Savage Dragon soon making this definitely a good time to be reading.
Review: I will be honest here. I began this comic clueless as how to review a title on its 140th issue that I had (sadly) never read before. However, I managed to strike a bit of luck with the particular issue, as more familiar characters – notably Witchblade and Spawn – made an appearance in the book. With my nerves sated notably by familiar faces, I entered unknown territory.
I began the book expecting a comedy or sorts – a book that did not take itself too seriously. Savage Dragon did endorse Barak Obama in a recent issue after all. But the comic was not superficial in the least. In fact, it had quite a bit of substance, which made it a bit harder to jump into.
The opening panel reveals that something is going down at the Pentagon. Savage Dragon – who, as far as character design is concerned, is totally badass looking – is paired with crime fighting comrade Invincible. The duo hopes to use the Pentagon’s technology to hunt down Solar Man, whose warped sense of justice has him trying to rid the world of “undesirables.” Problem is that their Pentagon contact seems to think that Solar Man is doing good – even says he is cleaning up a mess made by Savage Dragon himself.
We cut to Solar Man flying through the air after an absurdly cute lizard woman, (with a bizarrely ordinary name) Sara. Solar Man has malice in mind. From his vantage point in the sky he accuses her of murder, to which she says she was framed. Enter some sort of Iron Man / C3P0 mashup named Rex Dexter. He is on a mission to save the Sara by convincing Solar Man of her innocence. It doesn’t work as well as he hoped, and in the end Sara ends up buried under rubble caused by the duo’s struggle. Dexter runs to her aid to free her, only to be quite shocked by what he finds.
We flash to New York, where Homicide Detective Sara Pezzini gets wind that her fellow police force has the notorious Spawn cornered – and injured. Pezzini, having worked with him in the past, rushes to his rescue even though it means she must take on her own men. Suddenly Solar Man appears, likely with the mission of taking out another “undesirable” while he is weak. Luckily Invincible and Savage Dragon show up nearly at the same time – putting all the players on the field. So can they take on Solar Man together? I won’t tell you either way, but things got intense by the last panel.
I have to admit, not knowing the back-story of any of the characters left me a confused, but overall the issue was very user-friendly. It was written in a manner that held my hand part of the way, utill I was able to start figuring out things myself. Surprisingly, in the short span of 20+ pages, I managed to be intrigued. Left with a cliffhanger like the last two pages, it would be hard not to. The art was different – but refreshing – compared to the books I am used to reading, and was even more impressive when I realized that the title was written and illustrated by the same man, Erik Larsen.
I won’t be sly and pretend that I am already addicted to the series after one go, but I undoubtedly will pick up the next issue. I am intrigued by Savage Dragon and the collection of strange characters that co-exist (some better than others) in his universe.
Savage Dragon #140 is on sale now, so go and check it out for yourself.
November 13th, 2008 at 10:00 pm
Great review, chica! And dead-on.
I enjoyed this one, too.