A social justice–minded superhero for the Black Lives Matter era.
A DEI promoter turns vigilante in Washington’s debut graphic novel.
A rash of kidnappings has rocked Dale City, and Dr. Chris Withers has noticed a double standard when it comes to working the cases: When the missing girl is white, the city often gets superheroes involved to bring them home safely, but when the missing girl is Black or brown, the police handle it themselves—which usually means not handling it at all. Chris, a former special forces soldier turned social psychologist, operates a lucrative consulting firm and gives presentations about the effects of privilege in the justice system. When his wife, a reporter who’s been investigating the police’s handling of the disappearances, is found dead of a supposed drug overdose in the neighborhood where several girls have gone missing, he knows someone murdered her to shut her up. A skilled martial artist with plenty of resources at his disposal—including the lab of his friend, science prodigy and weapons manufacturer Dr. Alicia Johnson—Chris takes to the street to find answers. He may not be an enhanced human like most of the superheroes, but his need to avenge his wife is enough to fuel his new alter ego: Black Defender. But does this vigilante really have what it takes to go up against the trafficking syndicate responsible for the kidnappings and his wife’s murder—a syndicate led by a shadowy figure known only as the Overlord? Washington succeeds in revising the classic superhero formula to highlight inequities in the justice system. (Chris complains about Hammer Jack, a superhero who was put in jail because “he selectively patrolled Black and brown communities, and operated with a sense of impunity.”) There’s nothing subtle or arch about Washington’s treatment of the topic, which actually works in the book’s favor; by the time Black Defender squares off with a clueless white superhero who has just reflexively rescued a crooked cop, the reader has totally bought in. Paired with excellent illustrations by Tasbolatov, this graphic novel more than delivers on the promise of its premise.
A social justice–minded superhero for the Black Lives Matter era.Pub Date: N/A
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: -
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: April 12, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
PERSPECTIVES
Using modern language, McDonald spins the well-known tale of the two young, unrequited lovers. Set against Nagar’s at-times...
A bland, uninspired graphic adaptation of the Bard’s renowned love story.
Using modern language, McDonald spins the well-known tale of the two young, unrequited lovers. Set against Nagar’s at-times oddly psychedelic-tinged backgrounds of cool blues and purples, the mood is strange, and the overall ambiance of the story markedly absent. Appealing to what could only be a high-interest/low–reading level audience, McDonald falls short of the mark. He explains a scene in an open-air tavern with a footnote—“a place where people gather to drink”—but he declines to offer definitions for more difficult words, such as “dirges.” While the adaptation does follow the foundation of the play, the contemporary language offers nothing; cringeworthy lines include Benvolio saying to Romeo at the party where he first meets Juliet, “Let’s go. It’s best to leave now, while the party’s in full swing.” Nagar’s faces swirl between dishwater and grotesque, adding another layer of lost passion in a story that should boil with romantic intensity. Each page number is enclosed in a little red heart; while the object of this little nuance is obvious, it’s also unpleasantly saccharine. Notes after the story include such edifying tidbits about Taylor Swift and “ ‘Wow’ dialogs from the play” (which culls out the famous quotes).Pub Date: May 10, 2011
ISBN: 978-93-80028-58-3
Page Count: 80
Publisher: Campfire
Review Posted Online: April 5, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2011
Lush visuals bring this thoughtfully constructed tale to life.
Wondrous visitors encounter a desperate pocket of humanity.
Lori, a white orphaned teen who’s finally been adopted after bouncing around various foster homes, awakens to discover that nearly everyone has disappeared. The rapture? Maybe. She runs into her classmate Annette, who has brown skin and curly black hair, and they partner up to scavenge for food. The pair tries to evade several threats, such as the large Wolves and a gang called The Dogs. Supernatural Giants arrive, seemingly from space, speaking an impenetrable language of “musical chiming and weird bass-rhythms.” Lori and Annette then meet Beatrice, an older white woman who shares important observations about the Giants and Wolves. The tone of the story then subtly shifts from post-apocalyptic desperation to one that’s somewhat playful. After a certain point, a visual element that appears early on takes on clear significance and meaning in the context of the story at large, offering a subversively humorous twist for readers to consider and a creative element that deviates from other alien invasion narratives. Hans’ artwork and paneling fill each scene with wonders. An interaction with a giant sees the red, violet, and pink figure standing against a bright, otherworldly white-and-blue backdrop with dark contours. Elsewhere, Lori and Annette pause at night as they behold ominous shadows, their foggy breath forming clouds, and they hear a “KRRNCH” sound. The quick-moving plot wraps everything up neatly.
Lush visuals bring this thoughtfully constructed tale to life. (character designs) (Graphic science fiction. 14-adult)Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2024
ISBN: 9781534387072
Page Count: 104
Publisher: Image Comics
Review Posted Online: Aug. 17, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 2024
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