RECOMMENDED: "Fury MAX" (G. Ennis & G. Parlov)

- by Ninja Ross, 29 May 2013

Marvel have been printing a MAX series featuring everyone’s favourite cigar-chomping, one-eyed Colonel, Nick Fury, written by Garth Ennis with art provided by Gorlan Parlov. It’s set in the "Punisher MAX" universe, created by Ennis way back when he was writing the best Punisher stories in the world ever. Ever.

Cover of the 1st issue.

I used to read anything with Garth Ennis’ name on it, even if he only wrote the introduction. I was a huge fan of his work, but I kinda got sick of reading the same thing over and over again. Ennis is a creative writer, but when you get right down to it, it’s all very much the same in terms of tone and theme.

His characters are pretty much the same in every book; the naive idealist, the older, smarter leader who doesn’t take crud from anyone, the foreigner and a strong woman who is more than comfortable with her sexuality. The themes tend to revolve around religion, violence and a love of the military that could rival Michael Bay’s (although, Ennis does it better).

So I haven’t read Ennis’ work for a while. Not since Butcher Baker Candlestick Maker.

This is why I have only just started reading Fury MAX. I saw it when it was announced and I passed on it when issue 1 came out. It’s just another Ennis book. His last Fury MAX work wasn’t anything special and this won’t be either.

Bloody Nick Fury looks down at this caption. (All images © Marvel Comics)

I was... Wr... Wro... I was wr... I can’t say it. I wasn’t totally correct. Fury MAX is actually very good.

In this series, Ennis takes us through the life of the Fury he introduced in his work on the Punisher. Fury is retelling his life story into a microphone in a hotel room, occasionally accompanied by sleeping hookers and large amounts of whiskey.

His life, as you can imagine, is not exactly glamorous. In the first arc we get to see what happened to Fury in the late 1950s, near the start of the Vietnam War. Fury has been stationed here, in a dead end job, as a punishment for disobeying orders. He’s an advisor whose advice is rarely ever acted upon.

Drinking Nick Fury

Enter a shady politician who thinks Fury can help him advance his career, a secretary and an idealistic young soldier. While this book starts out like any other Ennis book, it takes a surprising turn by not letting these characters become copies of all of the other Ennis characters. Plus, very little ultra violence. It’s like he got that out of his system in Crossed.

There IS violence, though. But the fact that there’s less of it only enhances the scenes that are there. The final part of the first ‘Nam storyline was pretty bloody and there’s a scene in the following story, set in Cuba, that surprised me. Not becuase of what happened, but rather because it was unexpected.

As I said, this is set in the Punisher MAX universe he created. And it’s set in Vietnam for a while. Frank Castle was always going to show up, somehwere. This is a pre-Punisher Frank Castle.  Heck, this is before Punisher: Born. But it’s still Frank Castle and we get to take another look at what made him become the Punisher in the first place. It’s nice to see Ennis add to the character even though the book has finished.

There’s actually more talking in this series than violence. Or action. This isn’t a bad thing and certainly doesn’t hurt the book. The dialogue is educational and interesting, which is more than can be said for SOME dialogue heavy books. But this is certainly not something you can read on the toilet. Unless, you know... You had Mexican food the night before.

Frank makes an appearence.

The book does still have some of Ennis’ typical themes. Obviously, the obsession with the military is in there. There’s also a lot of Ennis’ ethics and ideals that have been made obvious in past books like Preacher and his many military comics. But it’s all very faint, like Ennis isn’t trying to make a point, but he’s trying to write a good story.

So, less Ennis-y than you’d expect. That’s a good thing, it gives the man room to meaneuver and write a story and not lose focus. But how about that art?

I’ve liked Parlov since Y: The Last Man and Punisher: Barracuda. So I think it’s great! While sometimes faces can look a little warped, his art has always captured violent tones and expressions very well. Here is no different. While a simple style can make some characters look too much alike, Parlov manages to make everybody look unique.

The covers are worth giving a special menton. Dave Johnson has been a favourite cover artist of mine for a while now, since 100 Bullets and he seems to only get better. His covers for Fury MAX are a joy to look at.

#11

This is a beautiful book that’s well written. Right now, Fury is taking on Enni and Parlov’s own creation - Barracuda. Issue twelve is out today and I can not reccomend it enough.


Have you read Fury MAX? Has my review convinced you to give it a shot? Let us know below!

Tagged: comics, Reviews, RECOMMENDED.

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