Jumping-On: "James Bond: VARGR" by Ellis & Masters

- by Señor Editor, 13 December 2015

A new Bond is usually a big deal, but it seems like “Spectre” may have been a little overshadowed by the one BIG movie everybody is waiting for this year (something about wars in the stars and all that). While the hype surrounding 007’s latest cinematic adventures died down quite fast, it’s good to know that it’s not all the Bond we’re getting this year. Dynamite has got a new Bond series, and issue 1 & 2 are already out.

Issue #1 cover. Click to enlarge.

Dynamite picking up the license is particularly interesting because the last time we saw a genuine Bond comic was way back when Pierce Brosnan took over the role in the movies. That’s two decades without a proper Bond comic, so it makes sense that Dynamite wanted to make this one count. Having Warren Ellis and Jason Masters handling 007 only confirms that.
​
“VARGR” opens with Bond exacting revenge on the killer of another 00 agent (008). The scene is quite brutal, with some very nice shovel action, and it shows us a side of Bond that’s not often seen. We don’t learn more about the fate of the late 008, as Bond soon gets called back home. He will be heading to Berlin, to get information on a new drug appearing in the UK. A drug with terrible side effects! To get the info he needs, Bond is to meet with an expert on genetics and cybernetic limbs.

It’s a nice mixture of the more violent nature of the modern Bond, the style and charm known from the Connery era (AKA the Best Bond era), and some brand new story elements that show a lot of potential and fit the Bond mythos like a glove. We’re off to a good start.
​

A GOOD START!

While we do see some familiar characters (there’s M, Q, Moneypenny and Felix Leiter is apparently on his way), it doesn’t look like they’re based on one specific version of the Bond supporting cast. Part of this may be due to some likeness rights issues, but I do like that the comic Bond and MI6 are different from what we currently have in the Craig movies. This is the comicbook version of Bond and while he’s not Connery, Moore, Brosnan or anybody else we've already seen, he is clearly Bond.

Jason Masters handles the action scenes very well (and in these first two issues we do get some nice action), but that’s not his only strength. Whether it’s Bond arriving in another country, or Bond just having a chat with Moneypenny, it all looks very good. Clean lines, nice compositions and facial expressions that actually express something.

Foreshadowing!

What I like about this Bond comic is that it doesn’t necessarily have “Warren Ellis” written all over it - that’s a good thing to me. Ellis is a writer with a very specific style, and while that’s all well and good, I feel that a Bond movie, book or comic should be first and foremost done to match the distinct style associated with James Bond, and not be overshadowed by whoever is handling the adaptation. While some of Ellis’ mannerisms are apparent, he first and foremost gives us a very solid and familiar Bond, and that’s much appreciated. 

“VARGR” started off much better than I hoped and Bond fans should definitely pick it up. Some of Dynamite’s series lose steam after the first arc, but I hope that doesn’t happen to Bond. I would like to see these series continue beyond just this story. There are still new Bond books coming out, so why shouldn’t we have a great Bond monthly comic? If you’re not yet picking this up, start doing that. Don’t wait for the trade, support it now and let’s see more Bond in comics!


Are you reading Bond? How do you think it measures up to the movies or books? Let us know in the comments!

Tagged: comics, Reviews.

blog comments powered by Disqus

---

Follow @TrashMutant