“Without reading the reviews, this book is almost certainly compared endlessly to Kick-Ass. With good reason. The ultra-violence feels pretty similar, the art isn’t too far off, and if you liked Kick-Ass, you’ll dig it.
Kick-Ass had its moments. Although I have to say, something about Mark Millar (the writer) rubs me the wrong way now and again. I get the impression that he has somewhat of a distaste for comic book fans.
But, as I learned with Metallica at a young age, you’re really only likely to end up liking something less if you spend too much time looking into its creator. Seriously, it’s very sad, but the truth is that you like something, you’re drawn to it for whatever reason, and then if you look into the creator you’re almost certainly going to be upset/disappointed/pissed off.
See: Metallica
See: Orson Scott Card
See: John Byrne
It’s a weird thing. I guess creators should be allowed to have their own opinions. I mean, they ARE absolutely allowed. I just wonder…
Okay, why is it important, for example, that I know Orson Scott Card is not a fan of gay people? I guess for a select few that might enhance the reading experience. But for the most part, I would think him expressing that opinion makes things worse for most people. And how bizarre is it that this dude with such a wild imagination has such a narrow view on that topic?
He’s made some wild speculations on the gay lifestyle, so I’ll go ahead and wild speculate back:
I’m guessing that any man with a shred of style has told him that he can afford to not do his own haircuts anymore.
And he just assumed that these people were gay. Call it a hunch.
Anyway, reading this was like reading Kick-Ass without going into it thinking the author kind of sort of hated me. In fact, the premise of this book, that Luther Strode becomes an ass-kicker by ordering one of those Charles-Atlas-type of workout books from the back of a comic, feels like a genuine nod to comic book fans. Which is nice. It’s not playing to fans to the point of ridiculousness. But it’s asking the question, “Wouldn’t it be fun to see if one of these ridiculous things actually worked?”
It’s a quick read, check it out.
Oh, and when they kidnap a woman, they don’t seem to plan on raping her in any way. Just beating her up the same way they would have beat up a male hostage. Which, and this is REALLY pathetic, is a step forward in comics.”