Sunday, July 28, 2013

Black Summer; Warren Ellis & Juan Jose Ryp

Black Summer is another one of writer, Warren Ellis' dark looks at what people with superpowers would do in a real world setting beyond what super powered characters do in the Marvel and DC universes. This type of story was first most famously done in Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' Watchmen back in 1986, and while Ellis' forays into this arena aren't as artful or literary as Moore's are, they are still very interesting and dynamic examinations of what it means to be a superhero.

 Black Summer begins in typical shocking Ellis fashion, with one of the Seven Guns, John Horus, killing the President because of crimes he believes he has committed against the world's best interests. The rest of Black Summer is a reaction from the world and other members of the Seven Guns to what John Horus has done and their place as superheroes post this action of his. Like most of Warren Ellis' comics / graphic novels, Black Summer is an R rated production, but if you like your superhero stories to go to places they don't in the Marvel and DC universes, Black Summer is for you. And Ryp's art, with his hyper attention to detail that often approaches that of artist Geoff Darrow, is perfectly suited to the ultra violence and carnage on display in Black Summer.


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