Customer Reviews

The Last Defenders

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The Defenders were the ultimate non-super group of their day - back in the 70s. They were a hodge podge assemblage of heroes and anti-heroes comprising notably of Dr Strange, Namor and the Hulk. Then later, they incorporated a loose and rotating "membership" of people like Valkyrie, Hellcat, Silver Surfer, Gargoyle...and Nighthawk. (Memory fails me at this point)

THE LAST DEFENDERS tries to pick up the pieces from the past - with mixed results. Most of the story hinges on Nighthawk aka Kyle Richmond who was always a reluctant b-rate hero. With Iron Man and Shield's direction, he tries to work with and resurrect a really odd bunch of heroes. In fact, the book cycles through 3 different assortments of heroes as Kyle tries to figure out what to do. So as you can guess, he and the storyline aren't very successful. (I thought the second assortment was actually far more interesting - you'll have to read the book to find out, but it included guys like Paladin and had a more mercenary outlook)

CONCLUSION: This is not a one-star book, but it's not exactly a page turner. Marvel has decided to take the group less seriously and slate them in more comically, but the problem is that the group meanders somewhat. In this book, you'll see the unlikely combination of She-Hulk, Krang (from Namor's days), Son of Satan and another Shield Agent trying to get it on.

I think the real question Marvel has to ask is: Are the Defenders still relevant in this day and age? With stronger books like the Avengers and X-men around, the Defenders are going to have to figure out their niche. The mish mash concept in the past was to give their characters more exposure, but Nighthawk isn't exactly the most compelling of characters. The book looks like it IS headed for more interesting things but we'll have to see. At this stage, their state of reinvention is just beginning, and this is not an essential book for Defenders fans to start with.

I bought this because I liked the caracters (Nighthawk, Colossus, Blazing Skull, Son of Satan, ...) but the art is simply horrible. The artist doesn't know how to draw a skull (in Blazing Skull)??? Sometimes it looks like a floating bean, but that's not all, a few figures don't even have a neck...
Some pages have ludicrous art.
About the story,... could be interesting but I find it a bit slow in the development of the action and too mysterious, implies many things but reveals nothing to spark my interest.
And for last, this version of Son of Satan has nothing to do with the caracter I remember and liked. The "vertigo treatment" it took a few years ago simply vanished to become a watered down archetype of an occult figure...