Doc Savage (2013) #1 Comic Book

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Peter Silvestro (December 11, 2013)
Comments: As with every other adaptation since the 80s, Ham has a mustache. Typo on p. 1: Institute for Advance Studies should have been “Advanced.”

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Peter Silvestro (December 11, 2013)
Review: Well, that was disappointing. Knowing Dynamite’s reputation and seeing that ideal Alex Ross cover raised my hopes for this comic very high. Were we finally going to get a great Doc comic book after all the let-downs of the past? Answer: no. The story: Not at all interesting. The characters seem okay but the plot is very weak. A guy has a machine that makes people aggressive. They locate him Doc grabs him, it’s over. No danger, no suspense, no real threat, nothing. The villain is a complete loser. And we’re supposed to care that it’s “far from over” on the last page? Hints seem to indicate that the story will move through the ensuing years and maybe center on Doc’s Crime College; if so I hope it’s better than this inaugural issue. The art: Dull. The characters are fairly wooden, the layouts aren’t creative, there’s no sense of excitement to anything. The character designs: This is the worst. Doc looks like a normal guy, Monk isn’t particularly apelike, Johnny isn’t tall and thin, Long Tom looks healthy, Renny isn’t gloomy. In fact the guys (including Doc!) are all the same height. And with their hair covered I couldn’t tell Doc, Renny, Long Tom, and the villain apart. When you can’t tell Doc Savage from Long Tom, something has gone radically wrong. And I might as well go all the way: 22 pages of story, nine pages of ads, 1 page publisher announcements for four dollars. Feh.