King of Spies #1

King of Spies #1

Image Comics 2021

Written by Mark Millar

Illustrated by Matteo Scalera

Coloured by Giovanna Niro

Lettered by Clem Robins

The world’s greatest secret agent has six months to live. Does he die quietly in a hospital bed, or does he make up for a lifetime of bad decisions? He’s been propping up an unfair system for over forty years. Now he knows where all the bodies are buried and has nothing to lose when he turns his guns on everyone who ever made a buck creating the mess we’re in right now.

Oh my stars and garters, yes ma’am, please sir i’d like some more, you bet your sweet bippy…

It really is something to see the opening half of the story versus the second half of the story. I really enjoy seeing him in his prime and doing shit that you don’t think would be even remotely humanly possible unless you are Jason Bourne, and he’s another work of fiction. So yeah I’m loving how we see the daring do of Roland in his younger days and then to see that he’s just as much a “Daddy” in his older years and just as deadly as ever just means that at no point in this story are things going to get even remotely boring. I love his attitude and his old school values and now he’s got the perfect excuse to do what he was toying with when that fat old bastard at the club pulled his vulgar moment.

I’m such a huge fan of the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see through how the sequence of events unfold as well as how the reader learns information are presented exceptionally well. The character development that we see through the narration, the dialogue, the character interaction as well as how we see them act and react to the situations and circumstances they encounter does a magnificent job in establishing the personalities we see. The pacing is excellent and as it takes us through the pages introducing us to the characters and the story we’re swept up in a world of action and intrigue.

I am a fan of the way that we see this being structured and how the layers within the story begin to emerge and grow. I also like the way that we see these layers opening up new avenues to be explored. What this does is add some great depth, dimension and complexity to the story. How we see everything working together to create the story’s ebb & flow as well as how it moves the story forward are exceptionally well handled.

The interiors here are utterly phenomenal. The linework is exquisite and how we see the varying weights and techniques being utilised to create this level & quality in the detail within the work that we see. How we see backgrounds and the composition within the panels expand and enhance the moments as well as how they bring out the depth perception, sense of scale and the overall sense of size and scope to the story. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show such a masterful eye for storytelling. Now the moment in the bathroom should’ve shown us everything just saying he’s sitting there naked so where’s the harm in it? The various hues and tones within the colours being utilised to create the shading, highlights and shadow work shows a spectacular eye for how colour works.

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One of the most intriguing and interesting introductory issues and it’s no surprise that Millar’s the one responsible. After all he’s infamous for his ability to craft stories that somehow find a way to set a new standard in whatever genre they happen to be in. The writing is fresh and innovative and the characterisation is sublime while the are brought to life by these brilliant interiors.