CREDIT: Marvel Comics
Rating: 3.5/5 – A Digital First Comic That Also Works on the Printed Page.
by ComicSpectrum senior reviewer Shawn Hoklas.
After reading Bob’s Blog on Digital Comics I thought I’d give a Digital First comic from Marvel a review. It’s been a few months since Steve Rogers has aged due to the neutralizing of the super-soldier serum and passed the mantle of Captain America over to Sam Wilson. Since then, Sam has starred in the All-New Captain America, Captain America and the Mighty Avengers, and now in a digital first mini-series titled Fear Him. It’s a fitting title due to the villain of the series, the Scarecrow. Similar to the more popular DC villain of the same name, Marvel’s Scarecrow uses a fear gas to affect his victims, while also utilizing a flock of crows under his control, and a body that can contort in multiple useful ways.
A series with the Scarecrow at the forefront isn’t going to bring in a whole lot of readers, but writer Dennis Hopeless has still constructed a worthwhile story, while making the Scarecrow a more formidable foe. After encountering and capturing Captain America’s son in the previous issue, who now has assumed the role of Nomad, Scarecrow has found a true challenge in trying to make Nomad feel fear. As Captain America searches for Nomad throughout a series of underground subway tunnels, he finds a group of people that have made the subways their home that present a greater challenge to his overall mission.
This series is by no means a must read, but it is an entertaining story that feels similar to an episode of Batman the Animated series due to the Scarecrow, the dark and shadow filled subways, and a bunch of crows that attack in waves. The art by Szymon Kudranski does the job, but the characters can come off looking a bit stiff at times. There are storyboard artists credited within since this was originally published as a digital comic which may lend to the characters feeling static on the physical page.
Overall, Fear Him is shaping up to be an entertaining story even if it doesn’t always feel like a Captain America story. It’s fun to see the Scarecrow get some more attention, and Nomad starring in this book gets just as much time as Captain America. Although this was originally released as an Infinite Comic, it works well on the printed page and I’m looking forward to seeing just where this story goes next.
Reviewed by: Shawn Hoklas
(shawn@comicspectrum.com)
https://comicspectrum.com/ Covering the full spectrum of comics culture
Follow ComicSpectrum: 
ComicSpectrum Comic Reviews 