CREDIT: Marvel
Rating: 3.5/5 – The Flaw is in the Lack of Character Development.
By ComicsSpectrum senior reviewer Shawn Hoklas.
Of all the Inhumans characters, Black Bolt and Karnak are my favorites. They’re both such well designed and creative characters that are like no one else within the Marvel Universe. Both characters created by Lee and Kirby have a rich history within the Marvel Universe and have powers that are wonderfully simple in their concept. Karnak’s powers allow him to see the flaw in all things, which also happens to be the title of the story in this new series written by Warren Ellis and artist Gerardo Zaffino. This second issue is a quick read that’s heavy on action and a bit light on the dialogue and characterization.
After a long delay since issue one, Karnak continues his quest to find a young Inhuman who may or may not be the Inhuman’s savior. That quest brings him to a warehouse where he believes the boy may be held. It sets up a very long fight scene that at times is very exciting, but also feels too long. Gerardo Zaffino draws some great action scenes, highlighting Karnak’s power set by showing his hands decapitating victims and punching holes in their flesh. Zaffino also draws a great scene that shows the villain of the book create a “gun” from energy and using it like a rifle. Unfortunately the delay in the release of the second issue and as much as the action dominates the story, we have seen very little exploration of Karnak’s character two issues into the story.
I trust Warren Ellis, he has proven he can write interesting and fascinating characters, but so far he’s focused on showing Karnak in action. It’s great seeing him let loose and finding the flaws in his victims, but we aren’t given insight into his personality, though this may be Ellis’s intent. Karnak is cold and calculating, and with little caption boxes or dialogue, we don’t really get to know Karnak which is a shame since I was hoping Ellis would define his personality in a way we haven’t seen before. I’m still confident that Ellis can make this character into something more than he is now, and hopefully we won’t see more long delays between issues before we find out.
Reviewed by: Shawn Hoklas
(shawn@comicspectrum.com)
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