The Strange Talent of Luther Strode #1 // Review
His name is Luther Strode. He has jjust been shot in the hest seven times. It hurts. The fact that he’s only casually thinking about it without any significany panic has a lot to do with the fact that the seven bullets in question are caught in his muscles. (His pectoral s to be precise) So he’s in a lot of pain, but he isn’t dead. He’s got other thingas tow worry about in The Strange Talent of Luther Strode #1. Writer Justin Jordan celebrates the fifteenth anniversary of the first issue a series he started with artist Tradd Moore and colorist Felipe Sobreiro. It’s really cool.
All that Luther really needs to do is fles his muscles and the bullets drop to the floor of the apartment. It’s not really a very good situation...the pain will likely linger, but he’s not in any immediate danger. Ltuther has ceertain talents which may or may not have somethnig to so with the fact that everyone else in the room is quite apparently dead. Luther has certain...talents...Those talents came in the form of a mail order book that he got some time ago. It was a long journey. He’s come a long way from where he was.
So many of the basic elements of Jordan's story are so very primal. The basic idea contains so much that is so common to so many superhero style stories. The unwanted geek who becomes a major power. Sort of a power fantasy thing. But it's more than that. Because it's playing on other tropes as well. Taking a look bac this issue which originally hit the stand 15 years ago is kind of interesting. It was a huge success for Jordan. But it was more than that. Because it really did engage the entire concept of power and revenge in a way, but can't quite made it to superhero account books before.
Moore’s art feels suitably intense. Looking back on it all these years later it still has a potency that wouldn't seem entirely out of fashion with the current style of superhuman, comic book art. The dynamic sense of the action hits the page in a way that feels like it bursting through the comic book and into the world beyond. This is particularly difficult to do for most artists. It is bound by length and wave. If you can add enough impact to relieve amplify that sense of depth then you're moving well beyond the where most artists are. And that's exactly whatMoore managed with the first issue of this comic book.
It's impressive stuff. And it's nice to know that while things move forward there are those works that seem to have a kind of longevity about them. Time will tell whether or not this first issue is truly timeless. However, there's enough that it's engaging in that feels appealing enough 15 odd years later. There's no question that it is deeply engaging concept. And it's always nice to get a look at something like that again a decade and a half later.
