Leaping from the pages of Captain Canuck comes Northguard, Canada’s newest super-hero! His first mission: Track down The Aurora Dawn, a mysterious cult hoping to bring about the end of the world! Chapterhouse Comics‘ Captain Canuck reboot has garnered praise and critical acclaim, now see our take on another classic Canadian superhero, Marc Shainblum and Gabriel Morrisette’s Northguard!

Written by Anthony Falcone with art by Ron Salas, Northguard #1 is exactly what I expected and hoped for, a nice fun throwback in a similar vein as Captain Canuck. The comic is full of action as we’re quickly introduced to the mysteruous Aurora Dawn and Agent Wise, aka Northguard.

While each comic features Canadians in super suits, the two comics have a very different feel to them, though share very similar qualities. This comic too has action and avoids dark and gritty, but it’s also a bit darker in the beginning, and dealing with an cult it has a bit more of a horror vibe to it in some ways (especially that opening page).

What’s also missing is the Canadian factor. One thing I find really interesting with Captain Canuck is the use of French throughout the comic without translation. Northguard has a few French words thrown in, but lacks entire speech bubbles or characters that are specifically Canadian. Agent Wise is a pretty generic guy overall, which isn’t a bad thing, and so far there’s not enough of a supporting cast to really make things stand out with a distinct Canadian voice. The first issue also has the main character flying solo and working for the CIA, so that may be a reason why.

The art by Ron Salas is solid and fun. It keeps a consistent style with Captain Canuck, which helps create a coherent look to the world. The action is good and scenes are set up nicely, though some have a lot of empty space. It’s not bad in any way, I’d just have visually set some of the fight differently as opposed to panned out shots. There’s nothing that detracts and the art fits the tone of the comic.

I’ve been looking forward to Northguard #1 and had high hopes going in. The comic didn’t disappoint me at all and continues the solid work began in Captain Canuck. Chapterhouse Comics looks to have another fun series on its hands.

Story: Anthony Falcone Art: Ron Salas
Story: 7.75 Art: 7 Overall: 7.75 Recommendation: Read