Power Man and Iron Fist #12
(W) David Walker (A/CA) Sanford Greene
Rated T+
In Shops: Jan 11, 2017
SRP: $3.99
REQUIEM FOR THE FANG GANG!
One member of Harlem’s greatest gang that never was gets a piece of the city – in exchange for another’s life! Can LUKE and DANNY take back the streets? And at what cost? They may have bigger (supernatural) fish to fry!
Occupy Avengers #3
(W) David Walker (A) Carlos Pacheco (CA) Agustin Alessio
Rated T+
In Shops: Jan 11, 2017
SRP: $3.99
BECAUSE YOU DEMANDED IT – NIGHTHAWK! BUT DOES HE COME AS FRIEND OR FOE?
Clint Barton and Red Wolf have taken to the road, determined to defend those that can’t defend themselves. Unfortunately, that mission may end before it gets started as a deadly threat looms on the horizon. Meanwhile, Clint and Red Wolf are joined by an unlikely ally – a perfect member for their new team…unless, of course, they all get killed.
Power Man and Iron Fist Sweet Christmas Annual #1
(W) David Walker (A) Scott Hepburn (CA) Jamal Campbell
Rated T+
In Shops: Dec 21, 2016
SRP: $4.99
YOU BETTER NOT POUT, YOU BETTER NOT CRY!
‘Cause you’re getting an extra helping of POWER MAN AND IRON FIST! This Christmas will be sweet, indeed! But not for Luke Cage, who is feeling neither holly nor jolly. Surely Danny can change that! Or maybe these demonic toys will! Wait, demonic toys?! OH, NO!
Occupy Avengers #2
(W) David Walker (A/CA) Carlos Pacheco
Rated T+
In Shops: Dec 21, 2016
SRP: $3.99
Clint Barton wasn’t looking for trouble, but trouble found him. Caught in the clutches of the enemy, Clint and Red Wolf face certain death – which is too bad, because they would’ve made a great team.
Power Man and Iron Fist #11
(W) David Walker (A/CA) Sanford Greene
Rated T+
In Shops: Dec 14, 2016
SRP: $3.99
THE FUNKY DRUMS OF WAR!
Luke and Danny make headway in healing the civilian wounds of CIVIL WAR II. But war is coming to Harlem, and there may not be anything our heroes can do to stop it!
After a few months of being a Civil War II tie-in, Power Man and Iron Fist #10 has become a stone cold crime comic and a healthy helping of sub-plots. Luke Cage and Danny Rand (Fresh out of jail.) have put some former Ryker’s inmates to work for Heroes for Hire while trying to find out who created the software that got them there in the first place while enlisting almost every superhero in the Marvel Universe. (This gives Sanford Greene an opportunity to strut his stuff and put his mark on a variety of characters, including Thor, Miles Morales, and Kamala Khan.) But the arc from David Walker, Greene, and skilled colorist Lee Loughridge is really about setting up several groups of criminals, who think they can be the new kingpin of Harlem and eventually all of New York City, including Black Mariah, Tombstone, and Black Cat (who has been playing this game in a bunch of titles like Hellcat and Silk.)
Even though it’s filled to the brim with quirkiness, like criminals who filed their teeth as part of the Fang Gang or Luke Cage continuing to make “fiddle faddle” his new catchphrase, Power Man and Iron Fist #10 is all about community involvement and responsibility. Luke and Danny were partially responsible for the big Ryker’s breakout so they are making it their goal to catch the escaped inmates and help out those who weren’t really guilty by giving them employment through Heroes for Hire. They even call in some “outside contractors”, the aforementioned group of Marvel superheroes, and it is nice to see heroes working together for a common cause after all the mostly pointless Civil War II terribleness. But bad guys can team up too, and this issue is about supervillains, like Cottonmouth, Tombstone, and Black Mariah learning from past screw-ups to get organized and run the town. (And Black Cat calling out Pirahna on his garbage sexism is a triumphant moment even if she’s a criminal.)
With his ability to match color to mood and add a little punch to flashbacks, Lee Loughridge is one of the best colorists in comics. And he nails the “almost got ‘im” feel of Black Mariah, Cottonmouth, Piranha, and Tombstone’s failed attempt at a crime syndicate with his back-in-the-day sepia color palette that evokes an old yearbook or a rerun of a blaxploitation movie on a fuzzy local TV station. And yellow is his go-to color in the present day scenes and pairs well with Greene’s split screen panel layouts and Walker’s quick banter as Power Man and Iron Fist put Riggs and Murtaugh to shame as a well-oiled buddy action comedy machine.
Power Man and Iron Fist #10 is mostly setup for more intriguing events down the road thanks to a powerful cliffhanger, but its sense of humor, social responsibility, and idiosyncratic art and coloring style is still firmly intact. It hits that right sweet spot between crime comic and buddy comedy, and Sanford Greene continues to draw bodies of all shapes, sizes, and skin colors kicking ass, telling jokes, or being menacing in the villains’ cases in his Bronze Age meets animation art style.
Story: David F. Walker Art: Sanford Greene Colors: Lee Loughridge
Story: 7.5 Art: 8 Overall: 7.7 Recommendation: Read
Marvel Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Power Man and Iron Fist #10
(W) David Walker (A/CA) Sanford Greene
Rated T+
In Shops: Nov 09, 2016
SRP: $3.99
“HARLEM BURNS” STARTS NOW!
The battle for Harlem begins here! As Luke and Danny struggle to pick up the pieces of Civil War II, the ultimate turf war erupts right under their noses! Tombstone, Mr. Fish, Piranha, Cottonmouth, Black Cat, and a mysterious new player are all vying for a piece of the pie – and the citizens of New York are caught in the crossfire! Can Power Man and Iron Fist help former prisoners and protect the innocent all at the same time?
Although it’s super sad Nighthawk was canceled, writer David Walker has yet another socially conscious Marvel comic book. It’s called Occupy Avengers #1 and is extremely relevant in light of the Standing Rock/Dakota Access pipeline protests in North Dakota, and the ongoing Flint, Michigan water crisis. The comic features Hawkeye as a protagonist as he travels across the United States like some kind of purple and black T-shirt wearing Robin Hood and tries to comes to terms with his killing of Bruce Banner in Civil War II. The first stop on his guilt trip is Santa Rosa, New Mexico where 100% of the inhabitants live under the poverty line, and the water on the Native American reservation is poisoned, which was their main source of income. Hawkeye wants to help, but this is a different and more nuanced challenge that shooting aliens with arrows.
Occupy Avengers #1 features artwork from Carlos Pacheco with inks from Rafael Fonteriz. Pacheco is a veteran artist, and his credits include the time-spanning epic Avengers Forever, a couple Uncanny X-Men runs, and a stint on the weekly series Trinity. Except the final few pages, Occupy Avengers isn’t a traditional superhero comic, but Pacheco is up for the switch in style. The first half of the comic is a slow burn focused on facial expressions as Hawkeye tries to figure out what’s going on in Santa Rosa, and Red Wolf, the town’s deputy and a superhero in his own right, looks on in disdain. The second half is all action, and Pacheco gets to cut loose with a double page, canyon-hopping motorcycle chase as Hawkeye is on the run from men who bear a resemblance to the troopers at Standing Rock. (But some of them have skull bandannas because this is a Marvel comic after all.) Pacheco lays out pages like a stained glass window showing off Hawkeye’s precision as an archer before opting for a bigger panels as Red Wolf, who is more of a hand to hand brawler, gets involved. And colorist Sonia Oback adds filters and a brown meets 
purple color palette to capture the tension of one guy with a bow and arrow fighting an entire group of men with machine guns.
Along with being a wonderful character study of Clint Barton and having some exciting fight scenes, David Walker explores the futility of the white savior narrative in dialogue, narration, and even in the action towards the end in Occupy Avengers #1. Granny Fireheart, a leader on the reservation, thinks he’s a journalist looking for a scoop or a “bleeding heart environmentalist” here to make himself feel good by going to Santa Rosa. The second is partially true even though he is more trained in the art of medieval-era violence. Hawkeye wants to help, but he doesn’t know where to start. He makes some ill-informed comments about the people of Santa Rosa moving away, but Red Wolf quickly educates him on the reality of this area’s poverty, and he kind of shuts up. Walker shows the importance of listening in activism and not barreling with a Messiah complex with a side of Instagram. He melds this listening with superhero action in the final third of the comic as Hawkeye lets Red Wolf take the lead against the soldiers watching the reservation.
Occupy Avengers #1 has a lot of narrative caption boxes for a comic book in 2016. However, Walker uses them to develop Hawkeye’s character, his feelings about killing the Hulk, and the situation on hand along with the occasional wry one-liner. Even though he murdered his friend, Hawkeye is just a regular guy from Iowa and currently Bed-Stuy that happens to be really good at shooting a bow and arrow and is an Avenger. Walker sets him up as the well-meaning, liberal white guy who needs to learn more about intersectionality and curing the roots of social problems and not just the symptoms but does it through quick, witty dialogue and an action narrative. And occasionally, the narration becomes pure poetry as Hawkeye describes why he uses a bow instead of a gun or a knife as Pacheco uses a nine-panel grid to show each creative hand to hand or archery move. (He is basically one of those writers, who still use typewriters instead of Word processors or CMSes.) It adds to the comic instead of just covering Pacheco and Fonteriz’s art.
David Walker’s ability to meld socially relevant themes with action-packed superhero narratives continues in Occupy Avengers #1. The inclusion of Hydro Man at the end seems a little on-the-nose and shoehorned to give the book a traditional “supervillain”, but it could be the beginning of a bold reimagining of the character. Carlos Pacheco and Rafael Fonteriz’s art gives the book an almost photorealistic style while Sonia Oback’s earth tones color palette sets the tone of Santa Rosa. The best parts of the comic are when Red Wolf cuts loose and Pacheco foregoes photorealism for bold moves and poses as he fights to protect his home and still doesn’t really trust Hawkeye for good reasons and not the usual “fight, then team up” cliches.
Basically, Occupy Avengers #1 is a 21st-century take on Denny O’Neil and Neal Adams’ “Hard Traveling Heroes” run of Green Arrow/Green Lantern, but with a lot more nuance and intersectionality thanks to its diverse creative team.
Story: David F. Walker Pencils: Carlos Pacheco Inks: Rafael Fonteriz Colors: Sonia Oback
Story: 9.5 Art: 8.5 Overall: 9 Recommendation: Buy
Marvel Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review
Occupy Avengers #1
(W) David Walker (A) Carlos Pacheco (CA) Agustin Alessio
Rated T+
In Shops: Nov 02, 2016
SRP: $3.99
Super heroes – they’re a privileged class. Doing what they want, when they want and suffering no consequences. They have no regard for the ordinary people who are left behind to suffer in their wake. Who will stand up for the little guy? There is a man. If you can find him, and if he believes in your story, he and his friends will put things right. Some call them outlaws, rebels, Robin Hoods. To others, they are heroes. No powers to speak of – just skills, smarts and a burning drive to do the right thing. His name is Hawkeye. Occupy Avengers: It’s time to “Take Back Justice”!
One of Marvel’s most brutal and socially conscious series, Nighthawk, comes to a suitably bloody end in its sixth issues as Nighthawk and his always witty and clever tech support Tilda follow the money and find the connection between the True Patriots and the evil, gentrifying Dan Hanrahan. (Think the Koch Brothers and the Tea Party back in the day, or Donald Trump and white supremacists right now.) Writer David Walker, artist Ramon Villalobos, and colorist Tamra Bonvillain confront readers with the fact that these wealthy businessmen want crime and violence to thrive in impoverished areas of their cities to
Ramon Villalobos really ups his layout game in Nighthawk #6 keeping the pace of the comic zippy as Nighthawk and Tilda connect the dots, busts heads, and does some killing. The final battle between Revelator is suitably intimate with a 32 panel grid spread over two pages showing every blow, punch, and reversal. Walker refrains from quips in his dialogue and focuses on these two men, who have a very similar goal, beating on each other while the wounded Hanrahan watches. Tamra Bonvillain keeps her color palette restrained with skin tones and a twilight backdrop to give the hand to hand fight a tragic tinge and saves the red for the end of the comic.
Throughout its run, Nighthawk has been a bitter combination of a twisted psychological thriller (The Revelator’s methods and way of speaking.), a vigilante story like Death Wish, The Crow, or Punisher, and a crime yarn with its ongoing investigation of Chicago’s corrupt police force and the connections between white supremacists and white gentrifiers. Nighthawk has that same cathartic ass kicking of Eric Draven killing his girlfriend’s murderers, but is much more socially aware.
For example, Nighthawk takes a little break from sticking sharp objects in criminals’ throats to deliver a mini-lecture about how rich real estate developers are using poverty and violence to drive property prices down so they can buy them and put up some fancy condos or a shopping mall while driving out people, who have lived in the area for a while. Nighthawk is an extremely violent hero and definitely has no predilections about killing, but he makes sure his targets are ones that are root causes of societal ills, like white supremacists, corrupt businessmen, and police officers. And during this “lecture”, Villalobos and Bonvillain don’t slack on this visuals, but show him destroying a 
machine gun against a purple background in a similar manner that he has destroyed kneecaps in the past. Tilda, who is usually critical of his killing, is actually happy about this destruction of a gun and his words to the small time criminals. But, of course, Nighthawk is back on the killing path again at the end of the issue.
What makes Nighthawk #6 such an interesting read is that its protagonist fights against deep-rooted societal ills, like racism and corruption, but he does it in a fairly moral reprehensible way with surveillance drones and brutal killing. Walker makes Tilda Nighthawk’s conscience, but she also kind of wants to jump into the fray and kick some racist ass and even saves his bacon in this issue with a well-timed drone swoop. She kind of represents the reader, who appreciates Nighthawk’s stance against police brutality, systemic racism, and even gentrification, but wish he would go about it in a better way. However, we still cheer when he walks off and lets the white supremacist arming scum bad guy bleed to death.
Nighthawk #6 is a perfect conclusion to a comic that wasn’t afraid to call out white supremacism and corruption while featuring a morally flawed protagonist. And it happened to look good too thanks to the art of Ramon Villalobos and Tamra Bonvillain, who brought bone-crunching action choreography, spot-on symbolism, and a murky palette to a comic that was excellent in style and content.
The ending of Nighthawk #6 is both bleak and satisfying, and it will be interesting to see what David Walker does with the character in the upcoming Occupy Avengers title.
Story: David Walker Art: Ramon Villalobos Colors: Tamra Bonvillain
Story: 9 Art: 9.5 Overall: 9.3 Verdict: Buy
Marvel Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review.
