Kick-Ass introduces us to Dave Lizewski. Dave is an avid comic-book reader, and spends most of his time talking to fellow high school friends and surfing the message boards. However, when he starts to get bored with his life, he finds his answer in his comics- pull on tights and become a superhero. He trains for about six months, orders batons and a costume off of Ebay and starts his crime-fighting career. However, it quickly goes drastically wrong with extremely violent consequences.
Mark Millar delivers a genuinely brilliant story. Whilst some have complained that it is merely an excuse for over-the-top violence and profanity, I find the story genuinely intriguing. Millar has written an interesting story that examines the superhero world very closely and brings us the greatest realistic superhero comic ever. Kick-Ass also shows us how teenagers interact, and some of the scenes in which Dave is hanging out with his friends tell us a lot about how teenagers interact with each other in the modern world. He also gives us one of the most lovable characters to be seen in comics- Hit-Girl. Imagine a ten-year-old girl with ninja agility, two swords, and about fifty guns, and you can get the picture.
John Romita Jr. gives us one of his defining works in terms of narrative and action-sequences. Every panel of the comic is rich in detail and he manages to capture the environments to perfection. The look of all the superhero characters are brilliant. The movie (which is coming out April 16th- yay!) nowhere near captures the greatness of the costumes. I would say that Red Mist does look a bit ridiculous sometimes, but it is hardly noticeable. Tom Palmer gives us some nice inks as well.
Dean White also gives us some great colors. Kick-Ass is perhaps one of the most vivid pieces of graphic fiction that you will ever come across, and Dean White’s colors is one of the main reasons for it. The superheroes look great when in stark contrast with the realistic world about them.
In terms of extras, Kick-Ass gives us an introduction by Rob Liefeld; bios on the comic’s creators; “Kick-Ass’s Greatest Hits”; Combined variant covers; variant covers by Scott McNiven and John Romita Jr.; and an illustration by John Romita Jr., Tom Palmer, and Dean White advertising the movie with the characters depicted as the movie versions. The extras are pretty neat, but it would have been nice to see something in the way of “making of”- some concept art, scripts, letters… you get the picture.
Overall, Kick-Ass is one of the defining pieces of comics. You’ll find much to like in the book- the art, the story, the colors. It will prove to be one of Mark Millar’s and John Romita Jr’s greatest works. However, I would only advise you to read it if you have a strong stomach.
Script: 10/10
Pencils: 10/10
Inks: 10/10
Colors: 10/10
Extras: 7/10
Overall: 9.4/10
