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The Secret Service (2014)

by Mark Millar(Favorite Author)

3.61 of 5 Votes: 2

ISBN

0785165452 (ISBN13: 9780785165453)

languge

English

genre

Graphic Novels & Comics

publisher

Marvel

review 1: 3.5 StarsGreat potential, interesting premise, critically acclaimed writer, legendary artist, Hollywood producer, thin character development, choppy storytelling, uninspired art, wasted potential.Those are the things that come to mind when I read Kingamsn: The Secret Service. What could have been an awesome James Bond type of story turned into a somewhat lack lustre story with pacing and storytelling issues:1) There are some good things with this book, the celebrity plot line was interesting and made me smile. But, that's about all there was to like this tale2) I like Dave Gibbon, he is an industry legend and did the famous Watchmen...but his art I think is outdated and compared to the plethora of talented artists in the industry now...just stagnant. His framing is nothing... more special and there is no sense of motion at all in his art. Disappointing.3) The story if I look at it as a whole is not a bad story, it is interesting and a story I would love to read about, but it's the writing and the framing and the pacing that are the problems here. It seems that Millar does not focus on the things that would grab the reader, we never really relate to the characters and the pacing is too jumpy for any momentum and emotions to develop. Issue 1-3 felt meandering and 4-6 felt fast but characters were not introduced well and made a lot of "huh, who's that?" moments. I think a couple of more issues may have fixed it but I think more than anything it's the focus that's a bit off. Overall, I really wanted to like the story but the faults and the missed opportunities just made this a forgettable read and coming from the likes of Millar, Gibbons and Vaughn that's disappointing.Onward to the next book!
review 2: Ran right out and bought this graphic novel after seeing the preview for Kingsman: The Secret Service before the X-Men movie and read it in a few hours.I think that the movie will be a lot more intense than the graphic novel. This is a bit more superficial with a jokey ha-ha plot, though Mr. Millar attempts to inject some serious undertones of class and domestic abuse and whatnot.I’d strongly recommend getting Queen and Country over this one if you want a more realistic British secret service type graphic novel. And then wait for the movie to come out.Still it was a pleasant enough diversion for a Sunday afternoon, though I must object to this recent trend of villains being white guys who happen to be good at computers. Weren't we teased enough during our childhoods? Can’t we have a bad guy who’s like, I don’t know, good at soccer or wrestling or at ease in social situations or something? less

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