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mysteriousmre 's review for:
Mega Man 1: Let the Games Begin
by Ian Flynn, Patrick Spaziante
The Mega Man comic series reminds me a lot of Batman: The Animated Series. It's framed in a way that's appealing to younger audiences, but tackles some serious themes and subject matter that older audiences can enjoy.
This first volume is decent. Just decent. Ian Flynn is a great writer, and I really enjoy his interpretation of these characters, but he's trying to adapt the plot of Mega Man 1 in just 4 issues and do a brand new character arc every issue, and that's really not enough space to do these ideas any justice. For example, during one point of the story Rock (Mega Man) is dealing with the fact that he is essentially attacking/killing his own kind, and he tries to cope with that by compartmentalizing all of his emotions. His family (Roll and Dr. Light) help him process those emotions by reminding him that, unlike his opponents, he's fighting because he values life and wants to defend it, instead of extinguish it. A really cool concept for a character arc, but because of its length it gets only 22 pages dedicated to it, and in context of the story starts and finishes in less than a day. It's still a decent read, everyone has a distinct tone and personality, but it's not as good as it could be.
The art though is flat out gorgeous. I don't remember ever seeing Patrick "Spaz" Spaziante work on a comic's interior art, but he's just as great at interiors as he is his on cover art! The panel composition is solid and the characters emote really well too. It's always awesome to see Matt Herms on colors. I first saw his work on Archie's Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic Universe books and I swear, everything this guy works on looks great. The colors are vibrant and helps add a lot of depth to the art.
If you're a fan of classic Mega Man games, pick this up. Despite its shortcomings it's a great adaptation of Mega Man 1 and I think you'll have a lot of fun. If you're new to the series though I'd recommend jumping on with Mega Man Vol. 3. The art isn't as great as it is in this volume, but the story is far more focused and makes better use of the space it has.
This first volume is decent. Just decent. Ian Flynn is a great writer, and I really enjoy his interpretation of these characters, but he's trying to adapt the plot of Mega Man 1 in just 4 issues and do a brand new character arc every issue, and that's really not enough space to do these ideas any justice. For example, during one point of the story Rock (Mega Man) is dealing with the fact that he is essentially attacking/killing his own kind, and he tries to cope with that by compartmentalizing all of his emotions. His family (Roll and Dr. Light) help him process those emotions by reminding him that, unlike his opponents, he's fighting because he values life and wants to defend it, instead of extinguish it. A really cool concept for a character arc, but because of its length it gets only 22 pages dedicated to it, and in context of the story starts and finishes in less than a day. It's still a decent read, everyone has a distinct tone and personality, but it's not as good as it could be.
The art though is flat out gorgeous. I don't remember ever seeing Patrick "Spaz" Spaziante work on a comic's interior art, but he's just as great at interiors as he is his on cover art! The panel composition is solid and the characters emote really well too. It's always awesome to see Matt Herms on colors. I first saw his work on Archie's Sonic the Hedgehog and Sonic Universe books and I swear, everything this guy works on looks great. The colors are vibrant and helps add a lot of depth to the art.
If you're a fan of classic Mega Man games, pick this up. Despite its shortcomings it's a great adaptation of Mega Man 1 and I think you'll have a lot of fun. If you're new to the series though I'd recommend jumping on with Mega Man Vol. 3. The art isn't as great as it is in this volume, but the story is far more focused and makes better use of the space it has.