By Joe Douglas
With the possible exception of Legacy, Mike Bullock’s début as
new writer for Moonstone’s on-going Phantom series has been
the single most hyped Phantom event since, well, as long as
this Phan can remember. But does he live up to it?
As regular visitors to our forums will know I have been one of
Mike’s loudest supporters. Having loved his work on Image’s
Lions, Tigers and Bears I was very exited to see what he could
do with our purple clad hero. However, as with any new writer
coming onto any book there are always thoughts of “what if he
messes it up?”
Mike doesn’t even come close to messing it up.
As has been noted in any number of interviews and articles
Mike is a life long Phantom Phan, and knows exactly how he
want’s to present the character. In Tigers’ Blood that
presentation is one of mystery, power, awe and even a small
amount of fear. Reading Tigers’ Blood I was reminded of how I
felt being introduced to the Phantom in Falk’s The Singh
Brotherhood and realised that I came away with very similar
impressions of the character here. This isn’t at all surprising as
Mike has often said that Singh Brotherhood is one of the stories
that inspires him most.
It must be noted, however, that the way Mike presents the
Phantom may not be to everyone’s likening. As The Phantom
comic has been around for such a long length of time with its
tone, mood and themes constantly shifting Phans that started
reading the character at a specific time may have a very
different impression of who and what the Phantom should be
than someone who started reading the comics five years before
of after them. It’s obvious that Mike prefers a mysterious,
powerful Phantom reminiscent of the Falk/Moore stories and
Falks’ own Phantom novels. However, Phans who are more
familure and comfortable with the more family oriented Phantom
of Falk/ Barry time may be put out here. Still, these readers
should still find Mikes’ presentation of their hero quite intriguing.
The script of Tigers’ Blood has a beautiful, almost musical beat
to it. Continually jumping from the poachers to new villain
Manuel Ortega in the bar could have ruined the flow of the
story; here it does the exact opposite, urging the reader on to
find out what happens next. The scene jumps come just at the
right time to build the suspense and tension of the story. The
scenes in which the poachers try to find another score,
members of their party mysteriously vanishing, the jungle drums
beating loudly and headily in the background builds to possibly
the most powerful scene in any of Moonstone’s books – the
Phantom’s reveal.
The Phantom isn’t seen a lot until his reveal in the final pages.
While some Phans may find this a little alienating, personally I
felt it built on the mystery of the character and made each
frame he did appear in all the more powerful and the character
all the more grand for his big scene at the end of the book. If
we saw the Phantom in every other panel then the mystery
would have been lost.
Although the script is very good, it is not without its faults.
Possibly the most annoying is that two of the characters swap
names halfway through the story, which can make it somewhat
confusing to tell what is happening to whom. I’m not sure how
such an error could have occurred, but it is very unfortunate
because it pulls you right out of the story. Also, in some
instances, mainly during our first introduction to the poachers,
some of the dialogue feels forced.
Unfortunately the art doesn’t help the story along either. While
Gabriel Rearte is perfectly capable of visually telling a story, the
majority of the books power comes from the script itself, not
from the images. To my eye Rearte’s art looks messy, like lines
have been drawn simply for the sake of drawing them. However,
his art does fit the feel of the story and it doesn’t distract from
the script, but it doesn’t invigorate the reader either.
One of the books most interesting elements is the introduction
of villain Manuel Ortega. The whole issue Ortega says one
word, but already we can get a feel for him. From the wary gaze
other bar patrons cast in his direction to his grim, self-assured
smile, not to mention the scratches he makes on the bar table,
we know this guy is going to be bad news.
Special mention should also be given to the brilliant cover by
Joe Prado and Rod Reis, who have filled Doug Klauba’s shoes
well.
Tigers’ Blood – Part 1 may not be the perfect Phantom comic.
The script is very good, but it is unfortunately let down by a few
small errors and uninspiring art. However it’s still a darn good
read and Mike Bullock has proved he can writer a wonderful
Phantom tale. A writer’s first story on a new book is always their
weakest, so if this is what Mike’s début is like, I can’t wait to see
what he manages in future issues!
3.5/5
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