In JAMES BOND: AGENT OF SPECTRE #1, available from Dynamite Comics on March 3rd, 2021, 007 is sent on a mission to track down the head of Spectre, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, before Spectre can meet with a mole in M.I.6. All goes according to plan until Bond finds out he was the real target.
The Details
- Written By: Christos Gage
- Art By: Luca Casalanguida
- Colors By: Heather Moore
- Letters By: Simon Bowland
- Cover Art By: Steve Epting
- Cover Price: $3.99
- Release Date: March 3, 2021
Was It Good?
Author’s Note: I’m an unapologetic James Bond snob. I’ve grown up with it all, from the films to the original sourcebooks and everything in between. I’ve seen writers try superficial pop culture interpretations of Bond (which usually fail) and other writers who “get” Bond to his core (those are winners), so it’s impossible for this reviewer to not review any new Bond material without some bias towards what a proper Bond should be like. Reviewers typically don’t caveat their reviews to warn readers about their bias, but Bond has a special place in this reviewer’s heart. Reader beware!
Thankfully, yes, this is an excellent start to a new Bond arc.
Cristos Gage hits all the right notes to start off a 007 adventure. A dangerous standoff as the prologue, a briefing with M including some witty banter with Miss Moneypenny, and the setup of a textbook yet dangerous case that turns into a high-stakes mystery with surprises.
A word about the art. It’s unpolished, but in a gritty, hard-boiled way that enhances the atmosphere of the story. There’s almost a Dick Tracy noir blockiness to the heavy lines and harder corners of the character. Bond’s jaw couldn’t get more square, and that visual style makes Bond the hardened, blunt instrument he’s meant to be.
What’s It About?
[SPOILERS AHEAD]
We begin with a bang as James Bond is chasing a Spectre agent on a ferry chugging along on the English Channel. There’s nowhere to run or hide, and desperate men take desperate actions. The Spectre agent threatens to set the ferry on fire if he doesn’t get safe passage.
Without spoiling the resolution, Gage makes excellent use of the classic Bond trope where the villain’s mistake becomes his undoing in this fast-paced prologue.
Back at HQ, Bond debriefs with M and Miss Moneypenny about the papers the Spectre agent was carrying. The hard copies are coded messages detailing schedules for Spectre meetings with assorted turncoats and moles within the British government. One such meeting with an M.I.6 mole is coming up, and Bond’s mission is to track down the head of Spectre, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, at the time of the meeting so both the head of Spectre and the M.I.6 mole can be captured.
Bond finds Blofeld and the meeting place, but the tables are turned when Bond finds out the meeting was a setup to lure Bond into a meeting with Blofeld. It turns out civil war is brewing within Spectre and Blofeld wants to enlist Bond’s help to clear out the competition.
What does Blofeld say to Bond? Can he possibly convince the world’s greatest super-spy to work for the enemy? What could Blofeld possibly have to bargain with? You’ll have to pick up the issue to find out, but suffice to say Blofeld makes the most convincing sales pitch possible.
Final Thoughts
JAMES BOND: AGENT OF SPECTRE #1, 007, available from Dynamite Comics on March 3rd, 2021, takes a classic hero in a classic setup and puts a unique twist on the story. The art is gritty in all the right ways, and the characters all ring true as the best versions of themselves. Within just the first issue, any Bond fan should be thoroughly pleased.
Score: 9/10
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