Previously…
If you don’t know by now that superhero is my favorite genre in the medium of comics you haven’t been paying attention to my reviews. Today I’m checking out a new American classic from the mind of Michael J Watson and published by Freestyle Komics in conjunction with Short Fuse Media, Hotshot.
Situation
Our story begins with a fire. Firefighter’s and medical personnel swarm a burning building, as our title hero Hotshot is getting molly whopped by a hulking man in black. Flashback a few days prior our hero Hotshot aka Michael is getting screamed at by his girlfriend, well ex-girlfriend as she breaks up with him. In classic superhero fashion, his double life has gotten him in trouble, mainly because his girlfriend thinks he is cheating on her. And thus he is ass’d out as the French say. On his way home from work he’s eating his favorite mesquite burrito (which I also love) and is bumped by a purse snatcher. Of course, the dude knocks the burrito out of Mike’s hand causing him to get into costume and wash the thief like a dirty shirt. All of a sudden the dark-clad man, calling himself Void, emerges from the ground and causes everyone in the surrounding area to fall under his thrall, causing theme to attack Hotshot. From here we are caught up to the all-out assault that befell our hero in the opening pages. After being assisted by the hero Vigilance, Hotshot rescues a number of civilians, including his ex, only to walk into the path of a telekinetic Void levitating several large vehicles with ill intent in mind.
Story
Like Freestyle comics other Vigilance, which I reviewed some time ago, Hotshot is a classic superhero story, it doesn’t say anything about the social climate or political landscape. It’s just a superhero story and sometimes that’s all you really need. I enjoy how the writer Victor Dandrige starts us off with a relatable scene in the break-up before plunging us into the rest of the action, establishing a bit of humanity in the character at the onset. The rest of the issue was standard superhero fair and I don’t mean that in any negative way this is the type of story that got us into comics as kids, we get to see how the main character isn’t so different from us, then we are tossed into what makes them so cool, why we want to be them. I feel like Hotshot is Static and all of the other burgeoning heroes we grew up with, in modern form. The book doesn’t break any new ground but not every book is supposed to and that might be why I enjoyed this so much, the creative team is simply telling the story they want to tell without any influence from any outside parties or external forces something that I think we haven’t seen in comics in quite a bit.
Pictures
Michael Watson and company do a good job on the lines, inks, and colors here, the action scenes are where the team shines the most. The fight between Hotshot and Void is illustrated to make the reader feel like they are there for every head-snapping punch, every bone-jarring slam, and every car that gets hurled our heroes way. Despite all of this the art team does a better job of rendering a city under attack by a crazed superpowered lunatic than Zack Snyder did in Man of Steel or Batman vs. Superman, shouts out to the storyboarder for that.
The Real
If you’re looking for some good old fashion superhero fun then Freestyle Komics is kicking out some great jams and Hotshot is just one of them. Go pick it up, you won’t regret it.
PURCHASE
This review was written by Ra'Chaun Rogers on behalf of Concept Moon Studios. If you enjoy his comic reviews click here or more
