In defence of the realm!
Creative Staff:
Story: Andy Diggle
Art: Luca Casalanguida
Colors: Chris Blythe
Letterer: Simon Bowland
What They Say:
It all comes down to this. With the Royal Navy facing off against the Hammerhead super-weapon, and Britain’s nuclear arsenal in the hands of a war-mongering megalomaniac, 007 alone must infiltrate Kraken’s fortified retreat. He has a license to kill, and he aims to use it…
Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers):
The Hammerhead miniseries draws to a close with this installment and it’s one that has me hopeful for more like it in the future, and for this team to reunite and do something else as well, whether a one-shot or another series. Diggle and Casalanguida clicked together well when it came to the final product as the story is quick and engaging with plenty of details and dialogue to tie it together with some wonderfully dynamic layouts that brings the action to life. Casalanguida has done what feels like some of their best work here as it just pops so well with impact and power alongside the tension of the moment. Everything on the platform with how it played out just felt utterly cinematic.
With it being the end of the series, Hammerhead is largely focused on action and wrap up material. Admittedly, you know that Bond will save the day and that we won’t get a nuclear weapon going off in London – though I’d be curious to see what kind of series and story continuity we’d have after the fact with that. Bond’s quick work on the platform is thoroughly engaging to watch as he moves through the passageways and the Hammerhead weapons themselves to deal with the soldiers that Victoria has brought into her cause. It’s not overplayed but there are some brutal moments along the way that are pretty nicely done even if grisly. It serves to reinforce what the stakes are and what Bond has to do to achieve his goals, something he does with a quip or two along the way but otherwise largely plays with a straight face.
Everything goes out in a big way here and while some of how the nuclear weapon is dealt with is just a touch too easy all things considered, and the kind of tension that would be going on around the world, it has the proper Bond cinematic elements about it that I like. I also thoroughly like that we get a nice little epilogue element here, something the films generally avoided over the years, as we see how Moneypenny is recovering from her efforts in all of this and M as well. Digging into the coverup of the event and the reality of it plays very well even if you do wonder how many holes could be poked into it while also wanting to get a better idea of how the Hammerhead tech would be dealt with from here on out. The complexity of the real world is hard to bring into comics (and many novels) so it’s no surprise that it’s a simple top down view with the confidence of those that set the stories that are to be told to the public.
In Summary:
Diggle and Casalanguida delighted me with this series from start to finish and I imagine those that read it in collected form will get even more out of it with the flow of the story. Diggle got the voice of Bond right and provided for some good material for Hunt and the MI6 folks as well. It’s a creative and interesting story that shows off some good ideas to work with when it comes to defense technology and outsourcing aspects of it. Bond and Hunt definitely made for strong opposing characters across it and Casalanguida’s artwork made the whole thing smooth and thoroughly enjoyable. I’m hopeful that they’ll have more in the future to add to the world of 007.
Grade: B+
Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Dynamite Entertainment
Release Date: March 29th, 2017
MSRP: $3.99
