Written by Ta-Nehisi Coates & Yona Harvey.
Art by Butch Guice; Mack Chater; Stephen Thompson; Scott Hanna; Dan Brown; Paul Mounts; & VC’s Joe Sabino.
Cover Artists: John Cassaday & Laura Martin; Dan Brown; & Paul Mounts.
Collection Cover Art by John Cassaday & Laura Martin.
SUMMARY:
Released in 2017 by Marvel Comics, this 136-page paperback compiles the entire six-issue series from that same year. Not necessarily a spin-off or sequel, The Crew is meant more as a reboot of a short-lived 2003 Marvel series by that same title.
Each issue starts with a flashback to Ezra “The Lynx” Keith in the mid-to-late 1950’s. As a civil rights reformer, “The Lynx” has assembled a four-member, African American super-team: Brawl, Flare, Gloss, & a sorceress, The Gates. Seemingly mercenaries for hire, they instead commence a fiery shutdown of a Bronx mobster in 1957. The second issue’s flashback occurs in 1955 at the Asian-African Conference in Indonesia. Ezra, at the time, first gets the idea of recruiting super-powered vigilantes out of Wakanda. What he doesn’t realize is that a shadowy terrorist organization will be manipulating his covert agenda.
Per Issue # 3, in 1956 Harlem, Ezra and his associate, Frank, formulate a strategy to recruit their Wakandan super-team. Issue # 4 explains how the grisly homicides of three civil rights movement workers in 1964 Mississippi disillusions Ezra. Still, his squad delivers some justice without lethal retribution.
By 1969, per Issue # 5, Ezra loses command of his ‘Crew,’ as they opt for a slick Frank’s end-justifies-the-means opportunism over Ezra’s conscientious brand of freedom fighting in Harlem. It later comes down to Issue # 6, as fate intervenes during a 1972 confrontation between an estranged Ezra and Frank. More so, Ezra realizes that Frank’s ongoing criminal activities are in league with HYDRA.
Now-elderly protester Ezra Keith, over the years, has since become a mentor and inspiration to four heroes with links to Harlem: Ororo “Storm” Munroe; her ex-husband, T’Challa/Black Panther; hero-for-hire Luke Cage; mutant Eden “Manifold” Fesi; and NYPD detective Misty Knight. Now, in the present day, Ezra’s suspicious overnight death in police custody has Harlem’s unrest sparking towards an ugly inferno of rioting in the name of social justice.
Misty reluctantly joins Storm, along with Ezra’s adult niece and nephew, to unravel the shady circumstances of the civil rights icon’s death inside a jail cell. With multiple attempts made on their lives, Misty and Storm’s probe gradually recruits Black Panther (in his low-key undercover identity of Luke Charles), Luke Cage, and the now-fugitive Manifold.
Storm & Black Panther’s undercover investigation into an upscale luxury condominium called The Renaissance confirms Ezra’s suspicions. In a subtle infiltration scheme dating back decades, HYDRA has not only slithered inside Harlem, but it has corrupted influential local players. More so, Paragon Industries’ shoot-first Americop robots provide another layer of stealthy insulation. Amidst a mass riot, it’s up to Storm, Black Panther, Luke Cage, and Manifold to finally strike back. They’re soon stunned by the identity of one of this plot’s masterminds.
Each issue is narrated by a character: Issue # 1 (Misty Knight); Issue # 2 (Ororo “Storm” Munroe); Issue # 3 (T’Challa/Black Panther; Issue # 4 (Luke Cage); Issue # 5 (Eden “Manifold” Fesi); and Issue # 6 (Ezra Keith).
Note: This title is also available digitally. Though the story arc implies a mini-series, apparently Black Panther & The Crew was initially an ongoing monthly. However, disappointing sales ended the series with Issue # 6.
REVIEW:
Premise-wise, co-writers Ta-Nehisi Coates and Yona Harvey have devised an ingenious set-up for a socially conscious and news headline-topical adventure-drama. Intermingled with actual history, the Ezra Keith flashbacks supply a vital insight into its present-day storytelling. As good as the primary arc’s twists mostly are, the plotting comes off as somewhat muddled.
Some anachronisms curiously imply that the entire storyline occurs sometime in the past, i.e. Misty’s encounter with first-generation Americops, though she then remarks that Sam Wilson would later face a more advanced version; Storm’s stylish, mid-80’s Mohawk hairstyle; and, not to mention, T’Challa’s Luke Charles cover identity from the early 1970’s. Yet, most other plot references, i.e. Ororo & T’Challa’s failed marriage; Luke Cage’s oddly unseen wife (Jessica Jones) and their young daughter; Misty’s then-romance with Sam “Captain America” Wilson, etc., clearly spell out that this arc is indeed in the present-tense 2017. Despite such inconsistencies, Coates and Harvey’s co-plotting still makes for a good read.
The artwork, like the scripting, tends to be inconsistent. Some panels (i.e. Storm’s facial close-ups) are excellent, but much of the remaining material merely hovers in varying degrees of ‘average.’ Curiously, in the last three pages, the artists depict Luke Cage as Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson (minus the tattoos) – though it’s some logical casting, this wink-wink homage doesn’t improve the end result. Suffice to say, this book’s visuals are generally solid, but they’re not a must-see asset.
Black Panther & The Crew, overall, is worth the plunge. It just may be more practical as a library option.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
The variant cover gallery (two per page) consists of: Issue # 1 (1. Artists Rich Buckler, Tom Palmer, & Rachelle Rosenberg; and 2. artists Damion Scott & John Rauch; 3. artist John Tyler Christopher; and 4. artists Jim Cheung & Jason Keith); and then Issue # 2 (1. Artist Mike Del Mundo and 2. Sanford Greene). Butch Guice contributes two pages of black-and-white character sketches, though Ezra Keith’s four-member crew is also inked.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 6 Stars
