Written by Marc Guggenheim
Art by Adriana Melo; Mariah Benes; Andrew Dalhouse; & VC’s Joe Caramagna
Cover Art by Adriana Melo; Mariah Benes; & Chris Sotomayor
SUMMARY:
Published by Marvel Comics for April 2010, this untitled standard-length issue is the mid-point of Jackpot’s solo three-part mini-series. Teaming with Spider-Man, Sara “Jackpot” Ehret pounds on White Rabbit and her thug posse to acquire a sample of an illicit street elixir dubbed ‘Ebony.’ Working with Reed “Mr. Fantastic” Richards’ help, Sara deduces that ‘Ebony’ was first siphoned from the villainous Corruptor’s sweat glands. Stalking Sara’s private life as a married mom, the merciless assassin Boomerang gets the go-ahead to eliminate the unsuspecting Ehrets.
REVIEW:
The art team’s visuals are definitely top-notch (including a great cover image). For the most part, however, Jackpot isn’t a compelling character, which clearly hampers her story arc. Writer Marc Guggenheim’s underwhelming plot twists do too little to alleviate this predicament. A lengthy team-up sequence with Spider-Man, for instance, grows tiresome fast due to the heroes’ incessant chatter amidst battle. Only White Rabbit’s few amusing quips interrupting their bantering serves as a respite. Sara’s follow-up sequence with Mr. Fantastic is fine, but again it’s just ordinary Marvel material.
The Rose-Boomerang scene discussing the ‘messy’ assassination of Sara’s family offers an appropriately ominous contrast. The last few pages are déjà vu of DC’s Identity Crisis re: Captain Boomerang’s attack on Tim Drake’s father. If Guggenheim had opted for a different assassin with a different trademark, perhaps this nasty sequence wouldn’t seem nearly as ‘copycat’-like.
The Ehret family’s dinner table discussion re: Sara’s black eye also doesn’t score any charm points, either. The last scene’s worst element is Guggenheim’s hedging of his bets by endangering Sara’s little girl as a shock value cliffhanger. By resorting to such dirty tactics to keep readers tuned in, Guggenheim unwittingly reveals how meager Jackpot’s storyline actually is.
As Marvel had initially teased (could ‘Jackpot’ really be Mary Jane Watson in disguise?), that dubious ‘Jackpot’ concept seems more appealing than what this Spider-spin-off delivers. It says plenty that Marvel Comics shamelessly relies on Spider-Man’s name in the series title to attract an audience. Accordingly, Sara Ehret’s Jackpot (with her peripheral resemblance to DC Comics’ Batwoman and, to a lesser extent, the original Black Canary) merits sporadic guest spots vs. prematurely headlining a forgettable solo venture.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
The first page entitled “Bugle Girl,” is a combo of credits and a synopsis of Jackpot’s storyline to date.
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 5 Stars
