And Then I Read LEGENDERRY Trade Paperback

Image © Dynamite Characters LLC

I had read the first two individuals of this series, and liked it but didn’t love it, so decided to give the first collection a try. I’m glad I did, it reads better this way. On the down side, LEGENDERRY is essentially an excuse to bring together a large number of licensed characters currently in the Dynamite roster, including The Green Hornet and Kato, Red Sonya, Vampirella, Zorro, The Phantom, Flash Gordon, The Six Million Dollar Man, Silver Star and Captain Victory, as well as many of their opponents. This is a very diverse lot from different centuries, story-wise, and writer Bill Willingham’s idea to get them on the same page was to set up a steampunk world and do steampunk versions of all the characters. It works better for some than others; Green Hornet seems a perfect fit, the Jack Kirby characters Silver Star and Captain Victory are perhaps the least at ease in this setting. But there are some fun interactions and lots of swashbuckling adventure, intrigue, villainy, heroics, and pulp magazine flavor that all goes together pretty well. The plot running through these seven issues is complex, and ultimately less interesting than the characters themselves. In all, I think it’s a good read in this format as long as you take it for what it is.

Recommended.