Comic Books

Tales of Suspense #101 Review

January 31, 2018

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In a series no one asked for (until they read issue #100) Winter Soldier and Hawkeye are teaming up to rid the world of Hydra. Or is it find the very much dead Black Widow? We find out more in this tale of suspense that’s got its thumb on fantastic dialogue and character writing.

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So what’s it about?

Read our preview.

Why does this matter?

Matthew Rosenberg is at the top of his game with this series and if you’ve ever liked Hawkeye (or at least the more modern flip version) you will love how he writes him here. Travel Foreman is flexing his espionage muscles well too as you can see from the very first full page spread page of our heroes diving away from an explosion.

Fine, you have my attention. What’s good about it?

The captions in the opening set up a great joke.

I really liked this issue as it makes these unlikely teammates work wonderfully. Hawkeye is funny and stubborn. Winter Soldier is all business and super serious. Together they may rub each other the wrong way, but they are forced to deal with each other. I never thought I’d see the humor in a scene where one character flicks a booger and the other does reconnaissance, but here we are. Rosenberg continues to deliver great dialogue in this well-plotted story that is always moving either with answers or action. The issue isn’t skimpy on scenes with a foot chase, two explosions, and an attack on a well guarded Hydra held base. You’re definitely getting your money’s worth.

Between Hawkeye’s fast thinking retorts and Winter Soldier’s all-business captions it’s hard to not love these characters. They’re definitely oil meets water throughout although Hawkeye probably enjoys rattling Winter Soldier. There’s a lot of moments in this issue that had me chuckle and you’re bound to run into a few too even if your sense of humor is slightly different.

Foreman continues to draw a solid series and this issue is even better than the last. There are a lot of scene changes from rooftops at dusk to a dreary New York night, to a winter river scene and they all look great. Props to colorist Rachelle Rosenberg who tends to make scenes pop with surprising choices like a teal-looking roof and hints of pink inside the Hydra mansion. Speaking of this scene, there’s a page where our heroes follow a woman and the shadows are excellently done. That keeps you guessing as to who this woman is and also creating a sense of dread as shots are fired and enemies flee.

This guy needs to take things more seriously.

It can’t be perfect can it?

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One could argue this story is utilizing a few tropes we’ve seen countless times, but heck, they’re done so well.

Is It Good?

This is an excellent issue that improves on the first. Who would have thought Winter Soldier and Hawkeye would be the dynamic duo of the year due to the balance of comedy and differing types of heroism? The plot moves along at a fast clip ensuring you’ll be getting every bit of the suspense the title promises.