Out this week is the Elektra: Black, White & Blood trade paperback (not to be confused with the Treasury Edition, which came out in January). Collecting all four issues of the anthology series, creators join forces to whip up visually stunning stories utilizing only the color red and shades of white and black. Some of comics’ best creators contribute to this work, including Mark Bagley, Leonardo Romero, Al Ewing, Rod Reis, Greg Smallwood, Ann Nocenti, David Pepose, Danilo S. Beyruth, Kevin Eastman, and more!
As I’ve said in other Black, White & Blood trade reviews, this collection is standard size and thus far inferior to the larger Treasury Edition. The fact is, with series like this highlighting art, it’s just better in a larger format. I can see how collectors who want their shelves to look would prefer this standard size, though.
Following in the footsteps of the other Black, White & Blood series featuring Wolverine, Carnage, and Deadpool, this series tends to feature a lot of action and a lot of blood. In Elektra’s first outing, Charles Soule, Mark Bagley, Leonardo Romero, Declan Shalvey, and Simone D’Armini do very different things in an entertaining opening issue.
This issue opens with Soule and Bagley’s “Red Dawn,” which is inked by John Dell and colored by Edgar Delgado. This story drops readers into a bloody mess as Elektra is bitten by vampires in a snowy, remote place. Similar to previous iterations of this series, the story focuses heavily on the action, which Bagley pulls off well.
There’s a great double-page layout featuring eight panels across the two pages that highlight the little moments in battle, like spearing a vampire in the back of the head or reflecting on her bloody neck. The play of red works well thanks to the vampire theme through red eyes and blood running through veins. It’s the kind of story that could only work in an anthology format like this, and it has a striking ending that’s fitting to the character.
The middle story is has a great car chase.
Credit: Marvel
Next up is “Not the Devil” by Romero, which involves gangsters and a hell of a car chase. It’s a gripping chase that’s well blocked out and exciting from panel to panel. The use of red on the car, Elektra’s costume, and some striking all-red moments utilize the color well. It’s a great piece of gangster fiction in line with greats like Frank Miller’s Sin City. Of the three tales, this is the most literal take on the character, which should delight fans.
Wrapping up the first issue is Shalvey and D’Armini’s “The Crimson Path” which uses a Greek tragedy theme and features a stark-white Elektra facing off against endless bad guys. It’s almost like Elektra is in a fugue state as she battles, killing hundreds. The story is spiritual in tone and ends in a somehow beautiful way, which is tough to reckon with given all the blood and death.
There are quite a few standout stories remaining in this collection, such as Peach Momoko’s, whose work is always beautiful and poetic. Creators have her tussling with Ghost Rider, smooching Daredevil, and fighting Kingpin. Possibly the showstopper is the final story written and drawn by Kevin Eastman who is of course known for co-creating the Ninja Turtles. His style suits an Elektra tail with creative layouts and visual panache. It’d be incredible if he could take on an entire miniseries, but after reading this most will admit we’ll take what we can get.
The Black, White & Blood format continues to be an excellent showcase of art and creative ideas. Comics is a visual medium, and once again this series shows off the artistry of storytelling from three greats. It also supplies meaningful takes on the character, which is particularly great since historically she’s been rather one-note.
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