Atomic Robo#1 (of 6)

Posted by Graig on August 17, 2007

(Red 5)
Advanced Review (Diamond order code #AUG073942)

There’s not likely to be to many people who read Atomic Robo that don’t see a similarity to Hellboy. The former is not necessarily a rip-off of the latter, because superheroic, wise-cracking adventurers taking on Nazi scum has practically been a genre of its own for 60 years. This latest entry into the fray, though, just happens to come at a time where Mike Mignola’s popular creation has gripped his red right hand around film, animation, toys and comics. The comparisons also will stem from Scott Wegener’s art, which we all can admit is heavily inspired by Mignola’s blocky, ink-and-shadow-heavy style.

Is any of this a bad thing? Not at all. Brian Clevenger’s script is imaginative and fun, the dialog is witty, and any time Nikola Tesla is brought into the mix, even if just in conversation, my ears perk up. Wegener’s design for Atomic Robo is pretty cool, and his action fluid. Though, yes, Mignola-inspired (like Matt Smith and a handful of others) Wegener here cleans things up somewhat, allowing for the lush, vibrant colors of Ronda Pattison to shine. Overall the book is just robot-stomping-on-Nazis action, what’s not to enjoy? There may not be a lot of threat to the protagonist, but it’s sure gleefully entertaining to read.

There will be people who won’t be able to look past the similarities I mentioned above. Those people will be missing out. There’s room for Hellboy and there’s room for Atomic Robo (and already there’s a little buzz in my head that would like to see them together). Even if it feels slightly derivative, when a comic is this fun it’s easy to see past it, and hopefully future issues will help to delineate the two more definitively.

4 out of 5 Vikings