Ozy-Cannon-Dias? Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt #1 Reviewed
by Josh Davison
[*Mild Spoilers Ahead!]
An alien invasion assails the Earth. An insect species has killed an entire city, and superheroes from around the world have united to respond. However, none of them know the way to stop the aliens. They consult Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt to save the day. Naturally, Peter comes up with a solution, but these disparate heroes must follow his commands to the letter. Most of them don’t even like him.
This is my first experience with Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt. As such, I’m not sure how faithful this depiction is compared to previous iterations of the character, or even the prior Dynamite Entertainment series from 2012-2013.
What I can say is that Kieron Gillen gives the reader a good and swift rundown of both Peter Cannon and the other characters within a few pages. As a result, I never really felt lost.
Peter Cannon himself is remarkably reminiscent of Ozymandias, both in personality and capability. Some of the major plot points resemble Watchmen as well with just a touch of Rick Veitch’s The One. There is also a scene that definitely seems like a deliberate reference to Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ Watchmen.
Despite these resemblances, the comic is steeped in good, old-fashioned comic book weirdness, which I love. Furthermore, it seems to be posing itself to go on the opposite direction of Watchmen, perhaps even intending to be something of an answer to comic.
Caspar Wijngaard’s artwork is quite good, and he gives the costumes an especially enjoyable treatment. The suits are varied, unique, but still feel distinctly superhero-y. The aliens look quite cool too. Mary Safro’s color work is vibrant and well-balanced too.
Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt #1 makes a strong and decisive first step with this opening issue, and it seems to be making deliberate references to Watchmen which have me especially curious as to where this book is going. This might be one to keep an eye on. In any case, this issue is a solid read and earns a recommendation. Feel free to check it out.
Peter Cannon, Thunderbolt #1 comes to us from writer Kieron Gillen, artist Caspar Wijngaard, color artist Mary Safro, letterer Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou, cover artist Sean Phillips, and variant cover artists Dave McCaig, Butcher Billy, Paulina Ganucheau, and Caspar Wijngaard.
