THE SECRET SERVICE #1
MARVEL COMICS/Icon – @Marvel
[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]
STORY: Mark Millar and Matthew Vaughn
WRITER: Mark Millar – @mrmarkmillar
ARTIST: Dave Gibbons
COLORS: Angus McKie
COVER: Dave Gibbons
VARIANT COVERS: Leinil Francis Yu with Sunny Gho
32pp, Color, $2.99 U.S. (June 2012)
Mature Content
The Secret Service created by Mark Miller, Dave Gibbons, and Matthew Vaughn
The Secret Service was a six issue comic book miniseries written by Mark Millar; drawn by Dave Gibbons; and colored by Angus McKie. The series was created by Millar, Gibbons, and writer/director/ producer Matthew Vaughn (X-Men: First Class) and was published in 2012 by Icon, a pseudo-creator owned imprint of Marvel Comics. Vaughn directed a film loosely adapted from this comic book and entitled Kingsman: The Secret Service. [The Secret Service has since been re-branded as Kingsman: The Secret Service to tie-in closer to the film.]
The Secret Service is apparently inspired by “classic” James Bond films and the spy thriller genre in general. [I must note, dear readers, that I consider the James Bond films from Dr. No to A View to a Kill to be the “classic Bond films.”] The story focuses on a super-spy and his young and wayward nephew whom he recruits into “the secret service.”
The Secret Service #1 opens in Zermatt, Switzerland where we find Mark Hamill of Star Wars fame in the clutches of mysterious, “middle-Eastern” types. Later, in Peckham, South London, Gary “Eggsy” London is dealing with another awful night of home life with his mother, Sharon, and her English-white trash husband, Darren, and his rowdy pals. So Gary decides to have a night of bad behavior with his own pals, but that will land him in trouble. Once again, it's Gary's Uncle Jack to the rescue, but Jack London is secretly an MI6 agent, and he is ready to redirect his troubled nephew.
I saw Kingsman: The Secret Service on DVD not long after its home media release. I thought some of it was really good, but most of it was mediocre slash OK. I got a kick out of Samuel L. Jackson, Sofia Boutella, (that sexy-M.F.) Mark Strong, and Michael Caine (cause there is never enough Michael Caine). I liked Taron Egerton, but he does not totally sell me on the idea of him being an action hero. I put up with Colin Firth's character because he is played by Colin Firth. Did I mention Mark Strong?
Reading The Secret Service comic book for the first time, what surprises me is how matter-of-fact the first issue seems. It is unassuming and so lacks glamour (unlike the film) that after a few pages I thought The Secret Service was going to be a disaster. However, I soon picked up on the steady pace, solemn pace. There is something real and earthy about the interaction between Jack London and his sister, Sharon. Reading it, I felt like I was eavesdropping on some real-world, old sibling melodrama.
By the end, I wanted to read more. I'll see the new movie, Kingsman: The Golden Circle, but I hope the new comic book, Kingsman: The Red Diamond, is more like this comic book.
A
8 out of 10
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
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