Dial H
Writer-China Mieville
Artist- Mateus Santolouco
This is a very strange title that feels like a sloppy version of Ben10. It follows Nelson an over weight chain smoking loser who discovers a mysterious telephone booth that transforms him into a different super powered being when he dials the word “hero”. His first transformations allow him to fight the thugs that beat up his friend Darren. The first issue shows off two transformations and gives us the typical mysterious bad guy that runs the local group of criminals. There is nothing too surprising and nothing that really stands out beyond the main premise.
The writing is fairly well done with Darren and Nelson having some amusing dialogue early in the book. The different super beings are interesting, but very little about them has been revealed and their abilities do not seem very useful. The story moves at a fast pace after the initial transformation which hurts in defining Nelson as a character. The artwork is very stylistic and has some throwback design, but feels really unpolished. The action is not all that well done and most battles end very quickly with no suspense. The book can also feel cluttered at times which makes following the action more difficult than it should be with a story like this.
This is a rough start for a new series. While it is an interesting concept and it has potential for future tales the rushed story and sloppy art do not make this book easy to recommend. This title is competently written and may be enjoyed by some people looking for a different kind of hero. The concept is interesting, but this issue feels rushed and incomplete. Hopefully it will improve with time.
Bizarro Indifference…
