Ed Brubaker and his partner in crime, Steve Epting, the writer/artist combination that brought us the acclaimed Winter Soldier storyline for Captain America are back with a brand new title: can the proven tandem bring something remarkable to the table for Image with the debut issue of Velvet?
Velvet #1 (Image Comics)
A super-secret agency is shocked one day by the murder of one of their best X-Ops agents, X-Op 14: Jefferson Keller. The news is especially hard on a secretary named Velvet Templeton, who was fond of Keller. The agency begins their investigation into trying to determine who the killer is, but as the days go on, Velvet decides to do some snooping herself.
I found Velvet #1 to be highly enjoyable. The setup is solid, with an interesting mystery that really effects Velvet and the people around her; we’re given ample evidence that what’s going on is very out of the ordinary for the characters and that they’ve been thrown for a loop.
Velvet herself is given enough development so we can connect with her but also enshrouded with enough mystery to make us want to find out her past. I was able to predict how the book was going to end, but that didn’t mean it was bad in any way. It left me excited to see where this plot would go from here. Not much else to say about it in terms of writing. Just all around great stuff that makes me want to see more.
The artwork by Steve Epting is beautiful. The characters look great, the settings and scenery are drawn well, and the action is fantastic. However, I have to give a lot points to the coloring by Bettie Breitweiser as well: The intermingling of lighting and shadows is done masterfully and really helps with the tone and emotion of the book. I especially enjoyed the coloring use for the driving scene during the flashback.
9.0
- Fantastic opening with plenty of things to pull you in.
- The main character is interesting and likeable.
- Great artwork overall.
- The main plot hasn’t really gotten going.
- Ending’s a little predictable.
Is It Good?
Velvet #1 is probably on the best first issues I’ve read from Image since the debut issue of Lazarus. There’s great setup, a well-defined character and plenty of mystery and intrigue to pull in the audience. The main story hasn’t necessarily gotten going, but I’m fully confident it is going to be great if this issue was any indication. Highly recommended.
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