I’m not sure if I’d say Black Market has a charm to it. Writer Frank J. Barbiere does have a big twist at the end, but he’s telling the story in two time periods a few months apart. Having a good twist and being able to do something with it for the rest of the series are two different things.
Here, he has his main character getting into the illegal superhero DNA trade; he shows the character before and after this life of crime. If it weren’t for Victor Santos’s art, it wouldn’t work at all. Santos is the one who makes the protagonist–Ray–sympathetic. Barbiere just gives him a sob story and a manipulative older brother. It’s Santos who makes the guy’s world seem real.
Because of the two timelines, the pacing is awkward; Barbiere doesn’t balance things well. But that end twist and Santos make it worth a look.
B-
CREDITS
Writer, Frank J. Barbiere; artist, Victor Santos; colorist, Adam Metcalfe; letterer, Ed Dukeshire; editors, Chris Rosa and Eric Harburn; publisher, Boom! Studios.
