These Are Not The Characters I Know
As of late, I've earnestly began to question just how much I trust Matt Fraction to give us a good story. Yes, Hawkeye is fantastic, but, beyond that, I've had a hard time finding something of his that has resonated with me. So, with this Marvel Digital Flash Sale (all works of Matt Fraction), I thought I'd give The Defenders a go; it's an interesting team and a really cool art style to work with. However, the characterization is so bland and out of character that I could hardly make it through this first issue.
We are quickly introduced to our new team, starting with Dr. Strange, who was having a one night stand... for some reason. The good Dr. has never struck me as someone who was terribly interested in such endeavors, being so logical. He is then approached by Hulk, who, for some who generally grunts all of his wants and refers to himself in third person frequently, is very articulate, seeming on the same level of vocabulary as the likes of Iron Man. Not only that, but he actually requests help rather than fight as hard as he could to prove himself to be the best. We continue to meet the various other individuals of the team, all of which are not themselves, especially Danny Rand, who comes off more as a Bruce Wayne sort of figure than anything else, which is really odd and off-putting.
The dialogue is incredibly awkward, especially late in the issue when Fraction plays at narrating some of the actions. And, though the art is great, bringing us some really cool depictions of Namor and She-Hulk, nothing can really save such poor writing. Go find something that gets the characters right.
