Comic Vine Review

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The Bionic Man #1 - Chapter 1: Flight of the Daedalus

4

The creative team that brought us the return of the Green Hornet use their skills to revive the Bionic Man. Easy for new and old readers to jump into, this updated retelling of the character's origin looks to be off to a great start.

The Bionic Man is here for a new generation and the issue begins with a bloody bang.

The Good

Kevin Smith provided the story, the script is by Smith and Phil Hester and the art is by Jonathan Lau. This is the same team behind Green Hornet. I was a fan of the original Lee Majors TV series and was excited about this relaunch. I have to admit I had some doubts as to whether or not it could be updated enough to work while still retaining the feel of the original.

Despite my recollection of watching the show as a child, I can't recall we got to see Colonel Steve Austin before he became the Bionic Man. I remember the opening credits showing his origin. Here we do get to see who he is before any changes occur. That was a nice touch as it says a lot about the character seeing who they were and how they adapt to any changes.

Jonathan Lau's art is always great to look at. Along with Hester's writing, it's what made me read Green Hornet despite not being the biggest Green Hornet fan in the world. The opening scene serves to deliver some action to kick off the series while also setting up what we can assume will be the mystery villain we'll be seeing more later.

The Bad

Steve Austin was a test pilot. I have to say he comes across as a jerkier version of Hal Jordan. Yes there are people that joke around all the time and can be a bit arrogant but having someone try cracking jokes all the time makes it feel like a sit-com. But that's all part of the set up. It leaves you wondering how the changes Austin is about to go through will affect his personality.

I was a little on the fence with the telling of his origin. A lot of people know the story. Things will get changed or updated. It is good to see the background before jumping straight into the action but except for a few scenes of action, this is more of a build up in the story. Not a completely bad thing but when you look at the covers seeing the Bionic Man in action, it's what you might expect to see.

The Verdict

The Bionic Man is officially here. Leave it to Dynamite Entertainment along with Kevin Smith, Phil Hester and Jonathan Lau to revive the almost forgotten character. You can see from this issue that this isn't just going to be a comic about a bionic man. Time is spent to give us the backstory of Colonel Steve Austin, allowing us to see who he was before whatever causes him to become transformed. While his character does come across as a more annoying Hal Jordan/test pilot, it could provide some interesting contrast to see if that personality remains once his life is torn apart. Lau's art is great to see along with Ivan Nunes' colors. If you've seen Lau's art in the Green Hornet, you know what a treat this will be. Besides the origin of the Bionic Man, we also have some mystery that will come back in later issues and look to turn things completely sideways. As a first issue, it's a little light on the action but this is because the story has to be set up. And to make up for that, we do get a bit of suspense to keep you on edge until the second issue.