Same old Wick, but something's missing.
It's tough to think of a recent action movie franchise better suited for the comic book treatment than John Wick. The first two films are practically comic book movies anyway, what with their extreme displays of violence and colorful sense of pageantry. There's ample room for a spinoff that explores how John Wick came to be that fearsome destroyer of men he is in the films. Unfortunately, the first issue casts doubt on whether this series can actually make good on that promise.
This series serves as a prequel to the films, unfolding back in a time when Mr. Wick is a rough around the edges freelancer still new to the ways of the underground assassin community. In addition to following his rise up the ranks, this comic also aims to flesh out his childhood as a reckless street urchin in Baja California. Sadly, the latter element is almost entirely superfluous. The interplay between recent past and distant past isn't handled very elegantly, and those brief childhood scenes don't wind up telling us very much about the character.
At least writer Greg Pak channels the tone and cadence of the movies with the rest of his script. His John Wick certainly sounds like Keanu Reeves - a gruff man content to exist in his own, quiet little world until forced to take action. Though that raises another problem - a much as this version of John looks and acts and fights like the movie version, how much room for character growth is there, exactly? We're supposed to witness the rise of a killer, but it's as if John sprung from the assassin's womb fully formed and already cranky as hell. It remains to be seen how much of an actual character arc this book is going to have.
The John Wick movies are, above all, visual stunners that make the most of color and framing and great camera work. It's difficult to understand why so little of that carried over to the comic. Artist Giovanni Valletta succeeds in capturing Reeves' likeness, but that's about it. The rest of the book is plagued by muddled visuals and murky, indistinct environments. Too often, the book has a very unfinished quality, as if the art is intended to serve as loose layouts to be fleshed out later on. It's all the more disappointing because Valletta's cover art looks great. But the interior art doesn't come close to living up to that standard. Frankly, if a John Wick comic can't capture at least some of the visceral appeal of the movies, there's really no point in bothering.
The Verdict
It's disappointing to see such a promising prequel comic stumble so hard in its debut. In some ways, John Wick #1 succeeds in capturing the tone and voice of the films. However, as a result, there's little sense of this version of Mr. Wick being fundamentally different or less experienced than his movie self. Even a "by the books" John Wick adventure would be fine so long as it replicated the stylish appeal of the films, but the loose, poorly defined artwork in this issue can't manage that feat.
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