"Putting on a mask and helping people isn't impossible...you'd think all these guys talking about it online every day, at least one would give it a try..." says the adolescent protagonist of Mark Millar's latest comic book series Kick-Ass, apparently unaware of the activities of real-life vigilantes. His obsession with superheroes leads him to imitate their conduct: He works-out to improve his body, dons a costume and mask, and goes on nightly patrols looking to fight crime, yielding predictably disastrous results.
Set not in a fantastic superhero universe, but a facsimile of the mundane world, this is a fairly unpleasant story of a very unlikable character. Dave Lizewski is a lonely, depressed person seriously out of touch with reality. In his first foray into crime-fighting, he antagonizes a trio of black teenagers by calling them "homos" - Not the smartest thing a skinny, short, white kid should be saying to a group of African-Americans. In his second effort he fights a group of Puerto-Ricans adults. His excuse for repeating such self-destructive behavior? "The beast was friggin' in me, man." Expect plenty of swearing and random pop-culture references that usually passes for witty dialogue in a Millar comic. John Romita Jr.'s art is good, but perhaps a little too cartoony to evoke the gritty, urban, atmosphere the story seems to be demanding.
Mark Millar's fans might enjoy this series, but so far, aside from the art, I can't find anything here worth pursuing.
