It stuns people when I tell them I am not a fan of Tom King. I recognize the craft within his prose and admire the ideas behind many of his stories. However, I generally cannot work past King’s history of bending established characters to fit his plots in ways that do not work for me. It was for this reason that I went into Black Canary: Best of the Best #1 with an equal measure of anticipation and dread. I am happy to note, however, that while King’s excesses are on display, the flaws are few and far between.
The plot of Black Canary: Best of the Best is simple enough. Dinah Lance, recognized as the greatest martial artist among Earth’s superheroes, enters into a PPV MMA match with assassin Lady Shiva. This first issue details the first round of the fight and the color commentary upon it.
Between blows, we are treated to a series of flashbacks and asides. Most of these center around the relationship between Dinah Lance and her mother, Dinah Drake, the first Black Canary. We also get to see the Justice League holding a watch party for the fight.
This image is symbolic of the comic as a whole. I don’t know how much of this was described by King in the script and how much is the innovation of artist Ryan Sook. In any case, I love the idea of the World’s Finest heroes socializing and all the little character moments in the background.
However, I hate the image of Wonder Woman yawning at the sight of a friend being beaten up, And I have to wonder why Sue Dibny isn’t here alongside Elongated Man. The concept is good, but the execution is erratic.
Black Canary: Best of the Best is a Tom King story, for good and ill
As usual, King bends the characters to fit his story even if it makes little sense. It is odd, for instance, that the secretive Lady Shiva agreed to this incredibly public fight or that various law enforcement agencies didn’t try to arrest her at the weigh-in. Black Canary, thankfully, is given motivation beyond proving she is “best of the best.” Yet even that reason, once revealed, raises more questions than answers.
That being said, the scenes centered upon the two Dinahs are magical. We haven’t seen this mother/daughter relationship written so well since Waid and Augustyn’s JLA: Year One. As such, it is unfortunate that this story is firmly outside of continuity (Black Canary is said to come from Coupeville, Washington, rather than Gotham City).
While I may have issues with King’s plotting, I can find no fault in Sook’s art. Sook does a fantastic job of blocking and depicting the fight scenes. The level of detail throughout is fantastic, from the faces of the crowd watching the fight to every Easter egg hidden in the backgrounds.
In spite of my objections and questions, I enjoyed Black Canary: Best of the Best #1. Between Sook’s art and the examination of a long-neglected DC legacy, there is more good than bad here. Whatever else this book does, it captures the core of what makes Dinah Lance one of my favorite heroes.
Grade: 6/10
Black Canary: Best of the Best #1 is now available at comic shops everywhere.
