We've seen various incarnations of Dinah Lance, aka Black Canary — but we've never seen her as she appears in Black Canary #1, the character's first solo outing.
The title "Black Canary" doesn't belong to Dinah alone. Black Canary is actually a band that Dinah recently signed on with as lead singer. That's right — Black Canary is currently a team of people, with Dinah at the lead.
Of course, the only person in the band with real crime-fighting experience is Dinah, who already has a head for violence. The band faces criticism after its last few gigs go awry when Dinah takes on bad guys at each show, beating them up and leaving major property damage in her wake.
Indeed, it becomes such a problem that venues start canceling tour dates on Dinah and crew. But for some reason, violence always seems to follow Dinah (as has always been the case with the Black Canary character).
However, one particular member of the band, Ditto, has a secret — and it probably has something to do with her amazing guitar skills. Some monsters – related to this secret – show up to one of Black Canary's gigs, leaving Dinah with no choice but to apologize to the venue before unleashing her Canary Cry.
But what is this secret? And will Black Canary, the band, soon become Black Canary, the crime-fighting team?
Black Canary #1 comes with some solid writing by Brenden Fletcher. While the story is serious, Fletcher manages to infuse it with humor. Dinah is as we've always known her: serious and brooding and often violent, but there's a humanity in her words that lets us know she's still a sympathetic character.
The twist with Black Canary being the band in which Dinah sings is also interesting. After the end of this issue, we can see that how the band could become a group of rock n' rollers fighting villains. It's a different take on the Black Canary character and we're interested in seeing where Fletcher takes this story.
The artwork by Annie Wu beautifully portrays these sides of Dinah, too, with panels devoted to her as a shadowed figure — a lonely woman surrounded by people. The action panels at the end are especially exciting, showing us a fight scene as good as anything a big budget Hollywood movie could offer. Black Canary's costume is a throwback to the short leotard and fishnets she's often seen wearing in comics. The look is more realistic now that Dinah's a rock star.
To sum it up, Black Canary #1 is a good start to a new title and we can't wait to see what happens in future issues. Pick up the issue now at comic book stores or on ComiXology.
Story
★★★★★
Art
★★★★★
Overall
★★★★★
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