Dynamite's Bond comics and graphic novels

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  • NickTwentyTwoNickTwentyTwo Vancouver, BC, Canada
    edited August 2022 Posts: 7,518
    Originally I planned to wait until the hardcovers of these stories came out, and add them to my collection that way. But I've missed a few now, and these are basically becoming one of the extremely few affordable Bond items currently being released that I'm not adding to the collection anymore. Either the comic book format just doesn't work for Bond, or no one who has tried it has really pulled it off in a way that makes these essential. IMO the art was best when Jason Masters was drawing.

    If they ever do any more Fleming adaptions in this format, though, I will be getting those. Fingers crossed for Moonraker.
  • MaxCasinoMaxCasino United States
    Posts: 4,049
    Originally I planned to wait until the hardcovers of these stories came out, and add them to my collection that way. But I've missed a few now, and these are basically becoming one of the extremely few affordable Bond items currently being released that I'm not adding to the collection anymore. Either the comic book format just doesn't work for Bond, or no one who has tried it has really pulled it off in a way that makes these essential. IMO the art was best when Jason Masters was drawing.

    If they ever do any more Fleming adaptions in this format, though, I will be getting those. Fingers crossed for Moonraker.

    Agreed 100%.
  • edited September 2022 Posts: 3,564
    Just read issue # 2 of 007 and I've got to say, so far this is one of the better runs in Dynamite's Bond comic series. The storyline is both original and "classic Bond," and for a the first time in too long I'm truly interested in seeing where it goes next. Myrmidon seems to be the sort of organization the Bond comics series has been needing for awhile: Spectre-ish but still unique in its own goals and practices. Agent 003 is a character I wish we'd seen before -- and it seems a shame that we won't be seeing her in the future. (If she does manage a comeback somehow, I won't be surprised -- she's too interesting a character to lose this way!) And of course, it's always a treat to see the 00 section assembled, even if it's only to say farewell to one of their own. Suffice to say, I hope Phillip Kennedy Johnson is able to sign on to this series for more than a single story arc! What's he's given us so far is classic stuff!

    Art-wise, Marco Finnegan's storytelling is clear if a little undistinguished. His inking is a bit boldly plain for my tastes. Maybe I just want to see a more detailed finish to these books, as a way of trying to capture the glamour that the Bond series requires (in my own mind, at any rate.) The coloring by Dearbhla Kelly is likewise a bit nondescript for my tastes. Can we try to bring a little more polish to the look of this series? The storyline at least is finally more to my liking -- now if only the visual aspect of these comics can likewise be brought up a few notches!
  • NickTwentyTwoNickTwentyTwo Vancouver, BC, Canada
    Posts: 7,518
    Thanks for the review, might have to check this one out.
  • Posts: 5,772
    Here's the sollicitation for the fifth issue of 007 :
    A few years ago, a dictator ordered his government to kill James Bond. Today, Bond is assigned to protect that dictator, during his stay in London. Little does the dictator realize that Bond is also assigned to kill the dictator...

    And a few covers :

    STL250572.jpg

    STL250574.jpg

    STL250575.jpg
  • SIS_HQSIS_HQ At the Vauxhall Headquarters
    edited September 2022 Posts: 3,382
    Not a fan of these two covers.
    Gerard wrote: »

    STL250572.jpg

    STL250574.jpg


    Except this one, I really liked this one.
    Gerard wrote: »
    STL250575.jpg

  • Bondfan68Bondfan68 Columbus, GA USA
    Posts: 14
    I like the Dynamite comics but I wish the art was as good as the stories.
  • Posts: 123
    How's 007 #3? Haven't seen anyone talk about it yet.
  • Bondfan68 wrote: »
    I like the Dynamite comics but I wish the art was as good as the stories.
    coco1997 wrote: »
    How's 007 #3? Haven't seen anyone talk about it yet.

    I'm liking this run of the 007 comic book quite a bit, actually. I do wish there were fewer storylines (not just in the comic but in Bond films as well) putting Bond in conflict with MI6 -- but I suppose that has more to do with the zeitgeist of our times and the general distrust of authority that is so prevalent today. Art-wise, I agree with @Bondfan68 -- this series' editors seem to like a "jagged edge" approach to the artwork (empasizing the abrupt turns that Bond's lifestyle can take) and I'd prefer a smoother look overall (to put the accent on the glamour that should be an integral part of Bond's presentation in any format.) They've had a few variant covers by Jackson Guice, and his work on Nick Fury, Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D. is just the sort of approach I'd prefer for this title. Still, the book is looking/reading quite nicely overall. I'm a little concerned that the lack of discussion in this topic thread indicates that our community has lost interest in Dynamite's 007 -- which does not bode well for the future of this book. Somebody, anybody, prove me wrong!

  • mrlynxmrlynx Maine
    Posts: 57
    @BeatlesSansEarmuffs I too am a fan of the Dynamite series. Like the film series, there are a high highs and more than a few missteps, but an overall enjoyable series that fills the long gaps between films. I think many of us wait for the hardcover collections (which look pretty handsome on the shelf) which seem to be delayed quite often. I'm still waiting on "Agent of Spectre" and that series ended a year or so ago.

  • I understand that many do prefer waiting for the collected volumes. For myself: individual issues sometimes appreciate in "value." Collections do not. From 2015-2020 I supplemented my faltering income by selling old comics. I was buying Marvels off the stands back in the '60s. I don't want to go too deeply into the topic but suffice to say: Spider-Man and the X-Men et al. paid my bills not too long ago. I don't anticipate Dynamite's Bond series giving me quite that rate of return but still: I like the floppies. I support the floppies when I can.
  • DarthDimiDarthDimi Behind you!Moderator
    Posts: 23,448
    I understand that many do prefer waiting for the collected volumes. For myself: individual issues sometimes appreciate in "value." Collections do not. From 2015-2020 I supplemented my faltering income by selling old comics. I was buying Marvels off the stands back in the '60s. I don't want to go too deeply into the topic but suffice to say: Spider-Man and the X-Men et al. paid my bills not too long ago. I don't anticipate Dynamite's Bond series giving me quite that rate of return but still: I like the floppies. I support the floppies when I can.

    So do I. I like to hold a single issue in my hands and gently stroke the paper as I turn a page of that seemingly feeble and vulnerable booklet. TPs are often clumsy (when too thick) or suffer from poor bonding so that pages start falling out, and panels sometimes drown in the inside edges of the book. I buy TPs when they are the only printed version of a comic still available. But only then.

    Also, I refuse to go digital with my comics.
  • ImpertinentGoonImpertinentGoon Everybody needs a hobby.
    Posts: 1,351
    On the flipside, I exclusively read comics digitally and the death of Comixology by the hands of Amazon has just totally messed up my comic reading and basically halted it almost completely. If I didn't follow this thread, I would jus totally forget that these comics exist. Your positive mentions make want to check out the two issues I haven't read yet, so I might do that and report back.
  • On the flipside, I exclusively read comics digitally and the death of Comixology by the hands of Amazon has just totally messed up my comic reading and basically halted it almost completely. If I didn't follow this thread, I would jus totally forget that these comics exist. Your positive mentions make want to check out the two issues I haven't read yet, so I might do that and report back.

    Please do, I'll be interested in hearing what you have to say.
  • NickTwentyTwoNickTwentyTwo Vancouver, BC, Canada
    Posts: 7,518
    On the flipside, I exclusively read comics digitally and the death of Comixology by the hands of Amazon has just totally messed up my comic reading and basically halted it almost completely. If I didn't follow this thread, I would jus totally forget that these comics exist. Your positive mentions make want to check out the two issues I haven't read yet, so I might do that and report back.

    I expect a full report on my desk ASAP, 00IG.
  • ImpertinentGoonImpertinentGoon Everybody needs a hobby.
    Posts: 1,351
    This is good. The story is. The art, I still don't really like, but it's not a hindrance.
    It's far from perfect and #3 is a small step down, but still the best series in quite some time.
    #2:
    I don't know how "Flemingesque" it is, but I love the 00s meeting and telling stories, hinting at a larger world. I feel like that has been missing for a while.

    I also like at least the allusion early on (let's see where this is going) of the idea of a grey MI6 being more complicated than: One actor is bad. Bond rumbles them. Everything is fine again. This is more complex. There's hints at the 00s seeing themselves slightly outside of MI6, which makes sense given what they are and how often Bond goes rogue. But there's also acknowledgement that this isn't ideal. (Although @BeatlesSansEarmuffs' point stands that we don't need quite as many Bond against MI6 stories.)

    The fight with the goon at Bond's apartment is great. Bit on the nose with the "old vs. new" stuff, but well done nonetheless. Good up and down and back and forth in just a couple of pages. And it hints at some more being up with Myrmidon than just a regular paramilitary organisation.

    (I'm quite sure a diplomatic attaché is a person and not an institution. So terrorists taking "a whole diplomatic attaché hostage" is a funny turn of phrase)

    #3:
    Kind of hard to follow the dialogue with first no art and then a lot of perspective changes and off-panel dialogue. I am pretty sure one speech bubble is rendered to the wrong person. The gist of the conversation is clear, I suppose.

    "We have to rid the world of amoral leaders by all means necessary" is a tired trope. The story about Philip I and the doctor is nice, though.

    A villain with Marfan syndrome (I guess that's what Fromm has) is a nice touch. All villains needing a physical deformity is too clichéd at this point, however.

    Myrmidon seems unnecessarily muddled. It's a super-soldier programme like in VARGR, but it's also a private intelligence agency like SPECTRE, but it's also a surveillance aparatus like SPECTRE from the film SPECTRE?

    Coming back to the fragment of a story Bond told in #2 is good, but it narrows the world again. The one mission of hers that has stayed with him is also the one on which this new plot hinges? Always a bit too convenient, but I guess you have to get your story beats in in such a short run..

    Also, I am happy to report that the Amazon Comics experience has gotten slightly better. Still a lot worse than the old comixology, but slightly more manageable. Either I just didn't find this before, or they've added series' being a thing, so you can now read and buy issued that are of one series more easily.
  • CharmianBondCharmianBond Pett Bottom, Kent
    Posts: 533
    Great write up @ImpertinentGoon, I agree with every word. I read #3 a few days ago, I think this shaping up as a really solid run. While I don't love the art style, I don't think it detracts from the story.
  • Thanks for the report, @IG. I'm glad the Amazon Comics availability has improved; it's not MY prefered method of comics consumption, but each to their own! (Does anyone have any idea how the $ generated through online readership translates into income for the publisher and creators involved? This is an important topic for those who want to see the line continue...)
  • ImpertinentGoonImpertinentGoon Everybody needs a hobby.
    Posts: 1,351
    Thanks for the report, @IG. I'm glad the Amazon Comics availability has improved; it's not MY prefered method of comics consumption, but each to their own! (Does anyone have any idea how the $ generated through online readership translates into income for the publisher and creators involved? This is an important topic for those who want to see the line continue...)

    Frankly, I don’t have a clue. I paid 2,45€ for one and 3,36€ for the other issue. No idea what they would cost in print. Given what we know about Amazon‘s business practices, I can’t imagine it’s a great deal for the publisher, let alone the artists, but more of a „damned if you don’t“ situation.
  • Posts: 5,772
    Thanks again to Previews World, here are the covers and the synopsis for issue # 6 of 007 :
    The Myrmidons are unloosed. The traitorous mole is revealed. Bond and Rook fight to the death.

    STL254321.jpg

    STL254322.jpg

    STL254323.jpg

    STL254324.jpg
  • CharmianBondCharmianBond Pett Bottom, Kent
    Posts: 533
    I love that Laming cover. Also that last cover the artist so clearly used the photo of Craig and Patrice's fight on the train as reference which I find quite neat.
  • Posts: 123
    Anyone read 007 #4 yet?
  • CharmianBondCharmianBond Pett Bottom, Kent
    Posts: 533
    coco1997 wrote: »
    Anyone read 007 #4 yet?

    Comes out next week according to Forbidden Planet, although sometimes they seem to be a few weeks behind everyone else. Anyway the short answer is no, not yet.
  • Posts: 123
    coco1997 wrote: »
    Anyone read 007 #4 yet?

    Comes out next week according to Forbidden Planet, although sometimes they seem to be a few weeks behind everyone else. Anyway the short answer is no, not yet.

    Weird, the Dynamite website says it came out yesterday. Someone must have forgotten to update it.
  • NickTwentyTwoNickTwentyTwo Vancouver, BC, Canada
    Posts: 7,518
    Looking forward to buying Agent of Spectre in hardcover soon. Not sure if they botched it or not but the premise is too good to pass up; it’ll be the first thing from Dynamite I’ve bought in awhile.
  • Looking forward to buying Agent of Spectre in hardcover soon. Not sure if they botched it or not but the premise is too good to pass up; it’ll be the first thing from Dynamite I’ve bought in awhile.

    Let us know what you think when you read it! I'm on the fence about that one. But this latest one, the imaginatively titled 007, sounds like people are digging it.
  • ImpertinentGoonImpertinentGoon Everybody needs a hobby.
    Posts: 1,351
    coco1997 wrote: »
    coco1997 wrote: »
    Anyone read 007 #4 yet?

    Comes out next week according to Forbidden Planet, although sometimes they seem to be a few weeks behind everyone else. Anyway the short answer is no, not yet.

    Weird, the Dynamite website says it came out yesterday. Someone must have forgotten to update it.

    Amazon/Comixology Germany only has it for 30 November. Strange.
  • RichardTheBruceRichardTheBruce I'm motivated by my Duty.
    Posts: 12,914
    coco1997 wrote: »
    coco1997 wrote: »
    Anyone read 007 #4 yet?

    Comes out next week according to Forbidden Planet, although sometimes they seem to be a few weeks behind everyone else. Anyway the short answer is no, not yet.

    Weird, the Dynamite website says it came out yesterday. Someone must have forgotten to update it.

    Amazon/Comixology Germany only has it for 30 November. Strange.

    Yeah I see both. Standing by to update On This Day discussion, my thinking is 30 November is correct. But also don't understand Dynamite not being the reliable source.


    Again, talking about 007 #4.
    DynamiteEntertainmentLogo.jpg
    007 #4
    Rating: Teen+
    Cover A: Tommy Lee Edwards
    Cover B: Marc Aspinall
    Cover C: Marc Laming
    Cover D: Soo Lee
    Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
    Artist: Marco Finnegan
    Genre: Spy Fiction / Action Adventure
    Publication Date: November
    Format: Comic book
    Page Count: 32
    ON SALE DATE: 11/9/22 [???]
    JAMES BOND HAS A NEW ASSIGNMENT: STEAL THE UNSTEALABLE!
    Faced with no choice, 007 must steal the impossible...
    TN0070404011AEdwards.jpg
    0070404011AEdwards.jpg
    0070404031CLaming.jpg
    0070404041DLee.jpg
    0070404051Eincen10EdwardsBW.jpg
    0070404061Fincen15LeeVirg.jpg
    0070404071Gincen20LamingVirg.jpg
    0070404091IEdwardsVirg.jpg
  • ImpertinentGoonImpertinentGoon Everybody needs a hobby.
    Posts: 1,351
    Just read #4.

    I hope this isn't too spoilery: It's mostly moving pieces for the finale, but in a very satisfying way I would say. A lot of tradecraft. It took me a few pages to remember what all this was anyway. It did that quite naturally, which was nice writing, I guess. It very much is like the action set-piece about 2/3 into a film. It's not the finale yet, but it sets the stage, shows off a bit and does a little bit of character exposition without being a heavily expository issue like #2 (I think that was the one with the 00s meeting, right?).

    If this is indeed only 5 issues, I do hope they have the writer on the hook for a second batch because I really can't see how he would tie off the main plot, the meta plot and the villain's overarching plot in just another 22 pages.
  • SIS_HQSIS_HQ At the Vauxhall Headquarters
    edited December 2022 Posts: 3,382
    Gerard wrote: »
    Thanks again to Previews World, here are the covers and the synopsis for issue # 6 of 007 :
    The Myrmidons are unloosed. The traitorous mole is revealed. Bond and Rook fight to the death.

    STL254321.jpg

    STL254322.jpg

    STL254323.jpg

    STL254324.jpg

    Out of all these Four? I liked the Third one.
    The rest I'm not a fan of.
    The Second one? Bond looked like a henchman in that chase 😅
    The last one? Reminds me of the Skyfall fight, but Bond does looked very young.
    coco1997 wrote: »
    coco1997 wrote: »
    Anyone read 007 #4 yet?

    Comes out next week according to Forbidden Planet, although sometimes they seem to be a few weeks behind everyone else. Anyway the short answer is no, not yet.

    Weird, the Dynamite website says it came out yesterday. Someone must have forgotten to update it.

    Amazon/Comixology Germany only has it for 30 November. Strange.

    Yeah I see both. Standing by to update On This Day discussion, my thinking is 30 November is correct. But also don't understand Dynamite not being the reliable source.


    Again, talking about 007 #4.
    DynamiteEntertainmentLogo.jpg
    007 #4
    Rating: Teen+
    Cover A: Tommy Lee Edwards
    Cover B: Marc Aspinall
    Cover C: Marc Laming
    Cover D: Soo Lee
    Writer: Phillip Kennedy Johnson
    Artist: Marco Finnegan
    Genre: Spy Fiction / Action Adventure
    Publication Date: November
    Format: Comic book
    Page Count: 32
    ON SALE DATE: 11/9/22 [???]
    JAMES BOND HAS A NEW ASSIGNMENT: STEAL THE UNSTEALABLE!
    Faced with no choice, 007 must steal the impossible...
    TN0070404011AEdwards.jpg
    0070404011AEdwards.jpg
    0070404031CLaming.jpg
    0070404041DLee.jpg
    0070404051Eincen10EdwardsBW.jpg
    0070404061Fincen15LeeVirg.jpg
    0070404071Gincen20LamingVirg.jpg
    0070404091IEdwardsVirg.jpg

    I liked the first and the last one, and I'm quite fond of the Third and Seventh picture (those two with the signature of Laming), but the rest in the middle, again, Bond looked like a bit of a teenager 😅.
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