Colleen Wing and Misty Knight have been lurking around the Marvel Universe since the 1970s, and generally, they've been seen as the gal=pal sidekicks to buddy hero team Power Man and Iron Fist. Here, writers Jimmy Palmiotti and Justin Gray try to set that sidekick perception aside and establish that these women are heroines in their own right. They succeed in part, but they also seem to go too far with that effort, making no mention of the characters' place in the Marvel Universe or why Marvel readers -- especially newer ones unfamiliar with them -- should care who they are. This is a Jerry Bruckheimer action flick set to paper, and it succeeds in offering over-the-top, kewl action and zippy banter, but anyone looking for any greater depth will be disappointed.
Bail bonds and the people who issue them are an integral part of the American justice system, but when a super-villain needs to post bail, that can be a bit much for most bail bondsmen. Enter Misty Knight and Colleen Wing, sometimes known as the Daughters of the Dragon. Colleen's ninja abilities and Misty's super-strong bionic arm allows them to chase down any superhuman clients who may cross them, and the latest to do so is a fellow who's tangled with Spider-Man too many times to count. Meanwhile, a quartet of B-list villains pull off a heist that's about to land them -- and the Daughters of the Dragon -- in a bloody mess of trouble.
Evans's name is a new one to me, but the style's similar to Billy (X-23, Marvel Knights Spider-Man) Tan's and Sonny (My Faith in Frankie) Liew's. The artist brings an impressive level of detail to bear here, and he conveys the extreme action and the heroines' acrobatics with seeming ease. Unfortunately, his vision of human anatomy is a distorted one. The title characters always appear to be contorting their bodies, and human beings never look completely human. The style suits the more over-the-top characters, but not all.
OK, I get that we need to see these characters as the protagonists, not as the supporting cast members they used to be, but the writers seem to go out of their to gloss over their history. They also fail to let us know who these women are, how they came to be in this line of work and why they choose to continue. There's little in the way of characterization to be found in this debut issue.
On the other hand, the main plot -- which emerges after an extended action sequence that shows off the heroines' abilities -- is actually rather intriguing. I like how the small-timer super-villains are portrayed, and a surprisingly dark and creepy atmosphere really grabs hold of the reader in the final pages of the issue. The overall tone of the script is light, though, and the playfulness in the dialogue is fun. Fans of Cable/Deadpool will no doubt enjoy this title as well. 5/10
