The title may put one in mind of the recent Jackie Chan/Jennifer Love Hewitt film, The Tuxedo, but it actually reminds me much more of DC's Silver Age Green Lantern and Marvel's original Spider-Man stories. The super-hero elements are mixed with some strong manga influences, not the least of which is detailed techno-organic plot elements. Overall, though, this is just a fun read and a great title with which to introduce new readers to the world of comics.
An alien race called the Geldarians are at war with the Kresh, and a conflict forces a Geldarian ship to crash-land on Earth. And in Average Town America, a teenager named Zack Thompson happens upon the wreckage, where he's about to discover something amazing. Meanwhile, his father is having troubles with shady characters at his hardware store.
Su's artwork strikes me as a cross between traditional manga visuals and Scott (The Flash) Kolins's more stark, detailed style. I'm pleased to see that Su manages to capture youth quite well; Zack and the other teens don't just look like slightly shorter adults. There's an innocence to them as well. The lettering is sharp as well; I love the dual caption approach to convey alien language. The colors are appropriately bright and reinforce the energy of the sci-fi battles in space nicely.
Kirkman's story is a fairly formulaic one. At this early point in the series, he explores some pretty familiar territory. Tech Jacket falls into the archetypical super-hero origin elements pretty neatly; it's like Peter Parker meets Hal Jordan. Mind you, just because the book doesn't really offer anything new doesn't mean it's not entertaining. The book has a lot of personality. The sci-fi elements are well thought out, and it's easy to relate to Zack's everyteen appeal.
Overall, Kirkman and Su deliver a light, entertaining read that hints at greater complexities to come. It's a fairly standard but fun super-hero origin story that should appeal to younger readers as well. This would be an excellent gateway into the world of super-hero comics for kids come Christmas time.
Note: Some of the comments in this review were reproduced from a previous feature on the website.
