Review by C.J. Bunce
World War II is definitely a theme in popular culture these days. Only in the past week we had a preview of Archie 1941, then a preview for Season 3 of The Man in the High Castle, and now a 1941 story featuring everyone’s favorite master spy. James Bond is a young man trying to survive the Clydesbank Blitz in Scotland in the first origin tale of Bond years before his memorable stint in Her Majesty’s Secret Service in the new comic book series Ian Fleming’s James Bond Origin. Issue #1 arrives Wednesday at comic book stores everywhere. We meet the orphan Bond as a young adult, eager to learn more about his parents, already able to teach fellow students a course in judo, and eager to grab onto the coattails and seek the advice of the professors he has access to.
Written by Jeff Parker (Suicide Squad, Fantastic Four) with artwork by Bob Q (The Lone Ranger) and lettering by Simon Bowland (Plastic Man), the first issue of the story has the same feel of an untouchable oppressor from the sky as H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds. Full of the action level we know from the Bond movies, the story is waiting for the hero to step in and take over. How is James Bond of March 11, 1941 different than the Bond with the 00 status? He has some rudimentary skills, he has the desire to learn, but he doesn’t have the confidence just yet.
The Clydesbank Blitz is the most destructive attack by the Germans on Scotland, and Bond finds himself right in the middle of it. The new series will be released this week with seven cover variants, with artwork by artists John Cassaday, David Mack, Kev Walker, Gene Ha, Ibrahim Moustafa, and Bob Q with Jordan Boyd.
Check out a preview from Issue #1 and all the covers (above and below):
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