Black Badge, the comic book about the spy scouts, has been collected into Volume One by BOOM Studios. And it is a marvelous read!
Writer Matt Kindt, illustrator Tyler Jenkins, and colourist Hilary Jenkins, the Eisner Award-nominated team behind Grass Kings, have a fun concept here with Black Badge. The Badge, supposedly the ultimate Scout badge, is the pinnacle award in the long list of badges that can be earned by Scouts. It’s also the name of this top-secret branch of Scouts. But the scouts in this storyline are no ordinary boys. They have special spy skills that allow them to excel at espionage. As long as they can survive by their wits alone.
This trade collects the first four chapters in the Black Badge series. And it’s so readable. Cast off your preconceptions about a series involving boy scout spies. This is well written with an eye to dialogue, timing, and atmosphere. The art is minimalist but in a good way. We are not seeing every leaf on the tree, or every crack in the sidewalk; instead, just what is essential to bring us a sequential comic at its most stripped down. The panels lead us effortlessly through adventures in North Korea, snowbound Siberia, and more.
Bonus content here in addition to the four chapters include cover art, original script pages, logo designs, and rough sketches. Recommended.
BOOM Comics, Black Badge Vol 1, HC, $29.99 for 136 pages, not rated assume Everyone, All Ages.
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