Savage Avengers #17
Publisher: Marvel
Writers: Gerry Dugan
Artists: Kev Walker
Colors: Java Tartaglia
Letters: Travis Lanham
Cover: Valerio Giangiordano & Frank D’Armata
With every huge comic event also comes the inevitable tie-in issues; King in Black is no exception. It’s symbiote-infested story has found it’s way into the pages of Savage Avengers, along with a team-up you never saw coming, but the creative team makes sure it’s one that you’ll actually enjoy.
You’re brought up to speed pretty quickly as Conan and Deadpool are on Rykers in the middle of the attack from Knull’s symbiote minions. The great part is that Dugan makes sure that you don’t have to know anything regarding the event to have fun with this. He writes a Deadpool that walks the fine line of comedy and subtle fourth wall breaks without distracting from the story. His Conan is entertaining and the callback to his obsession over Wolverine’s “sneak blades” was great. The story picks up during the actual prison escape which is disgustingly hilarious and where the identity of the guy with the perfect opening line for this issue is revealed. He’s a character who hasn’t been around for some time but hopefully Dugan has some plans for him to stick around a bit after this. By the time we get back to more action with the symbiotes, Dugan drops a cliffhanger that goes back to the first story arc and hints for big changes for Conan.
The visuals from Walker and Tartaglia bring everything together while making full use of minimal location changes. Since most of the story takes place in Rykers Island, Tartaglia’s colors reflect the drab atmosphere and mood of the prison and the outside world that’s under attack from Knull’s forces. Walker’s visual storytelling heighten Dugan’s narrative and keeps it moving at a smooth pace. One example is the escape which is pretty gross but it’s what you don’t see that adds to the comedy of the sequence. Well, that and the reactions from the other captives who see Deadpool’s entrails and broken bones.
The creative team does just enough to touch on the event but the big payoff here is for Conan fans and those who like crazy team-ups. So regardless of how you feel about the King in Black event taking place, this is a tie-in actually worth the time and money.
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