Captain Midnight #11

By Joshua Williamson, Fernando Dagnino & Javier Mena

Captain Midnight has been one of Dark Horse Comics’ strongest series since its launch and penned by Joshua Williamson, #11 didn’t disappoint, proving to be a fast paced, action blockbuster that continues the start of the Project Black Sky Event – with the flagship Dark Horse superhero comic being the best month after month – so if you don’t like the Captain America run and want pulpy superhero comics, or enjoy Remender’s take on the superhero but want something different, then Captain Midnight is your best bet – it manages to have enough differences to avoid being a rip-off, but at the same time familiar and entertaining.

This issue concludes the third part of For a Better Tomorrow and as a result it’s something that works very well. The friendship between Captain Midnight – Jim Albright, and his long-term partner Chuck Ramsey – has changed, and this is the point where everything comes to its head. Jim’s a flawed character and vulnerable here, however – as things are slowly moving into crossover phrase with the bulk of Project Black Sky just around the corner – it should be very interesting to see what lies in store for the heroes and villains in this book. Don’t expect it to be pretty though – we’ve already had plenty of deaths and this is a bloodbath, delivering one of the greatest moments of the comic so far with an epic fight scene between Helios and Captain Midnight over the skies of Seattle.

The artwork is handled by Fernando Dagnino and it’s executed very well, with a great pulpy feel that blends classic with modern day violence. His artwork is strong and confident, and he’s the perfect artist to helm a comic like this – especially when enhanced by the strong colours of Javier Mena, who does not disappoint – creating a great atmospheric feel to the book.

The supporting cast of Captain Midnight are continuing to develop in this book as well – with Joshua Williamson making them standout from Chuck and Joyce very well – and speaking of the latter, we get to know her whereabouts now and why she wasn’t present for the main conflict of last issue – and it’s something that is handled very well.

All in all then, Captain Midnight #11 is one of the best issues yet, and it’s one of the strongest series that nobody seems to be reading. Joshua Williamson is putting out a great book month after month – and there are barely any missteps in this issue in particular – so it comes highly recommended as one of the best superhero comics that Dark Horse has given us all year.