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| Pre-Order Cover by Guisseppe Cammuncoli |
WRITING
Max Bemis may be a rock star--literally--but he's also written comics for Boom!, Avatar, Dynamite, and Marvel. Some of his stories spring with his own battles with Bipolar Disorder. I don't know if you could classify Kevin Sauvage as Bipolar, but it doesn't take a genius to recognize that given his upbringing, he would find it difficult to come to grips with modern London.
In fact, lots of people find it difficult to deal with life in London. It's easy to get lost, and disconnected in a big city. This is especially true in the winter, when it's cold and it gets dark mid-afternoon.
By
now you've got a general sense of Max's story. Take a second look at
Kevin's profile on social media. If you read the previous series of Savage, you
know it's not completely true. But this short paragraph is simple to
understand. It focuses on Kevin's daily life-and-death struggle with
dinosaurs. This little lie in presentation shows how Kevin is being
coached in his usage of social media and presentation.
Also, the very
British term "Bugger off" seems a bit of a pose. It strikes me as a "Hey, I'm cool. If
you don't like me, too bad," sort of statement. Or, if you prefer, something to enhance his Savage appeal.
I get the feeling that Kevin's had about as much programming from his manager as he can take. The man senses he's losing his hold on his young charge, and is trying to reassert his power in the relationship by underlining how much Kevin needs him.
There's a little discontinuity here, as in the previous series his mother was shown representing his father. But people like professional sportsmen often have a bevy of people surrounding them, each representing different interests. Take, for example, a suggestion later that Kevin may have produced, or otherwise been involved with an album since coming to London. If so, he would have enlisted several folks in the music industry to help him out with this.
This advisor lists his specialty as "Life Coach" and "Brand Manager." It's safe to say Kevin would have other advisors as well.
Here's another example of how the manager is promoting Kevin. He's mixing truth with lies to create a fantasy version of Kevin's childhood. Not only does he acknowledge this, but every subsequent dialogue balloon shows this. His father was a capable but fading talent. The manager focuses exclusively on Kevin's father, while his mother had far more influence over their son. Kevin can't talk with animals, wasn't raised by animals, and Mowgli didn't go around killing every predatory animal in sight. And while Kevin has skills and ability, he's certainly no superman.
Kevin's expression suggests to me that the man's lies are really weighing him down. He's tired of living a lie.
Die-hard lovers of the previous series will have a problem with the second half of this story. I warn you: this new Savage #1 takes a very definite left-turn. In order to really enjoy it, leave all your preconceptions about the previous series behind.
Even with the preview pages, I was taken aback by the entirety of Max Bemis' story. Savage #1 suddenly veers from one type of story to another. Some people will like this abrupt change of direction. Others won't. I won't give the game away. I'll just say that Savage #1 takes on the form of a genre of film that rhymes with "Bless you."
Oh, and if you notice the names of Kevin's followers, you'll realize that Senior Editor Heather Antos was building this up to this major plot development from the inside front cover.
CONCLUSION
This new Savage #1 is nothing like its predecessor. If only a direct sequel will do, you're out of luck. But if you like London, dinosaurs, a certain genre of film, and are in the mood for some zany fun, then this new Savage series might be for you.
Hold on, and get ready for a wild ride.
Dragon Dave
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