Mooney has some real problems with faces. They’re way, way too static. He’s usually strong with detail and body language–though the double-page spreads recounting super spy behavior (with only the “hero” wearing a mask so it really is just him being a dork) are overkill.
Not a lot happens in the issue. The sheriff deals with the hiker. The teenage girls wonder what’s going on; turns out one of their mom’s is a former spy with a history with the sheriff. And knows what’s going on in the town. And is more in charge than the sheriff.
There are a couple surprises, with the second one being what seems to be a big ol’ twist, and Higgins handles it all quite well. The comic would read better if Mooney could do the talking heads without the characters overacting, but Dead Hand still has a strong hook to keep interest.
The way the issue ends, however, gives no clue as to where the book is going, which is fine… just strange given it’s a limited. Kind of a soft boot.
Mooney has some real problems with faces. They’re way, way too static. He’s usually strong with detail and body language–though the double-page spreads recounting super spy behavior (with only the “hero” wearing a mask so it really is just him being a dork) are overkill.
Writer Kyle Higgins likes his big concepts. The Dead Hand has a big concept, though that concept isn’t entirely clear yet. In fact, Higgins does some slight of hand to distract from things–though he forecasts the twist just before revealing it, a little too much of the hand showing. Most of the issue is some “rah rah” nonsense with an American CIA agent.
Mooney brings Half Past Danger to a reasonably good conclusion, though the whole thing just feels like a setup for a sequel series. Hopefully, if Mooney does a sequel, it won’t end with a setup for another series.
About half the issue is a submarine adventure, which is very cool. Mooney sure does figure out how to work all sorts of genres into a comic about dinosaurs (there actually aren’t any dinosaurs visible in this issue).
Big surprise this issue. Mooney’s apparently real good at not painfully foreshadowing.
Mooney gets a little rushed on a few pages. He brings it all together for the big finale though–how has no one thought of ninjas versus Nazis before? You’d think it would be its own genre.
Not only does Mooney up the ante with a ninja, he gives him a camouflage outfit out of “G.I. Joe.” It’s strange but cool, just like all of Half Past Danger.
I’m really impressed. I’d never even heard of Stephen Mooney before Half Past Danger–I hadn’t heard of him so much I thought the names were separate (based on the cover credit). I’m shocked to see it’s just one guy doing this comic and one I haven’t heard of.