Now collected in hardcover, just in time for the feature-film adaptation, KICK-ASS is an adult-oriented comic that lives up to both its title and its hype. In terms of WTF moments and outrageous humor, Mark Millar out-WANTEDs WANTED with this superhero spoof.
The premise is that socially invisible teen Dave Lizewski wonders why no one in real life has ever dressed up to become a superhero like those in his beloved comic books. Out of sheer boredom, he orders a wetsuit on eBay and transforms himself into the do-gooder eventually known as Kick-Ass.
But first, he gets his ass royally kicked, and then hit by a car, landing him in the hospital for an extended stay and three metal plates in his head. The additions turn out to serve him well when he again dons his costume to fight crime, because he can take more blows to the noggin — 85 percent numbness and all.
The downside is that during his hiatus, Kick-Ass is no longer a novelty. There are a few other heroes on the scene, like the über-rich kid Red Mist, who cruises the streets listening to Danny Elfman scores, and most notably, Hit-Girl. Even though she’s only 10 and 1/4 years old, she’s quite stabby with the swords — an absolute lethal weapon. As Kick-Ass recalls, “She was like John Rambo meets Polly Pocket. Dakota Fanning crossed with DEATH WISH 4.”
As Kick-Ass teams up with them to take down a local mobster, KICK-ASS takes some dark twists and turns for which even the more outrageous scenes heretofore may not prepare you. As anyone familiar with WANTED knows, Millar likes to shock. I don’t think he does it just because he can, but because his material is written strictly in the spirit of doing so; some of them are designed to make you laugh, while others to make you squirm.
The gore goes down goofier with John Romita Jr. drawing it. Whereas J.G. Jones’ art in WANTED made the proceedings ugly, as if you wanted to shower afterward, there are panels when KICK-ASS looks like Romita is channeling MAD magazine’s Jack Davis. The whole thing is, yes, a comedy, and a rollicking, raunchy one at that. It’s big and cinematic, as if Millar already did the work for the screenwriters. If they followed it closely, they’ll have an instant cult classic on their hands.
Judging from Millar’s account of both the film and its source material, KICK ASS: CREATING THE COMIC, MAKING THE MOVIE, that’s going to be the case. From Titan Publishing, the book covers only a little about the “creating” and a whole lot about the “making.” I’m not complaining, as at least the book goes a long way in comparing the differences — slight tweaks, mostly — between the two.
Titan issues a lot of these filmmaking tie-ins: big, splashy and full of vibrant colors. This one’s no different, except that Millar wrote it himself, rather than a for-hire author, and his enthusiasm for the project bleeds over every spread. It’s interesting to note that director Matthew Vaughn wanted to make the movie before the first issue even existed beyond script form, which is a testament to Millar putting it all the page and not holding back. The quotes, comments and photos in MAKING THE MOVIE suggest Vaughn’s not holding back, either. —Rod Lott
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The fact that this comic book is being made into a movie is great. I’m pumped to watch it!