| Title | : | Manhunter, Vol. 2: Trial by Fire |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1401211984 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781401211981 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 221 |
| Publication | : | First published January 3, 2007 |
Manhunter, Vol. 2: Trial by Fire Reviews
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3.5 stars
"Five minutes ago, my car was blown up. Three minutes ago, I fished the briefcase containing my costume from the melting inferno that used to be a BMW . . . Needless to say, I'm pissed." -- Kate 'Manhunter' Spencer
True to the sequel formula, Vol. 2: Trial by Fire attempts to double-down on all of the super-powered action and drama presented in Vol 1: Street Justice. Well, this subsequent edition is noticeably longer - 224 pages compared to 128 from the first time around - but I'm not sure that was a great idea, as it made the storyline seem a bit bloated or padded. Still, the character (either referring to prosecutor Spencer or her vigilante alter ego) is a winner, cooly in command whether its in the courtroom or on the mean streets of L.A., and adept at muttering the required humorous one-liners and asides. -
The Shadow Thief is on trial for the murder of Firestorm and it's up to Kate Spencer to make sure he's found guilty but some of his friends are on the way. Meanwhile, someone's murdering past Manhunters...
The second Manhunter volume is even better than the first. Kate learns more about her costume's capabilities, tries to quit smoking, and even works on her relationship with her ex. Also, there's a lot of great action. I can't say enough good things about the Kate Spencer character. She's tough and kind of a bitch sometimes and I'm quickly becoming attached to her. It's a shame she'll probably never make another appearance post-New 52.
I think the reason this book developed a cult following is much the same as Starman. Andreyko took a concept no one had done anything interesting with in years, Manhunter, and pretty much did what he wanted to with it while still showing respect for the past. Couple that with great writing and you have a winner on your hands. Too bad people ignored this book and Gotham Central in favor of the same old bullshit when it was being produced.
That's really about all I have to say. Anything else would spoil too many plot points. Like I always say with Starman, if you're looking for a super hero book that's about more than guys punching each other, give Manhunter a try. -
Interestingly enough, I feel about this series the same way I usually feel about Rucka’s books. I like the main character, but the storylines weren’t my favorite.
It’s kind of hard to pinpoint what kept me from living this one. It feels dated with some of the references, but a lot of DC books set during this era feel that way. The issues with the confusing timing from the last volume weren’t present in this one. Dylan wasn’t my favorite character, but I already knew that from the last volume. He reads like that strange side character you found present in a lot of comic book properties around that time. The guy that isn’t particularly attractive, is kind of obnoxious, hits on every woman in sight and yet, for some reason, women still want to be with him. I always felt like those characters existed so the stereotypical comic book guy could play self insert.
Anyway, moving on, maybe I didn’t love this one because the court case really took a backseat in this one? It’s completely sidetracked by an escaped fugitive storyline before that’s sidetracked by an assassin hunting down everyone who’s ever had the name Manhunter. I’m sure those storylines were more interesting for other people, but they just personally weren’t my jam.
However, I liked seeing Kate work with Cameron. I still like Kate as a character and I liked seeing some of the new things her staff and gauntlets could do. Unfortunately, I just didn’t love the story in this one. -
Manhunter continues to be a very solid series by Andreyko that I never much heard of.
So Manhunters are being hunted. Remember how our hero now wasn't the firsT? Well someone else knew that and is hunting and killing them one by one. Before that though we have our hero dealing with a legal case which is not going as well as she expected. Then BAM Super villains come in to ruin the day.
I really enjoy the colorful series which can be gritty when need be but still damn entertaining. I really like Manhunter, the supporting cast, and the legal fights as well as the brutal actual fights. The story can feel a little long here and stretched at times though.
Overall, series continues to impress. A 3.5 out of 5. -
The first volume of Manhunter was promising, and the second volume lives up to that promise. I like the balance between Kate as able prosecutor and Kate as rookie superhero. In fact, her finest moment in this volume comes as a prosecutor: serving subpoenas to the JLA. Bless the poor brave process server who has to ask Superman to deliver Batman's summons to him. I like Kate in general, a tough lady who can be deeply, horribly flawed, and yet still entertaining to read, capable of growth, and with her heart generally in the right place, if she can figure out how to use that.
I am a little confused as to why that reporter side story is still going on. I know that he's said that he's convinced whatever he digs up on Kate will win him a Pulitzer, but I don't know why. Nothing that he's actually found so far is all that interesting, and they don't hand out Pulitzers for digging up personal dirt on public figures. I'm sure it'll be going somewhere eventually, narrative laws demand that it will. But right now it's little more than a distraction in an otherwise solid book. -
Didn't enjoy this as much as the first volume. Looking back, series like this were really hurt by the tie-in to the whole Identity/Infinite Crisis era. The first half of this book ties deeply to Villains United, the second half to the Omac Project, and it's not a satisfying read since the villain motivations are never explained. For the most part, they simply happen, entering and exiting the book just to make an appearance in a random fight scene. There's also a convoluted story in here about the past Manhunters, as well as some unexplained DEO involvement and potential corruption. I want to like this book more than I do -- the subplots can be fun, and the characters are all entertaining -- but the main plots are too messy, and the art in this volume was a step down from the first. I'll read a few more issues and see if things improve.
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Okay so. This series is still quite good. however, identity crisis is the most offensive thing i've ever read and is probably the single worst comic i will ever read. this ties in with it wayyy too much and the result tone ends up with the same dark for darkness sake mentality of other books of the era. it's disturbing and disheartening in a way that makes it almost unenjoyable.
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Liked this.
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The second volume is as good as the first, and I’m still very much digging this series. Andreyko writes with a dry wit that I really enjoy, with snappy dialogue and convincing characters, making this feel more realistic than your average hero flick. Spencer is still struggling to balance the halves of her life, her tech sidekick (name escaping me) is adapting to his role while sleeping with every prostitute in sight, the judicial system continues to fail, and cogs seem to be spinning behind the scenes in a government plot the Manhunter mantle plays a role in. The title is also brutal. Lots of blood, decapitation, parental neglect, etc.
This series would be great for a mature DC TV show, like a darker version of Netflix’s Daredevil. Just let Andreyko write and follow these first 2 arcs (so far), and you’re set. I think the obscurity of the character is only a plus. I’d watch that shit.
The only knock I have on Vol. 2 is that the last 2 issues are OMAC related tie-ins, and they’re part of the resolution for this arc, which is unfortunate because it feels forced, and while it could’ve been a worse tie-in, they weren’t nearly as good as all the other issues.
Thus far, this series is way too slept on. Can’t wait for the rest. -
Kate is hired as the prosecutor for the Carl Sands aka Shadow Thief case. He is on trial for the murder of Firestorm. While preparing for the case, she must contend with assassins being sent for her and the older Manhunters. After some fun scenes in the courtroom, it's back to fighting in tights. Even an OMAC unit gets involved in the epic battle at the end of the volume. At least Kate gets closer to her family after this ordeal.
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Volume 2 collects issues 6 - 14. One tracks Kate in her day job as she sets out to prosecute Shadow Thief for the murder of Firestorm. This volume also addresses the convoluted Manhunter legacy. The second arc concerns a mysterious serial killer who has fatally targeted Kate's six predecessors carrying the Manhunter mantle.
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The art is not bad, and the covers are actually beautiful. Read issues 11-14 to follow Infinite Crisis. Part of OMAC but very skippable. Only a very tangential relation to OMAC Project. I'm a Marvel guy, so maybe this is more a DC book, but not a fan. Did not enjoy the writing. Maybe if I read the rest of the issues or more of Manhunter. I only read the Identity Crisis parts of Volume 1.
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It is really impressive how fully formed the new Manhunter and her supporting cast are and how none of them feel like 'plug and play' tropes. It's a smart book that makes use of the bigger DC universe without being made a secondary character by it. This is a very strong creative team and it makes me want to go back and re-read everything Andreyko has written.
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The first half involving the trial of Shadow Thief was very compelling. I wish there was more of it, because I felt the second half with the rather esoteric history of previous Manhunters and the OMAC Project tie-in was the weaker part.
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It was an interesting concept. The artwork was good and the writing was also. It showed how vulnerable she was and the improvement that she made.
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3.5 stars.
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Less Kate, but somehow more of a person Kate? Also, did it say she was a metahuman? I feel like the book hasn't said how she is doing so well, unless I missed something.
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Love the legacy connections in this and who DOESN’T love a good government corruption mystery?
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Not your average superhero storyline. Volume 2, but they catch you up with the story.
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Continuing from where the first volume left off. Very action packed because you don't read superhero books for the philosophical debates.
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Not exactly relevant to this book or this review, per se, but I have LOVED reading this in the old single issues - the ads are obnoxious until you get some time and distance away from them. Seeing ads for the Matrix: Online, Jade Empire, the third Blade Runner - well, it brings you back. And the ads for the books! DC in the 00's really had it going on. So many of the runs in this series are considered classics today. Makes you pretty sad for the talent that's been driven away by the New 52.
Anyway, the review! The thing I love about this series, at least so far, is that while yes, there are definitive arcs, they really roll into each other, continually developing the world, moreso than a lot of other comic series. There didn't really feel like a break between volumes 1 and 2. Kate's trying to recover from being an asshole (good luck with that), Dylan's tech-wiz is furthered. I really enjoyed the addition of Cameron Chase; it felt so right for Kate and Cameron to have a long and historied rapport. Their team-up reminded me quite a bit of Jessica and Trish's on Jessica Jones. It's hard not to keep continuing these comparisons, because Manhunter is oozing with noir - it really does feel like a hybrid of Daredevil and Alias. By way of the Punisher, I guess.
And my favorite little bit was Malcolm Merlin driving an SUV off of a parking garage and crashing it into the courthouse. Completely zany and unhinged, but the only surprising thing about it is that it hasn't happened on Arrow. Yet (please). -
I swear I do not get this book. I just don't understand why all of comics' major writers--Joss Whedon, Greg Rucka, Brad Meltzer--cream all over this stuff. Like, sometimes you can not like a thing, but understand why other people like it? Not here. Nope. This shit makes no sense to me. The only thing I can imagine is that it's because the protagonist is an intelligent, capable woman who isn't a scantily clad pinup with huge jugs? She's a powerful lawyer who wears a (very modest) superhero getup once in a while and kicks people's asses when she can't convict them in a courtroom. Which seems a little unethical, which they barely even mention in the book, but whatever.
Mostly it's crime is that it's an uninteresting read. All the right moving parts are there for an interesting story, but Andreyko doesn't really do much with them. -
I was a little nervous when I saw that this volume seemed to rely so heavily on crossover events, and sure enough, the constant parade of obscure (and not-so-obscure) DC characters was a bit annoying.
Still Manhunter manages to avoid most of the pitfalls that sunk She-Hulk (kind of a hard comparison to avoid, although they're very different from one another). Kate's story is still her own. I do wish that more time had been spent exploring the legacy of the previous Manhunters (I'm assuming that this will continue to play a role in the future of the series), but since the next volume is titled "Origins", I'm willing to give this one a pass. -
Manhunter's second volume. This time with more Manhunters. Dead Manhunters. While Kate Spencer is busy prosecuting Shadow Thief, someone's been going around killing everyone else using the name "Manhunter".
Interesting enough diverting little story. Have vague feeling it wasn't as good as the first, but meh. Oh, and I noted in my first review that the author wanted "average sized breasts" on his superhero. I just noted that and moved on. I suppose I should make a point of noting that a woman with breasts larger than Wonder Woman's are, at least in this specific volume, can't really be described as having "average sized breasts". But, that's not important. -
Nice work by Marc Andreyko. The lead character is less acerbic and the sidekick is less evil. It's a better second trade than the first as the plot twists a few more times and the writer feels at home with the characters. It gets a little far into the weeds with DC Continuity, but considering that Kate is the fifth person to call herself Manhunter, it needed to be done. Marc is so good, even the awful OMAC stuff that gets wedged into the story sort of works.
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Kate Spencer grows in you in this Volume. In Vol. 1, her motivations seem .. thin. You feel she chooses to be a vigilante for just one reason: she hates losing. Also, she is a bit of a bully. In Vol. 2, you get some much needed back story and .. well, she grows on you.
Still waiting for someone to stitch those gaping plot holes (how on earth does the suit fit her so perfectly?). But onward we go. -
My favorite part: subpoenaing the JLA to appear at the trial. Go Kate. (I especially liked the bit where the process server was all, "...please make sure Batman gets this" to Superman. Hee! (I love stories about the intersection of pseudo real-world crime-fighting/justice system bureaucracy with superheroing - hence my adoration of Gotham Central.)
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Mark Shaw shows up...with Dumas....making teenage me happy!
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This series would work REALLY well as an animated series. I am surprised to be reading about a federal (I think) prosecutor, but she's uber hot and the story is bloody good, so! :D
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eh
