Publisher: Image Comics
Writer: Mark Millar
Artist: Ricardo Lopez Ortiz
Cover: Amy Reeder
Release Date: 21st February 2018

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For Mark Millar’s second character rehash of the month we find Mindy McCready (AKA Hit-Girl( at it again in the first issue of her new solo series. Initially, I was fairly dubious about this reincarnation – especially considering the fact that Kick-Ass #1 missed the mark by taking itself far too seriously – but I actually ended up being pleasantly surprised. Hit-Girl is the Yang to the Kick-Ass Yin.

Hit-Girl opens in Palmira, Colombia with Mindy still seeking a new Kick-Ass to partner up with following Dave Lizewski hanging up his wet-suit up for good. Her partner-less status isn’t a result of a lack of trying, though (there is a very entertaining section mid issue documenting her recruitment attempts). Eventually, Mindy manages to team up with a mass-murdering hit man (under duress I might add) and so the adventure begins. I don’t want to give much away as it is a pretty fun read. All you need to know is gangs, guns, revenge, Colombia, guns, explosions, guns, violence and guns.

Millar obviously loves writing Mindy’s story. The script is fast-paced, humorous and hits just the right chord for a 12 year old murderer (that’s a sentence I never thought I would write). You can’t help but find Mindy kind of endearing because, for all her bravado and craziness, she is still a little girl and there is a brief flash of vulnerability here and there giving you the sense that she is a bit lonely and lost. That said, she would still kick the ever-loving shit out of you though. And then shoot you.

When I first read this issue of Hit-Girl my initial reaction to Ricardo Lopez Ortiz’ art wasn’t positive. I didn’t think it fit in with the narrative or the character and I felt it had too much of a Manga influence to it. I’m not sure whether that was because I was used to seeing Mindy through the eyes of Romita Jr for so long and, well, no one likes change. However, after re-reading the issue a couple of times, I’ve decided that the art is actually brilliant. Ortiz’s style is very kinetic with tones of movement and the Manga style influence actually works well, particularly with the bold colouring of Sunny Gho. Together they really bring the fight scenes alive. Also, a massive shout out has to go to Amy Reeder for her AWESOME cover. It’s probably my favourite bit of the whole comic.

All in, this is a great comic. It’s a bold move by Millar to use a different artist to reintroduce such a popular character to the masses, but it somehow works. It separates Mindy from the current Kick-Ass run (which is still drawn brilliantly by Romita Jr), and it stands alone well. I just can’t help but think that with the proper medication, a lot of therapy and some adult guidance Mindy could just be a regular twelve-year-old, but I suppose that would make for a much shorter and far less entertaining story with a lot fewer guns. Did I mention the guns..?

A solid, gun-toting, grenade launching four-out-of-five.

Rating: 4/5.

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Interview by: Cat McGlinn
Cat Tweets from @LibraryCat10.

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