Dark Eagle #1 is the creation of Miles Silas Bigger with art from David Dace. It conveys the story of Trent Taylor, a young Black Man coping with the sudden and tragic death of his mother in an auto accident. Shortly after her passing Trent moves from Pennsylvania to New York to stay with his father. Over the course of the issue, we meet the supporting cast. There’s Lollipop (friend and potential love interest), Rockhead (the local bully and potential rival), and then there is Anna (a mysterious neighborhood shopkeeper).
The characters are earnest, and Miles has a great voice for them. They feel like real kids and not some old guy trying to keep up with the times. I also enjoyed the relationship Trent has with his father. Normally Black Fathers are presented as overly uptight or absent. Trent’s dad is engaged and even lands the best lines of the issue. Trent’s mother also has a role and acts as his guardian angel, giving him lessons at key points in the story.
Trent gets his powers late into the story, but the issue wraps up with a set status quo and with the origin established Miles and Co. can focus on action, character development and worldbuilding.
The downside of the issue is in the art direction. The linework from David Duce is mostly flat. While all of elements of textbook storytelling are here, there aren’t many dynamic splash-pages, or action sequences. There is also a ton of blank space on pages that could have been filled with material. The good thing is that artists can improve or be swapped out. It just depends on how far the creators want to go with this project.
I also found the wrist wings of the character to be questionable. The logical place to put wings on a character would be their back, and it tracks better with the characters costume and origin, but in a world where Namor “The Submariner” exists I won’t complain too much.
The final issue I would call out is the price point. Dark Eagle has the same page-count as most standard issue floppies. However, the comic is $10 an issue online. This is more than most prestige format books on the shelves. Price is not necessarily a deal breaker for me as I do support various crowdfunded campaigns that cost more. The problem with Dark Eagle is the page count combined with the prohibitive cost of entry. Ten Bucks is a lot especially during recession.
I would suggest a less expensive digital offering and separate tiers for fans that would like to actively invest in the series development. This may be a ground but with crowdfunding campaigns being hot right now bundling the comic with a digital, physical, signed or merch tier may be an option to make up for potentially lost revenue.
Dark Eagle has potential. He falls into the Spider-Man, Static Shock mold of teenage hero and has a simple power set that can be easily understood by younger readers. The character’s youth also allow him to bump his head and learn from mistakes as the story develops. If you like stories featuring teen heroes coming of age, this one may be for you.
In Short: Dark Eagle is a solid origin story in the vein of Spider-Man or Static Shock. Despite shortcomings, the character’s foundation is laid and the trajectory of the series depends entirely on creative direction going forward.