Kick-Ass #3 Review

KICK-ASS #3
Written by Mark Millar
Art by John Romita Jr

After the merely average Kick-Ass #2 and the rather hefty delay for this issue, I was just about ready to write this series off as another Mark Millar "all hype, no substance" story and prepare to drop it.

Some may still think of it as all hype and no actual substance, but I thoroughly enjoyed this month's offering and couldn't help but smile like a kid with a new toy at just about every page and then get totally blown away in the final pages as the series takes a drastic shift in tone with the introduction of a new "super hero".

But I'm skipping ahead a bit here. We start this issue off with Dave Lizewski (no offense to Dave, the guy that won the charity auction to have his name immortalized in this comic, but goddamn that's impossible to remember how to spell and I have to look it up every damn time) basking in the glory of his 15 minutes of fame as the real life super hero as a video of his beating of the muggers from last issue spreads across the internet and media like wildfire.

There's a quick hint, early on, of what I assume is the groundwork of Millar's One-Man Event, which he claims will link Kick-Ass, Marvel 1985, Old Man Logan and his Fantastic Four run together. A man named Mister Genovese is informed about the news of this super hero and all he can do is say, "Oh Jesus, not another one.". Whether this relates to that Wyncham character Millar's been hyping up or if there's some other super hero that just hasn't made the news is left unanswered.

When Dave finally suits up again to go on patrol, we find out he's finally taken the name, Kick-Ass, as his super hero identity. He quickly sets out to do some comic book rooftop jumping before finding out, in one of the funnier scenes this week, that buildings are actually spaced out much farther apart than comic books typically show. He hilariously decides to simply walk and ends the scene with the line, "F*** this. I'm walking.". Look for it in the Moments of the Week on Friday.

We then follow Kick-Ass as he walks through the streets, random people cheering and calling out to him and even a girl flashing her breasts at him as they see him. Dave quickly lets us in on his new MySpace page (Sally Floyd must love this guy) and how people have sent him tips and requests for help already. He's on his way to talk to a girl's ex-boyfriend who has been harrassing and calling her all the time.

What he walks into is not the prettiest scene. Expecting the guy to be completely alone, he's seen with his entire gang and, as expected, the shit hits the fan pretty quick as Kick-Ass pepper sprays the guy and his friends all grab him and prepare to tear him a new one.

Just as we expect Dave to end up back in the hospital, the guy gets skewered through the chest from behind by a little girl, in full super hero costume, holding a katana. It was completely unexpected and she even goes on to decapitate one fellow before ending the issue with
a splash page of the girl, covered and dripping with blood, telling the rest of them to bring it on.

Verdict - Must Read. The book has really kicked it up a notch this month and, while it looked like it was going to turn into a generic "real world super hero" story, it's quickly distanced itself from that in the final pages of this issue and I can't wait to see more of this.

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