A little backstory. This series came out from the Daredevil 'Shadowland' event and, because I was interested by the premise and creative team, I picked up the first three issues. However, Heroes for Hire, just didn't do it for me and by that third issue I'd dropped the series, picking up the remainder in back issue boxes and off of eBay. Despite having the whole run, however, I've never read the series in its entirety.
That is until now of course because I'm in the process of clearing out and selling off some of my comic book collection and this is one series which is up for the chop. However, before I do that (or, rather, in order to make that final decision), I thought I'd actually go through the whole run.
So, to the topic at hand. Abnett and Lanning's Heroes for Hire is pretty much as the title suggests; heroes of the Marvel universe are hire to complete jobs a la the A-Team. However, this volume differs in the tried and tested approach as it sees Misty Knight fronting the new Heroes for Hire with a little help from top Mercenary Paladin. Throughout this run Knight is 'control', the omnipresent voice who request a rotating cast of heroes every issue or two to complete missions on her behalf. The only problems is, while Misty may think she's 'control' she isn't 'in control', as a unknown figure appears to be pulling the strings, using Heroes for Hire to their own end.
Now, as I had said previously, I had problems with this series originally and my problem was that, while it delivered it's promise of a rotating selection of characters, I had expected more of a done-in-one format, essentially a series of one-shots showing off different missions. What I wasn't expecting was the larger arc involving villains pulling the strings.
However, time and hindsight are wonderful things because now, after the reading the entire run in full, I found Abnett and Lanning's Heroes for Hire to be a lot more enjoyable than I did upon it's original release. Once again, the opening three issues were a tough hump to get over as, for the second time, I had issue getting invested into the whole 'who really control's Heroes for Hire?' idea which certainly became the main crux by issues 4 and 5. However, once I got past this (about the end of issue 5) and the reveal of the bigger bad, I actually found myself a lot more interested.
That said, the main draw for me WAS the heroes who would appear and I've got to admit I did find this a joy second time round, especially as I got into the latter issues. This Heroes for Hire contained a number of (at the time) B and C list heroes (if you can call them that), some of whom have moved up in the world since then, but there were certainly some standouts for me that made me wonder if I've been focusing on the right books over the years.
These characters included Moon Knight and Silver Sable, who was absolutely bad ass consistently through the series (I've got to get the former's Ellis/Shavley run), The Shroud, who I read in Daredevil but I found much more interesting while partnered with Elektra, Gargoyle (who I've never heard off until now), Stingray, who has a brief cameo in the last issue but looks so cool I wish I'd paid him more attention, and, of course, Paladin, who was a seriously interesting character and has me tempted to recheck him out in Thunderbolts (he was in there I think?).
Of course, what helps me find all these characters impressive was the art, which I thought was pretty damn solid throughout. Main artist Brad Walker gives a really gorgeous house style amongst his issues, something I think is equally matched by Robert Atkins and even Tim Seeley when he's pre-Grayson on their issues. The only falter I could see amongst the drawing talent was Kyle Hotz, who pencilled amongst the Fear Itself arc with a style which really threw me as it looked so rough compared to the others. That said, as I read I thought it suited the rather chaotic story surrounding that tie-in and by the end, I did find myself enjoying it just as mush as the others.
In fact, I've got to admit that the Heroes for Hire Fear Itself tie-in was really good, to the point that I was stunned. I had expected something which felt shoe-horned (because it's an event tie-in) and, while it was, Abnett and Lanning managed to chisel out a pretty nice story which fit nicely into both the event and their own arc.
Looking back, I think that the reason I dismissed Heroes for Hire was because it wasn't what I was expecting, as I figured it would be more high brow given it came from the guys who brought us Annihilation and restarted Marvel Cosmic. That said, after giving this run a second chance, I'm glad I gave Heroes for Hire the second chance I think it deserved. This run is a fun read with some great art and showcases some awesome visuals of heroes I might never have given a second thought to.
In fact, because of that last point, I'm pretty tempted to keep the series for now and putting something else up for the chop.
So, to the topic at hand. Abnett and Lanning's Heroes for Hire is pretty much as the title suggests; heroes of the Marvel universe are hire to complete jobs a la the A-Team. However, this volume differs in the tried and tested approach as it sees Misty Knight fronting the new Heroes for Hire with a little help from top Mercenary Paladin. Throughout this run Knight is 'control', the omnipresent voice who request a rotating cast of heroes every issue or two to complete missions on her behalf. The only problems is, while Misty may think she's 'control' she isn't 'in control', as a unknown figure appears to be pulling the strings, using Heroes for Hire to their own end.
Now, as I had said previously, I had problems with this series originally and my problem was that, while it delivered it's promise of a rotating selection of characters, I had expected more of a done-in-one format, essentially a series of one-shots showing off different missions. What I wasn't expecting was the larger arc involving villains pulling the strings.
However, time and hindsight are wonderful things because now, after the reading the entire run in full, I found Abnett and Lanning's Heroes for Hire to be a lot more enjoyable than I did upon it's original release. Once again, the opening three issues were a tough hump to get over as, for the second time, I had issue getting invested into the whole 'who really control's Heroes for Hire?' idea which certainly became the main crux by issues 4 and 5. However, once I got past this (about the end of issue 5) and the reveal of the bigger bad, I actually found myself a lot more interested.
That said, the main draw for me WAS the heroes who would appear and I've got to admit I did find this a joy second time round, especially as I got into the latter issues. This Heroes for Hire contained a number of (at the time) B and C list heroes (if you can call them that), some of whom have moved up in the world since then, but there were certainly some standouts for me that made me wonder if I've been focusing on the right books over the years.
These characters included Moon Knight and Silver Sable, who was absolutely bad ass consistently through the series (I've got to get the former's Ellis/Shavley run), The Shroud, who I read in Daredevil but I found much more interesting while partnered with Elektra, Gargoyle (who I've never heard off until now), Stingray, who has a brief cameo in the last issue but looks so cool I wish I'd paid him more attention, and, of course, Paladin, who was a seriously interesting character and has me tempted to recheck him out in Thunderbolts (he was in there I think?).
Of course, what helps me find all these characters impressive was the art, which I thought was pretty damn solid throughout. Main artist Brad Walker gives a really gorgeous house style amongst his issues, something I think is equally matched by Robert Atkins and even Tim Seeley when he's pre-Grayson on their issues. The only falter I could see amongst the drawing talent was Kyle Hotz, who pencilled amongst the Fear Itself arc with a style which really threw me as it looked so rough compared to the others. That said, as I read I thought it suited the rather chaotic story surrounding that tie-in and by the end, I did find myself enjoying it just as mush as the others.
In fact, I've got to admit that the Heroes for Hire Fear Itself tie-in was really good, to the point that I was stunned. I had expected something which felt shoe-horned (because it's an event tie-in) and, while it was, Abnett and Lanning managed to chisel out a pretty nice story which fit nicely into both the event and their own arc.
Looking back, I think that the reason I dismissed Heroes for Hire was because it wasn't what I was expecting, as I figured it would be more high brow given it came from the guys who brought us Annihilation and restarted Marvel Cosmic. That said, after giving this run a second chance, I'm glad I gave Heroes for Hire the second chance I think it deserved. This run is a fun read with some great art and showcases some awesome visuals of heroes I might never have given a second thought to.
In fact, because of that last point, I'm pretty tempted to keep the series for now and putting something else up for the chop.
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