I've already written in these pages of my favorite comic book authors, but sometimes you forget how truly gifted these people are. Sometimes, they write something that throws you for six, makes you question how much of their style you actually know, or takes you by surprise by its cleverness or audacity.
Warren Ellis is one of these people. Up to now, I've read PLANETARY and THE AUTHORITY - both of which take the superhero genre and add something different to it, twisting it in slightly different ways. Neither of these however, plays for comic effect. Whilst looking for other collections of Warren's I came across Heatwave - and I was completely taken aback – this is not just good, it’s sublime!
We all know that Warren has a soft spot for superheroes and super teams, so it’s no surprise that NEXTWAVE is essentially a comic about a superhero team. This time however, Warren takes a different tack by building the team members from the ranks of MARVEL’s B-List line up, so we have the like of Elsa Bloodstone, Monica Rambeau (one of the many Captain Marvels), Tabitha Smith (of X-Force), Aaron Stack (the Machine Man), together with a new original character only known as “The Captain” (actually Captain “XXXX”, a curse word so bad that when he introduced himself once to Captain America, Cap beat 7 shades of crap out of him and left him in a dumpster with a block of soap in his mouth).
NEXTWAVE’s main antagonist is a Nick Fury parody called Dirk Anger, director of H.A.T.E (the Highest Anti-Terrorism Effort), who NEXTWAVE used to work for until they found out that the Beyond Corporation (a corporation creating Unusual Weapons of Mass Destruction, and the very organization they were trying to take down) was actually funding H.A.T.E!
Yes, in case you hadn’t guessed it yet, this story is being played for laughs. Warren has taken Authority/Stormwatch ideas, stripped everything down to bare metal, added action, satire (mainly at MARVEL’s expense) and lots of humor. It’s a mishmash that shouldn’t work… but it does, and oh so brilliantly! Dirk Anger’s slow descent into madness (and I mean “Monty Python” madness here), combines beautifully with the Beyond Corporation’s purpose of mass mindless slaughter by the hands of the Broccoli Men, Fin Fang Foom, The Beyonders – even Forbush-Man!
Just a quick word about the art - Stuart Immonen, you are the canine cockles sir… 
I really thought this was going to be a big pile of poo – oh, was I ever wrong! NEXTWAVE is fast, sassy, plain crazy and funny to the point where I nearly lost my breakfast! It’s also the only comic to have its own theme song – what more could you want?
