Writer: Brendan Cahill
Artist: John Burns
Publisher: Marvel
The panels of Sable & Fortune look like a series of juxtaposed paperback covers from the sixties. John Burns' artwork is this book's greatest asset, and these characters easily suit his style and his artistic disposition.
Sable looks tough. Her body looks bodacious yet natural. Burns costumes her in a more realistic uniform, and he eschews much of the cartooniness that blended the character in the background of the Marvel Universe.
Thanks to Howard Chaykin's original intent, there was nothing wrong with Dominic Fortune's costume. So Burns does not fix what's not broken. He also uses the Chaykin template for Fortune's face, but Burns by employing a different underlying bone structure distinguishes his Fortune from Chaykin's Fortune.
Burns is not merely painting portraits. This story offers the artist the opportunity to carry out action scene after action scene. Scuffles against Sable's former mercenary squad, death-defying dives out of windows and daring double-crosses keep the excitement rocketing through the exquisite brushwork.
While Burns' artwork overwhelms the senses, writer Brendan Cahill should not be overlooked. Some of the conversation between Sable and Fortune is a little confusing in some scenes, but most of the dialogue gives each character depth and a different voice.
The story's plot is spy simple enough, but Cahill adds unexpected twists and turns that keep everything fresh. He furthermore keeps Sable firmly rooted in the Marvel universe. It would have been very easy to oust the character into a realistic modern day setting, but Cahill uses a staple Marvel hideout as the meeting between mercenaries and terrorists. He also discloses some amusing history that does three things at once: keeps Sable Marvelized, distinguishes her from the super-heroes and shows her to be a woman of taste.
It's a shame this book isn't getting much in the way of buzz. Sable & Fortune is a hoot and a half for fans of the super-spy genre and the great artwork of the legendary John Burns.
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