Goshawk and Falconet Volume 1 is a comic written by Martti Kauppinen with art by Daniel Pascual and colored by Javi Laparra. A bird-themed superhero couple attempt to thwart various crimes taking place around Los Angeles. This comic has the vibes of golden age of comics with modern art and plenty of violence. The leading man of this story is Goshawk, a Batman-like character who is wealthy and fights using technology that grants him flight-based abilities. He can seem a bit stiff and dry at times. His wife and partner is Falconet, a woman who is not as used to this lifestyle as he is but proves to be able to hold her own. She is has a bubbly personality and does the heavy lifting when it comes to socialization. The plot sees these heroes going up against villains named Black Parrot, Secretarybird, and King Vulture. Yes there is a theme here. The story touches on their lives in and outside of the suits(which isn’t all sunshine and roses) while also providing some backstory. This is pretty violent with most of it being of the hand-to-hand variety with blood popping up occasionally. The pacing can seem jarringly quick at times but for the most part I’d say it’s a brisk pace. Things start off lighthearted but there are serious moments. There are a lot of bird references and puns here and the dialogue can sometimes be unrealistically descriptive. There are a few wordy pages here but this is a big book so it doesn’t bog down the pace. This is an interesting character-focused debut issue that has exciting moments and violence.
The art style here is a sort of balance between the thick, smooth look of modern comics with the detailed, rougher look of comics from the past. There is a decent range of colors here and significant shadow usage. There are a number of locations visited here. We start off on a ship but we’ll get a good look at the couple’s mansion, take a stroll down the city streets, and visit some more dangerous areas. The most expressive character is Falconet but the overall level of expression is decent. The men don’t give you many different looks but the women hold up their end. The faces here are drawn with enough detail that it’s a shame they don’t emote more. No face sameness here. There are a number of gadgets here with most of them having wings and dealing with flight. The action here is very physical and gets a bit bloody at times. Action scenes tend to have some length and though some sequences might confuse you the flow is usually good. The outfits are skintight body suits for the key players on both sides but the henchmen look regular. There are a few sexy moments and some bondage scenes that aren’t treated as sexual in world, but might be intended for the readers.
“Is this worth reading?”
Yes.
“Would I like this?”
If you like stories starring a super couple fighting multiple enemies and using gadgets and dealing with some drama in their real lives this is for you.
“What would this comic’s film rating be?”
R. Nudity, violence.
“Could I get a quote from the comic?”
“You are a devious little lady, little lady. I like that, like that.”
Physical Link: https://x53studios.com/products/goshawk-and-falconet-volume-1
Digital Link: https://x53studios.com/products/goshawk-and-falconet-volume-1-digital-edition
Kickstarter Link: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/arachnacomic/goshawk-and-falconet/description
Indiegogo Link: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/goshawk-and-falconet/x/26236710#/
***IN-DEPTH COMIC STATS BELOW***
Probably Contains Spoilers
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Actual Pages(not counting covers and credits): 52
Violent Pages: 23, for 44% of the comic
Sexy Pages: 6, for 12% of the comic
**The levels below aren’t necessarily maintained throughout the whole comic, but they were definitely reached**
Violence Level – 3
“Wasn’t no tussling at all.”
“Sometimes you gotta hit somebody.”
“I’m getting charged with how many counts of assault?”
“This was a tournament arc.”
“All my life I had to fight.”
Gore Level – 3
“The only thing leaking out your face is tears.”
“Looks like somebody spilled some ketchup.”
“Might need to soak that up with a bath towel.”
“That isn’t supposed to be outside the body.”
“This is a slaughterhouse.”
Death Level – 2
“And everybody lived happily ever after.”
“We might have gone to a couple funerals.”
“It just LOOKS like a serial killer was here.”
“Yeah this was a tragedy.”
“Think Gettysburg.”
Porn Level – 4
“Everybody kept their clothes on.”
“I guess it was too hot for a bra.”
“Sometimes you got to let everything air out.”
“This is like late night Cinemax in the early 2000’s.”
“Oh. This is porn.”
