Review: Talon Vol. 1- Scourge of the Owls
Quick Summary
Pros: The book has an interesting premise that is filled with action and suspense. The main character’s reliance on stealth is fun to observe.
Cons: Readers who don’t know or care about the Court of Owls might not appreciate this book as much.
Overall: This volume is exciting, unique, and full of twists from beginning to end. It delves into the mechanisms of the Court of Owls, while simultaneously telling the story of a compelling main character. This leading hero brings stealth into every mission he goes on and has a number of great fight sequences. The only downside is that reader’s have to have an interest in the Court of Owls in order to appreciate this collection, which may disinterest some from the start. However, if you thought the concept behind the Court was cool, this is the prefect volume for you.
Story
In Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (Review), readers were introduced to the Court of Owls and the deadly Talon assassins they used to exert their influence. The concept was incredibly interesting, yet fans never really got a chance to dive into the numerous mysteries and intricacies that undoubtedly surrounded the Court. Talon Vol. 1: Scourge of the Owls, by Scott Snyder and James Tynion IV, allows readers to do just that.
In this volume, readers follow a former Talon who has now dedicated his life to dismantling the criminal organization he once held dear. This premise leads to a number of epic battles, thrilling twists, and great character driven moments. There is also a wonderful focus on stealth and escape artistry that is often absent in superhero comics. The only real problem here is that those who didn’t read or didn’t appreciate The Court of Owls (Review) might not appreciate the story being told here. Other than that, this volume is great and something I would recommend to anyone.
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The entire volume follows the adventures of Calvin Rose, an escape artist who used to work for the Court of Owls. After betraying them years ago, he has now teamed up with a man who has a grudge against the Court, Sebastian Clark, and a woman he saved years ago, Casey Washington.
As a concept, this plays out incredibly well. Each of Calvin’s missions feel like small pieces of a much larger puzzle. Seeing the Court lose their treasure room, their bank accounts, and their data one by one is an immensely satisfying experience. Plus, along the way, Calvin encounters a number of road blocks, mostly in the form of deadly Court assassins. These villains provide just enough trouble to inject each mission with some excitement, ensuring that the story stays fresh at all times.
The story is also kept fresh by this volume’s dedication to upholding Calvin’s status as an escape artist, rather than just another assassin. This means that almost all of his missions involve some sort of stealth element, rather than having him just punch out anything that moves. Though this is not uncommon for members of the Bat-family, Calvin relies on these methods more than others do, further differentiating this already unique character.
In between all of these missions, the writers find a number of great opportunities to fit in some great character development. We see pieces of Calvin’s history, become further acquainted with Sebastian and Casey, and even get to hear some touching stories from other members of the Court. By the end of the volume, readers have grown rather attached to this small cast of characters.
This means that when readers discover Sebastian has been a member of the Court of Owls the entire time, it hits much harder. I was completely blown away by this twist and honestly did not see it coming at all. However, it is the type of twist that, after being revealed, makes perfect sense when viewed with the evidence present. This makes it seem less like a random decision done for shock value and more like a well-planned decision present from the beginning. It also closes the book on a tantalizing cliffhanger that left me more than ready to read the next volume.
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Art
Guillem March’s artwork is consistently good throughout this volume. He draws the characters and locations with a beautiful sense of realism and detail. This is then enhanced by Tomeu Morey’s colors, which range from bright and colorful to dark and gloomy depending on the type of atmosphere required by the story. What blew me away the most though, were the little details found through the book. These details ranged from small objects in the background of scenes to a few subtle indicators to one of the book’s major twists. All in all, this is a good looking book.
Continuity
Talon Vol. 1: Scourge of the Owls starts the Talon New 52 series and contains brand new characters with no previous comic book history. However, the entire premise of this series is firmly rooted in concepts created and established in Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (Review) and Batman Vol. 2: The City of Owls (Review).
The story here continues in Talon Vol. 2: Fall of the Owls (Review).
This volume also makes references to other comic books, detailed below:
- Batman’s fight against the Court of Owls is mentioned a number of times. This fight takes place through Batman Vol. 1: The Court of Owls (Review) and Batman Vol. 2: The City of Owls (Review).
- At one point, Batman mentions the distrust in the Bat-family created by Joker’s latest attack, back in Batman Vol. 3: Death of the Family (Review)