REVIEW: Falcon #6

Marvel Comics“ Falcon # 6, “Vampires in Brooklyn”“ marks the start of the second story arc in the ongoing series of the MCU“s second (or third) most popular Black superhero. This series, penned by Rodney Barnes with artwork provided by Sebastian Cabrol and Rachelle Rosenberg, finds Sam Wilson, fresh off of his stint as Captain America, returning to his urban roots in Chicago and by issue #6 ”“ setting up shop in Harlem, New York.

More importantly, Sam Wilson is, in a believable way, rediscovering himself as the Falcon. Barnes has already done the heavy lifting of establishing a compelling personality for Sam Wilson and his slightly annoying sidekick ”“ Rayshaun Lucas/the Patriot. He“s tackled the gang battles and gangland analogies, touched upon the Black Lives Matter movement, etc. And he has also established the demonic antagonists of the series ”“ initially with the son of Mephisto and now with some mysterious Vampire sect operating under Mephisto“s dark blessings.

Barnes knows well the power of the black-hero-vs.-the-devil mythology. Of course it stands alone as the typical and universal good vs. evil trope ”“ the hero versus the bad guy. But it also has unexpected payoffs for readers who may have some sense of the mythic history of Black musicology or the political history of Black Nationalism. You don“t need to know these histories to enjoy the comic and that“s the beauty of writing a comic with both visible and not so visible Easter eggs.

The most visible Easter egg in Falcon #6 is the visual ode to the Hughes Brothers“ 1995 film Dead Presidents. Again, you don“t have to see the film to understand or enjoy the story, but if you have seen the film and love it (like I do), then it is rewarding to see how Barnes, Cabrol and Rosenberg work the visual allusions to Dead Presidents into the Falcon storyline.

Not that readers will need any additional incentives to try this book at this point in the story arc, but the fact that Misty Knight enters the story here and that her history is neatly packaged for folks unfamiliar with her Black girl majesty, simply makes this book and the entire series that much better. For readers (or film goers) who may think of the Falcon as a derivative character by nature ”“ or creation, this series is being written in a way to deliberately disabuse us all of that notion. 4/5!

[yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

(W) Rodney Barnes (A) Sebastian Cabrol (CA) Jay Anacleto