The Good
It is so awesome to see SECRET SIX return to comics. It's even better to see that Gail Simone is writing the book as well. The opening issue really follows Catman has a totally tough and awesome guy you do not want to mess with. After a battle with some guys who claim they are ATF, Catman finds himself waking up in a room with other villains.
Simone sets up this first issue wonderfully. Old readers and new readers alike are introduced to the New 52 version of Catman and we get a real good sense of who this guy is without all the answers to the mystery thrown at our feet. We're then slowly introduced to the team, and once again, it's not just dumped on the reader. We know these character's names and a little bit about their personalities, but that's about it. Simone really reels in the reader for future issues here.
The story of these characters in this room, is pretty dang weird, but I love it. Who's behind all this? What do they want this group to do? What's up with the masks? Why do I love Strix so much even though she doesn't talk and isn't that great with spelling? Simone weaves in mystery and a bit of humor and overall, it feels like SECRET SIX, even though we've just stepped into the shallow end of the pool, and that's what's going to make fans the happiest.
While I do have a lot of problems in the art department (see below), that final page, featuring a character I kind of love, Ventriloquist, is amazing. Ken Lashley and Jason Wright hit a home run here that is full of great detail and something I can never unsee. It's haunting.
The Bad
The biggest problem with this issue is that the art is a bit of a mess. Ken Lashley did the pencils and some of the inking, Drew Geraci did the other "some" of the inking. Jason Wright did the colors. There's not really a time where all three of these elements work in sync though. Either the pencils, inks, or colors aren't up to par at some point, through the entire issue
The first few opening pages look great, but something feels a tad off. Either the inking needs to stand out a bit more or the color palate needs to be more dominant. Frankly, I really like the colors, more than the inking, on these first few pages.
As the issue moves on, inconsistencies in the characters pop-up on the penciling front. During certain scenes, characters develop giant, anime-style eyes, and the inks of Drew Geraci feel completely different than earlier in the issue, when Lashley was inking. It gives his art almost a cartoonish style. It's rough because Lashley is a very talented artist, but I'm having some problems with the art as a whole. The whole second half of the book feels very rushed.
The Verdict
SECRET SIX's story and scripting are some of the best we've seen from Gail Simone. She nails this first issue. Everything from the set-up to the final page moves so smoothly and it really will keep you wanting more. However, it's really hard to overlook all the problems within in the art. The inconsistencies, rushed feeling of those final pages, and trading off of two very different inking styles is a big speed-bump on this issue. This issue is so close to a 4/5, but it's really hard to overlook some of the problematic art. The story and characters have a tremendous amount of potential though and hopefully, the art problems will be ironed out. Even though this book is a 3/5, I highly recommend picking this one up for the story.