Writer: Garth Ennis
Penciller: Howard Chaykin
Inker: Howard Chaykin
Colorist: Brian Reber
Publisher: Marvel Comics

WAR IS HELL: THE FIRST FLIGHT OF THE PHANTOM EAGLE is a new WWI aviation comic written by Garth Ennis, and thus is a guaranteed purchase for me. I always thought that WAR STORIES from DC/Vertigo was one of Garth Ennis’s finest hours as a writer, and apparently someone at Marvel did too. Something about war clearly brings out the best in Ennis, and Howard Chaykin is as worthy a collaborator (if not moreso) than any of the WAR STORIES artists.

WAR IS HELL opens like the crack of a whip. The first two images (1 full page + 1 double-page spread) set the tone so well, it’s like a great guitar phrase dragging you into a strong drum beat kicking off your favorite single. Ennis chooses an opening gambit that I always appreciate and wish I saw more often – his opening scene isn’t really a scene, not one that has any direct narrative relation to the rest of the book. It is instead a mix of infodump and mood establishment, giving you a feel for the world you are about to enter. Ennis is a good enough writer that his opening narration doesn’t feel redundant or labored. And Chaykin’s work in that double-page splash is among the best I’ve seen from him in years.

Since this is Marvel, there’s a bit of trademark-upkeep going on behind all this solid craftsmanship. The Phantom Eagle is a lapsed Marvel character that Ennis is rejuvenating for them, and while that sort of thing often goes wrong, here Marvel seems to have given Ennis plenty of free rein to strip the character of the 1960s costumed-hero tropes and turn this into a straight war comic. In fact, the one visual holdover from the previous incarnation of the character, a long white streamer attached to the top of his head, is mocked as ludicrous and unceremoniously snipped off by an officer to protect against it getting caught in a rotor. The few plot holdovers, such as the main character being an untested American who smells glory and fakes an identity in order to get into battle quick, are seamlessly blended (and subverted) into a story that is mostly serious and affecting (though there are still a few classic Ennis moments of dark comedy).

Chaykin is still one of the best artists at page layout in pop comics, his measured panels and images within images creating dynamic and complex pages without ever confusing the eye. There are a few moments when his rendering of major action is a little bit subtle, pushed off to the side or the background – a main character landing his plane is handled with one small image in the background of a panel, and isn’t mentioned or reacted to by any other character until a page later. But all the story information is there, easy to access if you’re willing to look, and I appreciate being given tiny challenges like that along the course of a work. It isn’t rocket science, but its just that extra bit more demanding than your average Marvel comic.

Even though I enjoyed this book immensely and am looking forward to the rest of the story, I may end up waiting for the trade. It’s a five-issue mini-series, and not only will it probably read better once it’s collected all-together, but there is something extra annoying about turning the page in this well-rendered early-20th century period piece and running into an incongruous ad for some crappy 21st century teen movie. Marvel has been building up a very good trade paperback system for a while, so I feel confident that this series will be in a bookshelf format before the year is out, on better paper and blessedly free of ads. But if you’re the type that still looks forward to getting your pamphlets on Wednesday, be sure to throw this one on the pile.