Title: Kick-Ass
Genre: Graphic Novel
Year: 2010
Pages: 190
Origin: read online during April 2013
Nod Rating: 3 nods out of 5
‘Okay you cunts, let’s see what you can do now’ – Hit GirlKick-Ass became known to millions in the form of the 2010 movie directed by Matthew Vaughn. It charts rising star Aaron Johnson as a self-made superhero-cum-internet sensation, Nicholas Cage as the trained killer Big Daddy, and Chloe Grace Moretz as his foul-mouthed assassin daughter, Hit Girl. Their quest, like all other superhero stories, is to take down the bad-guy. And, like all other superhero stories, it can trace its origin in print form.
Mark Millar is a well respected name in the Comics Industry, even taking on the role of overseer of all superhero movies for Twentieth Century Fox. Kick-Ass is his initial baby, before it took on life in theatres and with Nicholas Cage’s fake moustache. Released as a series of comics between 2008 and 2010, Millar’s story charts the journey of Dave Lizewski, a boy who decides to become a superhero and help out people. Interesting – for the modern day – is how he becomes an internet sensation on YouTube, using social media to advertise his services. Unwittingly, he teams up with the trained vigilantes Big Daddy and Hit Girl in a serious plot for revenge against a mobster; this team-up brings about recognition that he finds it ‘harder and harder to relate to people who didn’t wear masks’.
In many ways, the film trumps the comic book. Chiefly, with regards to the emotion on offer and the investment we plough into these characters. Whereas the concluding third of the movie reveals the death of Big Daddy and the climatic battle scene, the comic appears to throw a southpaw into the gut of expectations by revealing that Big Daddy is not an ex-cop, but rather an avid comic collector who invented the fantasy for his daughter so as to avoid banality of ordinary life. His lifestyle of guns and death is funded by selling unique out-of-print comics on eBay. As the character shouts out before his impending death:
‘I wasn’t a cop. I was a number-cruncher for a credit company and married to a wife who fucking hated him. Are you satisfied? I hated my friends and I hated my life so I ran away with my baby girl and built a new one. I’m a fanboy, Dave. Just like you. Mindy died having no idea, but I’m just another asshole.’
However, you could suggest that this is part of Millar’s greater plan: a love-letter to superhero comics. There is no doubt that Kick-Ass is a homage on the superhero theme, but with a grounding in the real, modern world. Comics are referenced throughout the series, such as in Dave telling Hit Girl that he will not kill anybody; the reply given from Hit Girl is: ‘Oh, kiss my ass. What is this? The Silver Age?’ Later conversations chart Dave commenting on his team-up with Big Daddy and Hit Girl: ‘Spidey wouldn’t mind teaming up with the Punisher, but there’s no way he’s gonna employ his fucking Vietnam-honed methods.’ Whilst he also notes: ‘Big Daddy and Hit-Girl could be our team’s Wolverine’. Such references will serve as a treat for comic book fans, however, unlike the Vaughn film it does not hold universal appeal.
Other notable differences include the love interest. Interestingly, rather than the inevitable movie match-up, the comic takes a fresh twist. Dave reveals his undying love, only to be rebuffed and then beaten up by a jealous boyfriend. Millar piles on the agony and humiliation, having a picture message sent to Dave showing the love interest performing oral sex on the boyfriend. This illustrates – in its own gratuitous way – that the comic has kept enough of its original identity to remain a unique read.
The comic book references, the use of social media, and the language utilised – ‘If I’m absolutely honest, I’ve wanted to see you in pain since the first we met. I’ve even jerked off about it. Does that sound weird?’ – makes this a read better suited to a younger audience. The violence hints at this; notably in Big Daddy’s death in which a bullet blows open his skull.
Kick-Ass 2 is in cinemas later this year, but before checking out the movies it would be a good suggestion to pick up the comics. As can be seen from the brief review above, it will be an entertaining experience.
Buy it here
*In the Books Vs. Movies war earlier discussed, this goes as a win to Movies. The overall score now stands at 8-5.
