Publisher: Dynamite
Writer: Andy Diggle
Artist: Luca Casalanguida
Colourist: Chris Blythe
Release Date: 29 March 2017
Price: $3.99

James Bond first appeared in comic strip form in 1958 in the pages of the Daily Express. Bond’s creator, Ian Fleming, was reluctant to give his permission at first, saying: The Express are desperately anxious to turn James Bond into a strip cartoon. I have grave doubts about the desirability of this … Unless the standard of these books is maintained they will lose their point, and, I think, there I am in grave danger that inflation will spoil not only the readership, but also become something of a death-watch beetle inside the author. A tendency to write still further down might result. The author would see this happening, and disgust with the operation might creep in. Not a great fan of the comic book movement then, our Ian. He did eventually give his permission and the strip ran continuously until 1983 which in some ways proves him wrong to have had reservations.

However, reading James Bond: Hammerhead #6 you can kind of see his point. Despite top notch talent in the form of Andy Diggle and Luca Casalanguida, Bond struggles to make as much impact on the comic book page as he does on the big screen.

Bond is a tricky beast for anyone but his creator to pin down even in novel format as the many successors to Fleming’s novelisation canon have found to their cost. James Bond: Hammerhead #6 is the concluding part of this story arc and sees Bond setting out to rescue M and Moneypenny whilst simultaneously wresting control of the Hammerhead weapon from his latest bed mate and evil vixen, Victoria.

In other words, in James Bond: Hammerhead #6, it’s very much business as usual Mr Bond. If you like your action thrillers played out to the faint strains of Rule Britannia and your heroes square-jawed, libido-centric and with a pithy line in grim one-liners this is right up your espionage alley. So, we meet again Mr Bond….

Reviewer: Gary Orchard
Reviews Editor: Steve Hooker